Transformers Alternators Shockblast / Mazda RX8

I can't help but notice the "Ages 5 and Up" recommendation for this toy. I guarantee if you give this thing to a five-year-old, it will be broken before you get it out of the box.

I'm a long way from five years old, and I've collected scores of Transformers since I was a kid in 1984. Still, transforming Shockblast is a nerve-wracking chore. When the hood pops off (and it will, repeatedly), it can be difficult to reattach. It seems impossible to reattach in robot mode, but slips right on if it's closer to car mode. In robot mode, it never seems to fit right, like it's not fully attached. The antennae on his head exacerbate this problem, but without them he just wouldn't look right. Perhaps the engineers at Hasbro should have mounted them on pins so they could rotate down and out of the way.

Another gripe is that the various plastic pins don't stick too well in their holes to hold the thing firmly together. The hip pins won't stay snug in the torso holes, and the pin on the gun handle won't push into the hole in his hand.

This all points to the purpose of the Alternators toys...they aren't meant to be played with, only examined and displayed. The Alternators line is definitely intended for older kids and adults. The plastic is just begging to be broken, and they take patience and a little ingenuity to transform. Compared with other Alternators, Shockblast is one of the more difficult to transform. I'm still surprised I didn't break it.

Sure, the durability of the plastic itself seems weak. The benefit of this construction, however, has merit over the old die-cast designs in that parts tend to pop off rather than break. It's generally easy to snap plastic parts back together, not so easy to solder metal (unless the plastic itself breaks, which has not happened yet despite the feeling that it will). Also, I have to give credit to the engineers for making this thing mostly work. I imagine it takes a lot of skill to get all of these parts to fit and move properly.

Despite the design flaws and poor materials, this thing looks super. The color scheme is a dead-on representation of the original Shockwave. The head mold and arm cannon are also perfect homages to the original. Articulation in robot mode is excellent, as is the level of detail. While annoying to handle, it looks great on a shelf.

Bottom line, this thing (along with all Alternators) should carry an "Ages 12 and up" recommendation. If you want a Transformer to handle, one that will stand up to the rigors of manual manipulation, get one of the kid-friendly "Energon" or "Cybertron" figures. If you want something more mature that looks better than it works, Shockblast is the way to go.

Final Note: Apparently Hasbro lost the legal rights to the name "Shockwave" (something that has happened a lot in the last ten years) but that didn't stop them from putting "SHKWAV" on the license plate. This little touch made me giddy like a schoolgirl.

Ok I got my Shockblast in the mail yesterday. It is not the Amazon one (that should arrive today) but still the exact same thing.

First off the toy looks cool in car mode, but as with all my Alternators I display them in robot mode.

Shockblast's transformation isn't easy. Definately not recommended for kids. The first piece that fell off (barely touching it mind you) was one of the back doors. Easily enough I reattached it and it fell off again. Then the right arm fell off (probably a total of 5 times during transformation). The legs are tough to transform. If you don't do it right it looks like the legs are assembled wrong. What you are supposed to do is spread the legs in a split and rotate them at the hip joints. You also have to do some moving of the feet which can spin 360 degrees like the hips.

Then when I transformed the upper part the hood fell off. It was not easy to reattach. I took a total of about 15-30 minutes to try to reattach it. It's such a tight fit that the small hood piece for his head kept popping off from the rest of the hood. It's not easy to put back once it comes off. Unlike some of the other Alternators (except Silvestreak, smokescreen & Grimlock) Shockblast seems to be made of a really cheap plastic that makes pieces fall off easier. He makes Hound seem very durable in comparison.

I had thought Hasbro found a way to make these figures more durable since I had no problems with my Windcharger. Not one piece fell off of him.

All that said, Shockblast looks good in car mode and is tied with Energon Shockblast for being the best representation of G1 Shockwave. His laser gun arm the gun has some movement to it. It can be turned 360 degrees and slight movement up and down and side to side. His other gun is one of the worst guns in this line. It looks pretty bad and cheap. Oh and don't try to move Shockblast's "ears" because unlike Energon Shockblast his ears have no movement. This is unfortunate because it might make the transformation of his head and upper parts easier if they could be moved and stored in car mode.

His knees are one of the best parts about him. They seem tight and are fully poseable you can bend them and using the moveable hip joints you can pose his legs sideways, straight or even backwards if you want. When you bend his knees it makes the transformation sounds like the original Shockwave, Soundwave and some of the older metallic figures. In that aspect his legs are very tight which is much better then his arms, hood, and doors which fall off too easy.

You would think since some of the problems with the previous Alternators that they would have caught this common problems with arms falling off and doors falling off too easy, but the problems only seem worse in the case of Shockblast. Don't they have a focus group to test and help find these problems? If so what are they getting paid for when defective products like this are released?

Complaints aside I realize not every figure is the same. This Shockblast could have all these problems and the next one in the line might have no problems. It's a matter of luck when buying.

Shockblast is near the tops in looks of both car and robot modes. I put him up with Battle Ravage, Tracks, Sideswipe & Dead End as being the best looking in both modes.

If you want Shockblast in a more durable form I'd recommend the Binal Tech figures, though they range in price from about $45-55 but they are die-cast and the best homages to the G1 figures. I have yet to shell out that amount for any Binal Tech because as cheap as the Alternators are they can be easily replaced. Now to get Meister (Jazz which is impossible to find it seems) and Wheeljack and I will be up-to-date with my Alternator figures.

I love the way the car looks, love the way the figure looks, need to be a MIT honor to transform. I swear the directions don't go with him cause i tried transforming him and yes, they are good for a estimation, but half the transformation i had to guess myself. Thats why i put so much in eduaction value, you have to do a lot of creative thinking to transform him back and forth. Anyways the thing i love about the alternators are the attention to details. everything from the crome to the wheels are nicely detailed and look like any expnsive sports car (or jeep) that would be proudly be cruising on the road. The only annoying thing is the transfomation (and getting the arms back in right so the wheels are alined right) and the stupid hood. I swear Shockwave (shockblast) head is not suppose to fit through the hood as i can not get the hood on right even after i pop it through. Anyways definately pick him up and ad to your collection as he looks just like his cartoon counterpart which is amazing.