Macross Frontier – 23
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Summary:
Many years ago, when Ranka was still young, she had been in a lab when her mother and Grace had been arguing about Grace’s plan to sacrifice something. Grace had wanted to change the world by combining her implant network theory with the Vajra’s zero-time Fold communications, and when Ranshe tried to protest but ended up coughing instead, Grace had questioned why Ranshe protected the Vajra to the point that she became so sick. Right after young Ranka realizes that she’s sitting beside a boy, she wakes up to Brera’s voice telling her that they’ve arrived at their destination. Meanwhile, on the Macross Frontier, Leon reassures some men that their journey will end soon with the best of goals. For the time being, the government is having all civilians carry around oxygen masks due to the low partial pressure of oxygen. Alto is at this moment flying a patrol around one of the abandoned islands, thinking about how fragile the vessels are and how he had felt that they were inescapable cages. He later meets with Sheryl for dinner, and she insists on them having a toast. Sheryl then gulps down a glass of wine and reveals that being like this has always been her dream. She makes Alto carry her to bed after she’s finished eating the food he cooked, and while she’s in his arms, she asks him not to go home and to always stay by her side. As Alto watches her sleep, he notes that she hasn’t been acting herself, but after seeing the bottle of pills on her nightstand, he wonders if it’s understandable.
Back at the alien planet, Ranka thanks Brera for going along with her selfish request, so he explains that, for a cyborg with no memories, orders are absolute. His raison d’être was to carry out those orders, but when he heard Ranka’s song, something overflowed inside of him, and doing all this is his thanks for that. Brera talks about how Aimo is the only memory he has, but before their conversation about it can continue any further, hundreds of Vajra suddenly de-Fold. Ranka sings Aimo to keep the Vajra at bay, and when Brera joins her with his harmonica, she’s reminded of her past with her mother and the boy who she still doesn’t recognize. Afterwards, Brera gives her his harmonica as a charm so that her wish is realized. Their moment together is short-lived though because the Vajra suddenly attack. Alto meanwhile gets called to a meeting with Leon and Richard Birla, and Leon reports the detection of a faint Fold wave. They’ve confirmed that it was from Ranka singing, and it has allowed them to finally figure out the location of the Vajra homeworld. Alto is ready to fight, but first he wants to know if the purpose of it is to obtain Fold Quartz, so Birla explains that the Vajra just have a habit of collecting raw Fold Quartz materials. Leon notes though that their goal as humans is primarily to survive, and for the future of humanity, they need to destroy the Vajra. He claims that this is because the Vajra are trying to obliterate mankind, and he surprises Alto by stating that the Vajra are using Ranka.
Leon continues by explaining that the Vajra don’t have brains – instead, they communicate with Fold waves via a network of enterobacteria. Each Vajra acts like a synapse, and they have no notion of individuality, so they behave as one swarm. When Alto tries to point out that Ranka’s song affects the Vajra, Leon wonders if Alto has thought about why that’s possible. Leon knows that those bacteria don’t live in human intestines and in fact bring death to humans. The only exception he can think of is if a child were infected while in the womb, and that would mean that a coexistence with the Vajra was chosen. Leon finishes by suggesting that Ranka connects them to the Vajra and that she will become the vanguard who can destroy them. Back in the space around the Vajra planet, Brera tries to reassure Ranka by promising to protect her, but she doesn’t want more fighting. Ranka gets out of the Valkyries’ cockpit after seeing Ai-kun nearby, but it turns out to be a trap, and as she’s getting carried away, Ranka realizes that Brera is her brother. Brera tries his best to give chase, but he’s first held up by the Vajra and then by Grace in her Valkyrie. Grace questions if he had fun escaping with his little sister – which Brera is shocked to hear – before she decides that the magical times are over and activates his slave mode.
While this is going on, over at the hospital on the Frontier, Luca tries to convince Sheryl to take her medicine because it will delay the progression of her illness. Sheryl refuses and points out that no medicine means that her power will become stronger. She feels that if they are going to use her as a tool, then they should be thoroughly cruel to her because kindness is a sin. Alto isn’t part of this discussion, but he is also at the hospital and happens to see his father being pushed away in a wheelchair. Yasaburo is there as well, and as they watch Ranzou being helped into a car, Alto comments on how small his father seems. In response, Yasaburo notes that Alto’s changed if he sees it that way, and he once again requests that Alto return home. Alto claims that he can’t because he’s a pilot in the military, so Yasaburo questions if fighting and killing is really the path that Alto desires. Yasaburo wonders if Alto would have become a pilot regardless of whether or not there was an enemy, and he suggests that Alto is an actor at heart who acts whatever roles he wants. Before leaving, Yasaburo asks Alto to think about what he wants and why, and Alto ends up spending his afternoon thinking about Ranka. At that moment, she is being held on the Vajra planet and realizes that everything that happened to the 117th research fleet was her fault. From her Valkyrie, Grace is watching Ranka during all this and starts to get excited about what she calls the opening of the door to the abyss.
Back on the Frontier, Alto talks with Kuran about how far he’s come, and he asks her why she joined the S.M.S. Kuran tells him that it’s a tradition in her family to become a soldier, so there was no question that she’d do it. Alto explains that he felt the same way about acting, but he yearned for the sky and left home to become a pilot. That’s how he met Ranka, and in order to protect her, he chose to join the S.M.S. Alto concedes that he might have been running away up until now, pretending not to notice various things, but he feels that that’s over. Taking into account how everyone on the Frontier wants to continue living there, Alto declares that if Ranka is made a tool of the Vajra, then he’ll kill her. Hearing this causes Kuran to wonder if that is Alto’s love. Unbeknownst to either of them, Sheryl had been eavesdropping on their conversation, and after she sheds a tear over it, she quietly tells herself that even though she understood, she still wants a little longer. Her thoughts are interrupted by an announcement from the government about an impending Fold jump. Leon plans to head to the Vajra homeworld – which he refers to as their promised land – and he feels that this begins the holy war. Sheryl meanwhile tries to fly a paper airplane that she made, and although it soars up at first, it soon tumbles out of the sky.
Preview
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Ouch, having that paper airplane fall out of the sky to end the episode is rather ominous. Add that to how much it probably hurts as well to overhear Alto say that everything he did was for Ranka and that he would kill Ranka if she were used as a tool of the Vajra (which Kuran thinks is his love) – things just can’t go right for her. The problem is that Sheryl really doesn’t have many good options or paths. At this point, she looks likely to die from the bacteria in her, so either she goes out as a hero (via her song rallying the people or saving the day or something), or there’s some miraculous cure found from the Vajra or Grace. Part of this also depends on if Alto loves her more or Ranka more, and despite what happened this episode, I think it’s still up in the air. Heck, Alto swings back and forth between the girls so much that I’m leaning more and more towards the idea that he won’t end up with either of them.
