Robotech and HG license debates

[Gubaba]

You miss understand. Its not that we hate Robotech at all and many of us such as myself enjoy both Macross and Robotech. What we hate is the fact that we cannot buy beloved Macross stuff right here in America. Robotech stuff is easy to buy so why shouldn't Macross be easy to buy in America as well? I for one want to be able to drive to a local Target and find Macross stuff to buy and for the cash I spent to help finance the great guys at BW who created Macross while the Robotech stuff rots on the shelves with there little gold HG stickers.

Yes, Harmony Gold gave us Robotech, but in the end it was just 3 series produced by Tatsunko edited together, yet somehow HG feels they should be credited for creating some brand new epic franchise. What if I took Indiana Jones and Star Wars and edited them together to create an epic mini-series for another Country, lets say Germany? Start with Inidana Jones saga then add a time jump and suddenly you have a saga focusing on Jone's distant ancestor Han Jones. Since they are both done by Harrison Ford and I have all these great ads about how "Ripoff Wars" is this huge multi-generational epic the stupid audience will play right along right? After I trademark 'Ripoff Wars: the Star Wars Saga" and deny any new Stars Wars stuff into the country, I should have Star Wars fans excited over the cheap knock-offs I market? Give me a break.

Since, HG loves to rip-off the Japanese for their Robotech franchise they should go ahead and "follow the Japanese model and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say I’m sorry, and then either do one of two things — resign, or go commit suicide” next to AIG executives.

Erm...you DO realize that Roy Focker is being sarcastic, don't you...?

[Einherjar]

Business strategy !?!?!? You mean doing nothing else than masturbating, right ?

The fans still do most of the work for them, so yeah.

[TheLoneWolf]

One hard fact I can give you, and I already mentionned it pages ago in this thread (it was 3 or 4 years ago though, so many of you may not have read it...), well, there's no reference at all to HG in the french edition of M7 Trash by Glénat (which is not exactly a small publisher in Euro, actually it's one of the biggest comics editor around): I own every volume and none of them have HG written anywhere

That's very interesting! What year or years was that published in? Also, does it specifically list Big West as the licensor?

We never made that claim. We only questioned if it was scheduled for six episodes because the last episode had really poor animation quality.

Thanks for the clarification. Mind you, I've never listened to any Destroy All Podcasts, just going off of Freiflug88's post.

[Jasonc]

In regards to the "marketing" HG does, I find it absolutely funny that they have one guy who makes like $13/hr to be their PR guy, say stuff like "Robotech is expanding", "We are growing", but have absolutely nothing to show for it. Then, a bunch of blowhards make their "We Will Win" posts by saying, "Thanks for telling us the truth", "HG is great". Then, they still believe that whole lame ass excuse of "We don't say anything cause we are doing so much" BS. Kevin reminds me of Gary Gnu from Great Space Coaster, "No Gnews is good Gnews!", then again, that's insulting to Gary Gnu, at least he was somebody, even if a puppet.

Kinda reminds me of something else, from AIG execs: "AIG is doing well, we are thriving in this economy"

Meryl Lynch execs, "Meryl Lynch will continue to grow"

It's all to comedic, seeing the used car salesman line some of those poor saps believe over there. As far as licensing, HG has 2 or 3 licensees left for current product, that's Toynami, and Palladium. ADV expires soon, like this month or something, although they still have SDF:M, Southern Cross, and Mospeada. I don't see them milking that again.

[Freiflug88]

Erm...you DO realize that Roy Focker is being sarcastic, don't you...?

Nah, I am the type who takes things too seriously at times plus I like to rant on about Ripoff-tech.

Thanks for the clarification. Mind you, I've never listened to any Destroy All Podcasts, just going off of Freiflug88's post.

I recently replayed to their MII podcast and heard nothing about the budget issues so no doubt I heard about that rumor from somewhere else on the net. The guys at Destroy All Podcasts are die hard Macross fans who really do seem to know their stuff and they are also hilarious to listen to. They do spoil a lot of things unfortunately so I only listen to them after I have watched something.

