Headmasters. As a Transformers fan you either love ’em or hate ’em! Hasbro’s 2015-to- present main line of Transformers featured figures with “Titan Master” transforming heads, with a line of Titan Master stand alone heads and mini vehicles to supplement the larger bots. The lack of having to engineer a space for heads during the transformation (besides always including a cockpit for the Titan Master) leads to many interesting design choices in the transformation and paved the way for the re-imagining of the Decepticon G1 Triplechangers (Astrotrain, Octane and Blitzwing) and even the Sixchangers Sixshot, and his Autobot repaint, Quickswitch. 
We were also treated to some amazing versions of the larger G1 Targetmasters, albeit without their Targetmaster partners in the Hasbro versions. Takara/Tomy reunited the Targetmasters with their respective larger partners, making them Headmasters AND Targetmasters! Thats a lot of G1 Masters-bation! 😉 
Other highlights from the Decepticon camp in this line include the leader classes, which gave the previously mentioned Sixshot (a huge fan favourite), but also Overlord, who’s HUGE G1 incarnation was only ever released in Japan and Europe, and for this reason he is considered one of the “Holy Grails” of G1 collecting. This is the first time this character has ever gotten an official North American release. Hasbro’s is quite a lot smaller, but still towers over his underlings! 
If it’s SIZE you are after, the Titan class Trypticon is sure to please, and at 19 inches tall makes the G1 Trypticon look almost insignificant in comparison! Plus: HE EATS TITAN MASTERS. Yes, that’s his gimmick… no sounds, no lights, just eating… NOM NOM NOM! 
Titans Return captured my interest not only from a nostalgic, 80’s-kid point of view but also from a design perspective. I feel that they retained a lot more of the “essence” of G1 versus the Combiner Wars line, which sacrificed a LOT in the design to make almost all the toys combine with each other. Was Titans Return perfect? Not by any means! My criticisms would include “hollow arms and legs syndrome”, lackluster weapons that often looked goofy to accommodate a Titan Master seat, and of course the lack of actual Targetmasters to go with their partners. Many fans complained that they were getting Headmasters versions of characters that had no business being Headmasters (The 86 Movie cast in particular), but I disagree! I mean, who doesn’t like a little head? 
The next main line, Power of the Primes is just popping up at retail and features a return to the Combiner Wars aesthetic, also adding some new gimmicks replacing transforming heads with different “Matrixes” with armor to plug them into, but I, for one, will miss Titan Masters and the little army of transforming heads! What did YOU like or dislike about the line? Feel free to leave a comment and get a discussion started in the comments! Until the next blog, “Till all are one”, and don’t forget to feed Trypticon-chan! Kawaiiii desu ne? 
We’re BACK! (Did you miss me?)
After a LONG hiatus, Robot Hero Toys is back with a VENGEANCE! What’s new, you ask? Well, only a FULLY FUNCTIONAL online store, thanks to Shopify! The new store launches NOV 15, 2017, just in time for some great deals on toys for Christmas (or Hanukkah, or Kwanza, or even Festivus)! Until then, check out the new shop layout (and the new products being added daily). The power of MEGATRON compels you! 😉
Vancouver Fan Expo 2014: Year of the “Meh”
Last year’s Fan Expo was a huge deal for me… I finally made my first costume and hit the Convention Center floor with the rest of the nerds, freaks and geeks as everyone’s favourite Latverian despot… Dr. Doom! I was in the huge group picture with Stan Lee and even payed to meet the guy and get my pic with him (the man is 92)! It was an amazing time and Marvel fans were abuzz with excitement! You could almost feel the electricity crackling through the air!
This year seems to be focusing on Horror Movies, something I’ve never been into, so the likes of Bruce Campbell (Ash) and Robert Englund (Freddy) as well as a few other “big” names like Ray Park (Darth Maul), and Karl Urban (Judge Dredd), really don’t do much for me. Jon Heder cancelled his appearance this year, so I guess I’ll never get my Napolean Dynamite action figures signed!
