As many of you already know, TFC Toys is making their own Constructicon Set called Hercules. The first figure released in the series is Exgraver (aka Scavenger), already available for some time now. I missed out on the first shipment of Exgraver since I was still on the fence over its $100 price tag, but good reviews of the figure has left me no choice but to buy. And so I pre-ordered Exgraver and now I’m waiting for the 2nd shipment to arrive. As of this writing, Heavylabor (aka Long Haul) is also available for pre-order.

If any of you are wondering how Hercules will look combined, below is a pic. Thanks to my friend Gemini for providing the pic.

I’m getting excited just looking at this. Hercules is gonna be huge! As far as scale goes, the only other fig that I recognize in the pic is Alternity Bumblebee, in the lower right. From that I can get a sense of how towering this gestault will truly be.

I don’t have Exgraver in hand, but if he’s as good as everyone claims he is, then Hercules should be a high-quality figure. Scrapper and Mixmaster appears to be the last 2 molds that TFC will produce. Their alt modes also appear in the pic and each fig is shaping up nicely I must say.

But let me point out again that it is $100 per figure! Hercules is a $600 investment. I’m already committed to Exgraver so I guess I’m in for the Long Haul (pun intended). That’s some crazy spending for a bunch of toys. But I’ll get over it. Transform and Roll Out!

At BotCon 2011 I first learned about Kre-O, Hasbro’s entry into the building block toys such as Lego and Mega Blocks. Transformers is one of Hasbro’s most successful franchises so it makes sense for them to first market Kre-O replicating toys and characters of the popular robots in disguise. As a kid I loved playing with Lego. I had quite an impressive Lego collection growing up, with sets mostly from the Lego Town and Space lines, and some from the Castle and Technic lines. I had to leave many of these sets behind when we moved to the United States. Only some of my absolute favorites were brought with me, and today they’re sitting in a closet somewhere.

I still played with Legos after the move and I even bought some sets here, but then I also got into Transformers. My parents, being strict as they were, didn’t buy me a whole lot of Transformers. And so I built many of them out of Legos. Its too bad I didn’t take pics of my creations. I remember building a Metroplex that was pretty G1 accurate, for Lego standards anyway. He was fully transformable too. I studied his design from a TF catalog since I never had the figure. Metroplex is kind of a blocky character, a good choice to do in Lego.

Anyway, when I saw the Kre-O at BotCon, I couldn’t have been more thrilled. This is a combination of two of my favorite kinds of toys. Many people were looking at Kre-O at the Con and it sure appears that Hasbro generated a lot of interest with these sets. Of course, the obvious question that was on everyone’s tongue was if these sets could transform. At the Con it was unclear if they would, and Hasbro reps seemed to be dodging the question every time it was asked. We now know that Kre-O sets DO NOT TRANSFORM. You build one mode, take it apart, then build the other mode. In some ways this was kind of a letdown. TFs that don’t transform… maybe they should have called them Kre-O Actionmasters. But regardless, I was still intrigued by the notion of TFs made from building blocks, even if they did not transform.

The second questions that was on many people’s mind was how are the quality of the blocks themselves. I don’t have any Mega Blocks, but many online reviews have suggested they’re crap. Blocks that don’t stick together are reported often. Blocks that don’t fit is another popular complaint. Hasbro went the route of doing the blocks themselves instead of partnering with Lego. So it was anyone’s guess how the Kre-O blocks would turn out.

Less than two weeks ago Amazon had the Starscream set on sale for slightly more than $20. I figured this was the perfect time to find out about these sets for myself, so I got one. It took me about two hours to put this together. It wasn’t too difficult, the hardest part was probably finding the pieces (there are 316 in the set). If you’re used to building Legos than you won’t have any problems. I haven’t really built anything since I was 12 so I thought I might be rusty, but it didn’t feel that way at all. I guess some things you never forget, like riding a bike. Anyway, here it is.

