I know, I know, there's already a thread for Leader class Megatron, but as the Repaint-happy monkeys at Hasbro say, "Vive Le Difference!" (At least the French ones do)

The first thing you notice when you see the Premium edition of Leader Megatron is that he's still the same price as the other leaders. Including the Megatron you already bought last year. D'oh!

The second thing you notice is that the shiny chrome banner across the top of the box isn't the ONLY thing that's shiny.



Premium Megs isn't as chromey as the metallized Best Buy Voyager version, or Cybertron Galvatron. Instead, he's molded in a silvery flecked grey plastic, not entirely unlike Deluxe Jazz or Deluxe Scorponok, except not Bronze tinted. In the right light, he's really reflective; my cheap camera's flashbulb doesn't do the effect justice. You'll notice it when you see him under the bright fluorescent lights of your local store.

On top of that, gone are the garish blue accents -- Megs has been given paint washes of gunmetal and brighter silver, along with some bronze and gold paint apps here and there. The quality of the paint apps isn't too terrible, though they're not spectacular. Let's just say Hasbro isn't putting Jin Saotome out of business anytime soon. The applications vary, so you might want to examine the figures on hand and pick and choose the one you like the best.



Some of the paint you won't be able to see until you take him out of the box, most notably the somewhat sloppy wash along the leading edge of the wings in Jet mode, since they're folded behind him in the packaging...but let's face it -- you're probably going to transform him once, marvel at the shoddiness of the vehicle mode, realize you wasted a half hour figuring it out, then display him in bot mode from that moment forward.

Seriously, this guy has the most incredibly complicated yet half-assed Alt mode since Cybertron Undermine...or most of Beast Machines. You'd think that if they were going to make a halfhearted effort at the alt mode, the designers would have given the Bot mode a bit more love and articulation, but such is not the case. Our fearless leader cannot move his wrists, neck, ankles, or waist, and only charitably at his shoulders, elbows, hips and knees. But if you've been paying attention since this figure's first deco was released, you already knew all of this. For more on the subject of gnashing teeth, check out the Feedback thread for Leader Megatron linked up there.

There was some talk that he might have a resculpted head, a la Premium leader class Optimus Prime. If that is the case, I don't see it. It's true, however, that he's gotten a little more attention paid to his face paint, but still it's not quite enough for my taste. I would very much have liked to see the eyes light up somehow, but no, only the chest lights up, and it still lights up a weak yellow; a far cry form the searing red they photoshopped all over the boxart.

The sound chip has also had a bit of an upgrade, with a major difference sure to melt the hearts and clench the fists of any diehard fan. Pressing the Automorph button activates a G1 transformation sound, instead of the unfamiliar, ear-bleeding "vroooOOOPEWPEWPEW" that initially accompanied the leader Leaders. The Jet mode is still a screeching turbine, but that G1 sound effect totally made the difference for me, from an "Oh that's neat" to a "Jeez, I guess I have to get this."

So if you didn't get the original, and you've been considering blowing a pair of Jacksons on Megatron, this is the one to get, since it's the same price as the version still lurking on some store shelves. If you DID get the original, first and foremost you have my apologies, but you might want to consider getting this one too. The Premium version is definitely a step up from the initial release, which is a damn shame, because this is how the figure should have looked since day 1.

P.S. - If you do buy this figure at a retail outlet, make sure that the one you get is the correct one, and not an original paint that some shady character bought, swapped out and returned. It happens a lot more often than you think.

For the more visually inclined -- you could save yourself the agony and just wait for Seibertron to put a gleaming gallery of this bad boy, but if you absolutely must see more pics, here is a small gallery of all the quick snapshots I took.

 

Sweet!

Thanks for the awesome review and clear pictures man!

One quick question:

Are the clear red spikes actually red this time or are they still that horrible pinkish red the first release had?

 

Dear God....I am so glad I passed on the first release. He looks GREAT. The mold, from what I have seen, isn't the best...but at least now he LOOKS good.

Definitely want to pick him up, and I hope I can.

Going off of his pics, they look rather red. The pinkish ones on the regular release looked pink even in pics.

 

cool except premium kinda seems like a rip off to me except the G1 transformation sound convinced me GAH another 40$ down the drain

 

I wana get this. Why do people think his transformation is hard? The copper looks weird and cheapish though, Looks like it would come off with a wash cloth.

 

Yeah, those colours are perfect.

 

Premium's not the rip-off...it's the first round of figures that were all rip-offs.
Premium should have been released right away. Who would buy the same toy twice.

So does everyone think this one > Best Buy Megatron?

 

You cant shine sh*t. This mold still blows. Pass.

 

The colours rock. The mould was awesome even in the first release, but these colours really prove it.

I just don't get why people say his alt-mode is half-assed? It really makes me question them. It's an alien jet. It's got the alien part down, lets go through the jet parts:

Wings: Check.

Fuselage: Check.

Tail/tail fins: Check.

Nosecone: Triple Check.

 

They're not quite the same red plastic as Wreckage's energy swords...or as red as the packaging would have you believe... basically, they're redder than the initial megatron release I think, but still -- translucent red + bright light = pinkish. :\

A lot of the metallic paint apps simply do not come off right in my camera's light. I fear I'm not doing the figure justice, and you'd really need to see it in person to get the effect. That said, some of the apps DO look like they were hastily slapped on, assembly line style (since they probably were) but they don't seem to want to rub off very easily. Personally, I may consider trying to smudge some of the more brushy areas, but this is hardy stuff, not like the deco-apps on Barricade or Bumblebee or G1 Jazz, where they crumble off under your fingers.

I apologize on behalf of the French employees at Hasbro.

 

Ok, thanks.

You were saying that the figure has metallic paint apps? Where abouts are these paint apps?

 

Okay, so he's made of the shiny sort of metallic plastic, with black joints and such. Certain places, like his toes, exposed elbow mechanics, and assorted other servos are painted gold. A lot of the other parts -- the bits that appear to be brown in my photos -- is actually a metallic gunmetal bronze.

Granted, he could use a lot MORE paint to make him truly incredible looking, like some of the customs in the Radicons forums...but for a quick and dirty accent wash on a retail figure, it's not terrible.

 

Yeah Id say Im going to pick it up. The burn my original!!!!! BWAHAHAHA!

 

Thanks for the review and the clear pictures. I'm not entirely convinced with the version. I never bought the first mold of the figure because I just didn't like the look and feel of it. I don't think these new paint apps are gonna get me to buy this premium version. I will get Prime for sure, but I will have to see Megs up close and personal before I make a final decision...but for now, I'm leaning towards a pass.

 

Definitly looking better than the first one, looks good in these pics   Is he out yet or did you got some early catch ?

 

Great review dude, thanks for posting.

 

I believe he's widely available by now, though actual local stock may still be limited. Two of our Toys R Us here got multiple cases (1x P.LOP 1x P.LM) x 4~5 cases last week, but I haven't checked any Target or Wal-mart since.