[Freiflug88]

I find it absolutely funny that they have one guy who makes like $13/hr to be their PR guy

Either he is a Robotard fanboy who agreed to receive free Robotech junk in compensation or he gets paid for spreading lies about Robotech marketing 24/7. I also think its sad how they hire Tommy Yune to do EVERYTHING. He was originally hired to do some artwork for Robotech.com, but ended up writing and directing Shadow Chronicles. Its no wonder there is nothing to show for Shadow Rising when Tommy is probably doing most of the work himself. Considering its their biggest franchise and only Tommy is doing the work, they would be much better off if they worked with WB on their upcoming Live Action and Animated movies. I for one bet that Bruce Timm and company would be the best guys for animating Robotech bar none.

As far as licensing, HG has 2 or 3 licensees left for current product, that's Toynami, and Palladium. ADV expires soon, like this month or something, although they still have SDF:M, Southern Cross, and Mospeada. I don't see them milking that again.

ADV was clever in marketing SDF:M, Southern Cross, and Mospeada as the source material of Robotech for fans, but I think they unfortunately did the release at the wrong time. Had the DVDs been released way back when Robotech was shown on Toonami and the Midnight run on Cartoon Network I bet sales would be much better. Come to think of it I wonder if anyone at Cartoon Network has considered airing the English Dubs of Macross and Gatchaman instead of the new garbage they show like Total Drama island.

BTW Jasonc did you make that hilarious Sourpuss avatar yourself?

[Roy Focker]

Rest assured we are working very hard to bring Robotech the Master Piece Collection to Your Local Target Store. You can afford these new toys even while making $13 an hour.

[taksraven]

Either he is a Robotard fanboy who agreed to receive free Robotech junk in compensation or he gets paid for spreading lies about Robotech marketing 24/7. I also think its sad how they hire Tommy Yune to do EVERYTHING. He was originally hired to do some artwork for Robotech.com, but ended up writing and directing Shadow Chronicles. Its no wonder there is nothing to show for Shadow Rising when Tommy is probably doing most of the work himself. Considering its their biggest franchise and only Tommy is doing the work, they would be much better off if they worked with WB on their upcoming Live Action and Animated movies. I for one bet that Bruce Timm and company would be the best guys for animating Robotech bar none.

I think that they should have hired Tommy's buddy buddy, Mr Pieman Khyron to write the Shadow Chronicles, since he clearly knows better than everybody else.

Taksraven

(Now that is off my chest I will never mention it again)

[RavenHawk]

Maybe I am being naive, but I really do wonder what they do at Robotech. I mean, the website now is talking about a convention that two people are going to be at, and how everyone should come there. To do what? To be told what?

Honestly, considering that all Robotech seems to be doing these days is licensing old material, or putting their name on Toynami, Beagle, and Megahouse products, what do they do? What does Tommy Yune do for 40 hours a week? I'm asking very seriously.

Steve Yune is in charge of the website? Other than arguments I see him having with people on the forum and banning people fairly arbitrarily, what does he do? The website has no PMs, has no capabilities that pretty much any other forum on the net has, hasn't had any real changes in years. So, what does he do for 40 hours a week?

Again, I'm not trying to be snarky, just don't get what these people do over the course of a week to justify whatever salaries it may be that they draw?

[Freiflug88]

Rest assured we are working very hard to bring Robotech the Master Piece Collection to Your Local Target Store. You can afford these new toys even while making $13 an hour.

That would be great, without Media Play its a pain waiting for local cons and their dealers' rooms. Now if only the Robotech Master Piece Collection, did a remake of the best toy ever, the Original G-1 Jetfire that was a VF and Transformer in one. Heck, why not market models of the "Lost Mechs of BattleTech" for Mech Warrior fans as well.

I think that they should have hired Tommy's buddy buddy, Mr Pieman Khyron to write the Shadow Chronicles, since he clearly knows better than everybody else.

Mr Pieman Khyron? Was he the one who leaked the supposed script for Shadow Rising about two years back.

