TRANSFORMERS TOYS
SUB-LINES
(Official Transformers, but not the main line.)
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Mighty Muggs Transformers
Take an idea that works nicely at 2" high, blow it up into a 6" tall toy with
the same Lego-figure articulation and lack of detail, and you get a line I
won't spend money on. I haven't been impressed by the existing Mighty Muggs,
and I'm not impressed by these. But I'll still list 'em for those what
care.
---WAVE 3: Mixed G1/Movie assortment, with G1 Shockwave and Jazz, RotF
Optimus Prime and Bumblebee. Quality control on the paint applications is
reportedly dodgy even for Hasbro. 12/5/09: TRU in Torrance CA, Hawthorne
CA.
Marvel Transformers
We've had plenty of Marvel Megamorph toys over the years, but never
Transformers™ of Marvel characters. That changes in 2008! Only one
size class to start with, a $15 size comparable to Star Wars TF Standard.
Part of the new "Transformers Crossovers" imprint.
---WAVE 5: Hulk (Bulldozer), Spider-Man (racecar), Wolverine (X-Force
redeco in black and gray). 1/5/09: At BBTS.com and at least one
Walmart (not a sighting sent to me, so missing info). 1/23: Target in
Muncie IN. 2/13: Walmart in Junction City KS (Spider-Man only, although it
may be wave 6 given that the cosells include the Thing redeco of the
bulldozer). 2/14: Walmart in Manhattan KS. Hulk's co-sells show Punisher as
a retool of Captain America, so I suspect the co-sells were done before the
actual shipping waves were decided on. 2/27: Walmart in Topeka KS. 3/18:
Target in Salina KS.
---WAVE 6: Black Costume Spider-Man (racecar redeco), Iron Man
(sportscar, new mold). Probably some reships. 6/17/10: Target in Muncie
IN. 7/31: Walmart in Junction City KS. 8/28: Walmart in Topeka KS.
---IRON MAN 2 WAVE: The new sportscar Iron Man, the old fighter jet
Iron Man (possibly a slight deco tweak), the combiner Iron Man redecoed as
War Machine and sold alone, plus a remold of Captain America (new head,
removed chainmail pattern, replace shield with gun), all shipping with Iron
Man 2 packaging. 7/24/10: K-Mart in Topeka KS. $15.99 each. 7/28:
Target in Manhattan KS. 7/30: Target in Muncie IN. 8/1: Target in Manhattan
Beach CA, Redondo Beach CA. 8/28: Walmart in Topeka KS.
Star Wars Transformers
The second major brand
extension of Transformers (Animorphs being the first), these are mostly at
the $15 price point. They used to come with Diaclone-like pilot figures, but
those were dropped when the move was made to the new "Crossovers" packaging.
---STANDARD WAVE C9: Anakin Skywalker (Twilight, the ship from the
Clone Wars cartoon) with R2-D2, Y-Wing Pilot (Clone Wars version Y-Wing, not
A New Hope version), plus reships. Anakin doesn't look very good, but I like
the Y-Wing Pilot. 2/17/10: Target in Muncie IN. 2/27: Target in
Topeka KS. (Oddly, one rang up as $16.09 and the other as $14.99.) 3/18:
Target in Salina KS (Twilight only). 5/21: Target in Manhattan KS; Walmart
in Topeka KS. 5/24: Walmart in Green Bay WI.
---STANDARD WAVE C10: Not sure if this is the exact assortment, but
it's all stuff that showed up new on HasbroToyShop.com in early April: Anakin
Skywalker (Y-Wing head swap), Cad Bane (Magna Guard Starfighter with a head
swap redecoed as the Xanadu Blood), Obi Wan Kenobi (yet another head-swapped
Episode 2 starfighter, although it looks like they may have left out the
hyperdrive ring this time). 4/7/10: On HTS.com for immediate delivery.
---STANDARD WAVE C11: Yoda (Republic Shuttle, new mold and not the
Imperial Shuttle with a wing chopped off), Captain Rex (Freeco Speeder) and
the usual padding of reissues. Packaging changes again this time, to a
mostly blue and black cardback, a bit flimsier than the previous wave.
