1/1 LowViz Lurker

I would. I think the YF21 looks awesome in battroid mode. When you rotate the forearms so the wrist guns are rotated closer to the outer side of the wrist and the shields are guarding both arms properly it kind of makes it look bulky and strong. Even though it looks a little fat in fighter mode (from a top view mainly but good in side view) I can apreciate battroid better from the front. Even though the chicken legs are long (like the classic zentreadi pods) the wide body and weapons gear on his arms balances it out overall. Legs are floppy so don't expect too much poseability with how legs are positioned. It still looks cool though. Paint has begun to chip on a part of the leg on mine which is worrying. Fighter and Battroid are the only modes I will leave this in. I've always liked the idea that the battroid mode combines 2 of my fave zentreadi mechs: the skinny legs of the battlepods, and the bulky round arms of the Qrau, with the bonus addition that the mech is a variable fighter instead of a giant non-transforming 'suit' for a macronised zentreadi. The double gunpods and "alien queen" fanhead with skinny limbs give it a unique attitude like that of wierd bipedal insect as opposed to the more humanoid mechs with the usual robot head. Avoid trying to make it look kick-ass in guardian mode though. The legs are only just thick enough to provide balance to the rest of the toy (unlike zentreadi battle pods with fat ankles/feet) and this thing needs all the weight in the centre to keep it standing in this mode. The skinny feet look ok in the anime but they don't seem too practical for a toy of this weight imo. The toy is very sturdy and there are no delicate parts though so I don;t see this thing falling apart. The main problem is getting the legs to come out and go in, in fighter mode when transforming it, since there is just barely enough space for them to fit. The first time trying to transform it, I was worried the legs wouldn't fit properly. You got to wonder how this thing would take off vertically in gerwalk mode. It doesn't seem like it would have an easy time.

Another thing I remember is in the book it explains that the pilots have a helmet which reads their thoughts and transfers that movement to the mech. At first that sounded ridiculous since we all know there are physical controls shown in the cartoon/anime. But then after seeing mac+: Can anyone say brainwave control system? Mac + = copying mckinney! The novels imo were good for backstory and explaining the reasons for why the Zentreadi were after Zor's ship. I particularly liked how the invid were right there at the start (Breetai's face gets injured) because it takes away the "WTF do the aliens want from us?" factor that was in the cartoon. Robotech fans had nothing during the time these came out, (I remember getting a few from a comic book store and my brother, who was only a casual fan of the series actually liked the novels better than the cartoon) so I can understand why people are so fond of these novels. The writing is pretty good, and it fills in the little details whilst not boring you. (the action is described in detail too) You know what they should have done? Put these free on the robotech dvds as a bonus right alongside those old robotech toy ads. And along with that, scans of the robotech comics. Wasted opportunity IMO The things I didn't like were contradictions to the cartoon. Personally instead of saying they used "thinking caps" as the controls, they should have explained that the existing controls were highly sophisticated and sensitive enough to mirror the natural motion of human pilot's body using the standard controls. This would have linked perfectly to how roy was demonstrating that with robotechnology they can perform more precise manuevers than thier older planes in the airhshow in the first episode. (an interesting discussion on rt.com about this.) Expert pilots and amatuers would then be given the chance to perform fancy manuevers thanks to the advances that the alien tech brought (but still be room for aces like max to prove the constant factor that thier pilot skills are what make the difference in the end regardless of what tech level the tool humans are given to work with).

I think I remember reading some of these ages ago. I thought it was funny how they added in small details that weren't in the cartoon like how Khyron was addicted to the flower of life and couldn't stop smoking it. haha I wonder if they'll keep that in the official robotech story?

*Bump* Would like to see some for yf21fp too.

Well I was thinking just as an example (I think I said it before in another thread) that with the new ninja turtles and the new he-man cartoon, and the zoids stuff essentially the same old thing: people have run out of ideas. Little kids will go with what they know. And if they never even saw a macross mech how can you sell new toys of old series? (If they see macross zero right now, not even knowing what "the macross" even is, because it hasn't been built yet, how can they get interested?) But if a new tv series (taking place in the same timeline of the old one with retelling of events that makes sense to old jaded fans) was updated for today, they(newer non-80s fans) might watch that first, then later go to mac zero and find out what the backstory of the new tv series was all about. (like the way star wars started from ep 4 not given us any information about who these "jedi knight" people were all about, adding to the mysteriousness of the story. If you think about it if a little kid saw episodes 1 star wars before seeing episodes 4,5 and 6, it would actually *spoil* the mystery of who darth vader really was and make him less cool. As a fan you acutally reommend he see episode 4,5, & 6 of star wars FIRST before the prequel) This way mac zero could be seen as both an ova for fans of the old macross tv series, but later on seen as an ova for new fans too. (who just got into the timeline of the series where zentreadi arrive) They wouldn't even have to tell the new tv series in exact detail to the old one. You could introduce new characters (maybe even new mecha, alongside old ones) without upsetting the main story from the original 36 ep series in the 80s.

