NeoverseOmega

I was pretty sure that was from one of your reviews, I just wasn't sure which . . . . I definitely like the Paladin unfurling from the plane as you lift it better than the white executioner skinning a jet, but either way she is a beautiful bird. And now I picture her with red crosses painted on those X's on the shoulder pauldrons, a sword, shield, and a bunch a terrified Zentran wondering just when the crusade started. Funny, even in that crude choppy animation the design still looks pretty bad-@$$.

Thanks man, it's good to know I'm not alone! Great minds think alike! Er, or like minds think they're great . . . . hrmmm, not quite sure which one is more accurate . . . .

Agreed. Go-Bots pulled off a Harrier, an A-10 tank-killer, and even an SR-71 blackbird in the 80's in tiny sizes when some much larger and more modern transformers are still pretty much robot kibble with a jet tacked on. But we're off topic. The VF-4 looks like it skinned a plane and is wearing it as a pelt (Veef, was that yours?). I think it pretty well trounces squadrons of transformers and go-bots without even smudging it's wraparound shades.

***Personal Opinion Alert!!!*** I love the battroid mode design as well, but I can definitely see where people are coming from when they complain that it looks like a jumble. Kamawori could have easily gone the Macross II route and basically just redesigned the VF-1. Instead he went a radically different route, one that actually makes me think more of the YF-21. Whereas the VF-1 is magnificently minimalist and elegant (every part seems to be used in every mode in a clean and satisfying manner - heck, the head is a gun turret for the jet), the VF-4 uses redundancy in a way that makes it look tougher. You could blow the legs, arms, and head off the batroid and the bird would still fly. Assuming the battroid mode parts are left alone you could wipe out the wings, nosecone, tailfins, and probably even the top thrusters and this bruiser would still be able to kick your butt. The battroid itself has this forward thrusting effect, armoring the cockpit and the shoulders and bristling with weapons all over. Heck, even the visor is thicker, like it could take a few punches in the face without cracking. To me it looks like a cloaked and hooded executioner. However, that wasn't my first impression of it. At first glance I immediately overlaid designs like the VF-1, and to some extend the VF-19: with those in mind the VF-4 looked clunky and kibbly. Wierdly enough it was after looking at mospeada, transformers, and some Gundam designs that this suddenly took on another cast for me. I guess once you get some perspective on other jet/robot designs to clear out your expectations it looks very different. All the angles for the "kibble" fit together (not just in jet mode as David and others point out) but in robot mode it creates a heavy robed, oddly medieval look while still leaving all these joints free for motion. The shape of the arms, the face, even the upper legs and nosecone screams extravagantly agressive. We all love the jet mode - its sleek and beautiful and deserves shelf space just on its own - but the battroid takes that apart and turns it into a tough, violent, brutal looking robot. Yamato is definitely capable of capturing both modes fantastically well if they are creative - after all, just a few extra twists and panels made the 19's fantastic, I can already see how a little inventive engineering could make this stunning. Some of us are just a little afraid that because most people like the fighter and not the battroid, that its going to end up looking more jumbled and awkward than it has to in that mode because so many people are seeing a jumbled go-bot instead of a deadly inquisitioner in white. Flatter feet make it look like a head stomper and keep the lower legs from looking to ridiculously long compared to the thighs - using VF-1 style feet would be more convenient, but doesn't really help either mode in terms of accuracy or appearance. It's not a deal killer, but it's just unnecessary considering how far they've come in the design department. Still looking forward to this bird! Over the years she's become one of my favorites in the Macross universe and can't help but be both critical and excited - it will be sweet to see her in three dimensions and hopefully as rock solid as Yamato's most recent releases! ***Personal Opinion Alert Over, you may now return to your regularly scheduled train of thought.***

Considering how many people see my Macross Valks and say -"Oooh, I love transformers" (maybe one in a hundred might say, "Wasn't that in Robotech"?) I'd be inclined to say in some countries (the U.S. anyway) ANY properly identified macross valkyrie is obscure. The only Valk to make it a little into pop-culture is the VF-1, and most people recognize it as Jetfire. So basically Nerds recognize Jetfire, hardcore nerds recognize that as a Robotech Veritech, and truly enlightened hardcore nerds recognize it as a VF-1 Valkyrie. Then you have the people like us who know all of them. . . . We are the nerd elite! Who wants to do a parade? And of course thanks to Graham for getting data to Yamato so that we can finally see this thing in its matte plastic glory!

