Protoform on a Rampage

 

Rounding out this Spooky Summer's look at some of the darker aspects of Transformers is one of my favorite characters. Rampage from Beast Wars was a monster, a killer. In fact Rampage was such a threat that part of the Axalon's mission was to secretly cart him off in stasis as the Maximal Council couldn't stop him. He was literally so bad that the best idea they could come up with was to lock him somewhere far away. To make matters worse... he was 100% their fault. 

Starscream was a notable figure in history. One such notable thing was his immortal spark. Due to some mutation, he just couldn't die. Have his body destroyed... sure, but then his ghost would just float about and cause trouble until finding a new body. Well, dang, wouldn't it be great if that could be replicated? Ultimately it was was, however the result was a criminally insane monster who killed an entire colony (and others too, I feel like the others are often forgotten). This insane monster of a Transformer that they called Protofom X (it wouldn't be until later that Megatron renamed him Rampage) just won't stop murdering others! Not to mention, also like to eat his victims and generally wallow in others suffering. By the way... he was immortal. Great job all around guys!

In the grand tradition of leadership creating a problem, pointing the blame at someone else, sweeping it under the table, and making it someone else's problem all while somehow staying in power. The Maximal Council had Protoform X locked away in a stasis pod and stuck with Optimus Primal's ship, The Axalon, to secretly hide somewhere far away. Then he could be someone else's problem! LEADERSHIP IN ACTION! OBEY! Following another grand leadership tradition of piling up responsibilities on one guy from the wrong department, the Axalon was also tasked with following Megatron's crew of Predacons after the theft of The Golden Disk. 

The subsequent chase lead to  the trip back in time and space ship crash resulting in the conflict that Optimus Primal would name BEAST WARS (insert guitar rift). During the crash, the various stasis pods stored on The Axalon would get dumped into Earth's atmosphere. This would add members to factions as the pods would land and the Transformer would enter the battle. Protoform X was of course one of these and found himself under the leadership of Megatron. Megatron would also rename him Rampage and force his obedience by cutting a part of Rampage's mutant spark and inflicting pain on it as a means of control. DO AS I SAY OR ELSE! Clearly those on Cybertron took examples from our government after the stint on Earth.

Rampage would then become a massive problem for The Maximals until his eventual defeat. Rampage was 100%  the horrible monster he was supposed to be until one stasis pod landed. This stasis pod contained another different Transformer inside. Transmutate was unfortunately malformed, and unable to control itself properly without  proper supervision. Rampage found a kinship with Transmutate and the two bonded. Sadly Transmutate didn't survive the episode leaving a monster mourning the only friend it had in life. Rampage is an analogy about how society often creates it's own monsters. He's both terrifying and sympathetic. A well written character in a show made to sell action figures.

And with that Spooky Summer comes to an end. We spent this year looking at the darker aspects of Transformers mixed with the scary stuff. Stay tuned though, the annual 3 months of Halloween Pumpkin Spiced Mayhem on Zone Base starts next week!

Bios: Unicron

 

Many Transformers still superstitiously toss a small handful of energon coins over one shoulder whenever his name is uttered, for the word itself means chaos and destruction. Once an all powerful eater of entire planets, he was destroyed decades ago by the Autobots. For too long he was trapped in the rusting hulk of his old body. Now, resurrected and redesigned as an unstoppable destroyer tank, he is not yet at full power, but soon all the universe will know him, and tremble.

Strength:?? Intelligence:10 Speed: N/A Endurance:N/A Rank:?? Courage:?? Fireblast:10  Skill:10

Weekly Halloween (Replay): Watching You

 

Summer is a Spooky Season

... and it's coming to an end. Well, here anyway. Next week, the Zone Base Halloween season officially begins. Obviously Weekly Halloween will be taking a break as there'll be Pumpkin Spiced Mayhem for 3 months. But until next week... I always feel like somebodies watching me. Don't you?

The Galaxy is Smaller than you'd think

 

It's clearly a good time to like small toys. In the spirit of the ultra cool Lightyear Hyper Speed Series toys is the new Star Wars Micro Galaxy Squadron! These are small scale Star Wars vehicles with pilots that can be taken out of the vehicles and used in others. While I don't know exactly, they do look to be around the same size as the Lightyear toys. That means they'd be compatible with other inch men style figures. Like your Diaclones and Zoids. Luke Skywalker could drive Optimus Prime. There's a few different size classes, but I'm most excited for the blind boxed smaller vehicles. Not just because I'm crazy about such things, but they're just right for a little fun whenever. You get a small vehicle (like a Speeder Bike) blind packed with a pilot. That's got the potential to be a lot of fun!