There is still hope that a new group of fans who have had a chance to be exposed to an official release of the original macross tv series will defect from the robotech ranks and fan support grows from there. I for one loved the fact that toys are at least being made since I had like a 10 year break from anything to do with the aging franchise. It's like the aliens series, where provided there are books, comics, toys and video games to live off of, there is a chance for new movies. The thing that keeps interest in macross is the timeless nature of the Variable fighters. It's a concept that is memorable after 20years no matter how sick the jaded collectors have gotten of the same mech being made. I think macross plus also helped to regenerate interest because at the time, I think it was one of the coolest anime to be released. (I only recently bought these on dvd, both ova and movie versions and still love them.) They didn't need to be aimed at a mass audience imo or to compete with other scfi fi series to gain attention and "steal" fans from other series, they just had to be true to themselves and fans would just gravitate towards them based on taste. The real problem for me is the fact that before the release of the dvd box set of the tv series I had no interest in trying to find info on macross series, the various toys that were out etc as I assumed it was a one-off thing that was dead. (I did have a short interest in gundam model kits but I'm not as much a fan of those mechs) I think it would be cool if they just remade the whole tv series, added smooth cg aimation, and retold the story again linking everything nicely with macross zero. If you think about it, little kids of today, won't be interested in buying toys of Qrau, battle pods, destroid mechs etc if they don't even know what those things are. Maybe they could even upgrade the look of the vf1 slightly for today and relase new vf1 types. jk I would love to see celshaded macross series (in the style of zoids cartoons) with the same intensity of mac+ and mac 0 dog fights.

As long as its got: high quality,(ie won't break) high detail (accurate to real thing) and good poseability(no floppy limbs in any mode, more apreciable in long term) then I'm there. (still would love 1/48 detail though) If they have to upsize the scale to please both the hardcore fan with wads of cash and those who have to save up then I'd say this will work out if they space releases apart. (so everyone can catch up. Still worried I will never be able to get complete collection 1/48 vf1s without paying inflated prices because the wallet can't afford it all at once and the threat of them disappearing.) eg. those little banprestos look good (and playable) standing on top of a monitor but if they make these too small they might alienate those who want perfection and who've gotten used to 1/48 details. I think it would be safe for them to first satisfy that demand amoungst the anal fan, and then work towards the masses later. If they take a risk but in small steps, (staggered release) while building up fans anticipation (generate the buzz that makes it a top priority on a person's toy shopping list as opposed to releasing all at once) they could survive I reckon. I had some cash ready for a toynami alpha but am holding back for other stuff (ie still want to buy koenig monster, vf11b, qrau etc) so it all depends on who they want to focus on. Make the toy perfect to please fans, and the "i'll buy the thing anyway because it's a yf19" people, and they won't have to sacrifice much. (why run the risk of pissing off either one group?) If they could go in with the attitude of "I want to make the best version of an accurate and high detail yf19 toy for the fan and grab thier attention", then the $ will flow to them because people will limit what they buy on only the best stuff; especially if that thing is seen as a highly sought after item based on what the fans percieve and what the critics say about it. It's like if you buy a cheap pair of shoes that fall apart easily, expect to buy more than 1 pair but be disapointed. (not really wanting it) But if you buy an expensive pair, then the percieved value to you personally will go up because you know they are dependable, (they last!) and something that you've always wanted from the beginning. (you just limit yourself to buying 1 because you are on a budget, but at least pleased with the thing you bought) Because if they could create demand based on word of mouth on the toy itself, (what fuels the demand?) people will seek it through reputation alone. Besides little kids have small hands and love to throw stuff around. By the time they grow up, they'll have jobs and be able to afford the 1/48 once it is finally released. I heard that japan is an aging population anyway. The older crowd is the growing market.

GG: here's an interesting ufo account about the black triangle ufos: http://www.rense.com/general57/blactri.htm http://www.fas.org/irp/mystery/tr3a.htm ^ could they be the tr3a? Forget vf1a, I want one of these. Antigrav or gravity reduction will be the key of the future. If these are real, then I can't wait for my george jetson hovercar! But before they can mass produce them, there will probably need to be another world war first. War and the technology that comes out of it, brings convenience that filters down to consumer products. But the conflicts must be carefully arranged so that both sides can't entirely kill each other off entirely so as to keep them competing and raising the bar.

