Kre-2

The 80s? Whatever, man.

Well, it was bound to happen. Generation 2 has officially infected Kre-O - and not a moment too soon. While mostly populated by G1 homages, the Kre-O universe has also recently gotten refugees from the world of Transformers: Prime (Optimus, Bumblebee, Megatron, Airachnid, Knock Out, Eradicons) and Beast Wars (Waspinator). But now, another segment of the franchise's history is represented, that most quintessentially 90s part.

Ok, sure. Yes, G2 is really just G1: More, and Devastator here isn't terribly different from the original (even still possessing a G1 Decepticon symbol), but I think it's great. Partially because the only version of G1 Devastator I own is the G2 version, which I collected piece-by-piece over the course of my 3rd grade year. Actually, there were two versions of G2 Devastator - the more common yellow deco (which I have) and then the very orange version. I think this Kreon - assuming the color in the image is correct - strikes a good balance between the two colors, being a fairly yellow orange.

However, I also like this version just for the "dark energon" purple version of the gun - which is G1 Megatron in alt mode. The original version of the kreon, which comes with the larger Kre-O Devastator set, has the same gun, but it's molded in a less exciting flat black plastic.

Edit: I should add that this image showed up on the Hasbro site overnight, and while it is listed for a price of $3.99, there's no indication of how this Devastator will be sold. It's too expensive to be a blind-packed Microchanger, nor does it have any parts to make an alt mode with (indeed, Devastator doesn't have an alt mode). It's too cheap to be part of any building set, so my guess is that this will be an HTS or NYCC exclusive. Maybe.

Swing and a miss

Ok, so today was the day that HTS finally deigned to list the SDCC exclusives.

Damn.

Bruticus sold out in less than three minutes. I didn't stand a chance.

Thankfully, I did manage to order Rust in Peace Terrocon Cliffjumper.

So, what next? Well, I wasn't originally a fan of the retail deco for FoC Bruticus, but I did already like Blast Off (purple vs. brown? Yes, please) and more recently, Onslaught, who is actually more game and cartoon accurate. Swindle just has yellow versus gold, which other Swindles have had in the past. No version of Voretx looks G1 accurate, so it was kind of pick your poison already. However, the SDCC Vortex doesn't look that much like the game deco, and the retail one has the advantage of marrying more purple (G1? check!) and orange, which the Energon version of Vortex (Stormcloud) was colored with. Brawl is almost lime green, which I don't appreciate, but whatever. Long story short, I guess I can handle Retail Bruticus. I would have thought about G2 Bruticus, but banana grape Onslaught is a deal breaker.

I was happy to get the RiP version of CJ. The "normal" Terrorcon version of him, that was originally supposed to be a wave 3 First Edition toy, is now going to be released for realz this fall, but it doesn't possess the more detailed deco, dark energon accessories, or over-the-top packaging that the SDCC one does.

Also, the missed opportunity of SDCC Bruticus opened up another opportunity: since he's basically the same price, I decided to have Amazon exclusive Jetwing Optimus replace the Brute as a belated father's day gift. So I'm pretty excited about getting him later in the year.

The Fall Begins Now

So, Fall of Cybertron. Sequel to War for Cybertron, the game comes out next month (I think) and the toys themselves are just now hitting shelves. Just like the WfC toys, the FoC toys are actually part of the new, second iteration of the Generations line, and (thus far) compose all of its releases. This is in contrast to Generations Mk I, which only had five WfC releases amongst many other toys.

Wave one, which only consists of three toys, includes Optimus Prime, Jazz, and Shockwave, all deluxes, Shockwave and Jazz still retain the same designs from the first game, which of course isn't an issue since they never got toys the first time around. Optimus is based on his new design, which looks a bit more like G1 Optimus' Earth mode body, since there's less kibble and whatnot. However, he's also pretty tiny, at least a head smaller than his previous toy, so I declined to purchase it. I don't get why you'd want the newer "upgraded" form to be smaller, so I'm holding out hope that Optimus' new design gets a release in the new Voyager class alongside Soundwave, Grimlock and crew. I also hope Megatron's new design shows up there too, as we've seen no indication that he'll be getting a FoC toy so far.

