FINALLY! AN UPDATE!

Sorry for the long delay… Things have been busy and I’d been procrastinating about a lot of stuff, but with the recent lockdown, I’ve finally picked up the DYRL novel again, and I should have new chapters up soon.

In other news, it’s pretty obvious that Macross the First has been canceled again, and probably for good this time. So none of the links on my summary posts work anymore, and I’m unsure what to do about that. On the one hand, I think the summaries are still useful for anyone who has the manga (and you’d HAVE to have the manga in physical form, since the Cycomi links are all dead now). On the other hand, I’m unlikely to continue the summaries, since it’ll just hit a dead end with no resolution. I apologize, but in order to do this kind of work, I first of all need enthusiasm for each project, and I don’t have any eagerness for a Macross the First that leaves off on a double-cliffhanger (since it left the main story for a flashback, and even the flashback is incomplete).

As for the Southern Cross rewatch, I want to get back to it, but it won’t happen immediately. I worked pretty hard to finish the Orguss Rewatch before the 35th anniversary of the debut of Southern Cross, and I underestimated how exhausted that would make me, and how the last thing I wanted to do was plunge into another deep dive into a series. Although I did end up watching all of Super Beast Machine God Dancouga recently (I found it mediocre, but mostly enjoyable), so maybe I’m ready for something else. And Southern Cross is pretty short, anyway.

For the Macross Rewatch, I’m holding off doing the Delta movie until the second movie comes out, so it’s gonna be a while.

Anyway, sorry to be gone so long. And again, I should have more DYRL up soon.

Macross the First REBOOT! (#7 asteroid cracker)

#7 asteroid cracker

(Previous synopses: #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, and #6)

This chapter incorporates a couple of ideas that formed part of the Macross story in its early pre-production days (when it was still called Battle City Megaroad). Minmay delivering Chinese take-out to the bridge, we saw last time (initially, by the way, that was going to be her ONLY role. But the staff liked her so much that they gave her a larger part). Here we see both the eponymous “asteroid cracker” (which here works a little differently than it would’ve in the show. There, depending on what account you read, it was going to be the anchor for the Megaroad (Macross) either hitting asteroids and shattering them, bombarding the Zentradi battleships with fragments (which is mostly how it works here), or else the anchor would’ve jammed into the astroids, and the Megaroad could whip them around like a mace.

The other idea that gets revived (which, again, we saw the beginnings of last chapter) is that at one point, the Prometheus would become unusable (if I recall correctly, it was going to get flooded while the Megaroad (Macross) was in the ocean). That happens here, but in a very different way.

Anyway, I think it’s interesting that while Mikimoto is in many ways updating the Macross story and making it more modern, he’s also reaching back for ideas that never made it to the screen in the first place.

#7 asteroid cracker(1)
Pages 1-2
The bridge announces that all civilians should go immediately to the nearest shelter and that the Prometheus crew should prepare for close combat. Kamujin senses victory. Battle pods fly in and attack the Macross at close range.

Pages 3-5
Things seem dire. The pods are attacking the bridge. The Macross fires all its nearby missiles and sets the pinpoint barrier to protect the bridge. Valkyries teams are getting wiped out. Minmay looks horrified as she’s cleaning up the spilled food.
The pods press the attack. Global is relying on the destroids, but thinks to himself that they’re not ready, since they were in the middle of resupplying.
Global desperately tries to figure out what to do. In their position, a Daedalus attack is impossible. Kim suggests detaching from the Prometheus. Global worries about what will happen to it (and the Valkyrie squadrons aboard it) if they do that.

Pages 5-9
A voice pipes up, suggesting they blow up the nearest asteroid. It’s Minmay. Everyone looks at her in bewilderment. Shammy starts to tell Minmay that that won’t work, but then starts calculating how much energy from the pinpoint barrier would be needed to shatter the asteroid. She concludes that it could be done.
Major Baltrow (on the screen) also says it’s possible, but that it’s useless. Misa says to Global that they can do it, but there’s no margin for error. Global commands her to try.

Pages 10-16
Misa starts issuing orders to the destroids as Max and Kamujin continue their fight. Max realizes he’s at a disadvantage because his destroid is limited to ground combat, so he fires the arm cannons down in an effort to get airborne (spaceborne…?).

Pages 17-20
On the bridge, everything is proceeding. Kamujin, however, is getting closer to the bridge, and Max is their only mobile defense. His superior officer tells him to be careful, and he says he can handle it.

#7 asteroid cracker(2)
Pages 1-4
As Max defends the bridge from the battle pod assault, reinforcements show up to help him. Misa commands the Spartans to take cables from the Daedalus and attach them to the surface of the asteroid.

Pages 5-7
Focker and Skull Squadron are holding off the battlepods attacking the Prometheus, and he’s worried that they’ll get inside. Misa tells him that the operation is about to begin. Claudia commands, “Prometheus, purge!” and the Macross disconnects from the carrier.

Pages 8-12
Kamujin again claims victory, since what can the Macross do, now that’s it’s lost one of its arms? His subordinate tells him, though, that there are some strange particles around. The Macross drags the astroid and maneuvers it into the right spot. Kamujin has no idea what’s happening.
Misa commands all the destroids to return to the Daedalus or take cover. They do.

Pages 12- 18
They start pouring the pinpoint barrier energy through the cables into the asteroid, getting it to 120%. Misa orders the blackout shield to cover the bridge’s window. Then she commands, “Burst! Asteroid cracker!!!”

#7 asteroid cracker(3)
Pages 1-5
The asteroid breaks apart, and chunks of it hit Kamujin’s battleship. He launches the front part of his ship to retreat, while the back part is destroyed (which, you may remember, is the opposite of how he got away from the barrier overload over Ontario). The tentacles binding the Prometheus are also severed, freeing it.
Kamujin berates the humans for doing something so silly and childish, but then says that this is going to be a fun match.

Pages 6-8
On the bridge, everything is wrapping up, as they’re accounting for the remaining Valkyries and destroids. Global says that the asteroid cracker was good thinking, and Misa suggests that Minmay deserves a medal. Minmay suddenly looks terrified as a battle pod appears right in front of the bridge window, but Hikaru blows it away and asks if everyone is okay.

Pages 9-12
Global thanks him, and recognizes him as Focker’s protégé. But he notices that Hikaru looks pained, and asks if he was injured. He replies that no, it’s because of the difficult instruction that he had earlier that day. The bridge bunnies laugh, recalling dragging him around shopping with them.
Minmay stands up and salutes him, saying, “Thank you for your service, Hikaru!!”
Global stares at her rear end thoughtfully.
As we pull away, we hear Shammy yell “Captain! No smoking on the bridge!!”
Then the narration tells us that after re-docking with the Prometheus, the Macross continues on its journey.

Macross the First REBOOT! (#6 quamzin kravshera)

#6 quamzin kravshera

(previous synopses #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5)

Wow, this is a really talky chapter… unfortunately, between this and the Orguss Rewatch, I haven’t had as much time for the Do You Remember Love novel as I’d like… let’s hope the manga calms down a bit soon…

THE SYNOPSIS
#6 quamzin kravshera(1)
Pages 1-4
The last of the battle pods are fleeing, so Misa recalls the Valkyrie squadrons. Global is relieved that they’ve made it through another day. Hikaru is exhausted from the constant battles, and Focker tells him he should relax. Hikaru says he has a date with Minmay the next day, and that they’re going to go shopping for some stylish clothes for him. Focker calls him a fool, and says that that’s just a pretext, and really, she wants to give Hikaru a “present.” Hikaru blushes.

