Transformers Shattered Glass Leader Class Ultra Magnus
Sheesh, that is a LOT of wasted space in the packaging….
Armored Ultra Magnus
Based on the Shattered Glass universe, where the Autobots are evil and the Decepticons are heroic, Ultra Magnus is portrayed as a sadistic, power-hungry version of himself. He craves more power by overthrowing his leader and brother, the evil Optimus Prime.
The figure is a redeco of the Kingdom Leader Class Ultra Magnus, featuring a new “Shattered Glass” skull-faced head.
In the Shattered Glass timeline, Ultra Magnus grew bored with his hedonistic lifestyle and craved excitement. Staging a coup against his brother, Optimus Prime, to become the new leader of the Autobots, the coup eventually failed when his co-conspirators betrayed him. Evil Optimus destroyed his face as a grim reminder of who’s in charge. Now Ultra Magnus wears a hologram projector to cover up his damaged face, his true face only revealed whenever he emotionally breaks down or when he reveals his true nature.
For weaponry, Magnus comes with his iconic RT-15 Stethoscopic Detector.
C-30 Magnetic Inducer Launchers
He also comes with an Energon Sword and an Energon Axe.
Unfortunately, the armored mode of Ultra Magnus cannot hold the sword due to the sword’s shallow peg.
Both can be combined to form a super weapon, the “Terminus Blade”. It is also the only way Magnus can hold the sword in armored mode.
In the comics, the Terminus Blade is a legendary weapon used to open rift portals into other dimensions. It is one of the artifacts of the original 13 Primes, similar to the Origin Matrix (not to be confused with the Autobot Matrix of Leadership).
The set comes with an alternate head in order to create the “positive universe” Delta Magnus.
With the alternate head equipped, you can recreate Delta Magnus, the archetype for Ultra Magnus based on the vintage Diaclone toyline. In the IDW Comics’ Shattered Glass II saga, this head serves as a the “hologram head” projection that he uses when he’s in public, following evil Optimus’ torture of his brother.
In the IDW Comics’ “positive universe”, Delta Magnus is eventually introduced as a separate character from Ultra Magnus. Delta Magnus is a member of the elite “Primal Vanguard” and is tasked with safe-keeping the Matrix of Leadership in between Primes until a proper successor could be found.
As the leader of the Primal Vanguard in the days prior to the Great Cybertronian War, Delta Magnus was primarily in charge of off-Cybertron peacekeeping efforts of neighboring alien planets, alongside other familiar Autobots like Hound and Kup.
Since Delta Magnus was tasked with holding onto the Autobot Matrix of Leadership (after Nova Prime was lost and before Orion Pax became Optimus Prime), it only makes sense for him to come with the Matrix for this set. Unfortunately, for this figure, there’s no way for him to hold the Matrix, it cannot even be placed into its chest for storage. Balancing it on the figure’s fist is the best you can hope to do. Bummer…
Armorless Ultra Magnus (Magna Convoy)
In the Japanese continuity, Magna Convoy hails from the Precusor World (yet another alternate universe Transformers saga, based on stories that try to connect the various Japanese exclusive redeco toys over the years into one narrative). Formerly a simple worker drone, MC11 is given new purpose by the leader of the “Blue Order” group in order to stop Straxus and retrieve the stolen Matrix Sword.
With the armor removed, Ultra Magnus now more closely resembles Optimus Prime. The colors are throwback to the vintage Diaclone version of Optimus Prime/ Powered Convoy as well.
Admittedly, I never really got the whole “Precusor world” storyline, but I understand that this guy is meant to be a separate character from Delta Magnus. Yeah, it gets really confusing…
Back in the Shattered Glass II timeline, evil Ultra Magnus finally succeeds in taking down his brother, evil Optimus. As a final act of cruelty, Magnus has evil Ratchet perform “surgery” and trap and immobilize evil Optimus in Magnus’ armor with his voice deactivated. Magnus would then carry on in his new “armorless” form to lead the Autobots in Prime’s visage against the heroic Decepticons. Magnus would eventually be betrayed and killed by evil Wheeljack, while evil Prime’s fate would be unknown following the collapse of Metro Titan with the badly damaged evil Prime still inside.
All of the weapons can be mounted on top of the vehicle mode.
Overall, I love it! I’ve been waiting for Hasbro to give us a proper Delta Magnus to go with the other “Diaclone based” redecos of the Generations Selects sub-line. While the figure itself is generally a simple redeco of the Kingdom Ultra Magnus with an optional head, the world-building possibilities go much deeper. Another piece of the puzzle down. The Shattered Glass version is just a bonus for this set, as far as I’m concerned. Getting this set for Delta was the real deal.
I think the only ones left on the Diaclone redeco list are Reboost (red Skids), a red Mirage, Loudpedal (black Tracks), a yellow Trailbreaker. I hope they complete the Diaclone-inspired sub-line.
Gold
