by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)
Welcome to the next part of my 2012 Reading/Watching extravaganza of Robotech! I have now moved on to the one-shot by Academy 'Civil War Stories' and more of Return to Macross and finally Break Point then I am onto the show! Catch up on what I am doing here.
Civil War Stories #1 (Academy 1996)
D.S. Villalovos is our artist and the ever-story-producing Robert Gibson is the writer once again. This one-shot is a story about a battle that happened during the Gobal Civil War.
Villalovos' art looks like it would be better suited for something original, instead of trying to reflect the look of a set of particular characters.
On page 8 we once again see Henry Gloval's 'give-up' attitude. How in the world did this guy ever get so high up in the RDF?! lol.
No sure whats going on in the bottom frame of page 22. It looks like it's a 'fill in your own tobacco advert' featuring Henry Gloval. Here is mine...
"Have you dodged death today on the open seas? Then fill up with Newton's pipe tobacco and celebrate!"
Now the first page of this story says it was an account of one of the 'bloodiest battles' of the Global Civil Way'. Must have been a VERY tame war.
Return to Macross #34 (Academy 1996)
On page 10 there is the concert on the cruise ship and in the back of the crowd is none other than Tetsuo from Akira. He looks pretty pissed!
The cartoon look of these character portraits are somewhat distracting. Take a look at page 11 and you will see what I mean. Lisa looks kinda retarded in that bottom-left frame!
The art at the bottom of page 16 looks like a caricature. I am going to bet this artist worked at one of those caricature booths at Six Flags or something.
In the Academy Mailbag section they tell us that Sean Bishop got a job working at Disney. I guess he went on to do comics for them. I wouldn't doubt it, he is pretty good.
Return to Macross #35 (Academy 1996)
Dusty Griffin continues his work with this comic with Bill Spangler doing the writing.
Looks like Admiral Hayes has been kidnapped by some thugs so Lisa isn't in so much danger anymore since they have the big fish now.
The bad guys also take control of one of the RDF's ocean platforms. They get some of the Radar X Destroids and make their demands. The Destroids look really strange.
The quality of the art in this comic is actually very good. It appears Dusty Griffin had more time or he just does a better job with action than alot of people sitting around talking.
Return to Macross #36 (Academy 1996)
The bad guys were headed up to the Achilles space ship with Admiral Hayes hostage. Roy (having his usual run of bad luck) had to put back down.
On page 4 Claudia asks Roy how he feel for the first time in this whole run of comics! She had dissed him so much all during Return to Macross I was beginning to feel sorry for him.
The double page art on page 12 looks great! It's Armor 1 doing something other than getting whupped on by the Zentraedi.
The designer of the Achilles shut off all power to everything... except the gravity. He must have forgot to shut that system off.
I found this comic to be a very easy read. It was well laid out and had coherent action, bravo!
Return to Macross #37 (Academy 1996)
Roy is in pursuit of Smythe and did he just try to commit murder on page 8? Shouldn't he be just trying to disable the shuttle?
On page 16 the Robotech Military Police sure look alot like the terrorist that invaded the Achilles. There's that strange looking Destroid again.
Mayor Lunan sure looks fit and trim! I wonder what happened to him?
That's some real dodgy art on page 21. I think he was in a rush that day.
And POOF! on page 24 everything is all right between Roy and Claudia... really? sheesh...
And that's it! The curtain closes on Return to Macross. It was a bumpy ride but I had fun. On to the next comic!
Breaking Point: Lisa Hayes #1 (Academy 1996)
All the women in this comic look the same (with the exception of Claudia). I was having trouble keeping people straight.
On page 13 the killer lady appears to be walking away from the guy then all the sudden we see him falling in the ocean. I guess she threw the knife? Not sure, the direction wasn't too clear.
Well... well... I can't say I saw the ending coming. I guess they felt the need to wrap of that particular character and leave her pre-launch. Ouch.
THAT'S ALL! I have completed the time line in the Robotech universe right up to the series. In my next post I will be going over the first Robotech book and the show itself. The reading list doesn't cover the comico stuff for some reason but I will be reading those as well.
Until next time!
Showing posts with label return to macross. Show all posts
Showing posts with label return to macross. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Monday, April 16, 2012
Return To Macross: Issues 27-33
by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)
Here we go back on a stretch of Return to Macross comics. If you are totally confused about what this is then be confused no more! This is my 2012 tour of the Robotech Universe! I used SuperMecha8's timeline list to begin reading/watching my way through the events in the Robotech universe in chronological order.
It's April and I am still in the pre-lauch part of the Robotech timeline. Fist we started off with the events pre-landing of the SDF-1 on Macross Island and have been slowly moving along, watching the island become a teeming city with all the issues a teeming city has. Let's continue!
Return To Macross #27 (Academy 1995)
The first thing that caught my eye was a spelling error on page 13 (yeah, I know... nit picky).
It looks like we are rehashing the story from several issues back when Roy is asked to join the Lumerians. The woman he kinda has a thing for was killed but she left a message for the rest of her people to capture Roy and try to get him to join them again.
Last time Roy tricked them into thinking he would join them and it appears the EXACT same thing is happening again. I hope this goes somewhere different.
Return To Macross #28 (Academy 1996)
Wes Abbot is back and his stuff looks different. It looked very manga-ish before, now it seems to have a realy cartoony feeling. I guess he wanted to try a different approach or something.
Wait wait wait! What in the Mayor Luan is going on here?! What happened to the story line from the last issue?! Roy was taking Lumerian ship while getting the Lumerians to abandon it to 'fight another day'. I figured this story would go somewhere... wtf???
This issue starts out with Roy trying to get Claudia to forgive him (what's new). Infact it seems like that is all that happend between Roy and Claudia. I can't remeber one time where he wasn't getting into do-do with her.
The story jumps to a serious situatution where Roy is out searching for survivors to a crashed shuttle. Oh, there are the Lumerians!
Return To Macross #29 (Academy 1996)
Yikes! That cover art! I HONESTLY think I could have done better... I can't draw for crap! Ok, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Knowing the power of the Internets I'm sure the artist will probably read this at some point. I apologize... I'm just being picky.
Check out page 12... Roy (I guess that's him) is just a head sitting on a torso... no neck!
Oh my gosh! This is just painful! Look at Leonard on page 16!
Well before I even get to thinking about it... this comic will 100% be the stinky winner of the 1st quarter's 2012 Robotech 'worse art in a comic' award. I'm sorry if I make the artist feel bad but this honestly looks like something I drew (which isn't' saying much).
The story is coherant though (which can't be said of some of the more recent stuff). Claudia's old flame shows up on the island and it tips her affections away from Roy. It turns out her old flame is wrapped up in some shady stuff.
Return To Macross #30 (Academy 1996)
We are back to the Birchfields and man what an improvement! I complained about them before but not now...
In this issue Gloval has a flashback of his youth in the Internationaists army. Their uniforms are strikingly close to the RDF ones.
The terrorist guy can shoot smoke out of his hand... cool!
What's wrong with Admiral Hayes in the first frame of page 17? He seems to have a crick in his neck.
Page 18 has some confusing speech bubble layouts. I hate when I get all lost on what is being said becasue I don't know which one to read next.
Towards the back of the comic is the Robotech Reporter where Malibu talks about their titles and news and such. They mention the passing of Brian Daley of Jack McKenny fame. That's sad. I didn't realize that he and James Luceno were working on Galaxy Rangers, thats' one of Chris' favorite cartoons!
Return To Macross #31 (Academy 1996)
Dusty Griffin is the artist in this issue. He draws structures and vehicles very well but seems to have a hard time with the human form. Not that I'm complaining, I'm still coming off the low of RTM #29 so this guy is Lenardo Divinci to me...
There is a nice two page panel to open this comic of Invid attacking the SDF-1 (presumabily during Zor's final hours). Nice artwork! I did notice that several of the Invid look like direct copies of the art from the Roleplaying guides (which was probably a direct copy from the Japanese 'This is Animation' book for Mospeada.
Look at the guy playing the sax in the street on page 9... te he.
On page 10 there is a nod to Akira in some guy's jacket with a photo of a pill on it. Claudia is apparently having gravity issues in the same frame.
On page 16 you can see the Dadelus in the water in the top left corner of the frame. This is one of the few times you ever get to see it in the water (what it was built for). It does look like it's riding a little low there...
