I am a weird macross fan...

[Gakken85]

So I'm a bit of a strange Macross fan from what I can tell. I grew up with the Americanized cartoon. I would watch it just about every day after class at my grandmothers house. My brother and I loved it, and we spent many afternoons pretending to be Veritech fighters. The whole show was on a loop so we probably saw it 2 -3 times.

This was when I was in grade school, so probably '85 or 86?

As I got a littler older I bought the Sentinels RPG books from Palladium, hoping there would be a sequel to the first 46 episodes of the show. I never liked Southern Cross, but I really enjoyed New Generation. Nothing ever happened. I was at some comic convention and found some old New Type magazines and a Macross II poster.. but being in the south I never had access to any new releases in the 90's.

This was around Jr. High to High school.

Anyway, I got older. I stopped collecting toys and got into other things like music, riding my bike, and playing guitar ect. I grew up (Just a bit) got different jobs and basically forgot about macross.

I collected some toys on and off. Mostly some horror stuff but I never paid much attention to anime.

---

Fast forward to 2013 (20 odd years) and catching some Yamato toy reviews on a whim on youtube. Those little reviews basically ignited and explosion of interest for me and a serious loss of cash. It was like a Minmay song to an alien warrior! haha

I started researching and buying up Valks and I've currently spent about 1,000 on toys in the meantime. Yesh!!

I'm also trying to catch up on the TV show/Movies/ect.

I have never seen Do You Remember Love?, Macross Zero, and Frontier.

I just finished re-watching the whole Macross TV show in one run to refresh myself and enjoyed it immensely. I was kind of shocked at how well the story held up, (Though the last 10 episodes are kind of poorly scripted) and really reconnected to the show. I think I actually enjoyed it more as an adult. The Love triangle themes, and the ideas about war and destiny really hit me.

Last night.. I watched Macross Zero.

My jaw dropped to the floor at the art work, and the animation. It was fan-frakking-tastic. I really fell in love with Macross again and the VF-0 design.

I'm going to watch DYRL next and then Frontier.

Any suggestions on order or shows I should throw in there?

Edited March 10, 2013 by Gakken85

[Benson13]

Easy, all of them. Nuff said.

[Jasonc]

You may also want to watch Macross Plus, and if you want to get more of the major plot, Macross 7. 7 is a harder show to watch, but it does belong in the timeline. SDF:Macross and DYRL are supposedly in the same timeline, Zero is before that, but Plus takes place around 2040, 7 around 2045, Frontier in 2059.

[Gakken85]

Ah, yes 7 and Plus!

Lots of things to watch.

[EXO]

If you want to venture out of Macross territory, check out Last Exile. No Transforming robots but a lot aerial combat and classic story telling like Macross. If I wasn't so broke from valkyries I'd be buying up vanship models.

[SuperSenpai]

My experiences were similar to yours -- Robotech was my gateway as a kid, and I never watched the original Macross or any of the related productions until later in life. I've since watched SDF Macross, DYRL, Macross 2, Zero, Plus, and seen a few episodes of 7. My thoughts on each of these:

SDF Macross: After hearing for years how HG had done a hatchet job on the original series, and how the original Japenese version was so much better, I finally got a chance to watch a dubbed version. And honestly, I was surprised at how similar Robotech's version was to the original Japanese. The obvious differences -- things like the nature of Protoculture -- I considered to be background material that were not that necessary to understand and enjoy the main story. I thought the main plot points, characters, and relationships were pretty much the same. The only major difference I noted was Minmay/Minmei's relationship with Kaifun/Kyle.

Grade: A (more consistent animation quality would have given it an A+)

DYRL: I loved this movie. Plot-wise, I thought the TV series did a better job telling the story and selling the characters, and I thought DYRL got a little hokey towards the end. But that aside, this is one beautifully drawn movie. One thing that frustrated me about the TV series was how the art quality was so inconsistent from episode-to-episode -- I heard that Studio Nue subcontracted some of the animation work to another studio, and the differences are obvious. Well, imagine if the studio that did all the "good" episodes of Macross upped their game even more and made a feature-length film, and you've got a good idea of how the movie looks.

