Macross Δ (Delta) - NYE Special Talkback - READ 1st POST

[Gubaba]

Which is why it is so unusual to see some of you grown men love shows aimed at little girls. It is easy to understand why grown men might still enjoy show aimed at little boys. All grown men were once little boys. Since when were grown men once little girls?

I said "young women," not "little girls." (And no, I've never been a young woman, before you ask.)

And I can enjoy Jane Austen novels, too. It really isn't difficult.

If you really don't like women, then, yeah, it would be difficult to accept something aimed at them. If you have a very narrow conception of what you can enjoy based on whether you've got a dick or not, then it's gonna be hard to accept.

Me, I just want an interesting story with stuff that's new to me.

And I happen to LIKE women.

[Duke Togo]

Almost everything Roy said

[Vifam7]

Blind devotion isn't necessary for Liking Macross. I'm afraid the mentality of some fans here are the same as fans of other fandom. The mentality is this: "It has a been years since we got anything new. Good or bad we have to support it or we'll get nothing. If you don't support it like us then you're not a fan."

Technically you don't even have to like the anime itself to support it. You can support it tangentially by buying the merchandise for it. I'm pretty sure there are folks here that'll buy the DX VF-31 toy without having seen a single episode of Delta.

[EXO]

Blind devotion isn't necessary for Liking Macross. I'm afraid the mentality of some fans here are the same as fans of other fandom. The mentality is this: "It has a been years since we got anything new. Good or bad we have to support it or we'll get nothing. If you don't support it like us then you're not a fan."

If you think that about this thread, you should check out the Star Wars thread... funny that people agreeing with you on this thread can't see it about themselves on that thread.

[technoblue]

Why segregate entertainment for men and women (or boys and girls for that matter)? That makes no sense in today's world, especially given that Macross has been getting more inclusive with each new series.

I do think it's fantastic that a short preview episode can get so much of the fandom freaking out, though.

Waiting on this new series is like waiting on a new score from a talented composer or songwriter. Everyone is eager to make it their own.

Edited January 2, 2016 by technoblue

[Duke Togo]

If you think that about this thread, you should check out the Star Wars thread... funny that people agreeing with you on this thread can't see it about themselves on that thread.

No one is "blind" when it comes to Star Wars anymore. We've lived through the prequels. You may not like Awakens, but tens of millions of people love it.

[BChoinski]

Finally saw it and my first impressions are that I will enjoy it. I think the character designs are fine, the valk action is pretty good, and the songs and BGM were good. I would have liked to see the opening and bumpers, to compare to MF, but I understand since it's a glimpse of Ep 1.

The holographic "Magic Girls" stuff was not as bad as some people made it out to be, and I liked those boomerang drones.

[EXO]

No one is "blind" when it comes to Star Wars anymore. We've lived through the prequels. You may not like Awakens, but tens of millions of people love it.

I liked it enough... but some people's blind devotion makes them like it more than the OK movie that it is. And it seems like you have to fill in a lot of the blanks from outside sources... the movie can't stand out it's own and your posts prove it more than anything. But that's for the Awakens thread. Like I said... look into that thread to see the hypocracy that stands against Delta.

[kajnrig]

Suddenly gender politics.

It certainly seems like a lot of the "hate" or at least aversion to the new series has to do with the fact that it incorporates so heavily media not traditionally aimed at straight men. Magical girls, pop music, bishounen, emotional characters... Looking at the franchise as a whole, though, it becomes apparent that Macross never had this super-masculine mystique that some commenters in this thread seem to retroactively prescribe to it. Perhaps this and Frontier make the "feminine" side of Macross more prominent, but it's always been there. Heck, part of M+, the most "manly" of Macross productions, part of its social critique is how being the dude-bro who denies his/her emotions is super bad for you, your friends, and society at large.

But none of that is a jab at anyone in particular. I honestly haven't read much of the conversation thread that led to this point. Something about who Macross is aimed at? I do know that Kawamori has a habit of trying to reach to the female audience more so than other mecha anime creators. Escaflowne's main character Hitomi Kanzaki was initially going to be the more helpless, airheaded waif that relied on the men around her typical of shounen anime, before they turned her into an athletic proactive type. Earth Maiden Arjuna had a female lead who didn't so much fight an enemy as sought balance with nature. He and his anime tend to have a feminist bend to them... even if they indulge in female objectification now and again, too.

