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Summary:
In a dream world, Ranka is crying because her mother isn’t around, and she stops only when a voice proposes a good method and shows her a compound eye. At Ranka’s bedside is Ai-kun, but – after a reaction occurs in its belly – the creature scampers out of her room, pauses outside to listen to Brera play Aimo on his harmonica, and then disappears. The following day is full of celebration for Ranka’s involvement in the successful long-distance Fold, but Ranka herself is absent from the festivities because she and Brera are out searching for Ai-kun. When they stop for some ice cream, Ranka thanks Brera for helping, and he reiterates that he’s going to protect her. Also out on the town at this time are Mikhail with Kuran, and Ozma with Cathy. The latter pair are on what appears to be a date together, but they’re acting the part because they’re aware that they’re being followed. While all this is going on, Alto meanwhile tries to sneak into the Saotome home, however he finds that Yasaburo is waiting for him. Seeing Sheryl there wearing a kimono reminds Alto of his mother, but he’s brought back to his senses after she questions what he’s doing there.
When Alto asks how she’s feeling, Sheryl tells him that she’s fine, however she goes on to reveal that she’s thinking about quitting singing. In response to this, Alto points out how she had once told him and Ranka that she had gotten to where she is by taking destiny into her own hands with hard work rather than relying on just luck. Sheryl, however, claims that it was all a lie and feels that she was lying even to herself back then. Pissed off about this, Alto questions if she’s the Galactic Fairy and ends up just telling her to come to Ranka’s concert at school later that day. Meanwhile, in a research laboratory somewhere, Grace shows Leon plans for a new warhead called the MDE created from analyzing the wave characteristics of Fold Quartz and by reducing the size of the Dimension Eater. This is just bonus though since Grace is more excited about how she’s finally solved a certain mystery concerning the Queen that had eluded both Ranshe Mei and Mao Nome. All this allows Leon to move forward with his plan, and he feels that the real fun starts here.
Back at the Saotome home, Yasaburo finds Sheryl staring at a picture of Alto and his mother Miyo from many years ago. She had died when Alto was just 12 years old, but Yasaburo still remembers how she had often combed Alto’s hair on the porch. This causes Sheryl to realize that Yasaburo had taken her in so that Alto could be reminded of those times and appear on the kabuki stage again. Sheryl feels that she was useless in that regard, but Yasaburo reveals that he hasn’t given up hoping yet. He explains that appearing on stage and performing is too sweet a poison, and he describes the thrill of having everyone pay attention to you. Yasaburo feels that it’s not something that’s easily forgotten once experienced, and he thinks that Sheryl should understand that. As the afternoon wears on, Ranka meanwhile has all but given up searching for Ai-kun after failing to find him on top of the hill overlooking the city. Brera reassures her that Ai-kun will return, and after he pats Ranka on the head, she comments on how he’s like an older brother. She wonders if he has a younger sister, but Brera reveals that he has no memories of his past, and Ranka notes that this is the same as her.
Brera uses this chance to ask Ranka why she sings, and he points out that she recently hasn’t been happy about it. When he questions her again about what or whom she sings for, Ranka thinks about how she had initially told herself that she wanted to communicate to everyone, but the truth is that it was all for just Alto. Regaining some of her confidence, Ranka decides to confirm things for herself and goes ahead with her concert at Mihoshi Academy. Alto, Mikhail, and Luca provide the air stunts for the concert, and they spell out Ranka’s name in the sky, punctuating it with an image of an arrow through heart. Sheryl watches the concert from the forest nearby, but when she turns to leave, Kuran appears and tells her not to run away. Ranka then moves on to her next song, and after landing, Mikhail asks Alto about Sheryl. Alto reports that she’s moody and spiteful as usual, but what Mikhail is asking about is Alto’s relationships. Mikhail thinks that Alto should have realized that all of Ranka’s singing is for his sake, and he points out how Sheryl was also more concerned about Alto despite her own current painful situation.
