- Older Updates:
Posted: Friday, December 20th, 2013
It's been a while, but we've got a decent update today! First in the anime section we've added two Episode Summaries for Guardian Force episodes 48 and 49. Episodes 46-49 have also been revamped with blu-ray quality screencaps. These are sized down from the originals because the blu-rays are actually so large that it just loses detail and demands unnecessary disk space for little result. Hopefully these are big enough!
I realize that this is starting in the middle of Guardian Force but it's where I left off when searching down the deleted scenes. No worries, all of the CC/GF episodes will get Blu-ray Screencaps!
In addition to the screencaps we've also added a Guardian Force section to the Zoids CC Media Box. It contains deleted scenes from the four episodes mentioned above. We'll add more episodes as we go along.
While we're on the topic of CC, the Chaotic Century Manga Directory has been updated with Volume 9 of the Viz Manga. We get a lot of inquiries about this manga and just want everyone to know that it isn't forgotten! We'll continue to add to it until all volumes are complete, it just takes a lot of time to organize them~
A new Manga Directory has been added today! It includes the UK Comic "Zoids" by Marvel, which we've added Volume 1 of. The first couple volumes are in a story-book format, so to avoid the unnecessary data usage we've added the text as ... well, text- to the page, and only scanned the pictures. Don't worry though, the original text is riddled with typos anyway.
Zoids Original Story has been updated with Chapter 7 featuring the Command Wolf RGC. Translations courtesy of Falcarius! Starting sometime in January we'll be starting to work on updating SS again, and appreciate everyone's patience!
The January 2014 issues have been updated for both Dengeki Hobby Magazine and Hobby Japan Magazine. You can find updated scans in the articles section!
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Posted: Sunday, December 1st, 2013
The Zoids Media Box has been updated! If you click on the Chaotic Century section you can find a new area for deleted scenes. These are scenes that were cut from the dub for one reason or another. They include not only generic censoring like blood and alcohol, but also some cool 2-3 second clips of the Zoids in combat that weren't shown.
This includes only Chaotic Century. We will be adding Guardian Force clips later on. These scenes have also been added to their respective Episode Summaries under the anime section, but the content is the same between the two sections.
In addition we've changed the screencap galleries in the Anime Episode Summaries to make them more even. Extra tall or wide images have been squished/shortened so that they should no longer mess up the row order. Soon we'll be trying to replace these with Blu-Ray quality screens but haven't been able to find a decent program yet.
The New Century Manga Directory has been updated with Part 4. This is the last part in the manga, which is only a single volume. We've bumped it down below Zoids SS on the main manga page since it'll no longer be updating.
The threezero Shield Liger has been announced as for sale! This limited kit will be going up for a retail price of 23,000 yen (roughly $230). You can view the english page on the Good Smile Company website
here.
There are a lot of options for buying. If you wish to order direct from the company you can use a proxy service to order
here. Hobby Link Japan has the cheapest price at the moment thanks to their Black Friday sale, at 18,838 (roughly $180)
here. They can be a little slow on updating stocks sometimes when items sell out, though. A third option is Hobby Search, selling at 207,000 ($207)
here.
While this is not necessarily official news, Anomaro who is recognized for their HMM Zoid features has announced that another feature, this time 27 minutes will be posted on December 25th (Japan time). This feature will be split into three different segments and a preview is posted
here.
The
Zoids Fan Anthology MK-II has been extended until the new year. Be sure to send in any entries you have sitting around!
- Older Updates:
Posted: Tuesday, November 26th, 2013
A review has been added for the MSS Sinker. This is a pretty cool kit, and TT managed to find a lot of places to add articulation to the build. The review includes instruction and box scans but at the moment these are not translated.
The TT Banner article has been updated with this month's new banners.
We've also rearranged the Fan Sites page in order of activity so that more active websites are at the top. Not-so-active websites have had their activity level adjusted.
TakaraTomy has published the winning entries of the Zoids Photo Contest! The grand prize winners and the consolidation prize entries are posted publically on their website,
here. The photo results will still be displayed in the Exhibition event from December 13th to December 18th in Japan.
Zoids Original Story has updated with a two-part story for the Command Wolf RGC. You can view the Japanese page
here.
Kotobukiya will be re-releasing some more kits in 2014. The Blade Liger AB Bang Version will be rereleased in January and the Liger Zero Jager and Shadow Fox will be rereleased in March.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Wednesday, November 20th, 2013
A review has been added for the new MSS Command Wolf model kit! The kit follows OJR colors but most noticeably is a dim gray color. It is not white as it appears in a lot of online photos. The review also contains instruction and box scans, as well as translations for the battle story, Forest Combat Type, and Nighttime Combat type.
Stats have also been added for the MSS Great Sabre. It does not have type variations like the other model kits do, just a weapons list.
A translation for Zoids Original Story 06 has been added to the Books section. This is based on the Command Wolf RGC, and also mentions the return of Mirage Fox! An additional profiles page is also available, all courtesy of Falcarius!
