Transformers: Dark of the Moon Toyline Toy Review Index

Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
Vehicle Mode

The final movie in the "original" Transformers Movie trilogy, "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" was released in theaters worldwide in the summer of 2011, and-- up to that point-- grossed more than any Transformers movie prior, which was quite an accomplishment. To go with the new movie, of course, were plenty of new toys, though the structure of Transformers toylines was changed up quite a bit starting with this line; Scout class toys were done away with altogether, and the smallest "Legends" toys were renamed "Legion", while the toys formerly at the Scout pricepoint were renamed "Commander" class toys and roughly scaled with the Legion class toys to be smaller versions of the larger/more important characters in the movie. This whole subline was named "Cyberverse", meant to be a way for kids (or collectors with less money) to get all of the major characters with simpler transformations and with considerably less money spent. In addition to those size classes, there were $15 U.S. Cyberverse "vehicle sets" released which featured small transforming vehicle/playsets, and a $30 U.S. Cyberverse Ark, which was a larger playset.
The deluxe-and-up pricepoints largely stayed the same, though, with the line's gimmick being "Mechtech" weapons-- oversized weapons that could convert from one kind of weapon to another if you held down a trigger. Unfortunately, the weapon would only stay in its alternate configuration as long as the trigger was held down. The new molds for the line were also slightly simplified from the at-times frustrating transformations of some of the Revenge of the Fallen toys, sacrificing movie accuracy at times for ease of transformation. "Human Alliance" $30 U.S. figures were still present in the Dark of the Moon line (although to a lesser extent than in the Revenge of the Fallen line), though $10 U.S. Human Alliance figures were added as well. There were also relatively small sublines primarily released at young kids, including: "Activators"-- $8 U.S. simplified TFs that changed by pressing a button; "Bash Bots", TFs that came in $15 U.S. two-packs that were (rather weak) versions of Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots; and "Go-Bots", $10 U.S. TFs with very simple conversions that you could pull back and let zoom forward in either mode.
Unfortunately, although the film was a great success, the toyline was rather less so. Some have speculated that it was due to fatigue from the same movie designs getting toys over and over again; others to the ridiculous oversaturation of the first two waves at major retailers; and still others to the overpacking of the numerous Optimus Prime & Bumblebee figures, in particular. (I personally believe it was a combination of all three.) Whatever the case, many retailers stopped ordering toys after the first few waves, causing Hasbro to cancel both the last 2011 wave of the line as well as the planned "Movie Trilogy" subline that was supposed to follow it up in early 2012. Thus, even some new mold toys didn't make it to mass-market release, though some were released overseas in China and/or Japan.
(NOTE: Roleplay toys and non-transformable toy products from this line, such as Speed Stars and Robo Fighters, are not reviewed on this site.)

Mainline Toys (Mechtech)
Air Raid
Autobot Que/Wheeljack [Asia Exclusive]
Autobot Ratchet
Autobot Ratchet (Specialist)
Autobot Skids
Autobot Topspin
Autobot Topspin (Armor)
Barricade
Bumblebee (original deluxe)
Bumblebee (Cyberfire)
Bumblebee (Leader)
Bumblebee (Nitro)
Crankcase
Darksteel
Ironhide (original voyager)
Ironhide (Cannon Force)
Ironhide (Leader)
Jolt
Laserbeak
Leadfoot [Japan Exclusive]
Megatron
Mudflap
Optimus Prime (original voyager)
Optimus Prime (Fireburst)
Optimus Prime (Ultimate)
Optimus Prime w/ Trailer (Movie Trilogy)
Roadbuster
Sentinel Prime (Voyager)
Sentinel Prime (Leader)
Shockwave
Sideswipe
Skyhammer
Soundwave [Asia Exclusive]
Starscream
Thundercracker

Human Alliance
Autobot Skids w/ Elita-1 & Tech Sergeant Epps
Autobot Whirl w/ Major Sparkplug
Backfire w/ Spike Witwicky
Bumblebee w/ Sam Witwicky
Crosshairs w/ Sergeant Cahnay
Decepticon Dragstrip w/ Master Disaster
Half-Track w/ Major Altitude
Icepick w/ Sergeant Chaos
Reverb w/ Sergeant Detour
Roadbuster w/ Sergeant Recon
Sandstorm w/ Private Dedcliff
Soundwave w/ Laserbeak & Mr. Gould [Asia Exclusive]
Tailpipe w/ Pinpointer & Sergeant Noble
Thunderhead w/ Major Tungsten

Cyberverse
Autobot Ark w/ Autobot Roller
Autobot Guzzle
Autobot Ratchet (solo release)
Autobot Ratchet w/ Lunar Crawler
Autobot Skids
Autobot Topspin
Barricade (solo release)
Blackout w/ Scorponok
Bumblebee (original, solo release)
Bumblebee (Bolt)
Bumblebee (Stealth)
Bumblebee w/ Mobile Battle Bunker
Crankcase
Crowbar
Decepticon Hatchet
Flak
Ironhide
Leadfoot
Megatron
Megatron w/ Blastwave Weapons Base
Mudflap
Optimus Prime
Optimus Prime (Battle Steel)
Optimus Prime w/ Armored Weapons Platform
Powerglide
Roadbuster
Sentinel Prime
Sentinel Prime (Dark)
Shockwave w/ Fusion Tank
Sideswipe
Soundwave
Starscream
Starscream w/ Orbital Assault Carrier

Activators
Autobot Topspin
Bumblebee
Bumblebee (Recon)
Ironhide
Megatron
Optimus Prime
Starscream

Bash Bots
Bumblebee vs. Megatron
Optimus Prime vs. Starscream

Go-Bots
Bumblebee
Optimus Prime
Sideswipe

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