Pages 5-7
Global discusses making changes to the city inside the Macross so that it won’t get damaged during the transformation again. Notably, he mentions the “refugees,” and then corrects himself to “Macross townspeople.” He then asks how the Miss Macross is coming along, and we meet the blonde dude who Hikaru saw Minmay with a few chapters ago. It’s Lynn Kaifun, and he’s listed as a music producer.
He says that they had already passed the first round of judging, and that they’re fortunate enough to have the majority of the people who were organizing the contest aboard the ship (the rest are dead, I guess…? He doesn’t say…) so that it will be a spectacular event.
Assemblyman Hymen Gwent (remember him?) says that he’s in charge of the committee for the contest and will organize everything. Kaifun takes him down a peg, saying that an Assemblyman shouldn’t concern himself with things like this. Gwent gets upset, and Global defuses the situation, saying that putting the civilians at ease is their top priority, and asks if there are any girls who are especially inspiring.
Kaifun says that there’s a girl under his wing who he thinks will do well, and Gwent accuses him of just wanting to get into this girl’s pants. Kaifun says that he has complete confidence in her, and that she won’t disappoint.
And just in case we weren’t sure who he was talking about, we switch to…

Pages 7-10
…Minmay, who’s meeting Hikaru. We get the scene from the TV series where there’s an announcement from the bridge that a group of battle pods have attacked, but that the Valkyrie squadrons have defeated them with no casualties or damage. Hikaru says that that’s a lie, that they didn’t even kill half of the enemy pods, and that plenty of Valkyries were shot down. Minmay is speechless.

Pages 10-13
They go to an arcade, and Hikaru plays a flying game, boasting about his flying skills. Minmay smiles and says, “You really love planes, don’t you?”
Minmay asks when they’re going to go shopping for clothes for Hikaru and he brushes it off. She notes that he doesn’t like shopping much, and asks if he likes artists. She puls out a photo of Kaifun and shows it to Hikaru. She calls him her “big brother,” but says that he isn’t really her brother, and that he’s a famous music producer. “You’ve seen him before, haven’t you?” she asks, as Hikaru fashes back to seeing her on the date with him. He loses concentration, and gets shot down (in the game). Minmay drags him away, and we see that the gamer he was flying against was Max.

Pages 14-16
They go shopping, and Minmay talks about how Kaifun has been helping her out, and even picked out her outfit for her upcoming birthday party. Hikaru, jealous, says, somewhat insincerely, that it must be great to have a diligent advisor pick her specifically out from the crowd. Minmay gets upset, and Hikaru asks why she brought him shopping instead of Kaifun. Minmay says that Kaifun’s busy organizing the Miss Macross Contest, but that he’s also giving her private lessons to prepare for it. She suddenly gets worried about picking out a present for him. Hikaru is nonplussed. Then she says she has to leave, since she’s doing directly to Kaifun’s room for her lesson, and says goodbye. Hikaru is shocked and jealous, especially when she tells him that Kaifun is staying in his old room above the restaurant.

#6 quamzin kravshera(2)
Pages 1-3
Hikaru works himself up into a jealous fit, and unthinkingly slams his coffee cup on the table, which makes everyone in the café turn and stare, including Misa and the bridge bunnies, who shout out (as you can see) “VT-102!” The bridge bunnies run over and gawk at him a bit (Shammy thinks he’s “cute”).

Pages 4-10
They press Hikaru into service, carrying their bags as they go shopping. They call him “VT-102,” and tell him to hurry up. Hikaru asks himself how this even happened, and concludes that they were just flattering him. Misa scolds him, “You’d rather be by yourself?”
Hikaru says that he was feeling gloomy, so he’s worried he’ll bring everyone down. Forgetting that he’s talking to a superior officer, he forgets to address her as “First Lieutenant.” She corrects him. Then she lectures him about wasting his time, when he could be reading or studying to improve himself.
Then she looks at the bridge bunnies, happily gossiping, and thinks that they should listen to her, as a superior officer, as well.
They end up in the (infamous) lingerie shop. The bridge bunnies tease Hikaru, asking if the place reminds him of the much-talked-about Minmay. Leeringly, they ask him what happened in the days they spent alone together trapped in the ship’s hold. He, for the umpteenth time, insists that nothing happened, and we get a shot of the bridge of the Macross as they shout, “WHAT!? REALLLLY!?”
Kim chides him for not taking advantage of the situation, Shammy wonders if he’s really a “healthy man.” He gets defensive, and Vanessa says that it’s rude to disagree with a woman. He stumbles backwards and falls…

Pages 11-12
Back with the Zentradi, Exsedol (as in the TV series) is horrified that their soon-to-arrive reinforcement is Kamujin “the Ally Killer,” and relates some of his more questionable episodes (again, as in the show). He wonders how Kamujin will fight.

Pages 13-14
Hikaru’s fall has dislodged the changing room curtain where Misa was trying on a bra. Everyone is shocked (as I’m sure you can see).

Pages 15-19
Narration informs us that the Macross has anchored itself to a large asteroid in order to mine it for minerals. The crew says it’ll take sixty-two hours to complete the operation. Vanessa worries what will happen if the enemy fleet attacks now.
Global says it’s okay not worry at least for one day. The crew says nothing.
Then Minmay arrives, with a delivery order from the restaurant. She checks to make sure that the order is correct, and Global murmurs that she’s the much-gossiped-about Minmay. Misa then yells at her to leave the bridge immediately, since only authorized personnel are allowed.
Global tries to calm her down, saying that it’s all right, but Misa is having none of it. Kim whispers to Minmay not to worry about it, it’s just because Misa had a bad experience with her (Minmay’s) boyfriend the other day. Minmay is confused, not knowing who Kim is talking about. Kim say, “You know, that guy you were trapped with.” Minmay replies, “Hikaru? But Hikaru’s just…”
Claudia interrupts, shouting that she’s caught a defold signature. Global commands the ship to battle alert, and Vanessa sees that the defold is right in front of them.

#6 quamzin kravshera(3)
Pages 1-6
The enemy ship nearly collides with the Macross, and as it passes, sends out strange mechanical tentacles that wrap around the Prometheus, pulling the Macross closer and immobilizing it.

Pages 7-9
The Zentradi ship launches its battle pods. Because the Prometheus is bound, the Macross can’t launch its Valkyries, so they order the destroids to be deployed.

Pages 10-14
The destroids attack, but are no match for Kamujin in his Glaug. He says he’s getting excited.

Page 15
The pinpoint barrier is still powering up, and the ships are so close that the Macross can’t use any of its cannon. Misa orders the Valkyries to exit the Prometheus in battroid mode to intercept the enemy. Global fears that if they aliens get into the ship, they could attack the city. Minmay murmurs, “Hikaru…”

Pages 16-19
Kaumjin faces off against a Destroid Tomahawk. He says he hasn’t had this much fun in 6 taarms (with the note that a “taarm” is about 1.25 earth years, so six taarms is 7.5.
In the destroid, the pilot estimates the enemy’s ability, and then we see that it’s Max.

Macross the First REBOOT! (#5 daidalos attack)

#5 daidalos attack

(previous synopses: #1, #2, #3, and #4)

It’s come to my attention that the new chapters aren’t viewable on phones or other devices. However, if you go to the site on your PC or laptop, you can view them. I have no idea why they’re doing it this way.

