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tekering

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Everything posted by tekering

  1. tekering
    It's a Transformers movie, with all the expectations that come along with that (including ties to the Michael Bay films that proceeded it)... and given that framework, I absolutely stand by my statement. It's a well-made film. The visual effects are as convincing as those in The Last Knight (despite costing only HALF as much), the story has a logical structure and a well-paced plot (unlike any of the previous films), the film is consistent in tone, and the performances are grounded in a rational context absent from pretty much ANY Michael Bay film. I'm not saying it's Citizen Kane, but it's the best we could ever hope to expect from a movie "based on Hasbro's Transformers action figures."
  2. tekering
    Great idea!
  3. tekering
    Sadly, the production values are all the show has going for it. The writing is mature, but derivative; the music is phoned-in, as you say; and worst of all, the vocal cast is uniformly bad. Some actors are trying to imitate the classic voices, some just do their own thing, and some switch halfway-through. Transformers media has been almost uniformly bad, it's true, but there are bright spots, even on television: Animated was clever and witty, and never took itself too seriously, Prime was mature and sophisticated, with an A-list voice cast, and... ...well, I guess that's it. Animated was terrific, Prime was epic, the original series has some iconic performances, and Bumblebee was a well-made film. War For Cybertron: Siege was none of the above... but at least it was better than War For Cybertron: Earthrise. Boy, what a slog that was. And yet, I keep buying the toys like a chump...
  4. tekering
    1:28th, an extremely awkward scale.
  5. tekering
    Ah, but only oldskool Gundam fans remember the variable Mobile Suits from the '80s... a minor footnote in the history of the franchise, unfortunately. The audience for anything sci-fi is surprisingly small in Japan, really. Apart from Doraemon, sci-fi anime is rarely broadcast on network television (other than childish animated toy commercials for whatever Bandai or Takara is hawking to little boys), so only specialized satellite channels or huge video store chains will carry shows like Gundam Unicorn, Macross Delta, or Yamato 2199. Most Japanese people are more likely to have seen Star Wars than Gundam, even (much less Macross). They were never as big here as they were in the US, actually. Hell, Transformers: The Movie never even got theatrical distribution in Japan, and only made its way onto home video THREE YEARS after its North American release. Stop me if you've heard this story already... The city newspaper had sent a reporter and a photographer to my house, and we stood before this wall of Transformers: The reporter turns to me and asks "Are these ALL Gundams?" Well, as I'm sure you've noticed, every available inch is occupied... I'm well-past the saturation point now.
  6. tekering
    Oh sure, I'm the same way... except my core roster includes EVERY Sunbow, Prime, IDW, Bayverse, or Animated character. I find it difficult to justify the cost of KKK figures... but that purple Prime is DAMN sexy. It depends on market demand, of course. Compared to Macross, Transformers product is much more plentiful; a 1:20 ratio, I'd say. Of course, Transformers pales in comparison to sentai/kaiju toys; Ultraman and Godzilla are in turn greatly outnumbered by Pokémon; and they're all greatly outnumbered by the ubiquitous "Gunpla," which can be found in any toy store, department store, electronics retailer, model shop, video store, second-hand shop... you name it. In fact, Gundam has so oversaturated the market that anyone not familiar with Transformers simply assumes every toy robot is a Gundam, be they little kids, teenagers, adults, or senior citizens. I get the same assumption from virtually anyone who sees me with a Transformer. Furthermore, when I demonstrate a transformation, the average Japanese person doesn't even have the vocabulary to describe the process! TakaraTomy uses 変形 ("henkei," meaning to change form) in their marketing, but most people aren't familiar with the word. Typically, they use 作る ("tsukuru," meaning make) or 作り直す ("tsukurinaosu," to rebuild). They can comprehend the concept, of course, they just can't adequately express it in words... ...so they fall back on "Gunpla" terminology instead.
  7. tekering
    TakaraTomy won't be releasing Earthrise Jazz until late April. It's always bugged me how much more quickly Hasbro gets these out, and how much cheaper they sell for there; in Japan, fewer figures get released, prices are higher, and quantities are considerably lower. If you can walk into a store and buy Jazz off the shelf right now, Mike, what possible excuse could Amazon have for delaying your order to May? Are they getting their stock from TakaraTomy or something? I admire your restraint... I've got a Siege/Earthrise collection, a Masterpiece collection, a Legends-scale collection, a CHUG collection, a Robot Heroes collection, an Animated collection, a WFC/FoC collection, a Movie Masterpiece collection, a Studio Series collection, a Super Collection Figure/Heroes of Cybertron collection, a Binaltech/Alternators/Human Alliance collection, a WST collection, a MyClone collection, a Mecha Nations/D-Style collection, and a History Collection... collection, and they ALL have Jazz figures. I don't know the meaning of the word "enough."
  8. tekering
    Yeah, but that's based on the video game design, not the Sunbow cartoon or the G1 toy... and like Animated Jazz or Bayverse Jazz, it represents a different continuity family. MakeToys "Downbeat" is much too big to scale with anything from the Studio Series line (or any CHUG figure, for that matter).
  9. tekering

