brouken

haha...nope, those are Hasegawa's vf-22s... something else...

I spy VF-4. Hasegawa?

If Fold Quartz is unique to the Vajra then how does Bilra know anything about it? Does he have a relationship to the 117th also? Is it possible Fold Quartz has other origins as well (although likely not nearly as plentiful)? It seems definite at this point that the V-type infection is related to the Vajra (hence the earlier issues with quarantines). We know that Grace and Mao worked together on some scientific project. I'm guessing Sheryl was one experiment: she was infected with the V-type virus and then given inhibitors to control its development. Ranka was a second type of experiment probably done more under Mao's supervision (perhaps a fusing of Vajra DNA which helps negate the effects of the V-type infection and also causes Ranka to develop fold crystals internally like a Vajra queen).

We also know that, as evil as Grace is, she really is working toward accomplishing a feat so grandiose that the Protoculture themselves were unable to accomplish it. It would appear that this feat is timeless/flawless folds and fold communication which would shrink the universe down from infinite vastness to a tiny neighborhood. I would suspect that Grace's sin is hubris and we will eventually learn that there's a reason the Protoculture never got to the place Grace is striving for. In the meantime, is it possible that Grace just needs a huge enough Vajra body count so that she can harvest enough Fold Quartz to make her vision a reality and that's why she keeps spurring all these battles? Is she just trying to make it appear that destroying all the Vajra is the only way humanity will be safe so that she can ensure herself enough crystals?

You talk about Grace as if she's the single responsible person for all of this. Grace is no longer a singular consciousness, but part of a greater collection of consciousnesses. So I doubt if Grace the individual is the sole perpetrator of these events.

But I do agree with you that whoever Grace is working for/with does want to harvest fold crystals quickly, and possibly for a different purpose than Mr. Birla. Maybe Galaxy Corp. is just interested in monopolizing the market for fold crystals, with Mr. Birla as one of their well paying clients.

And indeed, what faster method of harvesting than by causing an endless slaughter of Vajra, using the Frontier to do their dirty work.

Sneaky corporations. Always out to make a profit.

I agree that the Vajra are biologically engineered WMDs.

I believe that their true form are microscopic organisms responsible for the V-type infection which increases aggression in their hosts (Hydra, Sheryl), except for one: Ranka.

I believe that the huge bio-mechanical "Vajra" that the Frontier people are fighting now are merely hosts, whose original forms were those of Ai-kun. After being infected by the V-type infection, which is the "true" form of the Vajra, these creatures then evolve into their present form.

Perhaps the V-type infection/Vajra, changes the biological structure of their hosts, forcing them to evolve into mindless killing machines that are controlled by the Vajra microorganisms on the cellular level. Which explains why they have no brain (host brain is eliminated to ensure full control by the Vajra organism).

Maybe the 117th engineers chose Ai-kun's race for their subjects because they have simple brains and biology (i.e. easily controlled and manipulated by the Vajra organisms). Whereas humans, because of their complex thought processes/sentience are not so easily manipulated, hence the varying manifestations of the disease (Sheryl=agressive, Ranka=meek).

Or, maybe the 117th were simply experimenting on how the Vajra organisms affect different hosts, and accidentally caused Ai-kun's race to evolve into what they are now, with disastrous results for them.

A penny for your thoughts.

Right. So after reading the past "walls of text", I have an interesting theory to float into the discussion (with corresponding wall of text of my own) :

Sheryl is infected by the V-type infection correct? What do we know of this disease that has been more or less revealed so far?

1) That it is somehow related to the Vajra: Man-grace says to Leon in "Legend of Zero" - "Izure ni wakaru, Varja no hontou no ozoroshiisa wa..." (You'll soon understand how truly terrifying the Vajra are) after saying that they've transplanted a Eden raised Hydra into Frontier. We now know in ep. 18 that that Hydra was infected with the V-type infection.

2) That one of the V-type infection's known symptoms is, get ready...AGGRESSION.

Sooo, if Sheryl is suffering from V-type sickness, and all that Grace was doing was to inhibit the virus not cure it, what conclusions can we draw from this?