Vancouver Fan Expo expanded to 3 days this year, which I really think is excessive… 2 days was more than enough last year, and speaking as a toy-hunter, all the best stuff will be gone after Friday anyways. I also don’t really feel inspired to cosplay this year, as I didn’t get something new together and didn’t just want to do Dr. Doom again, even though it got such a great reaction last year!
So, this year being so lackluster, I opted for the $20 Friday pass for the more cursory experience. At least the HARDCORE cosplayers will be there on day one (and without a mask I can actually take pictures this year), as well as the fresh booths full of toys (that I can’t really afford). I have a few friends with booths this year though, so maybe I will bring my mask and my cape for a few staged shots (nobody needs to know what’s underneath Doom’s cape)! Next year I would like to cosplay Thanos, so I better start working on that costume now!
See you at Vancouver Fan Expo tomorrow, true believers!
Marvel Universe: An Infinite Universe of Toys
Face front, true believers!
When I was 13, I bought my first non-Transformer comic at my local comics store. It was Infinity Gauntlet #1, and it was the cover that inspired me to pick it up and consider a universe beyond warring robots… the year was 1991.
The evil visage of Thanos peering out at the reader, The Gauntlet itself, mysterious and obviously powerful. The worried heroes. It all grabbed my attention in a way that had never happened before for me in the comic shop. It was a passport to an entirely new universe (literally) and soon I was buying almost every Marvel title. These heroes and villains that had I had barely noticed growing up suddenly became incredibly real to me, and I couldn’t wait to follow their exploits every month!
Eventually, as I got older, and deeper into high-school I lost touch with comics, and quit reading altogether. The allure of grunge-rock, girls and Street Fighter 2 was too great, and it would be years until my interest in Marvel (and even Transformers) was rekindled.
Flash forward 20 years and I find myself reading almost every Marvel title again (since 2005), and what’s worse ( or better?) I have applied my obsession with toys to my love of all things Marvel.
From Marvel Universe to Legends, Toy-BIz to Hasbro and from MIni-Mates to Super-Hero Squad, there are very few Marvel toys that don’t appeal to me, and my collection reflects that.
Over the years I have gone from being very character specific (Silver Surfer, Galactus, Venom/Symbiote Spider-Man,Thanos) to being very general! I love mixing the characters up in interesting ways and going for that “Handbook of the Marvel Universe” cover style of display, but also still have shrines set up to my original favourites.
I collect both mint and loose, depending on what I find and what kind of deal I can get! I tend to keep the newer stuff sealed but love finding old Legends, Universe and Mini-Mates to add to the mix! With no shortage of older toys to be found out there, and a steady stream of action figures from Hasbro and Diamond Select, I don’t expect to ever run out of Marvel to collect! Excelsior!
Podcasts and Pictures and Toys for Sale! Oh My!
A burst of energy over the last few days has Robot Hero Toys moving forward and finally getting pictures up for all my stock. I will be updating stock EVERY DAY until it’s all online and priced, so check back every day for some great deals!
https://www.facebook.com/RobotHeroToys/photos_albums
Also, I’ve been doing a pretty cool little Podcast with my friends Travis (T-Kutty) and Jonny (J-Bo), none other than the owner and operator of Metropolis Comics and Toys! http://metropolis-comics.com/
The weekly podcast touches on comics, movies, comic-related TV, video games, and yes, occasionally toys! K-Stu in the house! http://fancoredaily.com/category/podcasts/
Transformers G1 Spotlight: Powermaster Optimus Prime
Ah, Optimus Prime… hero, icon, legendary Autobot leader. John Wayne and Jesus all rolled up into one big red giant robot package!
In 1986, when the Transformers Animated Movie came out, Hasbro killed off almost all of the bots from the 84-85 era, replacing them with newer designs that were more “colorful and durable”. The older Transformers were too fragile for North American kids, having been based on the already existing Japanese Diaclone line, which were quite prone to breakage. This was all well and fine, but Hasbro made one fatal miscalculation… they killed Optimus Prime! His replacement, the brash Hotrod, was magically transformed into Rodimus Prime by the power of the Matrix. Rodimus Prime never really jelled as a leader, he was indecisive and ineffective, so in 1988, Hasbro brought back the “true” leader in a new form, albeit still a tractor trailer!
