MACROSS 7
THE MACROSS SAGA
Macross was first aired in October 1982, starting with the original TV series The Superdimensional Fortress Macross. SDF Macross, as it came to be called, centered around the adventures of a pilot named Hikaru Ichijo, a young bridge operator aboard the SDF Macross named Misa Hayase, and a pop idol named Lynn Minmay. An alternate reality revolving around a giant alien spacecraft that crashed to earth in 1999, the show chronicles the conflict between humans and the alien Zentradi race. The anime is better known in the United States as the first season of the immensely popular cartoon Robotech.
Many of the creators of the Macross series had also at some point or another worked on the phenomenal hit series Mobile Suit Gundam. Macross was originally planned to be a parody of Gundam and other space mecha shows, but the producers abandoned the parody plan after they realized that the script had potential.
Macross is the story of music and its effect on humans, nature, and non-humans. The most important theme of every Macross series is regarding the power of music: its ability to change the hearts of everyone and everything, no matter what species or planet they are from, and each Macross series has its own idol singer or singing group. Another defining feature of Macross is the obligatory love triangles, with perhaps more than one in every series.
SDF Macross was brought to the United States as the first season of Robotech, the American version of Macross. The other two parts were taken from the anime series Southern Cross and Genesis Climber Mospeada. Altogether, the three series are completely unrelated, though the creators of Macross were part of the development team for the other two anime.
The Superdimensional Fortress Macross team is:
Project Planner: Ounishi Yoshimasa
Story Concept: Studio Nue, Artland
Series Script Supervisor: Matsuzaki Kenichi
Character Designer: Mikimoto Haruhiko
Mechanic Designer: Miyatake Kazutaka, Kawamori Shoji
Chief Director: Ishiguro Noboru
Art Direction: Tada Kikuko, Katsui Kazuko
Scenario: Matsuzaki Kenichi, Ishiguro Noboru, Tomita Sukehiro
Music: Haneda Kentarou
Producer: Inoue Akira
Production: MBS, Tatsunoko Productions
The Macross saga consists of the following series:
[AD 2008] Macross Zero
[AD 2009] The Superdimensional Fortress Macross
[AD 2012] Macross Flash Back 2012
[AD 2031] Macross: Do You Remember Love? ("historical" movie)
[AD 2040] Macross Plus
[AD 2040] Macross Plus: Movie
[AD 2045] Macross 7
[AD 2046] Macross 7: Encore!
[AD 2046] Macross 7: The Galaxy is Calling Me!
[AD 2047] Macross Dynamite 7
[alternate universe] The Superdimensional Fortress Macross II: Lovers Again
In addition to these animated series, there are various manga series, games, and drama CDs for each production. The music of Macross is also available on a plethora of different audio CDs.
What follows is a short summary of the other three Macross series:
MACROSS ZERO: Macross Zero is the newest Macross series, made to commemorate the Macross 20th anniversary. It's scheduled to be a series of 5 OVAs, with the first one released in December 2002. The OVA chronicles the development of the first Veritech Fighters and ultimately the production of the VF-1, which is seen in the original Macross, as well as revealing a little more of the mysteries of Protoculture. Interwoven between the gorgeous computer-enhanced dogfight sequences is the story of an F-14 pilot named Shin Kudo, a priestess-singer named Sara from the tropical island of Mayan, and who else but our old favorite Roy Focker.
MACROSS II: Macross II is different from the other four series in that it was not an "official" Macross production. The company that conceived and produced Macross II was different from the one that originally produced SDF Macross, though Mikimoto Haruhiko did do the character designs. Macross II is a 6 part OVA series set 80 years after the original Macross, starring a mysterious alien priestess/singer named Ishtar, a TV reporter named Hibiki, and a UN Spacy officer named Silvie Geena.
Because of its peculiar concept and generation, Macross II is generally regarded either as an Alternate Universe series or a TV series set inside the Macross universe. Either way, the Macross II storyline obviously is not canon with the rest of the Macross timeline and it is usually ignored in that respect.
MACROSS PLUS: Regarded as the gem of the Macross saga by many, the 4 part OVA Macross Plus is set in the year 2040, five years before Macross 7 takes place. The overall plot chronicles the testing and development of the prototype fighters that will later become the VF-19 and VF-22 Valkyries (both of which are used in Macross 7), but the interaction between pilots Isamu Dyson, Guld Bowman, and their old friend Myung Fang Lone holds plenty of tension for fans of character development. The singer/idol in Macross Plus is the virtual star Sharon Apple.
The art and character design of Macross Plus (which is done by MASAYUKI, who did the char designs for Neon Genesis Evangelion) is notably different from that of the other three series, and the plot focuses more on characters and mecha than on music. This series is probably one of the most famous OVA anime series in Japan.
For more information on the Macross saga, visit The Macross Compendium.