    Macross figures

    tekering replied to CF18's topic in Toys

    I wouldn't hold my breath... Since MEP first announced Breetai two years ago, they've released... ...Breetai.
  10. tekering
    Legendary Remains Confident in ‘Buck Rogers’ Rights After Latest Legal Threat https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/legendary-remains-confident-buck-rogers-025112118.html
  11. tekering
    I realized that as soon as the onscreen text identified the 使徒 ("Shito," meaning "apostles") as "Angels" instead. If you're confusing angels with apostles, you clearly don't know (or care) what those words actually mean. More like "we're using all these ancient religious allegories to suggest the story has much greater mythological significance than it actually does."
  12. tekering
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  14. tekering
    One miracle at a time, please. Let him deliver the moon before we ask for the sun and the stars.
  15. tekering
    That's supposed to be Prince? Doesn't look anything like him.
  16. tekering
    It makes about as much sense as the character selection (one Autobot vs. three Decepticons)... Optimus, but no Bumblebee.... Starscream, but no Megatron... Bombshell, totally off-scale and all by himself... ...and Banzai-tron, because he was just SO cool in the cartoon. Honestly, mass-market retailers have got to stop ordering this garbage.
  17. tekering
    Oh, that's the MegaHouse 1:6 "Fuhrer Desler" figure. They were readily available, back in the day... but that was 20 years ago now. But, since this thread concerns recent purchases, here are my GMG Zeon soldiers... ...also, incidentally, by MegaHouse.
  18. tekering
    I just hope the VF-4A PF release looks half as good as your "amateurishly" customized VF-4G.
  19. tekering
    Actually, that's an old photo. I've added more shelves since. Damn those pagan sun-worshipping wenches!
  20. tekering
    Revoltech would like a word.
  21. tekering
    Yeah, my living room has been under the Hot Toys occupation for years.
  22. tekering
    Yeah, Soundwave looks terrific! And Laserbeak looks... okay, I guess. But that ugly chunk of pinned hinges in the chest compartment... Is that supposed to be Ravage?
  23. tekering
    Yeah, she really cries out for paint. Love the red you used, @Mog... but thin those paints, dude!
  24. tekering
    I have to agree. While most of the Showa films are broad comedies (especially the original King Kong vs. Godzilla), Shin Godzilla is the only po-faced satire. Like all of Hideaki Anno's films, it's highly critical of institutional authority, societal values, and the common tropes of Japanese sci-fi... but unlike the nihilistic Evangelion, he genuinely seems to be enjoying himself making fun of the Japanese government. Far from merely providing exposition, or forced intrigue, or pulp drama, the humans-talking-around-a-table scenes serve a strong, consistent thematic purpose (although the satirical intent may be somewhat lost on foreign audiences). A Godzilla film with an intelligent message is a rare thing indeed. It suffers from a lot of problems that are endemic to Japanese sci-fi (paper-thin characters, poor pacing, awkwardly-delivered English dialogue), but the effects work is leaps and bounds beyond anything else in the genre... even when there are no kaiju to be seen.
  25. tekering
    Yeah, the Shinji figure seals the deal for me.
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