jenius

Hi all, with the DX VF-19Kai coming out, I'm wishing I had a Yamato version to compare it to. I sold mine ages ago when I bought the Arcadia version. I still have the Arcadia version, so definitely not looking for that. Would also be interested in a sound booster since I'd guess Bandai will give us one of those eventually and I'd like to compare them.

Wanted:
Yamato 1/60 VF-19Kai Basara Custom. Really, any condition could be considered. I don't need the box and the toy could even have a cracked part or two provided it still functioned properly and looked new enough. Nothing customized please, no panel lining, no stickers applied. 

Yamato 1/60 Soundbooster for VF-19Kai. Same idea as above. Loose is fine so long as it's complete. Nothing customized.

Other odds and ends I'd be interested in tracking down:
Harmony Gold releases (Not matchbox or Playmates) releases of the following Robotech toys, preferably like new:
1/18 Hovertank
1/72 Gladiator (AKA Spartan)
1/72 Raidar X (AKA Defender)
1/72 Spartan (AKA Phalanx)
1/240 MACII Monster
Battlepod
Officer's Pod
Invid Scout

Matchbox releases of:
Botoro Power Armor
Quadrano Power Armor
1/144 Raidar X Civil Defense
1/144 Tomahawk Civil Defense
1/144 Phalanx Tactical (blue)

Takatoku
Raidar X 
Vending Machine
1/100 Roy & Misa

Joons
Red/white/blue Release but potentially others also. I only have the green one. 

16 hours ago, PointBlankSniper said:

I think everyone is reading too much into the preorders with an old mindset. Everything from revivals like 25G, Tornado, 31J, 262Hs, 171EX, 25S armored and 27, have all been selling out very slow. Some of them are still in stock. Even the PO for the Fire Valkyrie is still in stock at a few places. PO madness is simply no longer much of a phenomenon for these toys. The only exception to this was probably the YF-19. While the 21's sales were hampered despite being new and having demand...

It seems like it's just the current trend with DX Valks. It may just be the result of the overall known issues of recent bandai action figures in general, including metal builds, and the economy, and bandai overproducing as they embrace global releasing valks after the legal issues of the macross IP cleared up

Even if they had perfected the sculpt for this release, my guess is that it would just sell out at a similar same pace. There's no way this thing could sell out faster than the 19Kai

Worldwide Macross was largely the death of the preorder madness EXCEPT for toys still restricted to Japan (DX VF-1). 

Glad to help! The combined unit takes both to the next level.

Think GBP, not fast packs. While this line is not something that interests me, I like the idea of armor variants like FEXT with their OWL.

They should have called it a VF-1XS or something and made up their own side history of it being an experimental line of "veritechs". How much does it cost to make a comic book? They could have included a comic with each release with a post rain of death story arch as new mechs were being developed.

Not ThreeZero... Thankfully. 

Huh, looks 2100 Yen more expensive from Amazon vs HLJ but I'm sure there are shipping considerations that might even it all out.... though let's not talk about shipping and hope things get better!

got one from hlj!

https://www.hlj.com/?utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=scorchedearthtoys

Well it invoke PO madness? Can't wait to find out!

I only remember a colored prototype of the fatty, not sure on the 21.

Maybe this will be like the Hi Metal R Fatty from Votoms where the initial prototype has lots of room for improvement and the final product addressed almost every concern... It can happen!

Just got the notice that mine is out for delivery. Probably time for me to open the HMR fire Valkyrie I purchased also

Lol, can confirm that I just received a 'duty invoice' from DHL. The breakdown is $24.91 on top of the 5200 Yen I paid to use DHL (since it was the only service available). Get this duty fee breakdown:

$1.31 Regulatory Charges
$6.60 Duties
$17.00 Tax Processing

Sooooo, if it weren't for the 'tax processing' charge things wouldn't be so terrible. Maybe Japan Post will get this figured out and be able to give us an affordable option again. Right now, it sounds like DHL is the big winner (though I'm sure their business is way down with everyone else's). 

I feel like Panzer Dragoon 2 could be redone to be amazing... but that is not it. 

5 hours ago, Scyla said:

As I said earlier, I want a slim VF-17 but this is just wrong. It would be the same if Bandai released the VF-19Kai by painting the YF-19 red and gave it a different head turret.

It also doesn’t help that Frontier had a totally different animation style compared to 7. Because the Valkyries in Frontier were computer generated they had a lot more details than the ones in 7 ever did.

Things like the details on the intakes, the additional surface detail on the back of the plane. Where do the micro missile launchers in the legs come from, where is the opening for the gunpod in the legs?

The problem is that this is not realistic VF-17, it is a VF-171 cosplaying as a VF-17. I really want to like this, because it has all the markings Yamato omitted (and I had to apply myself) and it is a sleek fighter mode but I can’t.

I think Bandai could have made something really cool, even reusing the "skeleton" (i.e. same transformation design, same joint engineering, same internal parts) of the VF-171 (which I don’t hate for the record).

Bandai showed with the VF-19Kai that they can do it but this is just halfhearted.

Maybe Bandai didn’t want to invest in such an extensive re-shell because they knew how bad the Yamato had sold and don’t want to commit to that.

Poor Gamlin, just can’t get a leg up against Basara.

Valid points. If Bandai insisted on reusing the 171, and I'm sure we discussed this 15 years ago when the 171 debuted, they should at least get all the different details of the 17 right. Had they started with the 1/65, we could have had one where the gun actually tucked into the leg! Unfortunately, I don't think the 17 has a huge following so half-hearted was as much as Bandai was willing to invest. 

We understand these additional fees may not be ideal for customers, so we also welcome customers who would like to utilise our Private Warehouse, which is now unlimited!

We are also working on restoring additional methods, such as FedEx, in the near future.

We appreciate your ongoing support, and if you face any issues, please contact our Customer Support Team.

Kind regards,
HLJ Team 

Oh man, you're tempting me to push this up in my review cycle.

Oh yeah, I thought some had two right shoulders but if it's just a part swap, super easy fix.

In a way, we're getting the best of both worlds from an aesthetic protective. If you want something more like the show, track down the Yamato. If you want a more "realistic" approach, get the DX. If you were let down by the Yamato and want something like it but better, tweet Arcadia... But I think it sold like a turd for Yamato so don't hold your breath. 

So just an apology? No word of replacement parts?

Well I guess I know what's coming! Agreed, I'm going to be a lot more judicious with my purchases abroad until we get some slower shipping and cheaper options.

Great question, I assumed it included the duty, I should have looked for small print. I went to ship something today from fromJapan and they make it very clear their prices don't include duty so maybe I'll get a second bill from DHL for my AE shipment. I'll report back if I do.

I think Kawamori has very limited ability to do anything and his involvement is largely collecting a fee to say he is involved.

DHL charge for the 19P from AE was 5200 yen which feels steep but relieved it wants the crazy amounts some have been quoted.

I have a few complaints about Mospeada but one of the bigger ones is the flight choreography... The battles just aren't exciting.