[Jasonc]

BTW Jasonc did you make that hilarious Sourpuss avatar yourself?

My wife made it, and was thinking of making more, like a Hikaru one, perhaps some others for comedic value. Might even make the tees by MWcon, but that's very up in the air right now.

[taksraven]

Mr Pieman Khyron? Was he the one who leaked the supposed script for Shadow Rising about two years back.

If I say what he really did I will have to go to the pokey.

Taksraven

[Einherjar]

Maybe I am being naive, but I really do wonder what they do at Robotech. I mean, the website now is talking about a convention that two people are going to be at, and how everyone should come there. To do what? To be told what?

Honestly, considering that all Robotech seems to be doing these days is licensing old material, or putting their name on Toynami, Beagle, and Megahouse products, what do they do? What does Tommy Yune do for 40 hours a week? I'm asking very seriously.

Steve Yune is in charge of the website? Other than arguments I see him having with people on the forum and banning people fairly arbitrarily, what does he do? The website has no PMs, has no capabilities that pretty much any other forum on the net has, hasn't had any real changes in years. So, what does he do for 40 hours a week?

Again, I'm not trying to be snarky, just don't get what these people do over the course of a week to justify whatever salaries it may be that they draw?

I asked myself the same question the first time I came here. Maybe somewhere down the road they decided to sell out and try to make as much money with the franchise without doing much. There's already a fanbase that's been deprived of new material for years now, so just cater to them as cheaply as possible and they'll eat up whatever comes from them. But, remember to keep tossing up words like Protoculture, Robotechnology, and Rick Hunter to keep things from being too generic and to remind people that the new stuff is related to the old glory days.

I don't know much about the current crew behind Robotech, but I mostly hear stories from people most affected by their work.

http://robotechflash.blog.com/

http://robotechflash.blog.com/4766662/#cmts

This might be the ramblings of a fan who got burned really bad by Robotech, so I wouldn't take anything in the blog too seriously. If anything, it lives up to the blog's slogan, "A Different Side to Robotech," and maybe explains where the madness began. It's a sad and disturbing story at the same time.

[Jasonc]

Ahhh, but a lot of it does make sense. Reading through that blog gives a lot more truth than simply what is told. Robotech is a hurthing franchise. Even if their live action movie does get made, I don't think it's gonna do well enough to make any money. My only hope is that if that happens, good ol' Frank Agrama will decide to just give up on trying to create more Robotech. Hopefully that'll be a sign for Tommy to go back to drawing for comic books, and Kevin can go back to being one of those airport shuttle drivers, since that's his real resume.

I've already read the treatment for Shadow Rising that Tommy and Steve wrote from that blogger guy, and based on conversations from fans close to Tommy that I talked to in the past, they gave me the scoop on it being from them. If any of it makes their next animated series, There will be a total meltdown of the franchise. Luckily, I saved the file of it when it was up on the net a year or two ago. Depending on what comes onto screen from that will say a lot,,, did they give into that crap that got spilled, will they do what looked promising even at its early stages, or are they completely rewriting it. Time will tell.

Perhaps one day, as Robotech starts to fall by the wayside, WB will buy it and then BW and Studio Nue will want to open up talks with them. Who knows, I'm just flipping a penny into a big wishing well.

[RavenHawk]

I asked myself the same question the first time I came here. Maybe somewhere down the road they decided to sell out and try to make as much money with the franchise without doing much. There's already a fanbase that's been deprived of new material for years now, so just cater to them as cheaply as possible and they'll eat up whatever comes from them. But, remember to keep tossing up words like Protoculture, Robotechnology, and Rick Hunter to keep things from being too generic and to remind people that the new stuff is related to the old glory days.

I don't know much about the current crew behind Robotech, but I mostly hear stories from people most affected by their work.

http://robotechflash.blog.com/

http://robotechflash.blog.com/4766662/#cmts

This might be the ramblings of a fan who got burned really bad by Robotech, so I wouldn't take anything in the blog too seriously. If anything, it lives up to the blog's slogan, "A Different Side to Robotech," and maybe explains where the madness began. It's a sad and disturbing story at the same time.

