Hey dudes! Jonathan Rosenberg, aka The Guy Who Draws Goats And Whatnot, has a new webcomic! It's called Scenes from a Multiverse, and it involves you, the weirdos of the Internet! See, every week he draws a set of unrelated strips that take place on various worlds, and whichever gets the most votes returns the next week! It's like Web 2.Oh Yeah. Jon continues to be a true visionary, awash in unfettered creativity.
And on Wednesday morning, me and my local buds head to BotCon. Shortpacked! veterans know what this means, though this year the usual all-weekend-long convention strips are getting a twist. You'll see.
If you're also going to BotCon, I've decided to be less stupid than I usually manage. Every year I'm met by a few dozen readers wanting to know if I have books for sale! Well, no, I don't have a dealer table at BotCon -- that's be counterproductive to my goal of Totally Geeking It Out 24/7, what with all the panels and whatnot -- but I figgered I'd plan ahead and bring a handful of copies of Shortpacked! Book 3 with me. I plan to have one or two on me at all times. Y'know, be prepared! It's like my backpack will be Shortpacked! Express, like those mini-Pizza Huts at Target. So if you see me out and about, hand me $15 and I'll hand you a Book 3. I'll even scribble in it for you.
As you can probably tell by the frequency of video game jokes in Shortpacked!, (not that often!) I am way more into action figures than I am in video games. This is, after all, a comic strip about a toy store and not Penny Arcade. I will dutifully plow through any new Super Mario game when one makes itself available, but it is not a primary interest of mine. Regardless, sometimes these two interests intersect.
Because I get an email every other day from you guys letting me know, I think it's safe to say that it is general public knowledge that a Big Transformers Game is coming out this month. War for Cybertron is a multiplatform third-person shooter that takes place on Cybertron before the Transformers leave for Earth. Optimus Prime isn't leader yet, he's just "Optimus," sans "Prime." Everyone is in crazy alien hovertank-like modes because Volkswagen Beetles and Freightliner trucks won't exist for another few million years. And, as Hasbro tends to do, they have some action figures of the game's character models.
He likes to drive crotch first.
This is Optimus Prime! He transforms into an "armored tank." This is my... third? toy of a Cybertronian-mode Optimus? First there was the War Within Prime (another pre-Earth story), then I picked up Cybertron mode Optimus Prime from the Animated toyline, and now this. We have an extra housemate this summer, necessitating the packing up of my not-on-display toys in the attic, so I did not feel like digging out the entire attic closet to search through fifteen Rubbermaid containers for these two other dudes to photograph next to my new one. You will just have to imagine them!
He comes packaged in robot mode. I have to admit, this removes a lot of my incentive to do the inaugural transformation, especially since robot-to-vehicle is always much more of a chore than the reverse. With Cybertronian Optimus Prime, this is no exception. He's a little too complicated, but I hate him waaaaaaaaaaay less after attempting the same on his wavemate Cybertronian Bumblebee. Really put things in perspective. Prime is a deceptively complicated toy. I don't think there's an uninterrupted square inch on him. But things peg together well enough in each mode, so no harm no foul. The only annoying part of him in robot mode is his shoulder kibble, which likes to flair up and about when you don't want it to. A good portion of the vehicle mode roof folds onto his back, sorta shellformery, but it packs away out of site well enough.
Megatron's is still bigger.
The most intriguing part of him is his gun. It transforms as well, from robot mode rifle configuration to vehicle mode weapon-mount configuration. There's little springs in it that keep it in one mode or the other - there's no pegs. In weapon-mount configuration, it wraps around itself. In this compacted mode, it's also intended to be mounted on his forearm. (You can see it in this configuration in some concept art.)
My favorite aspect, I think, is his pink highlights. Generally, Prime has yellow highlights, but I really like the pink. It accentuates him in a different way, and it sets him apart from other Primes. And, lord, that's the kind of thing I need at this stage in my collecting days. I have a buttload of Primes.
There's some rumblings that War for Cybertron is going to be the established canon for future Hasbro Transformers ventures. That would include this fall's Transformers: Prime CGI cartoon. So if you want a head start on your TF: Prime collection, this is probably it.
And here's the last of my (published) pictures. That's right! There are photos worse than the ones from yesterday with all the mouth-pooping.
(They were blurry or boring.)
Figgered I should take some pictures of some toys, since this is usually a toy blog. This is DC Direct's "Battle for the Cowl" wave. I totally need that Stephanie Brown Batgirl. And probably that hilarious Two-Face that was infuriatingly only a hallucination.
Sunday was kind of a no man's land for the Webcomics Pavilion... except if you were Jeph Jacques. How I hate him.
Since Sunday was kinda dead, I spent time drawing and coloring on my own. Markers are fun!
Reader asked for Reagan vs Hitler. Reader got Reagan vs Hitler. Hooray for democracy!