As for the other stuff in the episode, they didn’t talk about Protoculture this week like I thought they would, but a lot of the background was explained, including (kind of) what Grace is after. The whole Vajra hivemind thing reminded more of the zerg than bees, but that may just be me. What I found interesting was that Ranshe seemed to side with the Vajra by choice – compared to Grace who just wants to do whatever is beneficial for herself – so there are still some missing pieces in the past, including Ranshe’s motivations and where Dr. Mao Nome was during all that. On that note, I’m certainly expecting a few more big surprises in the final two episodes and am curious to seeing how this all concludes.
September 11, 2008 at 8:38 pmnycs
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Sherylx Alto FTW:
Sheryl (drunk while being carried by Alto to bed): “Don’t leave. Always stay by my side.”
Ranka (while being captured by Vajra again): “Onii-channnnnn!”
Brera: “My little sister, you say?! Ranka?!”
Alto: “I will kill Ranka.”
September 11, 2008 at 8:40 pmGuzano
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yay!!!!!!!, first post
September 11, 2008 at 8:44 pmChimasternmay
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liked it, was better then one before… also man he better end up with someone, or make it a meaning full dramatic ending, cause if not all that stuff about love triangle in all the episode before would be useless… i think if he doesn’t end up with someone it will be something like macross zero
September 11, 2008 at 8:45 pmCm
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“Grace’s goal is apparently to join her implant network with the Vajra’s zero-time Fold communications”
huh? can someone explain this part?
September 11, 2008 at 8:46 pmmaria
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sheryl is the best… alto should end up with.. let ranka go to hell
September 11, 2008 at 8:49 pmdangan
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no, Sheryl. She is crying again. But Sheryl is strong, now we know that AltoXRanka ending is obvious.
September 11, 2008 at 8:50 pmdangan
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http://randomc.net/image/Macross/Macross%20Frontier%20-%2023%20-%20Large%2031.jpg
they live happily with the vajar?
September 11, 2008 at 8:51 pmthenightsshadow
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If Alto does end up with no one, then I would have been right from episode 1.
September 11, 2008 at 8:51 pmAsPHERE
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If Alto will be pair up with Ranka in the end after Sheryl singing to protect the people of Frontier and die. I would hate all of it, not because I like Sheryl but it seem too painful for Sheryl when she more focus on protecting people by her voice rather than sing for just 1 person and join SMS for 1 person.
September 11, 2008 at 8:52 pmkey05
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The way Alto’s character has been develop in this series, I think I don’t care if he end up with Sheryl or Ranka at this point.
September 11, 2008 at 8:55 pmCherubium
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I’m just wondering, but what if Ranka mother’s mind was joined to the vajra as we seen her in ep 14, as well as it could explain why the vajra react to Aimo. Aimo could be a song that reminds Mei of her former self and could explain why they halt in their attacks.
Even with Klans’ words of wisdom, I presume that Alto will end up with no one.
September 11, 2008 at 9:00 pmCrusader
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So in the end Alto-hime chose volk and fatherland. Sorry Ranka but next time you see Alto-hime will be at the end of his gun barrel. Don’t worry though hime loves Ranka so much he is willing to blow her up for the sake of the fleet. Poor Sheryl at least she got to live with Alto-hime before she dies, glad that she focused on her duty instead of her own pain. Ranka will be loved explosively, but Sheryl is clearly the woman of the triangle. Alto-hime finally became an adult and chose to do his duty before anything else, and now he has his own vic complete with a Kakizaki. Sheryl and Alto-hime living together was great.
Well I guess Ranka is gong to need a new rescuer since she ended up as the damsel in distress again…Go Ai-kun the jealous little bug snatched Ranka away from Brera in record time!
Such a pity Grace was not in a pilot suit this time though she beat Brera. I cannot wait to see what Grace has planned for Ranka. Grace Taisa is love!
September 11, 2008 at 9:09 pmWESTLO
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biggest disppointment is grace in business suit instead of flight suit, 23 as a nice fake out episode like near the end of true tears, kgne and macross.
September 11, 2008 at 9:10 pms.a
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Its a AltoXRanka ending i guess. The way the place sheryl in the picture now seems like its all for preparation for her not to be with alto. Next episode would probably be about Sheryl telling Alto to go and find Ranka while she stays on to sing.
Sheryl <3
September 11, 2008 at 9:10 pmfalconx0101
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Well shit.
This series still has the potential to end very well. Not for the characters, but a good ending story wise.
September 11, 2008 at 9:13 pmnycs
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This is something completely off topic but its been bothering me for a while. Do people here post before or after watching the episode? I watched it already around 4-5ish, so I’m certainly of the latter.
September 11, 2008 at 9:21 pmmarvin
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looks like it will all lead up to a pretty bid ending. I still am rooting for sheryxalto but I just want to see a good ending for the anime in general.
but as for the episode, looks like ranka’s past is a little bit more revealed. As for the whole Ranka being the “purpose” of alto joining SMS and his dedication to killing her if she is to be with the vajra could either be a sign of love or just a sign of friendship. could work wither way.
September 11, 2008 at 9:21 pmgundamjehutykai
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Actually, all this talk of ranka makes me think that it will be an AltoxSheryl end.
Just like in the original series where it looked like it was going to be minmay right up until the last minute, but thank god it wasn’t out of place like the ichigo 100% ending.
September 11, 2008 at 9:22 pmHaesslich
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Well, that proves three things:
1) Sheryl SUCKS at folding paper planes. No wonder it fell down… and maybe this reflects her talents as a pilot. Or that she’s dead woman walking.
2) Klein and Alto go on another daito… which puts her another date above Sheryl, much less Ranka. If this was a dating sim, Klein would have a LOT of points built up with Alto. Since this is Macross, it just means that Alto listens to Klein, which is probably why she stuck around last week instead of joining the merry band of privateers.
3) Ranka is SO dead if Alto was serious about killing her if she’s becoming a Vajra tool. I guess Kawamori is busy trolling the shippers who want a Ranka x Alto ending, when Alto’s possibly going to go the Mylene “I’m not picking anyone.. yet” route.
Plus, Grace is so bloody hot when she’s being evil. Wish she’d had more time on this episode, but won’t complain. Let’s see how Ranka deals with the Vajra, now she’s tuned in directly to their network.
September 11, 2008 at 9:25 pms.a
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i think this series has enough of twist and turns >.> its getting me dizzy.
@nyc5: Im guessing its after the episode(:
September 11, 2008 at 9:34 pmCrusader
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@Haesslich
Ranshe turned out to be a wet blanket that could not fend of Grace when she was just a scientist, I hope Ranka inherited a bit of courage and spine from her father, because if Ranshe is any indication…well Grace is not taisa for nothing. If Ranka is still in need of rescue she has little hope when Grace takes off the gloves… Still Grace is nevertheless very awesome and evil, hopefuylly we shall see her in a pilot suit again.
Sheryl’s plane was made of beat up paper, but Sheryl Nome will bravely do her duty for volk and fatherland! She will defend the fatherland until death! Honor and blood for the Northern Cross!