Agreed on the shoulder pauldrons - If you look very closely on most lineart it looks like the valk actually has a fairly VF-1 shaped shoulder mechanism UNDER that massive booster/cannon. Allowing them to move separately wouldn't just look better but allow those cannons to be, well, pointed at something. Also, love the notion of using magnets to hold in the conformal missiles, that would be sweet. Hardpoints for the wings would be cool, but I'm not sure they're necessary - however just because of the compendium file (and my instinct that any valk should be able to carry a gunpod) It would be nice to also have a spot to store a handgun of some sort - GU-11 seems like it would be an easy move for yamato. It is a shame that this design hasn't been used more, I love all the modes - even the battroid looks like a "futuristic" superhero, and the jet is so sleek and sexxy. I'm really looking forward to seeing what Yamato does with this. On one hand, on most of their best pieces they've had multiple chances to work out details and kinks (VF/YF-19 is up to the third version, as is the VF-1) on the other hand, they did a bang up job on the VF-17 for a first run (even if it was a step back from the 19 according to Graham, but again, I suspect that partly because the only good examples they had to work from are garage kits and an old Bandai). This thing has never been a toy, and some of the garage kits vary pretty wildly from both the line art and each other. I don't mind them taking their time to get it to be as solid and beautiful as they can. Ah, I see top ramen and a possible kidney sale in the future. . . .

Ha! I can see a squadron of these quacking up the quadrant - hmmmmm, maybe we can get it discounted by having an AFLAC branded VF-4. . . . That would probably be the only way some of us could even afford it! Heh, initially I saw a squadron of flying nosecones . . . . but seriously do you think its a workable idea or does it just make the design more complicated than it needs to be? It depends on what your eye is paying attention too - granted part of the beauty of the VF-4 is that sleek fighter mode, so a lot of people are not going to want to monkey with that. Wierdly enough I actually like the battroid mode too (I know I'm a minority in that, perhaps part of what I like about it is that its so odd), so I'd like to see it pulled off as close to lineart as possible. So we've got one supporter for the needle nose alone! I'm curious to see if anyone else pipes in.

Cool, always wanted to see one of these made! Probably one of the most unique (although admittedly divisive) designs in the macross universe. So we've got until february to hear an announcement from Yamato? Great, that gives us time to gripe about all the stuff we want to see on this thing before the CAD goes out (ratchets, detents, solid ankles etc.). So, since we know its a fully painted toy and the web exclusivity will probably not keep us from being able to get one (although the price might) it would probably be more useful to start the laundry list and debates about how to handle the design. So forgive the long post, just trying to move the topic in a new direction! So, what do you think - needle nose or blunt? The Battroid would look like Ron Jeremy if it keeps the jet nose, but giving the jet a nosecone like the battroid crotch-plate would make it look like it somehow survived a nasty head on collision. I kinda like the idea of having three swappable nosecones: one that actually splits along the front, folds back, and then locks into place on that convenient black divot in front of the cockpit (not quite sure what its called, I think its just supposed to prevent reflected light from blinding the pilot) so that it can be either long OR short, and then two solid ones for Jet and battroid mode display purposes. Did a quick sloppy photoshop to show what I mean. The lines are pretty pronounced on the "transformable nosecone on this because, well, its lineart. If Yamato makes the tooling as clean as they can, the seams would probably hardly be noticeable, but having the swappable noses as an option would remove that issue entirely. So whattaya think? So many other things to discuss as well - if you work the head and chest transformation according to battroid proportions the slope behind the cockpit is going to be much more bulbous and probably extend back further in order to keep the head centered. If you go by Jet proportions you might have to do some creative engineering and have the whole thing flip up on a hatch from underneath and forego actually having that interesting "hood" actually be a part of that slope. What kind of origami twists can Yamato come up with to get this thing as close to the lineart as possible?