But still, seriously, what do these guys do for 40 hours a week? There is nothing going on that justifies full-time employees, tobe honest, except for customer service, which still takes a week to reply to customer questions, and often ignores them completely.

[Einherjar]

I've already read the treatment for Shadow Rising that Tommy and Steve wrote from that blogger guy, and based on conversations from fans close to Tommy that I talked to in the past, they gave me the scoop on it being from them. If any of it makes their next animated series, There will be a total meltdown of the franchise. Luckily, I saved the file of it when it was up on the net a year or two ago. Depending on what comes onto screen from that will say a lot,,, did they give into that crap that got spilled, will they do what looked promising even at its early stages, or are they completely rewriting it. Time will tell.

I thought the blogger was just ranting obsessively about stuff like that. He and a couple of fans online do that a lot nowadays sounding elitist or something. I arrived here too late to see the script, but I've been interested in the direction Robotech was going from here on. What was on it that caused an uproar?

[Gubaba]

I thought the blogger was just ranting obsessively about stuff like that. He and a couple of fans online do that a lot nowadays sounding elitist or something. I arrived here too late to see the script, but I've been interested in the direction Robotech was going from here on. What was on it that caused an uproar?

I remember about a year ago (maybe a bit less), I spent a few otherwise dull hours checking out Robotech fansites to see how the series was holding up...the blogger you linked was one of the ones I came across most (along with darkwater and pie-guy). There seemed to be a number of times where he would get banned from RT.com, and everyone would tell him he deserved better and he should say good riddance to HG. He would always agree, but then, when HG let him back in, he would happily jump at the chance to.

I guess he finally got TOO disgruntled.

(He's a good artist, though.)

Anyway, I'm not sure how much stock to put in what he says. Certainly, he's putting everything in the worst possible light, but that doesn't mean it's not true.

Jasonc's been closer to the center of operations than any of us, and if it rings true to him, it might very well be what's going on.

I haven't seen the Shadow Rising treatment either, and I hadn't heard about it until now. My guess is that it was really, really lame...?

[Bri]

The kind of obsession that blogger shows can't be healthy. For me HG means very little. It's just that their action make Macross DVDs and merchandise harder and more expensive to get. If they'd stop interfering in that I'd wish them the best of luck with whatever Robotech project they want to do. The whole mess around that company just seems so destructive.

[Robelwell202]

Ok, I actually have a membership on the RT site.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again... The Macross franchise that HG has a hold on can't possibly do them any good, except in the sales of toys. They can't expand on it, since they've chosen the Mospaeda tech-base for their 'Shadow Chronicles' extensions.

I have heard, however, that HG has tried inviting the powers that be on the Macross side to the table for renegotiation, but those guys wanted nothing to do with HG. Now, this is second hand info from other posters on the site, so I can't account at all for the validity of the info.

ANyway... I kinda lean towards the idea that HG is a dying entity. With the idea of a Live Action film getting more and more distant, plus their fanbase shrinking despite all their efforts to the contrary, it seems to me that it's near its' end.

[Gubaba]

The kind of obsession that blogger shows can't be healthy. For me HG means very little. It's just that their action make Macross DVDs and merchandise harder and more expensive to get. If they'd stop interfering in that I'd wish them the best of luck with whatever Robotech project they want to do. The whole mess around that company just seems so destructive.

*shrug* If anything, it makes me feel sorry for HG's staff, knowing that there are rapid, disgruntled fans not only loudly complaining about their work, but also lambasting them as terrible human beings as well.

Now, if they ARE lying to the RT fans (and I see no reason to believe that they're being truthful), that's kind of despicable, too. But it doesn't mean that they should have self-appointed Truth-Guardians stalking them at conventions.

The whole thing seems so toxic. There are a lot of franchises, and a lot of them crash and burn, or (at the VERY least) "aren't as good as they used to be." There are a lot of almost-franchises that try to take off and never quite manage to get off the ground. Rarely do I see the fans get SO unhappy that they feel like they have to do what they can to wrest the franchise away from the guys in charge of it, which usually ends up meaning they write snarky comments about it.

