Macross Frontier Official Fan Book

[sketchley]

24 pages of poster/cover art: some of it we've seen printed before (in the Official files), some of it we haven't.

11 page interview of Kawamori and Kanno; along with side columns of all of the released albums and singles, with their song lists.

1 page opening 2x and ending 1x snaps

8 pages of colour mecha (!) Lots of text descriptions, but nothing that comes close to the stats printed in Great Mechanics.DX. Nevertheless, there are some descriptions for items that have never previously been described, along with two "Macross One Point History"; one on the VF, the other on Emigration Ships.

8 pages of colour character art and text descriptions. It's great to see some of the secondary characters getting a bit more description (other than a name and job title) herein.

25 pages series story digest

12 pages staff and cast interviews

7 pages B&W character line-art with descriptions: great to see line art for Ogotai and Temujin.

5 pages B&W background location lineart. A lot of it can be had at a greater size in the Movic books. Nevertheless, there are a lot of new pieces.

5 pages B&W mecha lineart and descriptions - majority of it is new (or only can be found in the BD booklets); VF-25/27 cockpits, how the EX-gear fits in, the transformation of the VF-25 in 3 (!) different views, VF-171 cockpit (copy and paste of the VF-17's cockpit ), rough of the Macross Quarter, etc.. It's a shame that the escort warships in the Frontier and Galaxy fleets are simply B&W reprints of images seen larger and in colour, elsewhere...

1 page Vajra B&W art and lineart; names are: Large-Size Vajra, Small-Size Vajra, Vajra Carrier, Vajra Semi-Queen Mothership, and so on.

4 pages Q&A to clarify some of the mysteries of the series.

2 pages fan art

2 pages song sheets.

Conclusion: THIS is the Macross F book that we've all been waiting for. It's nicely balanced and has a fair mix of stuff that's been seen before, and new stuff. If you can only afford to buy one Macross F book out of the books released to date, THIS is the book to buy.

[Mr March]

Sounds like this is what I've been waiting for. Thanks for the review. I'm gonna line this up with my next batch of Chronicles.

[Graham]

Mine arrived yesterday. Pretty good and as Sketchley said the best of the books so far. Still pretty light on mecha lineart though.

Graham

[Morpheus]

Any info about the price and where can I get one?

I still want an official mecha book, just pure mecha.

[David Hingtgen]

Anything new for Grace?

[sketchley]

@Morpheus: ￥2,200 (￥2,095+tax).

Available at any bookstore that carries Macross Chronicle. Or check the hobby sections of your local bookstore(s). (I'm saying this, 'cuz you're listed as being in Tokyo... which makes your question exceedingly odd).

@David: she gets a half page in the colour section (complete with small picts of her datapad and stylus, glasses, hairclip and necklace, along with a decent screengrab of her "12 years before" image) and a small bit in the lineart section. No idea if the text is a reprint or new...

It's a pretty decent amount, given that the main characters only get 1 page.

[Morpheus]

@Morpheus: ￥2,200 (￥2,095+tax).

Available at any bookstore that carries Macross Chronicle. Or check the hobby sections of your local bookstore(s). (I'm saying this, 'cuz you're listed as being in Tokyo... which makes your question exceedingly odd).

That's because the three bookstores that I visited yesterday doesn't have it I'll try a bigger bookshop today.

[anime52k8]

@Morpheus: ￥2,200 (￥2,095+tax).

Available at any bookstore that carries Macross Chronicle. Or check the hobby sections of your local bookstore(s). (I'm saying this, 'cuz you're listed as being in Tokyo... which makes your question exceedingly odd).

@David: she gets a half page in the colour section (complete with small picts of her datapad and stylus, glasses, hairclip and necklace, along with a decent screengrab of her "12 years before" image) and a small bit in the lineart section. No idea if the text is a reprint or new...

It's a pretty decent amount, given that the main characters only get 1 page.

any way you could scan that page?

[klam1020]

Mine is on the way, can't wait any more

[sketchley]

any way you could scan that page?

If it was out of print, maybe.

However, with a newly released publication, especially one that we want more similar products produced of, no.

Go buy yourself a copy and support the cause, kid.

[anime52k8]

If it was out of print, maybe.

However, with a newly released publication, especially one that we want more similar products produced of, no.

Go buy yourself a copy and support the cause, kid.

oh I would love to except I'm a broke, American college student who can't exactly run down to the local book store to check these out (I'd rather not spend 2 hours and 10 dollars on bart just to find out if the nearest Japanese bookstore actually has it, which the probably don't)

and I'm not having any luck finding this (or Macross ace or macross Chronicles) online so my ability to afford buying these and the internal conflict between "supporting the cause" and eating is kind of a moot point.

So can you at least throw me a bone and link me an English website that sells this (and Macross ace and Macross Chronicles) so I can go ahead and spend what little money I do have on magazines I can't read.

