Macross Frontier Novelizations - A MTL Journey

[PixelatedShinobi]

After being enthralled by the Macross 30 Novelization and the short story "A Day in Alcatraz", I've decided to go through the Macross Frontier novelizations with the aid of Google Translate. I've purchased them digitally off of BookWalker and am copying all the translated text into Google Docs to record for later. In this thread I'll be compiling intereting bits of characterization, worldbuilding, mechanical lore, good prose, or just funny moment. I'm no translator, and I don't know a lick of written Japanese, so on my end I'm putting blind faith in the MTL - I'm happy to post the original Japanese snippets on request for those in here who have more skill.

[Graham]

Interesting.

[PixelatedShinobi]

Alright, so, I've already gone through what was available of the book's summary on Bookwalker, so here's some highlights.

The opening passage of the book really puts Kodachi's excellent prose skills on full display - even through the MTL, this is really impressive stuff. "Air flowed into Alto's lungs like a burst engine" is really evocative.

 

Some neat things from the life of a colonist, especially one on the sterile (putting it lightly) Galaxy.

 

This thread can and will turn into me just gushing over how much I love Kodachi's prose writing.

 

I never knew these things were called "bio-cell phones" which is neat. we love you froggyphone.

 

More evidence for my "theory"/"belief" etc. that weird anime hair is an indicator of Zentradi blood.

 

this felt like a flashbang going off in my face.

 

incredibly, incredibly powerful stuff!!!!

 

Incredible way to tie Zero's theming into the general arc of Macross as a whole and Alto's character arc in particular.

 

We have our top analysts working on this and they have confirmed that yes, Alto Saotome is a very pretty princess.

 

That's all I've got so far. We continue onwards!

[Seto Kaiba]

2 hours ago, PixelatedShinobi said:

Some neat things from the life of a colonist, especially one on the sterile (putting it lightly) Galaxy.

Yeah, that's touched on a bit more in Macross the Ride, when they visit the Macross Galaxy fleet and witness that its public spaces are all utilitarian and barren since the actual ceature comforts in the fleet are largely products of implant-induced augmented reality and sense manipulation.

 

 

2 hours ago, PixelatedShinobi said:

I never knew these things were called "bio-cell phones" which is neat. we love you froggyphone.

That term is, I think, possibly unique to the novelization.  They're referred to as just "cell phone" in the artbooks and such.

Also, Ranka's phone is not a frog.  It's a salamander.  Specifically, the Japanese giant salamander.  IIRC, Macross Ace had a joke comic showing her wearing a realistic looking life-size one as a backpack to everyone's horror.  (They get quite large, close to 2m long at full size.) 

EDIT: I partially misremembered... it's not a single panel, it's a whole series of jokes in a comic titled "Ranka Note" in Macross Ace No.004.  In it, Ranka learns that giant salamanders are real and proceeds to buy a series of increasingly terrifying realistic goods modeled on giant salamanders including a phone and backpack that traumatize Alto severely, and a full-body realistic giant salamander costume that reduces Sheryl to a gibbering wreck. She caps the experience by horrifying everyone with an (abnormally huge) real giant salamander Klan made in a lab that promptly attempts to eat Alto.

 

 

2 hours ago, PixelatedShinobi said:

More evidence for my "theory"/"belief" etc. that weird anime hair is an indicator of Zentradi blood.

That theory's been pretty conclusively refuted over the years.

 

EDIT 2: Just for shiggles, here are some panels from the comic hastily photographed on my phone.

Edited March 27 by Seto Kaiba

[PixelatedShinobi]

3 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said:

Yeah, that's touched on a bit more in Macross the Ride, when they visit the Macross Galaxy fleet and witness that its public spaces are all utilitarian and barren since the actual ceature comforts in the fleet are largely products of implant-induced augmented reality and sense manipulation.

 

I'll get you someday, The Ride. Someday. (whenever a translator is freed up to do LN commissions)
On that note, I believe you mentioned the short story "Wired Warrior" as another example of the Galaxy's... nightmarish conditions. Where was this story released? I'd love to take a look at it.

 

4 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said:

 

That term is, I think, possibly unique to the novelization.  They're referred to as just "cell phone" in the artbooks and such.

 

Also, Ranka's phone is not a frog.  It's a salamander.  Specifically, the Japanese giant salamander.  IIRC, Macross Ace had a joke comic showing her wearing a realistic looking life-size one as a backpack to everyone's horror.  (They get quite large, close to 2m long at full size.) 

Oh, huh! That thing is huge, holy crap. The more you know.

 

5 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said:

That theory's been pretty conclusively refuted over the years.

*shrug* Hey, it's what the book says.

[PixelatedShinobi]

So, back on this topic, let's finish off chapter 1


We get a favorite trend of Kodachi - giving the in-depth perspective of a random grunt who is almost certainly about to explode and die. Of note is that "Auda" here is explicitly piloting an RVF-171 - *with EX-Gear integration*.

There is a radome and underside-fin-attached variant of the 171 - I presume Kodachi is referring to this, but to identify it explicitly as a RVF-171 (of which we only have technical information on for Luca's counterpart to Alto's 171EX) seems to either pose an interesting timeline wicket or an active retcon about how long it was in development for.

Poor guy. At least his death is related in fanciful prose!

 

It really is no wonder that Frontier's demographic made the complete switch to a female audience over the years. It really is.

