When it comes to exclusive TF figures, Canada always gets screwed. We didn't get the Wal-Rat, we didn't get Tripredacus Agent, we didn't get this guy, and we're sure as hell not getting Cryotech (especially since there are no Targets up here). I'm just lucky that; a) I got to attend Botcon again
this year; b) I've got a friend in the States who will procure Cryotek for me.
Beast Modes Magmatron is unique in that he's formed from three distinct prehistoric beasties. First up is Landsaur, a Giganotosaurus. Hailing from Argentina, Giganotosaurus was larger, slower, and dumber than T. rex, with a narrower skull, smaller teeth, and three fingers on each hand instead of two. Landsaur measures about 21 cm(8.3") long from head to tail and can reach a height of 18 cm(7"). He's a nice bluish-purple with gray stripes running down his back, green eyes, and pinkish-gray claws and teeth. Like all BW toys, Landsaur is beautifully sculpted, with bumps, wrinkles, and scales adorning his hide. His tail's rather stumpy however, and he's got robotic parts showing on his belly and on the backs of his thighs. His legs
are jointed at the hips, knees, and ankles, and he has spring-loaded clamping jaws and ball-jointed shoulders. For a gimmick he can fire missiles from his mouth. Insert the missile down his throat and fire by opening his jaws wide. The missiles are stored inside Seasaur, whom I'll cover next.
Seasaur is an Elasmosaurus, a long-necked, flippered reptile belonging to the family known as plesiosaurs. Plesiosaurs were among the top oceanic predators of the Mesozoic, overshadowed only by the short-necked pliosaurs and mosasaurs. Seasaur measures an incredible 40 cm(15") long, although more than half of that length comes from his neck, which has ten segments. This allows Seasaur to be put in all manner of dynamic poses. In addition, he has a swimming gimmick where pushing on his rear flippers causes the front
flippers to move back and forth as though paddling through the depths. His front slippers are also on ball joints. Seasaur is very light blue-green with a dark patch on his back, yellow eyes, and small silver teeth.
Last up is Skysaur, the smallest of the trio. Skysaur is a type of pterosaur, most likely an Ornithocheirus or a Pterodactylus. Not a Quetzalcoatlus as some have reported, since Quetzalcoatlus would have a longer bill and no teeth. Look at BM Skydive and you'll see what I mean. Skysaur is mostly red with a yellow bill and yellow hands and feet, green
eyes, and pinkish wing membrane. From beak to tail he measures 13 cm(5"). Pulling back on his tail causes his wings to fan out to a span of 29 cm(11.5"). Skysaur is articulated at the lower jaw, neck(three joints), hips, knees, and ankles. Although five of the Deluxe Dinobots(Airraptor, Rapticon, Striker, Terranotron, and Triceradon) were outfitted with Dinobot Spark crystals, Magmatron was not. A Predacon Spark crystal is mounted on the underside of Skysaur's left wing.
Fused Mode
According to the tech spec, Landsaur, Seasaur, and Skysaur can combine to become "an unstoppable tri-dinosaur Fuzor." Other fans have lovingly dubbed this mode the Orgysaurus. Basically, Seasaur flips over, Skysaur snaps onto Seasaur's belly, and Landsaur's tail gets shoved way up Seasaur's rectum. A pair of robotic arms flips out from Seasaur's body
cavity to form the Fuzor's rear legs.
Hmmm. What you have now is a multi-coloured beast with tiny arms, wings, four legs, a second head jutting out from its back, and a third head on the end of its tail; a prehistoric monster conjured up from the warped mind of a
paleontologist on LSD. It's, uh, an interesting mode, but I'm not too sure how mobile or effective it would be in battle. Say, did Magmatron ever actually use this mode in the BW Neo cartoon series?
Transformation:
Ye gods! This has got to be the most frustrating transformation ever, even more so than the BW combiners. It's not all that complex per say, but so many pegs have to snap into so many tight slots that it makes transforming this guy a task and a half. Landsaur forms the robot
legs and torso, Seasaur splits in two to becomes the arms and back and the shield, and Skysaur forms the head. My sincere condolences go out to the poor six-year old who tries to transform this Chinese puzzle, and to the poor parent who tries to help him. Blasted thing.
Robot Mode
Assuming you haven't given up on trying to transform this guy, you should now have a robot that is 18 cm(7.5") tall and 20 cm(8")wide thanks to the wings on his head. Looks quite regal and primal, a real Predacon warlord-type. Magmatron's face is silver with green eyes and a stern grimace. In addition to the Spark crystal mounted in his wing, he has another one mounted in his left arm and a third in his weapon. His weapon
has two handles, allowing it to function either as a missile launcher or as a sword. As well as the two missiles from Seasaur, Magmatron has a serrated blade that stores inside Landsaur's tail and two smooth, sabre-like blades
that are attached to Skysaur's wings. The projectiles travel about a metre or so. For defense, Magmatron carries a heavy shield formed from the underside of Seasaur.
Magmatron is articulated at the shoulders, elbows, wrists, thumbs, hips, knees, and ankles. He's not as poseable and other Ultra-sized figures due to the kibble on his shoulders, head, and back, however. Interestingly, he has little spinning wheels on his heels.
Overall
Suspsy Sez: Definitely a toy worth checking out, especially if
> you're a hardcore dinosaur fan like myself. The three beast modes are well articulated and finely detailed, and I especially like Seasaur's multi-jointed neck. Fuzor mode is certainly bizarre, but still fun. Transforming Magmatron to robot mode is frustrating beyond words. Robot mode
looks nice, has a neat weapon, and good play value. Overall, a recommended buy.
Suspsy
| Reviewer | Suspsy |
| Date | January 2nd 2002 |
| Score |  (9 out of 10) |
| Reads | 9317 |
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