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M'Kyuun

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  1. M'Kyuun
    For a Hasbro release, it's revolutionary, certainly better than the usual obvious robot under a partial jet fuselage that they have been peddling as a standard for decades. This has tones of a Kawamori design, definitely taking strong cues from the VF-1. I wish the shoulders sat higher, but it is what it is; I can accept it. The grey could be a bit darker and more opaque, and the weathering done much better, but I'm trying to focus on the positive, and in my eyes, this is a design aesthetic I would like to see more often in Transformer jets. I'll echo the desire to see a Skystriker repaint. @Mikeszekely- I looked up Alternate Universe Prime out of curiosity; I didn't realize that was black redeco of Earthrise Prime. Funny they didn't call him Nemesis Prime, but yeah, I get it's a reference to the death scene. I was aware of the toy, but not the name they gave it, hence my confusion. If I didn't already have Perfect Effect's black redeco (and slight remold) of their Jinrai, I'd likely get the Earthrise redeco, as I have yet to own a Nemesis Prime.
  2. M'Kyuun
    That's 0630 here. I usually get up around that time anyway, but I'll have to remember to check out Pulse. Thanks for the heads-up, Mike. And yeah, hopefully the '86 SS figs will be revealed, and hopefully they're as good as we hope they'll be.
  3. M'Kyuun
    Dark Forces was awesome. That and the original Armored Core were what got me into gaming. I grew up in the 80's, but none of those games really interested me; what would become early first person shooters was what I had in my head as the perfect game. I never played the original Castle Wolfenstein, but IIRC Dark Forces used the CW engine. I put a lot of hours into Dark Forces, and it's sequel. I still remember the part where you had to sneak past the Scout Walkers, and sniping all the Trandoshans standing guard. Good times!
  4. M'Kyuun
    That's what I had in mind, too. A theatre set with actual moving pictures, or just scenery for something like a play, would be neat.
  5. M'Kyuun
    My thinking as well, but I'm hoping all the initial stock sold out, and the international retailers will receive rereleases with fixes. In a perfect world... Disposable income, but not loads of it. Like some of the other guys posted, I've become choosy about what and how much I collect. I'm not a completionist, which helps greatly when there are umpteen variants of the same toy for sale; I usually get one of a mold, unless there are interesting differences between releases, or the toy is well done enough to warrant a few repaints at the retail price. I collect primarily LEGO, Transformers, and Macross, in that order. I've recently discovered the Beastbox toys from 52Toys, so add that to the pile. I also pick up the odd figure here or there, like the Legioss, or Arcadia's Proto Garland, which fall into the category of long-sought after figures that finally got a quality toy. I've long been very good about budgeting, so I keep an eye on what I'm spending so as to never go overboard. It's a matter of discipline, and sometimes sacrifice. Most of the time, though, I'm able to get the stuff I want.
  6. M'Kyuun
    Love the 'Lo-Tech' logo on the bottom of the console tv. The tv does look like a fun build- it's a great function. Actually, the whole set looks like it would be fun to build; I'm just not interested in Nintendo. I hope that side-scroll function finds its way into a smaller set. It would be perfect in a theatre set.
  7. M'Kyuun
    Man, I love my Macross Design Works book, and have oft lamented not having a follow-on to cover the designs since 2001. Hopefully, some of the other Japanese e-tailers will have it available for international shipping. Like so much Macross merch, I'm guessing this'll be elusive for anyone outside of Japan. Not that it matters, and I know the Macross Design Works didn't have any, but has Kawamori-san ever included pics of his LEGO sketch models in any of his Macross design books? LEGO has been a lifelong hobby for me, so from a personal perspective, it'd be neat if those pics were included. His sketch models have become an important part of his design process when figuring out the transformation mechanics of new valks, and I think it'd be fantastic if he included pics of those along with his artwork.
