Toyfare Article Reveals Devastator, Fallen Info

Toyfare Magazine, issue 140 recently hit newsstands and it includes an interview with Transformers 2 producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, TF toy designer Aaron Archer and Hasbro Director of Marketing Greg Lombardo who discussed some of the toys and discussed some of the characters in the movie including Devastator and origin of The Fallen. The summary from TFW2005:

- Images of ROTF toys for Leader class Optimus Prime, Preview Bumblebee, Preview Soundwave, and the Voyager Class Starscream figure.
- Lorenzo believes the timeframe of ROTF is about one year after Movie #1.
- When asked about the challenge of creating Devastator on screen, Lorenzo mentions that Bay had the challenge in the first movie of having 30 foot robots. In the second movie, Bay has the challenge of having a robot almost four times that. Expect Devastator to be 100 to 120 feet tall in the movie.
- Archer said he couldn't give away the plot point, but there's a reason that Soundwave is designed the way he is for the movie. Hasbro had a more basic toy need. So, the two were blended together.
- Toy launch date confirmed as May 30th. A few weeks before, Bumblebee and Soundwave will be released.
- Characters mentioned in the initial wave are "Sideswipe, Sideways, Bulldozer, Voyager and many others". Promise of more off-screen characters.
- Robot Heroes will have better articulation
- Bumblebee helmet has voice mixer
- Bumblebee converting pulse cannon
- Big ticket deluxe item for the year is still "top-secret"
- Gravity Bots are geared towards younger kids. Convert automatically when you pick them up.
- A Megan Fox Human Alliance figure is on Archer's "wish list".
- The Fallen's origin confirmed: He is one of the original 13 Transformers. Lorenzo said to think of the 13 as "apostles". The Fallen is the one who turns and is the reason Transformers split into Autobots and Decepticons.

Based on the above, it is further confirmation of Devastator's appearance and the name of another Transformer (Sideways and maybe Bulldozer). Not sure what "Voyager" means, maybe the toy class but doubtful it is a character name. Even more interesting is apparent heavy reliance on Simon Furman's origin for Transformers that he has hinted at over the years (and will be doing a comic miniseries on later in the year) only here the Fallen is the point of origin for the Transformer civil war with the creation of the Decepticons.

Preview Soundwave A Triple-Changer

Action-Figure.com has posted pictures of the preview wave of Deluxe Soundwave and Bumblebee in their packages which includes a nice CGI image their heads. It turns out that the theory that Soundwave's alt mode is a satellite still lives to fight another day as the package indicates he is a triple-changer. Those wing flaps in his Cybertronian jet could easily become solar panels for a satellite. Hopefully the backside of the package will be leaked soon to verify the various theories about the character. Thanks to Phil for the links.

Official Bumblebee, Soundwave Toy Pics

Empire Magazine has posted a "first look" at the Deluxe toys for Soundwave and Bumblebee. The images are really nothing different then what we have already seen from leaked images. At least now though we do have official confirmation that at least initially Soundwave's alt mode is a Cybertronian jet. I also am assuming that these to toys are now confirmed for preview release ahead of the main wave as rumored otherwise why provide them to the press now versus other characters like Optimus Prime.

Deluxe Soundwave Alt Mode

TFW2005 has a link to several ebay auctions for Ransack, Depthcharge and Deluxe Soundwave. As part of the Soundwave auctions are the first pictures of a potential alt mode for the deluxe class Soundwave that I have seen. Apparently the alt mode could be a Cybertronian jet rather then a satellite or possibly this character could be like Starscream from the first movie where Hasbro released a pre-earth fall mode and then the earth jet mode. Another theory is he could simple be a triple-changer. Without the retail packaging, we really can't consider anything as confirmed so all theories remain valid. Looks pretty good though.

Deluxe Soundwave Picture

The Transformer 2 pictures keep coming from TF08.net. As part of their release of the Superion packaging, yizhi521 also posted an image of Deluxe Soundwave that is a better look at the toys then the previous image. Sadly nothing to verify his alt mode is a satellite. Thanks to Dan for the link.

