"Classics" Jazz at a deluxe scale finally gets made-- oh happy day! In vehicle mode, he's about as Porsche-like as you can get without being an actual Porsche (and having a significantly smaller spoiler). This mode looks quite nice, and very smooth-looking-- as Jazz should be. There's no proportional problems at all, and the only robot mode kibble is barely visible inside the transparent blue windshield. The mold detailing is rather minimal, but adding a lot of it would have ruined the curvy look of the mode, so I can understand why that was done. It's also particularly apparent with this toy that it's meant to mimic the "G1 cartoon" feel of him more than anything else, which gives a bit more justification to this decision. The blue-and-red stripes down the middle and sides of the vehicle mode help to bring a little pop to the otherwise fairly straightforward white/black/gray color scheme, and are quite eye-catching. There's also "4" numbers on the car doors and front hood, another little homage to his G1 self. That said, there could definitely be some more paint apps added to this mode; the back end is missing paint for the taillights, rear window, and tailpipes, which is a bit of a shame given how well the rest of him is painted. Jazz has a really cool gimmick that can be deployed in either this mode or his robot mode-- his car doors can open and flip out (relatively) giant speakers, which of course not only fits his character perfectly, but was also used in the G1 cartoon. That's just a REALLY nice nod and helps add more personality to the toy. Like other "Reveal the Shield" toys, Jazz has a black symbol which you can rub to reveal his allegiance (Autobot, of course); on this toy it's in the middle of the stripes on his roof.
    Jazz' transformation is also nearly identical to his G1 toy, but slightly more complex and with, of course, considerably more articulation and better proportions. Really, taking into mind the aforementioned "curvy, G1 cartoon" aesthetic the toy's going for, this mode is pretty near perfect. His head is perhaps a TAD small, but that's about the only complaints I have regarding his proportions (and the headsculpt is great and crisp, so no complaints about the head otherwise). The way his vehicle mode bits either fold against, integrate into, or frame his robot parts are all just really well done. Jazz' "door wings" enhance the mode, rather than detract from it (particularly when you consider the fold-out speakers on them). The front wheels make great shoulder pads, to boot. The mold detailing is a bit more prevalent on his "robot parts", though it's still relatively sparse compared to most other toys from the line-- again, almost certainly a deliberate choice to keep him looking more like he leapt out of the G1 cartoon show. His signature blaster folds out from under the front of his vehicle mode and can be held easily (and snugly) in either of his hands. His articulation is also great; he can move at the neck, shoulders (at two points), elbows (at two points), wrists, waist, hips (at three points), knees (at two points), and ankles (at two points). Really, any point of movement you could reasonably ask for on a toy of this size is there, though it should be mentioned the waist movement is a bit restricted normally because of the roof piece on Jazz' back. There are only really two complaints I have about Jazz in this mode-- firstly, and most annoyingly, his chest doesn't have any clip or peg to hold it in place. Thus, when you turn his arms up (most often at the shoulders, which are fairly tight joints), his chest will have a tendency to lift up as well (and his head to turn down, as they're both pieces tied together during the transformation). That's rather aggravating given that there's no real reason why a small tab couldn't have worked there. On a lesser note, it's also a bit difficult to get the halves of the rear of his car mode to get into just that right angle that they look "right" on the lower legs, given that there's no definite angle that they lock into relative to the other pieces.
    Special Ops Jazz is a fantastic mold, and a great update to a great character. The neat flip-out speakers are just a bonus to such a well-engineered, well-proportioned, and well-articulated toy. The lack of his chest locking into any sort of set position in robot mode is a bit annoying, though, and no paint on his rear end in vehicle mode is also a slight eyesore; other than that, there's not much to keep me from wholeheartedly recommending him.

Review by Beastbot

Back to Transformers: Autobot Alliance Index