Hasbro Transformers Studio Series 86 Dinobot Swoop Hasbro, 2024
Day #2,729: July 16, 2024
Dinobot Swoop Sometimes Simple Works
Transformers Studio Series Leader Class Toy
Item No.: Asst. E0703 No. F8773 Manufacturer:Hasbro Includes:2 projectiles that don't launch, 2 blasters, Swoop sword, Grimlock sword, backdrop Action Feature:Transforms from Robot to Dinosaur Retail:$54.99 Availability: June 2024 Other: Biggest, therefore best official Swoop toy
We knew it was coming and Dinobot Swoop did not disappoint. If you've been buying these, you know what to expect - big robot, good articulation, and generally not-too-complicated overall. Right out of the box you can see a pretty good adherence to the animation model, but it does strike me as a little bit flatter than my memories of the cartoon.
Unlike previous Studio Series 86 Dinobots, Swoop actually comes with the G1 toy's accessories and then some. Not only does he have his toy sword, he also has Grimlock's toy sword.
As an Dinobot warrior he's big but not huge - roughly Grimlock's height using his head horn, but otherwise he's a bit shorter. He's boxy but good - there's a jointed waist, perfectly nice hips and shoulders, jointed wrists, tilting ankles, and everything you need to say "I can get rid of any Swoop that wasn't my childhood Swoop." Or you can just leave The Power of the Primes one in combined mode - because as toys, they're now surplus to requirements. These versions are bigger and better, more expressive, and in this case, scowl-y. He's made of boxes, and this time it's even closer to having some real sculpted detail - the animation model is plainer, and this one has all sorts of grooves and panels, especially in the vestigial pterosaur legs on his thighs.
He looks a tiny bit "off," though, and when you look at the cartoon you can see where. That cartoon model didn't look quite so scowly, and things like the chest were shaped differently - the toy is wider, and the chest boxes were less rectangular in the cartoon. If this were a third party toy people wouldn't bat an eye, but being an official Hasbro release I'll be curious if people say "try again" or "good enough." It's only the third time we got something resembling a full-size G1 Swoop toy since Beast Wars ended, so I'd be surprised to see Hasbro even try again given their proclivity to recoloring and releasing.
The figure has no problems holding any of his accessories, which is good - because he has them all this time. Each rocket launcher has a removable, non-firing rocket. You can mount them in his hands or wings. He also has two swords with 5mm handles and thinning peg on the tip. Each is unpainted, one belongs with Swoop and the other is meant to go with Grimlock. I went ahead and handed it to G2 Grimlock since he's been on my desk all year.
Transformation is pretty easy - although getting the chest to Mad-fold-in on itself proved tough, leaving a gap for me. Also a few points of the paint seemed worn before I opened the box, which isn't ideal - but it's still a nice looking toy and fairly solid. The wings unfold, the head pops out, and the feet are still tiny. But you get a decent blocky pterosaur that looks best when he's in a "flying" pose more than a "standing" pose. I needed the instructions as there were a few tabs needing correct placement and I still don't know if I got it right.
As a prehistoric beast, he as jointed toes, jointed wings, an opening jaw (with 3mm peg for fire blasts), and a neck that can go up and down in a few spots. He's about as Swoopy as the original toy, and obviously, in cartoon colors. The original toy was red and matched the rest of the team, whereas this one is cartoony with some toy influences. You can mount all the accessories in either mode thanks to the 5mm pegs and sockets, and I wish Hasbro made flight stands for these guys. He looks OK on a pizza table and some LEGO bricks, but it's not quite as eloquent is it?
Since the debut of Missing Link I can't say "they'll probably never do another version of this character." I fully expect them, at some point, to do at least Grimlock and maybe the others. Hasbro might also do a new version of these guys in toy deco, or G2 deco. I guarantee there will be a market for one or both, especially if Hasbro doesn't keep shipping this blue, red, and silver version long enough to meet demand. (See also: the other Dinobots.) They could run these for a long time, and people are going to be happy to keep buying them - and also, it's a very satisfying end to the set. I still wouldn't mind some never-before-made-as-a-toy characters (Gilthor, Botanica), some easy repaints (Glyph, Tap-Out), another Minibot or two in the current scale (Powerglide, Seaspray) and the odd page-one rewrite (Megatron, Soundwave) but I'm generally pretty happy with what I've got. Hasbro has a lot of good stuff in the hopper, but as the line goes on the remakes are really good and hard to improve upon - if this is as good as Swoop gets, other than tweaking deco, it's a great place to call it a day make some new recruits for the Dinobots team. So get this one, get the other four, and call it a great collection of toys.
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