The limited edition M&M Transformers Revenge of the Fallen Optimus Prime staute has appeared on ebay.  According to auction the statue was limited to 40 pieces, however HK-TF.com reported earlier that 600 pieces were made.  You can view the auction here

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Hong Kong's Grand Century Place was the location for a Transformers event in Hong Kong recently where a huge Transformers Movie Optimus Prime statue was on display.

Along with the statue various Transformers toys from the history of the line were on display and for sale.

You can see a large gallery on HK-TF (which will be mirrored by some US sites before the day is out) and on Facebook.

Ryan Church has updated his website with some concept artwork that he produced for Transformers Revenge of the Fallen.  Ryan has also produced concept art for various other films of which you can view several examples on his website which is well worth as look.

hi guys,

i just got news from simon about Neil Kaplan.  here's what i have

Win A Personalised Voice Recording From Optimus Prime With Auto Assembly!

If you don't already know, Auto Assembly is in talks to bring Neil Kaplan, the voice of Optimus Prime in Robots In Disguise back to the UK for it's convention this year taking place over the weekend of 15th - 16th August 2009. Neil recently made his return to Transformers to voice characters in Activision's game based on Revenge Of The Fallen, and we are hoping that he will be able to make his welcome return to Auto Assembly as well, following his appearance in 2005 as our guest of honour...

Neil's appearance at Auto Assembly is confirmed subject to the convention receiving sufficient pre-registrations or sales of the non-attendee package to cover Neil's costs. While this figure has not yet been reached, we are confident that - with the support of Transformers fans everywhere - Auto Assembly 2009 can become the first European Transformers convention to play host to THREE voice actors, seeing Neil join Gregg Berger and Ian James Corlett.

As part of Neil's provisional appearance, he will be performing on stage in our script session on the Saturday evening alongside Gregg and Ian in a script written by Transformers legend Simon Furman, as well as taking part in a Q&A Panel at some point during the weekend and being on hand to sign autographs all weekend. For those of you unable to attend and who take up the non-attendee package, Neil's autograph will be in your package should he attend.

To tie-in with his return to Auto Assembly, Neil has graciously offered to provide a personalised voice recording for one lucky convention attendee should he attend this year. This can be anything at all that you want, and you can use it as a mobile phone ring tone, on your website etc. - as long as it is for non-commercial use. To stand a chance of winning this fantastic prize, all you need to do is pre-register for the convention as a WEEKEND attendee or purchase a non-attendee package and you will be entered into the draw which will take place on the weekend.

To purchase your tickets or non-attendee package and have a chance of winning, visit the Auto Asembly website NOW! If you have already registered then you will be automatically entered into the draw! If you have only booked a single day ticket and would like to upgrade to a full weekend pass, watch this space for details soon on how you can do this... Don't miss out on your chance to be a part of what is going to be a great weekend celebrating 25 years of the Transformers!!

For full details on Auto Assembly 2009 and to book your tickets, visit the website at Auto Assembly

Simon Plumbe
Auto Assembly 2009

so could we get this up and help us make it happen

Thanks

Dean

Marketwatch have published a report on the state of Hasbro shares, toy sales and the fact that Revenge of the Fallen has already grossed over $600 million worldwide.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Hasbro Inc. is revving up for bigger sales in the toy aisle thanks to the blockbuster Transformers movie sequel, with merchandise sales topping the 2007 product lineup by up to 25%, analysts say.  "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" is No. 1 at the box office so far this year. Since its June 24 release, the movie has racked up $607.6 million in global ticket sales through July 6, according to reporting service Box Office Mojo.Industry analysts forecast that Transformers toy-related sales, including licensing fees, could be as high as $600 million by year's end. If sales hit that mark, this would be 25% above the $482 million in sales the first Transformers movie-toy line racked up two years ago.Retailers started to sell merchandise for the second Transformers movie on May 30. The toys, celebrating their 25th anniversary, include robot action figures, helmets and lunch bags. "The toys are doing exceptionally well," said Lutz Muller, a toy-marketing analyst who runs Vermont-based Klosters Trading Corp.In an emailed statement, Toys "R" Us said the new Transformers "have surpassed sales of the toys based on the first Transformers movie." The major retailer helped support Hasbro's launch of the product line with print and Internet ads.

Shares of Hasbro's stock hastraded flat at $23.04 in midday trading Wednesday.Analysts' estimates vary on Transformer product sales for this year. Drew Crum at Stifel Nicolaus expects Hasbro to generate $550 million in sales from the toy line this year, while Sterne Agee's Margaret Whitfield estimates Transformers toy sales can easily exceed $500 million.  Sean McGowan at Needham & Co. projects Hasbro will sell $595 million worth of new and old Transformers merchandise in 2009, or 14% of total company sales.

There is less competition among movie-themed toys on retailer shelves this year. In 2008, kids had plenty to choose from, when Hasbro and Mattel Inc.  made numerous toys tied to action movies featuring Indiana Jones as well as comic-book characters Batman, Iron Man and the Hulk. Gerrick Johnson, analyst at BMO Capital Markets, estimates Transformers sales could provide a lift to Hasbro's second-quarter earnings due to the strength of orders ahead of the sequel's release. The toys have wider distribution compared with 2007, he added.

