My Top 10 Favourite Transformers: Studio Series Toys

I noticed my previous posts about Transformers toys seemed to attract a lot of attention. Seriously, both posts got quite a lot of views! So I thought I'd do another post about my TF toys again. This time around, I'm listing my Top 10 Favourite Transformers figures from the Studio Series line.

Beginning in 2018, the Studio Series line has become one of Hasbro's most popular and successful lines of Transformers toys. True to its name, the Studio Series line is focused on producing movie accurate depictions of many Transformers characters in toy form. At first, the line was devoted to just the live-action films, but it has since branched out to also make toys based on the characters as they appeared in The Transformers: The Movie and Transformers One. It's even made toys based on the Transformers: War for Cybertron game under the "Gamer Edition" banner. Recent listings revealed for upcoming figures suggest we may be getting comic inspired toys next year. So yeah, the line has a pretty broad range on what can be represented. This line has been THE toyline for fans of the films and especially for fans of the live-action movies, this has been a chance for them to get better more updated toys of various movie characters. I know that was the appeal for me.

The irony of the Studio Series line is with the exception of Bumblebee and Transformers One, I hate every Transformers movie that's been made so far. Yes, even the 80's film sucks in my eyes. But that doesn't mean I don't want toys of some of these characters, especially as many of the movie characters actually translate well into toy form.

So which ones make the list? Which Studio Series toys do I consider to be must haves for any collection? Let's find out. Lights, camera, action everybody! These are my Top 10 Favourite Studio Series Transformers figures...

Number 10: SS Movie Starscream

Many people joke about the movie version of Starscream looking like a Dorito chip due to his wide body shape and all, but I've personally always liked how Starscream looked in the movies. He actually looks menacing and like he can pose a real threat and his bird like legs are fitting for a Decepticon that flies. Of all the toys this version of Starscream has had, this is by far the best one. I dunno what the Bumblebee version is like as I don't own it, but it looks good for fans who want that version of Starscream. For me, I'm happy with this one.

This Starscream toy is a perfect replica of his appearance in the movies. This version is based on his appearance in the first film, hence the lack of black tattoos he has in ROTF and DOTM. Colour wise, he's spot on with the grey of his jet mode and the amber coloured cockpit window that always stands out quite nicely on his chest. The head especially looks fantastic to me, a spot-on recreation of how he looks in the film. He's quite articulated too, even if he lacks a waist swivel. His arms especially are very posable and the landing gear acting as heel spurs on the back of his legs makes him very sturdy when posed. Accessory wise, he comes with the missile launcher he uses in the film and it can peg in either arm. I like to imagine he uses it as a bladed weapon when in close combat too. I find it fun to pose him as if he's about to impale an Autobot with the sharp bits at the end. I also can't help but notice how similar this toy looks to the Deluxe figure he got in the Dark of the Moon toyline. It's like they took that figure and just made it bigger, which is great because it worked out for the best here.

If you thought the robot mode was amazing, the jet mode takes the cake. It's a spot-on accurate recreation of his F-22 raptor mode and unlike most jet Transformers, he looks VERY clean in this mode. There's no undercarriage kibble or visible robot parts or anything. Looking at it from above like this, you'd think it was just a regular jet and wasn't able to transform! It's just amazing for me how clean and kibble free he is in both modes. Previous Starscream toys weren't this clean looking, that's for sure.

There's a variant of this figure in where he has his trademark black tattoos from ROTF and comes with a saw blade accessory instead, so whichever one appeals to you more, go for that. For me, I'm content with this variant I have. Of all the toys the movie version of Starscream has had, this is the best one, hands down and more than deserves a spot on the list...

Number 9: SS Revenge of the Fallen Megatron

Megatron has a new design in every live-action film that gets made. Of all of them, The Last Knight is the best design, but I don't have a Studio Series figure of that Megatron as one hasn't been made yet. So for now, this version gets a spot on the list.

