Boobytrap

Oh I agree. I certainly prefer to have the box and have never gotten rid of any that I have. There is also the completionist side of me that wants everything it came with even if it's just going into storage. In this case though that box would cost a good $100 or more. At that price I can live without it and tell the completionist side of me to shut up and be happy the married couple is in the display case.

I'm guessing the same thing... which is why, after waiting months for even one listing, I wasn't too upset to see a boxed one listed right after I bought the loose one.

I know it's comparing apples to oranges but there are examples of companies re-issuing things over the course of many years without having an increase in price. The first that comes to mind would be Gundam models. Bandai re-issues those things all the time and always at the original retail price. Last I saw they were a pretty profitable business. Like I said, apples to oranges. But if Arcadia ever re-releases the assembly kits and tries to charge $150 or something that's when I'll call shenanigans.

I actually won this one. And your reasoning is exactly why I purchased it. With the slow trickle of re-releases and their focus on hero valks I didn't see any way they would get to this in the next ten years if ever. I can be patient, but not that patient. I actually preferred it being loose. It would immediately be going on display and it saved me a few bucks. No need to pay an extra $100 for a box that is going to sit in the closet/garage.

Regular release for me. I would prefer for them to fit in with the valks I already have. But I wouldn't hesitate to get the premiums if that's all they offer. No way I'm not having these two in my collection. As for the Bandai question, I'm not worried about it. As mentioned above I like consistency. I'll stick primarily with Yamacadia V2's. I might get a Bandai for novelties sake or if they offer the delta schemes or something else unique that I don't expect Arcadia to release.

Oh come on now, how can you not love the pineapple salad death. For me though I think his death in SDFM still had more emotion. It happened in front of Claudia so you get that heart string pull with her emotional response. Death in battle is more expected. In SDFM he survived the battle and was supposedly safe only to end up dying due to his bravado to make it through anything and a desire to make it to dinner with the one he loved. So I would say his death in DYRL was more heroic and was more tragic in SDFM. But both were a reflection of his character so it just comes down to what is more your cup of tea.

This. I know everyone is different and has their own opinions but I still don't understand the love for DYRL over SDFM. Other than better animation I don't think there is anything I like better in it. Unfortunately because DYRL is apparently liked more, at least by toy companies, it often leaves SDFM toys as an afterthought.

Overall this looks better than any previous release. If the manufacturer was Arcadia or Bandai I would have no problem with pre-ordering it. Unfortunately it is ET and I just can't trust that the end product is going to be something worth the price. The last thing I want is to drop a lot of money just to have it sit in a box somewhere because it wasn't good enough to supplant my Toynami version I currently have on display. At least I can rest easy knowing that this will be available long after the release. Like most others here I'm just going to wait for the reviews hoping for the best but expecting the worst.

You should check out this thread. I think you'll be pleased. http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/topic/42594-whats-next-for-arcadia/?page=51

Woo hoo!!! Super excited for this news. Been wanting this pair for so long. And it's not yet another VF-1S re-issue. Hopefully these sell really well so that Arcadia keeps pushing out other re-issues (VF-1D especially). I was hoping to see this news when I saw M & M on ebay today.

fify

I'd say they were just OK. Aesthetically they were the best as it didn't impact the appearance of the valk when they weren't on. They were also easy to apply. You didn't have to worry about getting them lined up with slots and tabs, the magnets would take care of that for you. They weren't without their faults though. Easy on also meant easy off. Sure, they would stay attached once in position but any time I would move move a leg there's a good chance it would come off. They also aren't the best for 'swooshing'. I tend to grip with a thumb on the side of one leg and the other fingers on the side of the other leg. This can cause the armor parts to easily slide off and since your hand isn't actually gripping the valk in any way (only the armor parts) there was a good risk of dropping it. There was also the issue of people not getting the magnets correctly applied from the factory which would cause them to repel instead of attract. Due to all of that (and probably other reasons I'm not thinking of) I can understand why they went to the more secure and less QC issue prone option that doesn't look quite as good.

The first time I put it into gerwalk I was worried that those pieces couldn't take the stress of clipping them together. While they do provide sturdiness and hold the two halves together I don't plan on ever clipping them together again. I'll just rest the pegs on the clips.

Great news. I use their sprays all the time with my Gundam models (too lazy to deal with an airbrush) and love the quality of them. Just never thought to use it on a transforming model/toy for fear of it not holding up. Always passed on getting one of the Yamato assembly kits for this very reason. I'll seriously consider giving it a try if the right opportunity comes along. Thanks for the inspiration!

Absolutely beautiful customs. What paint/top coat are you using to minimize it from getting scratched/chipped during transformation?

Time, money, and patience. As long as you have those in abundant supply you should be just fine. For me I only got back into this less than two years ago. I missed out on all the great deals back in the day. You're best bet is to regularly haunt the places you listed. Jungle and Mandarake have a decent stock at not too outrageous of a price. Ebay prices are through the roof due to scalpers but it is also the place I have found the best deals (I got a couple for less than retail). You just have to be johnny on the spot when they are listed because they will get snatched up in hours. The best thing I have found is to be patient. It may take months/years for it to show up at a price you are willing to pay. If you wait long enough it may even get re-issued or get upgraded so you can by it at retail. Following that formula I have been able to build up my collection in a relatively short period of time without drowning in a mountain of debt.

Really sucks that I missed out on the 31C pre-order. I'm sure there will be multiple opportunities to get it before the release date, just like the others before it. Even knowing that I'm going to be nervously biting my nails until I get my pre-order confirmation email. Why Bandai why?! Sometimes I hate this hobby.

Same here. I actually had a moment of panic when I saw the email saying that MyKombini had issued me a refund. I was worried that they had cancelled the order entirely. Then I opened it up and saw that the refund was only for 640 yen. Just to verify, I looked up the tracking number and saw that the package was on the way. Crisis averted.

Same here. They sent me an email and show that it shipped over 24 hours ago yet EMS doesn't show that the tracking number even exists. I guess I've waited this long to have Max and Milia side by side, I can wait a little longer.

My completely uneducated guess for why they changed it is due to them going to a clear plastic. In my experience clear plastic tends to be more brittle than opaque. Having those tabs extend down will make it more stable and less likely to crack.

it's going as low as $170 with free shipping on ebay right now. $194 with free shipping from Ami on ebay (might be cheaper if you buy from their site depending on your shipping costs.)

Just got payment request from MyKombini for Milia. Hopefully it will be shipping out soon.

I might get a couple of kits but that's not what I would really want. These are transforming kits first and foremost. The last thing I would want is to spend hours/days/weeks doing a custom paint job just to have it ruined the first time I transformed it. And there's no way I would not transform it. If I wanted a static kit I would just get a more detailed Hasegawa. At most I'd just paint areas that don't rub against other parts and add some weathering. I'd never be able to go all out and do something like a traditional aircraft grey or camo paint scheme like I would want.

Unboxed mine yesterday. No issues on the tampo. In looking at all the responses in this thread so far has anyone had any issues with that? Hopefully it's a rare issue that only a few unfortunate people received. I'm really digging the colors, especially the orangish gold. Reminds me of the Banshee Gundam. I might even end up displaying this with my PG Banshee now that I think of it. Haven't transformed it yet. Looking forward to sitting down and doing that later today.

Unfortunately no. Bandai slightly changed the design of their attachments. They added some pieces that extend down the side for extra stability. Those pieces make the gap too narrow to fit around Yeti's current adapters. The tab is still the same size though. You could probably just file down the sides of Yeti's adapters so that it could slide in.