#((one day I will go to Botcon))

[dimorphodon-defect]

((Botcon 2023 is SO close to my house this year, but I still can’t go bc it falls right between a bunch of IRL events that have been on the books all year. T0T))

[paulagnewart]

RIP Pauline Newstone

10th December marked 25 years since the Beast Wars episode Other Visits: Part 2 aired on Australian TV. Taking a moment to reflect, I vividly remember watching it (along with much of that season) on a small wall-mounted TV in a dimly-lit hospital waiting room. Hardly my idea of a grand way to spend multiple afternoons, but the prospect of more checkups and needles paled compared to the swelling dread of how, as the credits rolled, I might never see my favourite character again.

When Candice Santora announced three days later that Airazor's voice actor Pauline Newstone had passed away, that all-too familiar dread seeped its way back.

Beast Wars was far from my first foray into the world of those warrior Robots in Disguise, but certainly played an integral part of my life during the latter half of the 90's. Its writing and expansion of the Transformers history was captivating, its animation at the time second-to-none, and its voice acting nothing short of immaculate. Vancouver's finest breathed life into what could've easily been written off as another 20 minute toy commercial, but it excelled. They made the characters memorable, raw with wild, well-rounded emotions and truly raised the bar for future actors.

From the moment she burst onto the scene, I adored Airazor. Smart, sassy, more than strong enough to fight tooth and claw in battle, refused to put up with Rattrap's antics, and mistress in the art of dry wit. A welcome addition to the Maximal cast with a plethora of potential to grow. Granted the good times weren't to last; she was swiftly demoted to cannon fodder and later the role of "Mrs. Tigatron", but I was happy just to have her around. Whenever roleplaying our favourite scenes or making new adventures at school, Airazor was always my first choice. The original (and Transmetal figure a cherished Easter gift the following year) continued to have imaginative adventures after the show ran its course. For a time, something as trivial as a cartoon alien robot bird meant the world to me.

And it all came down to how awesome Ms. Newstone performed her.

It's a feeling the Aussie public clearly shared, as her video pack became one of the top 10 selling boys' toys of Christmas '98 (or maybe it's because the VHS repaint was, and remains to this day, the only version of her basic-class toy to see release here. But I digress). Yet Beast Wars proved a tip of the iceberg for Ms. Newstone's career. She lent her voice to shows including G.I. Joe, Mummies Alive!, Inuyasha, Monster Rancher, X-Men Evolution, Ninjago, and I certainly can't go without mentioning her portrayal of big baddie Frieza during Ocean Group's tenure on Dragon Ball Z (The infamous "Caressing the Balls" meme? That was her. Iconic).

Ms. Newstone was one of those voice actors I always hoped to meet someday. No means an easy feat, as she preferred to keep away from the spotlight in a fashion not dissimilar to the late Christine Cavanaugh. It would've been nice, but I understood and respected her desire for privacy, and commend the extra effort Pete and the other organizers went to adhering her "no photos" request at BotCon 2006.

Learning of her passing, let alone nobody reporting it until fellow actor Garry Chalk saw her name over six months later at the annual UBCP/ACTRA Awards, is a sad reminder how none of us are getting any younger, and each day those little things which used to give us joy slip further into the abyss of time. Cherish those memories and the ones you love, while always leaving room to create more tomorrow. Fiction generally doesn't last forever, but I like to think her memory and legacy both as a voice actor and person will for many out there.

The above image was taken back in 2011 while in Lithgow, but never made public until now. Far from my best work (assuming anything I do can be considered good to begin with :P ), but a decent day. History repeats itself, as that particular Airazor figure went on to appear in many more photos, accompanied me to multiple BotCons, a college graduation party (!), and most recently appeared on the official Oliver Brown social media page for their Rise of the Beasts promotion.

RIP Pauline Newstone. May many glasses be raised in your honour. You came, you stooped, and you sure as hell conquered.

[evil-robot-husband]

there's a lot going on in aligned knock out's tfwiki entry (text under cut) but I think my favorite bit is them calling Daran Norris' performance "somewhat campy" my brother in christ it's campy enough to blow my tits clean off

Some fans have interpreted Starscream's "you're one of those" line (referring to his car mode preference), Knock Out's wolf-whistling appraisal of Optimus's truck mode, the vanity about his appearance, and voice actor Daran Norris' somewhat campy performance to be clues that Knock Out is gay. Moreover, the term "knockout" is commonly used to describe an attractive woman. Make of all this what you will, as very little robotic sexuality of any kind is evident in Prime, outside of a very lightly-implied connection between Cliffjumper and Arcee. / When asked at BotCon 2011, the Prime writers said that there is no designation for gay, or straight, for that matter, on Cybertron, where Transformers are created by the AllSpark, not through sexual reproductions. They also said that Knock Out is a knock out, and that the Nemesis is a very "don't ask, don't tell" place. And then they jokingly deflected the matter, claiming that Knock Out's mannerisms are not caused by any particular orientation, but are simply eccentricities caused by "a glitch in the AllSpark" the day he was created... which is unintentionally so insulting to gay people that it could create an awkward silence in the Void.

[rinovarka]

thinking about art tabling events. botcon ran out and while it's not like I was going to be ABLE to do it ( travel + hotel + necessities + vending costs) in the span I found out about it, I do have some FOMO it sounds fun but ig I'll see via ppl Twitter posts. And artgrind next year so it would be a swag rinovarka display for a 4 day event.

And tfconBaltimore yaaa I got waitlisted and tbh I gave up on the idea of getting in LOL so I'll just.

moneysave + work at local events + do animal and other and fandom fanart + work on becoming tbe Mecha Artist instead (bc I ain't see anyone drawing robot at all and. Fine I'm the chosen one, they aren't sentient like I like but they are robot and they ARE giant and someone has to do it) >:3c

[decepti-thots]

I find it incredibly fascinating how you have the whole timeline down for not only the transformers franchise, but the transformers fandom in your mind. Is this from just a lot of extensive research or have you been here since the beginning.

And side note, can you sort of tell when someone joined the tf fandom based off how they characterize/interpret different characters? Or other fandom trends?

A side hobby of mine is fandom archival stuff! I have spent many, many hours dragging myself down the darkest depths of the wayback machine, old newsgroups like alt.toys.transformers, geocities archives, etc. to see what I can find. And in that time, I have found a lot of stuff. Plus, I am especially interested in TMUK history, in part because of the longstanding impact it has had on canon material, and the somewhat porous relationship that existed even before like, IDW phase two really crossed the streams.

Now, I haven't been here nearly that long- only since 2009, and I used to exclusively lurk. However! I do know folks in my social circle who basically have been around the whole time, more or less. I spoke recently to a woman who follows me on Twitter who went to 90s botcons and did fic zines. I know quite a few folks in their 40s to 50s who have been in this fandom a Very Long Time. My mate Stu has been going to UK Transformers cons for twenty years now. So, if I want to ask 'hey, back in the day, did people xyz?' I can like. Go ask people directly quite a lot of the time. Haha.

As for that latter question: sometimes! It's difficult, because once something becomes fanon, even if the original source of said fanon starts to fade out of focus, said fanon tends to remain and pass on to newer fans by proxy. See, for example, the fact that most people don't know why they put G1 Starscream's home city as 'Vos', or G1 Prowl's as 'Praxus', they do it because other fic does it. Or that elements of G1 Prowl fanon generally tend to draw from specific Marvel stories, but hardly any of us have read most or any of those these days. I would say certain trends definitely speak to things like, ah, this person got in post-IDW, or post-TFP, or whatever, though. Megatron characterization is one. Common Decepticon backstories is one. Use of stuff like 'conjunx' rather than 'sparkmate' or 'bondmate'. But again, people can pick that up by osmosis. So.

