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drifand

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  1. drifand
    I felt that what the movie got right is mostly just the physical appearances. The direction was uninspired and I think all this slavish following of the comic book panels in place of proper storyboarding for film is a huge mistake. The important bits (to me) such as Rorschach's episode with the psychiatrist, were truncated too much. I hated the error of omission that caused the Comedian to have no proof or reason to be depressed to tears. Did not like the fake-looking Nixon makeup. Did not find the non-canon additions such as Lee Iacocca to be of value or much humour. Missed the squid.
  2. drifand
    Come on, Bandai... bring on the Jumbo Grade Frontier!!! :-)
  3. drifand
    Generally: DX = 'Deluxe', i.e. more gimmicks relative to a non 'DX' version of a toy DX Chogokin = Deluxe toy with significant diecast content, although there have been cases where the metal was sorely lacking. This 'brand' is usually used to sell contemporary toys, i.e. those that haven't had previous toy incarnations in the last 10-15 years. SOC = Soul of Chogokin; premier collectors' line with significant diecast content focussing on updated versions of old vintage toy designs. SPEC = Sub-line of SOC, focussing more on 80s-90s 'real robot' designs There will always be exceptions as a line matures. I believe recent hobby show pix revealed an SOC for a Super Robot Wars design that has never been made into a toy before.
  4. drifand
    Thanks for the photos, Zx! I'm in agreement with RavenHawk... 1/18 just makes more sense for how I'd enjoy these toys. Unless... these are really petit Boomers!
  5. drifand
    No particular reason... it's just basic Otaku Tax. They know the average fan is a working adult by now... what's expensive is not 'unaffordable'.
  6. drifand
    Nice Boomer, Zx31... Do you have any Microman figures to compare its size with? Would love to see how big/small a Boomer is at 1/15 scale!
  7. drifand
    Hmm, maybe in a few years Bandai will release SOC or SPEC versions. Haha!
  8. drifand
    Another vote for CM's Goshogun (70s) and Patlabor (90s). These are some of the best made diecast toys in recent years that are NOT as mainstream as Bandai's SOCs. Well within your budget too.
  9. drifand
    Fixed the last link in my post... http://pony-hp2.web.infoseek.co.jp/KABUTOEXTENDER.htm As for the FAIZ Autovajin bike, yeah, the SIC is oversized for 1/15 purposes. These are also too big at 1/12 scale:
  10. drifand
    Oh no, those are for the larger 1/10(12?) scale SIC series which focus on incredible sculpted details but minimal poseability. The Kabuto bikes are already sold out on HLJ (out of production) and during a short visit to Tokyo in December, I couldn't find a single one of those toys either. Some links I scrounged after checking thru the excellent database at www.zincpanic.com: AM Driver Motor Bisar: http://pony-hp.web.infoseek.co.jp/AM-MOTO.htm KR Kabuto's DX 'Gatack Extender': http://ooebihara.sakura.ne.jp/ganngu/ganngu391.htm and DX 'Kabuto Extender' and 'Machine Zectron': http://pony-hp2.web.infoseek.co.jp/KABUTOEXTENDER.htm The last link includes the owner's toy mods to make the bikes less kiddified and more suitable for the 1/15 figures.
  11. drifand
    Hi RavenHawk, AFAIK, besides the AM Drive Motor Bisar, the only toyline with a sizeable 1/15 scale series of bikes is.... Bandai's 'Trans-Armor' Kamen Riders. And of the lot of bikes produced, only a few can be considered 'transforming'; e.g. - Popynica DX Machine Tornader for Kamen Rider Agito (front & back wheels extend and rotate to form a hover bike) - The transforming bikes for KR Kabuto, which although were sold for larger 1/12 figurines, are scaled more correctly for the 1/15 trans-armor figures.
  12. drifand
    Let's reminisce on how clunky the old Mac Plus Valks were: P.S. (most) toys are are only as fun as your imagination... as long as they stay in one piece!
  13. drifand
    No matter what the little birdy claimed, Kawamori signed his name on the box. Besides, being on the bleeding edge of toy design brings its own disasters now and then.
  14. drifand
    Both versions of the CM's Bartley are fiddly. Check out Jenius' review a couple of pages back (use search). However, between the two, Shinobu's armor seems a bit tighter around the joints compared to Fuke's. If you have collected the first 2 CM's (Stick and Ley), then you have the means for a quick fix. Basically, swap the retaining screws for the slide locks on the boy's bikes for the girls'. Long explanation in previous posts...
  15. drifand
    The easy way is to carefully apply heat (hairdryer / boiling water) to soften the lasers and let them 'remember' the original shape before cooling/hardening them again under cool running water. The modeler's solution is to cut off the offending wimpy lasers, drill holes in the housing and insert appropriate lengths of polystyrene or thin gauge wire.
  16. drifand
    Calibur locks together just fine. The 'iffy' part is how the painted metal feet hook onto the painted metal front-wheel housing. Eventually, paint scrape is going to occur there...
  17. drifand
    Haha! Know what you mean... but price has never stopped me from making a toy 'my own'. Heck, I even mod 'r@re' and vintage toys. As long as it becomes 'better' in my eyes, I'll do it.