The jet itself is quite amazing to hold in your hands once complete. The size is impressive, easily on par with a Leader class or Masterpiece figure (I go into size comparison below). There’s also some good weight to the finished figure. In jet mode he used almost all 316 pieces. There was only about 7 or 8 pieces that wasn’t used, 1 being the head and 2 being the hands. As far as quality goes, these pieces felt just like Legos to me. Everything fits just right, and with some minor exceptions, everything locks into place. The jet is very robust and it can withstand reasonable rough play. The core of the figure is very solid and I really don’t see any construction issues. The design on the layout of the pieces is on par with anything Lego has come up with, and so the jet is not likely to fall apart. Hasbro has done a pretty good job with the mechanics of this set in jet mode.

This Starscream is obviously G1 inspired. The shape of the wings suggest that he is an F-15. The colors are also true to the G1 incarnation with a base of light grey and bits of blue and red. Overall there’s quite a bit of detail for a building block figure.

I applied all the decals on him. The stripes on the wings are decals. The Decepticon emblem and markings near the cockpit are also decals. Once applied, they stick tight to the building pieces so you don’t have to worry about them falling off. However, I should point out that when I first opened the set, one decal was kind of falling off the sticker sheet. It was one of the long stripe patterns for the wings. Hasbro could probably use better QC in this area.

Here is a shot of the back. I like how they implemented the rear thrusters and I like the way they look. The tail fins are angled. This is done by placing them on hinged pieces. So you can also position them straight up if you want to.

There are landing gears on the jet and they are retractable. See the two shots below.

In these pics of the bottom, you can see that Starscream has more than enough missiles on the wings to punish some hapless Autobots running for their lives on the ground. The missile pieces are attached to the wings, but they can be a little loose and they come off the jet more easily than all the other pieces. But this is not an issue when the jet is only used for display.

The above shows that you can open the cockpit and insert Kre-Ons or Lego minifigs into it. Only the rear cockpit piece can be opened. One gripe that I have here is that it’s hard to place the Kre-Ons into the seat (more on the Kre-Ons later). The black pilot fig is designed to fit, but getting him in there can take some work, even if you choose to take apart the front cockpit piece first. If you want to get the Starscream Kre-On in there, you have to first remove the back wing piece (like standard Lego minifig backpacks) and his arm cannons. Another gripe I have about the cockpit is that it’s hard to get the two cockpit pieces to align with each other. Getting one piece in place is likely to pop off the other piece. It takes some fidgeting to get them flush.

Above is a pic for size comparison with the Kre-O next to Classics Starscream. The Kre-O is obviously much bigger. I don’t have MP Starscream handy or I would’ve took a pic with the Kre-O next to it, but I suspect the Kre-O is a bit longer than the Masterpiece figure in jet mode. Notice I built the Decepticon emblem on the wings so that the crown is towards the rear. This is how I prefer it to look. Hasbro can’t seem to make up their mind when it comes to the orientation of the wing emblem. Half the time they go one way and half the time they go the opposite way. The instructions does indicate you should build them the other way, like how they appear with Classic Starscream in the pic. But the cool thing about Kre-O is that the Decepticon emblem sticker is placed on a square piece, so you can easily rotate the piece to suit your preference.

There is one more feature I want to point out. The set does come with a ladder piece that can be used in jet mode for display. See the pic above on the back of the box.

And of course there are the Kre-Ons. A lot of people buy these purely for the Kre-Ons. On Ebay, auctions for the Kre-On figs alone can fetch a decent price, testament to their popularity. This set comes with two, a Starscream Kre-On and a black pilot fig. Kre-Ons are exactly the same size as Lego minifigs. The only key difference in construction is that Kre-On legs are on ball joints so you can move them pretty much any way you like. Lego minifigs on the other hand can only rotate the legs forward and backwards. Kre-On hand size is the same as Lego minifigs, so you can probably give them Lego accessories. Head size is also the same, so feel free to swap hair or helmets to your heart’s content.

