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M'Kyuun

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  1. M'Kyuun
    Well, damn, if I had known this was coming, I'd have waited. I got the first release and bought the Toyhax set. Applying stickers is far from my favorite activity, but it seemed necessary at the time to make my Jazz (Jive) complete.
  2. M'Kyuun
    As much as I adore ER Prime, a CHUG version that borrows from MP-10, MP-44, or even from the last two Magic Square Prime designs to capture his toon look is definitely worthy of anticipation. I admit I'd prefer a hybrid of toy and toon details- I want the stripe on his cab, the yellow arrows on his wrists, the silver vents on his shins, at least his front tires to be absorbed into the bot (the back tires on his legs don't really bother me, but being SS86, his bot mode shouldn't have any visible). However, as a Studio Series fig, toon accuracy will be the focus, and that's fine. Toyhax will probably provide a decal set to provide the other details. I'd love for them to do a commander class Soundwave as well in SS86 where they restore his cassettes to their original RW micro-cassette scale and include all the cassette minions featured in the film. Some improved engineering for those cassettes, especially Ravage, would also be appreciated. I'd really love it if Takara acted on their own and produced either a leader or commander class SS86 Megatron. To finally have a proper G1 Megatron to cap off my collection of all these Legacy & WfC G1 figs would be absolutely wonderful. The only possible way we'll get a proper Megatron is if Takara does it independently, and I hope they choose to do so. I think it'd make a lot of fans very happy. Seeing Takara cash in probably won't make Hasbro happy, but opting out would be their choice. After that, SS86 versions of Blitzwing and Astrotrain that fix all the flaws with the WfC/Legacy figs would be most welcome, as well as a SS86 all-new and improved Seeker mold with a far more accurate F-15 mode than the WfC voyager Seekers.
  3. M'Kyuun
    You remember correctly, and to extrapolate that connection to the YF-19 and YF-21 seems highly plausible. Those among us more conversant in Japanese may be able to elucidate further should Kawamori-san have spoken on it in interviews over the years.
  4. M'Kyuun
    Sweet assortment. After a decade's absence, I'm just happy to see LEGO leaning so heavily into an original sci-fi space theme again, 10497 Galaxy Explorer notwithstanding. I hope it sells well and sends a message that sets like this are desirable. I'll be doing my part- my wallet's crying already. 😁 I kinda wish the space ring had the modules situated end to end so the astrofigs could travel continuously through the station, but there's something to be said about the playability of the modules in this configuration. Moreover, it appears that similar modules come in the Base & Rocket Launchpad set and the Command Rover set so you can swap out modules or potentially snap them onto the ends of already attached modules. Overall, I'm liking the look of the theme and what it offers. Edit: With even more sets being revealed across other lines, it seems the new Space subtheme is crossing into other major themes like Creator, Technic, Friends, Dreamzzz, etc. 2024 is definitely shaping up to be a meaty year for LEGO Space fans, especially since a decade has passed since the last original Space theme, Galaxy Squad, premiered. After all this time of near absence, it's quite unexpected to see such a large and diverse selection of Space sets, especially in a single year, but I get the sense LEGO's testing the waters, so to speak, to gauge desirability. There's certainly a lot of nostalgia-driven conversations happening on any number of fan forums and on social media, but the real test will be in sales numbers, and I hope sales are well beyond expectations. I've greatly missed original sci-fi space set releases and I hope this diversification to appeal broadly proves successful in making Space an evergreen theme again.
  5. M'Kyuun
    I hadn't considered that consistency between designs, so I concede your point. Nevertheless, I'm still not a fan. TBH, I never cared for the wings just hanging off the YF-19's legs, either, but for whatever reason, it doesn't bother me nearly as much as the 21's belly plates. However, if the YF-21 has to have belly plates dangling off its legs, I'd much prefer Bandai's truncated plates over the Yamato's full-length plates. Of course, YMMV.
