A long-range box office forecast for Transformers: The Last Knight sparks a debate, with one host calling its chances 50/50. MPM-4 Movie Masterpiece Optimus Prime is revealed as an all-new, Leader-sized mold. Toys R Us unveils its Mission to Cybertron subline of Last Knight two-packs, which may explain why its stores are holding movie toys until June. Hasbro’s Trypticon prototype, kitbashed from Fortress Maximus parts, finally surfaces. Guest Eric Crownover shows off the Subscription Service 5.0 double Pretenders.
Show Notes
Matt is out, and guests Jason Kirk and Eric Crownover join the crew. Brian and Don tested the show’s call-in line ahead of Don’s planned call-in show, It’s a Don Deal. There Goes My Money becomes its own podcast, with Diecast and Don hosting.
This Week in History
For Free Comic Book Day, the crew looks back at Dreamwave’s 2003 Armada comic, which they enjoyed more than the show. They also recall Simon Furman’s Regeneration One #80.5 from 2012 and Transformers vs. G.I. Joe #0 from 2014, which one host calls the best Free Comic Book Day comic ever.
Bad Poet’s Corner
Brian reads the last of his vintage poems from 2000, a meditation on Autobot leaders always being named Prime while the Decepticons share a single phrase: retreat.
News
Transformers: The Last Knight Long Range Forecast Assesses the Film’s Chances of Success
BoxOffice Pro sees strong overseas business and better Twitter sentiment than Age of Extinction. It also expects continued declines in the US, with Spider-Man: Homecoming, War for the Planet of the Apes and Dunkirk looming. One host expects an opening under $100 million, while others take the over because the trailers are great. Diecast says the 15 minutes he saw feel like the last four movies. One host calls it a 50/50 proposition. Eric, at 17, says people his age are excited, while Brian’s coworkers have not mentioned it once. [Source: TFormers]
Figure Subscription Service Second Shipment In Progress: Pretender Optimus and Megatron
The second Subscription Service 5.0 shipment is reaching subscribers and retailers now. [Source: TFormers]
Masterpiece MP-34 Cheetor Test Shot Photos Reveal Unused Accessories
The test shot is a single green with clear plastic and includes two versions of the armband communicator from the Beast Wars episode “The Web.” The crew guesses the parts could return with a toy-colored variant, a Tigatron or a Shadow Panther. [Source: TFormers]
Side-by-side photos make the new Blitzwing look superior to the last one. One host recommends Toyhax labels for the Megatron mold, and Ramhorn is a nice retool of the still hard-to-find Shuffler. The crew notes US timing is anyone’s guess. [Source: TFormers]
Titans Return Trypticon Package Image and Prototype Models
Beyond the packaging, Hasbro’s early Trypticon prototype is a Fortress Maximus torn down and rebuilt to prove a Titan Class dinosaur could work. Diecast saw it briefly at Toy Fair and asked if it would be shared. The crew debates what such a one-of-a-kind design model would fetch at auction. [Source: TFormers] [Source: TFormers]
Tokyo Toy Show 2017 LG-EX Black Convoy: New Photos of Voyager Legends Exclusive
Jason and others want another version of the mold, and the crew pitches Laser Magnus and M.A.S.K. crossover recolors. [Source: TFormers]
First Seven Episodes of Robots in Disguise Combiner Force Streaming Online
Cartoon Network is streaming the episodes for anyone who logs in with a cable provider. One host has seen two episodes and likes where it is going. [Source: TFormers]
MPM-4 Optimus Prime Masterpiece Movie Figure From Hasbro and TakaraTomy
Size comparisons show MPM-4 is roughly Revenge of the Fallen Leader size and shares no parts with it. One host explains the Movie Masterpiece numbering, from the original Starscream and Bumblebee to the new Bumblebee and Optimus Prime. One host jokes Optimus has lost weight from listening to Get the Skinny. [Source: TFormers] [Source: TFormers]
Transformers: The Last Knight In-Hand Photos of Deluxe Wave 2 Premier Sqweeks
Sqweeks is a substantial retool and looks great. UK retailer Argos is receiving cases of only Sqweeks and a heavily reworked Drift. [Source: TFormers]
Mission to Cybertron Revealed as Toys R Us Transformers: The Last Knight Subline?
The leaked packaging assets likely belong to this exclusive subline of two-packs, expected around $40, with recolors like Megatron and Skullitron. One host thinks paying $20 for the tiny 2013 Megatron mold is a no-go. The crew theorizes Toys R Us confused the subline’s June 30 date with the main line, since one host was refused a Voyager Optimus Prime. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers: The Last Knight UK Retailer Argos Reveals New Voyager Optimus Prime Figure?
It is the Dark of the Moon Voyager Optimus Prime with big red accessories and a red stripe, and a couple of hosts like it. TFW2005 suggests an Argos exclusive, though the crew could see it landing at Target. [Source: TFormers]
Hobbyfree 2017 Expo in China Featuring Many Third-Party Unofficial Figures
Don highlights FansToys FT-24 Rouge, an Arcee shown on a card, alongside FansToys Springer and Hot Rod in progress. The expo also shows FansHobby’s Overlord, Iron Factory’s Black Zarak, KFC’s Horrorcons and a Masterpiece-scale MakeToys Starscream. [Source: TFormers]
Ocular Max Remix Volture and Buzzard: Unofficial Laserbeak and Buzzsaw
Volture is the full cassette-sized Laserbeak Brian has always wanted. At around $50 each, he will likely buy just one. [Source: TFormers]
Also on TFormers
Exvee reviewed Till All Are One #9, with praise for Mairghread Scott’s Starscream. Hasbro sent a box of Last Knight toys, and Rob opened a Tiny Turbo Changer, which does have codes on the bag after all. Jack also showed off Kabaya’s obscure Micron Legends die-cast cars. [Source: TFormers] [Source: TFormers] [Source: TFormers]
What We Got This Week
This week the haul segment is trimmed, with full coverage moving to the There Goes My Money podcast. One host reports that two Toys R Us stores and several Targets had no Last Knight toys, so Walmart looks like the best bet.
Eric
Eric got the Subscription Service 5.0 double Pretenders. Optimus Prime has a metallic blue shell, a new Optimus Prime head on the Swerve mold and a gray Orion Pax rifle. Megatron’s black face paint drowns out his features, and his purple Targetmaster is Spacewarp. A connector shaped like Megatron’s G1 gun helps secure him inside the Grand Maximus shell.
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.