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Wasn't sure about having having an exposition episode so soon after we just got back into the action. That said, there were a few things that swayed me, the main thing being that the exposition was primarily being delivered by the shady Epsilon guy, which means that there was a level of tension during the whole conversation. Additionally, the more important bits he doesn't outright spell out, just stating them to be "rumours" (regarding Mikumo). That said, there were things that could have been done better - the jumps to the Keith and Roid for one threatened to suck the tension out (since there wasn't any in those scenes).

Anyone know the title of the song Mikumo and Freyja were singing this episode (which also served as the ending theme for the past couple of episodes)?

EDIT: Never mind. Figured it out through Google fu.

Vita is such a weird choice. Then again, I guess we should be happy that Vita owners get some respite from their abandonment issues.

That image song at the end was too, too good.

The water animation was either epic or partly poached from live action footage and spliced nearly seemlessly into the cg. Either way, WELL DONE!

Yeah, either their artists have a very good volumetric particle system for water, or they're compositing in actual footage of water.

What are the chances of...

So we finally got to see the Elysion's Macross Cannon. I like how it's now integrated into the carrier instead of being as separate ship/module.

That said, does this mean that the Aether has one as well (considering that they fire from the Hemera), and that the Elysion can do Macross Cannon's akimbo?

Either that, or Scarfish is just a particularly macho example.

That Remember 16 cover was too good.

While they have their regular forces, I get the impression that they're vastly outnumbered by the NUNS which is why they need the Var.

In a dogfight too much speed is a problem. Corner velocity is really where one wants to be, which is neither too slow nor too fast. These fighters have effectively unlimited energy as well, and can accelerate fast enough to crush the pilot, so these WWII-esque analogies really don't apply.

Besides, gerwalk mode is way more effective than those cobras they keep pulling, and being able to keep a weapon system on target using the arms is nothing to scoff at either.

Its just a style thing in the show - there is no good reason for it outside of the duel.

Gerwalk probably still bleeds alot of energy though, and, with the engines pointing down, they probably lose alot of speed as well. The main use for it, as you said, you be as a replacement for a cobra, however Keith already doesn't need to do that since he can just use his Li'l Draken's to the same effect by rotating them backwards.

IMO, it's more likely just the crew acknowledging that traditional air combat is still more practical. Besides, both Keith and Messer strike me as very practical pilots, not restricted by doctrine like Mirage, nor flashy like Hayate and Bogue - they just do enough to get the job done, even sacrificing the Li'l Draken was more out of necessity than pure showing off.

As for the pilots getting crushed due to acceleration, these planes are far more likely to burn up due to friction than to have that happen to their pilots thanks to ISC.

Perhaps the reason they stuck to fighter mode was some kind of honor duel thing. I mean, if you are dueling with swords, it wouldn't be too honorable to pull out a pistol...

Keith using the previously hidden weapon is akin to pulling out a hidden dagger.

That and the use of the drone could be perceived as underhanded, IMO.

Nah, them sticking to fighter mode because they're fighting within an atmosphere sounds like a more plausible reason. Speed is life after all in air combat.

People are too used to seeing transforming as a move that gives someone an edge, yet at most what we see in the shows mostly just works due to the surprise factor. Once you get over that bit and figure out that a battroid is a (relatively) slow moving target that's bleeding energy, then it becomes easier to deal with.

It seems like modern battroids are much more functional in the air than the older ones were, so I'm not sure "battroids are on the ground" is a safe assumption anymore even for terrestrial combat anymore(and it was never a safe one for space combat, particularly after the advent of super packs).

Though it was a sound assumption in the good ol' days when they were making the VF-1, and such assumptions DO tend to outlive their foundations.

Battroids still have limited use in the air (in atmosphere) since there's no way then can beat basic aerodynamics. Once the small window of surprise is gone, they're slower moving targets that a faster moving fighter can easily take out. One of the most important factors in survivability for air combat is pure speed ("Speed is life" is one of the cardinals rules of air combat, alongside "Lose sight, lose fight"), something which battroid mode cannot have over fighter move due to drag (as well as the fact that they need to use most of their thrust for lift).

No love for Scarfish x random mercat?

I think Keith was "showboating" because he had to pull out from his bag of tricks to beat Messer. He had to sacrifice his last Li'l Draken to attack Messer from an unexpected/unconventional position (head on) to get a good shot.

