Macross Δ (Delta) Movie Gekijō no Walkūre (Passionate Walkure)

[Seto Kaiba]

11 minutes ago, kajnrig said:

Macross Plus doesn't shy away from messy endings. No one in the cast gets a happily ever after or the meting out of just punishment. Lucy ends the story hurting over isamu yet still pining for him; Millard faces the near certainty of a court martial that has yet to come (and never will, as far as the story is concerned); Margue gets the creation he dreamed of, and he might not mind at all that it hoists him by his own petard; and so on.

Macross Plus invested heavily enough in developing its characters that the audience actually cared about what became of them.  Their personalities were particularly importance, since they drove most of the actual plot.

Macross Delta had this enormous cast, but so few of the characters were developed at all that it was hard to care what happened to them.  Like when Messer died in the TV series, the attempt to devote an episode to eulogizing him like he was a beloved Roy-esque mentor figure to Delta Flight fell hilariously flat because the ONLY interactions he was ever shown to have with anyone except Chuck's younger brother Zack were antisocial, angry, contemptuous, or all three at once.  Trying to play it off as "see, he really cared!" by showing off a diary that he'd kept full of his nitpicking criticisms of his coworkers just hammered it home that he was hopelessly unsympathetic.  His whole "carrying a torch for Kaname" thing came out of freaking nowhere in the series, since he'd always made excuses to avoid her and Arad... so much so that I genuinely thought he was gay.  Same story with Makina.  "Oh no, she's been shot" fell flat because... well... what the hell does she even do besides fill a large bra and periodically remind us she's a lesbian?  So many of them have no bearing on events that it's hard to give a damn what happens to any of them.

 

11 minutes ago, kajnrig said:

I remember this came up as a theory in either the short questions or one of the episode threads. I like to think that's not the case, and that Sharon is entirely synthetic and/or otherwise divorced from the Protoculture and Fold Space shenanigans that inform the rest of the franchise. I can't quite articulate why I prefer this, but it has something to do with wanting to maintain an air of fascination but also danger around her. She's like other idols, but she's also not. Like... a mirror set just slightly askew to reality.

The processor that Marj installed in her was biotechnological, but yeah she stands apart for a bunch of reasons... perhaps my favorite being that she is a dark mirror of Myung, her id granted independent life by an accident of technology.  She's barely a character in her own right since she's not even properly intelligent until near the end, but as part of Myung she's endlessly fascinating because of the sharp relief she throws all of Myung's issues and insecurities into.

 

11 minutes ago, kajnrig said:

Oh, I dunno about that... I think it's pretty dull even just on its own merits...

Eh... I've seen a lot of compilation movies that were worse.

This one, at least, didn't feel like pulling teeth.

[JB0]

1 hour ago, kajnrig said:

 Millard faces the near certainty of a court martial that has yet to come (and never will, as far as the story is concerned)

Much like Isamu, court-martialing Millard would be politically problematic. By ordering Guld to follow Isamu to Earth, he wound up being involved in what accidentally became a heroic rescue of the homeworld from an insane brainwash-happy AI. Can't court-martial that.

I would assume he was quietly encouraged to retire, so they had an open desk to chain Isamu to once they promoted him out of a cockpit.

[Zx31]

I enjoyed all the characters in Delta and think they were written better than the majority of the characters in Frontier, 7, or SDF. Yes there is room for improvement, but I think they did well considering the size of the cast and the time allowed.

[Mommar]

The Characters in Delta all had the potential to be more likeable and interesting than anyone in Frontier or 7 but they most certainly were not written better than anyone in Frontier.

[Zx31]

The only persons in Frontier I felt like got any development were Sheryl and Ranka while everyone else stayed pretty much the same as when they were introduced, but that's just, like, my opinion, man...

[endlessabyss]

1 hour ago, Zx31 said:

The only persons in Frontier I felt like got any development were Sheryl and Ranka while everyone else stayed pretty much the same as when they were introduced, but that's just, like, my opinion, man...

