A synthetic procedure leading to 4,4Ј,5,5Ј-tetramethoxy-2,2Јbipyridine [(MeO) 4 bpy] was developed, and the first three metal complexes with this ligand were synthesized. A few ligand precursor compounds, the final ligand, and its homoleptic iron(II) complex were characterized structurally by Xray diffraction. The combination of cyclic voltammetry, optical absorption, luminescence, and transient absorption spectroscopy provided detailed insight into the electronic structure of the entire series of homoleptic Fe II , Ru II , and Os II complexes. The ruthenium(II) complex is a more potent photoreductant than the [Ru(bpy) 3 ] 2+ parent compound by [a] www.eurjic.org FULL PAPER the complexes were explored in detail, and we find that [Ru{(MeO) 4 bpy} 3 ] 2+ is indeed a very potent excited-state electron donor. The redox and photophysical properties of the new complexes are rationalized by comparison with existing data of related bpy-based complexes.