Collector Club Magazine contents

[griffin]

Issue 68 (APR/MAY) arrived last week, and just like the previous issue, this one had a fair bit of stuff in it that was worth readin.

The contents of this issue...

Page 1 (cover) - character art of Subscription Pretender Megatron.
Page 2 - They both talk about just completing BotCon (the issue was printed before BotCon) and holding back the release of this issue so that they could have the full reveal at the convention. They also mention that the 4th Subscription toys start shipping this month (mine arrived with the magazine), and that the Membership toy Ramjet will come out late Spring (May-June). Plus a final note that they are no longer selling any more memberships.
Page 3 - Another fascinating article about something from Gen1 era that few people probably even knew about - in 1987, the company U-Haul in America, approached Hasbro to produce a toy based on their iconic moving trucks, for them to give out to their customers (like the Aveo Swerve and Toyota FJ Cruiser). The article shows us the design drawings, and mentions that a prototype was made, but it is unknown as to why the toy didn't go ahead. The vehicle would have been about Minibot sized, but being slightly taller and skinnier, the robot mode would have been about 10cm tall, to be about the height of the Insecticons. Article by Andrew Hall.
Page 4 & 5 - the full reveal of the 5th Subscription set of toys.
Page 6 - Following on from last issue's history of Transformers statues, this issue covers the Palisades statues, which ended abruptly in 2006 when they went bankrupt, a year after Dreamwave (the source of their designs). Article by Colin Betts.
Page 7-12 - comic story "Of Masters and Mayhem", part 2 - Insight. The first three pages is about the "Humans", after one is shot last issue and isn't hurt. The next two pages are on Paradron, with Impactor talking to a Paradron Medic about a recent operation to save Punch/Counterpunch. The sixth page has Ramjet waiting to meet up with "The Other" to destroy this universe, while a mysterious man in black confronts the "Humans", knowing that they are Cybertronians, to warn them that "He'll be here soon".
Page 13 - The second part of the development of the Victory series (from last issue), talking about the changes that some of the toys went through from concept designs to their final versions. There is too much to mention here, but I'm sure that when the Club ends at the end of this year, scans of many of these articles will start showing up online.
Page 14 & 15 - bios of the Subscription toys Lifeline and Impactor.
Page 16 - mini-comic strip and an advertisement for buying unsold BotCon items from the Club Store.

[UltraMarginal]

Why does it feel like they've been keeping their good material for their swan song?

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Why does it feel like they've been keeping their good material for their swan song?

So that everyone can remember them fondly with good info, as opposed to remembering them as the asshats and useless bunch they really were.

Seriously, they should've had articles like this earlier in the club's life!

[BigTransformerTrev]

So that everyone can remember them fondly with good info, as opposed to remembering them as the asshats and useless bunch they really were.

Bwah hahahaha!

Seriously, they should've had articles like this earlier in the club's life!

I've had this issue sitting on the pool table for a week or two. Had become that disillusioned with them that I hadn't even bothered to open it, might do so when I get home

[Krayt]

Got the Post Botcon issue today.... haven't seen anything on US sites about it... but dont actively look either...

[griffin]

That's early... I guess they are making up for the lateness of the last issue (which they held back so that it didn't spoil the BotCon reveals).

I'll have to keep an eye out for mine... and Ramjet, which Americans were getting 2-3 days before Spinister, some 20 days ago, so it should have been here by now, before Spinister.
(or, they are using really cheap shipping for the membership toys that they don't make any money from, and first class shipping for the subscription toys)

[Krayt]

I did the math the other day.... 39 days between US arrival and our freebies last year.... Should arrive week of the 11th July

[griffin]

I picked up Issue 69 (JUNE/JULY) from the post office last week, and these were the contents...

