Beast mode is a cheetah- or at least, it's supposed to be. This mode looks just as much like a cheetah as my dog looks like an elm tree. In fact, if it weren't for the orange-yellow spots on the upper arms and legs, I'd guess this was some kind of futuristic robotic panther, and not some cheetah. Still, this mode looks pretty cool. LOOKS. That's about as far as this mode goes. The robotic parts that resemble armor do so really well, and this is one of the few Beast Machines Maximals that looks more robotic than organic. The cheetah head, although not show-accurate, looks VERY evil, even demonic. Pretty creepy, The tail is also done well- it even has a mini-laser on its tip! The overall stance in this mode is that of Transmetal 2 Cheetor, as Cheetor's very hunched over, and he even has a "jet pack" on his back, just like the Transmetal 2 version! The transparent orange claws looks pretty neat, too. Cheetor has a very weak "growling" gimmick in this mode. Just like the other Beast Machines Cheetor toys, if you push Cheetor's cheetah head from side to side, he "growls". It's exceptionally weak on this toy, however, and his upper lip moves an almost imperceptible amount. Cheetor's spark crystal, which is located on his upper back, looks very cool. It's a regular blue spark crystal underneath a thin orange plastic bubble, and looks VERY nice. If you press it, Cheetor's front legs move back and forth in a "slashing" action. However, because of this gimmick, Cheetor's front legs cannot support his body weight that well, and he almost always slumps down in the front so far that his head almost touches the ground. This isn't helped by the fact that his back legs are entirely too long, and the feet are located too far back to help support the main body. Thus, Cheetor's posability is severely limited in this mode because of his bad stability.
    Cheetor's robot mode is very cool-looking, and if it wasn't for the completely different color scheme, he'd be pretty show-accurate in this mode. However, his transformation is rather boring, as it's another "stand me up and flip my head" transformation, which is getting extremely boring at this point. By pressing the triggers on Cheetor's shoulder pads, swords swing out of their shoulder positions and right into his hands. Rather nifty. Also, by utilizing the same "slashing" gimmick mentioned above, Cheetor can slash his twin swords up and down, which is pretty cool. Unlike the other Beast Machines Cheetor toys, Night Slash Cheetor is very stable in his robot mode. That's because his beast mode feet are behind his robot feet. It may look a little odd, but hey, at least he doesn't fall over if you look at him the wrong way. The detailing on Cheetor's robot face is incredibly intricate for a deluxe toy. His very small mouth and chin plate are even painted! The light piping effect that is supposed to light up his robot eyes doesn't work that well, however. Cheetor also has very pretty, intricate designs on his transparent orange chest, and they add to the appearance of this mode a lot. An interesting note not mentioned in the directions- underneath Cheetor's chest panel is a metallized circle with red stripes. When you activate Cheetor's "slashing action", the circle moves back and forth, looking sort of like a peppermint candy swirling around. A rather nice touch, if not a bit odd for a figure such as this. Cheetor is also very posable in this mode, much more so than the other Beast Machine Cheetors, due to his stability. My only complaint is that his beast tail doesn't really stay up and out of the way on his back, and it rather sticks out from any view except a head-on view.
    A rather poorly-done beast mode, but a NEAT robot mode. Definitely the best of the Beast Machines Cheetors, even though he doesn't have that accurate of a color scheme. Recommended.

Review by Beastbot

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