Major Focker

...continued PART 2 + Brera: Sing, Ranka. Sorrow, pain, joy. Let all your emotions ride on your song...This time, I will stop this war. This will be our atonement. I didn't particularly like Your Sound when it was first aired, but here, the acoustic instrumental served as the perfect backdrop to Brera's moment of truth. The clarity of the strings and clear punctuations of the piano echo Brera's regained lucidity and resolve for redemption. + Cheeky SK slipped this right under our noses. We've seen it so many times in the OP we took it for granted. A symbolic image of unity and rising determination, SK could not have outdone himself with a better intro for Lion. Follow that with Macross Quarter charging and Battle Frontier saying Here comes big daddy! with a canon salvo as Lion goes into heavy guitar riffs, and the adrenaline rush is pretty much guaranteed. Top that off with Wilder chanelling Bretai as Lion plays on and it's goosebumps galore. Those with pride in their wings, press forth alongside me! + An homage to SDFM we've seen on many occasions, but here it takes on greater significance: Alto, and Macross Frontier as a series coming into its own. SK outdid himself with the VF-25, a design that echoes the original VF-1 but a classic on its own right. + Classic David vs Goliath. Canaria's charge is one for the books + When Lion comes back on, it does so like a pent up geyser. Deftly directed, the camera zooms past Ranka and focuses on Sheryl's eyes burning with determination as she sings I want to survive! and embodied by the Macross Quarter delivering the classic Daedalus manuever. Top that off with the most epic KO punch in all of anime-dom, this sequence is just pure win! + A solemn tribute to a fallen comrade + Brera's impeccable timing comes to the fore as he saves Alto, setting up the Alto x Brera charge that will be the benchmark of fighter choreography for many years to come. In that sequence, many might have missed the spectacular move pulled off by Brera: spotting another VF-27, Brera zooms ahead of Alto and shifts to gerwalk, then like a bird of prey, swoops the hapless quarry into his clutches before dispatching it as it came disarmed. Reminds me of DYRL Max grappling a Zentraedi before shooting him in the face. + Opening all missile bays never gets old. Specially not when it comes after an epic charge capped off with a back-to-back tango by two of the most gifted pilots. + Alto: But because we are alone...We love someone! (Never mind that he can't make up his mind as to who.) The writers have earned their pay. + The Angel of Retribution As for the most emotional moment... it's the Vajra sacrificing to save Frontier. I had guessed that the Vajra were not evil and would side with Frontier. But I was surprised it would involve sacrifice, and at this scale. I'm still surprised at how much it has impacted me. Damn scene brought a tear to my eye. Partly to blame is Diamond Crevasse, the somber low strings and uplifting high strings pull at your heart in both directions. Or perhaps it was the sheer magnitude? Easily hundreds of vajra for each precious soul aboard Frontier. The old war justification of the sacrifice of a few, for the lives of the many gets thrown out the window. With that kind of ratio, the mind struggles to cope leaving us with only our emotions to try to grasp the implications of war. Or perhaps it was the sheer crudeness with how the Vajra saved Frontier? No fancy flying, no acrobatic moves, no flash of brilliance nor skill; just literally laying theirselves unflinchingly in the line of fire. My life for yours. It was that simple, yet cannot possibly be even more profound. Well, that was my longest post ever. Hopefully with that, I can get Frontier out of my system and stop re-watching the finale. It's been great guys. Long live Macross!

