BotCon

BotCon is an annual convention for Transformers fans and collectors. The convention has been held, in one form or another, annually since 1994.

The name "BotCon" comes from both "robot convention" and the names "Autobot" and "Decepticon" used in the toyline.

Featured BotCon guests are usually involved in the creation of Transformers media in some respect, whether voice actors from the animated series, artists or writers from the Transformers comic books, or actual Hasbro employees.

Individual conventions

For details of each convention, click on the appropriate link below.

BotCon history

The first BotCon was held in Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1994. Organized by brothers Jon and Karl Hartman, the convention had 180 attendees. BotCon 1995 was organized by Raksha, a prominent figure in the fan community, and 1996 by Men In Black Productions, headed up by Dennis Barger. In 1997, the Hartmans brought Glen Hallit, a fellow fan, into the fold, forming 3H Enterprises (based upon the first letter of all three organizers' last names). During this era, the BotCon name was also licensed out for several conventions outside of the United States.

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At BotCon 2002, it was announced that 3H had secured the official Transformers convention license, as well as licenses to produce comic books and start a fan club. However, the Hartmans were pressured by Hallit out of planning or running the convention, leaving Glen Hallit as the sole organizer. As a result, the BotCon name, which was owned by the Hartmans, ceased to exist for a time, as 3H's convention was called "The Official Transformers Collectors Convention," or OTFCC for short.

In 2004, BotCon made a comeback as an unofficial convention, which was held in Pasadena, California. The history of the BotCon franchise up to that point was covered in great detail in the BotCon Legends magazine. At the end of 2004, 3H lost all its Transformer licenses, which were soon picked up by Fun Publications, owned by Brian Savage. The Hartman brothers were invited onto and accepted places in an advisory board for the new convention, along with other prominent fans Benson Yee and Rik Alvarez, and granted use of the BotCon name once again.

Since that time, BotCon has been held once again as an annual convention, run by Fun Publications.

Special Guests

Over the years, BotCon has featured many individuals who have worked to bring the Transformers multiverse to life, including voice actors, animation staff, and Hasbro design team members.

Exclusive toys

One of BotCon's most popular features is the sale of exclusive toys (originally just a single toy) to the guests. The toys are different every year, and will not be sold at retail anywhere in the world. The identity and design of the toys were originally kept a close secret until the opening of the convention, although in the later years of the convention the organizers often chose to reveal one or more of the exclusives ahead of time, due to repeated problems with stolen prototypes being sold on eBay.

In the past, the toys were sold individually as part of the convention registration process, however the current convention organizers are only offering the exclusives as part of a package deal, a move that has caused some contention in the fandom.

Although the toys are always unique, financial costs prohibit the creation of entirely new molds. As such, the toys are redecos of previously used toys given new identities, occasionally switching allegiances and even gender. In the last few years, minor remoulds have been made to the exclusives, such as the new heads given the Deathsaurus and Ironhide in 2005. After the convention, exclusive toys usually become valuable collector's items in the community, particularly among fans who missed the convention. Before the convention, many fans complain vociferously because the prices of exclusive, limited-run figures are high. This is particularly true of the 2007 "Games of Deception" set, which many fans still complain about because of its unavailability at a retail level.

Proposed/Unreleased Exclusives

A number of toys were planned over the years but never produced, for various reasons. Note that some of these entries are essentially jokes from the organizers' brainstorming sessions, which they then later mentioned to other fans:

• Lickme, a redeco of Spittor as a Poison Arrow Frog. Function: Psychological Warfare. Mentioned at the BotCon '99 Organizers Panel.
• Jai-Alai, a black redeco of Manterror. Function: Ninja. Mentioned at the BotCon '99 Organizers Panel.
• Cataclysm, a green and purple redeco of Transmetal Cheetor. This character actually appeared in the convention storyline and was thought to be the lower priced exclusive in 2000 until Apelinq was revealed instead. It is unclear whether or not Cataclysm was ever truly intended to be released, however.
• Optimal Rodimus Primal, mentioned by the Hartmans at the organizer's panel at Botcon 2000, this would have been an updated version of Rodimus Prime made from the Optimal Optimus mold. Plans were nixed very early on as Primal Prime was going into its limited production run and Hasbro didn't give licensees the leeway they now enjoy. Optimal Rodimus Primal's events in the Wreckers storyline were revised for Primal Prime and Rodimus instead
• Blue Balls Attack Team, from an anecdote shared by Karl Hartman on the now defunct BotCon Beyond message board, a planning session for BotCon had run much later than anticipated and an exhausted Hartman proposed a pair of blue repaints of Beast Wars Retrax. Obviously not a serious proposal.
• Hot Spot, a blue redeco of Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime as a new Autobot leader modelled after the Generation One character. The toy would have featured a new headsculpt for the robot's larger "Defensor" mode. This toy was originally solicited for OTFCC 2004, then pushed back for OTFCC 2005. When the license was removed from 3H Productions, this figure was cancelled.
• Megatron, a red redeco of Robots in Disguise Megatron as an upgraded (and resurrected) Beast Wars Megatron. This toy would have featured a new headsculpt. Designs of this toy were part of 3H's OTFCC 2005 proposal, which never happened.
• Devcon, a blue redeco of Energon Slugslinger as the Generation One character. This toy would have featured a new headsculpt. Designs of this toy were part of 3H's OTFCC 2005 proposal, which never happened.
• Brawn, a green redeco of Energon Strongarm as the Generation One character. This toy would have featured a new headsculpt and snap on Energon gauntlets. Designs of this toy were part of 3H's OTFCC 2005 proposal, which never happened.
• Roadbuster, an orange and green redeco of Energon Strongarm as the Generation One character. This toy would have featured a new headsculpt and Energon rifle. Designs of this toy were part of 3H's OTFCC 2005 proposal, which never happened.
• Sentinel Prime, originally conceived as the Cybertron Defense Hot Shot redeco for 2007. He was dropped in favor of Springer, who fit the mold and the story/theme better.

Exclusive fiction

Many BotCons have featured fiction exclusive to the convention. This fiction has taken the form of comic books, text stories, and script readings.

External links

• Official site
• Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club
• Convention info from the Transformers FAQ