Botcon 2014 Figure Reveals

So, there is a guests Thread, I thought there should be a figures thread as well.

the theme of the box Set is Pirates Vs Knights.

The box set figures can be seen here as they are revealed.

The list of revealed figures will be updated below links are to the TF wiki description of existing fiction for characters of the same name and or appearance:


Cannonball : redeco of Transformers Prime Deluxe Ratchet with a new head.

Ferak with Tornado: Redeco of Generations Cyclonus and Nightstick

Devcon: Redeco of Generations Scourge with a new head. and possibly new right arm molding.

Scorponok with Headmaster Olin Zarak: a repaint/remold of Energon Scorponok with a modification allowing for a remold of Reissue Spike (the smaller Headmaster from Reissue Fortress Maximus) to be used as the head of Scorponok.

Ginrai: a repaint of Classics/Generation Optimus prime to look like the "Fire Guts God Ginrai" repaint of God Ginrai that represented a power up of the character in the original show.


there have been some tweets from the club that imply the timeline of the convention set and comic is after the events of the supergod masterforce cartoon, implying that he is no longer a Transtector and is now independently sentient.

I feel like FunPub has ceased to want our money.

I kinda think that Rotf Skytalker or maybe even Generations Scourge would have been better choices for Ferax.

So far it's 1:1 of wants/don't wants.

I'm digging them both, looking at the art, Cyclonus is a good choice for the robot mode of Ferak as depicted in that comic shot, I see what you're saying about the vehicle mode being more suited to Scourge or Skystalker.

I'm glad that I like what I see, the last thing I want is to be going to Botcon and hating the box set.

Ferak was a vehicle mode first, before he got a robot mode, so I think that's where the priority for homage should be. The pirate is better off as a new character though.

Cyclonus is such a particular design, in both modes, I don't think he works as a repaint fodder... unless you can do something with the head... which is hard because of the transformation.

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Originally Posted by Paulbot

unless you can do something with the head... which is hard because of the transformation.

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never a truer word has been said

Botcon figures rarely seem to thrill me, and these are no exception. I don't actually know who these guys are, but I expect they are aimed at regular Botcon followers.

Ferak looks waay to similar to Henkei Strafe for me.

0/2 so far for me. Fantastic. Not like last year. :(

I like Cannonball figure
I don't like Ferak figure
I like the Squadron X reference

Yeesh, that Ferak is a bit of a nightmare; and that's coming from someone who's love for the Cyclonus mould will never die. :p
Terrible colour pallet.

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Originally Posted by UltraMarginal

never a truer word has been said

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I think you could make a new-age Conehead out of him. A big sweeping scoop behind his head that would cover the head-gap in the bottom of the ship in alt mode.

Cannonball looks awesome but he reminds me more of a knight than a pirate. I'm fond of that mould too.

Since Ferak was a Hunter-Seeker and for years we thought that's where we got the word Seeker from, he should have been the Seeker mould in those colours.

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Originally Posted by Sky Shadow

Since Ferak was a Hunter-Seeker and for years we thought that's where we got the word Seeker from, he should have been the Seeker mould in those colours.

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While reading Ferak's wiki page, i found a reference to a JC Penny's wishbook from '84 that features the use of the word Seeker

http://tfwiki.net/wiki/File:Seekers_ad.jpg

I dont mind that colour scheme on the Cyclonus mould :)

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Originally Posted by Sinnertwin

While reading Ferak's wiki page, i found a reference to a JC Penny's wishbook from '84 that features the use of the word Seeker

http://tfwiki.net/wiki/File:Seekers_ad.jpg

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Yeah, we only rediscovered that catalogue in 2003:

https://groups.google.com/d/topic/al...7g8/discussion

(e.g. "Hm. So does this mean that the old "hunter-seeker" explanation ISN'T
the true origin of the term?

I mean, as far as I can tell, this ad really nails the coffin on that
theory. It's anyone's guess where the copywriter pulled the term from,
but I think it's too much of a coincidence to assume that the term
"Seeker" later independently evolved in the fandom based only on that
misapplied old comic ref. It may have been a combination of both -
someone half-remembering the ad, then stumbling upon "hunter-seeker" in
the comic. But still. I'd say our commonly-accepted fandom history
needs a bit of revision.")

Before that, we had no idea where we got 'Seeker' from and assumed we got it from Ferak's Marvel appearance comic.

Geez, I sometimes feel like the guy who can be impressed by almost any deco as long as it's striking and creative, and... nope. Nothing from either of these. The Cannonball is okay, but all that black is a little dull. Ferak is just... I would have rather have just seen a one horned IDW Cyclonus head, you know? Face scratches optional.

