Penguin

I tend to prefer dubs to subs, just because I like to do other things at the same time, but I won't endure a crappy dub just because it's convenient (Macross II being a prime example). That being said, my preference is sometimes driven by how I encounter the anime first, like Cory mentioned. I first watched Escaflowne, War In the Pocket, and Stardust Memory on the original Anime Village sub-only VHS, and can't imagine listnening to any other voices (especially Escaflowne since I thought the English actor for Dilandau was atrocious). Same happened with watching the sub-only US Manga Corps Patlabor TV series VHS, although I have a strange fondness for the english voice of Gotoh on the old Manga Video movie dubs... and the fact that the subs on the Bandai Visual releases of the movies translate "-san" as "Mr." or "Miss." drives me disproportionately buggy. Cowboy Bebop and Escaflowne I watched dubbed with friends who weren't into subtitles, and that's how i've thought of them ever since. I never think of watching Macross as watching Robotech in another language, despite Robotech being my introduction to Macross. They've become separate entities in my media consciousness. Reba West is an integral part of the Robotech "experience". The immense popularity of an idol with no vocal talent crowns the surreality of the piece.

Well Paramount isn't expecting a different result. All three movies made obscene amounts of money. They're expecting the exact same result. Transformers fans are the crazy ones, if they expect anything to improve. Money talks, and it tells the studio that Mr. Bay's formula works just fine. No amount of fanboy hoping/ranting/begging will change that.

Alright. I think we've covered our bases pretty well, so this will be my last post on the matter. Any more is going to devolve into tedious matters like how to define "tribute", "homage", etc. So, to sum up: 1. I read your fanfiction opinion as an indictment of current practitioners (which I more or less agree with with), but you've posted nothing to counter the notion that writing can't be as valid a form of tribute/homage/whatever as any other fan works. Whether or not any current examples fit the bill is another matter entirely. 2. I wholeheartedly reject the notion that there's no point in creating something new, like a game, just because someone else has already done it, and done it well. The desire to create something has nothing to do with existing works. If I love programming, love games, and love Macross, then the point is to do something creative, to hone my skills, to make something related to a franchise I enjoy, and hopefully to take some pride in the effort I put into it. If I have delusions of grandeur about the end result, that's also another matter. I reserve the right to rescind the "last post" decree if you respond with something silly like "programming isn't creative", 'cause after 19 years in the industry, let me tell ya, it's entirely about creativity. Well... creativity and a lot of math.

I don't care much for fanfics myself. Too many people have way too high an opinion of what they write, or are often fantasizing about how the original creator(s) are going to notice their astounding work and they'll be "discovered" somehow. However, that's my impression of the people I've encountered, not of writing itself. I'm sure there are just as many who write fanfics out of a love for the source and nothing more. People choose to express their creativity in the ways that appeal to them. If I write a story set in the Macross universe, I'm using someone else's setting it's true. If I set it in Los Angeles in the 1940s, am I being unoriginal because I didn't invent that city? If you're going to apply that brush, then garage kits, fan art, and model customization are in the exact same boat. They aren't creating anything original. They are clearly appropriating someone else's designs. Aren't they just too afraid to create their own mecha as well? Why is bulding a model of someone else's design any more of an homage than creating a game or writing a story? Aren't fan artists just fanwanking because they're too afraid to invent their own characters? Thank you for further illustrating the point. Well, that's kinda silly. But, it illustrates the point too. You've got a low opinion of the poster as a result of comments like this, just as I have a low opinion of fanfic writers because of their opinions of their work. It doesn't invalidate making a game or writing a story as artistic expression, or make them any less of an homage than garage kits or fan art. However, it's entirely possible that the attitudes of those involved can give their hobby a bad name.

We could call it the X-Presidents! No, wait... that's been done...

Is that the 1/72 or 1/48? Looks nicely scupted. Wonder if they're including marking decals too. Can't say it piques my interest much. Unless it was under $10, I can't see it worth the price just to cover up the arms and head on the underside. Were I inclined, I'd rather just paint the model in the VF-X scheme and skip the mod.

Certainly, if this was about a group of fans somehow competing with a professional developer like artdink (especially as they've done such an outstanding job) using freeware and built-in tools, I'd agree with you wholeheartedly. I think you might be reading too much into leading edge's posts. Nothing in them indicates any commercial aspirations. Simply wanting to gather a group of like-minded individuals to build something to celebrate a franchise you enjoy isn't inherently useless or crappy. Is it necessary that anyone other than Mikimoto draws Minmay? No. Are we now going to pop over to the fan art thread and start deriding all of them for all their unnecessary artwork? Bully them that what they produce never be as good as HAL's triumphantly existing artwork and should just give up putting all that effort into making it? Fanfics and fan art and homebrew games and Cap's models and Mr. March's Macross Mecha website and bloody Macross World itself are all cut from the same cloth. Some succeed, some fail, some are quality, some are not.