The Storm Sworder FSV second variation has been added to the Zoids Original website, seen
here. This is the first kit in the Original line to not have additional parts and instead includes holotech wings with additional gold painted parts. The scheme in general resembles the Fire Fox.
TakaraTomy has posted on their website as well as the Kotobukiya Blog about a Zoids Exhebition Event that's being held from December 13th to December 18th! This event will have lots of panels, and you can view the page for it
here.
As far as we can tell from the page the event will include the following panels:
1. Zoids Photo Contest Display: Will display the winners of the recent Photo Diaroma Contest. They will also show some of the honorable mentions that didn't win, but came very close!
2. Diaroma Photo Shoot: In this event users can bring in their own Zoids to be part of a collaborative diorama display! A commemorative photo will be taken with the diorama.
3. Companies Zoids Exhibition: This event will show upcoming releases and new products developed by current Zoids Companies. It will have upcoming and popular kits from Zoids Original, MSS, HMM, and even the new threezero Shield Liger!
4. Zoids Classics Exhibition: This panel will display old box arts and packages from nostalgic Zoids products, back in the days when Tomy sold motorized models.
5. Dengeki Hobby Magazine Photo-Exhibition: Will display customs and kits that formerly appeared in Dengeki Hobby Magazine.
6. Zoids SS Raw Manuscript Exhibit: Will show the raw versions of the Zoids SS comic as seen in DHM.
7. Zoids Video Collection: Will broadcast original Zoids commercials as well as the Original videos.
8. Mercy Rabbit Autograph Session: Will allow members to get HMM packages signed by Mercy Rabbit, who does the box arts for Kotobukiya.
9. Sales Area: Will have kits for sale from Zoids Original, MSS, and HMM variety. A lucky few customers will also receive a signed concept art book, signed by the author. Only 30 of these books will be put into circulation.
(And more!!)
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Posted: Sunday, November 17th, 2013
The final pages of the Zoids EX Extra have been added. This concludes Irvine's back story and features full names for multiple characters (ignoring that Father Leon is now called Alex Pilgrim). There is still one EX story to do but the pages added today are likely the last manga translations until the start of next year. This also applies to Zoids SS which will stop updating until then, but don't worry, it'll be translated eventually! It's that time of year to start Christmas Shopping!
A review for Fire Fox has been added to Model Kits. This includes box, instructions, and stats, although the stats are identicle to Shadow Fox's. The kit is really quite nice, and has some beautiful golds and silvers, although the bright red makes it glaring to stare at.
Zoids Original has pushed the Command Wolf RGC back to December. This makes the month even more expensive for Zoid collectors!
The
Zoids Fan Anthology MK-II has a rough deadline of the end of November, so if you've been working on projects for this don't forget to submit them!
- Older Updates:
Posted: Thursday, November 7th, 2013
Both Dengeki Hobby Magazine and Hobby Japan Magazine articles have been updated. DHM features a model kit diaroma of the Command Wolf and Great Sabre.
HJM has two volumes added, November and December. November prominantly features the Shield Liger SG from threezero, which is said to be planned for a 2014 Release. It shows concept art and a size comparison of it compared to the also-prototyped Iron Kong.
December features the Z-Knights which are also planned for a 2014 Release by Kotobukiya. It is the same concept art we've seen. The issue has an image of HMM Gojulas being held in person which truly illustrates the massive size of this kit.
Chapter 3 of the Zoids New Century Zero manga has also been added. This chapter focuses on the Jager armor and the Storm Sworder battle.
A review for the MSS Great Sabre has been added to model kits. This includes box art and instructions. We'll try to get the stats file translated as soon as possible!
Quite a bit of artwork has been added to the Fan Art section! Hopefully we'll continue to update this on a bit more of a regular basis.
We've added a misc. section to the Articles page, which now includes an article on buying Zoids. Namely, buying Zoids from Japan. This has a general guide for deputy services and a list of both services and stores that you can use. We have gotten all store commendations from people that have personally ordered from them.
Kotobukiya has announced that they're relaunching the Kotobukiya Direct website. When they do they'll be releasing a few lucky draw anime items to people who are registered. The Zoids-related item being given away is a Holotech Berserk Fury!
- Older Updates:
Posted: Monday, November 4th, 2013
After a long break we've finally picked up the Zoids Chaotic Century EX manga again! You can find some new pages on the Extra Story 1, which features Irvine's past. The last 10 pages are new and we'll be looking to get the last pages of this story done very soon!
A review has been added for the HMM Iguan. This does not include instructions, but does include box scans! I'll be adding the instructions once I get the parts list translated.
Speaking of those parts lists, we've added the technical data for the HMM Liger Zero! You can view it by going to the HMM Liger Zero's page under Model Kits. It is just above the gimmicks section. It includes quite a few 'new' parts names. Parts that were always technically on the Liger Zero, but never before added to equipment lists!
- Older Updates:
Posted: Wednesday, October 30th, 2013
A review has been added for the HMM Liger Zero Jager. This includes box scans, but it doesn't include the instructions at this point. I'll add those as soon as I'm able!
