![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_minmay.jpg\")
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Driven by my obsession with Sheryl Nome<\/a> and my curiosity in Macross<\/strong> lore, I embarked on a journey of discovery to watch every single Macross series ever. Weeks later, I’m not yet at the goal, (*cough* Macross 7 *cough*) but I have seen enough to speak about my otaku trip.<\/p>\n It is a story of excitement and expectations, boredom and disappointments, and most importantly, a story of love.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The discovery that most surprised me was just how little Macross lore there is. Compared to the well-milked Gundam universe, Macross barely has any continuity between individual series, and the links between spin-offs\/sequels to the original are vague at best.<\/p>\n My only prior contact with Macross pre-Frontier<\/em> was Macross Zero<\/a>. I read enough to know that it was a prequel to the original, but that was about it. I thought it was a decent OVA series at the time, and along the way it gave me the impression that my ignorance of the franchise was causing me to miss out on a rich background story in a well-established fictional universe. It turns out that this is not entirely true…<\/p>\n The original Macross is definitely the best in the franchise, barring a possible future upstaging by Frontier<\/em>. Like most anime titles of its era, including the fanboy favourite Mobile Suit Gundam<\/em>, the original Super Dimensional Fortress Macross<\/em> suffers from bad pacing, awkward dialogues and weird directing. There are times when the characters behave pointedly out-of-character, and there are often unnecessary pauses in the dialogue that interrupt an emotional exchange. But the series makes up for all that with its sheer awesomeness, a sense of epic grandeur, and a decent mastery of emotive storytelling.<\/p>\n Macross is a pioneering work in the genre of mecha-mo\u00c3\u00a9 hybrid, the fusion of testosterone-fuelled variable fighter combat with the pop idol music of Lynn Minmay. It is undeniably far from perfect, limited by the technology of its time, particularly in terms of achieving harmony between the on-screen animations and the accompanying music. The movie Do You Remember Love?<\/em> improves on the original concept with upgraded animation and better rhythm synchronization, but the experience is still nowhere close to the immersion level of Frontier<\/em>‘s musical battle scenes.<\/p>\n Still, despite its imperfections, Macross is definitely the most enjoyable and engrossing mecha musical I’ve watched since RahXephon<\/em>. The plot-heavy storytelling works well in establishing the characters without having to do so blatantly. It annoys me when anime titles have clearly-demarcated “character development”<\/a> episodes which are really just glorified fillers. The only real problems I have with the story are the underdevelopment of the subplot between Max and Milia, and sudden character deaths that do not achieve any purpose.<\/p>\n Off-topic: What’s with Minmay’s name? She’s supposedly Chinese, but no one romanizes Chinese like that. It should be Lin Mingmei… >_<<\/p>\n And as awesome as Sheryl’s songs are in Frontier, Minmay’s Watashi no Kare wa Pilot<\/a> and Ai Oboeteimasuka<\/a> are simply magical in the way they have come to embody the spirit of the story. I also love Silver Moon Red Moon<\/a>. <3<\/p>\n The original Macross is awesome. That said, I would be lying if I said that the rest of it is just as good. Remember what I said about the lack of lore? Well, there are a few sequels and spin-offs, notably Macross II, Macross Plus, Macross 7 and Macross Zero. The problem is that they mostly suck and, with the exception of Zero, generally contribute nothing to the overall Macross universe.<\/p>\n Macross II: Lovers, Again<\/a> is ostensibly an OVA sequel set 80 years after the original series. Unfortunately, the story makes a good dentist, in the sense that it’s done before you even feel anything. The execution is one huge yawn and there’s nothing about the series that feels Macross. The appearance of SDF-1 is about the only thing that justifies having “Macross” in the title at all. It is barely watchable.<\/p>\n Macross Plus<\/a> is a short OVA series set a few years before Macross 7. Similar to Macross II, it’s a story that can easily exist independently of the Macross universe and, once again, the appearance of SDF-1 is the only link to the original. However, the story and execution does fare better than Macross II and at the very least the series is enjoyable and has music by Yoko Kanno. It would’ve been a lot better if Sharon Apple actually sang anything at all.<\/p>\n Macross 7<\/a>, as far as I can tell, is a handful of monkey feces that was violently flung into the collective faces of Macross fans everywhere. Among the titles listed here, this series is probably the only one that can be considered a direct sequel to the original, which only worsens the insult. To top it off, it is also the longest series in the entire franchise at 49 episodes long. I just can’t bring myself to continue watching this crap. Someone tell me if it’s worth the effort… I really want to find out more about Max and Milia, but Basara is putting me off.<\/p>\n Considering the poor quality of its successors, it’s quite an amazing feat that the popularity of the original Macross managed to survive to this day to justify the celebration of its 25th anniversary with a new series. The entire Macross franchise appears to be nothing but uninspired subpar works leeching off the success of the original. It is truly a miracle that we are able to enjoy the delicious love triangle that is Macross Frontier<\/em> today, instead of a second Macross 7<\/em>.<\/p>\n Driven by my obsession with Sheryl Nome and my curiosity in Macross lore, I embarked on a journey of discovery to watch every single Macross series ever. Weeks later, I’m not yet at the goal, (*cough* Macross 7 *cough*) but … Continue reading Super Dimensional Fortress Macross<\/h3>\n
![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_macross1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_macross2.jpg\")
\nAhh… The 80s<\/p>\n![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_macross3.jpg\")
\nThe 80s with a larger budget<\/p>\n![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_macross4.jpg\")
\nKyuun Kyuun<\/em><\/p>\nThe rest of it<\/h3>\n
![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_macross5.jpg\")
\nThe only reason why I finished watching the thing<\/p>\n![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_macross6.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_macross7.jpg\")
\n“Why am I stuck in this piece of crap?”<\/p>\nConclusion<\/h3>\n
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![\"Macross\"](\"http:\/\/www.darkmirage.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/08_misa.jpg\")
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