The Energon Pub

... but I think I'm actually starting to like the Leader Megatron toy. I know, I know, the toy is pointlessly mediocre. Horrible paintjob, poseability and movement problems, exposed head and shoddy gimmicks... but I don't know, the more I fiddle around with it, the more I find myself doing something I don't usually do with my Transformers: HAVE FUN. Maybe it's because of all the shortcomings that I'm not afraid to man-handle the damn thing. I transform it back and forth, place it in precarious situations for photos (see below) and basically treat it like crap, because, well let's face it, it is crap. I'm so painfully careful with my other toys (especially the big ones, Leader figures don't come cheap in Canada, regardless of the exchange rate, fellow Canucks will back me up on this one) that I don't enjoy them as much.

So for a few days, I thought I was just going crazy. So on a whim, I picked up the Legends class Megatron, and found that (egads!) I liked him too (very poseable for such a small fig, great value)! Then I started to panic... "Oh no! Does this mean I'm actually starting to like the Megatron design now?!" It couldn't be... I spent hours staring at that concept art just hating it with every fiber of my being. Sure, I liked the new head they gave him, and once I saw the movie I thought Megs was neat, but the design still bugged me, and don't get me wrong, it still does.

I don't know. The jet design especially has really grown on me (the leader figure's jet mode is HUGE, he's worth it just for the sheer size!). I went from hating it to really liking it. It's unlike anything else we've ever seen, sure, but I think it's finally sinking in that "this is the Movie Megatron, love him or leave him" and I think after nearly a year since seeing the original design, I've finally accepted this as the new Megatron.

... and the toy is alot more fun once you do.

Enjoy the pics, they were a pain to get.










Megatron transform!

Awesome photos man. Kinda makes me want to go out and get a Megatron. ...But I won't, lol, that thing is garbage.

Urgh. Still looks pantsto me.

Still looks like someone put a load of liquid plastic up their nose and then sneezed to me.

actually with my birthday in the next few months, I'll have some loose change to spare. Perhaps I'll get Megs because Prime is lonely with his dimwit Autobots.

I need to get this one. Dissapointing yeah, but still need to get him, Bonecrusher, and leader brawl to have all the toys that matter from the movie

did you switch the springs in his arms??

i think the head of megatron can pull off,..
if really really really want display to the alt mode

Megatron: COSMIC RUST!!!!!!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am Megatron.

All your suburbia is mine!

HAHAH! Another convert. YES!

I'm only disappointed (somewhat) in his articulation. Beyond that, I love my Leader Class Megatron figure.

I had originally bought him due to my completist attitude towards the movie cast, but once I had a chance to transform him back and forth, etc...

I love him to pieces. He rocks.

It's kinda sad to see none of the stores are selling him anymore.

You're a brave soul. I haven't tried putting any TF toy in direct sunlight yet. (Except for KO toys)

Nice pics man.

Sledge Tells the truth: Still looks like someone put a load of liquid plastic up their nose and then sneezed to me.

Finally put
In the words of the comic book guy from the simpsons

Worse Megatron EVER

This is the first megatron I have turned down just looks to organic bug like to me, has no look of megs just my thoughts

Clusterprime

Clusterprime wrote:

Sledge Tells the truth: Still looks like someone put a load of liquid plastic up their nose and then sneezed to me.

Finally put
In the words of the comic book guy from the simpsons

Worse Megatron EVER

This is the first megatron I have turned down just looks to organic bug like to me, has no look of megs just my thoughts

Clusterprime

That was why Megatron got so little screen time, and was killed off instantly.

Bay and the rest of the Movie crew must have been ashamed to show him too clearly.

Auto Bot wrote:That was why Megatron got so little screen time, and was killed off instantly.

Bay and the rest of the Movie crew must have been ashamed to show him too clearly.

Except Megatron has by far the most screen time of any Decepticon next to Frenzy. I don't think they were ashamed of the design, Bay and others signed off and greenlit his looks, how could they be ashamed of him?! If they didn't like the design, they would have chosen something else, THE FANS are the ones who were ashamed of him...

Auto Bot wrote:You're a brave soul. I haven't tried putting any TF toy in direct sunlight yet. (Except for KO toys)

What difference does it make? I don't think keeping a toy in direct sunlight (oh noez!) for maybe 20 minutes a week does any harm... it's not like my Leader Megatron would melt... though maybe most fans would like him more if he did...

Skowl wrote:

Auto Bot wrote:That was why Megatron got so little screen time, and was killed off instantly.

Bay and the rest of the Movie crew must have been ashamed to show him too clearly.

Except Megatron has by far the most screen time of any Decepticon next to Frenzy. I don't think they were ashamed of the design, Bay and others signed off and greenlit his looks, how could they be ashamed of him?! If they didn't like the design, they would have chosen something else, THE FANS are the ones who were ashamed of him...

Auto Bot wrote:You're a brave soul. I haven't tried putting any TF toy in direct sunlight yet. (Except for KO toys)

What difference does it make? I don't think keeping a toy in direct sunlight (oh noez!) for maybe 20 minutes a week does any harm... it's not like my Leader Megatron would melt... though maybe most fans would like him more if he did...

It is my opinion, that Bay et al can't find anything else for Megatron. I don't blame them. I, too, still can't imagine anything suitable for Megatron, that will not involve mass-shifting.

As for the sunlight.... Plastics deteriorate in time, due to radiation. Every bit of radiation absorbed by it will all sum up in the end to destroy the plastic, making it brittle and discolored. It's the sum total of all the radiation received by it in its whole lifetime. Including, but not limited to sunlight. Flourescent lights, boob tube lights, heat radiation from a nearby computer, ultra violet radiation, etc.

This may take 10 years, 20 years, 30 years. Depending on the initial quality of the plastic.