Is Sheryl's so called "aggressiveness" truly part of her personality? Or is it merely a byproduct of the V-type virus in her system, modulated as it is with the "receptor blocker" pills that Grace was secretly feeding her? Remember, Klan said that "It cannot cure the illness, but it mitigates the symptoms."

Of course one can argue that it is entirely possible that Sheryl already had a "strong personality" by virtue of her having lived in the slums. Poverty hardens you after all. But judging from the scenes of her during this time in her life, as revealed in ep 18, she seemed more frightened and lost to me rather than being strong and streetwise.

Now that Sheryl is NO LONGER taking the receptor blocker/inhibitor pills, can we reasonably expect her aggressiveness to increase dramatically? More interestingly, what happens to her once she is CURED of the disease?

What is V-type sickness? Leon and co. have been quite thorough in screening everyone who has come into close contact with the Vajra for this disease.

Point of interest would be his comments on Ranka, whom he had also screened. Ranka, as we know, first came into contact with the Varja during the 117th research expedition. So it is entirely possible that she is already carrying the V-type infection prior to her coming to Frontier.

But instead of exhibiting the aggression now associated with the disease, Ranka is generally meek and insecure. What is preventing the V-type infection, assuming that she is infected by it, from manifesting itself in this manner?

V-type. V. Vajra.

I forgot which episode that was (possibly in "Memories of Global") that there was a very brief scene of some microscopic creatures being affected by Ranka's singing. Is this the V-type disease? Or are these the true nature of the Vajra? Maybe both?

Which begs the question, are these things that the Frontier been fighting all this time not the true form of the Vajra themselves, but rather shells to house their true microscopic forms?

Sheryl. Ranka. Vajra. Triangular...

Good episode! (Took me long enough to get it, and quickly enough to go through it.)

Sheryl - How the mighty have fallen

Grace - My how you've grown since we first saw you!

Ranka - Still hasn't grown enough, even though she's being billeted as the new Lynn Minmei. (Looks at the Koenig noseart and screencap of Minmei's chest in DYRL) Yep. Long way to go.

Alto - Ore ga otoko nandayo! O-TO-KO!

Ozma - How come you're still in bed? Pineapple cake THAT bad? Or maybe too little Basara?

Bobby - In a catfight with the Quarter ladies over discounted linen = priceless

Overall, again, good episode despite some of the recycled mecha and battle scenes.

No .avi file for episode 18 yet?

Oh yeah, any of you guys know what converter I can used to convert video files into PSP .mp4 files? I'm going to Nagano for conference next month and I want to bring my PSP so I can watched frontier on the trip.

Download Xvid2PSP and follow Sergorn's instructions above for soft subbed episodes!

We've got a lot of votes for the locker scene so far.

To those who voted: there's one thing bugging me though...did Sheryl...you know...ever...reached her peak in there?

If she did, then that makes the locker scene WAAAAY hotter!

Girls getting the big "O" is always is huge turn on for me!

"Good Luck Finding Out!"

What happened to them that is.

The scene with Sheyrl and Alto in the locker with the vibrating phone.

Graham

Second this.

But then for me, Macross in general IS erotica.

Nothing says sexy than the VF-1 battroid's big cock...pit.

Yo Sergorn!!!

You da man! I did exactly as you instructed, and it all worked! IT WORKED! I now have two episodes of gg's subs in mp4 version, WITH ALMOST NO QUALITY LOSS! COMPLETELY PLAYABLE ON PS3! I'll be encoding more episodes from here on out!

After splitting hairs searching around video forums, downloading almost every video encoder, subtitle encoder and muxer out there, yours was the solution that worked! No more MKV problems for me! W00T!

Let me say it again for you: YOU DA MAN!!!

Funny, I just stump across Xvid4PSP a few days ago. I wanted to make a Full 1080p HD hardsub of the Yack Deculture of Ep01 to read on my PS3 - and it actually worked very well.

