The Energon Pub

Live, from New York, it's a Twincast Podcast Saturday Night! Maybe not quite live or on a Saturday, but it's still our recordings from New York City as yours truly, episode host Scotty P sat down with Seibertron and Diablien/Collecticon/Paul (of RIPT fame and an eternal Friend of Seibertron.com) to discuss the new toys and goings on from the toy industry's largest annual trade show.

Oh, and there's this matter of an interview with the Global Brand Marketing Director for Transformers, Hasbro's Jerry Jivoin!

Episode #111 "New York Toy Fair 2015" is available directly and in our RSS Feed and should appear on iTunes and Stitcher Radio within 24 to 48 hours of when you see this news post.

We hope you'll listen to the entire show, but if you'd like to skip our personal musings and get right to the interview with Mr. Jivoin, you may do so by going to 1:05:48 in the audio file.

We first tackle the big guy himself, Devastator! Now that we've seen this hugely anticipated, hugely sized toy in the flesh, are we more or less impressed? Are the individual bots something living up to expectations? We'll break down everything you ever wanted to know based on our observations, along with a bunch of facts you probably don't care about in the first part of the show.



Section something-point-something of the Autobot Code dictates that our next point of discussion is Generations Leader Class Ultra Magnus, popping right out of the pages of the IDW comic series and into our hearts. Listen in as we dissect what we saw of this latest entry into the impressive Generations series Leader Class lineup.



There were yet more cool Generations reveals such as Defensor, Cyclonus, and Legends Class figures. The customization/create-a-character aspect of Combiner Wars comes full circle with these releases. Tune in to hear our thoughts, as well as our condolences to GI Joe fans.



Seibertron.com is very proud to present the next segment of the show, an approximately 20 minute interview with Mr. Jerry Jivoin! You'll need to listen in to hear what he has to say about everything from Combiner Wars, more female characters, decisions on paint decos for reissue toys, the west coast dock strikes, whether these Combiners are being made in response to a certain other toy market, and even more!

Our sincere thanks to both Hasbro and Hunter PR for the opportunity to interview Mr. Jivoin on a very busy day in a very busy environment, and on basically zero notice at that! It was a blast to conduct and we hope our listeners and the fan community as a whole enjoy the information shared.



We didn't forget about the new toys from Robots in Disguise. Jazz and Sideswipe Warriors, plus lots of new Minicons will grace store shelves this fall. Find out our thoughts about the upcoming products coming out to support the cartoon show that's coming soon.



Since we're all just big kids here, we take a little bit of the show to chat about the upcoming releases for Rescue Bots. Join us as we jump on the boat and don't transform. Wait, what?



Loyal Subjects vinyls are about to hit their third wave and Toy Fair gave us the opportunity to get a very clear look at them for the first time. Why is Scotty so mad about the case breakdown? You'll find out, plus you'll get to hear the counterpoint which makes for a fun, lively discussion of these Action Vinyls. You can even preorder a case of this upcoming wave from our buddies at RIPT Apparel.



Toy Fair brought along far more than we could possibly cover without having a four hour show, so catch the rest as we break down our thoughts on licensed products hitting stores in the next year. Protect your home, keep your spot in a book, and try not to stab yourself with metal if you check out any of this stuff once it's available.



We finish up with an insanely elitist edition of Bragging Rights. The pictures can speak for themselves!




That wraps things up for this very special episode. We sincerely hope you enjoy this one, definitely had a blast on this end putting it together. See you in approximately two weeks as we attempt to get back on to a more "regular" show schedule between now and Botcon.

Don't forget, the show only gets better if you tell us how. Drop us a review on iTunes and be sure to tell us what you love, what you hate, and what you want to hear!

Not on the show to give your take? Probably not, so don't forget to keep the discussion going on the Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums by simply replying to this post!

Got a question for the Twincast? We take all of them, we just don't take them all seriously! Leave a question in the Ask the Twincast thread and, if it makes the cut, it may get read and answered on the show.

Oh my gawd; Scotty sorta kinda threw out my botcon east and west thing to Jerry Jivoin XD

Constructicons look awesome. But why does Hook have to be derped out in alt mode? Come on boys......tighten it up. jeez

Thanks so much for that Interview guys!

Great to know Hasbro uses the boards as a sort of market research and thank you SO MUCH for mentioning those G1 reissues. They mean a lot to me and you hit all the right nails on the head with what you asked for.

If anyone wants to keep the conversation going in regards to what G1 toys Hasbro should reissue, here is the right link to the thread where you voice can be heard!

PS: Also, its interesting they use SAP, that's what I am working with for bank data at the moment in my job.

Great interview, Scotty! I love hearing more about the business side, and it's so interesting to hear how data-driven the business has become. It's not necessarily just about the buyers.

I wish Jerry Jivoin were my uncle. Or something.

megatronus wrote:Great interview, Scotty! I love hearing more about the business side, and it's so interesting to hear how data-driven the business has become. It's not necessarily just about the buyers.

I wish Jerry Jivoin were my uncle. Or something.

