BotCon Panel news

[griffin]

The Hasbro panel is likely to get its own news topic, but the rest can probably just be in the one if nothing to exciting gets revealed.
(I'll have my photos and report done when I get home next week though - this is just some quick info)

Club Magazine - 12-1pm Friday

The Beast Wars story will continue into 2014, but in a different setting to this year.

The BotCon comic this year will continue somewhere (maybe the 2014 magazine BW story).

The 2014 comic story will end the "Wings of Honour" Universe, started in 2009.

More Prose stories will return to the Club website, which is expected to relaunch in September 2013.

They are limited to 4 remoulds (or heads) per year for BotCon toys.


Hasbro Publishing - 1-2pm Friday

A digital exclusive TFPrime encyclopedia will launch on Ipad, and hopefully Android soon.

An ultimate pop-up book in October, which has some pop-up characters being able to transform by sliding a tab on the page (they demonstrated it, and it is an amazing feat of engineering - for paper).

30th Anniversary Comic collection will be out in September.

3rd TFPrime book (Retribution) will be out in February. It brings in the Quintessons as the main foe to both sides.

Covenant of Primus - a prototype of the case was shown.
It includes information from the fabled "Binder of Revelation" which is stored in the Hasbro vault.
There will NOT be a cheaper version any time soon, as they haven't got one in the works. So if you are really wanting this book in the next 12 months, you will need to buy the expensive fancy version.

Papercraft Transformers.
A book that has tear-out paper parts, to build 10 3D TFPrime characters. The book also comes with 2 wind-up wheel units to sit them on, to make them move around.

[griffin]

Collector Club Panel 3-4pm Saturday.

2014 Membership toy - Rampage (to go with Depth Charge from this year) - redeco First Edition TFPrime Megatron with new head.
And an additional club exclusive - Transmutate (redeco First Edition Arcee)

Transmutate will come in a box with an empty spot for Rampage, like they did with the Battlechargers.


Subscription Figures Series 2. Only three could be announced so far...
Chromedome - from TFPrime Wheeljack
Treadshot - from Generations Warpath
Ironfist - from Generations FOC Roadbuster

Subscription pre-orders will begin in September.


Electro had to be called Electron, due to there being a character called Electro in an upcoming Spiderman movie (so couldn't use it).

[swoop]

Its pretty crap that they will take subscriptions for the second series before the first has finished shipping.

That said I'm really excited to see their chromedome. I love that mould and I think it'll look great it chromedomes colours.

[griffin]

They said the six month delay from the factory left them with no choice, as it is supposed to be an annual scheme, and they need to get the second series started... which they are holding off until at least half of the first series is sent out.

Apparently the Factory thought they were botcon toys because it was a set of six, so didn't get onto them straight away. The language barrier and the indirect communication (via Hasbro then Takara, then the factory, then back to Takara and Hasbro, back to FunPub)... by the time Funpub knew about the toys not being done and was able to correct the scheduling, it was close enough to the production of the BotCon toys to just hold them another month and send them all together.


Only on USA.... Characters welcome. :p

[griffin]

IDW panel 12-1pm Saturday

Not much revealed this year.

Slide show just showed promo images of each series, rather than upcoming covers and titles that they usually do.

MTMTE
#19 has the helmet of Ultra Magnus on the cover, and will deal with the revelation in #18.
#22 has Swerve on the cover and will be mostly retrospective of what has happened so far, before the big "Dark Cybertron" story arc starts.

RID
#19 back on Gorlam Prime with Wheelie, Optimus, Hardhead and that alien friend I can't remember the name of.
#20 features Starscream and Rattrap, and Shockwave. First of two-part story - Shockpoint.
#21 Second part - Soundwaves (looks at the relationship between Shockwave & Soundwave).

Dark Cybertron - a new story arc over 12 issues, alternating between RID & MTMTE.
The two series will be joining/crossing over, but will then continue as two separate series after, as they are selling very well to not change anything at this time.

