Rrrgh...

So they caught this sex offender guy, who's been in the news here in the Cities for almost a month now. Caught him yesterday, so why is it so tough to find the article on any of the local news websites? Why is a new stamp or American Idol top-line news, but not this?

Actually, forget I asked, I don't wanna know the answer...

And, once again, I come into a post knowing what I'm going to talk about, then find out that my friend CJ is writing in a similar vein... curses.

But here's something that she's almost guaranteed not to be writing about.

I got my Soundwave last night.

Oooooh, baby.

I haven't done any reviews on these pages for a while, so here goes.

Soundwave is one of those original characters that has been shortchanged over the years. While Optimus Prime, Megatron, and Starscream have had figures in almost every Transformers line since the original, ol' SW's been sitting on the sidelines. Heck, even Wheeljack, Prowl, and Shockwave have gotten more play over the years.

Despite this, Soundwave has remained a constant favorite amongst fans. If you put up a fan poll anywhere, asking "who's your favorite Transformer," Soundwave would be in the top three of any poll, easily.

Why is that? It could be way he was characterized in the cartoon. Voiced by Frank Welker, Soundwave was devised as a emotionless, calculating, cold-blooded Decepticon. Always speaking in the third person, with his inflection-free voice warped into the prototypical 1980's computer voice, he would toss out phrases like "Soundwave superior, Autobots inferior." He never became annoying like a lot of other characters on the show, because he never over-acted.

Another reason for his success probably deals with a creative alt-mode gimmick, one which is probably the same reason why he hasn't been recreated time and time again. A character that personified the Transfan term "mass shift," Soundwave's alt-mode was a tape recorder. While in both modes, this allowed him to carry what were termed "Cassetticons": Cassettes that would turn into human-sized robots. His cassettes, along with those of his eventual Autobot nemesis, a boombox named Blaster, went beyond the biped (eg Rumble and Rewind), giving us birds (Laserbeak & Ratbat), predators (Ravage & Steeljaw), dinosaurs (Overkill & Slugfest), and vehicles (Grand Slam & Raindance, who combined to form Slamdance).

These cassette figures led to some very cool battles between Soundwave and Blaster. A one-on-one confrontation could quickly turn into a battle royale if the two stepped back, pressed the button on their shoulders, and allowed their cassette comrades to join the fray. Kids loved that. Hell, I have a poster in my living room of Soundwave and his Cassetticons, and it's one of my favorites I've ever owned.

But, as I said, Soundwave's alt-mode is probably the reason why we haven't seen much of him in the later sets. Optimus could keep transforming into a truck. Starscream could keep finding newer and flashier fighter jets to become. Even Megatron, whose gun alt-mode became politically incorrect over time, had a vast array of imposing vehicles and beasts to become.

Soundwave, on the other hand, would soon fall to technology. Cassette tapes led to CD's. CD's led to mp3 players. Making a Soundwave figure transform into a Discman wouldn't be nearly as cool without his little army alongside him. So he quickly faded from the shelves.

Thank goodness someone finally decided to take action. While no longer a media player, the new stealth bomber style Soundwave (like a sonic boom, get it?) gets to show off some new digs while still retaining a lot of what made him great in the first place. Cool colors, cool head, and the return (albeit a minor return) of Cassetticons. I'll be putting up the pictures of the new version along with comparison shots of the original, so you can all see what I'm talking about.

SW's alt mode is, like I said, a stealth bomber style spaceship. It hangs on to plausibility, but since the character isn't supposed to be hiding himself on Earth, it's fine if it's not a direct translation. The color scheme of blue and silver is nearly identical to the original version. If nothing else, it's an even brighter blue, similar to the look achieved in the cartoon.

In the Cybertron version, the cassettes are replaced by hexagonal barrels that are supposed to be bombs. Of the three that come with the figure, the two that are most important for this mode are the weapons bombs. Both turn into guns, and both connect to Soundwave's wings. The third is contained in his chest compartment, which is a Planet Key-activated bomb bay in this mode. I'll be getting to that third bomb shortly.

The weapons were a little difficult to attach to the wing, and when they're there they don't necessarily bring anything too thrilling to the party. But for the sake of storage, it was one of two choices: Attach them to the wings or make the chest three times the size that the decided on. I think they made the right choice. Hell, G1 Soundwave could only carry one tape at a time in his toy form, anyway. It's better, less kibbly, this way.


Robot mode is where this puppy shines. This figure IS Soundwave, pure and simple. The designers of this toy retained so much of the original look: The head and face, the chest-plate, right down to the red striping on the limbs. At the same time, he's definitely designed in the 21st Century. A little choppy in his joints, he still has a lot more articulation than the original figure. The wings and the shield are both necessary for the alt-mode, but they just enhance the look of this new Soundwave. Despite the fact that he's not a very dark figure, color-wise, he is by far the most imposing figure to come out of the Transformers line in a long time. Maybe ever.

The weapon "bombs" continue with the homage, taking the place of the battery weapons from the original figure. One is mounted on the right shoulder, the other is held in his hand. They both have the Energon-like look, with clear purple plastic, but it's forgivable.

The third bomb is my favorite feature of this figure. Contained in Soundwave's chest plate, which opens in Planet Key mode, it can be pulled at any time.

Laserbeak's back. The Cassetticon that came with the original SW is packaged with this new figure, being touted as a Mini-Con. This Mini, however, can only junction with SW (and maybe Megatron/Galvatron, haven't tried yet) since he doesn't have any of the Powerlink points that the other Mini-Cons have. Only a peg on the bottom of his body.

This peg allows Laserbeak to perch, either on SW's arm or his wing, as well as Mega/Galvatron's arm. The wings and legs are both flexible enough to accommodate, but it's also the best Mini-Con figure I've ever seen, so I have no problem showing him off by himself.

Yeah, this one was friggin' long. I don't care. Soundwave was my favorite Transformer as a kid, and he still remains near or at the top for me. This figure is the best Transformer in the price bracket to come along in all the time I've been collecting, and will probably be on my top five in all brackets for years to come.

My only hope, either from Hasbro, Takara, or some intrepid kit-basher, would be the rest of the Cassetticons reproduced to go along with this figure. Rumble is already somewhat in the Cybertron line (Scrapmetal in the US), and Ravage has shown up in various forms over the years (biped-to-panther, panther-biped-to-Corvette, etc). But it would be one of the coolest ideas to see a Mini-Con three pack consisting of Ravage, Frenzy, and Buzzsaw or Ratbat, all created in Soundwave bomb-fashion.

This will probably never happen, but it's wishful thinking. All said and done, I LOVE THIS FIGURE!