1/1 LowViz Lurker

It's got some good poseability though. The tentacle mech: It's the mech that the escaped sex boomer girl used which had an AI that took control of the mech when it thought the pilot was dead. (by wrapping some wires around the pilots arms and forcing them to push the controls - this scene looks like a rape scene because the girl is still alive and is strapped to the chair by the wires/tentacles just like what happened to myung in macross plus) The girl was like priss and rode a bike, but then priss has to kill her to disable this rogue mecha that for some reason has a bomb inside it that could destroy the city. In that episode the cop that is always chasing priss gets beaten in his police mech trying to fight it, and then later priss shows up in her motoslave (which gets destroyed by this rogue mech) and then defeats it in her hardsuit by killing the pilot. (which shuts it down) Can't remember the episode but those are the details. The girl looks like she is getting raped by a robot, because it straps her down and stuff against her will. Edit: someone mentioned it is called the DD Fighting Pod. should jog some memories:

But enough to not want to buy one if it isn't shiny?

Thanks for the lineart Cain. I love the bubblegum crisis mecha. Any other lineart like k12 and 'Tentacle Rape' mech I can save to HDD? Thanks! You should make a website with lineart and specs like what Mr March has done with Macross . just kidding. Yeah it's weird that the MotoSlave itself isn't shiny and stuff but I consider it a military-use armor first and a bike second so I don't mind that its not clean and shiny. Before you say "damage control!" there are some mecha that just look better without being all shiny. (because they want to be rugged and tough like tanks) For those people who like their mecha flat it's a win, I suppose. I just hope the figures are not fragile and break easily. Did yamato do any of the powered suits from appleseed before? If so how were they? When they get to "lovin' you" in the lyrics they say "rovin' you!" which is my fave part of the song! I lent a copy of some of my vhs tapes to a friend and never got them back. I agree with you about these being better if they were bigger and more detailed, maybe yamato should put as much attention on BGC mecha as they currently do with macross? Do some larger scale stuff with lots of details and gimmicks, have a seperate action figure (like with VOTOMs) that you could buy, and maybe even have AD Police action figures to scale with the Knight Saber? You could then put the AD Police action figure inside the K12 and have him try to fight the "tentacle rape" mecha and stuff? (sexy vampire biker chic would be the pilot of course) These may be the *"1/72s of the BGC line of toys"? Who knows? Maybe they will release better stuff in the future from classic BGC but so far everyone is concentrating on macross related toys so it goes unnoticed? (so yamato only put half-assed effort into it compared to macross toys?) *like how the 1/72 macross plus toys were the inferior early toys before they would eventualy revisit those mecha with better, bigger and more accurate versions later on?

I had a feeling beagle would be the best. Hopefully it turns out better than both CMs and MH. CMs could have been better had it not been rushed to market. MH needs to restart the line by allowing us to have the stickers plus two sets of different sized wheels. Early adopters should be given the option to order the wheels and stickers from them and get it free. And about the small feet, not a problem if they include a stand like the other toys. Sounds like FUD from fans of the giraffe necks and fans of the cheap-unpainted-model-kit-looking ride armor toys. In real life these things wouldn't allow for a human to stand straight without breaking someone's backs anyway. As for toynami: it's going to be hard to top this.

What about the dreaded first release "yamatoed syndrome?" You guys are not scared of that anymore?

Well there was at one point a holographic rider in one episode. So maybe they could include that?

I'm more interested in owning the stock macross plus colour. I like the blue. If they were going to do a non-canon paintscheme: go for the Gamlin vf-22 black stealth scheme. Unlike the yf-19 I think it would suit the 21 because it looks like a logical black ops type fighter more. (ie like the like the vf-17 nightmare's cousin) Whereas the 19 looks good as game edition or standard anime colour. I think black was wrong for it. It's the reckless, loud, unsafe-to-use robot, while the 21 is the careful, cool-headed, "sneak-up-behind-them-and-kill-them-suddenly without anyone noticing" robot. (even the gunpods are hidden and concealed) Heck the pilot must enter into a prayer-like wishing for something good to happen for it to happen, and meditate to get things done reminding us this is the robot for the pilot with a focused mind. Sit this next to the credit card valk (which looks very much like the black valk seen in SDF:M) and you have a team of assassin robots!

