Customer Reviews

Robotech - The Macross Saga - Legacy Collection 1

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The Robotech Legacy: Macross Saga Collection 1, contains episodes 1 through 12 of the legendary anime series from the mid 1980s. The first two discs contain six episodes each. The third disc contains all the Exclusive DVD features and is only available if you purchase this boxed set.

For the uninitiated, Robotech was the most popular of the Americanized Japanese anime series to hit American TV waves during the 1970s and 1980s (along with Star Blazers, Voltron, Transor Z, etc.) Known for its cutting edge animation, thrilling battle scenes, futuristic techonology (planes, tanks, motorcyles that transform into robots), cool alien invaders, and realistic and compelling storylines, Robotech swept an entire generation and helped put Japanese Anime forever on the map of American pop culture.

Robotechs sweeping saga spanned three seasons and weaved together three actual separate storylines based on Japanese anime: Season 1 - The Macross Saga, Season 2 - The Robotech Masters (The Southern Cross in Japan), and Season 3 - The New Generation (Mospeada in Japan). The basic story premise is that the earth became forever changed when a mysterious alien battleship crashed on earth. The people of the world, now knowing that they are not alone in the universe, end all wars and unite to understand and assimilate the advanced technology and prepare for the inevitable alien invasion that is sure to come. As the story unfolds mankind would go on to battle three separate alien races over the next three seasons. The sweeping intergalactic war saga itself though, merely becomes the backdrop of a deeper human saga.

This Boxed Set contains 3 DVDs. Heres a listing of what youll find on these discs.

Disc 1  First Contact, episodes 1  6.

1. Booby Trap: While visiting his friend, Rick Hunter becomes an unwilling fighter pilot in the midst of an alien invasion!!!

2. Countdown: As Rick struggles to figure out his strange airplane, the SD-F1 struggles to lift off!!!

3. Space Fold: The SD-F1 warps in order to outflank the alien invaders, unknowingly taking Macross Island with it.

4. The Long Wait: Rick and Minmei are stuck deep within the depths of the SD-F1.

5. Transformation: In order to survive a Zentraedi attack, the SD-F1 must transform, at the potential cost of 70,000 refugee lives!!!

6. Blitzkrieg: Rick enlists!!!

Disc 2  Transformation, contains episodes 7  12.

1. Bye, Bye Mars: Lisa Hayes journeys to Mars hoping to find her long lost fiancé.

2. Sweet Sixteen: Its Minmeis birthday and Rick just got promoted and assigned two pilots under him!!!

3. Miss Macross: Minmei enters the Miss Macross beauty pageant while Rick dogfights it out with a Zentraedi recon ship.

4. Blind Game: Vermillion Group is captured by the Zentraedi!!!

5. First Contact: While interrogating Vermillion Group the Zentraedi finally reveal WHY they are so interested in the SD-F1. What is protoculture?

6. The Big Escape: Vermillion Group makes a break for it!!!

Disc 3  Extra 1: Elements of Robotechnology This is the Special DVD features disc that contains all the DVD extras. It is only purchasable if you get the Boxed Set. On this disc youll find the following:

1. Codename Robotech: This is an hour long prelude to the Macross Saga which was limitedly released to certain markets prior to the initial airing of Macross Saga in the mid-80s as an introduction to the series. It contains a summary of the first 13 episodes of the Macross Saga told as a flashback by Captain Gloval.

2. Audio Commentary by Carl Macek: Macek was the producer of the Robotech series. Macek does a voiceover commentary over the Codename Robotech feature. It is an invaluable commentary that reveals the series origins, WHY it was produced, HOW the series was produced, etc. It provides a valuable insight into the cartoon industry, both in the US and Japan.

3. Character Sketches for all the characters of the Macross Saga. Pretty cool stuff!!

4. Clips of Robotech in foreign languages. This is an awesome and cool feature. Robotech was released worldwide and here is a small sampling of how other countries and cultures caught all the action. For our viewing pleasure we can watch the famous clip of Rick and Minmei trapped in the SD-F1 in the following languages: Spanish, French, Portuguese and Italian!!!

Heres my rundown:

Awesome: Robotech on DVD, nuff said!!!

Must Listen: Carl Maceks commentary on the E1 disc. Its a fascinating look behind the scenes.

