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Robotech


samuraid

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This kind of topic can be highly dangerous. Wars have been fought on this topic. See the Macross 7 debate thread for where this one can go very easily.

That, and RT doesn't sit too keenly here.

I saw some RT when I was younger, only from the Macross saga, like many of us US folk but only got into Macross really after seeing DYRL and M+. Needless to say, I prefer actual Macross.

Edited by Anubis
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"sigh"

In the end Macross but something that has been said many times (and is worth repeating here) is that anyone who is even in the least a fan of Macross started with Robotech and when nostalgia over took them, ended up finding Kawamori-sans epic series.

Pretty much goes without saying actually...

Some advice though... Read through the forums or even do a search before you ask a question. I'm sure everyone has chimed into a thread like this one time or another.

Draal "The without purpose" Ranger

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I started with Robotech. In my opinion the characters are a lot easier to identify with in Robotech than they are in Macross (mainly because they're presented for a Western audience) but the overall story for Macross is much more complex and interesting.

They both have their ups and downs.

Edited by Gabriel
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Might as well reply before this thread gets locked. Or...it could simply be moved to the Other forum.

I started with anime before Robotech (got my start back in the 70s with Battle of the Planets and Star Blazers). However, it wasnt until after seeing Robotech that I really started into anime (it being the first show that I knew to be Japanese in origin).

I actually dont like Macross all that much, Robotech or otherwise. Its an ok show....not entirely brilliant in my mind....but it does get credit for being the originator of the "realistic" transforming mecha show. I know some here would like to see me stoned to death for my beliefs (heretic that I am ;) ).....but they tolerate me. I occasionally have something worth saying.

Edit: Silly me....Welcome to MacrossWorld. Watch your step and mind the "Do not feed the Macross 7 Fans" signs that are posted everywhere! :p:p:p:p:p:p:p:p:p:p

Edited by 1st Border Red Devil
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I started one episode of Macross, but that was when I was very little and it was Chinese dubbed. I only vaguely remember the opening and ending song, up until then a male singing voice and singing a ballad was very new for me and ofcourse the Valks and the odd pods, so a few years later I was delighted that that episode I saw was finally breaking through in the West as Robotech. I was fan for many years, even when the channel it was broadcasted was no more on the cable. I collected 2 Valks and some kits which some were lost during the years and I held on to a few tapes of the Robotech (and the Movie... :ph34r: ) and waited...

I fell of my religion when I wanted more information about the upcoming toys, registered here and found out that it was only part of a shameless cut & paste job for a megaseries. Up until that day I believed that there were three teams working at the series to share the workload. I also thought the Robotech Masters Saga pretty much sucked with very different types of aircraft and mechs. And that Earth was so easily beaten by the Invid after so many years of rebuilding its forces and no use of any main cannons that could be build by the huge Zentradi Factory. All those doubts went away the day I signed up and found about MACROSS.

I have DVD-sets of both the series (RT: only the Macross saga) now, for good old times' sake and ofcourse the original, which is more fascinating.

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Robotech is a bit of a tragedy to me. Yes, it was my introduction to anime. Yes it knit together three different series in an interesting way (and I think that it was a pretty inventive solution for the problem of an insufficient episodes for an american T.V. season). Yes it had gobs of cool mecha. Yes it had a lot of fun (if unrealistic to the point of being pure fantasy instead of science fiction) elements to it.

It also had a number of very unfortunate problems (please keep in mind, I'm not trying to start a fight - I'm just trying to give an honest response to an extremely touchy subject as best I can).

Because of Robotech I didn't know a Studio Nue existed, that Mospeada and Southern Cross were separate intellectual properties, or that Macross actually continued in Japan on a separate tangent (one might even, on a thin line, include Orguss in that). I didn't know Macross was about culture shock. I had to discover on my own that it was a reasonably intelligent statement on what happens when technological advancement doesn't match up with personal or cultural advancement - not simply an incredibly corny connection between music and some mystical force called protoculture. Because of Robotech I didn't know that these anime actually contained much more social commentary than I thought. Because of Robotech I miss out on a lot of related anime and toys even now.

Sadly, I can't help but think if it had been presented differently it might have actually been a pretty highly respected venture. Say it was an american spin on three anime series that said from the beginning "This is an homage to Japanese Animation, a sadly overlooked artform in America. Robotech connects these three series in a new way: Macross, Southern Cross, and Mospeada. The originals can be seen and appreciated by contacting (insert list here)". If that approach had been taken, and the continuations produced in Japan welcomed here with open arms, I think many of us would feel differently about it, cheesy or not.

Of course this is a capitalist country with a free-enterprise system (which is of course in itself a beautiful thing). I can understand, however, why a company that realizes it's targeting a small devoted group might be tempted to seal off what it has so that it can make as much capital as possible . . . I just think in the long run they would have recieved more money and good-will if they had handled things differently.