No Annuals this year.

TFPrime Dinobots #6-8 will start linking up with the TV show in some way. (I guess, since the TV show will be over by then, the comic series can easily expand or follow the cartoon series)


(non-news panels will be done up later... possibly when I get back home)

[Verno]

I haven't seen any pictures online anywhere for the Hall of Fame. Has it not been officially announced yet?

[Gouki]

Subscription Figures Series 2. Only three could be announced so far...
Chromedome - from TFPrime Wheeljack
Treadshot - from Generations Warpath
Ironfist - from Generations FOC Roadbuster

I would have assumed the only way to get a modern Chromedome was going to be 3rd party. But, hmmm, they will have to be some mighty sexy figures to even tempt me.

[Paulbot]

I would have assumed the only way to get a modern Chromedome was going to be 3rd party. But, hmmm, they will have to be some mighty sexy figures to even tempt me.

Because Chromedome was a major/lead character in the Japanese Headmaster cartoon, I believe he's a big deal in Japan. A general release figure should be more likely because of that.

[griffin]

A couple pics from the Collector Club panel...

2014 Membership toy
http://www.toycollectors.com.au/z62.jpg

2014 club exclusive toy... in addition to the 6 subscription figures, the membership toy, 13 BotCon toys, and the various Ehobby exclusives. :rolleyes:
http://www.toycollectors.com.au/z63.jpg


I haven't seen any pictures online anywhere for the Hall of Fame. Has it not been officially announced yet?

It wasn't a special thing this year, so just got a couple minutes in the Hasbro Panel. (http://www.otca.com.au/boards/showthread.php?t=16389) :(


Hall of Fame Voting

Hot Rod/Rodimus - 15%
Arcee - 16%
Prowl - 16%
Ultra Magnus - 19%
BW Megatron - 34%

Ultra Magnus and BW Megatron were the winners and inducted.


Since it was in the Hasbro panel, no photos were allowed.


Also, the pop up book from the Hasbro Publications Panel, was on display in the Hasbro toy exhibit. The first two days it was open on the Optimus page, but I didn't get a photo until the book was moved, and a Decepticon page was open.

http://www.toycollectors.com.au/z71.jpg

[Verno]

It wasn't a special thing this year, so just got a couple minutes in the Hasbro Panel. (http://www.otca.com.au/boards/showthread.php?t=16389) :(

Since it was in the Hasbro panel, no photos were allowed.

Damn. In previous years there has been much fanfare around the HoF, hasn't there?

[fatbot]

were there any hints on the location for next year?

[griffin]

People kept suggesting Pasadena again because of the Movie... apparently Paramount and Hasbro have a significant say... or maybe put some money or free publicity to locations they dictate.
If that ends up being true, FunPub shouldn't have had it in San Diego this year.

(one of the questions in this year's feedback form asked if we'd be happy about it being held in the same place each year... so maybe a hint of things to come)

[UltraMarginal]

Pasadena would work well for me, I've been there once now, I know the layout, it's not far from Universal where I'd definitely be going to get to the ride.

would work pretty well. but they should probably do it on the East coast to share the love a little.

then I'd go to florida universal and Disney. :D

[fatbot]

the west coast is perfect for me. hopefully that does come to pass.

[griffin]

It's interesting to see that when FunPub took over, 5 of their 9 are in just two of the 50 US states.... but then again, 6 of the 12 done before FunPub were also in just two states, so both "groups" had a clustering of locations. (which you can see in the map below with the two different colours)

http://www.toycollectors.com.au/bcmap.jpg

The west coast is obviously best for us to travel to easily, but it's going to start getting boring having it in Pasadena too often in a short space of time.

[fatbot]

I'd love it to be on the east coast ( preferably New York), but from my fat arse veiw, the west coast makes it a whole lot more feasible for to go

[Verno]

I'll be in California for my best mate's wedding around this time next year...