To summarize, I’ll just quickly point out some pros and cons.

PROS:
• Great value at MSRP of $29.99. You get 316 pieces and a similar Lego set would cost you about $40 to $45. Amazon has this set on sale often at barely over $20.
• Lego quality pieces! No crappy Mega Blocks here.
• You can build 2 modes. I only built the jet mode here, but don’t forget there’s still the robot mode.
• Fully compatible with Legos and Mega Blocks.
• Jet mode is robust and solid.
• Easy to follow color instructions that explains how to build both modes.

CONS:
• Does not transform.
• Missile pieces a tad loose.
• Difficult to proprely align cockpit pieces.
• One sticker came half-way off the sticker sheet.
• I got one wrong piece, it came in a different color than it was supposed to. In all the Lego sets that I bought, I never had any missing or wrong pieces. See if you can spot the wrong color piece in the pics above. 🙂

As for that last gripe above, I realize that Hasbro just started in the Kre-O business so I’m not going to complain too much. And I found that they will supply replacement pieces. I’ve provided a handy link here if any of you need it.

My final verdict is that I highly recommend the Starscream Kre-O set. I did point out some weaknesses, but there are way more positives here. If you are a Lego fan, or if you are a TransFan that like putting things together, then do yourself a favor and buy this. I know it doesn’t transform and that’s a shame. But if you approach this as more of a Lego toy then you won’t be disappointed. Hopefully in the future Hasbro will produce Kre-O sets that can really transform.

I will be taking this apart sometime soon and build the robot mode. Until then… Transform and Roll Out!

EDIT 09/14/2011:
Hasbro sent me the replacement piece. It took several weeks but it got here eventually. Thank you Hasbro!

Here we have another Gemini custom. This is the DOTM deluxe Sideswipe figure. I thought about buying this figure when he first hit the shelves back in May. This is a new movie-verse Sideswipe mold and I like how he’s a convertible this time. But the dull grey paint job just did not do it for me. Check out these pics on Seibertron to see what I mean.

Once again Gemini felt the need to correct this. And so he took this figure and painted him silver all over. The result is quite remarkable. This is Sideswipe as he was meant to appear. Check out pics below.

The last pic above shows off DOTM Sideswipe (center) with DOTM Walmart exclusive blue Sideswipe (left) and HFTD Sidearm Sideswipe (right). Don’t mess with DOTM Sideswipe in all his silver blingin’ glory!

In related news, it appears there will be a repainted version of this figure as Dark Steel. He’s looking pretty good and I will get this if/when he hits the shelves. I’m digging the color scheme, and using a new head mold is always a welcome feature. I included some pics below but you can see all the pics here.

As TransFans we all knew it was only a matter of time before Hasbro started repainting all the DOTM figs. It would be interesting to see what else they decide to repaint. And hopefully they will continue to make new molds too. The movies may have ended, but they toys don’t have to stop. Transform and Roll Out!

One of the biggest differences between the US version of Generations Red Alert and the Japanese Henkei equivalent has to do with the color of Red Alert’s head. The Henkei figure has a red head, accurate to the G1 animated series and to the G1 toy. The US Generations figure, however, comes with a black head, same as Universe Sideswipe. So once again, fans on this side of the Pacific gets the less show accurate version. Personally I don’t think it’s a big issue, but many other G1 fans other than myself feels strongly against the mis-coloration.

And so my friend Gemini comes to the rescue (much like Red Alert himself). As a customizer he did an excellent job of painting Red Alert’s head red for me. While he was at it, he painted the gun silver. Check out pics below.

Customized and uncustomized version side by side.

With his good buddy Inferno.

I think a black head on Red Alert has a charm of its own, but as a G1-er I certainly appreciate a red-headed version. Now if only someone will make his G1 missile launcher…

Transform and Roll Out!

Today I’m doing another Star Wars Transformer review. I’ve only done one of these and it was the Commander Cody Clone Turbo Tank.

