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Post by emerson on Mar 24, 2007 15:04:59 GMT -5
I am sure HLJ will get more in stock. I was in Akihabara 2 weeks ago, and literally every toy store literally had piles and piles of these everywhere. Makes sense I guess...despite the glut of RX-78-2 toys and models over the decades, one with GFF #1001's size, sculpt, engineering and diecast content has been a LONG time coming. It's a little puzzling to me actually.....Bandai has the phenomenal success of its Gundam franchise in one hand, and the phenomenal success of its Soul of Chogokin line in the other. I say, put the hands together! Is it just me, or would an SOC Gundam line be a complete no-brainer...
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Post by zephyranthes on Mar 28, 2007 0:21:23 GMT -5
I suppose the GFF 1001 would be the closest thing to an SOC Gundam figure since there was a Clover Gundam DX set (which I fortunately have) back in the 80's which featured the G-Armor.
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Post by nikodiablo on Mar 29, 2007 2:47:40 GMT -5
Just picked mine up from the post office! Gonna open 'em up in the office...
@%#$%^@$^&@!!!
Apparently, the box HLJ used for shipping is little bet bigger than the gundam's box, so the corner of the Gundam box is a little squashed... What's worse, the g0d d@mn f#^()ng customs ripped the box, because when they inspect the inside, they didn't just cut the seal tape, but seems like they pulled it off the tab!! Burn in hell, you *$%%$&%^&*)&*(&*!!!
But the content seems to be OK. Still sad about the box, tho..
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Post by nikodiablo on Mar 29, 2007 21:46:27 GMT -5
Well, I finally opened my GFF Metal Composite 1/100 RX-78-2 Ver. Ka With G Fighter last night. Here’s my quick review of the product, but sorry, no pictures since I don’t have a digicam. Here goes:
Box
The box is huge. The size is approximately (L x W x H) 45 x 15 x 27cm. I got my shipment from HLJ in a SAL small packaging, and when I opened the package, I was pleasantly surprised that the Gundam box filled almost the entire space of the shipment box, and only left a little space at the top which was filled with plastic bubble. But this also bummed me, since there’s only very little space for bubbles, the edge of the box got a little dented. Furthermore, customs ripped a little part of the box where the factory seal was attached, because the @$$holes don’t want to cut the tape.
The box is the glossy art-cardboard type, with pictures of the product on the front, but don’t get fooled, the picture of the G-Armor is not in scale with the Gundam. The G-Armor is a lot bigger than shown in the front of the box. The box graphic design is similar to the smaller 1/144 GFF packaging. Back of the box shows the possible combination variations (BTW, it doesn’t say Made in Japan). The toy is packed in a styrofoam tray. The Gundam and the weaponry is packed on one side, while the G-Fighter parts are packed on the other side. It really gives you the feel of a luxury toy, and I would say that the figure is packaged and presented, really, really well.
RX-78-2
The figure stands at height of approx. 18.5 cm. The figure’s sculpt is really well done, but it doesn’t really look like the chunky art of the 1980 anime, since it has been re-designed by the great Hajime Katoki. It’s blockier with sharp edges now, which gives the distinct look of a deadly war machine. The paint application is perfect; I didn’t find any paint bleeds or inconsistency. The figure is painted in flat colors, which gives the appearance of a model, not a toy. It’s adored all over with very fine tampo printing, and although the sizes are small, these prints are very sharp and not blurry at all. The figure is made of ABS plastic throughout (no bendy PVC, except for a replacement V-fin part). It seems to have an internal leg assembly made of die cast metal, hence giving a good heft and stability. I didn’t weight the figure, but I think it’s comparable to the SOC Grendizer. I didn’t dare to pry apart the leg assembly, but I noticed metal in the elbow joints. The screws are well hidden; the only ones I can find are in the bottom of the feet, and in the back, which will be covered by the power pack.
The articulation of is great too. The joints are a little bet stiff at first, and they seem like solid joints that will not get loose over time. The head turns (I think all the way around, but it is stiff), but it has very small up – down range, I believe it’s only 5 degrees, maybe less. The arm movement is great, the shoulder has 360 degree motion, 180 degree turn movement and 90 degree lateral sideway at the forearm, and the elbow bends 90 degrees (double jointed). The wrist is a ball joint with full movement (caution: replacing hands can be a pain, since the socket is really tight). The legs articulation are also good, the legs are connected with a ball joint at the groin, allowing a good range of motion to the front and back, and a little sideways. The knees joints are racheted, allowing the figure to hold certain extreme poses. The feet also have good range of movement and are segmented at the heels, and will allow the feet to be kept flat at a large range of pose. The skirt does not hinder the leg movement at all, since they are all jointed. I believe a kneeling pose is possible.
