Well, it was bound to happen.  The relatively negative fan reaction to the leaked pictures has prompted Hasbro's COO Brian Goldner - the one responsible for making Megatron public - to release a statement to the fans last Friday.  I'll let those who haven't read it yet to do so on their own, but the gist I'm getting is one of "You beg, you plead, you give us sad puppy dog impressions, and when we give you want, you spit in our face."  Whether you agree with that assessment or not depends on your point of view.  However, I will admit that's the wording is considerably better than producer Don Murphy's response to some poor blogger who voiced his own objection.

While I do believe that some fans' reaction has dulled the overall luster, it's also my belief that Hasbro made a serious mistake releasing the concept images to the public, especially after the reaction to Starscream a week earlier.  They should have used that as an indicator as to how the fans might react to Megs and waited at least a month or two before releasing the film.  If the situation results in an information lockdown on the part of Hasbro, DreamWorks, and Paramount, I won't be surprised.

On to more... vapid subjects.

Sunday, I went to my father and stepmother's house for a little party they were hosting to "celebrate" their apparent newfound celebrity.  They had participated in the filming of the H&G Network show "Curb Appeal" in which their house was remodelled from a "60's design" to one that was "English country cottage" (love to see real English reaction to that one).  It had aired on Tuesday (I missed it due to a feature on the Book of the Dead on the History Channel) with a reairing on Sunday.  I'm surprised how many folks saw it; my mother, her sister and friends, my sister and her friends...  Mom's comments about how "air-headed" my stepmother was presented was funny (she really does act like that, though ).  She also thought my father didn't look that good - the camera does add ten pounds though.

Added the last decals to the model of my S-37 prototype last night; once the 24hr period is up, I'll spray it down with Dullcote to make sure they stay on.  Got to admit, adding the decals while the model is still in peices was the best idea I've had for this thing.