  6. M'Kyuun
    That is an unexpected but clever solution, although I was always under the impression, based on the line art, that the inner lower legs had a three-position slider mechanism- fully retracted in fighter, partially extended in GERWALK, and fully extended in battroid. Regardless, I'm fine with this. I just hope it locks firmly in place, as there's a lot of weight depending on its being sturdy. Nope, they were always supposed to flare out. But look how much larger the legs are drawn compared to the minimalized forward fuselage, all to present a nicer proportioned battroid. Is it any wonder that toy and model makers struggle to find a good balance? Yamato did an exceptional job with the top half, but the skinny legs were just too disproportionate to the rest and never looked right. I prefer Bandai's proportions, even if it means a thicker back end to the fighter. Here's the line art showing the legs stowed. Again, Kawamori employed a lot of license in minimizing the size of the legs to make them fit. I've never liked the belly plate solution, as it renders this thing a partial shell-former. I prefer Bandai's current solution to keep the legs in their battroid configuration and store them inside the engine nacelles, which, IMHO, should have been the original solution, as it just makes practical sense. The best solution, however IMHO, would have been to eschew the loathesome belly plates altogether and shape the lower aft end with form-fitted cutouts into which the legs would insert. They'd be visible but contoured to blend seamlessly with the rest of the lower plane. That would have been my solution, as well as attaching the guns within holsters on a rotation joint just above the knee so they can be oriented forward regardless of mode. I think that would have eased the burden on toy and model makers significantly, not to mention eradicate the annoying hip kibble that those plates create. Alas, what's done is done, and the YF-21 remains one of the more difficult valks to translate into toys due to the copious amount of animation magic employed. I just hope Bandai's effort proves to be solid.
  7. M'Kyuun
    I got my copy of Code Red yesterday, and overall, I like him. I was surprised by the marked height difference in bot mode alongside the other voyager-scaled van bots. The long legs make his short arms look shorter, but I still dig him. As mike said in his review, this wasn't an obvious or expected crossover; it never entered my mind when watching the show. However, as crossovers go, I think it's cool, although Hopper's '89 Blazer probably would have been more significant. However, there's something to be said about the entire., ahem, 'package' with this guy. IMHO, the package designers at Hasbro earned their just keep with this bit of boxing. It's apropos and humorous and far more elaborate than it needed to be, but I appreciate the effort. Although I didn't take a photo, Code Red comes wrapped in a sheet of paper with kid-like drawings on it depicting Eleven, Hawkins, and a few other places. It's been some time since I watched the fourth season and my long-term memory is nigh nonexistent, but I'm assuming at some point the kids drew something similar. Anyway, I thought it worth mentioning as an additional meaningful element of the packaging that wasn't necessary, but I'm glad it's in there. @mikeszekely's review is quite comprehensive, however there's one additional feature of note: the pizza sign gun's handle also has tabs on the sides which allows the gun to be attached to either shoulder. It's not at all elegant or flattering to the figure, but it's something than can be done and it's actually how it's presented in the packaging art. Initially, I thought it was supposed to tab into the backpack using the same slots as the axe and the mace attachments, but there wasn't clearance over the shoulder. I totally disregarded the slots on his shoulders in my attempts to connect to his backpack and was only able to reach proper resolution after consulting the instructions. You'd think after nearly 40 years of messing with these things I'd pick up on all these nuances, but sometimes I space on the most obvious things. Anyway, I just wanted point out this additional option for mounting the sign gun. Kudos to Mike for figuring out how to stash the pizza box accessory in his van mode; that'll be my solution henceforth. One further thought: the mace and axe make no sense for this fig, but perhaps, as Mike suggested, they're intended to reference D&D, which we've seen the Hawkins' kids play on numerous occasions. Given the subject matter, I'm really surprised they didn't lean into the pizza theme and give him an oversized pizza-cutter as a weapon. Missed opportunity. As to future crossovers, I'd also love an Airwolf and K.I.T.T., and maybe even a Blue Thunder. What a shame we don't have any shows like these anymore.
  8. M'Kyuun
    That sucks, and I can sympathize having received my share of dented up boxes in the past. The exclusivity makes it sting worse, I'll grant you, and FWIW, you have my sympathies. At the very least, I hope all the parts and instructions are still there and undamaged. I do wish LEGO would improve their packing, as there's usually no more than a bit of wadded brown packing paper inside a thin-walled cardboard box that just seems to invite dents and tears which does little to protect the treasures inside. You could contact customer service, but with their supply exhausted, I'm not sure what they could do for you. However, OTOH, what could it hurt?