I had wanted to do a Top5 scenes from this final episode but quickly found out that it wouldn't be doing justice to the many awesome scenes packed into this finale. Still, there were some that stood out for emotional impact, where dialogue, music, and imagery simply came together into a potent cocktail. So in chronological order: PART 1 + Brera: Scatter to the ends of the galaxy! This has got to be the coolest pose with which to dispatch an adversary. Brera's gestures are mirrored by his gun pod as well as by the dialogue + Alto's death. A poignant scene that remains haunting even after you've found out Alto survived + Sheryl: Alto!!! Ok, so this was actually only shown at the end of ep24. But you got to admit, this heartbreaking scream was probably still echoing in your mind when you sat to watch the finale. We see a lot of primal screams in anime, but rarely one that is both beautiful and heart-wrenching at the same time. Northern Cross which cut in right after as the ED, underlined the tragedy: Our desperate meetings were always painful...I loved as if it was war...Because there will be no meaning if you are gone...Crucified by fate, the Northern Star burns + Battle Galaxy unleashes the terror of the Ghost V9's, launching wave after wave like spent rifle cartridges. The V9's make their presence immediately felt and punctuating it with a classic Kakikaze death. The pilot's curse lives! + A graceful ballet of symmetry and gesture, worthy of an accomplished Kabuki actor, and a deserved nod to M+ + Alto: Sheryl, lend me your strength. And Sheryl delivers in spades. From the conceited, self-absorbed diva that arrived in Frontier, who nearly everyone on the forum thought was a bitch, who would have thought that Sheryl, except for wanting Alto, would turn out to be possibly the most selfless and generous soul on Frontier? Ailing and at the point of exhaustion, Sheryl does what she does best: giving her all. + Luca: Now, I absolve you of your yokes. The strength which once held Macross city in fear. Judah system, release! Tough words from a wimpy kid, but gotta give credit for eloquence. + Amidst the frenetic action pulsing with the energy of Northern Cross, a touching moment as Klan takes aim. + Grace: The super-dimensional lifeform Vajra! A majestic sight that is terrible to behold. With one of the most spot on BGMs, the scene of the Vajra Queen emerging inspires awe and fear in equal measure. Easily double the size of Battle Galaxy and with regal wings that span the monitor, the Queen unfurls with a palpable dread that literally resonates throughout the galaxy. + The Macross city skyline- iconic even after 25 years. to be continued

thought you might be the best person to ask for recommendations. i'm looking for more stuff similar to the Homeworld2 soundtrack. in case you're not familiar with the PC game, here's a sound cue: thanks

oops! well, they're siblings afterall, so pardon if i confuse them every now and then was brera really targeting with his own missiles though or was he either guiding alto or feeding off alto for his own targeting (presumably through their newfound mind link)? brera had his back turned on the target. that's pretty neat. edit: also just noticed that one of luca's ghosts sacrificed itself to cover him (when alto was just about to charge the queen, but before hooking up with brera). either luca reined them back to normal programming or that judah system has had some tweaks. i don't think self-sacrifice would've been on its original programming back in the sharon apple days.

i'm curious why ranka's eyes were in the background while alto was doing that epileptic targeting bit. is it to say that ranka was basically advising him where to hit because of what she's discerned of vajra anatomy?

yup, let's move along. there are lots of other stuff from this episode worthy of discussion like how luca's rosy cheeks came back when ozma was scolding luca for not calling him captain, or beercan missiles (i'm SURE there's one in there somewhere), or that brera is now kenshin himura. but seriously, the way the nature of the vajra was explained and their link to PC (or rather, the PC's link to them) was mighty interesting and establishes a good foundation both for future development and links to the past. there are subtleties and implications there waiting to be mined. lest there be any doubt where my heart lies, check my avatar. all i can say is, "close but no cigar". i doubt sheryl would be satisifed with innuendos either.

theory: vajra mating cycles take eons. they might also have a hibernation cycle that takes eons and coincided with civil war, thus they were out of the picture. or at that time they might have gone to another galaxy to mate as they are not restricted to one galaxy as PC tech is (as far as we know). the vajra might actually have departed, to answer a booty call in another galaxy, before the civil war thus paving the way for the PC rise to power in this galaxy. the PC might have encountered the vajra, when the PC were still just a nascent civilization (ie. not primitive as in caveman, rather, already space-faring but relatively early in their galactic expansion as the humans are by the time of MF). the vajra encounter could've inspired the PC and provided another leap-frog in PC tech, but either the encounter was brief or the PC simply did not have enough time or contact with the vajra to sufficiently understand and emulate vajra tech prior to the departure, hence PC tech is "imperfect" (eg. PC fold capabilities are inferior to vajra fold) but the PC kept trying to develop anyway leading to their distinct flavor of PC tech with vajra influences. a brief encounter and the departure may also provide a basis of why the PC view of the vajra is almost mythological. they were basically a young race apparently deserted by their gods, but were left with the gift of fire (or fold in this case). without the vajra around, the stellar republic rose to become the dominant power in the galaxy, but collapsed and disappeared by the time the vajra returned from their honeymoon. all theory of course..

transformation pics

or bandai might push for a december release to coincide with the DX issue for a christmas windfall. hey, that's an idea. christmas on vajra planet. lots of romantic possibilities there.. edit: that perhaps can force a resolution whatever the story, and whenever they release it, with the movie, they have the opportunity to target a more mature audience. i hope they go that route.

just realized: they never did show nanase wake up, or did they?

that shot alone would probably boost toy/model sales of the VF-25G the altoxbrera tango was epic!

now, if they could just lower the hip joint or have a torso extension...

