Toy Review - Legacy Motormaster Commander class

[GoktimusPrime]

DECEPTICON MOTORMASTER
Series - Generations
Sub-line - Legacy
Size/class - Commander
New/remould/redeco - New
Wave - N/A
Released here - June 2022
Approximate Retail Price - $159 ($129 @ Big W Toy Mania sale)
Approximate Size - See below
Allegiance - Decepticon
Sub-Group - Stunticon
Alt-mode - Kenworth K100 Aerodyne sleeper truck
Main Features/Gimmicks - TL Menasor
Main Colours - Battle platform, gestalt robot
Main Accessories - Trailer, Dual Ioniser gun, Cyclone sword, Roller car

Truck Mode
27.5cm (L) x 11cm (H) x 8cm (W)

The cab is a nice looking Kenworth K100 Aerodyne with some neat details including wing mirrors, wipers, fuel tanks, trailer hitch etc. The trailer itself is impressively hefty. The rear wheels of the trailer on my toy are a little bit loose and prone to slightly shifting out of alignment; but should be fixable with some Fix-Loose-Joints Action Figure or clear nail polish. Some Menasor parts can be seen from the front of the trailer, and Motormaster's torso and waist is exposed from the rear of the truck cab, but I can easily overlook this considering what this toy has to do as not only a transforming robot, but also the bulk of what is the Menasor gestalt. This is also the first Motormaster toy that transforms into an articulated truck.

Robot Mode
17cm (H) x 9.5cm (W) x 5.5cm (B)

A gorgeously cartoon-like robot form. The way that the false-truck cab feet transform is pretty neat. The rear truck kibble also tucks away nicely on the back. On top of all that, the toy is well decoed with a good range of poseability. Able to wield the sword and gun, although the toy can struggle to hold the gun upright due to its weight.

Battle Platform
23cm (H) x 17cm (B) x 49.5cm (W)

Motormaster's trailer partsforms into a battle station. The main feature is the turret which sits in the centre. It features a pair of handles, and the rear purple piece becomes a targeting scope for Motormaster to look through.

Menasor Mode
31cm (H)

Now I completely understand that the TL Stunticons are aiming more for cartoon-likeness; I get that. And in that context, Drag Strip and Motormaster have really stepped up. But it's pretty hilarious that Motormaster basically forms Menasor all on his own! Drag Strip basically transforms into kibble that attaches to Menasor's arm; he is not Menasor's arm. And similarly, the other Stunticons will all be arm and leg kibble. I understand the context, but the end result is a gestalt team where all the limb robots are basically superfluous. Structurally useless gestalt members aren't a new thing for Transformers; but it is an extremely rare phenomenon, and it's never been done to this extent. The Micromaster gestalts from G1 all had a useless sixth member; i.e. the robots who became bum kibble. TL Menasor reminds me of this, only now done to a greater scale. I don't dislike this feature on TL Menasor, but I do find it pretty funny.

And this is all part of just how incredibly cartoon-like this toy is; even without Breakdown, Dead End and Wildrider, this toy already feels like the cartoon hopped out of my TV and became real. The in-built fists and feet look and function much nicer than detachable hands and feet. The legs are compatible with Combiner Wars/Power of the Primes limb robots, as it use the same connector port. The arms however are not made to be compatible; although you can ad hoc any two Deluxe CW figures onto the arm frames via the 5mm posts. Since Motormaster doesn't come with his Roller car, there is no breastplate component (which CW Blackjack fulfilled for CW Menasor). Although ever since I was a kid, I interpreted Menasor's own black breastplate as being his Roller car. Unfortunately, the tower component from the trailer/combat deck doesn't transform into any part of Menasor. Menasor can use it as an undersized gun turret, but I would have preferred to see it incorporate into Menasor.

Overall
There are numerous advantages to having Motormaster's trailer being a separate thing and not part of the robot mode. One of these is allowing Motormaster to have a really cartoon-like robot form, thanks to the fact that it doesn't have to deal with incorporating the trailer into the robot. The other upside is scale. G1 Menasor is either an undersized truck or massively gigantic robot, if not for mass-shifting. With a detachable trailer, Motormaster is more like Optimus Prime. Only the cab-robot is the size of other Transformers, with the trailer becoming a battle station.

My G1 bias goggles makes me want to lament that this is no longer a proper gestalt without the ability to freely swap the limbs around (e.g. Drag Strip cannot being either leg), but this was inevitable if you're gonna make a cartoon-like Menasor toy. Having said that, Combiner Wars Menasor is already a thing and ticks the box for a more traditional style gestalt with freely interchangeable limbs. So it makes sense for Hasbro to give us something new for CHUG Menasor 2.0; and we all know that fan demand for cartoon-like toys is a widespread thing. I do wish that the sword were silver (as it is with Combiner Wars). On the whole, just a really sweet toy. Highly recommended.

[Deano85]

In the designer video they mentioned that that wanted Motormaster to be in scale with Earthrise Optimus, so thats another big reason the trailer was detachable. Also great that the trailer has the battle station play feature.

[KELPIE]

Main Features/Gimmicks - becomes TL Menasor's arm kibble

copy paste error?

Since Motormaster doesn't come with his Roller car, there is no breastplate component (which CW Blackjack fulfilled for CW Menasor). Although ever since I was a kid, I interpreted Menasor's own black breastplate as being his Roller car.

