Radd

I'm also not sure how much relativity plays into space travel in the Macross universe. Sure, space fold will get you some place in an instant, but we see a lot of non space fold travel going on as well. Those capital ships may look slow but in all likelihood they're pushing pretty substantial speeds as they travel through the galaxy, which means the people on board are aging more slowly compared to planetside people. Of course, it's a TV show and it was a cute cameo someone thought would be awesome for the movie, chances are the writers didn't put much more thought than that into it.

Isamu was born in 2015 (according to the Compendium). He'd be about 44.

May have to order one as a birthday present to myself. My first Macross toy purchase since the 1/3000 Macross. (Was Bandai's original run of VF-25 toys before that.) I need to get a VF-17, too!

I used latest CCCP and the same copy of Media Player Classic I downloaded years ago and it played perfectly fine. It would not play in VLC for me. I tried that first since MPC had given me problems a month or so ago when I was trying to play videos.

I dunno. Consider this, Alto was communicating with them directly, mind to mind, via the Vajra network. Basically, in an instant the Vajra knew every single memory, emotion and experience that made up Alto. And through him, Sheryl and Ranka, who were also connected in addition to the Galaxy conspirators, giving the Vajra a pretty broad and complete view of what was going on more than anyone else in the show.

I still enjoy the show, and Basara as a character, but I can understand why so many don't and why the show tends to divide Macross fans. A part of the problem is that Basara's ideals aren't necessarily so limited that they would only work in the very specific circumstances set up by the story, it's just that the way the story ultimately developed makes it seem that way. Setting it up so that the resolution was "Hey, we can make our food from singing!" kinda actually works against selling the themes Basara represents by making it too convenient in a way that, magically resolves the source of the conflict, the Protodevlin's need for life energy as their food to survive. Basara's driving conviction being, of course, that if we just listen to each other we can work things out. I do like how people react to Basara throughout the show, I felt that worked very strongly to the show, and Basara as a character's favour, but ultimately it was overshadowed by the resolution in the final episodes. Like, they could have done so much more with the way everyone reacts to Basara, and Basara developing not necessarily his core convictions, but his approach to reaching people throughout the story. They also could have done more with the resolution to make it less "hey, we can make food from Basara's song" to "hey, these humans can help us make our own food rather than being our food!" and altered the way "spiritua" was presented, from "magical" energy source to something more believable. All without changing the core themes and principles of the show.

That's a fair point!

I'm reminded of when the series was first airing and many people on this very forum were convinced that Ranka had betrayed humanity, despite the fact that as the viewer audience we got to see a broader picture than the characters in the show and we were given enough to know that all was not as it seemed with the Vajra.The Vajra were not mindless, brainless bugs.They're an advanced civilization, just extremely alien to our own. Also, I can't fault the tv show/movie for portraying humanity forgiving the vajra quickly any more than the equally quick way the vajra forgive the humans (who, in case anyone forgets, were the aggressors the entire time. Remember, this was the big twist ending! In the tv series, the final battle above the Vajra homeworld played out like a scene for scene recreation of the end battle of DYRL, but with humanity as the invading alien fleet. They even matched up dialogue from the DYRL battle, with Captain Wilder delivering Britai's lines.) as this was all taking place in the middle of a battle for survival. Are you going to keep shooting the other side's soldiers when it's revealed to you that you've been lied to by your superiors the entire time? Alternately, are you going to keep fighting the invaders when you witness them firsthand saving you from being conquered by a third party using mind control, revealing that there's actually two factions on the "other side" and one is trying to help you against the common enemy? Seriously, Frontier gets a bit deeper with the double crosses and twists than any other Macross, but it's still relatively straight forward and everything is clearly revealed well before the end with no room for supposition regarding each character's or faction's motivations. Except maybe Mr. Bilrar, they make you actually read a bit into what he says and does to recognize his motivations.

Anyone know the quality on that messenger bag and whether or not it's big enough to carry a 15" laptop around in? I find myself in need of a new laptop bag. Sad there's no Koenig Monster in that sale, or anywhere on the site for that matter. I'll have to look around and see if anyone is still selling it. Unfortunately it came out right when I couldn't spare any money for it.

