COUNTDOWN: MPG Rattrap – 6 reasons it’s relevant! – The Source Report

COUNTDOWN: MPG Rattrap – 6 reasons it’s relevant!

It feels like a hot minute since a really exciting Transformers Masterpiece reveal, but wouldn’t you know it? TakaraTomy has you covered!

Yes, we’re soon to have this rather rousing rodent making his way to reality, as M̶a̶s̶t̶e̶r̶p̶i̶e̶c̶e̶ MPG Rattrap is happening at long last! This is a character that many of us have wished to see on the MP-style roster for a fair while, and it looks as though the wait will be worth it because he’s spectacular.

As with other Beast Wars figures in the line, MPG-15 Rattle (his Japanese name) is extraordinarily cartoon accurate, to the point of almost quite literally being ripped off the screen (save for a slightly enlarged robot mode backpack, mind), and appears to be chock full of play value besides. Yet beyond the appreciable attributes of the figure itself, there are some other noteworthy aspects to this release – here are six of them!

#6: It’s more Beast Wars!

Alright, it sounds obvious, but the mere fact that we’re getting more Beast Wars figures in the Masterpiece/ MPG line is a blessing. True, it was only halfway through 2024 when Rhinox dropped, but before that, it had been a long (very long!) four-year wait since Tigatron. Besides, with nothing else announced and the line-wide rebranding after MP-60 Ginrai, there was every reason to worry the beastly bots may not be in good standing moving forward. To see such a significant character announced means that not only are we safe for now, but we can hopefully expect more down the road besides… and yes, I’m thinking of you, Tarantulas.

#5: It shows that MPG really is a continuation of Masterpiece

Beyond just Beast Wars though, this release also gives a stronger vibe that ‘MPG’ – with the ‘G’ standing for ‘great’, ‘giant’ and ‘Gattai’ (or ‘combine’) – is just a continuation of the Masterpiece line we’ve known and loved since 2003. Sure, there was a bit of hoopla about ‘the end of Masterpiece’ post MP-60, but the more is revealed of MPG beyond stuff like the Trainbots and Ginrai, the more it seems it’s business as usual, bar a branding change. That appeared to be the case, considering we’re soon to receive some classic MP repaints in the form of MPG-10 Lift-Ticket and MPG-11 DK-2 Guard, but there were evidently still some collectors waiting for concrete reassurance. This is it.

#4: It gives a clue as to MPG scale…

In truth, we’re still not really sure what the deal is with MPG beyond a name change considering the unusual releases scheduled for the line thus far, although one aspect many have questioned is the ongoing scale of the toys. After all, the Trainbots were frequently cited for appearing significantly smaller than some collectors would have expected (despite never being very sizeable characters in the Headmasters cartoon!), and Ginrai has proven to be about equivalent height with Generations fare such as Studio Series 86 Optimus Prime. It’s all led to speculation that MPG is operating under a different scale to the one which has been established since MP-10 (well, MP-9 if we’re being technical!), despite regular-size Masterpiece repaints under the MPG banner. Rattrap should put much of that to bed as the first new mould beyond Ginrai and a release which slots in side-by-side against established MP figures.

#3: It’s the first non-‘combining’ MPG character

Another significant bit of guesswork concerning MPG is that it would be all about combining, despite ‘Gattai’ being only one of the three ‘G’s referenced in the title. Still, with Raiden very much playing into such a theme and God Ginrai arguably following the trend, it did seem as though that particular gimmick was rising to the forefront when TakaraTomy was choosing their output. Step forward, Rattrap, our first distinct non-combining MPG toy, and one which definitively shows it’s not all the line will be known for. True, he’s not especially ‘giant’ either, but he does look pretty ‘great’.

#2: It supersedes the Generations toy in an MP display

For our penultimate point, I feel I should stress that there have been many excellent Rattrap toys over the decades, and the 2014 Generations mould (and especially the TakaraTomy LG-EX repaint from two years later) is chief amongst them. However, in a truly unusual turn of events, that same toy was tied into the Beast Wars Masterpiece roster from its conception, given how MP-32 Optimus Primal featured a small peg on his back, which allowed him to carry the main line rodent in a clear nod to the cartoon! It’s not the first time we’ve seen some shades of grey between Generations and Masterpiece toys harmonising alongside one another, but it’s undoubtedly the most overt! Yet, with Rattrap finally getting the MPG treatment himself, such a cross-border relationship seems superfluous, as MPG-15 can do the exact same thing!

#1: It finishes off the initial Maximal crew!

And finally, and somewhat historically, MPG-15 is significant because it means we now have a complete crew of the Maximals who debuted in the first episode of the classic Beast Wars cartoon! True, Dinobot didn’t start out with that affiliation, but for many fans, this party of five is an iconic line-up, to say the least. Seeing it done so expertly and – perhaps even more significantly – so consistently across nine years has been quite the journey, and undoubtedly worth the wait. Perhaps we can also work on an MPG Airazor and then we’ll have the entire season 1 roster represented. For now, though, let’s take a beat to celebrate how well-served these beloved characters have been, shall we?

So that’s our list! Are you excited about MPG Rattrap?

TTFN

About Sixo

Transformers collector from the UK, collecting vintage G1/G2, CR/RID, UT & Masterpiece/3P. Find me at twitter.com/SixoTF or on YouTube at youtube.com/SixoTF

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