This causes Alto to figure out that Mikhail knows something about Sheryl, and he feels that Mikhail is in no position to be preaching about this. In response, Mikhail admits that he’s a coward, and he talks about how they don’t know when they’re going to die. This is especially true since they’re pilots, and Mikhail goes on to concede that he’s afraid of doing things seriously, but he thinks that Alto is different. Their conversation is interrupted by the arrival of Sheryl on the school rooftop, courtesy of Kuran. Meanwhile, Luca sees the picture of Ai-kun that Nanase had drawn, and he realizes that there is a Vajra larva on the colony ship. Around this same time, Ozma and Cathy confront Leon on his planned coup d’état, but Leon just smirks and tells them that they’re too late. Leon already has a sniper stationed at the school targeting Howard Glass who had come to watch Ranka. Unaware of what else is going on, Ranka has just ended her concert and is sprinting up the stairs to the school rooftop so that she can tell Alto her feelings. When she gets there though, she is shocked to find Sheryl in Alto’s arms.
ED Sequence
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ED: 「トライアングラー」 (Triangular) by 坂本真綾 (Sakamoto Maaya)
Watch the ED!: Streaming
As if they wanted to drive home the love triangle point, the ED this week was Triangular and featured some new art.
Preview
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Well the episode sure ended with a bang, and although my initial reaction was that of excitement, after thinking about it, aren’t we a bit too deep into the series for this kind of thing? It’s still fun (as it was pointed out to me) in a School Days kind of way, but I guess I was hoping for a push towards something more definite from a series that is only about half a dozen episodes away from ending. I could still see this being the catalyst to making Alto finally choose someone, but for the time being, it’ll only lead to more confusion as Ranka now thinks that Alto prefers Sheryl, regardless of why she was in his arms (probably felt faint again). And if this doesn’t get cleared up before the major battle next episode, this could have some major negative consequences.
As for who Alto will choose – if anyone – I continue to lean towards Sheryl, but it occurred to me that her reminding Alto of his mother is kind of a bad omen for her chances. Even though it’s probably the wrong context since reminding Alto of his mother is what Yasaburo was intentionally trying to do, I can’t help but think “Oedipus complex“, and that wouldn’t end well. The problem with both Sheryl and Ranka, however, is that I’m still not convinced Alto has truly deep feelings for either of them. As I alluded to last week though, that probably has as much to do with how his character has been developed as anything else, and that’s why I’m so keen on seeing him finally make a decision. Given that things look pretty bad for the good guys in the preview and next week’s episode is titled Diamond Crevasse however, my hunch is that there’s a bigger chance of someone dying than there is of Alto making up his mind.
Incidentally, Is this what Ai-kun has become? Seemed rather odd for them to focus on it during the concert, and I can’t think of what else it could be.
Alto definitely takes from his mom’s side more than his dad’s…
hmmm this episode should be nice
Wow, Ozma can really take a sandwich…
Lol at the Dreyer’s Idy’s next to Colece.
Something seems off. When Alto is having his talk with Sheryl at the Saotome house, he gets angry when Sheryl says that her speech about grabbing her destiny for herself was all a lie. In short he doesn’t buy it. Just before he leaves, he tells Ranka’s holding a live at his school, and he’ll be flying stunts there. He tells Sheryl to be sure to come and see it. Later when the acrobat team begins drawing ‘Ranka <3’ he thinks to himself “just watch Sheryl!” … so uhm, he wanted to show her that??? Seems very out of character.
In the end, Sheryl didn’t seem notice, but Ranka did, eventually leading to the roof top scene.
Nice, this series may set an anime-record for most endings per season.
Come on alto, do the right thing, go for the woman, not the jail-bait.
“Isn’t Sheryl reminding Alto of his mother a bad omen for her chances? I can’t help but think Oedipus complex.”
