I really didn’t have high hopes for the Fall of Cybertron Jazz toy when we got the first look some months back.  It looked a little small compared to some other toys (which it is) and for some reason it just looked liked it was lacking.  To be honest my initial opinions about Jazz were pretty mediocre when I first got him out and messed with him, but after playing Fall of Cybertron I’ve got a new found love for this toy.  And I’ll do my best not to bring my love of Jazz in the game into the review.  TRY.

Jazz’s robot mode definitely has some good and bad parts.  While the headsculpt falls under the good category, it’s a bit unfortunate that it’s sunken down into the freaking crater thing that serves is a part of Jazz’s torso.  Some may not mind it, but I really hate the fact that his head is so low in the body.  The shoulder are on a ball joint, and while the articulation on these isn’t the greatest, you can still lift it laterally up about 60 degrees or so, which seems to be about average.

Jazz’s elbows are ratcheted (as is just about every other joint) and do a good job at what they’re supposed to be doing.  The hands are connected to the arms via a ball joint, so thankfully the can be swiveled around.

Unfortunately Jazz lacks any type of waist articulation.  If you’ve played Fall of Cybertron you’ll know that Jazz’s transformation mimics some type of breakdancing.  I REALLY wish that he had some articulation here even if it is uncommon for a scout sized, I mean deluxe sized figure.  The legs attach to the hips via ball joints, and the knees able able to be swiveled around, as well as move up and down via a ratchet joint.  The feet also do have some articulation, and although like Shockwave it’s really just a product of the transformation.  It can be useful for some poses though.  Also ratcheted.  Jazz also comes with a single gun, which is a bit of a let down to be hones.  I would have loved if some type of grappling thing would’ve been included.  Any third party companies want to take on that challenge?

The transformation sequence from alt to robot isn’t very difficult, but I found the one from robot to alt to be a little bit of a pain in the ass.  There’s nothing really complex or out of the ordinary, there just seems to be a lot of pegs you need to snap in simultaneously.  It’s not a deal breaker by any means, I personally just found it to be a little annoying at times.

As far as Jazz looks, he looks pretty damn good.  Of course he’s a hell of a lot smaller than most previous deluxes (which unfortunately seems to be the norm), but he does a pretty good job of conveying his look in Fall of Cybertron, although I do believe most of the blue accents on the toy are actually red in the game.  Mine seems to roll around without any problems as well.  I’d say this is an overall good job by Hasbro, it’s just a bummer that he’s so small.

Overall I think Jazz is a solid toy if you’re in to the Fall of Cybertron toys and game.  I wouldn’t say he’s an overall great toy at all, trust me, but me being the FoC fan that I am, I’ll say that I have grown to like the toy and character a lot more after playing the game.  Sure he’s got his problems and it pretty damn small compared to other deluxes, but I do like this version of Jazz, and I’d still recommend him to anyone who’s been on the fence about purchasing.  Stay smooth…

7.5/10