A Collector's Admiration, and a Wishlist

Cruising along the web at work, and I stumble upon some collection vids that people have uploaded on Youtube. Some of them are nothing short of spectacular, and certainly makes me feel a bit inferior. However, givin credit where credit is due, I think everyone should take a look at some of these. For instance, this particular Saint Myth Cloth collection is absolutely amazing.

If you know the Myth Cloth series well enough, and look closely at the display, you can see just how much is into it. You can surmise that MUCH money was out into this. EVERY figure has a stand (stands are sold seperately for over 95% of them), there are several Appendix sets, and some Tamashi Web exclusives as well. 

One thing I would like to note on this particular collection is Poseidon. Slick enough to use the Royal Ornament Edition figure (That comes with blonde hair) with the normal Anime edition (blue) hair. The blue hair was an idea from Kurumada when making the anime to represent the seas. I thought this was a nice gesture from this particular collector to have Poseidon on his throne with a dark toned Kamui (my prefered look, actually) and blue hair. Now, what I didn't see are some other exclusives. No Original Color Editions, no black saints, and no Land, Sea, and Marine Saints. They are slo part of the Saint Myth Coth line, but hey...I'm impressed with the collection as is. I don't have room to start criticizing.

Here's another:

Now, I know my girlfriend now doesn't like my collection, so believe me when I tell you that I'm certainly jealous of this man for having a woman that at least seems supportive on camera. Could I get my girl to do that, I wonder? Not without a pair of shoes and a new handbag first, I'm sure! This guy went all out on his as well, and I'm glad I found this vid.

For Tansformers, we have a nice one. A bit long, so you might have to skip through a bit to get the meat and potatoes.

Now, Transformers is THE THING that made me start collecting. I'm an 80's baby, and Transformers has been part of my childhood since first I could remember, so seeing things like this should make anyone drop little insecurities about collecting. Hell, he even has his obviously attractive wife a part of the vid. So...kudos to them!

Me personally, I would never want that many Transformers. I don't collect G1, Bayformers, and ones obviously made for kids. That eliminates over a thousand right there, as well as the  Transformers I have now that I want to sell/get rid of. But looking at this is purely awesome. No matter how childish someone might find this sort of thing, there is no doubt of the dedication, and real heart it takes to keep this. Besides...the resale value on a collection like this is sufficient enough for a new car...so I don't wanna hear it! Maybe I CAN get my girl to do something like this after all.

Gundam is another series that has a certain place in my heart. Now, let me get this out the way. I am American, and by the time Gundam was actually popular in America, it was all due to Gundam Wing. Before that, Transformers and Power Rangers were the leader in robotics for American boys for what I remember. That being said, I am NOT on the Gundam Wing bandwagon. Did I watch it? Yes. Did I talk about it a lot? Yes. but only because there was no other Gundam media readily available at that time in America.

In fact, The first Gundam I ever saw was a 1/144 HG Zeta Gundam in an Electronics Boutique in the early 90's. It was next to a 1/144 HG Nataku. They reminded me of the cool, Japanese style knock-off toys I bought in cheap stores...only legit this time. In fact, they seem like the things that the knock-off's were modeled after (which they were). 

Now, as an adult, I only collect Master Grades. Gundam is entirely too large a universe to get everything I could want, so I stick to getting what I enjoy the most, which is building them. I have had enough Master Grades to know that I cant go back a step, although, I didn't like my Perfect Grade experience too much. I do like Gundam, but I'm not nearly a big of a fan as say...Southeast Asia in general.

I have seen more than these few vids, but I was just listing the ones that I remember off the top of my head. I also came across a vid that asked "What Master Grades would you like to see?" I can't tell you how much this jumped at me. 