Toynami take ages to release stuff. As punishment I will take ages to consdier whether I want to buy the toy. You know that money I may have had lying around for stuff I was ready to buy of theirs before has now been used up on transformers and other things right? They are only shooting themselves in the foot by taking so long to release stuff. By the time people finally get it, it's like WTF?!?! ZOMG it's coming out... and by then people have lost interest. You realise how many years fans of the legioss have been waiting for the Beta fighter ?? I remember thread from back in 2003 of fans hoping for a BETA fighter, and the response was: buy an alpha to get a beta. Now fast forward to 2008 and....is it here yet? huh ?? So you can understand the cynical attitude the fans have for toys they've been waiting so long for. It's like some cockteasing girl who by the time she puts out, she is all old and wrinkly and stuff. Toynami should have release stuff like the FAST pack and BETA fighter ages ago. There were some people that refused to buy an alpha fighter until such time as a beta was released too. I can imagine how frustrated it must be waiting so long. So as a way of reacting: maybe it's better to just ignore anything until it is actually out, reviews are written, toys are physically handled to see and touch as proof of existence.. And no I am not just picking on toynami. I also complained how bandai didn't do anything with the macross 7 license for ages in another thread. I hate the sin not the sinner.

Maybe, but will they come with fast packs and stuff? I just think the only reason that yamato release the non-transforming battroid toys and 1/200 is because it's cheaper and not so risky. (smaller toys like 1/100 1/200 allow them to reach a broader base of people not just the collectors spending huge amounts of money. It offers an alternative to those who only display their valks and don't play around with it)

I wouldn't buy fighter mode only toys. Sorry. One of the reasons I got into collecting all these expensive toys is the working transformation of the mecha even though I am the type to only transform the thing once or twice and leave it alone for ages. My Konig monster is gathering so much dust from not touching it for ages. But I like that they transform. I mean, with the beauty of the upcoming 1/60 yf-21 why would you buy the non-tf fighter mode only toy? These were designed to look good in fighter mode weren't they? So long as yamato can make the toys beautiful in fighter mode (vf-0 for example) then I think it would be a risk. It's like what happened wit hthe swapping parts idea for the 1/100 VF-0 that yamato was going to bring out. People would rather transformation. Although I do like the idea of huge amounts of inner detail but I don't think too many people can afford it. Remember they are going from 1/48 scale back to 1/60 scale. Maybe they should first concentrate on 1/60, then go back to revisit 1/48 for only the most popular toys. (or just ones we've been dying to see? VF-4 would be nice) I think they made a good move by doing the 1/200 scale micromachine minitures of all three modes. I wouldn't mind seeing stuff like the breast fighters or zentradi fighter pods. These things wouldn't look too bad at small scale. I think instead of making fighter mode only toys, yamato should continue to make non-transforming toys of non-transforming mecha like the tomahawk they are doing. Because they don't transform, they can concentrate on things like putting details (seperate micromissiles? tamp printed markings?) and gimmicks. (removable covers, parts that detach)

I'm going to wait for reviews. I don't believe they are coming out until someone actually posts a pic of them holding it with their hands. Belief that they exist is like believing in a UFO or elvis sighting. Ever heard of the boy who cried wolf?

Two joints in shoulder. One for back and forth, another for the up-down. The SV-51 for example already uses seperate joints for back-forth, raised-to-side/lowered-to-side. But just use stiffer detented joint that can never go loose for the back-forth movement since you know in the future the gunpod and armor it will put on might add extra weight that could make a ball joint go loose over time. There's nothing a single ball joint can do that two normal detented/click joints can't, ..except make the shoulder armor itself point a *funny angles. (but that's got nothing to do with the other parts of the arm.) Generally I think bigger toys need the ratchets/click joints over smooth ball joints considering the weight. But smaller toys are better with balljoints because they are lighter. Often one of the things that limits a robot's poseability isn't so much the lack of balljoints, but the armor it wears restricting its movement due to lack of clearance. (for an example see the Yamato 1/60 Qrau. The legs can't curl up) To solve the 'lack of clearance' issue the SV-51 already has the extendable box-like thing that comes out of the hip/thigh for extra space so that the legs can rotate a little at the intakes. And in the case of the knees there are the extendable knees with double joints which can be collapsed when needed. I don't see why they couldn't do that for shoulders, right? Now instead of ball joints just have two ratchet-type joints if possible. One of the loosest joints on my SV-51 is the head, which sits on a ball joint. Everytime I move it the head rotates. Rubber might help, but I'd rather 3 joints. One for side to side, one for up and down, and another for rotating the head. Rubber might wear out over time. *eg: banpresto valks have ball joints and allow you to angle the shoulder armor how you please. Compare that to the shoulder of say the bandai 1/65 vf-17 valk which has the armor stuck into place rigidly. One of the reason I love the shoulders of the banpresto so much despite it falling apart easily without the use of some bluetack.