GreenGuy: That stuff relates to the alien theory that an earlier poster joking refered the hurricanes to, with the belief aliens might have something to do with it on page 1. My theory is I think its weather modification technology causing the hurricanes to herd people from thier land ie HAARP (read the cuttingedge articles to understand) Stuff about aliens, UFO/govt cover up etc was generic response to the thread not pointed at a particular post. The sighting of alien-looking craft are explained here. They are secret weapons which helps explain the appearance of strange sightings of the mysterious craft, lights etc. Reffering also to a macross joke about pilots being needed to fight the aliens ID4-style hehe (the gist of the articles and what I was pointing out is that the triangular craft are not necessarily alien, although there may be the possibility humans reverse engineered alien technology like in macross, and from the ufo roswell crash in 1947 which the goverment denies) There'll also be shortages of water in the future: http://www.rense.com/general57/ou.htm Doomsday is coming. All the chaos is being controlled. The UN is targeting the US to create a more 'sustainable' world. I wouldn't be surprised if underground cities were to be built.

http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2.../6/183147.shtml there will be huge mass destruction attacks in the future in america. My own personal opinion is that 2012 or 2013 will be thier scheduled date to bring in the new world order. (The UN already want to change the calendar over to a mayan one, replacing the gregorian calendar) They have to time it just right. As for aliens? We may need future test pilots. You can download a flight sim for USAF Ultra Top Secret TR-3B. http://www.rense.com/general38/ulrta.htm TR-3B Antigravity Physics Explained: http://www.rense.com/general30/yrb3.htm Physics Analysis Of TR-3B: http://www.rense.com/general5/trb.htm Was One Of The Mexican UFOs Of US Origin?: http://www.rense.com/general53/wsa.htm UFO Triangles... Theirs or Ours? Answer: BOTH http://www.rense.com/ufo/triangUS.htm Human Engineered Flying Triangles - Many Names, Hidden Programs: http://www.rense.com/ufo3/humantringl.htm Remarkable Evidence Of Secret Black Budget Technology: http://www.rense.com/ufo/secretfouche.htm Weird Close-Up UFO Events In New Jersey - Sightings Increasing: http://www.rense.com/ufo/weirdevents.htm

heh well there are some good articles about weather control through HAARP here: http://www.cuttingedge.org/articles/weather.cfm now here's a scary thought: perhaps you are being herded off your own land for the NWO?

I'd definately buy a 1/48. Then after they release that, they can do the 1/72. (well in my dream world) Logic being start from easier to harder challenges...If everyone buys the 1/48 and no one buys the 1/72 it will prove sacrifices were unecessary because fans will be too impressed by the brilliance of 1/48 to care for the 1/72.

skull: hehe, as if! nah none of the above. Just thought it would be a nice theme to mock the new robotech shadow force and jack archer thing. I like that ninja in the avatar merely because he was my fave character in samurai showdown/spirits. Plus I've always liked the idea of an all black mech just merely because it looks cool. (I think I had a custom painted vf1 model that looked like that in the 80s) Shame that HG stole your idea wolf. Maybe you should get them to put your name on the credits. Although if that series turns out craptastic you probably wouldn't want to be associated with it as to avoid embarrassment. pic of a zentreadi ship lifting cloak

It would look cooler black and unmarked. Like it was designed to hide the identity of the people who use them. Kind of looks evil. They could say that these are special-use MIB-type vf1s (like the silent black unmarked helicopters haha) whos identity is kept secret and who nobody knows about. They were given special engines which are completely silent and run on technology nobody has been allowed to see before (with only 3 ever made and all destroyed in the zentreadi attack on earth). Yeah thats it. The shadow goverment just does not officially ackowledge thier existence, and these are designed only for specially trained pilots who can penetrate deep into enemy territory without being seen and for assasinations of key anti-un leaders. Equipped with countless prototype superspy gadgets (miniturised version of self repairing biomorphic armor, predator/ghost-in-the-shell-style optic camo/invisibility, Xray to penetrate and see through walls, motion tracking device to sense movements when deep underground, experimental AI system to take control when pilot is unconscious or dead etc) If only they could fit these into the story. Maybe fit one in like the 'jack archer' thing but for macross. jk