Edited September 16, 2018 by endlessabyss
=

[endlessabyss]

On 9/15/2018 at 8:12 PM, Zx31 said:

The only persons in Frontier I felt like got any development were Sheryl and Ranka while everyone else stayed pretty much the same as when they were introduced, but that's just, like, my opinion, man...

 

They are the main characters of the show. Focus is on them so there are ample time to develop them early on in the show. Even the secondary characters got some development and roles that actually contribute to the main story. Delta, on the other hand, tried to focus on everything, including its huge cast leaving little time for anyone to grow and to the point that anyone could have been main characters. (I think AKB0048 handled their characterization much better and it has huge cast, so to say it can't happen to Delta is nonsense.) The characters are just there. Developments, if any, came way too late in the second half to rekindle attachments --if not minimum-- to the characters. I think what's holding the characters in the Delta are their likeable personalities --at least the Walkure members-- but that's it.  

Sorry that I can't provide specifics as I don't have good memory.

Edited September 17, 2018 by endlessabyss

[seti88]

When delta's episode 1 aired, i really tot they were gonna flesh out hayate to be like john travolta, bringing his fancy footmoves and swagger into battle! 

Who knows, maybe in the next macross series?  

[kajnrig]

Dunno if this is against the rules (preemptive apology if it is, mods), but this is an example of the bad footage splicing I was talking about. I did not do this myself, this is taken straight from the movie. There's nothing spoilery in the gif, but I'll go ahead and spoiler it anyway for safety's sake.

[SMS007]

Yeah. Like when the climax battle begins and the Xaos fleet defolds, the Windermerian fleet is shown in orbit of what I think is the Ionideth animation model, from some TV episode. Then in multiple battle shots in the asteroid field (probably reused from multiple TV episodes, including 26), no planet is repeatedly visible behind the Windermerian ships. And when the Macrosses clear then asteroids and open fire, the Sigur Berrentzs is in front of the Ragna animation model.

This movie was piss-poor on astrogeography. 

Edited September 16, 2018 by SMS007

[Sanity is Optional]

33 minutes ago, SMS007 said:

Yeah. Like when the climax battle begins and the Xaos fleet defolds, the Windermerian fleet is shown in orbit of what I think is the Ionideth animation model, from some TV episode. Then in multiple battle shots in the asteroid field (probably reused from multiple TV episodes, including 26), no planet is repeatedly visible behind the Windermerian ships. And when the Macrosses clear then asteroids and open fire, the Sigur Berrentzs is in front of the Ragna animation model.

This movie was piss-poor on astrogeography. 

The sad part, is they could have just gone back and edited those scenes to have a different (and matching) backdrop...

[SMS007]

No wait, I stand slightly corrected. As the climax battle of the movie begins, the planet is correctly shown as the Al Shahal model. 

Ugh I’m not sure I can meaningfully distinguish between Al Shahal and Ionideth. Or for that matter, Randall from Voldor.

Oh and the movie did go to the length of recycling the episode 4 / 5 concert reveal on daytime Randall into nighttime Al Shahal. Take that as you will. 

Edited September 16, 2018 by SMS007

[Laundro]

I didnt enjoy the movie at all.

It feels like one long music video

[Seto Kaiba]

Rewatched Macross Delta: Passionate Walkure again with @Jack Verse the night before Super Dimension Convention, and it still failed pretty spectacularly to impress.  Tried to round up a few more folks for a screening, but unfortunately most of the folks I could find to invite were locals who were driving in the next morning.

On this rewatch, I think the thing that struck me the most was how jumbled the film is.  Half the film feels almost completely disconnected from the story.  It kind of reminds me of the way I felt after watching Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince... like I'd watched two unrelated movies starring the same actors that'd been inexpertly stitched together.  All the scenes with Walkure are so jarringly different in tone from the scenes that advanced the actual plot that the Walkure bits felt incredibly out of place.