The ROTF Megatron has always been one of my favourite movie designs out there and easily Megatron's second best design next to his TLK design. His toy is a great depiction of that Megatron for me. It looks very accurate to his ROTF appearance complete with detailed head sculpt, his enormous treaded legs and feet and his large right arm that couples as his fusion cannon and a sword for close combat. I love how unlike previous ROTF Megatron toys, his left arm doesn't look tiny by comparison and the sword on his right arm can fold out manually with no kind of gimmick behind it. The only downside to his robot mode is that he's a little gappy when viewed from the sides. You can't see it in the picture, but it is a little unsightly and makes him look a little hollow as if they didn't have a way to fill in the gaps. But when viewed from the front like so, he looks fantastic. Once again, he lacks a waist swivel but he's otherwise very posable and you can get some great displays with him fighting Optimus and the other Autobots.

His tank mode is pretty decent too, if nothing special. The transformation is very unique when going from robot to vehicle and I like how they pulled it off to give us what we have here. The tank looks suitably alien and nothing like what you'd find on Earth, which is perfect since Megatron has such a low opinion of us humans that he wouldn't want to copy our tech and our modes of transport.

If he didn't have those gaps in his robot mode, he could've been higher in the list. As is, for what we got, I think it's a solid update and definitely an improvement on previous ROTF Megatron toys. Now I wonder what a Studio Series TLK Megatron will be like...

Number 8: SS Bumblebee Car Mode Dropkick and Jet Mode Shatter

Can't have Shatter and Dropkick separately on this list, can I? Got to have them both together.

Shatter and Dropkick are among my favourite Decepticons in all of TF media, not just in terms of films, so of course I had to get their toys. They've had four figures with two presenting their car modes and two representing their flight modes. They're triple changers in the movie, but the toys can't replicate that for obvious reasons, hence we they both got a figure each to represent their two different modes. The best ones are the ones I have here, Jet Mode Shatter and Car Mode Dropkick. These figures are the most accurate to their appearances in the movie and also the best looking and best articulated. Jet Mode Shatter is a little unsightly at the back, but you do get used to it. Both of them have decent articulation and display well and Shatter's jet mode tail wings make for handy heel spurs to keep her stable. They both come with gun accessors as well with Dropkick's resembling his infamous gun that he kills two humans with in the movie. I wonder if this toy likes the way they pop as well...

The two figures look great standing side-by-side like in the picture and it really feels just right to have the duo together. Having these versions of them makes it better since they're the most screen accurate toys of the two.

Their vehicle modes are great too. Dropkick's transformation can be a little finnicky, but it's worth it for such a sweet looking car mode and Shatter's jet mode is nothing to sneeze at either. Like Movie Starscream, it's very clean looking with little to no robot parts in sight, leaving a very kibble free jet mode as a result. It's a pity the car and helicopter versions of Shatter and Dropkick are pretty lousy figures as it would've been nice to display them both as cars or both as jet and helicopter. As is, this is fine for me.

If you ever want Shatter and Dropkick in your collection, these two figures are the best versions of the duo to get. Great robot modes, better screen accuracy, very clean vehicle modes and they make for wonderful displays together. Just keep them away from any Bumblebees you might have lying around...

Number 7: SS Movie Bonecrusher

This guy may hate everything, but I have nothing but love to express for this toy.

Based on his appearance in the first live-action movie, Bonecrusher is a massive upgrade from his original toy released back in 2007. Not only did they make him a Voyager instead of a Deluxe so the size feels more accurate for him, but this Bonecrusher looks more accurate to his appearance in the movie and is more articulated. His arms especially have a lot of range and motion and his trademark back-mounted claw is very posable too. It's especially fun to display him with the arm lashing out to grab his enemies or spear them. He is sadly a little unstable due to the design of the feet, but he can stand well enough and his long arms can provide further stability. I love how well they captured his movie design here from his desert yellow colours to his brutish looking head sculpt and his gorilla like proportions.

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And then there's the vehicle mode. The vehicle mode is an accurate depiction of his Buffalo Mine Sweeper vehicle mode in the film and is just as fun to pose and display as his robot form. The overly huge fork has a very long reach and can easily flip over other Transformers vehicles, which really adds to the play value. You can easily recreate that scene in the movie where he's flipping over cars on the motorway. The transformation's pretty fun too.

This is easily the best version of Movie Bonecrusher you can get. Very articulated, very movie accurate, fun to play around with and always looking cool, this is a figure you won't hate whatsoever...

Number 6: SS Movie Blackout

One of the first Studio Series figures I recall getting, the Leader Class Movie Blackout was a figure I knew I had to own. Blackout is one of my favourite characters from the live-action films, so of course I was going to get this toy.

