Transformers ROTF Deluxe Soundwave Review

Soundwave, believe it or not, is my favorite character from the G1 series, and of all time. Yet, I find it ironic that I have yet to own my first G1 figure of him and the reason why I haven't made my decision for so long, is because I'm seeking a toy that is spot on to Soundwave's G1 appearance. The Masterpiece Soundwave, immediately fits the bill, and I'm determined to purchase either the Takara or Toys R Us exclusive version online. In the mean time, I did come across some cool pics of the ROTF figure, so my hunt was on to get Soundwave still sealed and for a good price. I did good, so now all that is left is to review this figure!

For a deluxe figure, ROTF Soundwave was designed to be a "triple changer." Soundwave has two alternate modes:  a satellite or a space cruiser (officially billed as a "vehicle"). As a satellite, he looks great in looks and details, but greatly suffers from appropriate colors. Soundwave's base color is a light grey with some silver, gold, and red highlights and blue molded plastics. The colors are far from being accurate to the movie and could much need a complete repaint. However, these drawbacks are overshadowed by impressive details. As a satellite, Soundwave looks very menacing, especially with the way the three solar arrays are positioned. The armor overlaps one another like pieces of scrap metal bonded by a magnetic field, and has a lot of jagged edges and tips. The solar arrays also has some nice lines and grids embedded combined with silver highlights. Luckily, two of the arrays can be repositioned, if the way they are posed by default seems boring.

Converting from satellite to a space cruiser (vehicle mode) is as easy as repositioning the solar arrays and other panels around. Besides that, there really isn't that much difference. Even in "vehicle mode" I still see a satellite.

The armored face seen in satellite and space cruiser mode will not be part of Soundwave's robot mode. In fact, Soundwave's real face can be revealed on the other side of the alternate mode. Out of the two options, Soundwave's satellite mode is generally preferred.

One little neat gimmick to this toy is that Soundwave comes with Ravage as a missile, which can be shot through a spring loaded mechanism. Ravage is molded in black and requires some dry brushing or other detailing for anyone who prefers Ravage to stand out better. The spring loaded mechanism in Soundwave's back works very well.

When glancing at Soundwave in robot mode, there's no doubt that his upgraded look is perfectly executed in terms of the movie. Upon analyzing the plethora of details molded on the body, Soundwave is definitely one of the most intimidating members of the Decepticon faction. The excess kibble forms remnants of Soundwave's cape and shoulder flaps, but the problem is that those pieces don't peg into anything, leaving a lot of dangling, albeit floppy parts. Also, the added weight of the cape and shoulder pieces make Soundwave a little top heavy.

Soundwave has a fair amount of articulation, but some of them are hindered by the cape and shoulders. Through Soundwave's design and range of motion, he can be posed seriously or comically, due to those huge forearms and fists. Soundwave has been posed to appear either very dignified and a serious threat to humanity, to beating his chest like King Kong, or look angry, strong, and vicious similar to Hulk. There's just something to the design that gives an impression that Soundwave just wants to stomp or pound on something.

Even though the base color seems dull, I still like this figure. The look is drastically different in robot and alternate modes, but Soundwave's original purpose as a spy/infiltrator still remains the same, which is very appreciated. This figure is fun to transform and he looks great displayed next to other characters. Because Soundwave has a lot of limbs that are secured and has a tendency to flop around, I do see this toy serving a better purpose as a display piece. In terms of display purposes and/or custom projects, I do recommend this toy for anyone, who is a fan.