Brian finally buys his first Cyberverse figures and finds the $30 Megatron inelegant, though the cheaper ones are fine for young kids. A screen-used prop in an auction catalog confirms Bumblebee’s Jeep mode in the Bumblebee movie, and the Studio Series Volkswagen Bumblebee turns out to be tiny. The Cyberverse teaser with Windblade, Bumblebee and Thundercracker leaves the crew cold. Novastar, the last Power of the Primes retail deluxe, reaches US stores. Diecast loses a Taobao box full of preorders to customs.
News
Power of the Primes Novastar Reaching US Stores Now
Novastar is the last retail deluxe for the line, which the crew calls one of the shortest in years. Reports suggest two per case, so she should be easier to find than Moonracer. Some of the crew have yet to find Optimal Optimus. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers Studio Series Volkswagen Bumblebee Movie Figure Gallery
The robot mode stands about a head shorter than the already small Studio Series Camaro Bumblebee, which feels bad at $20. A linked transformation video rules out shared engineering with the Camaro deluxe. The crew jokes about continuity, since the movie is set in 1986 and its trailer uses a 1987 song. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers Bumblebee Movie Jeep Mode Confirmed and First Look at Prop Vehicle
An auction catalog listed the screen-used yellow Jeep as Bumblebee’s first vehicle form before he switches to the Volkswagen. The crew finds it funny that a prop sale revealed it before the movie came out. Rumor says the film opens on Cybertron with G1-era characters. [Source: TFormers]
Windblade tries to jog an amnesiac Bumblebee’s memory. Brian liked it until the last 10 seconds, when Bumblebee’s stinger defeats Thundercracker. Rob finds it bland, with characters against static backgrounds, though he is not prejudging the show. Another host dislikes the character models and animation. [Source: TFormers]
Toys R Us Hong Kong Website Reveals Cyberverse Warrior Class Thundercracker
The secret repaint surprises no one. The writer notes the biggest surprise is that Toys R Us is alive and well in Hong Kong. Brian explains he will keep covering and buying Cyberverse, as he did with Robots in Disguise. [Source: TFormers]
Early concepts paired Rodimus Prime with Jazz, Starscream, Dinobots and more before Hasbro settled on a G1 look. One host spots the top half of the Leader Prima remold from the Overlord mold family in the vehicle mode. The crew wishes for more nods to underused characters like Star Convoy, while John wants new G1-universe characters. [Source: TFormers]
MP-43 Beast Wars Masterpiece Megatron 360-View Photos
It looks great. The crew teases Diecast about which part he will break first, after his Masterpiece Dinobot video drew more angry comments than his Chronos burning. [Source: TFormers]
DNA Designs Predaking Upgrade Kit Final Color Photos
One host finds the articulated hands unnecessary on what he sees as a toy. Diecast disagrees: third-party kits fix the compromises Hasbro made for price. He is glad they added waist guns after early criticism, and he already has it on preorder. The giant wing pack makes Divebomb look even sillier. [Source: TFormers]
MAAS Toys Shows Off Tyrant Throne Prototype for Masterpiece MP-36 Megatron
The crew admires the throne but will pass. Don pitches a Masterpiece-scale Nemesis bridge built from existing figures and a Toyhax backdrop. Others want a Beast Wars Megatron command chair with his scanner orb. [Source: TFormers]
This Week in History
In 2014, Q-Transformers: Mystery of Convoy Returns was released for iOS in Japan. The crew notes mobile games come and go, which keeps one host from investing in them. In 1992, the Headmasters episode The Evil Meteor aired in Malaysia, five years after its Japanese debut. Brian has three episodes of What’s Happened to the Headmasters in the can.
What’s on TFormers
TFormers finished its Power of the Primes Predaking review with thoughts on the combined figure. Chris posted a video on preserving the packaging of the SDCC 2018 exclusives.
RFC Shirts
John explains that RFC shirts are at shirtstickle.com/tfradio, printed by the Pro Wrestling Tees team. Designs are done in-house by John, including a G2-style Robot Collector shirt that is the top seller. A reversed-color orange design is on the way.
What We Got This Week
Brian
Brian bought his first Cyberverse figures: the small Grimlock and Megatron and the $30 Megatron. The small ones are simple and fine for kids five to seven. The $30 Megatron’s tank mode needs the shoulders just right, and its tabs pop loose when held, so he says to skip it. Thanks to Hasbro and Diecast, he also got the SDCC Bumblebee Vol. 1 set, minus a gun.
Diecast
Diecast got the SDCC Transformers Vol. 1 Tapes and Bumblebee from Hasbro Toy Shop, which arrived slightly damaged in thin packaging. He also got a custom Matrix ring like Eric’s. His Taobao box with Fans Toys’ Mindwipe, a small Omega Supreme and Perfect Effect Dinobot combiner kits appears lost at the wrong customs warehouse. He explains Taobao preorder discounts and why refunds need a verified Alipay account.
Matt
Matt’s pickup this week was not Transformers.
Jason
Jason found Robots in Disguise Combiner Force activator Soundwave on clearance for $5. He wanted the Laserbeak, which pairs perfectly with his Warrior Class Soundwave.
Rob
Rob had nothing in Transformers this week.
John
John had nothing this week.
Don
Don hit Target’s clearance after the reset for the Robots in Disguise Crash Combiner Strongarm and Optimus Prime at $4.48, and the combined mode is growing on him. From Ages 3 and Up he got the TFcon exclusive Machine Wars Optimus Prime redeco of the Thunderclash mold.
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.