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M'Kyuun

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  1. M'Kyuun
    Just got my copy, and it survived a full transformation to pistol and back without anything breaking. My copy has a number of folding panels that are very tight toleranced, and feel like they're going to break. The plastic hinge that pins to the base of the barrel was extremely tight; the base is die-cast and the double hinge to which it's pinned is plastic, and in the course of rotating it into pistol position, the little nubs intended for ratcheting suffered a bit of extensive wear after just one transformation. One other nitpick on mine is that the neutral face sits off center in the helmet, and I 'm not sure why. I removed and reinstalled it to see if it had been put in crooked at the factory, but no, there's an obvious offset. I'll have to try the other faces to see if there's possibly a deformation in the helmet. It's not the end of the world, but still- crappy. There's definitely an order to transformation, or things can get in the way prohibitively. I broke out the instructions going to pistol, as some things that looked like they needed to move, or that I knew needed to move from having watched vids, were very reluctant, and I wanted some assurance. I eschewed instructions going back to robot, and after one transformation, the overall transformation system can be figured out fairly well. It's not the most complex TF out there, but there are a few intricacies, mostly in the upper torso and upper arms. The legs are engineering gold, although the mechanism for narrowing them is tight on mine making it more difficult than I'd like. This would have been a good place for a spring-loaded mechanism, IMHO, as manipulating those leg panels to go back to robot position had me feeling very apprehensive. As an action figure, he's awesome; my hat's off to Takara for endowing such a complex transforming figure with an extraordinary range of articulation throughout. I'm pleased with that particular direction in the MP line, as I've always felt that the robot should be the primary focus and then the alt mode; after all, they're robots in disguise. Granted, the alt should still be done well, and thus far I think they're doing a good job with that balance. To that end, Megatron succeeds; his alt isn't as seamless as most of the previous figures, but he resembles a Walther P 38 well enough to get the job done. Lets face it, though, nobody's displaying Megatron in gun mode; Takara know it, and poured most of their efforts into making a really solid action figure. I'm pretty pleased with him, and encourage folks to at least transform theirs once; it's a satisfying journey once you know what goes where, however toleranced it may be. I pulled a few gangsta poses with mine, and then went back to bot mode. Given the ingenuity involved and the overall look and feel of this figure, I think MP Megs 2.0 was worth the wait. Happy to add him to the collection.
  2. M'Kyuun
    So I'm curious, for those among you collecting Generations figures, are you finding them in brick and mortar stores? I just did a sweep of four different big box stores and none of them had any warrior class figs; one had a few legion class, and one or two had a slew of the little Titan Masters, and a couple had a Voyager fig or three. I remember a time when the pegs were generally full of TFs, but nowadays, they seem pretty scarce, esp warrior class, which are all but absent in just about every store I go into in my area. There are still a bunch of Wave 3 warrior class figs at my local Walmart, but they got their shipment in after Christmas, after the nice $10 sale was over. Now they're shelf-warming, and no new stock will be ordered until they sell the current stock, which are back to their $15 price point. I don't know if this is an issue on Hasbro's part (distribution), or the stores', but it's becoming nigh impossible to collect these things when nobody is carrying them- the pegs are there, they're marked, but nothing's hanging on them. There's a certain satisfaction in finding a desired toy, bringing it home and tearing into it- immediate gratification, I suppose. I used to enjoy toy hunting, but for the last few years, it has become an exercise in futility and disappointment. Anyway, I just got home, and my frustration is still fresh. Needed to vent where my frustration is likely shared.
  3. M'Kyuun
    Got my FT Grinder today. Chunky beast, he is (pun fully intended). Just a really solid, well-scaled G1 Grimlock. Glad I went with these guys- they fill the void nicely, and I'll finally have all five G1 Dinobots when Cesium and Stomp release. Having two of their Iron Dibots in hand, I appreciate why Fans Toys have the reputation they have- everything about these figures shows a high standard of quality. Heck, my Grinder actually had a quality inspector sticker on it- only time I've seen that. I look forward to your reviews of another company's dinos, Mike. Always interesting to see the differences in design, engineering, detail, and features from company to company in a similar toy.
  4. M'Kyuun
    Yeah- wish I'd waited and looked around before ordering. I had a fear this was going to be like the Bandai valks, and jumped on the cheapest one I could find within the first day or two of POs. According to USPS, mine should be here on Thursday. Looking forward to it.
