aceoftherebellion

blah.. it was bad enough that there was a chunky dressed up as Jetfire but who in their right mind would convert one into a transformer.. yuck.

I've seen a ton of custom paintjobs to do exactly that, because they wanted it to basically be a "masterpiece" version of the old toy. Pointless, IMO, since it looks nothing like the cartoon character but eh, whatever.

It really isn't perfect, but since it's probably the best we'll ever get, there's some workarounds that really make it a lot better.

I feel like the hip locking mechanism is pointless and frankly restricts mobility, so I intentionally leave it unlocked. The rest of the tabs keep it together in battroid as much as it needs and with the hip bars unlocked from each other, the hips are about as flexible as a V2 VF-1. As for holding the gunpod, use the tab and don't bother moving the fingers. Unless yours has different tolerances and just doesn't securely peg in, that's all it needs, and the fingers are just kind of for show. (Graham, I know you've said you're not a Transformers person, but MP Hot Rod was the same way, and I got used to that from him...)

The superglue solution will also work absolute wonders if you're willing to apply it, it's a night and day sort of difference. I feel like the base figure is so close to being something worthwhile and it only takes a little bit of user-end effort to bring it to where it should have been from the factory. Annoying that we have to do it, but to finally have a VF-2SS on my shelf after 20 years of not existing, I'm more than okay with all of that.

That's probably a good call, even as much as I do love the figure. I really do suggest adding a dab or two of superglue to the two tabs that keep fighter mode together, because that one change alone will help bring it from floppy mess to something that's reasonably solid, but I do wonder how much the SAP wil exacerbate the problems that it does have.

I'm all in on the SAP myself, just because I'm such a fan of MII and this design but I can definitely agree that it's a hard sell. On the other hand, when I get one in hand whenever it's released, I'll definitely post more pictures and thoughts!

I think we've gotta stop with the 'model kit quality' comparison with the plastic, because it's a pretty unfair comparison to make. Model kits are made of polystyrene, which is a completely different material from the ABS this is made of. Polystyrene is much, much weaker, more flexible, more chemically reactive, and even has a lower melting point. It's apples and oranges. Only Kotobukiya produces model kits where the majority of the kid is cast in an ABS, and their model kits tend to feel a lot sturdier than say, a bandai kit.

For those who haven't handled the toy yet- it isn't the same sort of flimsy as say, a gundam model. It is using a lighter, thinner sort of ABS, but anybody who's handled some of Hasbro's transformers during their cost-cutting phases will recognize it as the same overly-shiny, kind of slick thin ABS. Generations bumblebee from 2014 is the closest comparison I can think to make. It isn't actually that weak, unless you get unlucky and have a catastrophic failure, or are being way too rough with it.

As I said the other day, I don't think the plastic is poor quality at all. It seems just as strong as what Bandai and Arcadia typically use. However I think the less refined finish of the plastic, the sharp edges in some areas and the thin-ness of some areas can create the perception that it's not as good, or 'cheap'.

This is about where I stand on it, yeah. It's shiny smooth glossy ABS, almost the same stuff Arcadia's VF-19 is made out of. The catch is that's used on everything, including transformation mechanisms, and because it's thin in some places, it just feels a little more fragile than it probably is. That said, I would suggest being very, very careful in transforming it- but I've already transformed mine several times and put it through some fairly rigorous posing and it's come through without a scratch, so I suspect people who've complained about breakage were manhandling it to a pretty ridiculous degree, treating it like a hasbro transformer or something.

From Veefs review it looks and especially handles nothing like the 3rd Party Transformers I own (mostly MMC, FT and MT).

I don't own anything from MMC or MT, and of the two FT figures I own, Not!Perceptor has, IMO, noticably inferior plastic and engineering compared to this. I own several from Badcube, and they're about exactly on par with this, IMO. I'm especially reminded of Wardog's fairly involved transformation which has a similar 'everything flops around until you can lock it very securely into place' feel.

Those big diecast leg struts everyone is complaining about in fighter mode are actually on fairly robust hinges, so he'll hold a dynamic pose midair a lot better than you'd think. I do have it 'resting' on the legs dyanamically here so gravity is helping keep the legs that far apart, but you can still get some pretty dramatic obari-esque poses on a flight-stand of some sort, and possibly even better.

