jenius

Are we discussing the outcomes or the story? Think of it as trains. Say your board the same train on two different days but on one day you follow it to the next stop down. Will that make it feel like a brand new train to you? No, you'll just feel like you took the same train to a different location. Summary of the two episodes: 1) Please show up to Miss Macross 2) I'm competing in Miss Macross but these other girls are so much better at this than I am 3) I'll wow them with a song! 4) Oh no, the boy I like is missing! 5) Boy, it sure is incovenient I had to leave the show. 6) Oh no, bad guys! 7) Good, bad guys are defeated, but someone is going to need to drag me home. (end similarities) In one the girl wins, in the other she loses 9) In one the bad guy is totally dead, in the other the bad guys escape in an emergency vehicle. So, you're right, the stories are only about 77% the same... and I don't know why that doesn't equate to me feeling like this is totally fresh...

I'm definitely NOT arguing that all the new characters are meant to represent the old ones. That said, doesn't it feel to you like the Miss Macross episode played out a lot like "What would happen if Ranka tried to be Miss Macross instead of Minmay and Alto had to leave during the show instead of Hikaru?" The events then unfold but with the different characters and the outcome is essentially the same except Ranka doesn't win the contest and no spies escape in a pod. Besides that, all I'm arguing is that the events feel too familiar, not that they're carbon copies. If they were copies we'd all be complaining. I am certainly not ignoring the many differences, I've even pointed many of them out. The fact remains some key elements occasionally don't feel fresh. Again, I still like the show, I just hope they slim down the 'homages' a bit. Give me a camera angle that's familiar, give me a location that's familiar, I don't need events that seem lifted right from the original... but with a TWIST! "Ha, you totally thought Ranka was going to win Miss Macross but she didn't!" I only thought that because the rest of the episode was so familiar.

Uh, Alto still caught Ranka... maybe there was a stylistic change but that doesn't really change the scene. Girl plummets to death, boy nearly dies saving her, both live, huzzah! Or the Miss Macross homage. Girl implores boy come to show, boy shows, boy gets called away, girl looks at a crucial time to find he's not there. Those are AWFULLY familiar scenes. By no means am I making the argument that MacF is just a rip-off of Macross, there are tons of nice differences, I just think it feels a bit too familiar at times. So far that hasn't turned me off too much but the series itself is never going to feel really fresh to me until I watch an episode that doesn't have a major plot element lifted from the first series (even if there is a nice twist on it). By the way, the "oh no we're trapped" homage I felt was much more fun in Mac F than it was in the original series so it's not all bad even when it is familiar (although the original was much more poignant and there's something to be said for that obviously).

Because we've seen it before. The Alto saving Ranka one is a good example. I didn't mind the Gerwalk mode ending of the first episode that was so similar to Macross because it was subtle, the shot itself is a nice homage. It just seemed to go too far when we once again having a girl falling perilously (even if upward) only to be saved by an opening cockpit yadayadayada. I've seen that before, it was great the first time. I like the minor homages but I don't like that sinister feeling that I start getting during an episode that makes me think I know what's going to happen next. That's what I'm really hoping Macross F avoids and Thank GOD Ranka didn't win Miss Macross. Still, did you know the moment Alto made plans to go see the competition he'd be called away half way through it? I bet you did because it was obvious within the context and because you'd seen it before under slightly different circumstances. I'm still on the fence, I think they're not getting too carried away just yet... but I do hope they break away 'cause I don't want to feel like I know what happens next, I like being surprised. The point that these repeated elements are not akward to people unfamiliar with the show doesn't hold a lot of water. A remake is a brand new movie to someone who hasn't seen the original... it doesn't mean it should be billed as a sequel. Again though, I'm not saying I'm not liking MacF but I certainly see where the complaint is coming from.

