Hasbro extends the HasLab Unicron campaign to October 6, after it reached 5,653 backers without funding on time. Brian technically wins his bet with Diecast, so the two raise the stakes to 8,250 backers. Generations Selects Seacons Wave 2, Seawing and Nautilator, go up for preorder at $35 each. TakaraTomy Mall offers Big Convoy with his Beast Wars Neo Matrix Buster cannon. Brian finally tackles the panel-heavy MP-44 Optimus Prime.
News
Hasbro Extends the HasLab Unicron Campaign to October 6
Unicron did not fund by its original deadline, so Brian technically wins the bet. Hasbro extended the campaign through New York Comic Con weekend, and backers rose from 5,223 to 5,653 in a week. TakaraTomy Mall has reopened orders, and fan channel orders have not been counted yet. Most of the crew now expects it to fund, though Diecast doubts it will clear much more than 8,000. He and Brian reset their bet at 8,250 backers, still with a Unicron-painted Turtler or a Diecast tattoo at stake. The crew doubts the extension was planned and expects Hasbro to avoid a second one. One host argues corporate conduct rules keep Hasbro from fudging the count. One host says Hasbro needs to keep revealing extras over the next month to hold attention. [Source: Yakface]
Generations Selects Seacons Wave 2 Color Photos and Release Date
Seawing and Nautilator are up for preorder on Hasbro Pulse at $35 each, due in January and February 2020. The crew notes that is less than they used to pay for TakaraTomy Deluxes. One host worries Nautilator’s crab legs hang from a single hinge. Don likes the Seacons but would rather put the money toward a Vehicle Voltron. Some of the crew preordered two of each. [Source: TFormers]
Hasbro Plans for the Future of Tariffs on Products From China
Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner told CNBC about the Entertainment One deal, which includes Death Row Records, and Hasbro’s tariff plans. Chris notes Transformers are already made mostly in Vietnam, so tariffs should not hit them directly. The crew still expects price increases across the board, possibly $25 Deluxes. [Source: TFormers]
Transformers Encore Beast Wars Neo Big Convoy Matrix Buster Version Pictures and Details
The TakaraTomy Mall exclusive is up for preorder through the end of September and ships in late February 2020. Unlike the cartoon-colored Encore release, it uses the toy deco and adds the huge anime cannon. One host will buy the mold again, since it matches the Big Convoy he has owned for 20 years. Separately, TakaraTomy’s golden Optimus Prime trophy crowdfunding failed at about half its goal. [Source: TFormers]
What’s on TFormers This Week
Rob points to new photos of Generations Selects Nightbird, Powerdasher Zetar and Siege Barricade, plus a video review of MP-45 Bumblebee 2.0. Zeta Toys fully revealed its ZV-02 Core Star unofficial Unicron, at about a third of the price and two thirds of the size. Diecast says Zeta’s quality control has been poor on about half his figures. Kuro Kara Kuri Star Saber is ready to ship.
What We Got This Week
Brian got MP-44 Optimus Prime. He gave up on the instructions and spent about an hour figuring out the panel-heavy transformation himself. He loves the cartoon-accurate robot mode, dislikes the back of the truck and says it is not worth retail. From Transformers buy-and-sell groups he got a G1 Overkill and a complete G2 Dreadwing and Smokescreen. He also got Cyberverse Prowl with Brave-style armor for about $15, which he likes far better than Skybite.
John got MP-44 Optimus Prime too and has opened it, but has not transformed it yet.
Jason got Iron Factory’s Hex Wrench, a Wheeljack homage. He also got Iron Factory’s Fekta and Mizar, Kaon and Vos of the DJD, for about $70. The set includes combiner feet, half the fusion cannon, the torso and replacement arms for Tarn’s breakage-prone shoulders.
Rob received a Hun-Gurrr from an anonymous sender. He says it is the best torso of the Silverbolt engineering family and brings him closer to his Terrorcons combiner.
Diecast got the Fans Toys Quietus retooled version in lighter lavender. He loves how slim the robot is for what it transforms into.
Matt bought his first Cyberverse figure, a Sharkticon from Walmart, and likes it despite the head that does not fold away. He also got the Transformers United Wipe-Out and Windcharger two-pack on eBay to go with his Trypticon.
Don got Spark Armor Ratchet and Shockwave.
Chris got another Amazon Warehouse Deals Brunt, his third, for his three-Brunt super robot.
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.