Jim Sorenson says Transformers Legacy, his 300-page book of G1 and G2 package art, is 99% done and due April 30. The Age of Extinction Super Bowl teaser puts Optimus Prime on Grimlock’s back, and even Brian is won over by that shot. Shout! Factory announces complete-series DVDs for Armada, Energon and Animated, and Mr. Potato Head gets a Grimlock. Fans Toys Scoria shows its colors, and the exclusive Masterpiece Bluestreak turns out to be blue.
This Week in History
In 1988, the Headmasters episode known as I Risk My Life for Earth premiered in Japan. Brian has watched its infamous English dub dozens of times. His favorite line has Spike, dubbed Sparkle, telling his son that boys can cry, but not out loud.
News
Age of Extinction Super Bowl Teaser
The crew splits on the Super Bowl teaser. Diecast likes the airborne green Corvette and notes Grimlock towers over Optimus Prime. Brian, no fan of the movies, says Optimus riding Grimlock is awesome and may make the film fun. Don likes most of it but finds the fast action hard to follow, so he is going in with zero expectations. [Source: not found]
TakaraTomy’s Lost Age Optimus Prime Mockup
TakaraTomy will release the same Leader Optimus Prime as The Lost Age. The mockup looks more muted than the US release, with silver smokestacks. The crew notes the US version has unpainted weapons, though both have rubber wheels. They count about ten real steps. The package shows only Level 1, and Diecast will ask Hasbro at Toy Fair whether Generations keeps the level system. [Source: not found]
Shout! Factory Announces Armada, Energon and Animated Complete Series
Shout! Factory will release Transformers Armada: The Complete Series, eight discs for about $45 with a lithograph, in March. Energon follows in May. The Transformers Animated complete series is about $35 on six discs. A separate Season 3 set is about $15 for fans who own the first two. The crew wonders about Blu-ray. [Source: not found]
Kre-O Webcomic Issue 12
TakaraTomy’s Kre-O webcomic reaches issue 12. Brian loves the cute art even without an English version. [Source: not found]
TakaraTomy Repaints Fall of Cybertron Grimlock as Fireblast Grimlock
TakaraTomy is repainting Fall of Cybertron Grimlock as Fireblast Grimlock. The crew calls it garish but likable. Don explains that the scheme comes from an Animated Fireblast Grimlock that was planned but never released. [Source: not found]
Mr. Potato Head Grimlock Three-Pack
A Mr. Potato Head Grimlock is coming in a three-pack with Optimus Prime and Bumblebee. The crew calls it adorable, and several hosts plan to buy it. [Source: not found]
Color Images of Fans Toys Scoria
Fans Toys shows color images of Scoria, its not-Slag. The crew calls it gorgeous. One host still finds it too tall next to Masterpiece Grimlock, while another is happy to display it in dino mode. Images show alternate heads, and the crew hopes for a black head option. [Source: not found]
Exclusive Masterpiece Bluestreak Is Blue
The exclusive Masterpiece Bluestreak is blue, in what the crew reads as Diaclone colors, and it includes missiles. One host says Big Bad Toy Store lists it at about $85. Another host owns Tigertrack and paid about $90 for it. [Source: not found]
Q&A with Rob Springer
Computron2, Bailey, asks why there is no Transformers online game like Marvel Heroes. Rob says licensees make these games, and Transformers Universe from Jagex has dragged on and switched from an MMO to a MOBA. He notes the Transformers Legends mobile card game already exists, along with unofficial knockoffs.
Interview: Jim Sorenson on Transformers Legacy
Jim Sorenson says Transformers Legacy is about 99% done, with an April 30 target and a $50 price. It covers G1 and G2 package art from the US and G1 from Japan, with a chapter of unused art. He found a Powermaster test illustration that he believes explains several Transformers wiki errors, and US box art for individual Multiforce figures.
Hasbro and TakaraTomy archives supplied 50 to 60 percent of the art, and fans filled most remaining gaps. Jim tracked down nine original illustrators for essays and interviews. He chose one 300-page volume over two smaller books. He would love to cover later eras or G.I. Joe if sales justify it, and he is writing brand-history articles for the Collectors Club magazine.
Comic Review: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8
The comic reviewers recap the latest ReGeneration One, then turn to More Than Meets the Eye #26. They read Megatron’s arc as setup for the Autobot-badged Megatron on an upcoming cover. Rodimus confesses the Overlord affair and keeps command by a narrow vote, which Orion Pax criticizes. They like Prowl’s recovery and Bumblebee’s scene with Megatron.
Windblade debuts leading a group of female Autobots caring for Metroplex. The reviewers think the Titans’ splash page fails to make them look giant. They would rather see artists like James Raiz, Robert Gill or Matt Frank draw it.
Toy Fair 2014 Preview
Diecast will attend the Hasbro Toy Fair event on February 15 with Anthony from TFU.info, and the show will stream live. One host hopes for a Headmaster Arcee. The crew also expects news on Kre-O and Construct-Bots and guesses at a Necrotitan. Brian runs through a busy convention year, including Joelanta, SavCon, TFcon and OmegaCon.
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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