Robotech Remastered Extended Edition Collection 1: Macross Collection 1 - Revolution SF
- Revolution SF
- Kevin Pezzano
- 08/01/01
- click here
Robotech: Battlefront
Reviewed by Kevin Pezzano
Rating: 8/10
It kind of scares me that the audience that watched Robotech on TV as elementary school kids is now old enough to buy DVD editions of that classic series. Especially since I can recall racing home from school every day in the 6th grade to catch each episode as it premiered. And now here I am writing a review of this dripping-with-nostalgia disc, bringing to mind yet again the awe I felt at the mecha battles, the fascination I had with the complex space-opera storyline, and the boredom I felt with the interminable love troubles of Rick Hunter. (Hey, I was 11, what do you expect?)
The six episodes on this disc are about as representative as you can GET for this series. There are intense battles, the surprising deaths of major characters (Robotech was WAY ahead of its time), loads of allegory and societal commentary disguised as culture clashes between humans and the aliens, politicking and maneuvering, an intense rivalry, and great steaming dollops of the aforementioned romance (though now I'm more amenable to it, fifteen years later). Though this disc, being the fourth in the series, is not exactly the best one to start with, because of the tons of backstory and character development you'll miss if you skip the other three DVDs, it does contain a nicely condensed version of everything that made Robotech (and by extension Macross, the original Japanese version) so great.
Anime adapted for US TV often has a bad reputation as an eviscerated shadow of the Japanese originals, but Robotech was different. Yes, some things in it were toned down, but the characters are as human and flawed as any in a live-action drama, the action scenes are quick and kinetic, the long slow romance between several characters is left intact, and, most shocking of all, the deaths are left in. This is a big deal, in this day and age where even recent anime on US TV talk about 'being sent to another dimension' or 'destroying' other people. Robotech left the dramatic and very brutal death scenes of several important characters intact. The impact of such a realistic drama on the minds of my fellow schoolkid fanboys can not be understated; Robotech was an adult drama disguised as a kiddie action cartoon, and that's why it is so fondly remembered even today.
Unfortunately, while the power and complexity of the storyline is just as I remember it, my nostalgia-clouded memory got a rude awakening in other areas when I popped this disc into my DVD player. For one thing, Robotech is OLD, having been broadcast in the mid-eighties. The Macross footage used is even older, dating from 1982... just three years after the impossibly-ancient Mobile Suit Gundam premiered. While the character and especially the mechanical designs in this anime are outstanding, the actual animation leaves something to be desired in this day and age. Even worse, the DVDs were taken right from the original masters, and haven't been cleaned up at all, leaving the video a little murkier than it should have been.
Problematic, too, is the audio. The dub actors did a surprisingly good job, but it's obvious that this is a quickie kiddie-TV production in the minds of the English voice staff. The music created for the American version holds up suprisingly well, but the vocal songs are often hideously painful to listen to. Minmei's even WORSE than I remember her... and I remember disliking her quite a bit, even back then. And if you want any extras, you'd better buy the Legacy Collections, with their separate extras discs... because there's ZIP on the discs holding the actual episodes!
Robotech will never be as popular with today's generation of anime fans as it was with my generation. ADV's marketing and packaging of Robotech reflect that, aiming the series strictly at a nostalgia-addled Gen-X audience. However, Robotech was a remarkable show, coming a decade and a half before Cartoon Network and widely-available DVDs changed our perceptions of anime shows. Robotech wasn't just marshmallow-fluff kiddie crap; it dealt with adult issues like love, death, family, war, loyalty, and more. It's a more complicated and realistic show than a lot of modern evening dramas, if you ask me! And for that reason alone, Robotech deserves to be remembered.
If you've never heard of or seen Robotech, I heartily recommended watching it. If you are one of those old-timers who saw it during its original broadcast, than these DVDs are the perfect way to relive your childhood experience with this show. Just keep in mind that the animation and dubbing are definitely showing their age, and the cool extras will cost you a bit more. For me, though, Robotech is definitely worth it.
Posted on Wednesday, August 01, 2001 (Archive on Saturday, September 01, 2001)