soundwave- still superior

So I bought this a week or two ago. I opened it tonight, and it's one of the few purchases that made me go "cool" as soon as I opened it. It's Soundwave from the Revenge of the Fallen toyline.

I had a hell of a time finding it. No local retailer bothered stocking the preview toys until a week after the release of the regular line, so I was Soundwave-less for like three weeks, which in this internet age, is like a lifetime. Memes rise and fall in less time, for instance.

Apparently, 'Wave is a satellite and a space cruiser in addition to his robot form. I really can't tell one from the other, so I'm just going to assume his true form is the satellite, since that keeps with Soundwave's function while still making him different from Frenzy in the first movie, who ostensibly was Soundwave in all but name. (Of course, had the producers used Soundwave's name for Frenzy, I would still be up in arms about it, but I'm an ornery fanboy who is prone to such things.)

There's a few visual cues that let you know who this character is just by looking at him. The head, while much more alien than the G1 version, is very recognizable as Soundwave. Then there's a gold border on his chest. Plus there's the Ravage missile, which is that dildo-looking thing on the right in the stock picture I stole. But beyond that, it's all-new, somewhat-menacing.

I wonder about his scale- is Deluxe big enough? But I wonder how long he'll be in the movie, if at all. If it's just a shot, I really don't see the need for Hasbro to make Soundwave a Voyager class toy. At any rate, I'm actually glad to see one of G1's most iconic dudes get some face time in the movies. I remember in the early days of the first movie's production, hearing that the character that became known as Blackout was going to be Soundwave at one point (and the fact that he carried Scorponok around lends some credence to this) but it was decided that Soundwave would be saved for later, and here he is.