Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Shockwave

"Shockwave this. Shockwave that. All I ever hear about is how great Shockwave is."

I just got this. And from the looks of it, the praise is warranted.

Here's a quick look at the package.

For those following the tales of the Beast Hunters, Shockwave has Chapter 11. You can click on the image to enlarge. The same goes for all of the images.

If you like to jump straight to the image gallery, the link is at the bottom of the post.

Since he's already in robot mode, let's start with that first. Shockwave is a big, solid figure. He looks well proportianate and heavily armoured, except for his back where there's a gap. Note the light grey area in the back view below. The plastic on him feels good. He can stand very well. The "hose" to his cannon is actually a tank thread. I love the look of him with it. It gives him a more classic look and makes the cannon seem more powerful. A downside though is that it will pull his arm down when you want him to lift the cannon. Hence I disconnected it when posing. When not in use the tank thread can be rolled into his back. This can be only done on his left side, the tank thread on the right cannot be pulled out.

Here's a close-up. I like the detail on his eye and in his chest.

There are two black fins which can be pulled from his "backpack". However he needs to be bent or you need to raise the "pack" section for them to be seen from the front. I think they are meant to give him the Fall of Cybertron look. I'll be displaying him without them.

The cannon is quite fun to play with. When you push the light grey lever, the barrel will spin and split revealing the interior.

For accessories, he comes with three pieces of "beast" armour. They are made of soft material.

Here's how he looks with the armour on.

It looks more like he's being controlled by an organic lifeform to me.

The articulation is decent. The shoulder armour have springs in them so you can extend his arms out to his sides without trouble. His left elbow has limited use due to the cannon. There seems to be a catch in his legs. You can only spread them to certain positions. It makes posing a little troublesome. He can lift his legs up and down fine though. I would have liked if he had some waist articulation.

Here he is with the FOC Shockwave.

Some comparison shots. Shockwave is of a good size. Megatron needs to be of the same size at least and Predaking going by the trailers should be much bigger. The First Edition Optimus matches up well with him.

Shockwave transforms into a Cybertronian tank. The transformation is fairly easy. Spread'em and lie down. The tank is pretty mean looking. A little flat but still decent. The cannon is fixed pointing straight. I would have liked if it were able to turn a bit. The wheels do not roll well.