Botcon have tweeted some links to facebook posts by Tornado. Feraks TargetMaster.

It's an interesting little prequel to potential fiction at the convention and a nice new way of fleshing out the characters.

I twitter from my phone and can't facebook or twitter from work so here is the link on Seibertron.com

Devcon has FINALLY got a toy! And he looks damn cool in my opinion! Admittedly a stealth bomber rather than an elongated spaceship but still looks good to my mind, especially the head :D

Certainly this figure is better than Cannonball and Ferak. It will be interesting to see who the final two are.


You can find links here:

http://www.botcon.com/BotCon2014/BC14exclusives.html

http://www.seibertron.com/transforme...evealed/29752/

They're none for three with me, so at least I'm saving money at this point. This recolour reminds me that Hasbro ought to use the Scourge mould as Generations Alpha Trion.

That's awesome news! I think many fans had Generations Scourge pegged for a Devcon repaint mould for a long time. The head/shuttle mode is a great update, but Scourge's bot mode seems a bit stocky for Devcon's representation in the cartoons (a lot of those older Cybertronians were thinner in the cartoons?).

Is that a photoshop paint job? The colors look really flat and boring.

Scourge mould was an obvious choice given what's available but I do believe the character's more 'heroic' presence is lost.

The only thing I find dissapointing (besides the fact I wont be going to Botcon yet again so will prob never get this figure unless I want to pay a fortune) is that while the Pirates are recieveing the sylized Decepticon/Pirate symbol there is no stylized Autobot/Knight one on Devcon, just the standard Autobot symbol.

Great minds think alike... :p

http://www.otca.com.au/boards/showth...ghlight=devcon

As mentioned by BTT here, the newest toy reveal is Cybertronian Night Devcon who has previously been seen in a G1 cartoon as a bounty hunter. Mentioned on Twitter this morning.

He has an interesting Writeup on the front page of the Botcon site.

And a Similar Design was brought to fruition by our own SnakeTales years ago.


I really like it, I never realised who Defcon was until today, and I only vaguely remember seeing him in the G1 Cartoon after reading his Wiki page.
I think the robot mode of Scourge with the new head works really well for this character, and while the alt mode is less "accurate" to something that turned up in a cartoon almost 30 years ago. it's nice.

I've got to say I'm starting to notice some colour palet similarities to last years set. and the year before.

So, probably 2 more weeks until we have all 5 characters revealed and then maybe a week after that they release the brochure and a week after that they open registration? maybe. They're taking their sweet time this year, I remember 2 years ago they released the brochure the week of Christmas.

just saw it, not bad at all! im really liking this, time to save & get one! anyone going to botcon this year ill be happy to ask for a pre order :D

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Originally Posted by UltraMarginal

As mentioned by BTT here, the newest toy reveal is Cybertronian Night Devcon who has previously been seen in a G1 cartoon as a bounty hunter. Mentioned on Twitter this morning.

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Nope! Admin's canned my thread. I don't fricken get it. I update an old thread of mine with new info, the info gets moved to a new thread someone has started on the same topic. Then 3 days later I start a new thread about a topic, due to not knowing an old one already existed, and my new thread gets deleted and the info moved to the old one. Wish the admins would make up their minds which way it bloody works because otherwise I'm just wasting my time making threads at all, which is a shame because I'll I'm trying to do is share info with my fellow Ozformers :(


(ok, whinge over)

Devcon looks pretty good, but nowhere near worth the price people will be charging for a Deluxe. Or even Botcon would be charging at their con. (Take the shortened word as you will.)

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Originally Posted by BigTransformerTrev

Nope! Admin's canned my thread. I don't fricken get it. I update an old thread of mine with new info, the info gets moved to a new thread someone has started on the same topic. Then 3 days later I start a new thread about a topic, due to not knowing an old one already existed, and my new thread gets deleted and the info moved to the old one. Wish the admins would make up their minds which way it bloody works because otherwise I'm just wasting my time making threads at all, which is a shame because I'll I'm trying to do is share info with my fellow Ozformers :(


(ok, whinge over)

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Sorry dude, I didn't mean to steamroll your thread. Your qoute has highlighted that I can't spell Knight correctly as well:o

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigTransformerTrev

Nope! Admin's canned my thread. I don't fricken get it. I update an old thread of mine with new info, the info gets moved to a new thread someone has started on the same topic. Then 3 days later I start a new thread about a topic, due to not knowing an old one already existed, and my new thread gets deleted and the info moved to the old one. Wish the admins would make up their minds which way it bloody works because otherwise I'm just wasting my time making threads at all, which is a shame because I'll I'm trying to do is share info with my fellow Ozformers :(


(ok, whinge over)

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New or updated news postings are always welcomed, which is why they are never deleted (and rarely moved). If it is a duplicate news posting or an update to a "current" news topic (on the first page of that news section, or second page if we've had a lot of traffic to push news topics onto page 2 that are still only a couple weeks old), it will be merged, so that the poster can still see that their news posting still exists because the effort behind it was greatly appreciated.

