Yamato 1/60 Version 1 VF-1 toys

Mega Review: Includes original releases, super releases, armored release, and 2 seaters

Packaging & Extras: (3.5/5)
These toys come in oversized boxes (30×27.5x10cm) adorned with product photography and produced from very thin cardboard stock dominated by a large plastic window that runs from the bottom over the top corner and around the top flap. Inside the box is a thin cardboard tray that holds the thin plastic clamshell that holds the toy and most accessories with some accessories, as noted below, taped in a plastic baggy to the back of the tray. The thin cardboard coupled with thin plastic windows and trays mean that the box is susceptible to crush damage and both the toy and the plastic window are susceptible to yellowing. There were two mass production versions of the VF-1A that come in the same packaging differentiated either by a round sticker indicating it’s the regular release of the toy or a star-shaped sticker indicating it’s the Toys R Us exclusive darker mass production variant. Regular VF-1 single-seat releases (no fast packs or armor) come with the following:
1) 4x Missile clusters (three missiles glued together)
2) 4x Do You Remember Love missile boxes
3) A gun with collapsing stock (V1.2 and greater variants also have collapsing grips)
4) A heat shield/canopy cover for battroid mode
The baggy taped to the back of the plastic tray contains:
5) An extra nosecone plug for fighter mode
6) 2x curved antenna for GERWALK mode (one extra)
7) A pair of fixed posed hands (gun grip and open palm)
Smuggled behind the interior cardboard tray were
8) Stickers
9) Instructions & warranty card
The lack of a pilot figure is an obvious deficiency that Yamato would later address in their super bundles and two-seat releases. These toys do not include a display stand and were released long before Yamato created their Launch Arm display stand so there are no display stand adapters. Yamato would later bundle adapters for these toys with the Launch Arm Display Stand.

The VF-1D toy, released after the super/strike releases, also included the same items from the single seat releases but added:
10) a copilot figure
Oddly, the pilot and copilot figure are anonymous UN Spacy flight suit pilots instead of Hikaru and Minmay.

The Super and strike releases were the first to include fast packs. The box now measured 27.5×30.2×11.5cm. The following accessories were dropped:
1) 4x Missile clusters (three missiles glued together)
2) 4x Do You Remember Love missile boxes
In lieu of those items, you received:
1) Pilot (in cockpit)
2) 4x reaction missiles
and, along with the other items included with the regular releases, you of course also received:
9) 2 x sticker sheets
10) Fast packs (2x leg armors for each leg, 1x forearm armor for each arm, and 2x boosters for the backpack)

After the VF-1D, Yamato created the two unicorns of the DYRL Macross universe, the VT-1 SuperOstrich and VE-1 Elintseeker. Though the boxes for the regular and super releases were already large, Yamato went even bigger this time around. The boxes ballooned to an utterly unwieldy 38x38x12cm. To put that in perspective, that is a larger length and width than Yamato used for their 1/48 scale toys!  These releases dropped all weapons so you didn’t receive:
1) 4x Missile clusters (three missiles glued together)
2) 4x Do You Remember Love missile boxes
3) A gun
You did get:
1) 2x Pilot seats
2) Custom fast packs including accessory antennae as appropriate
These toys still have the ability to stow missiles or a gun so some folks weren’t thrilled to see these accessories removed even if they’re never seen in the movie and logically wouldn’t be on these valkyries.

Yamato’s 1/60 Version 1 toys officially rode off into the sunset in 2004 with the final release: Hikaru’s VF-1J with GBP accessory. This toy includes everything that came with the regular release as well as:
7B) giant fists
9) 2x sticker sheets (one for the armor)
10) A pilot figure
11) GBP armor

Charm & Collectability: (1.5/5)
Yamato’s release of the “Version 2” 1/60 VF-1 line relegated the version 1 toys historical footnotes but there was a seven year window where many viewed these as the best VF-1 toy. Though 1/60 scale would go on to become the most prolific scale of Macross toy collecting, it meant the existing Takatoku and Bandai 1/55 reissues (22.5 cm tall in battroid, 26.5 cm long in fighter) would tower over the Yamato product (19.8 and 24.8 cm, respectively). Yamato was keen to give their toys a premium feel, loading them with metal (mostly in the legs), so they weighed the same 350 grams as a Takatoku. Competition was stiff among several flawed competitors. The lack of perfect transformation led many to stick with Bandai reissues of the Takatoku or to pursue Toynami’s Masterpiece Collection which compromised on appearance to maintain perfect transformation while adding many of the same features Yamato included on their line. Yamato learned a lot from the version 1 toy as was clear to the enhancements they made to the line throughout its production run:
Version 1.1 – Backpacks were modified to work with fast pack boosters
Version 1.2 – Guns were improved to feature a collapsing grip as well as a collapsing stock. This allowed the toy to abandon the awful forearm filler pieces found on versions 1.0 and 1.1.

