iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

To be accurate, I believe that's a 2007 Land Cruiser J70, which has an even greater reputation for ruggedness and reliability due to being extremely basic and largely unchanged since 1984. Hiluxes are fancy pants city pick ups by comparison. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_...

Photo of a white coloured Japanese spec, pre-facelift Toyota Land Cruiser J70 truck, in 5-door wagon body form. It is parked in a Japanese car park. Photo from Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Land_Cruiser_(J70)

Photo of a tan coloured 2007 facelift, European-spec Toyota Land Cruiser J70 dual/double cab pick-up truck. It is parked in the street in Europe. Photo from Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Land_Cruiser_(J70)

0140

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

@triggerredd.bsky.social Interesting - it appears a new line of licensed RGG merch for Japan seems to use the localised English dialogue from your time as producer. www.daytona-park.com/item/1087248... www.daytona-park.com/item/1024248...

101

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Originally, the writer behind it intended for Sunstreaker and the human who was experimented on as the prototype headmaster to become one mind, a unique creation. Then he was replaced by a writer who thought it would be cooler if the human was tortured by the Decepticons.

"Hail and Farewell" Transformers Mosiac comic strip, depicting the human Hunter O'Nion reminiscing about his troubled childhood before transforming and merging with the Autobot Sunstreaker.

Pencils: Steve Buccellato
Inks: Don Hudson
Letters: Richard Starkings
Script: Simon Furman

From Transformers: Mosaic
© 2008 Hasbro.

010

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Nah, this is some Hot Wheels thing made by Mattel. The most recent Hasbro Bumblebees are these:

Photo of Transformers Studio Series 86 Bumblebee. Photos by Figuregunpla from tfwiki.net

Photo of Transformers Studio Series Devastation Bumblebee. Photos by Figuregunpla of tfwiki.net

010

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

T-Spark also had a Zoids x Patlabor crossover that resulted in a police wolf.

Promotional art of the Zoids x Patlabor Synergex crossover, featuring the Zoids Hunter Wolf and Patlabor AV-98 Ingram.

Product image of the T-Spark Synergex Zoids x Patlabor Hunter Wolf model kit.

070

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Funnily enough, that's what the original Japanese toy that later became Megatron was called (I don't think they had a license to do so).

Front of box of Takara's Microchange Walther P-38 U.N.C.L.E, the toy that would later become Megatron in Transformers.

Rear of box of Takara's Microchange Walther P-38 U.N.C.L.E, showing off the accessories and features.

251

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Megatron having sympathetic origins has been a thing Hasbro has encouraged for a while. Probably the most controversial, and complex example below:

Megatron is confronted by Tarn, his most fanatical follower, for abandoning the Decepticon cause. Megatron is remorseful for the harm he and the Decepticons caused to so many others, while Tarn points out many Decepticons died in service of a better future that Megatron had promised them.

Line-art: Alex Milne
Colors: Joana Lafuente
Letters: Tom B. Long
Script: James Roberts

From The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye #51, "Your Fierce Tears"

091

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

It's his vehicle mode in IDW. A reasonable approximation all things considered.

120

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

It's this, his vehicle mode in IDW.

000

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Prior to the current Skybound comic, the most influential TF comic around was written by a self-described "hard Left" socialist, whose views became the foundational philosophy of both Megatron and Optimus Prime. So if TF had some anti-left political bent in the 80s, I guess didn't work on him.

Orion Pax poses Megatron's "Three Questions" to the corrupt senate of Cybertron, based upon "Five Essential Questions of Democracy" by British politician Tony Benn.

Line-art: Alex Milne
Colors: Joana Lafuente
Letters: Shawn Lee
Script: James Roberts

From The Transformers vol. 1 #23, "Chaos Theory Part 2"

130

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

And this is what happened earlier during that battle:

Ultra Magnus confidently faces down the Decepticon Warriors Elite aboard the Decepticon warship Hell's Point, not realising Megatron is also present in gun mode.

Pencils: Agustin Padilla
Inks: José Avilés
Colors: Josh Burcham
Letters: Tom B. Long
Script: James Roberts

From The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye #16, "The Gloaming" page 1

000

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

He had a life-changing series of events that led him to hate himself. Optimus Prime engineered a situation where Megs renounced his own past views/faction in exchange for parole. Though Megatron doesn't believe he deserves forgiveness.

Autobot Megatron and the Decepticon Justice Division leader Tarn debate Megatron's recent change of heart and his destructive legacy.

Pencils: Alex Milne
Inks: Alex Milne, Marc Deering, Brian Shearer and Phyllis Novin
Colors: Josh Burcham with Josh Perez and Joana Lafuente
Letters: Tom B. Long
Script: James Roberts

From The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye #52, "The Dying of the Light Part 3: Your Fierce Tears"

000

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 07/04/2026

Are phaser rifles an exception? In First Contact they introduced rifles that fired energy bolts and beams. Why rifles? Most of the rifle props (including the TNG/DS9 one) had mock up sights to imply greater accuracy at range, and they had larger power cells for "ammo".