The point of merging duplicate and update news postings, is to make it easier for members to share their news updates by minimising the number of news topics in that section, so you don't have to look at too many pages to see if a topic already exists. (but if there is a significant update that would generate a lot of replies, a new topic might be deemed necessary so that the update posting isn't lost by those who don't look at every new post)
In both cases of your moved postings, they were updates to "current" news topics (on the first page of that section), so the same merging rule actually applied to each (it just seemed different because of where you posted the update - one was posted in an older topic, and the other was posted as a new topic when there was little interest in the existing BotCon Boxset topic to need News topics for each Boxset toy).
It can sometimes be a balancing act, when it comes to updates that deserve their own topic, but it isn't just you (I've sometimes posted something that later needs to be merged, as it wasn't worthy of a new News topic). It is one of the jobs of the Staff, to keep the News sections "tidy but active", as we want to encourage members to contribute as much as possible, so that you feel an ownership of this site, and it doesn't make me look selfish by having my name all over the place in the News topics. (which is why we don't delete, and rarely move/merge posts)

Hope that insight into the administration of the News sections makes the process a little easier to understand. If not, people can send me a PM for further discussion. :)

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Originally Posted by UltraMarginal

Sorry dude, I didn't mean to steamroll your thread. Your qoute has highlighted that I can't spell Knight correctly as well:o

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Na, it was always all good me old mucka, was just confused with the whole process ;)

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Originally Posted by griffin

New or updated news postings are always welcomed, which is why they are never deleted (and rarely moved). If it is a duplicate news posting or an update to a "current" news topic (on the first page of that news section, or second page if we've had a lot of traffic to push news topics onto page 2 that are still only a couple weeks old), it will be merged, so that the poster can still see that their news posting still exists because the effort behind it was greatly appreciated.

The point of merging duplicate and update news postings, is to make it easier for members to share their news updates by minimising the number of news topics in that section, so you don't have to look at too many pages to see if a topic already exists. (but if there is a significant update that would generate a lot of replies, a new topic might be deemed necessary so that the update posting isn't lost by those who don't look at every new post)
In both cases of your moved postings, they were updates to "current" news topics (on the first page of that section), so the same merging rule actually applied to each (it just seemed different because of where you posted the update - one was posted in an older topic, and the other was posted as a new topic when there was little interest in the existing BotCon Boxset topic to need News topics for each Boxset toy).
It can sometimes be a balancing act, when it comes to updates that deserve their own topic, but it isn't just you (I've sometimes posted something that later needs to be merged, as it wasn't worthy of a new News topic). It is one of the jobs of the Staff, to keep the News sections "tidy but active", as we want to encourage members to contribute as much as possible, so that you feel an ownership of this site, and it doesn't make me look selfish by having my name all over the place in the News topics. (which is why we don't delete, and rarely move/merge posts)

Hope that insight into the administration of the News sections makes the process a little easier to understand. If not, people can send me a PM for further discussion. :)

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Fair enough, didn't know how it worked

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Originally Posted by UltraMarginal

I've got to say I'm starting to notice some colour palet similarities to last years set. and the year before.

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Those colour palette similarities are subtle compared to the Botcon 2012 set! (remembered as the year FunPub got a really good deal on blue and red plastic).

I am disappoint. When i saw Ferak i thought the Scourge mold would have looked better for him. And now i see they are using the Scourge mold for Devcon i wish the molds were swapped. Take a look at a Devcon Cyclonus here -> http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transf...l#post10802803 :cool:

I know this would use 2 head remolds (and i haven't seen my Cyclonus yet to know if replacing the pointy ears is really possible) but i wish there was community input from talented fans to help the figures hit the right mark.. which is of course subjective :rolleyes:

Tl;dr..
Short fat Devcon doesn't work for me.
Tall Cyclonus-head henkei-strafe-ish Ferak doesn't work for me.
+ Both jets have crap alt mode paint jobs (hopefully some faction logos can fix this).

I really don't think the Cyclonus mold could have a head swap, it's too important for the vehicle mode. A different head would leave gaping holes in the side of the fuselage.