Same. Though it might have hsd more to do with me losing this piece early on :P

My G1 bias goggles makes me want to lament that this is no longer a proper gestalt without the ability to freely swap the limbs around (e.g. Drag Strip cannot being either leg), but this was inevitable if you're gonna make a cartoon-like Menasor toy. Having said that, Combiner Wars Menasor is already a thing and ticks the box for a more traditional style gestalt with freely interchangeable limbs. So it makes sense for Hasbro to give us something new for CHUG Menasor 2.0; and we all know that fan demand for cartoon-like toys is a widespread thing. I do wish that the sword were silver (as it is with Combiner Wars). On the whole, just a really sweet toy. Highly recommended.

There's a little bit of catch-22 here. Putting G1 bias goggles on might make you appreciate this design further? As a kid, even though you could, I never swapped around the roles. If you were an arm, you were an arm - never a leg. Heck, if you were a right arm, you were always a right arm!! haha.

Due to that, I'm probably more in tune with this design and have less hang-ups about the interchangeability as others. Also, as for the kibble/exoskeleton, if it makes for a more functional gestalt I'm in favour, just like I am with fake kibble. Do what you can to make the various modes better, be it look or articulation. In this case, both.

[Tha_Phantom]

As a kid, even though you could, I never swapped around the roles. If you were an arm, you were an arm - never a leg. Heck, if you were a right arm, you were always a right arm!! haha.

Due to that, I'm probably more in tune with this design and have less hang-ups about the interchangeability as others.

This is how I also feel about the G1 combiners. I will always combine the G1 Stunticons a certain way and never deviate from that, along with the Combaticons, Seacons and so on.
If I ever do mix and match it's usually for a funny photo like the below.

[GoktimusPrime]

copy paste error?

Cheers, fixed now.

There's a little bit of catch-22 here. Putting G1 bias goggles on might make you appreciate this design further? As a kid, even though you could, I never swapped around the roles. If you were an arm, you were an arm - never a leg. Heck, if you were a right arm, you were always a right arm!! haha.

Due to that, I'm probably more in tune with this design and have less hang-ups about the interchangeability as others.

As a kid I loved mixing and matching the limbs around; even between teams (e.g. Protectobots x Technobots etc.). And it's something that I've really loved being able to do again with Combiner Wars and Power of the Primes.

I appreciate the Scramble gestalt gimmick even more as an adult knowing about the cancelled Diaclone Jizai-Gattai* toyline that the G1 Scramble gestalts were originally conceived for.

Also, as for the kibble/exoskeleton, if it makes for a more functional gestalt I'm in favour, just like I am with fake kibble. Do what you can to make the various modes better, be it look or articulation. In this case, both.

To me, having Motormaster just be Menasor makes TL Menasor a less functional gestalt because, really... he's not a gestalt. Motormaster combines with his trailer to form a giant robot who can piggyback the other Stunticons. They're not actually combining to form Menasor, they're attaching themselves to Menasor like barnacles. You can have solid non-swappable limb gestalts that don't use this "cheat," such as Devastator, Predaking etc. But I get it; this is how Floro Dery designed Menasor for the cartoon and one of the key features of the TL Stunticons is to emulate the cartoon designs. So by that criterion, absolutely two thumbs up.

Anyway, it's nice now that I have the choice to play with either my more G1 toy-play accurate CW Stunticons, or more cartoon-looking and solid Motormaster-torso TL Stunticons (I'll alternate between both depending on my mood ).

----------------------------------------------------
*自在合体/jizai-gattai = "free combination"
Note that 1992's Guard City and Battle Gaia's Scramble gimmick was called Jiyū-Gattai (自由合体). This also translates as "free combination." Jizai means 'free' as in flexible or customisable. Jiyū means 'free' as in liberty.
e.g. 「自由は全知的生命体の権利である」 / "Jiyū wa zenchiteki seimeitai no kenri dearu"
= "Freedom is the right of all sentient beings."

[Butcher31]

I like both versions of Menasor. I probably prefer the scramble city, where the individuals are more useful, but I do appreciate variety as well. This one is a clever idea which makes sense in terms of vehicle scale and cartoon accuracy.

I like to think that the trailer provides just the skeletal structure. The other Stunticons provide the strength and armour. So, sure, Motormaster can become Menasor by himself but without the others he's as weak as a kitten.

[Tha_Phantom]

I appreciate the Scramble gestalt gimmick even more as an adult knowing about the cancelled Diaclone Jizai-Gattai* toyline that the G1 Scramble gestalts were originally conceived for.

Don't forget that another figure designed for that same line was Metroplex who the other combiner limbs could plug on to. This is, I guess, similar to that.

]

I like to think that the trailer provides just the skeletal structure. The other Stunticons provide the strength and armour. So, sure, Motormaster can become Menasor by himself but without the others he's as weak as a kitten.

Yeah, if nothing else, think of the other Stunticons being attached as providing extra energon and processing power for such a giant robot.

[KELPIE]

I'd say yeah sure, physically as the toy is designed and from a saleability point of view, we're just sticking cars on an exoskeleton. However from a narrative point of view, he's still a combiner, with many reasons on how it works and why it works.

As far as the toon, in the transformation sequence, the cars still did transform into the arm, they didn't stick onto a "trailer". This is just the way the toy has managed to represent that.

I do agree though, not the best scenario for those that like to scramble.

Off topic, I'd love if they had another crack at some of the other combiners.

[Gehirn]

Just thought I'd make it aware that there are cases of yellowing if that is an issue you may be concerned about as it is sold in a closed box with no window.

-On the folding leg panels, the ones that close when the purple button is pushed in.
-As noted by SarhBear on the shoulder joint. http://www.otca.com.au/boards/showth...969#post652969

[Autocon]

Already yellowing on a new toy :O