They don't make them like they used to.....

Mr. K was nice enough to send me a sms after the auction ended to tell me no one else outbid me. That meant I could actually take the MP-01 out of its plastic wrapped box. It was like being 10 years old again - opening Christmas presents. Come to think of it - we never celebrated Christmas and I hardly got good presents for Christmas. It was more like opening up my birthday presents. Like the time when I got my first G1 Optimus Prime. Or the time when I got my first die-cast Voltron set.

I opened the package carefully and slowly - taking care not to damage it in anyway. I don't know who wrapped the box up in transparent plastic wrapper (the kinds I used to wrap my school text and excercise books with) but I guess it was a wise thing to do.

I've read people complain about twist ties on this thing to secure it in but I thought it was all exaggeration. Until I had the task to remove the twist ties myself. I should actually snap some pics when I am in the mood to do so.

TAKARA were also pretty generous with their plastic wrapping as the cardboard tray inside the box was also wrapped in plastic wrap! The reason the tray was protected was because it can actually be folded into a trailer for Optimus Prime.

After removing Prime from the plastic shell that protected the toy - it was time to examine it. The thing was solid with die-cast legs and parts of the body was die-cast metal as well. The plastic used seems pretty solid. Well - for RM 600 it'd better be! Quality wise - its fantastic - no complaints there. I'm sure it will last a long time.

Who would've thought that it would take an hour to actually transform a stupid toy?!?!? That's about the amount of time I spent trying to figure out how to change the MP-01 from robot-mode to truck-mode. Sure, the diagrams in the instruction manual do help a little but I don't read Japanese so there are some steps which requires a little guess work plus some trial and error.

All in all - from the instruction manual, it showed about 20+ steps to transform Prime from robot to truck. 20 fucking steps! Apparently, it was designed in such a way that it mimics the transformation of the cartoon version of the character. Whatever. And I don't remember there being an instruction manual with the first version. Maybe there was but it was negligible.

I remember my old Prime - I'd say there was only about 5 steps or so to transform him:
1) Flip head 180 degrees into the body
2) Bend elbows to 90 degree angle, move shoulders back and slide arms into waist
3) Push toes 90 degrees downwards then flip the legs at the waist 90 degrees backwards

There - only 3 steps, slightmore if you want to count each individual step. None of the twisting and rotating that is on MP-01. But hey what the hell - it looks fantastic on my desk/shelf.

Honestly, how can you compare G1(left) and MP-01 (right)!!!!!
There is no comparison. PERIOD!

Another guy on the forum was having some promotions right up to the 30th of April. The Binaltechs and the Galaxy Convoy were cheap! RM 119 for Binaltech and RM 169 for Galaxy Convoy GC-01.

I was thinking about it long and hard - thinking if I really should. In the end - I couldn't restrain myself and decided to go get them. I managed to locate the shop in Section 17, PJ. Imagine, a shop selling computers and accessories which also sells toys! What's going on?

Spoke to Mr.K (another Mr.K) and found out that Galaxy Convoy GC-01 was sold out because it was cheap. I've seen some on EBAY going for RM 270. Who or what the fuck is Galaxy Convoy? I can always go for the American HASBRO version but Mr.K told me that there have been complaints that the HASBRO version has looser joints compared to the Japanese TAKARA versions.

There's a new Transformers series that's out called Transformers - Cybertron. Galaxy Convoy is actually the latest version of Optimus Prime that transforms into a futuristic fire truck.

I also saw the Generation 1 Optimus Prime that I used to have - except that this was the Japanese re-issue and it costs RM 550!

Finally, I settled for Laserwave (Mazda RX-8 Mazda Speed II version) and Prowl (Honda Integra Type-R) at RM 119 each. There are other places that forces customers to buy the blue version of Prowl plus the Police Car version of Prowl as a set for RM 400!

Laserwave (Mazda RX-8)



Prowl (Integra Type-R) - Vivid Blue version

So after all these - what next?

Met up with JC and NA at Bangsar yesterday. We've been trying to meet up with NA for a long time. The last time I saw here was before I left for Melbourne. TL was supposed to be there as well. Called him but he never answered. Didn't reply my SMS as well.


Funny how things turned out - I thought that JC had left for Brunei because he didn't reply the last SMS I sent him. He actually lost his phone and contacts. NA decided to have dinner at La Bodega. Horror - bumped into 2 AVPs from work there, IS and MS! Never expected to see them there.

I thought I never had that before but I found out today that I had in fact tried their Paella before.

The food was good, service was great. Price - extorbitant! But I guess that's Bangsar for you.

Our large orders looked like a small that we had to get a waiter to confirm that it was indeed a large order. RM 30 for 2 sticks of kebabs about 3 inches long? If that was the large serving, I can't imagine what the small would be. In the end, we split the bill 3-ways and it came up to about RM 50 each including a couple of drinks each.

For that price - I'd rather go to Chilli's or TGIF's and have a hearty meal thank you very much!

I'm currently on this protein shake diet. Meal replacement to be precise and I only have 2 meals a day - one of which, the protein shake, is just pure liquids.

I've been on it for about a month now. Every morning - I blend 2 green apples, milk, yoghurt, lemon-lime crystals, 9 vitamin pills, protein powder and vanilla. The drink takes me almost an hour to prepare with the peeling and cutting of the apples. The taste is palatable. Not too bad if I say so myself, especially if I use chocolate milk. I have a mug of this when I get up in the morning and I don't need anything until dinner time at about 7:30pm at work everyday.

It's to help to lose weight and it seems to be working alright so far. I hope it works! My pants seem to be loose around the waist. Previously, I could do without a belt but these days, I think the belt is a must. The point of this is not to show that the diet is working - but to emphasize how much I miss regular solid food!

When I went out with KC last weekend, we had dinner at Chilli's and I ordered the Monterey Chicken. Sure, the chicken was coated with a piece of bacon and cheese topped with BBQ sauce and chopped tomatoes. But when I had a taste of the mash potatoes - damn, mashed potatoes never tasted so good in my life!

I've been sticking to this protein shake diet but I must go back to TGIF's or Chilli's once in awhile. That is a promise I will make to myself.