September 11, 2008 at 9:38 pmmuchan
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From the preview is it just me or does it seem all Meltrani are rather…endowed…
September 11, 2008 at 9:50 pmDragoneye
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Ranka feeling for Alto are the key to stopping the vajra
September 11, 2008 at 10:00 pmani_d
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Ranka ambiguously left Frontier in 21 because she wanted to end the war with the vajra and human. She wanted the fighting to stop. Thank you episode 23. Thank you lol Now for all the people who blindly accused her of being selfish, I respectfully ask you to….eat your words. ^__^
And gee, Alto….he surprised me. I may have underestimated his density. :( That was a truly nice scene of Klan and Alto. I loved all Alto’s flashbacks of Ranka and the way he said, “And then I met her…” LOL For Alto to make that much sacrifice for everyone’s sake is very mature. Although, I still think he won’t be able to do it. With Leon and Bilrer as his advicee and his feelings like that, we’re in for a reversal. Besides, looking at Ranka’s wish and the twisted turn of events….Everything is just so tangled up now that the best way to end things is to untangle it (while going dokunx3 =P).
September 11, 2008 at 10:02 pmharby
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Alto’s character development is a disappointment. Throughout the 23 episodes he acted just like a teenager with angst. There isn’t much growth in his character. The girls’ development are much better.
September 11, 2008 at 10:04 pmT_I
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Am I the only one who is reminded of Do You Remember Love?
Sheryl is playing the Misa Hayase role to the tee.
September 11, 2008 at 10:12 pmMoondoggiebuiscuit
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What the hell? Takes the happiness out of all the RankaxAlto fans out there doesn’t it…
Definitly a take-off from the traditional Macross… Plenty of dead people…
September 11, 2008 at 10:22 pmlol
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@T_I
Yep a lot of DYRL homages in this one.
September 11, 2008 at 10:23 pmnycs
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Hmmm DYRL huh. I did not notice. Wait. I will go watch it again right now.
September 11, 2008 at 10:35 pmkoyuki
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With the way things are going, I believe that Alto won’t end up with either girl. After all, Mylene never did picked the guy in the end. And young!Brera was so cute!
September 11, 2008 at 10:45 pmshan
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Vajra are likened to synapses of a one functioning brain? I have a suspicion that the Galaxy officials will never be touched upon in the last two episodes. They may have an open ending because of this for a possible continuation.
@koyuki
But they called Macross Frontier “Super Galactic Love Story”. Macross 7 is just…I don’t know what it’s promo line but it isn’t really about a love story. Alto will end up with one of the girls and get a happy ending. I can still remember how the traumatic tension in episode 12 was resolved by something terribly silly.
September 11, 2008 at 10:53 pmkai_y
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I would probably erase any file I have about Macross Frontier and forget it existed if Alto ends up with Ranka.
September 11, 2008 at 10:53 pmIthekro
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Both girls…one body.
September 11, 2008 at 10:55 pmMechwarrior
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Prediction:
We’ll have a Battlestar Galactica-esque ending, where all the major characters die (Ranka, Sheryl,Ozma, Alto etc.)
I actually want it that way, I love Tomino style endings!
September 11, 2008 at 11:13 pmcalde
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The 2 girls will sing Lion together, as the OP suggests.
All boys will fight together against bad guys.(Grace, Leon and others)
That’s my guess for the ending.
September 11, 2008 at 11:14 pmDokushaku
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Both Sheryl and Alto are selfish people.
They are both quite annoying actually.
I wouldn’t mind Sheryl dying … even after deciding to sing for ‘the people’ (Yeah right) …. her deciding to sing despite the fact that she knows it’s killing her, is simply a decision born out of selfishness. She has nothing but singing, and to be put in the same category that Ranka was once in (the hope of Macross) … well … there isn’t any other better way to die than to die that way.
I have never been a Sheryl fan … from the moment she tried to wedge her way between the connection that Ranka and Alto had … I extremely find her annoying.
Then as the anime progressed … Alto’s indecisiveness just puts him in the same group as Sheryl.
Kill Ranka …. Bull! …. He will have to go through thousands of Vajra as well as the indestructible Brera-san …. Then again … it may actually happen only if Ranka consents to it. :P Bleh
September 11, 2008 at 11:30 pmkoyuki
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@ Shan
They should rename it as ‘Super Headache Inducing Love Triangle’ instead. lol. No offense.
I still am holding out for a Alto/Ranka end since this has been my fave pairing since Ep 1 but it’s difficult for me to see him with either one of the girls now. Until he gets his feelings sorted out and his priorities straight, he doesn’t deserve either girl.
What I like about this episode is the Ranshe, Ranka and Brera past.
September 11, 2008 at 11:37 pmNaru
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Next episode will be battle heavy thankfully. This week’s wasn’t very good ;_; Alto…sorta hoping the “gets no one route”. Sheryl’s gonna die. That is inevitable. She knows it and we know it. It is just when. And by how annoying she was this episode kinda expecting soon.(acting girly, speaking politely and getting drunk? even Alto knew you hit rock bottom)I’m still thinking this is going to end up being one of Shoji Kawamori’s no one is the bad guy endings like Earth Girl Arjuna for some reason o_O;
September 11, 2008 at 11:46 pmSherry
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I haven’t seen he episode yet, waiting for the subs ^^
Still, my general overview is that Alto really chose Frontier…He was always looking for a limitless sky elsewhere, but realized that ‘his’ sky was Frontier’s.
As for the Love triangle *sigh* it’s getting really frustrating, we might really get an Altox…or so it would seem but I don’t think so, since the fans would riot Macross’ Frontier studios if it happened, except if they make such a conclusive and satisfying ending that everyone will settle with it.
As I said, I didn’t watch the episode yet so I can’t perfectly say but I believe the ‘winner’ of the Love triangle was still not determined: Alto cares for both girls in his own way and seems to ‘love’ both…? One he would kill, the other he would stay with until she dies ^^;;;
September 11, 2008 at 11:56 pmKel
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Kekeke. Zergling rush.
September 12, 2008 at 12:11 amDrakron
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@Dokushaku:
Maybe you should pay attention for once, Sheryl have a type-V infection on final stages and singing have nothing (directly) with it, she is going to die no matter what … there is no cure for it.
How is that selfish? the only thing she ever had was singing … she sings because that is the only thing she have and the only thing she can give, at least is better that just wait for her inevitable death.
And Alto … take a good look at the Frontier Fleet, its falling apart and guess who did it? the Vajra … Alto reasoning of “its us or then” is more realistic that Ranka “I will go there, talk to then and make the fighting stop” idealism … since it worked SO WELL right? its not like they just started shooting at then after a while and Ai-Kun taken her and put her in the Queen Chamber?
Maybe you should watch the original, the Zentradi were similar to humans and STILL decided it was better to wipe out humankind that being infected by culture with SDF Macross using culture to shock the Zentradi so it would make then easier targets.
