Macross Frontier

[SkyeFire]

I *love* this hotel internet connection. I wanna take it home with me....

Wow. If you thought Grace was a heartless bitch before, you ain't seen NOTHING yet. And just when you think you finally HAVE... there's ANOTHER
layer. I can't help but wonder if Grace chose Sheryl for this deliberately at the very beginning, with malice aforethought. I can't explain this kind
of behavior with just callous disregard -- there has to be some deliberate, active hatred involved here.

Of course, hatred of *whom* is the big question....

Mikey and Klan keep drifting closer, despite Klan's apparent determination to keep interpreting his actions as an insight into what kind of woman he wants.
(prediction: I think we'll find out before the end of the series if the Macronizing process will work on Mikey).

The public is a cruel and fickle beast. And Sheryl is a lot more fragile than she was ever willing to believe. Poor Sheryl -- she's about to hit rock
bottom so hard, she'll *bounce.*

But she's not alone. She still has friends she doesn't entirely recognize as such yet.

Hold on... Sheryl *seems* to share a last name with the green-haired woman who keeps showing up in pictures and flashbacks, who I've been assuming was
Ranka's mother. What does *this* mean? Just how deep does the Ranka/Sheryl connection run?

The return of Big Brother, and *not* in the Orwellian sense.

Luca's brilliant strategy goes piff.

Ozma... delegates. And stares moodily at a picture that doesn't really tell us anything we hadn't already figured out.

New opening credits: more desperate lyrics, more foreshadowing of Ranka and Sheryl's intertwined destinies. And they're singing a *duet,* again. And
triangles -- LOTS of triangles. (BTW, I *love* this new opening -- gotta get the soundtrack).

Bobby... leads an assault on the shopping mall. And gets upstaged.

[OpMegs]

SkyeFire wrote:

---

Hold on... Sheryl *seems* to share a last name with the green-haired woman who keeps showing up in pictures and flashbacks, who I've been assuming was
Ranka's mother. What does *this* mean? Just how deep does the Ranka/Sheryl connection run?

Actually, from what I can tell, Sheryl doesn't share a name with Ranka's mother(whose last name seems to be Mei/Meing/something), but rather with
"Dr. Mao Nome", the aged woman in the middle of the picture Klan finds(which also features Ranka's mother and Grace, and incidentally the same
Mao Ranka portrayed in the Zero movie)
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

...Has anyone else noticed the nose art on SMS's Konig Monster?

How the HELL did they get away with that without Ozma and Bobby MURDERING someone?  Not to mention the publicity issues? o.O
--Sam
"Egad!  Too much anatomy!"

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

GG isn't nearly as badly synced this week, though it's still an issue.

Flashback... Gracevoice! Compound eye of DOOM!

The Underpants Lizard reacts to Brera as well... for a moment there I thought it had received the signal to mutate or something...

OMG OMG TOMAHAWKS

[OpMegs]

.....damn it. Damn it all.

Anyway, details:

- Leon's sniper attack fails due to unforseen Vajra intervention. Unfortunately, his men gun down Glass in a hallway later. Cathy and Ozma come across the
body after escaping Leon attempting to detain them with armed guards.

- Ranka's depression at seeing Alto and Sheryl together affects her singing, and thus, the fold signature of the song. Rather than calming and repelling
the Vajra, it drives them into a killing frenzy.

- Sheryl finds her new reason to sing, and encourages people in the shelters as the Vajra attack. She also visits Nanase, who lost an eye.

- Brera's cybernetics apparently aren't unhackable, as Grace clearly demonstrates to show who's in charge.

- Klan confesses her feelings to Mikhail, and the two kiss. Later, as smaller Vajra(identical to the one sitting in the crowd in 19) swarm throughout the SMS
base, Mikhail defends Klan's macronization chamber against two of them in an EX Gear. They're blown away, but a third impales him through the chest
with its tail. Mikhail manages to drag it with him out a hull breach, but confesses to Klan just before he's sucked away with the bug that he loved her as
well.

- Preview suggests Ranka haters(and damn, there are some VIRULENT ones out there. I can't look at the Animesuki boards, period) will have more to rage
about given it's indicated Ranka will make a play for Alto's affections again. Meanwhile, Klan looks to be ready to go on a roaring rampage of revenge.
Hopefully, she doesn't burn out in a berzerker rampage.
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

[Foxboy]

RAW watcher... cheeky monkey.
''We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat
them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.''

