Macross World
The second model to be released by Hasegawa from Dengeki Hobby’s Macross The Ride Serialization is Chelsea Scarlett’s VF-11B “Nothung 2”, (the first being the “Rose GuryuneSilt’s Thunder Focus”.) Hidetaka Tenjin will once again provide the box art.
Cf18 posted a recent interview at the Japanese site, GA Graphics, with the toy engineers that is currently designing the 1/60 VF-4G Lightning at Yamato. Accompanying the interview is a good number of renders and CAD drawings. Some we’ve seen before, but now with much more clarity.
More images after the break.
Once again, master model builder “Cool8or” has completed one of his beautiful pieces. This time he tackled another mech from MW’s own Captain America’s 1/72 line, the Zentradi Regult Scout Type. Not his first from that line, Cool8tor continues to showcase his talent and technique, not only choosing the beautiful colors for the standard scheme, but applying weathering that makes it hard to believe that what you’re looking at in these photographs are tiny scaled models.
Member ahiachris posted that more super-deformed kits are going to be sold at the MetalBox booth. This time it’s the three remaining Destroids. The Tomahawk, Defender and the Phalanx.
We recently saw the Spartan HERE among the other Metalbox SD Macross kits. These new kits are seen in color as opposed to the recent pictures where all the samples were only primered. According to the MetalBox site, the kits paint application were inspired by the Arii model box art. Reading further using online translation tools, I’m judging that these will be unpainted, unassembled kits. We’ll find out Feb 12.
Check out the post HERE and then see the MetalBox site here.
More pics after the jump:
A couple of weeks ago, VF5SS and I got together to discuss the 1/55 VF-1 Valkyrie toy, a highly influential, internationally bestselling and memorable toy from 1982, with a highly complex background to match.
For your listening pleasure, we hereby present the story of Takatoku’s masterpiece, the 1/55 VF-1, from prototype to toy, to bootleg, to reissue.
I believe a great deal of this information is new to English-speakers, since a lot of it is taken from the following Japanese sources: Figure Oh #130, #77 and #134; Model Graphix #318, and Shoji Kawamori Macross Design Works.
LISTEN HERE: Streaming version on Youtube.
More links & info after the jump.
Hi fellow Macross fans! The MW staff is proud to present the new main page. Following the upgrade of the forums and its new look we’re finally ready to reveal the place where we will be posting the latest news in the world of Macross. We’ll still be using the forums to discuss the shows, toys, models and music but this will be a great way to keep tabs and archive all the significant events, announcements and milestones that concern our favorite anime franchise. We hope you enjoy the new site and thanks for making this a great place to be.
Dedicated to the Pioneers!
2012 marks a special milestone for the Macross franchise. 30 years ago this October, Super Dimension Fortress: Macross was debuted on Japanese TV. Since then it has spawned sequels, movies, OVAs and countless merchandise including the unforgettable classic, the Takatoku 1/55 VF-1 Valkyrie.
To celebrate the anniversary, Bandai visual is releasing 2 box sets of SDF: Macross in Bluray. One as a standard set and the other is called the complete edition. Yamato has also announced that they are releasing a web shop exclusive of the long awaited VF-4 valkyrie in 1/60 scale. Stay tune we wait for more merchandise announcements through out the year.
Happy Anniversary from Macross World!
As part of Macross World’s celebration of Macross’ 30th Anniversary and this year coinciding with the year the Megaroad was launched as seen in Flashback 2012, we will be giving a special monthly video presentation. We start off appropriately enough with Angel’s Paint. The song and animation that features the footage mostly associated when discussing Flashback 2012. This unofficial version has been edited to run all the way thru the song, unlike the two parter found on the commercial release.
Enjoy!
Ever since I was 14 years old and first discovered Macross, the one thing that I’ve always enjoyed most was the model box art. I never thought of myself as collecting plastic model kits, I always thought of it as collecting ART! I remember going every week to a San Diego hobby store called “Models Emporium”, and walking past the jets and the tanks and the soldiers to get to the treasures…the Macross kits! On the back wall there was everything…the Imai 1/72 Variable Valkyrie with its striking black background, or the VF-1J with the full size fighter on blue. 1/72 Regults and Glaugs. 1/5000 Macross. Of course at the time those larger kits were well beyond what my meager allowance would allow. Scraping up all my lunch money I could afford some 1/170 Imai or 1/200 Nichimo kits though! (To satisfy my 1/72 addiction I did find some solace in the Revell Robotech Changers from K-Mart for $9.99. Yes on the box it had backwards legs and a crazy name, but “I” knew what it really was! Ha!)
Over the decades my appreciation for this box art has not waivered, much to my family’s disappointment. The one downside to collecting this ‘art’ over so many years is that it is so BULKY! Whenever I have moved, I find myself with a couple dryer sized boxes that weigh a net 5 pounds each. 🙂 You can see many of the items in the Macross World Legacy Models pages.
But back to the main story…One of, if not THE best box art artist, is Yoshiyuki Takani. You could always tell his art from other artists, usually just at a glance. The shapes were somehow “mechanically organic’ and always had something,not sure what the word is, but I will call it 3D ‘weight’ to them. Go get one of his many books and you’ll soon appreciate his work as much as I have over the years. Even newer generations of artists, such as the incredibly talented Tenjin(who should have is own section!), are creating their new art in Takani’s famous style. Browse the Macross Chronicle magazines and you’ll immediately see the tribute to the past.
In 2011, a large lot of Takani’s original paintings appeared on the Yahoo Japan Auction site, where they were picked up by Japanese collectors anywhere from $500 to $3000 each. There were items from Macross, Orguss and the Galvion series to mention a few. This was a once in a lifetime event! I do not know the story behind how or why these works appeared, but if you happen to have some insight, please shed some light for us in the forums. Over the months I saved off many of the jaw dropping auction pictures, and thought I’d share them with you if you missed some of them.
Enjoy!!
Shawn