Anyway this issue is the continuation of the Salamander hacker and the people paying him (who just happen to be an old flame of Claudia's). Salamander is working off shore on a casino ship looking to get ahold of Admiral Hayes' itenary for his arrival on Macross Island... I'm sure they want to throw him a surprise party or something...
Return To Macross #32 (Academy 1996)
The art in this issue reminds me of some Role Playing Game books. I wonder if Dusty Griffin ever illustrated any?
Lisa has some deadly looking fingernails on page 13. Also, Admiral Hayes was named in an eariler issue and here you can see his name again. I never saw his name before these comics so I wonder if the Academy guys officially got to name him.
On page 14 Claudia comes into their (Lisa's and Claudia's) apartment in the middle of story that she is telling her beau, but the wording is wrong... I think the word 'the' is missing.
The Return to Macross series is really treating Roy Fokker like a putz. He is constantly drunk now and he acts more and more pathetic when it comes to Claudia. Poor Roy.
Return To Macross #33 (Academy 1996)
The character's looks veer wildly in this issue. Lisa looks real homely on page 7.
On story element I am digging in this particular story arc is the impending Typhoon. It is like a dark cloud (literally) shadowing everything that is happening. It menaces but at the same time it gives some reality to the whole situation.
On page 11 the 'Bree Bree' sound and the way De Salva is moving made me think that he was pulling his pants up at first! lol. I thought: 'ut oh, De Salva and Salamander are up to no good'.
Salamander seems more like a character out of Cyberpunk or NetRunner than Robotech.
Here we go back on a stretch of Return to Macross comics. If you are totally confused about what this is then be confused no more! This is my 2012 tour of the Robotech Universe! I used SuperMecha8's timeline list to begin reading/watching my way through the events in the Robotech universe in chronological order.
It's April and I am still in the pre-lauch part of the Robotech timeline. Fist we started off with the events pre-landing of the SDF-1 on Macross Island and have been slowly moving along, watching the island become a teeming city with all the issues a teeming city has. Let's continue!
Return To Macross #27 (Academy 1995)
The first thing that caught my eye was a spelling error on page 13 (yeah, I know... nit picky).
It looks like we are rehashing the story from several issues back when Roy is asked to join the Lumerians. The woman he kinda has a thing for was killed but she left a message for the rest of her people to capture Roy and try to get him to join them again.
Last time Roy tricked them into thinking he would join them and it appears the EXACT same thing is happening again. I hope this goes somewhere different.
Return To Macross #28 (Academy 1996)
Wes Abbot is back and his stuff looks different. It looked very manga-ish before, now it seems to have a realy cartoony feeling. I guess he wanted to try a different approach or something.
Wait wait wait! What in the Mayor Luan is going on here?! What happened to the story line from the last issue?! Roy was taking Lumerian ship while getting the Lumerians to abandon it to 'fight another day'. I figured this story would go somewhere... wtf???
This issue starts out with Roy trying to get Claudia to forgive him (what's new). Infact it seems like that is all that happend between Roy and Claudia. I can't remeber one time where he wasn't getting into do-do with her.
The story jumps to a serious situatution where Roy is out searching for survivors to a crashed shuttle. Oh, there are the Lumerians!
Return To Macross #29 (Academy 1996)
Yikes! That cover art! I HONESTLY think I could have done better... I can't draw for crap! Ok, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Knowing the power of the Internets I'm sure the artist will probably read this at some point. I apologize... I'm just being picky.
Check out page 12... Roy (I guess that's him) is just a head sitting on a torso... no neck!
Oh my gosh! This is just painful! Look at Leonard on page 16!
Well before I even get to thinking about it... this comic will 100% be the stinky winner of the 1st quarter's 2012 Robotech 'worse art in a comic' award. I'm sorry if I make the artist feel bad but this honestly looks like something I drew (which isn't' saying much).
The story is coherant though (which can't be said of some of the more recent stuff). Claudia's old flame shows up on the island and it tips her affections away from Roy. It turns out her old flame is wrapped up in some shady stuff.
Return To Macross #30 (Academy 1996)
We are back to the Birchfields and man what an improvement! I complained about them before but not now...
In this issue Gloval has a flashback of his youth in the Internationaists army. Their uniforms are strikingly close to the RDF ones.
The terrorist guy can shoot smoke out of his hand... cool!
What's wrong with Admiral Hayes in the first frame of page 17? He seems to have a crick in his neck.
Page 18 has some confusing speech bubble layouts. I hate when I get all lost on what is being said becasue I don't know which one to read next.
Towards the back of the comic is the Robotech Reporter where Malibu talks about their titles and news and such. They mention the passing of Brian Daley of Jack McKenny fame. That's sad. I didn't realize that he and James Luceno were working on Galaxy Rangers, thats' one of Chris' favorite cartoons!
Return To Macross #31 (Academy 1996)
Dusty Griffin is the artist in this issue. He draws structures and vehicles very well but seems to have a hard time with the human form. Not that I'm complaining, I'm still coming off the low of RTM #29 so this guy is Lenardo Divinci to me...
There is a nice two page panel to open this comic of Invid attacking the SDF-1 (presumabily during Zor's final hours). Nice artwork! I did notice that several of the Invid look like direct copies of the art from the Roleplaying guides (which was probably a direct copy from the Japanese 'This is Animation' book for Mospeada.
Look at the guy playing the sax in the street on page 9... te he.
On page 10 there is a nod to Akira in some guy's jacket with a photo of a pill on it. Claudia is apparently having gravity issues in the same frame.
On page 16 you can see the Dadelus in the water in the top left corner of the frame. This is one of the few times you ever get to see it in the water (what it was built for). It does look like it's riding a little low there...
Anyway this issue is the continuation of the Salamander hacker and the people paying him (who just happen to be an old flame of Claudia's). Salamander is working off shore on a casino ship looking to get ahold of Admiral Hayes' itenary for his arrival on Macross Island... I'm sure they want to throw him a surprise party or something...
Return To Macross #32 (Academy 1996)
The art in this issue reminds me of some Role Playing Game books. I wonder if Dusty Griffin ever illustrated any?
Lisa has some deadly looking fingernails on page 13. Also, Admiral Hayes was named in an eariler issue and here you can see his name again. I never saw his name before these comics so I wonder if the Academy guys officially got to name him.
On page 14 Claudia comes into their (Lisa's and Claudia's) apartment in the middle of story that she is telling her beau, but the wording is wrong... I think the word 'the' is missing.
The Return to Macross series is really treating Roy Fokker like a putz. He is constantly drunk now and he acts more and more pathetic when it comes to Claudia. Poor Roy.
Return To Macross #33 (Academy 1996)
The character's looks veer wildly in this issue. Lisa looks real homely on page 7.
On story element I am digging in this particular story arc is the impending Typhoon. It is like a dark cloud (literally) shadowing everything that is happening. It menaces but at the same time it gives some reality to the whole situation.
On page 11 the 'Bree Bree' sound and the way De Salva is moving made me think that he was pulling his pants up at first! lol. I thought: 'ut oh, De Salva and Salamander are up to no good'.
Salamander seems more like a character out of Cyberpunk or NetRunner than Robotech.
Friday, April 6, 2012
2012 Robotech Quarterly awards cermony (1st Quarter)
by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)
Welcome to the first quarterly awards in my 2012 Robotech Experience. I plan on having 3 of these which take place a the end of each quarter of the year (each 3 months). Let's get on with it!
Welcome to the first quarterly awards in my 2012 Robotech Experience. I plan on having 3 of these which take place a the end of each quarter of the year (each 3 months). Let's get on with it!
- Award for the best artist work in a comic this quarter: Sean Bishop
- Award for the best storyline in a comic this quarter: War of the Believers I guess, no real winner. I did like Academy Blues... hard... to... decide.
- Award for the best over all comic this quarter: Academy Blues #1
- Award for the worst storyline in a comic this quarter: It's a toss up between Metal Swarm and Warriors.
- Award for the worst art in a comic this quarter: Return to Macross #29
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Return To Macross #26, Academy Blues #4, Romance #1, and Academy Blues #5
by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)
So Spring is just around the corner and by looking at the reading/watching order list I am not doing so well. I think that once I get into the shows things will speed up a lot so never fear!
For those of you who don't know what the heck I am talking about check out my first blog post about my 2012 'total Robotech experience' and feel free to join in.
You will probably notice (if you haven't already) that I do alot of griping about the comics. Don't get me wrong, I love Robotech! There are places you can go on the net and see synopsis about the comics and such and I didn't want to do that. I wanted to throw my perspective about the comics and not just retell them to you in boring blog format. I might whine about art or bad lettering but I am enjoying the experience so just accept it! Let's roll out!