September 12, 2008 at 12:18 amani_d
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@koyuki
Omg, young!Brera is so cute~ Agreed. BreraxRanka’s sibling love is also really nice to watch. I love when he gave her his harmonica, though when he did that I immediately had bad vibes that’s something bad will happen to him. It did unfortunately. And Ai-kun…I think when the Vajra attacked him, he got enlightened and is now in colleague with the rest of the Vajras lol
I’m convinced that Ranka’s voice caused the tragedy 11 years ago. The explosion of Macross from her flashback probably scared her and it made the Vajras go rampant—much like what happened in ep 20. Ranka may have finally remembered what she had done that’s why she’s now blaming herself for everything. I can’t wait for the finale because I’m pretty sure Ranka will not just sit there and let her Vajra go wild on everyone. She will bring it all down on herself.
Also, if you noticed, Ranka called Ranshe and Grace “our moms”. Whatever does that mean? =/
September 12, 2008 at 12:18 amtphan
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I just have a feeling Alto is going to end up with Sheryl like how Hikaru and Misa ended up together in the end of the original Macross. Since Hikaru did join the military for Minmei and blah blah blah you should know the rest.
Well 2 epis left, I wonder if its going to end or is there going to be a second season since the first Macross didn’t have a second season.
September 12, 2008 at 12:20 amani_d
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Or maybe “mama-tachi” just pertains to Mama and the others….
September 12, 2008 at 12:29 amBlack
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We really don’t know what hit us, eh? Remember Nakamura Yuuichi’s words that the CONCLUSION of the love triangle will surprise people? THIS IS IT. This is the reason why Alto and him was mobbed in the studio. I don’t know about you, but I am hella surprised. Alto chooses Ranka, but decides to kill her for the sake of Frontier (with Sheryl in it). That’s a sasuke-coldness level.
September 12, 2008 at 12:32 amteutates
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Lol the only one who is currently being just is alto himself he just doesn’t realize it……
chibi ranka is very cute :P
September 12, 2008 at 12:36 amArijuana
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Damn it…I’d rather he choose Sheryl and decides to kill her.
September 12, 2008 at 12:49 amMelia
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And the triangle gets resolved. Now for the war with Ranka in the left corner and Alto on the right. Will the power of love overcome the boundaries? Will the misunderstanding ever ends? Alto wants to protect Frontier. Ranka blames herself for killing everyone 11 years and 3 episodes ago. Who will kill…Ranka first? Herself or Alto? Or is it everyone’s dark horse the NUNS? Super Galactic Love story you say? This is a Super Galactic Bout Story. Glory to deculture!
@Black
You’re not alone. Episode 22 is a faux with all the pity stuff. I was floored too, blinked for a couple of seconds then cheered because me wants to see Alto and Ranka bring it on.
September 12, 2008 at 12:50 amW-General
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ARHGHHHHIOTEHGHHGHHH!!!
GODDAMNIT RANKA END!!!!!!!
You can totally tell that the devil Kawamori’s setting up for a darned Ranka x Alto end. By letting Sheryl have her “fun time” with Alto right, it’s basically giving Sheryl her last chance with Alto so she can let go without regrets.
&)$&)(@&$@)(& (obscenities censored)
I am RAGING SO HARD right now that my veins are popping.
The Sheryl fanboy in my is EPIC RAGE
LONG LIVE Sheryl x Alto!!!!
September 12, 2008 at 12:55 amlol
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Ranka fans are being trolled so badly.
September 12, 2008 at 1:07 amyuKime
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oohhh. More drama!!! I love! =)
September 12, 2008 at 1:24 amdiva
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I’m thiiiis close to bursting, but I’m going to play nice here. *halo*
What happened here is just the confirmation of what was said last week. Alto is really staying with Sheryl out of pity and obligation. Alto is not saying anything but Sheryl knows it. She doesn’t want anymore pity going by what she said to Luca. Sheryl knows that Alto always cared more for Ranka but she chooses to keep quiet because she wants to spend a little more time with him. (She’ll dump you later Alto, you can bet your pretty head on it.) By the way Luca grew in 7 days time. lol wut?
What Ozma said to Alto before escaping proves to be right. What Michael has told Alto proves to be right. What Yasaburo has told Alto proves to be right. Alto-hime is running away and pretending he is not noticing stuff. Someone should put this actor to jail now. He is running away from his situation, from what he really feels, from everything. But now, he decided he will stop and will take everyone into the account. He will be an adult and not a dumb person like Ozma who claims he’s a MAN by doing what he wants and forsaking Frontier. Ozma will pwn him later on again before they pwn Leon and Bilrer. Fer sure. So his decision turned out to be to protect Frontier than to protect the ultimate reason he joined SMS. Amidst so many people’s lives, what is Ranka’s life anyway? Just one over a million. 1000000 > 1. Nevermind that he loves Ranka. He does the right thing. A logical choice.
Klan Klan who knows the woman’s heart did not even scold Alto for swinging away from her fellow woman Sheryl and even defined Alto’s feelings. “Is that your love?” In order to protect the people of Frontier, Alto is willing to sacrifice his most important girl when worst comes to worst. To preserve Ranka from being a tool for the Vajra, and to protect everyone who is living in Frontier, he is going to do it. That’s love. Watch Alto chicken out in the end once Ranka herself decides to do it for him.
@Black
Ah huh. This is what Yuuichi’s talking about. The surprising part was the part where he said Ranka o kurosu. I always had a thing for Basilisk so I liked what he said.
September 12, 2008 at 1:43 amBROOKLYN otaku
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yeah, grace be stalling out!!!! i can’t wait to see what kind of hideouse FREAK she really is.
ohh and heres a twist …maybe altos really gay..yeah i know its cliche, but. . .
September 12, 2008 at 1:52 amnycs
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@diva
Wow it actually made a lot of sense to me. I agree that a recurring theme in Macross Frontier is teenagers running away from their responsibilities and from who they are because they do not want to face reality.
Alto is running away from himself unsure of what he wants to do in life and who he wants to protect. He sees his mother as a loved one he wanted to protect but could not. He blames his father for losing that loved one and grows to hate everything associated with that person. He tries to do the same for both Ranka and Sheryl but only Sheryl is at arms reach so he focuses on her. He loses sight of even these by eventually going back to his old house which he promised to never come back and through his constant shifting feeling between the heroines
Sheryl is running away from the harsh reality that she will eventually die alone and lose the people she loves and cares. This would cause her to go back into her sad lonesome state in the ghettos of Macross Galaxy which is why she wants Alto to stay by her side. Until she tells Alto the reason why she feels like this, she is technically still running away because she desires company and not love.
Ranka is running away from her responsibilities, the harsh reality that the one person she cared about and for whom she has done everything would not like her the way she likes him and from her past.
Michael ran away from the concept of being loved by degrading the concept of love through his numerous girlfriends. Losing his sister at a young age, he found loving to be something grim and that he was truly afraid of opening himself up to someone only to lose that loved one through death.
