COUNTDOWN: 6 Beast Wars characters who still need Masterpiece toys!

Hot on the heels of our recent MPG revelations, it’s only natural to consider the avenues the existing Masterpiece line still needs to explore.

Whether the current roster is set to end summarily before its time or if things will continue rather business as usual following the impending rebrand, a fair number of characters remain still on the docket left to be explored in such a high-end style. Arguably, none of those is as deserving or desirable as a fair chunk of the Beast Wars cast, with some surprisingly notable names still to be done, even after eight years of toys! 

So, for today, here are six Beast Wars bots who still deserve the Masterpiece treatment, with the focus firmly on the remaining season 1 characters in order of personal preference!

#6: Scorponok

Scorponok is a goon. A thug, a lummox, a bozo; a total wasteman, if you will. He rarely does much of importance in season 1 of Beast Wars, and that which he does, he typically bundles in some haphazard fashion. Genuinely, no one respects him, least of all his comrades, as is commonly proven whenever he impotently attempts to assert any kind of authority over proceedings. And, to cap it all off, he meets the most undignified end, accidentally falling into lava in the opening moments of season two, never to be seen, referenced or even thought about ever again. However, despite all this apparent ignominy, he remains a memorable presence during the first half of the show’s fifty-two-episode run, which is enough to register him on this list, even if it is in last place. 

#5: Terrorsaur

Terrorsaur may have met the same dual end as Scorponok, and sure, he’s largely as ineffectual during most of his first-season tenure, but there’s still just enough about him to grant him the slot above his Predacon teammate. Besides, he turns into a pterosaur, which isn’t actually a dinosaur but is still a cool beast mode. In many ways, this very conversion makes the idea of a Masterpiece release so intriguing, especially with all the complex engineering required to do him justice in uber cartoon-accurate form. 

#4: Airazor

I feel bad not placing Airazor higher on this list. Sure, she’s not the most impactful member of the Maximal roster, only cropping up during a surprisingly small number of adventures before being whisked away to an alien planet and then merged into the larger Tigerhawk come the show’s closing episodes. Yet there’s something memorable about her despite this, and the idiosyncratic voice work from Pauline Newstone (RIP) is a large part of that. Plus, we already have her ‘best friend’ Tigatron done in Masterpiece form, so who wouldn’t want the perfect companion to go with him?

#3: Inferno

As we move into the second half of the list, I’ve no doubt it will become quickly apparent why some characters had to be ranked lower than others because already we’re into the territory of “undeniably crucial this happens at some point down the line”! Seriously, we’re eight years into Beast Wars Masterpiece releases, and there’s still no hint of this ferocious fire-starting fiend yet? Inferno dominates almost every scene he’s in after his introduction during season one and remains a mainstay of the show until its end (in his original body, no less!). Sure, he may primarily descend into the realms of comic relief as the series progresses, but none of that takes away from him being one of the bonafide breakout characters. Besides, the Kingdom take showed how great this guy can be in toy form, so imagine what a Masterpiece design could achieve! For the glory of the Royalty! 

#2: Tarantulas

It pains me to say that in the year of 2024, we still have not even a hint of a Masterpiece Tarantulas. When Generations started pumping out the Beast Wars cast a few years back, I knew it would only be a matter of time before a mainline spin on the character rubbed more salt in the wound, yet here we are, continuing to hope that such an event may eventually come to pass. From day one of Beast Wars, this scheming spider established himself as an unparalleled presence on the show, cackling away through his machinations all the way to his eventual end just before the finale. No doubt many collectors would rather see his super slick Transmetal bod given priority, but as the Masterpiece line has thus far stuck to purely season 1 fare, no doubt his classic form would be welcome all the same. 

SPECIAL MENTION: Waspinator

Don’t worry, I didn’t forget him! Yes, of course, no discussion around finishing the Beast Wars roster would be complete without mentioning the Predacons’ most beguiled bug-boy! If anything, Waspinator’s standing as a fan-favourite character and his reputation for all kinds of unfortunate antics during the show’s tenure more than likely transcends Beast Wars as a whole, with his turn in 2007’s Transformers Animated and his incessant memeability doing nothing to hurt his wider star status. In truth, that also makes him hard to rank on a list like this, especially because we already have some rather exceptional Generations toys of the character. For a more stylised attempt, there’s the recent Kingdom effort, but the previous LGEX release slots in surprisingly well alongside a Masterpiece line-up all the same. I’m not saying I don’t want an MP spin to happen, and he certainly doesn’t deserve to be on the bottom of this rung, but given the strength of the existing offerings, the character can’t legitimately claim the top spot, either! Rest assured, the universe definitely does not hate Waspinator. 

#1: Rattrap

Come on, you knew it had to be, no? Many characters could be claimed as a core part of what makes Beast Wars work, yet few are quite as legitimately crucial to the style and tone of the show as this particular mischievous mouse. Wise-cracking, s**t-talking and ball-busting to the end, Rattrap is never not a joy to behold on-screen, even when he’s giving his fellow Maximals a rough ride. The team wouldn’t be the same without him, making his absence from the otherwise complete initial crew all the more obvious for the Masterpiece line. Yes, there’s a decent stab in the Generations LGEX release yet again (especially as it can even ride on the back of MP-32 Optimus Primal in beast mode!), but nothing will rival the idea of seeing the big five done in proper high-end form. For bootin’ up cold, make it happen!

So that’s our list! Do you agree with our rankings?

TTFN