My point here is longevity. My TF toys are exposed to flourescent lights everyday. Plus indirect sunlight radiation, and all kinds of ambient lights.

Assuming my toys will last 20 years. Giving it a blast of 2 hours direct sunlight, which is about a hundred times more powerful than flourescent and other ambient lightings, could theoretically shorten its life. I don't know the exact ratio of Sunlight radiation versus Ambient light radiation. Could be much more than a hundred.

So by taking out my TF toy into direct sunlight for 2 hours, i'd probably shorten its life by, say, 3 months? half a year?

To appreciate all my blabbering, here's a dramatic "exaggeration" of what might happen.

Try leaving your TF toy the whole day out in direct sunlight. If one day don't destroy it, try maybe 10 consecutive summer days.

You'd see that the plastic toy has deteriorated considerably, if not, turned totally brittle.

That is because the sum total of all the radiation it absorb, which is at a very fast rate under direct sunlight, has finally exceeded its tolerable capacity.

So, the less time i take it out to the sunlight, the longer is its life span.

To be able to max out on its lifespan, I'd give it ZERO time under the sunlight.

Auto Bot wrote:As for the sunlight.... Plastics deteriorate in time, due to radiation. Every bit of radiation absorbed by it will all sum up in the end to destroy the plastic, making it brittle and discolored. It's the sum total of all the radiation received by it in its whole lifetime. Including, but not limited to sunlight. Flourescent lights, boob tube lights, heat radiation from a nearby computer, ultra violet radiation, etc.

This may take 10 years, 20 years, 30 years. Depending on the initial quality of the plastic.

My point here is longevity. My TF toys are exposed to flourescent lights everyday. Plus indirect sunlight radiation, and all kinds of ambient lights.

Assuming my toys will last 20 years. Giving it a blast of 2 hours direct sunlight, which is about a hundred times more powerful than flourescent and other ambient lightings, could theoretically shorten its life. I don't know the exact ratio of Sunlight radiation versus Ambient light radiation. Could be much more than a hundred.

So by taking out my TF toy into direct sunlight for 2 hours, i'd probably shorten its life by, say, 3 months? half a year?

To appreciate all my blabbering, here's a dramatic "exaggeration" of what might happen.

Try leaving your TF toy the whole day out in direct sunlight. If one day don't destroy it, try maybe 10 consecutive summer days.

You'd see that the plastic toy has deteriorated considerably, if not, turned totally brittle.

That is because the sum total of all the radiation it absorb, which is at a very fast rate under direct sunlight, has finally exceeded its tolerable capacity.

So, the less time i take it out to the sunlight, the longer is its life span.

To be able to max out on its lifespan, I'd give it ZERO time under the sunlight.

If you're going to go through all that trouble might as well be a MISB collector. If I have to keep my collection in a darkroom just so they can last 20 years and a month instead of just 20 years, then what's the point?

Plastic might degrade over time, but my TFs will still be around long after I'm dead, so who really gets the **** end of that stick?

Well, i like to have my pie, and eat it too! Hehe

There's really no trouble. And i don't keep my toys in a dark room.

I just display them on a cabinet. Visible and accessible all the time, for playing and transforming, under normal room lightings.

I just don't expose them to the elements and the extremes. Such as water and direct sunlight.

This system of simple moderate protection dawned upon me, when, a few months back, a friend and i went to see the TF collection of another friend. He's got loads of TF toys! Every series, every generation. It's like the Berlin wall of TF cabinet display.

Anyway, we were discussing happily and marveling at this gigantic collection. Most of the toys are in mint condition. Well, a bit off color, due to the age.

Then we thought of transforming some of them. So the owner took out G1 rachet. Darn! The wheels have partially melted into sticky goo! Then he took out another figure. An impressive big one. He pushed on the head to transform... it was stucked. He pushed harder. Snap! The head broke off and crumbled into tiny pieces!

That's when we realized all the plastics have become brittle.

These toys were never cooked in the oven. It's the action of more than 20 years of accumulated absorption of radiation.

Skowl wrote:
If you're going to go through all that trouble might as well be a MISB collector. If I have to keep my collection in a darkroom just so they can last 20 years and a month instead of just 20 years, then what's the point?

Of course, 20 years and a month compared to 20 years, makes no difference.

If i can expose my TF toy to direct sunlight for an hour today, assuming it shortened its life by 3 months. So? Nothing to it.

But i could do it again. Maybe another hour next month. Then another hour 2 years later. Then another hour 2 weeks after than. And so on.

Before you know it, the toy could have lost 5 or 10 years of its life.

Then my collection could have become garbage by year 2018.

I want them to last longer than that.

Not to my deathbed. But definitely longer than 2018.

You want to know my little secret?

I like Megatron's movie design.

Yeah. I know. But to me, THAT is the way he is supposed to look in that continuity. That was the way it was made, and hating him isn't going to change it. So I can enjoy the way they designed him to look totally alien and an evil alien at that. Besides, I tried hating Galvitron away and it didn't work.

That being said, I love my Leader Megatron too. Now I wish they could have hidden his head better. I wish that the alt mode looked a lot less bulky. But over all, I still love him!

Not a secret anymore.

Repaint Megatron into Galvatron... and I'd get Leader Class Galvatron any day, (looks better with some colors than with the dull silver-ish look IMO)

If Hasbro would have just made any realy attempt what-so-ever to disguise his head/face, it might acutally be OK. But they didn't, and I don't like it. Totally a case of what could have been with Leader Megatron. Legends Megs is just odd.

But you know what, I'm glad that some people like him.

I like the design of Leader Megs but hated the paint scheme. I repainted him from head to toe in silver, black and gold amnd made the things on the sides of his arms removable so now he looks awesome. it is amazing what a repaint of these toys can do.