THE SYNOPSIS
#5 daidalos attack(1)
Page 1
The narration says it’s now been two months since the ship folded away from Earth. And (as you can see) they are now approaching Saturn.

Pages 1-7
Under Focker’s directions, Hikaru comes in for a landing. Aboard the bridge, the crew says that they’ve spread out sensor pods to improve the ship’s picket line. Global is concerned that even though they can use the main gun again now, it’s only a matter of time before the aliens get them. Misa says that in attack mode, the SDF-1’s speed is way down, so it will be difficult to escape. Global hatches a plan to break through the enemy line, transform back into cruiser mode, and escape.

Back on the deck of the Prometheus, the crew is checking the heat-dissipation system on Hikaru’s Valk. Some officers ask him what he thinks of the fighter, and he says it’s just okay. They tease him that he won’t be as smug after his first battle. After Hikaru leaves, one of the officers says that Hikaru is one of the best new pilots they have, and mentions another, named Maximillian, who may be even better.

Pages 7-9
As Hikaru is changing, Focker, taking a shower, accosts him and demands to know if anything’s going on with that Minmay girl. Hikaru says he probably won’t see her again. Focker yells at him for being petty, and says that since they might never come back from a mission, Hikaru should really live for today. Hikaru flashes back to seeing Minmay out with the other guy, and feels glum.

Pages 10-11
The pilots are being briefed on their mission. Once the Macross reaches the Cassini Divide, the Valkyrie will launch and break through the weakest point on the enemy line. He also says that they’ll launch at 0600 hours, so if there’s anyone the pilots want to see, they should do it tonight. Hikaru looks at his phone, and sees a large amount of unopened, unanswered texts from Minmay.

Pages 11-12
Major Gina Baltrow explains the pinpoint barrier system, in dialogue mostly lifted directly from the TV episode.

Pages 12-15
A ship-wide announcement is made, saying that there will be an attack, and that all civilians should be cautious. Hikaru is waiting in the park, idly watching other pilots on their date. Then Minmay shows up, in her high school uniform, and asks Hikaru what he thinks of it.

#5 daidalos attack(2)
Pages 1-7
Minmay says she wanted Hikaru to at least see her uniform, and complains that he hasn’t answered her texts. She also says she can’t stay long, since she has to help out with closing up the restaurant for the night. She mimics calling an operator, saying, “I keep texting a Mr. Hikaru Ichijo, but he never answers. Is something wrong?” Hikaru looks down, and she snaps a picture of the two of them. She says it’s the first time she’s gotten a picture with a soldier before his first mission. He asks if she’ll send the picture to him, and she refuses, saying she never looks good in photos.
She wants to know why he never responds to her texts, and asks if it’s because he’s so busy. Somewhat nastily, he flings back that she seems really busy too, what with the restaurant, and… other things… She seems genuinely confused. She says that the little neighbor boy, Yot-chan, is helping out with the restaurant, which frees her up a bit.
She looks closer at him, and asks if he’s actually sulking, and says, “So that’s why you’re not texting me back?” She poses, winks, and says, “People are petty, Hikaru Ichijo!”
Hikaru narrates the rest of the date. Minmay had said that she had to leave soon, but they walked around for a while, and she never stopped talking. Hikaru says he wasn’t really listening, because he was so entranced with her smile. He also think that the Mayor might have been wrong about Minmay having a lot of guys.
She looks up at the image of Saturn on the city’s ceiling and can’t believe that that’s where they are right now. Hikaru thinks about how looking at her, he forgets all about his worries.

Pages 8-9
Global looks at a photo of himself and his wife Miho, and asks Misa is she has anyone special in her life. Misa says no, and Global says that he heard about her tragedy. She dismisses it, and then he start briefing her on the upcoming operation.

Pages 9-11
Minmay sent Hikaru the photo after all. He’s looking at it when Focker barges in, asking if he’s stolen Minmay away from any other guys yet. Hikaru pretends to be asleep. Focker knows he’s pretending, and tells him to count sheep or something, because he really needs a night’s rest. And tells him that he absolutely must promise to survive the mission.

Pages 11-17
The next day, the Valkyries launch. Misa chides Hikaru for flying recklessly. He complains about her being a snooty old lady, and she puts two and two together and realizes that he’s the civilian pilot who was in VT-102.
Global commands the Macross to rise and fire the main gun. Claudia notices with alarm that the main gun isn’t powering up. They can’t fire it, and the alien pods are quickly drawing closer.

#5 daidalos attack(3)
Pages 1-4
Hikaru fights off some pods, but ends up inside a Zentradi battleship.

Pages 5-7
The pinpoint barrier is activated, and the three girls with trackballs are having difficultly keeping up with the enemy barrage.

Pages 8-10
Misa says that the pinpoint barrier looks like a video game. Kim says she’s never heard of a game like that, and Vanessa says that she think it was a game from the 1980’s. Shammy wonders how Misa knows old-fashioned stuff like that, and Misa says it’s because she a soldier’s daughter.
The barrage continues, and the ship is beginning to get damaged. Global demands to know what’s happening with the main gun, and Maj. Baltrow says that the pinpoint barrier is interfering with it somehow, but that she can probably fix it in about thirty minutes. Global says that they don’t have that much time, since a enemy battleship is nearly upon them. Valkyrie Green and Brown squadrons have been wiped out, and Rose squadron has taken heavy losses.

Pages 11-17
Claudia worries about Focker, who says that the Valkyries can’t keep the enemy at bay forever, and that the ship needs to attack.
Misa, formulating a plan, tells Maj. Baltrow to organize the pinpoint barriers at the bow of the Daedalus. She tells Kim and Shammy to gather the destroids also at the Daedalus’s bow. Then she tells Claudia to head the Macross right at the enemy battleship and ram it with the Daedalus. She counts down, three, two one… and then says, “Daedalus Attack!”
The Macross punches the alien ship.

#5 daidalos attack(4)
Pages 1-5
The Daedalus opens up and all the destroids fire their missiles.

Pages 6-13
Hikaru thinks that this is the end, and that he’l never see Minmay again. He flashes back again to her out with the other guy and gets angry. Then the blasts catch up to where he is a kill the Zentradi soldiers around him. He uses the chaos to make his escape, as the battleship blows up.

Pages 14-15
Everyone congratulates Misa on her quick thinking. The Valkyries are mopping up the last of the battle pods, and the other enemy battleships are withdrawing. The Macross’s path is cleared. Global orders the ship to set course for Mars. Misa thinks, “Mars……” and narration says that it’s the location of a base that’s been abandoned since the Unification Wars.

Macross the First REBOOT! (#4 transformation)

#4 transformation

(Previous synopses: #1, #2, and #3)

As seems par for the course now, there’s very little new material here from the previous version of the manga, although the scene where Hikaru joins the military is made a little more oblique.

THE SYNOPSIS
#4 transformation(1)
Pages 1-5
Hikaru notes the tuna again. Minmay is gesticulating wildly from the window. He can’t understand her, but she’s suggesting that he grab the tuna and bring it back so they can eat it. Hikaru grits his teeth, thinking he’ll have to hold his breath much longer than normal. He pushes off and grabs the tuna… then starts to panic, since it’s difficult to move, and his ears are ringing from holding his breath so long. He makes it back, but passes out.

Pages 6-8
He awakes to Minmay calling his name. She exclaims that she really thought he was a goner, since he had no way to breathe. He points to his lips, “subtly” asking her to kiss him. She declines and calls him an idiot. Suddenly, he thinks of the tuna, and looks back to find that only the head made it into the ship. Minmay apologizes, saying she closed the airlock door too soon.