One thing I gotta say, watching this movie makes me more sad than I already was that the Bandai DX Quarter apparently didn't sell all that well. I'd love to add a movie version of the Quarter to my collection. I didn't really get a feel for just how different it was from the tv series version in that first movie. I knew the guns were different, but didn't realize that it had a very different bridge design. Not just the "ears" but the tower itself is shaped differently. It's more similar to Battle Frontier's bridge in a way.

To those who haven't seen the movie but are concerned by the comments that the end is like the end of "Macross Zero", take it with a grain of salt. I did not get that vibe at all. No one is magicked away without explanation. What happens is very cut and dry. It's just that the fate of one character is left a mystery. Personally, it felt like a heavy handed, but not unwelcome, way to suggest that this story will be seeing a continuation. That said...Goddamn this movie was full of amazing moments! I wouldn't say it was perfect, I agree some sequences required more than an acceptable amount of suspension of disbelief, but I can forgive it that for the parts that had me leaping out of my seat exclaiming, "HOLY CRAP!" I always liked Captain Wilder, but after "Big Wednesday" he's exceptionally awesome. I loved the movie. Agree that it doesn't have the edge of SDF, DYRL, Zero or Plus, but it was still a lot of fun. To me, Macross doesn't have to be just one thing, Frontier was a great series and, along with these two movies, a great send-up to the franchise. I'm looking forward to seeing what they do with it next.

For me it's easily the 1/3000 Macross itself. Hands down. No contest. It's my favourite design from the franchise, the movie version specifically, it's huge, detailed it's one of the only two Macross toys I unpacked when I moved into my temporary lodgings last year, it will be the first thing I unpack when I move into my new apartment this weekend. Second would likely be my 1/48 Hikaru 1A with FAST packs followed by my Gamlin VF-22 or the 1/60 Tomahawk. I still need to add Bandai's VB-6 to my collection, not to mention the upcoming VF-17 and VF-19 toys from Yamato. Those might push their way up into the top 5.

I'm talking more about aesthetic difference than how they transform. The VF-4, VF-22, VF-17, VA-3, VF-14 all look very different from the 19 and the VF-1, not to mention different from each other, even if they all share basic transformation similarities from the two main groups. Personally, even tho it's certainly not sleek and sexy, the VA-3 would be second on my "want" list behind the VF-4 simply because it's so different. It's ugly, but in the kind of way that the A-10 Warthog or the Millenium Falcon are ugly. A VF-3000 would be awesome, too. I agree, more interesting than the VF-5000 in any of its variations.

I feel bad about not getting a VF-11C now. I want one, just bad timing. Funny to go back and see my last post in this thread now that it's all paid off and I'm once again gainfully employed. I'll soon have the cash to consider picking the 11C up if I can find one. I'd still MUCH rather have the VF-X version. It's my absolute favourite version of the VF-11.

Add me to the "I'd love one, but prefer to see the VF-4 first" group. The VF-4 will always be at the top of my list until it finally gets made. As for the two versions of the VF-5000 in question, I'd honestly like to see both. I've no problems with variants. I'd also love a VF-14. I'm always up for more variety in terms of Macross toys. Like someone else pointed out the vast majority of Macross toys are the VF-1, the YF-19 or designs similar to those (Like the VF-25). I love when we finally get different looking toys, like the Konig Monster and the VF-22. It doesn't happen nearly enough, in my humble opinion.

I totally need to get Aliens: Infestation. No 2D Metroid game was my biggest disappointment of the DS.Here's hoping that changes with the 3DS. (Tho I want an Infinite Space sequel even more!)

... and not much else. I keed! I keed!

I like Basara. Still, I agree he could have been more developed. Not in the "emo whingey stage" kind of way, but a bit more background on how he came to have his conviction and beliefs would have been nice. I disagree with the comments stating the UN Spacey was made a pariah for Basara to be the hero. Macross has never depicted the UN Spacey as a lockstep hive-mind. Basara was supported by elements within the UN Spacey since before the opening credits of episode 1, and he only gains more support along the way. There's disagreements within the UN Spacey, from the pilots all the way up to command, and that's been a Macross staple since SDFM. I also disagree with Basara being like Lynn Kaifun. Kaifun was a hypocrite who, at times, seemed to enjoy creating conflict. (Gotta give that he did develop more by the end of SDFM than his Robotech equivalent.) I would still like to see the show get a "DYRL" treatment someday ( but maybe an OVA redo instead of a single movie). I disliked the use of song energy for beams and shields, but loved the way it depicts having a long term effect on people as the show progresses. It wasn't an instantaneous change, none of the Protodevlin were even phased at first, unlike the Zentraedi. Which made sense since they weren't playing the "race made for war encounters culture for the first time" angle. Syvil, Gigil, Gamlin, Fire Bomber's popularity all changed gradually. I think the effect on the rest of the Protodevlin (and their forces) could have been handled better, more like the progression seen in SDFM where it slowly moved through the ranks, rather than hinging on a handful of key characters. But, getting off topic. Basara himself, as a character? I like him. Wish he was more developed but I like his ideals and determination. The way the show presented things, tho, I can understand how he rubs people the wrong way.