Transform Squadron 34- Code Orange is Go!

 LISTEN NOW!

The spooky season is upon us as Rob discusses the first Halloween event of the year! Pumpkin spiced mayhem aside, talk of Star Wars Micro Galaxy Squadron is talked. Then, Rob speaks on what it was like as a Transformers fan 15 years ago before the movies. Happy Halloween, everyone... too soon? Every day is Halloween at www.zonebase.org!

Dia-CLONE!

 

Weekly Update 7/25/22

 

Another new week has begun here on Planet Zone! Thank you all for joining me again for another week of robots and monsters! Little programming note for you all, Halloween begins next week! Before it all begins, the new episode of Transform Squadron is diving into spooky season territory! Hopefully it'll be available soon for your listening pleasure!

This weekend was spent  eating sushi, playing games, robot cartoons, paranormal television, and Bluey. The Mrs likes Bluey and I'll admit the toys look pretty neat. While shopping I happily picked up Terrorsaur and the Creatures Collide set from Target. They didn't have Dinobot, so I'm still on the hunt. Not like I don't pop in Target often anyway. I also picked up a great little Bandai Star Wars X-Wing model at the local Hobby Lobby. They have an awesome model section and I really should spend more time there. I also need to spend more time building. 

I've got a fun week in store for you all. Just another week untill the pumpkin spice mayhem flows! Speaking of, my At Home was officially setting up their section. Finally! Usually my store starts stocking mid-June-July. They're a little late this year, but I guess I can let that slide. For now. Thanks for reading Zone Base. The most fun time of the year is near and I really appreciate your support. I hope you enjoy and please share with your friends!

Earth Sparking Fun

 

I've been patiently waiting for some spark (heh) of life regarding Transformers Earth Spark. Finally a trailer for the new shop just dropped and it looks pretty great. I like the designs getting used as they're traditional but updated. What I really like is the inclusion of something new as well. We've got some new characters and a seemingly fresh story. Old and new? I have nothing to complain about. The CGI looks pretty neat too. Here's hoping it's good... I prefer things I like to be good. The toys look like fun too. There's a mix of simple and more traditional figures like Cyberverse had. I had a lot of fun with Cyberverse (as readers know), so I can't help but to be excited for these. I REALLY like the Megatron. Can't wait to binge the cartoon this fall with a bag of Popcorners. It may not be every bodies cup of tea, but I'm getting crumpets. 

Don't get to close, it's dark inside (Cybertron)

 

While looking at the more spookier aspects of Transformers, it's hard to ignore the Demons. Demons on Cybertron are unlike mankind's undoubtedly evil menace. They're a race of monstrous Cybertronians that lurk under the surface of the planet. Considering the whole convoluted nature of the planet, it's not to hard to fathom the place is several layers of chaotic nightmares. They're literally the Transformers evil older siblings. Considering the amount of evil already apparent in the Transformers... that's saying something. 

A Demon is a very large scary looking robot monster that's able to withstand most firepower. They're generally savage creatures and sometimes can even breathe fire. In case large practically invincible monsters under the surface of the planet isn't scary enough, they also feed on normal Transformers by draining out their life force. That's a Transformers way of saying "I'll swallow your soul". 

Depending on what fiction you've read, they're the earliest form of life Primus created on Cybertron. Also depending on what future you've read, they're the future of the Transformers race. Regardless of what fiction you've read, they're scary monsters that are generally a pretty big threat. Summer is a spooky season and this summer we've been taking a look at the darker side of Transformers. We've got one more week until the pumpkin spice machine starts brewing up awesome lattes. Until then, if you find yourself in the vast underground of Cybertron. Watch out, that's where the Demons hide.

Bios: Catilla

 

"Stalk before you strike."

Function: Surveillance

Silent, yet vigilant. Enjoys stalking his victims and then moving in to attack. Nothing escapes his cunning clutches. Battle helmet equipped with infrared sensors, long range radar and tracking systems. Whip-like tail can crush buildings with its iron grip. Top-mounted turbo blaster provides phenomenal speed and agility on the battlefield. Maximum speed: 150 mph. Armed with air concussion cannon, durabyllium-steel alloy fangs and claws that can slash through the thickest armor.

