In my day, Transformers were these little itty bitty things. And they weren’t just plastic, they were metal. They were awesome, of course, and were one of the toys that definitely defined my childhood.
But times change. Bumblebee is no longer a Beetle, he’s a gorgeous Camaro concept car (this GeekMom has checked out the new Camaro many a time on the highway, and whispered sweet nothings to it… it will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine… in a thousand years when I can afford a car that doesn’t double as a bus/garbage can. How’s that for a Transformer? Eesh. Anyway.).
Now, with the film reboot, Transformers are once again a hot kids toy, and they come in all shapes and sizes. I had the chance to try out Battle Ops Bumblebee, which is recommended for the 5+ crowd; this bad boy is over a foot tall. And let me tell you, this Bumblebee is complex. If you’ve got a kid who adores puzzling out just exactly how to get from A to B, this is the perfect toy. While my son was most intrigued to have the car in its Camaro state (he’s a car aficionado, you see) he’s spent at least 15 minutes straight working out the parts. And while that might not seem like a whole lot of time, 15 minutes of non-chatter, non-movement, for my son is equivalent to a few hours for a typical person.
Depending on how you’ve arranged Bumblebee, he makes different noises. Because in his robot state, he is of course capable of different catch phrases than whilst a Transformer. And if you know kids, you know noise is super high on their lists when it comes to playability. It’s just part of their programming. While it might not go over as well with the parental contingent, when it comes down to a toy review I always try to think of it in terms of how much my kid enjoyed it. And our son adores Bumblebee. He’s better at putting him together than I am, that’s for sure. And after a visit to our in-laws, my father-in-law declared (after he’d spent the better part of an hour figuring out, without the manual, how to get transform him back and forth) that it was “the coolest toy.”
While the price is a little on the steep side, keep in mind how many moving parts there are in this thing, not to mention the variety of sound programming. While maybe not ideal for the budget conscious, it’s still a great splurge present that, if your kid loves Transformers and cars and challenges, is sure to please.