And yeah, the poor VF-25 has seen much better days...

Wow, the color on that Alt is baaaaaaaaaad. Makes me sorta almost glad that the one I got was the blue-tinted "movie" release.

The 2SS is looking good there though, I admit it's sort of refreshing to see a truly battroid focused take on a valk, even if the fighter mode suffers from it.

I have no idea how it managed to yellow so badly. It's actually yellowed *worse* underneath the super-parts, too, which is just. Odd. It's clearly more of a chemical degradation than your standard 'UV exposure' problem because it's yellowed in places that have never been exposed to much light, period- and it's spent most of it's life in a room where I intentionally boarded over the window just to keep excess sunlight out!

The 2SS is a really good Battroid. A pretty darn decent Gerwalk, and like I said, with a few minutes worth of practically no effort at all, a surprisingly solid fighter mode. A bit thin on the plastic side, but not worse than most third party transformers and honestly, several Hasbro/Takara products. At least it's a hell of a lot better than the V1 Bandai and Yamato offerings!

Alright, now that I'm home from work and have had a chance to sit and really play with this, I can say that yeah, I definitely love it. The plastic is a bit thin, but like I said above, I've got Third Party Transformers that are about the same, so that doesn't really bother me as much as it maybe should. One thing I can say- a few drops of superglue on the tabs that hold it together in fighter mode and it's actually pretty darn solid in all three modes. About 30 seconds of DIY work and it's suddenly a perfectly servicable, swooshable 80's arcade shooter airplane.

But let's get some more in-hand pics! To be fair to the toy, I photographed it with the Gold Standard Arcadia V2 Valk, and for some perspective, a legitimately terribly designed toy, the Bandai V1 VF-25. (I don't even know how it's turned so piss yellow, it's never seen an open window in its life...)

Overall, it's pretty damn decent. Posability is not significantly worse than the V2 VF-1, and IMO quite a lot better than the fest of awkward joints and desire to collapse into a mess of joints that was the VF-25. Gerwalk mode is actually pretty decent- it can easily take that agressive stance that seemed to elude Bandai AND Yamato/Arcadia recently (ahem VF-19....) For a version one work, let's be fair and compare it to the first offerings of a much larger company that had the technical know-how. Valkyries are NOT easy to design, and while their materials might be kind of cheap and they took a few inelegant shortcuts, the final product is really not bad. No, not A-game, but it isn't a complete failure like certain recent releases were.

Also, for those who are saying it isn't very posable?

As long as you're willing to unhook some things and be a little daring with gravity, Obari would like to have a few words.

(HAH, okay, now this is in the right thread, whooops)

Hah whoops, wrong thread, bumped the wrong thing!

Mr K. said basically the same thing on his twitter feed any time it was brought up. If that's what they said, I'm inclined to believe it.

My suspicions are the the success of Third Party unlicenced transformers have made smaller companies like ET bold enough to consider actually licencing and producing such a niche product. If these other companies can be successful selling exceptionally small runs of product purchased only by specific niche collectors, it might be more viable for a small company to do a high-risk product like this than it would be for a larger company. That could be an interesting sort of paradox there!

Now that is a nice looking VF-2 collection!

Just picked mine up from the front office, and yeah, confirming- It's about the quality of several of the Third Party MP Transformers that I've picked up. Specifically, about on part with Fans-Toys or X-Transbots, so really not actually terrible at all. As somebody above said, it's a solid B+ IMO. Better than the Yamato YF-19 and Bandai V1 VF-25 by a pretty solid margin. Plastic quality is about on par with the Bandai V1s, below Arcadia and Yamato's offerings but not nearly as flimsy as people were suggesting. Some of the posters made me think it was going to be like, Styrene or something. It's mostly thin ABS, not far off from what Hasbro and a lot of the third party companies use for transformers.

I'm completely happy with this purchase, and I'm 110% looking forward to getting another one with an SAP. Probably gunning for the Nexx version.

Honestly, that video review makes the figure look pretty good to me. Seems about on par with some of the middling-to-better Third Party Transformers, which I'm already used to paying a premium on, so I'm feeling pretty good about this one now.

I think it's just a matter of who sent it. My preorder is from CD Japan, and I think they sent it a day or two later than everyone else. I'm in LA, so it should be on my doorstep as soon as it's out of customs!