Alright, that looks sweet and SOLID. The only thing that kinda throws me still is the color. Granted the valk looks fantastic in the video (with the tampo on the head, the finished painting along the connection piece for the chest guns, and the slightly higher yellow stripe on the shoulders it starts to come together a LOT better). Is this supposed to be a generic Nightmare or Gamlin's? I was expecting the final look to have a lot more blue in it (I did a photoshop when the pictures first came out, the lineart is of course from Mr. March's page). Not that the white black and grey isn't a bit more realistic, but I think the grey colors combined with the heavy flash in the first pics was one of the reasons why a lot of people who LIKE this particular valk weren't sure what to think. There still seem to be some painted details missing (particularly on the chest plate), but Renato's video and all these internal construction shots we're seeing tell me I need to somehow generate almost three hundred dollars very quickly (and that's half a paycheck for me). Sigh, I used to think one valk every year or so was manageable. That's when I thought 180 bucks was a lot . . . . Alms, alms, alms for the poor valk junkie (Jingles cup . . . . .)

No surgery is minor to the guy going under the knife is it? Hope it's quick, painless, and somebody gives you lots of ice-cream afterwards! Oh, and just so this post is still on topic: BOMBAAAAAAA!!!

If it really does have "sturdy die-cast joints (that) allow it to . . . . mantain a large variety of poses" I will now attach the feeding tubes and catheterize myself for the bankbusting month of valk buying ahead. Just eating nothing but ramen noodles is for sissies, real macross fans cause self induced comas to save money for their habit! ;P

Holy crow!!! (somewhere crow from MST3K cocks his head and goes, "eh"?) Awesome and adorable all at once - funny how the big ol' head allows for oh so much more detail! I always found it kind of funny that Bandai seems to do better with their SD macross than their "realistic" versions. Even my beloved 1/55 chunky has silver inner hips, landing gear, and trapezius hinge, and a detatchable cockpit cover - the SD didn't have any of these issues. . . . Granted the chunky was originally a taka mold so I suppose they just didn't think it was worth futzing with since it WAS so good for its time, but still - I'd love to see that talent put to work on a hyper-detailed revamp for that huge menegerie of valks Bandai has the opportunity to produce. I like how they rotate the head around in its alternate mode to make room for it, and it looks like they've done a fantastic job of handling the hip system. Looking at the model it MIGHT just be perfect transformation, which would be awesome - is that a tab for holding the gun hanging from the back of it's shield in the gerwak back shot? Heh, who'd be up for a whole fleet of SD Macross? Even the Macross Class Battleships would be cool - a midget fleet of adorable Super Deformed death. Oh, I'm sorry - "little valk" fleet of adorable Super "Nonconventionally Formed" death (thousands of stubby guns slowly rotate away).

Even if you can make superstrong, superlight metals - a hollow jet using those same metals will STILL have a higher thrust to weight ratio than a jet with robot joints integrated in it, so just about anything would be able to outfly a valkyrie. Then making your valk light enough to function as a jet means that it will STILL have less armor than a tank. Battroids would probably get obliterated pretty quickly. Current warfare is about designing elegantly simple specialist machines. Being able to switch back and forth between a mediocre land unit and a mediocre jet just makes it vulnerable while transforming (assuming the transformation itself doesn't have glitches). When you can achieve VTOL and even reverse flight with ducting and vents, Gerwalk just becomes a useless form with two extra targets hanging off for other military units to cripple. Honestly, I love transformable mecha to the point that its almost painful to admit - but they are completely useless as anything other than a representation of our own strange need to have a humanoid knight emerge from inhuman weapons of war. The only way anything like that could happen is if in the distant, distant, distant (did I mention distant?) future we are able to create machines capable of such outrageous output using such minimal material that, well, it just plain doesn't matter how they are designed. That's right - magic. Then someone might build something a bit like a valk - NOT because its even remotely practical, but just because it satisfies them in some way. Maybe when mankind get sick of shooting (can that happen?) and wants to have the satisfaction of watching their battlefield surrogates beat each other down. Or more probably, some funky sports slash demolition derby craze. People might do something like that because they think its cool - armies notsomuch. Heh, I am writing a story that has something resembling transformable robots in it. In it the humanoid form is the side effect of a paranormal event. Basically the Paranormal Science Institute discovers that psychic effects are the result of our bodies in this dimension being holograms of a thousand different variations of us in alternate dimensions. Some people can actually shortcut impulses from their nerves through all those dimensions causing an effect in this one. Using people with phantom limb syndrome as models, they construct mechanisms that have no mass or weight in this dimension but are capable of absurd outputs. Integrating that with modern technology had an odd side effect - on some level all those "parts" recognize they should be human. The first ones tore the bodies of the tanks and jets apart - twisting them and reshaping them into something a tad disfigured. Later ones were designed more elegantly and deliberately - primarily to fight the ones that came about by accident. In short I use quack science that sounds a little like the kind of paranoid drivel that people might expect to see in area 51 and viola - magic! Fun but BS.