Compared to previous figures, this Blackout is a huge upgrade. He's a Leader Class figure, which is already a step-up from his original Voyager class toys since Blackout's friggin' huge in the movie. The Leader Class price point does him justice as now he actually feels like the giant he's supposed to be, especially when compared to other Studio Series figures, and he's a very faithful recreation of his appearance in the film. From his demonic looking head that vaguely resembles a Decepticon logo to the rotor blade "wings" on his back, this is Blackout down to the tiniest detail and he looks great. His arms are a little bulky and kibble heavy, which does hurt the appearance a little and the lack of wrist articulation is a little annoying. They had to re-release the figure as ROTF Grindor in order to fix that issue. But still he does look incredible on display and he's decently articulated too. To add to the play value, the toy even includes a little miniature Scorponok figure that stashes away in his helicopter mode. Curiously, the Grindor version of the mould came with Ravage, even though Soundwave's the one who uses Ravage, not him. This Blackout toy can also attack the helicopter rotor from his vehicle mode's tail onto his arm to use for grinding up enemies as you can see in the photo.

The vehicle mode is the best part for me. It's very big and just looks fantastic when displayed in this form. I love the enormous rotor blades and all the details on the helicopter. He even includes his famous 4500X ID number on the tail! That's such a great little easter egg.

As a fan of Movie Blackout, I'm the proud owner of this toy and I love displaying him in either robot or vehicle mode. For those who can't find it though, maybe try looking for Grindor instead. Whichever one you get, you're getting a great figure regardless...

Number 5: SS86 Hot Rod

Just in case you were wondering, no not every figure on the list will be from the live-action movies. XD Originally I was going to get the new re-release that was coming out this year which had some new accessories and a new paint job. But I found the original version on eBay for about £42 and went with that instead, so here we go. It was so lucky too since most Studio Series 86 Hot Rod toys aren't cheap to buy online! And you better believe I'm happy to own this toy now.

Unlike most TF fans who are still salty about Hot Rod "being responsible for Optimus's death" (seriously, they gave HIM crap about that and not Megatron, the guy who ACTUALLY killed Optimus? What's up with that?), I actually like Hot Rod and his toy only makes me like him even more. Design wise, this is a spot-on replica of Hot Rod as he appears in the G1 cartoon and 1986 movie. He looks very clean in robot mode with barely any vehicle parts anywhere and he has his trademark large yellow spoiler on his back. He's very articulated too, meaning you can get a variety of poses out of him, and he also comes with a load of accessories. These include two pistols, two blast effects, the Matrix of Leadership, a circular saw and a glowing effect to attach to the Matrix to recreate that iconic moment from the movie when it responds to him for the first time:

You can practically hear Stan Bush's "The Touch" roaring in the background right now, eh? XD

These accessories give Hot Rod a lot of play value and fun display opportunities. I know I especially like to display him with his circular saw in action. His head can open up to flip down a visor over his eyes (which I prefer to display him with) and his right hand can also be flipped around to reveal his welder tool he uses to patch up Kup in the movie. This really is a toy that is a love letter to the movie, and the 2026 rerelease took it even further by including a fishing rod and his training sword and shield! As is, this is one of those toys that puts the "value" in play value.

Hot Rod's vehicle mode is also spot on too. It looks as if it leapt straight out of animation into the real world. Proportion wise, it looks very sleek and aerodynamic, which suggests it can go very fast. Given he's called "Hot Rod", one would hope he can go fast. He also looks great with the flames on his bonnet, the large yellow spoiler at the back and the exhaust fumes on the sides. It's just as fun display him like this as it is in vehicle mode and the fact he manages to look so clean in either mode is a feat of design and engineering.

I say Hot Rod deserves more love and you can show it by buying this toy and adding it to your collection. It's a great depiction of his animated self from the movie, it's full of fan-service and play value with all his accessories and looks fantastic in either mode. This toy will definitely lighten any collector's darkest hour...

Number 4: SS Rise of the Beasts Scourge

As the best character from Rise of the Beasts, I am forever grateful to have this toy in my collection. ROTB Scourge has without a doubt one of the best toys of ANY movie character that's ever been made. Everything about this figure is just so great and I love posing and displaying him!

