Transformers Animated is coming to the Hub in July, possibly in HD for the first time. Takara Tomy’s Arms Micron Optimus Prime comes with a giant Matrix sword for about $100, and Prime Unicron looks set to be a Japan-only release. JD Church fills in for Brian, who is at SavCon. Aimee Morgan wraps up Autocracy with #12 and its 1986 movie twist. Transformers Rewind revisits the Animated episode This Is Why I Hate Machines.
JD has been toy hunting while his wife is away for the summer. Ross now carries Dark of the Moon figures, where he found Voyager Sentinel Prime for about $12. He jokes that he has become a scalper.
News
Transformers Animated Comes to the Hub in July
Animated returns on the Hub in July, giving fans another chance to watch Season 3. One host notes Animated was produced in widescreen HD but has never been broadcast that way, and Cartoon Network reportedly never asked for the HD masters. The crew hopes the Hub, which favors HD, will air it properly. [Source: not found]
Arms Micron Optimus Prime with Matrix Sword
Takara’s Arms Micron Optimus Prime comes with a huge sword that incorporates the Matrix, built from a Mini-Con blade that previously came with Japanese Red Alert or Ratchet. It is expected to cost about $100, against about $35 for the US Optimus without it. One host says that in truck mode it looks like Optimus is hauling a giant space pretzel. The shield Mini-Cons from the Voyager Optimus will also come in capsule form. [Source: not found]
Prime Unicron May Be a Takara Exclusive
Prime Unicron looks set to be a Takara-only release, which surprises no one. The crew has only seen outlines and blurry Tokyo Toy Show photos and doubts the spiky figure would pass US safety rules anyway. [Source: not found]
SavCon happens this weekend in Savannah, Georgia, where Brian is attending and Rob Springer helps run the show. Steve Jablonsky will also score Transformers 4.
Comic News with Aimee Morgan
Aimee goes live without her usual video. The Robots in Disguise #6 commentary is on the Transformers Facebook page. September solicits include the Robots in Disguise annual, Robots in Disguise #9, More Than Meets the Eye #9, ReGeneration One #83, IDW Collection Volume 7 and IDW’s The Art of Fall of Cybertron. The Autocracy trade arrives in July.
Autocracy #12 brings the expected clash between Megatron and Optimus Prime, plus Metroplex. The surprise is a reenactment of the 1986 movie: Hot Rod interferes, but Optimus transforms away and Megatron takes the shot. Aimee found it a predictable but satisfying close, with one more twist.
Rescue Bots: The Griffin Rock Triangle
Aimee and Nicole review the underwater episode, which reminds them of The Abyss. The Burns family rides inside the bots to rescue a long-lost scientist, Anna Baranova. They enjoy the logical explanation for the tunnels under the firehouse and a hint of romance between Baranova and Doc Greene, though the story requires suspending disbelief.
Back on the panel, JD says Rescue Bots Blades has been a great scalping find. JD also picked up Cyberverse Breakdown, which looks small next to Cyberverse Bulkhead, though the two are in different size classes. One host recommends disabling the spring on Voyager Bulkhead’s weapon. The crew is fine with Voyager Bulkhead instead of the First Edition. The club subscription and the BotCon script reading video are both late, and the crew feels for Buster Jones, who was clearly lost at the reading.
Transformers Rewind: Animated, This Is Why I Hate Machines
Ratchet and Captain Fanzone are pulled through a space bridge to Cybertron, now a police state under acting Magnus Sentinel. Omega Supreme emerges under Megatron’s control. The crew notes Optimus Prime never appears, and David Kaye voices the Sumdac Tower security robots instead. They love the deep-cut cameos, starting with Grandus nearly stepping on Fanzone, plus a Rattrap model.
The crew calls Ratchet and Fanzone a great buddy-cop pairing. Ratchet is called the best character in the series and Fanzone one of the best humans in Transformers. Animated Ratchet set the template that Prime’s Ratchet follows. They credit story editor Marty Isenberg for elements of Animated that still resonate, even if the series as a whole fades from memory.
Cyberverse and Legends Talk
The crew likes Cyberverse figures as an economy line, praising Cliffjumper’s arms despite weak hips. One host expects Cyberverse scale to become the future as Deluxes pass $13. One host recently bought the G1 Legends set and notes the Starscream mold could easily become Ramjet, Dirge and Thrust. Another recalls failing to paint a Transmetal 2 Cheetor black as Ravage, while a gold-painted Scarem turned out as a decent Transmetal 2 Goldbug.
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.