It's actually quite simple. All you need is the "ffdshow video decoder"

First you need to extract the .ass file from the mkv file using MKVExtract.

Then you launch XVid4PSP, and open the video you want to encode.

In the bottom right of your screen there should be the ffdshow icon, double click on it, the goes to "Subtible" and be sure to check the box.

Under subtitle : choose "File" then select your .ass file. Now ffdshow will automatically add the subtitles to any video you play. You can check your video under XviD4PSP, you should see the subs in it.

Now you simple choose the codecs/format you want and encore the Video... and voilà ! You should have a beautiful video with hardsubs ! Don't forget to uncheck the subtitle box in the ffdshow filter after this

-Sergorn

Hey thanks! I'll try this right now!

Ah---despite the name, xvid4PSP works perfect for what I need. It also seems that it can do "almost anything". It'll take Divx, AVI, MKV, OGG, Xvid etc, and convert it so that a PS3/360/Ipod can read it. It's by far the fastest way to hard encode subs onto a file. Frontier on an Ipod...

Now to convert more episodes.

I've done a bit of research and I've come up with Xvid4PSP too! But here's the thing: it cannot read the ASS subs from MKV. At least, not in my experience.

Can you share how you managed to encode your Frontier episodes using this? Are you using the mkv-coded episodes? Which ones?

Thanks a lot!

That's all I've found, too...I got Lunar for 12 and 13, and I'm getting all of Kei for good measure. Thank goodness for my brand-new, only 1/5 full 500GB hard drive...

Thanks!

I've got a question for the Lunar guys here (if they're here, that is): why is it that the PS3 cannot recognize your Xvid encodes? Is it because you encode them at 24 bit rates? That's the only difference I see between your encodes and Shinsen's.

Again, any feedback would be helpful. Thanks!

Go back a couple of pages...one of the guys from Shinsen said that Frontier is currently on hiatus...

I hope they get back to it, but I'm currently downloading any XviD version that I come across.

I know I'm not supposed to ask for links, but I'd like to ask how many gg-reencodes to Xvid are out there? I've found only episodes 14 to 16 so far (downloading them as I type this).

I've downloaded all of gg's mkv files. I made the mistake of watching them on GOB player, so the subs weren't displayed properly (I also saw that comment about Ranka in Episode 17). But I took one of the gg members' advice on this thread and watched it using Classic Media Player with the CCCP and the subtitles were a huge improvement.

My other question is, is there a way to convert gg's mkv's into avi format without losing the intended formatting for the subs? I've tried using MKV2VOB, but while the video conversion is okay, the subs are not (the formatting of the subs are wrong).

I want the avi format because my wife and I watch MF on our PS3. (Shinsen Sub's avi's look phenomenal on the PS3 by the way! Thank God Sony didn't block out upscaling of video files!).

Appreciate any feedback on this. Thanks!

That would be ep 10, after the credits of the Birdman movie, when Ranka was introduced to the stage as the actor for Mao Nome. Ozma, watching from home, said something about it "being fate that Ranka plays Dr. Mao."

Hey, thanks for that!

Didn't Sheryl mention she was "all-natural" in episode 3 when they were trapped in the shelter? But then again, maybe she's been led to believe that.

Does she ever make mention of her parents? I seem to recall Grace or some other character saying something about it. Or is that my overactive imagination at work?

hmmm... how is Sherlyn & Ranka linked with Macross Zero story? am i missing something...

I was wondering that myself too. Until I realized that Sarah and Mao have "Nome" as their last name. Which makes Sheryl Nome their...

I'm rewatching the past episodes to see if I've missed a mention of a "Dr. Mao Nome" somewhere.

I use a small flat head screwdriver to get those intakes open, as well as getting the landing gear out.

Thanks! I'll try that one out!

No scratches inside the intake for you then?

I don't have any problem just using my finger nails. And I bite mine to holy hell.

How come you used a hobby blade. There must be a dozen other things that you could have used with the same thickness but less scratching potential.

