drifand

Close up of mil-spec backpack... Shoulder markings... 'Fritz' helmet... Exposed camera 'orb'. You can rotate the assembly... Front view of waist armor. The 'lights' are clear orange plastic... Back view of waist armor. Check out the trademark '7-dot' marking on the side-armor plate.

Here's the SEE Type-7 Brocken on the side of the law. Physically it dwarfs the old-timer Asuka MPL. Only the advanced AV-0 comes close in height, but not in brawn. For GSG-9 duties, I reckon the 'scaled-up' MP-5 would be more than enough for most missions. Unless labor troubles in Europe are far more serious! From the back, you can make out the 'heavy duty' handles and hip-mounted smoke dischargers.

I received my blue TV Brocken today. Right out of the box, the right leg fell off at the knee and the left hip joint was disconnected inside the cloth shroud. If this isn't warning enough for the casual Patlabor fan, let me be clear: THE JOINTS WILL ABSOLUTELY BECOME DISCONNECTED INSIDE THE CLOTH COVERS DURING PLAY. Now that we've gotten that out of the way... I LIKE this figure! The size is nice and so is the sculpt. I wasn't really keen on the extra military parts, but dammit, it looks really MEAN in that GSG-9 anti-riot gear! And the weapons are nicely detailed (essentially 'scaled-up' H&K MP-5, MG-42 etc). Only useless bit: The power hose that was meant for the 'MG-42' is too short. I will probably scrounge up a suitable length of rubber hose if I want to display Brocken with the BFG. BUT THE CRAP JOINTS?! Sigh. If you own the AV-0, you know the drill. Just swapping out the shoulder armors means lots of pulling and pushing, which guarantees a dislodged shoulder. Heck, I managed to dislodge the torso joint! I had to cut through the secured end of the waist cover (hidden under the upper body) so that I could peek into the innards and re-attach the joint. Little surprises: - The detailing on the unmasked camera sensors is neat, and the spherical assembly can be swiveled. - The orange 'vehicle lights' on the front are clear plastic (but painted on the back). - Military shoulders are imprinted with a 'BROCKEN' tab and Abwher eagle badge. - The various 'handle bars' on the mil shoulders and backpack look great and seem pretty sturdy. Overall, it all comes down to the joints: - 4/10 if you cannot/will not deal with easily dislodged joints that are hidden under cloth covers. It's all by touch. - 6/10 if you like to pose your toys once in a while but hate to deal with the joints. - 8/10 if you're handy with modelling skills, and won't hesitate to fix up a great looking display piece. Personally, it's an 8 for me. I plan to show mine in the mil-spec setup and hope for a sale later to get the OVA version for normal display. Pictures coming in a bit...

And just a gentle reminder: stock toy in Gerwalk ain't half bad. You just need to PLAY with it a bit, you know? Don't worry, it won't break. :-)

Here's Luca in a desperate fight to the finish... armor half blown off, no gunpod... KNIFE FIGHT!!!

Hope to see these in person. FMP might actually get me buying my first Robot Spirit figure!

Yup, you spotted it right; it's a V-shape name placard holder. I usually have it propping up my Zoids Whale King 'playset' but borrowed it for Alto's shenanigans. :-)

Just a couple of repeats from the current DX VF-25 thread. Didn't realise I'd left 'auto ISO' on until I was processing the JPEGs, so the images are a bit noisier than I'd preferred. :-/

Here's more pix of my SMS Skull Squadron: First, a cleaner shot of how I've put Luca's RVF-25 on the stand... From the back - Gerwalk support struts do not interfere with fin antenna. Regarding the tailfins getting 'burned' by the super pack... OK, I tried the angle-in click but it doesn't seem to be very stable. Anyway, doesn't bother me. Here's the current gang in my preferred display modes. And here's a guest! Wondering if Bandai will do a nicer VF100s edition of the Konig Monster... (yes, please!) Totsugeki Love Heart!!! Alto's corkscrew? Heh!

Dude, you've already read the opinions of those who've bought the toy. Only you can make up your own mind. :-)

Read somewhere that the series turned out at least respectable because it was handed over to the young creative duo who made the award winning short KAKURENBO (Hide & Seek). Otomo only provided the designs and story premise. I think after Steam Boy, Otomo is spent as a director.

Pretty tempted to get Linna (green bike) but after tasting the pleasures of the metallic red Priss, it's GOT to be metallic or nothing for the Yamato BGCs.

Sorry to hear about the negative experiences so far, but... I'm not going to apologize for Bandai - people DO EXPECT more from the industry leader. Regarding the 'floppiness' of the VF-25G, I haven't experienced this in any degree of severity. Sure, the peg could be more secure, but it beats the 'no-grip' slot on the original 1/60 VF-1s :-/ For now, I've put my Michel Custom into the following shelf pose. It's the best I could manage with the armor-restricted knees: Add: The 'trick', if I can call it that, is to NOT fully extend the knee block when you don't have to. For example, in the pose above, the back leg's ankle IS fully extended to maximize the lateral angle. For the front leg, the ankle is only partially extended so that the shin can adopt a slightly lower profile and help balance the overall posture. Playing with angles of the thigh flaps on the hip armors can add a touch of 'movement' and dynamism to the pose as well.

