ROBOBLOG III Archives

4.16.2007

The Roboblog Chronicles: Episode 3

Speculation on possible returning ROBOTECH characters in the next animation ho!

Labels: , ,

posted by Captain JLS at 20:05

14 Comments:

  • can't wait...

    -adc-

    By Blogger aaron@digitalcole, at 16 April, 2007 11:24  

  • I'll be shocked and surprised if the sequel has Minmei's brother: Jason Minmei as part of the expedition force

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 16 April, 2007 15:39  

  • Darn I didnt get to see the video..what happened?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 16 April, 2007 20:42  

  • I would love to see more characters from various generations appear, but for some odd reason, I get the feeling that Harmony Gold has lost the rights to some of the characters' images, especially the Macross characters. Look at Shadow Chronicles Rick!! He looks like some beefed up Vampire Hunter D or something now!

    I have really been enjoying your video blogs, but I notice you seem to suffer from some type of indigestion. Might I suggest trying some Prilosec OTC! Just kidding! :)

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 16 April, 2007 21:54  

  • Good show. Some surprising additions, like Lazlo Zand. I would be pretty shocked if he was brought back in a major way. It certainly would add a whole new dynamic to things...

    If you bring back Rem--and I agree that should happen–Cabell (if he's alive) should come along for the ride. Cabell, being the experienced scientist he is, could give Rem a hand with the matrix work and share interesting banter about whatever sort of Protoculture anomalies might occur–he usually helps display the aloof Rem's humanity, too, since he is Rem's father-figure, and the original Zor's student.

    You covered a lot of the points I made about Jack (and Karen) in the previous comments I made for your last show (not sure if you saw those or not). But, being the big Baker fan I am, I'd like to reiterate some of those reasons for bringing Jack back in here in edited form. I think he's more interconnected than one might expect at first glance:

    First, in the new canon, he was Wolf Squad comrades with Daryl Taylor, who was killed in TSC; discovering this would give Taylor's sudden death some real purpose, and give Jack extra motivation to play a role in the fight against the Haydonites--whom he trusted in PttSC.
    Second, even in the new canon, he sounds like a trusted soldier and friend of Admiral Hunter's.
    Third, despite the big blank spot of the reworked Sentinels campaign, one has to imagine that Jack worked closely alongside Vince Grant and other Sentinels characters that have appeared in TSC or may yet appear.
    Fourth, he's one of the few notable REF combat troop veterans from the Sentinels Saga, and was THE "young Rick Hunter" of that saga.
    Fifth, besides the whole crucial Karen dynamic you went over, there's a potentially interesting connection with Marcus here: Since Jack knew Taylor, who Marcus looked up to; has dealt with a fellow fiery pilot like Maia (though more so) in Karen; and also lost his family to an alien race (in some canons, the Zentraedi), Jack could be a more complete role model for Marcus while the youth goes back and forth in his opinions of Scott, who is technically Jack's junior, and the Invid.
    Sixth, he adds so much interesting banter ability that is lacking in Shadow Chronicles' by and large stale cast*, in past canons arguing with the 15th over who had to fight the tougher war in EOTC and, when asked how things were going once during the Sentinels novels, he retorted, "It's not beer and skittles." (He'll be a little more mature, but Jack wasn't exactly the type to ever fully grow up from what we've seen in the past).
    And, Seventh, "you didn't even manage to rescue me--dismissed!"

    I only hope they can get back the perfectly fitting voice actor from the Sentinels movie!

    *as far as I'm concerned, the current Shadow Chronicles cast is unsatisfactory. You've got Vince and Reinhardt to lend some credible authority--and Admiral Hunter eventually--but with Alex killed off too early, the only characters with some notable personality are Maia, Marcus, and Jean. Scott and Ariel are pretty straightforward and semi-lethargic--they always have been--and the new Janice and Louie are goofy in a largely cringe-worthy way. This cast just is not dynamic and needs a shot in the arm from people like Jack and Karen.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 17 April, 2007 01:16  

  • Most of what you said was rather mundane and given.... except for the Zand bit. That actually is quite a good idea :)

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 17 April, 2007 06:44  

  • Lazlo Zand sounds interesting... and Benson (the young cadet who was talking to TR Edwards)

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 17 April, 2007 11:47  

  • I hope they don't kill Cabell!