G-Fighter/Armor combination
I didn’t mess with the combination, since I only bought it for the Gundam, therefore I will not give any comment. I only took out the G fighter parts out once to see the quality, and put it back. But all I can say, the parts are also done beautifully with perfect finish like the figure, and not just some add-on parts slapped in to jack up the price.
Accessories
The figure comes with the G-Fighter, obviously and the following: Weaponry: one beam rifle, two gundam bazookas, four beam saber handles, two beam (javelins?) handles, two clear plastic beam saber blades, two shields with different markings, and various parts for shield attachments in various combination forms. It also comes with a transformable core fighter which can be attached inside the torso and replacement V-fin part made of PVC, which I installed on mine now. There are additional 3 pairs of extra hands, one pair of fisted hands, one pair of sword hands, and one pair of gun hands.
Summary
The Pros. The figure is excellent. It exceeds all of my expectations and more. Firstly, the size is “just right”. I had refrained from buying previous GFF 1/144 figures because they’re too small for my taste. The sculpt and paint job is awesome and just perfect, not like the inconsistency found in smaller GFF 1/144 products, where paint bleeds and smudges are common. The choice of material is also great, hard ABS and internal metal assembly which gives the figure good heft and stability requires in posing. The figure also has good center of balance, since it is not back heavy. If you are a Gundam fan and don’t think that you have enough renditions of the original Gundam, don’t hesitate to get it. In my opinion, this is the best representation available, since it blurs the line between action figure, model kit, and even super robot with the inclusion of the G-Fighter to form the G-Armor.
The Cons. Although minimal, there are also some issues that should be improved for the next GFF 1/100 Metal Composite product. These are: The forearm armor parts does not line up perfectly, so there’s a slight gap. Not really noticeable, but it’s there. Secondly, it’s a b1tch to replace the extra hands, because the socket and the ball joints are so tight. Third, you will scrape some paint when you insert the beam saber handle into their slots, but that’s OK since these will be covered with the saber blades. Fourth, when you install the shields to the arms using the clamp extension (for G-armor combination), there will be possibility of paint scraping. I haven’t tried this though, just be extra careful. Fifth, the bazooka slot on the back does not hold the bazooka tightly. These are all that bugged me a little, but not much. Finally, Bandai forgot to include the beam javelin parts and Gundam Hammer accessory.
In the end, I give this figure 9.8 out of 10. I can’t give perfect 10 due to the cons I mentioned above, and let’s hope that Bandai fix these issues in the next release. Kudos to Hajime Katoki, this is what a Gundam should be. I really can’t wait for the next one, which I hope is a perfect transforming Zeta Gundam, or the ultimate Deep Striker. Finally, I hope that this quick review can help the guys who are still undecided in getting this figure or not. It’s definitely worth getting.
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Post by zephyranthes on Mar 30, 2007 0:04:52 GMT -5
I'm really looking forward to getting mine. I hope that customs doesn't mess up my GFF.
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Post by wilson on Mar 30, 2007 2:30:07 GMT -5
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Post by 00silvergt on Mar 30, 2007 21:07:21 GMT -5
LOL these are sold out in Japan, but Statue Toys is selling a preoder for 2nd quarter 2007 meaning soon...so are they re-releasing these or maybe they just secured one heck of an order and waiting for it to come in by sea? @ 95.99 this is cheap, Highly recommended heavy SOB.
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Post by zephyranthes on Apr 1, 2007 2:46:34 GMT -5
Nice price. I wonder what the shipping charge would be with UPS? Is Statuetoys.com a reputable company?
