mpchi

Watched Zambot 3 before, but wasn't as jarring as people said. I can see it being shocking in the 70s, but nothing too surprising when you have a decent dose of robot anime. Ideon, especially the movie, however, is at a totally different level. You'll be shocked by it no matter what. And love the human drama of no really true dispicable bad guy. Just people fighting for their pride and reasons (silly sometimes) til no end.

The DVD is a great freebie. They did left out a lot in the 20 min footage, but still a good watch. Love that they included all major trailers as well (add up another 30 mins to watch). Just wonder how good MGO is going to be, and hope that there won't be a connection disaster on the beta like the early days when they first released COD4 for online play.

Ya the classic one is awesome!! I was looking forward for a SOC on that, but somehow bandai did it on the new jeeg, which i think is far less popular than the original one. I would have bought the classic one in a second but this one i have to think about it.

windcloud

I am waiting for the SOC Classic Jeeg too. Hopefully its planned in Bandai's lineup, and Shin Jeeg is just a test bed of the magnet joints system. Guess I'll have to be very patient on this one.

Godmars is very awesome by the way. Got it a few days ago, and really enjoy it. Combination is actually very easy to remember and not that complicated. Though QC is still iffy, especially on the paint.

The jeeg thing is fugly as hell....i'm surprised it has a following.

Not for the Classic Jeeg. While it still has the watermelon paint scheme, I think it looks much better with the vintage round wrestler sihlouette. Think they tried too hard to modernize the Shin Jeeg and made it all weird and spikey.

Just did a quick paint job on Snake's plastic toy gun. While the functionality is still just as bad, it looks quite a bit better now. And given its his signature gun and being one that fits his hand the best, guess I'll use it to pose from time to time now. Also got Old Snake a "mini me".

The Play Arts figures in general are decently good, but I find a good number of the faces are not very well made. They either lack personality, look very spaced-out, or just look off on the likeness. But they are well priced and the figures are well built for $20 a pop. Articulation is decent too. I picked up a few, but only pick the ones I really like. Though the new FFVII ones seems to look very close to the original designs, so they might be the best offering in this line.

While it has a bunch of cool moves and ideas and lot of work put in there, I don't know if I like it as a whole. The moves and speed defies all sorts of physics that I can't quite get myself to just enjoy what I see. It almost makes stuff like Dragonball very realistic.

About The Ravages of Time, don't worry about it being boring. In fact, it will have more surprises than you could imagine, even if you know Three Kingdoms back to back. Its like Three Kingdoms you've never seen before, but yet keeping it realistic enough without crazy magic or super human abilities (though they can usually take a few more hits than usual). It just took a quite different look on the saga slightly different from the view we are so used to from Romance of the Three Kingdom novel. Still based heavily on the historical events, but filling in a lot of gaps and 'what if' scenarios that the author can fit into the events and characters. So gone are a lot of the sterotypical characteristics of certain characters:

Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei are no longer the center main characters. They just appear sparingly. Liu Bei is more like a Jack Sparrow type witty funny guy, Guan Yu still the same badass, and Zhang Fai is a skinny clever poet (supposedly based on some writings the author digged up from historical records). Lu Bu is no longer the super powerful but kind of dumb dude. He is very very clever in this one, like in Zhuge Liang level. And you won't even know the identity of the main character until reading a few volumes, keep you guessing the whole time. Basically, a lot of "more than meets the eye" moments and plot twists going on in this manga. So its definitely very refreshing to read. Almost like a Romance of Three Kingdom ver. 2, with a complete different look at the same events and characters, without getting overboard.

I am more worried about this not having an English translation for some of you guys to read, rather than bore you out.

I read about half of the saga (novel), in Chinese too, but eventually lost interest to keep going. Its pretty good, but gets confusing and fluctuates a lot. Sometimes its very interesting, sometimes its very boring. And a lot of characters to remember to a point you really need a reference guide or something to figure out the relationships between each other. And quite often, important characters die an insignificant death.

In terms of anime. I've always remember(vaguely) this one show that I watched when little and really liked it. Its sort of an OVA or 3-4 part movie. The style is very anime-ish, and made in the 80s. Liu Bei dress in red & white typical cool looking main character look, while Zhuge Liang is very girly in this one in pale purple with girly make-up, like a transvestite. But its action packed and fun, not very accurate to the orginal source though. But I don't even know what the show is called anymore, and don't seem people know about this one. Its not the ones that other posts had mentioned here.

