 Buzzworthy Studio Series 86 Ironhide and Prowl
Earthrise Prowl and Studio Series Ironhide, but More Dead
Transformers Generations Studio Series 86 Deluxe Target Exclusive
Item No.: No. F7129
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Includes: Prowl's rifle, Ironhide's pistols, 6 purple blast effects
Action Feature: Transforms from vehicle to robot
Retail: $55.99
Availability: August 2023
Other: Why should Optimus have all the fun?
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In recent years, Optimus Prime has sold as a dead guy. Ironhide tends to sell out nicely. Siege Prowl is pricey and the Amazon-exclusive Earthrise Ironhide & Prowl 2-pack is outright obscene. This Studio Series 86 Ironhide and Prowl at $55.99 is comparatively cheap. At 2023 market prices, this a fairly-priced set - a deluxe is $25 and Ironhide is still on-shelf at about $34. With the added blast effects, you might feel this is actually a pretty decent deal.
The big changes from previous releases are new "screaming" head sculpts, newly-tooled battle-damage chests, and some deco changes. Prowl and Ironhide have had their clear bits replaced with opaque elements, and some colors were altered. If you were made single Ironhide lacked his yellow stripe, this one restores it. But he's dead now. You can have them both at the moment they were shot through the spark. Also, since I wrote this initial review, we've since seen new "live" cartoon versions, and the battle-damage set you see here was dumped at Ross stores for about $17. That's why I need to get through the backlog faster. Also, I am feeling lazy having worked on other projects so why not print something I wrote a couple of years back?
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I was unsatisfied with regular SS86 Ironhide - my sample had a weak waist that split too easily, stiff arms, and generally felt like it might snap down the road. This one seems to have better red matching, and he's generally more lively thanks to the light blue animated windows. I realize the irony, given the big gaping 5mm chest wound you can put a blast effect inside. It's a clever new piece and a great workaround to having another 3mm "zit" sticking out.
The new head looks good - it's not necessarily "dead." You can look at him and see him shouting, or talking, or hollering, or complaining. It also matches the rest of the reds on the toy much better than the previous release of this mold, which is a huge plus. The grays are a little lighter on the shoulders, too, and overall if they just had swappable chest plates I'd recommend this one over the standard release. The big question is if you want a gaping chest wound or not, and I have to admit, I don't mind it. They opted to keep the colors vibrant rather than corpse-like grayscale, which is nice. I like the saturated look so you can at least appreciate the design without wondering how much of the "dead guy" weight is being carried by two newly-tooled parts.
Articulation is good, he can hold his pistols well, and my sample seems to tab together pretty nicely. Your mileage may vary.
The van mode transformation has a lot of panels flipping around capped off by what feels to me like brute force to shove the windshield into the front - but it looks good when you're done. The red van is a solid brick, with decent rolling wheels despite the undercarriage of his thighs. You can mount blasters on top, or below as exhaust pipes. He has the yellow stripes and thanks to the opaque plastic, feels more cohesive overall - but not perfect. Some unsightly panel lines can be visible, as can an external hinge that really betrays the emphasis placed on the robot over the vehicle mode. This makes sense - most of these guys are getting bought, opened, posed, maybe transformed, and displayed. It's a hassle to shift from one form to another, especially with the muscle-pulling shove you have to give the front end as you wrap it up.
Prowl was the fifth Earth-specific version of this mold I've bought - I think. This time it's a prowl-specific head rather than Bluestreak's sculpt, and there are subtle differences like the horizontal lines over the brow and the "ears" sculpted on the side that set him apart from the other "live" Earthrise toy. The colors seem brighter, the white is whiter presumably because he's newer, and he also has a new head. He looks like he's screaming, pleading, or in pain - it's kind of funny the first time you see it up close. The crest isn't fully painted red on the sides like other releases, which I don't think serves him well.
Other than the chest, it's basically the same mold. They added some exposed circuits and a "nipple" for the blast effect damage parts, which are welcome. It fits in well, and the figure is otherwise as good as previous releases of the mold. A benefit - or not, depending on your preference - is that the windows are all opaque now. That means the legs aren't weird, clear, fragile-looking panes but rather blue chunks of plastic. It's not for everybody, but I think I like it more. His articulation and center of gravity are great for posing him like he's just been shot, and it's kind of a shame Hasbro didn't wait for these remolded bits to do a "sparkless zombie" figure. It's good.
The cop car is a cop car! Transformation is pretty easy but I got a little gap in the back. It still looks good, and I like blue opaque windows a bit more than hte clear. The front bumper is a little smoky, but it's interesting. You can mount a lightbar on top, or a blaster, or both - and the wheels now have painted caps. It's a pretty good improvement, and makes an argument for waiting for Buzzworthy Bumblebee reissues if you knew they had them coming. (I didn't.) For those of you who missed the now-pricey Amazon-exclusive Earth Prowl, this might be good enough. When I first wrote this a few years ago I predicted Hasbro would do another new version later, and sure enough, Target has a cartoon "live" Prowl right now.
This set is what exclusives should be - unnecessary, but cool. You may have several Ironhide toys. You might have a ton of Prowls. But if you missed either - or want something to go with your dead Optimus Prime - this is a pretty good set. Two dudes for $56 with some bonus parts was pretty decent, especially given Hasbro used to do gift sets with more than one toy in it at a slight per-piece discount. The market didn't really love this set and you could get it on clearance (and then clothing store markdowns), but it's a nice set. I haven't yet ordered the new "live" guys, they're nice, but these are also just fine by me. You can still pick up this set on eBay for more than Ross sold it for, but less than I paid for it.
--Adam Pawlus
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