VFTF1

I actually have another comment (surprise surprise)... I'm looking at that pic posted above with the v.1 and v.2 1/60s and... Why are the v.1 1/60s so much smaller in battroid mode? In fighter mode they're pretty well matched...so why all of a sudden are the battroids so tiny? Pete

Finished the series. Nia's passing was not sad. It was noble and beautiful. Viral's destiny made me so very happy because I found the character to be so compelling from the very outset. Simon's fate was, however, very sad. Like Yoko, he became "nobody" - they really need to get together at the end. They share so much together that it is sad that each of them walks their own path - alone. Rossieu growing up to look like his Dad and having a job like his Dad is not surprising. I still don't like him though. At least his Dad had a sense of humor and a self-awareness about his own hypocracy that was light hearted. I like religious figures who behave that way - they don't take themselves too seriously because they know very well that they preside over something they do not understand. Rossiu behaved as if he understood what he was doing - in his zeal he lacked the faith which allowed for some kind of...oh...I dunno...moderation? I don't know. I guess I just don't like politicians... even the "good" ones are bad; Rossieu is not exception. Maybe it's the nature of the beast... The battle risked being too abstract - but then again... they are to be commended for the bravery to actually do something THAT crazy... So - in the end- as I kind of suspected - the Anti-Spirals were simply humans overcome with despair. The cycle of life and death is unstopable - our only choice is whether to embrace what little life we have and make the most of it like Kamina taught, or whether to embrace despair in light of certain death and - like the anti-spirals - seal ourselves off in bittersweet respite; waiting for death itself - a kind of quite destruction to ward off the potential for despair at the destruction wrought by the evolutionary full blooded pursuit of life. The one thing I find questionable about the series is the premise that conflict is inescapable - that the Spirals and Anti-Spirals MUST be in conflict - that they cannot ever be reconciled... I don't know - I have to think about this ending some more. It is very...well...Gainax seems to want to keep up their reputation for thoughtful anime after NGE? On that note - I really truly loved the aesthetics in this anime. Tired now. Can't really babble on forever. Wonderful series. Lovely. And a GREAT adventure series. A fantastic fun voyage - no holds barred - and no gritty realism: yay! I much prefer this romantic view of things. Very good stuff. Great music, great visuals. Rough edges... A sure fire classic. Pete

I think banning children would go a long way towards keeping them safe. Pete

Well - I'm going to defend BBTS here - and please do be mindful of the fact that I am an anti-HG fanatic who has flames shooting out of his ears and nostrils and has made calls to high hevean against the evil that is their attempt to shut out Yamato. But here goes: 1. I own a business and I know that there is sometimes a HUGE difference between what a few vocal customers yammer about in emails and on web forums or even to your face and what you - as the business owner - see when you analyze your sales. I do not think Joel would have made such a decision lightly, and I think it has very little to do with his personal preference (which you or I have no clue about). For all we know, he's a huge Macross fan with a mammoth collection of Yamato fighters. My point is that it is very possible that despite how vocal we Macross/Yamato fans are, and no matter how "morally right" our arguments are - the spread sheets might be telling Joel a different story. In a time of economic crisis; it might hurt him a lot more to lose a supplier like Toynami than it would hurt him to loose people like YOU. 2. Joel did not create this stupid situation. Joel is forced to respond to it. Joel made a choice - it's a choice that will piss some people off. But think for a minute: would you prefer that he let his business collapse or stop selling Macross goods altogether (including Frontier goods?) Would you prefer that he antagonize business partners? 3. I remember what Joel did when my VF-11B from Yamato's leg fell off. Joel offered me either money or anything from the store of equal value. I happened to chose Toynami's Masterpice VF-1S. The legs didn't fall off. Sure, later I learned more about Macross and Yamato's wonderful 1/48s - but at the time - I was not very impressed with Yamato. Now - from Joel's point of view - selling Yamato probably gave him hundreds of square feet of broken returned Valkyrie and lots of customers he either had to refund or offer replacements to. Yet he STILL offered Yamato products (because people still wanted them). My point here is again simple: ANY retailer who offers Yamato valkyrie products is a little crazy. Contrary to what one might think, I highly doubt that the market for these things is all that huge to begin with. The profit margin for a retailer is tiny. The WHAREHOUSE SPACE that these things take up is HUGE because these are generally huge pieces. 4. Do I agree with Joel's choice? No. Do I like it? No. I EVEN agree with not buying from BBTS to show ones' disdain. But don't call the guy a hypocrite or any other names. I don't think it's fair. I have never heard or nor experienced any thing bad from Joel and BBTS and while it's ok to disagree with their business decision and show your resolve by not buying from them - it just isn't fair to call the guy names. It's not his fault. 5. The vast majority of retailers would prefer to simply sell whatever the market is willing to buy. This means selling both Toynami and Yamato. The conflict that exists is the fault of HG - not BBTS, and not any other retailer who might have to make this decision. So - I would say - keep your aim on HG. Don't buy from BBTS if that's what you feel you must do - sure - but don't lay in too hard on them. I really don't think they did this with malice in mind. It's not like they sat there cackling - also - remember that HG has tried this crud for a while now - but only now did it work with a bigger seller like BBTS. This means Toynami has geared up its' distribution and is making good offers. Yamato is really niche oriented. I prefer Yamato; I think Americans should be able to buy Yamato products. I also think that if this situation were resolved in a common sense way then BBTS would not have to make any choice and could just sell both. In the end - I think Yamato will survive anyways and that they will prosper anyways because of their love and our love for Macross. Pete

