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This is one of only two cartoons I've got in the TV show list. The lack of cartoons is not due to a lack of cartoons available or a lack of cartoons I've seen, but more due to the lack of cartoons I feel the need to comment on one way or the other. What really needs to be said about Thundarr the Barbarian or Thunderbirds: 2086 or (and especially) the latest cartoon designed to promote the latest series of action figures or other toy. Almost none of it actually contributes to the genre in any way other than by merchandise sales.
Robotech is the exception. Robotech is a science fiction adventure story that's built around a love story. And it's got it all: action, adventure, romance, an invincible alien armada, cool ships and weapons, likeable characters, conflict, triumph and tragedy, and on and on and on.
Now I should mention that I'm really just talking about Macross here. The Robotech Masters and New Generation weren't even related until they were imported to North America and are far below in quality in just about every way except the animation itself. A few tiny changes to the dubbed plot made them into one (supposedly) long story arc
Back to the point. If you've seen it, you probably either dismissed it as just another kids' cartoon or got into it at least a little. As with any story, if you can't care about the characters, it's hard to keep with it. Great characters will make up for a mediocre story line and I'll admit that the story wasn't always great - it could probably have been compressed by a few episodes.
Admit it: you wanted to reach into the TV and smack Minmei in the head for being such a whiny brat. You felt for Claudia when Roy keeled over. You wanted to kick Kyle in the ass for being such an arrogant prick. You sympathized with Lisa over the man she loved being just a teensy bit thick when it came to matters of the heart. When Max and Myria got together, that was cool. You laughed at the three micronized Zentraedi spies trying to figure out what the hell was going on with the humans on SDF-1. You felt Rick's anger and cheered him on when he single-handedly took on the Zentraedi battlecruiser he'd thought killed Lisa (and did pretty well, too).
Was Robotech original? Well, not really in the overall scheme of things. It borrowed from a lot of different sources, though, and mixed all of those bits and pieces together to come up with something unique and lasting. And The Macross Saga had great characters. It's really unfortunate that the real sequel (Sentinels) lived only in comic books and never really got off the ground as an animated series.
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Page last updated: 23 Apr 2003.