Playing with some camera settings again while taking pictures of my Perfect Transformation 1/60 YF-19 made by Yamato toys that was originally released in 2006. My review of this beautiful toy can be found here. I also translated the transformation manual of the YF-19 to English from the original Japanese and you can find it here.
As a backgrounder, the YF-19 came out in the Macross Plus OVA as part of a two plane competition in the Super Nova Project that would determine the next frontline fighter for the UN SPACY. The other plane in that flyoff was the YF-21.
The pilot of the YF-19 was Isamu Dyson and he was going up against Guld Goa Bowman in the YF-21. What added to the conflict in the plot of the OVA was the fact that Isamu and Guld were estranged childhood friends due to the love triangle they formed with their other friend, Myung. Who naturally was part of the movie in order to fulfill one of the tenets of any Macross anime, which is mecha, music, love triangle, space opera *snicker*
I've always loved the design of the YF-19. As a Macross fan I remember being impressed with the complexity of the transformation sequence that Shoji Kawamori employed in the YF-19. I love how the nose fuselage breaks up in order to fold into the chest area.
Unique also to the YF-19 was the forward swept wing which was seen in the real life X-29 experimental plane. It improved maneuverability but was aerodynamically unstable which necessitated the needed for computer aided flight.
The YF-19 eventually won the competition and became the primary fighter of the UN SPACY. With this the "Y" designation was dropped and changed to "V" to reflect its acceptance.
In the second Macross Frontier movie (actually it was part 2 of the retelling), the YF-19 makes a cameo along with Isamu Dyson. Talk about being hit by the nostalgia truck for me upon seeing Isamu Dyson and the YF-19 in action all over again. In the movie, the YF-19 came equipped with the grey Super Packs mounted on its wings, similar to that being used by the VF-25 Messiahs of SMS. Of course, given how the wing is part of the leg, its hard to imagine how the super packs can be pulled off in Battroid mode by the YF-19. But that's just me thinking.
I always loved the head design of the YF-19 as compared to the different head variants of the VF-19. Simple, functional and not overtly dramatic or exaggerated. Heck, I couldn't fully understand why the Fire Valkyrie of Basara Nekki had to have a face designed with its head.
