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VF-1J Hikaru Ichijo Custom

Comments

12 comments posted
Nice, but...

I can see the appeal of this particular incarnation of the VF-Fighter. For my money though, the quality & perfect engineering of Yamato's 1/60 scale series is the only option for me. Of all my toys, of which most are modern, the Yamato 1/60 scale Valks are hands down amongst the best quality toy you can buy. The only way to buy a sharper looking version of the Valk is to build one of the model kits that are available. If only Yamato packaged their Valk in a smaller box to help keep shipping costs down... :(

north-exit's picture
Posted by north-exit on 10 November, 2010 - 03:52
I really don't like the fact

I really don't like the fact that this could have been mostly metal for the smal size but didn't do that.

VZMK2's picture
Posted by VZMK2 on 10 November, 2010 - 13:47
It's good to know that this

It's good to know that this is a pretty solid piece. Although I still want to get a Yamato 1/60 Valkyrie first, if I were to see this in an import shop or an anime convention, I would likely pick it up. Nice review and comparison chart Josh.

Dkun's picture
Posted by Dkun on 11 November, 2010 - 09:02
Nice Valk

These thing looks very good and detailed (for it''s size), but lately I've been going back and forth with the design of the VF-1. It does bring back memories from my childhood but after several years, the design seems rather outdated to me, so I don't feel the need to get it.

On the other hand, since I first saw the YF-19, I cannot get the dang thing off my head. It's my favorite Macross design by far (I also like the Destroid Tomahawk, wich looks a very rugged and tough machine) and I'm still deciding whether to get it or not.

Great Review as always, Josh.

mikespiegel's picture
Posted by mikespiegel on 18 November, 2010 - 09:03
Best toy

In my own personal comparison of the 1/100 Bandai Hi-metal to the following:
1/100 Toynami -awful, everything falls apart, but at least you can put it back together.
1/60 Yamato ver. 1- awful leg/hip articulation and transformation. Nasty grey tinted white plastic.
1/60 Yamto ver. 2 - It's so beautiful---Just don't breathe on it . As good as it is, the fragile shoulder hinge is a real problem. And for $70-180 online it's not worth it.
1/55 Bandai/Toynami- Most "playable" and "toylike" Durable- can probably use it as a weapon in case of an emergency!

Overall the 1/100 Bandai Hi-metal is a good compromise between playability/durability and anime accuracy. Unlike the others, I enjoy playing and transforming this Valk. And at 1/100 size it's OK to bring to work and not declare to everyone that you're a geek.

Ap's picture
Posted by Ap on 11 November, 2010 - 19:59
You are the first person I've

You are the first person I've seen say the 1/100 Toynami valks were "awful". I'm wondering if you got a bad one or perhaps an earlier version of it (the line was rebooted after the initial wave years earlier). While they aren't the best iteration of the design, they've been considered by most to be the best bang for your valkyrie buck and a nice little toy.

Again with the never-ending Yamato shoulder talk. I'm beginning to wonder if it's become an urban myth where people are now just assuming it's really an issue. I and my friends have about a dozen Yamato valks between us of varying scales and manufacturing runs, none of them broke or have any issues with them. The one Yamato toy that broke was my Garland, and that seems to be the root issue that somehow caused everything Yamato makes to have an unjustified stigma of "they all break and are fragile". What do you people do with them, hold it by one arm and spin around like a child? Haven't we all decided by now that these aren't toys any more and are now collectibles?

I guess we needed to christen the new site with a Yamato rant, so that's done.

Regarding Josh's comparison to the GN-U, that whole line is pretty much defunct and marked down everywhere. Getting one for less than $30 is commonplace.

duke togo's picture
Posted by duke togo on 12 November, 2010 - 16:39
Shoulders

I think the shoulders were an issue in the earlier releases of the 1/60, but the latest ones have absolutely no problems. I have the DYRL? VF-1S Roy Foker anniversary addition and have 0 problems. Also have the VF-1A Max and Kakizaki, and the TV Roy, and again, no problems. In fact, the latter three have the newly designed crotches, and clear canopies. So at this point, the shoulders, at least for the releases in 2009 and after, are not an issue.

pud333's picture
Posted by pud333 on 19 December, 2010 - 13:14
Gives me Hope

Excellent review and knowing that the Hi-Metal series is pretty good makes me thankful I have the VF-1S on pre-order.

SirAzrael's picture
Posted by SirAzrael on 15 November, 2010 - 16:55
I love this valk

I gotta say I love this thing, i sold most of my 1/48's so now I only have 1 1s, 1 1a, and 1 1j. I only have 2 1/60's so these new smaller and slightly cheaper hi-metals are perfect, and I think personally it pulls off the best looking battroid mode of any valk toy out there.

Tking22's picture
Posted by Tking22 on 17 November, 2010 - 20:05
Not another VF-1

Nice rendition but can't bandai develop another vehicle from the macross universe.

Viper8's picture
Posted by Viper8 on 19 November, 2010 - 12:20
Bandai QC

Picked up a Tamashi Bandai 1/100 VF-1J Max type. Unfortunately the Right hand joint suffered from over-glue, so I spent a day filing it down to remove the glue so that I could rotate the hand from its compartment. Also paint suffered from over-glue damage down the right knee plate. I'm not sure if this is general QC issue with the Hi-metal line or just limited to this "web exclusive" version.

The box was also different than the Hikaru version. Rather than a flip top display case. It features a light blue monochrome box without a flip top. The graphics are the same as that on Hikaru's. The tray and contents are otherwise the same.

Ap's picture
Posted by Ap on 21 November, 2010 - 00:25
This is a really nice little

This is a really nice little figure, very detailed for its size, and if I didn't already start collecting the 1/60 Yamatos, I would be all over this line like a fat kid on a smartie. Honestly, when compared to the 1/60's, this just doesn't cut it. But if someone is thinking about getting into valks and is not wanting to pay for a 1/60, this is the line to get. However, the availability of this line is frustrating. This and the Roy one are readily available, but the VF-1As are now Tamashii web exclusives as well as the VF-1J Max. That means if you're a North American collector, you will have to pay a premium for these to be imported. Because of that, I really think it's just better to go with the 1/60s. With how well the newer versions are now made, I think you'd be hard pressed to find anyone not incredibly happy with their purchase.

All in all though, very nice little toy, highly articulate and lots of fun to play with so long as you don't mind parts swapping. Definitely better than anything else in this scale. (I don't own a Toynami, but plan to in the future to see how well it compares). And the box is so nice, I find it hard to bring myself to throw it out!

pud333's picture
Posted by pud333 on 19 December, 2010 - 13:21