6/30/10: Available at Toysrus.com for $14.99. 7/1: TRU in Burbank CA.
7/15: TRU in Muncie IN. 7/24: TRU in Topeka KS. 8/1: Target in Manhattan
Beach CA, Redondo Beach CA.
---STANDARD WAVE C12: 8/2/10: The TX-130 Fighter Tank/Clone
Trooper has been spotted at Target in Pasadena CA. This is officially
the second wave of the fiscal year, padded out with reships in the new
packaging, including Cad Bane/Xanadu Blood (he has no hat, so it must have
been a bad plan), Turbo Tank/Commander Cody, Jedi Starfighter/Obi Wan. 8/3:
Target in Manhattan KS, price back up to $16.99. 8/13: Walmart in Manhattan
KS. Review is now up. 8/14: Target in Mt. Kisco NY. 8/21: Walmart in
Portland IN. 8/28: Walmart and TRU in Topeka KS.
STORE EXCLUSIVES
Pretty much what the header says. Toys that are only being sold through one
store, or maybe a couple of stores owned by the same holding company. I'm
not going to bother with bonus packs anymore unless the bonus is something
new (like the Classics Mini-Cons packed with Primus). If it's a movie
toyline thing, odds are it'll be on the movie page instead. This section
will just be for stuff that's not obviously part of some other line, like
exclusive movie toys (which will be on the movie page) or exclusive TF:A.
---BBTS EXCLUSIVE SEACONS: A gift set of the G1 Seacons in new colors
is being released through bigbadtoystore.com as an exclusive. Unknown at
this time whether this is the only version that will be available, or if a
brick and mortar like TRU will get a color variant exclusive.
---TRU EXCLUSIVE MASTERPIECE GRIMLOCK: Big Grim, finally released in
America, through Toys R Us. $69.99. 8/4: Torrance CA. 8/11:
Hawthorne CA. 8/16: Cross County Plaza NY. 8/19: Muncie IN. 8/25: Culver
City CA.
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MAIN LINES
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The Movies
Due to the huge amount of Movie-specific product, this gets
a separate sightings page. Updated:
9/2/10.
Power Core Combiners
A small interval line, these feature Scout-sized core
figures and smaller vehicles that either become limbs or are four-form
Mini-Cons (robot, vehicle weapon, robot weapon, armor). Deluxe sets (called
Commander Class) are Scout and quad-Mini, Voyagers are Scout and four
limbs.
DELUXE
---WAVE 1: Huffer (semitractor) with Caliburst (artillery
emplacement), Searchlight (helicopter) with Backwind (hook truck thing),
Smolder (firetruck) with Chopster (combat jet). Smolder is the lone
Decepticon in the set, and the first Decepticon fire truck. 6/29/10: TRU
in Cross County Plaza NY. 6/30: On toysrus.com for $9.99. TRU in
Torrance CA, Danbury CT, Waterbury CT, Whitestone Bridge NY. 7/1: TRU in
Burbank CA. 7/5: TRU in Hawthorne CA. 7/12: K-Mart in Torrance CA. 7/15:
TRU in Muncie IN; K-Mart in Manhattan KS ($10.99). 7/19: K-Mart and TRU in
Bloomington IL; TRU in Peoria IL. 7/24: K-Mart in Topeka KS. 7/28: Target
in Manhattan KS. 7/30: Target in Muncie IN. 8/1: Target in Decatur IL.
8/14: Walmart in Decatur IL. 8/21: Walmart in Junction City KS. 8/24:
Walmart in Manhattan KS. 8/28: Walmart, TRU and Target in Topeka KS.
---WAVE 2: Icepick with Chainclaw, Leadfoot with Pinpoint, Sledge with
Throttler. A running change will put all six Commander Class to date in one
shipment. 8/5/10: Walmart in Torrance CA. 8/14: Walmart in Decatur
IL.
---BEYOND: Redecos with mix and match coming, mostly putting
Commanders in Combiners and vice versa and mixing up the Mini-Cons and
drones. Windburn with Darkgrey (Searchlight with Caliburst), Steelshot with
Beacon (Bombshock with Backwind), Darkstream with Razorbeam (Skyburst with
Chopster).
