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There's ample evidence these days that IQ is partially influenced by genetics. That begs the question of what IQ is (strictly speaking, IQ is your score on a certain test), but if we accept that IQ has something to do with intelligence, it's reasonable to suppose that Zentradi are selected (or designed) from "conception" to have both intellectual potential and psychological tendencies suited to their intended roles. It's likely that a training regimen would also exist to further mold individuals. The personality characteristics that are useful in certain roles may actually be counterproductive in others. For example, the ranks of Regult pilots should probably have a high percentage of "natural killers"--people with a tendency toward aggression and relative lack of concern for personal safety. But however useful those traits might be among shock troops, they aren't necessarily what you want in a commander. Commanders should be more reflective and calculating, though still decisive in the midst of battle. Therefore, there is no single ideal personality. So to the extent that Zentradi are cloned to fill various roles, I suspect that they're also limited in their ability to advance or "change careers".

Its odd because it has Big Wests name and copyright on it... remember, HG blocked the sale of Plus toys. I am starting to think that perhaps an agreement has been reached. Exactly. Unless there's been a deal, it would seem unwise for HG to market a product from another company which they claim infringes on their trademark. Also, assuming dejr8bud is correct, HG needs to have worked something out with Manga. So basically, I think there's been a deal, but there's no telling what implications it may have for other products. What we've seen with the DYRL superposables and now the Manga video could be a sign of anything from BW throwing HG a bone to avoid further litigation, to BW essentially giving in to HG's position on the Macross intellectual property rights.

It all depends on how far the creators can get you to "suspend belief". That's the real magic of fiction--anime, book, or otherwise. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It's hard to know why.

If you're talking about Pom Poko (aka Racoon Wars) and not whatever the source is for that gif... You might be able to get fansub VHS version. E.g., I got a VHS sub of Nausicaa at Kimono My House...pretty outrageous price and mediocre video, but the DVD version hasn't been released yet in the states. Apparently the Region 2 version (sold at CD Japan) has it with subs. There are also VCD's (may or may not have English subs and may or may not be bootlegs) and I've seen a Region 3 DVD out there with English subs. You could wait for the Disney release--sometime before the end of 2005. That's probably your best option. Edit: here's a guide to non-bootleg releases: http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/video/pompoko/

If you measure a Yamato 1/60 or 1/48 in battroid, I think you'll find that the height of a battroid is measured to the tip of the head lasers, not the top of the head. And the pic with a 1/170 Arii and 1/200 Nichimo seems to show that the Bandai gashapon is somewhere between the two in height. Still, you got 1/170 for the wingspan measurement... In theory, the difference in height between a 1/170 and 1/200 would be about 11 mm. Edit: Thanks for the pics!

I think you're misremembering several details. It was an F-4EJ (Japanese version of the Phantom II). 188 rounds in all were fired, though I doubt more than a dozen hit the car. http://ww2.pstripes.osd.mil/01/jul01/ed070701g.html

If you believe the liner notes from the Animeigo sets (and why shouldn't we, Egan Loo wrote them, presumably with input from Kawamori), Britai was only 34 at the time of Space War One, and Kamjiin was 23. Exedol is "Age Unknown". I don't know if Zentradi keep growing throughout their lifespans but my guess is that they're cloned for general roles, with some advancement possible in some cases. Kamjin often fought on the front lines but if he had been successful in his career he probably could have advanced to a command equivalent to Britai or Laplamiz. On the other hand, I doubt that a Regult pilot is ever going to advance beyond that role.

Interesting stuff, but as we drift in the blatantly political, it may be time to lock the thread and move on...

The enormous gunpod is typical of the K&M variables...but you still may be right.

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Try copying the link and pasting it. (Copy in Netscape by right-clicking, control-clicking, or click-holding, then use the popup menu. Don't know about IE.) Ahh...I'll just resize them and upload...if you do use the URL, you'll see them somewhat bigger.

http://toyup2.hp.infoseek.co.jp/cgi-bin/im...40228124357.jpg http://toyup2.hp.infoseek.co.jp/cgi-bin/im...40228124222.jpg http://toyup2.hp.infoseek.co.jp/cgi-bin/im...40228123917.jpg Including DYRL Kakizaki, TV Max, Angel Birds, TV Kakizaki. I don't think these are customs. Edit: or are they?

Yes, I am referring to the Viz comic adaptation, which as far as I can tell is a straight translation of the Japanese manga version.

Check out the site I linked above. The latest news is that all the Ghibli stuff is going to be released in the US by the end of next year. Info is also at http://www.animeondvd.com/ (See March 6, 07:11 AM EST update.)

The size is right. Please see the data in the mecha files at http://macross.anime.net/

Congrats!

I know miyazaki has done some odd stuff, but damn. Yes, this was a very odd cartoon. IIRC they also use their balls as weapons at one point. Lots of info on the movie here: http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/pompoko/ And according to the FAQ which comes off that page, all the earthy humor about testicles was really pretty normal given the subject, and well-appreciated by Japanese kids.

I guess these kids have never been to a farm or a state fair? Have they never seen a male dog? Looked at themselves? Kids know what balls are, so I don't see the point of hiding it. You don't need to explain what they're for, or go into detail about which animals have balls and which don't.

do you mean like Nanashi's he has several depicted including the blue one Those models (gatling head, etc.) are probably from Macross Hobby Handbook or one of the other Macross modelling books. Which means they're probably just fan customs, probably with little or no basis in the actual animation.

General opinion is the the MPC's are strongly influenced by the HCM design. But are you saying the MPC's only have a hook in one wheel well? That would be really stupid.

Landing an airplane perfectly level may not be hard, but keeping the aircraft carrier perfectly level is! I think if Kawamori wanted to redesign the arrestor gear, he could either make the arms a tiny bit skinnier and put the hook between them, or mount the hook near the inner edge of one arm (perhaps even having a sort of offset in the other arm to get the hook dead-center). I'm sure the arms are strong enough since Valks can crash through buildings without a dent. As things stand, maybe the gear itself detects whether both hooks have caught the cable, and if not, it instantly lets go.

Where's that picture from, newca? Thanks.

It's irrelevant to the topic.

By the way, in no way am I advocating buying Q-Raus at whatever price just to "send a message" to Yamato to encourage them to make more enemy mecha. What I'm saying is that if you actually succeeded in creating a "strategic purchasing movement" to try to influence the market, you might well achieve results contrary to what you seek.