Decepticon Rumble (Blue) Transformers - Studio Series 86 Transformers Studio Series Core Class Toy Item No.: Asst. F3135 No. F3145 Manufacturer: Hasbro Includes: 2 blasters, 2 piledrivers Action Feature: Transforms from cassette tape to robot Retail: $11.99 Availability: October 2022 Other: Bigger, but still simple
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I had Decepticon Rumble (Blue) sitting on my desk for a couple of months unopened - a big mistake on my part, because this is a good figure. He's also infuriating - in 2019, we got Rumble and Ratbat [FOTD #2,149] for a mere $9.99. Two guys! This is one guy, and he's $2 more expensive. Is he better? Yes. Is he worth it? Probably, but we're also getting to a point where re-buying the same guy for improvements yields diminishing returns. Having said that, this figure is still hard to find while his peers are sometimes warming pegs.

Hopefully I'm not proven wrong in 3 years but with this purchase, I am happy with Rumble and hope I never need to contemplate buying another one again.

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The robot mode is slightly better than the black and red Siege Rumble. He has improved detailing and actual feet now, which makes him the better version to buy. I prefer this new blue one - even though the landmarks are the same, it's a little less flat and a lot more lively. The deco is improved with more paint applications, and Hasbro didn't put giant copyright and SKU markings in plain sight to make it look like an awful, ugly mess. This is definitely the refined version after the rough draft in 1999 - also, this new one fits well in Soundwave's chest.

I can't complain about the painted red visor, the faux-stickers on the lower legs, or the general color layout. He's not as puny as the last one, and he's nicely armed with two small blasters that connect to his back or his forearms, plus two non-jointed pile drivers. You get a lot of options with this guy and it's going to be hard for Hasbro to make an even better one at this size with all this stuff in it. The Masterpiece editions are probably still the best, but for $12 these are a perfectly good substitute.

The pile drivers go over the figure's wrists, and the form-fit is rather tight. If I were a kid, I'd be angry - as a collector who won't be playing with it all the time, it's acceptable. Getting the pieces to fit together right is of a high level of importance, and while the transformation is excellent it's a pain to get those goofy things off and on his wrists.

The transformation is easy and similar to previously released tape toys - the angles are different, and the head tucks into the back, but there's not a lot of variety to be had. This is an easy one, thank goodness.

The tape is a tape. It doesn't have some quasi-"armor" mode or anything else, it's just there to go in Soundwave's chest. It serves no other useful function, it isn't much to play with, and with no Soundwaves currently on the market it's purely for adult fans with a collection. The opportunity to upsell people on Soundwave - who himself has been in perpetually short supply across no fewer than four flavors of release - remains confusing, but it's not like Rumble is easy to get anyway.

This is good enough to consider replacing some of your old figures. I could see selling my Siege tapes because I have this - it's that much better. It fits in Soundwave's chest that much more easily. Also it's pricey for a tiny 2 1/3-inch mass-produced robot. I'd be more upset if it were only slightly better, but by spending a lot more on paint and accessories Hasbro may have provided the definitive Rumble mold. As I've said with other figures in the last year or so, this is good enough that other than black toy Rumble colors or the bluer toy Frenzy colors, I assume I will never need to "upgrade/replace" this particular toy.

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