Jazz I also passed on, as he too is kind of small (though not as small as anticipated) and also very simple in transformation. I may still pick him up sometime, as I don't have a cybertronian mode Jazz, but I'm in no hurry.

I was, however, excited to pick up Shockwave, whose design for WfC/FoC is fantastic. It's very streamlined and low-kibble, but I love the addition of the wings in bot mode, and he's also got one of the coolest cybertronian modes in the toyline's history. I can get more into all of that in a mini-review for the guy.

Also, SDCC exclusive FoC Bruticus was supposed to be available on HTS by now, but hasn't made it there yet (none of the SDCC stuff has). However, I'm pretty confident that it will happen this week, and with luck I'll be able to nab the set and add another five FoC Decepticons to the ranks, which as of now only consist of Megatron, Soundwave and Shockwave. If i lose out, I guess I'll be ok with the retail versions. Blast-off actually looks better than the SDCC one, and Onslaught is more game accurate.

Beyond the Combaticons, I'm also really looking forward to Starscream, Kickback, Magnus, Sideswipe, and the Wreckers.

SDCC 2012; Or, How Hasbro Got its Groove Back

Ok, SDCC has come early this year! Firstly, that means that I've got to try and snag the two TF exclusives from HTS next week (Rust in Peace Terrorcon Cliffjumper and G1 colors FoC Bruticus), so that'll be an adventure. At least my parents are paying for them as my belated father's day gift. Perhaps more importantly, this also means TF toy news! Longtime readers (assuming they exist, ha) will note that last year's SDCC had some pretty great news, which was a step up from the lackluster 2010 showing. But this year?

This is the year Hasbro got its groove back.

Ok, granted, a lot of this is because of many disappointments from the past year (really, the past few years, but I'll be charitable...), but Hasbro really did have a great showing today. Let's take a look at the rundown, shall we?

Some of the new Kreons

Kre-O: On top of the more expansive sets shown at ToyFair/Botcon, we now have Microchangers! These are Kreons that help fill out the line with new characters, but also come with extra parts to turn them into their "alt modes". It's pretty amusing. Also, there are combiner four-packs! I'll just be featuring my favorites here, as there are a ton of these things!

-Scorponox - yep, a name change. Still, good approximation of his G1 form (uses Sideswipe's helmet) with dark energon claws.

-Galvatron - nice to have alongside Megatron. Cannon altmode.

-Airachnid - has the spider mode that the deluxe doesn't!

-Hook - love the bastard.

-Devastator - includes four of the constructicons that aren't Hook. Looks great, and kind of neat that they're even doing this, considering that it could drain a decent percentage of collector purchases from the larger, more expensive Kre-O Devastator.

-Predicus - Formerly Predaking; glad to see these guys be remembered!

TF: Prime: Just like with Botcon, not much new here with the actual main toyline.

I swear I'm not Leobreaker. Or Razorclaw. Or Tigerhawk.

- Thundertron - talked about this guy a few posts back, and I'm still digging him. It seems, from display case pics, that he has a face mask that lifts up to reveal his bearded visage. Wonder if FP will use this to finally give us a lion Alpha Trion? Anyway, as stated before, he seems like a very fun toy that's a big shout-out to the Cybertron line - his transformation is similar to Leobreaker, his color's are Snarls, and he's an evil leader that's not Megatron, like Scourge. I'm really hoping the sword actually can stay deployed, too. Can't wait for this guy.

Naw, man. It's just a hammer. That's it.

-Ultra Magnus - looks even better in this somewhat clearer pic. After being somewhat disappointed with the Commander toy, hopefully the same design in a larger mold will work better.

