OK, in the 40th Anniversary line, we have a tribute to a toy made during the 20th Anniversary. I am suddenly acutely aware of my own mortality. Sorry, this is gonna be both fairly brief and fairly negative.
The 2004 Transformers Energon Megatron toy (leader class)
Lets try to unpack this. This version of
Megatron appeared, obviously, in Transformers Energon. I wrote a
retrospective on that yonks ago, but it was notable for being the
20th anniversary series. It didn't do many direct tributes, more
remakes and name reuses, but the influence was felt in more than a
few toys, which is why this Megs looks a lot like the original
Galvatron. As Energon was also a direct sequel to Armada, this makes
the toy a representation of the same guy we saw as a leader class
recently, which also explains his famous tank/sword accessory. That's
a weapon either referencing his previous form, or made from his own
corpse following his resurrection. Was it a good toy? Well, for its
time it was pretty memorable, but not one that aged well. It wasn't a
toy that especially prioritised articulation, it was more about
gimmicks than leg joints, more so than most of its time, but it had a
lot of style. I liked how it looked, but never how it moved or felt. Definitely a design that would benefit from a do-over.
So, with this new Core Class toy we have a toy that's a homage to a
homage. And one that you'd suspect would be at best a tenth the size
of the original, but with hopefully more useful articulation by a
country mile. Then again, its in the consistent disappointment that
is the Core class. Is it any good? Well, not hugely.
Starting with the robot form I find myself feeling oddly nostalgic, while also debating how much I can file under "acceptable for the price". Visually, it looks like a scaled down version of the original, with a few things understandably omitted, and the materials changed, but no shortage of paint. Good, that's what basically we're here for. Its nicely presented, swapping out translucent for opaque plastic, and retaining some elements of the old gimmicks. The tank/sword is present, as are the shoulder cannons which now work on 3mm peg. Articulation is also dramatically improved; this toy features ball joints rather than a spring-loaded conversion. Where the weaknesses start to occur is in the shoulders. There's a tab there for the purposes of the altmode, which is fair enough, but this ends up limiting the range of motion. The cannons can get in the way too, bumping into the wings. Now, this isn't a problem if you position them forwards, but why wasn't this just pinned in the first place? I mean... yes. You can have megs gunfighter things up now, but this feels like a life and lemons situation. Also, while this toy really isn't lacking in plastic, this is one where they've had to make compromises and hollow things out. Like the back of the head, the tank/sword, nosecone, forearms and legs. Classy. Given the sheer mass of the altmode, I'm not surprised, but I am disappointed. All that being said, its not actually a bad robot mode, sitting on the good side of average for a core overall.
The same general vibe continues into gunship mode, although it is perhaps a touch worse as the robot form was given priority. On the one hand, the look is definitely there, and its doing a better job hiding the head than the much larger original. Its also pleasently chunky and big for a toy in the Core slot. On the other, the hands don't collapse and so stick out under the wings, while the hollowness and such are more obnoxious. Case in point: the tank/sword, which just ends up pointing the blade backwards. Now, given that the tank itself is hollow, could we not have it fold up? Or possibly evoke the original gimmick, and stow the blade in the big empty front end? As small altmodes go, its not bad. Its certainly not bad. But it so easily could have been better.
Now, I have some very
mixed feelings about this toy, and I have been back and forth with my editing. Part of that's the whole "jeebus,
twenty years" thing, I admit, and I’m glad it it exists. But
a lot of it is the toy being frustratingly close to being good, but not. It feels like an earnest attempt to modernise an older design, but its also feels like every cost-saving trick they could have used, they did. Some designs just don't work out when scaled down, and while its not without its merits, this was too much to ask of a core class. I got this for £3, so I really shouldn't complain, but this would have felt bad value at RRP. Otherwise, there isn't a huge amount to say. It does
what it needs to, it is something that exists, but it exists in a
sub-average size class. In the meantime? I’m just gonna have a
brief midlife crisis, see you soon.
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