Strength:8 Intelligence:7 Speed:6 Endurance:7 Rank:5 Courage:6 Firepower:6 Skill:9

Weekly Halloween: Sin

 

Summer is a Spooky Season

The dead come out to walk among the living.

Halloween is coming soon.

Mario's Special Adventure

 

I quite like Mario, always have. Even with a lifetime of him in video games, cartoons, and everywhere else: there's always something else. It's pretty cool that such a long running and well established character can manage to be obscure sometimes. With as many times that the original Super Mario Bros. has been reissued, you'd think you've seen it all. That's not exactly true as when they reissue the game, it's the orignal game. There's actually a few special editions. Then there's a version that's outright just named Super Mario Bros. Special. 

Super Mario Bros. Special is a version of the classic Super Mario Bros. developed (officially) by Hudson Soft for some NEC, Sharp, and Samsung home computers for the Japanese and South Korean markets. It's weird to imagine a time when Nintendo would allow something like this to happen, but many folks in my age range likely remember Donkey Kong and Mario Bros. on Atari and Coleco Systems. Not to mention random titles by licensed developers in the 90's or the recent mobile games. Sometimes they're willing to make a deal I suppose. 

Basically, the game is a port of the classic Super Mario Bros. that was released for certain home computers. The idea of it sounds pretty great, there's even a few new items and villains from other Mario games that make an appearance. However due to the limitations of those older computers as compared to the Famicom, things were a little toned down. The graphics were not as colorful and a little lessened. There was some audio differences too. It sounds like it should, but a little off. 

Luigi was absent, but most noticeably the screen didn't scroll for the most part. When Mario would get to the edge of the screen, instead of that smooth scrolling you're used to, the screen goes black and the updated screen is presented. Not exactly ideal for some of those big leaps of faith. The controls were also a little wonky as Mario just doesn't move normally. I hear the Sharp X1 version handles it a little better though. It's weird to say a PC version of a console game was inferior (I can hear PC gamers scream out in disbelief), but it really was. Regardless of it's faults, Super Mario Bros. Special is a pretty unique side note in Mario's long history. I'm pretty sure it was cool at the time to have the availability of such a popular game for those who may not have had access to it normally.

Weekly Update 7/18/22

 

It's the beginning of another new week here on Planet Zone and you know what that means! It uh... honestly I don't know where I was going with that either. This weekend was a fun one with a small sampling of Halloween stock at At Home and more plan-o-grams taped to shelves. It's coming! Apparently my stores are in a lull right now as no new Transformers were stocked aside from one Micro Machines set (that I grabbed). I'm honestly hurting for the Target exclusive Creatures Collide set, so it's hard to be patient. I picked up a RX-78-2 Gundam model that came with a bunch of accessories. I'd been holding off on any more models since I've got a few that need to be built. However it was on sale for 9$, so obviously I jumped on that. 

I had some great sushi from the grocery store when the Mrs and I stopped by for some lunch. She got a sub sandwich and I got a great cream cheese with salmon and avocado roll. It was so good that I'm thinking about it still. Sunday was spent playing a few games bought off the e-shop on sale. The Switch E-Shop usually has some great deals if you poke around the sale section a little. I spent a lot of time wishing I was at G-Fest, so it made for a good distraction. 

I'm writing this before going to bed Sunday night. In the morning, the Mrs and I will be hitting up Bath & Bodyworks for the first day of their Halloween collection. She looks forward to it all year. It'll be fun. For now though, think I'm going to watch Beyond Belief and drink this Ramune. It's a tasty melon flavor. You've got a fun week on store for you Zone Base readers. Thank you all for continuing to support my nonsense. Please don't forget to share with your friends!

Cybertron X: Rondo of Blood

 

What is a Autobot? (flings goblet of strife aside) A miserable little pile of secrets! But enough talk! Have at you!

Werewolves, witches, vampires. Monsters, big and small have terrorized mankind since the beginning of time. But what if I told you that many, in fact, were actually... Decepticons? In Transformers Cybertron episode 23 'Trap' that indeed is the case. While we know the Transformers came to Earth and took the disguises of our vehicles and animals for various purposes, they traveled elsewhere as well. To other planets and even here at other times. The Ancient Decepticons who came to Earth hundreds of years ago patterned themselves after Earths monsters to terrorize humans! Fortunately the Autobots have an ace monster hunter on their side- CROSSWISE!

Bios: Iguanus

 

"The shortest path between two Maximal points is a heat seeking missile."