  9. M'Kyuun
    I have no intention of getting rid of my Yammie. As a battroid guy, the battroid's thin legs, loose hips, and overall instability ruined its shelf appeal for me, but no one can deny that the fighter mode is gorgeous, and that overall, legs notwithstanding, it remains one of the best transforming toy iterations of that design. I still think Arcadia should consider redesigning the legs to be thicker and better proportioned to the rest of the battroid. It would no doubt cost the fighter its extremely thin profile, but as I've always said, I'd rather the fighter be a little thicker if it fixes those legs. Likewise. I'm ready for POs to open- hopefully soon and with wide availability amidst the usual e-tailers here in the West. My thinking as well; a bit misleading on Bandai's part if otherwise. Considering those packs were featured prominently in both the movie and the OVA, it would be a remarkable omission to not include them. I hope the gear lock down as well, especially on a high-end toy that will no doubt have a fair bit of die cast content. Even without die-cast, at 1/60, it's a fairly decent sized plane that needs some strong, stable gear to rest on. I hope the wings have a firm locking mechanism to keep them firmly in place in jet mode- those things are thick and will have some significant weight to them. Overall, I hope design and QC are excellent, even if there are niggles from fan to fan- it's hard to please everybody, and I, too, have my own. I just hope it's a durable toy with perfectly tight joints (not too tight, but not loose, preferably ratcheted with lots of detents for a wide range of poseability).
  10. M'Kyuun
    All three have really good bot modes that capture their G1 looks well. The alt modes are where they take the hits. Since Megatron can no longer be a gun due to our asinine laws, a tank mode has become the accepted alt mode, and FWIW, scale wise it makes far more sense. I'd still love to have a CHUG scaled Megs that turns into a Walther P38, but since that seems unlikely and no third parties are jumping at what seems a primo opportunity, tank it shall remain. Shockwave was a complete copout- I doubt his original extremely sci-fi gun mode would fall under the same scrutiny under the law as Megs' Walther, and yet they made him into some really crappy spaceship that needs help from a bunch of add-on bits that only raised his price. As to Soundwave, for whatever reason that makes no logical sense, they decided to make his lower legs transform backwards leaving his specifically shaped knees, which corresponded with his waist shape on the G1 toy to fill in the front of his recorder mode, hanging out. The original toy had a simple but elegant and effective transformation that even allowed for his weapons to be stored as batteries. It was perfect, and why few to no Soundwave figs since have copied that feature is questionable. It's not the best recorder alt mode, and I hope they redo him in the SS86 line with an improved mold that borrows more liberally from the G1 toy, but I'll concede that his recorder mode is a far cry better than the whatever-he's-supposed-to-be alt mode from Siege.
  11. M'Kyuun
    Looking forward to this. I very much like Watchmen and 300, so I'm hoping it'll be good. The action is there, I just hope it has a decent story too.
  12. M'Kyuun
    I didn't go in on Deathsauraus, but I look forward to your review. Thanks for the offer, Mike. I got a copy quite a while back. Apparently I forgot to post it and forgot that I'd even made any comments to the effect of having missed her on Pulse. It's been several months, but I believe I ended up ordering her from Walgreens' website. I currently have Elita-1, Minerva, and Strongarm together on one of my TF shelves. It's neat to see the similarities and differences among the shared molds. I was at Target recently, and I caved to a purchase of WfC Game Edition Optimus Prime. Quite a beefy fig for a voyager. I'm still not as fond of him as I am of FoC Prime (the overall design in both modes) but in-hand, he's a pretty cool fig. I do, however, dislike that he can't just simply hold his gun in his hand; having to remove the forearm and peg it on his butt is a terrible solution. I know they simply transformed their arms into weapons in the game and that this fig homages that feature rather faithfully, but I'm just not a fan of it. My takeaway from the last fanstream is that I'm not alone in that sentiment and the designers are aware and may put some sort of handle on these GE guns going forward. A folding handle would be optimal to preserve the current arm-off-gun on feature, but allow the gun to also be pegged into the hand while keeping the guns streamlined. The only other complaint I have is the lack of panels to cover his hands in truck mode- even the 2010 WfC fig had the rear end filled in with taillight details, and it was merely a deluxe. It also had many more paint apps, but with budgets seemingly stretched much further these days, IIWII. I absolutely love my little deluxe FoC OP, and I'm cautiously excited for an upscaled version, hopefully next year.
