Death's Head
04-09-11, 09:02 PM
Soundwave has always been a particular favourite of mine, and one of the cornerstones of the Decepticon empire. Subsequent leaders have always found use for his particular skills, and it is this that has maintained his lofty position the Decepticon hierarchy. I enjoyed his slow but gradual ascent to leader in the Marvel UK comics, taking the reins simply because there was no one left to do the job. He also demonstrated (no doubt in part to those mind reading skills of his) a greater understanding of his troops than any previous leader, and was something of a wily political operative. Pleasingly, he has one of the best toys of the 1980s range, as well as sporting one of the best pieces of character art.
It’s probably worth pointing out that Soundwave, in his alternate mode, is a dictation recorder that utilises micro cassette technology. Not, as was frequently shown in associated media, a stereo cassette recorder. The attachments that were made available with the original Microchange version (headphones and microphone) although included in the Japanese release were absent from the western release. As well as robbing the toy of some of its role play possibilities, it probably lead to writers fudging things a little to put Soundwave in situations where simple characters like Spike would pick him up, the walkman being a big deal in the ‘80s. The character is so tied to this alt mode, that attempts to update the character have always looked clumsy (Cybertron Soundwave) or just plain awful (Generations Soundwave). Music Label Soundwave got it right, but that’s largely because he doesn't deviate much from the original. Sometimes, you can't improve on a design classic.
The alt mode is therefore something of a brick. Whether late ‘70s/ early ‘80s dictation machines were this clunky, I don’t know (but they probably were – the walkman glimpsed in Adam & The Ants ‘Stand And Deliver’ video is massive!), but it’s a nicely detailed representation of the real thing. It has moving volume controls, an opening door, belt clip and tape counter. Any one of the smaller Spy Cassettes can fit inside him in this mode and Buzzsaw does just that. Transforming Soundwave to robot by swinging the legs out from the side and the arms out from the back, before lifting and rotating his head around results in a surprisingly large robot mode. He stands around 8” tall – on a par with Grimlock- and towers over a lot of his allies and enemies. Another nice touch is having the weapons formed from two batteries which are stored underneath the belt clip on the reverse of the toy – much as they would in the real thing. The figure has a fair amount of articulation for a toy of its age, with movement at the neck, shoulders and elbows. His legs do have some movement but as he can only bend forward at the knee, it’s pretty redundant. Over time, Soundwave will develop something of a slight lean forward due to the mechanisms used to move his legs around to robot mode and the weight he has to support, which is the only failing of the mould. Buzzsaw makes a good addition and makes good on Soundwave’s playset nature, and he’s a nicely detailed figure in his own right. He looks great perched on Soundwave’s shoulder. He will, with a bit of care, also balance on Soundwave’s forearm. I tried seven times to get him to stay on whilst taking these pictures, but gave up in the end.
Thanks to a slew of re-releases, Soundwave is easy enough to pick up in one form or another and is an essential addition to any Transformers collection and looks great surrounded by a couple of his cassette minions. If you’re a bit picky, like me, you might be a bit disappointed by the pronounced buttons on recent reissues, which is due to Takara using the 1985 version of this mould which was retooled to improve the door mechanism.
625626627628629
It’s probably worth pointing out that Soundwave, in his alternate mode, is a dictation recorder that utilises micro cassette technology. Not, as was frequently shown in associated media, a stereo cassette recorder. The attachments that were made available with the original Microchange version (headphones and microphone) although included in the Japanese release were absent from the western release. As well as robbing the toy of some of its role play possibilities, it probably lead to writers fudging things a little to put Soundwave in situations where simple characters like Spike would pick him up, the walkman being a big deal in the ‘80s. The character is so tied to this alt mode, that attempts to update the character have always looked clumsy (Cybertron Soundwave) or just plain awful (Generations Soundwave). Music Label Soundwave got it right, but that’s largely because he doesn't deviate much from the original. Sometimes, you can't improve on a design classic.
The alt mode is therefore something of a brick. Whether late ‘70s/ early ‘80s dictation machines were this clunky, I don’t know (but they probably were – the walkman glimpsed in Adam & The Ants ‘Stand And Deliver’ video is massive!), but it’s a nicely detailed representation of the real thing. It has moving volume controls, an opening door, belt clip and tape counter. Any one of the smaller Spy Cassettes can fit inside him in this mode and Buzzsaw does just that. Transforming Soundwave to robot by swinging the legs out from the side and the arms out from the back, before lifting and rotating his head around results in a surprisingly large robot mode. He stands around 8” tall – on a par with Grimlock- and towers over a lot of his allies and enemies. Another nice touch is having the weapons formed from two batteries which are stored underneath the belt clip on the reverse of the toy – much as they would in the real thing. The figure has a fair amount of articulation for a toy of its age, with movement at the neck, shoulders and elbows. His legs do have some movement but as he can only bend forward at the knee, it’s pretty redundant. Over time, Soundwave will develop something of a slight lean forward due to the mechanisms used to move his legs around to robot mode and the weight he has to support, which is the only failing of the mould. Buzzsaw makes a good addition and makes good on Soundwave’s playset nature, and he’s a nicely detailed figure in his own right. He looks great perched on Soundwave’s shoulder. He will, with a bit of care, also balance on Soundwave’s forearm. I tried seven times to get him to stay on whilst taking these pictures, but gave up in the end.
Thanks to a slew of re-releases, Soundwave is easy enough to pick up in one form or another and is an essential addition to any Transformers collection and looks great surrounded by a couple of his cassette minions. If you’re a bit picky, like me, you might be a bit disappointed by the pronounced buttons on recent reissues, which is due to Takara using the 1985 version of this mould which was retooled to improve the door mechanism.
625626627628629