Here we have SS86 Megatron in his tank mode, which is meant to loosely resemble the unproduced M8 Armored Gun System. While the homage is sort of appreciative, it doesn't excuse how mediocre the alt mode ended up being. Let's first start with positives; the bottom section with the tank treads looks good, and I always appreciate seeing the chest end up near the front section as a bit of a G2 homage. Even the gun barrel substituting one seen normally the actual tank is appreciative. However, things fall apart when we go over the turret. While I sort of get the attempt in making it match the altmode design, the slightly wonky proportions going from what will become the forearms to the shoulders makes the turret look uneven. The fusion cannon being part of the turret is a thing we've seen since the Combiner Wars version, and much like the barrel, I could at least sum that up as Megatron taking a bit of artistic license. What I can't be too forgiving towards, however, are the shins, which are even more of an eyesore as the arms becoming most of the turret. Because they had to match the animation model, they're stuck in the bluish grey rather than the rest of the grey seen on the toy. It also doesn't help that they look out of place even more than the arms due to them resembling Lego plates that have nowhere else to go so may as well stick them somewhere in the back. So far, the tank mode isn't really doing any favors for itself.
The turret itself rotate, though it does expose how unsightly the shins are in the back. Also, I believe the swivel isn't centered due to where the shoulders would end up. So it does one thing worse than CW Megatron and most other Megatron's in this mode, but maybe the arm placement will redeem it.
For weapon storage, the totally-not-a-purple-lightsaber can peg on the sides of the alt mode while the gun can peg on top. The latter sort of works as a sort of mini gun you'd see some tanks whip out. The former? Idk if it's the world's shittiest joust.
Here we have him with his Earthrise counterpart, which admittedly had problems of its own like the feet sticking out the back like on Siege or the back piece meant to fill in the gap, but I think t has a much better tank mode in comparison. It looks more complete and it also feels bigger somehow. Yes, the Voyager is slightly larger than the Leader. A 2025 Leader, but still.
Transformation is one aspect I will give this thing credit for. Now only does it have a great level of complexity to ensure that the robot mode is cartoon accurate, but new tricks not seen with the Siegerise version such as the more intricate leg transformation or the way the forearms rotate and open to match the show design better. I also like the way we get some smaller steps, like the panel that ties underneath the chest for bot mode. And the result is a very cartoon-accurate bot mode, especially with the proportions. The Siegerise version was wider and brawler-like, but we have a leaner, more athletic build for Megatron, which we previously saw on MP-36 and plenty of non-transforming versions of the character. I also like that the figure is able to ditch any tank kibble simply by integrating it all in the legs while retaining that gun handle look. Even the shade of grey used is decent, which doesn't wash out the details badly and helps the face paint pop better. Thankfully his sculpted details are rich in spite of how held back most of them would become for recent CHUG toys. The rest of the colors are a bit off. The black used for the waist and fusion cannon have a more brownish hue compared to the fists, which are a more proper shade of black than what we have here. The more bluish shade of grey used for the shins was definitely part of a controversial debate within the fandom, as many hated how blue they looked. Given how the lighting varies for some in-hand photos, he either has the shins a darker shade of grey or they have a bluish tint. Also, I don't like how low his shoulders look. I have him transformed right, and they still look like he has a bit of a slouch. This part is a nitpick, but the skirt panels on the sides are accurate, but they don't let his arms sit flat unless you hinge them to the back, and then the obvious hinges are going to bother some. The fusion cannon isn't shaped 1:1 to the cartoon, but the red dot is appreciative at least. So certainly the most cartoon-accurate G1 Megatron in the CHUG scale, but not quite perfect despite whilst many would say.
His head sculpt is done marvelously, with the stern expression that is neither too squinty nor bored like with the Siegerise versions. The white paint also helps him pop within his grey helmet. There is a bit of a seam line at the cranium, which makes me wonder if this is either for assembly purposes or a scrapped face swap gimmick. Maybe it could be used for a toy accurate retool. His articulation consists of a ball jointed neck, shoulder rotation, outward arm movement, bicep rotation, hinged elbows, ball jointed wrists, individual index finger and conjoined middle, ring, and pinky fingers (two knuckles), butterfly joints, waist swivel, universal hip joints, thigh rotation, hinged knees, and ankles that hinge as well as pivot.
As we quickly go over the weapon storage, he comes with the totally-not-a-lightsaber on the left port and a slot for the gun near the middle of his back. Those are the only weapons he comes with, meaning no Energon mace to match Prime's axe, no other gun he used to finish Prime off, not even that random chunk of whatever that he threw at Prime's torso! At least the lightsaber has a glossy coat of paint without making it translucent, and it is able to split in 2 pieces, but the handle separates at the cross guard, which is a missed opportunity for blast effects potential. I also hate how you have to clip it in and I don't want to break the thumbs.
To make up for the lack of a proper gun altmode, Megatron comes with one as an accessory, which kind of makes sense given how some characters would hold him like a Targetmaster...especially Starscream, who somehow never took advantage of his leader's shrunken state and killed him. Of note, the gun accessory isn't shaped exactly like a proper Walther P-38 and is missing the stock.
For a size comparison, here we have him with Earthrise Megatron, who thankfully won't be showing his yellowed thighs anymore. For all the complaints I have about the figure, SS86 Megatron is much closer to the cartoon and has more fitting proportions compared to his previous iteration. But does that mean it makes up for the altmode being worse in some ways? No, obviously not.
And here we have him being even taller than Earthrise Starscream and Netflix/Legacy United Soundwave. Once again, we are about to expect new versions of those two to go with him, and while the new SS86 Thundercracker looks good, we will wait and see if Soundwave would ever be justified as a Leader again after seeing how Legacy United turned out.
It should be worth mentioning that there was a Megatron gun accessory as part of an upgrade set included with the Centurion Drone. It is sculpted differently from the one included with SS86, and it had a removable silencer. It also lacks a stock, so you'd have to find more accurate representations of Meguntron as an accessory from the G1 reissues of Starscream colored like the cartoon or some MP versions of Optimus, Soundwave, and the Seekers.
And finally, here we have him with SS86 Optimus Prime, the sole reason this Megatron exists. While it is nice to see these two look cartoon accurate and both be decent toys. Optimus is more than decent compared to Megatron. However, Optimus had more going on with him to justify his price tag on top of being more creative with his engineering compared to Megatron. Both modes look good on Prime while Megatron has a half-baked tank mode with a pretty good robot mode that has minor issues that hold it back from being 100% perfect. It doesn't help by the fact that Optimus had a few more accessories to help him feel more worthwhile than his Earthrise counterpart. I know some will say that AOE Optimus being smaller than his TLK Voyager takes points away as well as having a similar accessory count to Megatron, but Optimus had an even more complex transformation, featured more options for his weapons in terms of display options and integration, and was able to look good in both modes in spite of his backpack.
Overall, while SS86 Optimus Prime at least felt like a definitive stab at the character, Megatron I
is comparable to a rush job that many will give glowing reviews because 'muh cartoon accuracy'. If you still want him in spite of the mixed quality, at least it's better than buying meth I guess. At this point, with my approach being to have him be my final G1 Megatron for a CHUG display, I doubt I would want to get any of the repaints.
Final ranking: ⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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