San Diego Comic-Con
The San Diego Comic-Con is an annual San Diego convention. Hasbro debuts new product at the event, and various exclusive Transformers merchandise is made for it, usually sold at the Hasbro Toy Shop booth (and later also made available online via the Hasbro Toy Shop website). Additionally, in 2015 and 2016, Masterpiece figures were offered at the Entertainment Earth /Toys"R"Us booth, and subsequently also made available online at the Toys"R"Us website and sold at Toys"R"Us brick and mortar stores.
San Diego Comic-Con 2020 was obviously cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With no guarantee that further conventions will take place, the foreseeable future of San Diego Comic-Con is looking a bit murky. However, Comic-Con@Home will return as an online event on July 23-25, 2021. A smaller supplemental (in person) event dubbed "Comic-Con Special Edition" is planned for November 26-28, 2021, while the traditional con is planned for Summer, 2022.[1] See, not so bad after all.
Fiction
Live-action film ARG continuity
Leo Spitz and Sharsky attempted to attend Comic-Con 2008, but were hampered by the fact that Sharsky had booked the hotel room for the week after Comic-Con. Luckily they met Fassbinder, who got them a room by less-than-legal means, and the new trio of friends attended the convention. Unfortunately all their pictures of the event were accidentally destroyed. The Real Effing Deal
2005
Preview Night July 13, July 14 to July 17
- Skywarp - A redeco of Legends of Cybertron Starscream.
2006
Preview Night July 19, July 20 to July 23
- Nemesis Prime - A black redeco of Alternators/Kiss Players Optimus Prime.
2007
Preview Night July 25, July 26 to July 29
- Rodimus Prime - A redeco of Kiss Players Hot Rodimus.
- Menasor - A redeco of Titanium Series Rodimus Prime.
2008
Preview Night July 23, July 24 to July 27
- Nemesis Prime - A redeco of Classics Optimus Prime.
- War Within Skywarp - A redeco of Titanium Series Thundercracker.
2009
Preview Night July 22, July 23 to July 26
- Soundwave - A reissue of the original 1984 toy.
- Optimus Prime - A metallic redeco of Mighty Muggs Optimus Prime.
2010
Preview Night July 21, July 22 to July 25
- Autobot Blaster - A reissue of the original 1985 toy.
2011
Preview Night July 20, July 21 to July 24
Step 2: ???
Step 3: Profit!
- Ultimate Optimus Prime - A redeco of Dark of the Moon Ultimate Optimus Prime.
- Starscream Skystriker with Cobra Commander - A Redeco of the 2011 new-mold G.I. Joe Sky Striker
2012
Preview Night July 11, July 12 to July 15
- Rust In Peace Cliffjumper - A redeco of Prime: First Edition Terrorcon Cliffjumper.
- Shockwave H.I.S.S. Tank with two figures & Energon - A redeco of the 2012 new-mold G.I. Joe: Retaliation HISS tank.
2013
Preview Night July 17, July 18 to July 21
- Metroplex - A redeco of Thrilling 30 Metroplex.
- Shockwave's Lab - Redecoes of Prime: Beast Hunters Voyager Shockwave and Cyberverse Predaking.
- The Epic Conclusion! box set - A redeco of the 2011 mold of the G.I. Joe Skystriker.
- Titan Warrior 5-Pack
- A five-pack of 6" PVC Titan Warriors figures made up of Optimus Prime, Grimlock, Megatron, Starscream and Soundwave. Most of these figures were later released at retail, the exception being Grimlock.
2014
Preview Night July 23, July 24 to July 27
- Knights of Unicron Reunion Tour Set - The glorious set features the members of the eponymous band and their instruments.
- Megatron - A redeco of Deluxe Class War for Cybertron Megatron.
- Laserbeak - A redeco of Animated Laserbeak.
- Optimus Prime - A redeco of Deluxe Class Fall of Cybertron Optimus Prime.
- Ratbat - A redeco of Animated Ratbat.
- Smooth Jazz - A redeco of Deluxe Class Fall of Cybertron Autobot Jazz.
- Soundwave - A redeco of Deluxe Class War for Cybertron Soundwave.
- G1-Colored Dinobots
- This set features Voyager class Grimlock and deluxe class Strafe, Slug and Snarl done in G1-inspired decoes. This set comes with an Ark playset made up of platforms and inspired by the ship from Generation One.
- (A toy of Slog in similarly-themed colors was released separately via Amazon.)
