Ooooooh, a two-part wishlist. Spicy!

So pictures of the upcoming Studio Series Age Of Extinction Optimus came out and the reaction has been… mixed. He’s still got a kibble problem and it looks like Hasbro skimped out on the paint…but anyone who says Optimus looks terrible is just flat out wrong.

But that got me thinking about the last time Hasbro/Takara tried to tackle the knight Optimus design, Calibur Optimus Prime. Now that was a figure with a beautiful paintjob… but it was still a retool of the original AOE Leader Optimus. A heavy, HEAVY retool but a retool nonetheless.

Anyway, I looked at pictures and compared the two Optimus Primes. By doing this, I came to the conclusion that I want both of them.

Studio Series Leader Age Of Extinction Optimus Prime

The main thing you notice that’s different between the new guy here and the last attempt Hasbro made at this design… is the fact that SS AOE Optimus is jacked.

The kibble is a bit worrying… but it’s not the backpack that bugs me. It’s the very visible smokestacks on the lower legs. Because they’re there, the ones on his back are fake… and they’re just distracting man.

After the official reveal and pictures came out, a bunch of guys got their hands on Optimus then posted their own pictures of the figure. Dear Primus, the official photographer did NOT do Optimus justice.

Optimus’s colours look much better, the proportions look incredible and it was revealed that most of his kibble is removable. He’s just such a great looking update, I’m so glad that Hasbro/Takara look like they knocked it out of the park here.

The only sticking point… he’s a small Leader. All his budget went into the engineering and Optimus is most probably incredibly dense… but he’s about the same height as the TLK Voyager Optimus.

Buying him for his recommended retail price is going to sting.

The Last Knight Leader Calibur Optimus Prime

Why would I want this guy after SS AOE Optimus was announced?

Cause his paint is nice, he comes with a whole arsenal of weaponry and he has no back kibble. Having all his back kibble come off and transform into a shield was a brilliant idea.

Yes, the back kibble is deliberate cheating… and I don’t care.

I’ve been a defender of the AOE Leader mold since the very beginning. It makes sense that I’d want the literal ultimate version of it.

Closing

I’m not going to look at you and tell you that Calibur Optimus is better than the new Studio Series Prime… but I still want him anyway cause there’s just something about him. Also, obviously the new Studio Series Leader is absolutely gorgeous.

It’s gonna hurt my wallet but I’m totally gonna get both these Leader Optimus figures at some point.

Someday baby, someday.

PS: Official product images were taken from TFW2005. All the other ones were taken from user NOTRAB.