-- James Nicoll

[OpMegs]

Foxboy wrote:

---

RAW watcher... cheeky monkey.

I watch RAWs and then I go here so that I know what they mean.
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

[Florin]

I have to wonder who Glass has driving his limo, Bean Bandit? Evading machine gun fire in something that size is pretty impressive. And poor Micheal, he should
have known better than to put himself in a position where he could end up making a death bed love confession. Only confessing during or right before a battle
is worse (You wanna get a coffee when this is over = Instant Death).

I'm thinking Brera's being set up as Ranka's replacement Alto, which probably gives him Plot Immortality. Things for Klan aren't looking so
good though, that Wheel of Random Character Death is clearly spinning now. I'd say that Klan, Luca and the bridge crew of the Quarter are maybe screwed,
and that Grace, Leon and maybe Bilrer are almost certainly screwed.
--
If you become a monster to put down a monster you've still got a monster running around at the end of the day and have as such not really solved the whole monster problem at all. 

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

I'm thinking Brera's being set up as Ranka's replacement Alto, which probably gives him Plot Immortality.

Um. At this point, it's like 95% certain that he's her brother? Hello? o.O;

I wonder if just singing at a chunk of fold quartz might be enough to affect the Vajra. Probably not, though, as Sheryl didn't seem to be making much of
an impact.

If Grace and Greasy Leon don't die, I swear I'll invent transdimensional travel just so I can kill them
myself. >.

[OpMegs]

Evil Midnight Lurker wrote:

---

If Grace and Greasy Leon don't die, I swear I'll invent transdimensional travel just so I can kill them
myself. >.

---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

[Rod.H]

Lunar finally put out an xvid, so I'm now clued in. GGs softsub'd mkv of 19 reminded me of why I dislike Matroska encoded fansubs - they don't render right on my equipment.

- Sheryl finds her new reason to sing, and encourages people in the shelters as the Vajra attack. She also visits Nanase, who lost an eye.

Sheryl was there when Nanase got injured, so she was looking after her when she decided that her singing could have the mojo to boost moral.

- Brera's cybernetics apparently aren't unhackable, as Grace clearly demonstrates to show who's in charge.

Nope, Grace (evil Kikuko Inoue) just has root

Klan confesses her feelings to Mikhail, and the two kiss. Later, as smaller Vajra(identical to the one sitting in the crowd in 19) swarm throughout the SMS base, Mikhail defends Klan's macronization chamber against two of them in an EX Gear. They're blown away, but a third impales him through the chest with its tail. Mikhail manages to drag it with him out a hull breach, but confesses to Klan just before he's sucked away with the bug that he loved her as well.

The pineapple curse was circling.

I wonder if just singing at a chunk of fold quartz might be enough to affect the Vajra. Probably not, though, as Sheryl didn't seem to be making much of an impact.

It doesn't affect Vajra, so much as it's Sheryl's lucky charm. However as seen in an earlier ep she has inadvertently discovered how to use fold quartz for comunications.

I have to wonder who Glass has driving his limo, Bean Bandit? Evading machine gun fire in something that size is pretty impressive.

I'd think all wheel electric drive, Akerman steering and armour designed to resist RPGs might have something to do with that feat.

--Rod.H

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

PATTERN BLUE! LAUNCH KLAN-01!

That is all

--Sam

"What do you mean, 'Flash Gordon approaching'?"

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

...and Shinsen-Subs come through at last with 12, 13, and 14.

--Sam

"Is this a warm moment or should we be disturbed?"

[Rod.H]

Lunar has put out 21. All's right with the net.....

Evil bastardry for the win?

Vajra = super mutant cockroaches of the galaxy

[Murmur the Fallen]

Can this series be considered Darker and Edgier (as per the anime tropes wiki) when the first series had THE END OF THE WORLD? and the second series had
FRIENDLY AMNESIAC RAPE?

-murmur

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

"Macross Frontier?" Not anymore! Thrill to the adventures of SPACE PIRATE CAPTAIN WILDER!

We will never surrender. We will never beg aid from others. AND WE WILL NEVER FIGHT UNDER ANY OTHER FLAG THAN THIS.

