Graham

I just noticed something yesterday. When D.D. breaks into the Asuka II, Roy appears in the Armored VF-0S and it is clearly shown up to the point that Roy launches the missiles that the VF-0S is not carrying a gunpod. However, a few seconds later after Roy launches the missiles at D.D. and D.D. evades and leads the missiles back towards Roy, we see Roy using both the VF-0S's head lasers and a gunpod to shoot down the approaching missiles. And then after the VF-0S's Reactive armor gets trashed, we see Roy's naked battroid pick up the gunpod from the floor. So my question is, where did the gunpod come from? Is this just an animation error? Graham

Yup, Yamato does not give head .....sorry, couldn't resist Graham

Favorite dirty sci-fi movie? Err...............'Debby does Deneb V' Graham

Man that would be alot of McDonald's! In the beginning they would use a lot of cows to make those straps. But just think, after the UN Spacy gets hold of resizing chambers from the Zentradi, they could use them to macronize the cows. Heh, 60ft giant cows Graham

The idea to all meet up at the Kowloon Hotel lobby, is because it is; A) A convenient meeting place and close to the MTR. B) It will be easy for us to find each other. C) I would like us all to have a late breakfast/early lunch together so we can sit down, chat a while and get to know each other a bit before we all head out shopping. Tsim Sha Tsui is a good place to eat as there are lots of place to eat. Graham

The new February 2004 issue of Hobby Japan has a small line art pic of all the parts of the VF-0S. Do you model builders call them sprus or runners? Sorry, I'm familiar with the correct model kit terminology Anyway, I've been studying the pic an it looks as if the VF-0S kit does not have a pilot figure. Neither does it come with any wing missiles........boo, hiss! Hopefully this means that Hasegawa will later release a Macross Zero Weapons set similar to what they did for the VF-1. Although I'm not a model builder, because I have no skill at painting. In fact the average 3 year old has more skill than me, I am actually thinking of buying the VF-0S kit and having a local model builder make it for me as I love the VF-0 design and it will be at least 6 months before we see any toys so I need something to tide me over until the toys come out. Graham

LOL.........funniest thing I've read in a while. Used to like Seagal's early films, but gave up on him for good when he started using HK style wire-work in one of his movies. Graham

In the Go Go flashback scene the gross nerd asks her what she thinks of Ferraris, and she says they're Italian trash. Thank you. Graham

Don't ya know, it's to impart more spin to the beam for greater accuracy, increased penetration and whatnot Graham

Err....I don't get it? What's the conection between Ferrari and a fan art pic of a character from Kill Bill? Graham

I finished the game ages ago and gave up trying to get all the 'S' grades just so I could unlock Max, Hikaru & Roy's VF-1S. I've got the VF-4 and Hikaru, Max and Millia's VF-1J, so I'm happy! So just enjoy the game and don't worry about getting 'S' grades unless you are a real completist. Graham

I sorta like some of the plane designs in Yukikaze (but not as much as Mac Zero). Some of the dog fights in Yukikaze are also OK (but not as good as those in Mac Zero IMO). However, what really puts me off Yukikaze and makes it basically unwatchable are the character designs and the angst-ridden behavior of Rei and his boyfriend (the guy with the beard). I've watched the first two eps of Yukikaze and based on those, I have no interest in seeing the third ep. Perhaps if the main character was more believable as a military pilot and less annoying! The basic premise of Yukikaze was interesting, but the OVA has so far been disappointing IMO. I'd give Yukikaze a 3/10 compared to 9/10 so far for Mac Zero. Graham

Already mentioned in the above list, i.e Superman Toys & Ant Shop are in CTMA Center. Graham

Erm.............the gunpod strap could be removed and used as a garrotte to strangle Zentradi. Or whip them! Or used as makeshift handcuffs to tie up captive Zentradi Or used for bondage! See it's multi-purpose really! Graham

