With Brian on assignment, Jason Kirk hosts, and nearly everyone has Repugnus in hand. TakaraTomy’s Encore Big Convoy reissue arrives in Beast Wars Neo colors, and MP-20+ Wheeljack gets its animation deco. A new Empire image makes the Bumblebee movie look funny and cute, and Studio Series package leaks reveal a Volkswagen Bumblebee. Chris and Diecast open the SDCC Throne of the Primes and Retro Rock Garage Bumblebee sets.
This Week in History
On August 8, 1986, The Transformers: The Movie opened in US theaters. Don saw it in the theater at 16. He says the shuttle massacre shocked him so much that Optimus Prime’s death did not sink in until “Arise, Rodimus Prime.” The crew jokes about why the Junkions could rebuild Ultra Magnus but not Optimus Prime.
News
TF Encore Big Convoy Hi-Res Images of the Beast Wars Neo Colors Reissue
Jason loves the colors, but another host warns the mold is not fun to transform. The robot wears nearly the whole mammoth as armor, which makes him a bit like an Action Master with a wearable partner. The crew calls the 8,000 yen price fair. One host points out that the Universe Nemesis Prime version from 2004 is an alternative on the secondary market, and another says Ultra Mammoth is the best use of the mold. [Source: TFormers]
MP-20+ Wheeljack Hi-Res Official Images
Jason is torn, since he loves Wheeljack and the animation-colored robot mode. He would display it as a robot and keep his other Masterpiece Wheeljack as a car. Two hosts have already preordered. The crew agrees the plain vehicle mode looks like Combiner Wars Wheeljack, which one host fixed with Toyhax labels. [Source: TFormers]
Dengeki Hobby Images: Throne of the Primes, LG-EX Grotusque and Repugnus, MP-20+ Wheeljack
TakaraTomy’s Throne of the Primes looks functionally identical to the SDCC exclusive, so it is a second chance for fans who missed it. One host notes the Grotusque and Repugnus two-pack drops their bonus Titan Master and Prime Master. He suspects TakaraTomy is releasing the Throne set because it holds four Prime Masters available nowhere else. [Source: TFormers]
New Bumblebee Movie Image From Empire Magazine
Jason says everything he sees makes the movie look better, and this image looks funny and cute rather than stupid. Matt thinks it looks like Harry and the Hendersons, and the crew hopes Travis Knight sticks with the boy-and-his-car story the 2007 film abandoned. Jason’s son lit up seeing the Bumblebee trailer before his first movie in a theater. [Source: TFormers]
Studio Series Upcoming Deluxes In-Package Photo Leaks
Leaked package photos show Dark of the Moon Ratchet, Shatter and a Volkswagen Bumblebee. Jason wants the Volkswagen Bumblebee, and another host confirms it is a completely different mold from the Camaro. The crew notes it seems to include an alternate masked head, which Deluxes rarely get. They also doubt the box’s claimed height. [Source: TFormers]
Walmart Exclusive G1 Reissue Devastator Spotted in Stores
The G1 reissue Devastator turned up in Canada and briefly on Walmart.com before selling out. The minibots look to be about $8 each and Devastator $74. One report says it is much better quality than the earlier Encore release. [Source: TFormers]
MP-10 Convoy Golden Lagoon Up for Preorder
Jason does not like the mix of gold plastic and gold plating. One host explains some plastics will not even take chrome, which is why it looks two-toned. [Source: TFW2005]
2019 Reboot Confirmed for IDW’s Transformers Comics
Ernest Frazier in the chat brings up the news. One host notes IDW’s president said the Hasbro contract is renewed, so ending the current universe was a coincidence. Another wonders whether the new contract changes what the content can be. [Source: TFormers]
Toy Instructions Debate
Diecast’s Dinobot review drew comments about how roughly he handled the figure. One host says it is hard for a reviewer to tell whether a weak joint is his copy or the whole run. Don argues high-dollar toys should not come with bargain basement instructions and wants official video instructions, pointing to a Japanese reviewer whose videos he can follow without the language. Another thinks Hasbro would do better improving printed instructions, which must work without words across territories. One host notes Hasbro prints its instructions on flat paper that kills the contrast, though Repugnus’s glossy instructions are an improvement.
What’s on TFormers
Rob shares behind-the-scenes images and a restoration clip from The Transformers: The Movie. [Source: TFormers] Power of the Primes Wreck-Gar has appeared on Walgreens’ website, but Rob warns the in-stock indicator shows for any Generations Deluxe the store has. In Canada, Wreck-Gar is turning up at EB Games. [Source: TFormers]
What We Got This Week
Jason Kirk
Jason got Repugnus and loves him. His copy arrived complete, and he thinks this might be the best use of the mold yet.
Don
Don picked up Inferno, Blast Off and Repugnus. At Big Lick Comic Con in Roanoke he found another Sidearm Sideswipe, his favorite movie toy, for $8, plus the Marvel crossover Ghost Rider he had sold years ago. He admits he is tempted by Cyberverse Optimus Prime and Megatron.
Chris
Chris got the SDCC 2018 exclusives. Retro Rock Garage Bumblebee has fought him the whole show, and he finds it no better than the retail Studio Series Bumblebee. Throne of the Primes has some loose joints, but he values the cardboard throne, the metal dino cassettes and the clear orange set. He recorded videos on unboxing both without damaging the packaging for TFormers TV.
Diecast
Diecast got the Retro Rock Garage Bumblebee and the Throne of the Primes set, which includes four Prime Masters available nowhere else. From Taobao he got an upgrade kit for Masterpiece Soundwave with a light-up head, a sound-playing tape and a light-up gun. He also got Black Mamba’s upscaled Power of the Primes Grimlock and Slag, with added die-cast. His repro label review is up on RFC Reviews.
Matt
Matt got Repugnus and really likes him, though the legs fought him going into monster mode. He thinks a Squeeze Play recolor would be acceptable.
Rob
Rob got a replacement Tailgate from Exvee. His Repugnus was a gift from viewer X-Ray Monkey. Thick paint on the thighs makes them hard to turn, but he likes that the box holds the accessories in place.
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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