Admittedly, I never really got into Transformers toys as a kid. I know now that they were pretty darned cool, mind you, but I was and remain largely uninterested in cars, trucks, and planes -- so the fact that most Transformers come packaged in their alternate modes meant that I ignored them along with the Hot Wheels and Micro Machines and Tonka trucks. I've paid those robots in disguise much more attention as an adult collector, but even my current interest in those transforming robots didn't begin until I encountered the Transformatrix Light Up Action figure.

It may not look like much on its simple card with its shiny chrome and characteristic bootleg LED, but who could pass on a fairly faithful rendition of Optimus Prime for $1? Even though I wasn't terribly familiar with the character, I nevertheless recognized him on sight and decided to take his knockoff counterpart home along with the red variant. (There were actually four of them -- the two with the flat-nosed cab seen here and two others with more conventional cabs for torsos.)

I'm not sure if the picture captures it effectively, but this is truly one of the best dollar store toys ever. All we really ask of dollar store toys is that they look okay, don't fall apart right out of the package, and don't give us lead poisoning -- but this sucker actually looks the part (which is fitting, since he borrows several parts from the Japanese Robot Masters figure) and came with two character-appropriate weapons. Even the articulation is decent, what with a swiveling neck and waist, ball-jointed shoulders and hips (they have limited outward range, but still), hinged elbows and knees, and feet that can be posed along their sliding transformation hinge.

And heck, it even transforms! It's a very cheaty transformation -- it's basically the same transformation seen on all other Optimus Primes, except you just pull off the head and arms instead of collapsing them into the cab -- but this thing cost less than even a Spychanger and is the size of a full deluxe. Sacrifices had to be made.

Oh, and remember those weapons? Well, I loved this knockoff so much that I ran out and bought a few legitimate Hasbro Transformers shortly after getting it -- but, disappointingly, none of the Optimus Prime figures I bought came with his classic ion blaster. However, with a little modification, the Transformatrix Prime's weapon will fit just fine in the legitimate figures' hands! So that's two ways this bootleg helped me to appreciate Hasbro's wares -- first by getting me interested in the Transformers line in the first place, then by bringing the look of my Prime figures closer to that of the G1 incarnation I've since grown to love. Not all bootlegs are bad -- and the Transformatrix Light Up Action Figure proves it.

Check out Scary-Crayon for a retro review of this beautiful bootleg!

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Want to see even more bootleg toys? Find past and future editions of Bootleg Tuesday right here.