Cyclone Trooper

Actually, I don't think drag is much of an issue with Valkyries outfitted with FAST Packs. These booster packs/radar radomes are exclusively used in zero-g environments like deep space (at least in DYRL). Almost always, you see a pilot jettison all of the extra armor and boosters of a FAST system just before entering atmosphere to reduce drag. So the 45-degree angle of the tail section wouldn't necessarily be a weak point when being used in that way. I agree with a few theories on here about the strange design being largely due to allowing for a more raised ELINT radome on top. I would agree with the cockpit/canopy theory except for the fact that the whole tail section CAN fold completely up like a "backpack" in GERWALK and Battroid modes without the FAST Packs attached.

Y'know, reviewing DYRL, you are correct. When Hikaru pitched the tent underneath the VT-1, it clearly shows the tail section/backpack in the same place as any other Valkyrie's would be. So apparently the weird 45-degree-angle configuration seems to be specifically for FAST Packs. But why, I wonder?

There's always been a small detail about the VE-1 Elintseeker and the VT-1 Super Ostrich that's baffled me ever since the 80's: the oddball configuration of their tail sections with FAST Packs and in Gerwalk mode. One would think that, being a completely modular design, the VF-1 series chassis would largely have the same basic parts across all models, aside from the head units, grade of thruster engines, etc. But apparently not. The tail section of both of these "specialty" Valkyries does not fold up flush against the ventral hull like those of the VF-1S, 1J, 1D, or 1A. Instead, it sits at nearly a 45-degree angle with the tail fins still locked into "flight" position instead of folded up, then FAST Packs are attached. I'm not sure what the purpose of this particular configuration is...unless it was simply a design choice by Kawamori to further differentiate the VT/VE from the rest of the Valkyries appearing in DYRL.

Anyone mechanically-inclined or with a extensive background in VF-1 design history care to share possible reasons behind this strange design?

I've recently bitten the proverbial bullet and purchased my first V2 Valkyrie...the VF-1J Mass Production version. Now I just need an enemy mecha to compliment it. I've read various opinions on MW about the Q-Raus and it seems like it's not exactly in the "Top 10" of Must-Have-Macross-Mecha. Reviews have ranged from passable to downright disappointment. That said, I was wondering if there's anyone here on MW willing to sell their Max Q-Rau. If not, I suppose I can snag one off of HLJ...but I'm trying to avoid that if at all possible.

Anyone who felt ripped off with their purchase and is willing to part with their Q-Rau, PM me!

Make it exclusive and I'm going to be really pissed!!!

But if it DOES end up being a highly-overpriced limited-run exclusive...is anyone really going to be shocked by that? Not I...

Do you mean EMS?

My SAL Packages from HLJ takes about 3 to 4 Weeks on Average. My VF-1A came in about 2 Weeks. SAL ships when there is room on the plane. A Small Package addressed to a country that gets good amount of air travel from Japan is going to come faster. Customs can also slow things down.

Now if you paid EMS and got SAL you have a problem. I think EMS cost roughly twice as much.

Yes, that's what I meant. I paid for faster shipping, which cost me 3660 yen (roughly US $40.41), and it was still shipped SAL. And since its the weekend, I can't contact HLJ until Monday...not that contacting them will do any good since the package is already on its way...

DAMN!

I just checked my order status and its already shipped! HLJ wasn't kidding when I was told that it'd expedite my order! Now for a halfway off-topic question...

The shipping method is "SAL - Small Package" (even though I paid for EAS, but go figure...). Does this pretty much mean that it's going to take forever and a day to get to my front door? I have no way of tracking it either... HLJ's website says that it could potentially take up to 45 days. But what's been the experience of others who have had things shipped via SAL?

That is sheer, unadulterated beauty!

Been a while since I've posted anything...

But I just paid for my very first V2 Valkyrie, the VF-1J Mass Production from Hobby Link Japan. I also got a Super/Strike FAST Pack set to go along with it. Though HLJ may be a tad more expensive than Overdrive, I'm really impressed with it. After going back and forth with HLJ's customer service over a problem with my credit card (my bank flagged a transaction from Japan as "suspicious activity and froze my account), I gotta say they're a top-notch outfit. I was promised that my order would be expedited because of all the trouble I had with trying to process my order. The rep that I was in email correspondance with was someone named "Corky" , but he was very friendly, courteous and quick to respond to my emails.

Hopefully I won't have to wait a month for it to get here to the US...but time will tell.

Now, I'm left with a question.

Did the SDF-1 or any subsequent ship have a Wing Stop, or was the only restaurant a damned Nyan Nyan?

No, we at least know that the DYRL SDF-1 had a "McDonald's" (the Golden Arches are seen on a giant holo-billboard) and a "Humburger Po-Po" where Minmay and Hikaru went on their date. Hmm...Humburger Po-Po. That sounds kinda dirty...

