18 April 2009

VF-25 Fate Testarossa ver.

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We had Itasha, Itansha, Itachari, and even an Ita-GM, and here we have an Ita-Valkyrie (variable fighter from anime Macross Frontier) featuring Fate Testarossa from the Nanoha series.

This VF-25 plamo is made by rakigako2, a dedicated Fate fan who has shown his work on ToysDaily forum. I'll leave the pictures to do the telling, since a picture is worth a thousand words ^^

Battroid mode:
Side-by-side with 2 other Valkyries
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Fighter mode:
That's where the beauty shines in my opinion~
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Omake:
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Beautiful custom decal sheet, and is self made too O_O

No pictures of Gerwalk mode available though.

Want to make your own?
rakigako2 has some tips for DIY decal sheet:
  • Buy clear decal sheet(s)
  • Use software to design the decals (mainly rearranging and resizing images)
  • Use ink jet printer to print (or laser printer if you have one)
  • Use at least 3 layers of top coat (a must, and first 1-2 coating should be water based)
  • If the model is of dark colour(s), then use white decal sheet(s) instead


  • As far as I know, Macross plamos are not cheap, and their decals are not easy to apply (there are a lot of them!). This one simply made my jaws dropped for a while, and it looks really nice even for an Ita-Valkyrie~

    Big thumbs up for rakigako2's effort on making this Ita-Valkyrie, and his dedication towards Fate!



    Speaking of Fate, I've just finished watching Nanoha StrikerS tonight, and it's nice to see her in action (albeit a little short and limited). The anime has a slow start with a lot of new characters to introduce, but it does pick up the pace later in the series. It shouldn't be regarded as a "Magical Girl" series, as it has moved on to something that seem more serious and more bureaucratic, which is a big contrast to its prequels. The big change in timeline and themes can be a little uneasy to get used to, and the sucess of A's has overshadowed this series quite a bit, but overall it's still a solid piece with some interesting characters and backstory in my humble opinion, and I do look forward to another Nanoha series should there ever be one.

    18 comments:

    1. I initially thought that this is a Itasha Transformer ^^;;
      He did a nice job there!

      ReplyDelete
    2. Is it me or is Nanoha always 2nd last or never to get featured in these stuff. >_<

      Overall, StrikerS was a big disappointment. I agree there was a few great moments but the whole character development on the new guys just dragged the series through unnecessary boredom

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    3. Gotta be one of the best Ita's next to the Ita GM

      Btw I dont get why people hate StrikerS, I mean Subaru's a freaking incarnation of GaoGaiGar.

      ReplyDelete
    4. Oh shit. I think I just came.

      And yeah, whilst others might disregard StrikerS in favour of As, I will always stand fast in support of the series which had the balls to put GaoGaiGar into the body of a 15 year old genki girl.

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    5. @ Blowfish:
      Well it does transform afterall XD

      @ Optic:
      Well I did see a real Nanoha Itasha back in Akihabara last year ^^;

      As for StrikerS, I understand how one might be disappointed if they were expecting it to be like A's. But it instead gives way to the new characters, and the original characters (which usually are the ones we tend to like more) take a back seat. Seven Arcs (the studio) tries to put more time early in the episodes to let them develop as main characters, which I understand that it can be dragging quite a bit.

      I too prefer the original characters a bit more, but I think that if one gives the newer characters (and themes) a bit more chance, then StrikerS isn't as bad as how one would have thought.

      @ Gunstray(Mikee):
      The Ita-Valkyrie is one I'm most fond of so far even though I am not a fan of the Ita stuff ^^;

      Subaru going GaoGaiGar on episode 17 is quite a thing along with her fight, possibly one of the highlight of the series.

      @ Snark:
      StrikerS do get overlooked unfortunately as it's very different to the prequels and A's stood out quite a bit. I don't mind Subaru as a main character, but her GGG like mode in episode 17 has pretty much changed my impression of her.

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    6. wow he did a great job,gotta be kinda hard placing those stickers around those curves ^^ but what I would have done was put the girls in skirts on the top looking up or something and underneath the wings showing their pantsu :p So it'd be flying by and everybody be like
      WHAT THE!? close your eyes Timmy xD
      ...yah i don't know XD

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    7. at the beginning, i suggest my friend to make his VF to be like that , but he denied it

      i know it will be cool >_<

      the Ita-VF, i wish i could make it.... i don't want to make VF series Anymore :(

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    8. Simply amazing work! I sure wish I could produce my own decals, but its a skill that still eludes me, mainly due to equipment and cost.

      Still, what an awesome design!

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    9. @ blueplains:
      lol an interesting "Death from Above"... ^^;;

      I am sure someone will do one Strike Witches style soon or later.

      @ vixion:
      He's too embarrassed to make an Ita-Valkyrie? ^^

      I did hear that the 1/72 VFs are quite an effort to build. Too bad you don't plan on making another one for the time being... Maybe apply some to your current one? :P

      @ Apt-1B:
      It's surely amazing to see how people design their own decal sheets, and here it works so well it may look almost official!

      I think some printing services can do the printing for decal sheets if you don't have the right printers, but overall it may not be the most affordable thing for casual modelers. The maker here surely has put in a lot of passion (or love?) into it!

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    10. nice work there and +1 for his effort making his own decals.

      which reminds me. i bought the michael's VF-25G model kit yesterday even though i might not have time to build it. lol. good thing it doesn't need much panel lining because of the dark blue colour scheme. unlike alto's unit where panel lining is hell. O_O

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    11. that's really cool, at first I thought it was yours XD Wish I had the patience to fix up stuff I own like that.

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    12. @ gordon:
      Making decals of one's own surely deserves a lot of points there~

      Haha I've built an MG Strike Noir for my friend last summer, and I thought that was a tough work for my first MG (despite not mine). Luckily like your Michael's unit it's dark in colour so not too much panel lining is needed. The ironic thing is that the G-3 OYW ver. I'm planning to build is of the opposite colour, and I'll have hell of a time panel lining it 0o0!

      @ Persocom:
      Haha I'd wish I own such beautiful craft myself, but it would require quite a bit of work to achieve ^^;

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    13. I literally went whoa. That was breathtaking.

      I mean, you can actually make custom decals like those? That's so cool!

      I think I should consider getting models once I start working ^^;

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    14. @ konadora:
      Making custom decals isn't common, but it seems doable if you know what you're doing.

      Models such as gunpla are usually much more affordable than PVC figures. Start a hobby slowly and gently and build things up!

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    15. Thats awesoem man . never would of found this otherwise hehe

      i guess now i know what to do with my ozma

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    16. @ T0fu:
      Glad that you like it. So you are gonna convert your Ozma's unit to an Ita-Valkyrie as well? Good luck on it!

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    17. Nice itasha ^_^

      This is different in StrikerS, with Fate and Nanoha being captains now with more responsibilty which means they can't just do what they want like in A's. And also the introduction of new characters. It started out slow and things only start to pick up near the end.

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    18. @ valho:
      You have a good point on StrikerS there. Now that both Nanoha and Fate being adults and high in the rank, they are much more responsible and are quite restricted at what they can do. Maybe it's because of that people find it not as appealing along with the kinda inevitable slow start?

      ReplyDelete

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