Robtech II: The Sentinels Book I: #12-16

by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)

The Sentinels #12 (eternity 1989)

The cover of this comic is done in some stark primary colors. Its burns your retinas!

I like the dramatic GLOOP! on page 4. An exclamation mark, really? Lol.

Hummm... the bath chamber on Optera is quite interesting. Seeing the Regent without clothes is strange and interesting too.

On page 25 Max saves the day (yet again) and Rem, Cabell, Karen, and Jack all clamber aboard Max's VT. Rem is straddling the foot in a most un-manly like way.

They just had to have Cabell say that corny line... I just knew it.

The Sentinels #13 (eternity 1989)

Is it just my imagination but is Dr. Lang playing Star Trek 3-Dimensional Chess?

 

 

Page 2 and 3 is a pretty awesome double page frame.

 

Page 5... a very 'Star Trek looking' shuttle and the name Sagan... someone is a Sci-Fic nerd!

 

The bottom 3 frames of page 8 are greatness.

 

We finally get a look at one of the new races to encounter on the other side of the galaxy... the almost comical looking Praxians. Who came up with their designs, a teenage boy?

 

Ahhh! the 2nd frame on page 15!

 

How could Cabell recognize Exedore... he looks totally different now.

 

On page 23 when Cabell tells everyone that the Master left for Earth, I bet they all shit bricks!

 

This was a pretty good issue. Lots of stuff going on!

 

The Sentinels #14 (eternity 1990)

 

There is that robo-butler on page 1...

 

On page 10 there is one of those walking spotlights from way back on Macross Island during the recon of the SDF-1. They still use those things!

 

The way Obsim grabs his face tentacles (or whatever they are) when he is fearful is great.

 

The Sentinels #15 (eternity 1990)

 

On page 5 I am totally lost. Cabell says they have enough Protoculture for a fold but not enough fuel for the reflex drives... I thought the reflex drives are what used Protoculture???

 

 

Sorry. this frame just struck me as funny and I had to have some fun with it.

 

We soon see Rick feeling lost in his new command. This is something I expect and am glad to see. A little more detail than a cartoon would give you. Rick was a fighter pilot and now he feels overwhelmed at all the responsibility he has and how the mission is not going as planned.

 

On page 13 Lisa answers the comm in her nighty. This is sure is a laid back crew.

 

That's some Ben Dunn type action on page 15.

 

Who let Rick bring along that old VT?

 

The Sentinels #16 (eternity 1990)

 

How is it that Obsim speaks English? Sure, I can understand the Brain being able to do it with some method but an Invid who have never interacted with humans?

 

That is a cool shot of the underside of Rick's Veritech on page 9.

 

Did I read a Monty Python reference on page 11?

 

Edwards is sitting pretty with the Invid Brain. He deactivates all the Invid troops then the REF (by order of Lang) slaughter all the helpless Invid out there. That's pretty savage. I guess you gotta do what you gotta do.

 

Jean is hit with the news that it's going to take 5 years to get back. Lol, little does she know...

 

 

And so we end Book I of The Sentinels. Join me next time for the beginning of Book II.

 

 

 

Robtech II: The Sentinels Book I: #6-11

by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)

Thanks for hanging in there with me. I'm back in college again and with a full time job and a baby on the way things are just hectic. I am trying to keep up with this though...

The Sentinels #6 (eternity 1989)

The Invid Hellcat pictured here is huge! It's so much bigger than the ones in the cartoon. Like 400% times bigger! When Cabel is in the Bioroid transport we see it outside... huge!

On page 5 I finally get closure on something that has bothered me for YEARS. Rem climbs down and gets into a crashed Invid Shocktrooper. Here we see the dead Invid! He is nowhere to be seen in the cartoon.

What is the floating butler thing on page 10? My my, Dr. Lang is sure living the good life!

