Official solicit:

Target Exclusive Allspark Power Storm Surge

STORM SURGE is so named because of his all-encompassing approach to combat. Allies and opponents alike rarely leave a fight in which he is involved without being soaked in corrosive salt acid, or bathed in jellied gasoline. During fights at sea, the water around him erupts constantly into geysers as his depth charges roll indiscriminately into the ocean. On land, he sprays the area around him with emitters housed on his arms, figuring that the more destructive power he puts out, the more likely it is he’ll take out his AUTOBOT enemies.

Amazing robot figure changes into detailed hovercraft vehicle and back again, and features snap-up fusion torpedoes in hovercraft mode! Figure comes with CYBER PLANET KEY and instructions.

WARNING: CHOKING HAZARD-Small Parts. Not for children under 3 years.

SPRING 2008
MSRP 7.99USD

I’ve got a secret to admit - I dunno much if anything about the original mold of this figure or character at all. I wasn’t nearly as into toys when it first came out as the character “Shortround” in the Cybertron series, and looking back I might not have liked it anyways if I was. This Target Exclusive repaint offers a much better colorway, making the figure quite a bit more appealing if for that alone. Although I do really like hovercrafts, so there is that.

Still, follow along with me as I stumble through this clumsy review and stick just to the facts - is it a cool toy or not?

I DECIDE!

Storm Surge, as stated a few times above, is a Target Exclusive figure. Doesn’t mean it’s rare, or worth any more money than any other toy, honestly the way I saw these things shelfwarming over the last 18 months I’d say that might be the opposite. In fact, had I not seen this toy on clearance I probably would have never gotten him, as I’m not much into the simplicity and lack of details the Legends and Scout class figures offer (FYI for the Transformerly challenged - Legends are teeny tiny almost Happy Meal simplistic toys. Scouts are just a little bigger - think around Hot Wheels size, but still usually really simple to transform and don’t feature nearly as much detail or abilities as their larger relatives, the Deluxe, Voyager, Leader or Supreme class figures too. Headache, I know.), especially for the price point. I mean, for 2 more bucks I can get a figure twice as big, with twice as much articulation and weapons, which also isn’t just a repaint of a figure trying to cash in on the Transformers movie craze?

Either way, I fell for it with this guy, and honestly I’m kinda glad I did.

Packaging is pretty standard for the TFTM line, and features the characters mini-bio on the back along with his power chart showing how strong, smart, fast etc the character is.

Off card and still in bubble, we see Storm Surge comes with his Cyber Planet Ket (a stupid gimmick from the Cybertron line the mold originally comes from, basically you insert the key into the figure somewhere and it activates some autmated weapons system. In this case, it expands Storm Surges missile launchers, yay!) and his little blaster ray-gun thing.

Out of bubble, Storm Surge comes in hovercraft mode, and considering his size, is actually full of details. He has little wheels on the bottom to move him along, and weighs in at around 3 1/2 inches long. As you can see to the far right as well, with Cyber Planet Key inserted, his weapons extend and are ready for action.

Really not much to his vehicle mode. I’d love a big Voyager or Leader classed figure that was a hovercraft, with all sorts of missile ports and gun bays and maybe even could really float? Oh man, if I actually ran Hasbro for a a day…

SIGH.

Transformation with Storm Surge is actually kind of complex given his scale and class, but is simple and intuitive enough to not be that difficult. Being able to see the back of his head in hovercraft mode probably doesn’t hurt with that either. And considering how simplistic many of the old G1 figures transformations were, this is a nice update with a simple figure while still showing how far the engineering on the toys have progressed.

When it’s all done, Storm Surge stands not quite 4 inches tall, and features giant metal claws for hands. Throw in the blaster and extend his missile launchers, and Storm Surge is fully stocked for battle!

Storm Surge doesn’t feature a ton of articuation, but plenty enough for what he is. He moves at the arms, elbows, hips and knees, and his head is even on a ball joint. The big claw hands don’t offer much for actually grabbing or holding things, and in fact the gun is secured to his hands by fitting into a similarly sized male to female slot, which he can hold in either hand to boot.

Again, not a whole lot of movement or posing with this figure, but he’s fun enough for a little guy. Sure, he’s kind of gangly and doesn’t look like much of anything in robot mode, but he has great details, and something that is somewhat rare for toys today - actually comes with a gun. That’s always a plus for me. Also, I’m not really sure what it is, but Storm Surge definitely looks like a Decepticon to me - must be something about his shifty eyes, or that peculiar spoiled-milk smell. Who knows.

Paint apps on the figure aren’t the greatest, but they aren’t awful either. Mostly factory applied stamps, and some “Allspark Blue” paint for detail, the rest is that orange and blue colorway which makes the boat pop. Of course he’d look a ton better with a custom paintjob, but for a teeny stock figure, he’s not that bad at all.

The only other thing worth noting with Storm Surge, AND a not so small reason I did pick him up for, is his secret third transformation mode. Triple-changers were all the rage when I was a child, a robot who could change into two different vehicle modes - they were so cool! And Storm Surge is a triple-changer too, no doubt - why just look at how much he looks just like a turlet in the above right picture.

Yes, that’s right, a turlet. See nerds, Hasbro does love you.

In the end, I gotta say I like this figure way more than I probably should. The goofiness of the toilet-mode, the coolness of the hovercraft, and the much more appealing and reasonable colorway for this figure (which at least looks naval, vs. the Shortround colorway) all make this figure a plus for me. If someone had told me a year ago I’d ever waste money on a Scout class figure, I’d have told them they were crazy. Nuts. INSANE.

And yet here I am, loving my sweet little hovercraft turletbot. Loving him so much too.

Yay!