Anubis Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 (edited) Looks like the MSIA Freedom, and the two Zakus are out. They're already up on ebay. I'll see if I can find them today then. Graham Yeah, let's see how those came out. Pics and mini-review. I preordered a Blaze Zaku Phantom from Image Anime the other day (along with the HCM Pro Rick-Dias). Edited January 14, 2005 by Anubis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Stupid me, I went to the shop where I normally buy my Gundam toys yesterday, and they had a load of Bandai cartons just in. But as none of them were obviously marked as containing MSiA, I didn't bother to hang around. I bet they did contain the new MSiA...I should have asked . Oh well, only an hour and a quarter until I can get to the shop again . Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anubis Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Stupid me, I went to the shop where I normally buy my Gundam toys yesterday, and they had a load of Bandai cartons just in. But as none of them were obviously marked as containing MSiA, I didn't bother to hang around. I bet they did contain the new MSiA...I should have asked .Oh well, only an hour and a quarter until I can get to the shop again . Graham You're slipping Graham. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 You're slipping Graham. Yeah I know . I put it down to a mixture of old age & sleep deprivation. Plus a few sites listed the release date as January 22nd, so I didn't really think they would be released so early. Damn, never believe anything you read on a website . Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anubis Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Almost forgot, In February MegaHouse is releasing figures of Lunamaria, Mairin, and Stellar. I'm assuming these will be just like the Fllay, Cagalli, and Lacus figures they released last year. They're up for pre-order ar HLJ, but no pics yet. Must see pics of the Lunamaria figure if anyone comes across any. That could be worth picking up depending on how it turns out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Almost forgot,In February MegaHouse is releasing figures of Lunamaria, Mairin, and Stellar. I'm assuming these will be just like the Fllay, Cagalli, and Lacus figures they released last year. They're up for pre-order ar HLJ, but no pics yet. Must see pics of the Lunamaria figure if anyone comes across any. That could be worth picking up depending on how it turns out. There's been pics of these in the last few issues of Hobby Japan magazine. I'll try to get them scanned tonight. They look really nice. I'm definitely getting the Lunamaria one. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anubis Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Almost forgot,In February MegaHouse is releasing figures of Lunamaria, Mairin, and Stellar. I'm assuming these will be just like the Fllay, Cagalli, and Lacus figures they released last year. They're up for pre-order ar HLJ, but no pics yet. Must see pics of the Lunamaria figure if anyone comes across any. That could be worth picking up depending on how it turns out. There's been pics of these in the last few issues of Hobby Japan magazine. I'll try to get them scanned tonight. They look really nice. I'm definitely getting the Lunamaria one. Graham Sweet. Is Lunamaria in her Regular uniform or Flight Suit ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Sweet. Is Lunamaria in her Regular uniform or Flight Suit ? Regular uniform with that oh so lovely, oh so short miniskirt . Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 OK, just got back from my little shopping expedition. Went to my regular shop that I buy Gundam toys from and gasp..........on first glance, none of the new January MSiAs are on display. So I rumage through the shelves and 1 row back manage to find a single Slash Zaku Phantom (Yzak's blue one) for HK$99 (US$12.70). It seems that the shop only received a few pieces of the new MSiA yesterday and they sold out very quickly. So, being somewhat disheartened at not finding the Freedom MSiA I walk to a nearby shopping mall that has about half a dozen small toy shops. First shop I visit also has a single Slash Zaku Phantom only, but selling cheaper for HK$79 (US$10.12). Gah, knew I should have shopped around! Next two shops, nothing. Next shop........yes! I spot the Freedom MSiA, but it is the last one and the shopkeeper wants HK$178 (US$22.80) for it. Hmm.....this is an extremely high price for an MSiA. So, do I do the sensible thing and wait until next week, when more stock will probably come in and I can get it for a cheaper price, or do I buy it now? Heh, heh, what do you think? Let no man accuse me of being sensible . Of course I bought it . Final shop, luck is with me again. They have the Blaze Zaku Phantom (Rey's white one) selling for HK$79 (US$10.12), which I buy. They are all sitting in front of me now in their boxes. I'm just going to break them out and I'll write a quick report after I've had a chance to play with them. