New Striker Optimus Prime Review courtesy of TFW2005

Thanks to TFW'S Brave Max we now have a review of the Takara Striker Optimus Prime. You can see it here or read below as I have mirrored the entire review.  

Yep. His box just says "Striker Optimus". Go figure.
I didn't see another thread in here for this guy, so since mine showed up I took a few pics.
First off, packaging.
Packaging

Pretty standard Japanese-flavored DOTM packaging. I don't think it's any bigger than a normal leader-class box. The pictures are very crisp and clear, if you're into that sort of thing. Box mentions that the guns are a "Gun" and a "Blaster", which combine to form the "Mega Striker"... And that he has a "Shield" which converts to a "Battle Shield". Oh well - for a Japanese-only release I didn't really expect much in the way of creativity.
His bio reads:
Quote:

Mechtech technology allows Optimus Prime to achieve the ultimate in both speed and power while in vehicle battle mode. This amazing prowess on the battlefield earns this edition the special title of "Striker." His primary armament, the Mega Striker is the combination of the Eliminator Gun and Assault Blaster and fires electromagnetically-accelerated bullets. Even his Battle Shield converts its shape, for use in both defense and offense during close combat.

Inserts


Striker Optimus comes with the standard DOTM Mechtech Cards - one for Optimus, and an alteration card for the "Mega Striker" upgrade. His instructions are fairly typical as well - toy catalog, instructions, Takara-Tomy info insert, and a survey campaign insert.
Vehicle Mode

Comparison shots with Jetwing Optimus Prime:


Sorry for the photo quality... My phone sometimes has attacks of the dumbass when taking pictures in my apartment's poor lighting.
It's hard to notice from the pics, but the colors on Striker Optimus are significantly darker all around than Jetwing Optimus' colors. While Striker Optimus is missing the Autobot Sigil from the front windows' visor, all the other decos are the same - just in darker tones. It's actually quite nice. I like it!
Oddly, his "Vehicle Engine Sounds" sound is also slightly different than Jetwing Optimus Prime's - just a little bit lower-pitched. Striker Optimus is largely the same mold as Jetwing Optimus Prime, but lacks the "Buster" smokestacks that combine into a weapon. It's a pity, because if the toy had those it would probably be my definitive movie Optimus Prime (especially after my swords set arrives - more on that later)!
The mold also has a few additional mechtech ports added, notably at the back of the cab section.
One last thing to note is that the new parts can be stored in normal vehicle mode (if awkwardly):

Vehicle Battle Mode
First off, let's attach the new parts to the vehicle mode!
First, you fold the front portion of the shield down, rotate the grill pieces up, and then press the button in the back that released the spring-loaded side-pieces. Sounds complicated, but it takes about two seconds and results in something looking like this:

Here's the back for reference:

The thing secures to Optimus' cab mode headlights via the tabs in the middle of this shot:

Leaving you with this:

Next, begin to transform the smokestacks/side panels like you would for robot mode, except you fold the panels the opposite way from the way you usually would. This results in the smokestack drums being on top, with slots facing forward for you to slide his two small mechtech weapons into, like this:

Here are some shots of the finalized mode:



Here's a comparison with Jetwing Optimus Prime:

Aaaand here he is combined with the Jetwing backpack:



Basically, the new parts integrate really well with the vehicle mode. So well, in fact, that it almost feels like the toy was designed with this upgrade in mind. All parts hold on quite well, and nothing feels too forced. The "storage" mode is a little lame, but if one thing had to suffer I'm glad that's what they chose to skimp on. After all, who would display this in storage mode anyways?
I like that they kept compatibility with the Jetwing backpack, but I'm a little sad they couldn't find a way to keep the "Buster" combining smokestacks. Oh well - I suppose they felt he had enough guns as it was!
Robot Mode
First, some pics of the guns and shield.
Here's the back of the shield, showing how it connects in vehicle and robot form:

Here's the front of the shield:

The guns in individual extended mode:


The guns in combined mode:

Striker Optimus' smokestacks. I don't have ROTF Prime with me in Japan, so I'm not sure if the original mold had the slots for the two mechtech weapons... I'd guess not?

Some random shots of robot mode:




The darker colors look amazing on Optimus, and the shield (despite being a jumble of random parts in this mode) manages to feel like a riot shield, which is pretty awesome in my book. The pegs on the combined mechtech gun are a little short, sadly, which means the gun feels perched in his hand rather than placed there, and can be knocked out rather easily. In this mode, I feel like the "Buster" cannon really did a better job than the new mechtech combined gun. The new gun just isn't as threatening somehow.
Worth noting? The voice chip is different for this release. Optimus now says, "The Decepticons must be stopped!" in what sounds like Peter Cullen's voice. Interesting that they waited until now to change it... (At least, I don't think any of the other versions of this mold that I have have anything but the "I am Optimus Prime!" voice clip from ROTF...)
Final Thoughts
If you need a movie Optimus, this is a good one to get. The added play value of the "Striker" parts is well worth the price of admission. That being said, I paid retail Japanese prices, and am being paid in yen these days, so I know the value proposition might be a little different for those of you in the states. The new voice clip is also a small incentive to get this release over another version.
The lack of "Buster" smokestacks is one of two downsides of this release. For me, I'm glad I have at least one version of the mold with those babies, because they really are the best gun yet for ROTF Prime.
The other downside, of course, is the lack of any form of blades. Fortunately, TakaraTomy saw fit to remedy that... Sort of. There's a campaign in Japan at the moment for a free set of detachable blades for Striker Optimus if you spend more than 3000 yen at Toys R Us. BBTS has that set up for $50 (last time I checked), so this is remediable if money is no object. I have a set coming to me from a friend in Japan, and will add pictures once I get them.
Please feel free to request any pics I've skipped - I threw this together rather quickly!