Release Date: August 2025
RRP: $24.99/£24.99
Several years in and Studio Series 86 (even if it’s not technically called that anymore) still has a few surprises up its sleeve, debuting its first combiner figure in 2025 with the release of Devastator. That said, being the only combiner that appears in Transformers: The Movie means there isn’t a great deal of choice either. Hasbro have ensured fans haven’t had to wait too long to complete their Constructicons, with the team steadily releasing over the course of the year. Studio Series Scavenger is part of the final pair to release, coming as a Deluxe Class figure alongside the Voyager Class Mixmaster – mirroring how Scrapper and Bonecrusher kicked the team off earlier in the year.
The Deluxe Class Scavenger figure comes in the revised Studio Series packaging for 2025, which drops the “86” monicker from the Transformers: The Movie figures to bring the whole line under one banner. The packaging also aligns more with the concurrent Age of the Primes line for even more uniformity. Designed the fourth of five releases to build the mighty Devastator, the front of the box features new artwork of Scavenger alongside a window section showing off the figure itself. One side of the box features Devastator artwork seen across all of the Constructicon releases, while the other side simply features the Autobot insignia and general Transformers logo. On the back you’ll find renders of the figure in both modes, alongside a short one-sentence character bio and still of Devastator from the movie. Inside Scavenger is tied down to a cardboard tray, with his shovel arm separate from the figure and his weapon wrapped up in paper.
Right away the first thing you're drawn to with Scavenger is that head sculpt, which is both simultaneously glorious and ugly in the most 80s way possible. It's just so wonderfully blocky that it immediately stands out against the other Constructicons, no matter how you feel about it. Body-wise Scavenger fits in well with his teammates, though again stands out with his "green torso and purple pants" colour layout. The big silver chest piece does a good job of breaking up the colour on his upper half though, as well as adding some details to make the design a bit more interesting. As with the other Studio Series Constructicons, he is based off how he appeared in the cartoon so is lacking some of the sticker detailing seen on the G1 toy. The additional moulding on the body makes sure that the figure isn't too plain however. While most of the figure is simply coloured plastic, curiously the fists are actually painted. The excavator arm on his back folds up nicely, but can be extended out to act as a scorpion-like tail should you so wish.
Scavenger's articulation is quite similar to that of Bonecrusher's, which makes sense as the lower halves of their vehicle modes are similarly designed and they both serve the same function when combined into Devastator. Altogether he features;
- Neck and thigh swivels
- Ball jointed shoulders, elbows and hips
- Hinged knees, ankles, toe section and heel section
Again as with Bonecrusher, the head can also look slightly up and down by way of the hinged section it's attached to for the transformation. Sadly once again there's no waist joint to speak, as all of the Constructions have seemingly had to sacrifice that in the name of combined mode stability. While the ball jointed arms admittedly aren't the best (although that's more to do with aesthetics than actual poseability), the lower half of the body still remains quite fun - those caterpillar treads coming apart to form fully functional legs. The hinged parts that make up each part of the foot are perfect for making sure Scavenger has near-perfect balance in any sort of pose too. He isn't a figure that's going to wow you when it comes to poseability, but nevertheless has a few surprises that add to its charm.
Scavenger’s sole accessory is his blaster rifle, which is based on his cartoon model’s but does have a slight inaccuracy. A mistake that first appeared on the Unite Warriors Scavenger, the magazine part of the rifle is at an angle rather than pointing straight down – presumably caused by misinterpreting the character model image. It’s certainly not the kind of inaccuracy to get worked up over though, as it’s the kind you wouldn’t even notice if it wasn’t pointed out to you. The gun is moulded entirely in black plastic, and fits nicely in either of Scavenger’s hands via a 5mm peg.
15 simple steps is all it takes to transform Scavenger from robot to excavator mode, although there may be one slight hiccup along the way. Part of the transformation involves flipping down the cockpit section, the hinge of which is supposed to fit into a designated groove in the body. Unfortunately it's an extremely tight fit, and not getting it in perfectly results in the whole side of the vehicle looking misaligned. While the piece can be put into place without any modding the tight fit might not be the best for the plastic tolerances, which is why some collectors have taken to shaving down the piece to ensure a more comfortable fit. That annoyance aside, Scavenger's alt mode looks pretty good! The moulded detail across the body helps look a little more exciting/realistic (or as realistic as a luminous green construction vehicle can look at least), while the purple treads help break the colour up - something Bonecrusher could have definitely benefited from. Weapon storage in alt mode is simply a case of pegging the rifle into the side of the vehicle, which may not be the most elegant solution but does at least feel practical in battle.
Like the other Constructicons, Scavenger has some additional features in excavator mode – though not as many as you’d perhaps expect. The shovel arm is articulated at three points (where it attaches to the vehicle, the middle and the shovel itself) to give it plenty of articulation for assisting the other Constructicons in various construction duties. Unfortunately like Bonecrusher, Scavenger does not have any wheels built into his (non-functional) caterpillar treads. Which is a shame, because working wheels are usually the bare minimum you’d get with a Transformers figure and it wouldn’t have taken much to add them here. Thankfully the moveable shovel arm does add a bit of fun to the mix, and Scavenger looks great alongside the growing fleet of Construction vehicles.
Studio Series Scavenger will no doubt have more to offer when the six unite to form Devastator, but as single figure it falls slightly short of the other Constructicons. It’s still a perfectly serviceable figure, but the simplicity is harder to overlook when there’s also slight inaccuracies and QC issues to contend with. At the very least though, he makes a great addition to the team when it comes to lining them up together – whether it’s in robot or vehicle mode. Ultimately someone had to be the weakest link in the group, and better it be one of the Deluxe offerings rather than the Voyager or Commander Class releases.
No comments:
Post a Comment