Yeah, it's actually nice to know that they get some point of sale data for this stuff. I'm sure it still comes down to the assortment for most lines and not quite individual characters, but it seems some of the lines that don't do well are getting shuffled out quicker than before (Constructbots took three lines to reach its end, whereas Power Battlers took one) and maybe that's due to better data. Hooray for analytics!

Who else has some more thoughts about this podcast? We sacrificed good times in NYC to record this while we were there and ScottyP put in a lot of love for his interview with Jerry Jivoin. It'd be great to get some more feedback from all of you.

Seibertron wrote:Who else has some more thoughts about this podcast? We sacrificed good times in NYC to record this while we were there and ScottyP put in a lot of love for his interview with Jerry Jivoin. It'd be great to get some more feedback from all of you.

Uhhhhh, did you cut yourself on the broken beer bottle?

SW's SilverHammer wrote:

Seibertron wrote:Who else has some more thoughts about this podcast? We sacrificed good times in NYC to record this while we were there and ScottyP put in a lot of love for his interview with Jerry Jivoin. It'd be great to get some more feedback from all of you.

Uhhhhh, did you cut yourself on the broken beer bottle?

No I survived the experience and got to drink the beer too. That was so weird that the bottle did that when I opened it. I don't think I've ever seen that in my 20 years of beer drinking.

Viper's head is Wild Weasel, the pilot of the Rattler.

chuckdawg1999 wrote:Viper's head is Wild Weasel, the pilot of the Rattler.

Cool, thanks for the info! What would you say is the best toy of him? Looked to be about 5 versions on ebay on just the first page, tempted to just grab a vintage one for fun but looks like there's a 25th anniversary one as well?

ScottyP wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:Viper's head is Wild Weasel, the pilot of the Rattler.

Cool, thanks for the info! What would you say is the best toy of him? Looked to be about 5 versions on ebay on just the first page, tempted to just grab a vintage one for fun but looks like there's a 25th anniversary one as well?

There were 2 in the 25th anniversary, one was in a comic two pack with Ace and the other came with the reissue Rattler.

Great show! If you hadn't recorded while still in the moment it just wouldn't have been the same.
That interview. Epic.

I'm not sure what else to say.
You're doing it right!
I've said what I've had to say about much of the topics at hand in other threads. Never heard a beer bottle break on opening.

I passed on Powerglide when I saw him at Target the other day because I really dig that Viper/Rattler/Wild Weasel. This might be the first Decepticon/Cobra symbol on a TF but is this the first official crossover transforming Joe/TF toy?
Should I be posing this question in the Ask the Twincast thread?
Am I asking too many questions?

Convoy wrote:Great show! If you hadn't recorded while still in the moment it just wouldn't have been the same.
That interview. Epic.

I'm not sure what else to say.
You're doing it right!
I've said what I've had to say about much of the topics at hand in other threads. Never heard a beer bottle break on opening.

I passed on Powerglide when I saw him at Target the other day because I really dig that Viper/Rattler/Wild Weasel. This might be the first Decepticon/Cobra symbol on a TF but is this the first official crossover transforming Joe/TF toy?
Should I be posing this question in the Ask the Twincast thread?
Am I asking too many questions?

The very first Transformers/G1 Joe crossover figure was Titanium Series Megatron

Part of the very first wave of six-inch Titanium Series toys, Megatron was inspired by Dreamwave Productions' first G.I. Joe crossover, set in an alternate-reality World War II. Since the gun mode Megatron sported in that story was nonviable as a toy, this toy features a newly-designed tank alternate mode of made-up model. The backstory of the Megatron from the crossover, including references to Cobra, was retained on the package, make it the first U.S. figure ever produced as part of a G.I. Joe / Transformers crossover.

william-james88 wrote:

Convoy wrote:Great show! If you hadn't recorded while still in the moment it just wouldn't have been the same.
That interview. Epic.

I'm not sure what else to say.
You're doing it right!
I've said what I've had to say about much of the topics at hand in other threads. Never heard a beer bottle break on opening.

I passed on Powerglide when I saw him at Target the other day because I really dig that Viper/Rattler/Wild Weasel. This might be the first Decepticon/Cobra symbol on a TF but is this the first official crossover transforming Joe/TF toy?
Should I be posing this question in the Ask the Twincast thread?
Am I asking too many questions?

The very first Transformers/G1 Joe crossover figure was Titanium Series Megatron

Part of the very first wave of six-inch Titanium Series toys, Megatron was inspired by Dreamwave Productions' first G.I. Joe crossover, set in an alternate-reality World War II. Since the gun mode Megatron sported in that story was nonviable as a toy, this toy features a newly-designed tank alternate mode of made-up model. The backstory of the Megatron from the crossover, including references to Cobra, was retained on the package, make it the first U.S. figure ever produced as part of a G.I. Joe / Transformers crossover.

See I always thought that figure and bio was a reference to the later issues of GI Joe where Megatron gets his G2 tank mode from Cobra Commander

chuckdawg1999 wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Convoy wrote:Great show! If you hadn't recorded while still in the moment it just wouldn't have been the same.
That interview. Epic.

I'm not sure what else to say.
You're doing it right!
I've said what I've had to say about much of the topics at hand in other threads. Never heard a beer bottle break on opening.