Based more on early concept art of the character, this Scourge figure is otherwise close enough to what we got in the movie with a pretty accurate depiction of his appearance with only some small differences and lacking the more rusted brown colours of his movie self. He has all the character's trademark design features from his masked face (which isn't removable), his large blade on his right arm and his four-clawed left hand that's great for grabbing hold of unfortunate victims who stand in his way. Being a Leader Class figure, he's quite tall and looks pretty imposing next to the Deluxes and Voyagers I have and he's extremely posable. Unlike a lot of Studio Series movie figures, he actually has waist articulation and even his large neck gives him a lot of movement with his head.

His left arm can also be swapped out with an arm cannon accessory that can store on his back so you can recreate scenes from the movie where he uses said arm cannon. And if you look in the picture, you'll see he can hold his blade in his hand as opposed to it protruding from his arm like in the movie, which is pretty cool. I just wish the blade could fold away instead of always hanging off his arm like that. It IS able to be removed, but I'm not a fan of taking pieces off unless they're supposed to be removable like his two left arms.

His truck mode is equally as awesome. It's relatively clean and I like how the cannon accessory attaches around the back to hide the legs a little more. It's a very detailed vehicle mode with the grill containing the insignias of his past victims and the large wheels make it so he rolls very easily.

This figure is just incredible and easily among my favourite Studio Series figures ever released. Hasbro just nailed it with this version of Scourge and I'm so glad to have it in my collection. This toy does enjoy that look of confusion when an inferior figure meets a higher power...

Number 3: SS Dark of the Moon Shockwave

This thing is awesome. Shockwave was done dirty in the movie, but his toy does him justice.

DOTM Shockwave has one of my favourite designs in all of Transformers, not just the live-action movies, so of course I wasn't going to waste any time getting this toy. A heavy retool of the ROTF Megatron figure earlier, this toy is an incredible depiction of DOTM Shockwave. He looks incredibly movie accurate from the black and dark purple colour scheme to his enormous arm cannon and his eerie looking head sculpt with trademark single optic. I'd say he's one of the most movie accurate looking figures in the whole of Studio Series. He's very posable too and it's easy to get some great displays of him. It's always fun posing him looking as if he's ready to shoot with his large cannon. I do wish the blade on his left arm wasn't rubber. It would've been better if it was plastic to me, but that's just me. Everything else is just fine and this figure just always looks great when on display.

The vehicle mode is pretty pants though. It barely even looks like a vehicle, it just looks like Shockwave folded up with treads added to him to make him vaguely resemble a tank. I just display him in his robot mode all the time because he looks so much better that way.

With a toy that captures Shockwave's DOTM appearance this magnificently and is also fully posable, looks very menacing and makes a great display piece, the lacklustre vehicle mode doesn't detract from it at all. It was only logical that this toy was going to be in my collection...

Number 2: SS86 Dinobots

Can't pick a favourite here, so I've got to go with all five.

The Studio Series 86 Dinobot toys are in a league of their own, I kid you not. It still astounds me how all five of these toys are such spot-o recreations of their original G1 selves from their rather blocky proportions in dinosaur mode to their colour schemes and many of their trademark features such as Grimlock's long T-Rex arms, Snarl's large frill and horns and much more. Now you may have noticed in the picture Slug and Snarl are not in their G1 colours, but their G2 colours instead. That's because the original Slug was proving too expensive on its own and the G2 colours of him and Snarl were good enough for me, so it saved me a lot of money by just buying their Age of the Primes G2 colour re-release twin pack. As is, these toys are fantastic regardless of their colours. Their dino modes are awesome with each one looking recognizable as what species they are and with them being Leader Class figures, they look appropriately big and powerful like the dinos they turn into. Sludge, the Apatosaurus one, looks the best to me and I love how they even made it so his neck can move up and down. While they're not super posable in dino mode, they still make for great displays...

...as do their equally as fantastic robot modes. All five of them look very powerful and stocky, suggesting a powerhouse team that you don't want to mess with. All of them have great articulation and you can get some great poses with these guys. While Sludge has the best dino mode, I feel Grimlock has the best robot mode. He's very accurate to his G1 appearance and I love how powerful he looks, and also his eye-catching silver, red and gold colours. But they all look great in robot mode in my eyes. They're well articulated, well detailed, very accurate to their animated appearances and they hold together splendidly. I especially love posing them in a big battle with a huge Decepticon, namely Devastator in his combined form to recreate their battle from the movie.