VOYAGER
---WAVE 1: Aerialbots team (Skyburst) and Combaticons team
(Bombshock). 6/30/10: Aerialbots set available on Toysrus.com. No
Combaticons listed, though. Both sets at TRU in Torrance CA, Whitestone
Bridge NY. 7/5: TRU in Hawthorne CA. 7/12: Target in Torrance CA, South
Carson CA; K-Mart in Torrance CA, Carson CA. 7/15: K-Mart in Manhattan KS
($21.99). 7/19: K-Mart in Decatur IL. 7/21: TRU in Muncie IN. 7/24: K-Mart
and TRU in Topeka KS. 7/28: Target in Topeka KS. 7/30: Target in Muncie
IN. 8/14: Walmart in Decatur IL. 8/24: Walmart in Manhattan KS. 8/28:
K-Mart in Topeka KS.
---WAVE 2: Double Clutch with Rallybots and Mudslinger with
Destructicons. It looks like the first release of these is a mixed case with
wave 1. 7/28/10: Target in Manhattan KS. 8/1: Target in Manhattan
Beach CA, Redondo Beach CA. 8/14: Walmart in Decatur IL. 8/20: Walmart in
Manhattan KS. 8/21: Walmart in Muncie IN, Junction City KS. 8/23: Walmart
in Clemson SC. 8/28: Walmart in Topeka KS.
---BEYOND: More mix and match stuff. Protectobots with Stakeout
(white Smolder with redecos of the halftrack and AA tank from Bombshock, and
the rescue helicopter and F-15 from Skyburst), Destrons with Crankcase (black
Huffer with redecos of the remaining Aerialbot and Combaticon drones).
Huffer/Crankcase's combiner head looks like Menasor's, and this team does
seem intended to be a Menasor homage, although they decided to try a second
time on the Stunticons and that name will show up later (using Rallybot
redecos, presumably).
Generations
The "stuff that's not in the main line" line, replacing Universe. It will
include both the usual previous-generation homages and a few distinct
sub-lines such as the War for Cybertron game toys. All War for Cybertron
toys will be Deluxes, and it's possible we won't see any other size class in
this line.
DELUXE
---WAVE 1: WfC Optimus Prime (armored truck), WfC Bumblebee (like a
4-wheeled Tron bike), Drift (sports car, character from the IDW comic),
Thrust (Classic Starscream remold). 6/15/10: Copies are floating around, but
I haven't heard any major retailer sightings. 6/23: TRU in Rockville
MD! $11.99 shelf price. 6/24: TRU in Fayetteville NC, White Plains NY.
Odds are good most TRUs will have 'em. 6/25: To wit, TRU in El Paso TX.
6/27: Torrance CA, Culver City CA. 6/30: Toysrus.com lists the WfC figures
but has them out of stock, and doesn't list the other two at all anymore,
having sold out days ago. TRU in Torrance CA (just the WfC's spotted),
Whitestone Bridge NY (all four). 7/1: TRU in Monrovia CA, Burnank CA. 7/3:
TRU in Muncie IN. 7/5: TRU in Hawthorne CA (WfC only). 7/21: TRU in
Torrance CA (all four). 8/1: Target in Manhattan KS, San Pedro CA, Redondo
Beach CA. 8/9: Target in North Dartmouth MA. 8/21: Walmart in Junction City
KS. 8/23: Walmart in Clemson SC. 8/28: Walmart, TRU and Target in Topeka
KS.
---WAVE 2: If BBTS is to be believed, the second assortment will keep
the two WfC toys and swap in Darkmount (Straxus from the Marvel G1 comic, as
a halftrack) and WfC Megatron (hovertank-ish thing).
---WAVE 3: Again going by BBTS on this, and looking so far out gets a
bit dubious. Repeats of Drift, Darkmount, WfC Bumblebee, WfC Megatron all
one to a case, plus WfC Soundwave (combat car) and Red Alert (Classics
Sideswipe with a lightbar, not the same as the Henkei mold) two to a case.
TF Animated
As of mid-2010 there's still unreleased but complete molds,
the disposition of which remains...uncertain. It's possible we'll see these
as store exclusives, or maybe rebranded under the Generations line.