Pages 8-12
The Zentradi are catching up to the Macross, so Global is in the engineering staff room, talking with the Chief Engineer, Maj. Gina Baltrow (and her fishnet stockings), about how to get the main cannon to fire. She says (as in the show) that many of the energy conduits vanished with the fold system. The conduits were made from a special metal, and they don’t have any of it to spare, so repair is impossible. However, they can use the modular block structure of the Macross to connect the main reactor to the cannon. She calls this a “transformation,” and Global seems uneasy about it.

Pages 12-14
Minmay tries to cheer Hikaru up, saying that no one’s ever caught a tuna in space before, and he’ll be in the Guinness Book of World Records. When he still seems glum, she apologies again and says that if she hadn’t noticed the tuna, none of this would’ve happened. He notes that she actually saved his life, since even getting back to the airlock from as close as he was was a challenge, and if he had tried to go further, to find the next airlock, he wouldn’t have made it. Minmay calls him an idiot again.

#4 transformation(2)

Pages 1-2
Hikaru says that since he hasn’t been able to find food or an exit, their only hope is that Focker will find them. Then he remembers that the last time he talked to Focker, he called him a “murderer.” Minmay gets upset, saying that Hikaru is talking like he’ll never see Focker again. Hikaru apologizes, and Minmay starts singing the song “Cinderella” (as heard in Macross Episode 4, as well as Do You Remember Love).

Pages 3-7
Hikaru compliments Minmay’s voice and Minmay says that she really wants to be a singer, and even writes her own songs (which, I want to point out, is unusual for idols like Minmay, but Mari Iijima did indeed write “Cinderella” (and a few other Macross songs, as well as everything on her own albums) herself). Hikaru says that he’s always only been into planes. Minmay (as in the show) replies that she thinks throwing everything you’ve got into one thing is great.
Hikaru asks her if she has any other dreams. She blushes, hugs her knees, and says she’s always wanted to be a bride (again, just as in the show).
Then Minmay’s mood changes, and she points out that they haven’t found an exit, they can’t find food, everyone’s probably forgotten about them… and she wishes she could’ve worn a wedding dress.
Hikaru suggests that they have a wedding ceremony, but wonders if it’s okay that there’s no one but him for the groom.
Minmay isn’t buying his self-deprecation act and gets a little angry at him, saying that he should be more confident and say something like, “I’m the one who saved you!” Hikaru is ashamed.

Page 8-9
No dialogue on pages 8 or 9, so you’re on your own, champ. If you don’t understand this, I have to assume you’ve never seen Macross.

Pages 10-13
Hikaru tells Minmay she’s beautiful. They seem about to kiss. But reality always has its way of telling Hikaru he’s making the wrong choice. Here, the Zentradi attack outside shakes the ship, which alarms Hikaru and Minmay. Minmay finally goes crazy and (as in Episode 4, infamously), suggests that if they’re going to die anyway, they should throw themselves into space.
Hikaru (again, as in the show) points out how Minmay has survived so much so far, and that she needs to keep going.
Then (as in the movie), the gravity fails.

Pages 14-17
Because of the transformation, the gravity goes haywire, and the comic cuts between the (successful) transformation, and Hikaru and Minmay hurtling towards the ceiling. The bridge crew’s dialogue is straight out of the show (“Right side at 80%!” “Left side at 75%!”) while Hikaru just thinks that they’re about to ram into the ceiling, and that he needs to protect Minmay.

Pages 18-20
The transformation is complete and the Macross fires its cannon.

#4 transformation(3)
Pages 1-6
The Macross’s cannon destroys the Zentradi ships, and Misa notices VT-102. Hikaru and Minmay are shocked to see the city rebuilt inside the Macross, and Misa is so shocked to see VT-102 that she passes out.
Minmay reunites with her aunt and uncle, and regales them about her adventures. Hikaru isn’t sure how he feels about Minmay having “other people” in her life.

Pages 7-8
Aboard the Daedalus, some underlings are explaining to Roy that there are a bunch of destroids they can use, as well as the Daedalus’s own on-board weapons systems. Roy sees Hikaru’s wrecked fanracer and thinks “What about him?” and then says “!!” followed by “……..”

Page 9-10
It’s big, salacious news that an aerobatic pilot named Hikaru Ichijo was trapped with a beautiful 15-year-old girl in an unexplored hold of the Macross. The headline is “ZERO-G HUG!!!”
We see crowds going to Nyan-Nyan to catch a glimpse of this “beautiful 15-year-old girl.” Minmay says that she’s glad the restaurant is popular, but still…

Pages 11-14
Narration tells us that the city has been completely rebuilt inside the Macross. Hikaru is staying in a (rather plush) military dorm, free of charge. Roy confronts him, asking him if he’s going to enlist in the military, since he’s currently freeloading off of them. Hikaru waffles, and Roy points out that the room is meant to ease the souls of those who have to fight, and that maybe the previous occupant of the room died protecting Hikaru and Minmay and the other civilians.
Hikaru replies that in protecting others, HE would need to be protected (based on past experience). Roy tells him that he’s not wrong, and that he’ll have to get his hands dirty, and still use them, dirty as they are.
At that point, Hikaru gets a text from Minmay. Roy notices and excuses him from the lecture, saying that going after a girl is “a man’s true battlefield,” where one victory makes up for innumerable failures.

Pages 15-16
He also tells Hikaru to send a get-well card to Lt. Hayase, since she worked overtime trying to find him.
Hikaru shows up at the place where Minmay said to meet him, but he can’t find her. She replies back when she sees him and complains that she recognized him before he saw her. He points out that she looks different (that is, her hair is pulled up under a cap), but she retorts that she saw him, even though (as we’ll find out soon) he’s wearing Focker’s cast-off clothing, which is too big for him.

#4 transformation(4)
Pages 1-5
Hikaru and Minmay go on a date. She notes that he’s dressed strangely, and he says that Focker loaned him his old clothes. They reminisce a bit about when they first met, and then she asks him if he’s decided whether or not to join the military. She adds that she thinks it would be cool for him to do something that’s necessary, and that she likes Hikaru best when he’s flying, and that she’s fan number one of Hikaru Ichijo, Valkyrie pilot.
Suddenly, she notices the time, and needs to get back to the restaurant. She holds her hand out, mistaking the flowers Hikaru’s carrying (for Misa) as a gift to commemorate the opening of the restaurant. Hikaru gives them to her.

Pages 5-7
Having picked up another bouquet, Hikaru goes to visit Misa in the hospital, only to find that she’s already been discharged. He stares at the UN Spacy recruitment poster (but unlike in the original version of the manga, we don’t see him actually sign up). The slogan on the poster, by the way, says “for cutting through to the future!” which you might recall as a variation of Minmay’s catchphrase from Macross 30.

Pages 7-12
Hikaru gets something of a hero’s welcome at Nyan-Nyan, although the Mayor causes a little bit of worry by talking about how all the guys like Minmay. Hikaru gets roped into making a food delivery (to a family named “Ishiguro”(!!!)), and sees Minmay, who seems to be out on a date with a handsome older guy (we’ll find out who he is next time). Miserable, he goes off and sulks.

Pages 13
Misa’s back on duty, and Shammy finds Hikaru’s bouquet of flowers, and suggests that Misa has a secret admirer.

Pages 14-16
Hikaru sees an ad for the Miss Macross Contest and remembers the mock ceremony that he and Minmay had back in Chapter 2.