Although never introduced in the American cartoon series, Powermaster Optimus Prime had his on-screen time in the Japanese series “Transformers Super God Masterforce” , where he was known as Super Ginrai, Ginrai being his human partner that became the Powermaster “engine” for the larger bot (“Hi-Q” in North America)!
Toy wise, Powermaster Optimus Prime was a real winner! The first of MANY Optimus Primes that combined with his trailer (If you don’t count G1 Ultra Magnus) to make a larger, beefier bot, he absolutely TOWERED over his 1984 version, and had the added playability of turning into a base for smaller figures as well.
The Japanese version also added another upgrade ‘God Bomber”, an additional trailer that became yet MORE armour and weapons for Ginrai as well as pair of wings, making him “Super God Ginrai!” , but that dear readers, is a blog for another day!
All in all, Powermaster Optimus Prime was one of the great Transformers of the “later” G1 era, a real childhood favourite of mine, and should have a place in any serious Optimus Prime collector’s shelf!
Unfortunate Transformer Names… Part One
Released in 1993 In Europe under the name “Zap” or “Rush” along with his other Axelerator brothers, someone at Hasbro must have been having a little fun when he was released in North America as “Windbreaker”. A very unremarkable toy, Windbreaker’s main gimmick was that his chrome engine block turned into his weapon. Also, his name evokes farts.
Bring On The Villains!
So for my first blog, I wanted to go with a villainous theme, namely, Spider-Man’s Amazing Foes!
Spider-Man has always had a rich Rouge’s Gallery to draw upon since his debut in 1962, much like Batman before him! Often his villains are animal themed as well, (The Vulture, The Rhino, Scorpion, even Kangaroo!) other times he takes on mad doctors or scientists who also (and inexplicably) have animal themes usually as well (Doctor Octopus, The Jackal, The Lizard).
Perhaps Spidey’s biggest headache over the years has been Norman Osborne, the insane industrialist known as The Green Goblin. After killing Peter’s Parker’s girlfriend, Gwen Stacey, there could be no doubt as to who would become Peter’s most despised nemesis over the years!
Anyways, on to the figures!
The Sinister Six has always had a rotating membership over the years (sometimes there are even 7 or 12 of them!) but for this blog I wanted to put 3 of the coolest figures I had into the spotlight!
Marvel Select Rhino and Lizard were excellent additions to the steadily growing Spider-Man villains collection. Marvel Select is a 7 inch line, as opposed to the Toybiz (and later Hasbro) 6 inch line (where Mysterio comes from), but I find the bigger, bulkier figures work with the 6 inch line in terms of relative scale, and work quite nicely together, especially with the much smaller Spider-Man figure from Spider-Man Classics. Mysterio doesn’t seem out of place with the larger figures either, and casts an imposing shadow himself!
At this point, I need a good 6 inch Dr. Octopus, Vulture, Sandman and Electro to round out the team, as well as perhaps a Kraven The Hunter for good measure!
2014 will bring some great figures our way from Hasbro in the Amazing Spider-Man Legends line, such as Superior (Doc Ock) Spider-Man, Black Cat, Carnage, Boomarang, The Beetle and a very cool Ultimate Green Goblin build-a-figure that uses a retooled Avengers 6 inch Hulk mold from a few years back.
With Amazing Spider-Man 2 coming out next year and Spider-Man returning to the forefront of popular culture, I’m sure that Hasbro (and hopefully Marvel Select) will have a few more figures up their sleeves!
Spidey VS The Rhino
Spidey tries to dispatch his dim-witted opponent!
The Lizard
The Lizard (Dr. Curt Conners) Marvel Select (2012)
Robot Hero Toys 