Function: Demolitions, Artillery Expert

Iguanus is a master of combat calculations. Armed with long range tactical missiles capable of carrying a wide variety of warheads, his firepower rating is among the highest of the Predacons. Able to accurately calculate target position from incredible distances, he obliterates enemies from thousands of kilometers with cutthroat precision. Special titanium armor plating withstands even the most severe blasts.

Strength:5.6 Intelligence:8.1 Speed:3.5 Endurance:6.5 Rank:4.5 Courage:7.2 Firepower:8.3 Skill:7.3

Weekly Halloween: Loving IT

 

It's a good time, great taste,

for a 

Spooky Summer.

I'd buy those Transformers for a dollar as well

 

I was pleasantly surprised when the news of Transformers Squeezelings were announced. As readers know, I'm a big fan of blind bag toys and keshi in general. A Transformers line of that? No problem! So far the toys have only been spotted as Dollar Tree stores for $3 each. I'm not sure if they'll pop up at any other stores, but wouldn't be surprised. I stopped by and picked up 4 packages at my local stores. At the time there's no discernible code system, so it's a complete shot in the dark when buying them. I ended up with only one double, Starscream, so I can't complain too much. The figures themselves are a larger keshi figure that are pleasantly rubbery and fully colored (for the most part). 

The first series contains Bumblebee, Megatron, Starscream, and Optimus Prime. As of this writing, all I need is Optimus Prime to complete the set. Like I said above, I've only gotten one double in 4 packs. Hopefully Optimus won't be a challenge to get. The figures are in plastic bubbles inside the package, so feeling the bags won't help. The toys are located in the new 'more than $1' section of Dollar Tree. At $3 each, they're not expensive, but the price increase is still new enough to sting a little. The figures are mostly fully painted. I say mostly, because Starscream could use a little more. Speaking of the paint, it's a little sloppy. My Bumblebee has a messed up Autobot Symbol and some sloppy details. One Starscream has random paint on his face. Megatron's face paint is a little sloppy.

The paint issues aren't too bad. With the new higher prices, it does becomes more of a sticking point.  That's really my only complaint. The figures are well sculpted, non-Transforming obviously (there's always that one guy), but full of character. They're in the 'Evergreen' style of Transformers. That's really a fancy way of saying traditional Transformers characters and looks, just slightly updated. This is more for those products that will likely be on shelves longer than the current line. So when you run across a box of these and the new movie is out, they don't look like last years toys. It's a pretty good idea for a line that changes up every year or so. 

I'd like to think Squeezelings will eventually have more than just Transformers or more Transformers series. Time will tell of course, but I wouldn't mind other characters in the form factor. Hopefully a code system is adopted. I don't know exactly the details that go into implementing one and with the internal bubble, if one would be possible. It's not a big deal, but super convenient when avoiding doubles. Regardless, this is a fun new little line that so far I'm pretty happy with. I look forward to getting more.

Weekly Update 7/11/22

 

This weekend sure did go by faster than I'd liked. Oh well, but that doesn't mean we're not going to have a great week Zone Base readers! Over the weekend my routine trip to At Home resulted in some Halloween fun! They had plan-o-grams taped up! The spooky stuff will be arriving soon. I spied a little stock on the feader shelves! They did have some decorative pumpkin candles and I totally grabbed one!

A stop by Cracker Barrel for some exclusive Squishmallows for the Mrs resulted in another bit of early Halloween fun. They had quite a bit available and we left with a cool vintage black cat sign. They also had a pack of dinosaur egg bots that I plan to get later. There's quite a bit I'm looking for now, so I'm being a little frugal. 

Walmart has Sandstorm and Buzzsaw! They also had Nightprowler, but I'd already gotten that pre order in. The other pre orders were canceled and they were bought on sight. I'm not a fan of all these pre orders as is, but when they keep moving the shipping dates back, I like them even less. Walmart also had Fright Features Lucky! She was bought on site as well. None of the other Ghostbusters toys were there, but I'll take what I can get. There's a lot I'm looking for, so what I found was exciting. 

The Mrs and I fell asleep in the living room after some dinner. This resulted in me waking up super early Sunday. Sunday was Ultraman Day and the time allowed me to put in some extra viewing of episodes. Tokushoutsu was doing an all day marathon and getting in some episodes of Ultra Q was a real treat! We had to stop by Five Below before getting groceries as our order had issues resulting in cancelation. It's convenient to order groceries, but occasionally annoying. 

