It seems as though it's that time
again... Robotech is no longer in the queue, having left overnight, the eighth
of May being it's last day.
Sure, I could talk about the tons of
Warner Movies heading off into the sunset now that Warner is putting together
their own streaming platform. Hell, for all I know, Robotech is one of them. I
know for a fact that several Bond films dropped off recently, but no... I
choose to discuss probably one of the most loved and hated anime to be brought
over the Pacific.
At least, before Naruto and
Dragonball.
I love Robotech with that
rose-colored, Vaseline-on-the-lens nostalgia that comes from youthful
over-consumption of something that isn't rightly high quality, but still manages
to appeal.
If you were to plant me in front of
a screen with visions of Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior, MacGyver and
Murder, She Wrote, Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Weird Science, I tell you
now that I would be feeling a warm glow deep in my gut thanks to all the happy
feelings of remembrance... with a small sliver of personal embarrassment at
just how little actual taste I had.
For me and Robotech... well, it had
everything that I wanted as a kid: Explosions, Adventure, Romance.
As cheesy as it was, Harmony Gold
managed to put together a rather compelling little show, stitched from the
individual canvases of three separate mecha-combat series.
Granted, I know now the things that
were changed, censored, and basically hacked apart to make it all work... that
the constant narration and name changes to make everyone related across the
generations was just a cheap device to tie everything together without actually
having to support it on screen.
If I had a choice, knowing what I
know now, I probably would insist on watching them in their original format as
their own series. There's just so much about the Macross universe that doesn't
make sense in the other two shows... particularly the power of song. And I
would have much preferred the original Southern Cross storyline where
"Zor" of Robotech was actually a brainwashed human named Seifriet
Weiße.
Still, I can't help but enjoy the
series as it was presented to me almost thirty years ago. It was thrilling and
romantic, always populated with characters you either wanted to emulate or just
amused the heck out of you. Sure, the lines were corny and the story weak, but
it was fun.
Heck, it still is fun... but not to
be had on Netflix at the moment. Maybe it will come back at some point. If it
does, I eagerly await putting it back on my queue. Until then, even though I own
it on DVD, I probably won't bother. There's too much to watch for the blog to
deal with physical copies.
Robotech Saga... I salute you and
hope to see you on streaming again soon.
See you, Space Cowboy.
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