Page 17
Minmay is shocked that Hikaru was asked to help out at the restaurant, since he’s now become a soldier and has other things to do.

Macross the First REBOOT! (#3 alone with)

#3 alone with

(#1 is available here, and #2 is here.)

As with #2, not much is changed from the original publication in this section. Some panels are rearranged, but nothing major has been altered. I’m guessing that, moving forward, Chapters 4 to 8 (the remaining chapters that were originally published in Macross Ace Magazine, and collected in Volumes 2 and 3 of the books) will also be divided into four parts each, taking us up to the end of September. After that, the chapters will get shorter.

THE SYNOPSIS
#3 alone with(1)
Pages 1-2
The Macross folds, taking the island with it.

Pages 3-4
In dialogue lifted directly from the series, Britai and Exsedol express amazement that the Macross folded directly from the Earth’s surface, and begin trying to figure out where it went.

Pages 5-6
Alarm bells go off all over Alaska Base as High Command realizes that the Macross has folded, and there’s no indication of a de-fold. Admiral Hayase salutes the sky and murmurs Misa’s name.

Pages 7-12
The Macross de-folds. Misa picks up the ID signal from VT-102. Minmay’s excited and starts singing… until she and Hikaru see a battle pod heading towards them. Back on the ship, Global prepares to attack the enemy battle pods that have been dragged along with them through the fold. Then Vanessa examines the object beneath them and discovers that it’s primarily composed of seawater. They realize that it’s the entire island of South Ataria. More bad news comes when they find out that they’re in the vicinity of Pluto.

#3 alone with(2)
Pages 1-2
Trying to make the best of the situation, Global says that after they defeat the enemy pods, they can just fold back to earth… but then Kim gets a call from the engine room saying that the fold system has vanished. Global notes that it’s going to be a long trip…

Pages 2-9
Hikaru tries to avoid the pod attacking him and Minmay. He notes that while he’s a first class pilot, he’s strictly a third-rate shot. However, he hits the pod. He sees the Macross’s hull get punctured and flies into the hole.

Pages 9-10
Misa notices that VT-102’s ID signal has disappeared suddenly. Claudia teases her, saying that the civilian pilot probably got to a shelter, and that Misa’s just imagining things because he called her an “old lady.”
Then, having mopped up the enemy pods, Global orders the ship to land on the island, rescue any survivors in the shelters, and bring aboard the supplies that are floating around.

Pages 11-16
In the unexplored area of the ship, Minmay is waiting for Hikaru. She sees that she’s not getting a signal on her phone. Hikaru comes back after exploring the area, and Minmay optimistically asks if the exit is very far. He replies that every room is just a network of pipes and he has no idea where they are. With the plane’s communicator busted, it would be best if they mapped the area, and they can use the compass in his watch to keep track of their location.
Minmay, rather uncomfortable, asks if this means they’re going to have to spend the night here. When Hikaru says it may be even longer than that, Minmay opens a section on the Valk’s nose and pulls out survival rations. She says that a soldier who once took her on a sightseeing flight told her about it, and had said that if they had to make an emergency landing, they’d have enough supplies for a while.
Hikaru, a little jealous, suggests that the soldier was only trying to mack on her, and probably would make a fake emergency landing just so she’d have to spend the night with him. Minmay asks if this means that Hikaru himself is currently trying to make a pass at her.
Hikaru denies it, and insists he’s looking after her because Focker told him to. Minmay retorts that he should fire a missile or something and get them out of here.
This gives Hikaru an idea, and he ejects one of the seats, hoping (I guess…?) that it will break through the ceiling.

#3 alone with(3)
Pages 1-2
We open with Claudia exasperatedly explaining to Focker that the ship’s personnel is all occupied with rescuing the civilians, and they can’t spare anyone to search specifically for Hikaru. Focker blows up. Misa takes over and says that she’s checking all the footage from every monitor aboard the Macross as well as all the Valks’ recorders, in an effort to figure out what happened to VT-102.
Claudia expresses shock Misa hasn’t taken a break yet, and Misa says that since she’s the one that ordered VT-102 into combat AND since she’s the one who lost its signal, Hikaru’s life is her responsibility.

Pages 3-9
Minmay notes that Hikaru has seemed depressed since his plan to break a hole in the ceiling by ejecting one of the seats didn’t work, and points out that they can use the parachute as a tent.
She says that it’s only been one day so far, and is concerned about her aunt and uncle. Hikaru says that if they got to the shelter, they should be fine. When Minmay agrees, saying that the soldiers will protect them, Hikaru gets jealous again and says that her Chinese dress was too revealing (like it’s any of his business…). Minmay gets annoyed, so Hikaru backs off and says that it’s just because she’s very attractive. Minmay replies that that’s the first nice thing he’s said to her. He blusters a bit and says that they just met earlier that day (so it’s not like he’s had a lot of time or reason to compliment her). She says that guys usually start complimenting her immediately upon meeting her. Hikaru, still jealous, implies that they’re just trying to flatter her, but admits that she must be a very popular girl. Minmay asks Hikaru if he’s popular, and he says that he’s only really interested in planes, and that when he meets girls, he always ends up as “just a friend” or else as their “backup plan.” Minmay falls asleep on his shoulder, and he muses that being a backup isn’t all THAT bad.

Pages 10-14
The next day. While the images show Hikaru breaking the water pipe and Minmay taking her shower, the dialogue tells of a different conversation. Minmay asks Hikaru why he became a pilot, and he tells how his father had a aerobatic team, and so he (Hikaru) has been flying since he was a child.
Then Hikaru asks her if she wants to be an entertainer, since she entered the Miss Macross Contest. She replies that her “onii-chan” (undoubtedly Kaifun) signed her up for that without her knowing, and that she wants to make it on her own, without help. She says that she’s taken a lot of singing and dancing classes, since she didn’t want to take over her parents’ restaurant in Yokohama and thus had a lot of spare time.
She thinks that the day when she becomes a professional entertainer is a long ways off, and chides herself for even thinking it’s a possibility.

Pages 15-16
On the bridge, nearly a week later, the Macross has docked with the Prometheus and the Daedalus, and is working on getting their weapons systems back on line. Misa is distracted, and Claudia scolds her again for focusing on the disappearance of VT-102 rather than on her real job. Misa retorts that taking care of ALL of the civilians IS her job.

Pages 16-20
Minmay surprises Hikaru with a snapshot (taken with her cell phone). She says she’s collecting memories, and shows Hikaru a bunch of food pics she’s taken. He gets angry, and yells that if she wants to take photos of their meals, the cans are right there. She apologizes and says she was just trying to cheer him up (by showing him photos of gourmet meals like bird’s nest soup…? I’m not sure she’s helping…). He says that girls always seem cheerful and never distraught about anything, and she says she’ll become, for the first time, that kind of girl.
HIkaru goes off for yet another day of trying to find an exit (or, failing that, more food), and thinks to himself that he feels as lost as a mouse in the middle of the desert, since the ship (built for the giants) is simply too large…

#3 alone with(4)
Pages 1-2
Checking footage filmed by the Regulds, Britai and Exsedol realize that the earth people are “miclones.” Exsedol mentions an old Zentradi legend warning about contact with miclones, so they decide to stay away from Earth and focus only on capturing the Macross.

