Hasbro surprises fans with Ultimate X-Spanse, an X-Men Blackbird crossover with a 90s-style Cyclops robot mode. The Ghostbusters crossover turns out to be an Afterlife Ecto-1 Ectotron, and Studio Series Dino finally gets a figure.
Paramount wants Steven Caple Jr. to direct the next Transformers movie, and Aldi stocks Earthrise deluxes. In the hauls, Selects G2 Megatron’s painted head impresses, Matt opens the Earthrise Wave 3 deluxes, and Brian pushes the Elf on a Shelf Warmer toy drive.
News
Transformers Collaborative X-Men Crossover Ultimate X-Spanse
Hasbro announced a surprise X-Men crossover, Ultimate X-Spanse, a Blackbird jet styled after the 90s animated series. It loosely uses Jetfire engineering, and its blue and yellow robot mode looks like Jim Lee’s Cyclops, with a flip-down visor and blast-effect claws. It comes with a Wolverine minifigure. Don preordered two so he can keep one boxed, and Diecast ordered one despite being lukewarm on it. One host wishes it came with an optic blast effect. It is a Target preorder exclusive, then comes to Hasbro Pulse and GameStop after March 1. [Source: TFRadio]
Ghostbusters Afterlife Ectotron Revealed
The Ghostbusters crossover is a Ghostbusters: Afterlife version of Ecto-1, a $60 Target exclusive with a new head and a ghost accessory. One host is disappointed it is just a redeco, and wishes it were Ecto-1A from Ghostbusters II. Another notes the packaging differs from the first Ectotron, likely styled for the Afterlife toy line. [Source: BWTF]
Studio Series Dino and Cybertronian Bumblebee
Hasbro’s Fan First Friday was mostly a flop, but Studio Series Dino sold out its Pulse preorder immediately. One host says fans have wanted a unique Dino since Dark of the Moon. The car mode is not a Ferrari, due to licensing, and Chris compares it to a misshapen Bugatti. Studio Series also adds a Cybertronian Bumblebee, a Cliffjumper retool with a new head. One host hears that Japanese fans went wild for Dino. [Source: not found]
Creed II’s Steven Caple Jr. to Direct New Transformers Movie
Deadline reports Paramount wants Creed II director Steven Caple Jr. for the next Transformers movie, with negotiations underway. Chris notes the article calls it a reimagined universe, which fans read as a Bumblebee follow-up. Brian just hopes Michael Bay has no creative input. One host would rather have no movie for a while than a rushed one. [Source: AV Club]
Earthrise at Aldi
Aldi stores in the US are stocking Earthrise Deluxe Wave 2 for about $18. Chris recalls Aldi carrying Hunt for Decepticons and Revenge of the Fallen figures years ago. The crew also recommends Five Below for toy drive donations. [Source: not found]
Elf on a Shelf Warmer
Brian kicks off the annual Elf on a Shelf Warmer toy drive. He asks listeners to buy clearance or shelf-warmer toys for drop boxes and children’s homes, and share them with the hashtag. A wish list at tfradio.net/elf lets listeners send toys for Brian to drop off.
What We Got This Week
Chris got Selects Bug Bite, the preorder he was least excited about. The unpainted shoulder blocks are an improvement over Hubcap, and the white shows off the sculpt. He is done with this mold after Netflix Bumblebee.
Diecast got Selects G2 Megatron from Entertainment Earth and calls its fully painted head one of the best he has seen in a while. He says it is the only way he would have bought the Earthrise Megatron mold.
Don got Thunderhowl from a listener and is curious about its transformation. He also got Super7 ReAction Bumblebee for the card art.
Matt got two more Quintessons to fill out his ranks and Earthrise Smokescreen, which feels sturdier than Bluestreak. He got the Earthrise Wave 3 deluxes. Runamuck has a lot of white paint but pegs together easily. Fasttrack’s Weaponizers delight him, and Sunstreaker is American Cheese yellow. Trailbreaker is his favorite of the four. Selects G2 Megatron has a great head, but the tank mode is still an H-tank behind the turret, and the cannon sword disappoints.
Rob got nothing this week.
John had no Transformers this week, though he backed the HasLab Razor Crest.
Brian got the 2020 Hallmark Jazz ornament, Hershey’s Kisses mini Transformers, Tigertrack and the Autobot Clones. He also got the Super7 ReAction XL Devastator and ReAction Bumblebee. At Ross he found Masterpiece Movie Series MPM-8 Megatron for $40. He picked up an Armor Deformer knockoff Grimlock from Sheetz for $13 as a curiosity. He also got a second Alternate Universe Optimus Prime for a Toyhax Dark Awakening sticker set.