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Mr March

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  1. Mr March
    I'm not so worried about suspension of disbelief harmed because the normal human heroes could be "easily" duplicated. I think we may forget the simple human motivation and economics of these human heroes that use technology. Batman could only be duplicated by another billionaire strongly motivated to fight crime by the tragic death of his parents when he was a boy. The conceit often levied at Bruce Wayne is how much more good he could accomplish if he simply used his fortune to counter crime, rather than waging a one-man war on crime that - as good as he is - could never accomplish even a tiny fraction of what his money could for a far greater number of people. Nearly ever other billionaire would not see things Bruce Wayne's way and therefore would never become Batman. Ironman, again, another "Genius, Billionaire, Playboy, Philanthropist" would be required to even invent and build a competing suit. Even if the suit technology became known to world militaries, an Ironman suit of his type would cost millions to develop, maintain, REPAIR, upgrade, redesign, etc. Not something that could ever be made in mass production without a sacrificing thousands of smaller budgets for other pieces of military materiel. The Falcon, well while cost and motivation are somewhat mitigated out as a barrier to widespread adoption of his type of super hero tech, ability and budget are still major concerns. The closest analogy - modern day fighter pilots (despite the Falcon's own protest to the contrary) - are a rare breed. The majority of the population would never pass the physical barriers to entry, let alone the intense training necessary to qualify. Something like the wing suit the Falcon has could only be mastered to the degree of skill we see on screen by a handful of people. And wing suits would be ridiculously expensive technology, probably something only the biggest militaries in the world could justify the expense.
  2. Mr March
    That's such a weird reaction to me. At least as far as the writing goes for these "secondary" heroes (like Black Widow, Hawkeye, Bucky, etc) the Falcon was by far one of the - if not THE - best introduction and use of such a character in any of the Marvel films. From a technical criticism I suppose I can understand the nitpick of his abilities and technology, but this is no more/less silly than the absurdity found by examing the powers/abilities of other heroes/superheroes. I have to say the script writing and Anthony Mackie's great performance as the Falcon never once prompted me to be critical of the character. Worked for me
  3. Mr March
    I've been waiting for a sentence like this to be written since 1994. If Kawamori only knew where it would lead one day...
  4. Mr March
    That is pretty damned cool. I'd go to one of those events just for a laugh.
  5. Mr March
    Went to see "The Raid 2" last night. This second film manages to be a great action flick that is quite different from the original. The endlessly inventive fight sequences continue to thrive in the sequel. This time around the budget is much larger and it shows. The cinematography is sumptuous and the sets are beautiful to behold. Adding many more characters, a lot more plot and much more acting, the Raid 2 feels alot wider and grander as far as the world. Story elements of organized crime and police corruption from the original film appear yet again, but now with much greater depth and nuance. Performances from all of the cast are uniformly strong and Evans continues his skill for casting incredibly memorable faces as both heros and villains. Even with all that praise, I will say I don't think The Raid 2 is the all-time action/martial arts classic that was the first film. Although the film is much more substanive and sprawling than the first, the original film was just such an amazingly tight film that sent the audience on a perfectly edited thrill ride that I didn't get the same rush out of the second film. Again, the two films are very different (which is only a good thing in this case) but I do have a personal preference for the two styles when it comes to action flicks. Nonetheless, The Raid 2 is another smashing success for director Gareth Evans and silat action star Iko Uwais. How these guys manage to be so endlessly creative with action is beyond me, but I cherish them as international treasures of genre entertainment. This sequel includes as many nail-biting fights and "WTF!" moments as the first film. This sequel also includes a mind-blowing car chase (who'd have thought?) destined to go down as one of the greatest ever filmed. Well worth a theatre visit and another film to add to any action fan's collection.
  6. Mr March
    So, what are your thoughts about Basara?
  7. Mr March
    I keep hoping for more modes for the Variable Fighters too. I feel your pain
  8. Mr March
    Ah, that makes more sense. I've thought about it more since last night and kept asking myself who had the most to gain by this death and who had nothing to lose. Obviously a certain house does
  9. Mr March
    Haven't we been over this Megaroad thing already a hundred times? Hikaru, Misa and Minmay have been written out. It's a well known writers technique and that's the point. Not knowing the fate of Hikaru, Misa and Minmay is a blessing, not a troll or tease. This is not an "open end"; the "lost contact" is a closed book. It means means we - the audience/fans - have only the story of Hikaru, Misa and Minmay as told in SDF Macross/DYRL/Flashback 2012. We know only the golden age. We know the characters only as beloved heroes of Space War I. We know them only as forever young and are spared the banality of the post-war years. Like EXO has said, we know the defining story of these characters. No wonder Kawamori mocks us old school fans through characters like Birla in Frontier; he does us a favor but all we do is harrass him about it for 25+ years
  10. Mr March
    Well, THAT was epic. What a way to go! Terrifying. The tension built up was amazing. Masterfully staged and edited. This season is firing on all cylinders so far. So, does that mean...
