Lynx7725

Hmmm.. aside from the Shinden, doesn't really look like '46 is that interesting to me.

I've been playing quick missions for the last.. oh, 6 hours or so. One stupid thing I realise is that if you set a particular altitude for your engagement. bombers would stick to the altitude as above sea level regardless of terrain.

For example, if you set the height to be 200m, B-29s would fly at about 200m above sea level (which is fine over the ocean). But when they cross over land, especially over hilly terrain, the AI pilots don't look far ahead enough to pull up in time. The first time I saw this, I was amazed. Ace B-29 pilots all slamming into a cliff face...

Also, if you set the attitude too low (100m), bombers (B-17 and B-29) can clip the water and if they aren't going fast enough, the bombers would be doing cartwheels into the water. Between these two craziness, I've spent a mission where 16 Ace B-29s either all bounced off the water and broke up, or slammed into the steep side of a Pacific Island.

I made a mistake and bought a collectors' edition that had everything except 1946. What's in 1946 that's really good?

Wait.. Graham touched a Gundam! Oh Noes! The World is Ending!!!!111oneone!!

:lol:

Let's not get too carried away, I think the Beta would stand the same size as a VF-1 toy. It's HUGE in comparison to the Alpha, and it has a significant amount of girth, but it's not just HUGE in general. I imagine the Koenig is more imposing.

Err, I'm not sure.

And..

Bigger image

I think at least 1/48 VF-1 size. Maybe a bit bigger and since it's chest-heavy, would be more imposing?

(I'm leeching these guys' bandwidth a bit for now, I think I'll come back in the morning to host these on my photo site.. Meanwhile, don't shoot me.)

Can you give me the publishing date & the ISBN from each book that way it's easier to avoid buying duplicates or a novel version.

Would you believe I can't find any? Sheesh.

I'm not kidding. The inner page only had the copyright for Gunhed as a whole, and there wasn't an ISBN that I could see.

Even Mile High Comics doesn't have an issue OR an image. This is going to be hard to find... (and MHC doesn't have the ISBN either).

This might be it but without an image I can't tell for sure.

Amazon lists two possible ISBN: 092927914X or 978-0929279145, but again, no image so can't tell for sure. Year seems to be '90 to '92 -- different sources give different dates.

Given the difficulties in finding these information, it might be better off if you pick up the individual comics (3 in total), rather than gunning for the TPB.

Yes; at least, it has an english copy (with that art on the cover). I have a copy of it somewhere, but I can't recall the publisher offhand.

EDIT: You got very lucky; it was in the first cupboard I opened.

Yeesh, it yellowed quite a lot. It was published by Viz Comics as a graphical novel.

EDIT EDIT: Opps. Apparently Viz first published as a 3-set translation. I got the graphical novel format.

The Corsair does everything better!

The Corsair is a very sweet plane to fly in sims; the 6 0.5cal is also great. Thing is though, it's really an Ensign Eliminator.

There is a flight sim, Aces over the Pacific (IIRC) that had a '46 expansion. In it, they included the F4U-2, a brutal power hog that has an incredible climb rate and an incredible torque. The first time I took it off the deck, the plane started rotating clockwise immediately after leaving the deck. A very eerie sensation, that -- if you aren't paying attention, or got into the wrong situation, the torque could easily send you into the ground.

I always found it a bit surprising (especially after flying the hoggish Thunderbolt) that an American WWII plane can be so powerful yet so responsive to the stick as the Corsair.

I prefer foot infantry myself too. A lot more flexible, IMO -- don't really need the "shock and awe" of an armour advance, and most of the time I didn't have the transport capabilities either, to do it properly.

Very good point. I know from personal business experience that a lot of the Chinese contractor fabs play pretty fast and loose with their tools, so the scenario you mention is highly plausible. I still tend toward the notion that their must be some sort of agreement in place, however.

I would think some agreement is in place too, but we simply don't know anything, and I would have thought some news would have leaked from Nami Toi's side. Hooking up with Aoshima is a big deal for a toy company, and getting your design selected for distribution by a well-known company is something to be actually proud of... right?

On the other hand, the "fast-and-loose" idea has some interesting implications that's fodder for speculation. If Aoshima actually didn't go with Nami Toi, and literally went behind their backs to the Chinese factory (or vice versa), that implies Aoshima thinks they can get away with it. It's a direct challenge to Nami Toi's -- and thus indirectly, to HG's -- monopoly on MOSPEDA. If Nami Toi or HG doesn't rise to the challenge, then it becomes a precedent and would lay the groundwork for a lot more challenges in the future. Whether Nami Toi or HG has the financial capabilities or the interest to contest is not known at this time, of course.