[patchthemedic]

Glad you saw what we got! We heard from your friends about the algae research Thesis! I hope everything went great! Hope we can meet you next year (we’ll be tabling next year either here or at Botcon!)

[aw im so late on this] but thank u thank u so much! Everything did go great! :D The biofilm gods looked kindly upon me that day…

i hope i can make it to another one in person but it’s total chaos right now, kind of hoping to table at a local con [RetroCon] since the next TFCons are in florida and california 😅. We’ll see tho! I have no idea where I’ll be in a few months LOLOL

[aeonmagnus]

Happy 20th Anniversary Robots In Disguise!

This year, and today in particular, marks the 20-year anniversary of Transformers Robots in Disguise airing in the United States.  This was the official English language dub of the Japanese show Transformers Car Robots, which aired in Japan the year before.   This show and it’s accompanying toy line were a big shift in the Transformers brand and affected how things moved forward in the new millennium.  It was also a big influence on me and this website in it’s early years, so both the brand and TFW2005 may not be what it is today without it.

We hope you will read on after the break to check out our celebration of Robots in Disguise on it’s 20th!

Intro

The following is not a comprehensive article on the show proper, but rather a trip down memory lane from my personal perspective.  It was a period of change in my life, in the fandom, in the brand, and in the world – all happening at once.  Robots in Disguise was smack dab in the middle of it all and I think that’s why it still resonates with me all these years later.  For a deeper dive into the world of Robots In Disguise you can check RIDForever.info, a site I maintain just about RID and Car Robots. The 2021 updates are here, and the 2017 round of updates are here.  I’d also suggest checking the TFWe issue all about RID over on the 2005 Boards.  Now, onto today’s festivities…

The Show

RID, and yes I say RID as if it is the only RID.  If you must reference that other RID show and it’s off-shoots, refer to it as RID 201x, thanks. 😊 RID aired during the Fox Kids programming block on a Saturday morning, with additional episodes set to air each weekday during the afternoon hours.  Instead of stretching the show out over the course of 30+ weeks with only a new ep each weekend, they were going to blaze through it non-stop.  By the end of the first week, we would have been 7 eps in.  That however hit a big roadblock due to 9/11 just three days later.  While some local markets did air the episodes, many larger city networks, and especially east coast markets, stuck with news coverage.   Many of us did not catch the early episodes on TV the first go around.  In addition, several of the episodes got pulled from TV due to depictions of buildings being destroyed and other similar visuals which understandably could upset children that just experienced 9/11.  So right off the bat, the new millennium and new era of Transformers were dealing with a new reality.

The show, for those that don’t know – was a weird one-off in Transformers history.  We had G1 and then the G2 remixes for a bit.  Beast Wars came on the scene and ran all the way through 2000 with it’s successor – Beast Machines.   During the Beast Wars era – Japan did a couple of their own Beast Wars shows, non-CGI extensions of what we saw in the US.   Their market wasn’t quite ready for full CGI so they stuck with traditional anime.  When Hasbro decided to continue Beast Wars into Beast Machines, Takara went a completely different way – a traditional animated show which brought back Autobots and “Decepticons”, mixing them in with the beasts.  They focused the toys on a couple new and complex molds, then filled the rest of the line with repaints of previous toys.  Old 2nd tier Beast Wars toys, G2 Laser Prime, and even some Generation 1 molds in the form of the Combaticons got new life as new characters in this show, capped with the biggest TF of them all at the time – a repainted G1 Fortress Maximus, now Brave Maximus.  It was the prototype for what the Transformers brand did for years to come – repainting old toys into new characters.  Universe, Classics, Botcon, and even some Generations runs used this method to give us some great toys in the 00s.

While there is a very complicated and long explanation for how every single Japanese show is one continuity, to someone casually starting with Car Robots it was a refresh, a new story, a new arrival on Earth.  The Autobots vs the Predacons, and eventually the Combatrons/Decepticons. It was a hard cut from the last 5 years or so of CGI Beasts.  Hand drawn traditional animation featuring vehicle Transformers.  It wasn’t G1, but many of the folks who grew up with G1 were just getting out of college around this time.  They were rediscovering their childhood love of Transformers through Beast Wars, flea market finds, raids on their parents’ attics and basements, and for the internet savvy – imports of Japanese reissues from Takara.  It was a perfect storm of nostalgia; a return to Autobots and Decepticons was welcomed by kids and adults alike.

RID and TFW2005

In the years leading up to Car Robots, I was just getting into the internet, coding, design, some digital music, and all the possibility that came with it.  Beast Wars, especially when it hit Season 2/3 and the inclusion of G1 lore, really got me focusing on Transformers again as a hobby.  I eventually combined the two newfound hobbies into one and Transformer World 2005 was born.  At no point did I ever think it would last 20+ years and take over my life in the way it did.  I started the full version of TFW2005 around April 2000, with some starts and stops before that.  That was right around when Car Robots started airing in Japan.  Through the magic of 56k internet, I was able to connect with folks in Japan and get them to send me VHS tapes of Car Robots.  Really nice, high-quality tapes too, I still have them hehe.  To the younglings reading – try to picture this: no youtube, no video sharing. The concept of streaming anything did not exist yet. Napster and the eventual peer to peer stuff hadn’t fully kicked off.  Plus, we were all viewing the internet on giant computers in our rooms at the speed of 1x on your phone.  Less than 1 bar 3G mobile speeds today.

Yes, someone recorded episodes from TV to video tape over there, did that a couple weeks at a time, then physically mailed them across the world to me, who then got them on the internet.  Can you imagine waiting weeks to watch an episode of TV the size of a twitter profile avatar?  Crazy.  Uploading a full episode to the internet was a big pain in the ass, not easily done.  I decided to get a converter that allowed me to plug my VCR into the computer and encode the tape into digital format.  From there, it was reduced using Microsoft’s WMV technology so that the episodes were about 5 MB each.  30 minute episodes at 5MB each. Dimensions – 176 x 144 pixels.  4k video today – 3840 x 2160 pixels.  You can imagine that video looked like crap.  But we didn’t care – we were blown away.  Old school animation, vehicles, some cool Japanese anime vibes, it was what we as G1 fans kinda had in the back of our heads on what Transformers should be in a new era, and we were seeing it.  Most of us had no clue what they were saying or what was going on.  Also didn’t care.  I still to this day think CR/RID is better like that.

So one of the first things TFW2005 did on the internet was provide these super small windows into Car Robots and what was going on in Japan. It helped get US fans hyped up for what Transformers could be. It got us wanting the toys, and importers bringing the Takara toy line over were moving serious product.  It helped swing Hasbro, who was planning to return to Autobots and Decepticons again down the road, to move that schedule up.  Instead of running Beast Machines until 2002 and then starting what we now know as the Unicron Trilogy, it was cut short.  Robots in Disguise as a toy line and show came over in 2001, ran fast and hard for a year with non stop releases, got extended because it did so well, and then faded into the Universe line of repaints.  The new millennium of Transformers was here and Robot In Disguise kicked it off with a bang.

Wrap Up

As we all continue with collecting Transformers now, regardless if you tagged into the fandom during G1, Beasties, the Unicron Trilogy, the Movies, or just yesterday – let’s take the time to give Car Robots and RID some props!  It set the tone for what the new millennium of the brand would be.  It gave us some toys ahead of their time.  It solidified the repaint as an accepted thing in the hobby. And it gave us one crazy 39 episode run of TV that’s still a fun ride 20 years later.