  8. M'Kyuun
    For those in the know, do you think that the stock that comes to the American retailers will be intial issues or reissues? Just curious, as I orderd mine through TFSource, and it wouldn't hurt my feelings one bit if we ended up getting reissues with some of the known issues fixed. I don't expect that's the case, but it's a nice thought.
  9. M'Kyuun
    Watching the motorized functions reminds me of the Cargo Plane they did a few years back. Excellent set. I'm totally looking forward to this Osprey set- they did a great job on it. I think I'll be scanning that sticker sheet- pretty useful looking stickers. I believe you're correct, based on a very similar MOC I've seen. I think he did a different game, but the idea's the same. If this is an IDEAS set, it may just be the same fellow. Anyway, the effect is really neat. It's definitely a crowd pleaser at conventions. I've never been a Nintendo fan, so no interest here, but as an idea for a set that has both excellent modeling (can't even tell that Nintendo's LEGO until you see it up close), and very clever implementation of a mechanical function, it's a great way to celebrate the popularity of Nintendo in a unique way.
  10. M'Kyuun
    Nope. Honestly, I don't even know what that is. I didn't bite for DX Bike Robo, but I'd have been down for a DX Eagle. The Machine Robo jets were always better designed than the Transformers, and they were all based on real world aircraft. I so badly wanted Harrier Robo (Royal-T), but it seems like Action Toys are done with the line. Shame we never got Supercar (Turbo) or Blue Jet (Fitor), as they had protos of those guys from the beginning. Mike, you and I have the same idea if we win the lottery, although I'd split my factory between doing much sought after TF characters, and maybe a custom or two, as well as making a lot of the parts that LEGO can't or won't, and they are legion.
  11. M'Kyuun
    Well I'll be dipped in flour and southern fried; that's one of the best looking jetformers HasTak have ever made. The shoulder connections look like they're out of whack; hopefully that's just a mis-transformation. This is quite reminiscent of Macross designs; I wonder if they called Kawamori for a favor. already got my PO. Shout out to @Mikeszekely for pointing me in the direction of Amazon to score Earthrise Prime. He came today, and what a nice figure. I didn't get the Siege version, as I didn't care for the weird Cybertronaian alt mode they gave him, and I had faith that Earth alt modes were coming eventually. I had a bit of flash under one of the windshield panels that I had to trim a little, but now both sides are virtually seamless. I wish Hasbro would move back to rubber tires; those plastic things don't roll for crap. I tried sandwiching the gun part way down between his legs in truck mode, rather than pegging it in per the instructions, and it fits snugly while also allowing he trailer a full arc from stack to stack. I'll never understand why they put the trailer connection so close to the cab when you have all that leg back there. Anyway, Nonnef's kit arrived today, so I'll be installing that, and the little connector will help with the spacing. The trailer is really small, almost comically so, but I'm just happy that they included it at all. Enough typing- gotta go do some fixin'.
  12. M'Kyuun
    I was pretty excited that there was finally going to be a Harrier transformer, as the Harrier is one of my favorite fighter designs. This toy, however, leaves much to be desired for its plethora of inaccuracies, and I'll be taking an easy pass on it. Shame, as they did a good job with the AH-1 alt mode for Dropkick. However, in keeping with typical form, when it comes to fighter alt modes, HasTak seem at a complete loss as to how to make a convincing fighter without just stapling the robot under a jet, or just making a convoluted mess like this thing. The exhaust augmenters at the tail make me in embarrassment for Takara. Terrible.
  13. M'Kyuun
    I'll keep my eyes peeled, Mike. I wish now I'd grabbed a second set of Clones the day I got mine at Target. They had five or six sets of them. Sorry, Mike. From the descriptions being passed on from these SS listings, the potential for them to be Generations compatible figures seems greater, especially the Dinobots. I hope they turn out well. I'm in for a set,. Fair point about MP-08's articulation in comparison with many of the SS toys- adequate, but somehow inadequate. Lets hope they go for the Earthrise standard as a minimum bar. If they manage to give these guys ankle tilts, I'll be pleasantly surprised, although I don't expect any tuck-away limbs. One must check his expectations in the grim face of practical experience.
