The average Ultra Magnus is usually seen as a good friend of Optimus Prime, and even in Animated, he was in a mentor position who would tell him not to be a hero when it's not in his programming. However, the RID version of Ultra Magnus is nothing like the iterations from G1, Animated, and Prime; instead, he's dead-set on taking the Matrix away from Optimus Prime after years of envy towards his brother. A forced fusion led him to believe he could take all of Prime's power and the artifact from his possession, but Omega Prime combined the best elements of both brothers. Magnus would later help Optimus win against the Predacons, though he doesn't suddenly become a yes-man for Optimus Prime. And to celebrate this underrated version of the character, let's see how valuable he is as an action figure!
Here we have Ultra Magnus in his car carrier mode. While Optimus Prime was a major departure from his G1 self (in a good way, don't see me as shitting on RID), this guy feels a little more traditional when it comes to his choice of altmode, albeit more modern in aesthetics as was the case with the RID series. The entire vehicle mode is an inspiration for the Siege toy that the G1 character had back in 2018/9. While the trailer here is gray rather than blue, the white cab and the blue bumper are shared between both incarnations. This figure has chrome rims and rubber tires like Optimus Prime does, which read as "TRANSFORMERS" and "CYBERTRON"; none of them have cracked yet like how one has on my Prime. Differences are minuscule between them, but the Takara version is different from having slightly more metallic plastics and lacks the Autobot insignias. Either version is good, so no need to go over the Hasbro vs Takara wars. The bumper is even chromed in blue and silver, something that we don't see often. One other interesting aspect about this guy: he resembles the Godbomber design from Super God Masterforce.
The Autobot Brothers can be hauled by Magnus, with X-Brawn inside the trailer while Prowl and Side Burn go on the top. It's something I like seeing for toys like this, and it works better than with the Studio Series 86 Magnus. Yeah, I went there.
For a size comparison with his brother, here they are in their alt modes, and I love seeing when Optimus and Magnus have different vehicle designs altogether from each other. Optimus being a fire truck and Ultra Magnus being a different kind of car carrier is much cooler than how G1 made them the same cabs but with different trailers and that was it. Animated had them in different alt modes as well, on top of entirely different designs, while TFP was sneaky enough to have Magnus reuse Prime's body with a handful of tweaks before Prime returned in a much stronger and larger design.
The light on the siren correlates with a button in his robot mode's jetpack button where he would go "Ultra Magnus: Transform!" and that is it. More electronics are heard later in the toy's gimmicks, but we'll get to them in a moment. For now, have a pic of Magnus separated from the trailer. Will he have a smaller bot mode like Prime, or will it be a case of partsforming?
Transforming this guy is actually a case of partsforming, with the trailer becoming the legs after removing them from the cab. The upper body is more involved, as it contains the upper legs and pretty much everything else for the bot mode. A few unique tricks, such as requiring one of the wings to be shifted upwards from the assembly to transform properly, are utilized for a figure like this. The legs are simply panel-based for the transformation, meaning they end up becoming hollow from the back. The resulting robot mode is veeeeeeery lanky, what with how long the lower legs are in contrast to the thighs. As a result of having to transform like the G1 guy on top of also requiring the ability to combine with Optimus Prime, he ends up being much wonkier than expected. The rest of his proportions look just as unbalanced, from the undersized upper arms and hands versus the nearly Popeye forearms, and the torso does feel a bit hollow due to how the figure transforms. Not helping is that the weight of the jetpack, combined with the lack of any heels, results in the balance being worse for this guy. This is an issue with the lack of proper ratchet joints for the front and back hip movement, as it leans back to the point of tipping over due to said joints not being stable. Despite these flaws, I like seeing a one-of-a-kind Magnus that feels entirely different from the G1 guy yet feel like a version of the character regardless in terms of concept. I bet you that if this design was used for the Michael Bay movies, purists would get triggered AF.
His head sculpt is also very different from the usual G1 tropes, even compared to Optimus, what with the more Japanese-influenced super robot head aesthetics that don't match the white antennae or visor-like eyes on the original look. Yet it feels like A Magnus regardless, and it also carries that stoic heroism if you ignore his angst driven by the jealousy of not being granted the Matrix of Leadership in the cartoon. Hi articulation consist of a neck swivel, ball joints at the shoulders, elbows, and wrists (the former two not being as tight as I'd like, a bit of articulation at the fingers and thumb, front and back hip movement on swivels along with in and out ratchet movement, swivels at where the parts connect with light ratchets, and pretty decent knee bends if you don't bump into the robot kibble.