So to continue this analogy, all fan art, fan fics, toy mods, game mods, custom models, garage kits, etc. are crappy and unnecessary homebrews? Or is it something about game creation that makes it inherently unworthy as a way to express your love of the franchise?

It's got my interest.

I think there are a few differences to everyone's costume. Thor included. Gotta justify new figures for all of them, naturally, plus Hawkeye. Makes me wonder if we'll see a 1/6 Hulk. I'm still waiting for a Hot Toys Loki. Odin didn't interest me.

That's quite a premium you place on some well-placed ink. Guess you gotta have standards. All this talk about the legioss/tread had made me remember I've got the Aoshima Legioss and Tread in all 3 colours, but I've never combined them (because the legioss were boxed away before I acquired the treads). I'm thinkin' I need to dig them out and put 'em out on display, warts and all.

Wow... a 4 inch fighter mode legioss. Does really nice mean gold-plated?

I don't know about considered. The idea has vaguely crossed my mind from time to time. I'm a pretty decent programmer, but I haven't done any real investigation into how to even start game development these days.

As far as I recall it, Giger wasn't involved with Aliens at all. James Cameron and Stan Winston did all the new design there, especially the queen (Giger has been quoted as quite liking the Queen design). Giger was busy on Poltergeist II at the time Aliens was being made. He was involved quite a bit in the early stages of Alien 3, but only fragments of his designs made it into the final picture, and there was a whole legal row with Fox over everything.

HGUC Nemo... most excellent. My legion of mass-production MS will grow. MWAH-HA-HA! RG Mk II.... that's cool too.

Then I hope posting this isn't considered assault with a deadly link... http://en.wikipedia....Animated_Series http://www.virtualtoychest.com/b/battletech/battletech.html

My eternal lament. I love me them rank-and-file fellas.

I've gotten them so far. I've been impressed with the designs, both robot and vehicle. The crane's even got all the pieces for you to thread the hook if you want too. Are they worth $80 a pop? If they weren't going to combine into a massive Devastator Hercules at the end, I wouldn't pay that much for them. It's all about the promise of a massive, kick-butt combiner. Of course, if the final product turns out to suck, the joke will be on me.

The brand name "X-acto" has become like "Kleenex"... a brand name used to describe an entire product (I've never heard any real person refer to "facial tissue").

Looking at a freeze-frame of that shot, it's hard to tell the perspective of the shot. Looks like that figure could be in scale with the chair, which means notably bigger than human. Time will tell. I have a hard time thinking Ridley would make that big a gaff or bizarre a retcon. Can't wait to find out!

What has the size of the suit got to do with the size of the crew of the Nostromo? Those suits aren't for humans. They're for whatever race the crew of Prometheus is about to encounter.

Well, as one of those "1/72 guys", I'll cast my vote there. You know someone is going to suggest 1/60 to go with the Yamato series. Thing'd be huge.

Masking it completely and cutting away the area is a perfectly viable option. Just be careful not to gouge the plastic. It kinda depends on how deep the seams are, too. If they're deep, then a single slice down the middle and passing your fingernail through the depression is enough. If the seams are shallow, then you need to cut on both sides, which can be a real pain for a thin seam. Masking both sides might seem bothersome, but shallow seam lines may require it. You can always take the masking tape, split it down the middle, and align the outside edges to the seam (since the slice down the middle isn't likely as straight). Saves on tape and gives you some nice, thin slices to work with (which will follow curves better). That is, if your hobby shop doesn't carry the really thin masking tape. My hobby shop stocks some very thin masking tape (5mm and smaller) which is perfect for masking along seams (Hobbylink Japan and others carry it online too). As far as knives go, anything that's sharp enough and small enough that you can handle it with dexterity will do. I used the smaller blade on a Boy Scout (i.e. small Swiss army) knife for the longest time. You don't want to have to press too hard to get through the tape, otherwise you could gouge the plastic beneath, so sharpness is key.

Y'know, I actually enjoyed Robin Hood. Didn't think much of Hannibal though. Or Thelma and Louise, for that matter.

Well, you can use plastic tape, you just have to be careful. Before I got real model masking tape, I used Scotch magic transparent tape for masking. It has a weaker adhesive that doesn't leave any residue. Problem is it doesn't flex like real masking tape, so it doesn't follow curves very well, and it doesn't form as strong of a seal. The whole clear paint trick doesn't work either. Instead, I found that the best way was to cover the entire area with the tape, then cut away the area to be painted with an exacto-knife (carefully so you don't scratch the plastic underneath, of course). I still use this technique once in a while, if I have a strangely-shaped area to paint. Considering that you can't replace the figure, yeah, it might be safest to get the proper tape.