Review: #513
Name: Megatron
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Predacon
Line: Masterpiece (Beast Wars)
Year of Release: 2019
Size Class: Masterpiece
Mold Status: new
PACKAGING AND CONTENTS:
Megatron is designated 43 in the mainline Masterpiece flagship line of Transformers.
Coming in the now standard black thick cardboard box, the back has plenty of photos showcasing the various accessories that the figure has and the poses he can achieve.
Standard with Masterpiece releases is the collector's card, with art on one side and stock photos on the other.
Megatron also comes with a bunch of accessories as you can see: hunting rifle, beam effect, two additional faces, toothbrush and some parts used for the stand.
The thing that may surprise when you first get him in hand is how big the box it, above is a comparison against a Leader classed figure and you can see that the packaging absolutely towers over it.
DINOSAUR MODE:
Based on season one of the Beast Wars TV series, which had organic beast modes, Megatron transforms into a purple dinosaur.
This is a pretty good mode, even better than Dinobot's, because apart from the robot thighs that peaks out from the bottom of the rear torso, there isn't any other visible robot parts.
Megatron was the most expensive Masterpiece figure ever released (until MP-44 Optimus was announced that is) and one benefit of this, if you can call it that, is how big the figure is. He is chunky, hefty and feels really solid.
The other thing to note is to simulate his appearance from TV, there are paint apps all over and gives the skin a nice texture that makes it seem as if he stepped right out of the screen.
There are a few unobtrusive gimmicks, the first of which is that his eyes can move around. There isn't a switch or panel or anything, you just move it with your fingers.
His mouth can open, naturally, to reveal a row of sharp white teeth and a purple tongue. The neck can rotate.
Unfortunately, the articulation in dinosaur mode is not that great. In addition to the neck rotate, it can move slightly from side to side. The very tip of the tail is jointed but perhaps most disappointingly is how static his legs are. They don't give a big range at all.
Lastly, you can attach a clear piece to the bottom and this makes him compatible with Dinobot's stand.
Despite the static nature of the mode, it is still an absolutely amazing display piece that captures the character perfectly.
TRANSFORMATION:
Megatron transforms similar to onscreen and the original figure, but of course with a few modern touches. Despite that, it's still exceedingly simple, most of the cost didn't go to the engineering or parts count. What made the dinosaur mode so good is also a pain in transformation, because they are all small thin panels that fold upon themselves onto his back. They can feel fragile at times and will probably already come with stress marks. The scariest part is how tight the waist extension is, to the point of feeling like you'll break the figure and probably one of the reasons why there are so many Megatrons with cracked crotch pieces. It's best to watch a Youtube video to see how pieces are supposed to move if you are unsure because the instructions are horrible in certain places.
ROBOT MODE:
As good as the dinosaur mode was, the robot mode is where it's at and Megatron does not disappoint in this area.
Everything is pretty much spot on. He does have a mess of panels on his back but they only look messy from the back and side since with the way that they are folded, they form the shape that's on the show model.
The headsculpt is likewise fantastic and captures the character wonderfully. In robot mode, the plastic has metallic flakes in it and helps raise the premium feel of the figure.
Megatron absolutely towers over Leader classed figures, and bigger than MP Dinobot. His bulk is impressive and at times, you might think that he may actually be a bit too big (ignoring scale, of course since one of the biggest reasons why he is so big is because he towers over everyone else in the show).
The panels on his back stick out a fair bit which is unfortunate but necessary in order to achieve such a good dinosaur mode.
Megatron has two alternate faces, the first is an angry grimacing face. Replacing the faces are easy as you simply pull it up and out.
The other alternate face is a smiling happy one. Note that both modes have electronic gimmicks related to the dinosaur head as well as the robot head, with light up eyes and voice samples.
Megatron's left arm does have a hand this time and it is articulated pretty well with a separate index finger and thumb, while the rest are molded as one.
Articulation is as good as you'd expect for a figure at this size and price.
The dinosaur head can open and close, while the other hand has a wrist swivel. He has ratcheted shoulders, hips and knees, as well as joints for his elbows and ankles, complete with a jointed neck and waist swivel.
The dinosaur arm is a tad bit more restricted than one would like and the tail piece is huge, making it awkward to move around at times.
Like dinosaur mode, you can attach a stand to his crotch and this will allow him to use Dinobot's stand.
The giant tail piece can be removed (it is on a sliding joint, so do not pull otherwise you'll break the tab) to free up his arm.
This ties in with his ranged weapon, being a hunting rifle.
He can hold the rifle only in his left hand since the other arm lacks the fidelity.
It's actually pretty hard to replicate the stock photo of him looking down the sight because his arm does not have enough articulation to put it close to his head.
The effects piece can attach to the barrel but it looks somewhat stupid.
This is because the effects part is mainly for pegging into the dinosaur head's arm and it looks much better there instead.
Now, Megatron's armor pieces are all designed to pop off, this includes the back kibble, shoulder armor, hip cannons and the tail piece.
Taking it all off will have Megatron in what the instructions call "Light Mode".
The proportions are way off here and he frankly looks weird but he does show up like this in the TV series a few times.
This is where you get to use the toothbrush accessory, pegging it into his hand such that he can use it to clean his teeth.
It's quite amusing and interesting to have this feature included, even if ultimately you will only use it once or twice to check it out.
The hip cannons are not able to rotate and arm but they still look good there. They can get in the way of the outward motion of the hips though.
The figure is really heavy overall and thus he would have benefited from a ratcheted waist joint instead of a smooth swivel that's based more on friction.
While it is a remnant of his show model and the original toy but the tail piece just does not look like a proper weapon. The little claw thing at the end just makes it even more confusing at what its function is supposed to be.
Thanks to his large legs and heel spurs, Megatron is stable in pretty much all poses.
An absolutely stellar robot mode that cpatures the character model perfectly.
OVERALL:
Ignore price for one second and Megatron is a fabulous figure. He has two amazing modes that makes it seem as if he just jumped out of the screen. He has a clear premium feel with the heft and amount of paint applications. Unfortunately, the figure is hampered by an exorbitant price tag and some quality control issues. Whether to get him is really up to whether you are trying to complete the Beast Wars cast in Masterpiece form and if you are a big enough fan of the character.
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