Grade: A (I thought the TV show told the story better, otherwise it would have gotten an A+)

Macross 2: Didn't particularly care for it. Didn't recognize any of the characters, thought the action and mecha designs were so-so, and the story seems to not relate to any of the rest of the franchise.

Grade: C

Macross Plus: I was lukewarm towards this one at first, but I appreciate it more after watching it a couple of times. The mecha designs are decent, and the action scenes and overall animation quality are well done. The main problem I had when I originally watched it was that it didn't seem like a sequel to the original TV series or DYRL, but a tangential story with unrelated characters that happened to be set in the Macross universe. But it eventually grew on me. So long as you set aside any notion of connecting with the rest of the Macross franchise, I think this is an enjoyable movie/OVA series.

Grade: B+

Macross Zero: Really enjoyed the animation on this one, but the whole island/birdman/Protoculture storyline didn't do a thing for me. The mystical elements of the storyline seemed really out of place, IMO. But it was great seeing Focker in action again.

Grade: B-

I've only seen a few episodes of Macross 7, and to be frank, the whole Basara guitar-playing Vaklyrie thing is just plain weird to me. The earlier Macross productions had the theme of the power of music to defeat the enemy, and it was hokey then too, but it was more forgiveable because they didn't overdo it. It seems like for Macross 7, they really took that idea and ran with it to its most extreme conclusion. Hence you have a rock star who pilots a Valkyrie with guitar controls and plays his music to defeat the enemy.

[plutoniumhunter]

I've watched everything bar Macross 2... Just watch em'all!

[Gakken85]

I have a giant poster for Macross 2. So I'm sure I'll watch it.

Thanks Senpai!

[Kaldar5]

I am a weird macross fan...

Nope, we get your story alot here. Welcome back to the true essence of what you loved when you were young.

Skip Macross 7 and come back to that later. We don't want to lose you on the way

Mac 7 is not for everyone, and it's not the highest quality as far as combat scenes being a limited budget TV series.

If you were jaw dropped by Zero, prepare your chin strap for Frontier.

My suggestion is:

Watch DYRL,

Zero (you already did),

Plus if you like dark moody stuff and trippy music (not an insult!) Much to the rage of many here, Plus is not necessary, skip to Frontier if you like.

so you know what 2045 era Colony Shell/dome ships look like

Frontier 1-25. Macross Frontier is IMHO the first Macross series to really live up to the feel, story, and aspirations of the original series, while doing averted/reverse tropes & homages to all of Macross.

Frontier Movie 1 (False Songstress/Itsuwari Utahime),

Frontier Movie 2 (Wings of Goodbye/Sayonara no Tsubasa)

If you can, use [Central Anime] or [Galaxy Network] for subs whenever possible.

[Commie] and [Coalgirls] get alot of lyrics and Macross terminology wrong.

Then back to Macross 7 and Macross 2 When you run out of other Macross stuff to watch.

Personal history: I've watched everything at least twice except Mac 7, only once through on that.

I couldn't stand Robotech as a little kid. I KNEW they did something wrong with "Minmei", I couldn't stand it.... later I learned what it was, and I'm a Minmay fan. I wonder what percentage of Misa fans are Misa fans because Robotech screws up Minmay and they watched that first? First impressions and all.

And remember, Macross Zero:

None of that craziness was mystical. All "Predictions" were DURING an incoming attack that would have been easily detectable by the Protoculture "Birdman" radar, then mentally transmitted to the only surviving people with Protoculture blood. Sara seeing "Kadun" was a tactical HUD transmitted directly to her brain, and she visualized the incoming threats as best as her understanding could interpret them; She points out targets, the Birdman AI shoots em down. The Birdman itself was placed to judge the Earth when it became spacefairing, and ensure that the descendants of Protoculture remained peaceful, as the founding of the colony (Earth) was intended per DYRL... or at least make sure they still had love. <3

Edited March 10, 2013 by Kaldar5

[Kaldar5]

And for all the hardcore fans:

[Shaorin]

my own long but relatively undistinguished history with MACROSS;

1988/1989ish;

given a very poorly built-up/painted ROBOTECH DEFENDERS "VEXAR" (IMAI/BANDAI 1/72 VF-1S Focker VARIABLE TYPE)

by a cousin of mine. i must've had it all broken by the time i had it home, and rapidly forgotten thereafter,

but was my first brush with the venerable SDF MAC. VF-1, to my personal recollection, anyway.

