Fort Max

Ah well, it did have this massive feeling of too good to be true about it.

How many other people actually prefer the Toynami design to the CM's one?

I'm very surprised to have reached this realizaition but I'm just not that bothered about CM's set and haven't been for a while and yet yesterday I pre-ordered Toynami's Beta without hesitation.

I think both have their strong points, CM's does have excellent looking missle bays but the landing gear and the plain nasty connecting bar spoil it. Toynami's design seems to have improved greatly, most noticeably now hiding the cockpit in robot mode and though we havn't seen any gimmciks yet their Alpha had all the hatches and whatnot so I don't see much reaosn to think this will be any different.

There's also the asthetic to consider, CM's went with a more modern looking style whileToynami has actually created a more anime accurate look.I wouldn't be bothered if neither one was perfectly accurate but I do like the look of Toynami's more, it just looks more 80's and wins points for that alone.

That said I wish they were more forthcoming with information, delays people can handle but keeping your customers in the dark is a bad idea for pretty much any buisness.

CM's loves them some styrofoam.

This thread needs more pics.

Wow, it looks great, now who can get a bigger version of this pic?

Graham, save robotech, anyone?

Wow, Beagles 3d showroom model certainly looks good. I'm not going to hold my breath that I'll have exactly that in my hands when it ships but I will be watching it very closely.

Add me to those hoping for a re-issue of Scott's Alpha. *crosses fingers*

The Beta will look nice nough on it's own if they don't though, I suppose....

Cool pre-orders, thanks for posting them guys.

I ordered a Blue Beta and a set of series 4 1/100's, it's been ages since I got anything from BBTS, I'd forgotten quite how slick their system is.

That toy can't even be two years old.

well mine is on it's way from HLJ so if I get one with the crooked shaft I'll just have to hope HLJ has another to replace it with.

This thread is just going to go round in circles until Bandai shows the goods!

I've owened many Bandai toys over the years, including several of the SOC line (Various Mazingers, Getter, Combatler V, Grendizer). Also, more recently the SPEC Dragonar, which is an amazing toy.

But I still don't want to see painted diecast in a Bandai Macross Frontier toy for the following reasons: -

1) Die-cast metal toys will suffer from paint chips sooner or later, no matter how careful you are, especially transforming or combining toys.

2) It's never possible to match the color of die cast cast painted parts and ABS parts exactly.

3) Weight may not be such an issue with non-transforming toys, but too much weight can cause serious issues with parts locking on transforming toys.

Bandai hasn't proved themselves to me that they can make high die-cast content transforming toys. Toys like Voltes V, don't really count IMO, as they are combiners, not transformers, with relatively simple combining function. The only really complex die-cast transforming toy I can think of from Bandai with complexity on par with VFs is the SOC Gunbuster, but I don't own that personally, so can't really comment.

Graham

Fair enough, I do have the Gunbuster and most of the diecast is either internal (lots of strengthening bars etc) or it's parts that don't really scrape against anything else. I think (hope) that Bandai leanrt their lesson with the SOC Dancouga which I belive (I don't own this one) had paint scraping issues where the metal "ear" parts of the mammoth had to be carefully folded isnide the chest. If it'd been plastic there wouldn't have been any trouble.

But, the question is... Will they do that for a Macross line??

Historically Bandai has treated Macross like the red headed bastard son...

They just announced a DX perfect transform Chogokin, it doesn't get more metaly and transformering then that.

If Bandai's 1/100 line turns out to be HCM-Pro type toys and they make the VF-171 with all the markings Tampo printed on, I will be as happy as a pig in poo.

For their 1/60 DX line, as long as they keep the die-cast metal parts to only where needed for strength (i.e. swing bars), make the rest of the toy out of ABS, have nice tight joints, parts that fit and lock together well and have at least a similar level of detail as Yamato's 1/60 toys, I will be happy. I'm just preying they stay away from unecessary painted die-cast metal exterior parts. IMO, die-cast and transforming toys just don't mix.

Graham

This is what people keep trying to tell you, Bandai are about the one company that can make painted metal transforming toys work.

WTH? i thought were talking macross toys here...not uniforms

Yes, but Bandai are involved so the knives are out.

So much msgs to sift through and its mostly hate or fanboy crap.

The fact of the matter is Bandai has yet to prove their mantle in this. They haven't been making quality non-gundam toys sponsored by them in the past and the most recent examples of these are Eureka Seven and Code Geass. The fact that they are releasing the VF-25 in the Chogokin DX line (please note that DX is not the same as the mainstay chogokin line)is a bit of good news though not convincing enough as the Aquarion left much to be desired.

So Bandai haters keep your pants on....and Bandai lovers, don't count your chicks before they hatch.

Most of Aquarion's problems are inherrent in it's design. As bold as it was of Kawamori to try and mahe a Getter Robo type toy that worked it was never the best design decision in the world to have 1/3 of it's weight on it's back in each robot form.

I've noticed that both versions have really different scuplts, the MH one has the better looking RA scuplt imo, especially in the torso and hip armour.

Finally a straight up comparison shot.

Well that seals it for me, Megahouse win by a mile.

And both need support, the deisgn has a huge great backpack sticking out and wheels on struts, there's no way either of them would ever stand on their own unless you could put ballast in the front part of the armour.

I can't wait to see the reasoning used around here to say "Yamato should have made these" when Bandai turns out a fantastic toy you can both afford and play with.

Seriously, I know Bandai has stiffed Macross in the past, I've seen those toys and yes they're dissapointing. But those toys were cheap, easy efforts for a licence they weren't really backing.

But this time Bandai has said they're doing a chogokin large sized Valkyrie, that won't be a cheap easy effort, it will be a fantastic toy.

Ray was showing as low stock at HLJ so I requested shipment, fingers crossed.

Chances are that Kaiyaido will do a Revoltech one now they're doing that red and white AS.

I wonder why there's a month delay??? Transport from Asia??? WTH??

Not nessacraily a month, could be early March. Maybe their shipment from the factory was delayed and they can't ship them out till necxt month now, who knows.

My Patlabor collection could always use a few more Ingrams, but I have to say, I'm starting to think of them the same way I tend to think of VF-1s... "What... again?" I love the vinyl collection we've been getting with a lot of the "filler" labors to go with the CM's line, and I'd like to see some labors beyond the Ingrams and Griffon get a more "deluxe" release. The Revoltech Helldiver was a welcome addition, and there are some cool military labors from both movies.

I tells ya... whatever company can keep the new labors comin' has got my dollars.

Has anyone heard whether Yamato's using the movie or TV versions as the basis?

It's the movie version of Ingram 1, it says so on the poster displayed at wondefest so it's not a rumour or nowt.

The poster in question,

http://www.hlj.com/hlj_gallery2/v/wonfest/...C_9393.jpg.html

Wow, the VF-25 is much smaller than I had thought, but that's not a bad thing. It's easier to collect smaller figures.

I don't think any of those are the flagship 1/60 Chogokin though, the Wonderfest reports mentioned simpler 1/100 figures so probably those.

Well HLJ have changed their ride armours to a March release as well if it makes you feel any better.

I saw it mentioned on TBDX, thought someone woulda posted it in the CM's Patlabor thread.

Hadn't seen those scans though, cheers Graham.