VFTF1

Actually, Global needs the door to the Bridge of the SDF-1 and a special "xo!" face for when he slams his head into it (again) Pete

Puts on nerdy glasses and once again speaks in nerdy voice: Actually - given that the universe is infinite, then the proportionate likelihood of running across such a conflict remains constant independent of how many fleets go out into the universe, unless we posit that the conflict takes place in a finite scope - for instance our galaxy (which can be conventionally measured). That said - snort - it seems to me that it would be foolhardy, given the existence of other dimmensions (established in Macross 7) and the interdimensional fold ability of the Vajra race (MF) to presume that conflict between these races is limited to only our own galaxy given the Protoculture did have super dimmensional fold capacity and one might even therefore hypothesize that some where out there - remnants of the Stellar Republic still exist and have managed to escape the war - much like human culture "escaped" the war ravaged confines of Earth after SW I. snort. Pete who actually has 20/20 vision and doesn't wear glasses

That Good Smily Yoko is gorgeous. The biker Yoko is terrible. Good Smily for the win! Pete

Music Label Soundwave DID get a black Soundblaster version. It's called Music Label Soundwave Blaster Black Pete

Re: Zendradi commander - I had always just assumed that the fleets were operating under the imperative of their original orders - issued hundreds of thousands of years ago by leaders of the Protoculture who were long dead by the time of Space War I. So - WHY were the Zendradi still following their routine combat orders? Because they knew no other means of life. In fact, it seems that fleet commanders like Boldoza specifically understood that in order to maintain the Zendradi, they HAD to fight wars, avoid contact with culture and annihilate it. It was kind of like a prime directive that gave meaning to their lives. I don't think they need to have a central authority to find themselves involved in senseless warfare breeding more warfare. Humans sure don't. Pete

Reaches for spoon: 1) Don't let the prices scare you away. Plan on buying one Valkyrie every two or three months for the next 10 years. 30% of them will break. You will love the rest. Happy collecting. Pete

This is why I make it a policy never to sell anything from my personal collection and always try to think very very very hard before commiting something to my personal collection - I can imagine feeling the same way as you at some point and then, guess what? I'll just put my v.2s in their boxes, take out my 1/48s (although right now everything is out anyways) and marvel at my 1/48s The worst possible thing IMO is to sell of the 1/48s because you will eventually miss them for some reason... Heck - I even kept my v.1 1/60 ... although I only had one (the VE). The only thing I got rid of was my 1/72s because I considered them to be hideously ugly and not worth keeping. Pete

Well I still think HG has made a big poo poo situation and I like Yamato so there (I think I'm goign to stop writing long winded treatises and just limit my line of argumentation to infantile outbursts) Pete

Well, technically no we don't The VF-1S is only Jetfire to the extent that it is based off of the same model as the G1 Jetfire toy... But the whole point of Masterpiece is making cartoon/comic/"soul" accurate representations - so Jetfire could concievably be in need of one - although Henkei Jetfire pretty much does the job. Besides, he's another "fantasy" alt mode - and I don't think MP should be doing those because they are a bit too easy (although obviously with Grimlock upcoming, they have decided to do them anyways). Galvatron would be nice - as would Cylconus or Rodimus or Springer - but again - TOO EASY. I think Masterpiece should really stick to doing things which present achallenge from an engineering point of view. Optimus Prime was just such a challenge for instance - because although the "basic" transformation is rather simple, the process of getting him to look cartoon accurate is NOT - and they did it. Megatron was a marvel of engineering. The Seekers were also a marvel of engineering for the same reason as Prime (again - the transformation is simple - but getting it to look cartoon accurate is the key). But characters who are not hard to get to look cartoon accurate aren't worth the time. I can't see them doing Soundwave because it would be even more "pointless" than Grimlock. Grimlock at least can be marketed on his own merits as a big T-Rex that turns into a robot - independent of whether people love and know who he is. But a giant 80s cassette deck that is not in scale, doesn't play music and (probably doesn't come with MP Laserbeak) ? No way - it would be a disaster...I think. Although I do agree that he is the last of the truly great Icons not to get done. Hmm... who else? ...hmm.... Technically they could do Perceptor - a functional Microscope would be nifty - but again...tad too simple... My guess, however, is that they will now do a Decepticon - unless it's pre-ordained, with Grimlock coming out...that we're just going to get ALL OF THE DINOBOTS... Is that possible? That would be crazy...no...can't be possible...was easy to do with the seekers 'cause it's one mold..... but they wouldn't just dedicate the next 5 years or so to Dinobots...hmm... So that means it'll be a Decepticon. It's the Decepticon's turn. So that would almost certainly mean either the iconic Soundwave (albiet I can't concieve of them doing that for the reasons given above) or...or who? Shockwave? Wierd waste of time...hmm... I'm stumped. I would have never guess Grimlock would actually be an MP so - at this stage it stops being "obvious" and it gets hard to guess what they're up to. Pete

