SuperSenpai

He's obviously a marketing guy and is paid to put the best possible spin on things. But the most glaring problem I see with all his claims of Robotech's robust health is that none of the things he mentions is a result of HG actually producing any content. The things he's citing are mostly related to other entities producing ancillary content based on acquiring a license from HG (the Japanese toys being the obvious exception). I think history has shown that a media franchise's most reliable indicator of health is whether new content is being produced. Ancillary merchandising is great and all, but with a few notable exceptions, they can't carry the franchise. You need new content to energize the old-timers, as well as capture the attention of younger fans. Look at franchises like Star Wars, Transformers, Star Trek, G.I. Joe etc etc. Say what you want about the quality or appeal of the more current releases, but at least they are actually producing original content that helps to keep the franchise alive.

I haven't experienced the paint-eating effects of the tips, so I can't test this out -- but for those have had this issue, has anyone tried painting the tips with clear nail polish? I don't claim to know anything about manicuring, but don't they use clear nail polish as a top coat on top of the color? I would therefore assume that clear nail polish doesn't react in such a way as to dissolve the color base coat. This is a longshot, but perhaps whatever makes it non-reactive with nail polish would also make it safe for painted model and toy surfaces. As an added bonus, a layer of clear nail polish on the tips would probably add some friction and thus help the stands grip the surfaces a little better.

What??? Focker's VF-1S needs his Skull chest shield. It's like seeing Superman without the "S" on his chest. Did anyone ever have one of those super deformed Bandai VFs back in the day? Bizarre proportions aside, they had one of the more ingenious methods of integrating the canopy cover with the cockpit -- you just rotated the cockpit to reveal the skull.

The 1/60 stickers actually look pretty good on it. Hmmm... giving me some ideas.

The lions run off of Protoculture!

Did you add stickers? Where did you get them from?

Well you know, if you buy a valk a month, that's about the same as a gym membership.

If you look on the Flightpose website, a few Macrossworld forum members have contributed some shots of battroid and gerwalk mode poses. http://flightpose.com/photo/?aix=2

The DYRL off-white and the TV bright-white was a bit of an arbitrary distinction if you ask me. From I can recall, the VF-1S in the TV show was often rendered in a grayish or dull-white tone, not the bright white used on the toy.

I honestly find it hard to believe how anyone could come over to a person's house and openly insult them or otherwise make impolite remarks about their home or their hobby. If you want to judge them, go ahead and do it silently in your head, but verbally expressing it to the person whose home you're in? That's just rude. Maybe I'm just old fashioned, but no matter how slovenly or ridiculous I thought someone (or their home) was, I would just keep it to myself while I'm their guest. As far as guests confusing Macross toys with Robotech or Transformers -- at least you didn't have cousins in Korea who called your VF-1J a "Gundam": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TuhEycaDg4

I keep my toy collection in my office, which is in the basement. I also generally keep the office door closed when we have visitors (esp. if they have small children), so most people never see the collection. The only time people see it is when we occasionally give guests a tour of our house, if they happen to wander in after watching a movie (our theater system is downstairs), or if my wife says "You should see my husband's toy collection. It's pretty cool!" Generally, people react positively to it, especially the guys. Some of my wife's girlfriends simply say "My husband would love to see this." At worst, people might be indifferent about it. I've never heard anyone say anything remotely judgmental about it, but then again most of my guests have manners. I think it also helps to elevate your collection if you display your toys in an elegant manner, like works of art or museum pieces rather than children's playthings, and if the room they are displayed in is well-lit and organized. It can make the difference between looking like an adult hobbyist or an overgrown man-child. Check out the Shelf Porn submission at the Comic Book Resources Robot6 blog: http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/tag/shelf-porn/ They're not Macross or even strictly toy-related, but some collectors have some really elegant and clean-looking set-ups. This is one of my favorites -- and proof that Detolf enthusiasts exist outside of the Macross toy collecting community! http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/06/shelf-porn-face-off-who-has-the-best-shelf-porn-you-decide/2/

Maybe I'm in the minority on this, but as a matter of principle I refuse to pay that much just to get a display stand. That can't have cost them that much to design and make, so the mark up on those things has to be insane. I don't mind paying for expensive items when I know that the expense is justified due to complexity of design, premium materials, high-level craftsmanship, or exceptional quality of build and durability. But we're talking about a plastic stand that took them a few hours to draw up on CAD and costs probably a couple bucks a piece to make in China. That's not worth an extra $40-$50.