Gang banging Nora again? For shame... Pete

Well - ok - I should specify that I only buy and plan on getting kits made currently - newest/newer versions of everything - so I'm not going to have the "well this kit is from 1992" problem... Still - yeah - I was thinking about the Damashii line...but truth be told - I personally find Gundams to be COMPLETELY boring...unless they are built. The robot is just so...err...well...dull - as such - the only thing that makes it interesting is all of the detail, the internal frames the...hm...I guess I just answered my own question, eh? But seriously - I find Gundams to be just "throw away" robots. They don't transform, they are all pretty homogenous, they are your classic "real robot" and as such I just don't find the idea of having them as "action toys" - no matter how well made - appealing. I prefer the detailed model approach because it enhances their realism. Guess I'll just stick to that then. Meaning pretty much MGs...sigh... Pete

Got a general question, and please keep in mind I'm a fairly newbie builder (built 4 MGs and 3 HGs thus far): Are the Highgrade Gundams generally more durable and "playable" than the Mastergrades? I ask this because I'm considering which of the two I'd prefer to "branch out" into. My Mastergrade Gundams are great; but with most of them (Turn A and Unicorn especially) I get the distinct feeling that these are not made to play with - pose yes, look cool yes, display yes, photograph yes - but ultimately not really play with... Mind you - I am not talking "throw around on the carpet and smash play" - but rather photograph for comics play... Meanwhile, my Highgrade Gundams seem more play worthy. They are poseable, the joints are tighter and they seem more durable and less fragile. I'm wondering what to build now... In the end - this is probably a pointless question, since I'll likely go on to build more MG AND HG sets... still - would like getting people's feedback. I know from seeing pictures that some Gundams fit better in MG than in HG (for instance the Gundam Wing Zero MG is mighty fine and in HG scale it just wouldn't work so well). On the other hand, all of the Gundam OOs came out as HGs - given how streamlined their design is - this isn't surprising, nor necessarily bad. I can't really see how making them MG would make them any better. On the other hand - something like Unicorn in HG scale would probably be impossible given all the small panels in the transformation... What say all of you? Pete

I'm never going to be done with the VF-1 as long as Yamato keeps coming out with improved molds. I enjoy watching them push the technology. I still have my old VE-1 1/60 v.1 ...in fact I'm looking at it now. Back in the day, I remember how awe inspired I was by its' detail, its' sleek design, its'... you get the picture. Now - it's like - it looks ok, but put it next to the v.2 1/60 and the nose is stubby, the leg thrusters are just jutting out, the arms just have fingers sticking out the back, the trusters do not move, the packpack is one big flopperino... the pilots are stubbys... Not to mention the transformation which isn't perfect - and I'm not just talking about the legs (most obvious) - but the heatshield (which to me, besides the leg T-bar was the biggest innovation on the 1/48s)... Anyways - point is - I hope Yamato will keep lifting the bar and finally give us a totally QC problem free perfect VF-1. How perfect? Here's what I want in my VERSION 3 1/60 VF1: 1) FLIGHT CAPACITY. I want it to be able to fly - as in radio controled flight. I want a radio controled flying VF-1 in the 1/60 scale that also has perfect transformation and... CAN FLY IN GERWALK AND BATTROID modes as well. Get to work Yamato. The sky is the limit. Pete