Yeah, my bad using the craft knife. But there really isn't anything that would fit in between the cover and intake and have the structural integrity to be used as leverage. The gaps are too thin. I'd take a pic but my valk is in the office right now (using my home computer). A hobby knife seemed the logical choice at the time.

One question though...

Just how exactly THIN are your fingernails that you can use them to open the intakes? Man, I wouldn't want to have a catfight with you...!

Anyway, for the VF-0S, the manual says to press down on the bottom of the intake cover to pop them out. That doesn't seem to work with the v.2 1S though.

Any other trick the other v.2 1/60 owners here use to open their intakes?

Finished watching 17 today! (I REALLY need to get a faster ISP!)

Man, this episode absolutely REEKS of fanservice!

I spoiled it for myself though. I've been browsing this thread way before the torrent was finished. So I already knew how the episode would end.

But then, killing off Ozma at this stage wouldn't have made too much sense storywise in my opinion. He's still too underdeveloped as a character, so there isn't really enough of an emotional investment in him to have made proper Pineapple salad. But this was a good episode to show us more of where he's coming from (and where he is possibly headed).

I haven't seen all of Macross 7 yet. I've gone through Dynamite, but was completely lost. Good thing I've played the original VFX to appreciate "Try Again"!

I'm DEFINITELY collecting Skull-1's from now on!

Help guys!

Is there any simple way to get those darn intake covers off without using a thin object to pop them off?

I've been using a craft blade to pry the covers out. But when I looked at the top of the intake area, some of the gray paint has been scratched off due to the blade hitting that area when I insert it to take the covers off. I'm really pissed at damaging my own valkyrie like this.

The manual doesn't really say how to do this properly. Either it assumes you've got fingernails as thin as razor blades, or there is some other trick that it fails to mention.

Anyway, I'd appreciate some feedback on this. TIA!

Same thing happened to me last night. I was on my bed doing barrel rolls overhead (yeah?! So what!?) and a tiny piece of plastic shrapnel came out. I also went over the valk but came up with nothing.

BTW. Anyone bothered by the tiny tabs that lock the canopy down? Couple of people I spoke to don't like it but they are there in the lineart which I forgot all about.

Barrel rolls huh? Have you tried loop-de-loops?

Seriously, who wouldn't want to zoom around with this valk? Its so tight and solid that you can't help but hold it aloft and fly around with it.

Anyway, about the canopy tabs. If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have noticed! They're pretty much invisible in low light so it doesn't bother me one bit.

I've gone through a fair bit of transformations and I haven't had any shrapnel fall out on me yet. Hopefully, it won't happen ever.

Oh, and that Yamato video was VERY helpful. Thanks for that!

HAHA i see what you mean

yeah the VF-0S i have is floppy in jet mode,

this cant be helped...

but mine has no loose joints,

shoulders are 'A' OK!

note the shoulder "pads" in my photos which i point upward,

it was only possible to do this after adding some super glue inside to create residue and give some friction.

else it would be too loose and the shoulder "pads" just flop down.

but this is only a small problem =)

this fix was worth the effort, as u see in my first pic,

shoulder pads pointing upward in GERWALK mode is darn awesome (assuming you will agree with me ).

Thanks man!

Yours has loose shoulder armor? That's weird because they're pretty tight in my 0S. Its disheartening to hear that even the supposedly fixed 0S with the Ghost pack is also floppy. I thought they fixed that. Oh well.

Anyway, back on topic, I've put on the fast pack on my 1S and it went from gorgeous to OOOH-LA-LA! THIS is the valkyrie that I've been wanting to have since I became a fan of Macross many, many years ago! Thank you Yamato for making this wonderful toy!

Greetings from Malaysia! At last i got my 1/60 vf-1s with strike parts, and have been scrutinizing the toy for the past 2 days. i compared him with the vf-0s and the 1/48 vf-1a. man there is so many things to say, but overall, the new 1/60 simply rocks.

Great pics man!

OT, I see that you have the VF-0S with Ghost pack. How is it? Is it floppy or loose in the joints? Are the shoulders okay? I'm thinking of getting the ghost combo (I'm so pissed off with my first gen 0S), so I'd appreciate a little feedback on it. terimah kasih!

