General Information
Release Date: May 2024
Price Point: $89.99 (depending on retailer)
Retailer: General Release (Amazon, BigBadToyStore, Entertainment Earth, Target, Walmart etc.)
Accessories: Sword Handle/Hilt, Sword blade, Shield, Swords (red) x 2, Blast Effects x 7
Official images and text in italics are from Amazon.com:
- BEAST WARS UNIVERSE MAGMATRON ACTION FIGURE: This 10-inch (25.4 cm) Beast Wars Universe Magmatron toy features deco and detail inspiration from the animated series, Beast Wars Neo: Super Lifeform Transformers
- 3-IN-1 CONVERTING TRANSFORMERS TOY: This Transformers action figure is a combiner that separates into three dinosaur figures: Beast Wars Universe Skysaurus, Beast Wars Universe Landsaurus, and Beast Wars Universe Seasaurus
- CONVERT TO DINOSAUR COMBINER BEAST WARS MAGMASAURUS: Convert and combine the dinosaur figures into the fused dinosaur mode, Beast Wars Magmasaurus, in 33 steps
- AWESOME ACCESSORIES: This Beast Wars Universe Magmatron Transformers figure comes with Magma Blade, sword hilt, and 7 blast effects
- ARTICULATED FOR PLAY AND DISPLAY: Transformers figures feature articulated heads, arms, and legs for action poses
- CELEBRATE THE LEGACY: Transformers Legacy United honors 40 years of Transformers animated history! Collect other Legacy: United figures to unite your collection (each sold separately, subject to availability)
- GIFT TRANSFORMERS COLLECTIBLES: This Beast Wars Universe Magmatron action figure toy makes a great collectible figure gift for any Transformers fan
Unite your favorite characters from across the world of Transformers robots into your collection with the Transformers Legacy United Commander Class Beast Wars Universe Magmatron action figure! This 10-inch Beast Wars Universe Magmatron action figure separates into Beast Wars Universe Skysaurus, Beast Wars Universe Landsaurus, and Beast Wars Universe Seasaurus figures. Comes with Magma Blade, sword hilt, and blast effect accessories that attach in both modes. This figure is inspired by the character from the animated series, Beast Wars Neo: Super Lifeform Transformers, and features articulated head, arms, and legs for awesome action poses. Celebrate the last 40 years of Transformers history with Transformers Legacy action figures. Transformers Legacy opens the portal to a whole new universe of -- More Than Meets the Eye -- bringing together every Transformers generation like you’ve never seen before. Collect and combine different characters to create your ideal Legacy lineup. TRANSFORMERS and HASBRO and all related trademarks and logos are trademarks of Hasbro, Inc. © 2024 Hasbro.
Background:
In 1999 Takara released a sequel to the Japanese exclusive show Beast Wars II named Beast Wars Neo. This show featured the Cybertron crew of the starship Gung Ho led by Big Convoy in his fight against the Destrons led by Magmatron. Magmatron was a unique figure, featuring three beasts that combined into one robot. Unlike Beast Wars Magnaboss and Tripredacus, none of Magmatron's individual beast modes had a robot mode. Instead, Magmatron's robot mode was the robot mode for the group. The trio also had a very unusual beast mode featuring all three beasts combined into an unusual "Fuzor" form (more on that below). Now Magmatron is back as part of Legacy United as a Commander Class figure based on his appearance in Beast Wars Neo.
Packaging:
Magmatron is packaged in a large, rectangular closed box. The box is made of nice, thick cardboard which is necessary given the weight of the box contents. The size of the box allows for a large canvas for some beautiful artwork. The front of the box features Magmatron in robot mode facing off against what appears to be Big Convoy in the lower left hand corner. To his side is DNavi, the Destron ship artificial intelligence. In the upper left hand corner are photos of Magmatron's beast modes. The left side of the box (if you are facing it) has artwork of each beast mode inspired by a sequence from the Beast Wars Neo TV Show with the name of each beast in Cybertronian text: Landsaurus, Skysaurus and Seasaurus.
The back of the box features the toy in beast modes and combined as Magmatron. It does not provide the usual number of steps for the transformation (it's a lot) but it does show that the three beast modes form the robot. It also shows the Blast Effects included with the figure. Interestingly enough, the "Magmasaurus" (aka "Fuzor") Mode is not pictured. This may seem odd at first, but let's be real, the Magmasaurus mode looks like three dinosaurs um...having a really good time...so it's no shock Hasbro kept it off the box. That said, the figures can form that mode and I am thankful the designers did not leave that mode out.