Five Below lately has been having volumes of the Attack on Titan manga and the newest was available. I also picked up a cool Power Rangers building block set. The Rangers with their motorcycles are available and I grabbed Green Ranger! I'll likely get the Red one later. Got some stuff for podcasting and just stuff we needed. 

We intended to do a bunch of house work, but some of that will have to wait until later. Tacos were eaten and Code Orange videos were watched. Plans to order the Nintendo sundaes from Cold Stone Creamery were made, but canceled as delivery orders were expected to take way too long. I almost forgot to mention the cool office stuff I got at Walmart Saturday. A new Trapper Keeper and some notebooks were bought including a Marvel Mech Strike Monster Hunters one! I wasn't expecting to find that but was so happy to have that opportunity!

I've been making TikTok and Reels on Mondays the past few weeks. The Reels are much more popular, but it's flattering that they all get viewers. I don't think I'll be doing any today as I'm pretty wiped out. I stayed up too late watching Ultraman and playing Castlevania Legends on my Family Pocket. It's not the highest regarded Castlevania game, but I can have fun with it still. Today also is the one year anniversary of getting sick last year. I'm doing much better now, but can't help but to look back on how everything changed that day. I've got some errands to run, which is much better than what I was doing last year today. 

I've got a fun week planned for you all. I hope everyone has been enjoying the Spooky Summer posts. I made a change to them this year and it's been fun to make. Though, Halloween is just around the corner and I've been culling some really fun stuff for pumpkin spiced mayhem! Thank you for continuing to support Zone Base. It really does mean a lot that you all continue to do so. Please don't forget to share with your friends!

Beast Riders of the Storm

 

There's nothing more serious in Transformers than when Unicron shows up. The all out destruction of the Universe tends to take a little priority over the ongoing war between the Autobots and Decepticons. In case a giant demonic planet robot that eats other planets in a quest to destroy all life wasn't scary enough... he has heralds. Personally, I'd like to think his arrival would be obvious (he's pretty big after all), but still the need for someone to show up and tell everyone just how doomed they are is needed. In Energon, this got a little extra apocalyptic. 

Let me wind back the clock a little. Armada was much more popular than Hasbro anticipated. So much that another line of repaints had to be made to keep product on the shelves fast. Part of the scramble for new toys was reusing some Beast Wars molds in Armada. In all new colors  with  Mini-Con ports molded on, various Transmetals joined the ranks. Transmetal Megatron (now Predacon) and Terrorsaur for the Decepticons. Transmetal Rhinox, Airrazor, and Cheetor for the Autobots. However, they sure didn't blend in aesthetically did they? 

Some fans came up with the theory that the deluxe toys were in fact Unicron's four horsemen. Customs, fan art, and such were made of this idea. Simon Furman, who had been writing the Armada comic apparently came across this idea and liked it. The Armada comic transitioned into Energon and the war continued as Unicron returned. I'd hate to spoil a 18 year old comic, but it's kinda necessary. Also, that comic is 18 years old. During the big fight in Armada, Unicron took notice in the 4 beast characters and abducted them. 

Later in Energon- Heralding the return of Unicron, the now evil and scary beast warriors returned... as Unicron's Four Horseman of the Apocalypse! Riding skeletal monster steeds and spouting off words of foreboding doom, the four attacked Cybertron. There was much fire and brimstone and fighting. It was a Dio album cover staring Transformers and it was awesome! Ok, some fans took issues with the idea. Most days end in a Y as well, so whatever. While the evil and scary beast warriors were defeated, they did return in the unpublished later issues. 

Personally, I thought it was a pretty cool idea. While not just being different than the others toys due to their beast modes, the overall design was different from Armada and Energon's particular look. They stood out. While most of us didn't pay it too much mind, it clearly stuck out to some. Making four of the characters into demon flavored servants of Unicron was a pretty fun idea. Not to mention, the whole thing just evokes heavy metal imagery. Which, who doesn't love? We're spending the summer with a focus on all things scary and I'm pretty sure the apocalypse is kinda on label.

Bios: Thunderwing

 

"Cover yourself with lies and no one will find you."

Function: Aerial Espionage

A two-faced, lying, cheating, back-stabbing scoundrel. The ultimate Decepticon villain. Armed with power-enhancing, impenetrable exoskeleton. Also equipped with electrostatic gun ports in shoulders and metal-eating laser beam in forehead. Reserve fuel tanks in legs provide unlimited fuel supply and aerator hoses in chest emit noxious gases. Armed with cyclone cannon and transforms into inter-stellar jet that carries full payload of plasma charges. Outer shell jet equipped with neutron power pack that increases firepower by 50%. combines with jet pod to form super jet armed with heat seeking laser blasters.

