Optimus Prime's vehicle mode is a Cybertronian truck, which is appropriate since the War Within comic series-- with some of the series' designs finally being made into toy form, yay!- takes place before G1. The overall truck mode, with a few exceptions, looks pretty solid, given its futuristic nature. The very front looks especially nice, I think it was a great idea how the front tires are that far behind the large bumper to give Prime a bit more of a "get outta my way!" attitude if he's ever on the road, heh. The way the robot arms swing over said tires for the robot mode is also pretty cool, but I'm getting a bit ahead of myself there. The low, streamlined cockpit and curved features of the mode really help contribute to the futuristic look, while the toy still maintains its rugged features-- little details like the bars in front of the rear wheels really help to contribute to this. I like how the robot legs on the back end of this mode close together, as well-- unlike on most truck Primes, it's not nearly as obvious on this toy that the back end of his truck mode are, in fact, his feet. The gun that sits in the middle of this mode is really REALLY hard to get out of its slot, to the point where I worry about the paint chipping off of the handle shortly down the road. (The same goes with the robot mode-- it's incredibly hard to fit his gun into his hand and take it out, the handle is defintiely a smidgen too big for his palms.) I'm also not particularly fond of how obvious the robot arms are in this mode-- they're partially disguised as smokestacks because of the chrome detailing on the sides, but the robot fists don't scootch into the lower arm pieces all the way and the overall shape of the arms doesn't fit in with the shape of the surrounding parts at all. Plus, the little pegs that connect his upper shoulders to the main truck body come apart a little easier than I'd like. The blue, red, and gray color scheme is all Prime, and none of the colors clash, so no problem there. All of the accent colors look nice too, especially the silver-barred yellow headlights on the front, those are just spiffy. A couple of accent colors on the rear half of the truck mode/the robot legs really couldn't have hurt, however. There's also quite a lot of mold detailing on the figure, and the black "dirt wash" over the red parts on the front half of the vehicle mode really help to bring out the detailing there and make the truck look more "rugged" as well.
    Prime's robot mode LOOKS amazing. The proportions are absolutely fantastic, as is the overall detailing and aesthetic. The large lower legs, the barred "heavy duty" chest, the fairly bulky arms, the smokestacks on the sides of said arms, the head-- it's all instantly recognizable as Prime, even if it's different from the most well-known design of the character. The detailing on the head is especially great-- I love the pipe-like antennae and the large faceplate, they make Prime look focused and determined as he stares back at you. It also, somehow, manages to make Prime look younger than he does in his traditional form. The intricate chrome detailing on the chest also looks great, and it approximates the stomach grill and headlights he gets in his "future" form on Earth. The paint job there is a tad on the sloppy side, however. Prime also has pretty good articulation-- he can move at the shoulders (at two points), elbows, head, hips, and knees. Given that the very little kibble he has folds completely behind his back and he's not back heavy at all, you can get a fair amount of poses out of him, at least theoretically. I say "theoretically" because one of Prime's two huge downsides is that many of his joints are fairly floppy. The hinge that connects his shoulders to his main body, his hip joints, and joints that keep his upper legs suspended in place above his lower legs-- they're all fairly loose. Not so loose that they'll collapse or wiggle at the slightest touch, but enough so where you can accidentally wiggle or pop them off or collapse them a bit easier than I'd like. Also, the red, blue, and chrome paint on Optimus can chip fairly easily, especially the paint on the legs. Granted, I don't think Titaniums were made to be banged around, but even with the light play I've done with mine, the metal's showing through on a few small parts.
    Titanium War Within Prime is a well-design figure, with an awesome robot mode and a decent vehicle mode, even if the arms are fairly obvious in the latter mode. The looseness of some of his joints and the flakiness of much of his paint are what really hurts him. He's a fine figure to pose on a shelf and play with (very) lightly, but as far as a toy that you actually play around with, you're better off going with the later, more stable Titanium figures.

Review by Beastbot

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