All Hail Lord Starscream; Ruler of the Decepticons and Emperor of Cybertron.

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As Hasbro rolled out its toy line based on the upcoming Transformers movie, they went a different route with their basic-sized figures than their larger toys. Instead of vehicles, these figures would take the form of ordinary, everyday items. Dubbed "Real Gear," these were items of our world brought to life by energy from the Allspark Cube. One of the first offerings in the series is a small Decepticon named Booster X10, who bears a striking resemblance to a familiar character from the past.

Booster X10's alt mode is that of a small MP3 player with a wireless earphone, though it could probably be considered a type of listening device. The player is molded in bright red with black paint on the edges and on the buttons. Clear orange plastic has been used for the screen. Silver is used around the buttons. The top of the earphone is molded in red while the bottom portion and "antenna" has been made out of black plastic. Silver has been painted onto the end of the antenna. The ear hook is made out of soft black rubber and is attached to the right side of the device. A small silver Decepticon insignia has been printed the center of the earphone and the words "Booster X10" have been printed in black at the base.

There's not much you can do with Booster while he's in this form. One can hook the earphone to an ear and that's about it. I should note that the hook would probably fit better on a child's ear than an adult's, but it's still fun to imagine that you're listening to your favorite tunes or eavesdropping on a private conversation. An observant owner will notice that the antenna on the earphone has been sculpted to look like the barrel of a gun or small cannon. It would be easy for a kid or kid at heart the see this as a small hand weapon, similar to the hand phasers in the Star Trek series. However, this is the one piece that might be easy to loose at some point.

Booster X10's conversion process as "quick", a two out of four and he's fairly easy to transform. You might not need the instructions even for the first conversion, but I still suggest reading them before making the attempt. The Real Gear figures are too small to support the "automorph technology" found on their larger counterparts.

Booster X10's alt mode is that of robotic bird that stands under two inches high and a wingspan of up to seven inches at the widest point. All the colors of his MP3 player mode carry over into this mode, with more silver and black on the head and neck as well as yellow for his optics and beak. A small purple and silver outlined Decepticon insignia has been stamped in the middle of his head. Clear orange plastic is used for the "feathers" under the tail and in the wings.

Younger fans may just think Booster X10 is a cool little character, but older enthusiasts and those a little more familiar with the history of the franchise may find him strangely familiar. Booster bears a strong resemblance to the classic character Laserbeak and it's probably what the designers had in mind for the character. Some may even take to calling the toy "Laserbeak" out of personal preference.

Booster has thirteen points of articulation, three on each leg, one on each wing shoulder, one in each wing elbow, two joints which attach the wings to the body, and one at the base of the neck. The one on the head simply tilts the head side to side, as if he's regarding something, and the wings can move up and down. The earphone piece turns into the figure's back-mounted cannon, useful for strafing unsuspecting opponents. It is possible to keep the weapon off him, as if he left it behind to let his allies listen in to whatever he's recording, but he looks kind of strange without it.

Booster X10 is a wonderful figure for his class and is a good homage to a G1 character. He's not perfect, especially since his earphone cannon can easily be lost, but he has a lot of play value for the intended audience. Highly recommended.

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