I didn’t actually know about these mystery characters on the glatorian boxes till now (most of my canisters are in the basement collecting dust)
My first thought was that the guy sort of resembles Umbra, with the shared piraka legs, staff weapon, and trapezius spikes.
but, according to Willess12:
I’m looking for the original art now
Upon closer inspection… Isn’t that head the same as Matau’s?
It appears to have the same extended crest on the back of the head.
this is weird.
maybe it’s just an amalgamation of zaktan, kongu mahri, and a spear.
EDIT: My friends at BMP have given me a bit of a pointer:
This is the original image used as the base for the box art photoshop file. There’s a much clearer view of this mystery man here.
Most likely a prototype of another set. We can never be sure who, but I would think it’d Vastus because he has a polearm.
I think that’s more of a coincidence, but a nice one. It’d be a neat retcon!
I was thinking it could be mirrored as well, albeit for Reidak. I dismissed it at the time because the legs still didn’t line up precisely, and there was still the issue of the Zamor Launchers largely obscuring the arm (although it’d be possible that someone else’s arm was edited onto it). Definitely agree that the spear is added on though, similar to the weapon in the Strakk-Matoro example.
I considered that as well, but I couldn’t find any art of his that really matched this. I currently think that the spear was added in post.
Now that’s some crispy art right there. Looking closer at that, along with @Rockho’s cleaned up image found here, it’s looking a lot more like Kongu Mahri. There’s of course the signature wide chest, and the lower legs are almost definitely Vahki legs to my eyes. The arm on the left looks like Kongu’s*, with the two “Zaktan spikes” possibly being the Cordak missiles stored there. And on that same left arm, the hand looks rather bulky, almost like a block colored Cordak Blaster. It still doesn’t completely line up with either of these pieces of Kongu Mahri artwork, but I’m willing to believe it might be preliminary artwork for him. That said, I’m not 100% sold on this theory, but I’m much more warmed to it than I was last night.
*I’m wavering on whether the lower arm on the Glatorian is the Metru leg piece, or if it’s an Inika leg piece. The former makes more sense if the Kongu Mahri theory is accurate.
Honestly, that post was (literally a few days) before the discovery that Strakk’s figure is Mahri Matoro, so I’ll admit I was wrong
I think it’s clear it’s Mahri Kongu. You can make out the Cordak missiles, the Vahki legs, the dordak blasters, the same torso shape (you can even kinda see the hordika limb on the shoulder, and the holes through the metru leg arm)
Edit: you can even see the shape of the Zatth
Edit2: and the holes in the Metru hip and Metru chestplate on his hips
Yeah, with the HD picture, it definitely looks like Kongu. Or rather, Kongu with a spear and some spikes
I think you’re right actually. The pinholes on the right side of the mystery Glatorian line up too perfectly for it to not be that Kongu Mahri artwork. The pinholes in the abdomen area line up pretty precisely as well. Nice work!
Neat to have that cleared up after over a decade! Now what?
(Also edited the main post with this information, as well as with some deserved thanks.)
Now we figure out who the other guy on Strakk’s box art is.
Y’know, even before the Matoro revelation, that guy always did look like a Rahkshi to me… 
And same for this guy on Kongus right (on Malums box art)
I can see some Shadow-Matoran feet used there
I’d argue that’s not the zatth, but the great mahiki, although the body is most certainly mahri kongu with random portions added.
I now have a need to make MOCs of these characters.
Maybe some kind of core war veterans!
it would have been cool of they were easter egg hints to future characters
All I see is a shadowy roughly humanoid blob of shadow , reminds me of Teridaddy
Look it’s red kongu and not matoro!
he even has the same legs as matoro.
His helmet looks a lot like tarduks helmet