Pretty Cool: Robotech in foreign languages (found on the E1 disc). Hilarious!!!

Bad: Nothing at all!!!

If youve never seen Robotech, simply put YOU MUST. It is the series that forever set the standard for Japanese anime. If you did grow up with Robotech, give these a watch again. Theyre great for a trip down memory lane. Watching it again now, I can honestly say that its better than I remember. Give this (and all other current and future releases) a watch. You wont be disappointed.

If you are planning on purchasing these, by all means pick up the Boxed Set. Its the only way youll get the Elements of Robotechnology Disc. Alone, the individual volumes DO NOT come with DVD extras... its still a great bargain for all the action and extras. Get the Boxed Set.

Highest Recommendation possible.

One thing I can't stand, is people who review a product based upon previous viewings, not upon the quality of the product itself. I picked up a copy of this boxed set yesterday, and have taken a look at most of it. If your a fan of the show, or a fan of Japanese anime generally, you know what you're going to get with Robotech. This is a series that attempts to combine dramatic storytelling with the best elements of science fiction. Based upon the success and popularity of the show, it largely succeeds. The characters have a broad range of emotions and react to the trials and tribulations that they all experience. Love,loss, and sacrifice are all motivations for the characters in this series. Macross, the first series, focuses upon young people who face adversity of first contact with an alien race that is both hostile and militarily superior. Against this backdrop is a love story. The hero, Rick Hunter, struggles to find his place, both as a warrior/military leader while also navigating the hazards of true love. I don't think I need to say too much more in the way of the actual series. The art is gorgeous, having set the standards for anime in the 1980s. The voice actors are excellent. You don't even notice that the language is dubbed. This epic series set the standard for anime in the USA and it continues to survive the test of time.

The DVD production is another story. The master print does not appear to have been cleaned up in any way. Compared with other DVDs, the print appears quite grainy. It's a tv cartoon from the 1980s and this is exactly what it looks like. Just don't go in expecting this to be a polished special edition. The extras are not particularly impressive. The art collection is largely duplicative of material that has appeared in printed works. The sound track is rather tinny, and lacks the fullness of most modern productions. This is probably because the original production was designed for mono television via the airwaves, but compared to most modern DVDs it lacks the fullness that you would come to expect. THe two hour movie included on the extra disk is nothing more than a shorter version of the first several episodes. The audio commentary by Carl Macek (the producer) was interesting. It provides a nice historical perspective of the series and insights into the production. However, unlike movie commentaries, it really doesn't track the sequence of scenes on the screen. You can listen to the commentary without watching any of what is taking place on the screen. I must say that my copy of the extras disk has a glitch. One of the tracks continually jams my DVD player. I have not had this problem with any other DVDs. I'll probably look to exchange my set for another copy. I don't know whether this is merely a problem with my set or whether it may be representative of larger manufacturing difficulty. I simply point this out because anyone who buys this product should probably check theirs out as soon as possible. Despite these complaints, this is still the best production of the Robotech series to date. While the quality is comparable to the earlier video tape releases, this is still the nicest production of the Robotech series for home release, and it sure beats my grainy video tapes.

There are a few classic anime series which should never fall out of print- Speed Racer, Star Blazers(Yamato), 8th Man(the english translation) and MACROSS. Carl Macek's mid-eighties adaptation of the original Macross Saga into the Robotech series wasn't flawless, but it allowed American kids a chance to see some creative animation which didn't draw from the same pre-packaged toy pushing corporate garbage animation formula which overpowered American TV in the eighties. For the first and only time in the eighties kids got what they lusted for- space battles, robots, action, hard luck, death, romance, intensity. The Macross portion of Robotech delivered in spades, and nearly everyone who glimpsed an episode of this epic tragedy was changed, influenced by a thoughtful story matched with skilled animation artists creating an awesome milestone in animation history.

There were obviously three or more crews of animators and layout artists working on the Macross Saga in Japan. As you watch the episodes you will notice a quarter of the episodes are amazing in every aspect. The layout looked just like Mikimoto's original designs for the characters, the mecha functioned flawless, the animation was superb and the storyboarding was pushing the boundaries of what could happen on an animation camera stand. Another third of the series is very well done, but not quite as stylish as the best episodes, and the remainder was pretty horridly drawn and animated. The difference in drawing styles is very apparent, as are all the old Japanese hallmarks of bad animation(lens flares, cel scratches, inconsistant color, popping layers) which appear more in the lower quality episodes. The story is still quite a fun epic journey culminating in the obliteration of the earth's surface in one of the most unforgettable epiosdes in TV(the episode which got Robotech taken off the air in the later eighties due to explicitly gruesome violence as people fry and obliterate as a million atomic blasts devastate the earth), and then following its reconstruction period afterwards. There are so many unforgettable moments in the Macross saga which I have remembered ever since seeing it as a kid.

