Major Focker

thanks for posting the pics, Kicker. nice figure, but probably a pain to track down now. it's not even listed on HLJ so probably an exclusive release. you're lucky to have it. i'll stick with my Megahouse PVC and probably track down a Saito to go with it. wasn't planning on getting Saito, but seeing the gatotsu again made me want one. gotta watch those recommended movies. all this talk of swordplay reminded me of The Hunted, a Hollywood movie from a decade ago, starring Mr. Highlander, Christopher Lambert. thankfully, most of the swordplay action did not involve his character but rather from the other much more able cast. i recall liking it because it stuck a nice balance between flashy and realistic swordplay, in particular, aptly portraying the economy of movement which i imagine is inherent in real samurai fights. the master samurai Takeda would do no more than a parry followed by a strike against lower minions, and maybe just a handful more of that against more skilled foes.

posted this in the WTB section, but thought i'd advertise here as well. if there are any Singapore members who bought the Dengeki Hobby magazine Jan 2013 issue, and are willing to sell the model kit that came with it, please pm me with your asking price. i want to buy several of these.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Levitating-Death-Star/?ALLSTEPS

just finished watching Cowboy Bebop. wasn't planning a marathon but it ended up being so. man, why did i pass up on this when a friend lent me his DVDs many years ago? edit: now i gotta find myself a Faye Valentine figure. any PVC or GK recommendations?

reminds of the Mospeada Tread. i think it would've looked better if it split down the middle as two smaller pods and spread apart, held by two separate arms forming a v-shape. kinda like how the shoulder pods on the VF-25 are mounted.

agree with jenius' points, though i don't think Bandai is afraid of over-producing. they are big enough that they can easily write-off overruns. but their size also means that the will always have to juggle and do trade-offs with their multiple toy lines, each of which will be competing for their huge but finite production and marketing capacity. so it boils down to a production mix that maximizes returns whilst balancing sustainability against risks. Bandai aren't necessarily forfeiting income from unproduced valks. for all we know, they may have several production runs for other toy lines that deliver not only better returns %-wise but also bigger quantum in absolute terms. hence longer production runs for valks may in fact be costing them more in opportunity losses, perhaps to a degree that can't be compensated by raising valk prices or selling more units because of their underprojection. so i think it's less about fear of overruns, rather it's simply that they need to prioritize other income streams. sucks that our beloved franchise may not be that high on their list, but i don't think Bandai is averse to Macross nor to making money from it.

you're welcome. i'll be holding out for the bluray w/subtitles. the movie has already been licensed (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2012-09-02/live-action-rurouni-kenshin-film-licensed-in-60+countries) so it's inevitable that subbed discs will hit the market, perhaps just some weeks after the Japan release. HK will most likely be the first with an official english-subbed release as with previous japanese movie adaptations. curious about your resin figure. is it GK, and what scale? please post pics. i only have the megahouse release which is 1/8. been looking for a 1/6 or at least 1/7.

