Transformersasia released a picture of the upcoming Asia Exclusive THS-02B Black Convoy. The figure is different from the original e-Hobby exclusive in as much as this new version has a blue windshield rather than red, uses gold chrome accents rather than silver and has blue eyes.  The toy is due for release very shortly on the 8th November 2013 though there is no word whether he will come with the parts to change the reissue of the standard figure into the Generation 2 version or not.

You can compare the below image of the new toy to the original by using our image gallery here.

Hasbro have been ordered to pay just under $73 million dollars to the inventor of NERF in a decision made by an arbitrator on the 29th October 2013.  Hasbro are considering appealing the decision which was the result of a case where by the inventor was claiming unpaid royalties and damages from Hasbro for the period 2007-2012.

Whilst not directly relating to Transformers this news may well impact all of Hasbro's lines and business which will only be known after the release of their Q3 financial statement later this month as the company may seek to claw back some of the losses by cutting expenditure or increasing revenue through a price hike.

You can read the report here.

Hasbro have pushed out a major update to their website which has revealed a whole host of new Transformers listing for 2014. The full list is as follows:

Transformers Generations

• Generations Voyager Brainstorm
• Generations Voyager Roadbuster
• Generations Voyager Skybyte
• Generations 30th Leader Jetfire
• Generations 30th Leader Megatron
• Generations Deluxe Arcee
• Generations Deluxe Chromia
• Generations Deluxe Hardhead
• Generations Deluxe Jhiaxus
• Generations Legends Brawn with Mudslinger
• Generations Legends Gears with Eagle Eye
• Generations Legends Cliffjumper
• Generations Legends Gnaw with Gnash
• Beast Hunter Deluxe Value Packs (4 of them, most likely Black Friday deals)
• TRA Black Hunter Nemesis Prime
• TRA Black Skyfire
• Blindpacks - Jazz, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Grimlock
• Construct Bots Rider Autobot Drift
• Construct Bots Rider Bruce
• Cosntruct Bots Rider Bumblebee
• Construct Bots Rider Lockdown
• Cosntruct Bots Rider Duke
• Construct Bots Rider Max

Transformers 4: Age of Extinction

Deluxes

• A6509 BUMBLEBEE, CLASSIC/HIGH OCTANE (SAME ID #)
• A6510 CROSSHAIRS/SLINGSHOT
• A6511 DINOBOT SLUG
• A6512 "SOUTHPAW"
• A7812 LOCKDOWN
• A7813 DRIFT
• A7814 STRAFE
• A7815 DINOBOT SLASH
• A7979 PDQ
• A8113 SNARL
• A8114 RALLY CAR
• A8115 DECEPTICON STINGER

Voyager

• A6514 OPTIMUS PRIME "EVASION MODE"
• A6515 GRIMLOCK
• A7946 HOUND
• A7947 GALVATRON
• A8117 SLOG
• A8118 DRIFT
• A9181 OPTIMUS PRIME AND GRIMLOCK

Leader

• A6518 GRIMLOCK
• A6517 OPTIMUS PRIME

???

• A6519 OPTIMUS PRIME, FIRST EDITION/PLATINUM EDITION
• A7769 SILVER OPTIMUS PRIME

Jousters/Sparkers

• A6493 LOCKDOWN AND "WOLF"
• A6494 OPTIMUS PRIME AND GRIMLOCK
• A6495 BUMBLEBEE AND STRAFE
• A6496 SLINGSHOT AND "SOUTHPAW"
• A6499 DRIFT AND SLOG
• A6500 BUMBLEBEE AND STRAFE
• A7681 DRIFT AND SLOG
• A7684 HOUND AND SLASH

Cyberverse

• A7759 BUMBLEBEE
• A7760 OPTIMUS PRIME
• A7762 GRIMLOCK
• A7763 HOUND
• A7764 LOCKDOWN
• A7766 GRIMLOCK (with Optimus?) - listing number is also shared with Southpaw and Slingshot.
• A7767 STINGER SLOG
• A7768 STRAFE (with Bumblebee?)

PopBots

• A8242 OPTIMUS PRIME
• A8243 BUMBLEBEE
• A8244 LOCKDOWN
• A8245 CROSSHAIRS
• A8246 DRIFT
• A8247 GRIMLOCK
• A8248 STRAFE
• A8410 "STINGER"

Titans

• 16" Champions
• 16" Guardians
• 16" Grimlock
• 16" Optimus Prime
• 6" Bumblebee
• 6" Guardians
• 6" Grimlock
• 6" Lockdown
• 6" Optimus
• ?? Drift
• ?? Bumblebee
• ?? Guardian Grimlock
• ?? Hero Bumblebee
• ?? Hero Grimlock
• ?? Optimus Prime
• ?? Optimus Prime Knight
• ?? Hero Slingshot
• ?? Hero Stinger
• ?? Lockdown

Masterpiece

• Sideswipe

Credit goes to TFW2005.com members for spotting the update

Planet Iacon via ACToys have posted up some interesting new images of supposed CGI renders for Optimus Prime in his new look for the upcoming movie Age of Extinction

Australian news website news.com.au are reporting that a 2nd blackmail attempt has taken place on the set of Transformers 4: Age of Extinction.  According to the report a female crew member who was setting up on the roof of a Kowloon building was approached  and  intimidated by four men who approached her asking for money.  One of the men was subsequently arrested after she reported the incident whilst the others remain at large.

To add to the headline, the media outlet have re-used a stock image from Transformers 3 with Michael Bay and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.

