Beast Wars story editor Larry DiTillio has died at 79, and Brian remembers him as RFC’s first interview in 2000. New photos show the Parco World of Transformers exhibit in Japan is far better than it first looked, with a wooden Galvatron prototype and an intact Black Zarak. Lorenzo di Bonaventura talks up a Last Knight sequel and a Bumblebee sequel, and a mystery Unicron tease surfaces at TFcon. TFcon also confirms a return to Reston, Virginia, in October.
News
Beast Wars Writer Larry DiTillio Passes Away at Age 79
Larry DiTillio, a Beast Wars showrunner who worked on many other shows, has died at 79. Brian notes he was RFC’s first interview, back around February 2000. He credits Bob Forward and Larry DiTillio with making Beast Wars the high-water mark for Transformers fiction. [Source: TFormers]
Parco World of Transformers Exhibit Images
Photos from the exhibit in Japan show far more than the crew expected. Highlights include a wooden Galvatron prototype, Japanese box art paintings, Combaticon head design masters and Masterforce Seacons. There is also a prototype Sixshot and an intact Black Zarak. Brian takes back everything he said about the exhibit last week. The photos come from Autobase Aichi’s Facebook albums. [Source: TFormers]
Siege Voyager Starscream Running Change Adds a Chest Pin
Later Siege Starscream units have a pin in the chest-plate hinge, which popped off easily on early units. One host explains the hinge part had to be retooled, so it was an early running change. You should be able to spot the pin through the package window. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers/Ghostbusters #1 First Look
Textless interior pages show Starscream facing the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and Megatron swatting a terror dog aside. One host notes the cover is by Andrew Griffith. Brian loves Ghostbusters but is not yet excited about the crossover. [Source: TFormers]
New Transformers TCG Starter Set Coming in May
Diecast says the new starter set has new Bumblebee, Windblade, Starscream and Megatron character cards, so owners of the first starter set still have a reason to buy it. He thinks rotating starter sets is smart for the game. [Source: TFormers]
The Art of Transformers by Bill Forster and Jim Sorensen
A new art book from Bill Forster and Jim Sorensen will show unused concepts. Preview slides include unmade BotCon ideas, an Animated Skyfire, a G2-style Animated Swindle and an Animated Overlord from the Blitzwing mold. It is due by the end of the year, and Brian is definitely buying it. [Source: TFormers]
The producer says a sequel to The Last Knight and a Bumblebee sequel are both coming, while also talking about a reboot. He suggests Bumblebee 2 will have more Michael Bay style. The crew thinks he misses why fans liked Bumblebee. Diecast says the movie lacked something, and the crew teases him for it. [Source: TFormers]
GoBots Get Name-Checked in a Bumblebee Deleted Scene
A deleted scene from Bumblebee has a character guess that Bumblebee is a GoBot. Diecast calls it dumb, and one host wishes Bumblebee had reacted. [Source: SYFY Wire]
Mystery Unicron Teased at TFcon
A photo from TFcon shows a large Unicron holding two Bruticus limbs, hinting at a huge figure. The company, size and whether it transforms are all unknown. Diecast is thrilled, since no third party has made a Unicron yet. [Source: not found]
TFcon Returns to Reston, Virginia, in October
TFcon USA this past weekend was a West Coast show. A second US TFcon comes to Reston, Virginia, outside Washington, D.C., in October. Most of the crew hopes to go, and Brian notes it is two hours from his house. [Source: not found]
What’s on TFormers
Preview: Synergy, a Hasbro Creators Showcase
Rob previews Synergy, an IDW book spotlighting women who worked on Hasbro properties, including a short Jem comic. Don wishes for a similar look at the women who designed the toys. [Source: TFormers]
Preview: Bumblebee Sector 7 Adventures Comic
A Sector 7 Adventures comic comes with the physical Bumblebee release on April 2. Brian has the 4K version preordered. [Source: TFormers]
What We Got This Week
Brian
Brian found $3 bargains at Edward McKay, including the first Rescue Bots Chase, a Star Wars Mace Windu transformer and a loose Combiner Wars Wheeljack. He also got the Transformers Japanese collection on DVD and his Hero-X Generations book. His big buys were God Neptune and a complete G1 Scorponok from eBay, missing only Fasttrack’s left arm.
Diecast
Diecast got another Rise of the Combiners box to unbox on video. He also got Zeta Toys’ bar set for Legends-scale figures, which has a light-up Decepticon throne but no instructions. He added Zeta’s Catapult, his fourth jet toward a third-party Superion, a second Hoodlum and Toy World’s Exhaust, plus the Christmas edition for Matt. He also got a special edition Make Toys Striker Manus with the Nemesis weapon kit. He ordered the blue Diaclone-style version from TFcon, plus a black knockoff, so he will own every color of the mold.
Chris
Chris took a break from buying this week.
Matt
Matt got the Hero-X Transformers Generations book. He likes its concept art, including combiners with capes, and its bookmark opens to Thunderclash.
Don
Don bought Siege Voyager Starscream, which he calls the Underbase Saga Starscream. His local Walmart also restocked Studio Series Rampage and Optimus Prime.
Rob
Rob had nothing in Transformers this week.
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.