If you happen to notice any broken links around the site, please let us know through our contact page! I had to move around some URL names. I'm pretty sure everything was properly updated but just in case.
The Zoids Web Comic section has also been updated! This includes the trailer story for the Konig Wolf web comic, Bucks Vs. Maya. This takes place before the main story, and is kind of just glimpses of different happenings, so please forgive if the story seems discombobulated.
Since this story is split into 6 different episodes we'll be tackling it in that order, rather than updating it all at once.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Sunday, October 28th, 2013
The Zoids SS Manga Directory has been updated with Chapter 5, which concludes the story featuring Geno Ritter and Shield Liger SG. Chapter 6 featuring the Command Wolf RGC will begin in the December Issue but there may be slight delays in us getting it translated, as there appears to have been a delay with the shipment of DHM this month.
I'd also just like to note that while the Shield Liger is the "Thruster Gun" type it was shortened to SG, which is stated (in English) in the Japanese version of the comic. This is not a mistake in the translations.
The November Issue of Dengeki Hobby Magazine has been updated in the DHM article. This issue feature an awesome custom Iguan and the photo contest prizes.
The HMM Liger Zero model kit page now has scans of the box art, including the 'concept art' in a larger scan.
The Zoids Original section (under Books) has been updated with the profile page for Storm Sworder FSV. At this point in time they have not added the secondary variation; we'll likely see this in a future update. Translations for this page and the new Zoids SS chapter are courtesy of Falcarius!
TT has updated their main site with more Mechanical Files (
Link) from the newer Concept Art book.
The Zoids Original site has also added the first story for Command Wolf RGC (
Link), which features some awesome artwork. The story, like the others, includes an additional page (
Link) where you can read character profiles for both the Zoids and human characters.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Friday, October 25th, 2013
Ok so I lied about the Liger Zero box BUT that's because I wasn't planning on updating again so soon. We still have an update coming in a few days (and updated yesterday, in case anyone missed it.) I've added 1st Edition card scans to three of the NJR Model Kit pages; Konig Wolf, Lightning Saix, and Shadow Fox.
The article for TakaraTomy banners has been updated with the new four.
We also updated the Important Links section and wiped everthing but relevant links for the past week. We'll be working to maintain this area more in the future.
The Zoids Original website has updated with the next in line: Storm Sworder FSV (Flame Slash Version). This is featuring a red Storm Sworder (Note: Not the one from Guardian Force~) molded in a very bright red color (and not pink!). The alternate form of this Zoid hasn't yet been revealed but is said to have translucent molded wings. You can view the full page
here where it is already up for pre-order for 3,675 Yen.
The releases of Zoids Original are getting a little concerning, however. Storm Sworder FSV is to be released in March 2014, which is the largest wait we've had for an Original kit. Perhaps this is because they have had more experience to realize how long to expect releases to take (given the delays of all other kits) and are just trying to be more realistic, but equally disconcerting is that the 5th slot in the Original Line Up page has been removed. Perhaps that is just because it isn't being released in the foreseeable future.
The MSS site has updated with pictures of the Command Wolf, to be released any day now! The pictures include a very clear picture of the art image (presumably the digital version) which looks stunning. You can view the page
here.
We're a bit late to the punch on this one but MSS has for the past few weeks also been showing off the upcoming MSS Salamander. There is not yet a release date but it appears to be fully finished and colored! Pictures taken by
Zoikino show the Zoid in great detail.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Thursday, October 24th, 2013
A review has been added for the Kotobukiya Liger Zero kit! This review has a much warmer color to the photos than usual because it was necessary to capture the true off-white coffee colors of the Liger. It would also degrade quality quite a bit for us to lighten them so we hope the tones are not bothersome!
Right now the review does not include box scans. I'll get right to work on that and have it done by the next update, coming up in just a few days. It does however include some of the first three CP kits released for Liger Zero! Including the chrome claws/teeth and caps as well as the pearl version armor. It does not include the black chrome parts which were sold after I acquired mine (before Koto was boxing sets of CP parts).
The Zoids Chaotic Century manga directory has been updated with Volume 8 of the official Manga. This includes scans of both chapters. Soon we'll be renewing progress on the Zoids EX stories as well, as we still have two extras that need to be finished up!
The Zoids New Century Zero directory has also been updated, and now includes Part Two of the manga. This chapter is heavily based on the fight between Schneider and the Elephander and goes quite differently from the anime!
The HMM Fire Fox and the Zoids Original Geno Ritter have both been released! On the other hand, Dengeki Hobby Magazine December issue has been pushed back until November. We will be waiting until it has been released before we have it and the HJM December issue shipped.
The October chapter of Zoids SS is being worked on, just so everyone knows it is not on the back burner!
- Older Updates:
Posted: October, October 13th, 2013
We'll be changing up the Media Box a bit soon, seperating the video media into series and having seperate pages for soundtracks and commercials. At the moment we've moved the Chaotic Century media onto a seperate page. With this move we've taken down the two eye catches we had before (Shield Liger and Command Wolf IS) and added a whole bunch of others. Shield Liger and Command Wolf will be re-added when we get them ripped in a larger format.
