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Hasbro- Transformers Kingdom: Megatron
Based on nothing but a concept and an idea, I have nothing but a bad feeling about the upcoming live action Transformers Beast Wars film. Sure, I?m a glutton for punishment who constantly watches all the previous 6 live action Transformers movies (even Revenge of the Fallen) but I?m not sure that the charm of Beast Wars is going to transfer to the live action big screen. I mean, let?s be honest: it hardly transferred to the small screen in a believable way, that is, realistic animals transforming into robots. To see how big of a challenge this is going to be have a look at the following clips:
Intro to the Japanese Beast Wars Neo cartoon:
https://youtu.be/e7nEtz8t0lc
Trailer for the live action Lion King movie:
https://youtu.be/7TavVZMewpY
The first example had an extremely cartoonish design look to the new Beast Wars Neo animal models with very traditional robot mode design: so much so its almost jarring to watch. The other is from the recent live action Lion King movie that had very realistic animal designs, but looked a bit off while speaking. So that begs the question, how are they going to handle the looks of the beasts from ?Beast Wars??
Whatever they end up doing, I just hope its not robotic looking beasts.
Pros: I?m not sure we really needed an updated Beast Wars Megatron, but in a world with fifty movie Bumblebee figures, I suppose there is always room for more of the same, besides I never had the original figure, but rather the red repainted re-releases (Alliteration!) T-Rex. In any case, this version of Megatron is fantastic. Looks solid in both modes, has surprisingly good articulation as a robot and beast and a fun transformation. And while I know it is a big part of his design, kudos to Hasbro for keeping the right ?dino head? arm.
Cons: Two minor things: 1. The left hand/arm is extremely bulk, but that is more of a design flaw and the panels throughout dino mode are somewhat maddening to line up.
