TFCC WILL be closing at the end of this year

[griffin]

The GIJoe fans were getting emails as well that were saying Memberships were ending December 31st, but unlike us, they didn't get reassured that Hasbro had plans for the future of the Club/Convention.

I was surprised that the GIJoe club was ending, as it is FunPub's favourite Brand (they were doing Joe conventions for about 10 years before they did BotCon, and their senior staff (aside from Pete) are GIJoe fans... and never got interested in Transformers, despite running the Club and Convention for several years (at the time I was asking each of them)).
That was what made me think that they probably had the licenses taken from them, as I would have expected them to try to keep doing GIJoe stuff since they are big fans.

I guess the GIJoe toyline will just become one of the usual Movie toylines, that will only see product out for 6 months around a movie, and then that's it.

[griffin]

The cut-off for being a member of the Club for this year to be able to buy the fifth Subscription set or any other 2016 Club toys, has been extended to the 18th (America time - sometime Saturday morning here).
Unlike previous years, which people could sign up for a membership at the time of a Subscription set that they want to buy, this year people will need to take a chance and buy a membership just in case the fifth set is worth getting (which we won't see until next month).

They have also noted on their website, to reassure people who have memberships that expire after March 18th (and can't renew because their website won't process any more after the 18th), that if they had a valid membership as of the 18th, they will still be able to access Member exclusive toys like the Subscription set later in the year.



Just like recent years, they have left it until the last minute to promote joining the club before it's annual cut-off date for the "free" toy, with just two days notice in America with the fancy image above that should have come out weeks ago.
Two years ago ago, I was actually posting the reminder as news on TFW the day before the cut-off, because Fun Publications were totally silent on it.

[Paulbot]

The Armada-style design for the Skywarp box is pretty well done.

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

A review of TFCC Ramjet:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAaFrrS2jDU

[millhouse]

I really want to get the Transformers GI Joe figures... Another thing to add to the eBay list!

[UltraMarginal]

I thought G1 Joe was supposed to be Funpubs favoured brand. I would have thought that club would have gotten better treatment and thus had happier members than the TF one.

Spose it makes sense that they are losing all their Hasbro brands, not just the one

I'm only aware because of Bryan Kilby, host of the Radio Free Cybertron podcast. He is/was also a massive Joe fan so occasionally talked about the Joe club and convention in comparison to the way FunPub were handling transformers and Botcon.

[Krayt]

The GIJoe fans were getting emails as well that were saying Memberships were ending December 31st, but unlike us, they didn't get reassured that Hasbro had plans for the future of the Club/Convention.

I was surprised that the GIJoe club was ending, as it is FunPub's favourite Brand (they were doing Joe conventions for about 10 years before they did BotCon, and their senior staff (aside from Pete) are GIJoe fans... and never got interested in Transformers, despite running the Club and Convention for several years (at the time I was asking each of them)).
That was what made me think that they probably had the licenses taken from them, as I would have expected them to try to keep doing GIJoe stuff since they are big fans.

I guess the GIJoe toyline will just become one of the usual Movie toylines, that will only see product out for 6 months around a movie, and then that's it.

Well here's a surprise from GIJoecon.... Apparantly Fun Pub are still doing joe for another 2 years (announced by hasbro during panel)

http://generalsjoes.com/2016/06/18/h...-2-more-years/

[griffin]

Well here's a surprise from GIJoecon.... Apparantly Fun Pub are still doing joe for another 2 years (announced by hasbro during panel)

http://generalsjoes.com/2016/06/18/h...-2-more-years/

I'm actually happy about that, as next year was going to be FunPub's 20th anniversary for doing JoeCon, so I was a little disappointed that Hasbro pulled the license from them just a year before their big anniversary celebration.
And it is good for the GIJoe fans who don't have as much going for them as we do, in terms of toys and fan-focussed activities.

I would also be okay with FunPub still being allowed to do BotCon, because that was the one element that they could reliably deliver on. A convention similar to what it was like before the first licenses existed in 2003... something that Hasbro could still back and provide toys for, but the organisers had more freedom without having to be tied up by Hasbro legal with everything. And Hasbro could still do their own "general public" multi-franchise convention that the hardcore fans like me aren't likely to travel for (because we want the tours, custom class, dinner events, and other fan-focussed items that won't be in a "HasbroCon" for the masses).

[reillyd]

Joe fans don get no love, or toys. So they will be well happy at the news.