Pages 3-4
Hikaru explains his stupid plan to leave through the airlock, float through space and find another airlock, somehow get in, and send help. Minmay raises objections, like the fact that he doesn’t have an oxygen tank. He says he’ll hold his breath, just as if he were diving in the ocean. “Oh, you dive, too?” Minmay asks. “No,” he replies. Minmay suggests they exchange cell phone numbers so they can stay in touch, and Hikaru dismisses the idea.

Page 5-7
They go to the window to see where the closest airlock is, and are confronted with a ton of dead sea animals floating in space. Minmay thinks it’s beautiful, and says it makes her want to go to Enoshima (a small island near Kamakura, known for its aquarium). Hikaru says he’ll take her there once they escape. She says it’s a promise, and says she also wants to see the peony garden at nearby Tsurugaoka Hachimangu temple.

Pages 8-11
Hikaru confirms that Minmay knows how to work the airlock controls. He says that if he doesn’t make it back, there should be enough food for her to survive on for a little while longer, but that he’ll definitely get help. Minmay wishes him good luck, and then blurts out that he’s not a “backup plan” to her. He’s a little surprised, but then focuses on the mission at hand. As the airlock door opens, he sees a giant tuna directly ahead…

Macross the First REBOOT! (#2 lynn minmay)

#2 lynn minmay

(Intro and previous chapter available here.)

Well… this took a little longer than I thought it would. After chapter 1 of the series was split into three parts, I assumed this this chapter (which is slightly longer, but not by much) would follow suit. However, it looks like the fifty-page slice that we got at the beginning of Chapter 1 was just for the debut, and the regular chapters will be around twenty pages or so. So this ninety-plus-page chapter got divided into five sections.

Initially, I thought it would take about nine months for the series to get caught up to where it left off a couple of years ago, but now I’m assuming it’ll take around a year.

This chapter is less revised in this new release than Chapter 1 was. That had a couple entirely new scenes thrown in, and a lot of scenes shuffled around. This one merely compresses a couple of Britai and Exsedol scenes together (since they didn’t appear in the new version of Chapter 1) and changes some of the page layouts. There’s some new art, but not much. Most of this version is exactly the same as the old version from nine years ago.

THE SYNOPSIS
#2 lynn minmay(1)
Minmay is changing outfits, and seems awfully calm considering there’s just been an alien attack. She tells her pet ferret-thing “Kogé” (who, according to background info, is the sole survivor from aboard the SDF-1(!!!)) that he’s also male, so he shouldn’t watch her changing, and throws one of her hair buns at him. She starts taking off her clothes, but is shocked to hear a loud crash nearby.

Pages 5-10
We finally meet Britai and Exsedol. Most of their dialogue here is directly lifted from the TV show, but it’s a mash-up from several different scenes. On pages six and seven, they confirm that the Macross is the ship they’re looking for, and express shock that humans possess “the lost technology” of being able to rebuild it. Exsedol also points out that he’s pretty sure that humanity used reaction weapons against them, and so just wiping humanity out is not really advisable. On page eight, Britai orders a ground attack, and the battle pods land.

Pages 11-15
The crashing of Hikaru’s VF-1D knocks Minmay over. She gets up to take a look and sees the battroid, splayed out on the ground. She cries, “What is that?”

Pages 16-18
Minmay notes that it fell from the sky and wonders if it’s alive. Then it stands up and she realizes that it’s a robot.

MIKIMOTO’S POSTSCRIPT
“Because it’s been a while since I’ve worked on the comic, it’s a constant war with deciding what I want to revise and correct. After 30 years, I feel like I should just change EVERYTHING. *wry grin*
(The next author comment will appear when #3 is published.)”

#2 lynn minmay(2)
Pages 1-6
Hikaru crashes into Minmay’s bedroom. He asks if she’s okay, and she says yes. She recognizes his voice, but he can’t quite place her. She pulls her hair up into the twintails that she had at the Launch Ceremony, and then he recognizes her. Taking her hands off her stuffed animal, though, makes it drop from covering her chest, and Hikaru ALMOST gets an eyeful, but Roy’s face pops up on the screen at just that moment. Roy says he’ll be right there.

Pages 6-7
A helicopter patrol is checking everything out over the sea, and gets shot down by battle pods.

Pages 8-12
Vanessa reports that the helicopter patrol has been taken out, and that unidentified objects are on their way to the island. Global asks why they couldn’t be detected earlier and Vanessa says that the reaction weapons used earlier interfered with the radar (as in the show). Global notes that the air attack was a decoy, and orders the Valkyries to be resupplied and the ship prepared for launch.
Hyman Gwent strides in, smoking a cigar, demanding that the Macross launch and dock with the ARMDs. Shammy tells him that there’s no smoking on the bridge, which pisses him off. Global introduces Gwent to the crew, saying that the Macross would never have been rebuilt without his financial assistance. Claudia retorts that even so, he has to follow regulations.
Gwent says it would be a “disgrace” if the Macross were destroyed on the ground. Misa tells him that in the middle of a battle, only trained personnel are allowed on the bridge and that he should leave.
Gwent, super-angry now, demands to know Misa’s name. She tells him. He backs down a bit, since she’s Admiral Hayase’s daughter. Global, pulling out his pipe, says that he’s already preparing the Macross to launch, and that Gwent should go back to his quarters. He does so. Then Shammy yells, “No smoking on the bridge!” and Global says, “I know! I know!”

Pages 12-13
Roy asks Hikaru how it felt being shot down. Hikaru says, “Not very good.” Hikaru then asks what’s up with these planes that turn into robots, and Focker says he can’t talk about that.
Repairs done, Roy tells Hikaru to press both foot pedals to stand up.

Pages 14-17
Hikaru breathes a sigh of relief. Roy tells him not to be so proud, that even “that girl” (Minmay) could make the battroid stand up. Minmay resents that.
Roy tells Hikaru to take Minmay to the shelter, and Hikaru tries to get Roy to do it instead. Roy says that since his plane in a one-seater, Minmay would probably (ahem) “lose her innocence” by the time she got to the shelter. Minmay looks rather horrified.
Hikaru (suddenly, inexplicably in gerwalk mode) picks Minmay up and notices that she’s wearing sweat pants under her school uniform. She says, “So what?” and he says, “Nothing!”

Pages 18-20
The “9th Macross Guard ground unit” tanks are on the shore as the battle pods reach land.

#2 lynn minmay(3)
Page 1
The Zentradi pods are headed towards the city. The Macross orders all Valkyries to intercept them.

Pages 2-4
Hikaru lets slip that he’s never piloted any aircraft like this before. Minmay’s rather horrified by his lack of experience, and demands to be let off. Roy tells Minmay not to worry, since Hikaru is a first-class pilot. Hikaru tells her to have faith in him, and Minmay says she’ll wait for evidence that he actually is competent.
Then Roy gets called off to defend the city against the invaders, and tells Hikaru to get Minmay to the shelter.

Pages 5-7
Minmay gets very coy and asks Hikaru if he can make a detour. It turns out that she wants to see the area where the Miss Macross Contest (which she had entered) would have been held. Hikaru, on the other hand, is worried that if anyone sees the gerwalk, he’ll get in trouble for letting such a big military secret out.

Pages 8-11
The Zentradi battleships prepare for a laser bombardment on the island. Misa (unaware of that) contacts all Valkyries to defend against the arriving pods. She calls VT-102, to no avail.
Minmay says she should’ve changed into her Miss Macross Contest clothes, which Hikaru thinks is the Chinese dress she wore earlier. She says that that’s her restaurant delivery uniform, and that it was very popular with all the soldiers visiting Nyan-Nyan.
Hikaru gets back into the Valkyrie and shines a spotlight on the stage, saying that if Minmay wanted to be in the contest this badly, she should go for it. She takes off her gym pants.

