drifand

Anyone who doesn't like the new YF-21 just follow in my footsteps: I toughed out the entire 1/48 line! You TOO can get your 'perfect' YF-21 if wait long enough. (wink wink)

For fans who HOPED to own more Macross mecha toys in the same scale, the 1/48s were a collector's gamble from the very beginning. Once the line had progressed to the 5th or 6th repaint without any other supporting toys (due to unfeasible size and price, no doubt), the writting was on the wall.

David, I take it you're jesting? :-) For me, I still haven't gotten over my disappointment with M0 and the silly problems that plagued the VF-0 toys. So I'm really glad to be able to indulge in some idealised nostalgia than the unproven promise of more CGI and CAD. For now anyway...

I am cautiously optimistic about this new 1/60 offering. The Battroid proportions that so irked me in the 1/48 design have been improved tremendously, most significantly in the beefier arms and non-skeletal hands. And, yes, the less ambitious nosecone is very nice. Even the ugly mishappened ejector port on the old 1/60 gunpod has been replaced. Best of all, the VF-1S has a head sculpt that beats the less-than ideal 1/48's frontal seam. All things considered, movable wing flaps, airbrakes etc are not as important as the overall sturdiness and playability to me. Yamato can keep all that for the super deluxe 1/48 scale series if they want... Looks like it was worth my self-imposed Macross toy starvation diet! I could never bring myself to buy more than the trio of original 1/60 VF-1Js, nor could I settle for the 1/48's plane-optimized design. Now if only the SECOND RUN comes quickly for this new version. :-)

Not enough guaranteed sales unlike the Griffon, which would make back the investment in molds even with only ONE Japan-only variant. A mostly/all-plastic mass-pro AV-0 would generate more profits with less expensive materials, plus gauge the market for MAYBE a diecast AV-X0.

Well, as far as I'm concerned, yellowlightman said it all. The plot is not necessarily any clearer in the manga but at least it makes sense for specific arcs. AND the small-unit action as depicted by Shirow (before he descended into 3D amateur nite) was top-notch. It seems every production house that tackles a fan-favorite property insists on 'updating' the premise/plot/design, either for the sake of an unfamiliar audience, or the creative team's ego. Yeah, no one likes to 'trace' over an older design and still put his or her name to it. That's why I didn't mind too much Appleseed's 'new' character designs; but when it came to the plot... er... they really didn't manage to clarify it at all. And so beyond a couple of still-recognizable visual cues, I felt totally disconnected from the current Appleseed 'franchise'.

Specific to produced Macross mecha designs, I'd have to say the Zentradi Nousjadeul-Ger powered-armor really doesn't do it for me. The design just doesn't look menacing at all. A close second would be the unnecessarily girly VF-11 MAXL. 'MAXL'... what's that? Bra size? For unproduced designs, no contest: Stampede Valkyrie... what a MESS.

These have just arrived in Singapore. I think I'll pop by the stores just to see how high they can stack 'em.

Roger Harkavy's link to Yaclog's comparisons: http://wildcats.pupui.jp/mt/archives/2007/11/post_27.html - improved thigh front - the new missile pod - slot on back hip plate for gun

What... no LV bags?

Matt Alt reports on Yaclog's comments after receiving his preorder: http://toyboxdx.com/phorum/read.php?1,173781 It's a real shame how this turned out.

Takatoku Toys 1/40 scale MBG-24A Gerwalk Nikick... the rarer 'grunt' edition. Superb engineering, design and attention to details (the spring loaded arm covers!). 3 playable modes for endless flights of imagination.

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. When almost every super robot design is exactly the same along the vertical axis, the asymmetric approach of the Orguss mecha is breath of fresh air. I don't recall too many other hard-SF mecha designs that depict alien hieroglyphics either. Overall, I've always found the Orguss aesthetic to be the closest thing to realising the beautiful covers for SF novels in the 70s and 80s... i.e. the groundbreaking style of illustration by Chris Foss, Peter Elson, Chris Moore etc... So.... they are ALL beautiful to me. :-) Quick add: I believe the only other series with a similar level of hard-SF design would be TOMY's superlative Lensman...

There's a purity to the uncluttered wing design of the Opening Silhouette version that really appeals to me... I love the way the metal gleams from the exposed joint work. I think this one already tops Layzner for 'Soul of Ohkawara' goodness. :-)

What a fiasco! I am now doubly curious as to HOW IN HECK Aoshima agreed to this deal without better QC assuarances. Almost everything they've made to-date have been consistently well-finished and of high quality materials, even if a little behind in terms of engineering or gimmicks. Now I really hope CM's shows them up!