Enhanced Transformers Revenge of the Fallen Poster

Thanks to Bilal, below is an enhanced version of the official poster for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen that reveals more details of the Tranformer face. Click image for larger size.


Below is a quick snapshot of the various candidate faces we have so far. The first is Jetfire who has a vertical lined "beard" that the poster face doesn't have. The second one is Soundwave, who comes pretty darn close except he has one eye and a "mouth" while the poster doesn't. However, the toys have to be "locked" nearly six months to a year ago to meet manufacturing deadlines while Michael Bay and company can make adjustments as they see fit. Also of note is how similar to the Decepticon logo the face is (something Soundwave shares). It’s possible that a story point, supported by Alliance #4 Defiance #1 prequel cover is that "The Fallen" rather then Megatron is the creator of the Decepticons.


Update: At this point, I am going to assume the image in the poster is The Fallen until get evidence to the contrary. I could write out a long explanation but TheHDRoom already did it so why re-invent the wheel.

Voyager (or Deluxe) Class Soundwave, Bumblebee Picture

Thanks to Phil, below is a shot from what I believe is the Voyager class (around $20) Bumblebee and Soundwave from Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The main reason thinking Voyager class is the box size and generally (but not always) Hasbro puts images of the other toys of the same class on one side of the box. While the image is a little blurry, it definitely looks like Soundwave's alt mode is indeed a satellite with what appears to be folded panels behind his back and arms. Or airplane wings. Either way the grey and blue figure hints at some potential.

Empire, USA Today TF2 Articles (Updated)

As promised, articles are now online from USA Today and Empire magazine about Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. USA Today's articles (here and here) have no pictures and provides less spoiler information and more confirmation of a few rumors that have leaked over the few months. Empire Online teases their magazine article while providing the dynamic but spoiler free images in this post. To summarize:

- As a picture below shows, confirmation that Shia's hand injury was written into the movie.
- Story plot is for the Decepticons to capture Sam due to information he "learned about the origins of the Transformers and their ancient history of Earth."
- To counter Decepticon goes, "the US military and an international coalition has united with the good-guy Autobots." (This explains Matthew Marsden's role in the movie).
- Decepticon Soundwave is the "fearsome communications expert." (Nothing about alt mode).
- "...Devastator, whose arms and legs are built out of other Transformers." (This appears to confirm the gestalt rumor, but no details on how many TFs it takes to form him)
- "...Jetfire, a villain whose age and broken-down physicality leads him to help the Autobots." (Verifies that he will follow the G1 arc of joining the good guys and that he will likely have a crutch of sorts).
- New Mexico filming was for a plot point about running from "ancient temple while villainous Decepticons stomp and crush their way through a village in pursuit" and into a "line of tanks and soldiers blasting guns at the giant robots above and behind them."
- "Not that we don't trust (special effects coordinator James D.) Schwalm and the boys," he adds. "But even an eyelash flying at you at 700 miles an hour will cut you. You're running past them, and your clearance is only about 10 feet. These dudes are moving, and if one trips or falls and we run into the muzzle of a blank, that could blow your chest open or burn you."
- "The U.S. Department of Defense gave its official stamp of approval to the Michael Bay-directed film, not only allowing production amid the pristine dunes of the Army's New Mexico [White Sands] missile range, but also letting filmmakers follow jets and fighter planes through the sky from nearby Holloman Air Force Base. More scenes were shot on the Navy's aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis, and Marines fill the ranks of the strike team battling the invading Transformers."
- "The film's Army liaison, Lt. Col. Gregory Bishop, notes: "As far as I know, this is the biggest joint military operation movie ever made, in terms of Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines. I can't think of one that's bigger."
- "Among the equipment the movie is using in this desert sequence alone: two A-10 Thunderbolt II "Warthog" tank-killing jets; six F-16 Fighting Falcons; 10 armored Humvees; the Army's Golden Knights parachute team; two Abrams tanks; two Bradley tanks; two missile-launcher vehicles; two armored personnel carriers; and a quarter-mile of the missile testing range, cleared of unexploded ordnance and built into an Egyptian town and temple. (Signs warn not to cross a perimeter just over the gypsum dunes, because live bombs could be hidden in the sand.)"
- Off-duty enlisted where used as pay extra for many scenes shot with the military's assistance.
- "The final battle the military is helping Bay create is supposed to be an enormous firefight in Egypt, but much of it is being shot in the White Sands dunes in a town built over the roughly quarter-mile cleared span."
- "After completing work in New Mexico, the cast and crew moved to Giza for scenes at the actual pyramids, getting first-time access to the 5,000-year-old site from the Egyptian government. "It plays a big plot point," Bay says, noting that they were allowed to shoot on the pyramids — not just around them."
- "The studio has to reimburse the U.S. Treasury for live munitions and other requests for troops or equipment that unit commanders don't consider to be valid battle simulation or part of military training, Bishop says."
- "During this shoot, an F-22 Raptor [Starscream] roars by like a mechanical arrowhead, blasting the earth with the banshee scream of its engines. It circles the set dozens of times before heading off to complete its scheduled training."

