Toy Review – Transformers Retro 40th Anniversary Soundwave, Laserbeak, & Ravage

February 12, 2024

4 minutes

As part of Hasbro’s year-long celebration of the 40th Anniversary of their pop culture juggernaut The Transformers, they have announced plans to release over 40 distinct anniversary figures celebrating four decades of the toy brand. One of the first releases to hit shelves here in the UK is the triumvirate of Soundwave, Laserbeak & Ravage, all boasting their original G1 vintage designs and box art. And, as something of a lapsed Transformers fan who absolutely loved Soundwave back in the late 1980s (god has it been that long?), I simply couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get my hands on this one.

VERDICT: The first thing that hits you is the iconic packaging, boasting the familiar purple and black design, as well as the “tech specs” on the back of the box that kids were encouraged to cut out and keep in order to compare the strengths of each toy. The description here is a little abridged, and today’s adult toy collector tends to be a little more precious about the condition of their boxes (more on that later), but it’s still a neat addition that speaks to the overall nostalgia that this line is clearly shooting for.

The toys themselves look pretty solid. The bald gray plastic on Soundwave makes it look a little on the cheap side, but the figures still feel suitably chunky and high-quality in hand. Perhaps the one glaring difference between the 40th anniversary release and the O.G. version is the distinct lack of chrome when it comes to the various blaster add-ons, eject button, etc. which again makes it look a little bit cheap. I understand that the intention is for this latest release to look a lot more ‘cartoon accurate’ than the original, and in that regard it definitely succeeds, but buyers looking for an authentic reproduction of the toy they spent hours playing with as a child will likely end up disappointed.

For me personally, the gray plastic isn’t exactly a deal-breaker, although the chrome would have been nice, especially when it comes to Ravage and Laserbeak. I do like the addition of a more solid Decepticon logo on Soundwave’s tape deck rather than the heat-sensitive logo of the 80s (never really liked those, if I’m honest), and I’m not too fussed about Soundwave’s gun no longer “firing” spring-loaded missiles (or at least mine doesn’t, which seems odd as Hasbro included three separate missiles in the box) – health and safety, and all that.

Overall, this is a solid start to the 40th Anniversary celebration, comes at a reasonable enough price point (£44.99 from Hasbro Pulse UK), and feels a lot more durable and high quality than the Walmart reissue from a few years back which, while doing its best to include the chrome features and O.G. stickers, ended up feeling like it was going to disintegrate with every transformation. Oh, and one last thing that’s worth noting if you’re picking this up in the UK is that Hasbro’s shipping quality has been horrendously bad for both this item and 40th Anniversary Blaster and Steeljaw, leading to a lot of disappointed retailers being stuck with some badly damaged product. I was fortunate enough to get an undamaged one, but it’s definitely something to keep in mind.

(RRP: £44.99 – CLICK HERE)

Re-experience the nostalgia of your favorite G1 action figures with the Transformers Retro Soundwave, Laserbeak, and Ravage toys! Transformers Retro G1 action figures are designed like the original releases and feature vintage styling, accessories, and exclusive package art and tech specs inspired by the classic toy releases. Clip out and save the on-box tech specs to share, then see how this Transformers collectible figure stacks up against other heroic Autobots and evil Decepticons (each sold separately).

These vintage G1 Soundwave, Laserbeak, and Ravage toys are inspired by the original G1 releases
7-inch (17.7 cm) Soundwave action figure features classic conversion from cassette player to robot mode in 6 steps
Ravage action figure converts from cassette mode to jaguar mode in 2 steps. Laserbeak figure converts from cassette mode to condor mode in 3 steps. Figures are 1.5-inches tall (3.8 cm)
Features a chest cassette door that opens at the push of a button. In cassette mode, Laserbeak and Ravage figures can fit inside the chest of the Soundwave figure
This multipack comes with 7 blaster accessories for the figures to hold
Inspired by the original G1 collectible action figure packaging, original Transformers logo, character art, and classic Autobot vs. Decepticon battle scene artwork
Clip and save the tech specs included on the pack in the classic G1 style fans know and love to compare figures’ strength, speed, firepower, and more (each sold separately, subject to availability)

Transformers and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro.

Includes 3 figures, 7 accessories, and instructions.
Figure scale: 7-inch
Ages 8 and up

The writer of this piece was: Craig Neilson-Adams (aka Ceej)
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