I hate it when Western people elevate Japanese to some superior beings capable of deeper thought and greater humanity than mere mortals. They`re regular people and after you live here a while you realise that most of them are actually hollow, shallow jerks who don`t give a fvck about anyone but themselves. Take yesterday on the train. I was waiting to ask the station staff a question, this girl 4 or 5 times directly tried to cut in front of me, I kept moving to block her and eventually got to ask my 5 second question. Happens all the time. Then getting on the train, people will push in front, then no one will EVER get up for elderly. This like 100 year old woman was just standing in front of the priority seats and THREE 15 yo punks just sat there with their PSPs IN the priority seats ignoring her. I told em to move and they did but not until I said. They were totally oblivious. Don`t tell me Japanese have some kind of superhuman perception of nuance because they`re pretty oblivious to everything around them in my experience.

Uhm, first of all dude, I'm not "western". (Well, okay, maybe just a little. Being a Filipino, I can trace some of my ancestry to some Spanish roots, but then that's already how many generations back). I was born and raised with Asian ideals so I can definitely relate to a lot of the things that the Japanese consider important, culturally speaking.

I won't deny the fact that I'm fascinated and have a great deal of respect for the Japanese. This notwithstanding the fact that Japan invaded my homeland in WWII and did a lot of atrocities to my people. A lot of our elders in the Philippines still remember the time of the "Death March" and the use of Filipinas as comfort women, not to mention a lot of other horror stories of Japanese soldiers tossing babies in the air to be bayoneted or of men and women being used as human practice dummies for katana-wielding imperial officers. Our history classes still teach us about the so called "Greater East Asian Co-prosperity Sphere", and the puppet Philippine government used by the Japanese to promote the idea. We definitely have not forgotten about our dark history with the Japanese, and I certainly hope our younger folk won't.

So no, I don't "elevate" them to "superior beings". And I certainly don't think them any more capable of humanity than the next person in this forum. Sure they have A-holes in their society. But so do we.

I've ridden the MRT and LRT in Manila, and the JR Trains in Japan (lived there for a year under student scholarship) as well as the subways in several other countries. And I can tell you sadly enough, that young punks without respect for elders are becoming rampant these days.

But an apathetic youth is the problem of the entire human race in general, and is something to be discussed and addressed, not just by our leaders, but by ourselves as well.

I apologize to dreamweaver for this somewhat unrelated post in this thread. Let me end by saying that there are many things that the Japanese have that are worthy of admiration, respect and even emulation. I'll be audacious and say that EVERYONE in this forum acknowledges this as fact in one way or another. Macross after all, is a Japanese product.

Another Perfect vote here! Just one minor complaint though.

Man, that new QC guy must've been briefed very thoroughly about the floppiness of the VF-0 series, because this new valk is freakin tight, and I don't mean that in the slang term for cool.

I can imagine the QC guy giving a talk to the factory heads: "Okay, we've got a million complaints about how loose and floppy the VF-0 toy is. I don't want anymore of that you hear? I want this new valk to be tighter than a sheep's @$$! No, TIGHTER. You've got to realize you're working for Japan Inc. now! You ain't making Taiwan knock-offs here! You all ain't getting PAID until you make this new bird solid as a rock!"

Those poor Chinese workers must've been scared outta their pants because all the joints on this valk literally is TIGHT as hell. So tight, that I cringed each time I tried to move a joint or lock/unlock something into place.

Fortunately for me, I've gotten through battroid mode without anything breaking. No cracked shoulders and crotch hinges.

Let me re-emphasize though that the crotch area is a MAJOR pain in the @$$ to get right every time. Make sure you get the angle of the hip bar JUST RIGHT, or you'll be cursing left and right trying to figure out how to get that thing into the fuselage area and out again. Friendly advice.

All in all though, the v.2 1/60 is light years ahead of the VF-0, in all aspects but design (but that one's because of Kawamori himself, not Yamato) . Good work Yamato! You've made a believer out of me with this one!