-Skyquake - Uh, he was shown (as a prototype) at last year's SDCC, so that's kind of awkward. Looks good enough, but I don't think I'll get him except maybe on clearance. I prefer the Dreadwing version.

-Fallback - Really Outback, it's a repaint of Legion Breakdown with a yellow version of his gun. Don't really want it, but I actually have a decent little Outback collection going...

-Tailgate - Legion Cliffjumper repaint with a yellow Bumblebee gun, this is Arcee's first dead partner. He actually looked like CJ in the show, so that's neat. Probably skip.

-Knock Out - repaint of the legion mold with a blue or purple Ratchet blade; it's hard to tell. Similarly, I'm not sure if it's orange or red. If orange, he looks like a Skystalker homage. Not interested.

-Bulkhead - looks like an evil repaint - black with blue (or purple?) highlights. Very good looking, and a new weapon to boot! I think it's supposed to be his arm's cannon mode, but it looks more like the mace itself turned into a spherical gun. Blue color. Pretty cool!

- Skyquake - I probably will get this version, which has a new weapon - Skyquake's chaingun (orange). Nice.

Exclusives - Pretty extensive! This is really where the good stuff is.

....and this is how we get a domestic DotM leader class Optimus.

-Jetwing Optimus Prime - the Japanese/Asian DotM release. This is a remold of RotF Leader Optimus to look more like his DotM appearance and included the fuel tank transforming gun and, of course, his giant jetpack from the film, which was obviously very different from the Ultimate Optimus Prime flight armor we got stateside. This actually has a different deco from previous releases, giving the jet pack some color so it blends in with the bot mode some more. An Amazon exclusive that's $105, I may actually go for this, since Hasbro never released a proper large DotM Optimus toy. The only thing I'd want instead would be Striker Optimus.

One of these is not like the other...

-Masterpiece Thundercracker - an October TRU (I think) exclusive, this is a repaint of the new version of MP Starscream, which I'm happy to see. It's a remold of the original MP Seeker mold, so scale will be right with the older ones, but it will be distinctive in appearance. I will want this one.














-G2 FoC Bruticus - Amazon/BBTS exclusve. While actually the cheapest version of Bruticus if you buy from Amazon, overall I don't care for the colors (mostly because of Onslaught). I love the G2 symbols and packaging, though. It'll be hard not to get this to at least go with my G2 Redux set.

>TF: PRIME FIRST EDITION!!!!!
Not sure where these are exclusive to (TRU again?), but we're finally getting these back in November (or so)!

-Entertainment Pack - got it already, but glad it's there for others!

-Bulkhead - Glad I can get him for sane prices!

-Optimus Prime - ditto!

-Arcee - got 'er

-Starscream - got 'im

-Vehicon - I'd actually like to add this version to the collection now that he'll be a decent price. I mean, the newer mold I have is a lot better, but I like to think of the FE one as a rough job "first scan" version when the eradicons first hit Earth.

-Terrorcon Cliffjumper - a bit of a weird choice over normal CJ, since TC CJ is one of the SDCC exclusives (granted, with much nicer packaging and accesories), but still glad it'll hit retail for those who don't snag the SDCC version (possibly including me!)

>Generations "China Imports" - I had actually meant to do a big write up on these when they were first shown a couple of months back, but never got around to it. These were apparently never intended for the US market, but after a ton of fan complaints, they're getting released after (it seems, even with the mandarin still on the packaging!). I'm iffy on a lot of the larger ones, mostly because they're weird crossings of movie bodies with G1-style heads and therefore don't really fit in any continuity, such that I was considering making them their own continuity. Still, now that they'll be available without importing, they become a little more appealing.


-Silverstreak - I'll get it. RtS Prowl repaint with a G1-style rifle.

-Hoist - repaint of RtS Trailbreaker, again with a G1-style gun. Looks good; more detail than TB. Will get.

