As one of the first toys repainted for the Energon line, Energon Strongarm takes a great mold and adds some interesting choices in color to it. While there don't appear to be any mold changes, Strongarm's accessories underwent a dramatic change in tint.

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Review

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Measuring at 3 3/4" long, 2" tall at the roll bar, and 2 1/2" wide, Energon Strongarm still resembles a hybrid jeep. The mustard yellow has been replaced with a light blue and the navy-blue with a light gray. The weapon peg and roll bar are now a caramel color. An Autobot symbol is molded onto the rear driver's side fender and painted red. Unlike the initial release in the original color scheme, the symbol is properly painted now.


Also included are four light red Energon pieces: an Energon star, cannon, and two blade halves. The star can attach to the Energon receptacle behind the roll bar over the Autobot logo. The cannon can attach to the peg on the right rear fender and is able to rotate and be positioned up or down. The blade halves fit together to form a spare tire that fits on the peg in the middle of the rear of the vehicle. It can also fit on either hole of the cannon.

Start-Change-Finish

To transform Energon Strongarm into robot mode:

Swing the arms out from underneath and rotate the head around 180 degrees.
Rotate the rear of the vehicle 180 degrees and fold the roll bar down.
Swing the front section forward and flip the windshield segments up slightly or all the way, if that's to your liking.

Robot Mode

Standing at 4" tall, Energon Strongarm is now ready to help the Autobots by providing them Energon stars. He has a wonderful amount of articulation: neck, waist, bending elbows and knees, and ball-socket shoulders and hips. Due to his design, his legs are limited in their ability to be posed. However, his shoulders gain range due to the rotation of the rear wheels to bring out the arms.

Energon

The Energon accessories can be implemented in a few ways in robot mode. The cannon can be held in either hand or mounted on his shoulder or on top of his head. The blades, in their combined mode, can be held in either hand for use as a small shield or placed on top of his head. Additionally, the blade halves can attach to cannon to form a gigantic, relatively speaking, hand-held axe. The star is only designed to fit on the same peg as in vehicle mode, however.

Overall

Strongarm is a good, solid toy that can stand on it's own, has good vehicle and robot modes, and enough accessories to vary play for a while. He's also not burdened by gimmicks and can be found at a nice price, $6.99 MSRP. The new color scheme suits the mold well and complements the original Strongarm.

So far as name reuse goes, Divebomb here is a first. That's rather amazing considering how many Prowls and Mirages there are these days. And it's even more impressive that such a cool name accompanies a cool toy as well. Here's hoping the name Divebomb doesn't get run into the ground.

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Review

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In beast mode, Divebomb has a wingspan of 8 1/4" and stands 2" tall. White is the dominant color with dark blue bits scattered throughout the body and wings and comprising the lower legs. There are also yellow and gold highlights as well as red for the eyes. Divebomb's wings are attached via a ball-socket joint, enabling a fair amount of positions. Likewise are his hip joints. He also bends at the knee and the back talon is on a hinge as well.

Just past the wing connections is an Energon chip receptacle and behind it, where the tail feathers would be on a real bird, is the robot head. I suppose disguise isn't quite as necessary when you're an Energon-stealing drone. But, it would have been nice to have the head tucked away somehow.

Energon

As with the other Terrorcons, Divebomb comes with some Energon accessories. In this case, it's an Energon chip and two blade halves. The first wave of Divebombs have one blade with a handle at the tip and one blade that is pointy. Later versions include two handled blades, possibly for safety reasons, though I like the look of the non-handled version. The chip fits onto the aforementioned receptacle and each blade con plug into a slot on either side of his neck. He can also hold the handled blade in his beak.

Start-Change-Finish

To transform Divebomb into robot mode, remove the Energon accessories and fold the outer wing sections back until they close together with the front sections. Close the talons into the wings to form the feet. Now, raise the legs up and split the head in half. Bring the head and side sections back and pivot the waist down. Turn the robot head around and bring the arms down. Fold the bird feet together and position the bird legs so they face down.

Robot Mode

In robot mode, Divebomb stands 4 1/4" tall. The tail section forms the chest, so now the Energon receptacle is in the center of the chest. Divebomb's helmet is white with a dark blue lining, red face, and silver eyes. He also has a good amount of articulation. His neck turns, each shoulder swivels around and can bend outward. The elbows and hips are on ball-socket joints and the knees bend.

