mikeszekely

Somewhat true. Escaflowne is the typical case of love it or hate it. The number of ppl who like it is just about the same number of ppl who don't. Not to say its a bad show... but with 2 main characters full of angst..... it gives EVA a run for its money. B) . Correction... ppl like 0083 because of the animation and because it was the only Gundam series to get the physics right. Fair enough, Abombz!! I suppose you could argue that for a lot of animes, games, or anything really. I know sometimes I'm the minority because I like Megaman... As for Starust Memory, I'll have to watch it again. I don't remember anything special about physics or any special animation quality... I just remember spectacular mecha battles. But then again, that was back in the days before DVD... I don't remember a heck of a lot from back them. But getting back to Kawamori... for some reason (and I think it's possible, although maybe not likely) I still feel like Kawamori is working on a Gundam, possibly to go on after SEED's replacement. Don't ask me why, it's just a hunch. And you know what? I don't think it'd be a bad thing, although I really wish it was a new Macross TV series.

No we are not. You are just saying that to make yourself feel better. I'm not saying there aren't many Escaflowne fans out there, I'm just saying that its not as popular as you might think. Who's trying to make themselves feel better? <_< I'm not arguing that Escaflowne is a popular series. I'm arguing that of the people who did watch it, though, the majority liked it. Not necessarily loved it, but liked it. The people who outright disliked it seem to be the minority. The overwhelming majority haven't watched it at all.

Well, the next Gundam is a sequel to SEED, that's already been confirmed. It's unlike they'd start another new series, but hey... you never know. As for 0083, Kawamori only did design work on that... I got the impression from the original post that Kawamori is involved with this new series at a creative level. But hey, you never know! According to Bandai.... a new series aimed for the hardcore fans is due out late 2004 around the time the second Seed show is over. Yeah, I'd heard about that, and I figured that the post-SEED series must be more or less finished. They like to replace Gundam with Gundam in Japan (G after V, W after G, and X after W), and SEED is almost at the end of it's run. If Kawamori says he's in the early stages, whatever it is, it will have to go on after SEED. My mistake was in my math (as always)... 2003 should be Gundam's 25, right? So, if Kawamori is working on Gundam, it couldn't be for an anniversary. On the other hand, if he is working on a Gundam series, it could go on after the one that goes on after SEED. Speaking of that Gundam, I would love to see Tomino get back to it, but I'm not sure how I feel about a new UC series. Everything after Char's Counterattack doesn't quite feel like UC Gundam anyway, IMHO. As for Stardust Memory, yeah, Kawamori only did some of the mecha, none of the story or anything. But (and I could be totally wrong) I was under the impression that fans loved Stardust Memory because they loved the mecha.

Anything from 2013-2039 is okay, as long as the story is good and Kawamori gets around to filling in the gaps in the VF-series. Also, a OVA based on VF-X2 would be highly entertaining. But the best choice is for 2051+, because of the possibilities. Maybe, tired of corruption within the UN and with a growing sense of nationalism, many powerful countries break away from the UN. Or maybe a colony declares independence. Or maybe a colony fleet stumbles upon the last outpost of Protoculture, and the story that some people want from during the Supervision Army/Stellar Republic conflict could be told in flashback scence (that way, you get the old stuff but you get new stuff and new VFs as well).

Gundam... I was just thinking that myself! After all, isn't Gundam coming up on 25? Kawamori, after all, was a Gundam fan... and Stardust Memory turned out to be a fan favorite, didn't it? Considering the lukewarm response to more recent Gundam series, Sunrise would want to do something big to catch fans' attentions, and Kawamori + Gundam seemed to work before. Escaflowne... Abombz!, Melissa, and the Commander are the minority. I don't consider myself to be an anime fan... I only have DVDs from three different series. Macross, of course, then Gundam, and Escaflowne, which I thought was brilliant (although the character designs could have been a little better). Even my wife, who can't figure out why I'd want to buy Macross or Gundam, loved Escaflowne. But along with the other Escaflowne fans, I think a sequel would do more harm than good. Escaflowne told the story Kawamori wanted to tell, and ended the way it should have. Macross... don't write Macross off yet. Yeah, Kawamori might have wanted to quit after DYRL. And yeah, his interview in the Design Works book did give the impression that he's tired of doing variable fighters. And yeah, we're probably too far away from Macross' 25th for him to be working on something for that. But Macross is a mecha franchise that is probably only second to Gundam in fame. Toys, models, games, and other merchandise are still being made and still bringing in the money, even if Macross 7 and Macross Zero weren't the runaway hits they might have hoped for. I think Kawamori will continue to do Macross, because if he doesn't, I think Big West will get someone else to do them again, ala Macross II. That said... I kinda get the feeling that it's not another Macross. A brand new series... why not? Not much to say about this one. Of all those possibilities, the one I'd like the best is another Macross. I'm with Lightning06 on this one, we've seen enough of the VF-1, and Space War I is covered pretty well. I wouldn't mind if Kawamori concentrated on 2013-2039, and filled in the gaps in the VF series. I also wouldn't mind a series that deals with the time after 2051. Still, if I have to go on a hunch, I'd say the above possibility that'll turn out to be it is the Gundam one.

