Zinjo

Nevermind, Sketchley cleared up the question....

It is most likely it will be a highly detailed kit with various optional panels and internal details, which is a trademark of larger scale aircraft kits. I'd suspect that moving wings will be the minimum we could expect. I want the Yammie 1/100 scale VB-6 to go with my VF-100 series Messiahs...

Actually they aren't, Judah was the man who became Israel and the father of the Jewish people. Judas was the one who sold Jesus to the Romans. I always got the impression that the "Judas" system was an inhibiting code to keep the Ghosts from going on a self initiated rampage against friendly pilots. The new Ghosts have AI, but limited self will akin to a dog's leash. Essentially I see the "Judas System" to be more of a control system for attack dog mecha. Smart enough to fight, but not capable of turning on its owners.

HG currently only has a say as to what can or cannot be called "Macross" in the North American market, as they currently own the trademark to the name. BigWest has not yet challenged that trademark and we simply don't know if or when they will.

Kawamori likes enigmas... Every Macross title he's done has unanswered questions in them, no tidy little bow as the North American masses have been programmed into believing is necessary. As I get older I appreciate this approach more and more, as it keeps creative options open for future tales if inspiration hits right. The whole Brilar motivation only reinforces the legend of Minmay, not only within the universe, but also for the fans. I expect that now, no story, no matter how inspired could possibly live up to the fans' expectations of what the original triangle could have become. It is true that after DYRL, Kawamori swore off Macross for nearly a decade, but his clout in the franchise is what got him the funding to do Plus, which was not written as a Macross story originally. When he did return the inevitable Megaroad question came up and he's always maintained that the story of Hikaru, Misa and Minmay has been told and he has no interest in revisiting it. That isn't to say he never will, but so far after 25 years he has never been inspired to tell any new stories about that trio. I'd suggest accepting the fate of the Megaroad as one of the many mysteries of the Macross universe and move on. taksraven, I doubt we'll ever see any Protoculture fleets in Macross. The PC are the ultimate enigma and I kinda like it that way. Every production reveals a new kernel of information about the civilization. Besides, if the remnants of the PC's were to come out in force, they'd wipe out any NUNS forces they'd feel the need to attack, so it would be a very short show....

Some of the artwork was lifted from the masters already published in books or CDs, etc... Other ones seem to be new works. I count 6 new ones on the horizon, 7 news ones since the Ranka and Sheryl sheets were released. 1. Ozma Armored - Kathy sheet 2. Alto Armored - Sheryl sheet 3. Micheal - Klan custom sheet 4. Luca - Nanase custom sheet 5. Ranka custom sheet - New 6. Ozma - Planet Dance w/Kathy custom sheet 7. Ozma Fast Pack - Kathy sheet (ships with the Ozma FP version of the kit) Very exciting! Who knows what will come out for the VF-27 after it gets released? Bandai, can we get these for the VF-100 series, Puleeze!!! Tradition would be my guess... They've been publishing Vf customs forever.... Well considering their first run is already sold out, I'm not surprised. I suspect we'll be seeing other VFs from the series get the same Hobby Pro treatment over the next few years. It wouldn't surprise me if the sales of the Hobby Pro line prompted them to do the clear VF-25F DX toy. Obviously there is market interest in this type of product.

Well some market trading appears to be going on here as well. Yammie never had access to the Mac 7 licenses before and the 1/100 VB-6 is conspicuously absent from their current re-issues. As for the 1/48 kit, it's hard to say if Bandai is responding to Hasegawa's YF-19 or the other way around. There has been a market for 1/48 scale valks for a long time, but the market needed to mature for them. I'm sure the research departments from both companies realize that the Macross franchise (like gundam) has a legacy fanbase old enough to now be able to afford the higher end kits, unlike before and with other franchises.

I dont'! I love the fact that they are doing what Hasegawa has been doing for decades. Re-issuing the same kits with different decals. Now if only we could ask them to release the deculture decals for the VF-100 series I'd be ecstatic!!!

Wow, if this keeps up and I may have to send the transcript of this thread to Seth Green for an episode of Robot Chicken....

Not for Bandai! I've heard the paint schemes on the fighters are going to be changed like DYRL, which means cha'ching for the Bandai marketing department. Re-paint existing toys and kits and you have a whole new line to sell. The term "Ghost writer" comes to mind. Ohnogi was initially tasked with the Sheryl arc of the show, as far as I am aware the rest was left to the staff writers. However in the Famitsu Interview Kawamori describes how Ohnogi contributed to the last half of the show. As for Gubaba's question. It started here: http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=29322 and is confirmed here: http://community.livejournal.com/whatboutm...l?thread=277931

Well it is a movie after all, can't waste too much screentime on her running around the city, like the series...

My theory is that Bandai approached Yamato and offered a deal of certain Mac 7 VF's in exchange for the rights to produce and distribute the VB-6 Monster. Bandai has their VF-100 line which matches the scale of the Yammie VB-6. If a deal does exist, we don't know if that includes the Yammie molds, CAD specs or just the rights to the variable monster toy. If a deal exists then Bandai may opt to make their own in the same scale. There is a conspicuous absence of the VB-6 from Yamato and a surprising introduction of a Mac 7 valk (something Yammie never had before) by a company who never before released valks from that Bandai sponsored show. Considering how prominently the monster was shown in Frontier and all the re-issues of Macross merchandise these days, I suspect the VB-6's absence may be due to a quiet deal between the two companies. We won't know for sure until some sort of announcement is made by either side or Graham gets wind of a deal through his sources at Yammie that he can talk about.