Kotobukiya will be rereleasing four of the older kits in December! This includes Cannon Tortoise, Dark Horn Harry Special, Great Sabre, and Naomi's Gun Sniper. That brings the total pre-order count (by AmiAmi prices) up to 32,050 Yen for December, so prioritize carefully!
- Older Updates:
Posted: Wednesday, October 9th, 2013
Falcarius over at Phenotype's Zoids Forum has graciously allowed us to host some of their translations of official Zoids content on this site. This starts off with the TakaraTomy online web stories have been completed! You'll recall that these parallel the fourth installment of the Concept Books, sharing all of the images and the same general story. This area also includes the profiles that were posted on the final chapter of the website.
In similar news it also means that the Zoids Original Story section has been brought fully up to date! The profiles for the other stories have also been added, as well as the completed Command Wolf RGC page. Once again these translations were provided by Falcarius and we're extremely thankful for their effort towards providing free translations to the English-speaking Zoids community.
The Zoids New Century Zero manga has been linked in the Manga directory. At this point in time it contains just Part One, but we'll be scanning in the other parts and working on them over the next few weeks.
I'm also aware that quite a few people have been waiting for the rest of the Chaotic Century manga volumes. I just wanted to say that I have not forgotten! We have two or three more volumes scanned and prepped for uploading they just have to be properly formated. Expect to see those soon! The Ueyama continuation extras will also resume progress before too long!
It seems Kotobukiya has announced that Z-Knights will be released in 2014. This is both a good and a bad thing, as the Zoids related series shall continue, but it is not so great if they stop doing animal mechs, which are what defines Zoids. There are already so many human mecha out there I do not see the need to add another to distract from one of the only active animal mecha. Hopefully we will continue to see animal-based HMM designs.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Wednesday, October 9th, 2013
You'll notice a new layout when you visit today. We decided to change the old one for a number of reasons. Namely that the last layout was becoming broken after just one or two sub directories, forcing us to create hundreds of duplicate files for it to run correctly, even though it was set up nearly the same as this one. Second, because we've been told by multiple visitors that the previous layout was too wide for their screen resolutions, so we've opted for a layout that is thinner by about 150 pixels (it was only the very right being cut off for most people.)
We hope that the new layout doesn't bother too many people. Layout designed by Hanyoutai and coded by Vyrr.
With the new layout we have also changed the Models page. We have removed kits from the list that do not have proper reviews to reduce clutter and will add them back as they are photographed and documented. The new layout for that page uses images for quicker clicking at a glance, and a cleaner overall look.
The trading page has been updated with a number of Zoids merchandise that is for sale
until Thursday only! If you are interested in buying please use the contact page to send us an E-mail with your inquiry.
Two links have been added to the Links page. One is for the ShoPro site which has a lot of cool information and static images of the 3D models used in the show. The other is a Web Archive link to the old Zoids Web Comic page, in case anyone was ever wondering what it looked like!
In similar news we've added a link to Phenotype Zoids Forum on the Fan Sites page. This forum is still active, even after all these years. The site has since gone down and the archived model kit photos moved to a flickr account that is linked in the sites description. The Fan Sites section has also added an Activity: marker added before every website's description, to display at a glance if the website is still active.
Two new model kit reviews have been added. One is for the Fuzors Energy Liger (which is the Academy Version, not the Tomy version) and the other is the HMM Gun Sniper Linnon/Leena Special.
The Iron Bible page has had a new revamp. Now the page has embedded videos from our Youtube channel of all of the video footage on the DVD, except for the two commercials which will be updated soon. You can see the full promotional video, the added scenes, and all of the Zoid profiles there.
Three new wallpapers have been added to the Fan Art section. They feature the Empire Deck's box art, a Zoids Zi artboard, and the Gun Sniper Leena box art, all in two different sizes. If you are interested in seeing wallpapers in other sizes feel free to let us know!
Kotobukiya has announced that they will now be mixing their sales activity with Zoids Original, and that Zoids Original kits will be sold through Kotobukiya's store. While this is not a Japan wide release it is still a step in the right direction towards better availability!
Don't forget that the Photo Contest on the TakaraTomy site ends on October 15th!
On the Koto news front the HMM Iguan as well as the MSS Great Sabre have been released! We're updating our sales links below. September Zoids have been removed and the Zoids Original Geno Ritter is being properly placed as an October release, expected Mid October.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Friday, September 27th, 2013
The Zoids Battle Card Game checklist has been updated. There aren't a ton of cards added, but at least two from all sets aside from Volume 6. The entire Starter Deck checklist has been completed with the addition of the Empire set.
In addition to the checklist we have updated the Battle Card Game section with the Empire Starter Deck review. This includes box scans, photos of the included figures, and a checklist of all cards that are found in it. The checklist is just there for quick visual reference, they are the same for every starter box.
