Protoculture Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 While I'm not actually contributing anything to this KS on RT: Academy, I put the actuality of a new Macross series as more pressing matters to me. RT comes and go, sure I'll keep track once awhile, but as for Macross, there's always a 100% sureties you'll get either an OAVs or a series with a coupla animated film to boot when a decade kicks in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry the lone wolf Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Last I heard as space odyssey/operas go Macross borrowed from Star Trek, Starship Troopers, Battlestar Galactica, & of course Gundam (being that originally it was supposed to be a Gundam parody, just saying). Yes, it innovated transforming realistic robotics but a group of people going off into space was not a very original idea.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legioss Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 The "Children of Zor" picture is not a Sentinels design, despite it appearing like one on the DVD. They showed some preproduction material to a children's book illustrator and that fantasy type artwork was her understanding of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerli Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Fairy lemurs eh? They can be threatening ya know, if given the right antagonistic look. COZ.PNG This one's on me HG. Your welcome. EDIT: I regret nothing. jajajajaja Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommar Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 So far, out of all the figures that were promised, only a small amount of them are currently ready to be shipped out. Backers should be getting the first batch of figures sometime next month, but only after Palladium sells some of them at Gen Con to non-backers for promotional reasons. That's pissed off a lot of backers, especially when the owner of the company was forced to plead his case and ask the backers for permission to do this after the announcement. Also, what was estimated to be all competed by last December has now become an indefinite, long term commitment that the backers did not expect (but really should have). Just a slight correction, some of the backers will be getting their games prior to GenCon (at least for now), but I am of the bunch who think selling any of them at GenCon before bakers get theirs is BS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TangledThorns Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 The Robotech updates are more of continuation of the Mospeada anime. As cool as Mospeada looked I'm surprised it didn't have a new series or spin-offs that Macross had in Japan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr March Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 I know nothing about the show, but I'm inclined to agree. If it wasn't popular I suppose I can understand why more Mospeada wasn't made in Japan, but the mechanical design for that series was excellent and very distinctive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seto Kaiba Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Fairy lemurs eh? They can be threatening ya know, if given the right antagonistic look. COZ.PNG This one's on me HG. Your welcome. EDIT: I regret nothing. Sir, I salute you. To be fair, Macross 7 had the Protodeviln so we can't really cast stones about fairy space lemurs. And... this summation for Academy is... Space 1999? And a Child Prodigy? Did none of these HG guys watch Star Trek: TNG? Sure they did, how else do you think they came up with Janice Em... or as many Robotech fans know her, Commander 36DData? Just a slight correction, some of the backers will be getting their games prior to GenCon (at least for now), but I am of the bunch who think selling any of them at GenCon before bakers get theirs is BS. That depends on a few different factors, as of PB's last update... namely, the speed with which the goods actually reach Palladium Books' offices in Westland, the amount of time they can spare to prepare the stuff for shipment, etc. So, thanks to the vagaries of international maritime shipping and overland shipping, and the serial laziness of Palladium, there's a possibility that no backers for RRT will get anything prior to Palladium selling their limited stock of airmailed material at GenCon. I know nothing about the show, but I'm inclined to agree. If it wasn't popular I suppose I can understand why more Mospeada wasn't made in Japan, but the mechanical design for that series was excellent and very distinctive. MOSPEADA probably would've done better, IMO, if it had kept the planned original emphasis on the titular mecha instead of going for a piece of the Macross transforming fighter toy profits with both hands and fumbling the original concept in the process. SDCC's looking like it's going to have to be one hell of a Hail Mary save if they want to pull this off... the 3% a day loss continues, with today's projected final total of just 63% ($316,302) and a high-low projection cone that is now entirely below $270k ($205,552 to $266,126). If this keeps up, they'll never make it to 50%, let alone 100%. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Bateman Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 With everything that you've laid out I think this begs the question of what happens if this Kickstarter campaign totally fails? Is there a possibility that this was all an ultimatum by Frank Argama for Tommy and the others to prove whether there was still a viable interest in a new Robotech production or to produce some results (that's why they are doing this Kickstarter instead of actually investing money)? Looking at the stats for this Sunday it looks like they aren't even going to break $2,000 for pledges today and will be lucky to get more than a dozen new backers. I honestly think that there are some shakeups coming... What happens if the Kickstarter fails? Good question... I think it would most depend on whose idea it was to do this Kickstarter. I can see it being an idea of doing a Kickstarter being spawned by either Kevin or Tommy. My bet is that it was Kevin, since he's been the most vocal supporter. If he was the one who convinced Frank to go with the Kickstarter, he should be would be very worried if it doesn't make its goal. The one thing you do not do is mess with Frank's money, or make him look bad. If this Kickstarter fails, then that makes Frank and HG look bad, and it makes a serious statement to everyone in the industry that Robotech is not viable property. It would be very embarrassing, especially since they convinced Frank to appear in the video. I'm pretty certain that they thought they would have been fully funded by now, to be less than 50% towards their goal has to be disconcerting. One thing is for certain, they didn't pitch Frank on the Kickstarter idea with the idea that he would come in and make up the difference if they were short. I'm sure they told him that the "fanboys" would simply fork over their money and that he wouldn't have to spend a dime. They didn't count that these Robotech "fanboys" have turned out to be a lot more selective and discerning with their money than anyone (here or at HG) has given them credit for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coronadlux Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Maybe they should fire their creative consultants, and the marketing genius. Go back to the drawing board, and actually listen to what fans have to say. #1 open up the macross blockade and let it reach the fans. HG could pick up royalties on it. #2 if the Academy is for the fans, then, why not set up a brain storming panel and actually run through ideas and questions the fans have. Then, build a show from there. They will get their investments back even if they sell box sets only. #3 please, please, please, let the good Mr. Macek rest in piece. Don't cine up worth crappy ideas and say they were his. HG has a good CG company they can use to revamp the Robotech series. Now, all they need is a different set of creative minds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seto Kaiba Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 I think it would most depend on whose idea it was to do this Kickstarter. I can see it being an idea of doing a Kickstarter being spawned by either Kevin or Tommy. My bet is that it was Kevin, since he's been the most vocal supporter. If he was the one who convinced Frank to go with the Kickstarter, he should be would be very worried if it doesn't make its goal. Just my two cents, but since it's literally McKeever's job to be the most vocal supporter as their marketing man and their de facto public relations schmuck, that might not be the best indicator that he's the originator of the idea. It would make a certain amount of sense if he was, since he was the one who (repeatedly) aired the "Harmony Gold won't fund development of a new series until they get an episode commitment from a network" thing on the Robotech.com forums a few years ago. Whoever the "guilty party" is, they must be sweating bullets right now. 17 days to go, and they only just achieved 1/3 of the total pledge amount they need to get this off the ground. Unless their panel at SDCC lights the world on fire, this will most likely meet with a premature end. If this Kickstarter fails, then that makes Frank and HG look bad, and it makes a serious statement to everyone in the industry that Robotech is not viable property. To be honest, I think the industry figured that one out 'round about 1992... when articles in American anime magazines covering new Macross releases started to use phrases like "Forget Robotech" or only mentioned the Robotech portions of a side-by-side release of Robotech and the original shows as an afterthought. It'll definitely make Frank and Harmony Gold look bad... well... worse than they already do, anyway. Frank's reputation isn't what you'd call spotless and saintly ("acquittal! acquittal!", said the Harmony Gold parrot), but the Robotech staff have been doing an amazing job of making Harmony Gold look bad since at least 1999 thanks to some legendarily poor judgement. I'm pretty certain that they thought they would have been fully funded by now, to be less than 50% towards their goal has to be disconcerting. In all likelihood, it was the overwhelming runaway success of the Robotech RPG Tactics Kickstarter that convinced them that the fans would be throwing fat stacks of cash at Harmony Gold over Robotech Academy. They probably should've looked at details other than the total take, since the RRT Kickstarter turned into an ongoing public relations disaster for Palladium Books that has reportedly deteriorated to the point of backers threatening legal action against Palladium and even exchanging death threats on the comments pages. Water from a poisoned well, as they say... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerli Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 ​A Brief History Of 5 Failed RobotechSequelshttp://io9.com/a-brief-history-of-5-failed-robotech-sequels-1608968158 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azrael Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 ​A Brief History Of 5 Failed RobotechSequels http://io9.com/a-brief-history-of-5-failed-robotech-sequels-1608968158 Post that on the Kickstarter comments page (or have a donor post it), not here. We already know all about their failed-to-launch projects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EXO Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Post that on the Kickstarter comments page (or have a donor post it), not here. We already know all about their failed-to-launch projects. Except it gets funnier every time... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerli Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Post that on the Kickstarter comments page (or have a donor post it), not here. We already know all about their failed-to-launch projects. I know, but the fact that they were already list the kickstarter as a #5 Fail it's funny enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoptimus Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Yikes! Wow that is bad when you are getting mainstream on Gawker media(Kotaku,i09,etc..) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLoneWolf Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Hey Tom, do you know if Svea Macek's interest in Robotech was comparable to Carl's? The only reason I ask is that, excluding Svea's initial involvement with the Comico comics, she's been noticeably abscent from Robotech's development. Now that Carl has passed away, she's again working with the franchise, which strikes me as a little unusual. ​A Brief History Of 5 Failed RobotechSequelshttp://io9.com/a-brief-history-of-5-failed-robotech-sequels-1608968158 Oh man, what I would pay to be in the room when Team Robotech reads that article. Hey, can we make that into a Kickstarter? And io9's timing couldn't have been any better: just before Harmony Gold's big push at the SDCC.Though, it's unfortunate that they erroneously listed The Odyssey on there, because they've just given Harmony Gold a legitimate piece of ammunition to use against that article. Honestly, The Odyssey was just an idea that Macek kicked around in his own head, nothing more. They should've replaced The Odyssey with Robotech the Movie: The Untold story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seto Kaiba Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Though, it's unfortunate that they erroneously listed The Odyssey on there, because they've just given Harmony Gold a legitimate piece of ammunition to use against that article. Honestly, The Odyssey was just an idea that Macek kicked around in his own head, nothing more. They should've replaced The Odyssey with Robotech the Movie: The Untold story. Eh... it could pass on a technicality, since Robotech III: the Odyssey was Carl Macek's master plan for Robotech after Robotech II: the Sentinels was finished. It never formally entered development, but it's worth mentioning as a failure because it ending up as a non-starter basically signified the death of Carl Macek's grand ambitions for the animated Robotech series*. Thanks to a combination of factors torpedoing Macek's plans for Robotech II and beyond, we ended up stuck with crimes against animation like Robotech 3000 and the hopefully similarly-truncated Robotech Academy. * For once, I'm not being sarcastic here... even though the vast majority of Macek's ideas were absolutely terrible, the sheer scale of what he'd planned to do was nothing short of audacious. When you intend to make a series so vast every calendar day has its own episode, you're planning on a grand scale even if it is rubbish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old_Nash Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 They need a reboot of franchise, like this proposal http://issuu.com/richjohnston/docs/robotechproposal?e=1268187/3095388 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VF-15 Banshee Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 I have to admit, it is pretty funny, especially considering Bricken is something of a Robotech fanboy having written articles such as "Why Robotech is the Greatest Love Story of the 20th Century." Still not sure if that article is serious or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest davidwhangchoi Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 the fact that they were already list the kickstarter as a #5 Fail it's funny enough +1 pretty funny it's a list of failed sequels and it's on there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonc Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 They need a reboot of franchise, like this proposal http://issuu.com/richjohnston/docs/robotechproposal?e=1268187/3095388 It already looks like a Macross knock off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akt_m Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 They need a reboot of franchise, like this proposal http://issuu.com/richjohnston/docs/robotechproposal?e=1268187/3095388 Nah, they need to cease to exist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
technoblue Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 (edited) I don't know. I think the idea has merit with some tweaking. Albeit, this is all pie-in-the-sky speculation... IMO, a true reboot would let go of Macross and continue forward with the New Generation story. Trying to rewrite Macross again with Scott Bernard and a handful of other key characters sewn in like some kind of patchwork seems a kind of folly. It may be anecdotal, but the friends that I know who still enjoy Robotech want to see more Mospeada. They are aware of Macross and its sequals, but when watching Robotech they are able to set apart the two universes. The need to continue Macross as Robotech has become a non-starter for them. I think part of HG's issue is that it has become disconnected on multiple levels. The Kickstarter project seems to be bearing that out. Edited July 23, 2014 by technoblue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coronadlux Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 I actually like the proposal. It is fully thought out and gives more