Actually - I think I just have a thing for purple Thanks for the explanation and the assistance fellas Pete

Thanks Promethum. I now see my self as a 100 foot tall humanoid with the soul of a woman, strapped by controling binders put in place by her husband and carrying her child in her spinal cord rather than as an aloof, high minded, arrogant rock star on a distant interplanetary convoy who sings love songs to zombies. Pete

Wow! How could I have missed out on that! Now THAT is awesome! WAY TO GO YAMATO! Pete

Are you serious? My VFs can do this but no one has told me? How ? Please show me... Or is this something that only the 1D will be capable of? Pete

I on the other hand would like to take a moment to sing the praises of Henkei Octane. Octane as a character has always been one of my favorite Decepticons, right up there with Deadend, Pounce, Wingspan, Ratbat and the like... but I digress... First of all - has anyone else noticed that rather than use his "guns" as guns on the tanker truck mode (pretty silly for an oil tanker to have firearms mounted to the oil tank anyways) - you can actually use them as smoke stacks! They attach on the sides of the cab and look absolutely chrome-tastic there. Add to that the very involved and complex transformation (albeit, Octane could use a proper back of the tanker truck like the G1 version had... In any event - most pleased with him - as I knew I would be. I love it when third tear characters get love. Oh - and you know who needs love? Nightbeat. Matserpiece Headmaster Nightbeat. I'd get 50. Pete

So... a few days ago, I changed my avatar from everyone's favorite Macross character Basara (ow! stop throwing eggs at me) to EVA-O1... Since then, whenever I log in on my computer, I see EVA-01, but whenever I log in on my laptop...I see Basara...although he's become rather blury. What do you guys see? I would like EVA-01 to be my avatar, but I don't know if it is. Am I doing something wrong (quite possible, since I'm somewhat of a computer clutz) Thank you, Pete

Oh most definitely. Good job Macrossworld forum! I mean - I highly doubt it is a coincidence that the v.2 has: -Tampoo printing instead of ugly stickers -Astoundingly break-proof back pack -New sturdy designed super and strike parts which don't risk the back pack and serve as stabilizers as well -better more anime accurate hands -engineered to be a two seater I mean - is it really just coincidence that all of the things that 99.99% of the members of this forum have been whining about have been incorporated? All the more reason why the "Yamato is greedy" thread is not nice - Yamato is listening folks - the v.2 1/60 is proof. Speaking of which... Long ago - on one of the first threads announcing the version 2 1/60 VF-1, Graham mentioned that one of the features of the VF-1 would be a "surprise gimmick." So...what's the surprise gimmick? Pete

Well - it all depends on what we mean by "neutral with respect to the number of passages that there are between the producer and final consumer." Let me try to explain: From the point of view of everybody at every point of passage except the consumer, the VAT tax is indeed "neutral" in the grand scheme of things because even though everyone at every point of passage pays VAT, you get it refunded. Let me give you an example. Let us say VAT is 10% (to keep it simple): Producer makes X for 1 USD Producer sells X for 2 USD (100% mark up) + 10% VAT tax to wholesaler (aka the total Gross price is 2.20 USD Wholesaler marks up to 4.40 USD and sells to retailer for 4.40 USD + 10% VAT tax (aka the total Gross price is 4,84 USD at the VAT collected by the retailer is 10% of 4,40 aka 0.44 or just 44 cents. Now let's just stop there to make it even simpler. The Wholesaler, in paying the producer for item X, paid 20 American cents in VAT tax. In selling the item to the retailer, he collected 44 cents in Vat tax (thereby GETTING BACK HIS 20 American cents in VAT already paid). He then owes the government 24 cents (44-20). So yes - for the Wholesaler it is "neutral" in that sense. But for the consumer - it certainly ISN'T because the consumer does not qualify for VAT refunds and the consumer ends up paying all of the various VATs that were added up as product X was passed down from producer to wholesaler to retailer etc etc. As for the producer - his VAT accounting looks like this: he buys stuff for his factory or he imports (and pays VAT on the border) and then he sells his product X with a VAT surcharge (and again - he gets the VAT he pays back by making the sale). If, in the accounting process, a company collects less VAT than it spends (for instance sales are lousy and you have a blow out and end up actually bringing in less VAT than you spend) then they file for a tax return of the VAT they they over-paid in the cycle. In this sense the VAT tax is indeed "neutral" at every stage because for all of the entities (except the consumer) the VAT tax is refunded either directly via its' collection through sales or by the government in the case of negative VAT account discrepencies at the end of a given fiscal quarter. But for the consumer - non of this is refundable - and in this sense VAT is not really netrual: it is neutral for business, it adds up for the consumer. This is what I meant when I wrote that VAT is charge at every stage and consumers have to bear the burden of it. Wiki is right about it being a netral tax - but only in the sense that it is refunded to everyone save the consumer. Pete