A section has been added to the card games area for Zoids Scramble. This includes Scramble Volumes 2 and 3, with lists that have the full sized card images. The lists are mostly incomplete at this point in time but they still have some cool images.
A new installment of the Zoids Original Story has been added, continuing the battle between the Geno Ritter and the Shield Liger. You can view the Japanese version of the story online
here.
The
Zoids MSS site has added box art for the Shield Liger MK-II, Sinker, and the new Great Sabre, which has just been released.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Wednesday, September 25th, 2013
The new Zoids Concept Book has been uploaded to the Zoids Art Books section. This includes the main story but at the moment none of the profiles. You may notice that a lot of the pictures are seen in the TakaraTomy online continuation. They are more or less identicle, with the actual book having more content. Even though the text in the book is different from the text on the web page there are some sentences that match up exactly. The text that doesn't match still reads the same as the concept book -- as far as I can tell there is no difference at all in information conveyed.
A review for the Blade Liger 2013 Blu-ray BOX Ver. as been uploaded to Model Kits. This includes a lot of photos but at this point not the box or the instructions. Hopefully I'll get those done soon.
We're a little late on getting Zoids SS up, but Chapter 4 can now be found in the Zoids SS Manga directory! DHM and HJM were just released so you can probably expect another chapter in just a couple of weeks. This chapter and the next appear to continue on with the main Geno Ritter story.
Both the September and the October issues of Dengeki Hobby Magazine are uploaded to the Articles section. There isn't a lot of new content but there are size comparisons of how the HMM Gojulas matches up to the standard Gojulas.
While we're talking about HMM Gojulas, Toy-Wave.com has listed the Zoid to be 3500 grams which is 1,000 grams heavier than the Iron Kong SS. Depending on the size box you can assume that shipping to the North-West United States will be around $60-$80 with EMS to Washington appearing to be roughly $65. Who knows though, if the box is large it may skyrocket in price.
We've also added a section for Hobby Japan Magazine! I am undecided if this will be a regular or not. We'll be getting the November issue in about a week but depending on the quality of the content it may not stick around permanently. HJM October includes a second image size comparison of the HMM Gojulas compared to the NJR Motorized Gojulas.
HMM Iguan has been released! But that is not the point of this section.
According to some magazine interviews in the Great Mechanics magazine it is rumored that Kotobukiya will be taking a hiatus after the release of Gojulas (supposedly -- there are no 2014 releases currently scheduled). It is unclear if they will continue to rerelease old kits or new variations during that time, and how long the dormancy period will last.
Some mentions giving the Zoids Original line time to stand on its own two feet while Kotobukiya and Mercy Rabbit prepare for "Chapter 2". No inklings on what all that implies just yet but I suspect it'll be months before we have specific information.
The Photo Contest page has uploaded images of some of the unpictured prizes, including the Silver Plated Great Sabre and Liger Zero. They are looking fantastic! See the page details
here.
The Links Section has had the banners from the respective sites added. We've also added an Article page that archives the fancy banners previously put out by the TakaraTomy website, as these seem to change every month and some of them are quite cool!
There has been a
major update to the Zoids Fan Sites section. At least 20 links have been added to some of the cool Zoids pages found around the web. New links are highlighted with a green border around the image. Many of these sites are still active, even if some have stopped updating. It is definitely worth a look!
If you've been contemplating working on the Anthology project October would be a good month to get everything wrapped up in. There has been mention that the project submission deadline may be sometime during November.
From now on we'll be trying to update the site more frequently. Instead of these huge updates with tons of stuff we'll probably release the individual pieces for several updates throughout the month.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Tuesday, September 3rd, 2013
We may have bitten off more tahn we can chew with the last update. I want to let everyone know that we are temporarily putting Zoids Original content on old. This includes all of the profile pages (including Command Wolf RGC) and the story pages. Another group is covering this content so we feel that our efforts are better spent on projects that allow us to further expand the available content for members! Zoids SS will continue to be translated and posted on The Iron Bible.
To start off that endeavor we have opened a new area in the Manga Section! We are extremely excited to present the Zoids Web Comic section. Some of you may remember these interactive flash comics from years ago. We have been sent some video recordings of these original comics and are working to provide a translated video format of them for our English viewers.
Since the video is years old the quality is not always readable. There are gaps missing and possibly mistranslations. The Jet comic has some minor errors (Idabel is the older sister, not Florable) in the comic itself and some major gaps in the Jet profile. If you are able to read Japanese (kanji, no furigana) and would look to help us fill in the gaps please visit our contact page!
The Links section has been updated with web archive links. This isn't perfect but it fixes a lot of the broken links with archived versions of those websites before they went down. This mainly applies to the Zoids Games.
A review of the NJR Liger Zero has been uploaded to the model kit section. This review includes translations of the box and battle story.
A partial review for the Blu-Ray Box has been uploaded to the DVD section (Which we will ammend with BR soon enough). This includes details on the extras, special features, and also includes a rip of the special video that is included as an opening credit for each volume of the Blu-Rays. A review for the holotech Liger Zero is in the works and will be posted soon.
