It’s 2010. Hasbro has re-branded its Universe line into Transformers: Generations, a platform from which to release what it calls “legacy” characters from all generations of Transformers.

One of the first Transformers from this range is the ever-popular Bumblebee. And this time he’s part of the oldest generation of all, and the one Transformers collectors have been intrigued about for more than 25 years: the ancient civil war on Cybertron.

Problem: Update Soundwave—the Decepticon’s communications master—from a 1970s tape recorder to something contemporary that’s about the size of a normal Transformer, without the need for inexplicable growing/shrinking while transforming. Solution: Make Soundwave a satellite. The very idea is a sub-orbital inspiration!

The Megatron that appears in the “Transformers (2007)” film is an intelligent, witty and lustrous alien robot with more pressing things on his mind than reformatting into an “earthen mode”. In motion, his robot form is regal, menacing and fluid, and in jet form he is sleek and aerodynamic.

Just like the other five original Autobot Pretenders, Sky High’s Shell resembles a human. Rather than the somewhat generic designs of the first wave Autobots, Sky High’s Shell displays a bird-like (possibly based on an eagle) moulded motif. The Shell itself is cast in red plastic with painted details.

Lander’s Pretender shell is literally just that: A hollow carapace within which a weirdly proportioned, spindly robot can be placed. Everything else has been scooped out to make space for the robot. You also get a helmet, a belt, a sword and a (non-firing) rifle. No change of clothes for a spontaneous weekend away to the seaside, however.