Nyah, that’s overreacting. There’s been just a similar scene in Alto’s past and he saw Sheryl’s back first. I think that was just to point out, that his mother is dead and that he really loved her. That’s something about Alto’s personal troubles. Also I point out Sigmund Freud here, though that’s too complex to discuss..
“aren’t we a bit too deep into the series for this kind of thing?”
Agreed, there’s much stuff left to answer, and we have some other relationships to develop as well (e.g. Michael+Klan). Guess next week will be a quite important episode on the matter “which girl will Alto choose”. At least I hope that, for the reason Omni pointed out~
I think the annoying thing about this episode was that Ranka spent the entire episode galavanting around with Brera in Star Date fashion, but yet is upset to see Sheryl with Alto on the rooftop.
I think the comparision to Alto’s mother was in the fact that she was wearing his mother’s kimono in his mother’s room. Yasaburo’s doing, no doubt. But I don’t think that it has anything to do with Alto’s relationship with her, since he’s never made the comparison in the past.
@mutino
Just what did you think Omni meant by ‘Oedipus complex’ anyway? 😛
He meant that it hurt Ranka’s chances.
hmmm rooftop scene did remind me of school days haha but anyways I wont’ got to that length. Alto just needs to make up his damn mind already. It getting so close to the end almost and it seems he either isn’t interested or is just oblivious to both Ranka and Sheryl’s feelings. blah but the episode looks good non-the-less.
Hopefully this episode comes out subbed soon. I really want to see it. Also, now that both girls realized their feelings.. when will Alto? D:
@Yufaman
No, the opposite. I know the greek mythology perfectlc with all tales and stories. Better read the story yourself.. Also you should read what Omni wrote >.< Man people read first, then post pff.
Klan is still in her doctor get up I see. More costume changes for her imo.
Oh so that’s Alto’s mom? First i thought it was some cross-dressing shenanigans
I’m more interested in Ranka’s total obsession with all things Alto (even signing simply for him) then Alto imagining Sheryl was his mother. Any chance she’ll grow up before the end of the series? Needy doesn’t even begin to describe it.
School Days, that was a good one, I love it. Unfortunately, I don’t think we will see this kind of ending in Macross.
@mutino
Actually i did, but then managed to both misread it, and mistype my reply. Argh, i need coffee. Sorry for the mixup.
that pick of Micheal in the preview gives me a bad feeling, pineapple salad?
@huh – at least one character (maybe more) is likely to die next episode. Michael would probably provided the most emotional punch. But personally I prefer Nanase since she’s expandable and I like Michael x Klan .
What is Klan doing in the preview????
he could always take them both
Ranka takes a dump:
https://randomc.net/image/Macross/Macross%20Frontier%20-%2019%20-%20Large%2020.jpg
Looks like, they are trying to raise an Biological Weapon in this Tube. Are they repeat the same old error? Varjia is surly Galaxy first Biological Weapons to fight against the Big Ones. I think they are out of control not more needed anti-(Giant) Weapons, running free…
Nice Boat!!
AHAHAHA I loved the cliffhanger ending. Even if she’s dying Sheryl is still shown to be the bad guy so that Ranka can get the audience’s favor. Why so mean to Sheryl Kawamori? XD This is the best.
Ranka got a new song. Whaddya say Northern Cross!
Ranka sure as hell doesn’t get my sympathy. Her little issues with her school girl crush kind of pale in comparison with Sheryl’s problems.
Right. Ranka ditches her fans and the parade held in her honour to go have fun with Brera, then ditches Brera because *squeal* omg Alto confessed to her, and then gets all upset because he’d stopped to prevent a sick girl from falling rather than focusing all his attention on her. Ranka’s on top of the world and one thing didn’t go her way? How very tragic.
Did she break a nail as well?
Ranka’s new song is just as generic as all the other ones.
“Ranka’s new song is just as generic as all the other ones.”