1994;

caught my first real, lasting exposure to MACROSS via an ARII 1/100 GERWALK VF-1J Hikaru T.V. kit

that my father bought me at the very same hobby shop

that he had once been buying the many TAMIYA 1/35 military armor kits he was building in the late 1980's.

1995;

i found and built several more BATTROID, GERWALK and FIGHTER MODE 1/100 ARIIs, while discovering the T.V. series itself

via the $15.00 double-episode 1990's FHE ROBOTECH VHS editions that my local SUNCOAST VIDEO was stocking.

from there, i discovered MACROSS II and PLUS via the MANGA VIDEO movie edition VHS releases of both OVAs. (still have both cassettes)

1996;

i got my very first "variable" VF in the form of the awful (IMHO) BANDAI 1/100 VF-19S parts-forming kit,

1997/1998;

i got my first "variable" VF-1 in the guise of the 15th Anniv. re-release of the IMAI/BANDAI 1/72 VF-1J MAX T.V. VARIABLE TYPE,

and got my very first real MACROSS toys in the form of the BANDAI 1/65 DX VF-19kai and VF-17D (which i still have)

1999/2000, i got my first "Chunky Monkey" VF-1 in the form of a TRANS-FORMERS "JETFIRE"

with none of it's armor/accs. and a missing right arm, which i got replaced for $20.00 thanks to Jerry Tsai's long defunct VF-1x.com.

2001; i picked up my first and only YAMATO 1/60v.I, the first release VF-1A DYRL Hikaru.

2002; i got my first and only two YAMATO 1/48 VF-1s, the first two releases, DYRL -1A Hikaru and -1S Focker.

2008; my first 1/60v.II, VF-1J Hikaru T.V. (1st Ed.)

2011; 1/60v.II VF-1S Focker DYRL, (1st Ed.) 1985 BANDAI HCM 1/72 VF-1J Hikaru T.V.

2012; 1/60v.II, VF-1J Hikaru T.V. (recent Ed. with improved hip lock ) to replace my first copy which broke on me, and a 1/60v.I YF-19 (1st Ed.)

2013; (PLANNED ASAP) 1/60 VF-19S EXCALIBUR E. Force

[plutoniumhunter]

Wow, you really go way back! I myself started at 2008 only...

[Shaorin]

perhaps... though i know a goodly chunk of MW membership, past and present, whose fandom goes all the way on back to 1982...

[SuperSenpai]

You know, this thread got me thinking -- they really need to put out a proper sequel to SDF Macross. And by "proper", I mean a sequel that follows up on the characters and events from the original TV series. I'd love to see a new series that chronicles the journey of Hikaru, Misa, Minmay et al. after they left the Earth on the colony ships. It would also be awesome to see the VF-4 in combat action. That way maybe they might decide to do a regular release of the VF-4 that's a little less expensive.

Edited March 9, 2013 by SuperSenpai

[Valkyrie Magnus]

Wow, you really go way back! I myself started at 2008 only...

I remember seeing the episode bye bye Mars back in 1985 as a kid. Wow I am old.

[Vepariga]

I started my love back in 1992.

Watch it all! the good,the bad and the ugly. All of it is awesome and has moments of greatness!

Huzzah! *jumps around*

[Loop]

I agree, you should watch every bit of any Macross you can get your hands on.

[Shaorin]

y'know, i could swear that i have long had this nagging mist of a vague childhood memory

of hearing one of the instrumental ROBOTECH BGMs at some time in my early childhood.

perhaps i caught an ep. or two as a wee tot (4/5ys. of age) during the series' original 1985/'86 syndicated T.V. broadcast, i dunno...

[Gubaba]

y'know, i could swear that i have long had this nagging mist of a vague childhood memory

of hearing one of the instrumental ROBOTECH BGMs at some time in my early childhood.

perhaps i caught an ep. or two as a wee tot (4/5ys. of age) during the series' original 1985/'86 syndicated T.V. broadcast, i dunno...

