Notes from panel by BotCon's Rik Alvarez at TransformersCon
Posted: Mon May 01, 2006 10:01 pm
I won't copy the whole thing from the post written by TF Club Member Night_Viper, but I will write in some notes from a panel by J.E. "Rik" Alvarez -- one of the main organizers for BotCon -- regarding both BotCon, the Collectors' Club, the toys, and some other tidbits.
* The free Landquake toy (for Club members who signed up before March 15) is likely shipping from the barges overseas right now. A note regarding the identity of the full Combiner giant after all five toys are released at 2009; it will NOT be Alpha Trion.
* The 5-toy exclusive set for BotCon '06 -- pre-BW Cybertronian forms of Optimus Primal, Rhinox, Rattrap, Cheetor, and (Predacon) Dinobot -- will indeed all be from molds from the current TF Cybertron line, and the Golden Disk Keys will be made from Cyber Planet Key pieces. The molds will have some re-tooling to make the new figures actually bear some resemblance to the early BW cast, but the details will be kept secret until further notice.
* The story for this year will be The Day Before Beast Wars. You may recall in the first episode how some of the characters implied changing their names to suit their new bodies (i.e. Rattrap). The new toys will still retain their BW names, but the BotCon-exclusive comic will reveal the characters' pre-BW identities.
* The Club-exclusive Astrotrain will be available this fall.
* There was some discussion on the development of exclusives; the Club reads and considers every suggestion that they receive, but not every idea is viable. A number of Japanese-exclusive molds, for example, are simply unavailable. It will also be STRONGLY unlikely to release an exclusive with die-cast parts, due to cost issues. Also, the older a mold, the more likely it may be damaged, lost, or not usable (thus diminishing the chances of an exclusive based on an early G1 model). There continued to be the buzz regarding the Universe Seacons set which had first meen mentioned at OTFCC 2004, and to date has STILL not seen any form of release.
* With no hints given, Alvarez also gave a plug for BotCon 2007. Most notably, the big buzz by that time will be the new TF movie, and plans for the '07 exclusive set are already being started.
Outtsyder
* The free Landquake toy (for Club members who signed up before March 15) is likely shipping from the barges overseas right now. A note regarding the identity of the full Combiner giant after all five toys are released at 2009; it will NOT be Alpha Trion.
* The 5-toy exclusive set for BotCon '06 -- pre-BW Cybertronian forms of Optimus Primal, Rhinox, Rattrap, Cheetor, and (Predacon) Dinobot -- will indeed all be from molds from the current TF Cybertron line, and the Golden Disk Keys will be made from Cyber Planet Key pieces. The molds will have some re-tooling to make the new figures actually bear some resemblance to the early BW cast, but the details will be kept secret until further notice.
* The story for this year will be The Day Before Beast Wars. You may recall in the first episode how some of the characters implied changing their names to suit their new bodies (i.e. Rattrap). The new toys will still retain their BW names, but the BotCon-exclusive comic will reveal the characters' pre-BW identities.
* The Club-exclusive Astrotrain will be available this fall.
* There was some discussion on the development of exclusives; the Club reads and considers every suggestion that they receive, but not every idea is viable. A number of Japanese-exclusive molds, for example, are simply unavailable. It will also be STRONGLY unlikely to release an exclusive with die-cast parts, due to cost issues. Also, the older a mold, the more likely it may be damaged, lost, or not usable (thus diminishing the chances of an exclusive based on an early G1 model). There continued to be the buzz regarding the Universe Seacons set which had first meen mentioned at OTFCC 2004, and to date has STILL not seen any form of release.
* With no hints given, Alvarez also gave a plug for BotCon 2007. Most notably, the big buzz by that time will be the new TF movie, and plans for the '07 exclusive set are already being started.
Outtsyder
