Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0

Its Bandai. I am expecting toys that are nothing but phenomenal and durable. This is the top toy company in Japan, I expect nothing less for them. This is the sleeping giant, they have finally awoken, I shouldn't expect anything less.

At worst, rare and exotic could mean Max and Milia. However I don't think thats the case here, as those weren't rare or exotic in Japan. At best, it means the DYRL armor trio and GPS-1. Those haven't been reissued at all, so that definitely fits the bill for rare and exotic.

Prime won't be hard to find, the last leader cases to ship will have nothing but him. Don't. If you want the battle mask, get the Stealth version instead. I have CC BB, and now the stealth, and though its just a new head and paint job, it looks great in hand. I was originally going to swap heads with my CC BB, but I was so impressed that I didn't. I like both of them as they are. Surprisingly there are some parts that were molded in black. Initial previews made it seem like all the black was painted on. Premium Bumblebee looks boring compared to the first CC BB, and stealth. I would have liked a metallic paint job, but what dissapointed me was the leg articulation, as well as the arms. The elbows are weird, but as dissapointing as those are, his knees do not have a good range of motion. I also didn't like how far back is head is in robot mode, nor how low it is. Robot mode looks awesome, the design of the character is a strength, but the articulation issues outweigh how good the robot mode looks. Didn't buy the first Megatron for the same reasons. I like Premium Megatron a lot, I like the robot design better than the CGI counterpart(its more balanced on the toy, as opposed to looking like an aluminum foil Rocklord onscreen), but what is most dissapointing to me is head articulation. At first I didn't think it would bother me, various fans were saying it was blasphemous that his head couldn't even move, I thought to myself, "yea big deal". Its not dissapointing enough to stop me from buying it, but its dissapointing that he can't look where he is aiming. Be careful when transforming. Don't have the gold hip pieces facing forward when in jet mode like on the box, as it bends the hip panels. While switching spring locations in the arm, a small spring for the trigger flew and I can't find it. Luckily this wasn't the big spring used for enabling the cannon(shooting his hand when switched). This happen to anyone else? It hasn't affected anything, I think its just used to raise the trigger higher, but with the big/tougher spring in there to shoot the hand, the trigger is held up naturally due to the tension, at least I think/hope so. Articulation aside that is good, but ball jointed ankles like on Leader Prime would have been better. Premium Prime is nice. I don't think the head is based on the final CG renders. It looks like this time around, the head was sculpted after the promotional images of Prime that are on the gift bags, greeting cards, ads and whatever else you can find outside the toy section in department stores. The sword is a great touch, but the orange paint on the blade is not thick enough. Maybe its just me but the head automorph is quicker than the first Leader Prime. The sword attachement is knocked off when trying to flip the right hand out(after the sword is automorphed back into its hidden position facing backwards). The head sculpt is awesome. The metallic paint is a nice touch, in coordination with the lighter grey plastic, however I wish the metallic silver was more liberally used, like on Robovision Prime. I'm almost done with my movie collection, just a few more figures to go and I am satisfied. I didn't buy one of every figure, just the ones I wanted. I have to say, this line had a lot of playability and detail. I was very happy and surprised by this line. Leader Prime is the most complex mainline Prime, and yet not difficult to transform. This is the first time in a very long time that we have a mainline Prime who is imposing, yet not having a combining gimmick. The automorph gimmick is now one of my favorites, and I am glad it is used on the upcoming Universe as well as Animated figures. The line has is similar to Beast Wars, where every mainline figure is fully articulated, and has self contained gimmicks. Its a shame that some figures had gimmicks that completely compromised the aesthetic(Starscream), or a design that ruined the articulation(Jazz). As bloated as Starscream looks, I've seen worse, and enjoy the toy a lot. We got fully articulated Bumblebee figures with weaponry. We got Real Gears. There was something for everyone in this line. Hell we even got off screen(well they didn't transform in the film) Transformers, like Incinerator and Landmine, both enjoyable figures. I was a fan who didn't think we would get a good toyline. It wasn't until we saw our first glimpses of protoform Optimus from Puma King in China that I started to reconsider. This isn't the best Transformers line ever conceived, but its one of the best.

No, he looks like Flint. I hope so too, I'm not too fond of the cartoon, nostalgia aside. We have clips from behind the scenes up on the frontpage of hisstank.com.

Hell yea they are. With regards to the upcoming reissues, we are either paying the exact same price as in japan, or a little under.