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Post by paladin on Apr 1, 2007 9:56:29 GMT -5
Wait a minute. So it comes with beam javelin handles but no javelin heads?  |
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Post by nikodiablo on Apr 1, 2007 20:45:25 GMT -5
Wait a minute. So it comes with beam javelin handles but no javelin heads? Wait, let me clarify that. I assumed these were javelin handles, cause they were a little bet too long to be sabre handles, and there's no slot you can attach the sabre blades to. These are strange handles, a little longer than the sabre handles, the end is cut off in a slanted, angled manner. According to the instructions, it is carried in the back, under the beam bazooka slot. Maybe the other guys can give a better description what the two extra handles are for?! I'm kinda at lost myself on what they are. |
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Post by nikodiablo on Apr 1, 2007 23:48:42 GMT -5
Just a reminder:
The gun hands is not designed properly to hold the beam rifle, therefore, in an effort to place the trigger finger into the trigger hole, I accidentally scraped the forearm with grey paint from the beam rifle. Just be careful when positioning the gripped rifle, the rifle butt makes a contact with the forearm.
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Post by zephyranthes on Apr 2, 2007 0:19:37 GMT -5
It would be cool if Bandai produces add-on accessories and weapons for the GFF 1001. Imagine a separate set of armor pieces to turn this into a Perfect or Full Armor Gundam. Hmm.
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Post by nikodiablo on Apr 2, 2007 4:26:20 GMT -5
It would be cool if Bandai produces add-on accessories and weapons for the GFF 1001. Imagine a separate set of armor pieces to turn this into a Perfect or Full Armor Gundam. Hmm. Or better yet, the Heavy Gundam! Seems like the armor is removable, maybe that's what Bandai have in mind?! |
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Post by 00silvergt on Apr 2, 2007 16:35:51 GMT -5
Now is GF-1001 a one shot standalone project or is Bandai going to bring out other suits in this series? "My heart is telling me yes, but my wallet is hoping no!" Wouldn't it be great to have a Metal Zaku (Char's) or Zeta, Shiki, Double Zetta, RX-93 nu and of course a Sazabi?
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Post by nikodiablo on Apr 2, 2007 20:05:57 GMT -5
Bandai is probably testing the water by issuing the GFF-1001. If the sales went well, I suppose there would be no harm to bring out the other GFF in 1/100 scale. You can't have enough Char's Zaku anyway...
I'm still wondering how much would a 1/100 metal Deep Striker would cost. 20000 - 25000yen? Now that's a scary thought...
One more reminder about the GFF-1001: Smudges can be left easily on the white surface. Better wear your gloves... I tried to wipe marks using eraser, but it only seem to make it worse. Maybe it's the wrong type of eraser (at first, I used the clear rubbery tipe), but at second attempt using art eraser (the staedtler type and equivalent), it's a little bet better. Won't return to original condition, but, bearable.
Better stock on Tamiya Flat White Acrylic paint!!
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Post by 00silvergt on Apr 3, 2007 3:27:34 GMT -5
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Post by nikodiablo on Apr 3, 2007 4:22:23 GMT -5
That's a comforting thought! LOL!!
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Post by zephyranthes on Apr 4, 2007 0:40:33 GMT -5
It used to be in the past that I'd construct the models of various Gundams because that would be the only way to end up with a decent looking figure. Now we get figures like this GFF and the upcoming Super HCM Pro that are decked out with gimmicks and nicely painted (tampo'ed even) to the point that they rival or even exceed the gunpla models. It seems we're getting spoiled. Less and less need to really work to get a great figure. I guess I don't mind it now that I have no time to build models anymore.
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Post by nikodiablo on Apr 4, 2007 2:20:39 GMT -5
It used to be in the past that I'd construct the models of various Gundams because that would be the only way to end up with a decent looking figure. Now we get figures like this GFF and the upcoming Super HCM Pro that are decked out with gimmicks and nicely painted (tampo'ed even) to the point that they rival or even exceed the gunpla models. It seems we're getting spoiled. Less and less need to really work to get a great figure. I guess I don't mind it now that I have no time to build models anymore. True!! Bandai can spoil me anytime, now, as long as the price does not exceed 25000 yen! They have been so good to me who sucked at building figures ;D! |
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Post by 00silvergt on Apr 4, 2007 5:32:50 GMT -5
Yeah Bandai doesn't really spoil us, per se...they are doing it to meet a demanding market. It will be great if they keep it under 25000 yen or ~$230, but as our demands for better materials and product and the smaller the audience is to our hobby, you may see it kissing that price point and before you know it, it may start exceeding it.
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