It sure is. It does come with a hard case, a better bridge, a brass nut and - I guess - some case candy. And it has the nine-ply neck. I guess The difference with a normal Epiphone is not as outrageous as the Kiss bass compared to an SG Bass.
I'll wait for the surf colour Birds!
Having said that: A normal Mexican P is over 1000 euros nowadays, without a gigbag. US Music Mans aren't available in Eurpe anymore - well, you can order them at Ernie Ball's in the US - so what we can get is the Asian Sterling by Music Man Ray34 as top of the line. Also over 1000 euros, but with a gigbag. Compared to that, it isn't that strange.