HasCon is coming back, but not until September 2019, and the Radio Free Cybertron crew weighs what the first show taught Hasbro. A Masterpiece-style Last Knight Hot Rod prototype suggests third parties are turning to the movie designs. Iron Factory reveals its Decepticon Justice Division combiner, and Takara’s Legends Kickback, Brawn and Trigger Happy appear in hand. The crew also names this year’s holiday toy drive: The Last Knight Before Christmas.
The Last Knight Before Christmas Toy Drive
The show’s yearly Operation B-Hive drive returns, though there are hardly any Bumblebee toys on shelves this year. Brian asks listeners to buy Transformers off store shelves and donate them to Toys for Tots or a similar charity. Tag the show in a photo of your donation. Rob emails in the winning name: The Last Knight Before Christmas.
This Week in History
In 1988, the Super-God Masterforce episode “God Ginrai: Showdown on the Surface of the Moon” premiered in Japan. The show covered it in an RFC Rewind. In November 1983, Takara granted Hasbro the license to sell its Diaclone and Micro Change toys in the US as The Transformers. In 1998, the Beast Wars episode “Deep Metal” premiered, and the crew celebrates Depth Charge as the line’s grittiest hero.
News
HasCon 2019: Official Details for Semi-Annual Convention
HasCon returns September 6 to 8, 2019, at the Rhode Island Convention Center and Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Brian loves TFcon but misses having Hasbro there now that BotCon is gone. Diecast likes the venue but finds it too far northeast for most of the US. The crew would rethink the costly concerts and room assignments. They also say the Transformers panel should not compete with the exclusives store opening. [Source: TFormers]
The Last Knight Hot Rod Movie MP Style Figure Prototype Shown
The prototype is tied to a name, TF Evo, that one host could not find on any earlier figures. One host says third parties are clearly moving to movie designs, where the money is in Asia. He has pre-ordered Unique Toys’ movie Optimus Prime and praises their Lockdown. [Source: TFormers]
Hero-X Transformers Generations 2018 Book Cover Revealed
The cover shows upcoming figures, but no sign of an exclusive order form. Chris’s wild guess is a Bludgeon on the Hardhead mold, as seen in an e-Hobby comic. [Source: TFormers]
Zeta Toys Unofficial MP-Scaled Superion: First Look at Combined Form
The crew finds it well balanced but boring. One host says Combiner Wars Superion is as good as Superion will ever get. [Source: TFormers]
Iron Factory Reveals DJD Combiner for 2018! IF EX-31 Dubhe, 32 Phecda, 33 Mizar, 34 Alkaid, 35 Merak
One host calls it ridiculous and wonderful, with Tesarus as the gun. The full set could top $200. One host will finish his Mastermind Creations DJD first, and another is simply over the DJD. [Source: TFormers]
Chris already has Trigger Happy and has a gallery coming. The crew loves Brawn and Repugnus. The Takara Insecticons match each other even less than Hasbro’s, so the crew still expects a matched three-pack someday. [Source: TFormers]
Fansproject Rises From the Grave for One Last Dinobot-Shaped Gasp
Chris enjoyed writing the headline, but nobody on the crew plans to buy it. [Source: TFormers]
Toys R Us Bankruptcy Expected to Hurt Hasbro’s Holiday Earnings
Hasbro posted a good third quarter. The crew expects the Toys “R” Us situation to dent a strong holiday quarter. [Source: TFormers]
This Week on TFormers
Titans Return Slugslinger With Caliburst: TFormers Generations Gallery
Chris looks forward to the Takara version but wanted Hasbro’s for its different guns. [Source: TFormers]
RID Combiner Force Twinferno: TFormers Robots in Disguise Gallery
Chris calls it a nice-looking deco on a not-great toy. [Source: TFormers]
Halloween Horrorcons: The Phantom Transformers Exclusives Condemned to the Grave
Rob wrote about the canceled Halloween Horrorcons set from the first Transformers Universe line. [Source: TFormers]
Comics Review: Optimus Prime Issue #12
Chris reviewed this week’s Optimus Prime. [Source: TFormers]
Comics Review: Lost Light Issue #10, A Flashback to the Better Days of MTMTE
Chris has been cool on Lost Light, but this issue felt like the More Than Meets the Eye he used to enjoy. [Source: TFormers]
LG-EX Legends Grand Maximus Meets Its Goal! Production Moves Forward
Grand Maximus will be made, though Chris believes the pretender shell stretch goal was not reached. [Source: TFormers]
What We Got This Week
Diecast got Toyhax labels for Titans Return Windblade, Full-Tilt and Trypticon’s tower. He also got Fans Toys Coot, an unofficial Masterpiece Kup. He loves the vehicle mode and the Targetmaster, which has a waist swivel, but wishes the chest had more paint.
Matt got Iron Factory’s pocket-size Swindle and Brawl, whose tight tolerances made him pry the legs out. He thinks the combined Bruticus will be the selling point. He ordered from Ages Three and Up and had them on his porch by Saturday.
Chris got Takara Legends Trigger Happy, though he slightly prefers the Hasbro deco. He notes the Blowpipe Targetmaster has a different, more fragile gun mode. He also got Robots in Disguise Combiner Force Twinferno from the Toys “R” Us website with a coupon and reward points. That finishes his Robots in Disguise collection.
Don found a lone spare Titans Return Slugslinger at Toys “R” Us.
Brian had nothing in Transformers this week.
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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Radio Free Cybertron for December 9th 2009
Radio Free Cybertron 705 – Please state the nature of the podcast emergency