Bastards! So the question remains: Do they make them crap on purpose because they know collectors won't open the box? I would be willing to pay high price for one that isn't going to fall apart and actually lasts, so I wish they could make high quality toys. Why don't they just do that? I'm going to save my money until all the problems are fixed, IF they are fixed. I think by buying a faulty product you make it easier for them to continue profiting from neglect, and reward evil. It will make it harder in the long run for everyone else. What you want to acheive is to help destroy thier chance of profiting, being that they are the only ones making this toy and have leverage over the loyal fanbase. Normally competition between 2 competing companies rewards the consumers because your money will go to the competitor who is doing a better job, in the same thing; which then forces the other company to try harder to survive. But because they have full control, and being the only ones with legios toys, the only way to get what you want is to boycott imo. Once they know people are actually going to stop paying, they will put 200% more effort into pleasing you. Don't let them blackmail you into thinking there'll never be another line of toys if you hold off purchase as a result of them failing to achieve the standard you expect, since they are probably making money on dvds/games and what not. It's all about will power, since it is only worth as much as the consumer thinks it is. But meh, fans will be fans. And that's why people with casual level of loyalty will suffer. If this was just a case of them rushing the product (which I hope) then I would be patient enough to hold back in anticipation for future improvements they will make. But if this is an ongoing thing where the level stays about the same, it's not really worth the risk (unless prices sink right down and shops show some balls by resufsing to stock the item if price remains what it is ) If people could politely email thier negative feedback and give intelligent reasons for why they think the toy sucks ass, it might help them to improve and they could take this as constructive criticism. But we can only hope the reason they suck so much is because thier skill isnt up to the task and they were too ambitious and inexperienced; ...as opposed to: them "deliberately not caring" because they simply want to save money with cheap material in order to "maximise profits" through the exploitation of fan desperation. Thier reputation stinks yet fans continue to pay them, instead of trying to starve the beast. Why? Because the abuser knows you'll keep coming back for more bitch slappings.

Try this place: http://www.animeskyscraper.com/torrent.html (requires bit torrent to start downloading. Better to use bit tornado client though)