Re: "no breakages reported in Japan." If you live in Japan and can walk into a store and buy replacement parts for Yamato figures, then why would you report a broken part? Bettter to just spend a little bit of money on the replacement and presto. Re: Yamato talking to Graham again. Good news. Re: More viarants of the VF-1 down the line. Please ask Yamato to start selling the VF-1s with stands. I would pay more but I would like to have the stands as well as the super strike parts. I'm lazy and don't want to bother buying seperate stands. Anyways - I am not surprised they didn't chance the material the hinge is made out of. Pete

Lone wolf wrote: So - I'm a lot more calm reading this. Nothing to see here folks; move along. Basically - it looks like Congress trying to pretend that they're "doing something" about the safety of toys without actually doing any damage to the toy market. In any event... it does show us one thing: There is absolutely nothing that the government can't do. Any sane limits on government power don't exist any more and the very fact that we EXPECT that it would be possible for them to ban the sale of used toys just demonstrates how bad things have become. Even if - thank goodness - this particular law has enough loopholes and amendments to it to make it toothless and to basically not shut down a lucrative and important market - it still is scary that IF THEY WANTED to - they could.... But thanks lonewolf for clearing up this one. Pete

Sorry to be the pessimist, but contacting your congressman about a stupid law is like contacting the guy who mugged you in the morning to ask him to please not do it in the evening too. Pete

Gubaba: Me: I think I can lump the entire list into one sentence: 1. THOU SHALT NOT WRITE ON ANY SUBJECT THAT GUBABA IS TIRED OF READING ABOUT Seriously though - I naturally 'agree' with you - sort of; but in defense of these topics: a) As a Basara lover, I enjoy it when new topics and posts bashing Basara show up and when people make new arguments about why he sucks. It gives me the pleasure of coming to his defense and trying to show why he doesn't suck. b) Same for Macross Zero. I LOVE the ending and think it's a beautiful anime and so when people bash it - I enjoy being able to defend it. The same can pretty much be said for all the rest. But yeah - of course you're right that instead of going over all the old stuff, we could show some creativity and bring up NEW subjects to talk about. Only...what would those be? Pete

Heh That's not only fantastic - but it's sooo true to character for Dyson and Guld! I can just see them doing that... "Look Myung! I can pee farther than Guld! I'm the best!" "No way! I'm just getting started - you'll be out of pee in a few seconds and then you'll see how long we Zendradi can pee!" "Oh yeah! Well I'm gonna drink water while peeing and that'll mean I'll pee longer than you!" "No! Myung won't accept that cheap victory - she only wants an authentic pee-er!" I can just see them having a peeing contest while in high school And then trying to repeat it with their YFs Great avatar Pete

Good question. Or how about if a big brother who has "grown out of" his toys wants to give them to their younger brother ? Technically, it just says it will be illegal to "sell" them - but I think that judging by the lack of responses from the government agency when asked, we can suppose that they themselves don't understand the law they're supposed to be enforcing. I wonder who wrote it? Was it Congress that passed it? (should be) or is this another case of an agency writing up arbitrary rules as part of their "mandate" that results from the bill that founded the agency? In any case, I expect that they are busy trying to figure out how to go about implementing this and what it means. But yeah - in general - way to go. Great idea, especially during an economic crisis - let's make it even HARDER for people to do business. But I wouldn't stop there. Here's my list of what they can do next: 1. Prohibit the sale of Used Cars This terrible idea that every American can afford a car and feel the joy and freedom of crusing the highways is just a powderkeg of dangers waiting to explode. Think of all the traffic accidents we'd prevent. Think of the children that WOULDN'T be run over by used cars. Do you know how many children are killed by used-car drivers per year? MORE than soldiers killed in Iraq! Really. So I think that for the children, used cars should be banned. Mary Antoinette said of the french peasants during the Revolution: "let them eat cake." Now America's government can tell them "let them ride bycicles." As stupid as this sounds - that's probably what these guys do all day. Sit around and wonder what ELSE they can prohibit... Pete

Any chance you can throw up some pictures of Swindle? Him and Wreck Gar are two Animated TFs I'd very much still like to get Pete