 

Okay, here's one of my absolute biggest mechanical questions - the introduction of (as far as I'm aware) novel exclusive Ghost variant - the AIF-9S. It says "AIF-9S" in the Japanese text explicitly, so this isn't a MTL slipup or something.

Officially, both the Frontier forces and the SMS are established to use the QF-4000/AIF-7S Ghost, while the Galaxy uses the AIF-9V. The AIF-9B from VF-X2 (an identical airframe recreation of the X-9) shows up in 30 and its respective novelization. So what the hell is a "Ghost 9S" doing as a mass production aircraft for the Frontier NUNS? My only guess is that this is essentially just a creative miscommunication - earlier, the 7S was planned to be called the 9S in reference to the X-9 and to match with the 9B. Other than that? I got nothing.

 

I like the confirmation of the Frontier's park as a replica of Central Park, keeping up the "Frontier is made up of various real-world landmarks" theme going. Also, I just like Central Park a lot. Nice place.

 

Some in-universe perspective on "Deculture" as a loanword, plus confirmation that Ozma is a sports fan. I'm not surprised. I suspect the "Frontier Tigers" are a reference to the real-world Hanshin Tigers, although it might have been funnier to have the "Frontier Giants", aha.

S

 

Alto's characterization is so on-point in this, further reinforcing Frontier's theme of performance art and identity.

Continuing with Alto, an original flashback about how Alto came to love kabuki so much as a young boy.

(Alto is watching his father perform as an onnagata, for context)

|

To cap off the chapter, we get some characterization from the ill-fated Gilliam's perspective! I'm excited to confirm for myself whether Ozma leaving the UN was really due to Manfred Brando or not.



Chapter 2 first half post coming... whenever I feel like it, really.

[Seto Kaiba]

24 minutes ago, PixelatedShinobi said:

So, back on this topic, let's finish off chapter 1

Not seeing nearly as much "Engrish as she is spoke" or "My hovercraft is full of eels" as I'd expected, but oy... the grammar. 🤣

 

24 minutes ago, PixelatedShinobi said:

We get a favorite trend of Kodachi - giving the in-depth perspective of a random grunt who is almost certainly about to explode and die. Of note is that "Auda" here is explicitly piloting an RVF-171 - *with EX-Gear integration*.

There is a radome and underside-fin-attached variant of the 171 - I presume Kodachi is referring to this, but to identify it explicitly as a RVF-171 (of which we only have technical information on for Luca's counterpart to Alto's 171EX) seems to either pose an interesting timeline wicket or an active retcon about how long it was in development for.

It's not really that surprising, TBH.  The novels are their own thing separate from either version of the animation, but even in the animation's continuity EX-Gear and other tech for the VF-25 had been evaluated using older model VFs.  

Macross the Ride, for instance, depicts the Frontier fleet using some of its domestically-produced VF-19EF Caliburns and the custom VF-19ACTIVE Nothung as testbeds for new technologies going into the VF-25 for a year or more before the events of Macross Frontier proper.  

(WRT the RVF-171, it's just a VF-171 with an Aegis Pack... its specs aren't any different.)

 

24 minutes ago, PixelatedShinobi said:

It really is no wonder that Frontier's demographic made the complete switch to a female audience over the years. It really is.

They know their audience, all right.

 

24 minutes ago, PixelatedShinobi said:

Okay, here's one of my absolute biggest mechanical questions - the introduction of (as far as I'm aware) novel exclusive Ghost variant - the AIF-9S. It says "AIF-9S" in the Japanese text explicitly, so this isn't a MTL slipup or something.

Officially, both the Frontier forces and the SMS are established to use the QF-4000/AIF-7S Ghost, while the Galaxy uses the AIF-9V. The AIF-9B from VF-X2 (an identical airframe recreation of the X-9) shows up in 30 and its respective novelization. So what the hell is a "Ghost 9S" doing as a mass production aircraft for the Frontier NUNS? My only guess is that this is essentially just a creative miscommunication - earlier, the 7S was planned to be called the 9S in reference to the X-9 and to match with the 9B. Other than that? I got nothing.

As I mentioned above, the novels are very much their own thing story-wise.

It's not presented as a new/separate/distinct aircraft from the one in the actual TV anime.  It's likely just some authorial confusion, since the Ghost X-9 is the common ancestor to both the QF-4000/AIF-7S and AIF-9V.  (Esp. given that the novel will later explain that Luca's QF-4000 contains an authentic reproduction of the original X-9's system core.)

 

24 minutes ago, PixelatedShinobi said:

Some in-universe perspective on "Deculture" as a loanword, plus confirmation that Ozma is a sports fan. I'm not surprised. I suspect the "Frontier Tigers" are a reference to the real-world Hanshin Tigers, although it might have been funnier to have the "Frontier Giants", aha.

Considering the Frontier fleet's Island-1 is basically a pre-war Earth theme park, that the local baseball team are the Tigers makes a lot of sense.

After all, Japan's most famous and beloved baseball stadium is Hanshin Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya.  Home field of the Hanshin Tigers and the venue for the National High School Baseball Championship (AKA "Koshien") that features so prominently in so many Japanese sports dramas.  If the Frontier fleet were going to build ANY famous stadium, there's no question they'd reconstruct Koshien.

This begs the question, though... if the Tigers are always losing, is there a KFC in Island-1?