Accessories:
Like his Beast Wars Neo predecessor, Legacy United Magmatron includes several accessories inspired by the original toy:
Sword
One of Magmatron's weapons in Beast Wars Neo was a sword made from part of Landsaurus and a separate blade accessory. History repeats itself with this new version of the character. Part of Landsaurus' body detaches and collapses to form the sword handle and hilt. The sword blade stores in Landsaurus' tail and can be detached then connect to the handle piece. The design of the blade is based on the one from the original Magmatron figure featuring a curved, serrated edge. My only complaint about the blade is that it is made out of a rubber, clear plastic and then painted gunmetal grey. I understand the safety concerns involved but the rubber plastic feels too "squishy" and I am concerned that after being displayed for a while the blade might start to bend in warmer conditions. The sword blade on my copy of this figure is slightly warped already after being out of box a couple weeks.
The handle/hilt piece has a 5mm peg for Magmatron to hold the weapon. It also has a Spark Crystal! A what? For those not familiar, during the Beast Wars Neo era, many Transformers figures had their faction symbols sculpted onto them with a circular "crystal" on top (usually red for Cybertrons and purple for Destrons). The handle has a Spark Crystal featuring a Predacon symbol on the left side. This is the first time Spark Crystals have been made in a long time and it looks great! The handle/hilt piece is made of purple and gunmetal grey plastic.
Swords (Red)
If for some reason his enemies knock away his larger sword, Magmatron has two smaller swords! In the original Magmatron figure these were actually missiles that stored under Skysaurus' wings. There is no missile firing feature in this figure so these only act as swords. Each is curved and features a 5mm peg so Magmatron can hold them in his hands.
Shield
It feels a little odd to count this since this is actually the lower part of Seasaurus' body, but it definitely counts since this piece is also a shield in Magmatron's robot mode. The beast mode bits of this piece are made of turquoise plastic and the inside is gunmetal grey. The outer part of the shield has a lot of organic detailing while the interior gunmetal grey parts have some beautiful mechanical details. A clip with a 5mm peg swings up from the middle and attaches to Magmatron's left forearm.
Blast Effects
There are seven Blast Effects included with this figure. Each is a redeco of the ones that came with Siege Omega Supreme except these are translucent purple. The thing is, there is not a whole lot to do with these with this figure. The main place the instructions indicate to use them are between his sword hilt/handle and the blade. This is a callback to the original Magmatron's sword blade also doubling as a missile that would fire using a spring loaded launcher. Other than that however Magmatron does not have any cannons or pegs on his body to attach the Blast Effects.
Robot Mode:
Magmatron is a weird Transformers character. It is very obvious in robot mode that he is a combination of three different creatures mashed into a robot form. There is also an element of asymmetry to the design. While his legs, torso and hip armor are pretty much symmetrical his arms have slightly different designs and the Landsaurus beast head winds up on his right shoulder while Seasaurus' head hangs out over his left shoulder. On top of all that, his head has giant wings on it from Skysaurus. In text form this may sound absolutely ridiculous but somehow it totally works. Parts like the armor on his left shoulder and in between his legs give him the appearance of some type of ancient warrior while all the beast mode parts like the claws on his torso and feet give him a savage, powerful appearance. The wings on his head wind up looking regal, like some type of armor head dress. Overall, his look is regal and striking.
While this Commander Class figure is new, the design is extremely close to the original. The robot mode described above can pretty much be used to describe the original Magmatron as well. However, this time out a lot of the details are amped up with more intricate "skin" details on the beast mode sections and some really nice mechanical details on parts like the arms. It's funny. In my mind I remembered Beast Wars Neo Magmatron as being huge and I grant for the era he was (being an Ultra Class figure). This new iteration of the character however is huge standing at about ten inches tall. If you include the Skysaurus wings on his head angled upward it goes up to about twelve inches tall! I love how imposing this figure looks.
Magmatron is made up of three beasts so his colors wind up being a combination of all three and somehow it works. Skysaurus is mostly red and pink with some painted gold details. This makes up most of the top of the figure though his torso has some claws sculpted on the rib area with silver claws that seem to be a visual reference to Skysaurus. The mid-body (including the arms) has mostly turquois and gunmetal grey parts, referencing Seasaurus' colors. The lower body is mostly made up of Landsaurus' parts so there is a lot of purple plastic there with silver claws. That said, a bit of Landsaurus winds up over the right shoulder in the form of his beast mode head. Light blue is used for the ridge on top of the head. Again, in text this may sound like a total mess but somehow it totally works. I love this combination of colors. The purple and turquois are relatively dark colors that the red and gold contrast with beautifully.
There are forty four points of articulation on this figure. That is way above average for any Transformers figure. To be fair however, fourteen points of articulation are concentrated in Seasaurus' neck and head alone. Each arm has seven points (if you include the thumb being able to swing in and out) and six in each leg. I'm also including his head articulation and the ability for Skysaurus wings to swing back and move out of the way to move the head side to side (which may annoy some fans, I don't have an issue with it). You can add two more points if you include the ability of Skysaurus' wings to swing up. Each fist has a 5mm port, allowing Magmatron to hold his weapons.
