TTMM

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To kick off our 6th year, we have pulled

out all the stops for you! We have new fea-

tures, a new comic story line and a look at

the new video game (with toys to support

it)! So, check it out and post your com-

ments in the Club Magazine forum at

TransformersClub.com.

A quick editorial correction – despite what was listed on the

instructions and the title on last issue’s profile, our 5-year

combiner’s official name is Nexus Prime. This name only

recently became available and since he is one of the Original

13, we were thrilled to re-name him Nexus Prime. I hope

that clears everything up.

That’s all for now!

Take care,

Pete

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Happy Valentine’s Day! Winter is in full swing all across the

country and I hope that the cold weather will make you want to

join us for some warm weather fun at the Walt Disney Dolphin

Hotel for BotCon 2010, June 24-27!

You can make your hotel arrangements online from the link at

BotCon.com. Don’t delay, as we will fill up! Registration forms

and details should be available sometime in February. It will be

a terrific time in sunny Florida! Keep watching BotCon.com for

the most up-to-date information including previews of the con-

vention set.

We are currently working on an online registration system, but

we don’t think it will be finished before the BotCon information

is ready to be released. We will keep you posted on this one.

In case you missed the announcement in the last club magazine,

you probably noticed that there was no Master Collector with

this issue. After 17 years of publishing, we decided to migrate

our ads to an online auction and ad site MCAX.com (Master

Collector Auctions eXtreme). This will take the place of your

monthly ads as you now have unlimited free auctions and online

ads as long as you are a member of the Transformers Collectors’

Club! This will be a great new venue to trade with other club

members.

You will continue to receive your club magazine every other

month, and now each issue will come in an envelope. Hopefully,

that will help with the Post Office’s delivery.

In case you have not seen it online, our next Club exclusive fig-

ure is Cyclonus! He should ship sometime in the late

spring/early summer. Check out TransformersClub.com for

images and details.!

Thanks for your support.

‘til all are one!

Brian

The “War For Cybertron” willbegin in 2010!

On the cover, a look at thenew Bumblebee toy featuredin the all-new video gamefrom Activision. Check outpage 4 for more information!

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF.................................................Brian SavageEDITOR ...................................................................Pete SinclairCREATIVE DIRECTOR / LAYOUT.....................Lanny Lathem ASSOCIATE EDITOR...............................................Benson YeeASSOCIATE EDITOR.....................................Jesse WittenrichRESEARCH EDITOR............................................Karl Hartman COLUMNIST.............................................................Rob MeyerHEAD PROOFREADER................................Heather ChoplinPROOFREADER.......................................Mark Baker-Wright RESIDENT COLORIST............................................Drew EidenRESIDENT ARTIST....................................Evan Gauntt STAFF...................................Greg Sepelak and Trent TroopFEATURED ARTISTS.............................................Casey Coller

Published by Fun Publications, Inc.225 Cattle Baron Parc Dr., Fort Worth, TX 76108

817.448.9863 FAX 817.448.9843

Transformers® is a registered trademark of Hasbro, Inc. Transformers®is used with permission under license with Hasbro, Inc. The Hasbro

Transformers Collectors’ Club™ is a trademark of Fun Publications,Inc. and Hasbro, Inc. ©2010 Hasbro, Inc. All Rights Reserved. BotCon®

is a registered trademark of Fun Publications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

33 MMiicchhaaeell bbeellll IInntteerrvviieeww

44 AAccttiivviissiioonn PPRREEVVIIEEWW

66 MMTTMMTTEE PPrrooffiillee

77 MMTTMMTTEE PPrrooffiillee

88 22001100:: PPaarrtt 11

99 BBOOTTCCOONN CCUUSSTTOOMM CCLLAASSSS

1100 TTHHEE CCOOMMIINNGG SSTTOORRMM:: ppaarrtt 11

1166 TThhee BBAACCKK CCOOVVEERR......

OOnn tthhee CCoovveerr......

MMaakkiinngg iitt HHaappppeenn......

FFrroomm tthhee EEddiittoorr’’ss DDeesskk......

Please call us with your new mailingaddress as soon as possible in order tohelp us keep your magazine comingwithout interruption. The Post Office does not for-ward 3rd Class mail. The phone number for theTransformers Collectors’ Club is 817-448-9863 Mon-Fri 9AM - 4:30PM Central time.

WWhheerree iitt’’ss aatt......

““AArree yyoouu mmoovviinngg??””