DELUXE
---WAVE 8: Rodimus Minor (sports car) and Cybertron Ironhide (headswap
on Cybertron Ratchet), plus likely reships (the co-sell on the package can't
really be trusted, though). 8/4/10: TRU in Torrance CA. 8/11: TRU in
Hawthorne CA. 8/20: TRU in Cross County NY. Starting to look like these
might be TRU exclusives, and they ship with more or Arcee and Cybertronian
Ratchet in some cases.
VOYAGER
---UNKNOWN: A few unreleased molds are out there, such as Golfire
Grimlock (redeco) or a deluxe Bumblebee priced-up by the addition of a
submarine rig that turns into armor for the robot mode. Odds are they'll all
come out eventually. Thundercracker (Starscream redeco) has been spotted in
package (pre-release) with cosells of Mudbuster Bulkhead (minor redeco) and
Wingblade Optimus Prime (heavily modified Deluxe Optimus Prime with lots of
accessories in the spirit of the Bumblesub, comes with an appropriately sized
version of the Magnus Hammer).
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OTHER STUFF
Note: I will be less detailed about sightings on this side.
OTHER TF STUFF
(TF-themed but probably not transforming)
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MEDICAL: Icepacks in the shapes of Optimus Prime's and Bumblebee's
heads from TF:A, meant for treating injuries. 1/29/09: $4.88 at Wal-Mart
(you may have to look around a bit, I found some in the clearance aisle but
not on clearance). 2/21: TF:A Band-Aids™ for $1.88 at Walmart.
TF:A DINING SET: Cup with Optimus Prime, bowl with Bumblebee, plate
with Optimus Prime. Box set for $7.99 in little kid sizes. The bowl is
generally flatter than the one from the TF:Movie set, and the cup is clear
blue plastic rather than clear colorless. 11/14/08: Found at Target mixed in
with leftover TF:Movie dining sets. 8/13/09: Individual elements (plate,
bow, cup, plus covered cups) are available at Hy-Vee.
GAMES: 6/23/10: Transformers: War for Cybertron is out on multiple
platforms, to good critical reception.
CLOTHING: 6/23/10: Transformers kid-clothes have become pretty
standard now, I won't list things here unless they're notable in some way.
BOOKS: 3/5/10: Amazon has the AllSpark Almanac II on pre-order, and
what looks to be a TF:A sequel book of some sort (but there's no details up
at the moment). 6/23: Transformers: Exodus is out. It's a hardcover novel
that sets up the new official non-movie continuity. In theory, everything
not related to the movies that comes out from now on in Transformers
(including the War for Cybertron game and the upcoming Transformers: Prime
cartoon) will follow this canon. $30 shelf price, cheaper most online
sources, but not available as an eBook last I checked. Well, not LEGALLY.
CD/DVD: 1/12/10: The second half of G1 Season 2 DVD set is out now.
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NON-TF STUFF
(Things a TF fan might be interested in.)
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BIG LOTS KNOCKOFFS: Big Lots is getting their next assortment of
knockoffs and cheapo transforming robots out. 8/28/10: In addition to the
usual (insects, crappy dinos, knockoff G1 combiner teams, etc) they've added
a few more $10 sets, none of which I felt the need to buy. The "Transform
Vehicle King TK" line has pretty big robots that turn into various quarter
miler race cars (non-realistic), and I think they're supposed to have
pull-back motors. Fire Chariot (motorcycle) and Speed Chariot (car) are
Voyager sized and, well, suck.
ANDROIDZ: From Toy Quest, free-rolling robots that come separately or
with various track sets. There's also an "enter the code on the toy" online
game I haven't tried. The articulation is basically swivel shoulders and
hinges to let the arms lift to the sides...the arms are swappable, but I
don't think this is an intentional play pattern. 8/28/10: Toys R Us has
gotten what looks to be the entire line.
HERO FACTORY: This is what Lego is replacing Bionicle with. Pretty
much the same basic aesthetic and a lot of the same parts, but a new
storyline. The $8 price point is the heroes, who have about the same level
of detail and articulation as the original Toa (or the Stars line that ended
Bionicle...same shape and size of can, too). Six of them mostly differing in
helmets, weapons and colors, as usual. The token female this time is green,
Natalie Breez. $13 price point for four villains with more of a
Barraki-level of detail and variation. 7/19/10: TRU has had the $8 cans for
about a month, today I found the $13 villains at Walmart. 7/24: TRU now has
the whole line (two villains at $20, hero vehicles at the higher price
points). 7/28: Target and K-Mart now also have the full line, probably
Walmart too.