- 'Class of 1984' Kreon set
- A massive Kreon set which includes practically everyone from the first year of Generation One, namely Bluestreak, Brawn, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Frenzy, Gears, Hound, Huffer, Ironhide, Jazz, Megatron, Mirage, Optimus Prime, Prowl, Ratchet, Rumble, Shockwave, Sideswipe, Skywarp, Soundwave, Starscream, Sunstreaker, Thundercracker, Trailcutter, Wheeljack and Windcharger. Both Frenzy and Rumble are done using the smaller human-sized Kreon molds. In addition, Arcee, Ultra Magnus, Perceptor, and Skrapnel are also included even though they aren't strictly 1984. Laserbeak, Ravage and Buzzsaw, which are impractical to turn into Kreons, are included among the plethora of random accessories, which includes stuff like a Rubik's Cube, a syringe and a mullet for Sunstreaker. Whew!
2015
Preview Night July 8
Panels
- Transformers Generations: More Than Meets the Eye - July 9
- "Come see what the Transformers characters are up to as you are entertained with sneak peeks of the all new Activision video game trailers, IDW comic prints, and other special surprises. Then get your collector action on as you get an exclusive glimpse at the latest and greatest Transformers Generations Combiner Wars toys that have yet to hit toy shelves. The Transformers team members will also host a Q&A session to answer your burning questions."
- Transformers: Robots in Disguise - July 9
- Roll out with the cast and creatives behind Transformers: Robots in Disguise as they share details of the making of the popular animated series and give a sneak peek into the rest of Season 1, now airing on Cartoon Network. Followed by a Q&A.
- Women of Transformers - July 10
- From Windblade and Arcee to Strongarm and the brand-new Combiner making her debut at SDCC, female Transformers characters have finally gotten their due; but behind the page and in fandom, even bigger changes have been happening. Panelists include Transformers comics writers Mairghread Scott and Georgia Ball, artists Corin Howell and Sara Pitre-Durocher, Hasbro's Sarah Carroll, and special guests.
- IDW and Hasbro: Transformers, Jem, Ponies, and More - July 11
- IDW editors John Barber and Bobby Curnow, along with Michael Kelly (Hasbro's senior director, global publishing), present a comprehensive overview of all things IDW and Hasbro; Transformers, My Little Pony, Jem, G.I. JOE, Dungeons & Dragons. Get the inside scoop on the latest news and announcements. Featuring writer Mairghread Scott, artist Agnes Garbowska, and more special guests.
Exclusive toys
- Devastator - A redeco of Combiner Wars Devastator.
- "Kreon Class of '85" 30-Kreon set
2016
Preview: July 20
Panels
- Transformers Generations: More Than Meets The Eye with Machinima
- The primary focus of the Transformers panel was the Combiner Wars cartoon in an attempt to appeal to the mostly adult fans attending the convention.
- In hindsight, that probably wasn't the best idea.
- Transformers Animation: Then and Now
- "Celebrate the legacy of the Transformers characters and stories that have led you to Robots in Disguise."
Exclusive toys
- Fortress Maximus Convention Edition - A Redeco of Titans Return Fortress Maximus
- Titan Force gift set
- Brainstorm - A retool of Titans Return Blurr.
- Sentinel Prime - A redeco of Titans Return Sentinel Prime.
- Windblade - A redeco of Robots in Disguise Warrior Class Windblade.
2017
- Optimus Prime & Shreddicus Maximus - A redeco of Titans Return Powermaster Optimus Prime.
- Optimus Prime - A redeco of The Last Knight Optimus Prime.
2018
The winners of that year's Transformers Hall of Fame balloting were announced at Hasbro's Transformers panel at the event.
Shogo Hasui and John Warden were on hand to sign War for Cybertron: Siege Posters.
Uglydolls crossed over with the franchise, creating limited run dolls of Ox and Ice-Bat dressed as Optimus Prime and Bumblebee, respectively.
Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast announced the Transformers Trading Card Game, allowing fans to purchase a booster pack containing a set of exclusive cards.
Exclusive toys
- Throne of the Primes
- Amalgamous Prime - A retool of the Power of the Primes Micronus / Cloudburst inner robot.
- Nexus Prime - A retool of Power of the PrimesAlchemist Prime.
- Optimus Primal
- Prima Prime - A retool of Power of the Primes Solus Prime
2019
- MP-10G Optimus Prime Ecto-35 Edition - A redeco of MP-10 Convoy.
2020
Following COVID-19's utter devastation of the convention scene, the Quintesson Pit of Judgement 5-pack originally intended as a Comic-Con 2020 exclusive was shifted to being available online via Hasbro Pulse.[2]
Notes
- The "S.D. 74" on the Hasbro version of the Armada Hoist mold is an in-joke, according to Aaron Archer. He has pointedly and repeatedly refused to explain the joke, so its meaning remains a mystery. However, an explanation of sorts was offered at BotCon 2008: The marking evidently originates from an incident at the San Diego Comic Con involving an unfortunate mix of Hasbro employees, alcohol, and a construction crane. Whatever happened, apparently the Petco Park stadium was nearly not built because of it. Yowza. (How the 74 relates to this, exactly, remains uncertain.)
