So I’m obsessed with Megahouse’s Mega Cat Project line of figures, which means I’ve been buying them second hand in order to get the blind box figures I want.
In doing so I have ended up buying a counterfeit off of Mercari, and since I received the actual figure today (ordered off eBay) I decided to do a comparison of the two figs since I haven’t seen that yet for these figures in particular!
Please enjoy my overly thorough comparison below the cut :)
Right outta the gate, my advice for spotting a counterfeit is, like for any figure to ask for more photos. When I bought the counterfeit figure the photo was low quality and taken with bad lighting which made it hard to see any details. I've seen other ones where they are even inside a plastic bag to add to the 'realism'. **EDIT** wild statement from me here, they’re in plastic bags bc that’s how they get them from the people they bought them from (likely off of AliExpress or smthn I’m seeing listings with review photos that have the fakes)
The easiest photo to ask for is the bottom. If you’re finding it tricky to tell if it is real, the bottom is a bit of a giveaway.
As you can see the real figure has a mark that says “MH CHINA”, while the bottom of the counterfeit is just white.
This mark is present on all of the other Mega Cat figures I have. Interestingly the bottom of the Kakashi laying down has additional detailing, and the MH China mark is above the tail.
In addition to not having the stamp the paint quality isn’t as nice either. Counterfeit Luffy has blurry lines, and an overall more messy finish on the edges and sunflower design.
The coloring is also a little different, with the counterfeit being overall less vibrant which doesn't show up super well in the photos but it's really apparent in real life.
Next, the quality of the build of the figure. Which, honestly, isn’t horrible. The main issues are pretty apparent when you look at the side by side, notably the chest area on the counterfeit isn’t inlaid, rather it sits almost level with the shirt - there’s actually space in between the bottom of this piece and the rest of the figure. Additionally, there is extra bits of plastic sticking out from the sides that were never sanded down.
Overall, the structure looks almost blurry with the nose and collar folds not being as distinct. However, the detailing on the back of the hat is pretty good!
Another thing to note is that the counterfeit feels almost smoother, and is a little shinier.
Other than asking for more photos, a good thing to always consider is price. While you can definitely find these figures cheaper on Mercari (I tend to spend ~$16 vs $24 on eBay) beware of the figures that are suuuper cheap - I got my counterfeit for $10. I tend to trust the listings that come with a box, but that doesn’t mean that they are counterfeit if they don’t have one. The Kakashi figure in this post didn’t come with a box (and was bought off Mercari) and he is very much an actual Megahouse figure.
If you are looking for figures, I would scope out other sites so you can see which ones are more popular (more expensive) because that tells you which ones to be more careful with! Dressrosa Law from Nyan Piece, for example, is on the pricier side and if you look him up on Mercari you can probably find counterfeits (check the earrings, they look fur tone rather than yellow). Once you spend some time looking at photos of the real thing the counterfeits become more obvious.
If you are super worried, I recommend Suruga-ya, they are a resale store in Japan so there is little risk of counterfeits. Every so often they do free shipping internationally, and their prices tend to be cheaper than eBay. (I got my Zoro figure pictured above from there). But for me, Mercari and eBay have worked fine.
I hope this guide helps, and please enjoy your cat figures!! I have bought way too many - and if you are wondering counterfeit!Luffy is well loved and sits on my desk at work. :)