Atleast it’s not talking about heartache unlike…erm…While Ranka was climbing those stairs I was shouting “nooo Ranka doooon’t!!” and then BAM. 🙁 Don’t worry Ranka. Alto will see the light soon. Ganbare!
#
cuote : key05 at 6:09 pm on August 14th, 2008
School Days, that was a good one, I love it. Unfortunately, I don’t think we will see this kind of ending in Macross.
——
yes now sheryl kill alto y ranka kill sheryl xD
I find it funny how everyone is ridiculing Ranka for having a “school girl crush” on Alto when she’s a school girl to begin with.
I have a feel that Klan Klan will be killed off next week
@MYM
Nothing wrong with a school girl crush, but why base her entire career on it? I still think Sheryl and Alto have the potential for a more adult relationship.
I second the though of not feeling sorry for Ranka this episode. Why should we again?
Sniper aiming @ President Glass…so he’s gonna bite the dust for sure next episode. What a dread…that means Leon’s gonna become the next Prez…someone or thing kill him already!
As for the triangle-ship bit, Sheryl still has the edge over Ranka. But this episode has me more interested in the conspiracy plot than the triangle situation. Yay for Cathy & Ozma…they looked good together.
Wow what an episode! Seems that Sheryl’s got more people rooting for her now. I was quite taken when Alto first entered the room that Sheryl was occupying. Sheryl notices also and for a brief moment you can see the pain in her eyes. She quickly puts up her masks and asks Alto, “何しに来たの”
Her conversation with Yasaburo (or actually more like him doing most of the talking) is more of Yasaburo showing Sheryl how similar Sheryl is to Alto. Then there is Michael who really wants to tell Alto the truth regarding Sheryl’s condition but has promised to keep it a secret. Then there’s Klan actually encouraging Sheryl not to run away but to face Alto.
Oh well, we shall see what comes about in the next episode which I’m dying to see. the previous poster is correct about Ranka. She had a commitment and she broke it. She has no sense of professionalism. But aside from that, I found it hilarious that Ranka misinterpreted that the arrow that Alto added inside the heart (while performing their arial stunts, was like a declaration of his feelings LOL…he was just doing his job and nothing more. While he was performing his stunts, he was also thinking of Sheryl.
I’m off, so take care!
To be frank I don’t think Alto is ready for a relationship of any kind at this point. He’s proven to be very wishy-washy and has evident daddy (and possibly even mommy) issues. Not an ideal boyfriend candidate in my opinion.
Alto looks just like his Mom, Klein’s too cute (and apparently naked in the preview for next week), and Leon and Grace are now doing the Magic Bullet thing.
… and Sheryl reminds Alto of his mom. This is usually NOT how romances start, but end… unless they’re into incest. But at least Sheryl being in Alto’s arms means that Ranka’ll have to do SOMETHING – grow up and go for the gusto, push him away, or move on.
If a girl was dressed up in your mother’s clothing in your mother’s room with her hairstyle set in the same way that your mother wears hers, wouldn’t you draw a parallel? Don’t think too hard about it.
I seriously don’t care that it is an incest….. Ranka should be with Brerea and that’s the end. seriously alll that Pikachu mode of her ‘Alto Alto Alto’ girl get a break He is a no-good man, and it would be better for you to be with another man, even if it is your brother… seriously, there are better people out there! Pink Cherry wants alto, then you should just say “go ahead and take him… away from me would be a plus too”
and Sheryl…. I seriuosly can say you past suck, you still have a beautiful future, if you want towaste it on Alto… that’s your choice, but like Ranka… you’de be better with another man U.U or maybe you can become the first Yuri-pairing of Macross by pairing up with Ranka… heck even the girl -as inmature as she is right now- is a better choice than that guy
Alto…. what can I say?… just die for the love of god! nobody likes you! Well just the director… and that’s why you won’t die, but you can dissapear for the end right?