For those that would like to learn more about RID and Car Robots – I still maintain a Robots in Disguise website that archives everything I have or came across.  There is a lot there if you want to go on a tour of all the awesome Car Robots and Robots In Disguise era stuff.  Check it out at RIDFOREVER.INFO! FIYAH!

Let us know what you think and remember from the good old days of RID on the 2005 Boards here!

Epilogue

If someone over there at Hasbro is reading – can someone please figure out who owns the rights to the show in the US market and then get it out on DVD in full, finally?  Work all that funky licensing stuff out (if there is any) and get it done.  The US has never had access to it via an official release.  Maybe get it up on YouTube like G1?  Something.  Announcing plans for that before the end of 2021 would be a nice 20th anniversary tribute.

[itcamefromthetoybox]

Year of the Tiger

Valentine’s Day, that magical day when we celebrate the just murder of the asshole James Cook, is upon us once again, which means that tomorrow is the most important day of the year: discount chocolate day! For today, though, my fiancee gave me a wonderful gift I’m delighted to review: “Transformers Kingdom Voyager Class Tigatron!”

We’ve talked about the Kingdom line before, how it’s G1 and Beast Wars characters that try to be as show accurate as possible, with great detail and articulation. Tigatron’s a character from “Beast Wars,” and holds the distinction of being the first new character introduced on the show outside the initial main cast. He was known for living out in the wilderness, where he was one with nature, and for trying to avoid conflict, so as to protect the land around him. Also, it’s hinted he hooked up with an actual tiger before meeting his love interest, fellow Maximal Airazor.

Honestly, I was reluctant about getting Tigatron at first. I already own Kingdom Cheetor and his retool Shadow Panther, and I thought Tigatron was just going to be Cheetor with a new head and maybe a few new accessories to justify selling him for the larger price point of “Voyager” instead of a Deluxe figure like Cheetor was. Then my fiancee surprised me with Tigatron, and I was delighted by how wrong I was.

First off, Tigatron is much larger than Cheetor or any other uses of his mold, so he definitely earns his higher price. Also, while he does come with a tail whip like Cheetor, it’s a new mold that omits the blue blade at the end of Cheetor’s tail. In addition, Tigatron also comes with the infamous “gut gun” from the show, and has more articulation than Cheetor. So if you already have Cheetor, you’re not going to be paying more money for the same figure, no matter how similar they look.

I don’t think he’s feeling well. He’s looking a little GREEN! Oh hahahaha! I slay me.

Tigatron is really articulated, with moving parts all over his body. Hell, even his beast mode legs are really articulated. He transforms quickly and very similarly to Cheetor, which is a delight because he’s actually more articulated than his smaller counterpart. His robot legs become his tiger mode’s rear legs, his arms fold up into his chest, his beast legs fold around his chest, and his tiger head flips up to obscure his robot head. It’s a really user-friendly design that has all the best parts of Cheetor, with some improvements.

Tigatron transforms into a white tiger that looks pretty great, with one exception: the green parts of the robot mode legs are still visible on the backs of the beast mode legs. What makes up for this, though, is the level of detailing on the beast mode fur. There’s subtle touches of orange in the fur, like a real tiger, which adds some great touches to the design and breaks up the white and black fur, without taking away from the overall look.

And now we wait for Botcon or whoever to somehow shoehorn him into the Great War or give him a pre-BW life on Cybertron or something. Sigh.

I’ll say this about him: he’s definitely got some guts!

Tigatron’s gut gun looks pretty great too. Unlike the original toy from the 90’s, the gut detailing is actually painted, making it look more like the show design. Unfortunately, unlike the original toy, this gun doesn’t shoot water. The barrel can separate from the rest of the gun, but this doesn’t really do anything. It doesn’t make two guns, or even shorten one gun, and seems to be an effect of how the toy was assembled more than anything.

Now, I do have a few complaints about this figure that need mentioning. First and foremost, in beast mode, there’s no great way to store the gut gun. It does peg into the bottom of the tiger, but not in a way that hides it. Instead, there’s just a gun blatantly hanging off the bottom of the tiger. Also, the joints on the figure are kind of stiff, which can slow down the transformation at times and makes it a little tricky to move the joints, though continued play will loosen the joints. Also, there have been reports of the white paint yellowing over time with exposure to light. This is a common issue with toys that use lots of white paints, as anyone who has older “Star Wars” storm and clone troopers can testify to.

Tigatron’s available at mass retail with a starting price of about $30, which, for a figure of this size and articulation, is a good deal. The figure’s aimed at collectors, but some older kids will probably like him as well. I’d say give him a shot if you like “Beast Wars” or liked the Netflix “War for Cybertron” trilogy. Anyways, this is JL signing off and wishing you Happy Toy Hunting!

[wemblingfool]

With Beast Wars triumphant return, as well as Cheetor and Skybyte appearing in Cyberverse, and Barricade finally getting pulled out of the bayverse, it's really wonderful to see the G1 deathgrip finally beginning to loosen.

But there are still a ton of characters and designs who deserve to be rescued from obscurity. (Mine is by no means a complete list)

Beast Era- There was just so many, that if I don't limit myself, this list will be nothing but BW. Avoiding Beast Wars US show characters because they get 90% of the attention.

Razorbeast: Was just an empty toy-only character until Furman got ahold of him and did his typical magic to obscure toy only characters. Razorbeast was the best thing from IDW's terrible BW comic.

Botanica: The first (and only serious) plant TF. She would be amazing to see expanded.

Jetstorm: Like a bad gameshow host, Jetstorm was a joy to watch in Beast Machines. He also had a brilliant design that never got justice.

Hydra: From Beast Wars Neo, Hydra was a really lonely Predacon.

Killer Punch: Also from BW Neo, he was a conspiracy theorist on the level of The Question, or The Lone Gunmen. Imagine him sitting in his mother's basement (if Destrons/Predacons had mothers), blogging on the internet about how the original Megatron was secretly an autobot double agent.

Robots in Disguise- Everyone, honestly. Y'all really need to stop the RiD hate train. But here are the stand outs (for me)

Scourge: Is much more interesting a character than anything that's been done with "Nemesis Prime," since.

Gigatron: I go with Gigatron because IMO, he was much more interesting than his US Megatron version. Six modes and driven insane to the point of each mode having a unique personality.

The Predacon Trio: Darkscream, Slapper, and Gasskunk. Skybyte makes the occasional appearance recently. He needs his troops, who were fun enough on their own.

The Autobot Brothers: Sideburn, Prowl, and X-Brawn.

TAI: The best computer the autobots have. In any continuity.

Unicron Trilogy- The biggest continuity outside of the extended G1 continuity. As usual, too many to list.

Thunderblast: Not the most interesting toy, but she was a fun character

Shortround: Dude was a toy collector. He's one of us. He deserved to be brought back.

Brushguard: A decepticon botanist who loves old b-movies. What's not to love?

Ransack & Crumplezone: One of the most iconic duos in all TF

Landmine: We need more grumpy old robots, beyond Ironhide and Kup. Also, autobot construction vehicles are very rare.

Vector Prime: Amazing given how important he was/is, at how little he's been used since. The "multiversal singularity" thing was hands down one of the dumbest narrative moves, but that's no fault of Vector Prime's.

Override: She was an interesting design, and deserves to have more done with her.

Bayverse-

Blackout: neat design and a fairly blank character

Ransack: He's a friggin' biplane!

Sideswipe: same

"Daytrader": A Steve Buscemi transformer. Another Swindle-type character. He deserves to be rescued!

