The Manurhin (and Korth) is better than our domestic double actions, past or present, the same way a Ruger is better than a Heritage and a Freedom Arms is better than a Ruger. The same way a Holland & Holland is better than a Remington. Or a Bentley is better than a Chevy. Better materials, better machining, tighter tolerances, better fit & finish. I don't know why some folks have such an issue with accepting that concept.
If you stand back and think about the pricing, it's not really 'that' bad. Especially considering that it's a lifetime investment. We're not talking the difference between a $40,000 Chevy and a $450,000 Rolls-Royce Phantom. Virtually any new full sized DA revolver has an MSRP approaching or over $1000. So the $3000 French connection is like owning three Rugers or S&W's. Which means that basically anyone could own one, if they really wanted to. How many people are tapping out their responses with a $900 iPhone or a $1200 iPad that's obsolete in 5yrs? This is what always baffles me when the subject is multi-thousand dollar guns and people act as if you must just have piles of cash laying around with nowhere to throw it. I had my first custom revolver built 20yrs ago at a cost of $1500. Today that would be $2400, adjusted for inflation. At the time, I was making $10/hr so this was not a flippant purchase. However, it was important to me and it was what I really wanted, so I sacrificed less important things, saved my money and got it done.
In a word, no, not in a double action. Only thing that is comparable is the Freedom Arms 83/97.
N-frame .357's are tough but they're not bombproof. The .44's make their shortcomings stand out. Folks wax poetic about hand fitting but it was necessary due to the limitations of machining.