The chest panelling on Scourge works well with the old animation model, I think.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Deonasis

I am disappoint. When i saw Ferak i thought the Scourge mold would have looked better for him. And now i see they are using the Scourge mold for Devcon i wish the molds were swapped. Take a look at a Devcon Cyclonus here -> http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transf...l#post10802803 :cool:

I know this would use 2 head remolds (and i haven't seen my Cyclonus yet to know if replacing the pointy ears is really possible) but i wish there was community input from talented fans to help the figures hit the right mark.. which is of course subjective :rolleyes:

Tl;dr..
Short fat Devcon doesn't work for me.
Tall Cyclonus-head henkei-strafe-ish Ferak doesn't work for me.
+ Both jets have crap alt mode paint jobs (hopefully some faction logos can fix this).

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The creator of those digibashes, Ryan Yzquierdo, has had many excellent ideas fleeced appropriated by FunPub over the years..

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Originally Posted by UltraMarginal

. A different head would leave gaping holes in the side of the fuselage.

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Sculpt in some big ears and they'll cover the hole ;)

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Originally Posted by SuspectimusPrime

The creator of those digibashes, Ryan Yzquierdo, has had many excellent ideas fleeced appropriated by FunPub over the years..

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Lol:D

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Originally Posted by SuspectimusPrime

The creator of those digibashes, Ryan Yzquierdo, has had many excellent ideas fleeced appropriated by FunPub over the years..

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Considering the sheer volume of digibashes he does (like, hundreds), there are bound to be some similar ideas showing up by FunPub, who also does hundreds of ideas (that are whittled down to about 20 a year by Hasbro). And both of those groups are mostly focussed on homages of known characters... unlike Hasbro that does a large portion of new character toys.
But it would be like saying that Hasbro copied a fan's creative figure on some fan-forum somewhere, if they eventually released a redeco that is similar.

There are a lot of obvious ideas that multiple people come up with (just look at the creative sections of fansites), especially of high-demand characters... and FunPub and Hasbro are not going to avoid obvious or high-demand ideas just because someone else came up with it first - in fact, it's best that they keep track of what the current trends and demands are, so that they provide us with items we are already wanting (like non-toy characters).

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Originally Posted by UltraMarginal

I really don't think the Cyclonus mold could have a head swap, it's too important for the vehicle mode. A different head would leave gaping holes in the side of the fuselage.

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Actually it wouldn't. I had a look this morning and the Cyclonus ears sit in a groove towards the bottom of the fuselage. So long as a new head occupies the same space roughly as the original "helmet" it will fill the space quite well. A Devcon head (with it's gun-looking thing on top) could even fill a hole that does pass right thru the fuselage with a Cyclonus head!

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Originally Posted by Tetsuwan Convoy

Sculpt in some big ears and they'll cover the hole ;)

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It is not a hole but a groove and I think its location would make it less noticeable than many imagine.

BUT.. my thoughts aint gonna make it happen anyway :p

The fourth toy is being revealed soon, and FunPub are tweeting a heap of hints, to reveal that the recent fleshling they tweeted is Olin, son of Lord Zarak... and heir to Scorponok.
Plus noting that this fourth figure is a big one, barely fitting in the box.

So... I wonder who it could be.
Could it actually be a Gen1 Scorponok homage toy, and if so, what existing toy could they use to best suit that homage, and possibly include a combining "Nebulan" in some way that works with the toy's design?
If they pull off something amazing and creative, it could just win back a little support for the convention this year.

Would they use Energon Scorponok (again)?

Bugs me a little that they invent a male chid of Lord Zarak when he has an established daughter. (In my 90s fanfic Llyra, under the influence of Scorponok's original head became Black Zarak)

Based on the mention of a "Hive" and looking to have pale green skin, it's going by the cartoon universe, not the comic. Otherwise, it would indeed seem like a retcon, creating a son where there only sounded like a daughter existed.

Reading through some of the comments on other fansites, it had me wondering... with all the times they had on their feedback forms, asking if we'd like to see Gen1 moulds as BotCon exclusives, why are we still yet to have one? Could this being the anniversary year, be the year for some Gen1 moulds... or would they just look too out of place for the "combined look" of the convention set (box and at-show toys displayed together... which seems to be a priority of theirs).
I'm not suggesting the Gen1 Scorponok toy, as it is just too big, but just in general.
After the last 10 years of dozens of reissues between America and Japan, why have we had not one at BotCon, even as a custom class figure, which I think would be a lot of nostalgic fun building one from scratch.

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Originally Posted by griffin

Based on the mention of a "Hive" and looking to have pale green skin, it's going by the cartoon universe, not the comic. Otherwise, it would indeed seem like a retcon, creating a son where there only sounded like a daughter existed.

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Oh yeah I know (I saw that Hive reference) but there's no reason green skinned cartoon Zarak couldn't have had a daughter named Llyra too. ;)