Regardless of when you originally saw Macross, thank you for not posting yet more pics in this post.

[Agent ONE]

You are in for a serious treat with DYRL. It is one of the best films ever made.

[Shaorin]

Regardless of when you originally saw Macross, thank you for not posting yet more pics in this post.

what do you mean? i haven't posted any images in this discussion so far, nor have i yet had any reason to...

You are in for a serious treat with DYRL. It is one of the best films ever made.

big Rodge on that one...

Edited March 10, 2013 by Shaorin

[anime52k8]

what do you mean? i haven't posted any images in this discussion so far, nor have i yet had any reason to...

you do realize you probably average more imbedded images per post than any other single member on this forum, right?

[Gakken85]

Thanks for all the Feedback guys! I'll try do reply to all of you.

I just finished DYRL and I have to say it's far superior to the story in the TV series.

Having a blast here.

[Gakken85]

SuperSenpai - they really need to. Badly. it deserves a proper sequel to find out what Hikaru and Misa are up to.

Kaldar5 - Great notes and I'm really looking forward to frontier. Any thoughts on whats up with Shadow Chronicles?

Wow, you really go way back! I myself started at 2008 only...

I'm old. haha.

Agent ONE - It was fantastic. It was crazy to see that the differences in the story line, but still hitting the same big highs. I liked Roy a lot more too.

Shaorin - Thanks for your inputs too! haha I don't mind pictures.

Edited March 10, 2013 by Gakken85

[Agent ONE]

For me, the only real Macross is SDFM the TV show, and DYRL along with Flashback (a music video which is a tighter conclusion to either the TV show, or movie:

(its only 5 min)

The rest of the stuff rates on a scale of decent to total crap.

[Keith]

Watch 7 next.

[Kaldar5]

Kaldar5 - Great notes and I'm really looking forward to frontier. Any thoughts on whats up with Shadow Chronicles?

Frontier:

Enjoy it!

This is in no way a spoiler, because it's in the opening afterall, but I just wanted to talk about some of the tech available in 2059.

You might miss it because it's so fast, but for "Macross Frontier" Shouji Kawamori designed personal and military use man sized exoskeleton flight suits called EX-Gear (for flight, combat, and G-force endurance). You see them alot in the first episode, but you might miss that the flight suit actually transforms into cockpit seat and controls, and vice versa for ejection under fire. Quite a cool idea. They actually have a toy that does this too, so it actually works mechanically. The man is a genius.

(Posting pics, bring the hate)

Frame-by frame it at 28:34 first episode (Central Anime Deculcha extended ver). There are so many insanely detailed mechanical designs that go by so fast - but that is one of the things Macross is all about.

Shadow Cronicles:

Harmony Gold spliced together what they had licence for. But since they only had limited licences, it was not something they could continue doing - they were not "producers" they didn't make anything, they only adapted and re-wrote what they could get.

I am SUPER NOT the guy to ask about Robotech, but the forum has a great write up on differences Macross/Robotech, and what happened behind the scenes, why things turned out the way they did:

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=228

That should answer all your Robotech related Q's.

Edited March 10, 2013 by Kaldar5

[Gakken85]

Good read. I knew a lot of that but didn't have all the pieces in one place

[Gubaba]

Gakken85, you're not old. I got into the damn thing in 1984... (so if you're old, that means I'm old, and I refuse to believe that).

As for Shadow Chronicles... who cares? You've got a TON of Macross stuff to work through. GET TO IT!!!

[EXO]

Yeah! Focus!!!

[dizman]

Welcome back to macross fandom. Don't let these guys scare you away from Mac 7, it's a fun series and definitely worth a watch.

[pfunk]

Plus was great IMHO and you have to watch frontier

[anime52k8]

there's really no such thing as bad macross. watch all of it.

[David Hingtgen]

Watch DYRL and Plus next. Get the shortest/best stuff done first.

[Agent ONE]

If you decide to watch 7, make sure to make your opinion crystal clear to the entire board.