Even if Aoshima doesn't get away with it, it still sets Nami Toi up as someone you can bootleg off. That's really not a good thing from the company's perspective, and they might end up fencing off more bootleggers in the future. (On a side note, this is just speculation, and I'm not gloating about it, just stating my view. I don't like the products but there's no real reason to actually hate the company that much.)

the Alphas are like a box of chocolates: You never know if there will be missing pieces, broken parts or paint chipping.

Uh, dude, I'm not sure what kind of chocolates you are eating, but having paint chip off your chocolates is a baaaad sign.

As for the Beta/Tread, I still don't buy Toynami's linkeage with the Alpha, it's pretty obvious the Beta link system was an afterthought, so I hope that Aoshima can help them there too.

I'm not too sure whether Aoshima intends to. This smells of "quick profit" more than "planned line", and we know designing a Tread toy has almost have to be from ground up -- there are just too few previous incarnations for progressive engineering to build from. Granted, Nami Toi does have a prototype, but I'm not sure how much technology sharing exists between the two.

As for CFS2, I'm an avid fan of several WWII flight sims: European Air War and IL-2 top my prop list, but mostly EAW due to the outstanding campaigns.

I don't quite like the ETO air combat, mainly because of my experiences in Aces over Europe; most of the planes had similar performances and it really became quite boring. I find even the best ETO planes sluggish to turn around, and it annoys me -- I guess I'm a dogfighter, not a B&Zer.

Whereas in the PTO, there exist two especially disparate schools of air combat, both with good and bad points, which makes for very interesting combats. A Zero is an absolute joy to fly -- flick down the flaps under 200 mph, and you can throw it all over the skies with little fear. It just wasn't the best plane to be in when tracers are flying around though..

Umm, erm...

That is actually one of the more scary paintjob. Can you imagine the "nutcase" driving the Hog? A Hello Kitty spitting 30mm presents. What can be more scary?

EDIT: Just an added comment on B-24 vs. B-17.

I find, in CFS2, the B-24's defensive firepower to be quite.. off. Certainly it threatens me, but I find it not very accurate and I've never really had the fear of it. Not to mention, there are certain blind spots where a small-ish fighter can slip in without being tracked, making it ineffective at best and a deathtrap at worst.

Whereas, in AoE (which I hadn't play for quite some time), I recall being very wary of the B-17's defensive envelope. I recall being unable to approach a "Box" without picking up some rounds, and they are usually fairly accurate (could be the game modelling). I just find B-17 harder to knock down because of its defenses.

Of course, can't beat the Avenger in this department. While it does have serious issues chasing fighters directly behind it, I've blown off feets off both wings on Avengers in sims and they still flew on. Tough buggers.

Actually, I'm not sure if it's a cooperative effort. I'm not sure how much I should read into the blog entry, but the idea that it's OEM is a big odd point.

To me, it could be read as the factory, not Nami Toi, selling MPC Alpha parts (and not entire assembled toys) to Aoshima, which would take these parts to refit/ improve. This makes more sense rather than taking assembled toys, disassemble, refit then reassemble. It doesn't sound like Aoshima is buying up stock from the old 15K run, but rather spares and parts from the factory itself.

In which case, it's likely to be a big sticking point between Nami Toi and Aoshima (unless it's already been worked out and it is truly a cooperative effort). It is possible that Nami Toi gave the project its blessing, in which case we are truly getting an Alpha-plus. A lot depends on the contract Nami Toi has with the Chinese manufactory, but TBH I don't think they are that careless with these terms.

The other issue about this is more towards the fit-and-finish. Since Aoshima is still using base parts from the Alpha, and fit-and-finish is an integral part of the design process, it's hard to see how Aoshima can improve on it. Certainly I expect certain improvements, especially in posability and such, but they still end up working within the MPC framework, and you can only improve on it so much before you have to redesign parts, which I don't think that's what Aoshima intends to do.

In any case, since CM is going to come up with a Tread, it makes buying an Aoshima Legioss not that attractive an idea, no matter how good they fixed it.

Shootin' the breeze here, but if the Aoshima Legioss is a near copy of the MPC, and if either Nami Toi or Aoshima comes out with a Tread, do you think the Tread would be cross-compatible (i.e., Aoshima Legioss with MPC Tread, MPC Alpha with Aoshima Tread)..?

Food for thought.

I may just have to buy one of the Aoshima versions to see how this toy was actually supposed to be made.

Well, just remember to do a review.

At this point, we got the official Aoshima pictures and one source (all quoted stuff points to the same source) that says a slightly blurred picture.

Baseline is that we're getting an Aoshima Legioss. It looks remarkably similar to Nami Toi's MPC Alpha, but aside from that there is no proof/ hard evidence it is based off the MPC.