Wow Thank You diva for that insightful epiphany. Unfortunately, I cannot accept wholeheartedly your stance that Alto’s true love is Ranka and that everything he has been doing has been his way of denying his true feelings for said character. I believe that Alto is mentally stressed right now from everything that is happening and he is only being swept away by the events. This problem causes him to be irrational and he cannot fully realize his turbulent emotions such as desire and love.
This new portrayal of Alto in my eyes reminds me of the emotional teen that is Amuro Ray in the novel version of Gundam. Like Alto, Amuro is a teen first and therefore does not consciouly think about who his decisions affect his reality and the people around him. He only does what he thinks is rewarding and beneficial for him.
September 12, 2008 at 2:00 amMagnus
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Yeah, well. If Omni would have typed in Klans opinion a bit more ambiguously ( as it was mean, as agreed upon several japanese speakers in chat ), then it wouldn´t sound as bad for Sheryl.
As it looks at the moment, it´s a fake-out. Alto also speaks a lot about how he has to protect Frontier, and if necessary will kill Ranka, after which Klan goes “Is this your love?”. Most likely meaning “Your love for Frontier is that great…?”, and Sheryl overhears and misunderstands that he means Ranka alone.
And, yeah, Alto joined SMS to protect Ranka. Didn´t Hikaru join the military to impress Minmay? ^^
September 12, 2008 at 2:14 amyuKime
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@Magnus
Sure, think whatever you like. The episode can be taken in as how one interprets it anyway. ^^ But I won’t be expecting much SherylxAlto if I were you.
This one is not addressed to anyone in particular. (Because I forgot who said this.) One thing is clear now, Alto DID join BECAUSE of Ranka and her song in ep3. It wasn’t because of Sheryl’s destiny speechy. At least we can see clearly now that Ranka DID a great impact on Alto, even without her giving him advices~
My take on Alto’s “If blah blah, I will kill Ranka.” speech is this:
He doesn’t want Ranka to be used in a battle like that. Also, to make sure Ranka didn’t do anything that he knew Ranka would feel bad about. Maybe he has remembered Ranka’s little speech, “I don’t want to sing as a tool for fighting Vajra.”
Alto will protect Ranka even if it means to kill her, to end her pain. T___T Drama… I so want to see what will be the dialogue for this if it ever happens…
Too bad Brera goes blank and memory-less again. =( I hate Grace to pieces! I have a big hunch that it will be Ranka standing on the bridge of Frontier in ep25 (accdg to summary). I hope none of the three main characters die..
September 12, 2008 at 2:25 amdiva
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@nyc
I try :D
Ranka stated here that she wants to stop the fighting. She didn’t run away from Frontier. She’s been running away for 20 episodes by being a singing tool and refusing to remember. Alto’s useless advice to her in 13 even was : ‘Forget about it’. An advice from a fellow runner. What can you expect? Ranka stopped running in 21 when she decided she’d find out the truth behind the research fleet. It was just tough luck that what she found was something she never wanted to find out. She killed everyone. In Alto’s case, he stopped running here and made a decision. They all choose their destiny.
@magnus
“Didn´t Hikaru join the military to impress Minmay?”
And? What does that got to do with Alto and Ranka?
September 12, 2008 at 2:32 amdiva
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@yukime
Yea, Ozma will kick him later and say if “If you don’t want Ranka to be a tool, you’re going to kill her you bastard?! Wake up! If you’re a man, protect the woman you love and protect everyone all at the same time. Multi-task, damn it!” XD
September 12, 2008 at 2:46 amyuKime
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@diva
Yeah!!! Multi-tasking is the solution! *thumbs up* Alto just had to think up the most dramatic solution to put more drama in his life. Him running away from everything was dramatic enough, jeez. Oh, and magnus point is the similarities (some) of SDF Macross (original Macross) to Macross Frontier, saying Hikaru wanted to impress Minmei but ended up with Misa instead. But I think the situation here is different. Alto wanted to protect Ranka, not impress. Ranka didn’t need to convince Alto the way Minmei had to with Hikaru to join SMS. Alto joined ON HIS OWN WILL, wanting to fight and protect Ranka.
To make someone like that as your reason for fighting, it has to be love! And no, he’s not pretending anymore so every word he spoke in this episode is nothing but the truth. Plain truth. I hope Alto realizes that there is something else that can be done, not just killing Ranka! (But I think he was just thinking, if worst scenario happens. I do believe he still has some plans up his sleeves, not just immediately go kill Ranka.)
Oh, and I don’t know why but Kawamori’s words echo in my head now. “Once Alto realizes his feelings, he will go all the way to see it through.” Not exactly the words but it has the same meaning, referring to the love triangle.
September 12, 2008 at 2:53 amNekki
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Everyone!!! The G Gundam ending will be repeated in Macross Frontier!! Just my guess.
September 12, 2008 at 3:18 amFatal_Fury
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Hey! Someone get Alto a cape for the final episode! He’ll pull out Ranka’s naked body from the mother Vajra after saying “i love you…I love You! I LOVE YOU!” I knew it’s going to be all gundam g from here. Who knew this is what Alto’s seiyuu meant about the conclusion of the love triangle. Wicked!
September 12, 2008 at 3:22 amJustinStrife
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-facepalms- God the Ranka shippers are so getting trolled by kawamori.
Did any of you even watch the episode yet? Do you even know the context of the conversations?
September 12, 2008 at 3:24 amlol
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I think nothing built on misunderstanding and hurt of another character will ever be anything that will last. So, I don’t understand Ranka fan cheering right now.
@nyc
Sheryl is running away from the harsh reality that she will eventually die alone and lose the people she loves and cares. This would cause her to go back into her sad lonesome state in the ghettos of Macross Galaxy which is why she wants Alto to stay by her side. Until she tells Alto the reason why she feels like this, she is technically still running away because she desires company and not love.
I don’t think Sheryl is running away at all. If anything she is running full force towards her death, even refusing help to slow her disease. For one she doesn’t want to burden Alto anymore because she thinks it’s pity and for another she wants to help the people of Frontier while she still can. She also didn’t go back into her lonesome orphan state. She was reminded of what she didn’t have as a child and what she really longed for now. Her dream. Which was simply a nice dinner and someone she loved to share it with. She feels that way because she desires love and affection, someone she has never had in her life. Unlike Ranka, who was spoiled and loved by many people.
September 12, 2008 at 3:29 ammagnuskn
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@diva: yuKime basically said what my point was.
@yuKime: I can´t remember Hikaru joining *against* his will…
Well, here are some other interpretations done by Japanese speaking people on AS, to broaden the discussion a bit.
From MaiHikari:
“* It’s interesting to note the conversation between Alto and his brother. His brother wants him to consider what he wants and if fighting and killing is really what he wished for. This is reaffirmed with Klan’s question: “is this your form of love?” In my opinion, that question is after all a question, not an answer. She thinks Alto’s view of love, if it is true, is quite sad–meaning to kill someone close to him in order to protect everyone else. But she is asking him, because she doesn’t think that that is his true form of love. Again, the series wants Alto to consider an alternative solution to the war other than killing off the enemy.
