Transformers Legacy Commander Class Motormaster - Pictorial Review

Finally back from holiday, got some time to write.

As far as 2022 goes, this is one of the most anticipated releases, seeing how far Hasbro has come since CW

In Package

The box following Legacy's theme of brightly colored neon artwork. No window but not surprising, it's a Commander Class.

Alt Mode

Out of the box, Motormaster is in alt mode so we can just go straight to it

My first impression is that the trailer seems a bit short. I think ER Optimus had the same issue before. However, the alt mode feels compact and quite heavy. 

For aesthetic purpose, Hasbro could've leave some gaps for the components inside the trailer to make it longer. But, will it affect its sturdiness?

One of the most common issue is the back wheels tend to unpeg and collapse. This is due to 1) the weight of the trailer and 2) the peg size. 

Motormaster in full alt mode is generally the size and length of Kingdom Ultra Magnus. It's good that they made it to be roughly in scale with each other.

The cab is clean without any visible kibble. The paint job is nicely down without any smudges (at least on my copy). 

The cab is sturdy without anything unpegging while fiddling with it. In fact, the same is true for the overall alt mode, aside from the back wheel.

Base Mode

The trailer can first be split into 3 parts. I think Hasbro had cumulated their experience from POTP era and is now getting better at doing this.

The trailer transform into a battle station for Motormaster. I've seen a more far-fetched design used so this is quite decent

Robot Mode

Good transformation. Not too easy but not hard either. Despite being roughly voyager size, I noticed he has more "moving parts", just like how Commander Class Rodimus was.

The overall design is clean, without any large kibble hanging anywhere. The black paint and the purple highlights work really well for him.

Articulation wise, he has a good range of movement. The most limiting is his head where he can't look up nor down (possibly due to the shape of the head). Also, as you can see, he's not hollow, top to bottom)

Interaction with the base is minimal. But I don't think I expected anything more.

Combine Mode

First, let's start with the gimmick. 2 gimmicks was shown during his reveal by Hasbro before

During CW era (and 3Ps before), the combiner elbows were made out of the crotch and hip of the bot. For Legend size Menasor, they used a base for the hand where you split the bot into 2 and peg onto it.

For Legacy, you can't separate Dragstrip as there is a lock holding his upper and lower body. To transform into limb mode, you first need to peg it onto the hand base and only then you can start expending the hand base (where Dragstrip will split into 2).

For the 2nd gimmick, the involves a simpler feature but creative nonetheless. By default the calves are hollow as you can see in the pictures above. By attaching Wildrider on the back, a trapdoor-like gimmick will be activated and closing the calf.

Half done. I remember my disappointment handling CW Menasor when he was released 8 years ago. This is an overdue redemption.

Size wise, Legacy Menasor is as tall as Commander Jetfire (I don't have it in hand). Many people complaint that it's quite expensive to complete Menasor that the price doesn't justify the size for Motormaster. Let me make it clear. Even without the limbs, Motormaster still transform into a Commander-size combiner, hence he is a Commander Class figure. 

Compared to KO OS of MS-Toys Menasor, he is half-a-head taller and bulkie. People was surprised by this considering how big Motormaster and the alt mode are. I think one of the reason is the short thighs (which can be fix by 3P company) and body.

People my have issues with his height etc but without a doubt, he's a fun figure. Despite in combine mode, he doesn't lose his playability. Overall, he's a sturdy and stable combiner, something that's missing for most Combiners (3P@Official).

One complaint from me is the combiner war peg used on the knees. It worked during CW era as the joints are fairly loose but for Legacy, the ratchet is quite hard. It's quite easy to accidentally slide the pegs out when posing him.

Another nitpick is that there is a small leftover part. His canon tower. 

Is this the start of 1-combiner-per-year release by Hasbro? Signed me up if it is. And I guess we can expect G2 or SG boxset next year.

I'm curious though as Stunticons is technically an easy combiner in the sense that the trailer is the combiner frame. But it won't be the same for others, say, Aerialbots. 

Will the frame doubles as a base but without any interaction with main bot (Silverbolt)in alt mode?