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RavenHawk

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  1. RavenHawk
    It seems like the closed search link just reroutes me to the regular auction site. Am I doing something wrong? Thanks for the advice, btw.
  2. RavenHawk
    Thank you everyone. I really appreciate the advice, and the links to threads which have gone into a lot of detail. Now it seems like the decision is whether to bid and hope for the best, or just do the buy it now...
  3. RavenHawk
    Thank you
  4. RavenHawk
    I hope this is ok to post here. If not, I apologize in advance. It's anime-related, since I'm looking at an anime item on Yahoo Japan Auctions (where I know a number of folks here shop). I've never bought anything there, but a fellow member here was just nice enough to send me a link to something I've been looking for for some time. Anyone here have experience using that site and suggestions they can offer? I've never used it before. It looks like I need a proxy to purchase, receive, and then ship the item to me in the US. It looks like there are a number of proxies out there, with FromJapan and JapaMart looking pretty good. ZenMarket looks like it might be too good to be legit. Any suggestions? Thanks.
  5. RavenHawk
    I hadn't really thought about the similarity, but you're right, the roll bar does give them some definite similarity. Always love seeing the ARTMIC motorcycle designs.
  6. RavenHawk
    Did a quick look online to see if I could find Book 1 for you. It looks like the first picture is the cover of book 1, and the second is from a catalog Sega put out that year (1987?) of their new products.
  7. RavenHawk
    That's the site where I came across the fact that CMs had been planning a Tri-Charger. Very cool illustration of the Hyper-Charger, by the way. I wonder if it was an early design, or meant to be a line extension down the road?
  8. RavenHawk
    Those pictures are from book 1, right?
  9. RavenHawk
    You're SO wrong! It's for when he gets older, and needs a walker. Hmmm... that might have improved the final act of MZ23 Part III.
  10. RavenHawk
    As far as I know, it only ever appeared in Robotech Art 3. It isn't in any of the general ARTMIC or specific MZ23 books that I have, so I'm pretty sure it was commissioned by Harmony Gold for the Sentinels, which would mean it was done by Ammonite in-house of Tatsunoko. When Sentinels had its funding pulled, Tatsunoko kept the design team together by putting them on Zillion. As I understand it, most fans think that the mecha concepts were repurposed, so the GMU became the Land Carrid, the GMU dropship became the Big Porter, the Inorganics became various Nohza troops, and the Prototype Cyclone became the Tri-Charger. I assumed it was a new design for the Sentinels, but intended to show a prototype that would have made some sort of sense being developed into the Garland by those who stayed behind on Earth, and the Cyclone by R&D out in space... but I have no facts to support that. It was just 12-year-old me picking up Robotech Art 3 at Waldenbooks, and coming across both The Sentinels and Robotech The Movie for the first time, and trying to make sense of that one picture towards the back.
  11. RavenHawk
    In my continuing quests to fill out my bike/trike related anime love, I've come back to the old Robotech Prototype Cyclone. This was designed for the aborted Sentinels series, though I'm not aware of it ever appearing anywhere except for the one image in Robotech Art 3. It seems that the general consensus is that it was re-designed into the Zillion Tri-Charger, though there are some big leaps between the two. Is anyone aware of any concept art for this trike at all? Either on the Robotech side, or during the re-design process for Zillion? Literally all I've been able to find, after doing a lot of searching, is the one single image below, and then artwork for the finalized Tri-Charger. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks. Obviously, it's a big design step from there to here:
  12. RavenHawk
    If anyone on here has any of the artbooks, I'd love to hear about what is contained in each (in particular, I'm interested in ones with concept artwork on the mecha). There are a few books floating around online, but not much of anything for info or previews on what's inside.