I think this is pretty much how I feel about it. Mine hasn't arrived yet, but I've waited long enough for any version of the VF-2SS, and the photos all look as nice as anything I could have hoped for. Materials flaws aside, I think any problems with it are things I can easily live with. I'm tracking my shipment with my breath held.

Pretty sure given the context, aceoftherebellion is referring to Love Live! School Idol Project

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Live!

At least, I hope so

Yes, this "free" to play game that will cost more than a valkyrie habit and anime based on the same, otherwise known as Idol Hell. It's infectiously adorable.

I really want to give this series it's fair chance. I've loved every Macross to date whole cloth, but I'm having a really hard time with the genre blending in this one. It isn't the girl idol-group thing, I'm a big fan of Love Live and I think that could have been an amazing addition to the the Macross pantheon. I think it's just the awkward cross breeding with what mostly reminds me of Nanoha, which was a series I utterly despised. I don't care how much the technology behind it can be explained by things that came before, it's an awkward cross-genre blending that feels completely unnecessary, and very shoehorned in. Maybe a few more episodes and I'll be able to enjoy the show despite that element, but I don't see myself warming up to this seasons gimmick enough to actually enjoy the major aspect.

I'm not angry or anything, I'm just incredibly disappointed that this is the direction the franchise has decided to go.

I don't care what the reviews (or reality) say, I got my shipping notice this morning and I'm excited!

My expectations aren't too high, all it has to do is exist and I'll be happy. Finally, a VF-2SS in my collection? At least one valkyrie from every animated Macross released to date? That's all I ever needed.

...Well, unless they decide to make a marduk figure somehow...

That's probably the nail on the head, emphasizing Battroid vs Fighter or vice versa. It seems like the larger majority here at MW prefer a fighter-first approach, and they seem to have gone for Battroid first- easy match made in hell. I'll always be a robot-first guy, so it doesn't actually bother me in the least here, but I can see the hang ups. What it makes me wonder is what the majority consensus is among Japanese fans, whether their real target audience actually cares more about a perfectly streamlined fighter mode, or a more precise battroid mode.

Not buying this one, I just don't like it. But I do believe this won't be the last VF-2 we'll see. I want to believe.

Considering how many years we've had to wait already, and the fact that the only game we're getting is from an (admittedly) third rate company? I'm not holding my breath. I'm also clinging to my order for dear life, because this is the valkyrie I've waited half my life for. Sure, it looks kinda cheap and low on the detail, but it's a VF-2SS. In the immortal words of Ground'skeeper willie, 'it's not pretty, but eet'll dyoo'

More complicated, probably. More elegant, probably not. Again, the VF-2SS's transformation was terrible and does not work in the real world. I'm impressed at any attempt made to PT it, because I honestly didn't think it was possible.

New photos look good, but I think they've got the contrast way, way down to hide the seams. Can barely make out any panel lines. But I was already onboard from the prototypes so I'm fine with it. Liking the look of the cockpit now that it's painted, and the little pilot/Sylvie figure looks nice. Can't wait for mine to show up!

The placard explicitly says "VF-2SS with Super Armored Parts", so yeah it's a bundle. Neither placard references a specific pilot.

Most of these rumors seem to revolve around these licenses being exclusive, which it seems like they've never really been. Bandai and Arcadia have been releasing transforming toys from the same series in a competing market for a while, as were Yamato before them. The fact that they were in different scales seems to be more of a question of competitive semantics- why release a toy that a competing company effectively already made? The one exception was seemingly Frontier, which bandai had a (limited time) exclusive licence on, being the series primary sponsor, which makes perfect sense. All I'm seeing is Bandai being more bold about producing toys for a licence they'd previously been more cautious with. My take was that the DX VF-19 seemed like Bandai testing the waters to see if we'd really double-dip. We did. Now They're expanding further. There's been zero indication that anything has changed as far as Acadia is concerned.

The color won't match, but my suggestions is just get two, and replace both shoulders. That way they'll at least match each other, you'll have symmetry, and you'll have the peace of mind that both shoulders will now be secure without risk of further breakage.

I've also heard tales of shapeways plastic being dyed with fabric dye, so you could alternatively make the shoulders a dark grey and pass it off as just being like, 'mechanical detail!' like the VF-0's shoulders.