Crosshairs: Fairly big personality, which is rare for a bayverse TF, and an interesting design. I'd take him before G1 Crosshairs.

Animated- Just turn TF into animated for a few more years and I'll be happy. But, in terms of moving characters forward

Prowl: What's not to love? Peaceful nature loving ninja.

Bulkhead: A clumsy, sweet gentle giant with the soul of an artist. Everyone thinks he's an idiot, but he's the best spacebridge technician on Cybertron.

Sentinel Prime: Never been a more fun Sentinel, and never will be!

Lugnut: He just kinda got dumped.

Blitzwing: Would kill to see a future Blitzwing take after him instead of the dull as dirt G1 Blitzwing

Aligned- To be honest, i hate this trainwreck as much as I do Bayverse. But there are still concepts and characters worth salvaging

Knock Out: Dude was a blast. One of the only enjoyable things in TFP.

Soundwave: The only interesting Soundwave out there, imo.

Strongarm: She deserves moving forward

NuRiD Decepticons: Unique and fun designs, all of them! Would love to see Steeljaw and Bisk again!

Bumblebee- It is small. And it is broken. But it is still good... Yeah. Still good.

Shatter & Dropkick: Very much afraid these two will be quickly forgotten about and abandoned.

Cyberverse- it did a lot of new things with old characters. But it did bring some new and unique characters to the table.

Clobber: Sorta stole TFA Lugnut's design while being an amazing new character. She's something we've never seen before- a female big muscleheaded idiot brute. Female TFs are now becoming common enough that we're starting to get variety.

Wild Wheel: Nothing about him wasn't amazing. The show was cancelled before he even appeared, though.

Thunderhowl: Like Wild Wheel, didn't show up until Cyberverse was cancelled.

Hammerbyte: same

Botcon- While under Fun Publications, Botcon became nothing but milling out more G1. But under MiB and 3H, and even in FP's early days, they did give us some unique characters.

Fractyl & Packrat: I don't think there's a more iconic set of characters to Botcon than these two.

Shadow Striker & Roulette: Shadow Striker has gotten to move forward a bit. She appeared in the movie line, which that version was then the inspiration for Cyberverse Shadow Striker, but her sister has been all but forgotten.

Flareup: She's a very bubbly and upbeat personality, who happens to take an almost fiendish glee in blowing stuff up. She's the best thing FP ever did.

Landshark: One of the most hated FP characters, and I've never understood exactly why. He'd be brilliant if he got good fiction:

Landshark doesn't know where he got his name from and he doesn't really care. Some 'bots tend to confuse it with "Landmine", but once Landshark pulls his fist from their abdomen they don't seem to get it wrong anymore. Always the practical jokester and seen by his peers as a wiseguy, he often makes light of even the most dramatic situations. Once, he had one of his power claws ripped off of his body by a blood thirsty Narliphant. Landshark didn't fret about the situation; he simply turned to Flak and asked, "Can you give me a hand?"... Flak was not amused. Able to transform his auxiliary battle platform into a hydraulic booster pack, he has the strength to wield two massive power claws capable of ripping open an enemy's armor plating. This feature also gives him the ability to cling onto or climb up almost any structure. While in vehicle mode, Landshark enjoys intimidating, and then plowing down, anyone that stands in his way.

Like I said, these are all just scratching the surface. But these are all some of my most favorites.

[jimclassicstoycollection]

Transformers: War For Cybertron: Earthrise

Deluxe class

Hoist

I like the figure...but I thought i was going to like him more.

Vehicle Mode:

Starting off with the tow truck mode it’s...a tow truck...and I think it’s really good. It really looks like a modern day G1 Hoist...I mean, it IS a modern day G1 Hoist, however ever since The Classics/Henkai/Universe/Generations/Thrilling 30/Combiner Wars/Titans Return/Power Of The Primes/Siege, and now Earthrise toyline going back to 2005; these G1 reinterpretations haven’t looked this THIS G1 before. 

Even the tampograph Autobot symbol, and caution stripes look great.

As a tow truck Hoist does have a play feature of...well..towing cars.

I have one complaint about this vehicle mode and that would be the clearance below the truck. The robot arms are un-apologetically just under the truck giving just enough clearance for the wheels to roll. The arms hanging out from underneath just make this brilliant truck mode look a bit tacky, and that’s the only thing about it that I hate.

Transformation:

This is not a difficult transformation. ‘Nuff said.

Robot Mode:

Visually this Hoist is amazing. He looks the part, he’s a great range of motion, and he really captures that G1 toy vibe best out of all of the War For Cybertron figures so far, from the broad windshield chest and beer belly, to the orange knee pads, and those weird arm flaps which are clearly the sides of the tow truck

This toy has a great head sculpt. It’s boxy, and angular in all the right places, and I love how the visor just pops in with that sky blue paint.

Strangely enough however the toy is surprisingly light weight.

He doesn’t looks light weight, but this Hoist is hollow and light as a feather.

I suppose that’s not a huge problem, it’s off putting once you pic him, and expect to some heft to the toy that’s just not the case.

Hoist has kind of a double knee (it’s really of the transformation, but it’s there).

I need to do this more, I was really surprised that I could balance this figure on one leg.

Accessories:

Hoist only comes with one accessory, that’s his orange gun/nozzle.

Hoist is a doctor, I don’t remember him being in a lot of gun fights (I’m sure I’m forgetting something) but the orange nozzle is usually intecgrated into one of his arms. And this is no different. Thanks to the 5mm peg Hoist can hold the nozzle in his hand and fits over it perfectly.

And naturally Hoist is compatible with the blast effects!

Final Thoughts:

I’m happy to have this jovial Autobot doctor in my ranks.

I like the Thrilling 30 one (pictured below) but he was too Cybertronian, and short to REALLY make a serviceable Hoist, and the Botcon Machine Wars version (also pictured below) is okay, but he’s more of a far future upgrade to the character, I suppose. Earthrise Hoist on the other hand is a well done contemporary ‘timeless’ version.

[allspark]

Emitting lethal beams of energy in the Allspark Studios today is cold, brutal and scientific Siege Shockwave!  Will emotional thinking ruin his clarity of thought, or will he give in to the feels and adopt a Littlest Pet Shop puppy for a shelf companion?  Tune after the break to find out!

G1 Shockwave was one of my holiest of grails, alongside Jetfire.  I remember being on the playground in 2nd or 3rd grade when the rich kid in our school pulled out both to show off.  Shockwave mesmerized me due to the powerful look of the laser gun mode, and the fact that this toy resembled the character on the cartoon, unlike Megatron.  I had to have him…but don’t remember actually ever seeing him in a store.   I do remember a weekend trip to Pensacola, Florida that led us by a Radio Shack where I once saw the grey “Shackwave”, who was one of the first G1 figures I bought on eBay back in 2000.  I would not get the real Shockwave until Botcon 2005, and that one sits in his original packaging to this day.  He has been joined by a minty Shockwave I display, as well as numerous iterations, minus one of my current white whales, the Botcon 2012 customization class figure.  All of this to say, I am a bit illogically obsessed with the logical oriented character.

Siege Shockwave appeared to be a dream come true.  Initial pictures showed he had all the best design cues from the original figure, loads of articulation, and a neat set of armor to throw into the mix.  I was so excited that I began to worry if Shockwave would be able to live up to my expectations.  Let’s give the toy and look and see how it measure up!