T3 SOLAR ROBOT: These are solar-powered toys that claim on the box to
be "transforming robots", but they're really kits that can be rebuilt into
multiple forms (i.e. robot/tank/scorpion) using mostly the same parts. They
walk or roll along as relevant to the way they've been put together. 7/3/10:
$19.99 at Hastings. I passed.
IMAGINEXT ROBOT POLICE: Fisher-Price's sci-fi-themed subline in
Imaginext has added a bunch of new robots. They don't transform, but they
are designed to look like they would in-story. The $6.99 sets have a human
(cop or criminal) figure with the obligatory armor harness and chunky weapon,
and a robot slightly taller than the human. Each robot has some action
feature, like spinning rotors or clamping jaws. There's four Police sets
(tugboat, submarine, jet and ATV morph robots) and two Robot Villain sets
(helicopter and satellite). Definitely worth pursuing if you have old Go Go
Gobots that want new friends and rivals. Larger sets will include big mecha
suits and the inevitable playset. Each of the $6.99 sets comes with a
different game on CDROM, but since it's PC-only I likely won't be bothering
to play mine. 6/10/10: $6.99 sets have hit Target's endcap displays.
MATCHBOX HERO POP-UPS: These are six-wheeled trucks (dumptruck,
garbage truck, possible others) that have the front end rear up to make a
sort of robot mode. The $15 size does so at the push of a button, with light
and sound accompanying it. The $20 size appears to need manual
"transformation" but has more light and sound gimmicks. The cabs are not
cartoony or made to look like faces, so the robots are fairly non-human.
2/27/10: Spotted at Walmart.
WALGREENS STUFF: 8/26/10: M.A.R.S. Converters Cybotronix is a line of
9" tall robots with Scout-complexity to them that turn into various ground
vehicles. They have techspecs, sorta (Speed, Power, Skill, Defence and
Intelligence bars, but no numbers) and individual names. $9.99 each. I got
Valve Charger (red 50s muscle car) and saw but passed on Accelerator (silver
sportscar) and Drifter (blue convertible). Also on the cosell are Earthmover
(yellow bulldozer), Bio-mixer (blue cement mixer) and Spot Explorer (tan and
brown SUV or pickup truck, vehicle mode isn't shown). All three I saw in
person clearly had the same transformation. The one I got is pretty floppy
in robot mode, with the roof panel not really locking anywhere, but it has a
higher quality feel to it than I was expecting. His vehicle mode is 7.5"
long and reasonably sturdy, if hollow-feeling. Undocumented feature: the
headlights extend as chest cannons. 8/28: I picked up Drifter after seeing
that it had a significantly different transformation, but it doesn't hold
together as well in vehicle mode, and the shoulder joints seem designed to
fall apart. Meh.
BAKUGAN COMBINER: A TRU exclusive, with seven existing Bakugans
(including regulars, specials and traps) that connect via their magnets into
something resembling a large beast. May involve some mold re-engineering.
$39.99, sounds massively overpriced to me. 8/30/09: Hawthorne CA.
9/18: There's a second combiner, made from new Trap units, called the Bakugan
Maxus Dragonoid. It is reportedly total scalperbait, though. TRU in
Hawthorne CA had some, but they're probably already on eBay. 10/4:
Target.com has the Maxus for $39.99 online-only. 10/9: Walmart now carrying
Maxus in store for $34. The Maxus holds together with pegs, not magnets.