Overall not as much information as hoped. Hopefully once the Empire Magazine hits newsstands (not sure when) that will provide more details and context for the below pictures. Thanks to Rich and April for the links.



Update: USA Today has posted a six picture photo gallery (3 above, 3 new below) related to their articles. The Optimus Prime picture is the same as the Empire image just without all the text to covering it.

More Soundwave, New Bumblebee Pics

The apparently unending stream of Soundwave pictures continues. At least they are probably the best yet of the potential Transformers 2 toy. The left is yet another proposed configuration of the possible satellite mode for the character. The full gallery is here.

In addition TF08.net via TFW2005 have a few new pictures of what is reported to be the revised Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen toy for Bumblebee. The main differences are slight remold of the head and bumper with a new weapon design. The below picture is a side by side comparison of the figures with TF2 Bumblebee on the left and TF1 version on the right. Thanks to Jacf352 for the link.

Soundwave Video Review

From TFW2005, a video review (with short update) of the possible Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Soundwave toy. The toy has not yet been verified to be part of the line but its style suggests it could be. The reviewer starts in the "satellite" mode but I am partial to the Cybertronian jet mode. The figure size and construction suggest it’s in the Deluxe ($9.99) price point range.

More Soundwave Toy Pics (Updated)

More pictures of the TF2 Soundwave toy have popped up. They are the clearest yet but still don't provide confirmation as to whether this toy is part of the movie line and therefore a potential version of Soundwave in the movie but still indicates the alt mode is a Cybertronian jet. How many more pictures can there be of this toy?

Update: Well turns out that, yep, there can be more pictures of this toy. Two more thanks to links provided by Snortpocket.


Update 2: It seems the pictures just don't stop. How many of these are there out there now? From TFW2005, more pictures of Soundwave. Below is a great closeup of his head and one potential alt mode of the figure but more pictures can be found here.

TF2 Soundwave Toy Pictures? (Updated)

From TF08.net's "yizhi521", via TF2005.com are the below pictures of what could be a toy for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The current theory is this is an image of Soundwave based on the three wings that look vaguely like satellite panels, which is the current rumored alt mode for the character. Thanks to Simbatron for the heads-up.


Update: Two more pictures have popped-up. Still as blurry as the rest.


Update 2: Another pic has popped up. Still blurry but a better look at the head which almost looks like a re-colored Optimus Prime head to me.

Soundwave and Ravage Movie Concept Art?

From TFW2005 is the possible concept art for Soundwave and Ravage. The artwork (link below) is pretty slick but I think it's fake mainly because Roberto Orci already said that Soundwave's alt mode is not a truck (he didn't comment on the satellite mode). Besides I think the misspelling of "satelitte" is a big hint.

Thanks to Michael for the link.

Even More TF Rumors

IO9.com collected the various new rumors that have popped up over the last couple of days and then provided a few new ones of their own. Usual disclaimers about this applies.

Meanwhile, a guy who knows a guy has a buttload of spoilers. Apparently Soundwave is black, and does not have an Earth mode. (So not only is he not a pick-up truck, he's nothing at all, in Earth terms.) And the Decepticons mention Soundwave during their discussions.