Page 12
The Gravity System is ready for use. ARMD-1 and ARMD-2 will be a little late to the rendezvous point, but Global announces that the Macross will lift off in thirty seconds. Once they gain some altitude, they’ll execute a fold.

Pages 13-15
Hikaru gets a little nosebleed from Minmay removing her pants. He announces her as “Entry No. Infinity,” and asks her to introduce herself, which she does.

Pages 16-18
The pods fire a volley of missiles into the city. Hikaru notes that the fighting has started up again, and then a battle pod appears behind his gerwalk.
Britai commands all his battleships to fire on the island.

Pages 19-23
As the Zentradi beams hit the atmosphere, the Macross launches. Unlike in the TV series, the gravity control system cancels the gravity all across the island. Everything starts floating, including Minmay! Hikaru chases after her as she rises up.

#2 lynn minmay(4)
Pages 1-5
The Macross rises, but then the gravity control units (as in the show) break out of the hull and float upward. As they ascend, their field of effect ascends with them, and the negated gravity on the island’s surface comes back. Minmay starts to fall.

Pages 6-16
As Minmay falls towards Hikaru’s Valk, she reflexively shouts at him not to look up her skirt, and he reflexively closes his eyes, missing his chance to rescue her. He turns around and dives after her. He sees the battle pod from before, but it appears just as confused as he is. He finally grabs Minmay and pulls her into the cockpit.

Pages 17-18
The Macross crashes to the ground.

#2 lynn minmay(5)
Pages 1-2
Vanessa notes that it looks like the enemy is DELIBERATELY missing the Macross in their attacks. Global says they’re probably interested in recapturing the ship. Then he orders the ship to launch (using the rockets) and fold when they gain enough altitude. Misa voices disapproval at using more alien technology.

Pages 2-15
Minmay complains about the rough landing. Hikaru says it isn’t his fault, and wonders if there was an earthquake (actually, of course, it was the Macross crashing to the ground). Minmay then complains that Hikaru “touched” her. He insists that that’s also not his fault, since she’s sitting on his lap.
Minmay then catches sight of herself in the mirror, and then comes the famous exchange: “My hair’s a mess!” “What’s more important, your hair or your life?” “My hair, of course!”
Minmay finally relents and tells Hikaru that he is indeed a first-class pilot. Misa contacts the fighter to tell them to rendezvous with the Macross (and gets a view of Minmay’s crotch on her monitor), and Hikaru lies and says he’s at the shelter.
Hikaru sees his wrecked fan racer, and then Minmay cries out. The downed battle pod from before is stirring, and a Zentradi gets out of it (just like in the show) Hikaru thinks that it’s just another robot, so he shoots it… and then realizes that it looks completely human.

Pages 15-18
The Macross is back in the air, preparations for the fold are complete, and the ship executes the fold.

Macross the First REBOOT! (#1 booby trap)

Macross the First

#1 booby trap

It may or may not come as a surprise that a couple of weeks ago, Haruhiko Mikimoto’s comic, Super Dimension Fortress Macross the First, was “rebooted” on the online manga site Cycomi. I’ll be honest, I certainly wasn’t expecting this. It seemed to me that, as much as I enjoyed Macross the First, it was dead, sentenced to remain unfinished forever.

But no, it’s back. And unlike when it first went from print to online, you don’t have to switch the site’s settings to Japanese in order to see it.

However, there’s a catch: it’s starting over from the beginning, meaning it’ll be about eight or nine months before it catches up to where we left off, nearly two years ago.

The catch, however, has its own catch: a substantial portion of the comic has been redrawn, and the whole thing has been reorganized, with new scenes, dropped scenes, things taking place in a different order. It’s the most thoroughgoing revamp of an already-printed manga that I’ve seen since Five Star Stories (although Osamu Tezuka also did stuff like this a lot).

Anyway, the comic has a new chapter every Sunday, and I implore you to check it out (and if you REALLY want to see it continue, I’d suggest that you take a couple of minutes to create a Cycomi account (it’s nothing difficult, just your email, a password, and a username) so that you can press the “LIKE” button every week). And of course, buy any collected books that come out.

Anyway, since there ARE new scenes (and unlike the previous version of The First, much of the dialogue is NOT taken from the TV show), I figured it wouldn’t be a bad thing to explain what’s going on. So my intention is, whenever a “chapter” finishes (in this case, the first three installments), I’ll give a synopsis. It’s not as good as a scanlation, I know, but considering how low the sales have been for The First (it’s been canceled FOUR TIMES already… the fact that it’s still around AT ALL is pretty amazing), I strenuously urge every Macross fan to SUPPORT it. The art alone is EASILY worth the price of admission, and if every Macross fan in the world bought the books, it would be a massive hit.

(Of course, the enormous question that’s hanging over the whole project is… will Mikimoto actually follow through and tell the whole story? He sort of addresses this in the post-script for the latest section (#1 booby trap(3)), and simply says that he doesn’t know if he can stick to the deadlines. Which, I admit, is not comforting.)

Anyway, let’s focus on the present for now… and so…

THE SYNOPSIS
#1 booby trap (1)
Pages 1-4
Well, there’s a lot of English here, although some of it is illegible. Anyway, it’s Minmay from Flashback 2012, going through her snapshots and then leaving on the Megaroad. You probably already know this.

Pages 5-13
The Macross crashing, plus the Unification Wars that follow. This should be obvious to any Macross fan, and I feel a little silly explaining it, but for those who said, “I’m not gonna buy a book I can’t read!!” I feel like I have to. One added bit makes the Nostradamus connection that the staff had in mind when choosing July 1999 (“The year 1999, the seventh month / From the sky will come a great king of terror.“) as the date for the Macross’s fall explicit (p.6, bottom caption).

Pages 14-19
It’s 2009, and the Macross is ready to launch. A reporter in a helicopter oohs and ash about how big it is, and (foreshadowing? What’s that?) points out the Daedalus and Prometheus. There’s a launch ceremony festival, and the Unified Forces ambassador (later named “Hyman Gwent”) arrives in a limo with Global. He tells Global to wave at the crowd. Global does. In a departure from both the TV show and the earlier version of the manga, Gwent doesn’t suggest that Global has a hangover.

Pages 20-21
Misa arrives as the emcee, and introduces the VF-1 Valkyrie. In a bit of new dialogue, she says that it’s 20% smaller and 20% better than the VF-0 prototype.

Pages 22-24
Okay, this bit (new for this edition of the comic) needs some explanation. The Bridge Bunnies are watching Misa’s performance, and Shammy is gushing over how awesome and wonderful Misa is. Vanessa points out that the Macross is completely untested and that humanity doesn’t even completely understand how it works, so it seems strange that such an elite officer (top of her class, with an admiral for a father) would end up getting assigned to such a dangerous, unpredictable ship. This admittedly intriguing idea is cut short when Claudia shows up and tells them all to stop gossiping.

Pages 25-31
This section also needs explanation. Shammy is horrified to see Minmay posing for photos on the display grounds, because she (Minmay) was meant to be delivering take-out to the bridge. Indeed, the Bridge Crew see their delivery waiting for them (and reminisces about what they ordered), on the ground near Minmay.

As in the first version of the comic, Minmay gets upset because the photographers seem to be trying to get pictures of her crotch. She chides them for it, and they point out that she’s the one who climbed up high enough so that kind of photo could be taken. Minmay protests that she’s just trying to show off her legs.