YES, humanity needs to be more perverse! They're definitely laying the homages to the original series on WAY thick at this point. For all of you who think they're not over-doing it, imagine the series thusfar without ANY homages. It'd be a pretty thin skeleton of a story. So yes, there are a ton of differences to find within the homages but it definitely is relying pretty heavily on the original series thusfar. I've been okay with it through 4 episodes but I'm really hoping we see a drastic thinning of homages going forward.

True, Basara was a Macross super hero as portrayed in Mac7. We're also on the verge of just having to accept that G-forces are going to be overcome by some technology by some race. I can just see it now... Protoculture pilots will sit in embryonic sacks with a fluid that nullifies G forces in their bio-mechs... I'll bet we already saw that in MacZero.

In RT terms, IIRC there's an episode where Scott tells Rand the Cyclone won't transform if the rider isn't wearing the requisite armor. I think it's that second episode where Rook shows up and saves the day.

My odds on Toynami book box holding a chunky: 1:1,000,000

Very nice! I can't wait to see the custom weathered versions!

Something wicked this way comes....

Maybe in a few months there'll be Macross banners on MacrossWorld instead of Bubblegum Crisis or Megazone ones....

This could mean GREAT things in a LOT of ways.

Holy crap, I don't even understand what's happening in some of those Ride Armor pics but I'm thrilled. Whoa. The exhaust pipe work alone is super impressive. What's going on with the gauntlets and the front part of the bike? Wow... just wow.

I think it's just the Miria figure whose size is 1/72, the Q-Rau itself is 1/60.

Ah, didn't realize those were custom stickers, I thought they were just the MH stickers or something.

Why are there UN Spacy logos on that Ride Armor decal sheet?

Yes, they have several threads about it.

Pretty sure I heard the molds for this were dusted long ago with the chunky GBP. The good news is I got an absolutely MIB Taka 1/3000 for $500 and I've heard of people finding them even cheaper. Keep an eye out, deals do pop up occasionally.

not scifi, not toys, not macross, not anime, somewhat political... yeah, I'm surprised it's not locked already.

Do you have other Yamatos? Did you check the usual hiding spot behind the tray?

I honestly really doubt that. First, they'd retail for retail price, not some collector's price so the profit margin wouldn't be huge per unit. Second, they're a recon and trainer unit (not including the strike) so most people don't like them (why the first two didn't sale huge). Third, these chunkies are the same toy from the wee 80s which no doubt has some charm for the sentimental but the likelihood of them competing well against the new Yamato 1/60 offerings seems REALLY slim. We're about to have all sorts of original Macross saturation again. If I'm Bandai I do a limited chunky reissue with some new repaints but focus my energies on Mac:F and just let Yamato win this round.

w00t! Yeah, the points are just the barcode right?

On the Zents, are they part of NUNS? The captain of the ship bets on them as "his" guys right? It sounds like Michael explains to Ozma that the girls are part of SMS and used for dangerous recon jobs when NUNS is busy squabbling. This confuses me (not enough to detract while watching the show though).

Watched it, thought it was better than the third episode although I would have liked Altoh to be a little less of a bad anus from the onset. Hubris is supposed to get you killed so I hope he doesn't become all Basara with his arrogance. I would also like to see some play off the NUNS vs SMS. I think SMS has done enough to establish why they're needed, now it'd be nice to see NUNS show why the regular military is in business as well. Besides that, it could be a fun place for the story to go, another point to build drama around. A strong NUNS pilot could be a fun character also. KK looked like a Shadow Chronicles reject in Macron mode but she didn't bother me too much in micron but I stomached Mint from Mospeada. On a personal taste note, I also thought the missile trails in Shadow Chronicles looked goofy so I'm not too thrilled to see mech trails that draw hearts in M:F but that is the most minor of complaints ever. Really, I think it's just the bright color of the trails that turns me off.

Quoted pics on the same page = excessive! I got my green and red guys in... but I also got a Nintendo Wii for my birthday and some games and have out of town plans for almost every weekend through the rest of the summer. I will get pics up when my free time allows.