Return To Macross #26 (Academy 1995)
Michelle Birchfield is back as artist. Like I said before she isn't bad, at times she draws beautifully and some of her characters look great but they aren't very anime-like. At some points he art is a little 'iffy.
On page 7 Brian Bernard looks a little retarded. Derp!
Macross city seems VERY futuristic in Ms. Birchfield's panels. A little too futuristic at times!
Many of the drawings in the middle of the comic of Brian are very '80's' looking... like some thing out of an A-ha video! I like them.
Page 20... wtf...
On page 25 they talk about Robocon 10 which happened the month before.
Academy Blues # 4 (Academy 1995)
The artist for this issue is Frances Birchfield. I am not sure if Frances and Michelle are the same person or sisters or something. A quick look on the net resulted in no extra info. Michelle did attend Robocon 10 but no mention of Frances.
Frances' art is rough at times. Character's heads are way too big for their bodies and there are times I think I might have drawn a particular panel better (and that's saying something). I realize Academy didn't have big bucks to hire mega stars of the art world.
On page 8 is an advertisement for the 'swimsuit issue'. I have never liked that. Sure I am a guy and all but Minmei in those kinds of bathing suits... sheesh. She would be FAR too prudish to wear any of that!
On page 9 Roy has a super mullet... wait a second! Oh man... I just noticed that their 'pages' don't match up. The story line is numbered but the pages in between (the ads) are not. When I tell you guys to check out the ad on page 8 (or 9, or whatever) I am looking at the last numbered page and adding whatever number onto it. Well, just try to keep up. I'll just continue to do it that way...
On page 14 Simon Lebon makes an appearance... wait that's Roy.
When Claudia leaves the UEG building Roy follows and tells himself she went down 'Gibson Street'... is that a little nod to himself (the writer of the comic)?
So the guy that was following Lisa confronts Roy outside the UEG building which on a few pages back was guarded by armor-clad troops. Roy and this guy fight right out there but conveniently the guards are gone.
Romance #1 (Academy 1995)
Question answered! Both Michelle and Frances Birchfield are drawing this issue so they ARE separate people. You may all breath normally again.
Romance is an comic of shorter comics. A one shot of one shots if you will. With Gibson, the Birchfield Sisters and Seripo Calm (who is a first here) come together to write and draw 'the more romantic side' of Roboteh.
The fist segment presents itself as one of Lisa's old roomate's songs and is simple artwork with accompanying lyrics to various scenes in Lisa's love life.
Why o why was Karl Rieber in the military? What a puss, always wining about war and crap but still joining up!
Two Beers with a Skirt Chaser is the next tale and it's about Roy (of course). The art from Calm is... very.. Disney XD. It looks like Disney redesigned Robotech for their weekday Clubhouse Disney or something, very cartoony.
Roy drinks his way to near un-coherentness in this little tale. Rolf Emerson tries to talk some sense into the lush but nothing is working. Roy is hung up over Claudia and finds his woes are lessened in some cheap booze.
The final story is 'When the Going Gets Tough' by Gibson as well. It's about someone named Georgia (you may remeber that she works at the Academy with the simulators. Apparently she needs to seriously get laid (I kid I kid)!
She is having some very strange dreams about Rolf Emerson and the 'Bridge Bunnies' before they were actually bridge bunnies. I think Georgia just needs to NOT eat at least four hours before bed... that will stop those freaky dreams. Either way I am even more confused when at the end of the dream it's Sammie who is dreaming (and was at the beginning of the comic).
One page 7 is a STUNNING announcement from Academy. They write to everyone that they will no longer be doing Robotech comics in the coming year. After December of 2006 they will no longer be publishing or selling back issues. Oh the horror!
Academy Blues #5 (Academy 1996)
I can certainly see the differences between Michelles and Frances' art. Michelle uses softer edges while Frances' art has more straight lines.
Sammie is bummed because she is having to earn a living and Vanessa and Kim are free to be perverts.
We also see more simulator hijinks at the Robotech Academy with Georgia and the man she hankers for (Tom, who just don't look right). Lisa is barking at the other cadets (what's new) and life goes on.
We get a bookend to this issue with the explanation as to how someone so young (Lisa) could have become a Lieutenant in the RDF. She along with Rolf Emerson are promoted in the Academy and will graduate with those positions.
So Spring is just around the corner and by looking at the reading/watching order list I am not doing so well. I think that once I get into the shows things will speed up a lot so never fear!
For those of you who don't know what the heck I am talking about check out my first blog post about my 2012 'total Robotech experience' and feel free to join in.
You will probably notice (if you haven't already) that I do alot of griping about the comics. Don't get me wrong, I love Robotech! There are places you can go on the net and see synopsis about the comics and such and I didn't want to do that. I wanted to throw my perspective about the comics and not just retell them to you in boring blog format. I might whine about art or bad lettering but I am enjoying the experience so just accept it! Let's roll out!
Return To Macross #26 (Academy 1995)
Michelle Birchfield is back as artist. Like I said before she isn't bad, at times she draws beautifully and some of her characters look great but they aren't very anime-like. At some points he art is a little 'iffy.
On page 7 Brian Bernard looks a little retarded. Derp!
Macross city seems VERY futuristic in Ms. Birchfield's panels. A little too futuristic at times!
Many of the drawings in the middle of the comic of Brian are very '80's' looking... like some thing out of an A-ha video! I like them.
Page 20... wtf...
On page 25 they talk about Robocon 10 which happened the month before.
Academy Blues # 4 (Academy 1995)
The artist for this issue is Frances Birchfield. I am not sure if Frances and Michelle are the same person or sisters or something. A quick look on the net resulted in no extra info. Michelle did attend Robocon 10 but no mention of Frances.
Frances' art is rough at times. Character's heads are way too big for their bodies and there are times I think I might have drawn a particular panel better (and that's saying something). I realize Academy didn't have big bucks to hire mega stars of the art world.
On page 8 is an advertisement for the 'swimsuit issue'. I have never liked that. Sure I am a guy and all but Minmei in those kinds of bathing suits... sheesh. She would be FAR too prudish to wear any of that!
On page 9 Roy has a super mullet... wait a second! Oh man... I just noticed that their 'pages' don't match up. The story line is numbered but the pages in between (the ads) are not. When I tell you guys to check out the ad on page 8 (or 9, or whatever) I am looking at the last numbered page and adding whatever number onto it. Well, just try to keep up. I'll just continue to do it that way...
On page 14 Simon Lebon makes an appearance... wait that's Roy.
When Claudia leaves the UEG building Roy follows and tells himself she went down 'Gibson Street'... is that a little nod to himself (the writer of the comic)?
So the guy that was following Lisa confronts Roy outside the UEG building which on a few pages back was guarded by armor-clad troops. Roy and this guy fight right out there but conveniently the guards are gone.
Romance #1 (Academy 1995)
Question answered! Both Michelle and Frances Birchfield are drawing this issue so they ARE separate people. You may all breath normally again.
Romance is an comic of shorter comics. A one shot of one shots if you will. With Gibson, the Birchfield Sisters and Seripo Calm (who is a first here) come together to write and draw 'the more romantic side' of Roboteh.
The fist segment presents itself as one of Lisa's old roomate's songs and is simple artwork with accompanying lyrics to various scenes in Lisa's love life.
Why o why was Karl Rieber in the military? What a puss, always wining about war and crap but still joining up!
Two Beers with a Skirt Chaser is the next tale and it's about Roy (of course). The art from Calm is... very.. Disney XD. It looks like Disney redesigned Robotech for their weekday Clubhouse Disney or something, very cartoony.
Roy drinks his way to near un-coherentness in this little tale. Rolf Emerson tries to talk some sense into the lush but nothing is working. Roy is hung up over Claudia and finds his woes are lessened in some cheap booze.
The final story is 'When the Going Gets Tough' by Gibson as well. It's about someone named Georgia (you may remeber that she works at the Academy with the simulators. Apparently she needs to seriously get laid (I kid I kid)!
She is having some very strange dreams about Rolf Emerson and the 'Bridge Bunnies' before they were actually bridge bunnies. I think Georgia just needs to NOT eat at least four hours before bed... that will stop those freaky dreams. Either way I am even more confused when at the end of the dream it's Sammie who is dreaming (and was at the beginning of the comic).