I didn't get that at all. Neither Ranka nor Sheryl are pacifists. It's just that Ranka figured out that things were not as they seemed before anyone else. Well, before any of the other characters and most of the people watching, at any rate. (It was pretty odd seeing so many people on the forum calling Ranka a traitor even tho, as the audience, they got a face full of not so subtle hints as to what was really going on.) Anyways, I agree the show had high points and lulls. I liked it overall, I even like Basara. I liked Dynamite even more as they dropped, for the most part, the glam rock costumes and outlandish fighter colours, and we got more mecha!

Overall, I did not care for Macross II. The story is nearly scene for scene re-imagining of DYRL but it seems forced. It introduces the Marduk with no explanation. Hey, we established these other factions related to the Zentraedi/Meltrandi and have plenty of room to expand on them, but here's an entirely new one anyways with even less explanation! The characters just didn't grip me that much. I really did not care for the mecha designs. Well, I loved them when I was 15, but as I got older they just seem over the top fan-fic extrapolations of the old mecha. The Metal Siren is exactly what I would have done to make an "advanced" Valkyrie back when I was a teenager. A more "spacey" VF-1 with big bulging missle pods everywhere, some spikes, and a big giant gun and it can blow up enemy battleships by itself by farting lightning! All the mecha designs had that very 90's sci-fi look to them. More rounded and ergonomic with arching pylons for no reason. They just didn't seem very "Macrossy" to me. Not that the VF-2SS is bad, per say, but...not very Macrossy. The Valkyrie designs lacked that love of real world aeronautics that makes the designs in every other Macross so memorable, so "believable" to me. (Bad Sound Force paint jobs notwithstanding.) I did like the fleet battles, and I still think the "Macross Cannon" is a great idea. Just kinda...underdeveloped. It looks too flat. A great idea just it has a lot of the same style issues I have with every other mechanical design in the series. The score wasn't bad, a few of the background pieces still stand out to me, like the fleet arriving with the Macross Cannons. The vocal songs are poppy and catchy but pretty generic. Not bad, but not something I'd go out of my way to listen to. I loved the human character designs. Not so much the Marduk but Mikimoto's style is front and centre and that's great. Not having him is my biggest complaint with Plus, Zero, Frontier, etcetera. The ending seemed really forced. Like others have said, it's not terrible, it's not great. It's not "good", it's fairly blandly mediocre. I don't vehemently hate it or begrudge anyone else liking it. Just not my cup of tea.

"Why did Grace smile at the end?" It wasn't so much a smile as the transition from despair to resignation.

You'd be correct in that assumption.

Generally, any movie/tv series is going to be a collaborative effort, it is simply impossible for a single person to write, direct, produce a full movie/tv series on a reasonable timetable with the quality people expect. This, however, does not mean that you cannot single out a person as the main creative force driving the production. Be it the writer, the director, the producer, what have you. Just the opposite, most of the best shows/movies do have such a driving personality energizing the production. If all the major players in the production team defer to Kawamori as that main creative force, that's good enough for me.

Gah. I've been avoiding the site because I've been poor and busy. I come back just to take a peek around and see all these pics of the VF-19 Kai, the VF-25 version 2, the VF-17....my poor bank account....it weeps.

I have one of the original Yamato 1/60 Elintseekers but, like all my toys except Masterpiece Starscreem, the Quarter and the 1/3000 Macross it's in storage until I've settled into an apartment I intend to keep longer than 6 months. Would love to pick up one of the Version 2 Elintseekers eventually. Finances have been tough lately, tho.