Hmmm, Orguss and Boomer Hybrid . . . . I can kind of see it. It's not deliberate, but I can definitely see it. Heh, there's definitely worse things it could be compared too. Heres a quick fighter schematic I did last night at work - with the current proportions the sided view looks a bit like a legless Caimon Alligator that just swallowed something a little bit too big for it (heh, but it's still sleeker than the new leader class Starscream right? Dodges tomatoes . . .) I think If I make the elaborate side covers and arms a little thinner I can make the design quite a bit sleeker without compromising the bot mode too much. Sorry, on my way to work - was going to try to describe the transformation here, some of you might seee it.

Thanks! And here I half expected outcries of blasphemy and horror . . . . I've gotten pretty good with a pen - much of the time I can do a first draft like this without having to do a pencil sketch first. The down side of it is that if I make a mistake, instead of starting over I tend to just run with it. . . . But when there are no corrections it comes out pretty clean! Heh, you guys are actually pretty close to right about the transformation. Right now I'm trying to work up a transformation sequence so you can see how it works - admittedly part of what is a little off about this design is I had a craving for something very different and very complex, almost to see just how far I could push it in that direction and still have it look good in both forms. Unfortunately my jet drawing is a little off so I'm not sure things are proportioned as they actually would be. The bottom of the jet is actually not in this picture, but I'm kind of proud that the design leaves it much smoother than most. Chalk some of the confusion up to anime magic (I was hoping to have as little of that as possible but I guess without actually doing CAD or building the thing that's not so easy). And thanks to Drew Carey for the bit of advice. I started up chopping up an X-36 to try to make a robot out of it, but as the robot developed in my mind I think it started to take some pre-eminence over the jet. Of course part of the story is that these things aren't exactly engineered in the traditional sense. The first Proteans were an accident. This particular model was developed almost bonsai tree style as the thing developed in the hull of a working aircraft. The transformation was at times guided and at times "Accomodated" by the engineers. I'll start working on the jet a little more to see if I can balance out the design. Thanks again!

Um, and my apologies for somehow ending up with two topics while I was editing this. How that happened, I have no idea . . . . Obviously whoever can, please feel free to remove the duplicate.

Hello! I've kind of returned from my poverty imposed exile (not that many people here remember me anyway, but it's still nice to be back). Well, this technically isn't quite Macross - but it's Macross inspired and the work of a Macross fan, so I THINK this is the right thread to put this in. I'll just have to do a mea culpa on the fighter mode though - funny thing is I did a few quick top, bottom, and side measured layouts to make sure the transformation worked and then realized when I actually got to this sketch that I haven't drawn an angled fighter since highschool (a LOOOONG time ago). So this is just a quick lineart scan - haven't added color or shading yet. It's part of a pretty elaborate fiction I'm working on. Certainly there will be much savage shredding (this is Macross World after all). But hopefully there will also be some useful feedback and maybe someone will actually like where I'm going with this (I have the right to hope right?)

Very awesome show. Any production showing a shoplifter getting thwarted by telekinetically projected six packs of charmin HAS to be good . . . .