Magmatron's robot mode is true to the original figure and it is spectacular. He's big and looks powerful and I really dig it.
Transformation to Beast Modes:
Detach the accessories and set them aside for now. Then separate the three components. The arms and back detach for Seasaurus. The head detaches to form Skysaurus and the rest forms Landsaurus.
Landsaurus
- Swing down the green chest panels.
- Under the Landsaurus head, swing the panel on the side up.
- Swing the lower half with the legs down.
- Swing the green chest panels all the way down, rotate them inward and push them together.
- Rotate the section with the beast mode head around so it is over the chest panels.
- Swing the purple panel under the Landsaurus head down.
- Swing the Landsaurus head back.
- Swing the panels with the beast mode arms up and push them in on each side.
- On the bottom of the beast mode neck there is a purple panel. Swing that down.
- Swing the robot legs/hip section forward.
- Push the central purple panel on the back down.
- Separate the sword blade from the handle/hilt.
- The sword blade can be stored in the bottom of the tail.
- On the handle/hilt section, swing the handle up. Then swing the entire section with the Spark Crystal down.
- Extend out all the purple panels on the handle/hilt piece.
- Attach the base of the handle/hilt section to the base of the tail, then swing the panels up to cover up the middle section of the Landsaurus body. It helps to move the legs out to the sides so they are not in the way.
- On each foot, swing the blades in between each claw downa nd back.
- Swing the back section of the heels in, then swing the entire heel piece into the bottom of each foot.
- Separate the piston section on the back of the legs from the top armor piece.
- Swing each of these pieces up into the lower leg and thighs respectively, then angle the pistons so they look like they connect the thighs and lower legs.
Seasaurus
- Separate the beast mode neck from the shoulder peg if attached.
- Separate the green back pack section from the section with the robot arms.
- Swing the neck/head section down.
- Swing up the panels on the green back pack section.
- Straighten out the robot arms.
- Swing each arm in.
- Rotate each arm up to the sides.
- Lock each shoulder section in by connecting it to the tabs on the shoulder panels.
- Each shoulder has a slot that can fit the tabs on the fists. Rotate the fists and bend the arms at the elbows so the tabs fit into these slots.
- Swing up the section with the arms, then slide it to the side.
- Rotate the arms around so the arm without the gold armor on it is near the Seasaurus neck. The arms actually sit at a slight angle.
- Swing up all the green panels.
- Take the shield and rotate the fins so they sweep back.
- Swing up the panels on the sides and push the grey connection point in the middle down.
- Swing the tail piece on the shield up.
- Attach the shield to complete Seasaurus.
- Push the tail and neck pieces down.
Skysaurus
- Swing the beast mode legs down.
- Swing the beast mode head/chest section up over the robot head.
- Rotate the claws on the wings around.
Beast Modes
Landsaurus
Landsaurus is a Gigantosaurus. It would be easy to mistake him as a T-Rex from a distance, but there are some distinct features pointing more to Gigantosaurus. This includes the distinct ridges over his eyes and a row of raised ridges that run from the head all the way to the end of the tail. The sculpting on this figure is fantastic. All the "skin" looks organic with some parts looking like bumpy natural armor and others looking more like leathery skin.
Landsaurus mostly shows off purple plastic in this mode. A bit of gunmetal grey shows on the bottom of the feet and the back of the legs but he is, indeed, mostly a purple dinosaur. Light blue paint is used for a line of detail that runs down most of the spine of the figure. Oddly, the panel right at the base of the tail is unpainted. At first I thought this was an error but looking at photos of this figure by other fans online it looks deliberate. Silver paint is used for his teeth and claws, which contrasts beautifully against the purple.
There are sixteen points of articulation on this figure. Much of this is focused in the legs, but I was happy to see the tail also has a joint that allows it to move a bit side to side. Oddly, the mouth can only open a little bit so you really can't make him look like he is "roaring". It's a shame because they sculpted details inside the mouth.
Seasaurus
Seasaurus is a Elasmosaurus, a water based dinosaur. Like the real ife creature, Seasaurus features a long neck that measures 8 inches (about 20.3 centimeters) by itself! The body is oval shaped and features four paddles on the sides. The tail comes to a point, which is a bit different than the look of some artist renderings of the real life dinosaur, but it is true to the original Seasaurus figure so I am fine with it. Since this represents a "techno-organic" character, the skin details look like real organic textures with wrinkles and creases. He looks fantastic!
There are eighteen points of articulation on this figure, mostly concentrated in the neck which is made up ball shaped joints and hinge joints. This allows you to move the neck up and down but also turn the neck segments. Each paddle can move independently and the front paddles are on ball joints.
