Legends Devastator and Human Alliance Barricade are turning up at Walmart on this February 3, 2010 Radio Free Cybertron. Rob Springer hosts while Brian Kilby is out sick, joined by JD, Exvee, John DeLuna and Ender. The crew covers Shout Factory’s interest in the Japanese Transformers series, the first look at Sea Spray and the Power Core Combiners subline. Twitter Theater takes on Sea Change, and the crew debates the worst Transformers toy ever.
News
Hasbro Names a VP for The Hub
Hasbro named a vice president of production for The Hub. The crew finds the news less exciting than the network president announcement. Her credits include The Spectacular Spider-Man, Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman and Tom and Jerry. [Source: not found]
Human Alliance Barricade and Legends Devastator Hit Walmart
Human Alliance Barricade and Legends Devastator are showing up at Walmart. JD has opened his Legends Devastator and calls it a nice, decently articulated figure that holds together well. Scrapper is his favorite of the set, and Mixmaster is the weakest. He calls it a steal at $32. Another host wants both and is glad to finally get a good Barricade toy. [Source: not found]
Shout Factory Gauges Interest in Japanese Transformers Series
Shout Factory is reportedly fishing for interest in releasing the Japanese Transformers series on DVD in the U.S. One host doubts it will happen. Another says the sets would only be worth it with the RTM1 Malaysian dubs as an option. [Source: not found]
Power Core Combiners and the Transformers Name Change
The crew shrugs at the UK Toy Fair reveals, since the toys will come to the U.S. eventually. One host is excited about the Power Core Combiners subline, while another calls it the last five lines put in a blender. The toy line will also drop the Revenge of the Fallen name and go by just Transformers. One host likes the change but expects it to confuse gift-buying relatives. [Source: not found]
Repaints: Corporate Sham or Fan Favorites?
One host notes that G1 was full of repaints, from the Seekers to the minicars, and fans now treat them as separate characters. The crew agrees fans call repaints a corporate sham, unless it is Thundercracker or Skywarp. They also recall the He-Man fandom mocking Transformers as nothing but recolors.
James Avery Rumored as Silverbolt
A rumor says James Avery, Uncle Phil from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, will voice Silverbolt in a Transformers story. The crew likes his voice but notes there isn’t even a script yet. One host wonders whether bigger Hollywood stars in the voice roles would have pushed for better robot dialogue in the live-action films. The crew praises Kevin Dunn and Peter Cullen. [Source: not found]
First Look at Sea Spray
The crew gets a look at the new Sea Spray, a hovercraft with a flipper and a scuba mask. One host plans to buy three, while another jokes that Hasbro delivered a classic Sea Spray that disappoints anyway. The crew expects a Walmart exclusive in the right colors, or a Japanese version. [Source: not found]
Bruticus and Prime Pre-Orders at Big Bad Toy Store
John DeLuna has pre-ordered one of the two new Bruticus sets and calls Swindle an instant win. Big Bad Toy Store is the only place one host knows with a pre-order for the new Takara block-style Prime set, which he ordered because he collects Primes. He expects the line to suck. The crew also shares a Big Bad Toy Store customer service story about an expedited Christmas delivery. [Source: Big Bad Toy Store]
Twitter Theater: Sea Change
This week’s Twitter Theater episode is the G1 episode Sea Change. Ender says he never saw it until the late 1990s, and he can barely think of a worse G1 episode beyond Carnage in C-Minor. The crew jokes that Twitter Theater’s new goal is to break Ender’s mind. One host argues the only redeeming point is a link to Animorphs, and Ender rejects it.
This Day in Transformers History
JD marks the February 1997 premiere of the Beast Wars episode Possession, starring Starscream. It was written by Ian Weir, who also wrote Code of Hero. One host recalls fans online losing their minds when Starscream appeared, a moment that solidified his interest in Beast Wars.
Voice Actors at BotCon
The crew trades stories about Transformers voice actors at conventions. One host recalls hearing Garry Chalk’s Optimus Primal voice ringing down a BotCon hallway. Another tells of Peter Cullen nearly falling on an escalator at a con. One host notes that Garry Chalk has voiced Optimus Prime for far longer than Peter Cullen.
Worst Transformers Toy Ever
The crew picks Beast Machines Supreme Cheetor and G1 Quickswitch as the worst toys ever. Supreme Cheetor cost $40 and barely transformed, and one host says it nearly sank Air Attack Optimus Primal. One host tells how a Target employee sold him a Supreme Cheetor for a dollar. Quickswitch is a lousy robot and lousy at every one of his six modes, a brick with parts that pop off. Another host nominates Transmetal 2 Cheetor and Beast Machines Mega Cheetor. Other candidates include Injector and, from the movie lines, Blademaster and Arcee.
BotCon Haggling Stories
One host tells of buying the “dead man’s Starscream” at BotCon after haggling down a widow selling her late husband’s collection. The crew shares haggling tips, such as waiting until Sunday and walking away. They also remember the G1 reissue Primes at Toys R Us and Target clearance.
New TF Radio Network Shows
Exvee’s new show, Superhero Time, covers Power Rangers and other geek topics. A new comic show, Fanboy vs. Fanboy, features Ender, Brian and JD. New Soundwave airs Thursday nights.
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.