Halloween is here again! And you know what that means here at TFMatrix! The new orange TFs make their special appearance for a group photo with my plush pumpkin.

I always try to use orange TFs that I haven’t used before. And seriously, there has not been that many orange TFs since last time. I only found 4 figs that I would qualify as orange. And 3 of them are not even new, they were just forgotten or left out in previous Halloween posts. But better late than never. They now appear for 2018.

From left to right:

• Generations Thrilling 30 Roadbuster
• Studio Series Shadow Raider
• Mastermind Creations Bovis (Tantrum)
• Mastermind Creations Talon (Divebomb)

Here are links to previous Halloween posts.
Cybertronian Halloween 2016
Cybertronian Halloween 2014
Cybertronian Halloween 2012 (scroll down to last pic)

For the robots in disguise, everyday is Halloween! Transform and Roll Out!
 

By now, all third party Transformers collectors are familiar with the Feral Cons by Mastermind Creations, an homage to G1 Predacons. The 5 standard Feral Cons combine to form Feral Rex (Predaking).

However, MMC manufactured a sixth Feral Con named Felisaber. Felisaber is a yellow repaint of Tigris (Rampage) with some minor mold tweaks. I know what you’re thinking… “There are only 5 Predacons!” Yes you are right. Maybe this is just a ploy for MMC to sell more toys. But MMC did give Felisaber a backstory. Felisaber is an homage to Catilla, an Autobot Pretender Beast who appeared late in the G1 toyline. The robot head mold, the yellow mechanical saber tooth tiger alt mode, and the tiger helmet with the Pretender shell looks, all point to the fact that Felisaber is Catilla. I don’t know much about Catilla as a character since he arrived way too late to be included in the US G1 cartoons, but he did make appearances in the G1 comics. Apparently, Catilla used to be a Decepticon. And MMC extended the story so that Felisaber was once part of the Feral Cons.

With Felisaber in the mix, all six Feral Cons can combine to form the Ultimate Mode of Feral Rex. In this mode, Felisaber replaces Talon as the left arm. Talon then goes on the back of Feral Rex, acting kind of like a backpack or booster. As of this writing, there ain’t a whole lot of pics of the Ultimate Mode up on the web. Worry not my fellow TransFans! I have Felisaber and I have combined my Feral Cons into Feral Rex Ultimate Mode! Feast your optics on the pics below.

In the Ultimate Mode, Feral Rex does look more balanced. However, he becomes extremely back heavy. Talon is now fully on the back, as you can see in the pic below.

Personally I’m not a big fan of the Ultimate Mode. It’s not in the official TF canon that Predaking has a Ultimate Mode. And as for the MMC figures, Feral Rex easily falls backwards in this mode, making poseability a lot more challenging. I would buy Felisaber if you are a fan of Catilla. Or if you really like the Tigris figure. Tigris is my favorite of the standard 5 Feral Cons, which is why I bought Felisaber. But I would not buy Felisaber for the Ultimate Mode. Feral Rex is already an amazing figure without him, and Felisaber really doesn’t add anything to the combined form in my opinion.

Before I end this post, here are some pics of the Feral Cons individually in their robot modes.

Feral Cons… Transform and Roll Out.

It’s been a while since I did a post about what’s on my shelf. So I’m doing one today.

Same pic, different angle.

From left to right

Lower shelf: Thrilling 30 Rhinox, Thrilling 30 Rattrap, Mastermind Creations Felisaber

I especially like the three gestalts on the top shelf. Feral Rex and Giant have been featured elsewhere before in this blog so I won’t go into detail again. Combiner Wars Menasor is Hasbro’s official update of the Stunticons in combined form. Compared to Fans Project’s Intimidator, Menasor has it’s pros and cons. Individually I like the Hasbro figures better. They are larger, sturdier, easier to transform, and more fun to play with. However in combined form, FP has the better looking Menasor. Intimidator also stays together better than Combiner Wars Menasor, as the Hasbro figure feels like it could quickly fall apart. However I should point out that the Hasbro figures feel more like a true combiner. The leg components are not simply adding on top of Motormaster’s legs, like in FP’s offering.

Poor Rattrap and Rhinox. They are the only good guys here. Technically they are not Autobots, so I don’t have a single Autobot in this post. Decepticons forever!

Transform and Roll Out.

There are quite of bit of figures taking up room on my shelf. Before I put them away, I’ll give them their 15 minutes of fame and feature them in a post.

Same pic, different angle.

From left to right
Top shelf, in robot mode: MMC Bovis, TFP Beast Hunters Shockwave, Fans Toys Quakewave, Masterpiece Acid Storm, Generations FOC Thundercracker
Top shelf, in alt mode: Generations Megatron, Generations FOC Kickback, Generations Blitzwing, TFP Breakdown, TFP Silas Breakdown, Generations FOC Shockwave
Middle shelf: Generations Orion Pax, Generations Bumblebee, Generations Springer, Generations Sandstorm, TFP Beast Hunters Optimus Prime, TFP Beast Hunters Ultra Magnus, , Generations Hoist, Generations Trailcutter
Bottom shelf: Masterpiece Prowl, Masterpiece Streak, Generations Blurr, ToyWorld Trace, ToyWorld Aurora

Can you tell who it is the oldest figure on here? That’s right, it is Blurr. I believe he was released 2010. I dug him out recently for display because he’s such an awesome fig!

