I was back in my FLHS today (as well as my FLGS, getting a new rulebook) - and while there, I got to have a look at some of the components that come in the new 1:72 VF-27 kit.
First of all, the model itself looks great, not least in the deeper red colour it's been painted in by whoever did up the sample piece for the latest Hobby Japan issue (Jan 2010, which they also had in the store).
The canopy is clear green, with decals for giving it the look of Brera's unit - but it's left in such a way so that it would be relatively easy to use if you wanted to spray the kit and do it as one of the green 'grunt' suits!
(Although, I dearly hope somebody paints one of those things black, and goes for a Dark Skyfire-esque theme with it.)
Also, it comes with the pilot and passenger... who of course is Ranka. Indeed, the kind of attention to detail is so good, they even added an image showing the two as kids beside their mother - and made the picture look like it had previously been folded in, so as not to reveal the two siblings side-by-side! Those little touches really make a work for me.
I cannot wait to see one assembled in person, though sadly the closest I can aim for money-wise might be to hope for a Side VF-27, as well as to look out for the '27s coming in wave 2 of the collectible fighter minis.
And speaking of Side VFs, sadly the -25F and Q-rea never showed up, so I'll have to try again in the New Year...
...though I wonder - would the super parts from the F (or G), coupled with
this Figma, make for an interesting basis for a kitbash of a certain gunslinging flying giant?