  5. M'Kyuun
    I felt the same, that this was a bit of an origin story for the Section 9 characters, esp the Major and Batou. They invented a plausible reason for his sealed eyes, as introducing him with them probably would have confused folks with no GiTS background. The one thing I didn't care for was that , aside from an implant here or there, all of Section 9 are human except the Major, who was fully cybernized. In every incarnation I've seen, Batou has always been full cyborg like the Major. I like that, as it gives them a commonality by which they can empathize with each other. I am resigned to the idea that this is its own story apart from what's come before, even with all the borrowed scenes from the '95 film.
  6. M'Kyuun
    Best quote ever! Never too late to start- I was over 40 when I built my VF-4. It's challenging, but oh so rewarding when it comes together. One of the best experiences I've had was at a LEGO convention called BrickCon a couple years ago when one fellow, out of the thousands of folks that attend, recognized my VF-4 as a VF-4 (In the five years I've gone, only about five people at the Con have done so- tells ya a little about the obscurity of Macross in the West). I talked to him for a minute or two (lots of folks shoulder to shoulder shuffling their way around the Mecha table at the time) and he mentioned that GERWALK was his favorite mode ( I had the VF-4 displayed in battroid). As he continued on with the flow, I put the VF-4 in G mode, hunted the gentleman down, and tapped him on the shoulder. Years melted off his face, lost in a giant grin, as he turned and laid eyes on that GERWALK; that moment still resonates with me. So, get cracking! Build some LEGO valks and make the world a better place!
  7. M'Kyuun
    That's for Megs and shipping combined? If so, that's the best deal I've heard of. I ponied up $225 for him (my rationale was overwhelmed by squeee), and hindsight being clearer, I wish I'd waited for the inevitable reviews in case there were issues, which there are. Anyway, good job finding a great deal!
  8. M'Kyuun
    Some shots of my Classic Space Konig. Bittersweet project: I designed him to be very poseable, esp in the hips, so he could do an "A" stance, a very nice range of motion for such a large model. Then I added the backpack, which is rather substantial, and probably weighs as much, if not more, than the Konig's body. Well, the whole thing went ass over teakettle, necessitating a stand to keep him upright. After months of builds and rebuilds, lots of money spent on Bricklink, and a lot of excitement for how everything was turning out, it became a monumental failure, as it couldn't stand on its own, which was an absolute must from the onset. I still have it sitting on my worktable, unfinished. I've contemplated redesigning the hips with AT-AT joints to make them more robust, but I've lost my fervor, and for now, it collects dust. I keep hoping LEGO will produce some larger, more robust ratcheting joints for larger mecha, but I'm not holding my breath. So, I have another smaller Konig in the works, and I'm taking many of the lessons learned building this behemoth and applying them to it. Now LEGO needs to make the parts I need in the right colors. I'm hoping the Ninjago Movie Mecha sets will bring fruition to my erstwhile wishlist. High hopes. In the meantime, hope you like my CS Monster.
  9. M'Kyuun
    I've thought about it, but never seriously enough to try it. In any event, I have no idea how to post video. Here's another project I was working on; it's unfinished, but someday I may get back to it. Like the VF-4, it's fully transformable into all three modes.
  10. M'Kyuun
    Thanks! It took a few rebuilds, a bit of LEGO, and a lot of cussing, but I finally got it to work. Anyway, here are couple more shots showing some features. Notice the entire shoulder can move; I built it like this from the beginning, as I was working solely from Kawamori's lineart. After I got my Yamato VF-4, the immobility of it's shoulders really seemed an impractical hindrance, and I was glad I went with a moveable design. Much more dynamic. Incidentally, these are older pics; the chest vanes have since been rebuilt and the new ones can be seen on the above posted pics.