 

22 hours ago, seti88 said:

When delta's episode 1 aired, i really tot they were gonna flesh out hayate to be like john travolta, bringing his fancy footmoves and swagger into battle! 

Who knows, maybe in the next macross series?  

Saturday Night Var Syndrome doesn't have quite the same ring to it...

[Master Dex]

14 minutes ago, Seto Kaiba said:

Rewatched Macross Delta: Passionate Walkure again with @Jack Verse the night before Super Dimension Convention, and it still failed pretty spectacularly to impress.  Tried to round up a few more folks for a screening, but unfortunately most of the folks I could find to invite were locals who were driving in the next morning.

On this rewatch, I think the thing that struck me the most was how jumbled the film is.  Half the film feels almost completely disconnected from the story.  It kind of reminds me of the way I felt after watching Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince... like I'd watched two unrelated movies starring the same actors that'd been inexpertly stitched together.  All the scenes with Walkure are so jarringly different in tone from the scenes that advanced the actual plot that the Walkure bits felt incredibly out of place.

 

Saturday Night Var Syndrome doesn't have quite the same ring to it...

I really did want to, but as it is I barely got home after the con before midnight, heh.

Seems the best description of the movie's plot is "Things Happen."

I also am actually quite disappointed the dancing VF gimmick was dropped so fast... I enjoyed that. It was unique.

[kajnrig]

Speaking of, they replaced the dancing 171 with a dancing Siegfried, and the result is... Well, to a general audience I'm sure it looks fine, but if you know how the 31's back looks, with the wings protruding out and all, the maneuvers it pulls off look awkward to say the least. The 171 has a nice compact backside, you can easily see it pulling off a power slide without bumping into anything. The 31? Eh... I have half a mind to revisit that scene, see if they didn't pull off some anime magic.

[JB0]

3 minutes ago, kajnrig said:

The 171 has a nice compact backside

Quoted out of context for obvious reasons.

[kajnrig]

32 minutes ago, JB0 said:

Quoted out of context for obvious reasons.

[Master Dex]

Perfectly framed jokes aside, that compact wing section is something I like. Now I like the YF-24 derivative designs a lot, especially the 30 and 31.. but I'm not a fan of the trend for wing and back sections to just be left hanging there. From a mechanical complexity standpoint it is good and fair... but there was something neat about the YF/VF-19,  VF-17, etc in how they folded everything neatly away. I like that simplified Battroid look.

[Marzan]

Had a touch of the flu so I stayed at home and had a chance to rewatch the film.  I honestly think that Big West missed a chance here to be able to sell this property outside of Japan. Other than transforming mecha and music group (which many other shows and series do), there's so little to indicate that this is Macross. It could have easily been called Walkure Delta. Just a couple of quick edits here and there and don't call the capital ships Macross (just Elysion will do and they own the IP on the look) and they could have pulled it off.

I've been called out for being negative so I'm gonna go with the positives I got from the rewatch.

The mercats are cute as heck and I want to see more of them.

Kaname is the one member of Walkure that actually has the semblance of being a character. Not quite there yet but almost

I thought the long blonde haired idol had a very cute character design .

6 hours ago, kajnrig said:

 The 171 has a nice compact backside

Yes. Absolutely. I should have realized this sooner.

[JB0]

8 hours ago, Master Dex said:

Perfectly framed jokes aside, that compact wing section is something I like. Now I like the YF-24 derivative designs a lot, especially the 30 and 31.. but I'm not a fan of the trend for wing and back sections to just be left hanging there. From a mechanical complexity standpoint it is good and fair... but there was something neat about the YF/VF-19,  VF-17, etc in how they folded everything neatly away. I like that simplified Battroid look.

In seriousness, I remember not liking the YF-19 when Plus was the big thing because it was a relatively complex transformation that didn't even clean up particularly well in the end, with wings just left dangling off the thighs like someone forgot a step or two.

