Received this difficult news feed about one of the pioneer founders of Robotech stories, Carl Macek, was found dead due to a heart attack he suffered at home.
Carl Macek was responsible in redubbing Macross series, along the other two giant robot anime shows that gave us one of the longer running anime franchise series of today known as Robotech (see picture below) in the early 80s. Besides this project, he’s also responsible for dubbing other anime project as well such as Captain Haylock and the Queen of Thousand Years, and the more recent Bleach and Naruto. He also does other types of art direction works that are non-anime related as well such as the Heavy Metal series.
Even though, up to this point of my life, I never favour Robotech series a lot as I used to during my teenage years – this goes the same for others in anime forums. However, because of what he’s done so much to create such a successful American-brand anime franchise, a lot of anime fans in many parts of the world would not have existed. And perhaps their exposure to anime wouldn’t be as big as it is now.
Robotech Series by Carl Macek
So without further ado, here’s Youtube video footage, paying great tribute to Carl Mazek.
Was watching this video clip last night, which I received as a group email from one of the mecha-related forums.
It’s a great thrill to know this interview was conducted almost a week ago and I bet there’s a lot exciting developments Shoji Kawamori (Macross founder) has in store for long-time Macross fan lovers!!
Here you’ll find many outstanding facts about his contribution, not only to his epic masterpiece, but also to several globally well-known cartoon series like Transformers G1. Especially on how he came up with the design of the transforming 18-wheeler truck, aka Optimus Prime.
Macross: Do you remember love(DYLR)?’s founding composer, Kazuhiko Katoh, recently died. He died by committing suicide, hanging himself in his hotel department. Few sources of information suggest any strong reasoning why he’s motivated to kill himself. The only clue left behind by him are his two copies of a will on the table before he hung himself.
They mentioned that this man not only composed the unforgettable theme song, Do you Remember Love?(“Ai , Oboeteimasu ka?”) for the Macross film, but also responsible for launching a Japanese band to tour around UK in the 70s! The first of its kind.
This is the most distressing news indeed.
And many people in MyAnimeList forum were trying to figure out what and why caused his sudden ‘departure’ from this world of anime business he’s in. Especially his involvement with Macross as one of his outstanding achievements during his 20-30 year career!
It makes no utter sense why he had to go.
Do you really think, given his age, and after all what he’s done for Macross, that he oughta take his own life just because he found something ‘uncomforting’ about the will he read on the desk? Surely, the last step to take his own life was a bit too drastic to make a foregone conclusion….
I read this very cool article blog feed from AltJapan.com. Apparently, a pachinko-making (which is a Japanese form of gambling machine that has the functions like a pinball machine except you win the marbles in exchange for cash instead of credits) company, Sankyo, released a couple of amazing TV commercials, using Macross themes as their main elements of advertising, as part of their goals promoting new pachinko machines in Japan’s gambling market.
Macross Commercial - by Sankyo
If you watch the commercials, they used everything from the Macross series to make such impact! The music, the Valkeyries, Macross City, the clouds, Lynn Minmei! EVERYTHING!
With a tiny difference. They use real-life actors and objects.
Well, almost all real-life actors and objects. I love the way they did the bring out (spoilers alert!) transformation sequence of the Macross city like that!
While I was browsing around the forum on GearsOnline.net, there’s a link that intrigues me a lot….
It says here that a few years ago, there’s a group of Chinese students in China who’s expended their incredible amount of time and energy dedicated in designing a 1/500 scale Macross SDF-1 battleship. Â See below.
NB: The images are owned by AcToys.net and there’s no way these belong to me in any shape or form. The images are copyrighted by the rightful owner.
I admire their focus and energy in putting all their efforts in making this. Really enthusiastic bunch!
Thanks to the user Rubel Colus for sharing us this link at GearsOnline.net!
It’s been over 25 years since Macross Super Dimension Fortress (SDF) appeared on our tiny television sets, broadcasting after school hours. And technology were not that advanced as compared to today’s.
It’s amazing to note while I was googling through web pages on Macross, I keep thinking back about the sweet melodic voice of the singer-actor who’s the one that made the series such a masterpiece worth the while to remember. It was the same strong reason why and how I got so hooked into super robot and mecha anime since then. The story, the action, the the drama, the planes-turn-to-robot sequences. Everything… I absolutely adore it. And so sure for other fans worldwide as well, including the ones from the unrelated disjointed Robotech series.
