RavenHawk

I can understand your disappointment with RideBack if you thought it was all going to be about racing RideBacks. I had read the first volume of the manga before I saw the anime, so knew to expect it to be more about politics. When I asked about the target audience, I meant what age group is this aimed at? Seem to be elements there meant for young kids, and elements for adults, but in a way that is mutually exclusive.

I don't know if it's a matter of who has better engineers designing the toys, better materials, or just part of designing for a smaller market.

We were discussing this in another variable bike thread. I told you what happened with my issues with Yamato, and how great they were about fixing things. I figure you should hear back from them tomorrow. Let us know when you do.

I've been looking for this everywhere, with absolutely no luck. I'm obsessed with transforming bikes, and the old animated Prowl is one of my favorite toys.

Ok, I REALLY can't wait to see this.

No idea, have to take a look at mine when I get home tonight, but I feel pretty certain they'll find some way to fix the problem for you. I just wish these things we love were loved in higher quantities. I look at my son's $15 Transformer, with solid parts, good connections, proper fits and posability, and can be dropped on the floor and still be fine... Then I look at one of my $150 transforming toys from any of a number of Anime, that are fidgety, don't hold poses well, are no fun to transform, and break just from being transformed, never mind dropped...

Almost have enough space freed up to start downloading... so close... So, from what you said, this is sounding more and more like Megazone 23.

Soon as I free up some space on my laptop, I'm going to download an episode or two. See if it's any good before I go buying a boxed set. EDIT: Considering the Akira lineage, I'm surprised more people haven't heard of it.

Apparently it's been out for a good year now, but I had never heard of it. Anyone here familiar with "Freedom?" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rEGMe-uniU...player_embedded Here is what I found about it: Anime: Freedom. picts via: Neotype Freedom Project is a Japanese promotional project by Nissin Cup Noodles for their 35th anniversary in 2006. As part of the project, the 7-part OVA series, titled Freedom, was commissioned with Katsuhiro Otomo of Akira serving as the character and mecha designer. The series openly flaunts product placement of the corporate sponsor in numerous scenes where characters are shown consuming Nissin Cup Noodles. In the year 2041, mankind created their first space colony on the moon. But after a freak cataclysm devastated human civilisation on Earth, the republic of the moon built a domed megalopolis known as Eden. Now in the year 2267, a boy called Takeru spends his time engaging in illegal motorcycle races against rival street gangs, unaware that he is about to embark in the journey of unearthing Eden's origin.

Ok, just watched episode 1. A few comments: 1) So far, it's really not my thing. Generally not a fan of kind of silly characters. However, I'll give it 2 more episodes and then see if a story starts developing that I'm interested in. This can take a while with me. 2) Just not feeling the hook for this sport yet (and I do enjoy basketball, and love mecha). I appreciate shows that kind of create their own sport. When I saw the first 3 or 4 episodes of RideBack, with the whole club scene built around Ridebacks and the races, I really felt the passion for it that was meant to be there, and wish they were real. So far, with admittedly only one episode watched so far, I'm just not really feeling anything for the Big Foot Basketball, or what it does to enhance the sport, other than, you know, there being tall mecha around. 3) Who the heck is the target audience here?!?! It looks and feels like a kids show, but there were a TON of sexual references (and lots of closeup boob shots, even if they are animated boobs). I really don't know if I want to let my 10 year old watch this.

Just downloaded episode 1. Going to watch it, then see what my basketball-junkie 10-year-old thinks. Is the version that was on TBS on the US TBS station, or a different TBS?

I got mine back in December or January, transformed it, and the hip was broken. I emailed Yamato USA a very nice polite letter, telling them how much I loved the product, but had this one problem. Within a week there was a new Proto-Garland sitting on my doorstep. That is the way a company SHOULD treat their loyal customers.

Gotcha. My mistake.

They did produce the Blowsperior, both in animation blue and white, and in an all-black scheme. Nothing on the Bartley though.

Gotcha. I typically prefer black or blue bikes. Pretty much always, actually. However, for some reason, I really like this one in red.

What do you mean by the first bike?

I'm out of town tomorrow, but when I get back and have some time I'll take some screen captures so we have some decent Viper's Creed pics. Meanwhile, the following is a pic from the final episode. It is also a spoiler, though a very minor one and I can't imagine how it would ruin anything for someone, but don't continue scrolling down if you don't want to see it. If you like the Viper's Creed Maneuver-Blades/Maneuver-Roids, and you like the original Garland from Megazone 23, check this out...

The legs were separate, yes. It rode into a truck, and then the legs attached. If I remember correctly, the arms attached too. The bike really just became the body. Yup, just rewatched it and, while it's not totally clear, it does look to me like both the arms and legs attach to it. I have seen those figures from HLJ. Very very tempting, since you know we'll never see ones of that many different designs from Yamato. On the other hand, shipping from HLJ is kind of expensive, and none of those figures transform.

The limbs are a little skiinny for my taste, but they definitely grew on me a lot over the course of the series. FYI, the Hargan shield that comes with the proto-Garland fits on the Garlands arm. I'll upload a pic of all my different variable bike toys in a couple days. Heading out of town tomorrow. Like I said, I'm obsessed with variable bikes.

Not much out there... Here are a couple. Let me know when you get your Proto-Garland. I've got two, plus a factory color one.

Just watched episode 12, the final episode. Wow. Very intense. Lots of action too. Not only that, but I'd say is was the best choreographed action of the whole series. On to spoilers. Yamato really needs to get in on this. Like they did for Megazone 23, they could make the differect Blademen's Maneuver Blades, as well as , and . All from the same molds too, just different colors, stickers, and some clip-on weapons. All in all, a very good conclusion to what started out as a rather bland show.

I'll have to post a pic of my 1/18ths later (is it ok if it's not just MOSPEADA, but Megazone 23, Bubblegum Crisis, and Armor Hunter Mellowlink too?).

EXACTLY. I've seen plenty of MOSPEADA line-art, plenty of Bubblegum Crisis line-art, some Megazone 23 line-art (not all that much), I know there's a book of art from the recent Megazone 23 PS3 videogame, but you have to buy the limited edition version of the game to get it... But no line-art for Viper's Creed yet. Very little line-art for RideBack. Blassreiter... well, there is an art book out, but it's too expensive for me to buy it when you consider how little art there probably is of the Paladins, which are what I want to see.

You should check out my variable bikes thread. I've compiled a list of every single variable out there, as far as I can find, from every series, movie, comic, etc., that I've been able to find so far. Chromia looks very cool as a bike. As far as the wheel instead of legs... well, I originally thought that she might look like that because she's one of the 3 bikes that combine to form the new Arcee, but since then I've seen a pic of Chromia as she looks in the movie and also realized that her bike design, as much as I love it, doesn't look anything like the three bikes that form Arcee. As for Viper's Creed, there's another thread on here that I started about that show. No sign of any toys, models, or any merchandising whatsoever from it. I emailed Yamato USA, during a conversation about some Megazone 23 Garland issues I was having, and asked if they would be making any Viper's Creed toys, since, with the BGC and MZ23 toys, they seemed like a perfect fit, but got no reply.

Nevermind, forgot his name, but yes, I have seen Knockout. Definitely cool, but something about him just isn't really blowing me away. EDIT: Just watched a video of his transformation. Definitely reminiscent of the ARTMIC designs BGC motoslaves.