Transformers: Devastation preorder bonuses are confirmed, letting players use Nemesis Prime, Goldfire or Red Alert with new weapons. An Italian fashion shoot pairs a model with a man in an Optimus Prime suit, which the crew calls real-life Kiss Players. The Subscription Service 4.0 combiner gets a name, Thunder Mayhem, and a Thunderwing head that turns Don off the set. Takara Tomy opens preorders for MP-11T Thundercracker, and Stomp and Chomp Grimlock returns in Robots in Disguise colors. Voodoo Robots shows its unofficial Masterpiece-style Ratchet.
This Week in History
In 1986, “Five Faces of Darkness” premieres in the US. Don says its poor animation and story set a bad tone for season three. In 2003, Reader’s Digest publishes the Armada Official Guidebook, a thin book one host first mistook for a coloring book. In 2005, Metrodome releases Transformers: The Movie Reconstructed on DVD in the UK. The crew recalls old fan arguments over whether the movie was ever truly widescreen.
News
Italian Fashion Shoot Stars Optimus Prime and a Supermodel Girlfriend
An Italian fashion magazine shoot features a model on a date with a man in an Optimus Prime suit, including a diner scene with burgers and milkshakes. One host calls it real-life Kiss Players, and Don is not amused. The crew compares it to the old Mrs. Optimus Prime fan video Rob Springer once featured in Twitter Theater. [Source: not found]
Transformers: Devastation Preorder Bonuses Confirmed
Preorder bonuses let players use Nemesis Prime, Goldfire or Red Alert with new weapons. The crew calls them easy reskins and expects no story changes. Goldfire’s gun earns extra in-game money, which prompts jokes about microtransactions. Don looks up Red Alert’s voice actor, Michael Chain, who also voiced Hoist, Powerglide and Skids. [Source: not found]
Legends Ultra Magnus New Photos
New photos show Takara Tomy’s Legends Ultra Magnus alongside Arcee and Springer. One host loves the look and the tiny Alpha Trion it includes, and it is due this month. The crew says it looks far closer to the G1 toy than the US release. [Source: not found]
Subscription Service 4.0 Combiner Is Thunder Mayhem
The Subscription Service 4.0 combiner is named Thunder Mayhem and wears a Thunderwing head. Don likes Thunderwing too much to see him as a combiner head, so he is skipping the set. Matt loves the clashing dark green and pastel purple deco, which the crew calls Euro proto-G2. One host wishes the molds had gone to interesting characters such as proper Triggercons, without forcing a random combiner. [Source: Seibertron]
MP-11T Thundercracker Up for Preorder
Takara Tomy’s MP-11T Thundercracker is up for preorder in lighter, animation-accurate colors. Most of the crew already has the earlier Toys R Us version and will pass. The crew notes it includes a hologram pilot rather than another Dr. Arkeville. [Source: not found]
Stomp and Chomp Grimlock Repainted in Robots in Disguise Colors
Stomp and Chomp Grimlock returns as a straight repaint in Robots in Disguise colors. The crew jokes this is what happens when a copper dinosaur sits on shelves for a year and turns green. One host admits he kind of wants it, but John calls it hideous. Another would rather have Takara’s Battle Grimlock. [Source: not found]
Subscription Service Impactor and the Arcee Weapons
Rob supplied photos for Exvee’s TFormers article showing how the Subscription Service Impactor’s Arcee weapons work on the Rook mold. An Arcee sword can stand in for Impactor’s harpoon, and her larger gun for his shoulder cannon. The crew laughs that the mold comes with extra weapons but hands that cannot grip them.
Battle Core Optimus Prime and Combiner Wars Autobots in Stores
Battle Core Optimus Prime is now available. One host found the Combiner Wars Autobot cars at Target and warns that Prowl is the hardest to find. The crew also wishes for a G2 Masterpiece Grimlock and a Masterpiece Powered Convoy in Diaclone colors.
Voodoo Robots Unofficial Masterpiece Ratchet
First photos show Voodoo Robots’ unofficial Masterpiece-style Ratchet. One host loves the head sculpt and near-perfect vehicle mode but says the legs look deluxe-class. Others think it beats Takara’s Ironhide in engineering, but may stand too tall. After checking a fan scale chart, one host admits the height may be right. [Source: not found]
Transform Mission Masterpiece-Scale Stunticons
New company Transform Mission shows Masterpiece-scale Stunticons based on IDW designs. The crew agrees they are Masterpiece-scaled but not Masterpiece-styled, and none of them plan to buy. That sparks a debate over whether IDW designs count as G1. One host would not start a combiner from a company nobody knows. [Source: not found]
Dinoking Draws Lapsed Fans
One host notes that friends who have left the fandom are lusting over the third-party Dinoking combiner. Another was more impressed than expected by its pretender shell but balks at $80 for a shell.
What We Got This Week
Matt
Matt got Subscription Service Tarantulas, a Wreck-Gar mold, which arrived missing its right chest gun. He calls it a minor quality control issue. He also has G2 Bumblebee, the Kabaya Piranacon kit, Blue Streak and Transformers Adventure Override and Runabout on the way for his birthday.
John
John also received his Subscription Service Tarantulas, complete with all its parts.
Diecast
Diecast got Battle Core Optimus Prime and found its hip ratchets have been fixed. He took his original Combiner Wars Optimus Prime apart and found new plastic nubs, so the part was redesigned. He notes the Motormaster in the same wave reportedly has fixed ratchets too.
Don
Don picked up the white Robots in Disguise Clash of the Transformers Sideswipe because he likes the colors.
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.