The Blue Bolts weapon is able to attach onto Magnus in two different ways. Firstly, you have him holding it on the left side as a blaster, with square pegs to denote that they are meant for this left side specifically when attached to the chest; press the button on the jetpack and you get the appropriate sound effects. As for the right side, the weapon becomes a gatling cannon, using circles as pegs along with their own dedicated sound effects. And yes, all of the sound effects are different from the Japanese version.
Alternatively, using both pegs can achieve a multi-handle weapon similar to the one Optimus Primal had in his Transmetal body, and you can flip out the targeting reticle to complete the look. A new sound effect is unlocked, with Magnus shouting "FIRE!" while heavier firepower plays. And yes I am mad that the missiles are missing.
As far as reuses are concerned, this is a translucent version of Magnus that came with the clear Prime that has silver hubcaps. The cab is still translucent but not to the extent of the trailer. Let's hope the dense plastic lasts longer than on either version.
Another reuse by Takara, this time giving him a black and gold paint job. the windows are red, and it looks mean as hell for this guy, not going to lie; that being said, it is not going to be easy to get.
As for Hasbro, Magnus made most of the blue on this guy as black, which isn't that much of a mind-blowing difference when compared to the regular version but it was said to be cheaper to buy than the original.
And back to Takara, we have Encore God Magnus with a more refined deco to better match the cartoon, with a painted forehead insignia, no chrome on the bumper apart from the insignia, and overall cohesiveness at the cost of the quality control being poor as mentioned with pack mate Optimus. This version's sound effects appeared to be exclusive to this version compared to the original Japanese and Hasbro versions.
For a size comparison, here he is next to his brother in super mode. I like how both of them look when it comes to the super robot influence that they have. It makes me wonder if TF fans begging for an anime for the series even saw RID2001 or if they were referring only for a G1 anime which they still have with the Takara trilogy. Shrug. I should mention that depending on the copy you get online, you may have the white parts on both figures discolored at varying degrees, with my copies holding up alright.
We have Prime back into his regular mode because this part is cool to show off: As they showcased in the show, Prime and Magnus shook hands as a way to prove they're willing to put their grudges aside and work together. Magnus's thumb attaches to Optimus, and it would trigger the in-universe combination between the two as they both shout...
..."COMBINE INTO OMEGA PRIME!" Combining Optimus Prime with Ultra Magnus is similar to turning Prime into his super mode, only Magnus is disassembled from the legs and forearms while the torso becomes chest armor that is said to further homage Godbomber, resulting in more color breakup with gray lower legs, white forearms, and a blue chest with a gleaming gold Autobot insignia. Omega Prime looks impressive in this form, being reminiscent of the dual-combined Autobots like God Ginrai or Victory Saber before him, yet being a new concept to American fans. I like how they did the approach here, as the idea of Optimus combining with other robots would be another staple for Transformers in the 2000s, once again followed up with the Unicron Trilogy and Revenge of the Fallen. Here, Omega Prime combines the best of both brothers, from Prime being the central piece to Magnus adding flight capabilities. The chest piece isn't tabbed into anything so it could be loose at times. Also, pressing the button on the back in this mode has the sound clip going "Optimus Prime! Ultra Magnus! Combine!"
The new head is not a reuse of the original super mode head, which surprises me since it looks similar yet it has an angrier look on top of having gold antennae designed differently this time. Articulation is the same as with Omega Prime, but ankle rockers are added thanks to the new feet. Stability is still a concern as always depending on age on top of not every joint being ratcheted.
The Blue Bolts cannon has three modes. Two of which work the same as with Magnus and have heavier blast sounds this time.
The third mode utilizes yet another unique set of ports on the baby blue component of the Blue Bolts weapon, unlocking the "OMEGA POWER!" sound with a finishing blast. The eyes light up here as well.
If you want, the gear of Super Mode Prime on this guy, you technically can despite it being unofficial and unwieldily. Mostly with the ladder piece.
In addition, Omega Prime can hold Megatron (and by extension, Galvatron and all other repaints) in claw mode with one of the 5mm ports used to hold the chest. A Takara comic made it canon by the way.
As far as reuses are concerned, there is the aforementioned black repaint of Omega Prime and the clear plastic version that comes with the Matrix Saber.
And finally, Encore Omega Prime with quality control issues and Legacy Omega Prime who hopefully won't have the same issues. The katter will be bigger than this guy and I bet will have more going on with articulation.
For a size comparison, here he is next to Buster Optimus Prime. Yes, I own a Buster Prime. He towers over the already tall Leader Class figures of over a decade ago, which is impressive in my opinion. As for RID Magnus, I recommend him in spite of his flaws. While not as good as his brother, he at least manages to showcase a time when Transformers engineering and play features had a happy balance as well as value for money we lost through time and economic issues.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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