mechaninac

If HG and Toynami wanted to they could always create an extra Alpha variant and say its Jonathan Worf's plane. Just like Sue Graham, we only see him in a green type cyclone armor-bike; but just like Sue, it's understood that he came to Earth in an Alpha fighter. Thus, just like there are two Alphas form Mars Base, they could create an extra Jupiter Base craft with original color scheme to maximize the use of their moulds. Since Wolf is an established New Generation character, anything they make tied to his name would be semi-canon at the very least. I'm also sure that people would buy it the same way many of us purchased Yamato's 1/48 Low Vis...non-canon, but very cool.

I hope the following doesn't violate any rules of decorum or anything, if it does, mods please delete, but I thought that it is significant enough to CP here. The following was lifted directly from the RT.com forums, posted by Rocco_77:

Subject: Ok guys, I've got the reply from Toynami...

Posted On: July 12, 2004 - 11:32:13 AM

Dear Rocco Txxxxx,

Rumors are just rumors! We are producing the Scott Alpha Veritech in two

waves, 7500 units will ship in the first wave and the balance will come 45

days later. All 15000 units will be physically identical, so rest assure

that their is no need to wait and buy your Alpha later. The first 3000 will

have a slight repackaging of the Alpha in the blister tray, but really not

significant to wait for your edition. Early numbers are usually more

desirable so we personally recommend you getting any edition you can. The

first wave is already all pre-sold and sales are getting more aggressive on

the second wave, so you should not wait.

In regards to the Beta....? If sales are justified with all four editions of

the Alpha, which they are so far, we will heavily consider the Beta. Some

mock ups have already been started and this monster is quite big. If the

Beta is to come out and this is "IF", do not expect it for at least another

2 years. They will of course connect to all of the Alpha's. We appreciate

your support and hope you enjoy the Alpha MPC when it comes out.

Regards,

Toynami, Inc.

I would also appear that our hopes for a Beta are not in vain! I realize that in the reply they say, "at least another 2 years," which kinda sucks, but hey... if it really happens, then it will be worth the wait I think.... They've already done MOCK-UPS! SWEET!! It still doesn't guarantee anything, but it is most definitely a great start...

Thanks to EVERYONE here that continues to support this thread, and the desire for a linkable BETA MPC... GO TEAM!!!

It appears that the variation will be packaging related and that a Beta may indeed be in the very early stages of development...sweet.

A 1/55 Hovertank would be around the size of a 3 3/4" GI Joe figure which would be pretty cool.

Not for $80 a pop it wouldn't...

Is that a hatch on the back of the lower torso/crotch area? If it is, what is it for? Room for the canopy in bot mode? Beta hookup in bot mode?

I assume its a dress-up hatch to clean up the look in armo-fighter and armo-diver modes and still allow for the canopy in armo-soldier mode. It is a definite improvement over the yawning hole in the 1/48 IMAI kit.

Every time I look at the posted pictures I realize that Toynami has put a lot of thought into this minuscule triple changer.

I think the funniest thing about the Alpha is that it still has prototype pics used on the inside of the "box" packaging with the painted canopy.

Actually, that's a pretty common practice. Packages and box art are often concurrently designed with the product and have a extensive approval process before printing. With new products, in the absence of an off-tool production version for primary photography, a prototype is used to create all art work since the package has to be ready when the product is. Chances are that subsequent Alpha MPCs will have a final product pictured on the box as they will have more lead time to create the artwork.

so these toys are available online only?

I guess I should've done a better job of explaining. These figures will definitely be available online, but they will also be sold at "brick and mortar" retail stores just like all other Mcfarlane releases.

Hope that clarifies it...

That looks outstanding. I do have one bit of criticism, however, there is an odd pinching on the leg; see circled area. I'd try to spline-cage a new section to achieve a smoother transition. Other than that...beautiful!

Someone please tell me when these are coming, how much they usually sell for, and what local stores usually carry them?

thanks.

When are they coming out? I haven't a clue...I'd figure around October. These things usually sell anywhere from $9.99 to $14.99. Expect to pay around $11.99 most places; Mcfarlane figures eventually go on sale for around $4.99 in many places, but since I think these will sell quite well I doubt they will be around long enough to get discounted. As to where to get them, you can find them online, at KBToy Works, Toys-R-Us and other toy chains. FYI, I've found that TRU usually sells them for about $1.00 less than KBTW as they are a larger retailer.

Max exits the SDF-1 to engage Millia...lights all boosters, wings sheer off...Max turns into a pile of mush form the G force...Millia wins without even firing a shot. Looks kick-ass though.

