Side Swipe - Alternators - Figure The original Side Swipe returns, updated and upgraded for the new millennium. Unlike other G1 names, Side Swipe has the distinct pleasure of having shared his name with another bot only once in the 20 years of Transformers. Hopefully, he can hold on to that.
Review
Set Includes
Side Swipe is a convertible Dodge Viper SRT-10 this time, rather than his original Lamborghini Countach. He is red with black interior. The hood opens to reveal the engine and a large Viper insignia on the underside of the hood. The doors open and the steering wheel turns. It feels a little flimsy feeling where there aren't a support strut.
The rear-view mirrors are reflective and Side Swipe has a number of Dodge and Viper markings throughout, though nowhere near the extent of the endorsement markings on Alternators Smokescreen. The rear license plate reads "Side Swp" with an Autobot logo in between the words. Another Autobot logo is stamped on the black roof cover, thus revealing his true form unlike Smokescreen's more discrete look.
Start-Change-Finish
To transform Side Swipe into robot mode, open the hood and remove the engine. On the underside of the car, there are clips on either side that hold the doors to the front of the car. Push these sections in a bit to unlock them. Split the front of the car in half and pull them out slightly, then down to form the legs. Rotate the front part of the car 180 degrees.
Swing the front most sections of the car down and around to form the feet. Flip the magnetic, cylindrical piece down and the black panels the robot feet are attached to inward. Swing down the heel pieces of the feet to stabilize the feet. Lift the rear piece of the door connection section up gently.
Flip the back piece back and away. Swing the lower robot arms and hands up. Bring the arms out to the side and down. Now you have some options, you can position the car doors so they are on the side of the arms facing outward or rotate the wheels so that they face outward. This allows for the door to run down the sides of the arms like the G1 toy. You can also swing them up and out as wings if you prefer.
Flip the steering wheel down and pull the dashboard and windshield section forward. Fold the section with the seats down and attach the two clips on the upper part of the windshield to the black piece with the Autobot symbol. Swing the robot head down. Now, swing the back piece against the main body.
Robot Mode
Standing at 7 1/4 inches, Side Swipe is ready to take on the presently-non-existent Alternators Decepticons. In addition to the red that dominates his color scheme, Side Swipe has light gray on his arms, upper legs, and feet and black on his torso, hands, arms joints, and lower legs. His helmet and face are a faithful translation of the original G1 toy. The silver face and vent, horns and helmet all harken back to the original. His eyes are blue, as all Autobots' eyes should be.
Side Swipe is no slouch in the articulation department. His head rests on a ball-socket joint, allowing for a wide range of positions. Each shoulder rotates around and swivels in and out. The elbows bend up and down as well and in. His wrists are also on ball-socket joints and his fingers can bend with the index finger independent of the rest. Side Swipe can swivel slightly at the waist, but it's hindered due to the windshield's position. Each hip bends back and forth and out and swivels. The knees bend and his feet are connected to ball-socket joints.
Overall
His transformation is slightly more frustrating than Smokescreen in that the instructions aren't terribly clear, especially in the arm transform. The door frames feel very brittle, so take care in locking and unlocking them when transforming. And while the robot mode isn't the greatest, the car mode is wonderful and this toy handles the front steering axle better than Smokescreen.
Final Grade: B
| 
(7 out of 10) 
Link to TFormers.com