Energon

The Energon accessories can also be used in robot mode. The chip still fits on the receptacle and the blade halves still attach to the slots on the neck, now the outside of his forearms. The blades can also join together to form a Z-shaped bladed weapon which he can hold in either hand. If you have the version that comes with two handled weapons, Divebomb can hold one in each hand.

Overall

Divebomb is a wonderful toy. Both modes are solid and fun and his accessories are pretty cool, especially the Z-blade. Definitely pick this guy up if you get a chance.

Demolishor
"Your cries of pain are music to my ears"

Demolishor is a nasty Decepticon with an equally nasty weapons arsenal. To challenge him would be futile. He loves the thrill of the fight but he especially enjoys inflicting pain on his enemies. In vehicle mode, he is a burly dump truck that is stacked with powerful Energon launchers capable of taking down any Autobot that stands in his way. Though a bit uncontrollable at times, Megatron prides Demolishor as one of the Decepticons greatest warriors.

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Demolishor trades in his treads for a good set of durable tires in this upgrade in the Energon line. Now a dump truck, Demolishor is mostly dark green. His front grill is silver and he has two sets of gold headlights. Being a Decepticon must pay well. His cab section is a clear green with brown in the center and his fenders and bumper are a dark gray. The bumper even has some silver splattered on it, giving the bumper a used look to it. In the truck bed is quite possibly the largest Decepticon emblem ever on a Transformer. It takes up 3/4 of the bed. A much smaller emblem is above the driver's side headlights.

There are two Mini-Con ports on the front lip of the truck bed, one on either side near the back. Demolishor's Energon receptacle is located in the center of the front bumper and snugly holds any Energon stars you may have. All four wheels roll independently and very well, though the back ones can be misaligned slightly due to the leg design. Demolishor also had a Hyper-Mode in this form. Simply fold back the bed lip and raise the bed up to reveal a missile launcher. While eight are visible, only four fire using independent buttons in the bed. The launcher can also rotate 360 degrees and be positioned up and down for varying degrees of destruction.

Start-Change-Finish

To transform Demolishor into robot mode:

1. Separate the legs from the black connector underneath the bed and fold the feet down.
2. Carefully pull back slightly on the waist and swing it down, locking it into position using the tab and notch. (I should note that when I initially transformed him, I pulled too hard and dislodged the dual-hinged part, making it impossible to lock the waist into the torso. Guess excessive force really isn't necessary.)

3. Swing the center sections of the cab up and fold the green sections out so they lay out above the front wheels.
4. Rotate the arms around, swing the forearms out, and bring the entire arm sections down.
5. Pull the grill section up slightly and rotate forward.
6. Bring the bed down. This will reveal the robot head.

Robot Mode

In robot mode, Demolishor is a hulking, brute of a robot. Well, a hulking brute with tiny arms. his colors are now more of a balance between the green and brown, which comprises his upper arms, lower legs, and feet. His toes have a similar silver paint application as his bumper, giving them a used look. Replacing the silver grill is a purple torso plate with a small, slate blue box in the abdomen area. The design of the chest gives the appearance it may open. That is not the case, however. The head design looks like a cross between Rhinox and Long Haul with his helmet being brown with a purple crest, surrounding a silver face with gold eyes.

Demolishor has a number of articulation points. His neck is on a double-jointed ball-socket, enabling him to look in more directions than most other action figures. His shoulders rotate at swivel outward. His elbows and knees bend. His waist turns and he has ratcheting-style ball-socket hips. With his wide feet, Demolishor is able to pull off a variety of poses. He also has a Hyper-Mode for his robot form. Have the head face upwards and rotate the chest forward. This brings his launcher into position. The launcher can also be positioned without having to rotate the chest. While it looks better, it's not as stable.

Overall

Energon seems to kind to Demolishor. His new form is fun toy, provided you don't use that excessive force on the waist section. Both modes are durable and give an air of power to them. I do wish the arms weren't quite so flimsy and that his head looked more like the artwork on his tech specs card or his Armada form. Regardless, this is an Energon worth picking up.

Unto almost every line of Transformers toys, a dinosaur must enter and Energon is no exception. Cruellock is the latest entry into the Decepticon's Terrorcon army alongside Divebomb and preceded only by Battle Ravage. He is also a good medium between his two comrades as he's a better toy than Battle Ravage but not as good as Divebomb.