* Alto joined SMS to protect Ranka, and now to protect the rest of Frontier, he is willing to kill Ranka. There are a few ways to interpret this. The first, which was brought up in this forum, and I don’t agree with: Alto wants to kill Ranka for her own good because he loves her and doesn’t want to see her turn bad. If that is what Alto’s thinking, then he’s just selfishly using “Ranka’s sake” as an excuse to kill her, despite her own wishes to live, even to live with him. In this case, he is a coward and a hypocrite. The second, which is reaffirmed by the theme of the series and by Alto’s brother and Klan’s words, is that he simply wants to protect but his method is really the wrong way to do it. He can’t protect something by destroying something else. That is not what love means. Thus, what Klan wants to tell Alto in this episode is not referring to Alto’s romantic love, but his misguided methods.”
From Monir:
“When Klan asked, “Alto, sore ga omae` no ai ka?”… she isn’t exactly asking Alto who is he going to pick for his romantic interest, rather, .. she is making a very sad observation. Let me elaborate. Does Alto like Sheryl? Yes. Does Alto like Ranka? Yes. Alto also likes the people who chooses to live in this fragile world. Alto is declaring that he wouldn’t mind killing one of his loved one if it means avoiding mass destruction for those people. From that line of thought, it seems, Alto’s definition of “love” is too vast, so it renders him unable to be tied down by the affection of one or two people. I think that’s what Klan realizes just now, and Sheryl has been into such realization for some time already. They can love him all they want, but he is incapable of returning it to either of them to their liking because of his scope of perception.”
( Not my favourite interpretation, of course ^^ ).
From Darial:
“I am actually really amused at the whole angst about Episode 23′s ending part.
Alto’s feeling for the two female leads shifted and changed throughout the series. To say Alto’s feelings for both Ranka and Sheryl remain static is to deny all the character developments that have taken place in the 22 prior episodes.
Sure, Alto joined SMS with an urge to protect Ranka and Frontier (as well as flying) back in episode 3. But does he still feel the exactly the same way about Ranka in episode 23? Maybe, maybe not. Did he have feelings for Ranka, sure, at one point. Does he still have that feeling now? Who knows, other than he said will kill her to protect Frontier if push comes to shove.
As for Alto’s feelings toward Sheryl, if he still feels the same way about her as he did in episode 3, he probably wouldn’t have promised to stay by her side until the very end.
Therefore, to use one of Alto’s original reasons to join SMS to show he is in love with Ranka in Episode 23 is simply not supported by anything in fact or logic. The Alto of episode 23 is a very different person, and he still hasn’t told us who he truly love yet.
Thus, at the end of 23, Sheryl misunderstood the context of Alto’s discussion with Klan. And that’s fine. Kawamori has to milk two more episodes of dramatic tension, and if he needs to milk more sympathy from Sheryl fans, he’ll do it without hesitation.
The true ending is still far from certain, and anything is possible. My opinion is that Sheryl and Ranka are on two separate tracks with different “positive growth” endings for each character where each of them will be happy in their own ways. But that’s just my opinion.
IMHO, Ranka fans should not be celebrating this soon, and Sheryl fans shouldn’t get depressed at all. There are still two episodes left where anything can happen, and the fact Alto is still on Frontier speaks volumes in my mind.”
I hope this sparks some discussion. :)
September 12, 2008 at 3:32 ammagnuskn
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Addendum: Ah, sorry, I don´t know if Darial speaks Japanese, but his opinion seemed sound, so I wanted to quote him. ^^
September 12, 2008 at 3:37 amKaori
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judging from the episode didn’t Sheryl walk in half way through the convo? So she didn’t hear the first half she only heard about what he said about Ranka. So ranka shippers stfu before I gut you like a pig!
September 12, 2008 at 4:09 amsf_fan
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Come on Kawamori, stop producing any more Macross “sequels”. Is this the best you can come up? Frontier is no better than 7 and Zero. It is all drama using science fiction as a backdrop. What’s worst, you’ve produced a lot of shippers debating endlessly on what? Who’ll the main character will end up with. That’s how horrible your story for this Macross “sequel.”
September 12, 2008 at 4:11 amsf_fan
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Macross Frontier is a testament that the Japanese are losing their touch when it comes to story development. Oh well, I can always watch older animes.
September 12, 2008 at 4:31 amKagami
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@sf_fan
If shippers can debate over their pairings, doesn’t that mean Kawamori is successful in making good story and characterization? Either way, you are quite generalizing that older anime have better story. It’s quite insulting to the Japanese if you think they’re losing their touch. So do you think you are a better storyteller or producer? Don’t whine if you don’t like the story development or the fans reactions to the anime.
September 12, 2008 at 4:44 amani_d
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@diva
Yes. Multitask IS the solution. Kudos! Nice analysis.
@yukime
Alto finally realized his feelings. Now we get to see things move in a big way. ^__^ I can’t wait for the finale.
@magnus
I may have limited japanese but I perfectly understood that little scene of Alto/Klan. They really weren’t saying anything complicated afterall. Frankly, I’m getting exasperated debating about RankaxAlto since any Sheryl shipper can paint this scene to whatever will comfort them and interpret Klan’s “omae no ai” into anything but romantic.
I’m sorry, but there should be a limit between denial and being objective. The guy just admitted that it was Ranka that made him join SMS. To fight and to protect from there on. His flashbacks were composed of bits and pieces of his memories of Ranka while he was saying this. Alto fought to protect her, and this coincides with his hate towards Brera who constantly rubbed on his face that he is to protect Ranka not him. Alto’s feelings towards Ranka is No Doubt much stronger than what he feels for Sheryl. They are not equal. This is why Sheryl teared up and said she “knew it”. I wouldn’t put this past her since I’ve always thought she knew. From how Alto acted in this episode, you can see discontent in his eyes, someone who is unhappy yet resolute to DO what is RIGHT. In order to protect the people who wants to live on in Frontier, he is willing to kill the one person he wanted to protect the most if she were to threaten them. Thus Klan’s tears. Oh, and Alto had a nice coaching from Leon and Bilrer btw. ;)
After Galia 4, I’ve always been surprised that people are still calling Alto’s feelings for Ranka as “brotherly” just because he didn’t have any romantic move on her past 14, yet when they see Alto act like this with Klan’s direct label, they get all surprised claiming that this is completely out of the blue. -___- Seriously. AltoxRanka has been screaming at our faces ever since the beginning.
@Black
I was also taken aback by Alto here, so I take it this is definitely why Nakamura Yuuichi and Alto were mobbed in the recording studio—-the infamous surprised conclusion of the LT.
September 12, 2008 at 5:16 ammagnuskn
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ani_D: Well, I cited three different people with quite different interpretations, which *all* differ from yours. My own interpretation, going by the excellent translations I got from ickem, is of course Sheryl-biased, but I think my reading of the relationship is one of brotherly concern. Which in itself is kind of love, but not the kind of love you are hoping for.