Someone who has better Japanese skills can come and correct me if they want but I believe Ranka’s newest song is called, “Anata no oto” or “Your sound”. How cute lol They might play this song past ep 22 the way they promoted Seikan Hikou. I hope. ^_^
Anyhow, as much as I like seeing Alto getting worked up over Ranka’s sake, I feel like the RankaxAlto gets pushed forward the most when they’re focusing on Ranka. The drama just peaked in this episode and I’m loving it much like in ep 11. It was so adorable when Ranka realized that it was Alto whom she wanted to sing for the most and she had all this flashbacks of him (from before she was famous) to go with the nice BGM. Kudos to the staff for such a perfect moment. I’ll stop here before I turn into a cheese. =_=
Ranka’s quest for stardom never really revolved around pleasing the people, so I don’t know why people are appalled with this “sudden revelation”. Ranka always shone the brightest when Alto was involved and that’s what the story has always been saying. The story does not see Ranka’s feelings for Alto as a bad thing. It’s purely the opposite, and that pretty much is all that matters no matter how hard the others whine.;) If you don’t like it, don’t watch it. Simple.
Looks like they recycled a lot of scenes here. I didn’t see much people complaining, but it just felt weird to me. I have another crazy theory about the Vajra. Ranka is probably from Galia 4 and she probably came across the Vajra queen for some reason. It took a liking to her thus it acted like its her mother. 😐 She seemed to be looking for a mother figure in her dream.
Perfect moment? She remembered him in the middle of a date with Brera. >_<
@tired of nonsensical triangles- Hey want to cheer SherylxYasaburo with me? Sheryl should replace Alto as Sakura hime bunsho and get it on with Yasaburo! Her career should not die. Alto who? Galactic Fairy doing Enka—>Perfect ending scenario for Shery.
ani_d I respect your ability to ignore half the episode and just focus on what works for your shipper theories, not what actually happened. that level of denial is not easy to come by. kudos.
This Macross is definitely a “What if Minmey won Hikaru” kind of Macross. No mistaking it. Howard Glass lived to see another episode but how long will this last? Maybe some Survivor song from the Destiny’s child can cheer him up. The Macross Frontier citizens don’t even want to see him. He’s just an old man with a mustache to them. Instead of people pitying Ranka and Sheryl, pity Howard Glass!
I wonder if Michael managed to doom himself with a self-fulfilling prophesy. When he was dodging around telling Alto that Sheryl was dying, he ended up saying, ‘we’re pilots, we could die any time.’ It appears that Klan is going to have a ‘serious talk’ with him next episode, making it a perfect time for him to meet a tragic end -_-;…
@mel
LoL Please don’t tell me you’re actually trying to say that the story is portraying Ranka’s feelings for Alto as something that is bad for her.
Please don’t tell me that you’re actually trying to say that the story portraying Ranka as ditching her fans and the president of Frontier and trying to date two guys at once is something that is good for her.
@ani_d
LOL! Oh I wouldn’t dare suggest being needy and clinging to someone without question while knowing nearly nothing about them is bad. Who cares if she makes all of her life decisions on the basis of a crush? That’s not so bad. So what if she can communicate to the Vajra, but fails to tell anyone because Alto tells her she’s doing the right thing? I mean, perish the thought she had a mind of her own and stood up for something. Ranka is a real role model is girls everywhere. Her pure love is wonderful! ^_^
Let me guess: alto’s mom taught him how to make paper airplanes?
https://randomc.net/image/Macross/Macross%20Frontier%20-%2019%20-%2016.jpg
LOL mel, u r fucking immatured dude
TRUE DAT!! we to late fo these kinda shennanigans. time to wrap it up b. or we gonna end up with a rushed finaly . oHH WELL!! as usual DAMN YOU!! kuran klan U ARE TOO FUC#ING CUTE!!!