  13. RavenHawk
    I'm not trying to get into an argument by any means, but I do think that it's important to separate what was seen in the show from what was designed. It may have been seen in one still, but the ARTMIC team did a ton of design work and backstory work that the final episode writers did or did not include at their own discretion. There were histories written that never made it in, and many additional mecha, weapons, armors, and variants. Mecha were designed with full, detailed transformation sequences, even if the animators and script writers of the final show never used those designs. Again, we're talking about what was designed, not what made it into the show. Looking at the IMAI files (well, the English translation of the IMAI files), the Condor was described as the "Condor Armo Fighter". The Legioss, in its history notes, was referred to as the "Legioss Armo Fighter", which replaced the "Condor Armo Fighter". So, to me, that means that the designers intended the Condor not to be a TLEAD predecessor, thus it did not connect to the Legioss. I personally just like to picture it as an attachment/booster/re-entry add-on, just because I think it would be visually fun. As for transformation, I have seen no original ARTMIC pictures of it transformed, except for having the legs folded back; it also does have those small/vestigial wings on its back. However, lets keep in mind that the TLEAD transformation is, essentially, bend the legs and arms back and open the wings. Looks to me like the Condor would be essentially bend the legs back and unfold the significantly smaller wings. So, not THAT far short of it (in fact, early designs for the TLEAD, including transformation, didn't have a head or anything else folding or moving, but were basically the Condor "transformation", but with longer wings), but yes, visually less of a change. If you look at the backstory in the IMAI files, the different Earth colonies (Mars and Jupiter) were involved in warfare among each other, and then banded together to fight the Inbit, developing the Legioss along the way. My takeaway from that is that the Condor was used in these colonial battles. As these took place in space or in the atmospheres of other planets (and, in some cases, lower gravities and different densities of atmosphere), the Condor did not have to be very aerodynamic (not that the TLEAD is either). The first wave to retake Earth used these, and then the Legioss was developed. That doesn't change the fact that the Condor was an "armo fighter" and not just an "armo soldier". Realistically, it just doesn't matter. You prefer to think of it as not being intended to transform; I prefer to think of it as being intended to transform, just with a really minimalist transformation. To each his own. As to the comment about the ARTMIC guys not being able to design a basic rifle, I think that's a bit harsh. I think they came up with some pretty decent weapons designs. Their rifles are pretty decent, and the Gallant in "rifle mode" really isn't really a rifle; it's a pistol with a stock attached.
  14. RavenHawk
    It'll never be made, but I have a soft spot for Kakinuma Hideki's redesigns from 2007 Hobby Japan Magazine.
  15. RavenHawk
    I could look through my various ARTMIC books to refresh my memory, but I don't think it was every shown transformed (though there was concept art showing it flying, in robot form). All the transformed art work out there is fan art, I think... However, some of the ARTMIC art did show what appear to be wings on it, so my opinion is that, as originally designed, they were at least leaving the option there for it to be transformable. My personal, non-canon preference is to have it transform and be a booster, like the TLEAD. That whole proboscis on the design looks like it would fit nicely between the arms/upper engines on the Legioss.
  16. RavenHawk
    Thanks. It seems in great shape, with all of the joints very tight, no scuffs or other marks. Everything seems here. JJ's shoulder pads, pistol, holster, HUD/headband, a little red disc (not sure where that goes yet), even the face mask that clips into the helmet and the little blue thruster cones that go in the robot feet. The front swingarm for the wheel, on the other hand, is a huge pain. Just floppy all over. Really surprised by the size of this thing. It's more like a Yamato Garland.
  17. RavenHawk
    I think that's the Condor (did it have a different name in MOSPEADA or Robotech? I'm blanking).
  18. RavenHawk
    Looks like the classic design, not the Sentinel one.
  19. RavenHawk
    So, if it's ok to share some of my personal joy at the moment... After a decade of searching online, hearing statements that "those pop up on eBay every once in a while", this just arrived on my doorstep 5 minutes ago: The box looks pretty much pristine for anything I've gotten used from Japan, nevermind a 30 year old toy. Everything seems to be here. Stickers still un-applied, accessories still in the baggie, and even the flexible attachments to the helmet are there, undamaged. I think it's complete. Anyone with one of these able to confirm? I'm just giddy like a little kid finally getting this... and nervous to take it out and transform it. Now to spend the next decade trying to find a Ridingcepter...