Oh, well. Two weeks, then we´ll know for sure, unless Kawamori is *really* trolling us.
September 12, 2008 at 5:17 ammagnuskn
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Clarification: Brotherly concern from Alto to Ranka.
September 12, 2008 at 5:26 amani_d
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I doubt Kawamori is really trolling. It’s just us that’s thinking that he is. x_x
September 12, 2008 at 5:37 ammagnuskn
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Ahem. Ozma? ^^
September 12, 2008 at 5:45 amWestlo
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I wouldn’t even call it trolling… unless you want to call the events in KGNE, True Tears and Macross (and so many others) trolling as well… Don’t forget ani_d that after episode 12 I predicted Sheryl would look screwed at the end, just like the winners from KGNE, True Tears and Macross were. How could you forget Romance 101! XD
September 12, 2008 at 5:46 amYufanman
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そして俺はあいつに出会った。あいつを守るため、SMSに入ることを選んだ。戦うこと・・・守ること・・・それからずっと・・・
And then I met her. To protect her I chose to join the SMS. To fight… to protect… from that point, forever…
Kind of ambigious when translated literally. But then again, you have to read between the lines when translating these sort of things.
September 12, 2008 at 5:54 amani_d
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@westlo
Well, Ranka looks screwed here. Even the love of her life will kill her. Going by Romance 101, everything will turn out right by episode 25. When I say that everything will turn out right, that includes you getting bankrupt. ;)
September 12, 2008 at 5:58 amgundam_owns_macross
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alto turned into hero yuu i will kill ranka
September 12, 2008 at 6:05 amgundam_g_owns_you
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^then he’ll transform into domon kasshu and rescue ranka from devil gundam er vajra. then cut to everyone with their respective pairing while they sing doki doki.
September 12, 2008 at 6:11 amWestlo
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“Well, Ranka looks screwed here. Even the love of her life will kill her.”
How could Ai-kun do that?
September 12, 2008 at 6:14 amEri
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how many more episodes are left in this series?
September 12, 2008 at 6:17 amWestlo
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2 episodes
September 12, 2008 at 6:21 amRanka
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I gave up on Alto, why can’t my fans realize this?
September 12, 2008 at 6:37 amEri
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@ Ranka
Haha. Oh well. Fighting about who’ll end up with Alto spices up the forums.
@ Westlo
2 episodes??? How the hell can they wrap up everything with just 2 measly episodes remaining??? Maybe there’s a possibility of a season 2 (unless, there are already plans for one?)
September 12, 2008 at 6:43 amKagami
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@yuKime
I may have limited japanese but I perfectly understood that little scene of Alto/Klan. They really weren’t saying anything complicated afterall. Frankly, I’m getting exasperated debating about RankaxAlto since any Sheryl shipper can paint this scene to whatever will comfort them and interpret Klan’s “omae no ai” into anything but romantic.
Ahhh, yuKime, you are half right for this one. I give my 2 cents to your language. The language is not complicated, as it is only “Sore ga, omae no ai?” which can be translated as “Is that you (idea of) love?” roughly. However, you must understand that the situation itself is NOT PLAUSIBLE for it to be considered romantic situation or question. Yes, the problem is the situation of the dialogue.
Before that scene, Alto was talking about protecting Ranka, yes, however, he then said that he would kill Ranka if or because (not sure if it “if” or “because”, my head was a li’l sleepy on this part) Ranka joined the vajras. This is where I have doubt in my mind that Klan may not be talking about “romantic love”, since I don’t have any comprehension of “love=kill” logic. Klan’s question is considered to be a lot more ambiguous, as Klan did not state “what” love and “for whom/what”.
“Ai” is literally translated to love, but it has a lot of different meaning context. It is not only bordered on romantic love, it may be said as love on different kind of assumption, i.e. strong friendship, siblings. (This is excluding “patriotism” love which is different, but Alto’s act is not a patriotism though he wanted to protect Frontier) If it were, then I can say that Beyblade’s anime has 100% BL scene in one of the last episode lol ^^;.
In any case, I can only think that in the scene, Sheryl is the one who misinterpreted the question and Alto’s reaction (C’mon, you know she is dying and have feeling that Alto was pitying her…). In my opinion for the “love” matter, I would interpret it as love for Frontier : “Is that your idea of love for the Frontier? To kill one who you initially wanted to protect along with this Frontier?”
I might be wrong, but since the scene is meant to be ambiguous for now (a.k.a typical Kawamori troll scene until he clarified it), I don’t see why anyone can interpret this as Alto’s love for Frontier : This is Alto’s development episode, his resolution for his own choice episode. Triangle resolution still can be milked two more episode from now.
That said, now I really have to refuse Alto/Ranka end. So sorry, but I would have to damn Kawamori to hell if he decided to royally screw Sheryl at this point. Besides, I’m getting a REAL MAJOR DYRL and SDF vibes here…
September 12, 2008 at 6:46 amKagami
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I don’t see why anyone can interpret this as Alto’s love for Frontier :
Correction : I don’t see why anyone can’t interpret this as Alto’s love for Frontier :
September 12, 2008 at 7:38 amdra.
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Sheryl and Ranka both die. AltoXKlan. They’re all that remain.
September 12, 2008 at 8:45 ampassingass
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@ dra.
YES!!! Misery loves company.
September 12, 2008 at 9:43 amArdea
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@Kagami
If Alto joined SMS to simply protect ‘people’, it would be a completely different matter, but since the guy joined to protect ONE single person, it is rather difficult to interpret it as Alto’s love for Frontier (at least for me)… Moreover, he never showed any care for his homeland. On the contrary, he even said he hated it, because there was no real sky (of course he was exaggerating a bit, but still…)!
No…love for Frontier is simply out of question.
In my opinion, Klan is not asking just about Alto’s perception of love as such (be it romantic,strong friendship,etc.). It seems to be more about love AND duty (eg. to protect Frontier). Or maybe love AND doing whatever you believe is right (we are the good ones, Vajra are the bad guys)…
Now is that your idea of love Alto? To kill the one you care about if he or she joins your enemy (or becomes your enemy’s tool)? Won’t you try to understand, to rescue that person? And here comes the most important (and most complicated) question… WHY?
The answer depends on how we think he feels about Ranka (and Frontier, of course)…
On a side note, the “love=kill” logic is actually pretty logical (though pretty twisted as well). Ever read anything by Kaori Yuki XD ? It means that the person loves someone very much, but still hasn’t forgiven what he sees as a his/hers betrayal… I think that this explanation would kinda fit Alto with his stubbornness (just theoretically…), but again, this is Macross, not Angel Sanctuary…
September 12, 2008 at 9:54 amWestlo
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“No…love for Frontier is simply out of question.”