Outstanding. And yes, I agree we need larger pics. Graham

Back when I first saw A New Hope as a kid in 1977, I was blown away by the 'wow' factor and really loved the SW ship designs. But as I got older, I started to think more and more about how impractical they really are. The TIE fighter is probably the worst from a pilot's perspective. It has no side visibility, extremely limited top visibility, No rear visibility (or is there a tiny window at the back, I forget?). Even the forward visibilty is crap as it has that heavy canopy frame blocking a lot of the view. Yes, it looks cool, as you said 'visual appeal', but practical, no way jose! And don't get me started on the Millenium Falcon! A space freighter......yeah right! My office desk drawer has more cargo capacity than that ship. As for the canopies in Macross, I doubt they are made of regular glass or polycarbonate (or whatever fighter canopies are made of these days). They are probably some sort of OTM material as they seem very tough. IIRC when Guld caused Isamu's VF-11B to crash in Macross Plus, didn't it skid upside down for quite a while and the canopy still stayed intact? Graham

Back in the 1980's my most prized toy was also my Hikaru 1/72 VF-1S HCM. In the 1990s it was my Bandai 1/55 VF-1S Hikaru Strike Valk. Now it is the Yamato 1/48 VF-1S Hikaru with FAST packs. Graham

That fighter would have terrible downward visibility and also quite poor rear visibility. One of the reason I started going off Star Wars ship designs years ago is that I don't think their ships are particulaly well thought out or practical. IMO, they are designed for visual appeal only. Graham

Aieeee............................Gucci versions! I'll pass. I don't care how well enginered or articualted they are, I don't like Evas, and these days I only buy toys of mecha I actually like as opposed to in the past where I'd buy a toy just because it's a well crafted example of the toymakers art, whether I actually liked the mecha or not. Due to both financial and space constraints my days of buying any pretty toy that cought my eye are long gone and I'm putting myself on a diet of only Macross toys (with the Toynami MPC Alphas for dessert as well)! Graham

With a bit of luck, the wind in the right direction etc, etc the Q-Rau might just make it out from the factory for late January release. I'd say February is more likely though, but what do I know these days! And yes, that picture is of the Yamato DYRL Millia type Q-Rau, but it looks like just a painted resin sample, not an actual diecast and ABS test shot. AFAIK, it will come with a pilot figure. I've only seen pics of the pilot helmet sculpt so far, so I have no idea if the pilot figure is articulated or even if it's a full body figure or just the upper body. Graahm

I have two Japanese books for the very first Armored Core game for the original Playstation. Both books are published by Softbank Publishing. One book is a guide book, the other book is a design book with lots of kawamori lineart. AFAIK, both are long out of print. And sorry, no I'm not going to scan them. Too many pages, not enough time (better things to do with my time), too many backlogged projects for Macrossworld to do, etc, etc......... Graham

You do not need to and should not use force for any part of the 1/48 transformation. When swinging (I prefer the term pivoting) the arms from fighter to Gerwalk mode, there is a stop point halfway. You need to slightly pull the shoulder joint upwards, in order to be able to push them past the stop point. Graham

Agreed, you can learn most of the controls by playing through the in-game tutorial mode. Most us us here don't read Japanese, but we managed to muddle through. You can also try reading through this rather long 40 page thread, where we discussed the game in-depth. Somewhere in there, there may be some hints about the controls. If you are still stuck after playing the tutorial, I'm sure there are many members here, myself included, who will be happy to answer any specific questions you have. Good luck on getting all 20 'S' grades! Graham

A couple of months ago, Kotobukiya realeased a set of Armored Core trading figures for ¥500 each. Although small, these gashapon type figures were quite detailed. See here: Armored Core Trading Figs. Unfortunately, HLJ no longer has stock, although other stores may have. And as I'm sure you know, Kotobukiya used to make a series of Armored Core 'High End' Action figures, which were constructed of PVC & ABS and stood about 14cm high. However, these have been out of production for quite a while now. If you haven't seen these before, go to HLJ, do an advanced search for 'Armored Core' and you will see the whole Kotobukiya Armored Core line. Graham

Women are not built? Damn, what about the one I've been putting together in my basement during my spare time? Graham