So, later that fall, I finally gave in to the siren call of 3rd party upgrade kits. However, this wasn't anything flashy; I just wanted Megatron to have the normal shoulder movement that he ought to. The main option seemed to be a 3-D printed kit from Sam's Forge, an English guy who makes some pretty cool transformers, accessories and parts via 3-D printing.
It took a while, but I finally got my kit in December 2023; a second kit was even included for my trouble. However, even after I bought some new small screwdrivers to perform the installation, I kept putting it off for some time.
Finally, I installed the kit sometime in fall 2024. It was a bit frustrating, as Megatron's turret and midsection are awkward to disassemble or reassemble, especially for the first time. However, once I had everything together, it was a revelation. The mold completely opened up, allowing the character to come through in a way I didn't expect. Megatron became so much more menacing and (obviously) dynamic. While the mold still has some issues that hold it back from being a perfect update, the shoulder replacement certainly made it the definitive release for the character (or, at least, this version of the character; I'm still very fond of Cybertron Galvatron).
Sadly, one of the left shoulder hinge pieces broke a few weeks after the installation, breaking my heart right alongside it. I knew I had a backup set of parts, but I'd been reserving that for the upcoming Galvatron repaint, and didn't really want to deal with purchasing a new set. So, once again, I put things off.
Finally, in December, I managed to get the Galvatron repaint, on sale, from Walmart online (which is terrific and terrible - they've stopped carrying leader class toys in stores). This pressed the issue, of course. Not only did I want to repair Megatron's shoulder, but I'd want Galvatron fully mobile as well. Sadly, Sam's Forge was no longer producing new sets. However, his files are still purchasable online (very low price) and thankfully, I'd recently gained access to a 3-D printer. So, my son helped me get a new set printed; we had to go with black plastic rather than the grey that Sam used for Megatron, but it turned out quite nicely. I still had to depend on the more rubbery parts and screws from the backup set, but as of a few weeks ago, both figures are now equipped with fully functioning shoulders and are a heck of a duo.
It's incredible how such a simple change can totally reshape your view of a mold. Sam's upgrade kit blends seamlessly with the transformation, and its only real drawback is that it has to be made from printed plastic, so the durability won't be comparable to what Hasbro can typically offer. It's all the more strange that Megatron, a modern leader class toy (read: not too big) with minimal accessories (all of which are actual necessary components of his alt or bot modes) either couldn't find the room for these joints in the parts count, or Hasbro/Takara deliberately chose to design the shoulders the way they did. There is a bit of a pattern, with not only the aforementioned Laser Optimus, but also Legacy Blitzwing, though on him the issue is less egregious. Whatever the situation, I'm grateful that we live in a time where such a solution as Sam's shoulder kit is possible. As stated, the transformation works just as intended, and since Hasbro/Takara did take the time to include universal movement for the true shoulders, now having the same for the shoulder pads allows for nearly unparalleled movement and expression for the design. The parts are also just big enough to apply an appropriate amount of friction to the shoulder pad hinge, rather than the more floppy movement allowed by the factory parts.
Before I gush too much, I'll take some time to specifically speak to the Galvatron repaint, as I've only had him for about a month. I never bought the original Armada Galvatron, as at the time, I was new to adult TF collecting and not keen at all on the idea of same-character repaints. It didn't help that I also simply didn't like the deco. It didn't seem to make sense to me for the character of Megatron/Galvatron. I will also say, retrospectively, that I think the older 2002 mold didn't wear the Galvatron deco as well as the Legacy mold does. Anyway, I decided to bite on the newer release, especially because I'd been pre-gifted the extra shoulder kit in 2023. I was a bit hesitant, because the final unveiling pics had a much darker, creamier tone to the white than I'd preferred, but in hand it looked much better. The new face is a bit of a plus, and the inherent set of optional configurations to the mold means that I mostly have Galvatron with the right hand in arm cannon form, while Megatron usually keeps his tank cannon intact and slung under the right arm as his character model typically does.
Galvatron's deco, specifically the paint apps, also really impressed in person. The gold looks amazing, and there is a pretty liberal use of it. There's also a great use of contrast that isn't really exploited with Megatron. For example, both molds have a paint app on the helmet that extends from the front to the back piece. On Megatron, this isn't incredibly noticeable in alt mode, where the back of the head is very visible. For Galvatron, the base plastic for the head is the maroon color, while the paint app is the hold, and it just looks terrific. There is also a lot of black that contrasts nicely with the white and also the maroon (like with the three trapezoidal panels on the front left tank tread). Both molds allow their purples to mainly be a surprise for the robot mode, and the more lavender color for Galvatron may look less traditionally "on brand for Decepticons" compared Megatron's purple, but it's nicely distinct while maintaining some design continuity between the decoes. Also, while I think I probably picked up on this subconsciously through the years, I didn't find out until last year that Armada Galvatron's lavender was chosen because, as of 2003, one of the most recent Galvatron character/toy releases would have been Beast Wars II Galvatron, which of course is dominated by the lavender color.
Alas, my Legacy Megatron/Galvatron journey isn't over. Unfortunately, I've yet to be able to purchase a Legacy Tidal Wave, and missed out on Amazon's temporary $180 price. I'm not sure that I'd buy it at full price, as there are a lot of other high-priority expensive purchases in the coming months, but I'd love to be able to complete my Armada Decepticon leader with the Burning Megatron/Galvatron mode.
While I'm grateful that Hasbro has released both Megatron and his Galvatron redeco, I'd be lying if I didn't really want a new Universe/Timelines Megazarak from this mold. Yeah, it would mean finagling another shoulder upgrade kit, but I'd find a way. However, while I'm very convinced that the leader class has been Hasbro's strongest design showcase for the past few years, they've been pretty bad about bypassing some incredibly obvious repaints. I'm considering dedicating a post to such a list, but for here, my point is that if we haven't already gotten Cryotek by now and no sign of Universe Razorclaw on the horizon, I don't think we'll see Megazarak anytime soon. Which is a shame, because Hasbro has clearly been more than happy to reproduce previously Botcon-only characters (we got a whole Shattered Glass subline), and Megazarak possess the best deco that was actually released (I'd also love a "Black Megatron" redeco, which has black, dark olive green & purple, neon green, and yellow, similar to a later, cancelled deco for Energon Megatron). I was able to obtain Megazarak for a great price ($45 or so?) on eBay back in 2008-2009, and sadly sold it later when trying to make some money. So, yeah, a new one with modern articulation would be amazing. If I recall correctly, the black plastic on Megazarak had a nice metal flake effect - not the most unique thing in Transformers, but rarely seen with black - and I kind of doubt we'd see that again, but one can dream. Speaking of dreaming, I'd also love to see Hasbro spend the money and time to make a new, special release (it'd be best as Generations Selects, I guess, with a custom price point) of Armada Megatron with their own improved tooling for the shoulders, a Leader-1 mini-con, and knife accessory if possible. Or, at the very least, we need a special set of the missing mini-cons for the Legacy Armada/Cybertron tools, like Leader-1, Sparkplug and/or Over-Run, Swindle, toy-color Jolt, and Windsheer.
To close, a huge thank you to Sam's Forge. You've taken a mold that was just short of the mark and breathed new life into it, and for what is, probably, my favorite iteration of Megatron. Armada was the toyline that reintroduced me to transformers and, for better and worse, allowed the franchise to sink its claws into me.
