Sunday 30 November 2014

Mecha Month Week Three and Four...

So this is the The end of Mecha Month 2014 and it was good really good... but also sad. And that has had a knock on effect on this years Month... As i could not complete the month. One of the people i had worked with passed away so and a lot of things were put on hold... But this is not why your here so lets Carry on with MECHA MONTH!!!

Week Three Day
17-20 Monday-Tuesday 17-20/11.)


I spent the first half of the week watching Starfleet. This is a great hidden little gem of a show... and one that most people have never heard of. This is a show made with puppets very similar to the Supermarionation show from Gerry Anderson like Thunderbirds, Stingray and Captain Scarlet. But this show was Japanese and it was made by the Legend that is Go Nagai..... 
Yes the man behind Devil Man, Mazinga Z and Grendizer to name just a few... 
He was inspired by shows like Thunderbirds that had a massive following in japan just like the rest of the world. So he went out and made X-Bomber which was then imported to the UK as Star Fleet. 
I watched this at around the same time as another Gerry Anderson show was on TV called TerraHawks. 

TerraHawks opening

Anyway back to Star Fleet. It's a story about the crew of the Spaceship X-bomber and and the three pilots of  the Mech Dai-X. and we follow them in their adventures as they fight off an alien invasion of earth. It is we worth a watch and like i said above a real hidden gem... Also Brian May from the band Queen and  Eddie Van Halen did a cover of the theme. I have posted this link before but it is such a great little song that i need to share it with everyone....

Brian May & friends Star Fleet project

we jump a few days.

Week Four 
Day 24-29 Monday-Saturday 24-29/11.)

For the final week i went big and i mean BIG... i had just recived the Bluray of Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann - Ultimate Edition this is a six disc set that has all 26 episodes and the 2 movies. This is the first time in the west the Movies have been released. If you have not seen this show then go out and watch it... it is that good. It's a homarge to classic shows like Getter Robo and is full of GUTS and IF YOU BELIEVE THEN ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE kinds of stuff in it. It feels like a 70's throwback but with modern animation and style. And the music is some of the best i have heard in a long time in an anime The opening is amazing... it grabs your attention from the start and you know everything you need to by the end of the song.

Gurren Lagann opening full

So remember "Mine is the drill that will pierce the Heavens"


Day 30 Sunday 30/11.)

So for the final day of Mecha Month 2014 i when straight to an old friend the classic Gunbuster.
This was the show that gave Gainax it's big break. i can not stress the importance of this show. so i sat down and took a look at the Gunbuster Movie its an edited down version of the 6 part OVA. And if you have not seen this again go out and watch it. it's one of those shows that every Mecha Fan needs to see. It's full of Heart and Sprite. 

So that's it for Mecha Month. I am annoyed at my self that i didn't keep my promise and make time to build those model kits i got just to build over the month.... But i guess when i do get round to building them it will give me a reason to do a post about it. And as for next years Mecha Month... i wanted to have a theme... So for the time being lets say Comedy.... 
There's a couple of shows i have that i have not watched in a few years...   

And finally the other day a little trailer came out on line... 


Can not wait till December 2015

Ok there is a lot of Youtube links in this post.... i feel so lazy. Sorry about that. i will try to do better next time.
  







Sunday 16 November 2014

Mecha Month Week Two.... More Robotech.

So this is was Week two of Mecha Month. With the end of the week came the end of the Robotech Saga. And i must admit that i had forgotten most of the New Generation... I mean i was watching it and scratching my head think to myself.... 
I don't remember this happening...  and  How on earth did i miss this....
I must admit i always considered the New Generation as the weakest of the three parts. Well after all theses year i have changed my mind. It was a lot better than i remembered and i have to say it was the seconded best. Heck i even enjoyed the Shadow Chronicles and that did not get good reviews when it came out. So i will keep this post short and i will get back to the mecha goodness. 

Day 10 Monday 10/11.)

The Monday saw the last of the Robotech The Masters dvds. I enjoyed this part of the Saga the lest. It was still good and that but when i compared it to the other parts it would put it last . The why they reworked the ending with dubbing and editing leads very nicely in to the next part. I feel that this part was the most forced some of it comes down to the designs of the armour and mecha. The Hover Tank was fine and does look like it would fit in the Robotech world but the pilot armour looks like a suit of medieval armour and looks nothing like the outfits worn by any of the pilots in the rest of the Saga. and where before as a kid it never bothered me a lot of the time it would take me out of the show.... a pity but it is still a good show overall even if i am starting to see the flaws.

Day 12-14 Tuesday-Friday 12-14/11 .)

These four days was all New Generation. And i loved it mostly because i didn't remember half of it so it felt new.... 


Though this show had different designs for armour and mecha it still felt like a natural step forward and i do like the design of the Alpha Fighter... This show covers the Third Robotch War with earth being taken over by the alien Invid and it follows a small band of freedom fighters as they battle the Invid and reclaim the earth. The story was better in this part and it felt closer to the Macross Saga then The Masters did. I think this would of made a better second act with The Masters being the final act. 

Day 15 Saturday 15/11.)

So here we come to the end of the Robotech Saga. Robotech The Shadow Chronicles is straight to dvd movie that i think was supposed to be a lead in to a full show. Unfortunately that never happened. But i really like this movie. It set right after the final episode of The New Generation and introduces a new villains. Now i know this has a lot of connections with the old Robotech comics but i have never read any of the issues. I do recommend try to see it if your watching Robotech or if you have never seen it before.