Relax, dude. Don't let a personal take on fictional scale mecha impugn upon your collecting sensibilities :-) I played out great battles between my 1/72 Dougram, Soltic and Mugen Calibur against 1/67 Dunbine, 1/60 Ingrams and what have you... just have fun! + If I'd listened otherwise, my officially 1/15 Garlands and Motorslave would be a 'no-no' next to other 1/18 scaled mecha. AND, sometimes the boxes are wrong. Take the fan-favorite 1/55 Dorvak kanzen-henkei series... I believed what the Takatoku box claimed for two decades, until the same sized release of the Calibur by CM's Corp caused me to actually check the measurements. Turns out it's really 1/43 or so... Ha.

What a wimp - Beagle needs a stand to pull off the pose! I kid, I kid! Seriously, I love how the missile gauntlets look attached to the struts. The real challenge, I reckon, is in showing the Beagle interacting with a like-scale toy. Maybe someone also has the recent 1/10 Deunan and Briarios figures? Those would be cool next to Stick. Maybe get Deunan to ride the bike?

Yeah, somebody show the Beagle in the 'mid-transform' pose... I dare you!

No question about it, Bandai is totally milking the franchise. After all, they have seen what the 'going rate' is for Macross collectibles... the rest is up to us. Tough choices to be made, but a choice nonetheless.

Hi! My trio of Doyushas are set up this way: - Removed landing gears on planes. - Dark grey 'Page Up' paperweight/page holder as base. - 3 U-loops of metal wire stuffed into page holder slot, wire tips inserted into vacated landing gear holes, then bent to preferred balance and angles. - Stickers from a 1/60 v1 VF-1J. Cheers!

Haha, you're missing out if you'd never tried VB-6 Battroid! But seriously, I was 'forced' to use Battroid because the standard monster (gerwalk?) mode has a much larger shelf footprint. At the moment, I'm contemplating displaying either Michel or Luca without super parts... I think I'll go re-watch Frontier in its entirety to refresh my impressions of the VF-25s in action. :-)

Well, I went down to China Square (here in Singapore) this rainy afternoon, not really planning to buy the first run of 'Super Luca' but gave in when my regular store gave a discount. I paid 250 SGD (about US$165), which is LESS than Michel's VF-25G. No doubt, they were anxious to clear this batch of 'color problem' toys... I opened my purchase on the spot and truth be told, I could SEE the mismatch right away. Still, I decided to take it home and see if it really bothered me. Now that I've played around with it, I can safely say: the mismatch doesn't bother me. Regardless of whether I put the armor on or off, the uniqueness of the RVF's radar and fin-sensor array is just so much fun, I had no time to notice whether THIS piece of green looked out of place next to THAT piece of green. To me, this whole issue is the toy equivalent of 'pixel peeping' on digital camera performance. The bottom line: I ENJOYED THIS TOY VERY MUCH :-) Other things: Gunpod cannot attach in fighter mode? Of course! This is a recon jet, duh? And! The included display stand has found some use on my shelves at last! I used the 'Gerwalk' configuration to prop up the RVF-25 in fighter mode with a nose-down angle. This is ideal for keeping the radar dish in sight while on display. See the following: Now, my SMS skull squadron is complete! Closer look at Luca's jet mounted on the gerwalk-configured stand. Yes, the long fin antenna is deployed and kept clear of the stand's supporting struts. Ozma has been shifted over to the right... Happy! :-)

Hence the 'approx 1/60' note. :-) Like the Patlabor Ingrams, Layzner's 'true' height depends on how you tilt the head. The pilot figure does look a bit smaller than the one in the DX VF-25, though...

I think as long as there's a Mospeada element, go for it! :-)

Yup, makes sense for the fold boosters... though I don't think I'll be NEEDING those pricey exclusives. Hope to check out the local stores this weekend, and then rearranging my shelves again :-)

Quick check in my toy database shows the following: - Bandai 1/60 Cloth Gear Patlabor series (diecast chassis Ingram & Python labors) - Bandai 1/60 Patlabor model kit series - Bandai 1/60 Big Scale F-91 (semi-completed kit/toy) - Bandai 1/60 DX God Gundam, Wing Gundam - Takatoku Toys 1/60 Orguss series - Kotobukiya/ArtFX Front Mission 3 series (scale is approx. only) - Bandai Aura Battler in Action series (Dunbine & Billbine, approx 1/60) - Takara Masterpiece 03 Starscream - Bandai SPEC Layzner (approx 1/60)

Actually, I kinda liked the X-32 as well... mainly because it DIDN'T look like a 'cheap' F-22 rip-off. The gaping jaw config reminded me of the old A7 Corsair... just 'stealth-ified' for today's need. No doubt, it would've been a harder sell to overseas partners because of it looks if nothing else.