Page 1 (cover) - Photo of the Hall of Fame winners (Judd Nelson & David Kaye) at BotCon this year, plus a small photo of the Costume winner (the kid in the Fortress Maximus outfit).
Page 2 - Brian and Pete both talk about the recent BotCon, and the end of the Club.
Page 3 - Full page on the VIP guest at BotCon - Judd Nelson. Talks about his role as Hot Rod/Rodimus, and what events he was involved in at the Convention this year... plus several photos of him with VIP ticket holders.
Page 4-6 - A three page report (with photos) on the final BotCon, written by Jim Sorenson, celebrating the Convention but also reflecting on its legacy with a sombre tone.
Page 7-13 - comic story "Of Masters and Mayhem", part 3 - History. 7 pages this issue, after the last two issues had 6 pages each (plus a "cover" page for part 1). The first page features a school field trip to the zoo, with the kids and tourguide at the Gorrilla enclosure. They've named the Gorilla "Garry" (a nod to the BW voice actor), and that Gorilla should be the 5th series Subscription toy Optimus Prime (the one that comes with the Gorilla shell from BotCon 2015). The next four pages follow on from the previous issue with the mysterious man leading the Autobot Pretenders off towards a Decepticon Spaceship, and revealing himself to be the Pretender Megatron from the 5th Subscription series. Three of the five Autobot Humans reveal themselves as Crossblades, Vroom and Metalhawk. The final two pages introduces us to the 4th Subscription series Mayhem Attack Squad (Bludgeon, Ruckus, Windsweeper, Spinister, Needlenose), meeting up with Ramjet who wants them to join him to destroy the Universe.
Page 14 - a full page on the BotCon Unit-3 toy, which is based on the McDonalds Happy Meal "Under 3" toy from 1997. It says that the toy was originally planned to be Razorbeast, and the Streetwise head was photoshopped into 11 different colour schemes for different Beast Wars characters, with the Under 3 toy being the one chosen (the rest of the robot mode was coloured like the Under 3 toy, and the car mode was given paint decos to look like a lions mane).
Page 15 - another page on BotCon, as this is the post-BotCon issue. This time it was detailing the Friday Night events - the Hall of Fame presentation and Concert.
Page 16 - mini-comic strip, and like last issue, an advertisement for their unsold BotCon items from the Club Store.

No Bios this issue, as it had seven pages of BotCon material and seven pages of comic, leaving just two pages - the intro page (that talked about BotCon), and the back page (that had an advertisement for BotCon merchandise).
Still an okay issue, particularly for those interested in BotCon, and for the mystery that is building with the comic story.

The intro notes that there are four issues left. That must include this one, as there are only five months left, which can only give us 3 issues at the most - AUG/SEPT, OCT/NOV, DEC.

[griffin]

Issue 70 (August/September) arrived today in the mail, leaving just two more issue left to go before it ends.

The contents....

Page 1 (cover) - a screenshot from the Beast Wars episode "The Agenda", with BW Megatron facing Gen1 Optimus... as a hint to the contents of this issue.
Page 2 - Pete tells us that this issue is Beast themed, and next issue will be Animated themed.
Page 3 - Part 3 of the Transformers Statues history, covering the Diamond Select range of heads, busts and statues, produced from 2005 to 2010.
Page 4&5 - A diagram of the various official Beast Era stories (comics and cartoons). It looks like it was meant to be like a timeline of the various stories so far produced, but in trying to tie everything together, it looks like a big confusing mess.
Page 6&7 - A 2 page comic set during the cartoon episode "The Agenda", suggesting a possible altered universe that led to the comic "Beast Wars Uprising", as if it were in a different universe to the Beast Wars cartoon. (it looks like it was only done to just be a retcon, to perhaps neutralise any plot elements that may have been questioned by fans as being a contradiction to the main BW cartoon universe)
Pages 8-13 - Part 4 of the comic, Masters and Mayhem - Divination. We get to see the combined Thunder Mayhem, briefly. And the mysterious gorilla was featured again, but it's identity is still not being revealed for some reason. If it really is Optimus Prime/Primal, why keep us in suspense, when we know who it should be.
Page 14&15 - Character Bios of Raptoricons Gnash & Thrashclaw. According to the intro on page 2, these are characters from one of the Club's website stories.
Page 16 - Shattered Glass beasts, and the usual advertisement for the Club Store.

