Transformers Movie Deluxe Class Bumblebee 2008 Camaro
by Hasbro
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Our Price: $19.99 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $16.00 (click here) Category: Toy See more product details |
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Toys and Games Reviews of Transformers Movie Deluxe Class Bumblebee 2008 Camaro
Customer Review: Great toy, but the transformation from Autobot back to a car is quite difficult
Summary: 4 Stars
I am writing this review on behalf of my 9-1/2 year old son who simply loves Transformers. After saving up enough of his allowance money, he insisted on getting this particular Autobot Transformer.
He felt that the transformation from the Camaro concept car to Autobot was a piece of cake. The transformation back to Camaro concept car, however, was a different story.
The instructions were no help since they only showed how to transform from the car to Autobot (i.e. no reverse instructions). He eventually figured it out, and can now do it in about 3-5 minutes, but it was no walk in the park. After reading the other reviews, we definitely feel your pain. But don't lose hope. It can be done!! Once you've accomplished it, you feel like you can climb Mt. Everest. It's a real confidence builder, especially for young boys (and some old ones too). Below is some helpful advice:
1) The toy is built to be handled roughly (within reason), so don't be afraid to twist (by hand), push, and pull the various parts of the toy.
2) From Autobot mode, my son believes that the toy is easier to convert back to a car if you separate the top of the Autobot (torso up) from the bottom of the Autobot (pelvis down). Simply, pull them apart. The front of the car is definitely more challenging than the back, but after a while you'll get the hang of it.
3) If all else fails, go to www.youtube.com and type "Bumblebee Transformers, concept car". I thought of this after the fact, but this might be helpful to a few people out there who are at their wits' end. A couple of the videos are pretty informative and take you through the transformation process (step by step). Parents may want to preview the videos before their kids do. Some of the videos are more age appropriate than others.
Could our good friends at Hasbro have made the process easier (i.e. include a good set of reverse instructions)? You bet!! However, the challenge for my son was a lesson in patience, determination, and ultimately conquest. He didn't give up, even after dear old dad called it quits. I was proud of him.
LS
Customer Review: Good as a collectible, but lacking as a toy for kids
Summary: 4 Stars
I am a big Transformers fan, posessing about every incarnation of Optimus Prime I can get my hands on. I was very excited by the movie because I knew it would bring a new breed of Transformers toys. They all look cool, and that alone has me excited.
However, coolness comes at a price, and that's in the durability of the newer toys. For quite a few years now, Hasbro has been making strides in the Transformer lines looking more like their supposed to in robot mode - that is matching the supported media, be it the cartoon or the movie. For this reason, the transformations have become more difficult.
Bumblebee is a good case in point. He has these little plastic pieces that come off of his arms very easily while transforming him. To Hasbro's credit, this feature makes it so if one is doing the transformation incorrectly, a break isn't permanent. It's intentional that pieces are made like this.
The other thing that bothers me though is how easily paint scratches off. This has to do with constant rubbing together of pieces during transformation. Maybe I'm not the best at Transformers, but I remember my old metal ones lasting for years.
Gripes aside, nothing bad can be said about the look of this. It's pretty close to the look of the film and both the car mode and robot mode look fantastic. I just see it as a little frustrating for the kids.
As for the prices on this site - well its economics. I've been to the stores when they open cases and you'll find one Bumblebee - two if you're lucky - on the shelf. But they actually stay there for awhile, provided its not a peak shopping time. Because of the quality of the toy, I would recommend shoppers wait it out to find it at an appropriate retail price, especially if they're planning on buying it for a child. It's a cool toy, but its durability leaves a bit to be desired.
Customer Review: What's it worth to you?
