New pictures of Generations Blurr have Brian Kilby ready to buy on this August 18, 2010 Radio Free Cybertron. The crew also covers Kmart.com shipping the wrong Transformers, a release date for Masterpiece Rodimus and a shortened Washington, D.C. shoot for Transformers 3. Aimee and Tony Thrussell recap Auto Assembly 2010 in the UK. The crew then talks about how openly they share their Transformers fandom at work and in public.
Brian is joined by Exvee, John DeLuna, JD, Rob Springer and Bleebum, who found most of this week’s news. Aimee, aka Lady Wreck, joins partway through.
News
New Pictures of Generations Blurr
New pictures of Generations Blurr were posted, and Brian wants it. The figure is a redeco of the Drift mold with a huge gun. The crew sorts out the upcoming Generations waves, with War for Cybertron Megatron and Darkmount, then Red Alert and War for Cybertron Soundwave, then Dirge and possibly Blurr. Rob likes the Cybertronian modes, while one host calls War for Cybertron Bumblebee a terrible toy. [Source: not found]
Kmart.com Ships the Wrong Transformers
Kmart.com put up order pages for items like Darkmount and new Power Core Combiners that are not out yet. Buyers instead received peg warmers like Mudflap and Bumblebee, shipped from local stores. One Allspark user was charged in full for a partial order. The crew says the lesson is to stop ordering from Kmart, and notes it happened before with Human Alliance Mudflap. [Source: The Allspark]
Masterpiece Rodimus Gets a Price and Release Date
Takara has set a price and release date for Masterpiece Rodimus, presumably to tie in with 2010, though it arrives months into the year. The crew wonders whether the 2010 tie-in was intended, and one host would love a Masterpiece Galvatron next. [Source: not found]
Quadruple XP Weekend in War for Cybertron
War for Cybertron multiplayer offers quadruple experience points this weekend. Brian has not finished the campaign and has little interest in multiplayer, and the talk turns to rude players on Xbox Live. [Source: not found]
Transformers 3 Updates
A report that Sam “has the touch” briefly raised hopes of Stan Bush in Transformers 3, but no. One host notes Shia LaBeouf dresses like Stan Bush in the film. The film’s Washington, D.C. shoot was cut from three weeks to three days, disappointing Bleebum, who works near the National Mall. The crew jokes about a transforming White House. [Source: TFormers.com]
Animated Encyclopedia and Elite Guard Wingblade Optimus Prime
A Japanese publisher is releasing a Transformers Animated encyclopedia at the end of the month. Buyers can also order an Elite Guard version of Wingblade Optimus Prime at extra cost. The crew estimates about $58 for the book and about $108 for both. [Source: not found]
This Day in Transformers History
JD marks August 19, 1984, the first Transformers newspaper ad, posted on Crazy Steve’s blog. It lists cars like Mirage and Prowl for $7.99 and requires 300 pieces on hand per store.
Auto Assembly 2010 Recap with Aimee
Auto Assembly was Aimee’s first Transformers convention, and she had a blast. Her favorite part was sitting down to interview Nick Roche and James Roberts. She also met her Moonbase 2 friends and her Underbase co-hosts, and calls Chris McFeely tall and a sweetheart. Guests Jim Sorenson and Bill Forester stayed up all night with fans. Moonbase 2 has convention interviews at moonbase2.org, and more footage is on YouTube. Aimee sells cards at Lapis Creations on Etsy to cover the trip.
Interview: Tony Thrussell on Auto Assembly
Tony Thrussell calls Auto Assembly 2010 the best convention ever, despite a stolen camera and a roommate who locked him out. Highlights included Jim Sorenson singing the Japanese Animated theme at karaoke in a fez. The whole crowd also sang the 1986 movie’s Transformers theme. Scott McNeil never switched off and told Tony he prefers Auto Assembly to BotCon because the people are so nice. Tony shared breakfast with Garry Chalk, who drew him an Animated-style caricature.
Tony says Auto Assembly began in 2000 with about 50 people and one dealer table, and drew about 579 attendees this year. His haul included a mint-in-box Robots in Disguise Scourge, the SDCC Blaster, the Piranacon reissue and the Hound reissue. He also got Beast Wars Neo Heinrad and Magmatron. From the Hasbro giveaway three-pack, he calls Galvatron awful, Rodimus not too bad and G1-colored Cyclonus with his Targetmaster sublime.
The crew compares how openly they share Transformers at work and in public. One host’s cubicle windows hold NES carts and G1 Smokescreen and Soundwave, while another host’s conservative workplace allows only an RFC bumper sticker. One host’s vice president talked Masters of the Universe by name. Car stickers draw strangers in traffic, and one host recalls a Georgia cop asking where Chris Berucco got his Autobot sticker. Another kept an Optimus Prime potato head in his office for meetings. The crew argues collecting toys is no stranger than college football gear or fantasy football.
Fan Site Spotlight
Rob asks listeners to send in their fan sites, blogs and Flickr pages for a links page. His first pick is Beast Wars International at bwint.net, a long-running Beast Wars fan community.
Twitter Theater
Rob found a Norwegian Cartoon Network ad for Transformers Cybertron set to a cover of Everybody Dance Now, with Masterpiece Optimus Prime breakdancing. The crew says it makes Cybertron look 15 to 20 times more awesome than it was.
Wrap-Up
Brian has updated the tfradio.net archive so older RFC episodes are available. RFC is six followers short of 400 on Twitter. One host’s wife spotted Animated Rodimus and Ironhide at a Toys R Us.
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.