at the last preview image: it appears that klan klan is in her nude adult form
I’m still expecting Klan’s miclonization issue to be fixed before the end of the season, so that she can end up with Michel (if he lives that long… we’ll see), maybe that’s why he looks so surprised (she’s definitely not towering over him in that image, but she’s also not loli).
mr vajra (aka 1 one of the ranka fans here in RC) @ u r fucking immatured dude
You are making the ranka side look really fucking bad. 🙁
more michelxklan please!
i am getting frustrated about the rankaxaltoxsheryl triangle. (T_T)
alto’s mom does look like him a lot except for the sort of purple hair.
well y the episode it 9 min tell me the story about that fuck episode 9 min x.x
It’s funny how many people mistook the whole “Looking for Ai-Kun with Brera” as a “Dropping from Duty for being Lovey Lovey” Date, the only close thing to a date was the ice-cream part and it was more like “This is a Thank You and i’m Sorry for dragging you in my quest looking for my missing alien pet”, the whole thinking about her feelings for Alto and all was just part of her development, let’s face it, Ranka was never 100% sure, the same way Sheryl isn’t either or is half not accepting it because of her strong minded attitude towards him, this episode probably made the girls hit the 100% realization.
Instead of trying to make Ranka look like some silly spoiled girl and Sheryl be the one with the issues, why don’t you see both with Issues since it’s pretty much the real case? Ranka may had someone like Ozma to not let them get the best of her while Sheryl had the bad luck of being the tool of the token “Just as Planned” character of the series, aka Grace, but if you think about it, both girls pretty much are quite similar in many aspects including their own share of problematic and not so happy pasts, and just different in the personality aspects. Each girl have a different way to approach Alto and each one tends to focus on an aspect of him that the other doesn’t, while Sheryl seems to focus on knowing his past and at some point being able to fulfill his desire to fly on a endless sky, Ranka approaches him through their equal situations, both were people striving for their respective dreams that not many understood and thought it wasn’t good for them, but at some point they succedded and were accepted for that.
^ Agreed with Za Third. This whole “putting down another character to make another character look good” deal is getting ridiculous.
@Za Third: Exactly my sentiments for this episode. Some Sheryl fans are just twisting the scene and made it into a scene that will support their ‘I am disappointed in Ranka’ tirade.
And, I just don’t know why people (in some forum) say that Ranka misunderstood Alto when he made an arrow through the <3 Ranka sign in the air. She DIDN’T misunderstand anything because in the first place she didn’t assume that Alto DID say the ‘I love you’ to her. She isn’t stupid enough to assume just because it was Alto who did the arrow thingy. (If she were to misunderstand, she would probably misunderstand that it was Mikhail confessing to her because Mikhail was the ONE who made the heart.) It was all part of the air acrobat thingy and nothing more. It was just artistic effect that the anime staff made that and followed it with Ranka’s thought of ‘I knew it. I… afterall…’ Which is Ranka getting/understanding her feelings. Not Alto’s but HERS. This was when she finally realized that she does love Alto and thus brings about the scene of her running into the cliche scene of ‘I saw the guy I like hugging another girl’.
That said, I’m finally appeased.
I also agree with Za Third too
I thought Ranka was being a spoiled brat again for ditching her work just to search for Ai-kun. I was reminded of the time she was being sulky at Ozma for something and ditched school just to make trouble for someone else to go and find her. Even though she knows that her voice can help save Frontier, yet instead of making a “if there’s something I can do to help everybody, I want to do it” reason for singing, she simply forgets everyone else and thinks of Alto. Her flashbacks weren’t even about Alto saving her life, it was just that she herself was happy while being with him. She never even thought about Ozma, the borther who raised her up all this time. Talk about self-centered and selfish…*rolls eyes*
I really don’t understand how Ranka chose to sing for Alto over than Ozma and Nanase (e.g. she loves him). It’s not like she cares much about Alto saving her life so many times and she’s in gratitude mode. Alto only encouraged her a bit now and then. Ranka already has plenty of people encouraging her including a caring brother, a good best friend and Mikhail and Luca too – they’re all her fanclub. Ranka treasuring only Alto’s encouragement comes to me as lame and biased. Sheryl being attached to Alto makes more sense, she has no family, no best friends and Grace apparently has taken care of her while thinking of her as nothing. Her emotional support came from her earrings until she met Alto, who was the first person who never treated her like a star and that’s big enough to make Sheryl think of him as special.
