Top 5 most wanted updated Transformers Armada figures vol 2

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I am living an absolute dream as a Transformers: Armada fan! I grew up on these characters and designs, I grew up hoping for figures like we're getting nowadays, and Hasbro has spoiled me. Starscream is A+, Hot Shot is probably the weakest of the group but still nice to have, Leader Class Megatron BLOWS AWAY the previous Titans Returns attempt at an update, Armada Optimus in the Commander Class slot won the fan poll for best figure of 2023 which is a deserved title, and holy crap we are getting a freaking Titan Class Tidal Wave which I have dreamt about since high school!! I don't know how to express my joy and excitement aside from saying I'm so ready for even more, and we know we're getting Wheeljack after that suspiciously familiar looking new retool of the Shattered Glass Sideswipe mold (though the door wings of the Back to the Future collab would've been a perfect recreation of Wheeljack's design). So with Armada being one of the universes that Hasbro has been nailing perfectly in the past couple years, this is my updated list of my wanted figures from my childhood series!

Honorable Mentions: Thrust and Powerlinx Starscream

Coming in as honorable mentions are two characters/designs from the series I am very eager to get checked off in the line! Thrust is one of my all time favorite Transformers characters, and a great instance where I think a newer version of the namesake outshines the original G1 interpretation. Armada Thrust started out as such a cocky know-it-all only to be reduced to a sniveling brat whittled down by constant losses to the point that he turned on the Decepticon cause for his own gain! The Powerlinx Hot Shot figure we got seemed to have a tease for Thrust in the background; however, based on that image it was just an Earthrise Starscream with a new head and minor retooling. Since it has been so long and we haven't seen that released I truly hope Hasbro has changed their minds on that because it is too big a mold, doesn't match Thrust at all, and honestly if they wanted to re-use a mold Needlenose would be much closer to Thrust's design. So with my boy potentially being disgraced with a subpar retool, he is dropping to honorable mention status. On the other hand, Starscream's mold is spectacular and a beautiful update to my personal favorite iteration of the character by far. His blue and red transformation later on is just as iconic for being his look during the climax of the series, and his heartbreaking final scenes. I only hope that this release would include his Minicon, Swindle, just as Hot Shot's Powerlinx release gave us Jolt!

5. Jetfire

Getting into the meat and bones of my new list, I'm starting off with Autobot! The show has so many incredible Decepticon characters that they dominated my list the first time around, but with so many now checked off it is a chance for Autobots to appear in my list! Jetfire was a fantastic addition to the cast, with a bright personality that still housed a serious side for his role as second in command of the faction. As pictured above, he also had the ability to combine with Optimus Prime which is a feature I'm fully expecting to see at some point! The Optimus Prime figure has a port on his chest where you can remove his Autobot logo, but otherwise it serves no function, though I'd bet it is a port intended to be used for an eventual combination with Jetfire!

4. Red Alert

We got both Hot Shot and Optimus Prime, leaving Red Alert as the third and currently missing member of the core trio of Autobots who we started the series with. His Robocop design motifs are obvious, and I loved his deadpan personality that really offset him from the other plucky Autobot cast. There is an obvious Powerlinx repaint that can be used to get more mileage out of the mold as well, though his Powerlinx colors aren't ones I enjoy near as much as Galvatron, Starscream, or Hot Shot's.

3. Demolisher

Megatron and Starscream are only half of the original core Decepticon team that the show started off with. Filling the role of Beast War's dimwitted loyal soldier this time around was Demolisher, a loyal-to-a-fault soldier who followed Megatron into battle without hesitation, and who also found great irritation with the antics of fellow soldiers like Cyclonus. I loved his original action figure, with such a unique and wacky tank mode, and just like Red Alert this guy has a Powerlinx repaint that Hasbro could cash in on. Not only that, but his color scheme from Energon which I don't mind either!

2. Cyclonus

Speaking of Cyclonus, this was one of the most entertaining characters in the series. A constant barrage of trash talking, quippy remarks, and unbridled humor, this guy never took anything seriously and lived for any entertainment he could find, even if it was in-fighting between his comrades. One of my favorites lines was delivered by him after Demolisher seeks his help in stopping a battle between Starscream and Megatron, citing that it was hurting team "morale." To which Cyclonus remarks: "Morale? When have we ever had any morale here?!"

1. Sideways

Rivaling Tidal Wave and Starscream for my favorite all time Armada character has always been Sideways, the tricky bot with a double agenda who played both sides of the war till the very end. Flip flopping between Autobot and Decepticons, Sideways turned out to be aligned with neither of them in a great plot twist of his true allegiance and existence. I would absolutely go for him at a voyager price point in order to get both of his Minicons packed in with him, along with being able to transform them both in either of the heads he sported during his times on either side of the war.