Vifam7

I've seen cooler-looking ones in Japan for significantly less money.

http://geestore.com/detail/id/00000072968

I am giving away the following anime laserdiscs.  No cost for the discs. Just pay the shipping cost (media mail cost if in the US). Please PM if interested.

NOTE: I want to giveaway as much of it as possible at once. Please try to select 4 or more  of the following below.

Those that have been crossed out have been taken.

1. Here is Greenwood Vol. 1-3 (US release, English subtitled)

2. Otaku no Video 1982 & 1985 (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

3. Oh! my Goddess OAV series Ep 1-5 (AnimEigo release, English subtitled)

4. Spriggan (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

5. Vampire Princess Miyu (AnimEigo release, English subtitled)

6. Crusher Joe Movie & OAV series (AnimEigo release, English subtitled)

7. Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

8. Mobile Suit Gundam: Movie I, II, & III (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

9. Sakura Wars 4-part OAV series (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

10. Ghost in the Shell (Manga Video release, English subtitled + English dub)

11. Super Atragon (AD Vision release, English subtitled + English dub)

12. Sonic Soldier Borgman: Madnight Gigs (Japanese release)

13. Tenchi Muyo! Galaxy Police Mihoshi Space Adventure (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

14. Iria: Zeiram the Animation: Vol. 3-6 (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

15. Outlaw Star: Vol. 1-4 (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

16. Mobile Police Patlabor: OAV Vol.5-6 ~ SV2's Longest Day (Japanese release, no English subtitles or dub)

17. Aura Battler Dunbine LD box set 1 & 2 (Japanese release, no ENglish subtitles or dub)

Price lowered on the Toynami Masterpiece.

4 hours ago, AN/ALQ128 said:

New F-16 variant from Lockheed Martin.

Comes with a retractable in flight refueling probe (along with conformal tanks) and a large area display.

https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/products/f-21.html

I thought this had already been proposed as the F-16IN Block 70/72 Super Viper?

PRICE LOWERED ON LEGIOSS

I have for sale the following below.  Please PM me if interested.  All prices includes shipping to anywhere in the 48 US states.  Buyers in Hawaii, Alaska, or Canada, please ask for shipping cost. Sorry, I will not ship outside of US or Canada.

Toynami Masterpiece Collection Robotech VF-6I Lancer Alpha Vol.3 (ie. the green colored Legioss fighter)
Condition: Was displayed briefly. Never transformed. Nothing missing. Comes with original box.

Price: $175

Toynami 1:100 VF-1J set (Hikaru, Max, and Miriya)
Condition: Lightly played with.

Price: $25 for all 3  SOLD

Bandai Master Grade Aile Strike Gundam

Condition: Brand new.

Price: $50

Bandai Master Grade Force Impulse Gundam

Condition: Brand new

Price: $50

7 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said:

 

Watamote can be... tedious.

It's cringe comedy distilled down to its purest form.  Normally shows like that (e.g. Haganai) try to soften the blow a little by depicting the socially awkward otaku cast in a somewhat sympathetic light or throwing in a softer subplot like a little romance or some non-cringe-inducing humor, or at least make the protagonist an unapologetically horrible human being the audience won't feel bad for when their horribleness causes life to sh*t all over them (e.g. Fawlty Towers).  

Watamote is having precisely none of that sh*t.  Tomoko Kuroki is here to SUFFER for your entertainment.  That she's actually dimly aware of how screwed up her life is and wants little more than to become a socially functional person counts for exactly nothing, so naturally all the comedy comes from her desperate (and desperately misguided) attempts to gain even the tiniest iota of social acceptance.  She's the girl who can do no right, so she's perpetually digging a deeper hole for herself.  I stopped reading the manga after a few dozen chapters because the one-note humor stopped being funny rather quickly and that just left the cruelty.

Watamote can indeed be tough to get through, but depending on your viewpoint Tomoko can be a character you can sympathize with.  I was able to handle Tomoko's missteps early on but admittedly I was getting tired of it around Volume 6/7 of the manga. However, I stuck with it and it rewarded me when things turned the corner on Volume 8.  Right now, it's one of my top 3 manga that I look forward to getting the next volume.  It's now at Volume 14, Tomoko's in her 3rd year of high school, and the story seems to be heading towards the end. The anime isn't really worth watching as it barely covers the first few volumes of the manga.

On a separate note, I've started watching My Hero Academia. (Yes, I'm a bit late to this series :)) I'm halfway into Season 2 of the anime (as well as several volumes of the manga) and I'm enjoying it. Typical shounen martial arts/superpower fight series but it's enjoyable.  I've pretty much outgrown Shonen Jump anime/manga stuff like DragonBall, Naruto, and the sort but this one is done quite well.  At least, thus far.  Not sure how much this series can keep my attention though.