  13. M'Kyuun
    I think the bicep shape is largely a product of their ugly double elbow joint. While I welcome increased articulation, I wish it had been done more visually appealing, even if the second joint had to extend out of the bicep. nevertheless, I'm in for a copy when they go up for PO. Visual warts aside, I hope it's at least a solid and durable toy.
  14. M'Kyuun
    Just finished Blue Eyed Samurai on Netflix- my wife and I started it yesterday and finished it today. Just wow. This show is superb, from writing to animation to voice acting, to the motion capture work. The plot is a little boilerplate for a revenge show, but the pacing is well-done. If this show doesn't warrant at least another season, somebody making decisions at Netflix needs to be fired.
  15. M'Kyuun
    Honestly, none of these is really grabbing me, except Prime to a small extent, and I'm not really sure why a cabover truck needs a cowcatcher. Starscream suffers from the usual arms-at-the-side-of-the-plane syndrome, like they can't even be bothered to try and integrate them into the plane mode. Soundwave's 4x4 Jeepish truck mode is ok, but I think the bot mode is a bit too thin-limbed- I'm just not feeling it. Not seeing any minions for this guy, but if he has them, what exactly would they turn into? - parts of an engine block? I wish they'd find a more suitable alt for him where, like his original cassette player mode, both his alt and his minions are relevant on their own and to each other. That was the appeal of Soundwave and his minions in G1, and I wish they could find a modern equivalent. Bee's alt is ok, but it's not really grabbing me either. Overall, pass on all of these. If they end up selling Prime on his own, I may pick up a copy, but if not, more money for future G1 and Animated Legacy figs.
  16. M'Kyuun
    I stand corrected. I was thinking the Navy's was the VTOL version, completely forgetting that the Marines have a variant as well. If a company were to make a transforming F-35B, I'm curious how they'd work around that forward fan- perhaps a jet pack for the bot mode. That would be my solution.
  17. M'Kyuun
    I think so, too, and the fact that money has been awarded for a scale demonstrator shows the seriousness of its consideration. I worked on KC-135s for many years; those planes were built in the 60s and many are 60 or turning 60 and slated to fly for at least another decade. I have no experience with the KC-46, the newest tanker based on the Boeing 767, but the fact that the Pentagon is willing to fund development of yet another tanker, one that's rather forward thinking in its shaping and proposed use of hydrogen for fuel with zero emissions indicates open-mindedness that we didn't see back in the late 80s, early 90s when the ATF competition was happening. I applaud that and hope BWB designs become reality within the next decade.
  18. M'Kyuun
    The F-15 and F-16 are both impressive aircraft from the 70s, such that they're both flying along with the likes of fifth generation fighters like the F-22 and F-35, and may still be flying with sixth gen. Segueing from old to new, I've been looking at blended wing designs and stumbled on Jet Zero's Z5 USAF Tanker concept. Jet Zero Unveils Midmarket Airliner And Air Force Tanker BWB Plan | Aviation Week Network. Knowing how conservative the AF is when it comes to forward thinking designs, after all they passed on the YF-23, oft considered to be the superior design, for the more conventional YF-22, learning that this blended design is actually being considered was pleasantly surprising. I hope it proves out in testing and development and makes it into service, as, from my reading, it seems that blended designs like this are being considered by the commercial developers like Boeing and Airbus as well. Supposedly, they're more economical, using less fuel and featuring more interior space for pax and cargo than the conventional tube and wing design. From an aesthetic POV, IMHO, they're also more elegant and graceful in addition to their utility and economy. I hope I live long enough to fly on one some day.