I mean, even Delta has an all-female band actively fighting battles, and female pilots holding their own against the men (though yeah, that's been done before). Like I said before, I'm interested in seeing how all their interpersonal relationships play out; it would be so cool to see some LGBT and/or polyamorous relationships prominently depicted.

(Someone mentioned something about this being a return to M+. In what way?)

[Kyp Durron]

[Rbstr]

I'm in your corner, at least, kajnrig. When I think Macross I usually think more "atypical" to more standard mecha shows and less reliant on the macho kind of heroism (The whole point of SDF:M, to me, is that winning the fight isn't the only thing you have to do to see peace). I feel like SDF:M treated women quite a bit better than most of its contemporaries, at least. Most Macross female leads have been above average by anime/manga standards.

I'm excited for Delta...and I'm really not a big fan of the increasingly magi-science properties of music in the franchise. The magical-girl aspect is a bit ehhh to me (Like it seems a bit too dangerous...why not put them in a Valk of their own?). But, viewed from and in-universe perspective it's not like it's insane. Music/Fold-stuff do these things.

I'm liking Frejya and Mirage for the main triangle (Already on team Mirage TBFH). The Walkure girls seem like pretty serious people, not just some flippant idols in a combat zone.

There's some intrigue. I really dig that things are happening on a settled planet for at least some time. It's working for me.

Things I hope for:

A bit of planet hopping and some real world building in Earther-settled space.

A fun ride.

Mirage getting her timing down!

Edited January 2, 2016 by Rbstr

[RedWolf]

I figured it out:

Mirage = Misa's personality + Rookie Hikaru's piloting skills

i think she's going to be my favorite character development.

More like Gamlin before learning to chill.

Anybody else note the ones who heard the Var song was Freyja (Windermerian with Synesthesia), Mikumo (background unknown), and Hayate (a wanderer with what looks like a Fold Quartz pendant).

We can probably peg Freyja and Mikumo being singers having some Space-Time resonance ability.

Hayate isn't a singer but if he has a Fold Quartz he heard that Fold Wave.

Abnormal Fold Waves are a precursor to a Var outbreak.

Edited January 2, 2016 by RedWolf

[Vepariga]

Mirage is best girl. Thats all.

[Gubaba]

Mirage is best girl. Thats all.

You misspelled "Makina."

[HeavenCanceller]

I've watched Episode 0.89 three times already and just had to add my vote to the people who are loving it. The animation looks fine to me and I think the characters are really interesting so far. Mikumo seems a perfect fit as the center of Walkure and Freyja is super adorable. Messer sounds like he'll be the cool ace pilot of this series ala Isamu or Max - at least on Delta Platoon's side - while Mirage doesn't seem to have quite inherited Max's or Miriya's skills. Then again her seemingly-formal self may be getting thrown off by the Valkyrie dancing bits lol.

It's always interesting to see old-time fans knocking a new Macross installment and saying it's not "Macross" enough. I thought Delta so far is right in line with other Macross installments. Valkyries? Check. Singing Idols and the power of music? Check. Sci-fi setting? Check. Only thing missing so far is the obligatory love triangle but we know that'll show up sooner or later with all these characters we've seen.

I don't think your enjoyment of Delta is predicated on whether or not you started with the original Macross series like some here have implied. It certainly doesn't for me. I grew up watching Macross when it was first airing in Asia and have loved every installment since to one degree or another with Plus at the top and the original and Frontier close behind. Then again, I like all types of anime from silly crap like Osomatsu-san and AKB0048 to typical shonen fare like Fairy Tail and 35th Test Platoon to more "hardcore"/adult stuff like Gundam Thunderbolt and Garden of Words so I went into Delta just wanting to be entertained and not trying to find "original Macross". Anime in general has changed in the years since the first series just as the rest of the world has evolved so I don't think it's fair to roast a new installment like Delta just because it doesn't hew more closely to a 3 decade old show.