TF31Feb_Mar10 3/9/10 4:37 PM Page 2

Sound the Bell! - A TCC Interview

I f you head on over toIMDB.com and do asearch for Michael

Bell, you will find a treas-ure trove of TV and voicecredits from across thespectrum, drama to come-dy, with roles includingeverything from a Firemanto a Captain of the Guard.When it comes to voice act-ing, Mr. Bell has run the

gamut once again, playing some of the most iconic comic bookheroes and villains in animated form. He has been the voice ofThe Riddler on “Challenge of the Superfriends,” Lex Luthor on“Superman,” Dr. Bruce Banner on “The Incredible Hulk,” andDuke from “G.I. Joe”, just to name a few! And while the kidsfrom the 90s recognize his voice as Tommy’s uncle Drew Picklesfrom “Rugrats”, the kids from the 80s will most certainlyremember him as the staunch and reliable Prowl from the origi-nal Transformers cartoon. Mr. Bell recently took some time tosit down with us to talk about his days working on the originalTransformers cartoon.

Transformers Collectors’ Club: Going back to where it allstarted, when you first heard about a cartoonwhere everyday vehicles turned into giantalien robots, what was your initial reaction?

Micheal Bell: After creating voices for toast,butter, fish, ants, little girls and dandruff, doingthe voice of a giant robot, especially the calmand dependable Prowl, was a vacation.However, Swoop was a challenge. How doesone get the gravelly voice without spendingtime in the hospital after 8 hours of throatythreats and yelling?

TCC: What is your fondest memory from thatrecording booth? Did any shenanigans go onbehind the mic?

MB: Shenanigans is a word that cannot describe the intricacies of10 egos happily crammed into a booth about the size of a NYapartmernt for 8 hours. If it happened today, I am sure therewould be some romantic liaisons and a few murders. I wish I hadrecordings of all the stuff that didn’t make it to tape. There wasnothing other than some grumbling about the hours and the occa-sional slap in the face, bloody nose and stomping... and that wasjust the girls.

TCC: Was there any particular inspiration behind the voices youchose to use for the original Transformers cartoon? Anyone youtried imitating?

MB: Actors are either taught or instinctively use whatever is avail-able to them to create characters, whether on or off screen. Youwatch and listen carefully to those around you – family, friends,politicians, screen and TV personalities – and imitate them . Youthen work to get inside the skin of that character so you are notjust doing a voice but one that is actually couched in reality.

As to inspiration, if the character is large, then you go for a deep-er, more powerful sound (as much as your pipes will allow). For asmall or skinny character, I go high pitched or whiny. Those arethe most immediate responses to size. You flesh out the characterfrom there.

As I recall, I tried to fashion Prowl after all the movie heroes thatenthralled me as a kid. They were heroes that didn’t have to raisetheir voices to let you know they could handle the problem andwould always come back after being thumped and/or jumped. Iam not a big fan of Clint Eastwood but his movie persona was

like what I thought Prowl should be. I also was thinking ofRobert Mitchum, or Bogie, both of whom I am sure most of yousadly don’t remember.

TCC: Transformers fans know your voice well as Sideswipeand Prowl. Were there any other characters on the show that youthought, “Oh, now HE would be fun to voice!”?

MB: None that I can think of. Of course I would love to havehad Peter or Frank’s bellowing pipes so I could have played areally large imposing baddie, but I was given physical beautyand great abs instead.

TCC: Many voice actors mention that they miss working in agroup setting, having the opportunity to play off each other. Isthat something you miss and what else do you miss from the80’s style of voice performing?

MB: That was an era I am thrilled to have been a part of.Working together like actors did on early radio with an ensem-ble cast offered a high like no other in the world for actors. Itain’t like that today. There’s no time, no time... everyone’sbusy... gotta do it and get out so the actor waiting in the lobbycan get on mic.

TCC: Given the chance, which of the originalTransformers voice actors would you like towork with again?

MB: I think Frank. He is so funny and original. Iam a fan of all the actors on the show, but Frankmade me laugh. Sure, now Greg will call me at 4in the morning and breathe heavy because I did-n’t pick him.

TCC: What’s going on for Michael Bellnowadays? What can we expect to “hear” fromyou next?