- Motorbreath - hilarious new name for Motormaster, a RtS legends Optimus repaint, with G1-style sword. Will get.

-Thundercracker - the most appealing of these four; obviously a RtS Starscream repaint. Also comes with G1 style Null Rays, even though the mold has built-in arm guns.

-Sandstorm - RotF Dune Runner in G1 Sandstorm's colors. Not getting. Already have a movieverse Sandstorm in the DotM version, and I'm happy with HftD Legends Sandstorm as a G1 stand-in for now.

-Brawl - repaint of HftD Breacher as G1 Brawl. Interesting, as it's not a tank, but it does have the dual cannons that Brawl is increasingly becoming known for. Not bad, I may get it.

-Dead End - RotF Breakdown in G1 Wildrider's colors. Might get him if I never track down RotF deluxe Dead End.

-Laserbeak - repaint of RotF Skystalker in G1 Laserbeak's colors, most likely due to the pseudo-bird mode. Already have a movie Laserbeak, but might still get it.

-Springer - HftD Tomahawk with a new G1 head and a sword. Way to movie-looking to be a G1 stand-in, and I already have a movie Springer in the RotF legends mold, but I might get this. Maybe.

-Cliffjumper - a new G1 head on FE CJ's body. I'm guessing that this guy is why normal FE Cj isn't getting a domestic release. Still looks good, but I don't guess I need it. I'd love a blue club repaint as SG CJ, though.

GOOOOOO DAWGS

- Swerve - Generations Kup with a new head. This is a straight-up G1 style toy, and recently I didn't care about it, but I have lately read the first IDW MTMTE trade. Plus, the truck mode isn't too different from my dad's, and I could slap a Georgia "G" sticker on the hood...






-Wheelie - another straight-up G1 toy, this is RtS Jazz with a new head and slingshot weapon. Not sure about the original handgun and speakers, but he looks pretty good, and I was never able to find the Universe legends mold of this guy. I don't mind the idea of Wheelie "graduating" to a normal autobot size, either, as the endless "big" Bumblebees has kind of knocked that idea aside. Will probably get.

- Powerdive - repaint of HftD Highbrow. I don't think he has a new head, but I could be wrong. And I'll be honest, I don't really know who any previous Powerdive is supposed to be, but I've read that this toy is actually an homage of G2 Ransack. Again, I already have a movieverse Ransack from RotF, but this is a really good mold. Big maybe.

-Hot Spot - repaint of Universe 2.0 Inferno with a new head. It's pretty obviously G1 Hot Spot, but I already have this mold three times over, with two of them being fire trucks. Probably won't get.

"Mash-Up-Verse Megatron". How's that sound?

-Megatron - RotF Bludgeon with a G1 Megatron head and G2 megatron deco. Interesting, as it basically blends the ideas of G2 Megatron with Alternity megatron due to the samurai design and swords. Will most likely get at some point.













-Year of the Dragon Ultimate Optimus Prime - I think this is another Amazon exclusive, but it's a repaint of DotM Ultimate Prime in more festive colors. Was released last year or early this year for the Chinese new year. A neat novelty, but I'm not going to buy this mold at all unless it reaches some pretty low clearance prices (still a few at the local Kmart for about $60).

TF: Prime - Dark Energon - Apparently a set of BBTS exclusives, this looks like an actual retail refresh line with totally redone packaging and everything. All toys have a lot of translucent plastic

-Bumblebee - PRiD BB with translucent gold and blue detailing, this is basically a Gold Bug redeco. I like it, but I'm not sure I want this mold as BB, as I use the FE mold to represent him. We'll see.

-Wheeljack - translucent blue, this is a Slicer/SG Wheeljack homage. Still has normal Autobot symbols, though, so if you really want it to be one of the other two characters, you'll need some reprolabels.

-Knock Out - pretty neat; clear neon green with purple detailing. Some say constructicon colors, but between the "green = Tox En" idea in the show and the overall look, it seems more Toxitron-ish to me. Might get.