than the kickstarter updates. That is what HG needs. Someone with a clear vision of what they want. Not just " big reveals" and "carl's dream" so forth and so on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seto Kaiba Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 I actually like the proposal. It is fully thought out and gives more than the kickstarter updates. That is what HG needs. Someone with a clear vision of what they want. Not just " big reveals" and "carl's dream" so forth and so on. Problem is, that "proposal" is basically the exact same completely unworkable idea that every Robotech fan has at some point... it's "what if we just remade the original series to be more like Macross?", though they usually don't put it in those exact terms. In reality, it's no more complete and even less workable than Robotech Academy. Academy may be a mess, but at least it's a technically non-infringing mess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Einherjar Posted July 23, 2014 Author Share Posted July 23, 2014 (edited) They need a reboot of franchise, like this proposal http://issuu.com/richjohnston/docs/robotechproposal?e=1268187/3095388 I think they've past the point of no return for such things. Edited July 23, 2014 by Einherjar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seto Kaiba Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1381502542/robotech-academy/posts/923789 I think the comments section might be right when they suggested this is a desperation update. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old_Nash Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 (edited) https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1381502542/robotech-academy/posts/923789 I think the comments section might be right when they suggested this is a desperation update. I don't remember now where's I saw a ship like this XD Oh Yeah! Izumo Class from Gundam Seed^^ http://www.mahq.net/mecha/gundam/seed/izumo.jpg Edited July 23, 2014 by Old_Nash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negotiator Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 (edited) It's really disgusting how they keep pushing Carl's name around like that. 'do it for Carl, it's his dying wish' -that's the vibe I get. Edited July 23, 2014 by Negotiator Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
505thAirborne Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 I don't remember now where's I saw a ship like this XD What ever do you mean, this is the most original design of all time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coronadlux Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 Problem is, that "proposal" is basically the exact same completely unworkable idea that every Robotech fan has at some point... it's "what if we just remade the original series to be more like Macross?", though they usually don't put it in those exact terms. In reality, it's no more complete and even less workable than Robotech Academy. Academy may be a mess, but at least it's a technically non-infringing mess. True, but I am simply looking at it from an outsider point of view. If the kickstarter was similarly proposed as the "redo everything" idea, HG would have probably meet with less resistance. At least it would show that they were actually using their brain for the idea, planned it out and had a direction for their vision of the academy. Instead, they show a few character sketches, and a bunch of youtube videos. It just puts them in a bad light. No organization, no clear vision for the project, nothing. If they are saying that it's for a pilot, THEN we will see IF it gets picked up by a network, they already have sunk their own boat by not showing enough confidence in their (oops, "Carl's" ) idea. If they had such expectations of fans saying "take my money" then they would be more confident. They would approach it in a way that gave everyone reassurances. Something like this: We are asking for the Robotech and macross fans alike, for their support in helping us launch a new Robotech story. (present the McKinney type slide show) We are using kickstarter to give the fans a voice. Although the main plot has been laid out, the fans, through a "backer only" forum, can express their ideas and how they would like the characters to grow. This will be for backers that pledged (place a dollar value here) or more. Through the effort of the fans we will let the networks know that Robotech is still alive and strong. When the new series is picked up, the fans will know that they had a lot to do with it. Something to entice the backers to give more. As a stretch goal or something, maybe offer them massive discounts on the new toy line or something. HG has to give people the confidence to open their paychecks without a court order. My 2 cents anyways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beltane70 Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 Not a single one of my friends have any interest in Robotech! They'd probably laugh if they heard about this Kickstarter if they haven't already. I love how desperate that last update sounds! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest davidwhangchoi Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 guys hurry up and spread it to your friends, if each of you pays 35 dollars this will be backed. you'll also be asked in the future to print money and sell the dvd's yourselves to have a chance at seeing another kickstarter for the second episode. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coronadlux Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 BTW, why does that ship look familiar? I can't pinpoint where I have seen it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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