Here's another. I think Amuro is trying to say "you're kidding."

I totally feel for you! Not long ago, I went to my local mall, and when I can out, somone had dented the driver's side quater panel right above the headlight on my Mitsubishi! I didn't have have 10,000 miles on her! Now I'm saving to have the dent fixed and repainted, instead of getting the spoiler I wanted, because the repairs will probably cost less than my insurance deductible.

If you have an Xbox, get the Xbox version. I don't want to hear this "The Xbox controller sucks" because the Controller S doesn't. Maybe the big one, but I've logged 20 hours in on the Xbox version with a controller S, and it's smooth like butter. The Gamecube version looses out because the controller sucks. I played the Cube version at work a lot, and it in no way shape or form works for SCII, unless you really like the big A button a lot, or you can play with the analog stick because the D-pad is just poorly sized and poorly placed. Still, get the Gamecube version if you don't have an Xbox. The only reason to get SCII for PS2 is if it's all you got. You need another videogame to play just to keep entertained during the ridiculous load times. As far as the exclusive characters go, yes, Heihachi is a waste, but I've got to tell you, I'm not thrilled with Spawn, either. I haven't played as Link, but let's face it... most of the single-player game is going to be in the Weapon Master mode, and you're going to use your favorite/best character(s) in WM mode. I kinda doubt that Heihachi, Spawn, or Link make that list. For me, it's Yunsung, Kilik, Maxi, and Talim. For those of you saying that you're going to skip SCII and just replay SC on your Dreamcasts, knock yourselves out, but I think you're doing youselves a disservice. Yeah, Soul Calibur was a groundbreaking game that was ahead of it's time. And yes, Soul Calibur II is not so groundbreaking. Does that mean that SCII is inferior to the original? Hardly. It just shows how far games have come since the Dreamcast launch. Soul Calibur II doesn't blow me away the way the original did because there are a ton of great-looking, great playing games around today. Soul Calibur was simply the best-looking game on a console period when it came out, and the deepest fighting game for it's time. SCII might not be as groundbreaking, but it still improved over the original.

The Japanese aren't the only ones making amusing mistakes. This is a picture I took of an amusing subbing mistake from the Anime Cartoon version of first Gundam. What Amuro is trying to say is that there are bombs on the Gundam.

There's a point where the death of a main character adds realism and impact to the story, and there's a point where killing off too many main characters and making the ending as tragic as possible is no more realistic than happy ending. Anyone remember Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon? SPOILERS IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT! When Chow Yun Fat's character died, it was a believable part of the story. Now if they would have left it at that, fine, but having Zhang Ziyi's character commit suicide after she's finally able to be with her boyfriend, that was just stupid, reguardless of their little story about flying away or whatever. END OF SPOILERS. I think that Guld dying gave you that realistic tragic death for impact. I think killing off Isamu too would have been overkill.

Canon, as it applies to Macross, is basically anything that Kawamori sees fit to include in his Macross universe, be it anime, designs, or videogames. Examples of canon Macross would the SDF Macross, Macross Plus, Macross 7, Macross VF-X2, etc. Non-canon can be official. Macross II is an official Macross production. However, Kawamori chose to consider Macross II an alternate timeline, and is therefore considered non-canon. Even if Kawamori does it, it doesn't necessarily make it canon. Kawamori designed the very cool SW-XA series of variable fighters for some magazine, someone help me with the title. Even though Kawamori designed them, and made up a backstory for their development that could fit in with canon Macross, Kawamori has decided (for now) to keep them out of canon.

Now that Gamestop has changed there return policy (again) Gamestop and EB are exactly the same again. Since I can't return games I don't like anymore. I'll go to fry's or Best Buy since they are always cheaper. Sorry! The reason for the change in the return policy is because if you bought a game, played it for a day and returned it because it sucked, we'd shrink wrap it and sell it as new, because it basically was and because we'd lose a lot of money if we refunded full price but had to sell it as used. I don't think most of us hear would mind to buy a "new" game that might have been played one time in exchange for being able to return a crappy game, especially since you can return defective games if re-wrapped game didn't work. But you know, somebody always ruins it for everyone, right? In this case, that someone sued. Gamestop may been one of the biggest retailers of videogames, but we really don't have the financial resources of Wal-Mart or Best Buy, so it hit us hard. The change in the return policy was inevitable after that.

Bah! The Xbox controller sucks at anything period. The GC controller is much better..... except for fighting games, but then again... both are bad fro fighting games. But you are right.... Gamestop is better then EBworld. If you're talking about the original Xbox controller, sure, I'd agree with you. But the newer Controller S? I prefer it for most games, even over the PS2's Dual Shock 2.

Then I shall save $50 by keeping my JP GC version, and use the money for F-Zero X. F-Zero is crazy fast. I picked that up as well. Whooooooooo. Almost makes your guts wanna crawl out. Man... you guys better put more Wavebirds on your Christmas Lists. I heard that game is hard... not as in "challenging so you get your money's worth" hard, but more like "I'd rather go and cut the grass" hard.