  14. M'Kyuun
    I didn't even see the whiteout; I had to look for it after you mentioned it. Still, the skill on display in these drawings is amazing to me. I don't have an iota of talent for this sort of thing, so it's doubly impressive to me when I see artwork of this caliber. Nice to have inputs from folks who know their stuff. Thanks Akim, for sharing this art and and your commentary, and to Sketchley for your commentary as well. Much appreciated.
  15. M'Kyuun
    If you want, Mike, I can check my Wally for Scrapface. How many copies would you like? I despise exclusives, even if I realize that it can be a boon for manufacturer/retailer. But I'd rather they not make core characters exclusives. That just sucks for trying to round out your collection. The announcement of yet another leader class Dinobot is promising, and I hope they do all five in that scale. Of course, these are going to be voyager scaled Dinos with likely pointless accessories in the box to drive up the price. Thanks Hasbro, you dicks. On the positive side, though, I hope these are dedicated updates to the G1 characters, minus any combination gimmicks or elsewise that otherwise detract or mar the final figures. I hope these are close to MP level, so far as complexity and imparting ample articulation to both modes. I think that's what most of us old timer fans want- just fairly accurate G1 Dinos at a proper scale to the rest of the bots for our Generations collection. As I said over in the TFW forum, I hope with Earthrise and the follow on line in the WFC theme, Hasbro just goes all-out and makes every G1 character under the sun, and then moves on into something completely new and virtually divorced from G1. New characters, new alt modes, maybe even a new planet. Just something original. I think even some of us GeeWunners are starting to feel a little G1 fatigue; it'd be nice to see the franchise expand out into all new territory, storywise and toywise.
  16. M'Kyuun
    I look at those old pics and wish I could draw so crisply and uniformly freehandedly. Alas, I do neither well. Still, it's always cool to see concept art of this kind of stuff. Those tri-missile packs under the chest are a feature I remember well from the Monogram model kit, and the Toynami as well. I kinda dig the way they look, and wondered why they weren't shown on the Sentinel. Then I watched the anime, and they don't appear in the show at all, IIRC. It's a shame, as, to me, it was one of those recognizable features of the Legioss, and the absence of them, canon or not, feels wrong.
  17. M'Kyuun
    Those Netflix exclusives have been warming the shelves at my local Walmart, the longest I've seen mainline TF toys warm the peg/shelf in a long time. Usually they're gone in a week, not to be restocked for weeks to months thereafter. However, there are also regular Earthrise figs mixed in that display, like Wheeljack and Grapple, and they've also been hanging around longer than usual. As I said, it's highly irregular to see mainline toys hang around that long, so I'm not sure what to make of it. I'm surprised scalpers haven't come along and bought it all up by now, but perhaps Covid is taking its toll on them too. I should hope so. Anyway, none of the Netflix figs really interested me, so I haven't bought any of them. I might have sprung for Megs, but I already have the Siege version, so I passed on it. I thought about getting the purple Siege Seeker, as I own the Starscream version, and despite my early invective and dismissal of the mold, I kinda dig it in hand. Certainly, the bot mode is excellent, with probably the best articulation of any figure in the line, and without a doubt, the best articulation for a mainline Seeker ever, which is why the follow up Earthrise Seeker is so incredibly and frustratingly underwhelming and disappointing. I wouldn't worry too much about that lackluster Earthrise Seeker mold getting limited release; Seekers are a cash cow, and I'm sure Hasbro will release it in every color of the rainbow before they're done with it. Coneheads will undoubtedly get releases as well. Too, the way this Target Seeker two-pack's been going, I'm sure Hasbro's watching that situation unfolding with unmitigated glee, as we're a fandom that's easily abused, and exclusivity and scarce distribution seem to be their new favorite tools for artificially driving up the value of toys that aren't, practically speaking for what you're actually getting, worth it. It's deplorable, but that's business. I vehemently detest exclusives, so on that grounds alone, I oppose the potential SS '86 Movie figs becoming a Walmart exclusive. All it does in the end is limit availability, thus artificially inflating demand, which plays right into the greedy hands of scalpers. The fans of these toys are the losers, as we're forced to constantly hunt the internet for the next availability, scrambling to try and secure an order, with some folks having to travel far out of their way to get their hands on the damn things. The fact that Target is only selling the Seeker two-pack in store just amazes me in a bad way; in an era when most retailers offer their wares via preorders, Target's not providing that option, instead doling it out piecemeal, with availability coming at random times at very low numbers which sell out in minutes flat after they're posted. It makes no sense to me that a retail toy should be that elusive or difficult to obtain, but it's fatiguing to have to maintain FBI-like surveillance on Target's site just to try and catch a fleeting moment of availability and mad dash the thing into your cart before stock disappears. I don't remember toys being this hard to find when I was a kid, that's for sure.
