Hasbro Transformers Studio Series 86 Ultra Magnus Hasbro, 2023
Day #2,735: July 30, 2024
Ultra Magnus No White Optimus
Transformers Studio Series Commander Class Toy
Item No.: No. F6162 Manufacturer:Hasbro Includes:2 blasters, 2 red rockets and 2 white launchers, blast effects parts, Matrix of Leadership, helmet horns/antenna, cardboard backdrop Action Feature:Transforms from Robot to Truck Retail:$89.99 Availability: July 2023 Other: Biggest and therefore best non-Masterpiece Ultra Magnus
Ambitious! As time goes on, we see that Hasbro can do some pretty amazing things as the audience moves from "a kid or family member could potentially buy this" to "this is for adults and money is no object." Despite the ages 8 and up rating on the box, Ultra Magnus demonstrates the power of maximizing the budget of an adult with a job. We've had some pretty good toys based on various incarnations of this character over the years, but this one aims to give you the one you saw in the movie at a larger size. It's no longer really scale to the other guys in the line, but that's because Hasbro has given you a working car carrier mode that can haul around deluxe cars. It's huge and impressive, but there are a couple of small quibbles that make me think they could do a new version of him down the road and fans might feel compelled to upgrade again, despite how much better this is than non-Masterpiece toys. They just keep finding new ways to engineer these things, and I can see new discoveries in shoving parts and panels are sure to come sooner or later.
This one not only sold great numbers, but sold out, and as I write this is about $190 on Amazon. I overheard a random customer in a Target talking to employee about how awesome this line is - the employee seemed to be walking away - but the customer with no boundaries was right. These are really nice toys.
I don't have the Masterpiece Edition toy, and while I do see a lot of similarities I think that the Studio Series 86 version will be the go-to for non-MP collectors until we get another one. Given that we've had four repaints and retools of Siege Ultra Magnus so far, I doubt Hasbro will go forever without finding a new take on this guy to sell us again - be it the Minimus Ambus version, a toy-specific version, or something else entirely. As movie versions go, this one is excellent even if it's kind of hard to get him the pose on the movie poster.
It's a good robot, but one thing I noticed as I transformed him was that there were two tabs under his chest that were somehow hidden or left off the stock photos - I would love it if I could rotate these away. There are a few minor things sticking out on an otherwise gorgeous robot, like visible hinges on the chest and shoulder pylons that aren't exactly gorgeous. The designers didn't skimp on giving the shoulders quite a range of movement, plus you have jointed figures to kind of, sort of hold the Matrix with his index finger and thumb. He's just too big to open it, but his massive mitts have no problems holding his clear-painted-silver blasters. I really like all the articulation, and his giant feet ensure he's unlikely to ever fall over. If you bought someone this toy as a gift, and they weren't collectors, I bet they would consider it one of the greatest robot figures that they've ever touched.
There's a fun gimmick in his chest! If you lift open the blue part of Ultra Magnus' torso, the red sides fly open to reveal an Autobot Matrix of Leadership. It's a nice effect - probably something that exists more for the video reviewers than the end consumer, but I'd be lying if I said it didn't put a smile on my face. There are also removable limbs held in by springy, Combiner Wars-esque tabs, but they're somewhat difficult for me to remove. It's a nice extra, but it's also a feature that probably exists for the photographer set as it's too tight (and in the case of the arms, locked inside the limb) to just yank them off at a whim.
Hasbro and Takara-Tomy did a good job with the accessories, giving him two blasters seen in the movie, and a Matrix of Leadership he's unworthy to carry, and two "rocket launchers", plus the antenna for his head. Don't lose those - they're easy to knock off during transformation. If that weren't enough you also get a bunch of blast effects (the same as Omega Supreme's with different colors and paint.) I'd love to know how much of the cost of the toy is tied up in blast effects because, while cool, I'd happily give them up for a $5-$10 discount on the retail price. This is a toy where you can tell Hasbro didn't really cut any corners - they give you everything and charged you for it. While I don't know where the heck I'm supposed to store the blast effects, the Matrix fits in the chest and there's a storage slot on the back to hold one unused blaster.
Deco is pretty good - they went with light-up eye ports, which I am less and less enamored with lately. The painted blue opaque optics look better in more lighting conditions, as there's little guarantee your toy will be under a bright light at the right angle to give him that spark of life. The truck mode could also use a little more paint, but it's not like you're going to see it much. Ultra Magnus is molded in color in many spots, so it's toing to look good for a long time. Unless it yellows. I'm keeping mine out of the Sun.
Transforming this guy isn't too complicated, but I did struggle in a few places to figure out what could and could not move (and how) without the manual. There's a lot of unfolding and untabbing to get the arms into the trailer, and in my case there's still a visible gap in the back of the truck. Since it isn't going to be in truck mode much I'm not going to be too upset, but things like this always take a little of the magic away and when you buy a $90 remake of a toy you may have multiple times over, you want it to be magical. It's also very easy to knock Magnus' head off, and his antenna off, and the antenna separate into two pieces pretty easily too. I know safety standards are a thing, but I never felt that a head getting knocked off lets you keep the feeling that you've got some amazing warrior here.
As a carrier truck, minus the aforementioned gap, it does what I want. I can load up deluxe cars, I can pose the blasters, but also there's a weird belly-dragging kibble thing going on that prevents smooth rolling. Maybe I mistransfomed it - but I am unsure. There are a lot of very specific twists and turns just to get the various blue bits of the trailer to tab together, and not a lot of wiggle-room for pieces to be in the wrong spot. I think I got it right - but hey, if I don't, it's still decent and has a removable cab. I don't think they meant it to be removable other than for safety reasons, but it does come off pretty easily. This truck mode seems almost as close to perfect as you can get at this price, at this size, while retaining that whole carrier feature. I'm glad they gave it a shot!
The Commander Class toys have been fascinating, with the likes of Jetfire, Sky Lynx, Rodimus Prime, Armada Optimus Prime, and Motormaster commanding high prices once supply runs out. You don't always get something big and impressive, and Ultra Magnus is on the smaller side of things at about 9-inches tall at the head. I think it's a great Ultra Magnus, but he's taller than Grimlock (and should be shorter) and may not immediately read as being worth the premium price despite the high amount of parts. Nevertheless, until Hasbro makes a better one, this is the one you're going to be mad you missed. I hope they keep it in rotation so fans can get it without too much fuss because it is an impressive release if you can hold your nose when it comes time to swipe your credit card. After Siege, Netflix, and Kingdom Ultra Magnus toys - plus this new one - you may have spent north of $240 on four toys of one character over 4 years.
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