so theoretically we might see one hand cop a feel while the other slaps the face

not sure i'm qualified to do a review, having just seen it on a small screen. but short review is: go see/buy it. it's a fairly faithful adaptation of the anime and a solid, well-written, well-paced movie that stands on its own; making it accessible and dare i say entertaining even for newcomers to Kenshin. it didn't quite blow me away like the Yamato live action movie (but thankfully, it doesn't suffer from the exaggerated acting of that movie) but is infinitely better than the Blood movie. slightly longer version: the movie starts out like a james bond movie: big action scene at the opening showing the big battle that brought the Tokugawa era to an end, the royalist claiming victory, Battousai abandoning his sword, Jine waking up from under a pile of bodies and questioning why he was allowed to survive, then finds Battousai's sword stuck on the ground and upon grabbing the hilt, seemingly forms a mystical connection with the sword, cue intro credits. Saito is also introduced right at the start, trying to find and confront Battousai in the battlefield. i mention this since i don't recall Saito making an appearance in the anime until the Shishio arc (my recollection is hazy though as it's been years since i last saw the anime). so i think this is one example of how the writers made some non-canon changes which i believe were good calls as it allowed them to establish key characters and their motivations and consequently made the story flow better than if they were to constantly insert the backstories inherent in serialized shows. they did use flashbacks, but did so deftly and only at the appropriate moments to draw focus on Kenshin's internal struggle. i thought this was clever since it not only allowed them to visualize Kenshin's introspection, but also let them delve into key points of Kenshin's history (eg. how he got his scar from a soon-to-be-married samurai who simply refuses to die) and at the same time showcasing the duality of Kenshin/Battousai's personality, plus the bonus of more sword fights. they didn't spend a lot of time on how Sanosuke ended up relying on his fists rather than his big sword which IIRC was at least a couple of episodes in the anime. but again, i think it was the right call and a forgivable edit since it would've competed with the exploration of Kenshin's psyche which was the focus of the movie. in this regard, i think they did a better job than the Yamato movie in cramming so many episodes into just over 2 hours. the Yamato movie was still commendable considering it distilled an entire season, but did have a few lulls and some overly long scenes. in contrast the Kenshin movie had what i can only describe as a graceful flow, despite the annoying in-flight announcements. there's almost no CG, which is a good thing. this, plus only limited wire-work (no fantastical flying kung-fu) made the action scenes more plausible, at least as far as having a guy defeat dozens can be deemed plausible. i think they did a good job in balancing the realism of actual swordfights and the over-the-top moves in the anime. the fight choreography was excellent, as well as the camera work which gave a good sense of Kenshin's agility and speed, while still allowing one to see and follow the swordplay, unlike in some movies where it's an unintelligible blur (i'm looking at you Bayformers). in line with the generally serious tone of the movie, humor has been toned down, so don't expect any of the slapstick arguments between Kenshin/Kaoru and Sanosuke/Yahiko. not to say that the movie is devoid of humor, on the contrary it has enough moments that will elicit smiles, if not outright laughter, particularly from one of Sanosuke's fights where the combatants actually take a break to eat because they were so worn out. the Kenshin actor was a good fit. though i found his pout annoying at times, he was able to convincingly portray the two faces of Kenshin/Battousai (think of the anime where his eyes change from doe-eyed to the fierce eyes of a killer). he demonstrated good fluidity worthy of a master swordsman. by contrast, the Saito actor was less convincing in his swordplay. he accurately conveys a sense of power in his strikes befitting of the Saito character, but he swings at times clumsily and one does not get a sense of the precision of his strikes which is a hallmark of Saito. nonetheless, the actor managed a good performance of Saito's menacing demeanor, even if he was not as tall or as lean as i expected Saito to be. i got goosebumps when he put on that intense stare and assumed the gatotsu stance. the Jine actor had much better sword skills and portrayed the expert brutality in his swordplay. despite being a bit too good looking (my previous boss is a dead-ringer with his short cropped grey hair and blue eyes, which is unusual for an asian) he manages to be creepy and threatening in the movie, helped in no small part by his excellent voice acting. some people felt the Kaoru actress was too pretty for the role since the character is supposed to be ordinary looking. i disagree, partly because i thought Kaoru was sufficiently attractive in the anime, and partly because the actress did a good job with the drama elements of the movie. i felt though that the writers could've made her a more able character, say, knocking around a few guys before being overwhelmed by the number of thugs that invaded her dojo. shame, because the actress did have that feisty expression in her repertoire. Megumi was unquestionably pretty and striking, but i was expecting a different kind of beauty; more towards sensuous geisha and less kokeshi doll. missed opportunity for some fanservice i think this would've made a stronger distinction between Megumi and Kaoru, not because the Megumi actress wasn't pretty enough, but rather the Kaoru actress wasn't too shabby herself (in the anime they're supposed to be world's apart in terms of beauty). to her credit, the Megumi actress moved and carried herself gracefully, befitting her upbringing, and had good acting chops to boot. Megumi is actually fairly central in the movie, perhaps with even more screen time than Kaoru (or maybe i just paid more attention when she's on screen). Kanryu was probably the best casting choice of the movie. the actor made the character the annoying, abusive, manipulative, and entertaining villain he's supposed to be. actually, the overall acting caliber in this movie is very high, including Sanosuke and Yahiko which i won't go into detail. i'm definitely getting this on bluray. and while i would welcome a sequel covering the Shishio arc, i have some apprehension whether that would translate well into the more realistic tone that this first movie has adopted. Shishio's flaming sword would undoubtedly look cinematic, but a flying Hanya is another matter. nonetheless, i think showcasing how Kenshin and gang counter different fighting styles might make it a worthwhile endeavor.