If I were Ranka, I’d blush more over Brera’s “I’ll protect you”. Hey, someone telling that he’ll protect you is way cool! I’d also notice Alto was giving encouragement mainly because he was being a nice and polite.
@Za Third
Are you sure you’re not mistaking people for mistaking [“Looking for Ai-Kun with Brera” as a “Dropping from Duty”] for [ “Looking for Ai-Kun with Brera” as a “Dropping from Duty for being Lovey Lovey Date” ]?
The “lovely dovey date” part makes a big difference, you know coz without it the sentence is fully true.
This episode really made me think Ranka is a silly spoiled girl though. I’m not surprised others think like that too. It’s a feeling this episode gives.
AltoxRanka is very slowly dying. I read somewhere that Alto finds out soon, and he quickly runs to sheryl. Meaning, noting happened this episode and ranka freaks out for nothing. 😀
@Yukiruchan:
I don’t really call it dropping from duty but rather, prioritizing what is more important. Rather than partying with people (jeez, it’s not like people will die if she didn’t come. she already saved them by singing, can’t she have some time off to do stuff for herself?) she wanted to look for her lost pet which is very important for her since she treats Ai-kun as a friend (who cheered her up during lonely times).
AND the time with Ozma was her being a bit childish all right but she has grown over that and this time she is not ‘ditching work’ just for rebellious reasons. And even though she realizes that she sings for Alto the most, that doesn’t mean she will forget her desire to save people by her songs. She didn’t say that there did she? She only realized that there was a reason far more important that made her sing (i.e. Alto). Which led her to realize her feelings for the guy too.
And the guy deserves credit for being chosen as Ranka’s reason. Who was the one who pushed her when she was hesitating? Who was the one who supported her (even though at times very prank XD)? Who was the one who saved her lots of times? Sure Ranka also knows others are there to support her but the biggest push for her to sing WAS Alto. It doesn’t mean that others’ sentiments are being belittled at all.
Sheryl also found Alto as support but just because she has nothing doesn’t mean she can have Alto. What is this? A pity solicitation? Sheryl never used her no family, no friends and no home as a reason for people to choose her. Instead, she build up her strength so that people will see that strength in her and love her for that. So why should we say, “Poor Sheryl got nothing so she can have Alto.” I think Sheryl wouldn’t want that. Look at why she doesn’t want Mikhail to tell Alto about her sickness. It’s because she doesn’t want Alto to choose her because of pity AND doesn’t want to burden Alto.
And Alto doesn’t say, “I’ll protect you.” just to be nice and polite. Remember in ep 3, Sheryl scolded him for not comforting Ranka when she was scared. Alto reasoned out that he will say ‘I”ll protect you’ if he can. Exact words, “I’ll say it how many times you want. But with the way I am now…” But when he became an SMS pilot he did try to protect both Ranka and Sheryl many times because he CARED not because he was polite.
Just a note, Ranka did blush with Brera’s ‘I’ll protect you’ line. ^^
@yuKime
thank you, thank you… and one more time…thank you…
Finally a post about the Ranka-Alto-Sheryl triangle that is understanding towards all the participating parties and doesn’t wish death to any one of them.
In my opinion, your interpretation is pretty close to the actual state of the affair.The girls BOTH love the boy, the boy cares about BOTH and what’s admirable…the girls DO NOT hate each other. Just look at the OP and ED animation. Ranka and Sheryl aren’t portrayed as rivals, they seem to be friends or allies. Now isn’t that beautiful? Instead of jealousy and hatred, it’s friendship (or at least respect and understanding)that connects them.