  11. M'Kyuun
    I like the more modern construction vehicle aesthetic they went for, but the bot modes show a lot of license, and my preference is more for G1 homage. I'm getting the complete ToyWorld Constructor set with all the various improvements due out in a couple months. I already have three of their Constructor figs, and while the vehicle modes are a bit more simplified than I'd like, overall they do the job. My set will likely remain in their individual bot modes, as i like how they look, and it'll mitigate the wear and tear they'd receive if I left them combined for extended periods- heavy figures. I've been on a bit of a 3rd party binge lately, and ordered all five of Fans Toy's Iron Dibots. Grinder will be on my doorstep tomorrow, Soar is on a slow boat from China (Ebayed him b/c I wanted the blue chested version) due sometime between the middle of April and May, and Stomp and Cesium( new more G1 accurate version of Slag) are preordered. I have Sever, and man is he sweet. After sitting on the fence for about a year, I finally ordered Ocular Max's Jaguar, as I love Ravage, and I figure I'd better get him while he's still available. After watching a few vids, I think I'll get the Toyhax labels for him to make him look more authentic in his cassette mode. These third parties are rolling out some amazing figures- wish I had the room and finances for many more of them. Too many expensive hobbies.
  12. M'Kyuun
    Thanks, greatly appreciate the compliment. To answer your question, it has perfect transformation, just like a Transformer. It locks together solidly in fighter, and I can swoosh the crap out of it, go inverted- lots of fun. It also has retractable gear; none of these shots show it, but it's there.
  13. M'Kyuun
    I generally don't post my own stuff, but I thought I'd share some pics of my VF-4. I originally built this in 2011, and have modified (improved) it over the years to the state seen here. I built it in the dark blue and grey colors primarily b/c that's what I had the most of, and b/c I generally like how they look together. I figure this is an urban defense model, so the colors make more sense. This model is particularly special to me, as it represents an achievement that I tried to accomplish for over twenty years: make a transformable jet with LEGO. I didn't want to do the VF-1 b/c there are quite a few of them on the net; the VF-4 is one of my favorite valks, and it lent itself nicely to realization with LEGO. Hope you guys like.
  14. M'Kyuun
    Surprised they didn't get tara Strong to do Harley, but Melissa sounds good in the role. Love the Animated series, and offshoots like this are always welcome.
  15. M'Kyuun
    Looking forward to your review. These look like some nice SD figs.
  16. M'Kyuun
    I contacted Captured Prey, and they also verified no plug. Watched Chosen Prime's vid. Doesn't look like a fun transformation, although those legs are brilliantly done. I know most prob won't transform theirs more than once, but I probably will, so the idea of scuffing and chipping while transforming him is disheartening.
  17. M'Kyuun
    If it didn't have Scarlett, it most likely wouldn't have had the budget it had, and would have been a direct to video release. It's a virtually unknown property here in the States, and probably in the rest of the Western Hemisphere, so they needed a well-known actress to leverage what was otherwise an absolute losing gamble. As with most movies in this genre, the Asian market is where it will make its mark both financially and in popularity. I hope so, enough to justify a second. I felt it succeeded, just that it was very derivative. I thought Scarlett carried the picture well, and that she and Pilou (Batou) embodied their characters and their characters' relationship very well. I'd like to see the rest of Section 9 fleshed out more in a new movie with an original plot and mecha, and maybe a Tachikoma or two thrown in there. Azrael- yeah, that's lower than I'd expected for a big movie with Johansson headlining, but then again, if people don't know what "Ghost in the Shell" is, they're just not gonna pony up for theatre seats, but wait for Netflix or Redbox. Reality.
  18. M'Kyuun
    Takara did a good job of scaling his scope/fusion cannon to the bot mode. It's kinda jarring to see all the third parties having more red on the arms and legs than the official, not to mention their shininess compared to nearly-matte Megatron. Seeing the four of them together, I still think Apollyon comes closest to what I want in a MP Megs, leg kibble notwithstanding. XTransbots did a good job with proportionality, overall colors, and keeping the G1 transformation while delivering a pretty clean bot overall. I'm looking forward to MP-36, but I'm glad I also have Apollyon in my collection. Shame to hear about all the paint chipping, esp at the price point- unacceptable. Guess I'll never be putting his accessories on his gun mode. I hope his scope doesn't scratch his arm up over time. Perhaps they should have just molded him in color. I PO'd thru Captured Prey, and have yet to hear anything at all from them, so I don't know if they're installing plugs, or even if they're starting to ship orders. I'm hoping to hear something from them soon, as this thing's a bit of an investment.