  11. Mr March
    Nice work! And old kit yes, but you did it justice. As it happens, I've rebuilt all the colored art for the VT-1 Super Ostrich for the next update to my website, so I'm very familiar with all the colors and little details. Your model is an excellent version of this valkyrie. Bravo!
  12. Mr March
    There's never been any serious debate about the size of the Oberth Class. In fact there never was any "OFFICIAL" figures for the craft until the 200 meter length of the Oberth was provided in the 2008 publication of the Macross Chronicle. Not sure where 390 meters came from, but I suspect that is some kind of arbitrary "Robotech" trivia, which would be invalid for Macross. I have a rather large collection of Macross books and sadly I've never seen a dorsal schematic of the Oberth Class. That doesn't necesarrily mean it doesn't exist, but after almost 30 years of publications, it's unlikely if we've not seen such a drawing by now. The only line art I have is on my website at http://www.macross2.net/m3/sdfmacross/oberth.htm (which - based on your post - you've probably already seen). But enough of the other schematics exist that you could build an accurate dorsal schematic. Sorry I couldn't be of more help.
  13. Mr March
    IMO, it's prudish. The nudity in GoT get's more press than a pregnant woman brutally murdered by stabbing her to death through her womb on screen. Yes, we all understand the sex is gratuitous, yes, we know HBO does it to gain the unsophisticated fratboy demographic and yes, we all nervously laugh together watching parodies so we can cope with the unfathomable horror that some day an erection might appear on screen...but it's prudish no matter which way it's spun.
  14. Mr March
    I've never heard him mention it. I think he must have got asked the question at a convention or other press event. Perhaps try comic con videos? I assume a voice acting role in the pre-famous days of an acting career would be much the same significance as day player on a soap opera or sitcom. So I doubt Cranston recalls much of anything specifcally about Macross Plus (unless he was a fan). He's more likely to remember in more vague terms, like his many voice acting gigs as a whole.
  15. Mr March
    Yes, there's been a lot of talk about how the writers Joe and Anthony Russo did for the Captain America character what DC's film team SHOULD have been doing for Superman. I think DC have a lot to fear from the next Captain America film if the Marvel folks continue on a path like this. Then again, Man of Steel did big dollars, so repetitive super-fights sell just as much as good writing (mores the pity) so I guess it only matters to the people that care about that kind of thing
  16. Mr March
    What is good is subjective and should go without saying. And wanting more of the same is precisely the problem with more Macross (as it is with ANY long lived franchise). As for what is and what isn't Macross, like I said I'm willing to go far from what has been established to make a different kind of Macross story work. Macross Plus had no war drama at all, which is a pillar of how many define what is or isn't "Macross". Plus was about as far from the tone of SDF Macross as one could get, and IMO it was "good". Some fans are willing to take anything Macross even if it decends into mediocrity and some fnas have a very narrow definition of what Macross is; that's their choice, but I am not and I do not. I expect more from Macross because it was proved before that the franchise was capable of more and because Macross means so much to me as a fan. I can enjoy something like Macross Frontier on a surface level as pure entertainment (which I do), but I'm always wanting Macross to offer more depth like my favorite Macross series once did. If that's too much to hope from any future Macross series, then so be it. But that's all I'm advocating and that's what I want to see.
  17. Mr March
    GoT is known for slow season openers, but I have to say this 4th Season is the exception. The new season hit the ground running and featured a lot of story in just one episode. Great new character introductions, some amazing action, good acting and we got to see almost everyone. About the recasting of Daario Naharis, I'm actually shocked that this hasn't happened that often in 4 years of GoT. Just have to go with it and hope it works.
  18. Mr March
    I have to reluctantly agree. While the Macross geek in me is thrilled to see many of the Macross vehicles prominently featured in premier cover paintings, there really is a list of Macross mecha that should be prioritized for book-cover treatment over what we're getting. In addition, some of the hero mecha should be getting multi-mode treatment here. The VF-1 and VF-25 get pimped in Battroid, GERWALK and Fighter mode, why so few of the others? Granted, DeAgostini has brought us stuff like the YF-19 Battroid and others, but we should be seeing a lot more, including many of the variants. A Milia VF-17 Nightmare, a VF-19A Excalibur, or the Enemy Battlesuit from Macross Plus. The Macross Chronicle is being sold largely on the attraction of the Macross mecha, so show us the hero mecha we want to see in the modes we want to see. We won't get bored. Promise I hope they have a VF-17 Nightmare Battroid in their plan.
