Warbotron’s WB01, a huge third-party not-Bruticus shown fully combined, blows the crew away on Radio Free Cybertron 324. Takara Tomy’s Platinum Edition Year of the Horse Optimus Prime, Starscream and Fire Convoy get a lukewarm reaction. The crew recaps Charticon, the first-year Charlotte convention, and Aimee reports on Auto Assembly 2013. The episode closes with excerpts from the RFC live stream at Charticon.
Charticon Recap
Four of the crew attended Charticon in Charlotte, North Carolina, where Brian met Diecast in person for the first time. The crew calls it a professionally run show, from the name badges to the posters, and credits organizers Jake and Eric. Attendance topped 650 in its first year, and one host calls the dealer room as good as any recent BotCon’s. Highlights include Exvee explaining the Thunder Ultrazord to Aaron Archer, who stopped by on Sunday and chatted for 45 minutes over Cheerwine. The crew also enjoyed goofing off with voice actor Paul Eiding at their table. Don, who could not attend, hopes smaller conventions help voice actors get used to fan intensity before facing BotCon.
Aimee at Auto Assembly 2013
Aimee is back from Auto Assembly in Birmingham, UK, which drew 833 attendees this year. She notes the dealer room, convention and artist alley now share one loud room. She also took part in a podcasting Q&A panel with hosts from several Transformers podcasts, which ran 30 minutes over.
News
Platinum Edition Year of the Horse Optimus Prime, Starscream and Fire Convoy
Year of the Horse Optimus Prime is a slightly remolded MP-10 with a more animated-looking head. One host likes MP-10 but will not pay $300 for another, and he skips the Starscream and Fire Convoy too. Asked to save one Optimus from a burning building, one host picks Fire Convoy for the irony. [Source: not found]
Third-Party Jetfire Homage Revealed
Diecast’s favorite story is a new third-party Jetfire homage. He grew up watching the Fire in the Sky tape and will support the figure despite its odd arms and sharp edges. Others suggest a Classics Jetfire or the original toy, but Diecast dislikes the yellow. [Source: not found]
Warbotron WB01 Not-Bruticus Combiner Revealed
The crew is floored by a new company’s fully combined not-Bruticus, which looks close to Hercules in size. One host thought nothing would rival the Fans Project Bruticus kit, and this comes close. Another is glad the company showed the full combined mode up front. Leftover combiner parts form a launch pad for the Blast Off figure. Don, who owns nearly every Bruticus, begs them not to make a G2 version. The chat pitches knockoff names for the individual Combaticons. [Source: not found]
Licensed Self-Transforming Vehicles Recall the Alternators
Photos show a licensed Optimus Prime that becomes an FJ Cruiser, plus a Camaro. The crew thinks it is the self-transforming line shown months earlier. One host hopes for a Human Alliance revival instead. [Source: not found]
Mastermind Creations Not-Nova Prime Concept Art
Mastermind Creations shows original concept art for an IDW-inspired not-Nova Prime. One host thinks it looks like Optimus Prime, Starscream and a Gundam had a baby. The crew debates whether its armor works like Exkaiser’s. [Source: not found]
Predacons Rising Promo Released
Don flags a new Predacons Rising promo and warns that it carries mild spoilers. [Source: not found]
Q&A with Rob Springer
Listener Henry Pham asks why Hasbro does not buy third-party molds, such as iGear’s Ironhide, and sell them for less. Rob explains that licensing an infringing mold would undercut any future lawsuit against third parties. He adds that Hasbro designs its own toys and points to the Harmony Gold dispute as a cautionary tale. Rob then tells how his girlfriend raced him between Toys R Us stores to land Masterpiece Soundwave.
Live from Charticon
Excerpts from the Charticon live stream show the crew handing out free items and holding a drawing at the RFC table. They praise the handmade Landshark convention exclusive, which sold out quickly. They also call Charticon a good East Coast alternative to BotCon.
OmegaCon Preview
Diecast previews OmegaCon on Sunday, August 25, at the Crowne Plaza in Trevose, Pennsylvania. He plans to spend most of the day in the custom class and to hand out RFC cards.
What We Got This Week
Brian got his Charticon Landshark exclusive without waiting in line.
Diecast bought a figure labeled as Machine Wars Soundwave from the cheap bin at Don’s comic shop’s Charticon booth.
Rob traded two Cheerwines for a Fall of Cybertron Air Raid at the next booth.
John also picked up the Charticon exclusive after lining up early.
Rob Springer finally found Masterpiece Soundwave after a late-night Toys R Us hunt.
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.