Elektrix

Btw, for some freeze-frame fun, check out the English screen text around 16:20.

It does make sense - it is always interesting I think when Yoko Kanno gets to play with themes established in a previous series. Just thinking about her follow up soundtracks for Ghost in the Shell, the Cowboy Bebop and Turn A Gundam movies, etc. I personally can't wait to buy her Macross F albums (and hope for 3 or 4 albums worth of music).

Wow....... just had to chime in and share the sentiment that this looked to be an excellent first episode - of course, tough to say for sure without understanding the language, but I love what I'm seeing so far. In particular, I definitely agree about the quality of the animation - it does seem incredible to see this level of detail in TV animation. Overall, I'm just excited to know a new Macross TV series is coming, and it's great to get to see this first episode. -Elektrix

Very cool, thanks. The VF-17 probably is one of my favorite designs (probably because I'm a fan of the real-life plane its based on), so it's cool to see it getting updated and still used. And I love the VF-25, so this is definitely shaping up nicely from that front.

Two questions; is the VF-171 then in fact somehow based on the VF-17 (and is that the reason for the similarity in designation)? And that article translation mentions it taking place near the galactic core. Isn't that where the MEGAROAD-01 went? Why would they be sending another colony ship there? What are the odds they run into humans/people from MEGAROAD-01 out there?

Jeez, I'm an idiot..... I just made the connection between VF-25 and 25th anniversary....

Just had to pop in again to see all the latest - just saw the new trailer (with the Yoko Kanno music), and the Newtype scan. Man, I just can't say how excited I am that there's new Macross coming out.

Gotcha, I'd have to watch Macross Plus again - I seem to somehow associate it with some of the sort of desert scenes at New Edwards or some of the test flight scenes (it's got that western theme so it would seem to fit some of those desolate scenes). -Elektrix

I know this is probably a pretty unimportant question, but I was wondering if there's even an answer. Anyone know what Sparefish is or what it means? The Macross Plus song title "Welcome to Sparefish" has been stuck in my head and its been bothering me that I'm not sure what, if anything, it means or refers to. Googling for sparefish turns up pretty much nothing but references to the song title, and it tries to recommend Spearfish instead.

I did actually - it's not so much that he stole it as just that I haven't been in touch with him lately to ever get it back. Either way, until I do, I figure it will be nice to get another set in the meantime. -Zadillo

I am really glad I found this thread, with the mention about the AnimEigo discs now being available for only $40 from Robotech.com. I bought the original AnimEigo boxset (preordered it) for the full price, but I lent it to a friend who I still haven't been able to get it back from. I was getting close to just going ahead and buying the new ADV version, but knowing I can get another copy of the original AnimEigo discs for only $40, it's a no-brainer for me.

I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I actually think it is kind of cool that 2009 will see the release of a new Macross series, given the significance that year has in the Macross universe. Imagine if the new series premieres on February 7th, 2009, for example.

About the point about Basara not having any character growth; I can understand that to some degree, but I don't necessarily see this as a deficiency. Basara strikes me more as a character who is supposed to sort of be a catalyst for the growth of many other characters in the show. It seems like the point of the show is less about some standard character arch for Basara, and is more about how a variety of other characters react to him, eventually grow to undersand him, and perhaps even grow themselves by the example he sets. I can see how this isn't ideal, but I don't think it's necessarily a terrible way to do a story either. I'm not sure that Macross 7 would be more interesting if Basara were a more typical "heroic" lead having to learn a variety of lessons, etc.

Just out of curiosity, I have a question for the people who have said they really don't like seeing the "tree-hugging" environmentalism/etc. stuff put into these stories. As a general question, for the people who don't like to see this, what are your actual opinions on environmentalism? Technically I could guess just from the use of the term "tree-hugging", but I'm genuinely curious. Is it just that you don't think environmentalism and mysticism for that matter are topics that belong in Macross, or is it because you disagree with some of the ideas or philosophy (i.e. you don't think environmentalism is important) that it bothers you to see it? -Elektrix