On Page 31, Shammy rants that girls like Minmay, since they’re cute, are always coddled by the men around them, and will come to a bad end.

Pages 32-39
Vanessa talks to Hikaru, who’s arriving because Focker invited him. Vanessa tells him that his current course is dangerous, since some Valkyries (led by Roy) are doing an aerobatics show. Hikaru buzzes them anyway, and manages not to get killed. Misa is relieved.

Pages 40-45
As in the TV show, Roy teases Hikaru about aways tagging along behind him, so Hikaru has to show him and his pilots up. He does so.

Pages 46-49
Misa calls out to Hikaru, which gets Minmay’s attention. Misa dresses the guy down, but Minmay is thinking, “Hikaru… Ichijo…”

MIKIMOTO’S POSTSCRIPT:
“Time for a fresh start on a new serialization!
We’re working hard to make this comic enjoyable even for those who haven’t seen the anime or have never heard of it, so welcome!!”

#1 booby trap(2)
Page 1
The announcer is announcing that you can actually CHECK OUT a REAL Valkyrie cockpit, and that Hyman Gwent and Bruno J. Global will be giving an introductory speech later.

Pages 2-6
Some wind comes by and Minmay’s skirt flies up, causing the dirty-minded photographers to take tons of snapshots. Hikaru and Roy have a conversation over a couple of colas, about how Roy never came back to the aerobatic group, and how things are different since he started flying fighters. Roy also waves at Minmay, which is probably a step up from just staring at her ass.

Pages 6-9
Misa comes back from her emcee job, annoyed that she even had to do it. She and Claudia (just like in the TV show) get into an argument about how Claudia spent the night with Focker. An alarm interrupts the argument.

Pages 10-14
The Zentradi arrive. Unlike in the original version of the comic, we don’t meet Britai and Exsedol at all here.

Pages 15-22
The main cannon fires and destroys some Zentradi ships.

Pages 23-28
The bridge crew gathers information. Global shows up and says that it was a booby trap. Roy tells Hikaru he’ll check it all out. Global explains what a booby trap is. (Again, do I really need to explain this? I’ve come across a good number of people who out-and-out REFUSE to buy Macross the First until it’s in English, because otherwise, they can’t understand it. I think it’s just an excuse not to BUY it, because this all pretty clear if you’ve seen the show…)

Pages 28-30
The Unified Space Forces fare poorly, and Global says (as he did in the TV show) that the Unified Earth Government had decided that if they were to encounter any alien race, they would not initiate hostilities. “How ironic… Launch all fighters!”

MIKIMOTO’S POSTSCRIPT:
“It’s strange, but at the same time I started this serialization, everything started falling apart. My refrigerator’s busted, my PC crashed, my car broke down on the road… even work is having some issues. At least I’ve got about ten years… no, maybe twenty… before my body starts falling apart, too! (*Rueful laugh*)”

#1 booby trap(3)
Page 1-8
The Zentradi fire beams at the city while the Macross is trying to get its fighters launched. Misa ends up focusing of VT-102, in which Hikaru is sitting, and he launches (just like in the TV show. Same dialogue and everything). He calls her an “old lady.” She gets upset and calls him a chauvinist. Then he launches.

Pages 9-11
Just like in the show, he’s shocked by the reality of combat. He gets hit.

Pages 11-13
He has a vision (memory?) of flying in biplanes with Focker. Unlike the original version of the comic, the Macross doesn’t crash in the middle of their flight.

Pages 13-18
Hikaru is spiraling out of control. Misa tells him he’s heading right for the SDF-1. He doesn’t know what to do, so she tells him to (DYRL-style) turn the throttle up to turn to battroid. He does this, and is astonished that his fighter is changing.

MIKIMOTO’S POSTSCRIPT:
“Right now, I’m in the middle of revising the comic. Previously, being a contrary person, I had a bad habit of making puzzle-like panel layouts. But this time, we’re working on making it easier to read, and making the characters (and the staff the mecha scenes) more proficient overall. And the work continues on… I don’t know if we’ll be able to meet the deadlines, but please enjoy the comic!”

Master List of All Translations

Super Dimension Fortress Macross (TV)

Before the Launch (Chapter 1 of the SDF Macross TV Novelization. Published in 1983. The rest of the book is verbatim from the TV series (or compresses it into near-incomprehensibility), so this is all I plan to translate from it. The story of what happened BEFORE Episode 1. The title, I should add, is my own invention.)

Dreaming Prelude ~My Fair Minmay~ (a book of new script-style stories covering the events of Episodes 8 through 12 from Minmay’s perspective. Published in 1983. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!)

Misa Hayase: White Reminiscences (An illustrated novella about Misa’s childhood and adolescence. Published in 1984. Includes a lot of information about Riber and about the Unification Wars. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!)

Macross Outside Story (From Macross Perfect Memory. Published in 1983. Features the first comprehensive Macross timeline, as well as “The Plundering Fleet” (about Global as a submarine captain, and the story from Episode 15 about him and Admiral Hayase pretending to be Anti-Unification forces and stealing rations), and “The Lost Two Years” (about what happened in the gap between Episodes 27 and 28).)

Macross Vol. III – Miss D.J. (The first Macross drama album, released in 1983. A broadcast of Minmay’s radio show, covering many events happening in the ship and including nearly all of the show’s main characters. And the advertisements are amazing.)

Macross Vol. IV – Distantly Fading Memories (The second Macross drama album. Released in 1983. Misa’s thoughts throughout the series, right up to the end of Episode 36. Features most of the main characters, and has some beautiful Kentaro Haneda piano music created specifically for this album. Er, of course, this is just a translation of the dialogue, not the actual album (which is still in print.))

Macross Vol. V – Macross Love (The second record of the fifth soundtrack (a two-record set), Rhapsody in Love. Released in 1983. A condensation of the TV series, focusing on the love story, with newly recorded vocals.)

Macross – Snow Falling in the Galaxy and its companion story, Macross – White Christmas (From the Macross Christmas album, Snow Falling in the Galaxy. Released in 1985. Features new music, as well as some new scenes featuring the Bridge Bunnies and Misa. The “companion story” is a short story by Noboru Ishiguro about the first Christmas aboard the Macross (NOT Episode 35) which was published as the liner notes for the album.)

Super Dimension Fortress Macross – Do You Remember Love?

Macross – Do You Remember Love? The Novelization (The official novelization of the movie, by the movie’s scriptwriter, Sukehiro Tomita. Published in 1984. VERY different from the film! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!)

Super Dimension Fortress Macross the First (SYNOPSIS)

(The manga by Haruhiko Mikimoto, previously published in Macross Ace, Newtype Ace, and so on. Currently serialized here, but first published in 2009 (with some pages revised in 2018). This is just a synopsis, not a word-for-word translation.)

#1 – booby trap

#2 – lynn minmay

#3 – alone with

#4 – transformation

#5 – daidalos attack

#6 – quamzin kravshera

#7 – asteroid cracker

Macross Delta

Macross Delta Vol.1 – The Girl of Al Shahal

Macross Delta Vol.2 – The Aerial Knights (COMING SOON EVENTUALLY)

(The novelization of the Macross Delta series, by Ukyou Kodachi, who also worked on the show, and wrote the novels for Macross Frontier, Macross the Ride, and Macross 30. Published in 2016. Features characters and connections from previous Macross series that you might not expect.)