There are a lot of Macross fans who have been disappointed with a lot of the sequels. No one that I know of has decided that the best way to get a better Macross sequel is to shadow Kawamori and be a constant thorn in his side.

Perhaps the best thing HG staff can do is seclude themselves away. If Tommy Yune acted less like a rock star and more like someone working for a small company in charge of a small property, he might become less of a lightning rod for more extreme fans.

Either that, or he should start being more honest and forthright, but that would probably cause panic among anyone who has invested in HG's projects.

Anyway, the man is not the work. I may dislike Robotech (and I do), and I may feel that Carl Macek messed up Macross (and I do), but that wouldn't stop me from being polite and cordial to him if I were ever introduced to him socially. Ditto Tommy Yune.

I think HG is boneheaded and I intensely dislike the fact that I can't legally get Macross stuff here because of them (I assume), but really...there's complaining, there's ridiculing...and then there's just going off the deep end of fandom.

[Gubaba]

Ok, I actually have a membership on the RT site.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again... The Macross franchise that HG has a hold on can't possibly do them any good, except in the sales of toys. They can't expand on it, since they've chosen the Mospaeda tech-base for their 'Shadow Chronicles' extensions.

I have heard, however, that HG has tried inviting the powers that be on the Macross side to the table for renegotiation, but those guys wanted nothing to do with HG. Now, this is second hand info from other posters on the site, so I can't account at all for the validity of the info.

Oh, I wouldn't be surprised if that turned out to be completely true. RT fans, as I'm sure you know, like to use this as their trump card to show that the lack of Macross in the US is Big West's fault. My feeling is, HG, by claiming that they could've gone after the US releases of MII and Plus, made Big West look like they were acting in bad faith with Manga Ent. So if they're going to make Big West look bad, trademark the name "Macross" so that Big West HAS to work with them, and then act surprised that Big West doesn't want to...well, can you blame BW?

ANyway... I kinda lean towards the idea that HG is a dying entity. With the idea of a Live Action film getting more and more distant, plus their fanbase shrinking despite all their efforts to the contrary, it seems to me that it's near its' end.

I hope you're right. I doubt it'll be that simple, though.

(Oh, and in answer to your sig's question, John Galt is a technological genius, a rapist, and a guy makes a speech that is way too long in a book that is WAAAAAY too long. )

[Roy Focker]

Lies! All Lies. Don't believe the lying Macross Purist pretending to be Robotech fans.

All is in perfect golden hrmony.

[VF5SS]

Not to sound so presumptuous, but it seems like this whole "Roboculture" stems from the very nature of the product. When the product itself is comprised of pre-existing footage with a new story with no authority to it, doesn't that encourage a more fan zeal in terms of what the fans want for the franchise? Seems like they've had a long time to brew lots of fanfics and other such things. And given how Shadow Chronicles came out looking like a fan movie, it only adds more fuel to the fire that the current people in charge aren't much better than the fanbase itself.

[Gubaba]

Not to sound so presumptuous, but it seems like this whole "Roboculture" stems from the very nature of the product. When the product itself is comprised of pre-existing footage with a new story with no authority to it, doesn't that encourage a more fan zeal in terms of what the fans want for the franchise? Seems like they've had a long time to brew lots of fanfics and other such things. And given how Shadow Chronicles came out looking like a fan movie, it only adds more fuel to the fire that the current people in charge aren't much better than the fanbase itself.

Well...people DO get just as rabid about, say, Star Wars or Star Trek, but I agree with you. If someone wants to follow in the grand tradition of Robotech, what took tens of thousands of dollars to do in 1985 can now be done with the right software, a downloaded copy of Orguss or High-Speed Jecy, and five or six people who can do voices.

It doesn't help that Robotech is full of plot holes and bizarre inconsistencies, and die-hard fans jest LOOOOOOVE to try to find a way to rationalize those. It makes the whole thing more "interactive," I guess.

