Transformers Battle Tactics will shut down on May 12. Chris hosts again while the crew wonders whether Brian survived the week. Masterpiece Optimus Primal’s color prototype shows a fabric fur effect, and MP-30 Ratchet’s high-res photos still do him no favors. Official Victorion photos disappoint even the crew’s completists, and a revised Combiner Wars case short-packs Bruticus’s arms. Plus RFC collects fan picks for the Transformers Hall of Fame, and IronJ146 wins the Onslaught contest.
News
Transformers Battle Tactics Game To Sunset: Game To End Completely On May 12
The mobile game with chibi sprites, which introduced Decepticon Viper, gets no further updates and ends May 12. John has not played in months. Another host quit once the game required paying to advance. The crew wishes digital collectibles came with physical pieces, like scannable codes or Rob’s dream of blind-bagged Titan Masters. [Source: TFormers]
New Masterpiece Optimus Primal Images Showing Color Prototype
Takara Tomy’s latest video, hosted by the voice of Q-Transformers Arcee, shows a color prototype. Strips of fabric give the ape mode fur, likely just for the prototype. The painted teeth, eyes and weapons look great. One host worries that something will go wrong because everything he sees makes him more excited. [Source: TFormers]
Masterpiece Ratchet MP-30 Stock Photos In High-Res
Ratchet arrives next month. One host who owns Ironhide says the mold photographs badly even though it is great in hand. The Autobot symbols over the crosses on his shoulders avoid Red Cross trademark trouble. One host hopes it does not become another Exhaust situation. [Source: TFormers]
Combiner Wars Victorion Official Product Photos
The photos match the drab deco seen at Toy Fair. Diecast owns every Combiner Wars figure but says Victorion now feels like an obligation. One host dislikes the small hands with 5mm ports in the thumbs, though he loves the sword. Rob suggests giving each figure one main color with a neutral tone between them. The crew wonders what the other fan-vote color schemes would have looked like. [Source: TFormers]
Combiner Wars 2016 Deluxe Wave 2 Revision Case Assortment
The revised case has two Swindles, two Brawls, one Blast Off, one Vortex, Smokescreen and Wheeljack. That short-packs Bruticus’s arms and keeps the weakest Sky Reign limb. The crew would have chosen Trailbreaker over Wheeljack, and calls this the worst Wheeljack ever. [Source: TFormers]
Combiner Wars Wreck-Gar Out Of Package Photos
The colors look much better than the Amazon photos, with real contrast between orange and yellow. Diecast still is not sold. Two hosts would like a few as background Junkions if they can find them at retail. [Source: TFormers]
Robots In Disguise App Updates Showing More Toys And Characters
The app hints at One-Step and Warrior Class Ratchet figures built on Strongarm, plus Warrior Class Bisk. It also shows a Beast Wars-colored Scorponok, Switchblade Knight Bumblebee and a Pumpkin Prime the crew cannot stop laughing about. Don hoped for a Chop Shop that splits into bugs. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers 5: Michael Bay Returns to Michigan Motion Picture Studios
Transformers 5 will film in Michigan this summer. One host notes Paramount agreed to return $21 million in incentives under a pre-existing deal to keep the rest of its credits. Another credits Bay for staying loyal to crews he has worked with before. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers Adventure TAV38 Thunderhoof
Hisashi Yuki shared Takara Tomy’s Thunderhoof next to the Hasbro Warrior Class version. The extra paint makes the head look far less chunky. Don prefers Hasbro’s darker blue but would like it with Takara Tomy’s highlights. [Source: TFormers]
Rob reports that the original cover showed Duke with a cigar, later swapped for a snake. He suspects Hasbro asked for the change. More Than Meets the Eye #50 is finally due next week. [Source: TFormers]
KFC CST-D02B Hema-Fright: Dino Cassette Returns
KFC’s Slugfest homage is a dinosaur cassette. One host had hoped it meant the Japanese Dinoforce combiners. The crew questions KFC’s cassette quality, though one host has seen good reviews of the cassettes packed with its Twincast. [Source: TFormers]
Planet X Starscream-Like Figure in Fall Of Cybertron Style
The grayscale prototype’s jet looks stretched, and one host is reminded of Jetstorm from Beast Machines. One host likes this Starscream design but is not a fan of the toy. The crew suggests Planet X tackle Fall of Cybertron characters that never got toys, or upgraded Combaticons. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers Hall of Fame Fan Picks
Hasbro wants fan nominations for favorite Transformers character, favorite real-world music act and a new favorite underrated character category. Send RFC your picks at contact@tfradio.net by 11:59 p.m. Eastern on Monday, March 7, and the top three in each category go to Hasbro. TFormers also has polls up. Don jokes about nominating Jack, Miko and Raf as a group.
This Week in History
On March 3, 1991, the Super-God Masterforce episode “Rescue Squeezeplay!” premiered in Malaysia. Chris picked it with Don’s dislike of the dub in mind, and the crew laughs at the original Japanese title, “Save Cancer!?”
Announcements
IronJ146 wins the podcast review contest and a Combiner Wars Onslaught. Rob Springer, Dusty Griffin and Brian present the Transformers panel at Joelanta in Atlanta on Saturday, March 12.
What We Got This Week
Diecast
Diecast got Combiner Wars Trailbreaker and Hound. He actually likes Hound’s face, though the crew calls it Hound-ish. He also closed on a new house.
Don
Don got the club’s Treadshot and Catgut for about $26 shipped, and always likes the Warpath mold. He also got Masterpiece Hot Rod, still unopened alongside his Tracks and Road Rage. Don plans to give Michael McConnohie a Masterpiece Tracks if he attends another BotCon.
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.