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technoblue

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  1. technoblue
  2. technoblue
    Not sure. Perhaps he is talking about the blue pieces?
  3. technoblue

    Hi-Metal R

    technoblue replied to joppewo's topic in Toys

    I had the same experience this morning. 0800 click to refresh...wait... Click to preorder the HM-R 1J...wait... Oops...want to add that cool Tamashii Patlabor figure too...wait... Oops...need to login to complete my order...wait... Grr...AmiAmi's confirmation page...click...more waiting... But everything went through. Phew!
  4. technoblue
    I opened the power armor for MMC's Seraphicus Prominon (Nova Prime) on Friday, and I have been messing with it over the weekend. It's a fun, albeit expensive armor set. As a trailer, I find that it doesn't have many uses. In alt mode, for instance, the trailer is stretching my imagination. It doesn't carry anything like MP-22 or open up to take cars like MP-10. In bot mode, the power cradle is a little more useful, but that use is still limited. It reminds me of how you can utilize MP-10's trailer as a repair bay. The real deal is the armor, itself, which is a completely parts-forming affair. Think of how the GBP armor for the VF-1J works and you will get a good idea of how MMC's armor set works for their Nova Prime. Standing next to the armored VF-1J, MMC's Nova Prime is just a head smaller. Hikaru: Cool sword! Nova Prime: Hands off! The armor pieces all attach securely, and some even have clever tab-in points. I was impressed with how much of the core bot articulation was preserved in the armored mode. The waist still has its complete swivel (even with the added wing backpack), the arms keep their articulation, and the legs and feet keep most of their articulation. The only piece that made any noteworthy difference was the armored gauntlets. The fingers have the same articulation as the core bot, but the wrist appears to lose articulation. It makes certain dynamic poses a little more challenging to pull off. Nova Prime: By the power of... The only complaint I have with the armor set is with the two-piece helmet. It's a loose fit with the larger front half and a smaller back half coming together over the core bot's head with locking tabs. It gets knocked off easily if I bump it while setting up a pose. I don't know if that is due to a QC issue with my copy or a design issue with all copies. But it is only a small annoyance that I can live with. Where the Seraphicus Prominon core bot was an easy recommendation, especially considering its price, the power cradle is not an easy recommendation for similar reasons. It's just so expensive, and you are only really getting an armor parts package. If this set was priced close to the core bot (around $100), then I would say go for it. Since it is priced higher than that, I think it may only be worth the extra cost to die-hard Nova Prime fans or collectors who need to complete the set. In other news...My replacement for Guttur arrived with my pile-o-loot on Saturday from BBTS. FT-06X Sever (Snarl) is my second MP-sized dinobot, and my second attempt to add Snarl to my MP collection. He looks wicked in hand, but my copy arrived out of the box with a defect (the right arm panel was warped on that side and the ratchet was also defective). I've sent a note to BBTS to get that sorted. In the meantime, I've been looking at Sever in robot mode and running through a quick comparison with him and Guttur. Even with my out-of-the-box isssues, Sever does not have any of the design niggles that Guttur has. The good joints are tight and have smooth movements. The ratchets that are working on my version click and hold fast. On Guttur, this was not always the case. The GigaPower ratchets seem to have movement between the clicks, like there are spaces between the teeth. And since Guttur is top heavy, this can cause a bit of a bobble effect. Sever does not do that, which helps for posing. I do think that Guttur has better face sculpting, but the FansToys faces are okay (I would say the controversial neutral face is passable in person, whereas it does look bad in pictures). If FansToys ever decides to include extra faces as an incentive with another figure or as an add-on by themselves, I would pick them up.
  5. technoblue
    Dodged a bullet, you have. If the things I've been reading are true about Guardia, then it will be a more impressive toy (with all the separate bots) than the VF-2SS. My VF-2SS, in particular has a number of disappointing niggles. The fitment of the chest tabs is just out of whack in fighter mode creating a gap. The legs do not tab in well, and this is well documented in the corresponding thread on this forum. The problem here is that the "polish" fix is a fussy one, and it can hurt how things tab together in other modes (like batroid mode). Also, any dynamic posing is out of the question.
  6. technoblue