Day 16 Sunday 16/11.)

Right... Ok i will admit i made i little error in coming up my list for Mecha Month.... and i am really embarrassed by this. 
I... I.... er.... 
I put Rahxephon the Movie on the list and when i went to get it i couldn't find it, i look everywhere in the dvd carry case where i keep most of my anime and the book cases's... but it's not there.... So instead i watched What ever i had to hand..... Transformers Age of Extinction. I had just got the bluray through the post on Friday so yeah i watched that.... And now i must go to Amazon.co.uk and try to find a copy of Rahxephon the complete set the show and movie in one boxset.... So in an up coming Mecha Month i can put that on the list.

So that does it for Week Two of Mecha Month. Next week we will start with  Star Fleet X-Bomber...


Kick back and enjoy Brian May Rocking the Star Fleet theme.

     




Sunday 9 November 2014

Mecha Month 2014 Week One days 1-9 ROBOTECH

Well it's that time of year again where we celebrate all things MECHA in a month long festival of Anime, Video Games and Movies. Like i have posted a few times before here is the list once more.

Robotech all three seasons. 
Robotech The Shadow Chronicles. 
Star Fleet (...Xbomber...)
Gurren Lagann .
RahXephon The Movie.
GunBuster The Movie.
 Die Buster The Movie.

I am quite happy with the animes that i have chosen this year. It has a good range of drama, Action, Melodrama and comedy. Saying that Mecha Month 2015 might be a themed month. But more on that at the end of the month. 
So with out dragging this out let be begin with the first week of Mecha Month. 
But before i do that i need to give a little history on Robotech. How do i sum up the first part... This is a little harder than you may think. As Robotch is a combination of four animes that have NOTHING to do with each other. So i will give a very brief run down. Carl Macek at Harmony Gold re-scripted and reedited these shows in to one massive story. 


                                                                                                 Japanese originals 

                                                                                Super Dimension Fortress Macross. 1982 
                                                                           Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross. 1984
Genesis Climber Mospeada. 1983
Megazone 23. 1985-1989

Now these four shows became Robotech.

 Robotech: The Macross Saga.
 Robotech: The Masters. 
 Robotech: The New Generation.
 Robotech: The Movie.

I have not mentioned the Robotech: The Sentinels as i don't have it but that will be corrected soon hopefully. Harmony Gold still own the rights to Robotech but more inportantly own the rights to the original Japanese shows. So in the west we will never get the other Macross Shows  like....

Macross: Do You Remember Love
Macross Seven 
Macross Plus
Macross Zero 
Macross Frontier 

Ok how i will admit that i hate that Harmony Gold are so over pertecive of what they have and the fact that they have done nothing with the Macross franchise apart from slapping a court order on to anyone trying to release anything to do with Macross in the west. But you can not and i must stress CAN NOT deny that Anime in the west has a lot to be grateful to thanks to what they did back in 1985.

This is a good video on the history of the VF-1 toy. The main mecha in Macross and Jet Fire/Sky Fire toy from the 1984 Transformers.
History of the Takatoku VF-1 Valkyrie Toy - CollectionDX

Ok so with that little history lesson out of the way with... i mean it LITTLE. Just google Macross and robotech it very complicated... But back to the point Lets begin...

Mecha Month 2014



Day 1-6 Saturday-Thursday 1-6/11.)

I am not going to do a day by day brake down, this is because i started the month off with the 1985 classic Robotech. A show that covers 3 different series over three seasons. Day 1-6 were made up of the first part. Robotech: The Macross Saga. 36 episodes over 6 dvds. This is the old ADV complete box-set from 2001 and is the original TV edit. Not the newer Robotech: Remastered from 2003


What can be said about The Macross Saga that hasn't be said before... well nothing... It is nearly a 30 year old cartoon. But i will try to hit the basics. Robotech/Macross is a Real Robot Show. It is a story of Love, Hate, and War. But at it's core it is a human drama. The story of Rick Hunter and the love triangle with him Lisa Hayes and  Lynn Minmay/Minmie (... How do you spell her name i have seen it spelt a few different ways...) against the backdrop of interstellar war with the giant alien Zentraedi in The First Robotech War.  
And if your a anime fan over a certain age then this cartoon had a big impact.
I love the action and enjoy the the interaction between the many characters and i think the mecha design is some of the best. the VF-1 Valkyrie is one of my favorite Mechs of all time. Also the Macross saga is considered to be the better of the three parts. It has been years since i have sat back and watched this show and i am glade i did it brought back a lot of happy memories of my youth. Good times... good times.  

Day 7-9 Friday-Sunday 7-9/11.)

Over these three days i watched dvds 1-3 of Robotech: The Masters. This is a hard show to some up. a lot of the Robotechness of this part of the show can feel a little forced at times. It follows the exploits of the 15th Armoured Division which is lead by Dana Sterling during The Second Robotech War.Where earth has spent 15 years rebuilding after the event of the First Robotech War. The gantlet earth defenders of the Robotech Defense Force must combat the Robotch Masters and their army of Bioroids. Dana Sterling is the daughter of Max and Mira Sterling who were two characters from the Macross Saga. even though the some of the things in the show feel forced Carl Macek did do an amazing job of connecting this and the first part together that you do feel like your watching one show. This and the final part Robotech: The New Generation are a lot shorter than the first so by the end of next week i will have all 14 dvds done.