The worth of this series is incalculable. Currenty I work in the American animation industry and just yesterday I used some Chinese VCDs of Macross as reference for explosions and laserbeams. Every so often I and my artists influenced by this series will harken back to it for animation and storytelling reference because of its artistic strength. Mind you, I haven't seen the DVD edition yet, but if it is the unadulterated adaptation of the Robotech series without bizarre editing or gruesome color correction, 'creative' voice or video alteration then it is a definite 5 star must see for any anime fan who enjoys any genre. Thank you, Carl Macek for finally releasing a true classic. Now, if only you could release 'Porco Rosso' with your translation in tact....

Anybody that watched this as a kid, discovered it recently, or is just discovering it now, Will absolutely love this DVD. It is an exciting adventure that helped bring Anime to America. The story and animation is simply stunning. We have been waiting for this for quite a long time. The boxed set will be coming with 3 DVDs.The first 2 will have 6 episodes a piece giving you a third of the Macross Saga. The third one will be Codename:Robotech. A 90 min. special that helped introduced Robotech to us. If you are a huge fan and would like a lot more about Robotech, then just check out Robotech.com. It has quite a lot about the show as well as a fabulous forum with a lot of friendly people. Have fun with this, the first of quite a few DVDs about Robotech to come. Happy viewing. (I wish I could have given it more than just 5 starts)

I really can't believe some of the recent reviews. It's pretty obvious that some people bought this with unreasonably high expectations. Did you expect it to look like a new big budget Walt Disney production just because it's on DVD? It looks like a mid-80s cartoon because it IS a mid-80's cartoon.

It's also AFFORDABLE. To make it look beter, you would have to go through and edit the animation cell-by-cell. Animego is doing just that with the original Japanese Macross series (already a year behind schedule, and still no official release date). You can see stills of the difference this process makes at robotech.com.

I just got the first box set last night and watched all 12 episodes in one sitting. I thought it looked and sounded GREAT considering the age of the footage. Is it "state of the art"? Of course not, but if the cost of remastering the animation puts the cost of the set around the cost of my RENT, I'm more than happy with the quality of these discs.

This boxed set contains three discs; Robotech: First Contact, Robotech: Transformation and Robotech Extra Disc 1. Since the first two discs can be bought seperetly, my review will be on the extras disc.

As you already know, the extra disc includes Codename: Robotech. C:R is basically episodes 13 and 14 (both not included in this boxed set) which are streched into a 75 minute pilot. But how is that possible? Episode 14 is a recap episode so the flashbacks were continued to a longer extent then in episode 14. One thing I hated about it though was the poor video quality of it. That's right. This was copied off a low grade VHS tape I'll bet. There is tons of line noise and even some scenes where the framerate seems to lag. However, this pilot also includes commentary by Carl Macek, so that made it worth it. Mr. Macek talked about a lot of things including about Robotech toy lines, broadcasting rights, where the voice actors are now and even points out some little mistakes in the animation. That was the best extra on the disc. Furthermore, there is a character production sheet gallery featuring 33 different sheets of all the characters in the Macross Saga. The International Clip is of when Minmei and Rick commence a pretend wedding. The French audio sounded like it was recorded in a tin can, but the acting was good. The Spanish track has better audio quality then the French and has some nice voice acting. The Italian and Portugese tracks were by far the best. Rick actually sounds like more of a man in Portugese.

So overall, this boxed set is must for fans and non-fans alike. And you still get 12 episodes with the set. Now that's a deal. If you haven't done so yet, buy it now. It is well worth it's weight in gold and then some.

For those of you who don't already know, what is known in the United States as Robotech started originally as three separate and unrelated cartoons in Japan; Macross, Southern Cross, and Mospeada. The three shows were spliced together and dubbed into English, in an attempt to create a single story thread. According to the first Palladium Robotech roleplaying game book, no new material was ever added to the original Japanese footage. The only thing quintessentially American about Robotech is the name.