Well, at this rate, I'm just accustomed to the idea that the Soviet Union didn't go away, it just moved its' base of operations to America - and no, that's not a joke, but a sad statement of fact. This is why I don't live in the USA anymore. On the "bright" side - laws like these are made moot by he legal category of "adult collectible." Retailers just have to label used toys as adult collectibles and viola - no problem. In fact - if you look at how the toy market has been developing of late, you will notice that it's all been "growing up" - note how on BBTS now they even have the warning labels next to practicaly every product warning that the product is an adult collectible. I also have parents write to my shop asking about products for their kids - and I find myself compelled to write them back that say Metroplex is an ADULT collectible and is produced as a replica of a figure from the 80s and therefore does not meet toy safety standard laws and is not suitable for children. The parents probably think I'm a nutt for doing it and wonder "what the hell would an adult want with something like this Metroplex figure" - but I have to protect myself from any eventual legal dangers. In the end - people will simply end up calling the items something OTHER than children's clothes/toys. This is already happening. WHY do you think the notion of "adult collectible" is so popular now for goods which - by any stretch of the common sense imagination - are made to be played with like toys? Simple: because store owners can thereby get around any potential legal hurddles with regard to children's toy safety laws. In Europe, for instance, all toys need to have a CE marking to be sold legally. This would mean that if you import items like Macross or Gundam which don't have these markings then you should (a) put the markings on yourself (extra cost + ruins the MISB status of some items like - say - Transformers or (b) just designate them adult collectibles and scaled models (which by law do not need to have such markings). Everywhere you go, the push is on to essentially suck the creativity out of children's toys. The adult collectibles will end up being the coolest toys with the best sculpts and inovations while the children's toy market will essentially end up being ridiculous goop. In any event - enforcing this type of law would be nearly impossible, and getting around it by designating your items as collectibles for adults would be the way to go. Still - a stupid law - and of course few people will really protest because for the mass of people "they're just toys - and toys need to be safe so my kids don't die." This kind of stuff is so freakin' ridiculous. But - that's life. I'm sure there will thankfully be a million loopholes in the law and a few precedential court cases. Meanwhile legal businesses will at least be heartened when ebay shuts down illegal, non-tax paying dealers. Still, in the long run this type of law will only destroy some peoples' businesses and make selling old Transformers toys something you need to do while hiding in a dark alley... Pete

Speaking of sadness and death - the Beastmen commanders seem to die en mass; and pretty quickly. I didn't care much for the first one (see, can't even remember his name), and Cytomander just rubbed me the wrong way - I think he was authentically a bad guy. Adine was also fairly worthless (I loved when Nia asked her "If the King commanded you to slit your throat - you would do it?")... But the little armodillo fellow was very wise. Like the Helix king, it was clear he'd been around for a long time and that he had gained a certain consciousness. By the by - why wasn't he also thrown out - like Nia? Nia noted that the Helix King ditched her when she asked why she was born - suggesting that as soon as his creations become sentient he discards them; prefering dolls... But that armodillo guy was pretty self-aware; and I got the feeling - the only time in the whole series - that the Helix King authentically feared him. "Are you questioning me?" didn't sound like "I'm pissed and gonna rip you a new one" but rather "oh shmit! Are you challenging me - and if so I'm shaking in my undies cause you're a very clever and strong foe".... His death was sad because he was thoughtful. Pete

Yeah - like Graham said - don't apply pressure to the console. This happened to my VF-OS and I still have to repair it... Pete

:(:( I just watched episode 25. Two episodes left to the end. SO sad Kittan was soooo cool. And now he's gone too... sniff...everybody's dying!... sniff I'm not happy. Why does it have to be like that? Even if they wanted to...I didn't want it... there seems to be a terrible calculus at work here... this is probably the most striking and depressing feature of the world of Gurren Lagann - as the narrator says "a world of conflict"... And poor Yoko... two great guys... both gone Strangely - I feel happy that the Helix King is around. He's seen more than anybody else; he knows what's up... his calm and reserve are the only things that keep me from crying more Such a passionate, moving wonderful anime series But so sad :( Pete

Did you tie it with a wire Eugimon? I just used epoxy and it's holding fine. The crack was really little. And just to remind everyone - the cracked shoulder was on my second Roy - my first Roy was perfect out of the box and still is. In fact, I just did some winter cleaning and will be showing off pics of my Macross display (and other stuff) soon Pete

As far as I can tell everything is fixed and people are just complaining about their broken Roys. The 1D will be fine. Don't worry. And the 1/60 v.2 IS durable. It's less floppy than the 1/48 and it has better details (because it is tampoo printed) and has better panel lining and has better looking hands and comes with super and strike parts and every thirteen VF-1 fighter has been packaged with an inflatable Minmey sex doll with built in oral motor massage system. So buy as many as you can and you might get REAL lucky. Pete