(Not, of course, that Macross doesn't have inconsistencies of its own...but at least no one in Macross ever talked about a gigantic space fortress that wasn't there.)

[VF5SS]

Why do Robotech fans always refer to it as "THE ORIGINAL 85 EPISODES!" Most people don't refer to a show by its episode count.

It doesn't help that Robotech is full of plot holes and bizarre inconsistencies, and die-hard fans jest LOOOOOOVE to try to find a way to rationalize those. It makes the whole thing more "interactive," I guess.

Interactive fandoms are generally the worst kind. Give a fan any kind of inch into the franchise and they'll wank all over it. I prefer to let the people in charge just tell their story. I guess part of the problem is that Robotech really doesn't have its own story.

[Gubaba]

Why do Robotech fans always refer to it as "THE ORIGINAL 85 EPISODES!" Most people don't refer to a show by its episode count.

Interactive fandoms are generally the worst kind. Give a fan any kind of inch into the franchise and they'll wank all over it. I prefer to let the people in charge just tell their story. I guess part of the problem is that Robotech really doesn't have its own story.

NOW you're going too far! Of course Robotech has its own story...it's all about flowers that can be used to power spaceships and can also somehow control the universe.

And to think people natter on about Robotech's "realism"...

...and did the talk about "THE ORIGINAL 85 EPISODES" (which, you're right, is pretty weird) start before or after Shadow Chronicles?

[VF5SS]

No I'm pretty sure it has no story outside of just being edited version of the original stories. People liked it at the time for the same reason people like Voltron, most of the world just didn't have Japanese space opera shows on TV. All the stuff Robotech made up was pointless background filler and yet the fans make it seem like its the most central aspect of the show (probably because its the only thing that keeps someone from just watching the original material). It's like saying you like Gundam because of the ever guiding hand of the Zabi family or some poo.

[Einherjar]

Of the 85 episodes, how many were just filler from the original series it came from and not important in the grand scheme of the Robotech universe?

If someone wants to follow in the grand tradition of Robotech, what took tens of thousands of dollars to do in 1985 can now be done with the right software, a downloaded copy of Orguss or High-Speed Jecy, and five or six people who can do voices.

Oh, you heard about that crazy Robotech Orguss project also?

[Gubaba]

Oh, you heard about that crazy Robotech Orguss project also?

I heard (or, more precisely, read) about it when it was first getting started, but I never saw any follow-up. Is it still on, or did it fall apart?

If they could have done it in the same spirit as that awesome "Robotech III" done lo, these many years ago, it would've been a real pip. But it seemed like they were serious, which ruins the whole thing.

[RavenHawk]

Of the 85 episodes, how many were just filler from the original series it came from and not important in the grand scheme of the Robotech universe?

Oh, you heard about that crazy Robotech Orguss project also?

Are you talking about how Robotech II: The Sentinels was meant to be all new material, and then Robotech III: The Odyssey was to be new material showing Scott et al. searching for Rick Hunter and grew, while using Orguss footage to show what is going on on Earth while Scott is gone?

[VF5SS]

So they wanted to add to a stupid, convoluted mess of 80's mecha show by making another stupid, convoluted mess of 80's mecha shows? Why not add some of Dorvack and Galvion while you're at it?

[Einherjar]

I heard (or, more precisely, read) about it when it was first getting started, but I never saw any follow-up. Is it still on, or did it fall apart?

If they could have done it in the same spirit as that awesome "Robotech III" done lo, these many years ago, it would've been a real pip. But it seemed like they were serious, which ruins the whole thing.

It was a project led by The Robotech Fan, the podcaster, to fit Orguss into the Robotech universe in somehow. He tried to get support for it, like VAs, video editors, etc. but it eventually turned to vaporware like his Xenoforce mod.

[Gubaba]

Are you talking about how Robotech II: The Sentinels was meant to be all new material, and then Robotech III: The Odyssey was to be new material showing Scott et al. searching for Rick Hunter and grew, while using Orguss footage to show what is going on on Earth while Scott is gone?