Frankly I'd love to (and hopefully will) see Yamato do them all. I voted VF-4 simply because to me as a transformable mecha it's the most interesting deviation from Kamawori's usual style. Even the battroid mode has its quirky charm (the bare metal parts, the bulky upper body, the sleek teardrop shaped head - it seems like a raw mechanism in ways the other robots don't ). Besides, having churned over ways of making it work in my mind it strikes me as the most challenging design. Heh, that being said, it doesn't seem very likely that Yamato will do a toy just because it's the most rare and challenging (although they are definitely up for it). Having voted the unlikely underdog, I'll throw it a bone. If you take a quick swing by Mr. March's Macross Mecha Manual (um, when it's loading again) and gape at some of the many gorgeous mecha from the VFX games (still waiting to find life in glorious ABS plastic), you'll see that there is actually quite a few cannon paint variations on the VF-4, including two flown my Max and Milia. So you could do Hikaru, Max, Milia, and a Ravens color scheme and be perfectly cannon. There are also design works sketches for a second head type, so in theory there's more milking possibilities than with the VF-0 or VF-19. That being said, the 2SS would be my second choice, simply because I feel these are very cool designs that have been sorely neglected. However, I will agree, they are unrealistic and a tad over the top (although I think compared to most mecha franchises, this is an elegantly contrived over the top - hey, it's a valk with panache!). But again, it would be wonderful to see all of them eventually - I just want to plunk down for the least likely ones while there is still hope!

My response is like the theme song for Team America: Mospeada, F**k yeah! Take my check and strip my funds . . . .

Wow - the Beagle looks absolutely amazing! It appears that they're actually using cloth to cover up the joints on the rider figure, which is fantastic. There is definitely enough space for the head to pass through without a decapitation, and if I'm interpreting correctly it looks like they might have managed to pull of the transformation without requiring the removal of the missile gauntlets or the thigh covers (at the very least they have a complex enough mechanism sliding the schocks to the back that it looks quite possible). While the feet do look a tad small to me, they work so well with the proportions of the bike that it seems like a niggling complaint, in every other respect it looks like this is the true exo-suit we've been hoping for. I'm really looking forward to seeing the finish on this puppy - as it is the screws are already very well hidden and the plastic looks fairly matte, so I have high hopes. The near perfect transformation and proportions on the CM's got spoiled by the poor finish, and the beautifully finished MH could have used slightly better proportions and transformation - this looks like its got the best of both worlds and then some, lets hope it lives up to what we see in the protos! Then maybe once they move through the other 3 ride armors someone can pressure them into doing the tread and legioss as well . . . . So this is being distributed through Yamato? Do you think anyone on their design team might have had some involvement? Heres to hopes the execution, QC, and material choices match up with the design!

We hobos are quite offended by being compared to people on the internet. The fraternal order has decided that if this continues, we will throw the putrid green strings that were once our socks at you. Believe me, you don't want that.

I'm with Jenius on this one - hopefully Beagle is taking notes on these. If the computer mockup is at all accurate it will look terrific in bike mode and have little if any parts forming, but of course I'm just gathering that from my interpretation of the image, we still don't know for sure what they are going to do. Again, if that interpretation is accurate, all they need to do is try to match the finish on the Megahouse and we have a winner. Hopefully the Beagle ride armor isn't just vaporware, it was looking promising. . . ..

Is it just me, or does it look like leader class bulkhead has black smiley faces on for wheels? If so, very nice (if somewhat demented in just the right way) touch. Megatron looks cool - I can live with the small blades, the only thing that bugs me a little is the wings on his back in robot mode - but hey, they beat the wings on the back of the american edition of classics megatron . . . .

Bandai - when it decides to put the energy into it - has designed some of the best transforming mecha out there. I don't think anyone here denies that. Sure, it's sad that they've done nothing but recycle old molds on the variable fighters up to this point, but I hope they learned a little something when Yamatos 1/48 killed their 1/55 re-release. As much as I love the chunky monkeys for being a nigh indestructible piece of history, if Bandai wants their Macross stuff to earn them a little moolah they have to be as innovative as they are capable of being. Just looking at a few of the details on the white model, I'm cautiously optimistic. Somebody at Bandai has to be getting bored of just doing Gundam over and over again. Somebody? Anybody? And yes, Kamawori does have a look like "Uh, did you get this out of my wife's top drawer?"