The Zoids Original website has hosted the second story chapter for Geno Ritter, seen
here. A page dedicated to profiles for the Zoids and characters can also be read
here. So far there is no video for the Command Wolf RGC.
TakaraTomy's official website has posted videos of the limited prize contest Zoids being given away in the Photograpy Contest. They are looking great, and the transparent MSS Great Sabre appears to be similar to the ever-elusive ghost Zoids! See the page
here.
The new Zoids Concept Book has been released! We'll be providing information on it in the next update. In the mean time Kotobukiya has announced that the Geno Saurer Raven Version will be rereleased in late November. You can find a pre-order link down below.
The HMM Gojulas is also up for pre-order! The price of this Zoid is an extremely painful 24,150 Yen. While it is tempting to order through AmiAmi it is worth noting that a limited CP kit featuring a lighter blue replacement armor (the same, just recolored in a lighter shade) is available if you pre-order through the Koto Store.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Saturday, August 10th, 2013
The review second includes two new reviews: The first Zoids Original kit "Mirage Fox" and the NJR Konig Wolf. Both Zoids include box and battle story information which can be viewed by clicking the collapsable header image underneath of their box scans. This will reveal the translated story for both.
Zoids SS Chapter 3 has been released! The full chapter is translated and uploaded in the Manga section. Sadly this one is only 15 pages, compared to the earlier 24. It makes up for it with some very nicely drawn Zoids and plot though! It is still unclear how the continuation of the story will go.
Command Wolf RGC has a page in the Zoids Art Books > Zoids Original section. This includes a translation of the original image that was shown on the Zoids Original site. Unfortunately we do not have the full profile completed but this will be uploaded with the next update!
The Zoids Zi Ultimate Battle Cards deck has been uploaded to the Zoids Games section under card Games. Not much to say about this, it's a basic 52-card deck and features Kugo from the Zoids Planet Zi comics.
The Zoids Original website has updated with a complete profile for the Command Wolf RGC. It is shown that this Zoid will not only come with the RGC cannons, but with equipment to make three additional variations. The first is the basic Command Wolf. The second is the Command Wolf Interceptor which uses the LC cannon that is sold with the Irvine special originally. The third is the Command Wolf Zappa Version (Late Model) which is piloted by Commander Zappa from the Republican Trap Commando unit, as soon in the Concept Art Books and Zoids SS. Unfortunately they do not include the unique gun or shoulder armor seen to these Zoids, but it does include a new canopy cover for both the face canopy and the LC gun.
You can view the full profile in Japanese on the Zoids Original site
here. The TakaraTomy company has also upgraded a video on Youtube (seen
here) which illustrates all of the movable parts, including a collapsable cannon. So far this Zoid is shaping up to be much better than the first impressions!
First views of the finished MSS Command Wolf can be seen on the official site
here! The kit is shaping up to look great, with excellent proportions and nicely painted details. The Zoid is up for pre-order on AmiAmi for 2,200 yen, scheduled for a late October release.
The Zoids Blu-Ray box has been released! An unboxing was posted on the Zoids HMM Blog (seen
here). We hope to have a review done for this by the next update, but there are a lot of things to go over for it in this news post.
Below you'll see the unboxing image posted on the Koto blog and a couple of example screenshots. We'll go into quality in the bottom post.
When it comes to physical extras the Blu-Ray set comes with a small Encyclopedia, a bit smaller than the Viz Zoids CC Comics. This contains more or less copied information from the original Zoids Encyclopedia with virtually no additional details.
The case of the DVDs are in a book-like form and each disc gets its own book with the character images printed on the front (congratulations, Thomas! You get to be the very last disc!) and art printed on the sides. The quality is quite nice and contains the stock production art you've seen on other sites.
If you ordered the Limited Production version you also received the clear HMM Blade Liger, which is cast in all transparent plastic. The quality of this kit seems much superior to the Holotech Shield Liger parts that were released earlier by Koto, and does not crumble like it did!
Now for the actual Blu-Ray extras. The discs are all in Japanese. So far I've found no trace of a closed captioning track. It has no subtitles, Japanese or English, and no dual languages, as it is marketed only in Japan. The quality is by far better than the DVDs but scaled up you can see a sort of noise-reduction filter applied to the Zoids that gives them a watercolor feel, especially when in motion. You can see this clearly in the example images.
The image below shows a comparison of the Blade Liger. On the left is the Blu-ray version and on the right is a screenshot directly from the DVDs. Even though a noise reduction effect is on the blu-rays, and sometimes detracts, the quality is still much superior. The colors contrast differently from the DVDs with reds leaning closer to true red or pink, while on the DVDs they appear orange and more saturated. There is no editing or digital touch ups in the comparison photo at all, with the exception of the blu-ray being resized to match the DVD size.
