KRE-O Transformers: Sentinel Prime

Friday, August 26, 2011

A couple of days ago, I told you about Fan Expo Canada and how you can stop by the Hasbro booth to check out their new line of construction toys called KRE-O. Lucky for me, I got to test one out myself! Some of my friends on Twitter felt pity that I had the difficult task of putting together over 380 pieces but fear not. I came. I built. I conquered.

Now, it's true that where Transformers are concerned, there is more than meets the eye. It was slow, at first, but once I sorted the pieces by colour, then by size, and sent the kids to bed, I found it was much easier. The first page recommends that you do so. Sort by colour and size, that is. (It doesn't mention the kids.) This particular set is called Sentinel Prime, a 2 in 1 construction set that can be built in vehicle (firetruck) mode or robot mode. It's recommended for kids ages 8-14 but everyone knows I'm smarter than a fifth grader. I tackled it anyway. If you didn't catch some of the play-by-play on Twitter, I've put together a little collage of some of the steps along the way.

KRE-O Sentinel Prime Transformer - Vehicle Mode

From very early on, it felt like I was missing a piece. And, unless my son misplaced it, it looks like I may need to print out an order form to replace part number #00045. But it's located underneath the firetruck near the rear so it isn't crucial from a structural standpoint. The instruction manual is printed in colour and clearly shows how to build in each mode. The vehicle mode requires 87 steps whereas the robot mode requires a little over 100! Now you understand why I went with vehicle mode. Plus, my son is crazy about firetrucks. He doesn't need to know that it can be rebuilt into a robot for at least another couple of years, right?

The final result is really cool and took me about and hour and a half, give or take. I think my son will love playing with it. I do foresee issues with the side panels where the ladders are located since they come off easily. I'm thinking I could use the spare parts to better secure these panels. The four KREON figures (SENTINEL PRIME, SOUNDWAVE, THUNDERCRACKER and Fire Chief) are really cute, too. By the way, did you know that KRE-O works with other leading brands? Bonus!

I plan on attending Fan Expo today, barring any severe traffic delays in downtown Toronto. If you plan on coming, stop by booth #304 and if I'm there, come say hello. You can also get your picture taken with Bumble Bee. In the meantime, I'll be giving away not one, but TWO KRE-O prize packs courtesy of Hasbro!

This contest is now closed. The winners have been announced below.

TWO lucky readers will get to try out some seriously cool KRE-O products. Each prize pack, valued at approximately $134.97, will include:

Optimus Prime with Twin Cycles (the most advanced set available!)
Bumblebee
Megatron

That's a sweet prize, I know! So how can you win? By filling out the Rafflecopter form below. Good luck! (If you don't see the form, you might need to click on the words "Read more".)

Disclosure: I was sent a KRE-O Sentinel Prime construction set to help facilitate this review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own.