[Toy Review] Transformers: Platinum Edition Optimus Prime (Year of the Goat) is a classic

Optimus Prime (Year of the Goat)
Approximately Ultra Class with a Leader Class trailer
Platinum Edition
Transformers Generation 2 (originally)
MSRP: $179.90

Should you buy him? If you don’t have this classic mould yet, yes! 

Since it’s the Year of the Goat, we goat two new toys – Platinum Edition Soundwave (a redeco of Masterpiece Soundwave), as well as this Optimus Prime, formerly know as G2 Laser Prime (or Scourge, if you like show only characters). It’s goat year to be a Transformers fan. OK no more goat puns, I promise. You woolen like to hear any more.

So we get two pieces of box art as well, for this packaging! The first is him in bot mode, with his giant shoulder pads. I like the shoulder pad concept, just that it’s hard to make him raise anything as a result because his shoulder pads go all over the place.

I think this picture is really impressive. The shining headlights make it seem like he’s ready to knock down some Decepticons. You can hear his horns blaring at you from a distance.

So this is what it looks like inside! Optimus Prime looks virtually transparent and chrome – something that every exclusive aspires to look like.

Notice that Optimus Prime wields a Saber. Not a sword, or a blade, but a Saber. As in, you know, like Star Saber.

You know that just as we have 12 Zodiac signs (both Chinese and Western), there are 12 original Transformers, who effectively serve as deified Transformers? It’s actually 12+1, but the last 1 is the Fallen, who counts more as Unicron’s servant.

So it’s the 13 Original Transformers, and in Western horoscopes, there’s also a 13th Zodiac, known as Ophiucus (which you’ll know if you play Final Fantasy). There’s more to these Zodiac-themed Transformers than meets the eye!

The Goat Autobots. Go on, make it a sticker, make it your profile pic, usher in the Year of the Goat!

Optimus is finally out of the box. The tray packaging mimics the old G1 packaging, what with its grid lines on a red background.

This is what you get with Year of the Goat Optimus Prime. That’s a lot of missiles! It’s a different set of missiles for each piece of artillery he has. His base is more offensive than defensive. Kind of like Siege Mode for Siege Tanks in Starcraft.

Yeah I panicked for a while because I thought I threw away his blaster by mistake. It’s tucked inside the trailer. It’s supposed to be stored there in alt mode, anyway.

So here’s Optimus in alternate mode glory! His brown portions look more like highlights than an integral part of his colour scheme, which adds variation without being too intrusive.

No headlights, but you can imagine what it’d be like to see Optimus barrelling at you in the middle of the night on Old Tampines Road.

Just the cab. He’s really sturdy looking, as with his original toy.

It’s tampographed on. It’s tampographed all over his body, really. But since they went to the trouble of designing a new Autobot symbol for Optimus, why not, right?

And now, robot mode! He’s got a sword and gun. All good Optimuses should have a sword and gun. Like Beast Hunters Optimus Prime. Or Star Saber. Star Saber doesn’t have a gun and he’s not a Prime. But he’s going to be a Masterpiece soon.

Remember he’s a 20-year-old toy, so he’s got the backpack style aesthetics of that era. Still, it’s not unwieldy and it doesn’t unbalance him, so it all works out.

Also thanks to the translucent design, he literally looks like he has eyes on the back of his head.

Slightly gruesome, but here’s how his head hides in his body. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a variant of this transformation design before, so here’s a pic for reference!

Told you the symbol was tampographed everywhere. He’s not only an Autobot, he’s a Goat Autobot! Does that make him a Goatobot? OK I’m stopping here.

His head design. I’d have liked blue eyes though, but it’d probably look too plain against the translucent design (which is already a cool “colour” by itself).

And here’s Optimus with his ancestor! This is why it’s such a classic mould – it still stands the test of time 20 years later. Just like G1 Optimus Prime.

And then we have Scourge. If you’re wondering, my default shorthand for posing Transformers is that Autobots hold their weapons in the right hand, and Decepticons with their left. If they have a melee and ranged weapon, they hold their melee weapon in their favoured hand. Hence Scourge has his pink sword in his left hand.

I like swordfights between Transformers. I mean, I like swordfights, and Transformers, so it stands to reason I would like both.

And here are the good and evil versions of Optimus.

So here’s some trailer comparisons for you. Besides the brown, it actually looks more like Scourge’s trailer –

– than it does the original G2 Prime’s trailer. OK la, no gaudy sticker. I like it better clean and shiny.

More of the Goatobot symbol.

And here’s the trailer in base mode! Without any of the guns fitted on, because I might accidentally shoot myself with them as I always do when I’m posing big things.

From the back. There’s actually quite a fair bit of space for other Autobots to come in and man the guns.

Why are the discs pink? It’s a homage to Scourge’s pink sword, of course! Plus it’ll look like a pink laser streak when you shoot it at your sister Decepticons so it fulfills the “Laser” aspect of this toy.

This is his central cannon, air-powered by a pump behind. Again, it’s the G2 aesthetic!

This is what the missile looks like. It’s got a soft rubber tip, so don’t worry about hurting your sibling other Transformers when you fire it.

I like this one. The problem is that if you have fat fingers you’re going to fire a few at a go. But I’m sure that your family members Transformers won’t mind being hit more than once.

And, and just to show that it’s really a retool – here! The old versions of this mould had the G2 Autobot symbol moulded into the disc shaped missiles. But Platinum Edition Optimus Prime has a retool which takes away the vintage Autobot symbol (makes sense, since we hardly see this version of the Autobot symbol). So it qualifies as a retool rather than a redeco!

If you’ve never had a G2 Laser Optimus Prime or a Scourge, now’s a great chance to get it. The last time we saw this mould released was in 2005 – almost 10 years ago! It’s unlikely that we’ll see him again, at least until the next Year of the Goat, so grab it and finish your collection of Chinese Zodiac Optimus Primes!

Please don’t tell me I’m the only one planning for the future by collecting all the Year of the —- Optimus Primes.