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 17 April, 2007 11:47  

  • I think the more you use older characters, the more and more a story comes across like fan fiction. I didn't think of this until about a year or so after seeing Shadow Chronicles, but I think the best way they could have made the series accessible to new viewers would have been to start fresh with all new characters and a new timline (like 10-20 years later).

    A clever enough story could have done that while retaining the original spirit of Robotech while at the same time up the loose ends of the New Generation. And when you think about it, the Shadow Chronicles is the ONLY Robotech animation (besides the Sentinels) that doesn't have an entirely new cast of characters.

    The Shadow Chronicles using older characters feels like one of the Star Trek fanfics (check out New Voyages) where there are obscure references to the universe that only the hardcore fans would understand.

    By Blogger Darkwater, at 17 April, 2007 20:59  

  • I don't know, sometimes fan fictions work better than the real thing. I haven't seen The New Voyages, but I hear they are better than Enterprise.

    It would be pointless to drag out all teh old characters just for the sake of having them in the sequel. But at the same time, denying us the characters we want to see kind of sucks. I think it would be almost impossible to do a sequel after The New Generation without including Rick since he was MIA in the end of the series, and Scott went looking for him. Then again, I didn't like the way they teased us with the whole "find out what happened to Rick", and he got about 90 seconds of screen time.

    And Vince, Jean, JANICE, and the Haydonites are like original characters since I'm sure most people haven't seen The Sentinels.

    It's late. Maybe I'm not making a lot of sense. All I know is, fan fictions can be better than the real thing because fans care about the characters and their universe more than the powers that be.

    And what about Robotech III: Not Necessarily the Sentinels? :)



    ----Admiral DMC McKeever

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 18 April, 2007 01:19  

  • To an extent, Darkwater's probably right: HGUSA should have opted for an entirely new cast for a return to Robotech, as that way new viewers aren't forced to deal with all the baggage that comes with many of the existing characters.

    On the other hand, many Robotech fans want one thing and one thing only: the further adventures of Rick Hunter. How could HGUSA ignore this, when for 20+ years people have been clamoring to find out what happened to Rick?

    And like Admiral DMC McKeever, I tend to view The Sentinels characters as "new" characters despite their history; most people who have seen the original series probably haven't seen The Sentinels, so these are "new" characters to that portion of the audience. The casual fan has no idea who Jack Baker, Vince Grant, et all are.

    I just hope that whatever sequel we get, the new characters aren't killed off as fast as they were in TSC. And, you know, that Jack and Rem are back. And Pollinators. Robotech needs more Pollinators.

    By Blogger JHC, at 18 April, 2007 08:18  

  • I tend to view The Sentinels characters as "new" characters despite their history; most people who have seen the original series probably haven't seen The Sentinels, so these are "new" characters to that portion of the audience. The casual fan has no idea who Jack Baker, Vince Grant, et all are.

    I think what ended up happening was just the opposite, in fact I heard this complaint from a lot of people. While the Sentinels characters were considered "new" to a lot of fans, the movie itself acted as if we should have known them. It not only seemed to exclude the person who hasn't seen Robotech, it excluded the Robotech fan who hadn't closely followed the novels and/or comics.

    And I'd also go on record that New Voyages is NOT better than Enterprise. :)

    By Blogger Darkwater, at 18 April, 2007 10:59  

  • But would you go on record The Shadow Chronicles is better than Robotech III: Not Necessarily the Sentinels?

    ---Admiral DMC McKeever

    (who thinks they really need to get some fan DVDs of Robotech III and Robotech IV: Khyron's Counterattack out there. They were just too good to not be seen)

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 18 April, 2007 20:19  

  • Captain CLS, keep up the good work with those video blogs, I thoroughly enjoy watching them on my TV via my Nintendo Wii Internet access.

    One quick question though for your next video podcast. Do you think that visually, the Jack Baker character from Prelude to the shadow chronicles comics superficialy resembles Roy Fokker?

    And Marcus Rush resembles a young and naive Rick Hunter? Just a thought!

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 19 April, 2007 00:23  

Post a Comment

<< Home