- Starscream - FE deluxe mold, translucent black with purple detailing, this is basically Skywarp. Finally, we get a Skywarp that looks like he's phasing out to teleport (I've been waiting for this since they missed the boat in the Energon line)!

You're gonna die!

- Megatron - PRiD voyager repaint. Translucent purple (2 shades, actually, since he already had translucent parts) with black, this is the only one that really looks like it has dark energon in him. He actually looks really great - I'll probably get him to represent a "full takeover" mode by Unicron or something.

-Optimus Prime - PRiD voyager with translucent red and orange with light blue details, this is the most "vanilla" of the series. Honestly, this was a real miss, as this subline was a great place for Hasbro to use the FE mold as Nemesis Prime, especially since the more collector-oriented retailer would mean that you wouldn't necessarily need to have Optimus in the case. But whatever. Won't get unless I have to buy him with Megatron.






Generations - So far, everything in Generations "2.0" are Fall of Cybertron toys. This line has actually just started to trickle out to stores, but they obviously have much more on the way:

Oh crap

-WRECKERS! Total surprise, these are all remolds of the FoC Combaticons with new weapons to boot. The combined mode is named Ruination, in reference to the combined mode of the RiD Combaticon repaints. Color schemes are all pretty well coordinated.

Brace for impact

-Impactor - the leader, of course, he finally gets a toy as a remold of Onslaught. The new weapon looks to be his harpoon gun. Both heads (normal and combined mode) are new molds.

-Twin Twist - remold of Brawl with an impressive twin drill bit weapon. Hopefully, the drills can mount on the front of the tank mode.

-Topspin - Blast Off repaint, with a DotM Ratchet-esque buzzsaw weapon.

-Roadbuster - Swindle repaint. New gun is a big, tri-barreled thing that I think is actually from the game.

Hey look! IDW's most recent reimagined-beyond-recognition character!

-Whirl! Finally, a G1 Whirl update with the G1-acurate cyclops head. The deco is way off (and damnit, three out of four versions of this mold use orange!), but it ties him to the others pretty well. Vortex redeco, obviously.







-Blaster - remold of voyager Soundwave/blaster. Looks considerably less evil than I would have expected (especially compared to the Universe 2.0 repaint!). Comes with Steeljaw, who I think is a Ravage repaint/remold. Not sure if I'll get him.

-Eject & Ramhorn - 2-pack of data disc guys. Probably won't get.

-Rewind and Sundor - Again, 2 more disc guys for Blaster. Probably won't get.

ME BEEFCAKE

-FoC Voyager Grimlock - looks a little more beefcake than he should, but still pretty good. I really like the light-up T-Rex mouth and chest gimmick, and the sword and shield both look good. I'll get him.

-Linkin Park Soundwave - pretty weird, they basically let Linkin Park redeco a G1 Soundwave reissue. Pretty simple, it's a gold deco with a little bit of black trim. Includes Laserbeak, Buzzsaw (who is indistinguishable from LB since they're both gold, heh), Ratbat and Ravage. Nice looking box. While I don't mind Linkin Park, I also don't actively like them, and I don't even know the outlet for this nor the price. Probably won't get.

So, overall, a pretty impressive showing! Lots of weird, interesting and niche things, but also some good surprises and (FINALLY) some good news regarding getting back cancelled toys. I still won't be completely happy with Hasbro until we get some of the cancelled Animated stuff or DotM Wheeljack and Soundwave, but the move to bring the TFP FE stuff back and "import" the Asian Generations toys really has put Hasbro back in my good graces (and those of the fandom at large, I'd wager). For now.



All pics courtesy of Hasbro via TFW2005

New Cyberverse

Um....MORE ultra gear

Hammer Time

So, someone got a hold of a Transformers: Prime promotional booklet that has pics of the upcoming voyager toys. We had already seen Dreadwing, and now we see that his brother Skyquake is also due for a release and even managed to get his mechtech gun remolded. More interesting, though are the first pretty good pictures of both Thundertron and Ultra Magnus!