Phoenix sounds much cooler though. It fits in well with the end of the world theme going on in Zero. The phoenix having risen from the ashes after death and all.. (humans are going to be judged by a giant alien robot flower of life, possibly to save other lives from us?) Even though it was the Monster which shooed the birdman away.. The Monster with claws deserves an applause. About the zentradi food: what was that drumstick that Kamjin was eating in SDF:M? It's obviously a macronised chicken. That's the proof they can put food in the chamber and eat gentically modified food. Although europe is against GM frankenstein foods so maybe they are just eating a dead elephant, which was grown on an overtechnology farm?

VF-25 Silverbolt ^ It would be funny if they finally decided that they should have an onboard AI on all valkyries from now on and when the pilot is injured, the AI takes over and the valkyrie becomes like a transformer. Put a custom face on it and call him "silverbolt" from the transformers. Maybe have a different one called "jetfire", and another called starscream. And like the tacikoma in ghost in the shell they can think for themselves and stuff. The return of faces on valks!

I liked the idea of the monster fighting a red guy. I wonder how a monster in battroid mode using the arm missiles at point blank range would fare against swarms of the bugs? They just don't seem as threatening compared to the inbit who were small but numerous. If the Monster had add-on Fast packs and a giant version of the beam weapon that it could use as a hand carried weapon in robot mode it would be a great defense. This is what I was going to suggest a while ago: I wonder if the pilots themselves in modern times are necessarily more skilled then the same cannon fodder pilots of the old days? If not, then it would be a waste of money to see these guys using an expensive robot that just gets blown away easily due to lack of ability of the pilot to manuever quickly. Sure a crap pilot in a crap mech will die more easily than a crap pilot in a good mech, but maybe that money could be better spent on other things like giving the good pilots with experience the new toys and just slightly upgrade the existing valks for the noobs? (just as the VF-1 itself got upgrades as a super valkyrie towards the end of the tv series, not an immediate new valk) One thing about the speed of the valks is that unless the pilot has maxed out the potential of the existing valk he has, there is no point giving them vf-22, or a 19 unless the pilots can handle it. We saw how gamlin was respectful of basara's ability to withstand the Gs to be able to do all those acrobatic stunts, so it might also be about physical fitness and mental ability as well? What if you get dizzy easily, lose your sense of direction, or black out? Not everyone can be miria, max, dyson, basara. I think it is more realistic that these valks were still limited in numbers even in the future. (it's not like the enemies themselves are necessarily more skilled either, just that they were caught unprepared facing a new type of enemy with different tactics) Also the 21 as we saw in plus could go faster than what a human/zentradi pilot could handle. The only way to defeat the x-9 was if Guld killed himself. You get to a point where extra speed might not make that much difference in the way you fight efficiently and where money on other things (like better training, weapons, armor material) might be more sensible.

The non-transforming toys are aimed at action figure guys, the transforming stuff is for people who want model kit like proportions. Action figures have to take on the personality of the robot mode seen in the cartoons. Notice the hands on the VF-11 are big and manly? Notice the muscled look on the legs which suggests power? Gunpods: why are gunpods so fat? This is to emphasise strength of the weapon. Just as a low camera angle shot of a valk which makes the legs look longer emphasis height and tallness. Because of the lineart drawings of the robot modes having taken on impossible proportions in the the anime, these action figures look like that to be close to the tough robust appearance often granted to them when in that mode. Big expressive Ham hands and feet, beefy "pop-eye the sailor man" forearms, bulging muscles, and shorter stockier midsections all emphasise actions much better than if it were skinny like the cg model or the transforming robots which emphasise mechanical details and 'speed' (through sharp lines, skinny frame and light appearance in fighter mode) over smooth, more organic movements and bulky armor in robot mode. Kaiyodo have done a great job with the Revoltechs, but one thing yamato might be able to challenge them on is how they might be able to cram some more details into the toys. Like don't just think of them as cheap action figures but try to include model-like details on the various parts that give it a bit more "realism" to remind us these are mecha. I've seen those Spawn figures which are like statues in their level of detail, so why not try to go in that direction without compromising the playability? (the 19 should have details underneath the shield and ability to stock extra ammo for example. Will we normally see that kind of stuff on a tiny action figure? what about something like hollowed head laser for vf-1?)