heh Yeah but she cheated by using "manchurian-candidate"-style mind control to hypnotise and control. You'll note the theme of the holohgraphic character's evil 'third eye' in the holograms to stun the people and control them, reading thier thoughts and shaping themselves to what the person wants to control. One breed of song was destructive, (a song of death which corrupts, controls and manipulates) the other non-destructive. (love songs) For all we know it may not have even been music which was responsible but let's asume it was. (as I said the people looked like they were in some form of drug induced hypnotic state at the sharon apple concert) Hypnotism is real. Here's some info on mind control and the SSS spectrum: http://www.abovetopsecret.com/pages/mindcontrol.html more on patent : http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?...RS=PN/5,159,703 This is what I theorise how a computer could take control of the crew, by first hypnotising, programming instructions into thier subconscious which would later be triggered and unlocked without them being conscious of it, sparking a multiple personality and then carrying out the plans. (like the way sleeper assasins are mind conditioned) Myung mentions how much she hated her songs and the blackbox. Were they really her songs if they didn't come from the heart though? She gave up her real singing career a long time ago. Same thing happened with minmay, towards the end Hikaru and Misa ask her why she sings? It's not for the fans, and to be famous, (she was trying to escape attention) not for herself? Then who? I like to think she was singing for her soul and the emotions people also feel in her lyrics, the melody, etc were the awakening of people who had felt/or wanted to feel those things she was singing about. They wanted to share it. But she can't really express them in her music if she isn't motivated by what she is truly feeling. It would be fake. She would sense that herself once she lost the feeling to sing. Given that the zentreadi are all clones, and essentially mind-conditioned to be killing machines, whose only intructions are to destroy, destroy, destroy - they had no soul. Minmays music gave them one.(or awakened something that was always lying dormant in thier earlier culture) Some religious people who are against cloning might like to explain this by saying that cloning humans results in merely a human 'shell', a physical body, in that it wasn't given a spirit since it was not made by God (through the union of 2 people in love) so the clones lacks a soul. (there is a theme in the street fighter games where the main villain is part of a secret society called shadlaw and he purposely clones bodies for his demonic spirit to inhabit. A clone without a god-given spirit is an empty vessel free for a demon spirit to possess/control. This is what I think happens when other-dimensional beings possess people, because in order for it to be possible, you have to allow your own soul to leave its body to let 'them/it' in. ) Therefore given that the creation of a soul is when 2 people join together, you could say answer the question of: "what it means to be human?" with the answer... love. It's the hidden ingredient that gives meaning to life. If minmay has no passion in her music, what good will it do to motivate soldiers and remind them of what they are protecting? It would be hypocritical. The love song is the central theme and reminder. In fifth element the hidden ingredient after applying the 4 other elements (wind, earth, fire, water etc) was love. Ghost in the Shell? Answers the questions of whether machines have souls even after giving up all of thier physical body. The main character is unfeeling, mechanical and is searching to be human again - she falls in love with another machine! Proving there is a soul in the shell. Matrix Trilogy? The hidden ingredient missing from previous Neo's was that they all lacked love. The architect could not understand what it was in all previous neos that resulted in his world being destroyed, because he himself only thinks logically and lacks emotion and passion in his work (he is merely a robot thinking in mathematical terms) which ultimately makes the matrix destroy itself after a time. But with love, (the oracle may have arranged for trinity to fall in love with neo this time) the current version of neo is able to prevent the destruction by demonstrating. The lesson however is love may not last forever (and the french guy is an example of what could happen when it goes sour over a long time) and this is why the architect continues to be remain cautiously skeptical of the future at the end. But it DOES end the war with the machines nonetheless. Because Neo (a techno jesus) did not die for himself, but for everyone. If you take the matrix example, apply it to macross, minmay is the same at the end where she has to shed her innocence and be honest with herself. Does she love Hikaru, or is she just yearning for the past and for someone to protect her whenever she feels vulnerable? Hikaru protected her many times. (it may have been romantic but things change and now he wants to protect everyone) Love was fleeting and Hikaru moved on, focusing on a new goal. Protecting culture for everyone. (this is similar to the way jedi knights are forbidden to fall in love with only a particular person, but rather an idea: to love everyone. In the end love saved the day, ending the war) Now that is the same with minmay, she had to remain aware of her music for other people but find her passion again. Hikaru fights for the same reason minmay sings. Without her singing there is no hope to end wars altogether. This is the reason kyle had to leave so she could gather her thoughts and mature into a woman to see the effect her music has to others. You'll see a similar maturing of Hikaru throughout the series: he doesn't love the war, he doesn't continue being a soldier just to impress a girl anymore; or even because he loves flying, he gives up all those romantic boyish dreams, for reality and becomes a man by serving a greater purpose for the benefit of the people. There is really no time to mope around because its life or death. Now here's the key difference between evil music and good music: The reference to satan's dolls is equivalent to mindcontrolled puppets. With minmay's singing, the zentreadi were being UN-conditioned/de-programmed to kill rather than conditioned/programmed to love. (love was something that was always there in nature until the protoculture perverted it through genetic engineering and mind conditioning). Music then, just returned them back to thier nature. (like the way Darthvader had to be returned back to his good old self. Luke wasn't perverting truth the way the emperor was. We all though Darth vader was cool and cold all along. But he's a normal guy who was perverted and seduced through manipulation.) As for the emulators: The music the emulators used was more akin to mindcontrol than awakening feelings and emotions that were naturally within people. The good guys just want people to forget destructive forms of behavior, and focus on productive, 'creative' ones. As necessary as they were for defence, the war-like leaders of both sides (adimaral hayes, Bodolza) had to die because all they wanted was to control and manipulate people rather than look at peacful solutions. Why? They are scared! Demons feed on fear and it is the reason yoda warns about "fear" in star wars. "fear leads to anger, anger to hate" etc Now whereas music is the medium, the *intentions* of the person singing the music can change the effect it will have. The emulator music was for purely destructive purposes, while the minmay 'attack' music was for motivation, and *reminding* people what they have back on earth to protect. (probably girlfriends, family, other loved ones.) Remember Minmay's music wasn't intentioned from the beginning to brainwash the aliens and for distraction - only for liftng people's spirits. You'll see this whole "protection" wording used a lot in macross plus. The two rivals promise to protect myung from danger because they both love her which stems from 'weak' emotions, but this protection thinking keeps civilisation going. In nature birds protect thier young and aren't afraid to attack you if you go near thier eggs even if they are afraid to die, wheres snakes and reptiles have no problem eating thier young. One is unselfish preservation of the many at the expense of the few, the other is selfish survival benefiting only the elite. I would say that the leaders who order thier lower ranks to go and destroy! destroy! destroy! (and even destroying thier own guys to to breed more fear), are categorised in the latter reptillian group, while the ones who are "afraid to fight, but prepared and ready to fight when danger threatens thier loved ones", fall into the former category. The end result may be the same: survive! But the intentions of the former are more noble. A person willing to fight to defend others is far more dangerous to thier enemy than a person saving thier own skin, which is why the love song theme is central. This is why I liked the characters in macross because of that element of realism which explores the grey areas in the main characters alot more. You CAN tell the difference between the good guys and bad by getting a view of the whole spectrum and what the characters are all about. The aliens aren't black and white either, they are not blanket evil since they are just reflections of ourselves on a bigger scale. Its not just a case of 2 armies killing each other for gain.

Well, according to ancient legends the prophecised end of the world points to 2012, quite significant to some. In the original macross tv series that is the year when the photo album ends. I'm thinking that (apart from what's told) there isn't much more to tell. I'm waiting to see if those characters in macross zero escape the coming violence through an ancient wormhole. (they deserve some peace) heh I hope there will be more macross to come in whatever form it takes. Even if it's just a remake with all the designs and proper story melded together and reanimated for the fans. Maybe sparking interest from a new generation of fans.

