Transformers Movie Toy Review: Scorponok

With only three weeks left until the Transformers movie opens in theaters (the release date seems to have been moved up a day from the 4^th of July to the 3^rd), there are many Transformers toys that have been released in stores. One of these is Scorponok. Scorponok really harkens back to Beast Wars because his alternate mode is an animal. He transforms from a scorpion into a humanoid robot.

The scorpion mode is where Scorponok really shines. The aesthetic of it is very nice. He doesn't look like a real scorpion, but rather more like a mechanical manufactured one. He appears more like a carefully planned war machine that an army manufactured, than something that nature might have created. His mechanical nature is evident in the details on the action figure. He has spinning gears and rivets. All of the detail is nicely sculpted and really adds to the intricacy of the action figure.

Scorponok has two features. One feature is wheels that are located on his lower abdomen. When these wheels are spun, they make his inner chest turbine and claw-like hands spin. The other feature on Scorponok is a three-pronged spear on his tail that is spring loaded. There is a trigger on top of his tail that when pressed makes the spear shoot forward.

There is not much paint application to Scorponok, but what he does have is mostly good. It is definitely better than on some of the other Transformers figures that I've seen. In some places it is a little splotchy though.

I wish there was a little more articulation in his legs, they really don't move very much. I also wish there was more range of motion with his tail, especially for when he's in robot mode. There are only three joints in the length of the tail. Despite all of this, the arms have fantastic articulation. Their range of motion is impressive, especially because the claws on his arms spin no matter what position you put his arms in.

As good as his scorpion mode is, Scorponok's robot mode feels tacked-on in many ways. For starters, it's not much of a transformation. His legs are really short in robot mode, almost to the point of absurdity. This might not be so bad if it was possible to get his tail out of the way some more, but it isn't. Because the tail is in the way, he has a difficult time standing while in robot mode. Visually, it's just not very appealing. It really appears as if someone chopped his legs off. I don't mind this too much however, I suppose because his scorpion form is so good.

No accessories are included with Scorponok, although he does interact with the Transformers figure Blackout (Voyager Class), as I discussed in a previous review. When you attach Scorponok to the underside of Blackout in helicopter mode and spin Blackout's rotor blades, Scorponok's claw-like hands rotate along with his turbine-like chest.

I think that Scorponok is a bit small for a Deluxe Class Tranformers figure, especially if you pay the full retail price of $9.99. Wal-Mart had him on sale for $7.98 though and I thought this was a much more acceptable price, considering the size and the problems that he had. If you buy Blackout, I definitely recommend buying Scorponok because they go well together. There is a Toys R Us exclusive that includes both Transformers figures for $24.99 which is cheaper than buying them at retail separately. I give Scorponok a 3.5 out of 5 by himself, but taking into consideration his interaction with Blackout, I would give him a 4 out 5.