At this point, I have just accepted that buying Yamato Valkyrie means potentially getting a dud. I now own about 15 different valks. Out of all of the Valks I've bought, 3 have been duds - 1 VF-11B, 1 VF-0A and one of the new v.2 VF-1Ss (but the first 1S I got is not a dud and is in good working order). Oh - and about my dud 1S v.2 - the adhesive I glued the small crack with is holding firm and the valkyrie looks fine. I am not happy about these QC problems. I think for so much money we shouldn't have such problems. I also accept the fact that this is life. Just like I accept the fact that Bandai's VF-25 has many aesthetic problems. It's inherent in our hobby that we will have to deal with shoddy QC or bad finish. Live and let live. And buy. Enjoy the perfect qualit Valkyrie you manage to get. Lament not over the duds. It's just like rainy days and sunny days. They also cost a lot. Pete

Global says that the idea behind colonization is to prevent humanity from becoming like the Zendradi - a race geared only for war. Remember that after Space War I, Hikaru and the gang were sent on a very sobering and sad mission: to capture the Satelite Factory which could build space faring warships. Everyone realized that doing so meant that humanity risked becoming a warrior race like the Zendradi. Even though it was logical insofar as it was necessary for self-defense, the risk of over-militarizing and becoming a warrior race was there and so the choice was made to spread humanity throughout the stars - to seperate people from eachother really; in the hopes that culture would survive and even if some human colonies became war-like and destructive, other colonies would sing and make love. As for whether or not it's worth it to watch Macross 7: Without a doubt it is the best Macross series. And no - Basara does not ever become less annoying - he becomes more annoying and that is why you should watch it Pete

While we're on the subject, I'll state my opinion - and please notice it has many equally important components: 1. I respect the choice of the moderators to er on the side of caution, and to maintain a family friendly forum in order to reach a broad audience. I also respect that certain sensibilities exist in American society (and not only) regarding what is appropriate and what is not. 2. I strongly disagree with these sensibilities and believe them to be an excessive prudishness that does not understand the role of art in human society. "Obscenity" is a word which, if you look at its' roots, come from the Latin and meant - literally - "For the Scene/Stage." It was used in Rome to mean "meant only to be shown on the stage" - aka - in the form of theater or art. Obscene things are things which we cannot and ought not do in "real" life, but which MUST be done in fiction - in the realm of art, theater, literature, books etc because that is the proper place for them to be explored. I find it ridiculous to get upset over the portrayal of a fictional situation - no matter how brutal or erotic - as if the situation were somehow real; as if the mere fictional portrayal of the situation within the context of a work of art were as immoral as the actual practice of the thing. Furthermore, insofar as the portrayal of certain things is an attack on the sensibilities of people, it ought not be blamed for being so. Art does not exist to make people smile - its' purpose is to rouse them to think; to shock them, to make them examine their conventional beliefs. If we allow conventional beliefs to limit the scope of the arts, then arts merely become a reflection of the unreflective, conventional life - this is not good because unexamined conventions are not always as good as we think they are. 3. Having said all of that - the purpose of Macross world is to enjoy Macross, and to a large extent, I think it would be appropriate to ask that the "limits" that mods place on the content of this site be similar to the limits set by the Macross franchise itself plus the bounds of common sense. I think that's what - by and large - happens. 4. I don't think the thread was highjacked. Better to have this thread be an open place for people to make such remarks and questions regarding what is and is not appropriate than for there to be a million little threads essentially asking the same thing "boo hoo why did the mods do x,y and z" Pete

Actually, the only sympathy I have for this mold comes from my love of Beast Wars II, where the bomber was BB and the little jet was Starscream and they were a very cool dynamic duo. As for the G2 characters - well - what can I say? Yeah - making Darkwing and Dreadwind turn into that was a nifty idea and a nice rebuild. As a toy, this was one of the better Transformers; very poseable, multi-transformation. The weapons were too bulky for my liking and the colors are a bit garrish (but that's G2 for you). All in all a nice piece of work - though like I said - if/when I get these guys, it will be as the Beast Wars II set. In fact, I really prefer how Beast Wars II used the G2 line to how it was initially used in G2. The poseable figures from the G2 line fit better alongside the balljointed beast warriors than they do alongside the G1 retreads used in G2. Also, I prefer the colors and characterizations given to them in Beast Wars II - including Megastorm.... Soo...umm...why isn't this in the Transformers superthread? Pete