Sculpt, Detail, & Paint: (6/10)
The Yamato version 1 toy trounced its contemporary competition (Bandai’s reissue of the Takatoku’s 1/55 scale toys and Toynami’s 1/55 scale Masterpiece Collection VF-1) in the overall shape of fighter mode. Impressive details for the time included sculpted cockpit, paint application on the pilot’s seat, clear plastic parts on the wings, and three opening doors for the rear landing gears within the leg. On the negative side, the panel lines in the metal legs are of a different depth of the panel lines on the plastic which creates an uneven appearance. Yamato’s later 1/48 toy would allow the feet to recess into the leg and tuck the head up higher in fighter mode, among numerous other improvements. Bandai’s reissues of the Takatoku toys had far superior paint applications, a common shortcoming that Yamato would wrestle with until its untimely demise.

Things get worse as you transform the toy out of fighter mode. GERWALK mode looks jumbled together due to problematic fit at the intakes and the misplaced twist point below the knee. Still, it sticks the mode more naturally than the Takatoku reissues which never felt comfortable in this mode with their limited ankles and lack of twist anywhere in the legs.

As the toy is optimized for fighter mode, there are concessions revealed in battroid: the nose looks too angular through the pelvis and the heads have all been shrunk. The VF-1S head is particularly egregious, perhaps that’s why Yamato never made a Strike VF-1S Hikaru movie type. For a toy that doesn’t have perfect transformation, the hips are too wide from the body and the bulbous connectors look awkward.

Yamato made two attempts at a mass production color VF-1A, the first exclusively for Toys R Us is darker while the later regular release is tan.

Super and Strike Parts were never sold individually and can only be purchased in one of the bundles. The proportions were slightly small but it’s a decent approximation of the line art. The backpack boosters have a removable panel that reveals some painted interior engine details.

The Max & Miria toys are cast in hues that are less saturated than future companies would use.

Yamato didn’t take the easy way out with the VF-1D, they stuck to the line art and gave us a new chest, cockpit, heat shield, back plate, trap door, and head. It would have been nice if the hump on the trap door was painted instead of the entire door being cast in orange (as Yamato would do when they made the version 2 toy), the effort is otherwise very solid. Unfortunately, the pilot figures are two anonymous UN Spacy soldiers instead of Hikaru and Minmay, another shortcoming Yamato addressed on their version 2 toys.

The VE-1 Elintseeker was seen only briefly in Do You Remember Love but it received a Bandai 1/55 toy though it had many deviations from the line art. Yamato made numerous changes to their mold to more faithfully recreate the design. The most prominent change is the 2 seat cockpit with the larger hump through the chest. Yamato also did a very good job capturing the unique FAST packs.

Like the VE-1, the VT-1 Super Ostrich has the same two-seat configuration. This trainer vehicle also receives custom FAST packs that capture the look from the movie. As an added bonus, the VT-1 has pilot figures that simulate Hikaru and Minmay as they appeared on their joyride that ended in tragedy.

The final version 1 release was a Grenade Box Protection (GBP) Armor + VF-1J Hikaru (as he appeared during the Miss Minmay contest). The GBP could also be purchased separately and is discussed more in the article dedicated to it. The included VF-1J is unchanged from the earlier super bundle which means it does not have that classic gray armor wrap around the eye.

Design: (4/10)
By today’s standards, this toy is poorly designed. It feels as if Yamato had two goals in mind: 1) a good fighter mode presentation, 2) lots of diecast metal. This created some big problems which I’ll present in list form:

1) Transformation isn’t perfect, it requires some parts be removed and installed again differently in the next mode. The heat shield is not integrated, it’s a separate part you’ll have to swap out with the canopy as you transform from GERWALK to battroid. To make it worse, transformation is arduous… and that’s despite the fact that it involves removable parts! Trying to get the thin inner-tray to slide into the grooves in the shoulders on this toy can be extremely frustrating and the instructions don’t offer a world of help (the trick is to keep the chest loose while doing this). Then, when you have everything put together right, you may find the shoulders don’t quite clear the chest.

2) Super parts weren’t part of the original concept. Yamato addressed this by releasing the version 1.1 toys which have the proper slots to accommodate the additional parts. Only version 1.1 and 1.2 toys can attach the super parts which were bundled with select 1.1 and 1.2 toys. Fortunately, the armored parts included with the Hikaru VF-1J toy and sold separately fit all versions of the 1/60 V1 toys.

