Draykov

Here we go again. Why reserve all of your angst for the 1/48 Valks? Why not direct any of it at the 1/60 Monster or 1/60 Qrau? Both of those toys will be larger than any 1/48 Valk. After all, according to you, it's the size and not the scale that matters... So let's be consistent here. Let's get rid of the 1/60 Qrau and Monster, too. After all, how's a destroid with limited appeal the size of a coffee table and costing upwards of 400 dollars any more "practical" than a 1/48 VF-22? So why not campaign against these items? Yet everytime the 1/48 Valks are mentioned, we're treated to the same discourse. Or does it have something to do with a fear that somehow 1/48 Valks will cut into the possibility of *you* getting what *you* want? So, to be perfectly fair, and perfectly consistent... let's campaign against the 1/60 Qrau and Monster too, agreed? After all, these two products are more likely than any 1/48 in seeing the light of day at this point. Either way, I doubt Yamato will get rid of the 1/60 or 1/72 line. You'll get what you want. It's already in the plans and in the works. I don't see the need for you to campaign against us getting what we want. Once again, we don't piss on your parade, so please stop pissing on ours. -Al I think that about sums it up. Well said, Al. I'm inclined to give Graham's comments tremendous weight in the matter of Yamato toys, but Aegis! does seem to be a bit defensive about the potential of 1/48 Macross + Valks.

Those 1/1 scale helmets are Yamato? And the great "Aegis vs Imode: Big Ass M+ Smackdown" begins anew.

Yeah, the whole "VF-0" designation is kind of irksome for me. Kawamori-San usually sticks pretty close to reality in a lot of ways, but I've never known any aircraft to be designated as a A/B/C/D/E/F/H-0. Under the current U.S. system of aircraft designation, it always starts with 1 through whatever. I guess if I'm gonna point that kind of thing out, I should also mention that "V" stands for vertical take-off/landing (and not variable) in the current U.S. aircraft designation system (AV-8 Harrier, V-22 Osprey), but that's never bothered me. It's a nitpicky issue, so I don't dwell on it too much, but it's just an obvious reminder that they didn't plan for Macross Zero in the 80s, they just stuck it in because prequels are cool now. I like the show so far though, so I won't complain.

For the same reason targeting computers looked like liquid plasma in the Star Wars Prequels and like Pong in the orginal trilogy.

I thought that was the Hasegawa kit.

There is always Amazon Japan. Edit: Scratch that, they won't ship it outside Japan.

I've heard rumors about Yamato doing some Macross Zero stuff...at least I think they were rumors. Maybe not. From Graham's latest newsletter dated 01/09/03:

I saw a bit of this on a Saturday B-Movie matinee once. John Boy as Shad. Man that was too funny.

I thought Takatoys might have had some at one point. He's been concentrating on Yamato 1/48 stuff lately, so I'm not sure if he'd have any left (that is, if he ever made them in 1/55 to begin with). You might also see if Anasazi37 has done anything like that. Those are the two resident custom sticker/decal guys.

My pleasure.

Just go to My Controls at the top of the page, go to Edit Avatar Settings, select Your Image Avatars and paste this link http://www.speedracer.com/media/paint-4-big.jpg (or any other picture you might want to use) in the text bar there.

Welcome aboard, LurkerX. Yes the 1/48s are certainly addictive. As far as the glue thing...well...personally, I just plan on being super careful with the backpack when transforming rather than get glue all over or making any custom mods to reinforce it...but that's just me. I'm not sure which mini-figures you're referring to. By the way, might I suggest an avatar:

I like the one with the VF-1D:

It says to me that you would bad-mouth a cool toy because you didn't like the paint scheme.

Welcome aboard, drummer. Basically, the only 1/48 Yamato Valks out there without the "fixes" are the orginal releases of the VF-1A Hikaru and the VF-1S Roy...both of which have been reissued and released in Japan with the "fixes." They should find there way stateside in the next couple of weeks.

From what I understand, no: the boxes are the same. An easy way to tell without opening the box would be to check out the headrest in the pilot's seat, but that won't really help if you're shopping for one on eBay or something.

Well, a 1/48 YF-21 might be pushing the envelope of "do-ability," but I do think it would be more detailed than a 1/60. I mean c'mon: the bigger it is the more "realistic" you can make it. Real rubber tires on the landing gear, engine compartments...the bigger it is the easier it is to add detail. The act of adding the details is not easy, but the ability to incorporate it into a 1/48 model/toy would be easier than trying to detail a 1/60 or 1/72. True, although one valid point Aegis does make is that a 1:60 21 should be sufficiently large enough to add all the bells and whistles that a 1/48 vf1 has. Not that I really care about bells and whistles though. I just want it big and nice. True (with the exception of the pilot/cockpit area that is). But this is where I would say consistancy in scale comes in...I'd like it and if a $150+ table top YF-21 is what it takes to get it, then I may go for it. If you want to talk excessive, then let's discuss the 1/60 Monster.

