Graham

In Macross Plus, the YF-19, is shown reloading twice (IIRC), using spare gunpod magazines stored in the shield, so that would give a total carried ammuntion capacity of 450rds. And yeah, I wish the book had gone into some detail about exaactly how the spare magazines are stored. Grahm

Yeah, that's always been the conventionally accepted wisdom (which I don't 100% buy into), but I'd like to know if the book offers any new insight on this matter. Graham

No mention seems to be made of the prototype arm weapon shown in Macross Plus. Graham

I love the pics of the VF-19A with ventral and dorsal Fold Boosters and FAST Packs. Grahm

The the ankle vernier ring on the 19 F/S/P/Kai can provide manoeuvring thrust at any point nearly 360 degrees around the circumference of the ankle (depending on mode), making it superior to the YF-19/VF-19A, which only circle-bar type verniers per leg. Graham

Had a dream last night, that the next book in the series was the VF-17. Although, given that they seem to be focusing on main hero mecha, I'm sure it will be the VF-25. Graham

Very interested to hear if the book offers any explanation for the reason for the change from the forward swept wing of the A/B/C/D/E type to the F/S style wing? Up until the E-type, the forward swept wing was standard, so what drove the change to the F/S style wing? Must be some perceived avantage? I've actually got to the stage where I think the VF-19F/S looks far nicer than the other types. Graham

Pics look very silly IMO. Graham

Haven't spotted total production numbers yet for the 19, but I did notice that one of the color schemes is for the 1,000th VF-19. That's a fairly large number, given that it was never adopted as the new main VF. I like how in the markings section, they also show markings for NUNS as well as UNS. Little bit surprised that the VF-X Ravens color scheme isn't shown or mentioned (at least I have not spotted it yet). Also, no mention of the calibre or magazine capacity for the gunpod? Graham

Little bit disappointed that the leg missile bays don't seem to get much (any?) coverage. At least I haven't spotted any drawings of them. No idea if they are mentioned in the text. Graham

My copy arrived today, yay! Nice to see the VF-19F/S getting lots of coverage. And yes, after all these years, I'm vindicated on my thoughts regarding the thrust vernier ankle ring on the 19 F/S/P/Kai (sorry 'E'). Heh, not too sure what to think about the VC-19 VIP transport though. Graham

Saw my first bootleg Astroplan toy recently. It was some type of grey VF-1 toy, about 6-8 inches tall, in a blister pack with Astro Plan pictures on the packing. Should have taken a photo. Graham

Eh, I thought the existence of the VF-25A was well established already? I have that issue at home, but no working scanner at the moment. Graham

Lots of potential still to go. Here's the ones I would really like to see: Macross 7 VF-17S VF-17D VF-17S Milia VF-17S w/FAST Packs VF-17D w/Radome VF-17D w/Fold Booster VF-17T Kai VF-22S Max VF-22S Max w/Fold Booster VF-22S Milia VF-19S w/FAST Packs VF-19F w/FAST Packs VF-11C VF-11C w/Space FAST Packs VF-11C w/Atmospheric FAST Packs VF-11C w/ Space FAST Packs & Radome. VF-11D VF-11D w/FAST Packs VF-11B VF-11B w/Atmospheric Boosters VF-11B w/FAST Packs VF-11MAXL Kai Fz-109A Fz-109F AZ-130A FBz-99G Macross Frontier VF-171 RVF-171 RVF-171 w/twin Fold Boosters VF-171EX VF-171EX Alto RVF-171EX Macross Plus YF-19 w/FAST Packs YF-19 w/FAST Packs & Fold Booster YF-21 w/FAST Packs YF-21 w/FAST Packs & Fold Booster Ghost X9 Macross Zero SV-51 Nora SV-51 Cannon Fodder SV-51 Ivanov SV-51 Nora w/Boosters SV-51 Ivanov w/Boosters VF-0A w/Ghost Booster VF-0S w/Ghost Booster Macross II VF-2SS w/SAP VF-2JA Other VF-5000B VF-3000 VF-9 Graham

Just got notice from Amazon Japan that mine has shipped by FedEx. Can't wait. Graham

Like Renato, I also love being able to walk past my bookshelf full of Macross books, or stare at my display cabinet full of Macross toys, even if I don't play with them much these days. However, with the flood of Macross products released over the past decade, things have reached saturation point and I'm now forced to pick and choose what to display and what to store as there is now too much stuff to display it all at once. Unlike are US members and again similar to Renato, I'm also used to being able to travel a short distance to visit dozens of hobby shops, so this online web exclusive thing is a bit of a shock to me and takes some getting used to. Graham

I second HMV Japan and have also used them many times. You can select English to navigate their site. Amazon Japan is also another good choice as well. Again, you can select English to navigate their site. Graham

While proably not hurting the Japanese market in any way, I wonder how much this trend of online exclusives is going reduce spending by MW members living outside of Japan on Macross goods? I know it is definitely going to mean I will be buying less. A lot of my purchases are impulse buys. before the product is released, I always tell myself I'm not going to buy it, but more often than not when I walk past a toy or hobby store and see the shiny new VF sitting on the shelf, I'll cave in and buy. With webshop exclusives being that much harder to get and more expensive to buy, they are that much easier to resist. Case in point, the Hi-Metal Sound Booster Pack for the VF-19Kai. I neither need it or want it, but if it was a general retail release, I'd no doubt end up buying it. As a web exclusive, I'll pass. Graham

At 40, I'm probably a few years old than many on this forum. I've never warmed to the idea of downloads, prefering instead to go out and buy something physical that I can hold with my hands, be it a book, toy, DVD, music CD, game disk etc. Heck, I'm not even really keen on online shopping, instead prefering to travel to a bricks and mortar store to buy a book, toy, DVD etc. The only time I shop online is when it's something I can't easily or cheaply buy here in HK (usually English language books). The main reason, I'm starting to warm up to "only digital", is I guess mostly due to lack of space in my 'shoe box' size Hong Kong apartment. Heck, if I lived in a typical American sized house (which is a mansion compared to most HK residences, I'd probably never stop toy collecting (finances allowing of course). Graham

Also, are there any figures on the total number of 19s produced? Had mine on orde from Amazon for 6 months, so hope it will arrive soon. Graham

Hoping for drawings showing the layout of the various options for the leg missile bays. Graham

You guys do know that the figure fits inside the pod right?

I really hope this has a significant amount of VF-19F/S love. I may be in the minority, but I thing the VF-19F/S looks so much nicer than the YF-19/VF-19A.

Yes, but it is a Japanese comic, so Roy is probably spot on. Graham

Hi Sketchley, Just wondering, do you have plans to continue with your translation of TiAS M+? I would love to know what the book says about the VF-17. Graham