Macross Frontier Episode 15 Talkback Thread *READ 1st Post*

[Keith]

Not bad at all as far as recap episodes go, though it still doesn't to flying bicycle. Alto is officially the luckiest center of a triangle in anime now with that duet going. I will say this though, if at some point Grace winds up killing Sheryl, I'll never be able to look at Beldandy again! Someone needs to stop her.

Also, thought the next ep was titled

Ranka Attack, not Minmay Attack

[eugimon]

I hate to say this but she was vaporized in space, nothing left to be buried/recycle unlike Gilliam.

What makes me angry is seeing Klan cheerfully attend Michael as if it doesn't bother her at all, or she's hiding it.

Can someone translate the casualties Frontier sustained? AFAIK island 14 (or is it) is damaged beyond repair.

maybe it's a zentradi thing? I can't imagine a warrior culture would get too caught up in feelings of grief and loss when a comrade dies in battle

[magnuskn]

maybe it's a zentradi thing? I can't imagine a warrior culture would get too caught up in feelings of grief and loss when a comrade dies in battle

No spoiler tags necessary anymore at this time.

That being said, I am thinking that Klan is putting on a brave front for the sake of Michael. Also, it was only a few seconds we saw of them, so it´s not very conclusive to see how she really feels. I guess next episode we´ll get a bit more, and maybe even see if Luca made it. ^^

[Morpheus]

Did I hear Mao's voice among the Grace AI collective? I need to confirm it with the endinng credit to make sure the VA is listed there.

[Bowen]

Okay, episode 15 seriously got me doubting which is cooler, Ozma's Valkyrie or his car

That thing is awesome

[Tsuchiro]

Is that purple-1 escorted by two CF VF-27?

If Galaxy had mass produced VF-27 I think Frontier is screwed at best.

Bilrer must have something up his sleeves

[grss1982]

WOW. When Duke Togo said tha Bilrer was big dude I was'nt expecting this:

http://randomc.maximum7.net/image/Macross/...0Large%2038.jpg

[vanpang]

WOW. When Duke Togo said tha Bilrer was big dude I was'nt expecting this:

http://randomc.maximum7.net/image/Macross/...0Large%2038.jpg

Yup Bilrer is huge, but I always got the impression he is micronised, not macronized. He can easily run over his maids with his giant wheelchair !

Although I pretty annoyed with the episodes recap, there is enough new plot development in the episode and battle of the songs was good enough for me to give the episode a positive ratings !

The reaction on Alto was priceless with the two chicks giving him so much attention !

I thought there would be more explanations on the V-virus in this episode (as the last episode preview was showing the v-virus strands with purple gems) but that did not happemed.

[vanpang]

BTW did Grace ditched Sheryl as manager ? Sheryl looked kinda upset when Grace left the room and I understand Grace would be the Project Leader to use Ranka's songs against the Vajra.

[tankf77]

Subs out?? Seems kinda slow for this episode?

[VF-25 Messiah]

Subs out?? Seems kinda slow for this episode?

Very talky episode and the raws weren't too speedy either...

[Shun]

My impression of the Grace and her other folks:

they are not A.I. / machines, but rather people who somehow merged their consciousness into one network. Something like their consciousness being digitized? Grace was once a normal human, we know that because they mentioned that the physical body at the start of ep 15 was created as a copy of her original look. I'd say its not likely that machines will feel attached to a certain look (although still possible i guess ).

Seems like any single consciousness can be chosen as the 'controller' of the body? but it looks like they preferred to let Grace take control of her own 'copy'. Each consciousness seems to retain their own (mental) individuality so that they have different personalities/temperaments - for e.g. the guy feels awkward to control the new body (a Grace clone). These people are quite obviously the masterminds from Galaxy fleet, and doesn't this mind-linking/downloading technology mean that they are virtually immortals? until their database gets physically destroyed maybe? or their data corrupted ... if they're already that smart, they'd probably already have tons of network backup to ensure they can be recovered in any disaster (unless there's some limitation somewhere).

And also my impression is that they're saying Grace is from Macross Global rather than Galia 4.

why did Grace refer to Brera Sterne as the Prince? No matter, they are obviously not truely respectful to him since we know Brera is working under their orders and being blackmailed with his lost memories.

Liked that look of YF-24!! a very nice cross between su-27 and f-22...

Edited July 18, 2008 by Shun

[Isamu Starkiller]

Aside from the fact Sheryl's a little under the weather, she really didn't sound so great at first. Perhaps she needs mixing boards and synthesizers to sound good, unlike Ranka who seems naturally gifted....

[VF-25 Messiah]

Aside from the fact Sheryl's a little under the weather, she really didn't sound so great at first. Perhaps she needs mixing boards and synthesizers to sound good, unlike Ranka who seems naturally gifted....