[Seto Kaiba]

So can you at least throw me a bone and link me an English website that sells this (and Macross ace and Macross Chronicles) so I can go ahead and spend what little money I do have on magazines I can't read.

Well, if Sketchley won't point you in the right direction, I will. I've sent you a link to a site in english that sells all of the books you're looking for.

Incidentally, I saw your VF-4 redux on 4chan, and was quite impressed. Nice work.

EDIT: Had to reword that, didn't send him scans, just pointed him to a site that'll sell him the book.

Edited February 4, 2009 by Seto Kaiba

[anime52k8]

If Sketchley won't, I'll throw you said bone... it landed in your PM inbox.

Incidentally, I saw your VF-4 redux on 4chan, and was quite impressed. Nice work.

oh damn, it's made it to 4chan... (I'm worried about the context)

[Graham]

So can you at least throw me a bone and link me an English website that sells this (and Macross ace and Macross Chronicles) so I can go ahead and spend what little money I do have on magazines I can't read.

I order Macross Chronicles and Macross Frontier books through either Amazon Japan or HMV Japan. Both sites have English pages, so are easy to navigate and use. Shpping fees are a killer though.

Graham

[anime52k8]

I order Macross Chronicles and Macross Frontier books through either Amazon Japan or HMV Japan. Both sites have English pages, so are easy to navigate and use. Shpping fees are a killer though.

Graham

amazon Japan hates me, I don't know why but I have the worst time using that site. I'm giving HMV a try though.

[badboy00z]

Scans?

[anime52k8]

Scans?

:facepalm:

we just went through this 2 hours ago.

book's still in print, NO SCANS FOR YOU! go get you're own.

[UN Spacy]

Any pictures of the cover?

I'd like to know what I'm looking for when I hit up Kinokuniya in a few days.

I plan to pick up the February 2009 Newtype, Macross Ace Manga, and this.

[anime52k8]

Any pictures of the cover?

I'd like to know what I'm looking for when I hit up Kinokuniya in a few days.

I plan to pick up the February 2009 Newtype, Macross Ace Manga, and this.

dude, you're in the Bay area? I never noticed. if they do have copies let me know (like I said, I'm not going all the way down there if I don't know they have it)

looks like this by the way http://www.hmv.co.jp/product/detail/3513735

[sketchley]

Well, if Sketchley won't point you in the right direction, I will. I've sent you a link to a site in english that sells all of the books you're looking for.

Incidentally, I saw your VF-4 redux on 4chan, and was quite impressed. Nice work.

EDIT: Had to reword that, didn't send him scans, just pointed him to a site that'll sell him the book.

Who's VF-4? If it's mine, it should only be here: http://studiootaking.deviantart.com/gallery/#VF-Action If it is mine, it's in violation of the TOS: http://about.deviantart.com/policy/service/ and the person or persons distributing it will be hexed with spite.

[edwin3060]

You can always get it from eBay... thats where I ordered mine actually--they had a 20% discount so it ended up cheaper than Amazon or HMV

[sketchley]

oh I would love to except I'm a broke, American college student who can't exactly run down to the local book store to check these out (I'd rather not spend 2 hours and 10 dollars on bart just to find out if the nearest Japanese bookstore actually has it, which the probably don't)

and I'm not having any luck finding this (or Macross ace or macross Chronicles) online so my ability to afford buying these and the internal conflict between "supporting the cause" and eating is kind of a moot point.

So can you at least throw me a bone and link me an English website that sells this (and Macross ace and Macross Chronicles) so I can go ahead and spend what little money I do have on magazines I can't read.

Live in Japan. No need for me to rely on English to acquire it... let alone the net...

Nevertheless, I don't want to sound condescending, but... do you (meant in the plural form in the sense of people with access to the internet posting questions like this) know how to use a search engine, like Google?

I mean, it took me less than 5 seconds, using "macross frontier official fan book", to find an English supplier, using the English version of Google. It actually took me longer to switch Google to English than it did to perform the search...

So yeah, I can understand if you've searched for it, and haven't had any luck... but haven't bothered searching at all? It probably took longer to type the question than it does to complete the search...

Also... don't bookstores in your area have telephone numbers???

Edited February 4, 2009 by sketchley

[Major Focker]

got mine yesterday. not too sure if it was a worthwhile purchase though as it was mostly a repeat of materials in other MF books i bought prior. while i appreciate that some of the art and pics are slightly larger, i'm rapidly getting tired of these (basically) repeat publications. i think i'm going to hold off on buying any more until the MF equivalent of the Gold book or Perfect Memory comes out, though i realize that is a remote possibility until after the movie.

those in singapore interested in getting this, it just arrived yesterday in kino. they actually had to fish out my copy from the stock room but they should be on display by now.

Edited February 5, 2009 by Major Focker

[Seto Kaiba]

Who's VF-4? If it's mine, it should only be here: http://studiootaking.deviantart.com/gallery/#VF-Action If it is mine, it's in violation of the TOS: http://about.deviantart.com/policy/service/ and the person or persons distributing it will be hexed with spite.