One page 7 is a STUNNING announcement from Academy. They write to everyone that they will no longer be doing Robotech comics in the coming year. After December of 2006 they will no longer be publishing or selling back issues. Oh the horror!
Academy Blues #5 (Academy 1996)
I can certainly see the differences between Michelles and Frances' art. Michelle uses softer edges while Frances' art has more straight lines.
Sammie is bummed because she is having to earn a living and Vanessa and Kim are free to be perverts.
We also see more simulator hijinks at the Robotech Academy with Georgia and the man she hankers for (Tom, who just don't look right). Lisa is barking at the other cadets (what's new) and life goes on.
We get a bookend to this issue with the explanation as to how someone so young (Lisa) could have become a Lieutenant in the RDF. She along with Rolf Emerson are promoted in the Academy and will graduate with those positions.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Academy Blues #0 and Return To Macross: Issues 21-25
by Nathan Stout of (AccordingToWhim.com)
Academy Blues #0 (Academy 1995)
This is a whopping 40+ page comic which revolves around Lisa Hayes' days at the Robotech Academy. This type of storyline is the kind of thing I like. It gets more involved with the characters. When you have a nice mixture of the action and character's lives it really makes for interesting reading.
Roy Fokker shows up to lecture at one of her classes and on page 9 the students throw some funny questions at him.
Rolf Emerson is brought into continuity here as well. Claudia is smitten with him.
The comic only lasts the first 24 pages and then we are given an interview with the writer of the Academy Blues series: Robert Gibson. After that there is another interview, this time with artist Sean Bishop.
Return To Macross #21 (Academy 1995)
Bill Spangler and Wes Abbot are back on the case as we swing back to the Return to Macross series. We pick back up with the trouble with the 'Faithful' group on Macross Island.
Roy and Lang mosey on down to a special submarine that is kept on standby to safe all Lang's research away in the event something goes down on Macross. The sub takes off by itself and Roy has to takes steps to figure out what's going on and who is doing it.
On page 18 (after Roy has gotten ahold of a ridiculously large missile launcher) Lang dumps his research to distract the probe. It is a box of... floppy discs... come on! Even in 95 there were CDs...
Return To Macross #22 (Academy 1995)
This issue opens with Lang's sister Nina talking about how the SDF-1 is a timebomb then we cut to Roy and Lang talking at the Robotech HQ. I for one would like to know how the HECK they got out of the fix they were in during the last issue! They seems to have just dropped that storyline. Roy and Lang were prisoners inside that sub that was being remotely controlled then... nothing. I figured they would still be on it but I guess when they destroyed that probe thingy it released control (although nothing was ever mentioned).
On page 9 I could see the outline of a T.A.C. solider and sure enough on the next page there is the Southern Cross armor. Once again I like the fact that they are mixing that stuff in but it doesn't fit into the cartoon at all. If we are seeing it now I would assume we would have seen it in Macross City on the SDF-1... just sayin'.
On page 17 they are egging the Spartan Destroid... nice.
Return To Macross #23 (Academy 1995)
Charles Wilbur is back on Macross Island. You will remember that he was the once leader of the faithful but left after seeing that Robotechnology wasn't all that bad. He returns to the island to denounce the new violence that the 'Faithful' has started up.
Wilbur is shot and POOF! Roy just happens to have a brand spanking newplot device motorcycle to give chase to the killers.
On page 25 there is a short article about the upcoming Robocon 10 convention! I'm sure you all know about me and Robocon 10... check the last paragraph.
Return To Macross #24 (Academy 1995)
The 'Faithful' faction that is all for causing real turbulence is planning something big and Nina (who is on the less-extreme side of the argument) is getting caught in the middle.
I can't be sure but it looks like he drew the Gladiator backwards on page 15. It could be going the other direction but the hands look like they are facing the wrong way for it to be walking away from the viewer.
On page 16 we are watching the MBS news but there is a shot of a person being interviewed and an MBS TV camera guy is in the shot... filming the guy. I guess MBS (Macross Broadcasting System) wants multiple angles for some really high quality news reporting.
On page 24 there is a Playstation on the floor.
After the comic there is an interview with Carl Macek. He comments that he wishes everyone would just forget about Robotech: The Movie... lol. He also talks about his total plan for Robotech (one he would never get) as well as a tidbit about the Soundtrack Perfect Collection set that came out around that time.
Return To Macross #25 (Academy 1995)
This issue concludes the 'War of the Belivers' storyline from the last few issues. Nina was kidnapped in the last issue and it's up to Roy to save her.
So while they (Roy and Lang) are trying to find Nina, Roy just blasts a major piece of communications equipment to play a hunch... really Roy?
Everything is wrapped up neatly and Lang introduces Nina to Brian Bernard... yes, that Bernard. I don't think it was ever mentioned later but I am guessing this is supposed to wind up being Scott's future mother and father.
Academy Blues #0 (Academy 1995)
This is a whopping 40+ page comic which revolves around Lisa Hayes' days at the Robotech Academy. This type of storyline is the kind of thing I like. It gets more involved with the characters. When you have a nice mixture of the action and character's lives it really makes for interesting reading.
Roy Fokker shows up to lecture at one of her classes and on page 9 the students throw some funny questions at him.
Rolf Emerson is brought into continuity here as well. Claudia is smitten with him.
The comic only lasts the first 24 pages and then we are given an interview with the writer of the Academy Blues series: Robert Gibson. After that there is another interview, this time with artist Sean Bishop.
Return To Macross #21 (Academy 1995)
Bill Spangler and Wes Abbot are back on the case as we swing back to the Return to Macross series. We pick back up with the trouble with the 'Faithful' group on Macross Island.
Roy and Lang mosey on down to a special submarine that is kept on standby to safe all Lang's research away in the event something goes down on Macross. The sub takes off by itself and Roy has to takes steps to figure out what's going on and who is doing it.
On page 18 (after Roy has gotten ahold of a ridiculously large missile launcher) Lang dumps his research to distract the probe. It is a box of... floppy discs... come on! Even in 95 there were CDs...
Return To Macross #22 (Academy 1995)
This issue opens with Lang's sister Nina talking about how the SDF-1 is a timebomb then we cut to Roy and Lang talking at the Robotech HQ. I for one would like to know how the HECK they got out of the fix they were in during the last issue! They seems to have just dropped that storyline. Roy and Lang were prisoners inside that sub that was being remotely controlled then... nothing. I figured they would still be on it but I guess when they destroyed that probe thingy it released control (although nothing was ever mentioned).
On page 9 I could see the outline of a T.A.C. solider and sure enough on the next page there is the Southern Cross armor. Once again I like the fact that they are mixing that stuff in but it doesn't fit into the cartoon at all. If we are seeing it now I would assume we would have seen it in Macross City on the SDF-1... just sayin'.
On page 17 they are egging the Spartan Destroid... nice.
Return To Macross #23 (Academy 1995)
Charles Wilbur is back on Macross Island. You will remember that he was the once leader of the faithful but left after seeing that Robotechnology wasn't all that bad. He returns to the island to denounce the new violence that the 'Faithful' has started up.
Wilbur is shot and POOF! Roy just happens to have a brand spanking new
On page 25 there is a short article about the upcoming Robocon 10 convention! I'm sure you all know about me and Robocon 10... check the last paragraph.
Return To Macross #24 (Academy 1995)
The 'Faithful' faction that is all for causing real turbulence is planning something big and Nina (who is on the less-extreme side of the argument) is getting caught in the middle.
I can't be sure but it looks like he drew the Gladiator backwards on page 15. It could be going the other direction but the hands look like they are facing the wrong way for it to be walking away from the viewer.
On page 16 we are watching the MBS news but there is a shot of a person being interviewed and an MBS TV camera guy is in the shot... filming the guy. I guess MBS (Macross Broadcasting System) wants multiple angles for some really high quality news reporting.
On page 24 there is a Playstation on the floor.
After the comic there is an interview with Carl Macek. He comments that he wishes everyone would just forget about Robotech: The Movie... lol. He also talks about his total plan for Robotech (one he would never get) as well as a tidbit about the Soundtrack Perfect Collection set that came out around that time.
Return To Macross #25 (Academy 1995)
This issue concludes the 'War of the Belivers' storyline from the last few issues. Nina was kidnapped in the last issue and it's up to Roy to save her.
So while they (Roy and Lang) are trying to find Nina, Roy just blasts a major piece of communications equipment to play a hunch... really Roy?
