So.... <unknown - Shockblast?>, Venom, Brawn, Dead End, Cyclonus, Demolishor, uh..Mr. Plow?, Kup, Rhinox, Hot Rod, Sandstorm, Dreadwing/wind?
Some of the vehicles are approaching decent. Beasts and insects are still a joke. The paint decos on Rhinox, Hot Rod, and that last plane are really nice.
I never did post my thoughts about Wave 2. Here they are:
Superstars: Powerglide, Arcee, Perceptor, Groove, Vehicon, Hoist, Lugnut
Good: Hardshell (aka Bombshell), Bulkhead
Mildly disappointing: Acidwing, Scourge
Loser: Blight (aka Blot)
Overall, this wave is so much better than Wave 1. Transformations are still mostly pathetic, but there's some improvement.
The thing that really stands out is that the paint apps are 100% better, with more colors and applications. One of my biggest complaints about the earlier waves is that they cheaped out, with single color apps or left too much unpainted. This is no longer the case, and it's so welcome.
Also gone are the paint-obscuring chest shields. Between this and the improved paint apps, I'm really quite happy. They have listened and improved.
That shows in the number of great figures -- it's most of the set. All of them are instantly recognizable as their characters and they have defining parts -- Powerglide's wings and helmet, Perceptor's scope, Hardshell's proboscis.
There's really only one loser, and that's Blight/Blot. I'm not sure what they could have done, but reusing Predacon bits was not the right choice. The beast mode is actually decent -- it's the robot that is a big pile of WTF. Why choose this character? I don't get it, and I even have a little fondness for the little whatever-he-is.
Scourge and Acidwing (Acid Storm) are also somewhat disappointing. We've seen plenty of planes now. Acid Storm is better than the monochromatic Sunstorm, but the defining thing about Acid Storm -- his pixel camo -- is a total missed opportunity.
Scourge is just wrong -- they tried to reuse parts again and they didn't fit this time. Scourge should not have that helmet and should have his defining thing-on-top-of-his-head, as well as some wings. The head is great. Too bad the rest doesn't really say "Scourge".
The rest, though, are all good or very good. Groove, for example -- that would be another "Why?" choice, but it's executed well. If you showed it to me without telling me, I would know who it is. (Blot/Blight? Not so much).
There's still some cheapness in evidence. On my Hardshell, one of the insect legs is tight on the forearm, but the other isn't. Tolerances are just not solid. Also, while the increased paint and number of paint colors is great, it still pales next to Lego.
I'm mid-way through Wave 3, and it looks like they kept the quality up. So long as they do, I'll keep getting them. The good ones far outweigh the not-as-good ones.
The size of the damn thing is something that just has to be experienced in person. It's a very, very nicely detailed mold and while it could definitely benefit from paint apps, the stickers (100+, took me about 2.5 hours to apply them all) really make it pop, especially in this modern era of minimal paint/detailing. And that 2.5 hour sticker application? I loved every second. Huge nostalgia rush of "helping" my dad apply them to my G1 toys as a kid.