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 MSiA Blaze & Slash Zaku Phantoms Mini Review Articulation: Overall very good articulation. Ver.2 knees and elbows. Mid-bicep rotation point. Head can rotate 360 degrees and also is capable of some back & forth and side to side movement. Excellent waist articulation. Full 360 degree waist rotation, plus can tilt back & forth and side to side as well. Ankle articulation is fairly limited though as the armor gets in the way. All waist armor segments can be raised to horizontal so kneeling pose is not a problem. Accessories: Comes with 2 x arm shields, 1 x beam rifle, with detachable disc-shape power pack, 4 x spare beam rifle power packs for attaching to inside of arm shields, 1 x back mounted double beam gattling pack (Slash only), 1 x beam axe with removeable beam blade, 1 x large beam axe consisting of double bladed axe head w/removeable beam blades, haft section and end spike (Slash only), 6 x hands (2 fists, 2 gun hands, 2 axe hands), 1 x large thruster back pack with opening missile pods (Blaze only). Finish, Construction & Sculpt: These figures are mostly molded in the correct color PVC, so there is not a great deal of painted areas. The paint job on the painted parts is normal to good for MSiA. Construction of these toys is pretty much all PVC, except for the POM knee and elbow joints. No hard plastic used for the weapons, except for the haft of the Slash's double-bladed beam axe. Sculpt seems accurate to the lineart and anime, although I do think the haed sits a bit too high on the neck joint. Flaws: No major obvious flaws so far. Nothing really loose and no parts falling off except for the beam rifle power pack which doesn't attach to the rifle very securely. I'll probably glue it on. My only other minor complaint is that the missile pod hatches on the Blaze's back pack do not open far enough. Conclusion: With good articulation, no obvious flaws, a decent selection of weapons and a nice looking sculpt, I'd give these figures a 9/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 MSiA Freedom Gundam Mini Review Articulation: Fairly good articulation. Ver.2 knees and elbows. Upper-arm rotation point. Head can rotate about 45 degrees side to side and also is capable of some small back & forth movement. 360 degree waist rotation. Ankle articulation pretty good and the toy can keep it's feet fairly flat on the ground even with the legs spread. Front and rear skirt armor is not articulated, but as it is made of very soft PVC, it will bend up if you want to do a kneeling pose. Good articulation of the back wings with solid tight hinges, reinforced with thick metal pins so that the wings will hold their pose when open. Accessories: Comes with 2 x Beam Sabers with removeable blades, 1 x double joined Beam Saber hilt (think Darth Maul), 1 x beam rifle, 1 x shield, 6 x hands (2 x closed fists, 2 x gun hands, 2 x Beam saber hands). Finish, Construction & Sculpt: Pretty good paint job, with a bit of overspray in some areas, nothing major though. Toy is constructed of all PVC, except for the POM elbow & knee joints and the main wing hinges. Sculpt seems pretty accurate, although I'm no expert on the Freedom. Beam Saber blades are ABS, so no sagging, limp noodle blades here. Flaws: The only problem with this toy so far is that the left skirt armor does not hold the beam saber hilt securely at all. In fact the hilt falls out with just the gentlest of touch. The right skirt armor holds the beam saber hilt fine. The problem as I see it is that the two halves of the right skirt armor were not glued together tightly enough at the factory, leaving the channel that holds the hilt slightly oversize . Conclusion: I'm pretty happy with this toy. It's a nice looking sculpt, reasonably well articulated (although not as articulated as the Zaku Phantoms or the Impulse). The back wings/guns are well done and can hold their pose in either the full weapons mode, with the back and hip guns pointing forward or the mode with wings fully open. The hip rail guns also open and close without problem. Overall, I'd give this figure a 7.5/10. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panon Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 In February MegaHouse is releasing figures of Lunamaria, Mairin, and Stellar. I'm assuming these will be just like the Fllay, Cagalli, and Lacus figures they released last year.They're up for pre-order ar HLJ, but no pics yet. Must see pics of the Lunamaria figure if anyone comes across any. That could be worth picking up depending on how it turns out. Here you go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeo-mare Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 wow all 3 of those are very nice, i will definetly be picking those up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Oh well, even though Panon has beaten me to it, I'll still post the Hobby Japan pics. First up everybodies favorite female Zaft pilot Lunamaria. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Next up psycho chick Stellar. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 And Lunamaria's younger sister, bridge bunny Meyrin. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 I'll definitely be picking up the Megahouse Lunamaria figure. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 And here's some other Destiny figures, this time by by Bandai. The figs at the top half of the page should be out any day now. The figs at the bottom of the page are due for release in March and appear to have a voice chip in the base. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magnus Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Thanks for the reviews Graham! Could you give us a picture of the Freedom side by side with the Impulse and Strike? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Thanks for the reviews Graham! Could you give us a picture of the Freedom side by side with the Impulse and Strike? Have to be next week, all my Strike MSiA are at work. For now, here's a quick pic of Yzak's Slash Zaku Phantom. I did take some quick pics of the Freedom & Blaze Zaku Phantom, but they came out a bit blurry and as it's getting close to 11pm here, I'm not taking anymore pics for tonight . