Some interesting details in here.
http://www.tfw2005.c...details-181417/
SydneyYs translation:
Generations (Legends) Arcee was developed by Hironori Kobayashi with a corroboration with Yuki Oshima of Kiss Players fame.
Minicon "Carnivac" will be available at TRU from mid-November as a giveaway to customers who spend more than ¥3,000 Transformers products.
Dark Knight Scorn, Strafe and Slug will be store exclusives, but the identity of the stores is TBA.
Fembot character & weapon descriptions
The fembots will be released on Valentine's Day. In Japan the day is quite different from the West. A girl is supposed to give chocolate to a guy she fancies (or all the guys at her work/class/etc.) Romance!
LG-10 Arcee
Arcee is the first female Transformers character who was part of a main cast - in Japan she's known for her active role in the 2010 series. The focus of her character design was on the feminine appearance, and was too difficult to recreate as a toy with the technology available at that time. There was a plan of producing her as a Headmaster, but that did not materialize either. Mr. Kobayashi, who is responsible for this product took extra care to perfectly realize the screen accurate transformation process and proportions. Mr. Oshima corroborated from the early planning stage. They did not compromise on any details on her feminine style.
(An interview with Mr. Kobayashi will be featured in the next issue.)
LG- 11 Chromia
Chromia is a sub-character who appeared in G1 episode 41 "Search for Alpha Torin" (US G1 episode 53). She is a sub-commander of "Woman Cybertrons" and a girlfriend of Ironhide. In Galaxy Force, a character with the same name appeared as a female Destron character. In Revenge of the Fallen, the character appeared as a part of the Autobot bike team with Arcee and Elita-1.
LG-12 Wingblade (Windblade)
An Autobot who has the ability of a telepathically link to Metroplex. She was the winner of "Fun Choice Bot" poll by Hasbro. In the poll Hasbro provided the options for the motif, colors, faction, characteristics and weapons and combined the popular choices.
The head sculpt design incorporates the motif of a courtesan and Kabuki stage makeup reminiscent of Nijika, a mechanical doll in another world who appeared in "2010" episode 27 (US G1 episode 92). (Note: for Wingblade, the word used to describe her motif is Oiran, not Geisha. Oiran is a professional high class courtesan, very cultured as well as being able to sing and dance (and sleep with their patrons). During the time Oiran class existed, a geisha was only a background musician. If you are interested I recommend looking it up - it is interesting.)
AD-31 Armor Knight Optimus Prime
An explanation is offered for the face change gimmick, the color scheme of the figure, and the weapons:
- Face Change gimmick - The center part of the face go up and rotate the face part to change between mask on and off faces.
- Chest/Torso - New layout for the armor plates with extra paint applications including gold. Front flaps/plates are new molding.
- Sword and shield design based on the his appearance on the screen. To differentiate from the other versions, this sword is named "Temenos Sword".
- Re-creation of the gauntlet arm parts.
- New molding to make the feet/toes more screen-accurate.
- The figure will be packaged holding the sword with both hands, as seen in the movie posters and such.
Cybetron Satellite campaign #3 - From mid-October at Cybertron Satellite (affiliated retail stores). Customers who spend more than ¥3,000 on Transformers merchandise will receive an exclusive Drift sticker. The second "Satellite Point" campaign will be on soon as well.
Block+Radio Control+Transform! - Nanoblock Motion Chro-Q, build the vehicle body with nanoblocks on a Choro-Q size chassis. The first lineup of this series is a collaboration with Transformers. Re-build the vehicle to the robot, and the chassis can be controlled with a smartphone application. Convoy and Bumble are due out late November. ¥4,860 each.
Carnivac present campaign - Giveaway to customers who spend more than ¥3,000 on Transformer merchandise at ToysRUs. Carnivac is a smoky black clear Mini-Con and named after a Pretender Beast. His motif is Lockdown's minion Steeljaw in Lost Age.
Movie Advanced Series EX Rollbar - Mid-November, TRU exclusive. Overseas "Generations" Skids mould and the deco is based on Shane's car in Lost Age.
Transformer Expo merchandise on sale - Limited numbers of some items available at TakaraTomy Mall online stores. Many illustrators and manga artists visited the Expo and as well as the autographed arts shown here, there were original TF visuals.
Dinobot Black Knight complete! - Slug, Scorn and Strafe. Store exclusives. (Strafe - Cybertron Satellite exclusive late December. Scorn and Slug - stores TBA, mid November.)
Coming soon! - MP Bumble, Legends Whirl, Roadbuster and Tankor.
Fun fact from Type-R:
As said above, Horinori Kobayashi was one of the designed on Legends/Generations Arcee. Kobayashi landed his job at Takara because of his scratch-built BotCon Japan 98 Arcee. So, in a very cool way, hes come full circle now.