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In beast mode, Cruellock is some form of carnivorous dinosaur. It's been far too long since I've studied prehistoric beasts, so I can't say for sure if he's meant to resemble any particular species. He stands approximately 4 1/2" with a 2 1/4" stance.

His primary color of dark green for his tail, head, upper extremities, and hind claws. his chest, shoulder and hip pads are a light gray with metallic green on the chest and shoulders and metallic purple on his chest. The forearms and lower legs are a light green and the claws on all extremities are made up of a clear green plastic. Additionally, there are orange highlights painted on the neck, head crest, and sides of the tail.

Due to the simplicity of his transform, Cruellock has many points of articulation. The jaw opens and closes. The shoulders rotate and are on a ball-socket joint, just like the hips. The elbows are ball-socket joint and the knees and ankles bend.

Energon

As with all Terrorcons thus far, Cruellock comes with some Energon Accessories. The Energon chip fits on the Energon receptacle on his chest and on all other Energon compatible toys. The smaller gun can be held in either hand, though dinosaurs aren't known for packing heat. The large Energon sword can be placed in the tail chamber by splitting it open slightly and attaching the sword to the Mini-Con port at the end of the left interior tail segment.

Start-Change-Finish

To transform Cruellock into robot mode, first remove the Energon sword from the tail, pull the tail outward and spilt it in half. Rotate the hips 90 degrees downward and straighten the legs. Bring the hips together. This will flip the dinosaur head back and extend the sides of the torso outward. Bring the tail segments around to the backs of the hips. Turn the robot head around and swing the shoulders down.

Robot Mode

In robot mode, Cruellock stands at 4 1/4" tall, 5" to the top of the dinosaur head. In addition to the articulation he as in beast mode, Cruellock can also turn his robot mode head. His head is a light green with a metallic red crest, yellow eyes, and four orange fins on his faceplate.

Energon

The Energon accessories can also be used in robot mode. The chip still fits on the receptacle and the gun and sword can be held in either hand. However, the claws on the hands get in the way of positioning the sword, so the forearm has to be positioned outward to have the blade face forward. The two weapons can combine by inserting the barrel of the gun into the peg at the base of the sword. This creates a huge sword, 5" in length.

Overall

Cruellock is a decent toy. His beast mode is fearsome looking and fun. His robot mode is not all that different however, but considering the size and transform, that's not such a bad thing. It would have been nice if the dinosaur head could have been stored somewhere in robot mode, though. Still, Cruellock is a solid toy worth picking up.

The name Cliffjumper, up until know was one of the few G1 names that hasn't been used on a variety of toys over the past few years. With Energon Cliffjumper, the name is put to use on a fitting toy. Though he bares no resemblance to his namesake, Cliffjumper is the third Max-Con able to Powerlinx and possible the best of the trio.

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In vehicle mode, Cliffjumper resembles an enclosed sand rail and a large one at that. At 8 3/4" long, 5 1/4" wide, and 3 3/4" tall, Cliffjumper is at a much larger scale than the rest of his contemporaries. The middle of his front bumper, launchers, and cabin are yellow with red windows, brown flood lights Mini-Con port, and Energon receptacle. His main lower chassis is brown with silver and blue lights. The rear engine block is green with silver engine details and brown battery cover. The wheels are a dark brown with golden hub caps, the rear of which are held on by light gray struts.

The engine block portion houses the electronics of the toy. By placing two AAA batteries in the battery compartment and pressing the light gray button on the top of the engine details, you'll be treated to a whooshing engine-like sound. It's rather long and loud and I found it annoying, so unless you like the noise, do yourself a favor and keep the batteries out of the toy. Cliffjumper's other feature are the two launchers located in front of the cabin. Each can pivot independently and can fire the missiles included with Cliffjumper quite a distance. Due to the nature of his transform, the front tires can pivot to allow Cliffjumper to turn while rolling.