On the next page Karen shows up. I've always thought she looked strange. Waltrip has caught her look from the cartoon exactly. I think it's the slanted eyelids/brows that make her look strange.

On page 16 Max and Miriya are having the 'discussion' as to why they are ditching their kid cause on Earth (along with Bowie Grant).

On the last page of the comic I can tell that the shadow is obviously Vince Grant.

The Sentinels #7 (eternity 1989)

Page 2... whoa!

Ok, Rick and Lisa are stark naked in bed and when someone comes to the door Rick just says 'come in'.

There's that floating butler again...

On page 12 we get to see the GMU. It is MASSIVE! People are just specks on the page compared to it. I didn't think it was quite that big. I can see how the Southern Cross people felt that the REF were taking all the good stuff with them and leaving Earth with nothing.

Page 15... really...

Overall this was a good issue. It took us all over the place, giving us bits of each set of character's story with a bunch of new stuff. We have finally moved on past the cartoon and are now in Eternity's own creation, bound only by Macek's notes (and perhaps the books).

The Sentinels #8 (eternity 1989)

This issue appears to be a  mixture of pencils and watercolors. Interesting look. We've seen it before but I thought I'd mention it.

Bowie looks a bit frightening on page 1.

The pretext of Minmei just wanting to see Rick and Lisa one last time (so she steals a shuttle to do it) is a bit much. I know we have to (story-wise) get her back to the SDF-3 without doing it willfully but still...

When Rem and Cabel go into Zor's study on page 14... I think that's cool.

Whoa! Now this is getting interesting. The SDF-3 just popped into Tirol space! I must confess I haven't read The Sentinels in so long I really have forgotten what happens so you will have to forgive me for doing a lot of exclaiming from this point forward.

On page 21 Lisa acts dumb as to who the Invid are... how is this? The RDF knew about the Invid from the start (see Lang's first visit to the SDF-1). Guess we need some exposition...

The Sentinels #9 (eternity 1989)

Nice 2 page scene on page 2 and 3!

Page 7 has some great mecha art too. All the mech art in this issue is awesome.

Also on page 7... the skull symbol on Max's Alpha looks more like an alien than a skull.

The Logan fighters are kinda strange looking. You will notice that the cockpit canopy comes all the way down to seat level. It's like the cockpit is 50% canopy.

Wolf does some surprisingly detailed oxygen analysis in a split second and has some questions as to why there are 2 people in the EVA but only enough oxygen for one...

Cabel's schematics don't make sense (if you read what he is saying about what they represent).

The Invid brain is quite the comedian.

At the end of this issue it appears the Invid made quick work of nearly taking out the SDF-3. Puny humans!

The Sentinels #10 (eternity 1989)

On page 3 we see the SDF-3's council chamber. That table setup looks an awful lot like the one in Star Wars on the Death Star... And I bet everyone has to speak up to be heard... it's awfully big.

I forgot Jean was a doctor. She was always just in the background but now (in the comics) we get some more depth (a little, at least).

Page 10... ho ho ho, who is this?...

Oh snap! Dr. Lang almost got busted when Rick walked in. Lang's Janis PC looks like a cash register...

On page 14 we get to see the MASSIVE GMU again. That think is way too big to be useful.

Wait a cotton-pickin' minute... Lisa's hair... it's back to it's former... er... self. (on page 20).

The Sentinels #11 (eternity 1989)

On page 3 Cabell looks a little 'derpy' on the 4th frame here...

I though Obsim was killed a couple of issues back by the Regent... I guess those Invid all look alike.

Ah ha! So we finally get to see some of the 'newer' mecha designs. Been waiting for this...

The look on Jack's face at the bottom of page 12 is great.

I think my favorite character in this whole mess is the Invid brain. He has the smarts and the wit!

On page 17 Cabell is holding a rifle backwards. Now I understand this is a comedic point but really? Would anyone (even people who have never clapped eyes on a rifle) hold it the wrong way around?

The sentry guards around the armory look cool.