Japanese singer, Mari Ijima, the sweet 19 year-old-then girl, who lent such incredible voice when she went for the audition in the set of Macross to sing the main theme of the series as part of the selection process just like what they did with Sakamoto Maaya in Macross Frontier.
If you play from above clip, listening from beginning till the end, I would find it hard not to ever get tranced by its deep, soothing voice of Mari. It’s spellbound. Â In my humble opinion. And that’s the greatest winning formula that sealed the Macross series’ fate as the greatest anime of all time that’s ever produced in anime history. Shoji Kawamori pulled out all the best works into Macross franchise and having Mari dragged in seemed like it was the best investment he’s ever made. Have a look at this 1984 live footage of her singing “Ai Oboete imasuka (Do you remember love)”.
That was Mari in his her late teens before hitting major stardom.
25 years later, this is her now…
Okay. It’s quite an appearance change from her sweet 19 years of age to her today’s present form. She looks though as if she’s keeping up to the fashion trends of modern casual clothing (and she’s even wearing a sports beanie). Guess you’re never too old to wear anything that’s super trendy and fashionable of today, even for Mari. Come to think of it, looking at Mari Ijima in her new video clip, she hardly ever ages at all! Honestly, in general sense without sounding too stereotypical, asian women usually look younger than their actual ages compared to other women in from other races. That means her voice is still keeping strong and fresh as ever!
I say ‘Bravo’ to her! I’m glad she’s moving ahead in times and she’s handling very well. The above video Mari was playing a piano, was held at the Rock and Jazz Live Festival in 2008 where she gave her singing performances on all her songs, mostly in English, since she moved to USA many years ago to learn English. She moved so she could launch her music career in the hopes to find greater fame and fortune thanks to the success of Macross, which was responsible for making her life possible till now.
Heard that an unofficial Macross fan club is planning to host one of the biggest Macross crossover singing concert in its history in Japan, spanning all the main actors/actresses/singers from Macross series.
Here’s the excerpt from Animenewsnetwork.com
F-Tama, the official fan club for the Macross Frontier science-fiction anime, has announced to its members on Saturday that it is holding two “Macross Crossover Live A.D. 2009×45x49″ concerts at the Makuhari Messe convention complex near Tokyo on October 17 and October 18. The “galaxy’s biggest crossover” will feature Mari Iijima (Lynn Minmay in The Super Dimension Fortress Macross), Yoshiki Fukuyama (the singing voice of Macross 7’s Basara Nekki), Chie Kajiura (the singing voice of Macross 7’s Mylene Jenius), May’n (the singing voice of Macross Frontier’s Sheryl Nome), and Megumi Nakajima (Macross Frontier’s Ranka Lee). This is the second event to mark the “first year of Macross” after the Macross “space launching ceremony” in February. (The first episode of the first Macross series aired in 1982, but its story was set in February of 2009.) The first Macross Frontier film will open in Japan on November 21.
Tickets are already available to people who join the F-Tama club between Saturday and July 25. People who joined the club before can purchase tickets between July 13 and July 29. The organizers plan to offer the remaining tickets to the general public on August 22, initially through the FamilyMart convenience store chain’s ticketing system.
The last time that this many singers from this many Macross series held a concert together was in 2007’s “Macross 25th Anniversary Live: Minmay meets Fire Bomber” concert. During that concert, Iijima, Fukuyama, Kajiura, Nakajima, and Nobutoshi Hayashi (Basara’s speaking and occasional singing voice) performed. (Since Nakajima had just been selected in a nationwide audition and Macross Frontier was months away from its television premiere, Nakajima had sung the “Voices” song from Macross Plus.) The last time that more Macross performers were on stage together was in “Macross One-Night Stand,” the 15th Anniversary Live concert in 1997. That concert featured Iijima, Fukuyama, Hiroko Kasahara (Ishtar in Macross II), Akino Arai (one of the singing voices for Myung Fang Lone and Sharon Apple in Macross Plus), and Yoko Kanno (composer and pianist in Macross Plus).
Kanno held a Seatbelts concert this month that featured songs from Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Macross Frontier, Arjunaã€RahXephon, Macross Plus, Wolf’s Rain, Cowboy Bebop, The Vision of Escaflowne, Aquarion, Card Captor Sakura, and other titles.