Everything is wrapped up neatly and Lang introduces Nina to Brian Bernard... yes, that Bernard. I don't think it was ever mentioned later but I am guessing this is supposed to wind up being Scott's future mother and father.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Metal Swarm: Issue 1 and Return to Macross: Issues 16-18, 20
by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)
Onward and upward. I have been following this reading list for the complete Robotech saga and we are now up to Metal Swarm and continuing Return to Macross. The year got off to a quick start but slowed in the last 2 weeks. Work has been crazy and so my free time at home has been shorter than usual so the progress on Robotech for 2012 has slowed a little. Not to fear, we are doing well, it's only February so no panicking... yet.
Metal Swarm #1 (Academy 1995)
The artist for this comic draws in a very 'deco' design. It looks more like individual artwork than a comic. I am not sure if I like or don't like.
The story in here is a one-off job. I am not sure how academy was doing things but it is a bit confusing. I am guessing that they were going to continue the series since on the last page it said: Next Time: Family Ties. I did a search though the comics I had and I don't see anything titled Family Ties so I guess the sales sucked enough for them to ditch the line.
Return to Macross #16 (Academy 1994)
We have jumped back across the universe and are picking up the story with Roy Fokker back on Macross Island (pre SDF-1 launch). We are back with the story line of Roy's old war buddy who is having flashbacks of the Global Civil war.
On page 3 the credits at the bottom of the page look like they are literally those old label makers you click and the letters are pressed though the label. I forgot all about those!
Roy's friend gets killed and Roy gets in trouble... ooooooo. I'm soooo scared for him. Not really.
Return to Macross #17 (Academy 1995)
We open with a wide shot of Macross Island... ahhhh. I love shots of Macross Island.
In this issue we see some of the future leader of the Southern Cross Army: Anatole Leonard. Apparently he is dabbling with the extremist group: 'The Faithful'.
On page 21 there is a semi-closeup of the SFD-1 while Roy is flying away from it. This is the first scene like this I have seen in any of the comics. No one has drawn the SDF-1 at that distance yet, it is interesting.
Return to Macross #18 (Academy 1995)
Is the singer at the first of this issue singing Abba or The Bangles? By the way, the cover of this issue could have been better...
The singer is Nina Lang, Dr. Lang's sister that we met back in some earlier Return To Macross issues. The Faithful are wanting her to be the voice of the anti-robotech movement. She seems cool with it.
What is Roy doing with his hand on page 26 (second frame)?! Why is he sniffing his hand 3 frames later!? lol. Just bad positioning I guess...
Return to Macross #20 (Academy 1995)
In this issue we see some of Lisa's childhood and her father (Admiral Hayes) is given a first name. I don't remember if he was ever given a name in any of the books and I know he wasn't named in the show.
On page 14 there is a shot of Lisa in the shower that looks exactly like the shot of Minmei in the shower (from the original Macross). Here is the original Minmei shot.
As Lisa is remembering Karl Rieber he seems to be wearing something VERY similar to Rick's launch day jumpsuit complete with trendy early 80's cravat.
The story as a whole is Lisa recalling her youth caught up in the middle of the Global Civil War. She is doing all this recalling because she is about to move out of her childhood friend's place and in with Claudia Grant. There is a bit of a back story here with this childhood friend and it actually made me want to see more of this storyline. I guess this issue was an attempt to see if the storyline performed well enough to warrant its own series since the story begins and ends right there. This seemed to be less 'action and adventure' storyline and more 'relationship and situation' storyline. I think the series Academy Blues takes this slant so I might fulfill that need with it.
Onward and upward. I have been following this reading list for the complete Robotech saga and we are now up to Metal Swarm and continuing Return to Macross. The year got off to a quick start but slowed in the last 2 weeks. Work has been crazy and so my free time at home has been shorter than usual so the progress on Robotech for 2012 has slowed a little. Not to fear, we are doing well, it's only February so no panicking... yet.
Metal Swarm #1 (Academy 1995)
The artist for this comic draws in a very 'deco' design. It looks more like individual artwork than a comic. I am not sure if I like or don't like.
The story in here is a one-off job. I am not sure how academy was doing things but it is a bit confusing. I am guessing that they were going to continue the series since on the last page it said: Next Time: Family Ties. I did a search though the comics I had and I don't see anything titled Family Ties so I guess the sales sucked enough for them to ditch the line.
Return to Macross #16 (Academy 1994)
We have jumped back across the universe and are picking up the story with Roy Fokker back on Macross Island (pre SDF-1 launch). We are back with the story line of Roy's old war buddy who is having flashbacks of the Global Civil war.
On page 3 the credits at the bottom of the page look like they are literally those old label makers you click and the letters are pressed though the label. I forgot all about those!
Roy's friend gets killed and Roy gets in trouble... ooooooo. I'm soooo scared for him. Not really.
Return to Macross #17 (Academy 1995)
We open with a wide shot of Macross Island... ahhhh. I love shots of Macross Island.
In this issue we see some of the future leader of the Southern Cross Army: Anatole Leonard. Apparently he is dabbling with the extremist group: 'The Faithful'.
On page 21 there is a semi-closeup of the SFD-1 while Roy is flying away from it. This is the first scene like this I have seen in any of the comics. No one has drawn the SDF-1 at that distance yet, it is interesting.
Return to Macross #18 (Academy 1995)
Is the singer at the first of this issue singing Abba or The Bangles? By the way, the cover of this issue could have been better...
The singer is Nina Lang, Dr. Lang's sister that we met back in some earlier Return To Macross issues. The Faithful are wanting her to be the voice of the anti-robotech movement. She seems cool with it.
What is Roy doing with his hand on page 26 (second frame)?! Why is he sniffing his hand 3 frames later!? lol. Just bad positioning I guess...
Return to Macross #20 (Academy 1995)
In this issue we see some of Lisa's childhood and her father (Admiral Hayes) is given a first name. I don't remember if he was ever given a name in any of the books and I know he wasn't named in the show.
On page 14 there is a shot of Lisa in the shower that looks exactly like the shot of Minmei in the shower (from the original Macross). Here is the original Minmei shot.
As Lisa is remembering Karl Rieber he seems to be wearing something VERY similar to Rick's launch day jumpsuit complete with trendy early 80's cravat.
The story as a whole is Lisa recalling her youth caught up in the middle of the Global Civil War. She is doing all this recalling because she is about to move out of her childhood friend's place and in with Claudia Grant. There is a bit of a back story here with this childhood friend and it actually made me want to see more of this storyline. I guess this issue was an attempt to see if the storyline performed well enough to warrant its own series since the story begins and ends right there. This seemed to be less 'action and adventure' storyline and more 'relationship and situation' storyline. I think the series Academy Blues takes this slant so I might fulfill that need with it.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Return To Macross: Issues 19, 14-15
by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)
In this post I will be covering Academy's Return to Macross comic books (issues 19, 14-15). If you don't know this is my year long Robotech Adventure! I am reading/watching the entire epic in order throughout all of 2012. You can read all about my plans in this blog. Feel free to join in and comment where necessary.
Return to Macross #19 (Academy 1995)
Sean Bishop is our Artist on this issue. He seems to have stuck to the more Anime look which is nice.
This comic takes place in 2005 and involves Rick Hunter visiting Macross... uh... really? Now from my memory Rick was 16 when he arrived on Macross island in 2009 so that would make him 12 here... So you are telling me he made the flight halfway around the globe to visit Roy? Oh well, I'll let it ride.
On page 6 there are some signs and one is interesting. It says Avatar... Academy could see into the future!
The first half of the comic is Rick running around Macross with all other Macross players just out of range (their parts come later). We see Lisa and Claudia walking down the hall. The Bridge Bunnies and Claudia leaving a movie (with Lisa running out before that).
The artist has a real grasp on the characters' appearance. He did a really good job portraying all of them.
On Page 21 Gloval's pipe is HUGE!
On Page 22 there is a poster on the wall with the Yamato that says 'now playing'. This goes along with the 'now playing' sign that Rick passed earlier. Little did they know there would be a live action Yamato movie in the year 2011.
Return to Macross #14 (Academy 1994)
We take a jump back in time a bit and head to issue 14 which takes place chronologically after issue 19. Our artist is Wes Abbot who does a pretty good job with the Anime look.
We are dealing with the micronized Zentraedi that was running loose a few issues back. He is in a type of suspended animation since the 'Knight of Knives' stabbed him.
On page 5 there is a club called Bamboo 7. I guess this ties into the Bamboo Disco seen in the series...
Apparently someone is out to get the secrets from Lang but who is the question...