Actually I recall seeing a Yammie VF-17 somewhere, but can't remember where... OK, I didn't have time to elaborate that I can't see Bandai giving up it's DX line of Frontier fighters, considering the R&D costs they must have spent. I also have to amend my comments regarding any future GNU Macross lines, I just found on the web today some announcements for TV versions of the GNU VF-1 that are scheduled to come out this fall. I doubt they are new announcements, only new to me (so much for that theory ). Maybe Yammie and Bandai made a deal for only a few fighters. Since the Yammie VB-6 is conspicuously absent from their current line up and it was featured prominently in Frontier. I don't think we'll be seeing Yamato release it, but rather Bandai releasing their own Frontier version probably in the same scale to compliment the VF-100 series of mecha.

What book is this line art from?

Probably, since they had to re-design the Alto version to work with the new FAST Packs version scheduled in a future release. The other thing about Yamato's new M7 line is that I have a suspicion that the possible VB-6 deal may well extend to all the 1/100 scale of Macross mecha. The latest releases of the GNU series (also 1/100 scale battroids) were limited editions with no future announcements for the Macross GNU line. This suggests to me that instead of competing with each other in the same scales, that Yammie is taking over the 1/60 scale valks, while Bandai is taking over the 1/100 scale. Yammie is pretty strong in the 1/60 & 1/48 scales toy market, while 1/100 is a fairly profitable size on a secondary line for Bandai. Both can milk the molds with variations on both scales for a very long time, taking a few cues from Hasegawa's marketing strategy with the Macross kits over the years...

Get the VF-100's. I have the VF-25F so far and am in love with it!

I suspect Yamato and Bandai did a deal for the VB-6 Konig rights. Bandai got the VB-6 and Yamato got the rights to do VF-7 valks. To be fair, the VF-100 series really aren't toys, but rather posable/transformable display mecha. They are too small, fragile and do not "perfect" transform like the DX series of toys do. They started out pricy but they appear to be dropping as more volumes are sold. If all you want is a nicely sculpted display piece for your collection, they are a good choice) Yes, these are quite gorgeous, however advanced modellers like wmchen, have had challenges with painting. Well the DX line is the best ones for perfect transforming toys. They may not be the best sculpt due to the mechanics of transformation, but if you don't build kits and want a larger scale than 1/100 its your best bet. There are a few resin kits of the Sheryl and Ranka, but no mecha yet...

Not sure how to fix that brother. However, I'd suggest waiting for the Bandai or Yamato 1/100 scale VFs. Yamato will probably eventually release a VF-1 battroid, while Bandai may well eventually release a variable 1/100 Max version in their VF-100 line. Both are superior quality compared to the Toynami brand.

The VF-22 is a new item for Yamato. All Mac 7 items were exclusively Bandai. I am wondering if they made a deal to allow Yamato to release Mac 7 fighters so that Bandai could do a VB-6 with the Mac F branding?

True, however memorable media always has a relevant hook for the audience. If the characters aren't believable or cannot be identified with, then interest in the entertainment is lost. Mac II & Mac Zero are perfect examples of how flash over drama just doesn't keep an audience's interest. I believe the Sheryl arc in Frontier is what turned a formula Macross series into a hit. All the characters were 2 dimensional and bland. Then we get the fall of an idol and how she evolves because of it, and that's interesting drama. The Japanese people love a good drama, which is why Korean live action character dramas are so popular these days, because the Korean writers have a knack for writing compelling stories. In the West, shows like Lost, Heroes, BSG, etc... are so well received because they are character dramas set in extraordinary circumstances. That is what good entertainment is all about. Rooting for your favorite character(s) to succeed against the odds. Had Alto, Ranka AND Sheryl had similar dramatic arcs, the show could have surpassed even SDFM. The key to SDFM was that despite it being a super robot show, it had character development and growth. The only other show to do that at the time was Gundam. History has shown that because of this, the shows are near iconic in their lasting power. The most recent addition to that club has been Evangelion.

Maybe, but if you look closely at the lineart in the DVD liner notes, you can't tell which end is which, nevermind which side is which...

Actually the bridge of the Galaxy looks more like a Megaroad bridge than anything else. Well nice of the research crew to add "NMCV" to the confusion surrounding naming conventions and designations of warships in the Macross universe... A little consistency would be nice right about now.... We have the SDF-1 Macross, SDFN-4 Global, the NMCV(?) Macross 7, 21, & 25 [assuming NMCV is a military designation like the SDF-1 series of warships were-but not necessarily and maybe...], the CV404 Uraga carrier, and the ARMD 01-362 series space carriers', but let's throw in an undesignated stealth frigate just to mess with everyone's sense of order.... Now each are meticulously classified and the VF-s are meticulously designated, but the rest are three sheets to the wind.... I love and hate Macross sometimes....

You know I'd buy a book with just the Mikimoto cover art for this series... Another win!

Too bad! I was hoping they'd be thinking a bit further ahead...

It was also going to be a parody of giant robot shows, not the serious drama it became.