VF-25 Messiah answered your questions pretty well, and rather diligently. you might want to do a bit of rewatching (ideally with subs) including some previous eps so it'll piece together. the changing colors thing, the meeting in fold space, galaxy-wide networking, etc... these popped up earlier or were used in a similar fashion in previous episodes, so should provide some explanations/background. there are still some open questions but many of what you've mentioned aren't exactly WTF-types and can be discerned with some reruns.

24:00 and counting. was inclined to wait for the ep25 subs but might have to fly out this sunday on a week-long business trip which would make the wait unbearably long. so i'm considering watching the live broadcast and perhaps read up on this IRC thingie...

i actually thought right=front since the area near the right end of the fuselage looked like a cockpit and the spoiler was slanting right to left in the picture. anyway, good luck on your build. and if you're hosting a buildup thread/blog somewhere, please let me know. i've never scratched anything before and i'd like to see how some like this is scratchbuilt.

i'm starting to suspect alto might be confusing his control buttons the same way people mix up the wiper lever and left-turn signal when driving abroad

that looks cool. from what series is it from and where to get the kit? also, where to get this munchkin? thanks edit: after a bit of research, found the red craft to be from the Border Down shoot-em-up. most likely available only as a GK but still no idea where to get them. or where you planning on scratching it?

bandai might be phasing out this package format (ie. solo vanilla), and switching to an expanded format (valk+packs). their projections might have shown they wouldn't be able to sell as much of the super/armor packs if stand-alones were available, and they were just testing the waters with alto. well no surprises there, they've got a tsunami of a demand.

that 0C looks mighty nice. definitely will get one. unfortunately i missed out on the 0A. anyone want to sell theirs? i hope hasegawa also issues a separate ghost kit.

the tool tip looks like this but the notch is smaller and narrower for use with plastic seams: found above pic on a metal working site, but the scraper i'm looking for is for scale models. first saw it on some guy's build-up thread/blog and he was using it to remove raised panel line off an old school kit. can't remember though if it was a WWII bomber or a star destroyer.

surfing some time ago i stumbled upon a seam scraping tool for removing raised panel lines. i can't remember the brand, but this particular scraper was distinct since it did not simply have a flat tool tip. rather, it had a notch in the middle of the tool tip where the raised panel line would go and be cut off while flanked on both sides by the tool tip. unfortunately i lost the link and after searching for some time still couldn't find it. i'm hoping some of you might be using it or perhaps come across it as well. appreciate any leads. thanks.

whew! i can breathe now. just got shipping notice from hlj. pre-ordered on the day they put it up and paid within minutes of the payment request, yet others who just placed their orders got shipping notices earlier. seems like shipping priority is a pretty random affair for hlj, but perhaps this will give some hope to those who pre-ordered early but yet to receive their notices.

exactly 4 days from now, MF ep25 will be airing. i am wondering how many of us will use that time to contemplate how to approach the end of the line. (those who are well-versed in japanese need not apply) will you: 1. watch the broadcast/ live stream even if you don't know a lick of japanese, even if the resolution might be horrible or that it'll turn into a slideshow as more people get on the stream, just so you can immediately see (albeit, probably in pixelated fashion) who will buy the farm or who alto (assuming he lives) will kiss at the end? 2. keep pressing F5 until the first HD raws show up, then rewatch until you can form a vague opinion of what is actually happening in dialogue heavy scenes which sound greek to you, or perhaps console yourself by running the entire episode frame by frame to catch the next occurence of the machida punch or a beercan missile? 3. put yourself into a coma to avoid the agony of waiting for the first subs? how you get yourself into a coma is up to you, but you know that any broken bones or any lingering hemorraghic or chemical overdose damage will be worth it so you can experience and understand the final episode as close as possible to its intended delivery. as ozma said: we need to choose our own path. i have one request to the fansubbers: make it quick. please.

i've seen their GitS subs and they're ok

i thought he missed a little and had to kick off the vajra then shot it. after re-watching, i can't shake the feeling that alto may well and truly be dead. he might do an obiwan, appearing to sheryl, confess his love and egg sheryl to sing the finale. sheryl expires with the last note. argh, who am i kidding?! it's friday night. time to hit the bars.