Spaceship/Gun/Destroyer Mode

The spaceship mode for Shockwave is an upside-down gun.  It’s not going to do any G1 fans pining for a real blaster any good, however, because at the current size, this laser gun would only fit a toddler’s hand.  I imagine this could be one of the figures targeted by the KO industry for an upsize, as the most common complaints I see online are related to the size of the leader class figures.  But I digress…

Resemblance to a weapon aside, spaceship mode fits with quite a few of Shockwave’s legacy forms, such as the most recent Walgreen’s exclusive, Combiner Wars Shockwave, and the FOC Shockwave.  I love the idea of Shockwave becoming a battleship.  In my fanon, he designs full size battleships based on his current alt-mode, because logically he chooses the most powerful forms, and these ships are his personal battalion.  It’s silly, but I love to display his vehicle modes, and it gives me a reason.  😀

While I am not a huge fan of the overloaded surface details of the Siege line, it does look good on Shockwave’s vehicle modes, even if I would have preferred smoother panels.  Other neat details include incorporating the hose from robot mode into the spaceship, as well as a uni-eye at the front of what I imagine is the bridge from the tower.  Another cool piece is the “gun” barrel as the front of the ship.  They could have really gone out of their way to make this appear less like a blaster muzzle, but they didn’t, and I love it.  I can imagine Autobots seeing this battleship and turning their own around, not willing to risk a fight with a flying cannon.

You an take this mode into overkill mode and really make an impressive battleship by incorporating the armor.  Doing so beefs up the front end of the ship, adds more engines, and additional cannons just behind the bow and to the sides of the new engines.  If an Autobot ship were afraid of the regular spaceship mode, this cruiser is frightening enough to make an entire fleet turn tail and run.  This is the best Decepticon battleship yet created, and I must admit I am so enamored with it that I want to have an extra to leave in this mode at all times.  Fortunately, the cold logic of my empty wallet has silenced the impulse…for now.

Robot Mode

Where do I start?  Siege Shockwave is 96% the Shockwave of my dreams.  Why only 96%?  What happened to the other 4%?  Well, I am taking off 4 points due to a few minor issues I have with the toy.  Let’s cover those now and get back to the absurd lovefest.  I am deducting 1 percentage point of love for the following issues:

  The purple, while reminiscent of the G1 figure, has way too much blue and not enough red. Simply put, he’s not the right shade of purple.

His neck has some articulation, but I expected more. I think the worst part of this is that the hinge that holds his backpack is the biggest limiting factor in the movement.  He should be able to move his head around with greater range, and neck articulation continues to be an issue for the current design team.  I see improvements here and in the Siege line, but I want consistency across figures.

The details are overly busy. I get that they wanted more detail than the smooth panels of the G1 figure, however this is overload, and unnecessary.  I wish they had come to a middle ground before finishing this mold.

He is too small. I feel like this is mostly due to increased parts and joints for the mold, and I cannot completely fault them for that…but that makes him less for me by 1%.  I would say the same applies to Ultra Magnus.

All negatives aside, this is a glorious rendition of Shockwave in robot mode.  He has the right build and proportions.  He has an actual rubber(ish) hose.  He has some of the best damn light-piping ever seen in a Transformer.  Beyond his backpack, he has no hollow spaces, which while I was never bothered by them, they were the bane of some fans’ existence.  Shockwave also comes PACKED with articulation!  He has:

  ankle tilts

ratcheting knees

lateral thigh articulation

double rotary hips

rotating waist

double rotary shoulders

lateral bicep articulation

rotating elbows

rotating wrists

ball jointed neck with some limitation in backwards and forwards movement

This figure can get into basically any of the classic Shockwave poses.  My favorite is the pose from the cover to Marvel Comic’s “The Transformers” #5.

  Hover Mode/Armored Mode

Personally, I love the hovercraft mode most out of these configurations.  I can see Shockwave using this to loom over his enemies and his subordinates, as well as providing a tactical advantage in battle while remaining in robot mode.  It is an ingenious use of armor parts, and I hope we get more of this in the future.

The armored mode answers the question; do I need a Shockwave with more gun arm?  The answer is yes.  Yes, you do.  And now you get a Shockwave with 3-gun arms, two laser feet, and a bulked up backpack which must hold a larger power source.  If regular Shockwave was not firepower overkill, this mode definitively is.  While I must admit it is fun, mine won’t be staying in this mode.  I much prefer G1 Shockwave riding in on his hover platform, and that is how he will be displayed.

Recommendation

I give Siege Shockwave 9.6 multiples of 10 on the logic scale!  He hits all the right stops, looks like the ultimate update to G1 Shockwave, comes with more than enough articulation, and the C.O.M.B.A.T. system armor adds tons of playability and 3 additional modes to this nuclear powerhouse of a figure.  While I did not cover transformation in detail, I am pleased to find he is not super difficult yet contains a few neat steps that add fun to the process, like the formation of the “muzzle” and spaceship tower.  Kids will like him.  Older fans will LOVE him, and that is something Shockwave would dismiss as he has no time for expressions of emotion.

Don’t let that stop you!  Siege Shockwave is beginning to really hit stores in force now, so get out there and add to your Decepticon army!

    Siege Shockwave Gallery and Review! Emitting lethal beams of energy in the Allspark Studios today is cold, brutal and scientific Siege Shockwave! 

[iseas-blog]

Walking Battle Robots Guide Tips.

War Robots hilesi

Free Download And Install Walking War Robots Apk Mod (Unlimited Ammo) v2.0.0 Terbaru 2016 - Selamat siang para pengunjung Santrihawa dimanapun sobat berada, sebelumnya admin sudah membagikan salah satu video game android yang berjudul Frozen Front Apk Mod Unlimited Loan kali ini admin akan membagikan sebuah game android yang berjudul Strolling Battle Robots dengan penambahan Modifikasi yaitu Modifikasi Unlimited Ammo. That is the raw caution from a leading robotics professional that spoke today of the threats of permitting increasingly advanced robotics making choices of life and also fatality. Since it will certainly permit you to test out all the available builds and find the one that fits you, the Battle Robots hack could also aid you right here. Together with the new baddies and bosses there are new upgrades for your weapons, and also new Elite areas that you could evaluate your shooting-things abilities in. Which seems amazing. Optimus Prime was one of the initial five robots named by Hasbro to be inducted in to the Transformers Hall of Fame at BotCon 2010. Much of that is asserted upon making use of robotics to offer a progressively maturing population. When the battle began, Keith Douglas was currently a published poet while studying at Oxford. Having these as the most effective sort of tool, it is just one of one of the most been afraid robots in the video game. Nah ada cara agar kamu dapat bermain di level yang kamu inginkan, kalau diandaikan ini seperti primary di Mode Hard, Normal, Ataupun Easy Degree, yaitu dengan menseting robotics dan weapon yang digunakan. Below are some brand-new variations of Humanoid robots with boosted operating, they could not only stroll but could chat and see things. Numerous additional surgeries will be performed by robots in the future, as more innovative robotics are created that can executing challenging surgeries. Equipments of Battle 4 improves the layout we learned to like throughout the last generation. It's going to be a full-on, session-based PvP game for Oculus Break and HTC Vive, where players pilot robots and also battle versus individuals from throughout the globe.. We had bush Number at the end of in 2015, as well as months passed before we also started to evaluate the Dashboard robots on the test server. Digital awards apart from the War Robots VR download will. be delivered soon after the project is funded. Battle Robots Apk Most Current Version Free Download- Permainan yang udah dinanti-nantikan bagi para pecinta game yang epik dengan tampilan grafis 3D dan aesthetic audio yang spektakuler. The program has a 2D battlefield where you could put in robots and where all the activity takes place. Caminando Robots Guerra Códigos Hack Tool Cheat puede descargar desde nuestro sitio web blog.. It is similar to Fire Emblem, but replaced with distinct personalities and awesome robotics. Were the norm, currently car producers have lines of robots functioning 24/7 365 days a year to create autos. These armed forces robots have four legs and also have to be shown how to stroll, which isn't an easy job to accomplish. Working together with many EOD groups have actually been robots-- searching in advance for IEDs as well as ambushes, conserving soldiers' lives sometimes over.