  19. M'Kyuun
    Honestly, if those are domestic numbers, I'm not surprised. While it has its fans, most anime as a whole, just isn't that well known here in the States. There are a few exceptions, like Pokeman, Naruto, and DBZ, but outside of a handful of really popular animes aimed at kids, the more mature anime is obscure. We saw GiTS at an 1130 showing yesterday, and there were only about 20 people in the theatre to see it, so even with Scarlett attached, a big name doesn't always sell a movie. My wife and I were the first two people in the theatre, followed by another couple prob in their 40's or 50's who had no idea what the movie was about, and most likely, had never heard of Ghost in the Shell. I'm guessing they were bored, or they anticipated an empty theatre so they could get up to some sexual shenanigans (we had an older couple than this having sex a few rows down from us during another movie a year or two ago- crazy times we live in). Anyway, I imagine profits will be much higher in China and Japan. I hope it makes some kind of profit; it's a better movie than some others I've seen (like every Bayformer movie thus far.)
  20. M'Kyuun
    Saw it today, and I liked it, but I have mixed feelings. I like the homages to the '95 film, and there are quite a few, as Hikuro mentions, although a number are changed to suit the story. For those of us familiar with Oshii's film, sadly, there really aren't any original standout scenes; all the memorable shots were lifted from the animated film, and to me, this is the greatest weakness of the film, IMHO. Many of those shots will give you a deja-vu feeling, as they are very faithful to the Oshii film. The movie itself is a visual treat, esp those city-scapes, which feel very much like GiTS. The special effects were really well done. I personally didn't mind the Major's backstory; it made sense, and gave a plausible explanation for her character, while introducing her to folks with no prior GiTS knowledge. While philosophical topics are explored, it didn't have the exposition of Oshii's film to make that exploration as blatant. To some degree, I think that's a good thing, as I've always found some of the dialog, at least in the English dub, to be clunky and un-natural, esp her and Batou's conversation on the boat and some of the Major's questions to the brain hacked guy after she beats his ass in the water-sheened lot. Just my opinion. In the end, I think it's a good GiTS movie- all the necessary elements are there. But I also think it relied too much on the '95 film for content/scenes, and could have benefited from more originality. My hope is that it will do well enough for a sequel with a unique non-derivative story line, and where the other Section 9 characters besides the Major, Batou, and Aramaki will be fleshed out more.
  21. M'Kyuun

    Bandai Sv-262 DX valk

    M'Kyuun replied to seti88's topic in Toys

    I wasn't a fan of it, either. I pretty much detest gold coloring, unless it's used sparsely, and this thing is plastered with it. But, in hand it's not as gaudy, at least to me, and the pattern and break-up of the gold against the dark blue looks sharp. It's grown on me, and I find it rather striking. Still, it would have looked even better if they'd gone with a Su-27 blue and dark grey camo scheme.
  22. M'Kyuun
    I fail to see the difference between selling a set on Ebay and selling it piecemeal on sites like Bricklink and Brickowl. Either way, the seller purchased the set; what does it matter the manner in which it is resold so long as the parts are properly identified with the brand? I was under the impression that most folks buying LEGO by the part are generally too purist to even consider muddying the LEGO waters with some Mega Bloks, even if the parts in question are highly useful and not produced by LEGO, thus the lack of interest. Personally, I'd consider using those plates with studs on top and bottom, and a few others as well.
  23. M'Kyuun
  24. M'Kyuun
    https://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/takara-tomy-seminal-designer-hideaki-yoke-retires/37663/ Best wishes and utmost respect to a talented gentleman who greatly impacted my life, and the lives of millions, with his work and art. Happy retirement, Yoke-san!
  25. M'Kyuun
    Well, depending on how LEGO purist you guys are, Mega-Bloks sets these days offer some nice alternative parts, as they tend to craft special parts specific to some sets, including some contoured parts. Moreover, they make plates with studs on both sides (so, so useful- extremely high on my LEGO want list), as well as a lot of other specialized bricks with different stud alignments, shapes, slopes, etc that LEGO hasn't made. I haven't brought myself to use MB parts in a LEGO MOC yet, but I've been tempted. For anyone on the fence whether to buy a Mega-Bloks set, I'd highly recommend their Call of Duty Harrier set or the CoD AH-64 Apache set. I have both, and I love them. The overall quality is good, much improved since Mattel bought Mega-Brands. Parts-wise, the Harrier set is a treasure trove of specialized parts with studs going in different directions. It makes me wish there was a Bricklink for Mega-Bloks, or that Bricklink would start selling MB parts.
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