Duke Togo Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 well, harsh lighting and what appears to be a diffusion filter don't really make for flattering shots... So it has nothing to do with the actual review?
m0n5t3r Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 (edited) can't read a lick of japanese, lol... but i'm loving the cow skull on the chest armor, now i'm thinking i have to display it in b-mode... ... b-mode w/out armor looks so much better w/ the new neck and head lasers (did anybody ever confirm if the whole head is new???) i hope they re-issue a stand-alone ozma w/ the upgrades... i'm seriously thinking i would want one as a play and abuse vf-25 ... i still think its a shame you can't display that big badass cow skull in fighter mode w/ the SPs or armor on... Edited August 11, 2009 by m0n5t3r
eugimon Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 So it has nothing to do with the actual review? oh yeah, it seems to be mostly stuff I think we came to expect. Some stuff on the neck and how people were hoping for an extendable one instead of the a swap out part/ and he likes the weight of it. My translator friend is kinda busy and just came back from a wedding in Germany so he's not really in the mood to give me a good translation. but I gather that the overall review is positive.
vendetta Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 (edited) I got my e-mail from Anime Export about adding extra money for EMS shipping - another 2490 yen on top of the 2490 yen I already paid. Oof. EDIT: It looks nice in the photos and all, but I'm starting to wonder if it's worth the ~$230 shipped it came out to be. Edited August 11, 2009 by vendetta
UN Spacy Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 My #1 complaint with the DX's is the paint that's easily removed when touched the wrong way. Did they fix this on the Armored?
SuperHobo Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 What I really want to know is if those hip armors attach securely since they were the biggest gripe with the super pack.
Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 My #1 complaint with the DX's is the paint that's easily removed when touched the wrong way. This^^^^^^.... What I really want to know is if those hip armors attach securely since they were the biggest gripe with the super pack. ...and that^^^ The hip armor might be more secure but it looks like it might be compromised to do so. For example, it looks like it clips not only from the sides, but from the front, but lacks the moving flap to enable forward articulation below the intake.
Cent Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 (edited) Yea it looks like the intake movement is inhibited even more with the armor. From the review that was posted earlier, the gerwalk mode looks like the VF is just falling over, even on the stand. http://hima-toy.cocolog-nifty.com/.shared/...009/08/11/g.jpg Edited August 11, 2009 by Cent
Graham Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 Tamashii exclusive armored reaction missile set confirmed? For those with the ghost and weapon set, do you guys think that the supplied reaction missiles will fit into the highlighted slot? I strongly doubt the reaction missiles from the ghost & weapon set would fit on the Armored Pack, as the missiles have an overwing clip, but to fit in the hole in the photo would need a peg attachment. I hope Bandai releases a third accessory set, consisting of: - 1) 4 x Reaction Missiles for use with Armoured Pack. 2) 1 x normal Fold Booster (the type that Alto uses to get to Galia IV). 3) 1 x spare sniper rifle, so Alto with Armored pack can have one, so that I don’t need to steal the rifle from my DX VF-25G Michael toy. Graham
Cent Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 3) 1 x spare sniper rifle, so Alto with Armored pack can have one, so that I don’t need to steal the rifle from my DX VF-25G Michael toy. But that's what he does in the anime! That's anime accuracy, amirite?
Letigre Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 Yea it looks like the intake movement is inhibited even more with the armor. From the review that was posted earlier, the gerwalk mode looks like the VF is just falling over, even on the stand. http://hima-toy.cocolog-nifty.com/.shared/...009/08/11/g.jpg But they always look funky in the first reviews. Sometimes it seems like the first toynuts that grab them up don't quite know what they are messing with.
drifand Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 Well, the armored 25S should arrive in Singapore soon, but meanwhile here are a couple of pix of the GALLIA 4 SET for Michel's ride: Basically, the set is priced to milk every drop you've got to give, but what the heck, the episode where the sonic gear is used is pretty fun and memorable. It's also a good excuse to strip off the Super Pack and display something a little more unique. At the moment, I've got Alto saluting while cradling the sniper rifle, and the otherwise useless fold booster (pink!) strapped onto Ozma's jet. FWIW, the finishing on the 4 speakers look really nice, with a metallic green finish on the main diaphragm and alternate colored 'lights' for the inner and outer pieces. The clip-on attachment is of course non anime-accurate... A closer look at the miniscule Ranka Lee in trademark 'Kira Kira' pose. This will probably be the only VF-25 I'll keep in gerwalk mode. Looking forward to Ozma's 'bulky-lee' :-)
Talonvar Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 Is there any firm release date on the vf-25s armored version, have they said if its already out, end of august or even end of september? trying to plan ahead for a family member who can pick one up for me, whose headed to Hong Kong in mid September so im hoping its in HK by then retail:D
Letigre Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 Hobby Search's latest weekly newsletter listed it as released today (Aug 11th). HLJ lists it as available (but low stock) on their website, but I have yet to receive a processing notice for my preorder.