After a great start at the beginning of the year, the Magazine is descending back to its old levels of boringness... leaving me with little to be interested in with this issue.
The BW "timeline" was too much of a mess to be a useful resource later, the 2-page BW comic was very fanfic-y, and the only info article this issue was about Statues, which I was never a fan of. Plus, the two character bios are of characters I've never even heard of before, coming from FunPub "fanfic" that most fans will never end up reading.... while the six page comic this issue, was almost entirely all talk - we get a single frame of Thunder Mayhem attacking, but that's it.

An Animated themed issue next time... hopefully something worthwhile, and not just a bad tease that only gets our hopes up, but leads to disappointment.

[griffin]

Issue 71 (OCT/NOV) arrived last week, which was a month late, as it should have arrived late October.
This is the issue that was being promoted as Animated themed, detailing what a Season 4 would have been, by the people involved in the series almost 10 years ago now... but there is no mention if it is what was actually planned back in 2009 when Season 3 was screening, or if this was just written up recently... similar to how the 20 issues of Regeneration was promoted as being how the US Marvel Comic would have been after issue 80 but was instead storylines Furman had only more recently created.

The contents...
Page 1/cover - Animated Megatron, as he probably would have looked like in Season 4 of the cartoon.
Page 2 - They note that there is one issue left, to come out in December. Plus they repeat the earlier announcement that the fifth subscription series is delayed, but they hope to have the first shipment out in December, and that they will be pairing up the toys into just three shipments, with instalments expected in January and February (one shipment each month it seems).
Page 3 - An article on the Generation 2 Powermasters, which we got here, but American fans missed out on. These are the four toys Staxx, Ironhide, Meanstreak and Bulletbike... noted as "Power" masters because they were pull-back toys, not mini-engines like the Original Series toys had in 1988.
Page 4&5 - Animated biocards. Similar to the earlier Club Magazine issue that had some Gen1 styled techspec cards, we have another 10 in this issue, of, Battletrap, Cosmos, Ironhide, Slipstream, Dirt Boss, Stryka, Shattered Glass Optimus, Shattered Glass Bumblebee, Shattered Glass Sumdac, Shattered Glass Sari.
Page 6&7 - Plotlines of 15 episodes that may have been Season 4... or what Season 4 would be like now if it was restarted. At the very least, it give fans something to hassle IDW with, to do a comic version of these stories. Of the stories, there is a heavy focus on Megatron with six episodes featuring him, as well as appearances by Rattrap, Cosmos, Minicons, and the Mirrorverse.
Pages 8-13 - Part 5 of the comic, "Pandora's Gift". After three parts teasing us with the mysterious Gorilla, we finally get to see that it is indeed Optimus Prime in a double Pretender shell (the Gorilla shell and the redeco BotCon "Oilmaster" shell). He reveals himself to help fight the Thunder Mayhem combiner, while the Wreckers (5th Subscription toys) also show up on the last page... with one chapter left of the story.
Page 14 - A full page on Sari, with it being mostly just an animation of her 4th season form, and a small paragraph that contradicts the Return of Blurr story from BotCon 2015 (which was also written by Derrick Wyatt), by saying that she had merged with his cubed body, to gain his speed abilities (and looking more like a Headmaster head too).
Page 15 - A combined Bio for the three Headmaster Juniors that were introduced in last year's Return of Blurr story - Nightbeat, Siren, Hosehead.
Page 16 - An Animated themed Superdeformed mini-comic, plus the usual advertisement for the Club store, featuring the Gen2 crossover multi-pack.

As a bit of an Animated fan, this was another one of this year's better issues, giving us quite a few better than average issues in their final year... better than the average standard of their previous 11 years.