Miria 1J out~!

[Hurin]

Hurin: Excuse my ignorance, but did you mean to say that ALL the TV fastpacks have the same molds and thus they ALL don't fit the Gunpod on their armour?

Yes, it is my understanding that all the TV version FAST Packs (Hikaru VF-1J, Max VF-1J, Milia VF-1J) are the same mold and therefore have the same problem. It is also, of course, my contention that the problem has persisted throughout all three releases because the arm armor pieces were all manufactured at the same time and stockpiled.

[wolfx]

Hurin: Excuse my ignorance, but did you mean to say that ALL the TV fastpacks have the same molds and thus they ALL don't fit the Gunpod on their armour?

Yes, it is my understanding that all the TV version FAST Packs (Hikaru VF-1J, Max VF-1J, Milia VF-1J) are the same mold and therefore have the same problem. It is also, of course, my contention that the problem has persisted throughout all three releases because the arm armor pieces were all manufactured at the same time and stockpiled.

Ahh...ok. Thanks for pointing that out. Strange that I didn't hear those complaints about the arm armour until the Miria 1J. Maybe I wasn't paying attention.

[Neova]

Hurin: Excuse my ignorance, but did you mean to say that ALL the TV fastpacks have the same molds and thus they ALL don't fit the Gunpod on their armour?

Yes, it is my understanding that all the TV version FAST Packs (Hikaru VF-1J, Max VF-1J, Milia VF-1J) are the same mold and therefore have the same problem. It is also, of course, my contention that the problem has persisted throughout all three releases because the arm armor pieces were all manufactured at the same time and stockpiled.

Ahh...ok. Thanks for pointing that out. Strange that I didn't hear those complaints about the arm armour until the Miria 1J. Maybe I wasn't paying attention.

It's true. It sucks to have it like this but I hope the next run will be better.

Maybe Rohby can offer up a fixed version of his TV ARM FP recast for everyone.

[JsARCLIGHT]

I was staying away from this thread but when I got back from an extended lunch today I had a big box waiting for me in my office... it was my Milia 1J.

I opened her up, gave her lasers a quick hit of dark grey and placed her next to her husband on my basement entertainment system for a quick snapshot.

Here are some of the things I noticed while goofing with her and her hubby (my teachers in school always said "say the nice things first before you rip something a new corn chute"):

The GOOD:

- They are Max and Milia, nuff said.

- The colors are a bit nicer than the 1/60 versions, nicer red and blue hue

- The accessories are varied and nice (you get a full loadout of weapons with the fast pack toys)

- the white "Seam areas" add more neatness to the toys when in Battroid mode

The BAD:

- the painted stripes are abysmal, leaky leaky everywhere. Both Max and his wife appear to have been rushed through the paint process. Max's lines are a bit cleaner than Milia's and I mostly attribute that to the way the blue sort of "hides" the overdrool of the white better. Some of the areas on Milia that are solid fields of painted white almost have a milky quality to them rather than a nice smooth finish.

- as people have said before the arm FAST pack armor is incapable of retaining the gunpod, but with me it appears to only be an issue in Battroid and Gerwalk. When the two arm halves are pressed together onto the gunpod in fighter mode they seem to hold it well enough for display purposes. My max sat with his attached in super fighter mode for weeks until his wife arrived with no droppage. Time will tell if his wife works out as well.

- THE HEAD LASERS ARE BODY COLOR. This irks me to no end. I know it's "canon" and all but it looks like baboon ass so ZAP! Painted!

- While people are complaining about loose parts not holding on let me once again voice my hatred of the Yamato 1/48 Reator Bomb twin rack design. Who designed this thing? Dropsy McOoops the stumble clown? I have yet to have a twin rack of Reactor Bombs stay on their rack without the use of glue. Talk all you want about gunpods these darn bombs are an even worse drop issue!

Not Really Issues but I'd like to mention:

- the now not so new cartoon hands seem to not be fitting as snug as they once did. Both Max and Milia's cartoon hands don't seat well in their peg holes, especially the gunpod grip hand and they seem to back themselves out micrometer by micrometer over time.

- Milia is a MAN, man!

I did not have any issues with crooked seats or different color plastic. I think, from staring at my Milia's air brake, the claim of different colored plastic comes from the slightly different finish on the air brake piece. It seems to have a more fuzzy look to the plastic rather than a nice smooth look like the chest plastic that surrounds it. In certain light conditions it appears to be a different color but it is actually the specular properties of the rough surface compared to the smooth one next to it that creates that look. I am not a giant Jenius family lover so my purchase of the Max and Milia set is more out of need to complete my Yamato collection rather than love of those two. Much like the Q-Rau these two currently are not in my top 5 favorite Yamato toys list. I think a few people have laid undue hate upon these two toys and some people have looked at them blindly with love... I myself think they are average mass-assembly line toys. Yes they have a few issues but nothing as serious as hips that snap when you remove them from the box. I think the biggest issue at hand for most people is not the quality level of the toy but the price that is being demanded for these two. Both together run you just under $390 for the set at most retailers in the US with shipping. You could almost buy all three current video game consoles for that price. Worth it? Only you can say for sure. Was it worth it to me? Not really. I feel kind of... empty. But hey, I've got a Max and Milia set. Yay!... I think...