    Hi-Metal R

    technoblue replied to joppewo's topic in Toys

    Hi, SMF2015. No reissue has been announced for the Roy or Hikaru 1S Valkyries by Bandai and I haven't heard anything about the landing gear (which are currently extra parts). The VF-1A Mass Production Valkyrie is the first release that includes an additional pilot figure, according to Bandai's Hi-Metal R site: http://www.bandaionline.com/hi-metal-r-vf-1a-valkyrie-mass-production-type-action-figure/ The extra pilot is part of the included gimmicks for this release allowing you to switch the VF-1A between SDF TV and DYRL styling. I don't know if it is a one-off thing or if Bandai will be producing other Valkyries with removable/interchangeable pilots. If they do, it will be pretty cool.
  7. technoblue
    Definitely. It's time to put Duke and Dobber on Spock's time ship and send them back to save Into Darkness.
  8. technoblue
    No and no. But do feel free to express your Trekkie troll in more than 140 characters instead of dismissing legitimate criticisms.
  9. technoblue
    Did I mention I was more of a Rose fan than a Clara fan? BCS is opening up pre-orders for their new 1/6 Rose Tyler. There's a sign up available for those interested in picking this one up early. This version depicts Billie Piper when she was reprising her role in the Season 4 episode of Doctor Who—The Stolen Earth.
  10. technoblue
    That makes more sense to me too, especially since Nemesis and Into Darkness are both aping Wrath of Khan. IMO, they needed to wait a little longer than 10.5 years before writing another Wrath of Khan imitation (even with JJ's hand-waving) after the reboot.
  11. technoblue
    Interesting. Although The Final Frontier was the worst of TOS films, I would have thought Star Trek: Nemesis would rank lower.
  12. technoblue
    No argument here. It was more of a tongue-in-cheek post. I think the most flawed piece from Star Trek V was Sybok's character. I don't necessarily take issue with the fact the he was a renegade Vulcan who did not reject emotion like the rest of the members of his society, but making him into a religious extremist seemed way off. I think they could have done something different while preserving the core conflict between him and Spock. Anyway, I didn't mean to go on an off-topic tangent.
  13. technoblue
  14. technoblue

    Hi-Metal R

    technoblue replied to joppewo's topic in Toys

    The more I see these, the more I find myself warming up to them. The HMR M&Ms remind me of the stylistic interpretations given to the TV Valkyries in the Master File VF-1 Squadrons art book. IMO, it's a sweet interpretation of a cool design... Yeah, I'll take it. Plus, it gives room for Arcadia to release the more traditional paint scheme at a larger scale. How nice of them! (but bad for my wallet, if Arcadia takes advantage)
  15. technoblue
  16. technoblue
    Yeah, I remember the SD Monster that Master Made teased last year. Wasn't it supposed to be an add-on pack for the Makuros? The prototype was looking very good. I guess it was eclipsed by the news of Bandai's HMR Monster. Even with the HMR stuff, I'd buy an SD Monster.
  17. technoblue