While I do agree with you, in all fairness Megumi's version of the ED wasn't really as good as Mayn's version. Mayn doesn't sound very good a cappella in my opinion though, but she makes a very good plaything for YK to include in her compositions

[MisaForever]

Can someone explain why you're calling this a "clips" episode? Does that mean it's slow?

[Shun]

BTW did Grace ditched Sheryl as manager ? Sheryl looked kinda upset when Grace left the room and I understand Grace would be the Project Leader to use Ranka's songs against the Vajra.

I think Grace didn't "officially" ditched sheryl or quit from being her manager, but probably sheryl will not be getting well and Grace will no longer want to waste time/effort on sheryl now that she got her eyes on Ranka.

more random thoughts:

so now we know that Bilrer is not working with Grace's faction. he goes for Alto instead of Ranka, maybe he's much smarter. (being a maid and train otaku is evidence already i guess)

Leon thinks he is playing both sides but he might end up being the fool and a pawn for both.

the consciousness/personality downloading part is similar to zegapain (and other such "theories").

PS > the ending dialogue are those from Grace's faction, Bilrer is not involved. these 2 are probably adversaries to each other

Edited July 18, 2008 by Shun

[Valkyrie addict]

So...Frontier is a corporate war...there's capitalism for you...

[junior]

why did Grace refer to Brera Sterne as the Prince? No matter, they are obviously not truely respectful to him since we know Brera is working under their orders and being blackmailed with his lost memories.

Probably because Ranka's the "Little Queen", and Brera's her brother.

BTW did Grace ditched Sheryl as manager ? Sheryl looked kinda upset when Grace left the room and I understand Grace would be the Project Leader to use Ranka's songs against the Vajra.

The preview summary for the episode that was released before it came out indicated that all of Sheryl's work had been canceled until she fully recovered. That's probably what she was upset about (though I won't know for certain until I see a translation). Keep in mind that Grace fully intended for Sheryl to die on Gallia 4, and Grace's plans for now probably involve keeping Sheryl out of the way while the plans for Ranka continue to develop.

[azrael]

Can someone explain why you're calling this a "clips" episode? Does that mean it's slow?

Clip show. Basically, they fill the episode with clips from previous episodes (usually with narration). This was a partial clip show since the latter half was new stuff.

[MisaForever]

Clip show. Basically, they fill the episode with clips from previous episodes (usually with narration). This was a partial clip show since the latter half was new stuff.

Ah, thank you sir. Since I haven't seen it yet I was curious but that does make sense.

[stray]

Okay, episode 15 seriously got me doubting which is cooler, Ozma's Valkyrie or his car

That thing is awesome

I second that... hatchbacks on Frontier = win. I really kind of want a Skull squadron logo on the roof of my hatch...

Clip show. Basically, they fill the episode with clips from previous episodes (usually with narration). This was a partial clip show since the latter half was new stuff.

Great clip show, or greatest clip show?

[Valkyrie addict]

why is Ozma always driving on empty roads?? is it cause the way he drives?

[junior]

why is Ozma always driving on empty roads?? is it cause the way he drives?

Usually when they show the road around him, he's on the ramp that leads to the SMS entrance. I would imagine that it doesn't get much vehicle traffic during the middle of the day.

[Zinjo]

Clip show. Basically, they fill the episode with clips from previous episodes (usually with narration). This was a partial clip show since the latter half was new stuff.

Yeah, typically used to conserve budgets or extend production time on future episodes (or both). Quite common.

[kalvasflam]

The reaction on Alto was priceless with the two chicks giving him so much attention !

Think I'm starting to understand Alto, Alto is an actor after all, and most actors are well.... you know.

So Ozama better watch out, and Bobby might have additional competition. That explains the whole "LET ME JOIN SMS" thing

[CF18]

So Mr Bilrer is a super rich Zentradi and a train head. I wonder what kind of scale do they use for the trains: 1/3 human scale or 1/18 Zentradi scale? I think they missed the chance to connect with the core fans though - how cool can that be if Alto was instead entered a room full of 1/60 (Zentradi scale) VFs? It could also be a great chance to bring all kind of concept VFs into the canon, even the VF-2SS. Oh well may be he also have an underground hanger with a collection of real size VFs...

At least we know Mr Bilrer is not on the same side with Grace - his home has a force field that blocks Graces sensor.

[veffidas]

I'm glad somebody mentioned Ghost in the Shell with regard to the AI conversation, but to me it felt more like Motoko conversing with the Tachikomas (and them amongst themselves) rather than with the rest of Section 9. That said, it wasn't quite exactly the same.