It was a head-on zero-deflection shot, which is geometrically the next-easiest thing to being directly aft. The only lucky/skilled part was the single shot to the canopy.

You forget the fact that anyone going for this is basically playing chicken with their target and, at the speeds they're going, risks getting a head on collision.

Nope, it's for aerial DANCING!

More seriously, heavy damage can leave a vehicle incapable of transformation. So each mode should have the same priority placed on survivability, because the pilot might not be able to get back to F mode when the poo hits the fan.

I assume fighter/GERWALK primary sensors are in the nosecone, since the head turret has a very poor view outside of battroid mode and the nose has a very poor view while IN battroid mode. Hooray for redundancy!

But... you get redundancy in the fully camera-ized situation, too. The head turret alone is not enough for a full YF-19-style display.

The holosseum cockpit requires an array of cameras with overlap in their field of view, so losing any one camera isn't going to devastate your basic visibility in any mode(but there's far less coverage on more specialized sensors, obviously).

With a canopy, you get total redundancy in case everything sensor/camera goes out. Take note that in fighter mode, there's a higher chance that this'll happen in flight and the pilot will still need visibility. In battroid mode, there's a higher chance that they're on the ground and the pilot wont need to visibility to stop the plane from crashing.

Of course, there are workaround, such as the ejectable armor plate on the VF-27. At the same time however, the fact that the planes already have pin-point barriers, plus the higher chance of them getting hit somewhere else (engined due to head, main fuselage since it's the center of mass, etc.) means that the NUNS doctrine probably thinks that it's extraneous.

EDIT: Actually, now that I think about it. Most things that would hit a cockpit would probably tear through the armor anyway. Especially when rounds that can make whatever they hit just go the hell away into fold space exist.

Unless you're in battroid mode, and then cameras have always beat the eyeball.

But battroid isn't exactly used for aerial combat.

Additionally, knocking out the sensors can cripple the plane if even fighter mode uses sensors. We saw how Hayate couldn't aim when his head was damaged in episode 8, yet once he transitioned back to gerwalk and fighter modes, he had no issues at all. Can't say the same for something that requires monitors and cameras full time.

I'm guessing canopies are still used for the same reason we still use them today, even when theoretically, the tech exists to not require them. At the end of the day, nothing beats a pair of Mk. 1 Eyeballs.

Additionally that shot that Keith pulled off is an almost one in a million shot. For the most part, in air combat, planes tend to get shot from behind as getting on someone's six is still the best way to lineup a shot in WVR combat (and how we get stories of real life aces, such as the IAF's Giora Epstein surviving a 11 on 1 fight - because no matter how many enemies you have, only one can be on your six at any time).

Now to Keith doesn't really have an excuse for not transforming, he couldve forced Messer to slow down allowing him to get surrounded and get taken out much easier. Keith doesn't really use his forces superior numbers to its full advantage, but thats probably because out of everyone in the show he enjoys and prefers 1v1 duels as evident in him going Alto over the sheer bliss he was experiencing fighting Messer all out.

Keith doesn't need to because he's been abusing the Li'l Draken's on his wings by using them to quickly change direction.

One thing different in Messer from Roy, Kinryu and Michael is that he isn't a womanizer.

I guess how much of a womanizer you are dictates how heroic your death will be in Macross.

Look at Kinryu, he'd go on dates with two women at the same time, and how did he go? He took out a friggin battleship buying the Macross 7 fleet time to get away, while singing Totsugeki Love heart to boot.

Messer being reassigned made me wonder about the effects of Var on the NUNS logistics and personnel divisions. I mean, it basically means that they have to keep transferring anyone freed from Var out of the front, so they're likely having to replace entire divisions.

I'm guessing that the Li'l Draken's give the 262 a bit of an edge in certain situations. Their almost Harrier-like ability to rotate and vector thrust likely helps in certain situations. Not sure though if they provide enough thrust to give the Draken an edge in speed though (I'm guessing no).

I'm betting on Mikumo being half Protodeviln, the love child of Sivil and Basara. The timing would be about right.

That would imply that Basara is actualy interested in anything other than singing. It's more likely that he just sang so hard one day that Sivil got pregnant from across the galaxy.

Been wondering about this.