    Hi-Metal R

    technoblue replied to joppewo's topic in Toys

    For me, the HMR line has an action figure aesthetic which I like. It reminds me of my figmas in good ways.
  18. technoblue
    It looks like GT is going for a pearlescent white for Jazz after all: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-3rd-party-discussion/1054199-generation-toy-jazz-j4zz-49.html?s=c859d2b4545f06b37315a6015de9a41b#post13626066 Props to ph4zed at TFW for the digital render. And...I'm okay with that. To me, it looks closer to IDW Jazz, whereas the other seemed to be a mix and match of multiple Jazzy things. On a totally different note, for those who like SD-sized 'formers, Master Made released some images of the Apollo test shot (Omega Supreme): http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transformers-3rd-party-discussion/1044143-master-made-apollo-sdt-03-omega-supreme-15.html?s=c859d2b4545f06b37315a6015de9a41b#post13625233 Can't wait for the painted prototype.
  19. technoblue
    To me, that price seems like a good deal for FansProject's G1 repaint of X1. Not that you need extra reassurance, but there you have it. As to why no one else bid? I think Dio hit all the high points. You may have also lucked out with impeccable timing for the end of the auction. Even with ebay, there are times when that kind of coincidence will work in your favor.
  20. technoblue
    Guilty as charged. I was laying it on thick with irony and hyperbole, but I'm also not a fan of the updated movie look. You can add me to the group that is waiting for a nice 935 alt mode that evokes more from the classic Stefan Adami Martini trim. It doesn't have to be perfection, just close enough. The silver/grey base on Generation Toy's version is off to my eyes. All the better if it works for you. You could be right. I'm not familiar with all of IDW, but the alt mode reminds me of what I remember from MtMtE. Edit: Time for something completely different. Someone fashioned a new face for FansToys' Sever (Snarl) and is selling it on Taobao. Here's the discussion on TFW: Replacement Face for Sever And...I don't know. I'm not put off by it, but I'm not wowed by it, either. On a related note, buying the Planet X dinos set off an unstoppable crazy train of dinobot nostalgia for me. I was content to pick up one or two of GigaPower's dinos, but the one or two dinos that matter to me are missing from that line (Sludge and Swoop). FansToys released both, and that is causing me to rethink my MP dinobot strategy. Decisions...decisions...
  21. technoblue
    Yeah. It's nice, but Jazz really ought to be a Porsche with racing trim. I like how Beta is a nod to Alex Milne's interpretation of Drift from MtMtE. It fits in with the aesthetic that MMC is using for their other Reformatted bots. For me, it works rather well.
  22. technoblue
    The Axanar team sent out an official update to backers about the legal business with CBS/Paramount. Since it was mentioned in this thread, I thought I would post an excerpt from the update here: I was thinking that this business would lead to stricter rules for fan films, and it looks like that is the case. It would be silly to think that CBS/Paramount would go on ignoring the inherent value of the Star Trek IP. Yeah, no real conspiracy theories, but there is a lot of legal work to tie up and get things moving forward again. Mostly, I see it slowing down future fan efforts as the rules are set in stone.
  23. technoblue
    That "Add to Cart" button is enticing me to CDJapan, but I want to keep my HLJ order. I have some things in my Private Warehouse waiting on Alto's YF-29.
  24. technoblue
    Another Hot Rod imminent? Yeah. That's it. I took the pictures without even thinking that there was an issue because the hands were holding the swords fair enough for my tastes. It wasn't until I went back and reviewed some videos on the transformation to alt mode that I noticed that I did the weapons wrong.
  25. technoblue
    Those are some nice pictures, slaginpit. I really like the outdoors shot. But I can't tell...what are you posing your Transformers on in the yard? RE: MMC's Seraphicus Prominon R-11 (Nova Prime) This one was a long time coming. I sold my Maketoys HyperNovae when I first learned that MMC was going to add this character to their Reformatted line. The prototype looked impressive back in the day. I didn't know that it was going to be delayed for a dog's age or that it was going to be sold in two parts (figure plus armor). This first review focuses on the core figure only. I'll post an update later that is specific to the trailer and the armor parts. The Seraphicus core bot follows the same standard set by other MMC releases. He is a single figure and he is packaged in bot mode ready to pose out of the gate. The core bot includes all of the instructions (even those for the armor), a matrix, and only two additional accessories: a couple of frosted semi-translucent swords. You can see in the picture above that my sword is not pegged in correctly. Paik4Life has a good tutorial on how to do it, in case you haven't seen his review yet and are wondering if it is possible. The paint apps on the Seraphicus core bot are quite nice (dare I say, excellent?), albeit the pallet is straight forward. There is white, there is dark (almost TARDIS) blue, and there are quite a few accent colors throughout (light blue, gunmetal, silver, and some translucent bits). Around the head I was surprised by a very keen turquoise, as well. Something to watch out for with this paint scheme is paint bleed/rub. I noticed certain tight areas where the blue was rubbing over onto the white. It isn't a big deal for me, but it is something to keep in mind. Articulation-wise, i don't think Seraphicus will leave anyone wanting much in his core form. His arms have bicep and forearm swivels, double-jointed elbows, wrist articulation, and individually articulated fingers. There are shoulder pads/pauldrons that you can maneuver about. His legs have thigh swivels, and sufficient foot articulation. There are good ratchets in the hips and knees (with impressive backward and okay forward range). His head is on a ball joint that also has a swivel of sorts for full on motion. The downside of this neck joint is that it can look odd from certain angles. Transforming Seraphicus to his alt sneaker...*cough* *cough* to his Cybertronian alt mode takes a bit of patience. The legs fold up nicely, and are easy to tab into place. It's the torso that is the meat of the puzzle. the arms, especially, involve some creative turns and bends in order to tab them in correctly and get things looking smooth. My advice: if the wheels of the future truck don't all roll on a flat surface, then something isn't right. But the arms aren't the worst of it. The most nerve wracking part of the transformation is tabbing in the backpack, which also happens to be the top of the alt mode truck. The tolerances here are tight and this last step is the most fiddly. The good news, if you are careful and stick with it, is that you get a cool thing. And yes, I think Slag digs it. MMC has done an interesting thing with this release, especially since the Nova Prime armor is available separately. Personally, I think the core bot has a lot of value on its own and I would recommend it, even after acknowledging the fiddly steps when transforming Seraphicus to alt mode. If you are already collecting transformers from MMC's Reformatted line, then this core bot is a must have.
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