If you can read Chinese, or find translation for it somehow, there is an on-going manga/comic from Taiwan named The Ravages of Time that is very good. Pretty much Romance of Three Kingdoms, but tell it in a very different point of view, breaking the stereotype on a lot of these well known characters. The art is very good too, like a blend between Hong Kong style and Japanese manga, in black & white, but not one of those cheapy looking wannabes trying to rip off someone's drawing style. Highly recommended, and is pretty popular among the Chinese.

Finally got mine. The Medicom MGS4 12" Old Snake. The rubber suit wasn't as bad as people put it. It actually has very good shoulder movement and holds position well, but the elbow can only hold at 90 degree without bouncing back. And no wrist articulation does hurt quite a bit (and bad choice on Medicom too). But I am surprised at the sturdiness of the inner body, and it doesn't seem very fragile (I did need to take apart a leg to fix a bad lower leg/feet connection though, all good now). And the figure stands surprisingly well without needing a stand. So overall, the body is decent. Almost felt like most people expected a lot from a rubber suit 12", without realizing its limitations. Also a surprising move on Medicom to make Snake taller than all other Medicoms. Old Snake is now as tall as a normal 12", even though the head tend to be a tad smaller in comparison, due to the anime style proportion. And when I look at the inner leg structure, it does look a bit different from their standard RAH301 body. Its like a modified 301 body with some extension, and probably the metal joints too which I don't see in the lower leg.

The weapons are pretty horrible though. My gun is actually not bent like some of others', but its still not that great. Turn out I just use the magazine clip and use that on the chest rig. So much for that M4. Might try to paint it up a bit to see if I can make it any better. But as of now, details are very soft and just looking very plain, not to mention no functioning bits. And that knife looks like a rubber knife that got ran over by a car...so end up giving Snake a nicer M4 with similar setup, as well as a real knife he can hold. Also did some touch up to the eye and eye patch. Seems to improve it a bit.

So for me, a cool but only decent quality figure with many minor issues that can be fixed. But the weapons are a disgrace.

Got the Aiolia & Mu Appendix. AWESOME!!! Definitely must buy on both.

I was iffy on Mu's, since the upgrade seems not a big improvement, but it does add a lot when see it in person, especially the head & horns. The new face has nicer eyes and a much fuller hair, as well as overall upgrade on the chest and arms, even if they are a bit subtle. More streamlined and less chunky. Miss all the diecast though..

Aiolia is like a complete overhaul. After putting all the parts on, he is like a completely different figure, and now became one of the best looking Myth to date. Have always like Leo, but now, it really brings it to a new level.

A couple things on these add-on though. Both have arm extension that makes the lower arms longer. While it does improve the look and more anime-like, Bandai might have extended them a tad too long. But they do look great, and made the arms of Shaka look chubby, since his Appendix has no arm upgrade. Also, Aiolia's shoulder assembly is a bitch to put together. Need to be very careful and patient not to snap any of the small parts.

Watched Pailsen Files vol.3 (episode 5 & 6). No mecha action in these 2 either. All about Chirico, and how the whole army (his own side) is trying to kill him (to test if he really can't die). Its a bit weird since if Chirico stirred up such a big fuss among the Gilgemesh army, there is no way people don't know him in the TV series like a celebrity. So feel like they pushed the 'Chirico can't die' fact a bit too far. But we'll see more as the story goes.

If you were going for "period accurate" then the lower receiver looks close to correct. It's also not really anything you could do much about... I myself have a lot of those "big army man dolls" and the inaccuracies in their weapons are quite common. Weapons, like the characters that carry them, are very unique and have many small "tell tale" bits and details that give away their age or period. When it comes to toy accessories most designers simply opt for a mish-mash approach. All they care is that it resembles something rather than it being 100% dead nuts accurate. Then again 100% dead nuts accurate is a waste of time usually, as only I and like four other people will know it's not "right".

The intent is what counts and I'd say you nailed it.

Another notable AR pistol design that has some Hollywood behind it is the Olympic Arms OA93, which was used by Willem Defoe's character in "Clear and Present Danger". The OA93, unlike the Patriot style AR Pistols, remedies the gas system problems by using a different bolt and gas system which completely omits the recoil buffer. It still suffers from the same ballistic issues though with the short pistol barrel.

To also complete my douche-baggery, the Beta C Mag (the double snail magazine) shown used on the Patriot in MGS3 also did not exist until the early '80s and it has never served with any military command as an issued magazine, mostly because it is too finicky and delicate for military use (it's primarily plastic after all).