It's only natural that humans would fight each other due to the mixture of zentreadi and human mixing together. Just based on the tv series, you would think humans would not trust thier alien friends and some would distance themselves after sw1. I would love to see a repeat of the events in the original series only this time music is apreciated on both sides and there is a lot of defection going on on both sides, with most of the main characters much more cynical of the politics and of thier own government like the main character in macross II. The soldiers in this new era would feel like combatants in a gladiatorial arena forced to fight each other by thier corrupt leaders. Later drawn between loyalty for thier "cause" and a love for thier own enemy. (do aliens ever play the good guys? And really as wise as the protoculture were there own republic split) That's basically what the original tv series was about to me. Sure Hikaru could have been mad that max would be attracted to an alien enemy in the original series, but if Max could demonstrate to people that love for the enemy can lead to peace than it is true that magic is the key to disarming a physically powerful foe. Fighting destruction with destruction only leads to more destruction. All those cannon fodders were people who were there by necessity wishing for it to end, some possibly kids. Music winning wars may look cheesy but I like to think it's not so much the music but the emotions it stirs up in people. I don't see the difference here to the way movies (apocalypse now?) can be used to move people (provided they are not propaganda) and change thier opinions. If people can use art to change other people's lives then it's not so unlikely that music can be used to affect the soul. The thing that starts wars is the greediness to gain more power(If people could predict the future and outcome of a war, would they enter a war they knew they were going to lose?), with leaders stirring up enough hate in the people for more support to go and fight for them to gain them something, with the only exception being that people fight to defend. But the casualties are always the same. And people's hate for "the enemy" at the losses due to the war only keeps the war going because it fuels even *more* hate - "I must get revenge!". The hate then is emotional rather than logical and to take an example from star wars: Unlike normal people, Jedi knights in star wars can never give into; and are forbidden from; giving into the dark side through emotional hate. But so often we see a hero made out of hate (hollywood movies) because of thier emotion at losing something and us seeing them slowly turning into a vigilante who outdoes his enemy in killing, which isn't realistic or original anymore. In the original series, I liked the fact that hikaru needed to think about his actions, only being heroic towards the end as a protector, not gung ho and artificial because action fans think its cool to see exploding mecha. The problem I think with cartoons back during the 80s (and one of the reasons which got me into macross) was how black and white the characters were and because macross (in the form of robotech) came out, it stood out alot amoungst adults as well as kids. People could for once actually watch a cartoon as a soap because it touched on issues that were semi-realistic. Sure the sci-fi fans love the giant robots and mecha, but it's silly to think that the popularity of a series is solely because of that alone. (even with cool designs an audience will tune out) It really needs a good story which can interest the masses and not to only please a niche audience. Giant robots and mecha by themselves are a dime a dozen, but character that you care about not so. An analogy from star wars: In star wars the main characters were actually pretty real (there's something very world war II about it) and the revealing parts (omg Darth Vader is Luke's dad?!) were what gripped a mainstream audience and what created memorable moments. Luke only disarmed his Dad through love, (similar to the way minmay's music disarmed the zentreadi) and because Vader's heart was not into it (into killing his own son) he took the light side in the end. Demonstrating that even if the exterior shows a cold, droidlike, unfeeling puppet to an evil manipulating dark force; there is still a person under there, that person not being evil, but rather being used and perverted to evil ends like a mind-altered assasin. All the aliens races are just the background (filler) into the rest of the movie, with various shades of grey within each race. (why is it that in sci fi movies there is the habit that everyone who isn';t human must think the same? wear the same clothes, walk the same etc?) Sure watching Jedi knights is "cool" when they are kicking ass onscreen (and isn't it thier duty to fight and destroy evil? Logic and thier teachings say this right?) but for that situation in particular love (just like the minmay attack) was the only thing that could have ended the wars and one reason I think Yoda was much too reluctant to reveal the link of Vader to Luke in the beginning. (not even a Jedi knight could be expected to kill his dad after all. All the beliefs, all the 'reason and wisdom' of the older and more experienced isn't going to make Luke's path any easier, since all yoda could really do is train luke to be a perfect warrior, not an asassin/killer with no conscience. In the fifth element you have a similar thing going on underneath: the four "magic" elements (water fire, wind etc) we are so often seeing in role playing games are the keys to fulfilling the ritual at the end of the movie, but the most important and final element (the fifth element) was love. The magical significance of love is sort of cheesy and all, but it makes sense symbolically as it can be seen as a non-destructive 'weapon' that can defeat anything. Because mainstream audiences can connect to realistic characters in semi realistic settings, I think if they had to make another macross series, it would need to cut away from side stories to maintain the resurgecne of interest and get back to the roots imo. (that is a person who is not necessarily a fan or concerned about the filler in the background) Hopefully riding on the success of the roots of what made macross great, and seeing follow-up toys and stuff. As much as I love macross plus and zero as the rest of the fans, it seemed to be aimed only for existing fanbase but risks alienating others no matter how good it is at what it was originally aiming for by the creator. (treated as a stand-alone, one-off thing) The macross plus story is flat to somebody who is not a fan of macross. This is a negative point in creating a side story to an old series for a fanbase that might have moved on. But you can still be original and yet still maintain a mass audience. It's just a stereotype to think that just because you repeat something it has to be unoriginal and overdone. (comes from a lifetime watching poorly-executed sequels?) They probably could reanimate the original but personally I would much rather a new series which physically reorganises; while also symbolically retells, the same basic story as the original. When misa and hikaru are fighting against each other in the beginning, it parrallells with how the zentreadi and humans are fighting. Towards the end, the theme of love plays, and we see misa and hikaru become lovers (which is so unlikely) as does the humans and zentreadi in the form of zentreadi loving minmay and human culture. Macrocosm and microcosm - The theme being played in the small scale - hikaru and misa fighting and hating each other's guts -, and large scale - the war of humans vs aliens. And meanwhile Minmay's music and love songs bringing the two halfs together in the background. Like someone else said I think when you leave big gaps between releases, people will forget, but look at some totally re-made cartoons in the US like the ninja turtles. The original toon may not have captured what the original creator had in mind as closely as it has to the later version. (new turtles is much more cinematic) I remember reading the original turtle comic (I had the first print issue 1) and it was much darker than the 80s cartoon, more close to the newer toon shown today. And the newer toon, although using the same characters, has been reorganised enough to maintain interest for people who had seen the old 80s version and the 80s live action movie. ie it's still fresh besides being essentially the same thing over again.