But Johnson expects 2009 Transformers sales to be on par with those of 2007. He cited cautious consumer spending and competition from popular Bakugan action figures that sell for less. Toronto-based SpinMaster sells Bakugan.

Hasbro could not be reached for comment on how the sales have gone so far.  The company reports second-quarter earnings July 20. Analysts expect the toy maker to earn 24 cents a share, compared with 25 cents a share earned in the year-earlier quarter, according to FactSet. Sales are pegged to rise to $797 million from $784 million.Hasbro is looking to generate more action-figure sales from the Aug. 7 movie release of "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra." Muller of Klosters Trading estimates G.I. Joe movie-related toys will generate sales between $150 million to $180 million in 2009.Yet Muller warned that G.I. Joe toy sales could be undercut by Transformers and toys tied to the July 15 release of the latest Harry Potter film.

Hasbro shares have fallen 21% for the year to date, compared with a 2% loss for the S&P 500 Index and a 5% loss for Mattel. Investors have become wary of Hasbro since the company announced a kids' TV joint venture with Discovery in late April. McGowan rates Hasbro shares overweight; Crum has a hold on them, Whitfield a buy and Johnson a sell.  The mean target price on the stock is $27.91, down 12% since the start of the year, according to FactSet data.

An image of a new recolour of the Transformers Disney Label Mickey Mouse figure has been posted on the internet.  The image shows the Halloween themed recolour which will be released in Japan later in the year.  You can view the image below.

Simon Furman updated his blog yesterday with a post regarding his appearance / signings at this years San Diego Comic Con which takes place later this month.

"Next stop on the 09 signing/convention trail is the annual San Diego comicon. I’ll be attending this year, Friday through Sunday (July 24th to 26th), and apart from hanging around the Hyatt bar I’ll be popping up here and there for official events/signings throughout the weekend. So far, what’s been locked in are two DK (Dorling Kindersley) signing events, one on the Saturday (4-5PM at the DK booth) and one on the Sunday (2-3PM, also at the DK booth), where I’ll be signing copies of Transformers: The Movie Universe, plus, of course, Transformers: The Ultimate Guide and You Can Draw Transformers (and other stuff too!). Soon as I have details of other locked-in events/signings, I’ll update this post accordingly. Look forward to seeing you there!"  writes Simon on his blog.

Three years ago Brett Reynolds who you may have known as Toughboot, Jammie Jammie or Primus or various Transformers message boards including our own and Auto Assembly passed away. Brett was a good and very much valued friend and is still missed greatly by those who's lives he touched.

Today also marks the 4th anniversary of the bombings here in London, so we urge you to take a moment to remember those who are no longer with us.

Here's to you Brett, the world is still not the same without you

Brett Reynolds - 4th August 1978 - 7th July 2006

KingGrimlock posted this on the board earlier: 

http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?type=4&campid=5336111689&toolid=10001&customid=&mpre=http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/White-Leo-Prime-T ... 7C294%3A50

Pretty much confirms that the line lives on in some form, but it's still another repaint.

The BBC has reported that Revenge of the fallen has held the top spot against Harry Potter this weekend:

"Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen kept its place at the top of the North American box office chart, taking $42.3m (£26.2m) over the weekend."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8137671.stm

For this year first germany´s Transformers Fan Convention "C.O.N.S". on 19.07.2009 the Programm and Booklet are ready. Every one is welcome, lets have fun, find your Transformers Toys you are looking for and see what we can doo!

Programm:

10:00 - Die Türen öffnen sich (Introshow) / The Doors open (Introshow)
11:00 - Offizielle Begrüßung durch das Team / Official introduction from the Team
11:30 - Vorstellung/Eröffnung der 25-Jahre Transformers / Opening for the 25 Years Transformers exhibition
12:00 - Eröffnung des Attacktix-Turniers / Opening for the Attacktix-Turniers
13:00 - Start der Grillzeit / The grill time starts
13:30 - Attacktix Turnier / Attacktix Turnier
14:30 - Jumpstarter Challenge (Eigener Jumpstarter muss mitgebracht werden!) / Jumpstarter Challenge (Bring your own Jumpstarter with you!)
15:30 - Attacktix Turnier Finale / Finale Attacktix Turnier
16:00 - Deadline der Abstimmung für Fanart- und Custom-Contest / Deadline for votings on the FanArt- and Custom-Contest
16:30 - Verlosung der Preise (Custom, Fanart, Attacktix, Jumpstarter, Tombola) / Lottery and Prices (Custom, Fanart, Attacktix, Jumpstarter, Tombola)
18:00 - Verabschiedung durch das Team / The Team says Good bye
18:15 - 19:00 - Ständeabbau / Tables reduction
19:00 - ... AFTERSHOWPARTY

Booklet:

Look here please: http://www.ntf-archive.de/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1001

All who comes we see us on C.O.N.S.

Greetings from:

Lucy

http://www.ntf-archive.de

Our thanks go to The Last Allosaur for sending in some Transformers sightings for the John Lewis store in Edinburgh which had the following new Revenge of the Fallen figures in stock:

Wheelie, Chromia, Desert Brawl, Smokescreen, Desert Tracker Ratchet.

Chinese site TF08.net have posted the first picture of the back of the box that will be used for the upcoming US release of Masterpiece Skywarp The image shows his profile as well as the planned (but perhaps not final) colour scheme for the US release.