Summary: 5 Stars
If you are reading my review, thanks. If you notice, my ratings are a little muttled. The reason for that being, is that I am a collector of sorts. I have seen the movie, and yes ficticious characters based on comics, cartoons, and tv shows I find intriuging. Thus, I don't believe in playing with or opening anything I collect. It's a little obessive compulsive but I feel as though it's a stepping stone to something else. Why do we collect such things? Are they worth anything? Maybe there's something missing in our lives. What makes us indulge in these seemingly meaningless pleasures? I had an entire collection of action figures that were unopened and in mint condition. All it does is just create a burdon. The true test, however, is just letting go of such desires. So one day, my wife and I gathered up all of my toys, went to my neighbor's house, and gave his children my entire collection. Your prohably thinking, "WHAT, ARE YOU CRAZY!!!"...prohably. Though they may have been in value to someone on ebay, you can't put a price on the look on those kids faces when they looked in the boxes. I felt a slight sting. But it quickly dissapeared when my burdon melted away. We stayed over to help them with dinner and watched his kids play with their first toys in prohably 5 years. It was quite a sight. I never knew that my toys did any of the things they did. I watched them play with everything from my spider-man and x-men to transformer figures. His oldest daughter loved my bumblebee transformer most of all. I noticed in other reviews that he falls apart to easily or it has poor construction. Not True. However, if you give it to someone who does not have the patience or cool to handle such a toy, i recommend the lower skill level counter-part. All in all, it was well worth seeing them have so much fun with accumulative joys. What's it worth to you? <12:36 am> - - -Customer Review: The BEST of the Movie Deluxe line-up
Summary: 5 Stars
The old Camaro version of Bumblebee was disappointing in a number of ways, not the least of which was that the Automorph hood clip on mine broke almost immediately. Pleasingly, there is no such problem with the 08 Camaro Bumblebee, which, when considered together with the rest of the qualities of the figure make it one excellent Transformer!
Bumblebee is undoubtably one of the bigger robot stars of the movie, and the attention given to this figure is reflective of that status. Not only does each leg have good Automorphs (rotating the rear windshields out of place), but the front section also rotates a number of parts simultaneously. Unlikely the older Camaro version however, this version is robust and does not have any flimsy tabs that can break off - it's more like Wreckage's Automorph actually.
The car mode is, needless to say, really quite good looking, albeit with a number of joint lines that are easily visible. The windows are translucent/transparent, which is another step up from the older Bumblebee. The robot mode looks similar to the other version, but is more muscular and feels more solid, with an overall look that one would easily declare as superior. And, perhaps more importantly, it is very poseable.
What more needs to be said? A very desirable car, an excellent robot mode, and three (if you count them like that) Automorph sections; not to mention being one of the big stars of the movie. This is definitely the best and most collectible of the Deluxe range!
(Look at my other reviews - I haven't given any other overall 5 stars out)
[...] The review above is more purely regarding the characteristic of the toy itself.
Customer Review: Wow, a lot of stupid reviews here.
Summary: 5 Stars
Interesting. Most of the transformer reviews seem to be from a somewhat informed collector's perspective. Most of these seem to be from people who bought this model for their five year old kid and who thought they were going to get Ultimate Bumblebee (who retails for 80 bucks) because the price was marked up. Ten seconds of research would have given them the information to avoid such a mistake, but these people feel justified in railing against Amazon for charging extra for a product in high demand.
I'd agree with anybody that they shouldn't be buying these new transformers for young children. They are for kids who are at least 10, and for adult collectors. And from an adult collector perspective, it's a superb toy. It does have a complicated transformation, and what you get is a toy that looks stunning in both modes. And while many of the transformers have done a respectable job imitating the vastly more complex movie models, this one takes first prize, moreso than what I've seen of Ultimate Bumblebee.
So yes, the toy is in high demand, and you should either expect to spend a long time tracking one down, as I did, or fork over the cash for the quick fix. I was lucky enough to find a re-issue at Target yesterday, stocked by the cash registers instead of in the toy aisle. And I paid 9.99 for it.
So I recommend less cry-baby behavior from dimwit parents and some sense in realizing who these models are really designed for and why they're in high demand. Blame the manufacturers for claiming they're for younger kids, blame yourselves for buying without thinking, but don't blame Amazon, fer chrissakes.