This was a pure impulse buy. I was at Target yesterday and saw this smaller Star Wars TF of Anakin. I didn’t even know they made these. Up to now, all Star Wars TFs came in one size, which is somewhere between a deluxe and voyager class. Looks like Hasbro is extending into more petite scale for the Star Wars line as well. This figure looked pretty good in fighter mode so I bought it.

Check out pics in the package.

I’m not exactly sure if this figure is scout class. Star Wars figs never have their sizes stated on the package. I’m only saying it’s scout class based on its price of $7.99.

In fighter mode this figure is fairly robust. For the most part, all the pieces come together quite nicely so nothing would flop around. There’s a lot of good detail. The colors look pretty accurate to Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter. For something this small, I don’t have any complaints about the appearance.

As far as gimmicks go in alt mode, you can extend the tips on the wings like the typical Jedi Starfighter. There’s also a retractable landing gear located on the bottom of the cockpit area, making it possible for the jet to be posed with the wings out on a flat surface.

Check out this pic below for alt mode size comparison, next to DOTM scout class Sandstorm.

My main gripe with the alt mode is that there is nowhere to store the lightsabers. I only expect non-storage for accessories with G1 figures. TFs today really shouldn’t have this problem anymore and I find it unacceptable. Come and think of it, my full size Obi-Wan Episode II Jedi Starfighter TF that I got at BotCon also had this issue. Earlier Star Wars TFs didn’t seem to have this issue though.

Transformation to mech mode is not at all difficult so I won’t describe it. He looks okay in mech mode. Construction is pretty solid. Details and colors are also adequate for figures of this size. Having twin lightsabers is kinda cool too.

There are many weaknesses in mech mode. Poseability is extremely limited. The arms are not bad, but there’s not too much to work with in the legs. The head appears to be able to rotate, but there’s so much kibble behind it I don’t think you can. He’s way too much of a shell former in the G1 Scourge fashion. The shells/wings end up on his back. This makes him totally back-heavy that it’s very difficult to pose him standing up without falling backwards. I also don’t like the wing tips on the arms. I guess they’re supposed to be shields, but functionally they’re really awkward and I just don’t like how they make the arms look.

Below is a pic of Anakin in mech mode next to Sandstorm in robot mode. Notice Anakin is much smaller. He’s probably more of a commander class figure.

Even at $7.99, I can’t recommend this figure all that much. The alt mode looks kinda cool, but that’s about it. Sometimes I think about opening one of my full size Ep III Jedi Starfighter TFs and see how they compare to this. Hopefully the larger ones are much better, but the Force is not with these smaller figures.

Transform and Roll Out!

Once again I’m back home. In anticipation of the upcoming Encore reissue Constructicons, I decided to dig out my knock off Constructicons from back in the mid 80s. These are supposed to be knock offs of the original Diaclone toys, that’s why they’re red and yellow.

In alt form they’re in pretty good shape. I didn’t put the accessories on any of these since I think they look better without them.

In robot mode they began to show their age. Left arm on Mixmaster is broken so I left it at the side. Right leg on Hook is broken at the knee, though you can’t tell from the pic. They show some sticker wear but overall not too bad, unlike my G1 Combaticons where all the stickers are in bad shape. My favorite of these is Bonecrusher. I like his transformation the best. I got all the little guns that each of them have, but after 25+ years I can’t remember which gun goes to who so I didn’t bother.

Combined as the fearsome Devastator. They still hold up pretty well after all this time. Granted, it wasn’t that good to begin with since it’s KO, but after 25+ years this set feels about the same connection wise. Some attachments actually felt tighter than I remembered. KO Devastator is all colorful, kinda like movie Devastator.

Below is KO Devastator next to a genuine Diaclone Slag.

As a kid I treasured this set even though I knew they were KO. Nowadays I keep these around for a good laugh.

Transform and Roll Out!

Roll for it! The third movie in the Michael Bay Transformers trilogy, Dark of the Moon, opens on June 29th, 2011. Here in California it is around 9:30pm of June 28th. But when the clock strikes midnight in a few hours, many of the bigger multiplexes around here will be showing the movie.