war robots hack ios

Adapted from Wired for Battle: The Robotics Revolution as well as Dispute in the 21st Century by P. W. Singer. Robotics will function relentlessly slicing veggies and preparing foods, and never call for the type of break a human line chef calls for. So named because it is set throughout World War I, Battleground 1 brings the series back to its concentrate on warfare after 2015's Battlefield Hardline, which was everything about robbers as well as polices. This experience with Globe Battle Robotic advised me of my disappointment with the Shrapnel comic. The hack device smoothens the process for you while you relax as well as delight in the video game. The Battle of Eustrath is a remake of this game from a brand-new developer formed out of the ashes of Team Darkland, which appears to have gone defunct around 2007 approximately. It flew off of World War II-era U.S. battlewagons that had actually been gotten of mothballs in the 1980s and updated for usage in battering ground targets with their massive sixteen-inch guns. Lots of people ask why there are less rhymes from The second world war, as compared to the First Globe Battle. Therefore, Gears of Battle 4 really feels more active than various other third-person shooters, including its predecessors. Sure, the mechanics are virtually identical to the previous games however with new implementations, vehicles, protection building plus brand-new enemies/weapons and yunona.org you have every little thing you need for a terrific Gears of Battle 4 experience! With the objective of bringing service robotics to help individuals, FRIEND Robotics has actually established several of the globe's most advanced humanoid robotics, the REEM collection. So, I utilized exactly what cover items I could, poking out and also taking adversary robotics down one at a time with explosives and also capacities. The investigates say there are a large variety of feasible professional applications if molecular robots function in researches with computer mice and eventually human scientific tests.

[paulagnewart]

Super Sonic Storytelling Special: Act 1

To say it's been a while would definitely be an understatement. Nearly 3 years in fact since I last updated a particularly long fanfiction, and just about 2 years since I wrote (or co-wrote) anything remotely related to this franchise.

The delay was never intended to be this bad. A number of factors got in the way; poor health, change of jobs, trips to BotCon and back, the reboot (and subsequent cancellation) of the material, and some pretty disparaging comments from a certain source I don't feel comfortable talking about these days. It siphoned away any interest remaining, resulting in this hiatus and personal pondering whether I had potential to produce something, anything, of value.

From a creative standpoint, I was dead inside. That changed about 2 months ago when I stumbled across a server dedicated to, of all things, DC's Teen Titans franchise. They had a roleplay channel looking for people, so with a metaphorical crack of the fingers, I wrote a short character piece about a member of the team. People actually liked it (somehow) and were interested in seeing more. So they got more. And more.

This helped reinvigorate my passion for writing, and thus I assisted them with advice and words of encouragement for their stories. It was rewarding in a way, seeing them grow and develop their own skills. During this period, I recalled the older stories I wrote (and left hanging), wondering if perhaps revisiting them was a good idea.

Which brings us to here and now. The beginning of a new story featuring the adventures of that bloody blue Hedgehog. To be more accurate, it doesn't revolve around him exactly, but he is a key player later on. It's also worth mentioning the story does take place around and during events from the dearly departed Archie comics. Expect a few callbacks along the way.

The prologue is available below, while subsequent chapters will be posted on a certain Sonic forum many of you know. They'll also be uploaded to my website at a later date. Or, if there is anyone truly interested, I may even post them here. Maybe.

Have a read-through if you want, and let me know how it went. And especially whether and of you Archie aficionados saw THAT coming at the end. No peeking. :P

Oh! And one more thing. Providing I'm not busy or don't keel over soon, there will be updates EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. That's right, as a certified glutton for punishment, Hedgehog action will happen throughout the entirety of December. Yay?

==Ancient Awakening==

We are everything, yet nothing. Everywhere, yet nowhere. Everyone, yet without an identity.

For as long as Mobius has been, we have. Spanning from the early days of the forgotten wars, we observed life come and go. A world in constant change, yet each lifeform retained the same desire to subvert the other. We considered and reconsidered whether revealing our presence to these barbarians would prove beneficial. Our power was beyond their feeble comprehension. Should we be utilised as a force of order and law?

Or a force of chaos?

Ultimately we decided that neither option proved of value. They were not ready for us. Only when a truly unique individual crossed our path would we reveal our presence. It would be a lengthy wait, but to us, time is irrelevant.

As we had foreseen, that individual eventually arrived. A tall, revered Mobian male of mammal origins. As a father of two, he had witnessed both great tragedy and great happiness in his life. A perfect balance. We were… intrigued. We had furthermore expected him to be apprehensive upon our meeting, but he gradually warmed to this crossing of paths. He shared much of contemporary Mobius with us, and we in return offered glimpses of what could (or would not) be.

With all things, he too succumbed to the natural forces of life. Yet before his death, he shared our existence to his offspring. We saw potential in one-another, and it wasn’t long before a sacred union between us was forged. This proved the beginning of a bond that has endured for centuries, as we devoted our existence solely to this proud line of male guardians.

All that changed with the current generation, as their family welcomed its latest heir- a daughter. Her being was unexpected. We had not foreseen this, a rogue element somehow overlooked despite our omnipotence. We accepted her nonetheless, and watched the young Mobian mature during great times of hardship. She was growing fast. Perhaps too fast for our liking. Not that she had a choice though; when the planet was in the metallic mandible of a madman, maturity was paramount. She fought tooth and claw to survive, and at the cusp of her fifteenth year on this world, earned her victory.

Life gradually eased. Her previously-corrupted father was restored to his former self, bringing with it the next step of our most sacred of traditions. In order to complete her rite of passage, the teenager was ordered to become one with us. Once more the freedom of choice was out of her paws. She had to, no, would fulfil her destiny…

…But she rejected us. A youth spent in hardship not only made her strong, but furthermore stubborn. She declared us not part of her life, refusing to accept everything we had offered. Her fate was her own, and saw no desire to witness the future we presented. Once more we had been blindsided.

How could this possibly be? Why did we not see this coming? We serve only to guide the bloodline, working as one to create the optimum outcome. Some would call it symbiotic at best, or even possessive at worst. Good? Evil? They are but foreign concepts. Means to an entitled end. Nothing more.

And yet… we pause to wonder.

She had forsaken us. The first in her family to outright refuse completion of the metamorphosis. She had… no right to abandon her duty. If only she had accepted the inevitable, today would be different. We would not be here, hidden deep within the farthest depths of Mobius, our connection to the outside world all but lost. Her home would still stand. Her family would be alive and well. Her love would be… someone else. Someone far, far greater and unequivocally worthy of her body and mind.

If she has no further use for us, what purpose do we serve? We.. wait, is this…feelings? Yes, despite her refusal to amalgamate with us, we retained a subconscious bond. We studied her emotions first-hand. Fear and Courage. Love and Hate. We must know more. Not since her ancestor had a member of this bloodline intrigued us. She was truly special, and we had to have h… feelings again… a maelstrom of them. Friendship. Affection. Lust. Obsession.   Love. Power. Control…

…Domination.

If she would not accept us by choice, then she will by force. Her will can be crushed. Her ideal future erased, replaced by one better suited. One forged by us. If… no, she will definitely refuse. No matter. It will make things… fun…

We have reached a decision.