MB: I am currently directing (which is morethan I could have hope for at this stage of my career)“Irredeemable”, a graphic motion comic from the famous BoomComics’ comic book about a hero gone rogue. Chris Folino, thecreator of “Sparks” (another motion comic I directed for himand William Katt), is producing. Chris is the creator and directorof the film “Gamers”, about men in their 30s caught up in play-ing the longest fantasy board game ever. If you haven’t seen it, Ican send you a copy or you can purchase it fromBUYGAMERS.COM. It is truly hysterical.

I have been casting really good actors for theroles in both “Sparks” and “Irredeemable”,many of them from Transformers and G.I.Joe... if they are available. I should letMichael Bay know I need them forMY stuff and to stop using them forHIS movies. (laughs)

As the episodes develop and theconcept of downloading motioncomics to iTunes, iPhone andiTouch catches on (hear that myever vigilant fans?), then I will beable to hire more and more of theactors from those classic animatedshows. Then they will be able toafford their suites at the MotionPicture (Rest) Home.

A huge “thank you” to MichaelBell for taking the time to talkwith us!

3

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The truck tears down the road; the street lightsilluminating the curves of the unearthly fenders.Suddenly, seemingly without provocation, the

truck shifts violently. Parts tear themselves loose, twist-ing and turning as the truck becomes airborne. Now,with nothing beneath the truck’s tires but air, a newwarrior is realized. Optimus Prime. The robot of redand blue grabs for two streaks of flame; missiles firedby an unseen enemy are knocked from their lethalcourse. As he lands, the armored machine removessomething from his back — it’s long, almost staff like.However, with a flick of a switch, energy roars to thehead of the staff and the reality of the weapons vicious-ness is revealed. It is an ax, tremendous and terrible.Optimus Prime lunges forward and, with one gracefulswing bisects the coming foe, who falls to the ground ina spray of now useless electricity…

Most of you reading this article have probably alreadyseen the trailer for Transformers: War for Cybertron,but just what else does the game have to offer? TheTransformers Collectors’ Club Magazine has had achance to talk with Matt Tieger, Game Director at HighMoon Studios about this upcoming video game, andjust why Transformers fans should be excited about it!

Transformers Collectors’ Club: We have heard thatTransformers: War for Cybertron will set up the back-ground for a certain G1 Transformers Universe. Howdifficult was it to design a video game around 25 yearsof Transformers history?

Matt Tieger: When working on a property with such arich history, and one that I have a strong nostalgic con-

nection to, the challenge is how to re-spin some coreideas without violating the guardrails of theTransformers universe. I can’t wait until the fans get toplay, because I believe we have crafted a story which isbrand new and yet familiar at the same time. Was it dif-ficult? Are you kidding me? It was a dream come true.

TCC: In the past, Transformers have seen many differ-ent backgrounds for the war between the Autobots andthe Decepticons. Can you discuss what makes this newstory unique?

MT: I have read, watched and played some great sto-ries, but I always wanted to do my version of Optimusand Megatron. Their conflict is ageless, real and I want-ed a piece of that! For Megatron, we really exploredWHY he does the things that he does. He is the hero ofthe story - or at least that is what he would tell you -and his motivations are grounded in what he thinks isright. Optimus and his story could not be more differ-ent. Every Autobot mission is about hope and findingthat hope in some very dark days. Optimus is thathope personified, even though he doesn’t want theresponsibility. The Autobot story is really Optimus’story of how he grows and becomes the leader he wasmeant to be.

TCC: The fictional Transformers Wars have appar-ently been going on for as long as 4 to 65 millionyears. During what part of this time frame is thisgame set? Will we be thrown right into the middle ofthe fight, or can we expect to see the rise of theDecepticons, or maybe even something even earlierthan Autobot and Decepticon?

MT: There was such along and brutal historyon Cybertron that wedidn’t think we could domillions of years of histo-ry justice, so we boiled itdown to what I believedwas the most interestingpart. We focued on thefinal events of the CivilWar where Megatron ispoised to gain everythinghe ever wanted and anuntested robot namedOptimus rises to lead theAutobots.

TCC: What characterswill fans recognize in thevideo game? Will therebe any familiar or per-haps unfamiliar namesand faces?

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MT: When we first start-ed this project, we satdown with Hasbro andlooked over the list of themost popularTransformers characters –that became the core ofour cast. However, this isa game and we neededsome lesser known char-acters to fill in somegameplay roles. Althoughhe isn’t a super popularTransformers character, Ihave always likedWarpath. He blasted hisway into our game, asmuch because he was afun character as he was atank and I wanted anAutobot tank.