Strength:8 Intelligence:7 Speed:7 Endurance:8 Rank:6 Courage:6 Firepower:6 Skill:9

Weekly Halloween: In a Corner

 

Summer is a Spooky Season.

Psychic in a Psycho World.

 

Sometimes a great game will get swept under the rugs of history. Considering how many great games come and go without a sequel, that's not really a surprise. However sometimes the great game might have been seen at one time as something special, so when it doesn't get a sequel and or gets ignored by history... well, it's a little sad. Psycho/Psychic World is one of those games. In those older days of video game magazines, it was one of those games that was clearly one of the more cool ones to be into. Originally released as Psycho World for the MSX2, it was later ported to the Sega Master System and Game Gear as Psychic World. 

I've mentioned before how many game magazines made micro computers like the MSX2 seem like a whole different level of hip. That's probably got to do with the entire vibe. Games like Valis or the MSX2 versions of NES games often got that treatment. Psycho World was in that camp. The MSX2 version was a more robust game than the SEGA version for reasons I cannot understand. Those systems have pulled off some great conversions. I'm not a developer though, so what do I know? I've never played the original, only the SEGA ones, and I think those are pretty great. The SMS game definitely has more watered down graphics, however on Game Gear they were redrawn to fit the smaller display better. Personally, I think it's the better looking of the three.

The game takes place in the year 19XX. Dr Knavik and his twin sister assistants study ESP and it's uses. One day there was an explosion and Cecile had disappeared. Lucia, the remaining sister, is told that experiments with ESP had been performed on monsters. Those monsters now had rebelled and taken Cecile. Lucia is sent to rescue her and defeat the monsters armed with the ESP Booster, which gives her the ability to use psychic powers. Game play consists of action platforming with plenty of running and jumping. Those psychic powers are used as various weapons which are collected along the way. These weapons also serve as abilities to help Lucia get through each level's challenges. 

I've seen some random criticism that the game is a Megaman rip off. I've never felt that way personally, but the graphics are a little similar. The Game Gear version more so than the others. It's a game firmly of it's era without a doubt and the story is definitely from it's time. As a kid, it seemed much more serious than it does as an adult who rolls his eyes at the idea of an employee cleaning up her bosses mistakes. Regardless, it's still a fun game with a cool setting. Perhaps some of those memories of how much cooler those old game magazines would make it seem as compared to others are still lingering. You won't hear much about this game anymore, aside from various play through and the odd blogger (cough). That's a shame, it's pretty great.

Pretty Mayhem 5- A New Beginning

 

From Memorial Day to Independence Day is fireworks season here in the States. It's a highly dangerous yet beautiful way to celebrate during the summer. Another festive yet scary summer tradition is the big budget summer movie. Which aside from Bumblebee, is the live action Transformers movies. With them is our last look at sparking Transformers toys. This time though, there's no monsters to be found. Instead another scary summer movie tradition, dinosaurs! In 2014 Age of Extinction brought us the live action movie's version of the Dinobots and a slew of toys with it. 

Being a big budget movie with a bunch of toys and merchandise is a different animal all together than the standard Transformers toy line. There tends to be more odd gimmicky simple toys out in force than usual. The Dino Sparkers are exactly just that! Translucent versions of Dinobots rode by figurines of Autobot characters. Pulling the toys back on a solid surface will make them roll toward and fire sparks! The character selection was- Optimus Prime and Grimlock, Bumblebee and Strafe, Drift and Slug. There was allegedly Lockdown with Wolf listed at one point, but nothing ever came of that. I wish there was more to say about these toys, but they 100% were what they were. I had a good time with this movie line with the various Dinobots and then new One Step Changers. It was a fun summer of chasing down neat toys. 

And that brings our look at sparking Transformers to a close. Summer is a Spooky Season, partially due to the various dangers that lurk between all the fun in the sun. We've got another month of Spooky Summer to go before Halloween starts... but as of this weekend, firework season is over. It's Independence Day and another long holiday weekend. I certainly need the break and will be enjoying napping between grilling. Regular posting will resume Tuesday as I'll be taking Monday off. Thanks everyone for reading Zone Base and please don't forget to share with your friends!