It did Agreed! If you have any ninja joes/cobras from 2002-05, chances are you have that sword. It was reissued to death during those years. KB has VVV single figures, and the Night Creeper has that sword.

"Velocity" was good, funny. A must for Blitzwing fans.

HLJ has the VF-1J/S for 7800 yen. Robotech.com has them listed for pre-order for $79.99. The Super valkyries are set for 9000 yen, and etailers here have preorders up for $84.99. That isn't gouging.

He did? I don't think it should have, if it got in the way of him telling a good story. Same here. It would be nice to know what the fate of Hikaru, Misa, Minmay and crew is, but if not, it doesn't affect me. Kawamori has been pulling a Tomino all these years with the exception of killing off the majority of the cast, and it hasn't brought the stories down. The possible ties I see forming are possibly finding out the fate of Kudo Shin, Megaroad-01 and crew, and Genzoh Dyson. I watch Frontier because its Macross. I've enjoyed it a lot thus far. I was worried that it would only be good as a Macross anime, as opposed to being a good anime on its own aside its lineage. I was worried over nothing, its a great series so far. The main character is likeable and relatable, as many homages are there are, none seem verbatim(for example though Michel is seen as this series' version of Max, he is not exactly the same, he is very different in some ways), the music is GREAT, and the CG is good. The plot hasn't been too predictable or cliche, and one doesn't need to watch the past Macross series to know what this one is about. Though, I must say, its a damn shame if someone hasn't watched the originals before. There are so many homages in Frontier that one wouldn't notice if they hadn't watched the previous series. Its a wealth of history and background. Though good on its own, I think it satisfies Macross fans more than new fans, simply because they would be the only ones who get the homages. In a way, its like Otaku no Video; if you weren't a fan of old anime or knowledgeable about it, its just not as entertaining and you wouldn't get some of the inside jokes/plot. In conclusion, my initial draw to this series was that its the newest addition to Macross. What kept me watching is the story, and great characters. Its nice to see a mecha show that is much more than mecha porn. This is one that is going to last.

The other alternative is paying vintage prices for a vintage one. Reissues for other toy lines are no different. Some Transformers reissues, some much smaller, were in the same price range.

Not to the point of actually talking about his dominance over his peers though. He is impressed with his own brilliance, and confident, but he doesn't talk over Hikaru as if he is an older brother/mentor/jock, unlike Michel talk to Alto.

There maybe a few of us, but at the end of the decade, there will be more Bandais in one piece than Yamatos. Its a classic toy and we aren't paying a huge price for one. This is an opportunity I waited years for, one I never thought would happen, and one I am not going to pass up. I plan on getting the new Yamato 1/60 too, but the chance to own a classic is too much to resist, especially since I know how durable it is. I play with my toys, and my Bandais have survived without having the "worn in" feeling. For a Macross toy, this is rare. I don't even mind the swing bars bulging at the sides of the cockpit. The common saying is "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". I don't mind the sculpt at all, its balanced in all modes proportionally, which Yamato didn't achieve with the VF-1 until the new 1/60. The only thing I would want more from the Bandai would be universal hip movement, swivel thighs, missles, and an attachement point for the gunpod in fighter mode. None of these would get in the way of its fast transformation.

It didn't stop them from retooling the FAST pack arm parts. If the ELINT/Super O sets come out, why wouldn't they remold the arm armors? Exactly. I have a feeling if Toynami struck the deal with Yamato instead, people would be rejoicing. People would say "oh man, Toynami is finally doing the right thing, and we can get broken VF-0 arm replacements from Yamato USA in coordination with Toynami rather than paying HLJ! Man I knew they would come to their senses! Isn't it a better place now that Toynami and Yamato are friends rather than competitors? Man I knew Toynami would come through! Cheaper US prices for us as opposed to import prices! Freaking Bandai, they are too lazy to make use of an opportunity like this." Toynami didn't tool up the Megahouse Ride armors, so I don't know why everyone thinks somehow they will even tinker with the Bandais. For Bandai this is easy money. For Toynami this is easy for them, no r/d on their part. If Yamato were distributing these, rather than Bandai, I bet that alliance would be called the "best of both worlds", David hand in hand with Goliath, the pioneer with the sleeper.

The VF-27 in battroid mode looks a lot like the VF-25, just pinkish red, with different wings. Thanks for the refresher jpegs Mr. March.

