Bandai 1/60 VF-25S Messiah DX

The last Macross toy I bought was the 1/55 VF-1S Super Valkyrie by Bandai - years ago.
I've always liked the commander-type Valkyries from Macross and now we have the one from their latest series, Macross Frontier.
This is actually from the set that contains the armor parts. I just haven't had time to take pics of the armored Valkyrie yet.

I've decided to go with the toy version instead of the 1/72 model kits. Although more expensive, I got it at sale price, saving me S$50. Besides, this thing is bigger... and I don't have time to build any more model kits, aside from the Gunpla that I already have ^^;;;

I like the Valkyrie mode of the toy. It's nice and sleek, looking like something that can actually chase down enemy Vajra. As with most Macross toys, the gunpod can be attached at bottom of the plane using a special connector. At the top of the plane is the Skull Squadron insignia. I do prefer this than the decals of the Macross Frontier girls that Bandai sells separately for the VF-25 model kits.

The cockpit hatch is made of clear plastic. It can open to reveal Ozma inside.
You can open the hatch below the cockpit to lower the landing gear. This hatch also needs to be opened when you transform this to Battroid (or was it Battloid?) mode. The landing gear is made of metal and the wheels are of some hard rubber.

Gerwalk has always been my favorite mode ever since the original Macross. Unfortunately, they couldn't make the legs on this toy to move properly in Gerwalk mode, which simply frustrated me. I went straight to Battroid, so don't expect any pics of the Gerwalk.

For some reason, I've never been impressed with the VF-25's Battroid mode. It looks too skinny for me. Or maybe since they've always used super or armor packs in the series, the plane Battroid just looks... lacking...

Anyway, the legs on this thing is made of diecast inside. you can see it more on the ankles. This gives the robot a nice sturdy base for it to stand properly.
You need some part-swapping for the hands. The annoying thing is that you will always need to swap back the straight-hands-opened hands when you transform it back to Valkyrie.
For weapons, it has the rifle, the shield and the knife (which I forgot to take pics of).
Articulation is quite ok. Legs move freely. Shoulders has a hinge on it so you can also swing it forward and back. And as you can see on my pics, it's not a problem for it to hold the rifle with 2 hands.

I almost forgot to mention the base!
I don't really have a problem with it, that other people seem to have. It's just uglier than other stands in the market these days, I suppose. And it's clunky to use. But as a base, it does serve its purpose.
There's an SMS-insignia on the base, but it's all molded in black so I'm very tempted to spray-paint with yellow just so you can see it properly.
You need to do some part-swapping for it to hold the different modes.

And here's a couple of more pics of the toys' details:

As always, thanks for reading!