  18. drifand
    I posted the approx scale as 1/43; - Calibur stats: 7.8m divided by 18cm = 43.3 - Nove stats: 2.4m divided by 5.5cm = 43.6 The instruction sheet shows the Brave Gohkin 23x release with 2 different mini power suits, and NO FULL ARMOR. Don't know how much 'value' CM's places on the damn armor, but even at less 50 USD, Army Calibur will still be expensive (as compared to exorbitant). Start saving your bucks! As for panel lining, yes pretty tempting. CM's also supplied a full complement of color molded polycaps to hide all the exposed screw holes. Strangely, the first mod I wanted to do is to paint the INSIDE of the chestplate with a solid gray. During photography I really hated the way the backlight shone through the plastic. A second 'easy' mod I have in mind: cutting off some of the back of the neck block so that Calibur and tilt his head up. Won't affect appearance or transformation, so I think this is a sure thing for me.
  19. drifand
    Old school POPY Jumbo Machinders were 24" tall, about 60 cm. More recent Jumbos made by Bandai include a couple for Power Rangers as well as the newest 'transformable' Zeta Gundam at 56.5 cm tall. Check it out: http://www.hlj.com/product/BAN952362 A theoretical 60 cm Battle Frontier too big? You'll be wishing they were more affordable to ship!
  20. drifand
    I actually do like the general silhouette of the Bandai DX VF-19s, but the short wings and big gaps all over + simplified landing gear are real downers. In the end, shelf space is limited; so toy-rotation is a yearly ritual for me... get to rediscover some toys and make space for new goodies. If my brother gets his house finished this year, I may help to ship over a large portion of our Gundam collection. Then maybe I'll put back ALL the Macross items. Change is good.
  21. drifand
    Yeah, my bank account is protesting still. I usually shoot my pix under more even lighting but rushed these off on my worktable under a hot lamp. I'll try to get nicer shots with the mini Noves when I get some time away from work. This is a toy that I consider really worth having, if you ever find it at a price you can stomach. One word of warning, because of the large box size and flimsy tray inside, the seller told me that most if the shipment arrived with crushed-box damage. In time, finding one in pristine C-10 shelf condition may be impossible.
  22. drifand
    Robot height is 18cm tall, almost the same as the TT 1/55, but comparative measurements of the height of the support Nove figures confirms a scale of about 1/43. Diecast content is well-placed: - Front wheel housing - Wheel hubs - Upper legs - Feet - Hip-joint armature - Back hatch armature Poseability is good compared to the old Takatoku 1/55 full-transformation toy, especially in the arms. For the legs, with the basic armor removed, it's 3 clicks to the front + 1 click behind at the hips. With armor on, legs canot click backwards at all. In that sense, poseability is still 'bad' but already way better than before. Some quick poses: Basic pose if you follow the rules... not even an 'A-stance' but the arms add a lot of character compared to the old 1/55. This is what you get when you 'cheat'... ... i.e. pull out the hip joints from the groin socket and hide the trick through creative angles. 'Sitting down' to attach a rifle grenade... 'Almost kneeling'... Lastly, the chest hatch that shows the pilot in his swivel seat. CM's worked the proportions so that in vehicle mode, it actually looks like his hands CAN reach the wheel, unlike on the TT 1/55. That's all, folks. A very pricey toy that's hard to recommend to general real robot fans, but a must-have for those who grew up with and loved the original TT toys. Hopefully, the green Army Calibur will be more affordable as it comes w/o the Full Armor parts. I'm keeping my fingers crossed! :-)
  23. drifand
    Sorry for this non-SOC-but-still-gohkin piece of news... :-) I just received my CM's Corp Brave Gohkin 23 COMBAT CALIBUR yesterday. IT cost me the princely sum of 290 SGD (pre-ordered), that's about 190 USD. The box is large but very lightweight; most of the plastic tray was used to house the many pieces of the figure's optional 'Full Armor' parts and bulky extra weapons. To me, though, I never liked the oddly-styled full armor, which made the grungy military design look suddenly 'spacy'. I think it's another case of too many designers working on the Dorvack show; e.g. the powered suit designs are excellent on their own but look like they belonged in a different world to that of the main transforming mecha. Anyway... I took some quick snaps to share with other Dorvack enthusiasts on TBDX, focusing mainly on the vehicle mode and the poseability of the robot (sans armor). Here we go: First up, none of the publicity pix seem to show the vehicle mode transformed CORRECTLY. What I mean is that the way the feet fold up against the front wheel housing looks TERRIBLE on the box... the tips are angled up against the wind. Luckily, if you explore the toy a bit, it's totally possible to fit the feet flush in vehicle mode. Pix... Correctly folded feet in vehicle mode. Flush-fitting... Compared to CM's publicity shots:
  24. drifand
    Repeat: 1 drop of Supa-Glue Non-Drip Gel in the joint, then work it around as it dries.
  25. drifand
    ... because I kept them? Just didn't enjoy the M7 toys as much as the old 1/55s.
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