Very nice. That explains why the Patriot being quite a unique looking combo that is very hard to find any real life reference identical to the one in the game. Wish I know these type of info, as I got into military 12" stuff recently (collecting super hero stuff mostly before that), so I have better idea on what to look for when doing bashes and shop for parts.

Actually not to totally douche bag out, but if I put my AR15 hat on for a second...

The "Patriot" was a brand name of what is basically an AR pistol. The actual "Patriot" was made by a group called Rocky Mountain Arms from 1993 to present day. There is no such animal as a "Patriot" from the 1960's, as MGS3 depicts. AR pistols are also NOT fully automatic as most people think. They could be (and a small handful are) but they suffer from constant jams and erratic rates of fire because the gas system and recoil buffer are too short to reliably cycle the 5.56x45mm round. The shortest barrel you can have on a semi-reliable fully automatic AR style rifle is 10.25", and that is with a bare minimum CAR collapsing stock. To get a short barreled AR to run well full auto you really need a "pig tail" gas system, which is basically the long rifle size gas tube bent around the hand guard... it "fools" the weapon into thinking it has a full size gas system which creates more reliable operation.

Another nasty down side to an AR pistol is that the short barrel neuters the kinetic force of the 5.56 round. The military 5.56x45mm round was developed to achieve optimum power out of longer barrels and when fired from short barrels there simply is not enough rifling to properly stabilize the round, which results in less than stellar ballistics. While not totally ineffective, a 5.56 round fired out of an AR pistol possesses noticeably reduced range and power.

Lastly, I know I've talked about this weapon before (in the old MGS3 game thread) but the bullets definitely do not tumble end over end out of the weapon as depicted in MGS3.

Is the RMA Patriot (and AR pistols in general) a cool looking weapon? Yes. But it is pretty much all bark... but when you are making a video game or Hollywood movie, nothing "sells" like bark.

All that aside that is a really nice custom. The only nitpick I'd have is that it has a "late model" A2 pistol grip and A3 upper assembly (which did not exist prior to the early to mid '80s) and you can't see the front gas block. But it's not "wrong"... the gas block could be under the hand guard and hidden by and end cap... it just looks a little weird. But only to someone who has seen more ARs than trees.

Good info actually. Yeah, the custom won't be dead on accurate, due to both my modeling skills and knowledge on the weaponry. But its as close as I could get with the parts I have.

Quick question. Is it automatic or pump action?

Not a weaponry guru myself, but I am pretty sure the Patriot is an automatic, not just in the game. It has very similar setup like an M16 or M4, just a lot shorter. While don't seem a very popular weapon as images online are hard to come by, it does seem to have a couple modern variations with slight difference.

Never saw the Patriot as something phallic at all. But now you mentioned it, it does remind me of something... Thanks for ruining my impression of the gun.

Finally got around and did a long overdue Patriot mod for my MGS3 Snake. Used a DML M16 with the duo drum magazine, a Hot Toys M4, and a black fine tip Gundam Mark cap. Turned out quite a bit more cutting and sanding than I have anticipated as the Dragon drum feed is way longer than the Hot Toys M4 magazine slot. Need to chop it half the length, while retain the bullets on the top of the clip. End up scratching the drums quite a bit as its hard to reach in and make a clean cut inbetween the two drums. So when all is done, I gave the thing a quick paint job to match the colors, as well as some minor weathering. Turned out pretty good, with most flaws well hidden. Snake can finally have the Patriot and blast all the other 12" figures in my collection with his new "unlimited ammo" ability.

Here are some of Snake's favorite gun. The AK-47 on his back, the M63 Stoner, and of course the Boss' momento, the Patriot.

Thats great! Glad someone else truly acknowledge the awesomeness of DMZ Rabidlydog. It doesn't seem to get a lot of love that it deserves.

I don't mind the bulkiness at all, but find the animation hard to follow. While not choppy in a way that it lacks frame rate or lazy animation, the flow of the movement is just sometimes hard to read. The moves that we all familiar with are better, because they just mimmick things we saw like hundreds of times before. But for the new ones (new characters especially), you really can't tell what moves they are pulling off a lot of times. A bit hard on the eyes to track the motion.

Chun Li got a pretty face, but Ryu's face is a bit messed up. His eyes look a bit like a retard.

