John DeLuna reports that TransTech has been scrapped and will never reach shelves. He also finds the first finished Strika and Stealth Cheetor toys on bwtf.com disappointing. Brave Maximus gets two reviews: Matrix Prime rates the Fortress Maximus repaint a 7, and Brian Kilby prefers Metroplex and Fort Max’s original colors. Goldimus Prime gives Hammer Strike a 5 for its handless robot mode, while the tank drone is called the best Basic yet.

News

TransTech Is Dead

John DeLuna says it is now clear on alt.toys.transformers, and long known to those in the know, that TransTech has been scrapped as the line after Beast Machines. It never reached the prototype stage, and while the next line may share toys or names, it won’t be called TransTech. [Source: not found]

First Look at Finished Strika and Stealth Cheetor

Ben Yee’s bwtf.com has pictures of the finished Strika and Stealth Cheetor toys, and John thinks both look terrible. Stealth Cheetor’s black with gold spots hides all his detail, and a third Deluxe-sized Cheetor feels like overkill. Strika’s vehicle mode is awesome, but her robot arms are as gimpy as feared, and her gold, dark blue and silver colors aren’t show-accurate. John suspects a show-colored repaint will follow. [Source: not found]

Hasbro Direct Ravage Rumor

Early catalog pictures John has seen show a black repaint of Transmetal 2 Cheetor from Hasbro Direct, likely to be released as Ravage. He calls Hasbro Direct cheap and warns it might even keep the Cheetor name and packaging. [Source: not found]

Repainted Beast Riders at the Hasbro Store

Repainted Beast Riders briefly turned up at the Hasbro company store, apparently color tests packaged and sold off. [Source: not found]

Show Notes From Brian

Brian Kilby explains that last week’s show was skipped. He asks alt.toys.transformers posters to keep politics and religion off the group after a partisan thread blew up. Trivia moves to the start of the show, and listeners email the episode title to brian@tfradio.com.

Toy Review: Transmetal 2 Cheetor

Goldimus Prime sums up Transmetal 2 Cheetor in one line: “utter, total, complete crap on a stick.”

Toy Reviews: Hammer Strike and Tank Drone

The Computer, impersonating Rattrap007, reviews two upcoming Basics from Big Bad Toy Store. Hammer Strike is a six-inch hammerhead shark with a spark-button blade gimmick, and his 4.5-inch robot lacks hands. He gets a 7. The tank drone is dead-on show-accurate in both modes and called the best Beast Machines toy yet, earning a 9.5.

Toy Review: Brave Maximus

The Computer reads Matrix Prime’s review of Brave Maximus, Takara’s Car Robots repaint of G1 Fortress Maximus. Brave is the Cerebros counterpart and Plasma the Spike counterpart, and none of the original accessories are included. The 55-centimeter robot has die-cast metal in the left leg and waist. Battleship mode is a simple reconfiguration, and the painted lit-window city mode looks great, even with a cheap playmat printed on the instructions. Matrix Prime paid $189 and rates him a 7.

Brian’s Brave Maximus Thoughts

Brian Kilby paid $143 after shipping through an eBay Dutch auction. The box is ordinary, and opening it confirms how stripped-down the toy is: Brave, Plasma, two ramps, Brave’s handgun and the radar dish. He prefers Fortress Maximus’s colors and finds Metroplex the better city, though battleship mode is his favorite. To him Brave Maximus is just another Takara repaint, impressive mostly for his size.

Bad Poet’s Corner

Two poems: one about a robot made from a bucket, and “The Car Brothers.”

Toy Review: Hammer Strike

Goldimus Prime gives Hammer Strike a full review. The six-inch hammerhead has a nice tan, translucent orange, blue and red scheme and four points of articulation. The robot mode inherits the McDonald’s Jetstorm’s arms, meaning no hands, and his neck joint isn’t shown in the instructions. His hammer weapon can only swing side to side. Goldimus can’t recommend him and rates him 5 out of 10.

Radio Free Cybertron: The Transformers Podcast

Brian Kilby

Radio Free Cybertron is the world's first and oldest toy and action figure podcast — broadcasting from the heart of the Transformers fan community since October 1999. What started as a scrappy fan show has grown into an institution, with nearly 1,000 episodes and over 25 years of coverage. Every week, host Brian Kilby and the RFC crew dig into the latest Transformers news, toy reveals, collecting, and everything hitting shelves from Hasbro, Takara, and beyond. No fluff, no hype — just informed, passionate collectors who have been doing this longer than anyone else on the planet. The original. The longest running. Till all are one.

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