  20. RavenHawk
    It's called the "patrol carry position", and is the standard way that infantry are trained to carry their rifles when on foot.
  21. RavenHawk
    I am SERIOUSLY conflicted on this one. The blue and white color scheme is exactly, 100% up my alley. Absolutely love it. On the other hand, with the regular edition coming in at $228 on AmiAmi, the strike parts themselves (which are kind of a must if you get the blue and white edition) coming in at $232, and then the special Garland at $582, that's paying $814 for some cool extra parts and a limited edition color scheme (or 3.6 times the price of the regular edition). I just don't know if I can justify that... then again, I'm still kicking myself for not buying the Viper's Creed Maneuver Blade back in the day, and that was around $450... For those of us who missed the kickstarter, does anyone know if the blue and white edition is being offered anywhere other than AmiAmi?
  22. RavenHawk
    Nice video and great review. I agree with pretty much all the comments you made about this toy (including not being a fan or the extra spinning part on the shoulders, which is too loose on both of mine). I think the only points you missed are the round ankle parts which I believe are meant to be rotated around in robot mode (not that they make any difference), and the big one being that the scale corresponds to the figures (Arcadia and Yamato) and not the vehicle itself (though you show "true" scale at the end). Again, great review, and such a great toy. I only wish the blue and white one were priced so that I could justify ordering it too.
  23. RavenHawk
    Well played. My Apple figure came in the mail yesterday, so I thought I'd post a few pictures for anyone on the fence about it. Everything that I've seen online was just stock images. It arrive in a nice, very sturdy and solid outer box. Inside was a foam insert, the actual product box, and a free gift (picture taken after I removed everything but the insert). The package included this artwork. I think it's referred to as a pencil board (please correct me on this if I'm wrong). Basically very heavy stock, almost cardboard, with this artwork on the front. I was not expecting this, and was pleasantly surprised. The product box itself came wrapped in tissue paper. Not a big deal, a little more protection to keep everything mint, but definitely added to the impression of getting a high quality item. Apple herself comes in this very nice box, with generous display windows. And here she is, along with Opa-Opa. Nothing amazing to the base (relatively thin plastic), but it gets the job done and the connection for her foot (metal) is very nice and solid. I was impressed. I took the picture next to the other most recent items I've received, to give a sense of scale (Arcadia Garlands in front, listed at 1/24 but really 1/18, and Sentinel MOSPEADAs in back, which are 1/12 and noticeably smaller). I'm very happy with this purchase. I paid $66 on Amazon on Sunday, and it was well worth it, in my opinion. Is it worth the $160 that Amazon is charging today, or the $105-120 that most other sites seem to be charging? That all depends on your love of the show. For me, I wouldn't pay much more than what I did, but then I'm really a mecha and vehicle collector, and not into just character figures. I hope this is helpful to people considering the figure.
  24. RavenHawk
    Now if we could get enough perceived interest to get Arcadia to do a Tricharger and Ridingcepter...
  25. RavenHawk
    My two Arcadia Garlands came in the mail yesterday, and I've had a chance to muck around with both of them. One to display with my 1/18th Shinji Aramaki bikes, and one to hopefully display with the other upcoming Arcadia MZ23 line. Overall, I'm VERY happy with them. i absolutely love the build quality and the solid feel of the bikes. As soon as you take it out of the box, it feels like a quality product. Surprisingly, some of the connections that are tight on one aren't so tight on the other, and vice versa. Everything works fine though. My only complaints are: - The white chest piece on one fell off. It connects loosely, and looks like it was basically held in place by the red paint of the part that it attaches too. A tiny drop of super glue fixed the problem easily enough. - The upper windscreen on that same one popped off. For now, I just slotted it back in and it seems ok. No glue yet. - The pegs that connect the legs to the read wheel in robot mode don't quite seem to line up perfectly on either one. When you're slotting them in, you kind of have to force them... and then when you disconnect them, you get really nervous the plastic is going to snap.
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