Transformers Shattered Glass Deluxe Class Toy
Item No.: No. F2704 Manufacturer:Hasbro Includes:5-part blaster/bazooka kit, shield from rear window, IDW #4 Comic Book (outside of box) Action Feature:Transforms from car to robot Retail:$29.99 Availability: October 2021 Other: Another new repaint line
Previously a rare BotCon exclusive, Shattered Glass "Heroic Decepticon" Goldbug was in 2008 a retool of Cybertron Hot Shot - a nice, $10 deluxe from 2005 that stood six inches tall at the top of the head. This premise worked. In 2021, it's a retool of Earthrise Cliffjumper, a then-$20 deluxe from 2020 that stands about four inches high. While the articulation has improved, it's hard to make a case for deluxe toys being a better perceived value today.
It's a good toy - in this continuity, Shattered Glass Bumblebee was white (like Bug Bite) but got blasted and rebuilt into this version of Goldbug who looks pretty great. I like the black-with-gold coloring, which you may also remember from Unite Warriors Trickdiamond and myriad releases from over the years. This 2021 Goldbug has a new head sculpt which is almost the exact size of his taller ancestor, and suffers no loss of detail. It works here, and I like it.
If you have the many Bumblebees and Cliffjumper, you know what to expect here - lots of joints, nice detail, 3mm pegs for C.O.M.B.A.T. effects (that you bought elsewhere), and the like. A new head sculpt is very similar to the original BotCon head, with blue helmet, red eyes, and the silver face mask. It's not the same sculpt but all the same landmarks are present, potentially making this a perfectly fine - if smaller - substitute for the original.
I like the black, glossy plastic body with minimal gold highlights and gold fists. It looks really sharp, as does the metallic purple Autobot logo. I am a bit worried about the longevity of the gold plastic, but who isn't these days? All the joints move well and the fists can hold the weapons just fine. My only real complaint is that it isn't as dynamic a change as 2008 Goldbug - they turned Bumblebee into a giant, with wings, who is unusually tall. The 2021 rebuild has a new head and some paint. They could have just as easily slapped a Goldbug head on another, taller body and I'd be pretty delighted.
Transformation is the same as Cliffjumper, Bug Bite, Bumblebee, Hubcap, and the other Bumblebee. The backpack becomes the rear of the car, the feet become the hood, and everything fits together really nicely.
The sporty little black car is really nice, with gold rims and a lot of painted highlights all over. It doesn't do much, but you can plug in the weapon on the roof or take it apart to use as a sort of underwater upgrade kit. The colors here look really good, but you'll note that the gold paint seems to match - or not - depending on the angle of the light shining on it. Also the rear window is a weird, solid blue, but that is the price of love.
$30 sounds like an absurd price for a tiny deluxe, but it's also an exclusive, with a full-size comic book, and we just had a price increase to $22.99 per deluxe. This more or less makes the price a little less hard to swallow, but long-time fans will no doubt be upset at the stark comparison of just how small these guys got since our last evil Goldbug. The final product looks good, and the colors do look especially nice after so much yellow. If you've got the inclination, I'd nudge you to get it. A new head sculpt does make a difference. If this were a convention exclusive I'd have paid $30 and not blinked.
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