--Sam

"This is the voice of Free Macross..."

[Rod.H]

Woooho boy!

Grace is the Borg Queen, the Vaja are organic borg bees (but still = super mutant cockroaches of the galaxy) and Ranka's possibly got the makings of either
a chestburster or Zerg-Kerrigan, on the off.

I wonder if the Vajra are supposed to be Macross's Invid?

So next eps going to feature a mass battle of M-Borg, Crazed NUNS, and SPACE PIRATE CAPTAIN WILDER!! vs the Vajra. This cannot end well.

--Rod.H

[OpMegs]

Well, in terms of people I expected to explode at the end of the ep, THAT was not one of them.

That said, I'm severely confused as to how they're going to wrap this all up in one episode.

Could it be? Macross Frontier Season 2?
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

[DKnight54]

I presume Alto will be saved by the magic of Sheryl's warp crystal earring again(Damnit, those two belong together!!!), and he will find himself in the
warp world network, face of with Grace and Brera again, and warps into Macross Quarter just as it warps into the battle field and end the show in the plane he
started in.

Be the Ultimate Ninja! Play Billy Vs. SNAKEMAN today!

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

He has a spacesuit and the EX-Gear armor, remember...

--Sam

"Just an ordinary... love song..."

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

SAY GOODNIGHT, GRACIE.

...Ender's Game: The Good Ending was brought to you by the cast and crew of Macross Frontier.

--Sam

I'm just going to assume all three of them come to their senses after the end credits and execute the Tenchi Solution...

ETA: Today's Least I Could Do is oddly appropriate here

[Matrix Dragon]

... Crowning EPISODE of Awesome. Seriously, I can't think of anything here that wasn't epic win

[OpMegs]

Double Daedalus Maneuver for the fucking win. This episode was so much mecha battle porn. Galaxy vs. Frontier was freaking genius.

Also, the thing this confirms for me?

The Bird Man from Macross Zero was a Vajra....
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

[Evil Midnight Lurker]

No, the Protoculture just styled the Bird Human after Vajra drones.

Unanswered questions:

-What happened to the population of Galaxy Fleet? Were they all absorbed into the Grace Collective?

-Was Bilrer part of Grace's conspiracy or not?

--Sam

"This is graveness."

[SkyeFire]

Well, *heck.*

I can't *believe* it took me this long to download Ep25 (HUGHESNET SUX!!!!!!), but it finally came. And lo, there was much rejoicing. And singing. And
mecha action. And Alto Saotome is the luckiest SOB since his ancestor Ranma (luckier, really, since *Alto's* girls might just be willing to share).

I honestly lost track of how many mutual ass-saves there were during the course of this episode. It was perhaphs cramming too much into one ep, but I do love
a full-ensemble cast battle -- even though the Big Three bailed each other out several times, they wouldn't have been able to do anything without the full
commitment of the entire supporting cast.

"The Vajra sing with their tummies!" *PRICELESS*

Heroic Vajra -- who'd'a thunk it? But it happened. You could just about *hear* the Battle Frontier commander thinking "Aw, screw it -- I have NO
IDEA what's happening anymore, I'm just rolling with it."

Klan must have set a new record for getting Micronized. And putting her in Skull-2... aside from the phone book under her butt and the wood blocks so her feet
could reach the pedals, that was inspired.

You know, for a moment there, Grace&co really *were* on the verge of taking over the *entire galaxy*. Or at least wreaking most of it. But... where was
Macross 7, I wonder?

So, Luca's boys were actually fully-capable AIs, eh? But loyal to the end -- there was a real Bolos-vs-Berskerkers moment, there.

Well, let's hope the Vajra make good neighbors... or, rather, that the inhabitants of *Frontier* make good neighbors, since they're not likely to be
taking off again.

...Soooo, what was *up* with the SMS Boss, anyway? He keeps a locket picture of... Minmei? But what happened to his speech to Alto about how one side *had*
to annihilate the other in this conflict?

And Alto, dumping his fighter (moron! *always* bring back your ride, if it can still fly!), with two girls waiting for him on the ground.... takes off and
goes flying in his EX-gear. I suspect Ranka and Sheryl will have to double-team him and handcuff him to the bed in order to get his undivided (er...)
attention....