No, it's not yours. It's anime52k8's VF-4 w/ VF-25-style feet. No need to get your knickers in a twist.

I just ordered my copy of the Fan Book today... so I oughta be getting it around two days hence.

[Graham]

got mine yesterday. not too sure if it was a worthwhile purchase though as it was mostly a repeat of materials in other MF books i bought prior. while i appreciate that some of the art and pics are slightly larger, i'm rapidly getting tired of these (basically) repeat publications. i think i'm going to hold off on buying any more until the MF equivalent of the Gold book or Perfect Memory comes out, though i realize that is a remote possibility until after the movie.

those in singapore interested in getting this, it just arrived yesterday in kino. they actually had to fish out my copy from the stock room but they should be on display by now.

Also getting annoyed that all the books are basically the same with just slight variations and focus 95% on the characters and episodes with very few pages devoted to the mecha. If we get one more episode stills guide I'm gonna scream.

For mecha fans seems like the best source is actually Hobby Japan magazine has they have had several issues with detailed lineart of various parts of the VF-25 (legs, RVF-25 radome, Super Packs) and also the largest, clearest CG pics of the mecha published so far in any source.

Graham

[anime52k8]

Live in Japan. No need for me to rely on English to acquire it... let alone the net...

Nevertheless, I don't want to sound condescending, but... do you (meant in the plural form in the sense of people with access to the internet posting questions like this) know how to use a search engine, like Google?

I mean, it took me less than 5 seconds, using "macross frontier official fan book", to find an English supplier, using the English version of Google. It actually took me longer to switch Google to English than it did to perform the search...

So yeah, I can understand if you've searched for it, and haven't had any luck... but haven't bothered searching at all? It probably took longer to type the question than it does to complete the search...

Also... don't bookstores in your area have telephone numbers???

I looked, and got nothing but blog posts, hundreds of them. similar problem finding macross chronicles and macross ace. nothing but blog posts about them, and Japanese only websites. and that's with yahoo and google.

and calling stores in SF for info isn't exactly something I enjoy.

[Mr March]

I'd love to get all the books and individual magazine issues of all the Macross art work, but it's just not feasible. They have to release at least semi-definitive collections otherwise I can't really afford to buy all this stuff. I also don't really want a massive collection of magazines, guides and books just to get a completed guide of line art that should have been sold in one "Macross Perfect Memoray"-style publication quite some time ago

But if Big West must be difficult about it all, I'll settle for the Chronicles and picking up this book.

[sketchley]

I looked, and got nothing but blog posts, hundreds of them. similar problem finding macross chronicles and macross ace. nothing but blog posts about them, and Japanese only websites. and that's with yahoo and google.

and calling stores in SF for info isn't exactly something I enjoy.

Re calling: tough beans.

Re searching: see 5th entry "Welcome to the Otaku mail order shopping site" http://www.google.com/#hl=en&q=macross...;fp=Rhq7p-mUk-o

What search string are you using?

[sketchley]

For mecha fans seems like the best source is actually Hobby Japan magazine has they have had several issues with detailed lineart of various parts of the VF-25 (legs, RVF-25 radome, Super Packs) and also the largest, clearest CG pics of the mecha published so far in any source.

Graham

IMHO, Great Mechanics.DX is a slightly better source - in that it's published much less frequently for about the same price per issue, and has a lot of official text printed with lineart and other images. They're also packed full of official mecha info and lineart from a bunch of other series (usually a lot of Gundam) as well. The image sizes are smaller, but if space and cost are an issue, it's a better investment.

[sketchley]

That's because the three bookstores that I visited yesterday doesn't have it I'll try a bigger bookshop today.

Have you tried Animate?

I was at the local store yesterday, and I saw five or six copies, each, of this book and the Pash book on Macross F. I also saw the 2nd series of cards for the first time (no, didn't buy. Not getting sucked into that.)

[Jasonc]

Thanks for posting the link for the cover. I'm exhausted from a busy work week and being on here and being able to find a quick reference helps for my trip to Kinokuniya tomorrow, downtown L.A. So, about $26, is there anything different in it than what's in all the other books? I've bought them all so far, and I maybe skeptical if all it is is just repeat pics.

[klam1020]

[anime52k8]

how big is that in the book?

[Graham]

IMHO, Great Mechanics.DX is a slightly better source - in that it's published much less frequently for about the same price per issue, and has a lot of official text printed with lineart and other images. They're also packed full of official mecha info and lineart from a bunch of other series (usually a lot of Gundam) as well. The image sizes are smaller, but if space and cost are an issue, it's a better investment.

I do buy Great Mechanics, but only when it has Macross stuff in it.

I still prefer Hobby Japan though, as over the past year there have been several issues that have featured the largest and clearest Frontier CG art and lineart of any book or magazine published so far. Some of the VF-25 lineart has not been published elsewhere either.

Graham

[edwin3060]

OMG! NEED.BIGGER.PICS.!!