Well, for the record, as one of the "extremists" - I agree with the people who voice the opinion that the best thing that could happen would be for all parties to come to an agreement that would allow this mess to be cleaned up and Macross to flourish in the USA. That said - rather than argue over interpretation of the first Amendment with JBO, as interesting as that prospect is, I would perhaps try a different tact: Given that Yamato make the finest Macross collectibles around, or at least many people believe so, and given that they DO have the legal license to do this in Japan, and given that this license comes from the SAME ENTITY which has given BANDAI its' Macross license (which Bandai is using in a partnership with Toynami) - and which Toynami is NOT CONTESTING but rather trying to work together with Bandai THEN: Why can't part of this agreement iron out the issue of Yamato Macross figures in the USA? Toynami is working with Bandai which got the license from the same people who gave Yamato the license in Japan. Ipso facto - Toynami acknowledging Bandai's license pretty much acknowledge's that therefore Yamato's license is also legit since it comes from the same source. Toynami COULD HAVE said to Bandai: "pee on you - we have exclusive international distribution rights" but instead they are working with Bandai - and good on Bandai for bringing about such a result. But - can't therefore Yamato also be incorporated into the deal? It's not an unfair request, nor is it an unfair question to ask: Why Can't Americans buy and sell Yamato Macross products? It's not unfair or extremist to hope for/wish for/demand/want this kind of situation. I don't want to get bogged down in petty arguments over legal mineuta - because that is beside the point (although, like I said, it's fascinating and beneficial insofar as one always learns from such arguments). So - in a nutshell - is the above position extremist? I don't think so. Pete

When people still used VCRs, my family had a multi-regional VCR, where you just had to press "PAL" or "NTSC" in order to play video tapes from where ever in the world/whatever region. Since this technology was available for video cassettes in the 1980s, I would presume that a variation thereof would be available for DVD players. Just make sure your player has this option and you should be good to go. If not - time to buy a new one Pete

You know, amateur lawyer/economist I may be - but amateur chemist is going a bit too far even for me Until I saw people using it with regard to plastic on this forum, the first thing that came to my mind when I thought of the word "POM" were cute cheerleaders. Hm. Then again - the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of ANY word is cute cheerleaders...so... maybe that's not a good analogy. Anyways - I can tell you this much: I think the hinge-swing mechanism on the v.2 is far less heart-attack prone than the one on the 1/48. The arms on the v.2 really swing out naturally after you lift them out of their snug little niche (a niche which the 1/48 doesn't utilize). But I couldn't tell you if they're POM or not - I dunno. All I know is that there are NO defects on this valkyrie - just like there were no defects on my first VF-1S (defective hinge on my second one though). Hopefully, when my 1Js arrive, both will also be perfect. But - like I said - I haven't heard of anyone with a defective 1J or 1A - so it must have just been 30% of the 1Ss (30% because that's how many people voting in the poll answered "broken" - so I figure roughly that many were defective). Pete

Would I be wrong to say that you did that using an Alpha production type CF? It looks fantastic! I remember your earlier work and this is up to par. Dag... Yamato...make that Pete

I would personally adore Yamato if they started to sell dioramas and cargo trucks, missile bays, 1/60 tech figures and the like. Given that there are only so many variants of the VF-1 that you can make, and the fact that they have (wisely) decided to make everything in the 1/60 scale - they should start branching out and doing dioramas for this stuff. Pete

For when you add the upcoming armor Pete

Open it. My 1A is fine. 1 out of 2 of my 1S's were fine. I'm gettiong 2 IJs. They'll be fine too. From what I know/have read there have been NO reports of bad hinges on anything EXCEPT about 30% of the 1Ss. Pete