Normally I would be totally making plans to go to the midnight showing. If not, then this weekend for sure. But the GF is on vacation and she would kill me if I saw this before she did, so most likely I’ll catch it when she returns next week.

Some of my coworkers are planning to see this soon. I’ll be asking for their thoughts.

Prepare yourselves, my fellow TransFans! This is Earth’s Last Stand! Time to… Transform and Roll Out!

Oh happy day! News broke that the G1 Devastator giftset will be re-released in the Encore line. This is finally my chance to get my hands on a complete set of the G1 Constructicons. Release is set for late 2011. MSRP will be around 10500 yen, roughly $130 US today.

I mentioned before that I am on a quest to acquire all the G1 Combiner teams. This brings me one step closer to that dream. Getting a complete G1 Devastator would have costed me an arm and a leg. Now that this set is on the horizon, I might get some of those custom Devastator parts by Crazy Devy. They’re not cheap though. Even at Botcon they were not being sold for any kind of discount. All the parts added together will easily surpass the cost of the giftset.

For the full story, click here.

In related news, the 3rd party Scavenger figure that I reported in my last post is now up for pre-order at your favorite online TF retailers (you know what they are). This product is being called Hercules Exgraver. I’m guessing Hercules is Devastator and Exgraver is Scavenger.

Here’s the pic I took at Botcon:

Another color image:

MSRP of this figure is right below $100. The obvious conclusion here is that this Devastator set will be $600, if they really make all 6. Am I hardcore enough to buy them? Only time will tell.

Dinobots and Constructicons were rivals in G1. At Voyager size, this Constructicons set will even give Masterpiece Grimlock a run for his money. “Prepare for Extermination!”

Constructicons… Transform and Roll Out!

I am back from BotCon 2011! General admission was on June 4th and 5th and I was there both days. Once again I went with my buddy Gemini. We couldn’t wait for BotCon 2011 since we had a blast in 2009, which was also in Pasadena. BotCon 2011 did not disappoint! Check out the pics below.

 

The Venue

 

Across the street from the convention center were parked fan customs of Ratchet and Bumblebee. Notice Ravage is on top of Ratchet. Very cool. Movie Ironhide and G1 Trailbreaker showed up later but I forgot to take pics.

 

Convention Displays

 

 

BotCon 2011 Exclusive Figures

 

I’m not sure what are the names for any of these figures. Also, I had a chance to take pics of the exclusive Animated Stunticons, but forgot to.

 

Hall of Fame

 

 

Upcoming Third Party Figures

 

FansProject is working on an add-on for G2 Optimus to make it look more G2, similar to the add-on for Classic Ultra Magnus and Rodimus. This is shaping up nicely. Word is, there will be 2 versions, one for Prime and a black repaint for Scourge. I’m getting this for sure!

Another shot of the same product from different angle. Also includes a shot of the clear Rodimus add-on.

These are the upcoming FansProject Insecticons! In color for the first time! Really, really looking forward to these. All 3 are required purchase for me.

Masterpiece Ramjet by iGear, or “Jet”. TF Source was selling these for $130 on Sunday. These were available to be touched. The quality is not too shabby, feels like real MPs by Hasbro. Now if they were only about half price I would’ve bought one.

Other Masterpiece Seekers by iGear: Thrust, Dirge, and Sunstorm. Can’t remember what iGear calls them. I’m guessing they will also be around $130 per.

Apparently, iGear is making their own interpretations of G1 Ratchet and Ironhide. Right now its pics only and no prototype displays. These are looking promising. No word on what the price will be.

Sonicron by BTS Toys. This may be released already. No mystery who this is supposed to be. I may get one if it gets good reviews and the price is acceptable.

