Kit Review

Straight build + Panel lining + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack.
It's about the same size as an HG Gunpla.

1. Battroid mode

Detail shots

Rifle and shield

Shield interior detail

5 nicely sculpted hands are included.

Effect parts

A stand joint part can be inserted at the bottom of the hip joint.

The eye area lets you choose from 3 different stickers to apply.

The black stripe stickers on the wings come in two options — one with white lines and one without.

Separately included swap parts for Gerwalk/Fighter mode

Excellent limb articulation

There's a gimmick that lets the hip joints spread out to the sides.

HG YF-19 - The knees can be extended to increase the range of motion. It's originally a Gerwalk gimmick, but it helps wi

The knees can be extended to increase the range of motion.
It's originally a Gerwalk gimmick, but it helps with posing too.

Forward/backward shoulder articulation

In exchange for giving up full transformation, the waist moves in all directions.

HG YF-19 - Dynamic poses you'd never see from a traditional Valkyrie Battroid mode. (1/4)

HG YF-19 - Dynamic poses you'd never see from a traditional Valkyrie Battroid mode. (2/4)

Dynamic poses you'd never see from a traditional Valkyrie Battroid mode.

Rifle pose

Poses using the effect parts

2. Gerwalk mode

Separate the body as shown above.

The waist section is not used.

Rotate the head 180 degrees, fold it back, and position the arms as shown above.

Remove the front skirt and engine cover from the lower body.

Insert the separately included Gerwalk mode auxiliary parts and front skirt into the bottom of the upper body.

Extend the knee joints and bend them into a reverse-joint configuration as shown above, then

Position the wings as shown above.

HG YF-19 - After adding the separate nose parts to the front, plug the upper body into the rear to complete the transfor

After adding the separate nose parts to the front, plug the upper body into the rear to complete the transformation.

HG YF-19 - Gerwalk mode. The swap-assembly approach makes it nice and sturdy. (1/4)

HG YF-19 - Gerwalk mode. The swap-assembly approach makes it nice and sturdy. (2/4)

GERWALK mode.
The swap-assembly approach makes it nice and sturdy.

A stand joint part can be added to the underside.

HG YF-19 - Gerwalk mode posed on a stand (1/4)

HG YF-19 - Gerwalk mode posed on a stand (2/4)

Gerwalk mode posed on a stand

3. Fighter mode

HG YF-19 - Remove the front skirt attached to the bottom of the upper body. In Fighter mode, the upper body isn't used e

Remove the front skirt attached to the bottom of the upper body.
In Fighter mode, the upper body isn't used either.

Attach the separately included rear parts for Fighter mode as shown above.

Fold the legs up as shown above, then spread out the vertical tail fins.

HG YF-19 - The legs, wings, and body are locked together at three points — the inner legs, the top cover, and between th

The legs, wings, and body are locked together at three points — the inner legs, the top cover, and between the wings and legs —
so you can get a really solid, clean shape.

Attach the front skirt and rifle to the underside to complete the transformation.

The underside after transformation is complete.

If you want to use the stand joint part in the center, you'll need to shift the rifle back one slot.

Once Fighter mode is assembled, the entire upper body from Battroid mode is left over.

The bottom cover can be swapped out for landing gear.

HG YF-19 - Fighter mode placed on the ground (1/6)

HG YF-19 - Fighter mode placed on the ground (2/6)

HG YF-19 - Fighter mode placed on the ground (3/6)

HG YF-19 - Fighter mode placed on the ground (4/6)

Fighter mode placed on the ground

Fighter mode on a stand

Together with the fixed-pose 1/100 VF-25F Alto custom.

It's noticeably smaller than an MG Gundam. Definitely HG-level volume..

HG YF-19 - Straight builds by mode (1/6)

HG YF-19 - Straight builds by mode (2/6)

HG YF-19 - Straight builds by mode (3/6)

HG YF-19 - Straight builds by mode (4/6)

Straight builds by mode

Out of nowhere, the YF-19 from Macross Plus got released as a 1/100 HG. Being 1/100 scale, it comes out as a compact little kit on par with HG Gunpla in terms of size. Whether it was a durability consideration or not, full transformation was dropped in favor of a swap-style transformation.

First off, transformation is arguably the most important feature for any Macross kit. Perhaps because the old 1/72 fully transformable Macross VF-1 got absolutely roasted for its terrible durability, a swap-style transformation was adopted here — just like the HGUC Zeta Gundam. So each mode gets its own optimized parts: a dedicated waist for Battroid mode, a core part for Gerwalk mode, a nose section shared between Gerwalk and Fighter modes, and a dedicated tail section for Fighter mode — all swapped in and out as needed. As a result, the transformation process is relatively straightforward, and the durability is solid.

In the end, all three modes — Battroid, Gerwalk, and Fighter — show the best stability and lockup of any Macross kit out there. Fighter mode in particular has three separate locking points across the legs, top panel, and wings, so everything holds its shape really well. Each mode also has a spot to plug in a stand joint part at the right location, so aerial display is totally hassle-free.

By giving up full transformation, Battroid mode gained excellent articulation. The waist moves in all directions, and the hip and shoulder joints are nice and flexible, making dynamic poses possible that you'd never see from other Battroid kits. On top of that great articulation, the joint strength is solid too, making this a Macross kit that's genuinely fun to pose.

Stickers are provided in both gloss and matte finishes, and for the eyes you can choose from three different gloss sticker options. The stickers for the wings and body come printed in a premium matte finish that looks almost like a proper paint job. On top of that, swappable landing gear and effect parts for the fists are also included.

The end result of going with swap-style transformation instead of full transformation is a real success — it nails the proportions, articulation, and stability across all three modes. Battroid mode proportions are a little on the stubby side, but honestly that's just how the YF-19's original design is. Either way, this kit is significant for finally delivering a stable, solid Macross transformation, and it's one I'd recommend to any mecha fan who loves transforming robots. :-)

HG YF-19 | 2023.1 | ¥3,800

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.