  18. M'Kyuun
    If they want to include '86 Movie figures in the Studio Series line, it strikes me as apropos, as long as the branding doesn't effect a downturn in the quality that has been notable in the Siege and Earthrise lines. As I'm not a fan of Bayverse, I've largely steered clear of SS, and to whit, I only own a few figures from the line. From the experience I do have, I think deco takes a little more precedence than articulation, especially since the majority are licensed vehicles, which puts any number of constraints on HasTak, as we've also seen with the MP line over the years. With the Earthrise figures, they've been skirting the licensing, making alts that are close to the original real world alts, but different enough to avoid the licensing fees and design constraints. I'm fine with that approach. Earthrise, for the most part, has been a very satisfying homage to G1 thus far; barring MP, concerning mainline toys, these are what I wanted in the box when I was 13 years old, watching the show for the first time, and have since wanted in the mainline. So, with the exception of Astrotrain and Arcee, thanks Hasbro, arigato Takara. The question that remains is whether or not HasTak are going to seek licensing for the alt modes of the potential '86 SS figures that apply. For consistency's sake, I hope not. It would be a bit odd to have that mixture of fictional-but-close alts from Earthrise with licensed alts from the film that most of us are likely going to mingle together in our collections. Too, as mentioned, Porche have been rue to provide a license to Takara, so the chances of an authentic Porche alt mode seem to hover around zero for the foreseeable future. As most of the '86 cast of characters had fictional alt modes, the burden on HasTak is greatly reduced, and hopefully the focus will be on crafting quality figures that homage the characters in the best possible marriage of toy and toon, within the budget, of course. It is a bit unfortunate that, with Hasbro exercising expansive control over the brand, their budget-over-design philosophy is likely driving the direction of the line more than it ever has before, which, IMHO, has manifested itself through reduction of plastic volume and poor or lazy engineering.
  19. M'Kyuun
    Yep, I agree. I think they had a good premise for Legacy. The idea of turning the eponymous hero into a tool of Clu's autocracy was unexpected, but interesting. I think a lot of people are put off by the younger renderings of Flynn and Tron, but it didn't bother me. Maybe it's due to having grown up in the 80's with the limitations of effects, but I'm usually amazed by how good it actually is. Difference of perspective, I suppose. If holography ever matures and becomes a mainstay, folks from the 2D generation will feel the same, I'm sure.
  20. M'Kyuun
    Sounds like a lot of work. Aw well, like anything worth doing, the final product pays for the time and effort expended. I would like to find a good match for the blue plastic; if I can, I'd like to paint those grey bits on his legs. I don't what they were thinking molding them in grey, especially when there's a greater focus on G1 accuracy in this line. I doubt I'll repaint the trailer; I'm just not that invested. The grey trailer, and even the slightly off-colored grey of the Nonnef parts, probably won't bother me. I don't usually get too plussed about that stuff. For the time and money I'm putting into it already, I'll no doubt rarely take it down from the shelf to mess with it. The stickers sound like a worthy investment, though, for both Prime and his trailer, so I'll likely get a sheet. I love what you did with your maintenance drone, and methinks it worth the time to do likewise with mine. As always, I appreciate the suggestions, advice, and reviews, Mike. This'll be the most work I've ever put into a Transformer fig, but I'm looking forward to it. I'll have to share a pic or two when I'm done. Hopefully, I won't cock it up too badly.