Macross Frontier won the Seiun awards at Nihon SciFi Taishou (Japan SciFi Convention, in English) in its 48th annual convention last Saturday. The award was given to such well-deserved anime artists for best sci-fi anime in TV . There were about 8 categories of sci fi listed for the awards presented that evening. (Click here to view the rest of the winners)
Director and mecha designer, Shoji Kawamori, the man who’s achieved massive success with his masterpiece classic Macross 25 years ago, once again proved he’s got the ‘magic’ touch to retell a wonderful story as it was in the orginal, with today’s modern CGI technology, the infamous love-triangle element (that everybody got hooked up to guess who will Hikaru fall for eventually in the original Macross) and fast-paced thrills of planet-robot action in space war between the humans/Zentraedi forces and the Vajra. Nothing short of expectations coming out from him.
I really loved the whole series whilst watching at Youtube. (I know. I shouldn’t be watching fansubs anime as I promised I wouldn’t. They’re doing a complete disservice to the anime industry as a whole. So rest assured, I’m not planning to watch them anymore in the future.) I think I’m going to buy myself DVD copy of the series and keep it as one of mecha DVD collection. Totally loved it! Highly recommended to all fans of Macross series or people who just wanna watch their favourite variable fighter jets transform/fight!
One of Japan’s popular manga magazine is said to publish a new Macross manga series. And it’s the third manga of the Super Dimensional Fortress Macross Universe series, taking straight adaptions on last year’s popular tv series, Macross Frontier as artist Megane Kikuya mentioned.
They also mentioned that they have plans to retell the entire story of the original Super Dimension Fortress Macross as in a manga version and celebrites interviews will be conducted by the magazine editorial staff on the very special people that brought you the great success of Macross including the infamous Macross character voiced none other by Mari Ijima! It’s next issue will be available by mid November. (click here for more info)
One of the great anime legends of all time. Such story. Such epic. Such fascinating story that comes with great scenes of robot-planes fighting scenes with a bit of love triangle that involves our young pilot hero, Hikaru Ichiyo who’s caught in between two women that are very important to his life. The series captivated my former childhood’s heart and soul, at that time. It had everything that any classic anime could attest to. It became a grand masterpiece that any mecha fan in my time would consider as their past time favourites. A fabulous series to watch and cherish for many years to come (which resulted a number of websites which brought up by several Macross fans all over the world to commerate them such as MacrossWorld.com and a Wiki site that looks into Macross’ universe in greater depth).
For most of you are probably aware the fact that this series has two versions of plots ie it’s catered for two countries’ audiences only. We have the Original Macross which was geared for the Japanese mainstream public (and other Asian nations), and then we have the English version which it was retitled as ‘Robotech Masters’ that targeted for the USA market. Solely. So how did such a great program like this ended up in two different continents of the globe with different titles yet the visual content and character development are the same?
Well. Before we unravel the details behind this confusion, let us take the journey back to the early 80’s when robot anime became a boon for Japan (and the rest of the world). A young Japanese student named Shoji Kawamori, who always wanted to get into animation industry to show his artistic talents and gifted-story telling abilities whilst he’s still studying in Keio University. At the time, it was a major difficult path for him to take as he’s studying and working on the story development of Macross at the same time so expectations and responsibilities soon overwhelmed him on a day by day basis. Nevertheless, he pushed on and decided to take this mission, as if it were a destiny for him. During those early years of the 80’s, it wasn’t certainly easy. But he succeeded it. With his long time university friend, Haruhiko Mikimoto, they both worked together studiously to deliver its great epic of drama. This success didn’t not come with one simple iteration they both worked on. Clearly, a lot of determination and preseverance made this possible. Getting a large mixture of geo-political warfares, a complex triangle-love romance, incredibly fast-paced robotic-plane technology, heartfelt songs/music and several memorable twists of humour was the grand scale of plan they had in store for us. As a avid fan, I would drop my had and applaud them with great sincerity.
At this time, Shoji Kawamori looked at the Real Robot subgenre for his Macross series. And it worked out pretty well. After all, you notably see that a lot of his mecha were designed closely on all of VF plane fighters models. They’re based on the actual XB-70 Valkyrie, a supersonic jet bomber that used in tactical warfare developed by the Americans several decades ago.