Return to Macross #15 (Academy 1994)
This take centers around one of Roy's old buddies that is having some mental issues in regards to his past.
On page 12 there is an ad for Protoculture Addicts. I wrote a blog post in 2010 about my enjoyment of that particular magazine (at least the first 10 issues of it). Go here and read it. As a side note, I plan to read and review those as well in this Blog.
Alright, that's all for now. This issue is split (that's why it's so short). The other half is Robotech: Warriors. In my reading schedule that is the next title so my next post will start with this 'half issue' and then the rest of the Warriors series (only 3 issues). Later!
In this post I will be covering Academy's Return to Macross comic books (issues 19, 14-15). If you don't know this is my year long Robotech Adventure! I am reading/watching the entire epic in order throughout all of 2012. You can read all about my plans in this blog. Feel free to join in and comment where necessary.
Return to Macross #19 (Academy 1995)
Sean Bishop is our Artist on this issue. He seems to have stuck to the more Anime look which is nice.
This comic takes place in 2005 and involves Rick Hunter visiting Macross... uh... really? Now from my memory Rick was 16 when he arrived on Macross island in 2009 so that would make him 12 here... So you are telling me he made the flight halfway around the globe to visit Roy? Oh well, I'll let it ride.
On page 6 there are some signs and one is interesting. It says Avatar... Academy could see into the future!
The first half of the comic is Rick running around Macross with all other Macross players just out of range (their parts come later). We see Lisa and Claudia walking down the hall. The Bridge Bunnies and Claudia leaving a movie (with Lisa running out before that).
The artist has a real grasp on the characters' appearance. He did a really good job portraying all of them.
On Page 21 Gloval's pipe is HUGE!
On Page 22 there is a poster on the wall with the Yamato that says 'now playing'. This goes along with the 'now playing' sign that Rick passed earlier. Little did they know there would be a live action Yamato movie in the year 2011.
Return to Macross #14 (Academy 1994)
We take a jump back in time a bit and head to issue 14 which takes place chronologically after issue 19. Our artist is Wes Abbot who does a pretty good job with the Anime look.
We are dealing with the micronized Zentraedi that was running loose a few issues back. He is in a type of suspended animation since the 'Knight of Knives' stabbed him.
On page 5 there is a club called Bamboo 7. I guess this ties into the Bamboo Disco seen in the series...
Apparently someone is out to get the secrets from Lang but who is the question...
Return to Macross #15 (Academy 1994)
This take centers around one of Roy's old buddies that is having some mental issues in regards to his past.
On page 12 there is an ad for Protoculture Addicts. I wrote a blog post in 2010 about my enjoyment of that particular magazine (at least the first 10 issues of it). Go here and read it. As a side note, I plan to read and review those as well in this Blog.
Alright, that's all for now. This issue is split (that's why it's so short). The other half is Robotech: Warriors. In my reading schedule that is the next title so my next post will start with this 'half issue' and then the rest of the Warriors series (only 3 issues). Later!
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Return To Macross: Issues 7-13
by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)
In this post I will be covering Malibu's Return to Macross comic books (issues 7-13). If you don't know this is my year long Robotech Adventure! I am reading/watching the entire epic in order throughout all of 2012. You can read all about my plans in this blog. Feel free to join in and comment where necessary. Chris will be joining us on this journey as well and he will be dropping in from time to time.
Just a note of reference I know the company is Eternity/Malibu so get over it... I'm calling it Malibu. :)
Return to Macross #7 (Malibu 1993)
When Breetai wakes up he finds that he has been tied up. There are all sort of alien body parts including the head of an Alien from the Aliens move (above him).
After some alien fun Breetai and Khyron leave the ship, unprotected into outer space. This sets up Breetai's ability to survive in a no-atmosphere environment before the attack when Max saves Ben, Lisa, and Rick.
The shooter in the story is hold up in Grace Brother's Department Store. This is the name of the store in the British show: Are You Being Served... coincidence?
Low and behold the police show up in ATAC armor. Somehow in the whole of the Macross series these suits never showed up on the streets of Macross City after the Zentraedi come back. Sure, it's nice to see them tied into the whole story but it is kind of wierd. For those of you who don't know that armor is the armor of the Southern Cross forces in the 2nd part of Robotech (more than 18 years down the road in the story).
At the end of the comic there is an interview with the writers/artist of Invid War: Aftermath. It's rather disrespectful of Robotech in general and they talk about how they are interested in doing more editorial in their series (basically giving their anti war slant). As I remember I didn't like Aftermath at all and I think it was that anit-war slant that annoyed me. I will still read it again though. The writer's kept talking about how shallow the whole robot thing was and how they wanted to add depth to the characters. Hello?! That's what Robotech is... it's all about the mecha! Oh well...
Return to Macross #8 (Malibu 1993)
This issue starts with Breetai giving exposition dialogue in the vacuum of space! A ship leaves the alien ship he was on (on page 2) and it looks suspiciously like some ship I've seen before in one of the RPG books. I will have to keep an eye out on that in the future.
Quadrono battle suits pick up Breetai and Khyron... um wait a second... are Quadrono battle suits used only by the female Zentraedi and aren't females supposed to be TOTALLY segregated from the males? And Breetai and Khyron are bare chested...
The alien 'sniper' speaks English... how clever of it to learn so quickly.
Page 19 has a cool shot of the cop punching Roy. I like the angle and action.
Roy turned into a midget on page 23...
Return to Macross #9 (Malibu 1993)
William Jang takes over as artist and it shows. Jang's lines are jerky and seem less confident where Divar's were very precise. It is a look I will have to adjust to.
On page 12 there is a hover car in front of the Robotech HQ. I thought that those only ever showed up in Southern Cross...
There's not alot to say about this issue except for the somewhat disappointing change in art work. I'm not saying it's bad (I couldn't draw like that) but it isn't as good as the previous works. We will just have to see where it goes from here.
Return to Macross #10 (Malibu 1994)
Yeaa! Tim Divar is back!
So Breetai is in some sort of virtual reality simulation but he doesn't know it and Roy farting around at the bottom of the ocean with a hot chick... I wonder how long until he's in bed with her...
The hot chick (captain of the sub they are in) is interested in the building of the Alaska base (grand cannon). This is a nice tie in to later events in the total story.
The Lemaurians have quite the technology. In fact those 'robot suits' don't seem to fit at all into the time period (pre-Robotechnology) that they are in.
Return to Macross #11 (Malibu 1994)
Breetai is still in virtual reality. Khyron is behind it but Breetai gets smart and figures out where he is.
On page 12 is a bird's eye 'fish view' of the SDF-1 that's very interesting. I guess the artist wanted to mix it up a bit. He is good at drawing the SDF-1 in any situation.
Not much to say in this issue. Both and Roy and Edwards are tricking the Lemaurians and Edwards get back while Roy has to fight his way out of his situation.
Return to Macross #12 (Malibu 1994)
Oh crap, Jang is back. Breetai is still being tortured by Khyron but is fighting his way out of his virtual reality prison.
I have noticed that Breetai never has anything scintillating to say. He usually utters 'by the moons' or 'by the void' or 'moons of Phantoma'. I guess they kept the interesting lines to Exedore.
When Breetai is in the machine he is wearing some sort of suit. When the dying scientist ejects him from the ship, suddenly Breetai is wearing his uniform. I guess the writers/artists forgot that a change in clothes would attract Exedore's attention so they just changed his clothes to skip that annoying bit of continuity.
Page 10 and 11 are awesome! It's a double page with Destroids firing on the attack Lemaurians. Nice art work!
Return to Macross #13 (Academy 1994)
So Robotech comics switched over to Academy comics and Academy did something strange and kinda cool. Instead of just starting fresh they kept the comic title and numbering.
Wes Abbot is our new artist and there is a definite Anime look to the characters. The mecha also look pretty good so this should go well.
This issue quickly deals with the Moon base Aluce and Mars base Sera, nice tie-ins to later events.
And according to the reading guide we must jump around a bit. Joint me next time for more of Return to Macross but issues 19 plus 14 & 15.
In this post I will be covering Malibu's Return to Macross comic books (issues 7-13). If you don't know this is my year long Robotech Adventure! I am reading/watching the entire epic in order throughout all of 2012. You can read all about my plans in this blog. Feel free to join in and comment where necessary. Chris will be joining us on this journey as well and he will be dropping in from time to time.