The on-disc extras include a new CGI opening that we'll be uploading a low-resolution video of with the review next update! High quality scans of the CGI images used for postcard releases on the DVDs are included on Disc 10, along with small cgi turn-arounds of one or two Zoids. The final disc contains creditless opening and endings. Sorry to ramble at great lengths over the Blu-Rays! This concludes today's update.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Saturday, August 10th, 2013
The review second includes two new reviews: The first Zoids Original kit "Mirage Fox" and the NJR Konig Wolf. Both Zoids include box and battle story information which can be viewed by clicking the collapsable header image underneath of their box scans. This will reveal the translated story for both.
Zoids SS Chapter 3 has been released! The full chapter is translated and uploaded in the Manga section. Sadly this one is only 15 pages, compared to the earlier 24. It makes up for it with some very nicely drawn Zoids and plot though! It is still unclear how the continuation of the story will go.
Command Wolf RGC has a page in the Zoids Art Books > Zoids Original section. This includes a translation of the original image that was shown on the Zoids Original site. Unfortunately we do not have the full profile completed but this will be uploaded with the next update!
The Zoids Zi Ultimate Battle Cards deck has been uploaded to the Zoids Games section under card Games. Not much to say about this, it's a basic 52-card deck and features Kugo from the Zoids Planet Zi comics.
The Zoids Original website has updated with a complete profile for the Command Wolf RGC. It is shown that this Zoid will not only come with the RGC cannons, but with equipment to make three additional variations. The first is the basic Command Wolf. The second is the Command Wolf Interceptor which uses the LC cannon that is sold with the Irvine special originally. The third is the Command Wolf Zappa Version (Late Model) which is piloted by Commander Zappa from the Republican Trap Commando unit, as soon in the Concept Art Books and Zoids SS. Unfortunately they do not include the unique gun or shoulder armor seen to these Zoids, but it does include a new canopy cover for both the face canopy and the LC gun.
You can view the full profile in Japanese on the Zoids Original site
here. The TakaraTomy company has also upgraded a video on Youtube (seen
here) which illustrates all of the movable parts, including a collapsable cannon. So far this Zoid is shaping up to be much better than the first impressions!
The Zoids Blu-Ray box has been released! An unboxing was posted on the Zoids HMM Blog (seen
here). We hope to have a review done for this by the next update, but there are a lot of things to go over for it in this news post.
Below you'll see the unboxing image posted on the Koto blog and a couple of example screenshots. We'll go into quality in the bottom post.
When it comes to physical extras the Blu-Ray set comes with a small Encyclopedia, a bit smaller than the Viz Zoids CC Comics. This contains more or less copied information from the original Zoids Encyclopedia with virtually no additional details.
The case of the DVDs are in a book-like form and each disc gets its own book with the character images printed on the front (congratulations, Thomas! You get to be the very last disc!) and art printed on the sides. The quality is quite nice and contains the stock production art you've seen on other sites.
If you ordered the Limited Production version you also received the clear HMM Blade Liger, which is cast in all transparent plastic. The quality of this kit seems much superior to the Holotech Shield Liger parts that were released earlier by Koto, and does not crumble like it did!
Now for the actual Blu-Ray extras. The discs are all in Japanese. So far I've found no trace of a closed captioning track. It has no subtitles, Japanese or English, and no dual languages, as it is marketed only in Japan. The quality is by far better than the DVDs but scaled up you can see a sort of noise-reduction filter applied to the Zoids that gives them a watercolor feel, especially when in motion. You can see this clearly in the example images.
The image below shows a comparison of the Blade Liger. On the left is the Blu-ray version and on the right is a screenshot directly from the DVDs. Even though a noise reduction effect is on the blu-rays, and sometimes detracts, the quality is still much superior. The colors contrast differently from the DVDs with reds leaning closer to true red or pink, while on the DVDs they appear orange and more saturated.
The on-disc extras include a new CGI opening that we'll be uploading a low-resolution video of with the review next update! High quality scans of the CGI images used for postcard releases on the DVDs are included on Disc 10, along with small cgi turn-arounds of one or two Zoids. The final disc contains creditless opening and endings. Sorry to ramble at great lengths over the Blu-Rays! This concludes today's update.
- Older Updates:
Posted: Friday, July 26th, 2013
We have finally updated the Zoids Concept Art Book section with the Concept Art Book III. This includes scans and the story portion of the book. In addition we have updated the Zoids Concept Art Book I. It now contains translated profiles for the many Zoid types, including primitive, wild, and prototype Zoids.
If you navigate to the Zoids Art Books Section, a little further down the Zoids Original section has been updated. This now includes information of the Geno Ritter, including weapons list and profile notes. While I could be wrong it seems that the vermillion Genosaurer type would refer to the Geno Breaker seen in Guardian Force, giving us a vague hint at the time line of this story. This is based on the observation that the name of the base Zoid often refers to multiple variations and is not used as strictly the original weapons set-up.
The third model kit for Zoids Original has been announced! This is the Command Wolf RGC. The profile page unfortunately contains just this image, but you can find it
here. There is no information like there was with the Mirage Fox and the Geno Ritter, but I suspect we'll be seeing this next month sometime. Maybe the month after that.
