Macross Quarter
To use the internet vernacular that is so popular with the kids these days… the Macross Quarter by Bandai is a total Fail.
The Quarter is named such as it is 1/4 the size of a normal Macross class ship. Being a purely military ship it doesn’t carry a civilian population and being smaller it can move in to engage enemy vessels at close range in melee combat. Please enjoy this clip of the Quarter in all its glory…
As you can see it’s all sorts of ass-kicking goodness and fires me up as a mecha/Macross/Robotech fan like nothing has since first seeing Robotech in the 80’s. So needless to say I was very interested in checking this out when I heard Bandai was doing one for their DX Chogokin line. Being their DX Chogokin line however, I was apprehensive as their previously released VF-25 Messiah’s where woefully lacking in my opinion.
Well, the apprehension was justified … Bandai (once again) thinks this is good enough for your $200 bucks.
No, no it’s not Bandai. If folks are spending $200 on a toy (High-end collectible or not) of a flying fortress, we should be able to pick it up without it completely losing it’s form and falling in on itself. No excuses…
The box the Quarter comes in is big. Inside the Quarter is stored in a styrofoam tray and the rest of the parts are stored in clear vacuum formed trays. It the usual modern packaging. Included in the set is:
- Macross Quarter
- Beam Cannon (Right Arm)
- Flight Deck (Left Arm)
- Stand (Multiple Parts for reconfiguration)
- 4 VF-25 Messiah’s
- 2 Destroid Monsters (in Flight and Destroid mode)
- 1 Vajra
In Fortress mode the Quarter measures 20 inches x 8 inches at it’s longest and widest points. It’s huge and on the stand it’s gorgeous and stable. No denying it’s got presence on the shelf and it sure looks pretty.
Also in the box are a bunch of mini-figs. 4 VF-25’s , The Destroid Monster (in Flight and Destroid mode) and Vajra. These are nice touches that allow you to decorate the flight deck. They are not in actual scale to the Quarter but any smaller and they would not even be noticeable. So no complaints here.
Paint and sculpt detail is generous. No complaints here it all looks soooo good.
So not only will it not hold it form off the stand in Fortress Mode but it is a pain to transform. Literally…
All this exacting detail creates very sharp corners around areas you need to grip to transform. Leading to sticking yourself, possibly drawing blood and generally pissing you off before you finish. Not to mention that the hinge in the waste is incredibly tight. So you really have to get in there and force it to rotate out. Then once you’re in mid-transformation it becomes so unwieldy and awkward as you fight to line things up I gave up on shooting a video of this thing. It’s just not worth it…
Transitional Mode or what some folks have been calling Gerwalk mode is obtainable but it looks pretty silly. I doubt many will ever willingly display it this way anyway. It looks way cooler when you see it happen in the show as it just looks a moment of homage as it transitions between modes. Here it just looks silly.
After you have pricked yourself, drawn blood and set your blood pressure rising fighting this thing into “Assault Mode” it’s not bad at all. Unlike its Fortress Mode, it has no problem holding it forms off the stand.
It features a nice range of motion in the legs with nice ratchet joints that hold them where you want them.
Arms seem tight enough as of now to hold the Beam Cannon and Flight deck upright but that may change over time.
Mainly because the ratchet joints are in such a useless spot on the shoulders it makes no difference in this mode. The elbows are a tension joint so that is most likely to get loose over time.
An included bracket allows you to mount the Flight deck to it’s back so it can fire the beam cannon as seen in the show. Does make me wonder, where does it put the beam cannon when it needs both hands?
The stand included is basic and utilitarian but it gets the job done.
Overall I am incredibly disappointed with this release and it is most certainly not worth the asking $200 it was going for new. Die-cast content is once again low for something under the “Chogokin DX” banner being limited to the feet and some joints. The rest is all plastic.
It looks pretty on the shelf but is Zero fun to handle so I leave it to you to decide if the trade-off is once again worth it but I do not. What do you think? Is this worth $200 bucks to you? Let us know in the comments section.
UPDATE 6/21/2010 ——————
Well I have let this thread run on long enough. While it has been highly entertaining to watch the hardcore Macross nerds react as if I had kicked their puppy it certainly wasn’t the reaction I was expecting. I will get the last word in and lock this thread because it’s gone on long enough and there have been some VERY vocal accusations and personal attacks on me that require addressing. 1)This was MY review and MY opinion. That is why I am here doing what I do, to share MY opinion not report a general consensus of what others think. I am happy many feel it was worth the price tag. I did not. 2) The argument that I was biased in some way because it was a review sample is simply stupid. The only thing someone is “guaranteed” when we get a review sample is, is that we will actually review it on the site. I never see anyone jump on Josh’s case when he puts up a sponsored review… To quote Josh from a recent blog post… “It’s no secret that we get a lot of free toys here at CollectionDX. Most of these new High-End items – we don’t pay for. They are often furnished in exchange for a review, but no guarantee is given that it will be a positive review. Sometimes toys are given in lieu of advertising dollars. Regardless of the circumstance of how CDX gets a toy, we pledge to be objective and fair in our reviews.” 3) …which brings me to personal attacks. I am sorry I don’t value the same things as you and have a difference of opinion but attacking me on personal levels just discredits anything you will ever say again on this site and is no way to engage someone in conversation.