Just a note of reference I know the company is Eternity/Malibu so get over it... I'm calling it Malibu. :)
Return to Macross #7 (Malibu 1993)
When Breetai wakes up he finds that he has been tied up. There are all sort of alien body parts including the head of an Alien from the Aliens move (above him).
After some alien fun Breetai and Khyron leave the ship, unprotected into outer space. This sets up Breetai's ability to survive in a no-atmosphere environment before the attack when Max saves Ben, Lisa, and Rick.
The shooter in the story is hold up in Grace Brother's Department Store. This is the name of the store in the British show: Are You Being Served... coincidence?
Low and behold the police show up in ATAC armor. Somehow in the whole of the Macross series these suits never showed up on the streets of Macross City after the Zentraedi come back. Sure, it's nice to see them tied into the whole story but it is kind of wierd. For those of you who don't know that armor is the armor of the Southern Cross forces in the 2nd part of Robotech (more than 18 years down the road in the story).
At the end of the comic there is an interview with the writers/artist of Invid War: Aftermath. It's rather disrespectful of Robotech in general and they talk about how they are interested in doing more editorial in their series (basically giving their anti war slant). As I remember I didn't like Aftermath at all and I think it was that anit-war slant that annoyed me. I will still read it again though. The writer's kept talking about how shallow the whole robot thing was and how they wanted to add depth to the characters. Hello?! That's what Robotech is... it's all about the mecha! Oh well...
Return to Macross #8 (Malibu 1993)
This issue starts with Breetai giving exposition dialogue in the vacuum of space! A ship leaves the alien ship he was on (on page 2) and it looks suspiciously like some ship I've seen before in one of the RPG books. I will have to keep an eye out on that in the future.
Quadrono battle suits pick up Breetai and Khyron... um wait a second... are Quadrono battle suits used only by the female Zentraedi and aren't females supposed to be TOTALLY segregated from the males? And Breetai and Khyron are bare chested...
The alien 'sniper' speaks English... how clever of it to learn so quickly.
Page 19 has a cool shot of the cop punching Roy. I like the angle and action.
Roy turned into a midget on page 23...
Return to Macross #9 (Malibu 1993)
William Jang takes over as artist and it shows. Jang's lines are jerky and seem less confident where Divar's were very precise. It is a look I will have to adjust to.
On page 12 there is a hover car in front of the Robotech HQ. I thought that those only ever showed up in Southern Cross...
There's not alot to say about this issue except for the somewhat disappointing change in art work. I'm not saying it's bad (I couldn't draw like that) but it isn't as good as the previous works. We will just have to see where it goes from here.
Return to Macross #10 (Malibu 1994)
Yeaa! Tim Divar is back!
So Breetai is in some sort of virtual reality simulation but he doesn't know it and Roy farting around at the bottom of the ocean with a hot chick... I wonder how long until he's in bed with her...
The hot chick (captain of the sub they are in) is interested in the building of the Alaska base (grand cannon). This is a nice tie in to later events in the total story.
The Lemaurians have quite the technology. In fact those 'robot suits' don't seem to fit at all into the time period (pre-Robotechnology) that they are in.
Return to Macross #11 (Malibu 1994)
Breetai is still in virtual reality. Khyron is behind it but Breetai gets smart and figures out where he is.
On page 12 is a bird's eye 'fish view' of the SDF-1 that's very interesting. I guess the artist wanted to mix it up a bit. He is good at drawing the SDF-1 in any situation.
Not much to say in this issue. Both and Roy and Edwards are tricking the Lemaurians and Edwards get back while Roy has to fight his way out of his situation.
Return to Macross #12 (Malibu 1994)
Oh crap, Jang is back. Breetai is still being tortured by Khyron but is fighting his way out of his virtual reality prison.
I have noticed that Breetai never has anything scintillating to say. He usually utters 'by the moons' or 'by the void' or 'moons of Phantoma'. I guess they kept the interesting lines to Exedore.
When Breetai is in the machine he is wearing some sort of suit. When the dying scientist ejects him from the ship, suddenly Breetai is wearing his uniform. I guess the writers/artists forgot that a change in clothes would attract Exedore's attention so they just changed his clothes to skip that annoying bit of continuity.
Page 10 and 11 are awesome! It's a double page with Destroids firing on the attack Lemaurians. Nice art work!
Return to Macross #13 (Academy 1994)
So Robotech comics switched over to Academy comics and Academy did something strange and kinda cool. Instead of just starting fresh they kept the comic title and numbering.
Wes Abbot is our new artist and there is a definite Anime look to the characters. The mecha also look pretty good so this should go well.
This issue quickly deals with the Moon base Aluce and Mars base Sera, nice tie-ins to later events.
And according to the reading guide we must jump around a bit. Joint me next time for more of Return to Macross but issues 19 plus 14 & 15.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Return To Macross: Issues 1-6
by Nathan Stout (of AccordingToWhim.com)
In this post I will be covering Malibu's Return to Macross comic books (issues 1-6). If you don't know this is my year long Robotech Adventure! I am reading/watching the entire epic in order throughout all of 2012. You can read all about my plans in this blog. Feel free to join in and comment where necessary. Chris will be joining us on this journey as well and he will be dropping in from time to time.
Up to this point I have read The Legend of Zor: Genesis mini-series and the Graphic Novel. Those comics basically took place right up to the crash landing of the SDF-1 on Earth. Return To Macross takes place between this time and launch day of the SDF-1. There are a few flash forwards and flashbacks but it MOSTLY follows a timeline.
In this post I will be covering Malibu's Return to Macross comic books (issues 1-6). If you don't know this is my year long Robotech Adventure! I am reading/watching the entire epic in order throughout all of 2012. You can read all about my plans in this blog. Feel free to join in and comment where necessary. Chris will be joining us on this journey as well and he will be dropping in from time to time.
Up to this point I have read The Legend of Zor: Genesis mini-series and the Graphic Novel. Those comics basically took place right up to the crash landing of the SDF-1 on Earth. Return To Macross takes place between this time and launch day of the SDF-1. There are a few flash forwards and flashbacks but it MOSTLY follows a timeline.
Return to Macross #1 (Malibu 1993)
The Death of Zor and the wounding of Breetai begin this issue. It is a VERY QUICK recap of the events in Zor: Genesis but with the change that Breetai is wounded during the Invid attack that kills Zor. In all the other comics Breetai is already wearing the faceplate. The SDF-1 looks very un-alien like in this comic (more like the final, restored ship) unlike it looks in the Comico comics. The story switches to 2004 and Roy Fokker's arrival on Macross Island (for the first time in a long time). While Roy is waiting to land on the island he remeber's back to the exploration he, Gloval, Edwards, and some Marines did five years previous. It caught my attention that in one of these panels it closely resembles a panel from the Comico Graphic Novel. The artist was obviously looking at the Graphic Novel as a resource while working on this series.
Roy is overwhelmed that Macross Island is so changed since the last time he was there. There is a large population there now and an element of disharmony. Conrad Wilbur leads demonstations aganist the military and use of the alien technology.
Return to Macross #2 (Malibu 1993)
The Veritech is introduced in this issue. The artists who worked on this series really had a good grasp of the design and they look sharp.
Roy meets up with his old rival T.R. Edwards. In the years between the SDF-1s landing and Roy's return to Macross, Edwards has moved up in the new United Earth Government. He was sent to Macross to observe and report on the Veritech testing going on. Apparently he is up to more than that though.
Edwards contacts the dissident Conrad Wilbur with some scheme. Edwards only real goal is money, something is brewing and he wants to use Conrad to be his patsy.
The comic jumps back across the universe to Breetai and Dolza who have been giventhe task of finding the lost ship. They are attacked by Invid and Breetai finds himself in deep trouble.
The first time I read this series was really my first introduction to black and white comics. I had read the graphic novel Maus and enjoyed the simple black and white scheme and when I started reading this series I remebered how much I enjoyed it. I like drawing and this type of comic is basically that.
Return to Macross #3 (Malibu 1993)
Breetai gets himself out of trouble and Khyron is introduced in this issue. For some reason Dolza still has Zor's body. I guess this bit takes place not too long after Zor's death and they are just catching up on the storyline.
Edwards talks Conrad into sabotaging Roy's test flight so he can sneak off in the excitement and get some photos of the inside of the SDF-1 (for the highest bidder, ofcourse).
Once again there is a lot of Veritech art in this issue and it is done really well, very cartoon-like and all in porpotion... looks great.