The best thing to do is to wait for the Shizuoka show for more details. If the show provide more clarity, we can make purchasing decision then. There's no point rushing into a pre-order that might not be worth your money; of course, there is also the risk of not getting one due to the delay, but to be honest, I rather save than spend.

The other consideration, is as stated before, the Tread...

Don't look like it's official; seems like it's OEM to Aoshima, and Aoshima's not really in cooperation with Nami Toi. Sorry, the translators are fairly garbled, and my Japanese's just not good enough to wring more out of it.

Nami Toi??? BWAHAHAHA!

EDIT: So essentially, Aoshima got hold of Toynami's MPC and added touches here and there? I really can't tell because the translator mangled it badly.. wait, let me go read the original.

EDIT x2: Google has a better translator

Hmm, looks that way. Seems like Aoshima got some of the production run of Toynami MPC. It isn't selling on behalf of Toynami, so legal issues are likely (I think). Aoshima modified it to some degree, but it's still essentially an MPC. This should be shown at the Shizuoka show (next month), so we can expect to laugh our asses off again next month.

Actually, I'm more interested to know.. what are Orders 1 through 65 (and 67 onwards, if any?)

Order 1 "Whack off the current Chancellor."

Order 4 "Kill Jar-Jar with Extreme Prejudice."

Order 69 "Take Padme to my chambers.."

Opps, double post. Work proxy messing up.

I recall seeing clips of another B-24 getting hit and quickly going down. It looked like the camera was so close from a higher up Liberator that you could clearly see the pilot & copilot. Next thing you know, a quick flame shoots out near the left wing's root and the left wing snaps off. The B-24 then immediately dives and begins to spiral, along with all the still-living aircrew.

Funny that you should mention this, but I recently reinstalled MS CFS... 2 I think, the Pacific version. Flew a few free-flights with a Shiden-Kai vs. B-24s.

Generally what happens is that I'd spiral down from on top and then drill through the wing root with the 4 20mm cannons. Wing would then snap off, inboard from inner engine, and then the B-24 would roll on its axis and then rapidly pitched downwards. Not many 'chutes at this point, but I typically wasn't in any position to count numbers.

I got to a point where it almost invariably happen once or twice per flight of 8 B-24s.. definitely looks like a weak point on the B-24. A few times, I'd blow the tail straight off, but that's comparatively rare. Since you tend to go for engine hits on the big bombers, sawing the wing off with automatic fire is fairly common for me. Doesn't tend to happen when I engage B-25s -- those seems to be more resistant to fire.

The question relevant to this thread would be whether Toynami farmed part of the production run to Aoshima to sell off the stock, or actually sold Aoshima the molds so that Aoshima can produce however much they want.

Of course, this is contingent on the Aoshima version being the MPC Alpha. To me, this is most likely based on the pics, but it might not be true.

In the case of this B-52 if I remember correctly, they were intentionally looking for turbulent conditions as part of an actual test (whether it had to do specifically with how the B-52 would handle or if this was a more general test I don't know). They found turbulance alright!

What happened to the airframe? Scrapped or returned to service after repairs?

IF, (and that's a BIG 'if') Aoshima pulls off the unexpected – actually upping the QC and materials from the MPC Alpha to produce a really solid, well-fitting Legioss, would anyone still hold grudges?

If Aoshima did that, it would be nearly the same as creating a totally new model. Then they won't need to put those pics up...

The MPC Alpha is a hand-made toy. It's lovingly put together, tooled, and assembled.. but it seems to be the work of an apprentice, not a master. Aoshima would have to retool the majority of the mold to meet my standard (which, admittedly, might be a tad high).

Would I hold grudges? Probably not, but I would be extremely skeptical. It would take a lot to convince me to put down money for an Aoshima, especially since there's no guarantee of a Tread, whereas the CM, at this point, guarantees a Tread.

Big Boeing bombers have traditionally done well with having only a stub of the fin remaining---you can find very similar B-17 pics. Strange that the JAL 747 did so much worse, but I think it had its controls frozen as well, which doomed it.

Yeah, you do see B-17s with big pieces missing. Rudder, wings, etc. Only the Grumman Iron Works seems to have a more hefty reputation in getting planes home.

Not that I advocate leaving bits and pieces of your plane in enemy territory, mind you...

Toynami..........cough....30% diecast content in VF-1 MPC....cough!

Keep promises, yeah right!

Graham

Yeah well, there's always the exception to the rule. I don't expect such companies to last very long though, but HG Toynami proves to be exceptionally cockroach-like in its ability to survive.

EDIT: Sorry, forgot I need to be more precise. Doesn't do well to mix the two.