Whew! Lucky I held back buying these. Sounds like a nightmare. No wonder they are limited edition. By holding back your wallets maybe the price will go down quicker. Maybe at some future date they will release mass produced toy versions with all the fixes and proper quality control (instead of delicate "master"-in-"pieces" collections designed for desperate Mospeada fan) so that people can play with it. I don't think many people would put up with this apart from the dedicated fan with money to burn. Seriously I want to see a transformable toy (are masterpiece collections even considered "toys"? They are not under the toy section on the robotech site) sometime in the future with all the detail these masterpieces have. I wouldn't mind paying a high price for something so long that it is going to last.

Yeah but even if they could force themselves to turn away, curiosity would get the better of them and at least slow down thier reactions, (like the demonstrated kissing) weakening thier focus on the battle. In DYRL when Hikaru and Misa are trying to escape and the soldiers are about to recapture them, Roy tells them to perform a kiss which disgusts and intrigues them long enough to make an escape to get away. If a kiss could do that, then an x-rated porno would send them packing. I often see the similarity here with how women are disgusted and scared of cockroaches, bugs, spiders or rats but not other types of things. (insects as much as they are harmless) Or how elephants; although much greater in size, have a phobia of mice. (although it has been found they are scared of what they don't know) Maybe they don't want to get contaminated or catch something? Even though the said fear is illogical, and the thing quite harmless, that doesn't explain why they are scared. Women will even jump onto a chair at the site of a mouse. Lizards? no reaction. Flies? nothing. Mice? "EEEEEEEkk!!" To aliens we are creepy. Remember all they would need is a distraction long enough to target the guy giving them thier orders and upset thier chain of command. Seeing as the average intelligence of a zentreadi has been kept at a minimum to maintain total order, humans can use this to thier advantage by splitting thier forces apart using constant psychological attacks. Whatever scares them to gain any advantage at all, no matter how wierd we think that fear might be to us. Remember the Zentreadi spies in the tv series didn't choose thier risky mission out of devotion to the cause, but more because they secretly wanted to see minmay and more of those scantily-clad chics from the beauty contest. That much was obvious. They may not have been able to explain thier "strange feelings" they got to thier supreme commander and breetai at the time, but that was them just not being able to hold back thier sexual urge after it was awakened at the sight of the females in clothes.

That pulsating brain is scary. If the dna of zentreadi is almost identical to humans imagine how hard it would be for exedol and gloval to convince those skeptics at the meeting who can't believe the aliens are like them. They would scream at the sight of exedol and run out the room before letting gloval read the report. And to think exedol was shocked at the sight of the woman on the billboard ad and yet his throbbing forehead wasn't at all strange to us humans..Don't you think they would want to know what was growing in there? (like in the movie aliens where the little baby alien pops out of the stomach of the victim) I suppose they could just say that like the elephant man, it is a mere deformity (to not panic those around him) but the throbbing brain would give it away. They should never have made his head throb for no reason.