Props from Star Trek: First Contact. From top to bottom:

- EVA Phaser rifle
- Type 3 Phaser rifle
- Borg memory chip thing and type 2 Phaser
- Variant of the type 3 Phaser rifle

120

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

In the IDW comics there's another robot civil war (that's completely unrelated to the Autobots and Decepticons) that's been going on for 16 million years, and even the Autobots think that's absurd.

Page 7 from The Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye issue 22 "Little Victories". The Autobots Skids and Whirl encounter a group of green robots who refer to themselves as Ammonites. They quickly start comparing the dubious accomplishments of their respective races.

Art: James Raiz
Colors: Josh Burcham
Letters: Tom B. Long
Script: James Roberts

120

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

It's vaguely annoying that the only glimpses we have of ESD's interior are from Star Trek 3 and Star Trek Online.

020

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 21/02/2026

They talk about it here:

Page from The Transformers: Lost Light issue #8 "An Axe to Break the Ice"

Script: James Roberts
Line-art: Priscilla Tramontano
Colors: Joana Lafuente
Letters: Tom B. Long

Copyright Hasbro, 2017

100

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

Well, for what it's worth, the original Optimus Prime had flames back in 1995. His tanker trailer has a mural of him burning down a forest, too.

Photo of the 1995 Transformers Generation 2 toy "Laser Optimus Prime". Scan from the Transformers Generations guidebook.

Photo of the 2022 Transformers Legacy toy "Laser Optimus Prime".

010

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

*slides a copy of Yakuza 5 across the table*

Screen capture from the Sega video game Yakuza 5, depicting a humourous side quest involving a Lady Gaga parody named "Daddy Papa".

010

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 18/01/2026

At the time, I didn't realise that the way Trailbreaker died in IDW was mirrored in how Megatron would avenge his death later on. In retrospect, that makes the revenge more satisfying.

A furious Autobot Megatron rages against the evil Decepticon Justice Division, and in turn, his own legacy.

Line-art: Alex Milne

Colors: Joana Lafuente

Letters: Tom B. Long

Script: James Roberts

From The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye #55, "The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle"
© 2016 Hasbro.

030

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 11/01/2026

This isn't in your usual wheelhouse, but here's Epic Games CEO and bad takes sufferer Tim Sweeney (Fortnite) decrying moves against Twitter/Grok as "censorship".

@TimSweeneyEpic , CEO of Epic Games, reacting to news of US senators petitioning Apple and Google to remove the Twitter and Grok apps from their app stores. He describes it as a way to "censor all of their political opponents".

Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, says no AI companies are perfect, and to punish Twitter/Grok is to "selectively crush the one that's their political opponent's company is basic crony capitalism".

Sweeney also defends himself from a commenter by saying he defends "open platforms, free speech and the consistent application of the rule of law", not "the bad stuff people do with AI". But he "staunchly opposes the wrondgoing of a few from being used as a pretense to undermine freedom for all."

1180

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 10/01/2026

The flowers represent lives lost, and are placed around the statues of those who ordered it, sanctioned it or dealt the killing blow. Here's Megatron's, which was sobering enough for him to accept whatever fate or punishment was in store for him. Optimus was said to have similar numbers.

Autobot Megatron, faced with the enormity of his crimes, by being surrounded by a field of flowers representing the billions of his victims.

From The Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye #44 "The Not Knowing".
Line-art: Hayato Sakamoto
Colors: Joana Lafuente
Letters: Tom B. Long
Script: James Roberts

260

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 23/11/2025

Wasn't SS86 Ironhide a Voyager? In case you didn't know, Flatline/Red Alert (and the original Armada mold) turn into the venerable Y60 Nissan Patrol.

Official Nissan photo of the 1989 Y60 Nissan Patrol 4WD.

110

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 06/10/2025

@triggerredd.bsky.social This thread was about misconceptions re: the original Tanimura actor having to be recast, but I guess this is confirmation that "okama" (which I recall you and Sam talked about as a substitute word) is now considered offensive. I had heard rumblings about that at the time.

120

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

I'd love to get one, but all I've gotten lately is a promo ship box that doesn't have anything I am particularly interested in. I like that this has a phaser lance. I headcanon that the ship is a step below the prototype Yamato class battleship (from Klingon Academy), which had two assault phasers.

Yamato class battleship from the video game, Star Trek: Klingon Academy.

200

FFN @ffnbbq.bsky.social · 09/07/2025

The Yamato class was the other 2-hull, 4-nacelle TMP ship. It was originally designed for Klingon Academy, but first seen in Starfleet Command.

220