If someone can get me a good scan of the original decal sheet, I might be able to add those--if it's just the ones you circled. I'm trying to keep the sheet fairly simple and affordable, though, so I don't want it getting too big.

Unfortunately I don't have that kit, I got that image off Macrossworld's model section. Can anyone help? Those little extras would be a great addition to spruce up the 1/60 GBP.

There is one thing that could be quickly added, however, without much effort. See attached picture for the circled item.

Is there any chance of expanding the decal/sticker sheet to include some of the extra warnings, numbers, pin-up art and assorted stencils that came with the IMAI kits like the one pictured bellow? That would be great and a definite improvement over what Yamato offers.

I made my VF-1A CF fast pack compatible by enlarging some of the existing holes with a round needle file and carefully drilling, cutting, filing rectangular slots in the backpack to accept the booster attachment prongs. It worked quite well; as a matter of fact, I have it wearing the fast packs form my Hikaru VF-1J.

I'm truly wondering how much a variation there will be, because the staggered release of the first 3000 and the remainder seems to scream "teaser, then jack up demand further".

Hopefully that's all it is. The cynic in me says that there is some design/QC problem with the first 3000 units that required some re-engineering, thus the staggered release, in which case it would probably be best to get the later ones; or it could just be that the first 3000 are RT.com exclusives with some additional gimmick in the packaging. We shall see...

Does anyone know how many Toynami will be making of these? sorry i haven't read the entire tread..

15K units for each of the four MPC Alphas under the "Robotech - New Generation" licence and an untold number of each under the "Mospeada Legioss" name for the Japanese/Asian Rim market.

You can sum up a collector toy company's mindset this way: If you make it, geeks with money will buy it; and if you make it in limited quantities, the same geeks with money to burn will pay 10X as much and trample on each other for the privilege of buying it.

The fault lies not with the company, but with the collector who'll pay anything for the new limited edition bauble. Unfortunately, most of us are guilty of it at one time of another for one thing or another.

The way I look at it, if someone wants to buy something and is willing to pay the asking price, then go for it. As long as you're not hurting anyone else in the process on acquiring the funds necessary to support your addiction, who am I to say you shouldn't.

I actually like the look of the battleship Yamato form 2520; it looks like a futuristic evolution of the space battleship concept, even though it may not be everyone's cup of tea. This "new" Yamato, on the other hand, looks like a convolution, a collection of different design elements cobbled together by a team of CGI geeks who thought that putting everything, including the kitchen sink, into the design would make it look cool.

I just watched this and it is fantastic, and I thought that some of you would find it just as entertaining as I did, so I decided to share. Just click on the LINK to launch the QuickTime file. Those with slow connections may need to have a healthy amount of patience as even with a fast line it still takes a while to fully download.

Enjoy!

Hey mechaninac, it's quite possible that the back end(legs - feet) were mistransformered. Well, here's to hoping.

I hope you're right, but the picture shows the toy in fighter mode, inside the box, secured in its vac-formed plastic cradle. If the toy was mis-transformed, it probably wouldn't fit in there properly...time will tell.

If you have a hard time visualizing objects in 3D from 2D sources then 3D modeling would not be your cup of tea; if, on the other hand, you can picture in your mind what something should look like from a few drawings (top view + side view for example + a front view if you're lucky) then the only thing to worry about would be to learn one of the myriad 3D modeling softwares available out there. From there, imagination and/or inspiration are the only requisites.

Alright, first picture showing the back end of the toy in fighter mode. Not to carp too much on Toynami's MPC Alpha (both the 1/35 Gakken Legioss and, to a greater extent, Imai's 1/48 kit are guilty of this too) but those legs and feet stick out like sore thumbs in fighter mode.

VF-11B is from Macross Plus and VF-11C is from Macross 7, other than that...

Wow! I'm beginning to be glad I have this thing on pre-order; this toy, dispite it's puny dimensions, appears to be very well thought out and replete with detail, and the color choice looks excellent from the pictures. My only two nitpiks are the chest hanging so low in armo-fighter mode (maybe an inheritance from the IMAI kit) as it appears that it will come very close to dragging the ground, and the huge feet that could be due to the design team trying to achieve an anime "accurate" look in armo-soldier mode. Having the toy in hand will answer any questions about the first issue, but the "clown feet" issue is one that we'll just have to learn to deal with...until someone decides to create a retrofit resin kit for those who are bothered by it.

no politics please. i'm sure bill o'reilly has a personal wbesite we can take discussions like this to.

Point taken. I agree that this is no place for politics, but I did not start it and felt that that puerile, cavalier comment deserved a response in kind.

I'll henceforth step off my soap box.

Shadow technology? What is this, Robotech Vs. Babylon 5?

That's exactly what I was thinking...