Besides, what's so wrong with the concept of Delta? This is a culture that has had itself saved from a major threat multiple times by music. Current humanity is almost entirely descended from survivors that only made it because of the power of one cutesy idol singer. They've been raised on stories and rumors of Sharon Apple and Fire Bomber. They've almost certainly heard of the Galactic Fairy and Super Dimension Cinderella that saved the Frontier fleet. Why does it sound so weird that such a culture would develop a weaponized form of idol singer?

Sounds perfectly logical to me in that context lol.

You misspelled "Makina."

You guys need to learn to spell Mikumo properly lol.

Edited January 2, 2016 by HeavenCanceller

[arbit]

Watch AKB0048, then all will be clear.

[azrael]

You guys need to learn to spell Mikumo properly lol.

Thank god it's not a shipping-war. Can't wait to see Kaname or Reina getting pulled in.

[HeavenCanceller]

Thank god it's not a shipping-war. Can't wait to see Kaname or Reina getting pulled in.

Well, okay I'll concede that I think any of them have the potential to be best girl. It's just that Mikumo is bestest girl lol.

[Gubaba]

Well, okay I'll concede that I think any of them have the potential to be best girl. It's just that Mikumo is bestest girl lol.

She's the biggest badass so far, definitely. Edited January 3, 2016 by Gubaba

[Einherjar]

Hikaru Ichijo!

Only after years into his career. He didn't out start out using the lowest type of cannon fodder mecha like these two.

Edited January 3, 2016 by Einherjar

[Renato]

Which is why it is so unusual to see some of you grown men love shows aimed at little girls. It is easy to understand why grown men might still enjoy show aimed at little boys. All grown men were once little boys. Since when were grown men once little girls?

That's a question you should ask yourself, Megatron. Oh wait, you already answered it, back in September!!

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=42893&p=1223639

It is because he's a teenager. All teen age boys look like girls until they can grow a moustache .

I'm learning so much!!

[Guest davidwhangchoi]

Things I hope for:

A fun ride.

Mirage getting her timing down!

Yes!

Mirage is best girl. Thats all.

She is

[Raptor One]

Gonna have to agree on Mikumo being besto girl so far. In fact, she reminds me a lot of Sheryl. I'm interested to see Mirage's development though. And I really like Kaname's character design and the little glimpse we've seen of her partnership with Messer,

Oh, and Freiya is a lot of fun so far.

The context I got from watching the subtitled episode was that Lady M is Mirage.

Nah I didn't get that impression at all based on how the others members of Delta Squadron were talking about her. From Arad calling her "our naive little girl" to Mikumo ditching her in order to go undercover. That's not really how one treats a commander. It's more likely that she's the newest member of Delta.

Lady M has yet to be seen.

Edited January 3, 2016 by Raptor One

[sketchley]

The holographic "Magic Girls" stuff was not as bad as some people made it out to be, and I liked those boomerang drones.

On the 2nd viewing, I didn't mind the main singers doing their thing so much, but I found the holographic dancing girls behind the drones... jarring. I think they're too animated (in the sense of moving too much), and that tended to be distracting from the focus of the shots. Otherwise, I agree on the boomerang drones.

[HeavenCanceller]

Gonna have to agree on Mikumo being besto girl so far. In fact, she reminds me a lot of Sheryl. I'm interested to see Mirage's development though. And I really like Kaname's character design and the little glimpse we've seen of her partnership with Messer,

Oh, and Freiya is a lot of fun so far.

Nah I didn't get that impression at all based on how the others members of Delta Squadron were talking about her. From Arad calling her "our naive little girl" to Mikumo ditching her in order to go undercover. That's not really how one treats a commander. It's more likely that she's the newest member of Delta.

Lady M has yet to be seen.

I got the same feel from Mikumo about her being reminiscent of Sheryl. No coincidence I like her then when Sheryl is my number one fave anime character ever. Freyjia was super amusing though like whenever she totally squees over Walkure, the way she described why she stowed away, or how she always has a snappy comeback, e.g. when the spaceport drone is yelling at her to stop running and she just off-the-cuff says "I won't!" while making good her escape.

