MacrossMania

Spanner, Big F, great stories. Love to hear em. Sorry, but I just find it amusing because I've had the same struggles here, albeit without the same flair as you guys. I've only just managed to contain my rage in as civil a tone as possible, but sometimes it does boil over and I do end up having a few choice words with the person behind the counter. I feel bad for some of them because on the one hand they are just on the receiving end, but on the other some of them cop such an attitude when I go up to the counter to collect my package - staring me down with glowering, grimacing looks - I have to wonder if they're not directly responsible. I know they aren't and they're just doing their jobs. But the whole thing smacks of "I could care less" attitude. Seems like an institutional problem at that point, so I consider my choice of words just institution bashing rather than taking it out on the person.

I suspect you're right. Every time I go to the post office the local employees suddenly find excuses to start throwing things around. I can literally hear them throwing boxes against the wall while I wait in line. It just makes me wonder what the other people are thinking when they hear such things. Anyway, good idea, but how do you go around your local clearing hub?

That's crazy! If that ever happened to me I'd sue the feds and test their appetite to entertain suit under the Federal Tort Claims Act.

It's funny that you've never had that happen. I swear to god but I've had this happen to me on several occasions so far. And I'm beginning to think that customs is targeting me or something. Sounds paranoid I know but so many "coincidences" and "accidents" add up to more than just an accident. Anyway, don't know the service that was used, and I've used EMS in the past without this joke happening. I can request what they use and we'll see. I'm a little disappointed because I've finally found a seller in JP that has the same eye I do and may be able to find some rare items to ship over. Here in the states I've had packages look like someone was playing football with them. Honestly, I'm at a loss. Anyway, thanks for the advice.

I just got an item back from Japan through the US Postal Service, and the the box was opened and all torn up. It looks like somebody had stomped on it! The toy was fine (undamaged) but the box for the toy itself was damaged. Dented one side where it was clearly unable to handle the support of the force that had stomped on it. Some of you might think that I'm complaining a little too much, but to an MISB collector like me, that's as good as stomping on the toy itself. Have any of you had any similar experiences? Do you have any idea how to counter such an invisible beast? I've tried different shipping services, pleading with the gods, offering sacrifices etc.? Kidding. But I've tried everything under the sun including double boxing, and sometimes that's not even enough. It just makes you wonder what people are doing with these packages?!!! Does anyone have any suggestions? Guaranteed vendors, shipping methods/services etc.?

I guess it's a matter of personal taste. I happen to like the super-engineered Bandai valks, but what really surprises me on these boards is how loyal people continue to be Yamato/Arcadia. I've been a real fan of them for a long time and I still think Bandai upped their game from their dreadful 90's valks (VF 17 comes to mind) mainly because Yamato burst onto the scene in the early 2000's with their 1/48's. Somehow that just changed the game entirely for me. At that point Bandai couldn't afford to ignore them anymore and they started producing their own "masterpiece" series. Primarily Frontier. Since then I've just generally been of the opinion that Bandai has been master of its domain no questions asked. Prior to their folding, the 1/60-1/48's that Yamato have been so famous for paled in comparison to Bandai's superior engineering. But who knows? Maybe this latest effort will usher in a return to the Yamato/Arcadia era. The VF-0D is a beaut for sure. It will be interesting to see how things play out.

Stunned by the looks of it but I haven't decided if I'll fall off the wagon again and purchase this thing. Went stone cold sober on Macross valks about a year ago but that old bug has been biting me again. This one looks good. Little disappointed by the lack of diecast. It would be a real stunner if Bandai began scaling back on their quality for higher profit margins because that's basically what they're known for. That and their engineering. Don't mind the overengineering as I'm one of those guys who likes mine all muzzled up in a box. But to hear about all these problems with transformation just makes it seem like this one is on par with Yamato/Arcadia VF-19. If it's all plastic and hard to fit together, what's the difference? I know there are aficionados out there who will point out the finer subtleties, just sayin. Still, it has me thinking. Should I pick up the bottle and drink from that all too poisoned well?