TCC: Previous videogames have struggled tocombine the ability totransform with engaging levels. You seem to have founda happy medium, however. What has Activision/HighMoon learned about gameplay and Transformers afterthe first two movie games?

MT: I can definitively say that there are no real parallelgameplay patterns to Transformers. Players can becometheir vehicle form whenever they want and cross hugedistances easily. That in itself is challenging, but whenyou multiply that by the vehicle types, the design chal-lenge is staggering. Instead of looking at that as a weak-ness, we embrace it as a core strength. The only answerI can give as to how we do it is playtesting, playtesting,playtesting. Our entire team is composed of rabidgamers and they play the game everyday, mercilessly.

TCC: Since game play no doubt involves destroying ene-mies, but it also cannot affect future story lines in theupcoming cartoon, does this mean that we will see morecannon fodder drones? Or will there be new charactersjust for the video game?

MT: The Civil War was on a grand scale, with an entireplanet at war. As such, both sides had many differenttypes of troops. No matter who you play you will fightagainst a variety of enemy types, some of which are‘named’ characters. If those characters die or escape tofight another day... well, you will just have to play thegame to find out.

TCC: It seems that providing exclusive play and/or char-acters to the various platforms has become an industrystandard. What kind of exclusive content can we expectfor Transformers: War for Cybertron?

MT: We do have a lot of characters in our game, but wehave not yet decided if there will be exclusive content onparticular platforms. Stay tuned for more announce-ments in the near future!

TCC: How closely has Hasbro worked withActivision/High Moon to establish the look, feel and his-tory of the new story line? Have they helped with any ofthe character models outside of those present in the car-toon?

MT: We have worked side-by-side with Hasbro on thisone, I am pleased to say. The fusion of our creative intel-lect, love of Transformers and gamer attitude are whatmakes this project so very special.

TCC: Since the new cartoon and toy line are the inspira-tion for the video game, will we see any galleries/conceptart of either as Easter eggs or unlockables? Transformersfans love their Easter eggs!

MT: We redesigned everything from the ground up(story, character designs, environments, etc) and thenworked closely with Hasbro to shape those initial designsinto the characters and world that you see in the game. Iam very proud to say that many of our designs wereaccepted outright by Hasbro.

TCC: Will we be seeing any video game exclusive char-acters on the toy shelves like we did with characters fromthe game based on the 2007 Transformers movie?

MT: We talk with Hasbro constantly and there are a lotof cool things we’re doing with them that we’re just notready to talk about yet, but I can say that there is aBumblebee figure which the Collector's Club is getting afirst look at in this issue... so stay tuned!

TCC: Lastly, there have been rumors that Activision isaiming towards making Transformers an annualrelease. Is this something that you are looking at mak-ing a reality?

MT: The fans are going to love this game. I will be thefirst one up at Activision HQscreaming to makeanother one!

5“War of Cybertron”Bumblebee toy in vehicle mode

TF31Feb_Mar10 3/9/10 4:37 PM Page 5

D E C E P T I C O N

WEAPONS / ABILITIESThe experimental Battlecharger frame gives Runabout an almost instantaneous vehicle-to-robottransformation, capable of making the shift in 0.4 seconds. He can convert back to vehiclemode in 0.7 seconds, enabling him to change between forms rapidly. The wheels on his feet

allow him to maintain an incredibly highmovement speed in robot mode, zippingalong at 110 mph, boosting to 185 mph invehicle mode. He uses a high energy particlebeam rifle that can easily punch holesthrough Autobot armor, though he hits moretargets through blind luck than actual skill.

RUNABOUTTM

BIORunabout tries to pass himself off as asuave connoisseur of fine things. It’s nota facade he can really maintain for long,less because of his generally low intelli-gence, and more because his interest inbeautiful objects starts and ends with

“blow them up.” A good-looking sportscar will instantly turn his head, and quicklydraw his fire. His drive to seem sophisti-

cated is in direct conflict with his urge toalways be active and his love of explosions, and the

former is losing. He’s not interested in theDecepticons’ plans for conquest; he’s just with

them because of the greater opportunities forhis kind of fun. He’s always on the move, look-

ing to create a bigger fireball, a larger bombcrater, and generally cram every microsec-ond with action.

Now partnered with the hyperactiveRunamuck, Runabout has never had morefun in his life. He’s only marginally

smarter than his partner, but he hasbetter self control, giving the pairing

just enough focus to present areal danger to most robots theygang up on. For his part,

Runamuck doesn’t really under-stand why Runabout is so fasci-

nated with blowing up pretty things, butdoesn’t mind because explosions are cool, and there are alwayssome of those around when the Battlechargers are in town.