The future we have designated will come to pass.

Sally Acorn will be ours…

[mahpro]

MdM Voice Over Panel

(Daniel Ross, Dave Sobolov, Debi Derryberry, Justin Timpane)

(Debi Derryberry has a book out called "Voice-Over 101, How to succeed as a voice actor." All of the info is in her web site.)

On Friday April 28, 2017 was a voice over panel in Washington DC.  It was sponsored by the talent agency MdM Talent (http://mdmtalent.com/).  This was their inaugural event.

The guests of the event were veteran voice actors in the animation industry. The headliner of the event was Ms. Debi Derryberry (http://www.debiderryberry.com/).  Ms. Derryberry is perhaps best known for the voice of Jimmy Neutron of the Nickelodeon series, “Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius.”  There were two voice actors in the panel.  One voice over artist included Mr. David Sobolov (http://www.sobolov.com), who was the voice of Drax the Destroyer for the animated version of “Guardians of the Galaxy.”  Mr. Sobolov also voiced several animated shows in the 1980’s, such as “RoboCop.” The last guest was Silver Spring native Daniel Ross (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1405391/).  Mr. Ross is best known as the new Donald Duck.  He has been a voice actor for the past decade.  Ms. Derryberry and Mr. Sobolov have been in the industry for more than 20 years.  

The MC of the event was Mr. Justin Timpane (http://trekoffmovie.com/wp/). Mr. Timpane is best known as the director of the highly successful independent film series “Ninjas vs Zombies" (http://www.nvzmovie.com/).  It is worth noting that Justin and Daniel worked well together in the past.  The panel was very enjoyable with Justin and Daniel both MC-ing the panel, even though Daniel was a guest.

The start of the panel the guest were seated in their respected seats.  From right to left was Justin Timpane, Debi Derryberry, David Sobalov, and Daniel Ross.

Justin started off with the panel with a brief history of voice over work and the animation industry.  He mentioned how many people when they were young watched Saturday Morning Cartoons.  The cartoons ran until the late 1990’s on network television.  These were staples for children who grew up who anticipated watching cartoons every Saturday from 7am to 12noon.

Justin then asked the voice artists to say, “Hi DC” in their respective characters.  Debi gave her response in Jimmy’s Neutron’s voice, which the audience gave a huge applause.   David went right into his Drax voice.  He gave a physical appearance of the role made famous by the original actor, Dave Bautista.  Finally, it came to Daniel who not only gave the hello in Donald’s voice, but also the voice of the dreaded Starscream.  Daniel voices the villain for the Transformers video game.  Justin then began to interview each of the voice artists individually.

First up was Debi Derryberry.  Ms. Derryberry was first going to be a doctor.  She later decided to be a singer and moved to Nashville. She is an accomplished singer with several CDs, mainly for children.  Debi had several on-camera roles. She played Skeeter the Clown on a Saturday morning show "Hey Vern, It's Ernest."

Next came David Sobolov.  Mr. Sobolov is also known for the series “Overslayer” (1995).  He is an accomplished musician, he has played the French Horn.  He had live action actor training in NYC.  He is also a singer.  He sang in an Acapella group in Vancouver, Canada.  His first job was on the Fox series “Four Tech” (1995).   Mr. Sobolov said that he was given great life experiences to what he is today.  He says that gradual work and having a good work ethic are important things to do as an actor.  Mr. Sobolov mentioned that he reduced his on-camera appearances in the fear that he might be type casted as the same character.  Ironically Mr. Sobolov does play similar characters as a voice over actor, but he says that is because of his voice range and that is what most directors are looking for in a voice.

Then it came to Daniel Ross.  Apparently, He and Justin have been friends for a very long time. Daniel grew up in DC so it was like a homecoming for him.  He loved the fact that he was the voice of Starscream for the Transformers video games. At first Daniel said he didn’t know much about the voice over business. 

Daniel is still a big fan of Transformers.  He said he watched the original television run of the series. Daniel said that he was hugely influenced by the Transformer series “Beast Wars.”  This was one of the first 3-D animated series in the 1990’s.  Daniel said that his best memory was meeting a super fan of “Transformers” who showed him an original record of the Transformers movie.  The super fan asked Daniel if he could sign the cover.  Being a fan himself, he declined because he felt he didn’t want to ruin the value of the album, which was signed by all the principle voices of the movie, including the late Leonard Nimoy and Orson Wells.  The fan insisted because he said he didn’t get to have the original voice of Starscream (voiced by the late Chris Latta).  Daniel did sign the album and wrote a small note.  

It is also worth noting that later Daniel did get a chance to meet a member of Chris Latta’s family.  At a convention, he was introduced to Abby Collins (https://www.voices.com/people/aryanc), Mr. Latta’s daughter. 

(On a personal note, I also got to meet Abby when I visited LA to hear Robert Paulsen’s podcast(http://robpaulsenlive.com/talkin-toons-with-rob-paulsen/) with John DiMaggio (http://www.iknowthatvoice.com/).  Abby, like her father is an accomplished actress and voice over artist.)

Daniel went on to say that he always has a great quote to remember, which is “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.”  It pays to make the higher ups to take notice.  He said his first job was working in a theater organized by Carl Weathers, aka Apollo Creed.  Daniel said keep learning your craft.  Incidentally, Debi Derryberry is also Daniel’s talent coach.  Debi also trains artists into improving their skills in the voice over industry.

The next part of the panel was Justin asking more in depth questions to the Voice Over Artists.  The voice over artists agreed that you must stay humble in this fast-growing industry. Debi mentioned that back in 1990 the highest technology she had was a beeper.  Now there are smart phones.  She also observed that the voice acting pool was very small 20 years ago.  Since the web began in the min 1990's there are talented people all over the world who could send audio files via the internet.

They mentioned that is getting a Voice Over Demo.  It is kind of like an audio version of a visual artist portfolio.  You need to show your range as a voice over artist.  Getting a VO Demo is very difficult.  They said you need to make the Demo just right or no one would hire you as a Voice Over artist.

Justin then asked the voice over artists what was his or her turning point as a voice over artist?  Daniel said that his turning point was getting recognized by lots of fans at a convention in Rhode Island called "Botcon."  David said that for him was meeting a child in the Autism Spectrum.  The child spoke to David in length about his character. David later learned that meeting the child was the first time they spoke in a while. 

Debi explained that being a voice actor, you need to be where the jobs are going to be.  In this case, Debi informed the fans that Los Angeles is still the place to go and set up your voice over roots.  Debi suggested establishing your "Social Blue Book" as a vital was to do business. She said making sure your social media is well respected and have a solid fan base.  Debi made it clear that practicing your craft and training are the most important things you need.  She also said that having good business sense is an important tool.

Justin next asked for the audience members for any questions.

I asked the following question; " What advice would you give for people who were behind the camera (production artists) to be in front of the camera (Actors, extras, etc.)?"

Daniel cited to handle the business in a professional way, prepare for failure, and make decent business sense.  He continued by saying, "Write your own show. Make it yourself. Be in control of your own work."  Debi and David both agreed by that statement.

Daniel went further by saying, "it is good to meet people (networking).  Success is never overnight.  Keep acting by flexing and practicing your voice.  Meet people who are influential in the industry.  Keep talking to people.  Keep doing active things.  Make a living to what you love."

Daniel remembered a quote another voice over artist said to him.  Her name is Kari Walgren.  She said, "Don't forget that your dreams change."

Debi said that she wanted to be a doctor early in her career, but she decided to go into singing and later as a voice over artist. Her famous kid's song is "Baby Banana."