I think enough has already been said about the quality (or lack thereof) of the DVD collection. Personally, I would have preferred to wait for a subtitled edition, but then it wouldn't have been called Robotech, now would it?

The one thing I can say about this DVD collection is that you definitely get your money's worth. With six episodes on a disc, we could only hope that the other anime producers (or rather translators) would pick up on the trend and release more episodes on a single DVD, rather than charge $20 and up for barely 30 minutes of footage.

There are a few people who have reviewed this collection badly because there is going to be a release of Macross soon. Robotech is not Macross. Given, this portion of Robotech uses the Macross animation, but the story is significantly different. If you loved Robotech as a kid, this is what you want. You might also enjoy Macross, but if you wait and get Macross expecting it to be what was on after school, then you'll be sorely disappointed.

Well that's how I felt when I got the boxed set. The anticipation before I got it was like some sort of twisted line between pleasure and pain. A gutwrenching wait.

Those of you who don't understand this let me explain. There was this extraordinary anime show that aired in 1985, marketed in 1984 as giant robot models. It was a mess of a licensing mess between Japanese studio/distributors , whatever and an American company that took three different Japanime series and tied them together with a new story and broadcast all over the USA(God bless her).

Of course as a child I never knew all that mess of three different series and licensing. All I knew that this thing was the best thing since Star Wars with a little G-force/Battle of the planets action mixed in it with a little music action going on as well.

There was a tremendous animation style that was rare found in ROBOTECH. A large departure from the Hannah Barbara style. But it was not only the large transforming robots it was also the mature themes that was integral to the story that made appealed to me.

Of course the large transforming and non-transforming robots were great too! The design of the mecha was superb, It will stand alone even today, not even looking dated. The mecha seemed by design to be functional and believable, just like a lot of the characters were very believable, human.

Ok, why the Gutwrenching?

Because after the mid to late eighties the series disappeared. Even when the show was on TV the merchandise for the show(toys) were elusive.

It was t he Holy Grail to me, finding any kind of veritech
(transforming jet) in any flavor in any brand name or actually any mech from any of the three generations. AHH the woe! The loss The melancholy pain as a child looking in the windows of a closed toy store checking on if they had that Gerwalk/guardian( half plane half robot) toy in the window, and after finding it, saving your money only to find that it was gone. Off to another store.

And then there were the cold years with no robotech at all. Of course those were the years of growing up, discovering girls , sports, other interests . But in my heart I would never forget ROBOTECH! It deeply affected me.

That's why finally getting the boxed set was like a loud blaring
Robert Plant(or insert loud wailing rocker here) soul scream of joy , rocking the hisouse!

Almost everyone I introduce it to loves it, my older sister, my cousin, friends at work, fraternity brothers star wars fans, star trek fans.

This boxed set introduces the series and includes some of the best animation of the Macross saga. The first few episodes will convert almost anyone. I in-fact played some of the first episodes for some of my office mates at an office lunch and they were enthralled.

The first episodes are the best and you will love them. They will suck you in and hypnotize you and keep you wanting more and more robotech. Or you may just like them.

The boxed set is a great deal since you get the extras DVD for almost free. The two episodes DVDS have at least 5 shows per disk. They are pretty cheap too, but with the legacy box set you get a nice package with original art. The extra features are good, the get more meaty with the other box sets that come after.
All the box sets for Macross that come after, the other two legacy box sets are have similar matching, almost the same exterior cover. Nicely done.

one of my only gripe with the DVDs is that it doesn't come with subtitles in any other languages. Spanish, English and French would have been nice.

The quality of the video is a lot better than the old vhs tapes I had and with 5 eps per $11-12 DVD you get a lot of bang for your buck.

If you watched this show as a kid or at any age when it was on during the eighties you will want this set. It rocks.

In an earlier review,, someone says that robotech is not macross and these episodes are not the ones that were on TV as a kid,,, (they give wrong info) Robotech contains different saga's, :

Macross, Southern Cross, New Generation, Sentinals,

This dvd collection is the first of the Macross Saga 12 episodes. there are probably aroud 30 or so in this Saga,, and 85 in the whole Robotech Series. These DVD's are the ones we watched as a kid,, I recommend it to anyone.