SHOCK TROOPER

®

“Beauty is fleeting...especially when I’maround.”

WEAKNESSESRunabout’s aversion to boredom borders onthe psychotic, leading him to be easily dis-tracted. He’ll often take stupid risks justbecause it seems more interesting thanwhatever he’s currently doing. His transfor-mation mechanisms are very delicate, andeven light damage can result in misalign-ments that can lock him into a single mode.

SHADOWY SEDAN

ALTERNATE MODE / /

TM

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TF31Feb_Mar10 3/9/10 4:37 PM Page 6

JETSTORM

WEAPONS / ABILITIESJetstorm’s primary weapon is his aquarifle. This weapon draws moisture from theatmosphere and contaminates the liquid with radioactive isotopes, producing ascalding blast that is toxic to organic or machine life. His ultimate weapon, however, is his posi-tion. As a troop coordinator, Jetstorm can send Decepticons that cross him on the most dangerousor unpleasant missions available. As such, despite the contempt his fellows carry for him, he iswell protected and obeyed by the Decepticon rank-and-file.

TM

TM

D E C E P T I C O N

TACTICAL COORDINATOR

WEAKNESSESAs long as Jetstorm is functional, noDecepticon outside the leadership ranksdares cross him. He cannot, however, counton any Decepticon to save his life if hisdeactivation appears certain. Nearly everyknown Decepticon hates him, and if hispower were to wane he would not be longfor this universe.

Jetstorm’s sociopathic nature prevents himfrom understanding the emotions of otherbeings. Any emotion beyond fear, hate orhumiliation is foreign to him and he reactsto all acts of charity or compassion withparanoia and psychotic mistrust.

®

BIO

“Revenge is a dishbest served often.”

A tyrannical bully, Jetstorm demands nothing lessthan absolute control over every situation. He isloathed by his fellow soldiers, mistrusted by theDecepticon leadership, and feared by all who fallunder his command. He seeks disproportion-ately harsh revenge against anyone whodares question his orders. These traitswould have sealed his fate ages ago ifnot for his raw talent as astrategic coordinator. Jetstorm’s successful mili-tary strategy helped liberatethe Decepticon leadershipfrom exile on the planetChar, and secured a numberof strategic outposts beyond the reach ofthe Autobots and their allies. This, com-bined with his unwillingness to strike atDecepticon high commanders, kept himfunctional.

In recent years, Jetstorm has beendeployed less frequently on the ground.Rumor has it that the Decepticon spynetwork has him stationed on the out-skirts of New Iacon, planning heistsinstead of battles, though what theyintend to steal is anyone’s guess.

RADICAL RACER

ALTERNATE MODE / /

7

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2006-INFERNO

2006-RUMBLE

2007-OVERKILL

2008-SHATTEREDGLASSNIGHTBEAT

2009-SHATTEREDGLASSTHUNDERCLASH

W ith all the BotCon 2010announcements on the horizon, wewill be taking a look back at some

of the events that have been a part ofBotCon over the last 5 years.

This issue: the Customization Class hostedby Shawn Tessman.

This event has become a staple of BotCon.On the Wednesday and Thursday before thethe convention begins, class pre-registrantsget a shot at creating there own uniqueTransformers figure, actually building itfrom unpainted, unassembled factory parts.Participants go through all the steps ofpainting and assembling the toy. ShawnTessman gives each class member directionand ideas on how to create a great cus-tomized Transformer! With help fromTransfans Stogie, Stay Puft and Rayvn, thisclass is always a blast for fans of all ages!

Here is a complete look at the finishedBotCon Custom Class toys from past years.

BBOOTTCCOONN CCUUSSTTOOMM CCLLAASSSS RREETTRROOSSPPEECCTTIIVVEE!!

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to be continued...

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Produced by Fun Pub Comics exclusively for the Hasbro Transformers Collectors’ Club.

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...see you in 60!

THE RETURN OF FAN ART!Each month, we will be highlighting fan art as part of ourback page feature. So, if you want YOUR art to be seen byall of your fellow club members, please submit your entriesas 300 dpi JPEGs to: pete@botcon.com.

If you need to mail your entry, please email Pete for mailinginstructions.

The Back Cover...

Dinobot II versus Depth Chargeby Jeffrey Witty

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