3) Version 1.0 toys have two slender pieces on the forarms which have to be removed hold the gun in fighter mode. This was an absolutely terrible idea that was resolved by version 1.2 which eliminated these forearm filler pieces and introduced the collapsing pistol grip (yet another item introduced in this toy that became standard on subsequent VF-1 toys).
4) The swivel joint located in the legs is located at the upper-calf point rather than the knee.
5) The leg bars in GERWALK mode rub/press against each other causing the legs to look uneven.
6) The hand that can retract into the forearm does a poor job holding the gun.
7) The armored and super parts eliminate the swivel point in the leg reducing articulation.
This toy was a tremendous learning experience for Yamato… and it’s quite clear this was their first effort.
8) The Elintseeker variant permanently has the radar dome attachment bar protruding from the backpack.

The Strike cannon can be removed from the strike parts and applied to any of the FAST packs. The top armor of the booster can be removed to expose engine detail. For the Version 2 toys, Yamato would make the side of the leg armors and the top of the missile launchers removable also.

Durability & Build: (6/10)
These toys are slightly below average in terms of build quality and durability. There are a few possible problem areas to look for. First, as with the Toynami MPCs, it is possible to receive one of these with a bent head laser. Due to what seems to be manufacture inconsistencies, sometimes the legs on these toys are less apt to stay attached (especially in GERWALK mode) than they ought to be. The front landing gear doors are easy to dislocate. This toy has lots of parts that come on and off so be careful not to lose anything. That said, I can easily imagine a couple ways in which this toy could be accidentally broken but since I have yet to really have one bust apart on me, I’m going to assume it’s much sturdier than it seems. Build issues are common. Though I commend Yamato for making a toy that is screwed together rather than relying on glue, one large nuisance are the many screw covers littering the surface. The little screw covers pop off frequently. Even in very minor, gentle handling it is not unusual for a screw cover to bounce out. Another sad note is that these toys are prone to yellowing more than any toy Yamato released later. My TRU has two landing gear doors that have already yellowed and none of my toys are ever in direct sunlight and are stored in mild temperatures.

Articulation: (7.5/10)
In the turn of the millennium “VF-1 Wars” the Yamato V1 toy was the king of articulation, easily trouncing the Toynami Masterpiece Collection and Bandai 1/55 Reissue efforts. A pivot point where the neck meets the head allows the toy to look up/down while the neck allows 360 rotation. The housing for the shoulders was a little too large or inset which can make the 360 rotation that should be there catch against the back plate. Inside the shoulder is a pivot point that allows the arm to reach out away from the body at about a 75 degree angle from the ground or angle inward about 15 degrees. A twist point at the elbow allows the arm to rotate around 360 degrees though the elbow only offers slightly less than 90 degrees of movement. The hands attach via pegs so they can spin in any direction. The benefit to the imperfect transformation of the legs is a waist joint that will allow you to twist until the back plate hits the rear of the intakes. Ball joints in the hips are a huge improvement and made the Yamato 1/60 version 1 toy one of the first toys to be able to angle the legs outward while being able to rotate 360 degrees. The GERWALK joint below the intake has ratcheting joints and allows a full 90 degrees of movement. The knee allows about 75 degrees of backward flex and about 90 degrees of forward flex (for GERWALK mode). Though the twist location is awkward in its location, it allows the lower leg to rotate a full 90 degrees outward and slightly more inward. While this toy left lots of room for improvement, it was none-the-less the most poseable toy of its era.

Total Score: (28.5/50)
This toy best serves as a glimpse into the future and should only be sought as the historical footnote it is. There were so many lessons learned in the lifetime of this product that were then carried over to the 1/48 scale product line which then led to the 1/60 version 2 toy that was easily the best available toy for a decade. We all owe Yamato and this line of VF-1 toys a hearty thanks for making the toys we dreamed about for years a reality… even if this first effort left us wanting more.

June 10, 2006: Original single seat and original super VF-1 posts
June 12, 2006: Original VT-1 post
June 13, 2006: Original VE-1 review
September 18, 2006: Added VF-1D content
February 2, 2007: Additional variants added
February 21, 2007: Additional super/strike VF-1 content
October 23, 2007: Original Hikaru + GBP review
November 12, 2007: Additional VT-1 content
November 25, 2007: Additional VE-1 content
September 4, 2008 – Additional single seat content
September 6, 2008 – Additional super/strike VF-1 content
March 16, 2009 – Additional photographs and contents added
May 2, 2010 – Additional VE-1 content
May 25, 2010 – Additional Armored VF-1J content
April 10, 2012: Increased resolution of photos, additional content, line art comparisons and HD video review. Combined all V1 reviews into one mega review.
October 16, 2016 to include an HD transformation guide.
October 23, 2016 to include a more complete HD video review.
October 6, 2026: upgraded content to modern style, added some 4K images