Guys, buy at Gamestop, because I work there! Gamestop is cooler than EB anyway. I got the Xbox version. In addtion to having Heihachi for a lame bonus character, the PS2 has slowdown and nasty load times. As for Gamecube... Link is cool, but NOT my favorite character. And the Controller S beats the Wavebird for fighters. The art book is a very nice freebie, but beware Voldo's page...

I guess stowage involves flipping the backpack up and "closing" the wings like Battroid mode. Oversweep could be a position that has some other use, like in Gerwalk mode.

Well, what DO you have to do to be qualified as sick in your book?

You do realize that you can set the AI behavior to avoid things like that? Just set it to "far". Yeah, I tried that. But, my ally was a Zock... he (or maybe she) kept plugging away from afar with those beam weapons, nailing me in the ass all the while. Yeah, I never played the Dreamcast version, just the domestically released PS2 version, but the ally AI had serious problems. Whenever I'm in trouble, my allies are nowhere to be found, and whenever things are fine and I'm going for a Newtype Rank, my allies switch targets to hurry up and pick enemies off before my shots reach, just to lower my accuracy. And personally... I don't think they listen to those commands you can give them. Unless things are really hairy, I try to tell them to "Hide," so they'll get out of my way. 10 seconds later, they're right behind me, trying to hit the target I'm after, and pegging me more often than not. Yeah, ally AI needs some fixing. Something else they should fix? Melee combat. I lost count of how many times I knocked an enemy down, moved in for the kill with my melee weapon, and somehow the enemy puts away it's gun, draws it's melee weapon, and bludgeons me with it. I didn't dread the space missions, but they certainly weren't as fun as the ground missions. Space just felt... akward to move around, I guess. But they really weren't that bad. I really hope they're more selective about how much and when they use music from the anime. I haven't seen Zeta Gundam to know what the music is like, but I do know that first Gundam's music was lacking at best, and the vocal tracks were terrible. And not only did Federation Vs. Zeon use the series' vocal tracks, but it used them in like 15 missions in a row, and they were always long missions so that the song had two loop two or three times per mission.

I hope they do away with that "friendly fire" crap or revamp ally AI. I played a mission on the Zeon side, were you and an ally attack Federation forced on Side 7. I picked a Gouf, and I assigned a Zock to my ally. As I usually do with a Gouf, I charged the enemy mobile suits to get close enough to use my Heat Rod. My ally always seemed to zero in on whatever enemy I was charging, reguardless of how many other targets their were, and I swear it shot me more than it shot the enemy.

Sweet! After a friend loaned me The 08th MS Team, I got back into Gundam and picked up Federation Vs. Zeon on a whim... what a great whim that's been! It was the only game I bought since Megaman Network Transmission that I really enjoyed this summer (thank God Soul Calibur II comes out this week). But my only gripe about it was that the best mecha in the game looked so... old. I really wanted to play as some other Mobile Suits. A new Gundam game with mecha from Zeta Gundam works well for that, but I have to admit that I'm a little dissapointed that they skipped over Stardust Memory. I hope that if there's a third in the series, Char's Counter Attack isn't similarly overlooked, because Nu Gundam is my favorite UC Mobile Suit. Anyone know if Capcom is working with Bandai on AEUG Vs. Titans the way they worked with Bandai on Federation vs. Zeon?

But one thing... in the screenshot, the knees on the legs DO bend forward. So it's either an animation error, or the legs bend both ways. As for it looking more advanced than the classic Destroids, I disagree. With wheels on the legs, it almost looks like an armored vehicle that can stand up. Also, it almost looks like a believable piece of military hardware, whereas the classic Destroids don't. This new Destroid is a more complicated and detailed design, but let's not confuse complicated and detailed with more advanced.

Actually, I don't think I could sit through LOTR without that little break in the middle to go to the bathroom, take a nap, something.

Ah.....same here. Which one are you going for? PS2? Gamecube? X-Box? I gotta have my favorite character - LINK! B) I'm going to have to go with Xbox. The PS2 version was out of it from the start, since I heard that there are mad load times, slow down, and Heihachi sucks (for Soul Calibur II, anyway... well, yeah, with that diaper, he sucked in Tekken 4, too). It was close for Gamecube and Xbox for me, since the Cube has the cooler character but the Box has the better controller. I eventually decided to go with Xbox, since my best friend is getting the Cube version. I want to play as Link, I'll go to his house. He wants to play as Spawn, he can come to my place.

I hear ya, MilkMan. Actually, kiddies have overrun every other forum I've ever been on, from Megaman to Korean Music. I swear, we could go to a forum about nuclear physics and you'd have some kid on with posts like "Neutrinos are way cooler than quarks, and anyone who doesn't agree sucks!" That's why MW is so special. Well, maybe we can get an official Gundam thread here, and we can have private Gundam discussions amongst ourselves.

Not this Tuesday. I'll wait and see if there's another fancy pants edition. Besides, this week, gotta save the money for Soul Calibur II.