I think Macross is a richer, much more sophisticated enterprise overall - an inspired original - whereas what little bit remains of my liking for Robotech embarasses me more than a little - after all, by now its just the result of how much I love that montage of mecha.

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A few years back I got back into anime and went to the RDF-forum

While in a chat there, I started to realize that only "The Macross Saga" appealed to me

and since that was an edit of Macross, I decided to stick with the original stuff

and ended here....

"Either you stick with the bible, or create your own religion. Don't add stories and deny the original, it wasn't your work in the first place"

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Robotech got me into anime by way of a 1/100th Takatoku I stole from a friend in 2nd grade. I loved Robotech a lot, but even from early on I knew about the differences between Robotech and Macross. The differences never bothered me, I always considered both series different and seperate and appreciated each series for different aspects.

Robotech had an overall larger feel for me, despite a lot of retconning (and depending on the version of the story you believe) everything managed to fit together relatively well. Not to mention with so many novels, comic books, etc you have about 30 years of the Robotech timeline exhaustively covered. Macross is kinda the opposite, not as much overall detail but more specific detail. Not to mention the fact that Macross actually has new series released for it, up until recently all Robotech had was comics (which all sucked after Academy lost the license).

Like it or not, Robotech doesn't get the credit it deserved and definately jump started anime fandom. Star Blazers, Battle of the Planets and others came before it but none of those series had the impact Robotech had.

As for the future, Macross seems to be heading away from it's more hard core technical roots into something a bit more mystical and 'magic music' like. Meanwhile Robotech is getting raped by HG. In the end I think I'll just hide in my room and tell myself that anything released after 1995 for either series never existed. Kinda liek what I do with Gundam and anything post-Char's Counterattac.

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I got introduced to Macross through Robotech just before Macross Plus came out. I had to read the book version of the Robotech series in order to find out what happened, since the local rental place onlyhad a few tapes of the Macross part of Robotech, and the stores had stopped selling Robotech tapes.

I'm happy I found Macross, but it didn't take Robotech to introduce me. I would have wound up watching Macross Plus anyway, since it took me a while to realize that Macross Plus and the first third of "robotech" was related.

I hate butchered anime, and that's what Robotech is to me. I really hate HG, especially since their interference with the Macross Plus toys.

In the end, I believe that this (along with Duke Togo) summarizes my opinion:

post-2-1073847722_thumb.jpg

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I got introduced to Macross through Robotech just before Macross Plus came out. I had to read the book version of the Robotech series in order to find out what happened, since the local rental place onlyhad a few tapes of the Macross part of Robotech, and the stores had stopped selling Robotech tapes.

I'm happy I found Macross, but it didn't take Robotech to introduce me. I would have wound up watching Macross Plus anyway, since it took me a while to realize that Macross Plus and the first third of "robotech" was related.

I hate butchered anime, and that's what Robotech is to me. I really hate HG, especially since their interference with the Macross Plus toys.

In the end, I believe that this (along with Duke Togo) summarizes my opinion:

:lol::lol::lol: HG sucks.

Damn she ugly. If he's forced to again, Montarvillois could use her for his new Valkaeda avatar.

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I treat them as separate entities, and therefore feel no shame or hesitation to say that I like them both.

Robotech has a more epic and coordinated feel to it, simply because it has been filled in so well. All the same, though, it can't avoid the awkwardness that arises from the bastardization of storylines....

Macross I like because it makes more sense overall, and has a clearer view of humanity struggling with what it inherently has against hostile outside influences. It does have it's own continuity problems, though....

Frankly, I collect both Macross and Robotech stuff, have always and will always. I just treat them like two different series....

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I was lucky.... my father is Japanese and my family in Japan sent me a constant stream of Anime taped off TV or bought from the store. My favorite tape was DYRL... along with Doraemon (hey I was 6... give me a break) and Ashita no Zyo. I couldn't understand what was going on (hell I could barely make out what they were saying half the time), but watching max kicking the crap out of Zentredis was too much. Awhile later I watched Robotech, and although I liked it (probably because I could understand it), it wasn't like DYRL. I watched the whole series, and bought the Robotech roleplaying books as well as models. I didn't really understand the difference between Robotech and DYRL until I started watching Macross II, but still that didn't make too much sense because I was 12 at the time. What really drove it home was when I was in Japan for my 14th Birthday and turned on the television to see a red valkryie... which turned out to be Macross 7, that night I bought the first Macross Plus OAV. Then I realized the difference between the two series. Since then I have never looked back. I can't wait to see how HG will try to best any of the Macross series... (if they even try to put together a movie or tv series together) I can't even imagine how they can even match the skill or bredth of Kawamori and Studio Nue.

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This question is more like the kind we had during the first 3 months of operation. It's like already old and it iss likely to require a mod to check on it quite often. Since I don't think were that interested in spending half our time watching this topic...

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