I hope Mirage also seems as amusing in the long run as she was here in the preview. Honestly I'm excited to learn more about all of the characters - well, all the girls and most of the guys 'cause Chuck so far seems kind of one-note and may end up being too much on the aggravating rather than amusing side of comic relief. Hopefully I'm proven wrong lol.

And as for Lady M I definitely didn't get any indication they we're talking about Mirage. She seemed the most junior gopher member of the team and hardly someone they'd call "Lady" other than in jest. Mikumo was closest to a possible candidate in my mind but who the hell knows lol. Lady Macross maybe?

On the 2nd viewing, I didn't mind the main singers doing their thing so much, but I found the holographic dancing girls behind the drones... jarring. I think they're too animated (in the sense of moving too much), and that tended to be distracting from the focus of the shots. Otherwise, I agree on the boomerang drones.

Have to agree about the holographic dancers being jarring. One of the few things I disliked - not the concept but the execution of them. Even the design looked cheap, never mind the animation.

[JB0]

Flying through a missile cloud at high speed and not being damaged at all is sort of cool, if a little fantastic. ; )

I may have to watch M+ again, but I don't remember Sharon Apple's AI voodoo working the same way as the Var Syndrome. IIRC, she was the one hacking into every system and fighting Isamu and Guld.

The one parallel I do see is that Sharon's music did pacify anyone who could potentially resist her.

Pacify? She had the staff in the Macross shooting guns at Myung. Not WELL, mind you, but...

I do concede it wasn't exactly the same. Just that the concept showed up there too.

[neptunesurvey]

I need to see more before I make my final judgement. I do get that Macross II vibe with the songs increasing aggressive tendencies.

[Graham]

I have a feeling that at some stage in the series, the butch, buff Zentradi captain of the Macross class vessel will be infected by the Var Syndrome and Delta squadron and Walkure well end up having to fight against the Macross class vessel.

[Graham]

Perhaps Lady M will be Mylene, that would be so cool.

I'd rather see Mylene back than Milia. And in the context of Walkure being a singing group, it makes more sense Mylene be a mentor/leader figure.

Also, based on what we seen on-screen in the first episode, Walkure doesn't actually seem that effective as a cure to the Var Syndrome.

I mean on-screen, we only see one Zentradi being cured by their singing. The rest of the Zentradi have their mecha disabled by Delta Squadron.

That's not to say that they weren't cured off-screen, but it wasn't shown and thus by no means certain without confirmation.

[Mazinger]

I just want to take this chance to point out that I called it correctly when I posted the following about the Var Syndrome plot, back on "29 October 2015 - 05:26 AM" in the speculation thread:

Delta = A spreading illness?

Culture and memes are "viral" so could Var syndrome perhaps be not literal virus, but an ideological one?
Perhaps a statement on extremism?

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=41796&p=1231810

You may all congratulate me now.

I'll accept any Hi-Metal R goodies you feel compelled to send my way...

[Graham]

Gonna watch a third time today.

Wanna check and make sure all of Delta's hits against the Zentradi mecha were disabling hits or whether there were any cockpit kills.

From what I remember they were all disables, i.e. limbs lopped off, but wanna make sure.

[Karaoke Ninja]

Gonna watch a third time today.

Wanna check and make sure all of Delta's hits against the Zentradi mecha were disabling hits or whether there were any cockpit kills.

From what I remember they were all disables, i.e. limbs lopped off, but wanna make sure.

I'm pretty sure they were all disabling hits too. When Messer saves one of the girls from a Regult/Queadluun he seemed to shoot the arms and legs.

[Bariaburu Faita]

I went to the recent Comic Market 89, and can safely say almost everything will have magical girls added to it. Kinda like rule 34. You cant fight it, its inevitable.

[Bub]

Mikumo, the mysterious girl with no mention of her age, trapped in the rubble? Then rising like nothing happened? Mysterious indeed...

Anyway, my first impression after watching the raw. It's FUN!!! It's AWSOME!!! and I LIKE it!!!

[Gubaba]

Is this a magical girl, like in Delta?

Edited January 3, 2016 by Gubaba