Comparing the modern toy lines with those of the bygone era of the 80's is never a fair one. I get this same argument from hardcore collectors at work over the new GI Joe line. Back in the 80's, the mantra truly was "bigger is always better" in the toy industry. It was the decade of greed; the "Me" generation where the world economies and stock markets were booming. Hasbro never batted an eye at releasing a 7-foot-long aircraft carrier for 3.75" figures...or huge multi-level Defiant Shuttle playsets that could hold literally 50+ figures comfortably. And this is what a lot of the older collectors want to see again: vast aisles of huge product from one specific toy line (in this case, GI Joe) with four or five different big-ticket playsets dominating the bottom shelves. It must be a nostalgia thing...lol

Back in the day, stores allocated shelf space a lot more liberally to a particular toy line than they do today. In 1989, you would have seen an entire (or mostly entire) aisle dedicated to GI Joe merchandise. Not so in 2009. The TRU where I work generally only allocates 4 to 8 feet of shelf space per toy line, and sometimes more than one toy line shares that same 4 feet. Star Wars usually gets the lion's share of space at 8 feet, along with whatever movie-merchandise is currently being sold in tandem with its theatrical release. But everything else is condensed into 4 foot areas. The "BFM" Millennium Falcon was not purchased in huge quantities by stores last year, and were generally placed in floor stacks in the middle of walkways. And those did not sell well AT ALL for TRU.

And this is the major issue that someone at Yamato seems to have realized. Just because they COULD make it ridiculously large, doesn't necessarily mean that it SHOULD be done. And it definitely doesn't guarantee that the sheer size will make it a sure-fire seller. Quite the opposite in today's economic environment, just as Graham said. If you go back through this thread, you'll find several of us NOT living in Japan even wondering aloud where the heck we'd put a 2 1/2-foot SDF-1 in our homes...so its not like Yamato is totally off-base in rethinking the scale.

Either way, if it doesn't simply end up another case of vaporware like the Monster ended up being, it will be released in whatever scale Yamato ultimately decides upon...and we can all choose to purchase it or turn our collective noses up at it in favor of hoping that another company will release one the size of an '84 Buick at some point in the future.

Well, i've always said in these forums i'm a gundam fan first and macross comes second

Macross had better mecha designs and soundtrack, while gundam has the better story. I just can't get my head round the idea of singing to my enemies.

Well...here's another way to look at it...

What the U.N. Spacy essentially did was use Minmay as a tool of psychological warfare. Once it was established that the Zentraedi and Meltrandi had no real concept of music, art, TV, fraternization, sex, or anything else we humans commonly associate with being "cultured", it was easy for us to demoralize the enemy be exposing them to something they couldn't wrap their minds around. These are giant clones manufactured for a single purpose: warfare. Then you also have to factor in the millennias-old standing order to avoid any "Protoculture" at all costs. This doubly insures that no Zentran or Meltran is "contaminated" by something they are psychologically unable to cope with. In effect, someone's iPod would be like using a WMD against them.

Now, in the Gundam universe, sure something like this WOULD sound absolutely ridiculous to you because (usually) both sides fighting one another are roughly the same in terms of the level of "culture" they share. Aside from political ideology, most Gundam adversaries are understandable, no matter what the tech level. So I can see where you're coming from, but as someone who cut his teeth on Macross, I've had many years to see it for what it was supposed to be. Not fully understanding the reasons behind the "Minmay Attack" can make it look a bit silly to those who prefer other mecha shows.

Hope that helps at least a little...

Okay. Got it. SMS's Skull is in no way affiliated with the U.N. Spacy's Skull (or N.U.N.S's Skull, if there IS one). This was something that was never really made clear to me just going on watching the series. And as far as the differences in insignias, fighter groups DO update their insignias every so often...so I figured that within the 50-year timespan between Space War I and the Vajra Incident, Skull just adopted a new one along the way. Why the Jolly Roger was replaced by a cow skull was beyond me...so that should have been my first clue that the two squadrons were independent of one another.

Continuity is still being respected. SDFM TV story events but with DYRL and Macross Plus visuals.

Also to not let a certain dead franchise from profiting from them.

Redwolf, normally I'd agree with everything you've ever said in this area, but considering how Toynami somehow got its hooks into the DYRL license by releasing them in 1/100 scale (complete with Strike FPs, which I'm sure confused several fans of said dead franchise), I'm not so sure DYRL is safe from a certain HG...but that discussion is for another thread.

Okay, so here's another sub-question for you all...I'll post it here instead of creating another thread.

If MacrossF (and all sequel series for that matter) is supposed to be based off of the original SDFM TV series only, then why is Hikaru's DYRL-style red/black VF-1S featured on the top of the school instead of the TV-style yellow/black paint scheme? Every time there's an argument made that everything is based off of the TV series, there's something that pops up that throws a DYRL reference into the mix to make you second-guess everything. The other blatant DYRL reference is at the beginning of most of the first handful of episodes is Bodolza's DYRL "flying pumpkin patch" flagship during the narrator describing the origins of Space War I and subsequent colonization attempts instead of the original asteroid-like construct.