Ginrai Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 there is going to be a special armored set tamishii release in the next month Okay, how but how do those of us not living in Japan get that special Alto armored set?
todd77 Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 Okay, how but how do those of us not living in Japan get that special Alto armored set? You can pre-order them through sites like OverDrive, Anime-Export, or Tokyo Hunter. However, OverDrive is no longer accepting additional orders since, correct me if I'm wrong, these Tamashii-exclusive items can only be ordered during a specific period of time. Not sure about the other two sites but you can shoot them an email if you want. Alternatively, try scouting eBay or even MW's For sale forums - you never know when one might just pop up.
Graham Posted August 11, 2009 Posted August 11, 2009 Is there any firm release date on the vf-25s armored version, have they said if its already out, end of august or even end of september? trying to plan ahead for a family member who can pick one up for me, whose headed to Hong Kong in mid September so im hoping its in HK by then retail:D It's been out in HK for a few days already, as has been mentioned in recent posts. I picked mine up last night.
Letigre Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Anything to say about it yet, Graham? There are plenty of anxious overseas ears..
retaane Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Anything to say about it yet, Graham? There are plenty of anxious overseas ears.. graham pleeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaase post pics and your review even if brief
mitch Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Hobby Search's latest weekly newsletter listed it as released today (Aug 11th). HLJ lists it as available (but low stock) on their website, but I have yet to receive a processing notice for my preorder. I pre-ordered from HLJ in March and I've not heard from them either. Have to admit, I'm getting kinda antsy about it...
Letigre Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 As did I, and I'm getting rather antsy as well.
blacklotus Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 I pre-ordered from HLJ in March and I've not heard from them either. Have to admit, I'm getting kinda antsy about it... Japan's celebrating Bon Holidays from 12 to 16 Aug 2009. So you won't hear from sites based in Japan for a while as they're all on a long, well-deserved holiday.
Letigre Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 NO freaking way? Argh. Why release it the day before?
catcha Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Hi guys, Just a couple of questions, what's the likelihood for Bandai to make ver 2.0 for these VF-25s (like what Yamato did)? I don't feel like buying them now as the few reported problems (GERWALK posing prob, lack of decals, chunky legs, absence of reactive missiles etc) are a turn off for me... would want to spend good money on a quality product. If they do intend to revise the design, what's the timeframe you reckon? Thinking of getting the model kits but they are not good for playing.... kinda in a dilemma whether to buy the DX now... Cheers.
Roy's Blues Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 I ordered the vf-25s armored version from Anime-export and the total with shipping was $231.13. Paid today, and i hope it ships soon.
catcha Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 (edited) or maybe a movie version of the armored VF-25S?? Edited August 12, 2009 by catcha
vendetta Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 My Anime Export armored VF-25S shipped yesterday. Can't wait for that sucka. Depending on how much I like it I may pick up the Michel and Luca DX's too. Not sold on the upcoming Alto bundle though... I'd rather wait out for a possible release with normal colors.
SuperHobo Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Your order from Anime export already shipped? My gods they still haven't asked me too pay the extra 2,000 yen and now Japan is going on Holiday? ARRGHHH I want this thing now!
ff95gj Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Hi guys, Just a couple of questions, what's the likelihood for Bandai to make ver 2.0 for these VF-25s (like what Yamato did)? I don't feel like buying them now as the few reported problems (GERWALK posing prob, lack of decals, chunky legs, absence of reactive missiles etc) are a turn off for me... would want to spend good money on a quality product. If they do intend to revise the design, what's the timeframe you reckon? Thinking of getting the model kits but they are not good for playing.... kinda in a dilemma whether to buy the DX now... Cheers. I don't know. I think the chance that Bandai is going to make a version 2 DX, is smaller than that they release the license so Yamato can make them.