Just got my DMZ-05 Turbo Custom all assembled, with minor silver spots weathering so it doesn't look too clean. So now people can see the color and paint difference compare to a DMZ-01 with Red Shoulder parts. The DMZ-01 Red Shoulder Custom sure look more busy with all the weathering and painted decal. Even the weapon parts have more sculpted detail on them. But the overall form does look more clunky (since Chirico just slapped whatever weapons he could find in the warehouse to put on a normal Scopedog). The Turbo Custom on the other hand looks simpler in some areas, but more streamlined and slick. Weapons feel more tailor made. Rabidlydog in the back of course towers over these two. It is pretty much one of the biggest & the most advanced AT in the series afterall. Love them all.

As a side note, if you have both the RSC & TC, their missiles are identical in shape, but the RSC missiles have a deeper red color. Looks better if you swap the missiles between the two figures.

I just took mine out last night and the joints were overall improved, mainly a much sturdier hip and a wider range ankle. I did find the shoulder hydrolic joint looser than my other DMZs, but I took the arm apart and fixed it with inserting a piece of paper in the joint and add friction. Easy fix. The knees are now double ratchet joints, instead of the old ratchet + friction double joint. Awesome new leg gimmick by the way.

However, looks like Takara sealed the feet even better this time, so I have no idea how to take it apart and insert metal inside to give it more weight (for doing those extreme gliding poses without falling). Too bad... I did the weight thing to my DMZ-01, and it feels like a gokin now LOL. Just a bunch of coins (as many as you can fit in there, then seal them in place with kneaded eraser (probably sculpy will work too). DMZ-04 got trickier as the screws are all hidden, so I only managed to open the front half with only added weight to the toes. But for this TC, I couldn't even fins a gap or panel that might be hiding the screws. I bet they are underneath the triangle roller dash thing in the inner side of each feet. But I couldn't figure out a way to even loosen up that piece. Don't think it'll help even if I pry with screw driver. It'll just dent the outside. So might need to give up on the mod on this one.

Man... if I splurge on the DMZ Turbo Custom (it's not cheap even with 30% off), I'll probably have to rebox my DMZ-1 in order to make space on my shelves... Decisions, decisions.

Yeah dude. And the size of this box is on a whole new level when compare to DMZ-01's. Its about the size of DMZ-04 Rabidlydog, but even thicker. Can't really say it can replace the DMZ-01 though. While its still a green dog, it looks slicker, cleaner and the color is quite different. Its more forest green and the gun & ammo parts more blue, while DMZ-01 has a more yellow green with a lot of wear. The Turbo Custom barely have any wear, but more airbrush shading. Looks very nice, even without all the painted decals.

I really like this TC already, even when I haven't open the thing up.

HLJ is having DMZ-05 Turbo Custom on sale for 30%OFF! Get it while you can.

http://www.hlj.com/product/TKT77245

I really don't know whats going on with HLJ and the DMZ getting 30% off...AGAIN! I hope it doesn't mean the line is doing bad. I just received the DMZ-05 Turbo Custom (without discount). Haven't taken it out yet, but its darn gorgeous from the window box, and comes with lots of stuff. Heard a lot of praise on this one too, and if its just as good as the other DMZ I have, its sure a winner as well. Would be a real shame if such awesome line doesn't do well and HLJ has to clean them off everytime. And I think they still have the DMZ-04 on 30%off, and still in stock after all this time. That toy is a great toy too...sigh. For once, the Chirico's face is not screwed up on mine. Not that its that great to begin with.

If you enjoy votoms toy info, consider getting a copy of the current Hobby Japan Plus vol.4. It has a very big coverage on votoms stuff from 1983-2007, as well as a bunch of very nice custom models.

Yeah, would get the DVD when it comes out too, to finish my Rambo collection. Hope it comes with commentaries and goodies like Rocky Balboa did, so I can get to know more on the thoughts behind the film, and what they go through to make the gory scenes as gory and effective as they are on screen. Probably will still feel a little sick in the stomach though on my second viewing, even though I like the movie quite a bit.

I guess its now somewhat official though the publication was retracted at the last minute and never published

http://animecornerstore.blogspot.com/2008/...-on-at-adv.html

But read on and the have an update stating that all is apparently well. *cross fingers*

Oh no....First Gurren Lagann got halt, then I found out the Yotsuba manga is under ADV... and my girlfriend loves that one too. This is getting worse...

Don't quite understand why most reviewers are being quite negative about it. Some even said the actions are bad... and even mentioned they never seen any Rambo movies before LOL.