Two days before Charticon, Diecast tells the saga of his San Diego Comic-Con Metroplex, from a lost FedEx delivery to electronics he fixed himself. Toys R Us exclusives keep coming, with a Supreme Starscream and a Year of the Horse Optimus Prime in the Platinum Edition line. Toy World’s Brainstorm homage and a pricey Super Fire Convoy reissue leave the crew cold. The new Generations Deluxes get early impressions, and Rob and Exvee review Robots in Disguise #20.
News
Masterpiece Soundwave and Acid Storm Available for Store Pickup
Toys R Us now offers Masterpiece Soundwave and Acid Storm for store pickup, a first for a Transformers item there. Don says the distribution center for his area still shows none, with over 1,000 pending. Another host lives near many stores and has seen them arrive, but has not caught one online yet. [Source: not found]
Toys R Us Platinum Edition Supreme Starscream and Year of the Horse Optimus Prime
Toys R Us announced a Chinese New Year Supreme Starscream, the giant Cybertron figure, as a Platinum Edition exclusive. A Year of the Horse Optimus Prime, possibly based on MP-10, is also coming. The crew calls the Cybertron Starscream a terrible toy. [Source: not found]
Masterpiece Grimlock and Jetfire Reissues Are Convention Exclusives
The Masterpiece Grimlock reissue and the Asian Jetfire appear to be exclusives for a Hong Kong convention. One host who missed the original Grimlock hopes for a wider release, since aftermarket prices are high. [Source: not found]
Transformazing Toys’ Pandora’s Box Drops the Box
Transformazing Toys’ Pandora’s Box upgrade for Prime Ultra Magnus will no longer include its trailer. The price falls from about $170 to $80 or $90 for the armor alone. One host is not satisfied at that price and suggests hunting for Fansproject’s City Commander armor instead. Don knows a fan whose knockoff City Commander fits fine with a little foam. [Source: not found]
Full-Color Images of Toy World’s Brainstorm
Toy World’s Brainstorm homage appears in color for the first time. Brian loves Brainstorm, but the figure does not click for him. The crew calls the jet mode too much like an X-wing and the face too alien. Don says Fansproject’s homages reinvent transformations while keeping the look of the original. [Source: not found]
Super Fire Convoy Reissue Listed at $150
Big Bad Toy Store lists a possible Super Fire Convoy reissue at $150, though it is not confirmed. The crew calls that far too much for a toy that has not aged well. One host disagrees and loves his Black Fire Convoy. [Source: not found]
Generations Deluxe First Impressions
The crew compares the new Generations Deluxes: Orion Pax, Trailcutter, Megatron and Bumblebee. Trailcutter is intuitive, though its packed-in comic drops the scene where Whirl renames him. Orion Pax has a great robot mode but a loose, imprecise vehicle mode. One host calls Bumblebee a bigger Scout Windcharger with uneven yellow paint. Megatron’s soft joints make it the least liked, though the flying wing mode is impressively thin. A third-party Trailcutter kit adds open hands and a force field. [Source: not found]
Diecast’s Comic-Con Metroplex
FedEx marked Diecast’s San Diego Comic-Con Metroplex undeliverable, then dropped it off on a Sunday. He spent three and a half hours applying stickers, then found the lights and sounds dead. Hasbro Toy Shop offered only a refund. He found extra solder touching the battery cover, trimmed the plastic and got it working. He thinks the chrome breaks up the white, so the Comic-Con version was worth about $70 more to him. Retail Metroplex is $125 with free shipping at Hasbro Toy Shop, about $112 with code COMIC2013. Don calls it a great figure but not a must-have. Another host says it will not feel real until he sees one in person.
Comic Review: Robots in Disguise #20
Rob and Exvee review Three Monologues, an issue of Starscream running Iacon. He talks to the dead Metalhawk, to Megatron kept in a display case, and to Wheeljack under repair. Scoop is jailed for sabotage he did not commit, and Rattrap plays a big role. The reviewers love how quickly the crowd’s support fades once the power goes out. They note Andrew Griffith designed Flatline so a future toy could come from the Skids mold. Starscream’s new body is due tomorrow, the same day Dark Cybertron begins.
Charticon
Brian, Diecast, Rob and Exvee head to Charticon in Charlotte, while Don has to work. The live panel will be posted as a show afterward. Aimee is at Auto Assembly in the UK this week.
What We Got This Week
Diecast
Diecast got the San Diego Comic-Con Metroplex and had to repair its electronics.
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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