Is Magcargo Actually Good?

I think we’re all aware of the Top 8 Magcargo team that’s been kind of a meme recently despite actually being kind of good. It’s gimmicky, sure, but it tends to get the job done.

The idea is pair it with Clefairy as a lead, Shell Smash magcargo and Follow Me clefairy to ensure it goes off, then switch clefairy with flamigo for a crazy attacker.

And flamigo is amazing with these boosts, so having a shell smasher is invaluable when paired with flamigo and Clefairy can reliably set that up while helping flamigo out once magcargo dies

But after using the team a decent bit, I am becoming more and more convinced that Magcargo might actually be good (but albeit, niche) in the current format, even without flamigo

I’ve played some sets where I don’t use flamigo at all. Heat Wave is an amazing spread move, and with +2 on a serviceable SpA and 180 speed outspeeding most things without scarf, it can really come in handy to cut out some of the bigger threats on an opposing team (if not the main attacker). It is great into Rillaboom and Tornadus especially, with Special Rock being a very valuable offense otherwise. Tera Grass and Tera Dragon are both pretty viable for it, and it gets flame body to help against physical attackers.

Is it amazing and meta-defining? No. But I think it is pretty slept on overall right now. With good offensive matchups, Shell smash, and the fact that it benefits like crazy from Tera, it could definitely find footholds on the right teams.

What do you think? Is Magcargo worth looking into?