...

Yeah, in hindsight, the -19 is an elegant masterpiece of grace and simplicity.

[kajnrig]

5 hours ago, Marzan said:

 Kaname is the one member of Walkure that actually has the semblance of being a character. Not quite there yet but almost

I'm glad I wasn't imagining things.

[Hikaru Ichijo SL]

On 9/17/2018 at 8:08 AM, kajnrig said:

I'm glad I wasn't imagining things.

I totally agree, she is my favorite Walkure member.

[VF-27_driver]

HI all,

I've been outa the loop rather long...  Anyone know where I could get a copy of this???   Is the Limited Edition worth it?

Thanx,

Air-eek

[Seto Kaiba]

1 minute ago, VF-27_driver said:

HI all,

I've been outa the loop rather long...  Anyone know where I could get a copy of this???   Is the Limited Edition worth it?

Thanx,

Air-eek

CD Japan, Amazon Japan, HMV Japan... all the usual suspects.  (CD Japan was so swift in delivering mine I got it the same day it came out in Japan.)

[Focslain]

1 minute ago, Seto Kaiba said:

CD Japan, Amazon Japan, HMV Japan... all the usual suspects.  (CD Japan was so swift in delivering mine I got it the same day it came out in Japan.)

Speaking of which, here's the link for cdjapan

Macross Delta: Passionate Walkure

Edited September 24, 2018 by Focslain

[VF-27_driver]

HI all,

COOOOOOLLL!!!!  Thanx guys.

Ear-ick

 

 

[hardreturn]

Liked the movie but not as much as the series. I loved the Delta series though. Opposite of Frontier where I found the series pandering and badly structured, but the movies super enjoyable.

 

Similar to how I love the Plus series, so the movie falls flat. But I enjoy DYRL greatly since I have no nostalgia for the show and find SDF unwatchably boring and poorly paced.

 

[Sandman]

On 9/4/2018 at 12:20 PM, no3Ljm said:

Or maybe I'm just getting too old for that kind of stuff.

I wonder if I should just cut and edit all the Valkyrie stuff and have it played over and over again and call it Macross Delta: Walküre Free. 

 

i'd watch it.

[Convectuoso]

I watched this movie a couple days ago, and it was terrible. Although the last 20 minutes or so are the best moments Delta has provided, it's still no match to any other Macross movie. 

It's good that they cut most of the filler material, but they should also have cut  Freyja's birthday party and used those minutes to develop the characters and the main conflict a bit more. 

[Bolt]

52 minutes ago, Convectuoso said:

It's good that they cut most of the filler material, but they should also have cut  Freyja's birthday party and used those minutes to develop the characters and the main conflict a bit more. 

I haven’t seen it yet , but was there Delta curry @ her birthday?

mabe that’s why they didn’t cut it..

Sinething else to tied in and to sell  @ the Walkure concerts..LOL!

[kajnrig]

2 minutes ago, Bolt said:

I haven’t seen it yet , but was there Delta curry @ her birthday?

mabe that’s why they didn’t cut it..

Sinething else to tied in and to sell  @ the Walkure concerts..LOL!

Or the Walkure maid cafe, because of course.

https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2018/10/13/macross-delta-caf-reveals-key-visual-and-menu-items

[Bolt]

OMG...I was born 20 yrs too late..

(massive sarcasm)..

[Karaoke Ninja]

On 9/4/2018 at 3:20 PM, no3Ljm said:

Or maybe I'm just getting too old for that kind of stuff.

I wonder if I should just cut and edit all the Valkyrie stuff and have it played over and over again and call it Macross Delta: Walküre Free. 

 

I'd like to do this but with II and Zero.

[JB0]

44 minutes ago, Karaoke Ninja said:

I'd like to do this but with II and Zero.

I thought they did a good job editing Walkure out for the official cut of those.