*looks at pics* Yes, will be getting one of these. Going to save up first then read reviews about it before making the purchase though. The little banpresto valks will look nice next to it. heh I'll have one crouched riding on top of it, with monster in gerwalk mode while other dramatically posed banprestos stand near offering up close range support. Not that it needs it.

I thought the dogfighting, music and mechs were ok in this. For people like me who pretty much thought macross had ended with the tv series and movie, (given the assumption that macross had not originally intended to have a sequel and may never in the future) this was water for a thirsty man in a desert. It may not live up to the standards of the fans but I quite enjoyed it for what it was. I'm just going to imagine this as a movie within a movie. Fans in fictional world saw DYRL and loved it, demanding a sequel. Then Macross II was made quickly and like in the real world; rushed out to rake in profits and we have the sequel to DYRL? J/k I had the manga a long time ago and remember thinking wtf? who are these new characters and enemies? The story was so formulaic though and you could almost tell how the enemy confrontation and problems were going to be resolved without needing to see everything. It's interesting that the Marduk males aren't tempted by all the near fully-naked female emulators in the skimpy outfits. (at least the Zents from the tv and movie were ignorant or had forgotten the ancient mating rituals, which was thier excuse: believing love stops warlike behaviour and weakens them. They weren't gay or anything, they just forgot - not the marduk though) ..So as a solution all the humans need to do in future is create a virtual holographic XXX-porno, beam this to all the monitors and holographic projectors and the enemy-aliens would get the idea to defect and start behaving. Now that's a distraction that'd buy time to quickly eliminate the higher ranking enemies and cause chaos amoungst the lower-ranked brainwashed slaves who can't think for themselves. They won't know what to do because once thier leader is gone they can celebrate thier individual freedom and concentrate on getting on with the naked emulators without fear, and bringing peace to the galaxy. If the singing isn't working then at least beaming images would make them pay attention. You can't ignore large holographic porn. Heck it would be the ultimate defense and a reminder to all the other of what they are destroying, making thier enemies gradally more complacent and weaker-willed.

I'm thinking that the death is always inevitable as foretold in the prophecies, and that whether they are anti-un or un, it doesn't matter as it is in man's nature to kill others so new ones can be made. Sounds harsh but that is the whole birth, death, rebirth cycle of the phoenix. In order for it to arise it has to first be destroyed and that corrupt old scientist dude is the key to making that monster come alive. He used the necklace to bribe the religious chic into breaking the rule of giving her blood as a way to bring destruction to the world I'm thinking. Knowing full well that by fullfilling the prophecy he could see within his own lifetime whether the myths were actually true but having tempted fate all hell will break loose. The UN soldiers that raped that messed up crazed chic only shows the corruption in man on either side, so they are both greedy to get thier hands on more advanced tech to tip the scales, but in the middle are all the blood of the innocent because they both go about it through violent militaristic means. (This is similar to the two sides in the protoculture republic which split up and eventually wiped out thier race after they fiddled with experiments into trying to create the ultimate soldier which didn't need technology to survive.) It's all very X-files but I think I'm starting to like M Zero's need to put human religion and myth into the mix. The bottom line is that the needless death is just a step to a new life (like in relgions where there is a heaven or after life waiting for you after you die.) in a constant cycle that repeats in order that people adjust to changes. Similar to the fighting style used by valkyries (example is when Roy is instructing Shin on using the Variable fighters effectively by changing to each unique situation) or in martial arts. (example: Bruce Lee philosophy. Also, the incident where shin learns to "swim" underwater both as a human and later in battroid form to adapt to new environments, it is parrallell with the creatures in nature which live in harmony with thier environments and change to survive in them, like the flying fish.) By being adaptable, it will ensure survival of the species. That chic obviously has the power to ressurect creatures that died by using her singing. The scientist (Roy's love interest) I think will record her singing, play it back and try to ressurect and awaken the dead birdman monster thingy and given that the monster might have superdimensional powers (time travel?) it could bring her villages to another word by space folding as a way to protect her people from what's about to come (the coming zentreadi arrival etc) and act as a star gate to thier heaven. I personally doubt people that can make rocks float are around anymore by the time of macross tv, otherwise the military would try to harness them for evil purposes and use them. I like to think of the singing as a magic spell that can be used to kill or give life. Either it can be used as a song of destruction or a life-giving song. The song of destruction would be too dangerous if used as a weapon and in the wrong hands. But it will be necessary to "change" or cleanse the growing evil from the destructive war on earth possibly almost bringing on the end of the world. Here's an interesting article on the effect different sounds have on people and the environment. The floating rocks could be explained away from the magic created from that girls singing which affects the enviornment in a unique way, but in an exaggerated form.)