Which is why it showed images of Frontier and talked about protecting Frontier right before he made his I’ll kill Ranka statement, because it’s meaningless right? You realize he’s putting Frontier above Ranka right? And just because someone says they hate something doesn’t mean they want to see it go, refer to Sheryl’s reaction to Galaxy being “attacked”.
September 12, 2008 at 10:00 amT_I
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guys, it’s actually possible to GASP love more than one person
furthermore, feelings can sway back and forth
Kimikiss is an example of this
September 12, 2008 at 10:01 amMandy
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no no no no!!! This is the most horrible ep evar! (>.<)
poor Sheryl!
September 12, 2008 at 10:05 ammagnuskn
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@Mandy: Don´t fret, it´s a fake-out.
September 12, 2008 at 10:09 amWestlo
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“guys, it’s actually possible to GASP love more than one person”
no waii!
“Kimikiss is an example of this”
A rather horrible one but an example nevertheless.
September 12, 2008 at 10:11 amYufanman
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No matter how often you state your opinion as a fact, it won’t become one. A lot of people here could learn from this…
September 12, 2008 at 10:27 amSherry
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I think there is no need to fret so much: as of now, both Ranka and Sheryl are still candidates for Alto’s Love, as long as he doesn’t clearly express himself and his feelings, which will be happening in the 2 next weeks ^^
But I was surprised to hear Alto joined the SMS for Ranka: I watched back the first episodes and no matter in what angle I looked at it, it was mainly for himself –> he wanted to fight, he wanted to fly, and somehow I think he was also rebelling against his father and cutting completely with acting but…for Ranka? I mean, really, in the first eps of the series Alto wasn’t specially close to neither girls, and definitely not to the point of joining the army for neither’s sakes…it was disappointing to have him saying he joined them for a girl, while I believed it was one of the *very few* serious decisions about his life he took :(
September 12, 2008 at 10:37 amArdea
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@Westlo
Well, I do remember writing that his statement about hating Frontier was exaggerated… but I should have probably expressed myself a little bit better:
Klan’s question IS ambiguous (and can be interpreted in many ways) but interpreting it as asking about Alto’s love for Frontier just didn’t sound that good to me. However, I do not say that she is asking him about his love for Ranka, either. It’s more about his general idea of love… but as I can see, I have already written this as well…
Actually, I don’t think that Ranka herself – who we all know(and many MF fans hate)- is that important in this particular conversation. Or Sheryl… I really really tried to avoid any shipping in my post, and that’s why I used the word ‘person’… so, how about discussing this scene (which is a very well written, intense and moving one, no matter how you look at it) on a more general level? How about simply enjoying the first moment we are given some serious insight into Alto’s mind XD ?
September 12, 2008 at 10:39 amnezumibento
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Yay finally Alto actually gets some real development, but that doesn’t raise his rating in my book since he spent an exhausting 22 episodes running away from himself. Who gives a shit who he ends up with anymore? Anyway, we all know by now that he’s decided that if Ranka’s song is going to destroy Frontier, he’d choose the ‘lesser evil’ in his book despite whatever feelings he may have for her if it’s weighed up against the fate of humanity on Frontier. A hard but noble choice, if Ranka really meant that much to him.
But hmm, based on Ranka’s overflowing sense of guilt over being the cause of so many deaths I smell a kamikaze scene.
Frustratingly too little has been revealed in this episode about what happened in the past, and that all that’s certain is that Brera and Ranka are siblings (aww damn XD), and it seems obvious that Ranshe Mei had sympathies towards the Vajira and disagreed with Grace on her methods. Ranshe was also in Ranka’s memory flashback when the Vajira appeared, together with Brera, and she didn’t seem at all horrified or surprised when they came up over the hill, which makes me suspect that she knew what was coming. We also still don’t know why Ranka’s hooked up to the Vajira’s network, if she’s not sick with the V-Virus like Sheryl.
Grace being able to see through Ranka being ‘hooked’ up to the main network is freaky. Talk about a ‘mad scientist’s dream come true’ scene.
September 12, 2008 at 10:55 amKagami
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@Ardea
Yes, initially he joined to protect Ranka. That I can admit and it is shown for Christ Sake. I still have doubts though in his current state that he still wanted to protect Ranka. I will explain in the next paragraphs of why do I think so.
Are you sure it is impossible for him to love Frontier? As much as I can gather, his dream is to fly in the real sky. Using his inability to fly in the real sky as his hate to Frontier does not seem plausible to me. Yes, he may dislike it, but imo, I think he still care for the people in Frontier great deal. Perhaps I need to clarify better in this post that Frontier that I mean in the previous post basically mean the people on Frontier (Sorry for the confusion if this is the case). Evidence? Episode 20, where he wanted Ranka to sing, so that people won’t die. And also the statement of him protecting Frontier just before saying he would kill Ranka. Who says he hates Frontier? The colony, may be dislike, but his concern for people is genuine. Which is why I would still stand on my statement.
In one sense, that can be accounted. But since Klan was asking specifically about his idea about ‘love’, I don’t really think duty or anything would need to be added. As for the ambiguous interpretation, I really do hope that yours is not the case, since his silence may foreshadow something terrible for their relationship… (That’s just me, of course)
( OT but boy, do I have to wonder how much Kawamori loves to mess with the simplest word possible :P )
Do read her works ;) You are dealing with Kaori Yuki veteran fan here ^^; Unfortunately, as long as I have lived, I have never ever seen Kawamori doing any “love=kill” logic particularly the romantic ones and I have to say, he has the ability to deliver what love truly means without having to resort to such kind of twisted relationship. At this point, Alto cares about Ranka (how much I do not know) but his hate to Vajras is more overwhelming that he would not forgive Ranka’s actions these past two episodes. I would not say that he would not forgive Ranka in the end though considering Kawamori’s past Macross works ^^ Relationship resolution would be different though…
September 12, 2008 at 11:51 amArdea
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Aaa… now I understand it…stupid me, too focused on the ‘Frontier=colony’ part (somehow forgetting the ‘Frontier=citizens’^^;)… And I maybe used a bit too strong words to express my opinion… I never wanted to say that he really hates Frontier, just to point out that it’s Alto we’re speaking about here… and Alto is…well, Alto… the image of him being dedicated to his colony seemed just absurd to me… that’s why I said it was out of question…
But now that I finally see the light on the end of the tunnel (and as I hope, explained my point of view a bit better), don’t you think that our opinions are actually quite similar? Your ‘love for Frontier’ and my ‘duty to protect’?
Which means that I didn’t really have the right to post anything, since I simply misunderstood… and was unintentionally repeating your words without bringing anything new to the discussion…
OT To me, the scene just screamed Lucifer x Mika-chan (you know, the part with Setsuna pointing his sword on Mika-chan and saying ‘because you loved him the most’)… and in my twisted mind, the first thought was: sooo tragic but soo romantic(it even brought tears to my eyes T-T)…and than I remebered whose work am I watching… but i like the whole Kawamori’s ‘peaceful solution’ idea…
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