With the exception of Blurr, Breakdown, and FOC Shockwave, all figures on here were acquired in 2013.

4 figures are from third parties: MMC Bovis, Fans Toys Quakewave, ToyWorld Trace, and ToyWorld Aurora.

There are 3 Masterpiece figures: Acid Storm, Prowl, and Streak. Though one could certainly make a case for Quakewave. He’s a third party fig, but he fits into the MP toys just fine.

OK, time to make more room for the figs of 2014. Into the closets these will go. Transform and Roll Out.

Once again it is the end of the month, where I count up the Transformers that have come into my possession for the duration. In contrast to September, I received all these TFs in the first half of the month. And in direct contrast to October of last year, where I set a record number of TF figures purchased in a single month, this October is quite modest in terms of figures bought.

• Masterpiece Acid Storm, Toys R Us, $74.99

• Generations Thrilling 30 Optimus Prime and Roller, amazon.com, $10.94

• Generations Thrilling 30 Bumblebee and Blazemaster, amazon.com, $10.94

• ToyWorld Aurora, bbts.com, $49.99

• Mastermind Creations Bovis, bbts.com, $89.99

This comes to a total of 7 figs for October. 4 figs from Generations Thrilling 30, 1 Masterpiece fig, and 2 third party products.

MP Acid Storm was a pleasant find (though that same day, he was also available online). I have been hunting at TRU for about a month on a regular basis before I found him early in October. I really like the new Seeker MP molds. Acid Storm is an exact repaint of MP Thundercracker, and I have already mentioned what a awesome figure that is. Acid Storm certainly does not disappoint. I really wish Hasbro would also re-release Starscream and Skywarp in the US in the new MP molds.

The little Generations Thrilling 30 figures were ordered from Amazon. I have never seen these in store. So when I saw them on Amazon for only $1 more than MSRP, I wasted no time buying them. Technically they were not from Amazon, they were from TFSource selling through Amazon. That particular arrangement worked out quite well for me. I don’t live in the same state as TFSource so I don’t have to pay tax, and this is sold through Amazon so it qualifies for free ship with Amazon Prime (which I have). Anyway, the OP fig is just ok. The Bumblebee fig is not half bad. They are fun distractions, and they pose well with Metroplex.

The two third party figs are nothing short of incredible! Aurora by ToyWorld is an homage to Searchlight, a G1 Throttlebot. This figure transforms quite well. He looks nice in both modes, and the construction is solid. ToyWorld does intend to make all 6 Throttlebot homages, and supposedly they will combine! I know G1 Throttlebots never did this, but it’s nice to see ToyWorld go out of their way to make this happen. Now that I’ve seen how cool Aurora is, I plan on getting the rest of them. I got Trace (Chase homage) on pre. Now I need to get Grind Rod (Rollbar).

That leaves Bovis. Fans have been gushing left and right on TF sites and forums about how well Mastermind Creations products are. They are right. Words alone cannot do justice to the quality that MMC have put into this figure. Bovis is a homage to Tantrum, a G1 Predacon. MMC is making the whole team. If the rest of the figs turn out as well as Bovis, then we are really in for a treat. Anyway, I transformed Bovis from robot to bull. He is a really solid piece that any G1 fan needs to own. Bovis is certainly large for a figure that can combine. Predaking will be massive! I love it.

Happy Halloween! Transform and Roll Out!

I got a whole bunch of crap on pre-order. So much that it makes sense to make a post dedicated on just this topic. So here they are.

Takara MP-17 Masterpiece Prowl

Takara MP-18 Masterpiece Bluestreak

FansProject Causality CA-11 Last Chance

FansProject Causality CA-12 Down Force

Mastermind Creations Reformatted R-01 Terminus Hexatron

Mastermind Creations Reformatted – Feral Rex – R-02 Talon – Aerial Assaulter

Mastermind Creations Reformatted – Feral Rex – R-03 Bovis – Supply Specialist

MakeToys MB-01-C Mobine Paladin / Chaos

MakeToys MB-01-SP1 Mobine Missile Launcher Jungle Type

Beelzeboss Heroic Duo Custom Kit Version 2.0

RENDERFORM: GOLD SCOUT UPGRADE KIT + BONUS WEAPON

ToyWorld TW-T03 Trace – Gestalt Part 3

That’s a lot of stuff! With the exception of the 2 MPs, they are all 3rd party products. It seems like everyone wants a piece of custom TF action. Perhaps this is a more lucrative business than I thought. Only Primus knows when all this stuff will get released though. I hope it’s soon.

On unrelated news, I will be attending Fanime 2013 this Sunday. Look for a coverage soon… Transform and Roll Out.