I'd already explained a few posts back that this was a good year for Ultra Magnus, as (to date) he's already received a Shattered Glass Botcon (p)remold and TFP Cyberverse Commander toy. We're also still waiting on the club to announce the date for the Ultra Mammoth repaint of Big Convoy, and the Ultra Magnus remold of Fall of Cybertron Optimus Prime is forthcoming this fall as well.

Well, it turns out that Magnus is important enough of a TFP character that he's also getting this voyager mold! It's the same design as the commander toy, meaning he very well could be in the show. Also, being a TFP Voyager, he comes with a "powerizer" mechtech weapon, which is kind of like a cannon emplacement that turns into his now-famous hammer. He also has a non-firing(?) missile, kind of like voyager Starscream's missiles.

ARRRRR

Thundertron is a horse of a different color. Transformers: Prime has actually been fairly decent at producing some new characters, like Knock Out. Another new face on the transformers scene is this guy. Thundertron first appeared last year in Exiles, the sequel to Exodus, the War for Cybertron tie-in novel. He's the leader of a band of space pirates called the Star Seekers which are their own faction - new symbol and everything. He transforms into a lion for whatever reason, but he looks pretty good. He has a peg leg so he can maintain his pirate cred. I also appreciate him in that he kind of represents a throwback to the Cybertron series, a somewhat more fun era of the franchise. I mean, the whole idea behind him is pretty silly, but he'll also be portrayed in a serious manner, which is funny. Glad to have him coming up.

Pics courtesy of TFW2005.

Sibling rivalry

So, as you can see, I managed to get my hands on Botcon 2012 Shattered Glass Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus! I'll do full individual reviews of them later, but I just wanted them to have a bit of a spotlight here.

Firstly, for the uninitiated, these are Shattered Glass transformers, meaning that they hail from a universe where everything is reversed, primarily the morality of the characters, leading to evil Autobots and good Decepticons. In most universes, Optimus and Magnus are two brothers, top-tier autobots who fight for the freedom of all sentient beings and what-not. Here, Optimus is a despot on the level of Hitler, and Magnus is his former right-hand general who (much like most Starscreams) tried to usurp leadership from his brother. Optimus recently upgaded his body in the style of G2 Optimus, and Magnus, who has been plotting his return from exile, has done the same. Oh, and he also has a skull face, since his brother ripped off his actual face.

The toys themselves look great. Optimus already got a toy back in 2008 in the original SG set, which I really should have bought. It was a repaint of the Classics voyager mold, and still goes for $500+ on ebay, also helping to keep the cost of the box set high. Fun Publications decided to throw a bone to all of us who didn't buy '08 SG Prime and wanted to fill the evil hole in our collection by repainting last year's Reveal the Shield "G2" Optimus Prime deluxe mold. It's basically what you'd expect, as it doesn't change any of SG Prime's colors - still purple torso, grey legs, and battle damage everywhere. I like the gaudy, huge SG Autobot logo on the hood. Another neat addition is the new text on the nose of the truck. '08 SG Prime had "'Till All Are Gone" emblazoned on his cab fairing, and this toy has a similar twisted quote: "I shall stand...all shall fall." I do wish the bas-relief Matrix in his chest had been painted like Magnus' is, but I guess they used up all the paint apps on other areas.

As for Ultra Magnus, he didn't have a preexisting toy, so we didn't really know what to expect. Turns out that they decided to use the Diaclone colors of the original G1 Magnus toy (called "Powered Convoy") for the evil version of this character. Also repainted from RtS Optimus Prime, this toy was given a new head mold that was already designed by Hasbro (and has actually not been used by Hasbro yet!) - a very evil, skull-faced take on the traditional Optimus head design. He looks very sharp, and, to be honest, is the best looking version of the mold I own (thus far).