Is this just another example of SK and company pulling elements of what they like from past projects, continuity be damned?

I guess this is a case of opening my eyes (or in this case, ears) for the first time onto something I've previously not allowed myself to enjoy.

This isn't really a question directed at anyone in particular, because I don't think the information on this was ever shared with the general public by SK himself. But then again, I may be wrong...

I know that, by 2059, the U.N. Spacy was reorganized into the New U.N. Spacy (N.U.N.S)...an anacronym that, to this day, sounds like a military division of the Vatican to me...but I digress. After SWI, Skull Squadron pretty much became the poster child for anything remotely related to the U.N. Spacy. We even see glimpses of this fact in MacrossF in the form of Hikaru's DYRL VF-1S (or a replica thereof) being used as a statue atop Alto's school. Being such a well-known Valkyrie squadron and symbol of the U.N. Spacy, you would think that Skull would have remained part of the N.U.N.S. military forces as one of its heavy strike squadrons. But instead, somewhere between 2010 and 2059, Skull became an independent paramilitary outfit...and by all definitions, basically a mercenary group hired to field test prototype military equipment.

I just find this odd, but maybe Skull's history and reputation has allowed it to operate "as it damn well pleases" in the new government? Anyone have any specifics on this?

I've been one of the staunch holdouts here on MW who has loathed MacrossF for all its fanboy pandering. That much is no secret. But on a whim (or out of morbid curiosity, I don't know which), I "procured" a copy of the soundtrack...and man, did it make me sit up and take notice! The musical scores are honestly right up there with anything John Williams ever did. Now before anyone scoffs at my comparison, here's why I say this...

A great musical score is supposed to illicit an emotional response from the listener, evoking mental images of the action going on in the movie the score is overlayed on. When I watched the series the first time through, I largely didn't pay much attention to the background music because so much visual "eyecandy" was going on onscreen. I'm not talking about anything Ranka or Sheryl performed, but the background incidental music. Scores such as "The Target" or "Zero Hour" are absolutely incredible works of music! "The Target" paints mental images of epic dogfights in space, and even seems to have a similar cadence to Williams' "Imperial Attack" from SW Episode IV. "Zero Hour", to me, is an awesome piece because it was the music playing during the Quarter's captain's speech prior to the final battle. This particular score could have even been used in the original TV series or DYRL just prior to their respective final battles...at least in my opinion. It has an energy to it that invokes images of flight crews preparing for the worst yet carrying on with a heroic spirit.

I am amazed at how well-done the entire musical score for MacrossF was done. The soundtrack has more of a motion picture sound to it rather than a weekly TV series. Color me impressed...and a tad surprised.

Any new updates? like price pics?

I think i would appreciate the news.. cause still hunting for a decent SDF-1..

When it was first announced and started making its rounds at the hobby shows in Japan, Yamato reps were quoting an MSRP of 50,000 yen. As of today, the exchange rate puts the price at $522.77 (plus probably $30 to $60 for shipping, considering the nearly 2 1/2 foot length of the thing). But no "official" price has been given yet. So there ya go...a ballpark figure to shoot for.

...plus an extra $75 for the exclusive "Bomba" paint scheme.

I couldn't agree more. i'm really looking forward to this one.

Sorry, because I'm sure it's been mentioned all ready, but when is the VE-1 due?

Chris

September...

Okay...using the techniques shared by anime52k8...and by proxy, Talos as well, I present Diamondback Leader's Strike Valkyrie. It turned out quite a bit better than my first attempt. The panel lines are so much smoother and show up well, even on the midnight blue paint job. Now I just need to work on my gradient shading. Again, thanks guys...

Thanks Mr March and anime52k8 for everything!

The pointers you gave are working out beautifully! I'm currently working on the Diamondback Strike Valkyrie and its turning out awesome using the techniques you suggested.

Now if I can just track down the Elintseeker schematic, I'd have everything I need! I know it exists...I've seen it at least once floating around on here.

...not to mention the most expensive V2 Valkyrie to date.

And I believe the "private parts" is supposed to read something to the effect of "Valkyrie-specific" parts. lol

Gotta love online translation software...

I got a quick question pertaining to Photoshop...

How do you overlay panel lines over objects like the UN Spacy logo, the insignias on the tailfins, etc. I've tried layering in various ways, but I can't seem to achieve the desired effect. If it helps, I'm using Photoshop CS-4 Extended. I'm not a professional Photoshopper by any means, so any tips you guys could give me would be appreciated. My Diamondback Leader has all of its logos sort of "floating" above the surface panels of the Valkyrie...

That's awesome! I can even remember back to when my roleplaying group got ahold of Mekton II and Roadstriker. The humor written into the skill descriptions alone was worth the purchase price for these RPG books. One in particular that I remember is "James T. Kirk from Star Trek has a Leadership of +11...but you never will!" Classic!