Macross Frontier 15: Just when I thought…
…I was going to be able to write a post on this series without having to deal with the dysfunctional love triangle of the animellennium, the two ladies start a singing contest for Alto’s attention and lo and behold Ranka goes so far as to do a triangle with her hands. This is something!
The conspiracy involving Sheryl is very twisted. I love it. I don’t understand it, I don’t have a clue, but that’s fine. The mere suggestion that Sheryl’s tour has been engineered to wreak all sorts of havoc on mankind is just delicious.
If there’s one thing that I didn’t like about this episode (and I’m being picky since this episode and the last have entertained me greatly) is this dude Brera. I mean his shonen-ness. And by that I mean for example the scene at the president’s office where he shows up and introduces himself as “Brera da”. Not even a “Brera desu.” That’s impossibly rude. Literally impossibly rude. Even high schoolers in a casual setting will introduce themselves more politely than this, just prior to bantering in the rudest of terms. So I don’t know, I have an issue with the characterization of this, well, character. There’s a current of though among young people, in Japan and elsewhere, that being indifferent (so-called nihilistic) is hip. In Japan faux-nihilists abound. Fine. But this is the president so please, shape up. I don’t care if Brera is the Emperor of the Galaxy or whatever, because if he’s the Emperor of the Galaxy then he desperately needs a change of wardrobe.
It is no laughing matter. Idols are milked for all they have by managers, promoters, photographers and fans. Theirs is truly a "dairy life".
Can we count how many naked body parts of Ranka and Sheryl Alto has seen so far? I don’t remember off hand, but the numbers are stacking up. He takes it really well, though, too well I think. This man’s libido is stunted, period.
Looked at it objectively, Alto is a very desirable man. He’s handsome, comes from a good family, is gainfully employed, cares about others and does heroic stunts every so often. So I guess I can get why Sheryl and Ranka are so riveted with him, even though there is no way in the universe I’d be interested even if I was the girliest of girls (or the boyest of boys, for that matter). Either he stays the same way and then any sort of relationship would be a disaster, or he will change but then let’s just wait for him to change first. So if I were inside the Macross universe and was one of these girls’ buddies I’d give them the “there’s plenty of other fish in the sea” speech. Honestly. And that’s not all. For example:
Animekritikette: “So, you just told me that Alto saw your bits, right?”
Ranka: “Yes, I was so embarrassed!”
Animekritikette: “And what was his reaction?”
Ranka: “He told me to cover up.”
Animekritikette: “That’s it?”
Ranka: “Yeah…”
Animekritikette: “He didn’t stammer for the next five minutes, or break into a sweat or sit down abruptly. Nothing at all?”
Ranka: “No. Why would he sit down abruptly?”
Animekritikette: “Never mind. My dear, there’s plenty of other fish in the sea, so let’s leave that salmon alone.”
ETC.
Kritik der Animationskraft 
Hehehe.
Idol sing off was awesome.
Alto isn’t attracted to Ranka because she looks like a 10-year old, and generally behaves like a pet dog, or little sister. Sheryl pisses him off, even if she’s the one that can make his cock hard.
RE the conspiracy:
Sheryl is supposedly Fairy 9, the means by which the shadow elite of Macross Galaxy would interact with, attract, or perhaps control the Vajra.
Are you spoiling things for me or is this something I would have never known even after finishing the show??
That much can be inferred from the all the portentous conversations and monologues Grace has.
Inforing is not my ferret. Sorry, I meant inferring is not my forte.
I’ve rewatched this series multiple times and I’m still unsure about some of the stuff relating to “Operation Carnivale.” What the heck did that cabal hope to accomplish by eliminating Sheryl before confirming that Ranka suited their purposes better?
On a related note, you didn’t accidentally skip another episode did you? You mentioned enjoying this episode and the last one, which leaves episode thirteen unaccounted for. Maybe you just didn’t enjoy that one very much, but I want to make sure you didn’t accidentally skip an episode again.
Sheryl and Ranka’s duet has to be one of the friendliest declarations of romantic warfare I can think of. 😆
And speaking of Sheryl, this might be pointing out the obvious but this is the episode where she really starts to feel threatened by Ranka’s success. (I still don’t think she considered Ranka much of a threat prior to Gallia IV. Do you think she ever imagined that Ranka would do what she did there? Or that she’d ever find herself unable to compete because of something as basic as her health?)
Not being very familiar with the Japanese language, I didn’t realise Brera was speaking super rudely in that scene. The thing that bugs me about the TV version of his character is his fashion sense. Seriously, cleavage doesn’t work well for guys.
I haven’t skipped any episodes this time 🙂 It’s just I’ve got so much going on I can’t afford to blog every one. I did see 13 though..
About Sheryl, I guess I tend to think of famous people as paranoiacs who see anyone younger than them in the same business as a potential threat.
Hehe, cleavage.. My solemn opinion is that Brera sucks so far. I imagine this opinion will change.