Skysaurus
Skysaurus is a Quetzalcaotlus, a type of pterosaur (so technically not a dinosaur but they lived around the same time). The head has the distinct shape of the Quetzalcoatlus including a long, pointed beak and distinct ridges on the top of the head. The wings are curved with claws in the middle while the small feet sit at the back of the body. The texture details on the "skin" of this figure are fantastic including wrinkles on the wings. The claws have rounded bands on each digit which are very bird-like and look great.
This figure is made up of two types of red plastic. The head, neck and core body are hard plastic with the wings are more flexible plastic for safety due to their shape. The left wing has the purple Predacon Spark Crystal embedded in it. Gold paint is used on the "hands" and feet. The claws are all painted silver. Meanwhile the underside of each wing is painted pink, which I appreciate since they easily could have just left it red. My favorite deco is dark red paint which looks sprayed on to the top of the wings. It is a beautiful type of paint application we do not see often nowadays and it looks amazing!
There are nineteen points of articulation on this figure. The wings and legs each have four points and the mouth can open and close.
Transformation to Magmasaurus Mode:
To begin this transformation, start with each component in beast mode.
- Swing the neck up at the base, swinging the upper part up on the hinge.
- Swing the top of the tail up.
- Separate the half of Seasaurus that becomes the shield.
- Swing the side panels on the shield in.
- Swing up the gunmetal grey connection point in the middle.
- Swing the front paddles forward, then rotate them.
- On the other part of Seasaurus, swing the halves down at the center.
- Slide the section with the arms into the middle.
- Swing each forearm out, then swing the arms out at the shoulders.
- Swing the arms down.
- Rotate the forearms around so the elbows face forward.
- Rotate the fists around, then flatten out the hands and fingers.
- The four finger sections should face the same direction as the tail.
- Swing the side panels in the front section up. In each panel there are gunmetal grey panels that you can swing out and connect to the grey shoulder panels.
- Swing up the claw-like section in the middle.
- There are two clips on the Seasaurus section that then attach to corresponding sections on the Landsaurus tail. Snap those together.
- On either side of the Seasaurus tail section there are panels with small pegs on them. Swing those up and connect them to corresponding ports at the base of Landsaurus' tail.
- Reattach the shield to the top of the Seasaurus section, covering up Landsaurus' tail.
- Swing up the Seasaurus neck section which locks everything together.
- The tail piece on Seasaurus slots into the opening on Landsaurus that would make up the robot mode chest.
- Swing the Seasaurus head/neck over the back of the Magmasaurus mode.
- On Skysaurus, rotate each wing around at the base.
- Straighten out the neck and legs.
- Swing up the central panel on Landsaurus' back.
- Attach the tab on Skysaurus' tail to the slot on Landsaurus back.
- Push Skysaurus' neck down onto Seasaurus.
- Push the Landsaurus panel down.
- Swing the Skysaurus legs forward.
Magmasaurus Mode:
The Magmasaurus mode is perhaps one of the most unique Transformers beast modes in history. It literally looks like three dinosaurs ran into each other and wound up some type of cartoonish jumble. Well okay, that's pretty much exactly what this beast mode is and how much this appeals to you will vary wildly from fan to fan. I do recall that when this beast mode for Magmatron was first revealed back in 1999 fans found it both cool and hilarious at the same time, and even with this modern version filled with beautifully sculpted detail and more "realistic" looking beast modes I don't think that has changed.
Speaking of the 1999 Magmatron toy, this "Fuzor" mode does a great job of taking that design and then amping it up to modern day standards. While bizarre looking, this creature also looks like something you would not want to take on in combat. The claws and teeth in the front are scary, the Seasaurus head looks like it can reach out and bite anyone who gets close and Skysaurus' blades look like they could slice any enemies who dare attack from the sides.
I absolutely adore this mode and I am so happy Hasbro included it with this figure (even if it is not advertised on the box). My only concern is that Skysaurus does not really hold securely. He's fine for display, but if you were to bash this figure into another in play combat I can see Skysaurus separating pretty easily.
Final Thoughts:
Magmatron is a spectacular figure. The design takes the original and amps it up not just in size but also in detail and construction. The deco looks great and the figures are fun to transform and combine. I do have some concerns like the "bendy" sword blade but overall this figure is highly recommended! Also, big shout out to emgo's transformation video for Magmatron which really helped me with this review.
Pros:
- Sculpts are excellent updates of the originals featuring beautiful details.
- Somewhat obscure character revived with a new figure.
- Joints are all nice and tight.
- Really well done deco.
- Spark Crystals!
- Plenty of play value in this set.
Cons:
- The rubbery plastic used on the sword blade is less than ideal.
- Skysaurus comes off in Magmasaurus mode a little too easily.