In other Zoids Original news pre-orders for both the Mirage Fox and the Geno Ritter are re-opening. They have already opened on July 25th and will continue until August 6th. If you missed your first window I strongly recommend that you try to obtain one through the TT mall now.
Kotobukiya has posted pictures of the Fire Fox CP on their website. They've also posted an unboxing of the Zoids Blu-Ray set [Limited] and we'll be seeing this released on August 2nd! I'll be sure to post a similar unboxing once it gets here and do my best to provide you all with information on what all of the extras are.
This is a long one. The official Zoids site (
Link) is going to be holding a photo contest. This is strictly for Japan residents ages 15 and up but I felt the need to go over the details here. Entries permit photo editing and there are categories for HMM, MSS, and Zoids Original. Entries opened today on July 26th and close on October 15th.
This news is of particular interest because of its prizes. They will include several plated (chrome) Zoids, several translucent Zoids, and also some model kits. Below is a list of the prizes. I suspect they will be one of a kind, but that is only because I didn't see a mention of multiple winners for each category. There very well may be multiple entries! But you'll want to keep an eye out on Yahoo Japan auctions for them just in case.
Zoids Original Grand Prizes:
- Plated Mirage Fox
- Mirage Fox Clear Version
- Zoids Original set of 2 (Model Kits)
HMM Contest Grand Prizes:
- Plated HMM Liger Zero
- HMM Godos (Clear Version)
- HMM Iguan (Clear Version)
- Decal set of 10 pieces (Randomized contents, cannot be chosen by winner)
MSS Contest Grand Prizes:
- Plated MSS Great Sabre
- "Natural Color" MSS Great Sabre (Painted, maybe? Not sure)
- MSS Great Sabre model kit
- Older Updates:
Posted: Friday, July 19th, 2013
More frequent updates are coming, I swear! August 2nd is Blu-Ray release day so can we all just take a moment to go eeeeeeee. Ok now that that's done.
Zoid Model Kit reviews have been added for the Command Wolf LC & AC Barad Version and for the Psycho Geno Saurer. Pardon the wide screen images for these reviews! We may be using this format in the future, while testing out new cameras that can get slightly better indoor shots. The reviews include very high resolution box scans and of course still have all the instruction stuff, which from now on will include a higher resolution image of the diaroma image.
We've also added a translated parts list for most of our Kotobukiya Zoids. The list below will tell you which ones have these lists. They include names of the weapons and equipment. Some things were not mentioned in the parts list, such as the new tail blade thing on the Berserk Fury. Some Zoids are also not given appropriate stats (Psycho Geno). Nobody mention that the Irvine Ver. Saix weighs as much as the basic Saix with twice as much armor.
- Berserk Fury
- Command Wolf AC & LC Barad Version
- Dibison
- Liger Zero Panzer
- Lightning Saix Irvine Special
- Psycho Geno Saurer
- Saber Tiger Gold
- Shadow Fox
We've added a new fan art from AngelNinja, our first fan-submitted fan art to the site! Everyone be sure to go check it out, and lots of love for the submission!
Also in the Fan-Art section we've added a wallpapers area. Currently we don't accept fan-submissions here but it includes high-resolution images from our scan archives, some touched up to be less flecky than the ones we have added on-site. If you use a screen resolution other than the two listed there feel free to send us an E-mail and we'll make sure a version of every wallpaper is added for your resolution! Also feel free to recommend wallpapers from images on our site.
The August 2013 issue of Dengeki Hobby Magazine has been added to the DHM article. This features a retooled Mirage Fox and some previews up upcoming model kits.
Chapter 2 of Zoids SS has been updated and the full-story page has been as while. This chapter was another 24-page chapter. It is hard to say at this point how things will progress. The framing around the final page seems to imply that it will switch stories to the Geno-Ritter and, presumably by a series of short-stories instead of an ongoing story arch. It could very well just be setting up the main story though and will continue on as it has already. It's hard to say at this point in time but hey, we'll have a better idea at the beginning of next month sometime!
Now on to Zoids news! We may have missed stuff here, this update was a little rushed. Nonetheless, Kotobukiya has revealed the new Chrome parts for Fire Fox and Shadow Fox. We saw these announced earlier but there were not clear photos of them actually attached to the foxes. There are now! Even if they are small and Shadow Fox oriented. You can view them
here.
Just before that they announced the next D-Style: Iron Kong! This is quite a surprise that we certainly weren't expecting, but it's a nice surprise. The kit looks good but there is definitely some funkiness with seeing the attachments through the mouth (although that may be unavoidable). It can be viewed
here.
A re-release for the original HMM Saber Tiger, Liger Zero Schneider, and D-Style Blade Liger has been announced for late September. Pre-order links have been added to the up-coming Zoid releases.
The Zoids MSS site has also released new photos of the MSS Great Sabre. You can view them
here. The kit looks really nice and the MSS site photos are much cleaner than other preview photos I've seen!