Scavenger figure, I think by TFClub. He appears to be Voyager size. Pics in the back does show other figs and they will combine. We talked to the guy manning the booth. He has confirmed that 3 of the Constructicons will be released, but at this point there’s no word on the other 3. He also places the price point at about $100 per fig after shipping. Details are so sketchy on this right now. At Voyager size, this Devastator would be so impressive combined. But it would totally suck if they made 3 and then stopped.

The above 2 pics are not 3rd party products. They are repainted customs being offered by this one booth. Nowhere else to put these pics so I lumped them here. You can see the guy that does these in the upper pic. He’s got impressive skills to say the least.

 

Contest Entries

 

There were many entries. I only took pics of the ones that grabbed my attention.

This last pic above, that was the winner.

 

Kre-O

 

When I first learned of Kre-O, I was thrilled. I loved Legos when I was a kid and I built TFs out of them. However, I think I read somewhere that these sets will NOT transform. What these sets offer is to build one mode, take it apart, and build the other mode. That kinda takes the fun out of Transformers. Quality of the bricks could also be an issue. Many have attempted to copy Legos, but none have reproduced the quality (I’m looking at you, Mega Blocks). I’ll read up on some reviews before I get these.

 

Cosplayers

 

I only managed to snap 2 pics of Cosplayers. I saw many others but were too lazy to take pics. Some were real creative. Definitely better Cosplaying at this Con than the 09 Con.

This Movie Starscream has got to be the best TF cosplaying I’ve ever seen!

 

Current and Upcoming Hasbro Figures

 

All store exclusives in this pic. I already got the Prime and Comettor 2-pack. Will also get Leadfoot and the Terradive repaint. Undecided about the rest.

More store exclusives. I have the blue Sideswipe repaint.

Definitely getting US version of MP Rodimus, even though I already have the Japanese version. US version will include the Targetmaster figure, and I’m hoping the flaws are corrected, like the Japanese 2nd release.

Here’s my chance to get Unicron! He will retail for $59.99. Looks like he’s got a more Movie accurate head mold too.

Current Reveal the Shield figs. I’ve got the bottom row. Still trying to find Grapple.

I’ve got all of these, except Mindset and Fallback. Amazon was selling Wreck-Gar for $14.99 right before BotCon started. I wasted no time buying one. They are all sold out now, I should have bought more. I’ll post about this later.

I now have Windcharger and Chopsaw (see Haul section below). I like to get the G1 legends figs. I haven’t seen them anywhere, other than BotCon. Not gonna pay the markup that the dealers ask though.

Some Power Core Combiners on the top row. I’ve got all the Generations figs in the bottom row.

DOTM Scouts. So far I’ve only bought Sandstorm. The new ones are on the bottom row. Some of these have potential to be good.

More DOTM toys. Top row are the Human Alliance figs. I’ve bought Roadbuster. Haven’t opened him yet, but he’s looking good. More scouts on the bottom row.

Optimus Prime and Megatron from Transformers Prime. Really looking forward to these.

The other TF Prime figs. The Matrix packaging on the bottom will be a Comic-Con exclusive.

This is Ultimate Optimus Prime. It’s huge! Retail I believe is $89.99. I plan to get one.

DOTM Leader class figs. I’ve got Sentinel, and Bumblebee is available just about everywhere. Ironhide is looking promising.

DOTM Voyager figs. I have Shockwave and Skyhammer. Might get this Prime with the ax too.

More DOTM toys. I’ve got Prime and Megs at the bottom. Will also get Thundercracker when I see him. Some dealers already had him at BotCon.