Me Media Man love Studio Series Dinobot toys! Me Media Man declare them king! King of Studio Series line!

Well, almost. These guys would've been Number 1, if it weren't for these guys...

And my Number 1 Favourite Studio Series toy, or in this case favourite Studio Series TOYS are...the SS86 Constructicons

I'll always prefer the ROTF version of Devastator design wise, but when it comes to the toys? The G1 Devastator design translates a lot better into toy form and we get probably the best combiner in all of Transformers thus far.

What else needs saying about these guys? The Studio Series 86 Constructicons are utterly fantastic toys from top to bottom. While I've never been a fan of their bright green and dark purple colour scheme (seriously, why not make them all distinctly coloured instead of them all looking the same), I like how each Constructicon still looks visually distinct from one another and you can tell them apart even if their colours might cause them to blend together. Each one is decently posable and has something unique about them from Scrapper's shovel behind his head to Bonecrusher's stocky appearance to Long Haul looking like a proper brute and more. While neither of them have waist articulation they all have great articulation everywhere else with ankle tilts, knee bends and everything. Appearance wise, they're all very accurate to their G1 selves with much of their trademarks included. If I had to rank them from best to worst in terms of robot modes, I'd rank them as so:

1: Scrapper

2: Long Haul

3: Scavenger

4: Mixmaster

5: Hook

6: Bonecrusher

And even then, that's not to say any of the robot modes are bad. Bonecrusher could've done with bigger arms though.

Their vehicle modes are also great too with each one looking like a powerful construction vehicle that can do a lot of heavy duty and carry out all the big tasks a construction site may require. It is rather silly how Scavenger and Bonecrusher have no wheels though. Scrapper, Hook, Long Haul and Mixmaster look the best in vehicle mode and Scrapper, Hook and Scavenger have the most play value as they have articulated vehicle parts to play with like Scrapper's shovel, Hook's crane arm and Scavenger's arm. Long Haul also comes with a trailer he can pull, cause why not? Long Haul's always being used to pull stuff about. But the trailer is necessary to include for these guys...

...for the crowning moment of awesome with this batch isn't how they are individually...but when they combine into one. Prepare for devastation, for they all come together to form the mighty Devastator! Studio Series 86 Devastator is in my mind, hands down, the BEST combiner we've EVER had in the history of the franchise. Not only does this Devastator look incredibly spot on to his animation model, but he looks very imposing when displayed against other Transformers figures. He is huge in his combined mode, and unlike a lot of combiner toys, he's extremely solid and holds together excellently. He's not floppy in the slightest, nor do any of his components feel too heavy for him. He also looks very clean too with very little kibble all over him. It's almost easy to forget he's a combiner and can split into six parts! The transformation for his combined mode is uniquely handled, especially the way Hook and Long Haul form the torso and the trailer forms the lower legs while also coming with his iconic purple chest plate and the lower arms to attach to Scavenger and Bonecrusher. Devastator is also very well articulated too. He even has a waist swivel, which all his components lack!

It's especially awesome and very fun to pose this guy fighting other combiners like Age of the Primes Superion. You get a true clash of the titans with these guys.

Studio Series 86 Devastator is just the complete package. He's a combiner, which is always fun, his individual components are great figures by themselves, his combined form is very stable and very articulated, he looks spot on to his classic G1 appearance and he's just a lot of fun to play and display with. Hasbro are going to have a hard time topping this toy in terms of combiners. These guys are my favourite Studio Series figures for representing the line the best and also having the most amount of play features for me. They're accurate to the movie they're from, they look great in robot and vehicle mode and they combine together into the best combiner toy we've ever had in this franchise. The Studio Series 86 Constructicons, my Number 1 Favourite Studio Series figures...

And that's all I have for this list. I hope you enjoyed it and I invite you all to share your thoughts down below. Do you have any favourite Studio Series Transformers toys? Which ones would make YOUR list? I'd love to hear all about it.

Join me next time as I review The Mandalorian and Grogu. See you then media fans!

Honourable Mentions

SS ROTF Scavenger

SS ROTF Sideways

SS ROTF Hightower

SS 86 Ratchet

SS 86 Jazz

SS86 Perceptor

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