I have one. Last time this topic floated around TFW I folded and rushed over to BBTS. So, I'll give a quick little review. There are two versions, the 'main' RGB one, and the military (mass-produced, as I recall) one. I got the military one. As near as I can tell, both are identical in terms of transformation, posability, and sturdiness. The military one has the unified colors, and the cool guns, namely that huge friggin one. The military one DOES come with the stand, DOES NOT come with swords. The design of the mecha (actually, the story of the show too) is by Shoji Kawamori, the man who brought up Macross, Armored Core mecha, and MP Starscream. This is, without a doubt, the single most complex transforming mecha I have EVER laid hands on! And anyone here who owns this can probably QFT that. That's a huge selling point for me. About the only other thing I can say offhand is that even though the docking system is pegs and clips, it's quite solid. If you have a bunch of money to spend on a REALLY sweet looking robot, go for it!!
So I finally broke and ordered this guy today. I made sure to find the first one (the multicolored one), because I think that one just looks cooler. I think this is the first transforming toy I've bought that was over $200. I better like it, dammit. I heard that the military one had remolded feet in one of the modes, for better standing and no extra parts need to be added? Is that true? If so, I'm still glad I got the one I did, the swords and colors make him worth it. I love super-complicated transformation schemes, and it sounds like this one is one of the best in that regard. I'll post a little review when he shows up.
Heh, I did a BIN for the military version about a week ago after all the advice in this thread. I got it for $169 plus $30 for shipping. Cheapest I have ever seen it go for.
So here's a question...if each ship can turn into each of the three robot parts, how come there are only three robot modes? Wouldn't there really be six different robot modes (an extra mode made by switching the middle and bottom parts around on each of the three regular robot modes)?
Nope, just three. He really isn't modular like that. The middle and bottom parts only work with a specific top and vice versa. I have seen a bunch of fanmodes though that are really cool.
My guess would be the floppiness of it without the stand, or the cluttered sort of look it can have. As far as SOC's go none is better than Dancouga.
I got Dancouga at the same time, and it is a thousand times better. I think the alt modes for Aquarion look like a robot split into pieces, and the "blue" mode looks like ass. Since it needs a stand, it doesn't work very well as a toy. I also expected it to be more complex. Sure, there are a lot of moving parts, but the transformation is far from ingenious. There is a significant amount of "kibble" and/or misproportioned parts in each mode, and there are no "oooh" engineering like 20th prime's guts or Megabolt Megatron's legs. Add to that the fact that the general design of the main "red" mecha does little for me compared to Macross, TF, Dancouga, Yuusha or practically any other transforming robot I can think of, the result is a disappointing figure. It's not crap - it is pretty detailed, relatively complex and has nice diecast parts. I just wish I had saved the space and money for a more memorable figure - like a vintage godaikin transformer.
I love mine, although it could've been better. It lacks that final design and construction polish which would've made it a great figure, and instead leaves it as only a good one. Unlike Nighscream I don't really think the ships look like a robot split into pieces. For that sort of thing take a look at Voltes V, Combattler, Gaiking, or any of the other old school combiners.
The big difference is that Combattler V etc didn't have any vehicle parts sticking out of them in robot mode. Aquarion does look like a transforming robot, so one should expect more from the vehicle modes. Again, they are not crap - but a far cry from transformers.
The feet on Combattler are nothing more than one vehicle split down the middle, the head is a little ship with a flap slid down sitting at the top of his torso, and he has tank treads hanging off his back.
This is what I recall, as far as toy variations... First one (RGB) generally has trouble standing without his support stand. Military one has minor design improvements in that area. I -think- there was a mail-away for replacement foot parts for the red bot mode so that he would have the same improvements as the military bot, but as far as I know it was very tricky to get in on that without being a Japanese resident. Note that I do not own either (tempted, though), and am going by memories of discussions I lurk-read on ToyboxDX and Robot-Japan.
I was initially interested in the toys too but unfortunately they're inability to stand without the stand was a major turn-off for me but I got to admit the transformation, sculpt and engineering of the toy is pretty good.
Well, it finally showed up. Holy crap this thing is complex. Extremly high quality and looks fabulous in all modes. I don't mind the stand. Actually, I like it. I have tons of TFs that could benfit from a stand. Those little black ones for dolls do a good enough job...but I digress. Everyone tells me it's sturdy so I must be doing something wrong. In two of it's three modes, it has extreme difficulty standing up. Even with the stand. The first problem is with the "Omega Mode". This is the mode where it has the huge shuny wings open in the back. The docking point for the upper body and legs is the head of one of the ships. This causes said head/neck to become a waist joint. This is a ball joint. A stiff ball joint yes, but still a ball joint. Once you add the extra weight of the third mech as the very heavy backpack, it tends to spin freely. There's also a flap there behind that "head" waist joint that tends to flop. A few people have spoke of it's sturdiness (which, for the most part, it has in spades) so I have to wonder if I'm missing a crucial panel flip here, or tab there that will lock that joint. Anyone?