No, DougBendo (who is more off-balance than most Robotech fans) proposed doing a new Robotech series using Orguss.

For Robotech III, I was referring to this. I saw it years and years ago at a convention (or maybe a C/FO meeting). Wish someone would post it up on the web...I'd like to see it again.

[Jasonc]

Robotech has had it's share of faults, and I can't really say "Down with HG" for attempting to bring over Macross back in 85. Originally, that was their plan, but with syndication guidelines, they couldn't, and mashed the 3 series together so that it could air on television. While I was fortunate to know about Macross back in 1984 before Robotech. It might have taken a long time for me to actually see all of Macross if it wasn't for Robotech. Aside from my introduction to Macross, there's tons of Macross fans who wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Robotech's first airings on t.v.

The point where I draw the line is where they are still using someone else's work, art, and general premise of a story to create their series. Then, they disgrace the art (in my opinion) by half-assing the CG, and putting it to such a garbage, unintelligent "sequel".

Oh, in regards to the Tommy/Steve Yune treatment. Back in the day, when I knew a lot of Tommy's close Robotech friends, and occasionally even talked with Tommy, one of his friends came over to my house and was talking about a treatment for the sequel to RTSC. He didn't mention a title, but certain events that the treatment had in it that just wreaked of amateur writing. I remembered these descriptions cause it was all very new to me, as I hadn't heard anything about any swquel yet. Anyways, fast forward months to a year later (not sure of the exact time, and I'm on the net, and I get a message from a buddy telling me to look at a blog site that supposedly had one of Tommy's treatments. I go to the blog site (site has been long since removed it appears from HG), and see this scan or whatnot of a pitch or treatment from Tommy and Steve Yune. As I read it, I remember the story Tommy's fan buddy tells me, and it all clicks to me. this is what he read and had told me that time before. Anyways, I watched to see what would happen and what would happen with that guy who posted some weird story of how he obtained the treatment (don't remember). There was some blog Kevin, Tommy go on and deny that Tommy even wrote it, and everybody, natually believed the story Tommy said. At first, I didn't know if I should just write it off or not, but when I first read the blog with the Tommy treatment, I saved it to my computer. The fact that those in charge at HG were so quick to shut down that guys blog, their podcast, and the quick denial, made me think, "you know, you don't act so extreme over something that's a stupid lie, or worthless print.

Anyways, taking in all I was told before, actions afterward, I came to the conclusion that it was in fact really Tommy's, and if you read it and had any concern or dislike for Robotech, after reading it, you were gonna definitely just abandon the series after reading it.

So, what is HG doing now? I have no clue, nor do I really care. When the Shadow Rising comes out, I'll know what decisions they made as far as the story goes, as will probably everyone else who had a chance to read that treatment. as far as what they do now, I think they just go on these worthless conventions, talking about how well their franchise is supposedly doing, and make that speech saying that they have so much going on, but they can't say anything about it (B.S. for, "We don't have anything to show you guys cause we haven't done anything.") They don't have a story yet for movie or sequel, and they haven't even begun production on either. One's on hold till the other is released, and the LAM is looking less and less likely it'll even be made.

I agree with the statement above that Gubaba made. It woudn't be so bad if Macross products were accessable here in the U.S. It's annoying to know that HG set up BW to not want to deal with them, then point the finger at BW for not wanting to do business with them. It's a testament to the Macross franchise that even in it's "Japan only" state, it has extreme success despite. It's not a series that flaunts itself as the greatest thing since sliced bread, but simply knocks out a decent series, or OVA, and backs it up by product after product.

[Macross007]

It doesn't help that Robotech is full of plot holes and bizarre inconsistencies, and die-hard fans jest LOOOOOOVE to try to find a way to rationalize those. It makes the whole thing more "interactive," I guess.

Strange. I was doing the same while I was a Star Trek fan. With the time, I became tired of rationalizing those illogical inconsistencies made by lazy writers who did not give a sh*t about it themselves and quit being a Star Trek fan. I think the same fate is waiting many Robotech fans ...

Edited March 30, 2009 by Macross007