Transformers Prime: Breakdown Robots in Disguise (RiD) Voyager (AM-12) Review

Monday, August 13, 2012



Full disclosure: We intend to pull you apart. Break you down, if you will

The Decepticon heavy hitter who is Bulkhead's rival, Breakdown is featured throughout the first season as one of Megatron's henchmen and Knockout's partner.  Sadly for him, he's always been the one who suffers the most damage such as having his eye removed by the human crime organization known as MECH and finally being dismantled by Airachnid.

Takara has started selling Transformers Prime toys and, as of now, Breakdown looks to be a Takara exclusive. Sadly Takara introduced a new gimick with Transformers Prime with new build it yourself Arms Microns - weapons that transform into robot animals. Just do the Arms Microns get more usage on the main toys, they added lots of peg holes to their toys just like the last movie line of toys.

Front of the box:


Back of the box:


Comes with instructions, stickers, and a make your own hammer/rhino:

I hate stickers because they easy come off after a few times playing with it. I also hate the whole Takara Arms Micron thing and all the peg holes they introduced to their toys.

Truck mode front:

What you see right before getting run down

Left of Truck

Very nicely molded with the side mirrors and even the steps.  The wheel hub caps should be silver, the two windows beside the main side mirror should be painted black.  The back part of the truck should be a darker shade of blue.

Top of Truck:

5 pegs on the top.  That peg hole at the front is ugly but it's not as bad as the peg holes found on Knockout or Ratchet.

Bottom of Truck:

Very tight and compact just like First Edition Bulkhead

Right of truck:

There are 3 peg holes on his side.  The rear part is really annoying to peg all the tabs in properly.
Back of truck:

If only the lights were colors red and yellow and wheel hub colored silver.

Mid-transformation:

He expands out a lot during transformation.

Front of bot mode:

Very close to the TV show design.  The red on his face is well painted and very accurate to the show.  No light piping in his eyes, but who cares?  Only inaccuracies are the forearm should be covered, there shouldn't be a piece sticking outside of the hand, the knee piece should be grey, the shoulder component should not have the back blue piece, and wheel position should be at the back of the leg.  Worst aspect to his front is the peg holes just above his hands and the hollow forearms.

Sides of bot mode:

The backpack isn't bad for him - at least it folds up well against his back. The wheels on his legs should fold in better and not stick out like that.

Back of bot mode:

Hollow legs and arms don't look so good.  It seems to be the new trend in Transformers to save manufacturing cost.

Breakdown vs. Bulkhead in truck mode:

Breakdown is not as long but a tad taller.

Breakdown with Bulkhead:

They share many design features such as the angular and bulky design

Breakdown vs. Bulkhead in bot mode:

Here the squarish Breakdown contrasts to the roundish Bulkhead. They're comparable height - perfect for re-enacting scenes from the TV show.

Breakdown with his good pal Knockout:

About the right scale between Knockout and Breakdown

Breakdown with the rest of the Decepticon cast (click image for larger version):


Breakdown is a great toy that transforms very similarly to First Edition Bulkhead.  He easily fits in with the rest of the cast and a great toy standing beside Bulkhead.  He's fairly easy to transform (easier than Bulkhead) but features some neat tricks in his arm area.  The peg holes aren't so bad in this mold since he was designed from the beginning to have them. My main gripe with the toy is the difficulty lining up the little tabs at the back of his truck mode.  He meets every expectation of a voyager but he's not featured in all episodes of Transformers Prime and I don't see kids clamouring for him at the store.  If you need to get the full cast of Transformers Prime toys then you need to pick up Breakdown because you can't have Knockout without Breakdown.  But if you're an occasional collector, I recommend skipping Breakdown due to high import cost and that he's just an OK character.



Eric Toy Score: 3.5 out of 5
Publisher: Takara
Year: May 2012
Price: 3,960 Yen (~$59.99 imported)


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