Mega

[thanigraphics]

So his name is Leo? In the pic are 2 lions, so the one on the background is called Mega?
Does that lion have a role in the story? I haven't read it yet. Lazy me :p

[Akril]

So his name is Leo? In the pic are 2 lions, so the one on the background is called Mega?
Does that lion have a role in the story? I haven't read it yet. Lazy me :p

You can read "Vulture Shock" here.

To make a long story short, Leo, Mega and several other lions appear in this scene, where Kopa asks what his family tree is like, though it's never clear from the text exactly who is who.

In a later scene, Simba, Nala, Rafiki, Zazu, a few other non-lion characters and Leo are talking together when the three vultures that are keeping Kopa hostage appear, and this is the accompanying illustration. The same pale, large-nosed lion from the previous illustration is in the background, and since the text says that Leo -- not Mega -- is present, most people have deduced that the pale lion is Leo and the golden one in the background is Mega. However, for all we know, it could be the other way around and there was another communication problem between the artist and the author.

[thanigraphics]

thanks for clearing things up! woah, thats a big miscommunication between author and illustrator then

[Simba]

wrong, it describes Mega as an old lion with a full mane. the golden lion is obviously young, so he can't be Mega. I have the book.

Then why does the scene with the vultures in it show "Mega" in the illustrations, yet never even mentions his name and strongly implies that Leo is the only male lion in that scene besides Simba?

EDIT: Oh, and before I forget: The text in other books also describes Nala as having amber eyes and Ahadi as having a black mane and green eyes, and we all know how well those descriptions match the illustrations. ; )

you mean those descriptions don't match lol. but yeah, the illustrator was probably just told to draw an oldish lion and a young lion for that scene, then put one in a later scene. it just seems more sensible that the old lion is Mega.

darn illustrators, confusing people all through the TLK6NA books.

[KopsTheTerminator]

Darn, I'm still confused... ~.~

[Akril]

Well, I guess everyone's going to be divided into two camps: the people that go with the lion that matches the written description of Mega the closest and the ones who say that the pale lion is Leo because the text supports the idea that that's him in that second illustration and not Mega.

It's sort of like the written description of Ahadi vs. the visual description of Ahadi: they're both completely different, and we may never know which one is real, though most people go with the written description. (Hmm...has anyone ever tried Googling the names of the artist and illustrator in an attempt to find a way to contact them?)


By the way, I did a search for Mega's name on TLKFAA, and everyone seems to support the idea that he is the golden lion in the background. I couldn't do a search on Leo because the search engine won't accept strings less than four letters long (so no searches for Uru or Ni either).

I'm not saying this to support my claim, I'm just passing on what I've found out.

By the way, Simba: Could you please clear up a little mystery and tell us what color eyes the lion on this page has? It's impossible to make it out in this small scan, but since you actually own the book, can you tell? Thanks.

[KopsTheTerminator]

I'll stick with the lion that laughs at Kopa to be Mega. ~.~

[thanigraphics]

Me too, I think we just have to live with the fact that we'll never know!
Mega means something like "enourmous/big" and this lion is very huge. So that's why I consider the pale lion that appears 2 times in the illustrations to be Mega.

[Akril]

"Mega" has also a meaning in Swahili, which is "old, run down".

I was actually able to track down some message boards for the author of this book to ask her about this matter. Unfortunately, the forum doesn't allow URLs to be posted, so I could only describe the illustrations.

I'll stick with the lion that laughs at Kopa to be Mega. ~.~

Er...actually all the lions laugh at Kopa.

[Simba]

Er...actually all the lions laugh at Kopa.

yep. and they're all laughing in the illustration.

also, lots of animals in the Pridelands had come to comfort Simba and Nala in that one scene, so Mega might'e been there too.

I can't see that pic at the moment cause Photobucket is blocked. I'll answer that question later