The Constructicons join together to form Devastator more than once. Jetfire starts off as a Destructicon and then changes sides. Also, John Turturro's character dies at last. Optimus Prime "has a scene with a trailer." And Ravage is actually a biological weapon, and there's no Laserbeak. The ice cream truck, the Chevy Volt, and the Hummer HX are not Transformers. And Megatron doesn't return (possibly as a tank) until the end of the movie — when Soundwave resurrects him.

My two cents again. Soundwave as a satellite supports the notion of a black non-Earth mode. I wouldn't mind satellite to robot toy but I am betting that Hasbro would be far less enthused by the idea since kids tend to like their toys to do a touch more in the alt mode. Jetfire changing sides fits the character historically and the idea has been since the character was first determined to be in the movie.

John Turturro dying rumor has been coming around lately. Might be something to it. Nothing like killing a core character (but not too major) to drive home the seriousness of a situation. Optimus "has a scene with a trailer" sounds like a joke similar to the beetle sitting next to Bumblebee in the parking lot from the first movie.

The ice cream truck and Volt not being TFs, sure that could be true but that doesn't really explain why those two vehicle has been seen at multiple sites and traveling with the Autobots rather frequently. The Hummer on the other hand seems to have only been at Bethlehem and suggests it was involved with that one sequence which means it a) died or b) was a human vehicle only.

As for Megatron's resurrection, are they really going to hold Megs back to the very end again? If they where setting up for the third film that would be fine but Bay and the writers have been very adamant with the press that they are not doing that. The bit about the Fallen, sure why not. Currently there is absolutely nothing to support or contradict the idea. More then likely though, due to simple budget constraints, I am guessing the Fallen is a single character. Otherwise you have three groups of robots (Autobots, Decepticons, Fallen army) to CGI which can be mighty expensive once those groups come together.

While I am at it, here are more rumors posted from comments on another post.

Hello.

I can confirm some of these rumors as an employee of Dreamworks.

Jetfire is confirmed. He will be hurt and he will use a landing gear-which is NOT computer generated-as his crutch, however it is very unlikely that he will combine with Prime.

Soundwave's alt mode is a satellite, I'm not so sure about Bay's plans for a truck.

Scorpinok WILL return and there will be hell to pay :)

Three bikes will combine for Arcee.

The Chevy Trax is NOT Cliffjumper. This car is the RED car that people have been commenting about. The Trax is one of the "twins"... it's twin is the GREEN Chevy Beat (Skids).

I hope I have helped a little, I'm not sure what has already been posted on this website since I ran across it by accident.

Also, let me state that everything that has been "confirmed" by any source can change at the drop of a hat. Bay can have a vision of one thing one day and dream up something completely crazy the next. An on-going motto on any Michael Bay set is "It's Bay, you never know". I promise though, you won't be disappointed!

A damaged Jetfire using landing gear as a crutch is new and actually a pretty interesting idea visually and a good way to mitigate his potential strength (which, based on TF1, seem to be proportionate to size). If take the comment at face value this would be the third source to say Soundwave is a satellite (which does fit the character), further confirms Scorponok's return (given), continues the Arcee rumor (my favorite theory) and first to "confirm" who the twins might be.

It will be interesting to revisit these anonymous rumor posts once its all said and done to find out which was real and which was simple misinformation. Regardless, it adds to the fun.

More Movie "Leaks"

Siebertron.com's own TF insider provided the site with more information about the movie. Much like with TFW's source, I remain skeptical but the ideas still seem pretty cool (and sometimes a bit farfetched).

- As mentioned before, Soundwave's alternate mode is a satellite. Our source, however, cannot personally confirm the other reported rumor of Soundwave also turning into a pickup truck.
- Our source confirms the recently reported rumour that Optimus Prime will combine with Jetfire.
- Ravage uses biological warfare against the humans.
- Jetfire can create wormholes.
- Scorpinok will return.
- Our source does not know if the three "Arcee" motorbikes seen in the Wal-Mart exclusive video combine to form Arcee or not - but our source does tell us that the Arcee bikes have not been on set for months, leading to speculation that the character may die early on in the film.

