Like I said ...
As I noted at the bottom of the big long Prelude #2 analysis (below), Prelude to the Shadow Chronicles #3 is out today. And if things proceed as they have, my copy should be here next Thursday. So c'mon folks, help me out -- leave your thoughts, observations, and impressions in the comments thread.
Thanks!
Thanks!
posted by Captain JLS at
11:14
12 Comments:
J-
Just picked up and read #3. I'll try to describe it as best as I can. To all that haven't read it, spoilers will apply starting in the next paragraph. Here goes...
The Tokugawa continues to plummet toward Optera. Vince evacuates the ship, barely escaping himself. To do so, he utilizes a Cyclone, fancy driving, transformation into robot mode, and some other techniques that may or may not be very realistic. You'll have to be the judge on that one. Makes for an exciting sequence, at the very least.
Once Vince makes it to a functional dropship, Edward-controlled Invids take control of the ship via the piggyback method and drag it to the Hive...
SDF-3 en route to Space Station Liberty...
Lisa and Rick have a nice conversation, mostly about recovering and getting back to command. It looks like Lisa has a (temporary?) injury that keeps her in a wheelchair. She does, however, want to get back to her job. It seems that Rick won't be #1 forever...
Janice gets a preview of her new robot shell from Lang.
SDF-3 reaches Liberty (coloring is very dark in this section), Rick meeting Louie and gets a tour of the facility and all the ships that are being retrofitted with Shadow technology. There's a lot here that, frankly, is over my head. Ship classes, etc. That's your area of expertise, so I'll leave it to you or someone else.
There is a new class of ship mentioned, though. A Heavily Armored Class, the first to be completed named Ark Angel. A bit later, Louie says the class is called the Ark-Angel class, so who knows what the deal is with that.
Liberty gets a distress call from the Tokugawa...
Edwards, in typical nutty fashion, explains to Vince his plan to use The Regent's Army to destroy the Regess (wasn't it spelled Regis? When did this change?) and her army on Earth. Eddie sees it as liberation and not craziness. He then shows Vince his control over the Genesis Pit and claims that Vince will help him as a man...or as a beast.
Immediately after that, using Shadow technology, Rick and Co. surprise Edwards and mount a full scale attack on the Hive. The dropships land, out comes Rick and Cyclones, and the issue...ends. Rick does want Edwards alive, though :)
So that's what I have. Any questions? I'll try and answer.
-shane
By
Anonymous, at 16 November, 2005 14:58
Y'know, funny thing is, I think it was "Regess" first -- I seem to recall seeing it spelled that way in an early Comico New Generation comic. However, McKinney popularized the "Regis" spelling. I suppose they're stepping away from that not only because it and "Regent" come off as a better match, but because they don't want to confuse the queen-mother of the Invid with a certain morning show/game show television personality.
Sounds like there's a lot going on, as usual. Glad to see some setup with the Genesis Pit, since we know it's going to be important later. Heh. Wonder if any of this is going to further peg down the timeframe ... hmmm ...
If Lisa's talking about returning to command, and we know she's not going to be in Shadow Chronicles, they must be either A) setting her up for the NEXT animation (after all, that was one of the reasons cited for HG casting someone else as Ariel, remember?), or B) getting ready to off her. You know the drill -- the nice chat about plans for the future before the knife falls. Do I think they'd do it? Probably not. But you never know.
I rather like how they've recast Edwards' plans. His current thinking dovetails nicely from some of Rick's dialogue at the beginning of the series, how he's much more about going about defending Earth in his own way than being a megalomaniacal nut. Not that he ISN'T a megalomaniacal nut, but that's just an aspect to his personality rather than the end-all it was back in Sentinels.
I hope he's not wearing a toga.
By
Captain JLS, at 16 November, 2005 15:33
No toga on Edwards, at least not yet.
I would just like to expand on the ship class information posted above. The first ships mentioned are "Crusader Class Dropships" which I believe make up the rear portions of the SDF-3, if I remember correctly.
Then they mention the "...new heavily armored class of colony ships that have been constructed in response to the outbreak of hostilities after the orginal pioneer expedition. The first to be completed will be the Ark Angel."
The third ship type mentioned is on the next panel and is referred to as old. "These older vessels are the Angel-class colony ships that are now being mothballed to make way for the contruction of the new Ark Angel-class." Rick mentions that this seems to be a waste...
My question is, why create colony ships during wartime? If you are going to war with the Invid, either on Optera or Earth, why waste shipbuilding resources on non-warship class vessels?
And what is the Angel Class? If it is apparently already outdated, when was it produced and why? I did a quick google search, and other than using it as a Star Trek nod, there doesnt SEEM to be any tie-in with Robotech. Maybe it is a comics reference? (I don't have any of the sentinals comics)
By
Anonymous, at 16 November, 2005 16:20
Take a good look at the Angel-Class Colony ships, and then look at the Neutron S missiles. They looked really close on my first pass I'll have to pull the DVD and check that out.
I love Louie's comment about using them for Oversize shipping.
By
Anonymous, at 16 November, 2005 19:27
Did anybody else notice that Edwards' chin looks like a fat ass that really sticks out in this issue?
By
Anonymous, at 16 November, 2005 19:41
I can't figure out what kind of injuries would keep Lisa in a hospital for a YEAR! Must have been devastating in nature, like a broken spine, pelvis, legs, etc. or something like that. I mean for Pete's sake she's still in a hospital gown!?!
Aikiweezie
By
Anonymous, at 17 November, 2005 21:50
Yeah... I still need to pick up those comics... *laughs*
By
Anonymous, at 18 November, 2005 04:42
Lisa's injuries must have been pretty bad, you can see when she is in the wheelchair how they have metal cages around her lower legs. Doctors use that when you shatter a bone and they put it back together with screws and pins. Since both of her legs are in cages, I would say the injuries to her lower extremities were pretty massive.
By
Anonymous, at 18 November, 2005 06:52
howe2329 - that's what I was thinking, too, not that they're braces but those things with the implanted pins. OUCH!!!
Aikiweezie
By
Anonymous, at 18 November, 2005 07:30
So, let me get this straight: The Shadow Fighters that are the center of the "Shadow Chronicles" are the same Shadow Fighters that assault Reflex Point in the final battle against the Regis in the New Generation????
Ry-on
By
Anonymous, at 18 November, 2005 10:17
Sure seems that way.
However, I think the "Shadow Chronicles" title is a little deeper than just an indication that, LOOK, we're all using Shadow technology (though remember, the show's called Robotech, which tells us, um, they all use Robotech-derived weaponry). Rewatch "Symphony of Light" and listen to the Regess' speechifying throughout. The word "shadow" comes up an awful lot in regards to a whole lot of different things. For instance ...
"The shadow of the Robotech Masters has been allowed to rule this world for too long!"
... and ...
"However, the humans have been influenced too strongly by the shadow of the Robotech Masters, and are intent only on the destruction of their entire race."
She also spends a a lot of time speaking of "children of shadow." Somehow I can't help but think that these references are going to be important to the Shadow Chronicles story, considering where it's going to be picking up, y'know?
By
Captain JLS, at 18 November, 2005 21:36
Hey, is it just me, or does Louie seem really, really young for the time that this is supposed to take place?
By
Darkwater, at 19 November, 2005 20:01
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