Edit: add a snapshot of those crazy kids on my old entertainment center downstairs before they head up into the hallowed Ikea shelves of nirvana.

Edited May 8, 2004 by JsARCLIGHT

[Hurin]

Thanks JsCarlight. Good review! Very even-handed.

I'm going to get a re-issue Roy before my Milia. But I have a feeling I'll be satisfied for mine based on your review.

Best Regards,

H

[Hurin]

On only a vaguely related note. I think the "cyclops" eye effect looks great in that image. Remember when that was such a big deal? I've grown to really like it!

H

[do not disturb]

nice review JsArclight, i am not alone.

its not so much that the gunpod doesn't stay on, its the principle of paying an arm and leg for a sub-par toy. i don't have a serious problem with the paint job as much as having parts that don't work/fit together. just like the loose ass missiles...why? why can't they make the fix?

people can argue, its mass produce, it cost less, it would slow down the releases, then why the heck are we paying just as much for a bad valk as a good valk? if yamato is gonna shaft the buyers with degrading quality in their products and defective parts, their price should reflect it, shouldn't it? if they screwed up and made some crappy parts and want to "pass the buck" to their consumers, the price should be lowered IMHO.

how would you feel if you went to buy a car and the dealership knows theres something wrong with it? lets say the sunroof leaks water but they won't fix the problem and still want the same money for the car? is that right? granted a car costs a lot more but getting ripped off for $100 is the same thing as getting ripped off for a $1000....you're still getting ripped off!

it doesn't really matter now i guess, i have them sitting there and i'm not stupid enough to return them. why would i? then i'd have to live with the fact i paid more $$$ just because i looked at the damn thing and didn't like it. basically i'm stuck with them for now. i should've opted to just buy the strike armor packs for these guys and throw the TV armor out or sell them at a hefty discount and recoup some of my money.

BTW, anyone looking to score some TV armor?

[Armor]

If I may say, For almost $200... No this toy it is not worth it. There are higher quality toys for less money for sure. But. I'm forking out the dough. Even though ther are QC problems and I wish they were only $100, my wife said something pretty cool about them. I showed her MP O Prime. She said , your Valks are way cooler. She said, they don't look like toys like Prime did. But as fare as the gunpod on the armor; I took a X-acto knife and cut a small piece off the armor. No problems now.

[Hurin]

If I may say, For almost $200... No this toy it is not worth it. There are higher quality toys for less money for sure. But. I'm forking out the dough.

And that, my friends, is why they cost what they do.

As for lowering the price solely for this release. . . I don't think that's reasonable. I mean, it might be honorable, it might be nice, it might even be the right thing to do. . . but to expect a toy company to actually lower the price on an identical toy because of QC problems. . . they're just not going to do it (at least anytime soon). They might as well announce to the world: This toy sucks. It sucks so much we had to knock down its price.

Leave it to the retailers to knock down the price if the paint and gunpod issues actually cause the toys to languish on the shelves. I doubt it would happen, but I think that's the only way we're going to see a discount based on QC issues.

This thread could go on forever as it has every time a new valk is released. People were saying that crooked skulls and face seams made the original releases not worth the $135. Obviously, some people are going to buy it, notice some fuzzy paint lines and say: "Whatever. . . it's still cool." Others will say: "Those lines are terrible! This toy costs too much for such shoddiness!". . . but keep it anyways. Others will read that and still buy one, only to decide it's not as bad as they thought it would be. Others will buy one anyways and find it is just as bad or worse than the critics had said. And finally. . . some won't buy it at all. It's all subjective. It's all opinion. The only shame is that people need to shell out $185 before they can make an educated decision.

In my (humble opinion follows) experience, every time I've read the scathing reviews of newly released 1/48s, I've always picked one up, set it on my shelf and said: "Wow. Looks great to me! I guess those guys are just a lot more demanding."

To each their own. Personally, I though JSCarlight's review was pretty positive. . . cuz I'm pretty positive towards these toys in general. I especially appreciated the clarification about the "different color air brake" allegations. But even I, when I start thinking about the monetary concerns he brings up, start to balk. Paying $380 for both these toys, even without any problems seems just insane. So I try not to think about it. And spread out my purchases.

H

[Hurin]

Just put up a Milia Quality Poll and a Max Quality Poll. I hope everyone thinks the questions are representative and fair.

H