TakaraTomy have announced that they will be revealing the winner of the Masterpiece Fans Choice Poll during a live broadcast on the 19th November.  No further details are available  at this time other than they will be updating their website with further details on how to watch the anouncement at a later date.

Autobase Aichi's own Snakas has tweeted two new images of a black repaint of TF Prime Hunter Prime as the Decepticon Nemesis Prime which show that this black recolour will have a Decepticon insignia as well as coming with a new head sculpt.  You can view the images below.

Hasbro have released new stock images of their upcoming Kreo Combiners Menasor and Computron.  You can view all of the images by clicking after the jump (or by clicking the headline on the homepage of the website).  Fans were calling out for more Kreo combiner figures after the success of the original releases.

Following on from the news we broke yesterday images have been posted on Twitter and the image sharing site TinyPic from a recent TakaraTomy product catelogue which shows the first actual toy images of TG-25 Black Lio Convoy,a recolour of Thundertron / Leo Prime but with two new swords, and TG-26 Optimus Prime, the quad-changer gestault Transformers Go exclusive figure.  You can view the images below.

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Earlier this month Big Bag Toy Store posted a new listing for a Transformers Go! Optimus Prime figure which was reported to change from Robot into a train, into a dragon as well as combining with Kenzan and Gekisomaru.  No image was available of the figure at that time but now, thanks to a Japanese Gaming event, 4gamer.net have posted an image which includes the first real look at the upper body design of the figure which appears to come with two swords.

Credit to 4Gamer.net for the images.

Our thanks go out to Mr Neurie for reporting this ti us via Twitter yesterday.  Neurie was looking through the online Metro Newspaper, a free newspaper here within the UK and normally read by commuters on the train/tube, when he spotted the following advert for Transformers: Battle For Cybertron

Battle For Cybertron is a gambling game available on a couple of onlne gambling sites and varies from Bingo to a slot machine type game.

News outlets around the world, including the BBC, have picked up on a story about two men who caused a disturbance on the set of Transformers 4 demanding money from Mr Bay before injuring the American director by striking him on the right side of his face.  The two men proceeded to assault police officers before being arrested on suspicion of blackmail and assault.  Michael Bay refused to go to the hospital for treatment, instead deciding to continue working on set.

"A local newspaper in Hong Kong reported that three men caused what it called "a huge disturbance" to the filming of the American science fiction film.  It said that the men could have missed out on disturbance fees which the film crew paid to shop and business owners whose businesses were likely to be affected during filming.  The two men approached Mr Bay on the set during filming, a police spokeswoman told Reuters.  One of them demanded payment of HK$100,000 ($12,900; £8,030). >As the discussion continued, the man assaulted Mr Bay and also attacked three police officers who tried to intervene, police say. The officers received treatment at hospital for minor injuries.  Police also arrested a third man at the scene.

Report the BBC

Recently there was a listing found for a Rattrap Generations figure within the Wal*Mart computer system which led fans into believing that there is a Rattrap figure in the works, something the fan community was speculating about after James Roberts name-dropped the character when talking about the comic books. Well over last weekend at Roll Out Roll Call 2013 it was confirmed that designs have been produced for a Generations Rattrap figure as well as a possibly a fourth Beast Wars character.  No details were given on who that additional character could be; it was more deduced from the wording that was used rather than being directly stated; though the Rattrap design is said to be based on original season one form, much like the comic art has shown, rather than the TransMetal figure.  Whilst nothing was shown since the Generations Rhinox figure is turning out to be be very close to the concept design (which was shown), this should give everyone hope that the final Rattrap figure should also look close to his design which is said to be close to the animation model.  It was mentioned at the show that the figure was to be revealed at NYCC though from the reports we have read online it appears that this wasn't the case.

No word on when the figure is expected to hit, but it is coming.

Having debuted the figure yesterday at the New York Comic-Con, Hasbro have now issued a press release containing the first two official images of the Leaderclass Transformers: Age of Extinction Optimus Prime figure

TRANSFORMERS GENERATIONS OPTIMUS PRIME Leader Scale Figure
(Ages: 4 & up /Approx. Retail Price: $44.99/Available: May 2014)
The Leader Scale OPTIMUS PRIME figure from Hasbro is part of the TRANSFORMERS brand’s popular GENERATIONS action figure line and is inspired by the upcoming TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION movie from Paramount Pictures. This impressive figure is the first to be revealed from the highly anticipate 2014 TRANSFORMERS line. This extraordinary OPTIMUS PRIME figure features all new deco, converts from robot to vehicle and is styled in the character’s new look as he will appear in TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION. Additional features and accessories including an impressive new sword and shield let fans relive the action of the blockbuster movie series. The TRANSFORMERS GENERATIONS OPTIMUS PRIME LEADER SCALE FIGURE will become available at major retailers beginning in May, 2014 in advance of TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION coming to theaters on June 27, 2014.

Both Big Bad Toy Store and RobotKingdom have posted new listings for a re-issue of the TakaraTomy Transformers Hybrid Style Convoy Black Edition (THS Convoy). The figure was originally released as an e-Hobby exclusive.  The re-issue of this figure is completely out of left-field considering only three THS figures were produced, Convoy, Galaxy Convoy and the Black Version of Convoy.  We own all three figures and think that they are fantastic little "Masterpiece-styled" figures, though because the Black version was also release with parts to convert the original convoy into a Generation 2 version, does this mean that the regular release will also be finding a re-issue? Time will tell.