I passed on Powerglide when I saw him at Target the other day because I really dig that Viper/Rattler/Wild Weasel. This might be the first Decepticon/Cobra symbol on a TF but is this the first official crossover transforming Joe/TF toy?
Should I be posing this question in the Ask the Twincast thread?
Am I asking too many questions?

The very first Transformers/G1 Joe crossover figure was Titanium Series Megatron

Part of the very first wave of six-inch Titanium Series toys, Megatron was inspired by Dreamwave Productions' first G.I. Joe crossover, set in an alternate-reality World War II. Since the gun mode Megatron sported in that story was nonviable as a toy, this toy features a newly-designed tank alternate mode of made-up model. The backstory of the Megatron from the crossover, including references to Cobra, was retained on the package, make it the first U.S. figure ever produced as part of a G.I. Joe / Transformers crossover.

See I always thought that figure and bio was a reference to the later issues of GI Joe where Megatron gets his G2 tank mode from Cobra Commander

Could be, the Wiki is based on some people's expertize but you are a GI Joe expert so you have as much right to declaring something as fact. I just wanted to point out that it was the very first Transformers toy that involved a corssover with GI Joe, and that still holds true.

william-james88 wrote:

chuckdawg1999 wrote:

william-james88 wrote:

Convoy wrote:Great show! If you hadn't recorded while still in the moment it just wouldn't have been the same.
That interview. Epic.

I'm not sure what else to say.
You're doing it right!
I've said what I've had to say about much of the topics at hand in other threads. Never heard a beer bottle break on opening.

I passed on Powerglide when I saw him at Target the other day because I really dig that Viper/Rattler/Wild Weasel. This might be the first Decepticon/Cobra symbol on a TF but is this the first official crossover transforming Joe/TF toy?
Should I be posing this question in the Ask the Twincast thread?
Am I asking too many questions?

The very first Transformers/G1 Joe crossover figure was Titanium Series Megatron

Part of the very first wave of six-inch Titanium Series toys, Megatron was inspired by Dreamwave Productions' first G.I. Joe crossover, set in an alternate-reality World War II. Since the gun mode Megatron sported in that story was nonviable as a toy, this toy features a newly-designed tank alternate mode of made-up model. The backstory of the Megatron from the crossover, including references to Cobra, was retained on the package, make it the first U.S. figure ever produced as part of a G.I. Joe / Transformers crossover.

See I always thought that figure and bio was a reference to the later issues of GI Joe where Megatron gets his G2 tank mode from Cobra Commander

Could be, the Wiki is based on some people's expertize but you are a GI Joe expert so you have as much right to declaring something as fact. I just wanted to point out that it was the very first Transformers toy that involved a corssover with GI Joe, and that still holds true.

Yes absolutely 100% I could be wrong on my end since I never read those comics.

Convoy wrote:Great show! If you hadn't recorded while still in the moment it just wouldn't have been the same.
That interview. Epic.

I'm not sure what else to say.
You're doing it right!
I've said what I've had to say about much of the topics at hand in other threads. Never heard a beer bottle break on opening.

I passed on Powerglide when I saw him at Target the other day because I really dig that Viper/Rattler/Wild Weasel. This might be the first Decepticon/Cobra symbol on a TF but is this the first official crossover transforming Joe/TF toy?
Should I be posing this question in the Ask the Twincast thread?
Am I asking too many questions?

Thanks!

For the questions:

1. Officially, yeah(woops just read the posts above), but there's some stuff like Universe 1.0 Snow Cat (one of the last Universe 1.0 toys, came out so late the packaging style was reminiscent of TF Cybertron) was a Joe homage. I don't know enough about Joe to know if the original Energon colored version was or not.

2. Meh, we're pretty behind in there so I'm cool with this

3. Never!

ScottyP wrote:

Convoy wrote:Great show! If you hadn't recorded while still in the moment it just wouldn't have been the same.
That interview. Epic.

I'm not sure what else to say.
You're doing it right!
I've said what I've had to say about much of the topics at hand in other threads. Never heard a beer bottle break on opening.

I passed on Powerglide when I saw him at Target the other day because I really dig that Viper/Rattler/Wild Weasel. This might be the first Decepticon/Cobra symbol on a TF but is this the first official crossover transforming Joe/TF toy?
Should I be posing this question in the Ask the Twincast thread?
Am I asking too many questions?

Thanks!

For the questions:

1. Officially, yeah(woops just read the posts above), but there's some stuff like Universe 1.0 Snow Cat (one of the last Universe 1.0 toys, came out so late the packaging style was reminiscent of TF Cybertron) was a Joe homage. I don't know enough about Joe to know if the original Energon colored version was or not.

2. Meh, we're pretty behind in there so I'm cool with this

3. Never!

Scotty: The original Energon SowCat is based on a GI Joe play vehicle of the same name. As I recall from pictures, the bed of the vehicle mode is way wrong, whether that was Hasbro compromising to make room for Snow Cat's arms or just creative license I don't know. The Universe repaint was based on a Night Force color scheme that was being applied to a lot of GI Joe vehicles, as a unified theme, but had not up to then been done with the Snow Cat