Here are 5 scans from 'DIORAMA WORLD' featuring the work of famed modeler Takuji Yamada. First 2 are 'modern' army: Followed by a 'retro fantasy' WWII scheme:

Though I've never watched Layzner or Dragonar, the designs are definitely part of what I loved about the rise of Real Robots in the 80s. So while the more DX edition with the 'armor' suit would be cooler, I think I'll be looking out for the opening silhouette when it arrives in Singapore. Graham, do post pix when you can! :-)

More exciting would be an European forest camouflage scheme as depicted in some fo the old 3D diorama books. THAT would be a compelling repaint.

I've got the WHAM Yellow Tachi by Wave and it's also weak in the knees. Luckily(?) the body is just an empty plastic shell, and it is possible to either extend the first leg joint or jam it in tight to prop up the segment against the body housing for support. If ever a mecha design NEEDED Revoltech joints, this is IT. Come to think of it, I've never had much luck with multi-legged mecha toys. Anyone had the old Kotobukiya/ArtFX Front Mission 4-legged tank? It looked sooooo poseable but the legs really can't be put into any dynamic poses at all...

Chet, The Aqua Unit Griffon has already been out for about a month. If you visit CM's page for the normal Griffon, there are links to Japanese online stores that stock the limited edition toy. But of course, they won't ship internationally. Vhunter D, Yes, the joints are shrouded with velvet-y cloth. The upcoming same-scale, non-diecast action figure for the production AV-0 Peacemaker will also feature similar cloth covered joints. Almost every previous Patlabor toy/model used PVC/rubber covers that either restricted joint movement (tendency to pull back the limbs into a neutral pose), or interacted badly with styrene joints (ala early VF-0A o-ring arm tragedy). The velvet tends to photograph badly but looks fine in person.

No, no Griffon review... and a bit of bad (if not unexpected) news: The Aqua Unit Griffon is a Japan-only limited release. My favorite local dealer has explained that he tried to obtain a small quantity of it for sale but was turned down flat by the suppliers. If anyone is hardcore enough, you'll probably need a 3rd party service like CELGA to get one of these wet puppies. So... no spare head to modify. :-/ Meanwhile, I HAVE gotten the latest 2 soft vinyl labors from CM's... the ASUKA-SSL96 / MPL-96 TAISYO. Very nice looking but absolutely unposeable figures at around 5,000 yen each. The 'standard' worker color only has a 300 piece run... so I decided to customise my TV-color Taisyo instead. Check out my review on TBDX: http://toyboxdx.com/brog/?p=610

Love the new labors but am slightly disturbed by the 'sliced off' feet hydraulics... especially when they've painted them so shiny!

While I mostly enjoyed BLOOD+, I always felt the movie had a LOT more potential... the post war time period, the more-realistic character designs, the mood and music... Really looking forward to this!

Quick add-on: The text on the cards say the Ingram will be ABS & DIECAST, while Helldiver will be ABS & PVC... So WAVE are following CM's same-scale but multi-tier strategy? Also, WHAM Ingram = 10,290yen CM's Ingram = 12,800yen So the WHAM is likely to have a higher plastic-to-metal ratio, if the SDF-1 is anything to gauge by.

Actually, CM's Corp has never given an official scale for their Patlabor figures (both Brave Gohkin and soft-vinyl). Initially I'd thought the scale was close to 1/48 because the pilot figures were a perfect fit for Takara's 1/48 ActicGear Votoms. However, careful measurements and averaging of of head-heights throughout the line-up gives evidence of a scale closer to 1/46. Still, I suppose a 4% difference in scale will hardly be noticeable. When the WHAM AV-98 is released, I'll take my CM's to the stores for a comparison. If the sizes aren't too mismatched, I will be open to the possibility of buying the Helldiver. It's not a must-have (yet) because CM's may still release a Helldiver in their non-gohkin line (like the upcoming AV-0 Peacemaker), which will probably have the 'advantage' of real-cloth shrouds for the joints, whereas the WHAM prototype seems to sport molded rubber/PVC, which MAY look out-of-place next to the CM's labors. The worst-case scenario would be for CM's to anounce a gimmickless but oh-so-niche sofubi Helldiver... because I'd be SO tempted to have THAT as well as a fully articulated WHAM version