To add my two cents in order:
- Soundwave's alt mode remains speculative but this is the second source to say his mode is a satellite. The pickup truck mode has been debunked by Transformers writer Roberto Orci.
- I know combining is a theme right now with the rumors but this combo just strikes me as strange. I am hoping this one is false. Optimus Prime shouldn't need assistance of that order to get the job done. His strength, tactical knowledge and leadership skills should be enough.
- Assuming that Ravage is the same creature we saw from Princeton, the attack seems physical. A biological attack, by its very nature, doesn't require direct confrontation, it is a distance offensive attack that doesn't lend itself to action packed Transformers sequences that Bay (and us) favors. Possible but why bother.
- Transformers and special powers is great for a cartoon series, but when the stated goal was to be realistic as possible (hence no mass shifting, complicated moving parts for Transformations, etc), then giving a Transformer the ability to create wormholes seems to negate that goal. Besides, if he could create wormholes then it would make it real easy to kill (or move) all enemies out of the field of battle, which again is counter to action packed TF sequences. Again possible but why bother. Jetfire is big, he flys, he is strong, just using that to make things go boom and beat up on Decepticons.
- Scorponok's return is pretty much a given to me considering his survival in the first film and the return of desert sequences in the second. It’s almost like this piece of information was added to make the rest seem legitimate.

Long story short, I take most of the information with a grain of salt. As usual time will tell. Feel free to add your view in the comments, please keep it civil and insult free.

Soundwave's Alt Mode Revealed?

TFW2005 and Siebertron.com said they received information from trusted sources that provides the alt mode of fan favorite Soundwave.

The TFW TF2 Insider brings us more news about Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. This time we can exclusively reveal both alternate modes for Soundwave. He will appear in a Cybertron mode, which will turn into a satellite, and he will also appear in an Earth mode - this will be a pickup truck.

Siebertron didn't provide the pick up info but they said they where told about the satellite mode also. I have my doubts but as usual time will tell. Thanks to Rich for the heads up.

Orci: Soundwave in Transformers II

IGN is reporting that Roberto Orci, one of the writers on Transformers 2, has verified that fan favorite Soundwave will be in the movie. Orci remained mum on details such as what form he will take, the role in the story, and whether Ravage (rather then asking about Laserbeak for some reason) will show up.

From the interview:

Q: What's the status of Transformers 2?
ORCI: That starts shooting in three weeks.

Q: What do you want to do that builds from the first one?
ORCI: We want to follow some of our lead characters which we thought were so successful. Shia's character; where is he two years later? His girlfriend, where is she two years later? But for fans, I guess I'll address this more for the fans, because I think if you didn't know Transformers at all and you came in and you liked the first movie, you'll like the second one. However, some of the die hard fans, which we were a member of that group, felt, well, maybe it's a little light. Maybe it wasn't science fictiony enough. And I think the second one will deliver on a true Transformers story. You know, the first one, we had a limited budget for what it was. Every second of Transformer time is a million dollars or whatever the heck it is, so this time, because we were able to prove through the whole thing that it's a viable live-action movie, we have a little more freedom this time to actually learn about the Transformers, see them, hear them. It's a better balance between the humans and the Transformers.

Q: Is there one particular Transformer, good or bad, that you absolutely had to get into the sequel?
ORCI: Yes.

Q: You're not gonna tell us.
ORCI: I'll tell you. We had to get Soundwave in there.

Q: Nice. Where Soundwave goes, will Ravage follow?
ORCI: Perhaps! Who's Ravage? ... I'm kidding! You know, we had Ravage in an early draft of the first movie and Soundwave, and we couldn't do it right and I think this time hopefully we'll have the ability to do it.

Shockwave and Soundwave Movie Style Mock-Ups

TFormers.com has posted two images for the heads of Soundwave and Shockwave, supposedly for Transformers 2. The site and I thinks its more likely a fan mock up since there isn't even a script for the film but darned if they don't look good. Its a fantastic mix of the movie style with the G1 look many know and love.