The last question asked, "How do you define success?"

David said, "Be a nice guy (person).  Having integrity is key to happiness." He went on to say, "You must do the work full time. Take care of yourself.  Do what you good at doing.  Make sure you try it all.  Then work on the things that you most comfortable doing."

David made an important statement, "Say 'YES' as much as you can, but within reason.  If it doesn’t feel good. Don't do it."  

Debi and Daniel both nodded in agreement.  "Know your limits." was mentioned by all the voice over artists. "Your job is a story teller" was another statement all agreed.

The panel ended with all the voice over artists signing items and taking photos with the fans.  The next day’s (Saturday and Sunday) were workshops devoted to future voice over artists.

It was a pleasure to meet Ms. Debi Derryberry and David Sobolov again. I met both previously at San Diego Comic Con.

I was honored to meet Daniel Ross and Justin Timpane for the first time. Daniel is quite talented as a voice over artist.  Daniel used his Donald Duck's voice many times at the panel.  He even said the Mary Poppins’s famous word, "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" in Donald's voice.

[mcawesome-jesse-mccree]

Repost don’t reblog

name: Carla birthday: April 22nd 1987 gender: Female/Gender Fluid orientation: Bi-sexual/romantic Still figuring things out. age: 29 so close to *shudder*thirty*shudder* favorite soda: I don’t drink soda anymore. At least not regularly. I quit about seven years ago and can’t stand the taste of most sodas. But i will have an occational Barqs Root Beer or Orange Creame soda. but it’s VERY rare, not even one every year. favorite candy: Chocolate sponge candy and those Gummy Blue Raspberry sharks. favorite pizza: I love just plain cheese, but OMG i’ve become addicted to Chicken Alfredo pizza. (especially form Papa Johns and Dominos) favorite salad dressing: Thousand Island. favorite meal: Tough one, i’d have to say going to this cool little Asian Bistro and having their Beef Udon with miso soup and at least two or four of their Octopus shashimi. best memory: When I got a hug from THE Scott McNeil at Disney World a few years back after i gave him a portrait of him with Tahu in the brim of his Cowboy hat at BOTCON. best friend: @w4nderingstarfanfics​ best relative: My parents. best celebrity: A lot of the VA’s from the Transformers Series. one random fact about you: I’m a geologist and will be starting my MA in Museum Studies this fall! I LIKE ROCKS! one random fact about your day: My Bearded Dragon gave me a GLARE when i dared to pet her today. one random fact about your job/school: I get to (at the job i’ll be starting at the end of the month) talk about fossils and rocks to school kids! one random fact about your favorite t.v. show: . . . i don’t...really....watch TV? i guess you could say Dreamwork’s Animation is damn good for a free Netflix series (Dragons: Race to the Edge) tagged by: @the-rad-doctor

Tagging: Whoever would like to do it! :D

[allspark]

The TRU Chaos on Velocitron set has been elusive for many fans, perhaps as elusive as dominion over the power of speed, found on the planet for which this set has been named. If you are search of this power for yourself, check out some quick pics we were able to snag of this rapidly appearing and disappearing set after the break!

 I have to admit, I live in a great distribution area.  I found this set days after it was first sighted at a TRU in the Dallas Metroplex.  I wasn’t actually looking for it, which is probably why I found it (and a Nintendo Switch for my kids….yeah….my kids).  Since then, lucky fans who do not live near a Toys R Us have been able to get one online, at this link here.

There are some definite pluses and minuses on this set.  It has the feel of a Botcon set, which I LOVE, and I hope this type of thing is a behavior Hasbro repeats many times in the future, because there are way more pluses than minuses and I am always up for a great remold/repaint that is not the same character.  I won’t go into a full review since these have been out for a few weeks, but I would like to touch on a few points for each figure.

  Quickswitch

This guy is beautiful.  His colors clearly indicate who he is, and he has lots of paint and sparingly used decals (#stickerssuck).  While he could have benefited from some remolding (a slightly different beast head would have been great), it definitely does not break the figure. The only minor issue I see with Quickswitch is that his “helmet” comes down too far over his eyes in robot mode, but fortunately, that can be adjusted for, so it not a true concern.

  Laser Prime

Another visually striking figure, Laser Prime is the only figure I will begrudgingly admit needed decals (but seriously, #stickerssuck), but only because I am sure a tampographed design of the same nature as the image in the decal would have been difficult to pull off…or at least that is what I am telling myself.  Laser Prime appears to have better QC in the joints than the first release of this mold.  He is much tighter in the hips, and his arms stay posed much better.  Additionally, his neck spikes stay put better than the ones on the first release.  While I can’t say I like this mold much more than the original, I do like what Hasbro has done here, and getting the Titanmaster and triple changer play patterns out of this figure add tons of value.  He is definitely worth adding to the collection.

  Fastclash (Fastlane)

The G1 clones were always a little nebulously designed when it came to their alt-modes, and Fastclash is basically G1 with joints, so you know what you are getting.  He’s not quite a deluxe, and not quite a legends class figure, falling somewhere in between.  It is clear when looking at some of his parts that he shares a mold with his mold brother clone, Cloudraker, who I assume we will see in a future set.  His limbs seem a little stubby when compared to the G1 figure, but they are in proportion to the new body.  The spoiler not having a new use other than to stick to the back of his head is a little annoying, but again, not a deal breaker.  Nice additions to this figure are a seat for Titanmaster figures and his heat change decal, imitated on his chest with a non-changing tampographed image.  All in all, Fastclash looks great and is a fun little figure with nostalgic appeal while bringing in some new elements to make him fit the current play pattern.

  Nautica

Dear Hasbro,

If you make figures from the IDW comics, especially MTMTE and Lost Light, I will give you all my money.

Sincerely,

A Rabid Fanboy

  Nautica is a repaint, remold of the ever useful Blurr mold.  She comes in her distinct color scheme from the comic, and has a vehicle mode that is made close enough her own by the addition of some plug in hover-fans.  It’s not exactly her alt-mode in the comics, but it will do.  My only real issue with the figure is that the head is not Nautica enough, which I will admit is probably a double standard since I am able to forgive the alt-mode, but the face makes the character, and I think the Titanmaster gimmick here leaves her looking much less like herself than she should.  Even so, it’s an IDW character made into a toy, and I will gladly take many more done like her, just to get those wonderful bots on my shelf.

Thanks, Hasbro!

  Rodimus Prime

This was one of the guys I was initially really excited about, but the execution has left me liking him the least out of the set.  He looks nice enough.  They made a new face for the body and everything…but they made what I believe to be a huge mistake: die-cast in the face.  The face is metal, which means it will not give.  As a result, the details are softer than I would like, and another side effect is that the Titanmaster neck, which becomes the neck for Rodimus in combined mode, does not move.

      I had to remove the face plate on mine just to be able to get the head in a nice neutral, forward facing position.  I think that whoever designed this face did not take into account that it might be painted completely, or that the tolerance for metal against plastic is slightly different.  All I know for sure is that having a metal Titanmaster face and ball socket means Rodimus Prime will never sit atop anyone else’s body.  If there is a chance they might make an actual Rodimus, I hope they remove the metal for the next release.

      Overall, I think this is a very solid set.  It has tons of play value, is set at just the right price, and gives us figures I did not expect to get.  In spite of the few minor concerns, this is definitely a set you need in your collection.  Get one now!

  Cheets made me do this. I like!

TRU Exclusive Chaos on Velocitron Gallery! The TRU Chaos on Velocitron set has been elusive for many fans, perhaps as elusive as dominion over the power of speed, found on the planet for which this set has been named.