  19. M'Kyuun
    I did no background, but your info about its licensing gives serious pause, as it should to anyone in a country targeted one way or another by the PRC. It's a shame, as it's a cool toy, but I'd rather not support the CCCP directly or indirectly. I wish it was a true F-35, too, especially the Navy's F-35C with VTOL capability. I wish we had an American company of talented toy designers who made transformable toys at this level. Alas, Hasbro is the only game in town, and they're sadly not up to the task. It's odd, too, b/c we have a huge Transformers fandom and a decent Robotech/Macross fandom, a lot of very talented artistic and mechanically inclined people, and a growing culture of people doing independent design with 3D printing. One would think some of them would get together and form a company making custom transforming toys. I'd love to be part of something like that, although my skills are meager. However, like Kawamori himself, I could at least create a practical template with LEGO as a proof-of-concept to illustrate the transformation process. As to the J-35's bot mode, I'm not crazy about the face or the nose gear on its crotch, but otherwise I like the look of its bot mode, especially the leg design. The transformation is quite involved, a bit too much for my liking, but that seems to be the way for a lot of these modern transforming bots. I agree with your assessment of Zeta's Blitzwing- well done in both modes judging by pics. I'm also impressed with Metagate's Red Fantasy (BBM Shatter) for how well they pulled off the vehicle modes, especially the Harrier. Usually, as with both Has/Tak's and Toyworld's versions, the jet mode, as usual, takes the brunt of the compromises; Metagate's car mode, IMHO, suffers more than the Harrier mode. And while the Harrier mode isn't perfectly accurate, it's decently passable, esp from a distance.
  20. M'Kyuun
    I don't know if contributing to a Chinese toy company furthers the CCCP's agenda, although I get what you're saying in principle. I'm not at all a fan of the Chinese government or their shady practices, but as to the talents of the Chinese people, there's no question. The Japanese may have invented the transforming toy, but over the last decade or so, Chinese toymakers have dominated the market with their many third- and fourth-party companies as well as the add-on/upgrades markets. While I confess to being tempted, I'm likely not going to buy this; that said, I felt it was worth posting simply as a showcase of what can be done with a modern jetformer, as this should be the standard and not the exception. It's still not the standard even among most 3P jetformers, but my hope is that this will inspire the other companies, Takara included, to step up their games. Takara's MP-52 is a travesty writ large in comparison, just shameful. As for Kawamori, he's been looking down his nose at all these other companies making crappy jetformers since 1982. Too bad more companies didn't follow his long and venerable lead.
  21. M'Kyuun
    Just discovered this today. This is an excellent example of how a transforming jet should be executed. Bit involved, and the weapons bay partsforms, but otherwise, it's a brilliant bit of engineering resulting in a cool looking bot and a jet mode that looks realistic from all angles with little to give away its transformative nature.
  22. M'Kyuun
    Digits crossed that there are improvements, but at this stage I doubt it. Gonna get it anyway. 😜
  23. M'Kyuun
    Well, at this point, I think we all agree that this doesn't share the same level of polish as their VF-19 Advance/ YF-19. From my standpoint as a battroid guy, it fixes the main issue I had with the Yamato- the too-thin legs. However, it still has issues that could certainly do with tweaks, but at this point I think we're getting what we're seeing. Is it better than no YF-21 toy at all? IMHO, yep. Edit: Sometimes it helps to read what you've written to ensure you're expressing your thoughts properly. Initially I didn't. Fixed.
  24. M'Kyuun
    Just toys in general. Many Transformers toys these days have this kind of detail in panels and even in some of the hollow areas in arms and legs where they're conserving plastic. I love detail, especially molded detail, so it's a practice I welcome. Of course, if the toy is crap but has a ton of nice detail, it's essentially a gilded turd, so there's always that situation. 😄
  25. M'Kyuun
    This has to be one of the nicest compliments I've ever received for any of my LEGO MOCs, and I thank you most kindly. Getting back OT, I hope Bandai makes some sort of PO announcement soon. Warts be damned, we've waited far too long for a new YF-21 and overall, as I've said since this thing was frst intro'd, I'll take it as-is if only b/c the battroid proportions look better to me, at least so far as the legs go. That said, I'd be thrilled to no end if Arcadia tweaked the nigh-perfect Yamato design to have thicker legs that look more proportionally correct even if it means the jet has a slightly fatter back end; that's a concession I'll take all day long.
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