Start-Change-Finish

To transform Cliffjumper into robot mode:

Pull the front brown sections out to the sides and fold the back brown sections 90 degrees forward.
Push the front tires back and swing the front bumper halves so that the headlights face outward.
Swing the legs out to the side, rotate upward, and bring the entire leg sections down.
Stand the robot, fold down the rear legs stabilizers and split the cabin in half, bringing them out to the sides so that the windows face back.
Fold the rear engine block back, bring the rear tires up using the middle hinge on the strut, and pivot the tires so they face forward.
Remove the launchers and lower the forearms.
Flip the fists out and fold the spoiler flat against the chest.
Robot Mode

In robot mode, Cliffjumper stands at 7 1/4" tall, 8" to the top of the rear tires. There is more light gray apparent in this mode in his fists and thighs. His upper torso is also mostly green, which compliments the rest of his Earth-tones very well. His helmet is the same brown color as his legs. His goggles are painted a metallic blue with the rest of his face being yellow. A Powerlinx symbol is stamped on his right forearm. An Autobot insignia is molded into the square panel on his left shoulder pad with a red diagonal line on the corresponding panel on his right shoulder.

Cliffjumper sports a fair amount of articulation as well. He can rotate at the neck. His shoulders and hips swivel and extend outward on ratchets. His elbows are on ball-sockets, though their design prohibits side-to-side movement. Finally, his knees bend and swivel. Each launcher can be placed in either hand with the triggers facing either inside or outside.

As with the rest of the Autobots in his size class, Cliffjumper can Powerlinx with another warrior to form a larger robot. Similar in design to Ironhide, Cliffjumper's legs flip out to extend to form the lower torso while his upper body splits to hid his robot arms and head. His robot mode feet form the arms and hands when he forms the Powerlinx upper torso. His upper torso splits again and swivels 180 degrees while hiding his regular arms to finish the look.

Overall

Cliffjumper is a good, solid toy in robot mode. His cabin doesn't lock into place in his sand rail form however and his Powerlinx modes, while better than Ironhide and Jetfire, really don't look all that great. Still, his articulation is good and his color scheme is very appealing, a suitable form for the name Cliffjumper.

As seen in the packed-in mini comic, Battle Ravage is one of many Terrorcon drones of the latest incarnation of the Decepticon forces. Capable of ingesting Energon in the quest to collect it to reactive Unicron, the Battle Ravage drones are also able to fabricate weapons made from the substance. I wonder if there is a leader-type a la Beast Machines, or if this is merely one of a drone army.



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Like so few before, Battle Ravage comes packaged in robot mode. Oddly enough, the instructions refer to his beast form as his robot mode. That aside, Battle Ravage is mostly black with red and purple highlights. His forearms and lower legs are an off-white color with his toes painted silver. His face is painted silver with green eyes and he has gray highlighting his forehead. Also, his face has some feline qualities to it as well as a toothy grin. Battle Ravage also features a good amount of articulation: neck and waist turn, shoulders rotate, ankles, elbows and knees bend, and ball-socket hips. His tail is also positionable and can be removed for use as a mace.

Energon

As with his Autobot counterparts in this assortment, Battle Ravage also includes Energon parts that can attach to different parts of his body and some combine as well. The Energon chip attaches to the peg on his chest that houses a Decepticon insignia. The larger weapon, a missile launcher that fires a spring-activated purple missile, can be placed into either hand or pegged into the holes behind his head using any of the three pegs it has. There is also a Powerlinx port so that this weapon can be attached to other Transformers similarly to Mini-Cons. The other weapon, an homage to G1 Megatron's particle beam cannon, can attach to the holes behind his head or to the launcher to create one large weapon.

Start-Change-Finish

To transform into his beast mode, flip the forearm claws down, rotate the head 180 degrees and flip back. Rotate the black portion of his torso up 90 degrees and rotate the animal head 180 degrees. Bring the arms down. The joints on my toy are rather stiff, so the entire torso wants to move as well. Rotate the waist 180 degrees and bring the rear legs down. Position the tail as you wish.

"Robot" Mode

At approximately 2 1/2" at the shoulders, Battle Ravage is ready to drink his fill of Energon and defeat the Autobots.The colors remain the same, though there is some green detailing around the animal head that's visible. In this form, his eyes are yellow. As for what this form is, I'm not entirely sure. It looks like a large cat-like animal, though I have a feeling no specific species was in mind in the design. He has the same articulation as in robot mode with exception of his neck, which is on a ball-socket joint in this mode. The Energon parts attach in this mode as well, though no new configurations lend themselves to his animal form.

Overall

Battle Ravage really isn't anything spectacular. He shares the same stand-animal-upright-and-swap-heads transform that a number of toys from Beast Wars and Beast Machines used, so there's not much new in that regard. The beast mode is nicer looking than robot mode and the G1 Megatron cannon is neat accessory. At the $6.99 retail price, you can get better toys with the Omnicons.