San Diego Comic-Con 2016 brings Platinum Edition Combiner Wars Liokaiser as a $110 Entertainment Earth exclusive, and the crew is thrilled with the price. Titans Return reveals keep coming, from the Walgreens-exclusive Brainstorm to Legends Gnaw and a TakaraTomy Legends Super Ginrai with very odd feet. Machinima’s Combiner Wars series confirms Jon Bailey as Optimus Prime, and IDW renames its main comics Optimus Prime and Lost Light. Back from TFCon 2016, Diecast transformed MakeToys’ Despotron and calls it maybe the best third-party figure ever.
This Week in History
In 1994, the first BotCon was held at the Grand Wayne Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Don was there and says it changed his life. Seeing Japanese and European figures like Victory Saber and Road Caesar opened up a whole new world for him. He also saw prototypes for G2 toys that never came out, including a GoBots racing rig. The show’s souvenir Breakdown figure last sold for about $400 to $500.
News
Platinum Edition Combiner Wars Liokaiser Is an Entertainment Earth Exclusive
The Platinum Edition set costs only $110, which is a relief for many fans. Every figure gets a new head sculpt and plenty of paint. One theory says TakaraTomy started the retools and Hasbro is taking advantage. The crew expects a November release. Guyhawk and Drillhorn keep their Japanese names, and the sixth member is the Arms Micron Eagle Breast. One host calls that an odd choice and wishes Deathcobra had been included instead. [Source: not found]
Titans Return Brainstorm Is a Walgreens Exclusive
Brainstorm’s display tag lists August 1, matching Robot Kingdom’s preorder. A Walgreens buyer told listener Barricade64 it should reach stores around November. One host asked the buyer about the gap and has not heard back. Another guesses Walgreens wants a more even launch after some hit-or-miss exclusives. [Source: not found]
Titans Return Megatron’s Box Shows What Comes Next
The back of the Voyager Megatron box shows Trigger Happy, Fangry, a Voyager Optimus Prime and Sixshot. The crew is sure Megatron’s jet mode means a Blitzwing repaint is coming. Some hosts prefer the tank mode, while others like the jet. They also hope the mold becomes a Starscream. [Source: not found]
SDCC 2016 Titans Return Display: Gnaw, Sawback, Bumblebee and Overboard
Legends Gnaw is on the way, and one host plans to army-build Sharkticons. Gnaw last appeared as the dinosaur packed with Age of Extinction Construct-Bots Optimus Prime. Legends Bumblebee gets a modern take on his classic car mode. Sawback is based on the Japanese Headmaster Lyon, and its render files still use that name. A gray-and-blue Crashbash recolor named Overboard looks like the cassette Overkill to most of the crew. [Source: not found]
SDCC 2016: Starscream and Steve Blum Invade Robots in Disguise
Steve Blum will voice Starscream. The crew hopes for a stronger tie to Transformers: Prime than Soundwave’s appearance gave. A new Robots in Disguise Starscream toy reminds one host of Thunderwing. A Toys “R” Us exclusive in September packs Bumblebee and Steeljaw with accessories and a stasis pod. One host never bought Steeljaw because the mold cannot stand without its tail. [Source: not found]
Combiner Wars Animated Series Voice Cast Revealed
Machinima’s Combiner Wars confirms Jon Bailey as Optimus Prime. One host recognized his voice in the trailer before the cast was announced. The series streams on the go90 app starting around August 2. The crew likes the trailer but not the idea of watching it on a phone, and they notice the low frame rate. Jon Bailey missed the panel after an eight-hour flight delay. [Source: not found]
IDW Renames Its Transformers Comics After Revolution
The Transformers becomes Optimus Prime, and More Than Meets the Eye becomes Lost Light. Andrew Griffith leaves, and Kei Zama takes over art on Optimus Prime. Alex Milne will alternate arcs on Lost Light with Jack Lawrence, news he learned on Twitter. Till All Are One appears to keep its numbering. James Roberts and Nick Roche write the More Than Meets the Eye Revolution special, with Alex Milne on art. [Source: not found]
Subscription Service 4 Bonus Figure Is Combiner Wars Blue Streak
The mystery box labeled BotCon 2016 turns out to be the Figure Subscription Service 4 bonus figure. Fun Publications labels all its shipments that way. The figure is a Combiner Wars Blue Streak, and one host is jealous. [Source: not found]
TakaraTomy Legends Super Ginrai Photos
Legends Super Ginrai looks great, though nobody can explain its strange feet. The crew suspects they leave room for a future God Bomber. Its price is 8,500 yen, close to the American price. The new guns may combine into a seat for a Titan Master. One host has already preordered it and thinks he needs two. [Source: not found]
TFCon 2016 Report
Diecast was picked for MakeToys’ invitation-only event at TFCon 2016. He transformed Despotron, their Masterpiece-style Megatron, on its third or fourth test shot. He calls it possibly the best third-party figure ever, with a clever leg transformation. MakeToys is aiming for Iron Will’s price, about $145. He also handled Cross Dimension Striker Manus, at about $69 to $79, and the Targetmaster Contact Shot, which the crew reads as Pointblank. Attendees went home with a clear Trash Talk.
Fans Toys revealed Phoenix, its Masterpiece-scale Skyfire, at about 18 inches and $219.99. Diecast will review a test shot, and Don insists he is keeping his Kronos. Diecast helped set up the display cases and says Sovereign beats Tyrant for Masterpiece display. Sovereign is due around October, and Despotron around October or November. Grim Grinder will include new heads for the other Dinobots.
Mastermind Creations showed a Masterpiece-style Trailbreaker. The third-party panel was mostly reruns, but Ocular Max showed a Laserbeak, and a Black Zarak repaint of Pandanus is coming. The next Decepticon Justice Division figure also appeared, and the crew can’t agree whether it is Tesarus or Helix.
Third-Party News
Trent Troop’s Titan Master Face Plates on Shapeways
Trent Troop offers Titan Master face plates, including Rescue Bots and Tarn. He is also making small Pretender shells scaled to Titan Masters. One host has known him since the ’90s and plans to buy them.
Iron Factory Lord Scorpion Color Photos
Color photos look great, but a scale shot puts the figure at only five and a half to six inches tall. The crew had expected closer to nine inches, though it still looks massive. [Source: not found]
Listener Feedback: Kronos
Listeners answered last week’s question about Don’s Kronos. Most like the design but say the engineering is flawed. One fan bought Kronos rather than wait a year for Fans Toys’ version. Chris says they are all wrong.
What We Got This Week
Diecast brought home a TFCon haul. He got Planet X’s Hephaestus, a red and green figure based on a Fall of Cybertron Grimlock recolor. He bought two of DX9’s TFCon-exclusive Sphinx, a half-clear Mirage, one for himself and one for Brian. He also got DX9’s Gewalt, which includes ratcheting hips for Chigurh and a transformation tool. KFC’s Crash Hog and Dump Yard came early from Toy Dojo, but Crash Hog can’t hold its sword and parts pop loose. He also picked up an Impossible Toys figure, a Fans Toys figure and a MakeToys exclusive.
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.