Which ones do you have (that is, if you've opened them to look)? I may go ahead and get a second set, but depending on what you have I might be interested in purchasing them from you or trading (provided I have purchased another set and get duplicates).

Well, a 1/48 YF-21 might be pushing the envelope of "do-ability," but I do think it would be more detailed than a 1/60. I mean c'mon: the bigger it is the more "realistic" you can make it. Real rubber tires on the landing gear, engine compartments...the bigger it is the easier it is to add detail. The act of adding the details is not easy, but the ability to incorporate it into a 1/48 model/toy would be easier than trying to detail a 1/60 or 1/72.

No problem, man...and welcome aboard.

I was thinking: the VF-1S Hikaru is here (yippee!), the VF-1S and 1A reissues have started popping up (hooray!), and the J is supposed to be out in a few weeks (whee!). What then? I wonder when/if Yamato will announce another 1/48 VF-1. I think the 1/60 Q-Rau and Monster (and possibly a YF-19 resculpt) are the big releases of 2004, but this will be the first time since the original 1/48 was announced that I haven't had some clue that another 1/48 was coming down the pipe. It's weird. What will I have to obsess about?

More or less.... Well, when most fans are male.. what do you expect? Giant robot animation isnt quite a big draw for females. Right, but there is a lot of Ranma 1/2 or Ah! My Goddess type stuff that girls can get into, and fan-servicing can still be found there. It's not limited to "mecha driven" series.

And here we go again... What´s all this fascination with 1/48 scale for everything ? not everything is gonna be good because it´s big ,specially a 1/48 M0 or M+ valk. THEY WOULD NOT BE THE SAME AS YOUR 1/48 VF-1s they would double its size and the ammount of die-cast would be minimal , moreover the toy itslef would be too cumbersome to even transform , and as a display piece it wouldn´t have anymore detail than what Yamato can actually do with their VF-1s , and for that price it wouldn´t sell well , hell , if the curent VF-1 toys are limited collection item the M0 or M+ toys will be even more limited within that market. just as an example of th size of this things : do people realise that a 1/48 YF-21´s nosecone would be just as big as an entire 1/72 YF-21 toy ? I certainly wouldn´t buy such a big and expensive monstrosity. Let´s not talk about the M0 valks , those even bigger VF-1 dimensions: Fighter Mode Wingspan (fully extended): 14.78m (48.49 ft.) Length: 14.23m (46.67 ft.) Height: 3.84m (12.6 ft.) Battroid Mode Width: 7.3m (23.95 ft.) Length: 4m (13.12 ft.) Height: 12.68m (41.60 ft.) VF-0 dimensions: Fighter Mode Wingspan (full extended): ? Length: 18.69m (61.32 ft.) Height: ? Battroid Mode Width: ? Length: ? Height: ? So if my math is right, a 1/48 VF-0 in fighter mode would be a little over 15" long to the VF-1's 11"+ (does anyone have the exact dimensions of the Yamato toy?)...what's the big deal? It doesn't sound too monstrous to me. Big, sure, but not impossibly expensive or difficult to engineer. In regards to "everyone wanting everything in 1/48," I think it has more to do with consistancy than a "bigger is better" mentality. Obviously when it comes to cockpit and pilot detail, 1/48 is going to offer more in that area. Personally, I'd like to have various Valks of the same scale to display together. If it's easier for Yamato to do so in the larger 1/48 scale...cool. If they do M0 Valks in something smaller, so be it. It would feel like a step backwards to many, myself included...but whatever will sell is what they'll do. Dimensions are from The Macross Compendium

Well, I got my first set of these today. I say first because they're pretty cool and I may go for a second set in an attempt to complete the collection. I ended up with the SDF-1/VE-1/Destroid set (that's the one with the Hikaru pilot that Rohby is recasting). I did end up with the VT-1 Super Ostrich in place of the Regult...so for me the Regult is now the chase figure from this set. These are really cool little sculptures. Think of them as Macross Micromachines but with a functional purpose. The fighter mode Valks come off of their launch arm stands so you can swoosh 'em around. My only complaint is that, like Micromachines, thin, protruding parts like Valk wings tend to get bent up in their little boxes and only straighten out with lots of effort (extended pressure in the form of a clamp or something). I highly recommend these to anyone trying to spice up their display shelves with some small scale goodness or to those with many, many dull pencils. Edit: $107.99 shipped?! The crack is strong in Hong Kong...

I wasn't sure it was that simple. Thanks. So when we say "fan service" what we really mean is "man service." Got it.