Another thing: don't go cheap on the tampo printing of details. I would pay extra for more tampo printing. I don't want a combination of ugly stickers and prints. But as much printing as possible. (don't try to make "special exclusive" editions with more tampo prints or stickers like what megahouse is doing with the Mospeada Ride Armor). If it does boost the cost to unreasonable levels then just do the most important stuff. As an example lets say you re-release the VB-6 Konig monster, do the damn eyes on the side of it. Honestly, how hard would that have been? Instead of ball joints for bigger toys: you need detented ones on the hips imo. (sharkteeth - every time you push it the hip must push outward to go over the tooth, which then immediately snaps back down due to pressure from a spring that pushes everything back together towards each other after one click) Have double jointed hips: the hard detented joints that click (up-down) and another one for side to side (for A-stances). The upper limit of a valk to do "the splits" is the clashing together of the intakes against the nose/crotchpiece of the robot. So make the click increments smaller/closer-together. I want double joints for hips and maybe as standard: let them extend too. (just like the SV-51 which can collapse inwards and pop outwards if more space or clearance is needed) Above all: flexibility (good materials that have a little give so things can't crack) with firmness. (held tightly together like a spring loaded projectile stuck in a chunky munky ready to shoot out violently ) That is the key.

Make sure the toys can be tightened or loosened by screws so if things are too tight or loose we can adjust if necessary by ourselves. Don't just glue stuff. Double Jointed Elbow as standard on all valks. (the SV-51 really needed this since the forearm is so long!) Have things lock together like the way transformers do. Not just sit near other stuff but look like they just hang there. (example the black flap on the SV-51 in robot mode just looks loose and a smalle gap is visible between it and the chest it should sit flush against thanks to nothing for it to lock onto. If they are worried it will ugly up the outer appearance of the toy just make sure you make covers to hide the 'holes' where the little hole is for the peg or whatever that needs to go into that hole just like how you have screw covers for your toys.) It seems that generally fighter modes are fine when it comes to things locking together firmly and making the toy feel firmly fit together, but robot mode is sometimes a little half-assed. Some stuff sits tighter than others rather than everything sitting locked into other things tightly and consistantly as it does in fighter mode. I think stuff shouldn't flop around loosely or be easy to accidentally push out of place and make the robot look like there is a tiny gap when you let go of it. But rather it should snap-fit together like it really belongs shut into place. (yf-19 chest for example) Don't rush the robot modes. Think about them as much as the fighter mode in terms of locking together nicely.

Me too. But I think if CMs just made it bigger, maybe that would give it more points in the reviews so the stuff isn't going to pop off easily as people struggle to move parts without accidentally moving or popping off other parts. It can still be complex, but just bigger and more detailed to make it even better.

Just bought Landmine from the 2k8 movie line: review of him here: http://tformers.com/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=866 Like wreckage I like the articulation in bot mode and the details of alt mode. Best of the 2008 line in the deluxe size for me so far. I had not intended on buying any more movie TF after Cliff Jumper (a repaint of Concept Camaro Bumblebee). Those who like easy transformations and high articulation should definitely check this toy out. I also like how the gun can be stored his back and even be used as an over-the-shoulder gun in bot mode. The hands are also very interesting: it is the seats of the alt mode. But the opposable thumb and (what look like the mine sweepers on brawl) fingers can be posed with lots of freedom. The dagger-like fingers also look like perfect close quarter combat weapons to stab other robots in the eyes. heh. Overall this is 4 and a half stars for me. I'll hold off 1/2 a star in case a better repainted version comes out. If only they weathered the buggy like they did with classics grimlock that would have really suited the toy. Anyone else still buying movie line stuff? Landmine took me by surprise. Witness the power of having man hands/claws/paddles!

Grimlock looks good. Grim-lock Grim....lock Grim...lock.

nah just an old school fan of these specific shows like you. I just have a soft spot for mecha shows from when I was young. I don't know if that means I am biased just that sometimes I think the originals seem to have something from them that the sequels seem to be missing. If people who say SDF:M is the only true macross because they as fans have their preferences for the older show, then I want to say the old-school BGC is the only true BGC for me because of the style of the suits or the way the boomers are introduced. Maybe it really isn't that much better but as it came first, it just stands out for having aged well while the sequel retreads the old thing but doesn't necessarily improve upon it, so we hold the sequel to a higher standard? (as time goes on we expect things to get better not the same or worse right? So we are much harsher on the newer show if it doesn't advance on the ideas or present them better than the original?) For example in the new BGC, the upgraded suit priss uses in that had been changed a little bit and been given some kind of spikes or fins which ruins the classic design. This is almost as bad as the valks with faces from macross 7, you know? Different people find different things cool. I think it spoiled what I liked about the old design.

Any transformation pics?

VF-25 Matryoshka Based on the russian Matryoshka doll which contains a doll within a doll within a doll etc The smallest doll is the human body, with the EX gear being the next stage, with the valkyrie being the next stage, and finally the full armor the last. I think of the machine as being layered like that. A person within a person within a person within a person. Each layer hiding something beneath it.

The chick can look pretty after you've had a few drinks though.