The mothership idea is nothing new. It's been around since the age of biplanes and dirigibles.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akron-class_airship

2 hours ago, RavenHawk said:

That's it for me at the moment. Hopefully some other folks can comment on what they're currently reading, and what else is worth checking out.

Anything in particular you are looking for?  Certain genres or subject matter?

4 hours ago, jvmacross said:

 

Almost 2 years ago......no complaints from me though....we got a VF-4 and VF-1D coming....plus we got the VF-2SS, SuperO and Elint....I can wait some more I suppose, they'll all get released eventually...would have been quicker without the non-Macross HMRs though!

And if they didn't release any Gundam Robot Damashiis, Metal Builds, or Star Wars and Marvel SH Figuarts etc etc...

HMR is just one of numerous lines under the whole Tamashii Nations brand - which includes SoC, DX Chogokins, Robot Damashii, SH Figuarts, GFFMC, etc.  HMR is not a separate division inside Bandai. Thus, just because a non-Macross HMR is released doesn't mean it actually took away spots that would've gone to a Macross HMR. For all we know, those spots could've been taken by any number of other toys under the Tamashii Nations umbrella. But I think Bandai is simply spacing out the Macross releases so that a glut doesn't happen.

Here are some comparison shots to my 1/72 Bandai kit in fighter mode. Sorry, can't do comparison in gerwalk or battroid mode because my Bandai kit is locked in fighter mode.

Just watched the Episode 4 of Magical Girl Spec Ops Asuka and... yikes....

If you guys don't like torture scenes... you might not like this episode. 

The Wave 1/100 scale VF-1 kits don't require glue. Snapfit for the most part... but some areas (like the pylons & missiles) could use a wee bit of glue for additional strength (just a dab of Tamiya Extra Thin cement should do just fine.

The Wave kit may not require glue but it does need painting.

14 minutes ago, mikeszekely said:

Can't comment on AC7, but I had the flight stick bundle for AC5.  I thought it was harder to play with than the regular controller. *shrugs*

I was fine back in the day with the D-pad on AC3 but I'm having a hard time with the analog joysticks on the standard PS4 controller. It's just too jiggly for me and I'm having a hard time making accurate control inputs.  I'm going to try out the T.Flight Hotas 4 flight stick and see if having a complete stick in the hand results in better control than the small joystick under my thumb. Unfortunately, it seems I'm going to have to wait several weeks as Amazon is out of stock.

On 1/29/2019 at 1:36 AM, AN/ALQ128 said:

Picked up Magical Girl Spec-Ops Asuka and its hilarious. Its a magical girl show that got blended into Rambo, complete with a grizzled war vet main character who is reluctantly dragged out of retirement, a fantasyland NATO and an American magical girl whose codename is a reference to the Invasion of Panama. Just the kind of shlocky entertainment I like.

Based on this description, I watched the first 3 episodes. I guess this is supposed to be a "dark magical girl" anime but I don't think it's going to be as dark as Magical Girl Site or even Madoka Magica. Or have as much impact. But that said, it looks to be a kitschy shlocky fun series. I'll keep watching it for now.  "Blended into Rambo" is an appropriate description I think. You could dub in Stallone for the lead heroine and it wouldn't feel too out of place (except for the gender) .  I do also love the codenames.

1 hour ago, RavenHawk said:

This one sounds interesting to me, but i'm having trouble finding much out about it online other than actual sites with scans that look slightly sketchy. Can you say anything else about what it's like?

My rought summary : Lead heroine Ayako and her class of 40 girls are suddenly transported to an alternate world/dimension where they must fight Nazi zombies. Led by an alternate world fox-girl Saki, they try to find a way back to the real world. Like a videogame, the each girl has a certain amount of 'lives' per day.  Running out of 'lives'  means they actually die for real. Ayako and her classmates are each given roles that are seen in army squads/platoons (such as rifleman, sniper, medic, etc.) and they are equipped in WWII-era US Army style (thus M1 Garand, M1903 Springfield, Thompson SMG, BAR, Willys Jeep, etc)

Among my current favorites...

Watamote (No Matter How I Look at It, It's You Guys' Fault I'm Not Popular) - I was ready to drop this series around Volume 7 but it got really interesting ever since Tomoko's class trip to Kyoto.

Goblin Slayer - I actually find the manga version superior to the original light novel. The anime version is just okay.

Houkago Assault Girls (Afterschool Assault Girls) - Kinda like Sword Art Online except with a WWII D-Day theme going.

Tamayomi - High school girls baseball.

Yurukyan (Yuru Camp) - This is one of the rare ones where I think the anime is actually better than the original manga. That's not to say that the manga is bad. It's quite good. But the color and music in the anime really adds to the flavor.

Other include...Tomo-chan wa Onnanoko , Komi-san wa Komyushou desu (Miss Komi Can't Communicate) , Kyou kara City Hunter , Gundam Aggressor, all of the Konosuba and Girls und Panzer manga adaptations, etc.