Alto. I like how he is not afraid to call someone out. Even though he is fearful of the Vajra initially, it doesn't stop him from taking them on, especially episode 4. Klan klan outranks him, but that doesn't stop him from taking her on in mock combat either, he put up a good fight, rather than hide behind an asteroid the entire time and wait for Michel or Luca to do something. He is also a character who strives to break the ties that bind him and free himself from the expectations of others. For a character who starts out young and not as experienced as his peers, he is strong and puts in a damn good effort. Not cocky, unlike Michel, and not easily scared, like Luca. Michel is okay, too cocky for my tastes. If he becomes more of a mentor rather than retaining the "cocky older brother" mentality through the series, then he will be more likeable as a character. I have a feeling his arrogance and one-shot mentality will lead him to screw up and miss, with Alto saving him. I don't like Sheryl. Maybe I'll like her later, but only if her ego is destroyed. Her only redeeming factor, is that she is encourages Ranka, but as of episode 5, I can see this changing. Ranka is likeable, and I didn't notice her VA's singing talent until episode 5. Ranka can sing fairly well, her rendition of "What 'bout my star" is better than Sheryl's! Nonetheless, the lyrics are horrible engrish. I like Ozma too, but not as much as Alto. Ozma fights to make up for his mistakes and make sure they don't ever happen again. He doesn't have as much as a macho attitude as Roy. His past is interesting, I hope we see everything explained about him before the season ends. The only thing I don't like about him, is that from his attitude, it seems like he could have prevented the tragedy that occurred to Ranka, and he didn't need to punch Alto(that was random). I don't like the guy that made out with Cathy Glass. Not only does he look like a prick, he acts like one, a dumb one at that. What idiot decides to shove a bioweapon that might not be dead, into a glass tube? This guy has it coming, I hope Ozma kills his ass by season's end.

Get a chunky. Its the takatoku/bandai 1/55. Durable. Timeless. A toy that looked great 20 years ago and still looks great now. The most durable valkyrie toy ever made, and can be transformed in seconds. Looks well, and plays well. Yamato has steady new releases, so there will be a lot to go around for those. You can wait on Yamatos. Start with what started it all, the chunky monkey.

Kevin, did he say if the VF-1J/S will have a cheaper price, now that the SUPER valkyries are only $5 more? The molds for the bodies are the same, who is to say that the Strike, Super O, and ELINT armor pieces haven't been accounted for or recasted from the vintage toys? I have a feeling we will be seeing Angel birds, Max/Kakizaki TV type, and a low viz VF-1A. Has George tried asking Bandai to recast the old HCM?

Thats a general rule of thumb for all toy companies.

If Bandai's new creative division is actually behind this, you're just making things harder for yourself, and spending more money in the process for the very same toy.

I think its the same one, I don't think she is in a comic pack. The DVD set she comes in is a letdown though. One piece of the Mass Device, then 2 figures I already have. I'm not the fondest person of the cartoon, the main reason I like the battle packs is because they are a bargain, and I've always liked buying multipacks.

For small scale toys, HCMpro/ABS/POM or bust! I had no idea what the big deal about PVC was until I had the MSIAs for a few years. I definitely want my macross valkyries with no warpage!

Please tell me the Hikaru 1J will be in grey. Grey>white. I don't care if white is canon. Bandai's VF-1J paint scheme>Yamato Hikaru VF-1J paint scheme. Why? Bandai had grey. Grey wins. More military looking. Yes white and red are heroic colors in japan...but grey screams bad ass. I might bite the bullet and preorder the strike. I need a Roy valkyrie. Graham, out of all the valkyries you have handled, especially the latest SV-51s, how does the new VF-1 stack up?

Wave 5 comic packs That Cobra Commander is surprisingly impressive. The cape and sword are a nice touch!

.....and the alternative being Yamato valkyries which cost more, and at this point FAST pack versions are a minimum of $100+ at least? Thats true. Years later, which toys will remain in one piece though?=) It is for me, its an option. I don't know how well the new 1/60 will feel in my hands. I stupidly neglected the old Bandai reissues in favor of the old 1/60. That was a big mistake on my part. The 1/55 is something timeless, a toy that has always proven durable, its a piece of history. Hell what Bandai/Toynami is doing isn't any different than other brands. Transformers anyone? Hey at least with this one, the 1/55 can actually move its legs =)

He does put his mask on, DESTRO the head admin of HissTank, has already seen it. I think we will see it at SDCC. Storm Shadow looks much better with a mask on. Reminds me of the v1 84 look smacked with the Reloaded look. Don't know if anyone caught this, but his swords are very similar in shape to the ones that came with the V1! Look at the curvature, and one was short, one was long, which is what we are seeing here.