singapore airlines. saw it last november. http://www.singaporeairlines.com/gridItemsLightBox.form?category=Movies%20next%20month&itemId=7455 they normally have movies on board within weeks of the theatrical release.

caught this movie on the plane. quite entertaining actually. the action scenes were well done. hope to watch it again on a bigger screen.

at 2:16, VF-0D skimming the ARMD flight deck. nice to see that they seem to have gotten the capital ship scale right, contrary to previous released pics which showed a gerwalk looking very large on an ARMD at 2:21, VF-25 making a strafing run on a zentraedi ship. again, seems to be in the right scale. i'm still worried though if the RPG elements will make it impossible for me to play. hope some kind soul puts a a detailed english guide. btw, has there been an english guide for the past macross PS3 games? ideally, one that shows the various pre-mission screens and what one can do there. i recall someone posted a screencap of the controller setup translated into english, but i've lost the link. appreciate any leads to these resources. thanks

check this out: http://www.ourstarbl...2013/index.html so 2 fighters per "platform" x 8 platforms per carousel x 2 carousels = 32 fighters another 4 are probably in storage since there are supposed to be 36 Cosmo Falcons onboard. (or there are actually 9 platforms per carousel) the 2x Cosmo Zero, 2x Scout, 2x Seagull are probably in an upper deck hangar with access to the topside catapults. the Yamato is about the same length as a modern aircraft carrier at 333m (2199 version). Yamato's 42 craft is half the complement of a modern carrier (80-90, 60 of which are below deck in the internal hangar) the 1/1000 model kit shows how the "Turret Ring" system fits: this, i agree with.

yes, the mouth moves. you can see him with a silly grin in the picture below, which also gives a reference for the size. but sadly, the ankles are not articulated. what happens when two rare birds meet: which is how you get this:

nope. this one has a 22 inch wingspan it was released several years ago as a pre-order bundle with the Monster Hunter PS3 game. yes, there is a smaller revoltech version which should be released soon, if not already.

after years of hunting, finally tracked down one of these rare critters lurking under my sofa... Silver Rathalos, limited release from Hi-Blitz another item i've been lucky to finally find after first seeing it in HK last year (shop was still closed, and gone when i returned for it a mere half hour later). chanced upon it in a local shop selling dolls: Sheryl Nome, 3D/Lenticular A3 poster too bad the holographic effect is lost in the picture. it's pretty well done with the several "layers" and good perceived depth. and since the macross gods were smiling on me that day, i also helped myself to these 3D posters: edit: not anime, but thought i'd share this as well Minas Tirith, crafted by The Danbury Mint

cautiously optimistic about this one: http://uk.gamespot.c...railer-6394011/ (Strike Suit Zero) music sounds like a mishmash of Zone of Enders and Homeworld. gameplay a cross between wing commander and the macross frontier games, but more wing commander since you actually get to aim and lead your targets and not constrained to flying circles around a target. multi-missile lock seems to borrow from ZoE homing laser implementation, which to me is the closest approximation to how Ozma would do a missile salvo.

cough.. hovertank...cough pretty please?

i thought this was a scoop thread

couldn't agree more

er... <shivers>

finally someone mentions Claudine Auger. i'd squeeze Carey Lowell (after the haircut) in there, but might be tough to choose who to bump off; maybe Carole or Gemma

that minmay deserves a PVC rendition

thanks! that was awesome! never heard of them before, but i'll definitely track down their albums now. agree with bond being a reflection of the times. when i was a kid i thought Moore was the greatest and scoffed at my Dad for preferring Connery. then when i got older...

Thunderbaaaaaaaallllll!!!! LOL I like it too, though I might get a hernia if I try to sing it!