FOOTBALL ROBOTS: "Cleatus" the 10" tall Fox Sports robot has popped
back up at K-Mart for $19.99. 9/26/09: ProBots has a line of football robots
licensing the likenesses of various players. The 10" versions are $20 and
feature a Power Rangers-style head-flip that swaps between robotic helmet and
player's face. The general aesthetic is somewhat Gundamy, and they use
magnets to hold the football in the robot's hand. I wasn't impressed enough
to drop $20, though. The assortment includes Romo, Eli Manning, Brady and
ROFLs...er, Roethlisberger. There's also a 6" line listed as a co-sell, but
I haven't seen those in the store yet. 10/31: Spotted the 6" assortment at
TRU for $11.99, grabbed ROFLsburger. Er, Roethlisberger. Comments once I
actually open it. 11/3: Eh, not really worth $12. The jointing is a bit
loose, the magnet in the forearm that's supposed to hold the football isn't
all that strong, and the head-flip gimmick comes out of true pretty easily.
BATTLE MACHINES: From Jada, a licensor that had a piece of the classic
Speed Racer market last year, this is a $3 price point 1:64 car set of armed
and armored regular vehicles, a la Deathrace or Car Wars. Each model has two
color schemes (with slight mold variations in some cases). Neither of the 69
Camaro versions is yellow, though, and there's nothing really close to
Frankenstein's Monster from the recent Deathrace movie (I've got a Matchbox
of the base vehicle sitting around waiting to be kitbashed, though). A
little more cruddy chrome than I'd like, but looked good enough for me to
pick up a couple. 8/20/09: Walmart is carrying these, at least. 9/19:
There's 1:32 versions at the $5 price point, and 1:24 at $12-13. 10/25: A
pair of roughly 1:24 remote control Battle Machines sells together for $45.
MARVEL UNIVERSE MEGA BLOKS: Another series of these has started
showing up, with Wolverine, Spider-Man and Iron Man in the assortment.
7/11/09: Spotted Wolverine at TRU, passed on it. I might get Iron Man
if I see it, but at $15 I'm rather reluctant. 8/20: I have heard that Mega
Bloks brand is teetering on the edge of bankrupcy, so we may never see the
rest of this line or the Neo Machines.
LEGO: 12/22/09: Power Miners year three includes the $20 price point
Magma Mech 8189. It's shorter than the $20 Exo-Force sets, and is
articulated in much the same way as the $8 mining mech from the first year,
but has some nice gimmicks. Also, the Ben10 Alien Force sets are out, $15
Bionicle-ish figures (rather than Galador-like) that could be raided for
mech-making. They're not really worth $15, though, and share about as many
pieces as early Bionicles (i.e. differing mainly in color, head and a few
details). Humongousaur is the only one with unique hands, for instance.
1/12/10: Pictures have started showing up of Hero Machine, the successor line
to Bionicle.
MEGA BLOKS: 7/27/09: Spotted in the Phillippines and Amazon.co.uk is a
new line, Neo Machines, in which the Neo Shifters turn into vehicles, more or
less. The lowest price point is just redeco'ed PlasmaTech figures with new
guns, but then there's a $10 or so price point and a $25 size. The vehicle
modes are pretty skeletal, but at least it's not more spheres! 8/20: As
mentioned above, Mega Brands' financial difficulties mean we may never see
these in America, sigh. 8/29: The Magnext line now has Halo figures.
2/3/10: The small car and jet Neo Machines sets have started hitting
Walgreens (Ft. Lauderdale FL sighting, will check my local ones soon).
The jet is reportedly kinda RotF-Soundwave-ish. 4/3: I found a couple of
sets the other week. Sadly, they don't actually transform, they have to be
taken apart and rebuilt for vehicle mode (and not all the pieces are used).
They have pilot seats for the little Neo figures, but only the larger Neo
Machine sets come with pilots. 4/7: I've found alternate ways to get decent
vehicles out of both sets without requiring reassembly. For Jetstrike, mount
the wings on the connectors at the small of his back in robot mode rather
than on the top of his back. To transform, turn the head around to be the
fin, fold the arms back as the tail section, and fold up the wings. The
launcher can mount on the underside, and the feet peg together (the pegs need
to be moved elsewhere in robot mode). For Quadrock, just make the robot
according to instructions and use the launcher to peg the feet together at
the front of a dragster mode with the arm guns sticking up at the back.
POWER RANGERS: 8/21/10: "Cell Phone" morphers (Red and Green Rangers)
that are basically rangers with cell phone torsos with their limbs folding up
around the sides (still looking like limbs) for altmode. Pretty crappy, but
they're out now.
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