It was before my time... But I'm pretty sure MP-02 had to be clearanced also. Despite his icon status, Ultra Magnus was portrayed as a very poor character, might be a hard sell at around $200 (depending on the Au$).
I don't think I remember seeing him on shelves myself, I know he was though , but I wasn't 100% back into TFs at that point either and at that time I certainly would never of spent $200 on a sole figure... My how that mindset has changed!