David, if you're still looking for a Max TV VF-1A, there's one listed on eBay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/221257135441?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649 Price seems a little steep, at least in my opinion, but free shipping and the seller is in the U.S. and is taking offers. It's been on the market for a few days, so he may be willing to come down in price.

It isn't a terrible deal, esp. considering what the stands are going for these days. But definitely brings you back down to reality a bit when you realize it's a V1 not a V2. A V2 Milia with a Yamato stand for $150 would have been unreal. Heck, even just a boxed V2 Milia for $150 would be a great deal, esp. in the post-Yamato era.

Dude, that was the one I saw too... at first I thought it looked like a great deal -- v2 Milia and a stand for $150? Then I saw the second picture and noticed the detached heatshield and realized that it was a V1. Gakken, hope that's not the one you got.

You know, I saw an auction on eBay for a Millia with a stand -- but it was a V1. You didn't get a V1 did you?

I thought WB paid for the license to make a movie? The comic is being put out by Dynamite Entertainment. But the press release also mentions DC Comics. Dynamite is an independent comic publisher with no corporate ties (to my knowledge) to Warner or DC. Dynamite also has the rights to Voltron (they are currently publishing a Voltron comic), so it's not because of the crossover. I thought maybe it was because Wildstorm, which is owned by DC, still has the comics rights, but weren't planning on doing anything, so maybe they worked out a sub-licensing agreement with Dynamite? That's just speculation on my part though. If that's the case, then it potentially opens up the door for even more crazy crossover madness -- Superman vs. the Zentraedi!

So my question regarding all of this -- why is DC Comics involved? Do they still have publishing rights (I think Wildstorm was the last publisher to put out anything Robotech-related in the comics realm) to Robotech?

He'd have a better chance of selling those if he split them up.

Agreed. It's unfortunate that the manufacturer didn't bother to take any steps to correct the problem, and the best the owner of the company could do is simply recommend not to use the stands for permanent display. On the other hand, it may simply be an inherent property of whatever chemical or manufacturing process gives the rubber tips the necessary friction and elasticity, so there may not be anything they can do about it. That being said, it seems that the undersides of most of the toys I have on the stands have plastic parts molded in color, rather than painted, so I agree that I haven't had a problem finding ways to position them.

There seems to be an assumption that if a toy has die-cast metal, it must be of higher quality that one that is completely made of plastic. I think this is a carry-over from old-school toys made before the 1980s, when die-cast was used much more liberally, and toys generally had much less articulation. I think of things like Matchbox or Hot Wheels cars, where it was expected that they wouldn't have many moving parts, and kids would generally smash them around so it was desirable that a sturdy material be used. Also, a generation or two ago, around when mass produced consumer goods sold in the U.S. were increasingly being made overseas, traditional materials like wood, metal, glass, etc were being replaced with plastic. I think there was an impression among Americans that equated cheaply-made foreign products with an abundance of plastic (seen at the time as a cheap replacement for those older materials) as being of lesser quality than American made goods made from traditional materials. Of course, we all know this reasoning doesn't hold up when dealing with highly-articulated, transformable toys with many fine parts.

This was discussed in another thread in the Toys forum. The owner of the company is aware of the problem, and contacted the manufacturer about it, but the manufacturer doesn't acknowledge it and has taken no steps to correct it. In the meantime, the owner has recommended not using the stands as a permanent display. From reports here, it seems like not every stand eats the paint, and certain batches may be more prone to eating paint than others. Also, it only seems to be a problem on painted surfaces -- parts that are unpainted seem to be fine.

I'm actually constantly amazed by how tight the hip ball joints are on my hi-metal. They seem to have plenty of friction even after a lot of handling.

I pre-ordered mine this past spring, and just got the stands on Monday, FWIW.

Another vote for plug in hands. Even if they can't fold into the compartment, as long as they don't crumble at the slightest touch it will be an improvement.