Bandai's MG line is certainly my favorite. The thing is, in recent years, it has not been exclusive to just Gundam. Kamen Rider, Luffy, and even Goku have had incarnations of themselves in super poseable, snap together model kits. I thought the idea was pretty clever. Not that I have ever considered purchasing one, but it's nice nonetheless. However, now that this example has been given, it makes me yearn for things I know deserve some MG justice. The Gundams Reborns, Devil, Knight, V2 Assault Buster, and most importantly Double X should be Master Grades. Double X is my favorite Gundam period, and I believe should have been a Master Grade mold long ago. Idea of constricting thos huse satellite cannons and the hidden satellite panels is enough for a preorder there. It doesnt even have a Robot Damashi figure, so I hope Bandai pays special attention to him. Devil Gundam would be a big kit, but a deserving kit. I can only imagine trying to play out the final scene of G Gundam with the Gundam "coalition" against it. Shin Musha, and Musha Mk II are already MG's, so witht he release of Gundam Musou 3 (Dynasty Warriors Gundam), there should already be at least a protoype on the web somewhere. V Gundam was a series highly overlooked, and a somewhat underdog in the Gundam world, though popular enough at least for a Damashi figure. With all the attachments that can go with the V2, I think they can just make a huge kit like the F.A. Unicorn, and get it over with. 

Finally, if Bandai grants me but one favor in this life, it would be to make an MG of anime version Escaflowne.    In the 90's, Sunrise was a leader in anime (along with Manga, Funimation/Toei, and Pioneer), especially in America. They dealt alo with giant robots. A few Gundam series' and Escaflowne. For those of you that may not know much about Escaflowne, it was a bit more adult for the time of its release. In America, it didnt take very well, being vastly outshined in anime by the likes of Gundam Wing and DBZ. Nonethelss, Escaflowne had giant robots called Guymelefs, and they were based on a more steampunk design, rather than modern/futuristic. At the time of its release, it was just another world of robots for me, but as I got older, and re-watched it, they became more like royal machines to me. Something akin to what a queen or king would own. If you actually watch the anime, you would see that its not too far from the truth, as a king is the protagonist, and the suit is his "armor". Anyway, Bandai has made model kits if Escaflowne in the past, but model kit technonolgy has grown since 15 years or so since they came out. Therefore, I would like a revisitation of that series. Reasons being: 1 - It's a beautiful looking machine, and not like your standard Gundam with fusion reactors, electric currents, and hydraulic fluid. MG's specialize in making the skeletal frame first, and Escaflowne's would all be steampunk, and feature components that generate smoke, and the skeletal frame would resemble more of a standing locomotive. 2 - Bandai is making a habit of making toys out of old things. The newest MG's coming out are from Gundam Seed, which is almost 10 years old. The Armor Plus line is Ronin Warriors (Yoroiden Samurai Troopers) and Tekkaman Blade. Tekkaman Blade is considered a classic now, and Ronin Warriors is even older than that. Chogokin Gao Gai Gar is still a fairly new release, and that is based off a robot from the same time frame...ANOTHER Sunrise production! Zeorymer, Reideen, and Macross are all classic anime Chogokin has released in recent years. I even saw a pic on the Tamashi Nations Facebook page of Servo, from Super Human Samurai Syber Squad. 3 - It's Variable. It transforms into a freakin' DRAGON. I know the transforming process can damage the integrity of the mold. MG Unicorn is a straight nightmare in some areas, and so is MG Zeta and Double Zeta. However, I do believe the engineers at Bandai can handle it. Borrow some elements/techniques from Takara, if need be, and make sure to have sturdy joints when changing. If push comes to shove, they can follow suit of the VF-25F Messiah Alto Custom, and add interchangeable parts like the cockpits of MG's Double Zeta and the Impulses. Also, it would be interesting to see what kind of material is used for the cape/wings. i would hope that they not use the same material they used for MG Exia's repair mode, as I think the cape/wings would be more or less a special piece. Transparent parts for the eyes, shoulders and energist, and BAM, you got yourself a sexy, Dragon-armor guymelef.

Would make me a VERY happy man to see any of this come true.

As I was closing this up, I came across this, but nothing has been in the works that I found anywhere since 2010. If it's true about it being die-cast, I shudder at the thought of weight, and paint issues. No matter what, I want this MG...and I want it bad.
http://www.sgcollect.com/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t63312.html

After this inspection is finished, will start with that White Rock Shooter I promised.

Happy Hobbying, everyone.