TakaraTomy’s Power of the Primes line starts in May 2018, and its listings and prices suggest straight repacks of Hasbro’s figures. New Transformers Movie Series images show Megatron, Brawl and Leader Blackout with Scorponok, plus an Authentics Grimlock. Machinima’s Titans Return Episode 5 splits the crew, with Don calling it lifeless. Power of the Primes Wave 2 stock images and Planet X’s Fall of Cybertron Megatron round out the news.
News
TakaraTomy Power of the Primes Line Begins in May 2018: Listings and Prices Revealed
TakaraTomy’s May assortment looks a lot like Hasbro’s Wave 1, minus a few figures. A Leader lists at 7,000 yen instead of the usual 8,500. One host notes the price gaps track BBTS’s US prices closely, so he expects straight repacks, possibly with Japanese stickers. There are no Dinobots, Starscream or Dreadwind listed. One host predicts a split year, with a revived Unite Warriors-style line, and user-applied stickers like TakaraTomy’s Prime line. One host explains that TakaraTomy’s market leans toward adult collectors, which supports pricier, more detailed toys. Don vents that Amazon Japan still will not ship many items to the US. Another thinks importers are a small market TakaraTomy can afford to ignore. [Source: TFormers]
Machinima Titans Return Episode 5: At the Last Second
Don calls the episode lifeless sludge with no energy or characterization. He says Mainframe’s 1998 War Planets looked better and had more emotion. Another host disagrees and enjoys the story. He likes Emissary powering up Metroplex, Trypticon gaining fire breath and Rodimus giving up the Matrix to become Hot Rod. One host blames choppy animation and slow pacing, and says Combiner Wars was too short while this runs too long. One host pitches a cheap, scripted Titans Return audio drama instead. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers Movie Series Toys: New Images of Megatron and Brawl, Plus Authentics Grimlock
New images show movie Megatron and Brawl, and the crew likes Brawl. These are new molds, not reissues. One host notes the original Leader Brawl now sells for close to $200. The one-color Authentics Grimlock needs paint, but the crew finds its design serviceable and very G1. One host heard an unconfirmed report that the Leader movie Grimlock has its club built into one arm. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers Movie Series Leader Blackout with Scorponok
Clear package-back test shot images show Leader Blackout, and everyone agrees he looks great. Scorponok comes as an accessory rather than a separate figure. [Source: TFormers]
Power of the Primes Stock Images Leaked for the Wave 2 Deluxes
Stock images show Snarl, Sludge, Rippersnapper and Blackwing. Snarl uses the same engineering pattern as Slug and Sludge, but with almost all new parts. The crew is glad Rippersnapper has wrist swivels. They groan that Jazz’s wrist swivels lock in place, so no jazz hands. One host says the Prime Armor attachment point on Jazz is well hidden but works terribly. [Source: TFormers]
Power of the Primes Moonracer High-Res Stock Images
Moonracer’s stock images show the Prime Armor piece on her chest, and the crew says it looks like a baby harness. One host argues Hasbro has to advertise the gimmick, even if it stores fine on the back. [Source: TFormers]
Power of the Primes UPC Info for Waves 2 and 3 via Toys R Us
Toys R Us register data confirms names from an earlier leak, including Prime Masters and Legends Tailgate. Some entries, like Blackwing listed as Darkwing, look like preliminary working names. One host suspects the names come from the GDSN product database. [Source: TFormers]
Planet X Pluto: Unofficial War for Cybertron Megatron
Planet X shows color production samples of its Fall of Cybertron-style Megatron. The crew credits Planet X for sticking to a distinctive niche instead of chasing Masterpiece figures. Several hosts are tempted by a Megatron that stands apart. Planet X also has an Ultra Magnus coming. [Source: TFormers]
LG-EX God Ginrai: Legends Super Ginrai and Godbomber Reissue With Cab and Minerva
In-hand images show the reissue set, a TakaraTomy Mall exclusive. It looks different, but not enough to matter unless you want Cab and Minerva. The crew is annoyed it costs less than buying the two figures separately months ago. [Source: TFormers]
Tokyo Comic Con: Movie The Best, G-Shock Watches, Dioramas and More
Tokyo Comic Con shows Street Fighter x Transformers dioramas of the Spinning Bird Kick and Shoryuken, and John wants the line to continue. Masterpiece Sunstreaker appears without the yellow on its head, which may be an alternate head. A Revenge of the Fallen pyramid battle diorama is also on display. A black Targetmaster Hot Rod draws admiration from one host. [Source: TFormers]
The Last Knight Before Christmas
This is the last week of RFC’s Toys for Tots drive, The Last Knight Before Christmas. Brian is dropping off a couple of Titans Return Deluxes. Toys for Tots wraps up soon, but Walgreens keeps collecting until the 15th. One host notes older kids get fewer donations, so Transformers are welcome.
Collecting With a Focus
One host recommends an episode of the Retronauts podcast about collecting. It nearly convinced him to sell off part of his mismatched collection. The crew agrees that buying every Transformers release, official and unofficial, is no longer practical. Collectors need to decide what they actually care about.
This Week in History
December 5 was a rough day for Transformers video games. Mystery of Convoy came out for the Famicom in 1986, and Beast Wars Transformers came out for the PlayStation in 1997. Brian owns both and calls them terrible, but he loves Mystery of Convoy’s music and playing as Ultra Magnus. Another host thinks the Headmasters Famicom game is even worse, since its rules keep changing.
On TFormers
Instruction scans for MPM-5 Movie Masterpiece Barricade show a 40-step transformation, which the crew finds fair for a Masterpiece. [Source: TFormers] A Chinese video review gives the best look yet at the back of Power of the Primes Grimlock. One host will still get it to complete his Deluxe Dinobots, but it is not his ideal Grimlock. [Source: TFormers]
What We Got This Week
Brian
Brian got the Legends Sixshot he ordered during last week’s show, and he thinks its joints beat the Hasbro version. He loves the box. He also got Legends Misfire and LG51 Haywire with the Doublecross accessory. A second Masterpiece Lambor, the Sideswipe, arrived from HLJ after his Amazon copy last week.
Chris
Chris had nothing this week, thankfully.
Diecast
Diecast’s Taobao order has been stuck in customs for about two weeks. His Black Friday Battle Tanker did arrive, and he also got Contact Shot for $100.
Don
Don used a $10 Amazon credit to get another boxed 10th Anniversary 2007 Optimus Prime, on sale for $29.99. He loves the mold in its tweaked colors and chrome. He also finally opened Beachcomber and calls him a fun, posable little desk toy.
Eric Crownover
Eric got the Walgreens clone two-pack of Wingspan and Cloudraker, sent by a friend on Twitter. He says it holds the best and the worst of the four clones, with Cloudraker at the bottom.
Rob
Rob also got the clones. He agrees Wingspan is much better, but he is happy to have Cloudraker since he had it as a kid.
John DeLuna
John DeLuna had nothing this week. His new Legends figures arrive tomorrow.
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.