Chunky tyranny.

Dear Primus, this has been a long time coming. I finally got myself an ROTF Leader Megatron! After a decade, it finally happened!

I had the choice between getting this guy or the ROTF Voyager Megatron when I was younger and I went with the smaller, greener version of the tyrant. And I always wondered if that was the right choice.

Welp, I finally got him. Let’s see if Megatron here was worth the wait!

Vehicle mode

Back when he came out, almost everyone agreed this Leader Megatron had a much better vehicle mode than the 2007 Movie Leader. Well, they’re right; Megatron is an awesome Metal Slug. The 2007 Megatron turned into an alien jet that was a bit hard recognise as a jet but ROTF Megatron here’s definitely a tank.

There’s lots of molded detailing but the drab grey plastic is a a bit boring to look at. Thankfully, the treads are nicely painted and break up the grey monotony. Also, I actually like that Megatron has his head looking forward in tank mode but you do have the option of folding it away if that’s your style.

There’s a lot of playability in tank mode. The turret needs to stay static if you want to activate his lights and sounds but if you don’t care about them then you can swivel the turret as well as point it up. There are also tiny wheels under his treads so Megatron can roll around.

Transformation

This is where Megatron came up a bit short among the ROTF Leader line up. Compared to Optimus and Jetfire, Megatron was absurdly simple to transform.

I’m gonna come out and say it; I like having a big guy that takes like a minute to transform. It’s also not that simplistic and has one or two steps that made me go “Ah, that’s clever”.

Robot mode

Yeah, Megatron is a total beefcake in robot mode. He has the opposite problem that the DOTM Voyager had; that Megatron was too thin and this Megatron is too chonky. Both the tank mode and the robot mode are closer to the concept art of ROTF than the actual ROTF on-screen design but the robot mode is definitely more inaccurate than the tank.

He’s way too buff and has a bit of a hunchback. Also, his left arm is tiny. There’s more details and colours in robot mode so Megatron is very interesting to look at even though there’s a lot of that gray plastic I don’t like but Hasbro loves to use.

Megatron has… hampered posability to put it bluntly. I honestly don’t mind his weapon arm having limited joints but the head having such a pitiful swivel is just irritating. His head can look up and barely rotate side to side. His arms both rotate as well as go in and out at the shoulders. His left arm has a bicep swivel and bending elbow as well as a moving finger. His legs rotate as well as go in and out at the hips. He has thigh swivels and bending knees. Lastly, his toes can move up.

Gimmicks

Megatron actually has a crap ton of gimmicks.

The light and sounds in tank mode are activated when you lock in the turret then fire the launching missile. Launching the missile when the turret is locked in lights up the front of the tank and activates a missile firing noise. Transforming the waist either way triggers the transformation sound effect we all know and love.

When Megatron’s in robot mode, the Mech Alive as well as lights and sounds are activated when you pull down then release the lever on the chest. The armour on his chest shakes, inner parts move around inside the chest, Megatron’s head shakes and he screams “I am Megatron!” while lights in his head as well as chest pulse. The moving parts do make Megatron seem like he’s alive so the Mech Alive gimmick does it’s job well.

For weaponry, Megatrons right arm (which becomes the tank mode turret) has a firing black missile and can also transform into a battle axe with a bayonet. The bayonet/sword is spring-loaded so that it comes out automatically when you pull the black lever. The fact that his arm can transforms from a long-range weapon to a melee weapon really pleases me for some reason.

Toy or collectible?

Both but Megatron leans more into toy.

I mean, he’s a more than decade old Leader from a highly regarded toyline and all… but Megatron is big, chunky, simple and full of gimmicky fun for kids! On top of that, he’s super dense feeling as well as sparsely painted and will very likely stand up to a beating.

Of all the ROTF Leaders, Megatron is the one that always seems to be on sale for cheap and I got mine for RM110 ($28) used. The only Leader from the first three Bayverse movies who’s sold cheaper is DOTM Leader Bumblebee. As such, you won’t feel it’s a waste getting him for a kid.

Still, of the Leader Class Megatrons released over the original Bayverse trilogy, ROTF Megatron is the clear winner. If you’re a collector of the old scale Bayverse figures, you really should get this guy.

Closing

Make no mistake, this Megatron is flawed and has been one-upped by a ton of newer takes on this design. Heck, the first ROTF Voyager has his number in more than a few ways! But this Megatron fills the role of big, dumb, stupid fun toy very well.

Megatron isn’t a super accurate, witchcraft infused, super Transformer like ROTF Leader Optimus but he’s not a bad Transformer. If you give Megatron a shot, you’ll probably enjoy yourself.