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anubis Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 I am so buying the Lunamaria figure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montarvillois Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Geez ! I'm getting to like the MSIA lineup more and more. How good is the quality, I mean, are they made of cheap waxy plastic ? is there panel lines ? are they tall ? do they get floppy after a while ? Please tell me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HG Blows Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Geez !I'm getting to like the MSIA lineup more and more. How good is the quality, I mean, are they made of cheap waxy plastic ? is there panel lines ? are they tall ? do they get floppy after a while ? Please tell me. Quality is pretty good. They're like 4inches tall, plastic is rubbery (kind of cheap), and for some reason the Seed and Destiny MSIA aren't paneled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolfx Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 I am so buying the Lunamaria figure. Me too! Here's hoping to some fanservicey pantsu shots in Seed Destiny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F360° Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 i don't know, i'm pretty sure we'll only get some jiggles soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morpheus Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 Just watch epi. 14 New opening, briefly I saw 2 new MS, along with the DESTINY, its look like Freedom with beam wings similliar to V-gundam. Now I believe that Neo is actually Mwu, or one of its clone since during the opening I can clearly saw Mruue crying while pointing gun at Neo. The 'bride kidnapping' scene is nice, its clearly show Yuna is a total jerk The Archangel is returned, and it seems it has been refitted since its capable of submerging Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morpheus Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 some images of the 2nd opening, from Gunota ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panon Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 Plus something from the new ending Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phuqueue Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 Something else to note in episode 14... there's been some speculation as to whether or not the shot of Strike Rouge in the OP meant it would actually be in the show or if it was just like Astray appearing in the first SEED OP. Episode 14 provides a brief glimpse of Strike Rouge in the Archangel hangar, so it seems it does still exist and is going to be used. Haven't been keeping up much with Destiny talk and rumors, but as far as I know, that's not old news, so I thought it worth mentioning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fort Max Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 I just love these beautifull arty intros/outros they do. The Seed ones have to be some of the best I've seen. New suit looks cool, an evolved Freedom was kind of expected though. New Uniforms are nice too, so AEUG it hurts. Graham, I don't really buy MSIA's so I don't know how detailed they are but I was just wondering if the Axe on Yzaks Zaku folds up at all like it does in the anime? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anubis Posted January 15, 2005 Author Share Posted January 15, 2005 (edited) double post Edited January 15, 2005 by Anubis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anubis Posted January 15, 2005 Author Share Posted January 15, 2005 Nice opening. Waldfeld gets a gold MS!! The Destiny Gundam seems interesting (if that's indeed what it will be called). Something better have funnels though. Whaterver the Zaku variant the new Zaft guy has is, it looks pretty cool too. Cagalli is also shown in her flight suit in the OP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freedomatrix Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 Great Opening with revealing footage - "Destiny Gundam" is definitely Freedom-esque but alittle bit of the Providence-esque DRAGOON wouldn't hurt either. The golden Marasame reminds me of what Shiki would be if it could tramsform like Zeta - Very nice touch. That orange zaku looks Gouf-esque with that dual-sided beam sword plus it has the cruved Gouf spikes. The UC comparisons in Destiny are starting to make me wonder if Impulse it just a "fusion design" of RX-78 & Strike - The Yellow Cross Lives On!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anubis Posted January 15, 2005 Author Share Posted January 15, 2005 (edited) Great Opening with revealing footage - "Destiny Gundam" is definitely Freedom-esque but alittle bit of the Providence-esque DRAGOON wouldn't hurt either. The golden Marasame reminds me of what Shiki would be if it could tramsform like Zeta - Very nice touch. That orange zaku looks Gouf-esque with that dual-sided beam sword plus it has the cruved Gouf spikes. The UC comparisons in Destiny are starting to make me wonder if Impulse it just a "fusion design" of RX-78 & Strike - The Yellow Cross Lives On!!! Yeah, you're right, it is more Gouf-ish. It's got the wrist guns too. [Khan]So much the better.[/Khan] Edited January 15, 2005 by Anubis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beltane70 Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 OK, I feel like a noob now, I've been watching all of Destiny and didn't even realize that Meyrin was Lunamaria's sister! Heck, I didn't even know that her name was Meyrin! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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