I just flipped on the TV as the Conan O'Brian show was ending, and during the ending credits, they had this guy in an easy chair just going on and on about how he was a big Robotech fan (he described it as a Japanese anime series), describing it as a show about a city captured in a bubble and sent off into space where they fought aliens. He then went on to describe how he was collecting it on VHS and had collected about 30 tapes before the company went out of business. Then he talked about how he started buying Robotech on DVD, but then was troubled when he found out there was a Robotech Masterpiece collection, a Robotech remastered collection, etc. Then the camera zoomed in on him, he pointed his finger at the camera and he said that he was calling for one definitive Robotech collection so he could finally see how the story ends and what happens to that city in the bubble. Anyway, I'm not sure what the heck the point was, but it was REALLY bizarre seeing someone on network TV talking about Macross (even if it was by way of Robotech... and he did specifically say the "Macross Saga"). Just wondering if anyone else happened to catch it. All I can guess is that it was supposed to be intentionally bizarre and nerdy. -Elektrix

I posted a link above dedicated to this. But it now seems defunct. I'll check that out later. But keep in mind that if you want to have the original video quality, you'll need a dual-layer DVD, and hence a dual-layer-capable burner. Such burners *just* became available. . . and the dual-layer media is still nearly non-existant. H Hrmm, aside from doing DYRL, aren't there some options to just span a dual layer disc across 2 single-sided DVD's? I know it would screw a few things up, but I could swear I've seen things that split them up and then you just insert the second disc for everything that didn't fit on the first disc). -Elektrix

This is very cool. I have a normal DVD burner, and the FX DVD's/ Would anyone have any advice (i.e. step by step) how I could go about using the FX DVD's and these sub scripts to burn new DVD's with the new subs? -Elektrix

It seems that these are just rips from some sort of bootleg..... the video quality seems poor compared to the R2 DVD's, and the song lyrics aren't translated at all. Aside from that, some of the dialogue seems akward, and there are odd misspellings like Megaroad translated as Megalord in the intro in the first episode. -Elektrix

I don't know if I could agree with that...... I don't see anything inherent in animation that would explain this. I mean, take Watership Down, or Grave of the Fireflies..... I don't think it's even about equaling what a live action movie can accomplish. It is a different form. If anything, I think that animation and artwork in general can convey a type of emotion and presence that would be impossible in a live action movie or photography. But you're free to believe that. I personally think there are unique things about artwork and animation that make them perfectly legitimate and capable of very unique things that can't be done with live action or photography.... it's a different form, I don't see any reason to call it a lower one. But if you feel that way about anime, that's up to you. -Elektrix

I don't know, I've really enjoyed both episodes immensely..... I certainly want to see how the remaining three episodes play out, but I have really liked everything I've seen so far. And JsArclight, of course you're free to your opinion...... I'm not sure why you would think you wouldn't be. The only reason I can see people perhaps trying to convince you of this is when you bring up things like "poor scriptwriting", which perhaps they feel like responding to. At the very least, just as you have your opinion, others have their own... it's not so much that they are trying to convince you of anything as responding to what you have said. I don't think you're necessarily alone in liking the original Macross primarily...... there's probably a lot of people like that. I personally enjoy the various Macross stuff to varying degrees..... the original is probably my all-time favorite.... at the same time, I can certainly understand that other people perhaps don't like Macross 7 as much as I do..... or that they may not enjoy Macross Zero as much as I've enjoyed it. Different people will react in different ways. I think you are free to say you don't like it. But I think some of your statements perhaps go beyond just opinions, which is perhaps what people are responding to.... i.e. if you say the show has poor scriptwriting, you have to expect that someone who does like the scriptwriting of the show so far would respond to that. If you say not just that you don't like the show, but that it is weak, people will respond to that too. It's natural. But it's ok.... you are free to your opinion, everyone else is free to their own. -Elektrix

Does anyone know what the story is behind these? I was talking to a friend who had downloaded them, and he complained that the video quality was very poor (like VHS copies almost)..... that the "intro" text for the show seemed to be very garbled English...... and that a lot of the song lyrics, radio chatter, etc. weren't translated at all. Are these ripped from a bootleg source or something? I am guessing that might explain things. Just wondering if that is what these are..... since I would assume they would rip from R2 DVD sources and use the existing fansub scripts (like how AiA used the Central Anime scripts as a basis.... and the pysco-KORps scripts are still available). -Elektrix