 

My BotCon 2011 Haul

 

No trip to any anime/toy/comic convention is complete without acquiring some loot. And so I proudly present my acquisitions from BotCon 2011:

• Windcharger, Chopsaw, Breacher, Sunspot, Firetrap, Backfire – These were purchased as a set of 6 for $48 at the Hasbro booth. That comes to $8 per fig. Hardcore fans will tell you that the prize here is Windcharger. And that was pretty much the reason I bought the set. Most dealers ask $40+ for just Windcharger, so I figure $48 bucks for 6 figs is not too bad. Hasbro knows how to milk it though, this is one way to rid figs that don’t sell. I’ve seen the other 5 figs go for $5 sometimes. But anyway, Breacher was new when I bought him, I just forgot to take the pic. I’ve also opened Sunspot and I checked out Gemini’s Windcharger. All 3 are good figs, so I don’t regret buying this set at all.
• TF United Megatron – I have the first Classic Megatron released in the US, back in 2006. However, I don’t like his Nerfy colors and I’ve always wanted one that was more G1. In the 09 Con, I thought about buying the Henkei version for $50, but in the end decided not to. On Saturday when we lined up to get into the Con, we saw a Devastator costume with a Henkei Meg attached to the shoulder. This gave me the idea to re-look for either a Henkei Meg or a United Meg. One booth had many United Megs for $50. I made an offer for $45 and the guy agreed. I now finally have a G1 looking Meg in the Classics-verse.
• Beast Wars Complete DVD Set by Shout! Factory – Beast Wars is a great series, in my opinion only 2nd to G1. Gemini introduced me to the show, and I watched all 3 seasons on his Rhino DVDs. I wanted my own set for some time now. Rhino Beast Wars DVDs went OOP for a while so the price was all marked up. News broke of a Shout! Factory version some months ago. I have their G1 Matrix of Leadership set and that was great, so I expect the Beast Wars set to be great as well. As of this writing, I don’t even see this set listed on Amazon, only the Season 1 set. So I’m happy to get one so early at $45 for the complete series.
• Encore Sky Lynx – I know, I mentioned before how I think Sky Lynx is one of the lamest Transformers ever. But the deal I see at BotCon was just too irresistible for a G1 guy. One dealer only asked $35 to get rid of these. There were about 10 units when I first saw the deal. I didn’t get one right away because I was still considering if I really wanted one. I came back 20 min later and only one was left! You can’t really see it in the pic, but the top right corner is kinda messed up. So I offered $30 and the seller took it. $30 for Sky Lynx is not bad at all. I’ll open him later and check out the walking action.
• Obi-Wan Transformer – Got him new for $8. This looks like the Ep 2 Jedi Starfighter. He’s only worth about $8. Not recommended at MSRP.
• Kre-O Optimus Prime figure – This I got free from the Kre-O booth. This is supposedly a convention exclusive. Some dealers were buying these at $5.

All pics below.

So that about wraps it up, my experience at BotCon 2011. I had a great time and I’m certainly looking forward to more. Chances are, BotCon will not be back in Pasadena next year. I was lucky to have it close to me in 09, and so soon again this year. Depending on where they have it next year, I might consider traveling, but that’s a post for another time. For now, I’m looking forward to the third movie.

I do have a small gripe about this year’s Con, and it’s that you have to buy tickets on each day. In 09 I bought tickets for both days on Sat. I wonder why they made this change. However, I do want to point out that there were no lines at all to buy the tickets on Sunday, so it’s not a big issue.

I want to take this opportunity to thank the BotCon organizers for making this such a great event. Long live Transformers and long live BotCon! Until All Are One… Transform and Roll Out!

BotCon 2011 is this coming weekend! I’m so stoked! It officially starts tomorrow, but I will only be there for General Admission which is Saturday and Sunday. I can’t wait for all the robots and the TransFans. Pasadena Convention Center is a great venue for the event. I will be doing some serious shopping. I need to make a list of figures that I’m looking for so I don’t miss anything. I might attend some panels. In the 09 Con on Sunday, Tyrese made a surprise visit! Who knows what surprises Hasbro has in stored for us.

Below I have some previous posts mentioning BotCon on this blog:
BotCon 2011
BotCon 2009 Pics Part 1
BotCon 2009 Pics Part 2
BotCon 2009 Pics Part 3

I will be sure to post pics from BotCon 2011 in a later post. TransFans, heed the call! Transform and Roll Out… for BotCon!