As for the making Bilra a Valkyrie fan opposed to a train guy, I think it'd feel a little odd with a "Macross fan" being depicted within a Macross series.

[DarkReaper]

Why should he need Models, he has his own private army and a hangar full of valkyries. He already is the ultimate valk nut.

[DarkReaper]

I'm glad somebody mentioned Ghost in the Shell with regard to the AI conversation, but to me it felt more like Motoko conversing with the Tachikomas (and them amongst themselves) rather than with the rest of Section 9. That said, it wasn't quite exactly the same.

As for the making Bilra a Valkyrie fan opposed to a train guy, I think it'd feel a little odd with a "Macross fan" being depicted within a Macross series.

Meh, do you think it is unusual for real people to keep models of current tanks and planes in their homes, why should it be different 50 years from now.

Besides everyone would instantly brand it as product placement for all the cool toys bandai has made/is making. Don't expect any yamatos in a Bandai show.

[Batou]

Yeah, typically used to conserve budgets or extend production time on future episodes (or both). Quite common.

The last 3 were pretty heavy on the CGI, too, which can't be cheap at this quality. It's a welcome breath of fresh air after the recent intensity, and appears to drive the plot forward at least (I'm assuming - will have to wait for the subs to appear, for me at least).

The sing off was a blast. I loved seeing Sheryl primping herself before Alto entered ... even more when she got all catty and jealous when she saw Ranka was with him. Altogether, it shows that she has a vulnerable side underneath all that bravado, and made me appreciate her more. I'm fully rooting for her at this point: Ranka just seems too lolicon and unsure of herself to me, whereas Sheryl, despite her faults, is very human and likeable once you get past the thick skin she puts up. And she at least looks like a grown woman, fer chris' sake. Given Ranka's connection to the Vajra, I think she's going to ultimately get the guy (assuming he doesn't get himself killed or vanish a la Shin before the end).

At least Alto's seen both their goodies, so no surprises there. (Me: Ponders whether Ranka's a natural green-head or not ).

Very eagerly awaiting subs for this one. Yeah, it's a clip show, but I suspect Grace and the other voiceovers during the clips (at least early on) will shed a lot of light on all the sneaky sneaky we've seen so far. And beg more questions, I'm sure.

[veffidas]

Meh, do you think it is unusual for real people to keep models of current tanks and planes in their homes, why should it be different 50 years from now.

Besides everyone would instantly brand it as product placement for all the cool toys bandai has made/is making. Don't expect any yamatos in a Bandai show.

Well, given unlimited money and space, no type of collection is impossible.

Besides your product placement point, I was speaking more from a production standpoint; while it might have been a chance to draw in the continuities, self-referencing prior work in such a manner would be a bit too pretentious. Plus, seeing a homage of yourself (the Macross toy/mecha fans) inside the actual series could feel a little weird, if not creepy. But that'd be me. (Then again, Hikaru did have that model VF-4 but at least it wasn't a whole collection.)

[Aegis!]

Oh boy, this episode was fun.

I'm not a big fan of clip shows but this one has to be one the best I've seen lately, very plot-intensive as well. The animation itself wasn't bad at all, considering the budget of clip-shows nowadays. A few things that caught my attention tough:

- The YF-24 is a much much more beautiful and elegant bird than the low budget looking VF-25, I'm really disappointed with Kawamori choosing the final VF-25 design over the original 24, such a waste...WHYYYYYY Froating Head WHHYY !!!???

- So Galaxy is all fine and healthy looking, what are they waiting for ?

- Too many parties involved, LAI+Grace+Bilrer+Galaxy+Vajra+NUNS+SMS+Mao+Ranka+Leon, that is one heck of a conspiration. At this point I've gotta wonder where does the protoculture come into play.

- Brera as Ranka's Bodyguard...a NUNS Mayor...bodyguard...Wait, what ?

-Except perhaps for Plus, this has got to be THE most publicly acknowledged love triangle in the Macross Universe, that sing off was weird on so many levels. I'm with the people in favor of a polygamist relationship here, why choose only one when both girls seem so cooperative with each other ? I say there's enough Alto for both.

- Where's Ranka's vajra pet ? maybe it's sleeping in its cocoon somewhere, waiting to come out as a red lobster and kill everyone.

- Uh-oh, Leon and Grace finally get their hands on Ranka, this is not good.

[VF-25 Messiah]

Kei is out it seems...

[DarkReaper]

Yeah, only the sub file is out, but adding it to the raw isn't a problem. Guess they didn't want to wait until their encode finishes.

[VF-25 Messiah]

Yeah, only the sub file is out, but adding it to the raw isn't a problem. Guess they didn't want to wait until their encode finishes.

I know that, that's how I'm making my own sub for the episode after all