  21. M'Kyuun
    YES- for the love of all that's right in this world, lots of strong ratchets with many detents for greater range of posability. Should be a law.
  22. M'Kyuun
    @Mikeszekely, I caught your suggestion on the official TF thread and came over to check the review. I pretty much agree with everything you said. Roller could have stood some more details, and yeah, the sprue marks are rather prominent. I think I'd almost rather those parts came on the sprue, and just let the customer trim them. I've got a good set of clippers for the job, and between them and some fine shaving with a hobby knife, I can just about eradicate sprue marks. Anyway, I think the kit addresses the majority of shortcomings of the official toy, and for a garage kit, it's well done. I also like the fact that it's made here in America; most of this stuff comes out of China, so I take some pride in American craftsmanship. I'm not sure if I'm gonna spring for for the Toyhax labels, yet, but I may follow suit with painting some stuff. Painting is not my forte', and without a decent airbrush, I'm down to hand painting it, so I'm always reluctant. I'll have to be in a mood. Anyway, as always, I appreciate the breakdown of this kit. I think I'll be pretty satisfied with it. It is a shame, though, as you mentioned, that the little stabilizer feet for the trailer have to be removed and replaced depending on whether they're being stored or used to support the trailer. It's not a bad solution, per se, but a ball jointed rotation point to allow it to flip over and rotate 180 degrees around would have been awesome. It is what it is, though. Shrug. Thanks, Mike!
  23. M'Kyuun
    Toynami had the right idea. Their boom just had to be longer than the artwork suggested due to how far back the legs extended on their Legioss' fighter mode. Sentinel has already conquered that hurdle, making adhering to the original concept feasible. Definitely a step in the right direction, if indeed they're making a Tread. I believe it.
  24. M'Kyuun
    You're reading my mind, Jenius. I was also considering how a rotating connection point might allow for the two configurations without the need for parts-forming. They could also make a telescoping boom, to allow for more compactability within the limited space in the groin section. When I see the extent of engineering employed in the Legioss, there's a point of pride there, and it's difficult for me to expect less in a follow on toy, especially one that's larger, which affords more room to ply your engineering. I also believe absolutely that they didn't approach the Legioss as a one-off; rather, I believe Sentinel designed their Legioss and a Tread simultaneously to ensure consistency and harmony in the engineering between them, which is the most logical way to approach the total design. Since the Legioss is the more popular mech, it makes sense to release it first, and then follow on with a Tread. It's my pet theory, but if was a toymaker doing Mospeada toys, I'd design my Legioss and Tread together to make sure the thing works as shown in the anime. The level of engineering that Sentinel brought to the fore with their Legioss only intensifies my belief.
  25. M'Kyuun
    Thanks Mike! Got one on order. I went with free shipping, so it won't come til around the 20th, but still better than waiting until September. I'm hoping Nonnef will be getting my upgrade kit out about the same time, as he was backed up due to machinery breakdowns and power outages. Something to look forward to. Thanks again! Edit: Checked my email after I finished my post, and I had a ship notification from Nonnef. Good timing. I've got Earthrise Arcee PO'd, but it's a really underwhelming figure. She has better articulation and a nicer face sculpt than the T30, but it bugs me that no part of her bot mode becomes her alt mode. It's anathema to what makes this particular line of Transformer toys appealing. I would've been happy if they'd just tweaked the T30 mold to update the articulation and alter the alt mode to make it more like the G1 model. As it is, not the best, and I hope this level of lazy design doesn't become a trend in the mainline.
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