3 hours ago, AN/ALQ128 said:

https://theaviationist.com/2019/01/29/u-s-navys-last-operational-f-a-18c-hornet-to-be-retired-on-feb-1-2019/

Say goodbye to those old Bugs.

 

Meanwhile in Canada...

Apologies to my Canadian friends.

Watched the first 2 episodes of Kouya no Kotobuki Hikoutai. I already love it. First episode has possibly the best (and most accurate?) aircraft startup sequence ever. The aerial dogfight animation is absolutely superb as well.

Watched the first 2 episodes of Girly Air Force. While it's too early to judge, I'm not getting a good vibe based on the 2 episodes. Looks like a generic "nice boy meets the Ayanami Rei girl and their relationship is key to saving the world" anime.  Plus another meh animation quality from Satelight.

1 hour ago, kajnrig said:

Well... were you good at AC3? If you did alright there, you should be fine here, insofar as playing the game is concerned.

Lore-wise: In AC4, the country of Erusea (vaguely Europe) tries to take over its continent of Usea. You play Mobius 1 and stop it, defeating its super weapon Stonehenge in the process. In AC5, on the other side of the globe, the continent-nation of Yuktobania (USSR) declares war on Osea (USA). You play Wardog 4/Razgriz 1 and unify the two countries against the real instigators of the war, Belka (Nazi Germany). The other games don't seem to matter TOO much lore-wise. This game seems to be about war breaking out between Erusea and Osea (you).

1 hour ago, dizman said:

From what I've played so far AC7 is very beginner friendly so I wouldn't be worried about not being able to handle the controls. 

Thank you for the replies. Yeah, I did OK in AC3 back in the day. Wow, has time gone by...

The last time I played Ace Combat, it was Ace Combat 3 on the original Playstation.

I hope I have enough skill to play this game.  I haven't played anything other than Super Robot Wars for the past decade.

Anything I should know before jumping in?

3 hours ago, Shadow said:

Okay. Now I'm curious. What were the pros/cons of the GE/RR engine over the 135? I don't imagine the difference was as stark as it was between the P&W F119 and the GE F120 were.

My guesses -

Pros:

- Should there be any problems with the P&W engine, the whole F-35 fleet doesn't have to be grounded

- Jobs for GE and RR <- esp. important for UK?

- Some air forces may be more familiar with how GE does engines and have better relationship

- Competition could mean each manufacturer strives to be the best in product, price, and service

Cons:

- Additional cost to develop a second engine

- Additional cost in making the F-35 be able to use both engines

- Additional cost to train technicians for the second engine

- Additional logistics train needed to support the second engine

- Lower production volume for each engine could mean higher costs for both

3 hours ago, kalvasflam said:

Does anyone expect the LM guy to say anything bad about about their primary breadwinner? 

Seriously, I wonder if they could somehow get that engine into the F-16  C block 50s; it seems to have significantly more thrust.  Although the -Cs might not have stealth, it carries just as much weapons if not more.  And probably costs less.  But it does make me wonder if structurally the F-16s can accommodate such an engine.  

A total side note, I wonder how much it would cost to rip out the avionics and upgrade it to modern standards.   To be more precise, take something like an F-15 airframe, but stuff in the electronics of the F-35, compensated of course of the right frameworks.  I'm not sure what the difference would be between the F-15E and the F-15X in terms of the avionics, computers, and other capabilities.  Then how much of a difference there would be between the -35 and the 15X.  Anyone know?

Well if the cost of the F-15SE Silent Eagle is any idea...

The F-15SE Silent Eagle was projected at $100 million per unit (compared to $85 million per unit for the F-35 currently).

1 hour ago, Knight26 said:

See that's where my concept works great.  You issue an RFP for the various platforms with the stipulation that they all use the same core hardware: Engines, Avionics, Radars (with a larger or smaller antennae array) etc...  Now you have a fighting force that can use all the same weapons, and support hardware for the expensive bits.  Carrier for instance only need to carry one kind of engine onboard, plus or minus afterburners, and there is no question of weapons cross-compatibility.  The Air Force actually used this same argument back in the late 70s for the F-15, F-16, B-1 force.  They all used the same engines, radars based on the same core architecture, and Link 16 for connectivity, but they were all built by different contractors.

The hardware is easy to cross-compat. The software is much more difficult (maybe impossible) to cross compat. However, the biggest hurdle and cost multiplier is politics and budgets.

7 hours ago, kalvasflam said:

The truth of course is that even with the bloviating by our idiotic leaders, the US military is still far ahead of the nearest competitor.  There will be rude surprises, but the strategic situation overall still hasn't turned enough for the nearest peer to be directly competitive.  It may change in another two decades, but for now, the weakness isn't in its body, rather in its heart and mind.  

Agreed.