Optimus Primal with Arrowstripe (Beast Weaponizers/Beast Alliance)

Beast Weaponizers are my favorite part of the Beast Alliance sub-line.  When Rise of the Beasts toys were first getting leaked out on news sties, this particular set was one of the first I saw and was instantly hooked. Beast Weaponizers are a two-pack of a traditional Transformers figure with a Beast Battle Master partner. However it's not specifically stated if partners are Beast Battle Masters or Beast Weaponizers. I tend to think that the set itself is called Beast Weaponizers and the partners are Beast Battle Masters, so that's how I'll be referring to them from here on out. If I'm wrong, I'll correct that in the future.

In this specific set, Arrowstripe is the Beast Battle Master. Not just that, but a new character! Arrowstripe is a cleverly named white tiger that converts into a crossbow. This crossbow can held by most 5mm compatible Transformers. Most Beast Alliance toys can also be mounted via ports on their arms and bodies as well. It's a fun gimmick that hearkens back to Armada. Some of these are even Mini-Con port compatible... which I've noticed on some newer toys as well. Arrowstripe is made from a different plastic grade than the individual Beast Battle Masters and isn't as articulated. That's likely a cost cutting measure as the set was only $16. I didn't mind it too much, but it's worth pointing out.

Optimus Primal is the set's main figure and a pretty nice toy all around. These Beast Weaponizer figures are similar to a Core Class Transformers toy. However they're to scale with the Beast Changers for some nice uniformity. The Beast Combiners (I'll cover them too, don't worry) main figures are to similar scale as well. However they're more simple. I appreciate that everything is to similar scale in Beast Alliance, even though there's some differences in the toys themselves. I'm actually really impressed with Optimus Primal here. This is a fairly nice little figure. Thanks to his beast mode, Primal has some pretty decent articulation. While his colors match the movie, his sculpt is classic Beast Wars. Like some of the Cheetor toys, I'm sure this is due to design changes during production. 

Optimus transforms into his gorilla form pretty easily. Admittedly the beast mode is a lot more simpler than I'd like it to be. On all fours it isn't terribly impressive as the beast mode head will look straight down. Standing upright looks pretty good. With some additional color this would be a nicer toy, but once again, movie. Still, it's pretty decent. I like this one a lot and it's definitely my favorite of the Beast Alliance toys so far. Actually, I think the Beast Weaponizers overall are my favorite part of Beast Alliance. I'm not including the stand alone Beast Battle Changers in that as they belong to the Rise of the Beasts line overall. It's a weird distinction to make, but I'm trying to be specific to keep confusion down. Optimus Primal with Arrowstripe is probably the best set overall in the Beast Alliance toys, which is probably why it's a little harder to get than others. Fortunately the Mrs ordered me one off Amazon right away when they first showed up. This is a solid showing and is pretty recommended. Especially if you're a Beast Wars fan as it's a good little figure of the classic Primal.