  19. Mr March
    Now this is a Captain America movie far better than the first film and actually a fun movie on it's own. Marvel took some chances with this one and it paid off. Combining elements of a political thriller, CA: The Winter Soldier actually works as both an entertaining super hero action flick, an engaging thriller and even has some social commentary I was not expecting at all. Writers did a great job making Cap relevant by having him fight against the Patriot Act-esque state of fear America currently has itself in. Good character work as well; they really played up Cap's abilities and also did a fine job with the execution of the winter soldier himself. Comedy hit the right beats and the action sequences propelled the film forward rather than being obligatory hurdles found in lesser action films. Overall, a solid big box office ride. Never thought I'd like anything they did with Captain America, but this one was a hit in my books.
  20. Mr March
    Wow! This is a stellar-level version of the Glaug! The detail is very impressive and I like all the wear/weathering. Amazing work.
  21. Mr March
    Very cool! Looks sufficiently Zentran-like
  22. Mr March
    Interesting concept art for the Valkyrie. Very different but would need some refinement to make the Battroid mode much more stylish. Since the highly advanced technology of your fictional world allows such radical transformative capabilities in the Valkyrie, It's not like you'd have to be constrained by traditional Kawamori-esque design (since there wouldn't be any toys, lol). So you could litterally make the Battroid look however you want I think your logo is my favorite piece of design work you've done for this story so far. I am REALLY impressed with how you've managed to keep the style of the old logo, but create a very different graphic design from it. I like it! I love the idea of "far" future science fiction, but it's very difficult to get it right. By virtue of far future technology, many traditional "dramatic situations" that we are used to in our current fiction are either hampered or obsolete by default. Much like how cell phones would have solved the conflict of a lot of older movies One of the few writers I know that has been able to write far future fiction really well is Iain M. Banks, particularly his "Culture" novels. I'd recommend reading his work for inspiration or ideas.
  23. Mr March
    I think you'd be surprised how far from "Macross" a sequel could go while still remaining "Macross" (whatever that actually means). Both Macross Plus and Macross 7 were about as far from what was SDF Macross/DYRL? as most could imagine at the time and yet they were both still unmistakably Macross. That's really one of the things I'm advocating the most; a departure from the norm, perhaps to an extent none of us have considered. And yes, perhaps even without Valkyries it can work if it's done right. If Wolverine can do 7 movies without a single piece of yellow spandex in sight, anything is possible To go with the Marvel analogy (since apparnetly genre-film analogies work well here on mW, lol), the studio is talking all kinds of ways to present characters and tell stories. The new Captain America movie is supposedly a departure from the super hero norm, using the tone of a political thriller to tell it's story. There's talk that Ant-Man or Guardians of the Galaxy are more comedies than super hero films. And Kevin Feige has said Doctor Strange would have to be done like some surrealist Kubrick-esque film in order to work as a movie. There's no reason not to take these kind of chances with something like Macross. Macross Plus and Macross 7 did that. Now I feel one succeeded while the other failed, but I'd much rather watch an interesting failure than uninspired mediocrity. And I beleive that redefining what Macross is (or can be) is key to injecting more quality into it.
  24. Mr March
    Regarding the Macross Plus battle sequence and Scream Man's point 4, I think too much is being assumed and/or forgotten about what actually happens in that sequence. We never see the YF-21 actually grasp and fire the GU-15 gun pod. We also never see if the arm that's holding the GU-15 gun pod is still attached to the YF-21. So we can't be sure it WASN'T the left arm of the YF-21 that ultimately used the gun pod. Also, if you look closely at the sequence just before the final bout of fighting you'll note when the YF-21's right arm is ripped off it remains gripped to the GU-15 gun pod. That's why the dismembered arm is still gripping the gun when Guld notices it on the ground. IMO, the most nonsensical part of that sequence is not the hand/arm or the loadout but how the GU-15 Gun Pod actually ended up anywhere near the Battroids when the YF-21 was felled by the YF-19. After the gun pod falls, the two battroids clearly move dozens of meters away from the area of the "arm wrestle" battle (possibly as much as half a block away). So unless the GU-15 gun pod and the YF-21's death grip bounced like a giant rubber ball, it's hard to see how both ended up anywhere near Guld's YF-21
  25. Mr March
    If you need reference of the Zentradi guns, I've got an improved version of that same line art for the next update to my site. I'll add that improved scan to my post here.
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