The story revolves around a alien spacecraft that landed onto one of the Earth’s shore in 1999 and a special military organisation came to that site to discover this technology was so advanced that it could prove very useful for the human race as part of global military strategy. They reversed-engineered the technolgy and gave it a name SDF-1 or “Super Dimension Fortress” Macross. When this project was completed in 2009, alien in a distant galaxy happened to arrive within the Earth’s solar system and detected heat source of the missing space craft as it belongs to them. Soon later on in the story, a space war broke out, Hikaru become a better VF-figther pilot and he eventually meet up Lynn Minmay and Misa Hayase in the most unusual relationships, we started to learn bigger truths about the alien encounters. Aliens know as the Zentradis after capturing humans, they started to believe humans were the ancestors of their race, known as the Protoculture. Meaning that human beings are “the first extraterrestial humanoid civilization in the universe that occurred over a million years ago. This civilization had proven leaps and bounds in terms of advanced spacy technologies they used/researched to make their race more powerful. They invented a sub-light travel velocity in time and space continuum. And 100 years later, Zentradi were genetically modifed thanks to the expanding influence of Proculture spread into wider colonization of the universe. The show gathered great accolades of fanfares around Japan and Asia all over.
On the other hand, we have the American version ie Robotech, which the production company Harmony Gold had obtained the licensing rights over Macross material along with the other two (Southern Cross/Genesis Climber Mospaeda) and re-edited the story lines and linking all three of them as a chronology that talks in a complete different medium compared to the Original. In Robotech, the Protoculture was termed
“powerful energy source, a catalyst in genetic engineering, a hallucinatory substance, and the described “lifeblood” of two different races. As the “foodstuff” and the by-product of the Flower of Life, it is used by one race, the Invid, in “finding the ultimate lifeform through the ritualistic eating.” The Robotech Masters also call it “the lifeblood of our existence,” and say their “foremost goal is to control this life force by conquering Earth” — from Wikipedia.org
Whatever that means… It makes little sense to me how and why Harmony Gold decides to create
such incredibly convoluted plot taking 3 mecha series merged into one so-called ‘chronology’ when in fact they bear no relevance against each other. They could have just made a direct translation of Macross story (even dubbing!) and tell things as they are and the story made more sense to common masses of mecha fans out there, so we don’t end up having divided opinions on who’s telling what stories and what. I never figure out why the American company took down this path of producing such translation, other than betting on the possibility of making a unique adaption of it series to call their very own “Macross” saga. I must say they were doing it pretty well with their little piece of work.
Anyway I must digress. Macross is, without a doubt, considered the greatest mecha classic of our time. People in my generation would remember how great the film gave us the sense of gravitation and we knew how other programs would find it hard to compete with the show that had this level of magnitude of success in its reins. The romance, eye candy, the environment, the incredible dog-fight style scenes of robot planes vs Zentradi, the wonderful designwork of Shoji Kawamori’s VF Fighters, the heart, the politics, etc etc. And last, but not least, the music and songs that captivated our hearts and minds that render our thoughts to enjoy everlasting tranquility and peace while humanity fights against those that threatens human ideals, and (hopefully) bring an end to war. “Ai Oboete Imasuka” – meaning “Do you remember Love?” in English. What a great song.
It’s truly gem to hear this over and over again. I find that its unique quality that today’s mecha anime would find it hard to compete its standards unless there’s new generation of anime artists that could surpass Shoji Kawamori. It could happen. We just don’t know yet.
could prove very useful for the human race as part of global military strategy. They reversed-engineered the technolgy and gave it a name SDF-1 or “Super Dimension Fortress” Macross. When this project was completed in 2009, alien in a distant galaxy happened to arrive within the Earth’s solar system and detected heat source of the missing space craft as it belongs to them. Soon later on in the story, a space war broke out, Hikaru become a better VF-figther pilot and he eventually meet up Lynn Minmay and Misa Hayase in the most unusual relationships, we started to learn bigger truths about the alien encounters. Aliens know as the Zentradis after capturing humans, they started to believe humans were the ancestors of their race, known as the Protoculture. Meaning that human beings are “the first extraterrestial humanoid civilization in the universe that occurred over a million years ago. This civilization had proven leaps and bounds in terms of advanced spacy technologies they used/researched to make their race more powerful. They invented a sub-light travel velocity in time and space continuum. And 100 years later, Zentradi were genetically modifed thanks to the expanding influence of Proculture spread into wider colonization of the universe. The show gathered great accolades of fanfares around Japan and Asia all over.