Return to Macross #4 (Malibu 1993)
Conrad is ready to blow up the device on Roy's Veritech but is distracted when a fire breaks out in Macross city and Roy uses the Veritech in Battloid mode to save the people in the building. Conrad's wife died in a similar situation and Conrad changes his mind about the uses of Robotechnology and doesn't blow it up.
Edwards sneaks off in anticipation of the explosions and the ensuing chaos and goes spelunking inside the ship. He comes across someone (or something) and screams. Next thing he knows he is falling out of the ship as if it altered itself to kick him out. He plays it off and sneaks back like nothing happened.
From the panels it appears it is a Zentraedi that Edwards saw since there is a broken-open cloning chamber shown and what appears to be wet footsteps leading out of it.
I believe this is the first time (since the crash) that a living alien is shown inside the ship.
The comic shoots back across the galaxy to show the final rescue of Dolza and Breetai from the Invid thanks to the rescue mission (led by Khyron) sent by the Masters. Later Dolza assigns Breetai the mission of finding the SDF-1 and assigns Exedore to assist. In the Legend of Zor mini-series Exedore was already with Breetai.
Probably the most interesting bit of this issue isn't even the comic itself. It's on pages 25-27. The first thing is an advertisement/letter about Robotech Echo, the BBS for Robotech fans. If you don't remeber a BBS was a Bulliten Board System. You used your modem and dialed up the BBS and communicated with others. It was like a crude and very limited internet. I remeber using the Blasted Trumphet BBS out of Fort Worth, Texas about the time this comic was out. On page 26 was a list of BBS that had the Robtech Echo board on it. Good times...
On page 27 was a list of fan addresses. This was very cool. You could have a Penpal that was into Robotech. Right there on the page were several willing fans you could communicte with. This was great in a day and age when the Inetrnet hadn't connected us all yet. In some ways it seems that the Internet has taken that special feeling away from finding a like-minded fan. They are everywhere now-a-days on the net and most people could just take it or leave it, nothing special.
Return to Macross #5 (Malibu 1993)
This issue starts with Breetai and Exedore coming across something they think might be the SDF-1 but it isn't. Khyron is sent out and the something attacks him.
Back on Earth someone kills Roy's current love interest for some unknown reason (at this point). Did I mention that Claudia has shown up?
Isn't that a snazzy PC on page 15? That CRT monitor could be a boat anchor! Robotechnology at its best!
I found it funny that Claudia came to Roy to stop him from bothering her and by the end of the conversation the roles were reversed and he didn't want her to bother him.
Later we see the mysterious figure from issue 4 that Edwards found inside the SDF-1. We know this because it blurts out the name Zor and he is fairly large. Not a giant as I thought but larger than a normal man.
Finally someone is killing scientist off trying to stop the RDF from continuting work on the SDF-1.
I have commented on the art in this series before but I want to say it again. The artist; Tim Divar does an excellent job. The lines are sharp, the details are nice, and the characters drawn very well. The only issue I had was with Breetai in the first few pages. Tim seemed to miss the mark with Breetai's look there for a bit.
Roy is overwhelmed that Macross Island is so changed since the last time he was there. There is a large population there now and an element of disharmony. Conrad Wilbur leads demonstations aganist the military and use of the alien technology.
Return to Macross #2 (Malibu 1993)
The Veritech is introduced in this issue. The artists who worked on this series really had a good grasp of the design and they look sharp.
Roy meets up with his old rival T.R. Edwards. In the years between the SDF-1s landing and Roy's return to Macross, Edwards has moved up in the new United Earth Government. He was sent to Macross to observe and report on the Veritech testing going on. Apparently he is up to more than that though.
Edwards contacts the dissident Conrad Wilbur with some scheme. Edwards only real goal is money, something is brewing and he wants to use Conrad to be his patsy.
The comic jumps back across the universe to Breetai and Dolza who have been giventhe task of finding the lost ship. They are attacked by Invid and Breetai finds himself in deep trouble.
The first time I read this series was really my first introduction to black and white comics. I had read the graphic novel Maus and enjoyed the simple black and white scheme and when I started reading this series I remebered how much I enjoyed it. I like drawing and this type of comic is basically that.
Return to Macross #3 (Malibu 1993)
Breetai gets himself out of trouble and Khyron is introduced in this issue. For some reason Dolza still has Zor's body. I guess this bit takes place not too long after Zor's death and they are just catching up on the storyline.
Edwards talks Conrad into sabotaging Roy's test flight so he can sneak off in the excitement and get some photos of the inside of the SDF-1 (for the highest bidder, ofcourse).
Once again there is a lot of Veritech art in this issue and it is done really well, very cartoon-like and all in porpotion... looks great.
Return to Macross #4 (Malibu 1993)
Conrad is ready to blow up the device on Roy's Veritech but is distracted when a fire breaks out in Macross city and Roy uses the Veritech in Battloid mode to save the people in the building. Conrad's wife died in a similar situation and Conrad changes his mind about the uses of Robotechnology and doesn't blow it up.
Edwards sneaks off in anticipation of the explosions and the ensuing chaos and goes spelunking inside the ship. He comes across someone (or something) and screams. Next thing he knows he is falling out of the ship as if it altered itself to kick him out. He plays it off and sneaks back like nothing happened.
From the panels it appears it is a Zentraedi that Edwards saw since there is a broken-open cloning chamber shown and what appears to be wet footsteps leading out of it.
I believe this is the first time (since the crash) that a living alien is shown inside the ship.
The comic shoots back across the galaxy to show the final rescue of Dolza and Breetai from the Invid thanks to the rescue mission (led by Khyron) sent by the Masters. Later Dolza assigns Breetai the mission of finding the SDF-1 and assigns Exedore to assist. In the Legend of Zor mini-series Exedore was already with Breetai.
Probably the most interesting bit of this issue isn't even the comic itself. It's on pages 25-27. The first thing is an advertisement/letter about Robotech Echo, the BBS for Robotech fans. If you don't remeber a BBS was a Bulliten Board System. You used your modem and dialed up the BBS and communicated with others. It was like a crude and very limited internet. I remeber using the Blasted Trumphet BBS out of Fort Worth, Texas about the time this comic was out. On page 26 was a list of BBS that had the Robtech Echo board on it. Good times...
On page 27 was a list of fan addresses. This was very cool. You could have a Penpal that was into Robotech. Right there on the page were several willing fans you could communicte with. This was great in a day and age when the Inetrnet hadn't connected us all yet. In some ways it seems that the Internet has taken that special feeling away from finding a like-minded fan. They are everywhere now-a-days on the net and most people could just take it or leave it, nothing special.
Return to Macross #5 (Malibu 1993)
This issue starts with Breetai and Exedore coming across something they think might be the SDF-1 but it isn't. Khyron is sent out and the something attacks him.
Back on Earth someone kills Roy's current love interest for some unknown reason (at this point). Did I mention that Claudia has shown up?
Isn't that a snazzy PC on page 15? That CRT monitor could be a boat anchor! Robotechnology at its best!
I found it funny that Claudia came to Roy to stop him from bothering her and by the end of the conversation the roles were reversed and he didn't want her to bother him.
Later we see the mysterious figure from issue 4 that Edwards found inside the SDF-1. We know this because it blurts out the name Zor and he is fairly large. Not a giant as I thought but larger than a normal man.
Finally someone is killing scientist off trying to stop the RDF from continuting work on the SDF-1.
I have commented on the art in this series before but I want to say it again. The artist; Tim Divar does an excellent job. The lines are sharp, the details are nice, and the characters drawn very well. The only issue I had was with Breetai in the first few pages. Tim seemed to miss the mark with Breetai's look there for a bit.
Return to Macross #6 (Malibu 1993)
Page 3 has an awesome drawing of a MAC II and a Gladiator! The artist seemed to have slight problems drawing Gretchen in the next couple of pages.
Roy looks like the lead singer of A-ha on page 7.
Page 23... You hear that?... It's a motorboat pulling Cark Macek up and over a shark infested pool.
Starting on page 27 there is a behind the scenes look at what's going on at Malibu/Eternity comics. Looks like a bunch of geeks to me... I'd fit right in!
Page 3 has an awesome drawing of a MAC II and a Gladiator! The artist seemed to have slight problems drawing Gretchen in the next couple of pages.
Roy looks like the lead singer of A-ha on page 7.
Page 23... You hear that?... It's a motorboat pulling Cark Macek up and over a shark infested pool.
Starting on page 27 there is a behind the scenes look at what's going on at Malibu/Eternity comics. Looks like a bunch of geeks to me... I'd fit right in!
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