Graham Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Picked up the VF-25S Ozma with Armored pack yesterday from a shop on the 2/F of the Oriental 188 Center in Wanchai for HK$1,250 (US$161). It’s an absolutely huge box, even I wasn’t expecting it to be that big. Not quite “Yamato huge”, but still big and very deep. Now for some limited comments and observations I say “limited”, as so far I have only attached the armor in fighter mode. I have not tried transforming the toy yet. First off, the toy only comes with one set of head lasers, not two sets as speculated previously. The head lasers are still made of some sort of semi-soft plastic, I’m not sure what, perhaps still PVC, but they are much straighter and more ridged than on the V.1 VF-25S. At least the lasers are now parallel. To attach the lower leg armor, you first have to remove the front and rear ankle collars from the VF-25 toy. Keep a zip-lock bag handy so you don’t lose them! The Armour Pack fits very securely for the most part, much more so than the Super Pack. You will all be happy to hear that the hip armor seems to attach very securely, at least in fighter mode. I can’t speak for Battroid mode as I haven’t transformed to that mode or Gerwalk yet. The huge wing armour/gun/missile/engine pieces are also much more secure than the Super Packs. Oh and the 4 main thrusters are on ball joints, so can be positioned as desired. Likewise, the ball turret guns also have a good range of movement. Getting the wing root pegs to lock into the holes on the leg armour was scary at first, as it is a super-tight fit. The lower leg armor is super secure, with the two halves of the leg armor being locked in place by multiple external pieces. The only parts of the armour that have fallen off once or twice when knocked are the armor pieces that cover the wing root guns. And the forearm armor. These wing-root guns armor pieces have two pegs on the back that plug into corresponding holes on the replacement wing root pieces. The armor pieces need to be removed and reattached from the host wing root during transformation. The fit is not as tight as it could be, but still acceptable. You can tell the toy was not initially designed with armor in mind, as the attachment for the forearm armor is a joke. It’s a small ‘L’ shape clip at the wrist and pure friction fit by a small triangle shape that fits into the ‘V’ cutout in the elbow. When attaching these in fighter mode, you have to bend the elbows slightly, to open up a gap for the triangle to fit. When everything is assembled and gunpod in place it is pretty secure, but could be better. Some members here have complained about a lack of markings on the toy. Well, all I can say is that in the anime the Armoured Pack never had as many markings as the Super Pack and to me it seems to have all the markings I recall seeing in the show. It took me about half an hour to get the Armour attached to the toy on my first try. I was going carefully and slowly. Quite a lot of time was spent figuring out how to get the gunpod to attach. At first I thought it couldn’t attach as I thought the supplied connector is too short and the manual doesn’t show the gun attached in fighter mode with Armor. However, I realized that the gunpod actually has to squeeze between the leg armor pieces to fit. My one real dislike, which I’ve posted about several times previously, is the multiple small rows of vents on the sides of the leg missile boxes are missing! Bandai sculpted in these vents on both the model kit and the VF100s toy. It escapes me why they forgot to sculpt them on the much more expensive DX! That’s right, the sides of the leg missile boxes are just plain plastic with no sculpted details. The toy is huge in fighter mode. Really bulky and imposing. It looks great IMO, but is a real shelf-hog. The display stand supplied is the same as comes with the Super Packs and VF-25G/RVF-25 and is unpainted. Some extra clip on support pieces are included to cope with the extra weight and size of the Armor Pack. However, at least in fighter mode, I thought these did not give the necessary support and it didn’t feel secure at all and I decided to use the stand for display. The toy comes with a support or locking panel for Gerwalk mode, that the manual shows attaches to the underside of the back plate. Two support struts then plug into the underside of this panel and connect to the armor on the back of the lower leg. I haven’t tried these yet. The toy comes with a small neck extension peice for battroid mode, but I haven't tried it yet. I also haven't checked the head yet to see if there are any changes to the head sculpt. Here's some photos of fighter mode. I'll try to take some of battroid mode tonight. Graham
ff95gj Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Thanks Graham! I have picked up mine too last night, but I didn't have time to finish transforming it to battroid mode before I was ordered to bed. It's a huge bird in the fighter mode... And looks nice to me. I gave up the Gerwalk mode because it pains me to see how the backplate connecting part has to support such a big weight with the armor backpacks. I hate the QC, and never more so. I'll whine again when I post the pics.
blacklotus Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 A Thousand Thanks, Graham. You just made me poorer by US$200. I ordered mine after reading your reviews. Didn't pre-ordered as I was afraid of loose armor falling all over the place.
Graham Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 A couple more minor comments: - 1) the number of micro-missiles in the various pods differs from the model kit, which differs from the VF100s version, which differs from the anime, which differs from the lineart, etc, so on and so forth. Seems like Bandai can't make up their mind just how many missiles their should be in the Armored Pack....LOL! 2) As suspected. the lower front part of the intake armor is not hinged. Looking forward to transforming to battroid mode. I'm very interested to see how the crotch lock holds up to the extra weight and if it has been strengthened at all. Graham
Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Looking forward to transforming to battroid mode. I'm very interested to see how the crotch lock holds up to the extra weight and if it has been strengthened at all. I've noticed that all images of this that I've seen in the past few days in battroid mode do not show it with the crotch piece dislodged from underneath the cockpit(to enable the waist to swivel). I think this is because the weight of the armor would dislodge the crotch lock immediately.
macrossnake Posted August 12, 2009 Posted August 12, 2009 Thanks for your quick comments and cool pics, Graham. It looks great in fighter mode, it is a 'monster'!
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