And that’s why(even though I personally like Ranka a wee bit more)I’d like to say hurray! for the both girls XD
LOL @ sia. I don’t care if that makes ranka side look really bad cuz i’m not her fangirl naturally, heh
Owh btw, i’m simply a macross series fan, not a fangal. Find another ranka’s fangal to argue ok? 😉
…and i’m too old for irc, sweetie. cheers~
mr vajra @ you can type properly. so why do you troll?
Who said anything about IRC?
someday we must ask omni to do an ip-check.
Well this episode pretty much confirmed a sherylxalto ending, it’s clear that Ranka’s loss in this triangle will result in her maturing. Ranka’s self centered attitude is in clear contrast to the selfishness of Sheryl, better luck in your after Frontier love life Ranka.
Ranks is being self centered and everyone encourages her I remember even when ranka wasn’t famous sherly used encourage Ranka now Ranka makes sheryl look like her enemy just cuz of alto.
Oh the Denial.:)
@Yukime
“Sheryl also found Alto as support but just because she has nothing doesn’t mean she can have Alto. What is this? A pity solicitation? Sheryl never used her no family, no friends and no home as a reason for people to choose her.”
True. This is why it’s really annoying to see people say that Sheryl should be with Alto because she has lost everything. It’s like if Sheryl can’t be the songstress of the Galaxy, she’s better off being a housewife? I really want to see Sheryl pick her game up and show Grace and everyone that she can get back on her feet for a counter. If she gets through this trial, her success story will be for real. She will not drown in misery and crumble in pieces of heap if Alto doesn’t get together with her.
Alto picking Sheryl just because she is dying is another pity trip if it really does happen. He can encourage her all he wants, since y’know she needs it for now, but to actually fall for her just because she’s going to be gone soon? I don’t think any person would want someone to fall for them just because they’re dying. It’s demeaning. They’re probably play this scenario (or something similar) soon though just to hype up the drama. It’s not really impossible with Alto like this, but I doubt it’ll work till the end. I thought Sheryl would talk to Alto about her mom, but she just reminded him of her and that’s usually a bad start for a romance. You can say I was expecting a lot more from their ‘talk’ here but was disappointed. Ah well…
On another note, I also enjoyed the BreraxRanka scenes here especially when he patted Ranka’s head. (Seems like everyone wants to pat her head) Brera’s brotherly tendencies are kicking in. ^__^
Hey ani_d, what happened to your #2 Ranka fan Michael? :p 😉
Lol did anyone notice how so many characters got the ugly stick this episode (especially Mihail)? The quality really took a dive, but that seems to happen a lot after huge battle scene episodes.
Anyway, I’m excited to see how the conspiracy finally comes to a head and how we find out just what Ai-kun is. If she is indeed an immature Vajira queen, it’s going to be interesting to see all the emotional conflicts that happen when they try to kill her. I’m wondering though how Ranka will realize it’s Ai-kun if she has indeed metamorphosed into her more intimidating alien form.
And come on Sheryl there’s more to life than Alto! I hope she doesn’t completely give up on her singing because of everything Grace did to her. I was pretty sure that if there’s anyone who’s got the guts to put up a fight for her love of singing, it should be her. It’s just going to be such a plot cop-out if she just gets the pity treatment. If she gets Alto in the end, it shouldn’t be through such an anticlimactic manner.
Yeah Michael was real bad… and they made it worse by having some flashback scenes of him too lol…
damnt ranka what a lame character…. next chap she will say never sing again just cuz she got dumped
AltoxRanka fans is whining about how it’ll be so bad if Alto chooses Sherly out of pity when Klan Klan had to force her to even get there. AltoxRanka is much worse if Alto chooses ranka: compared to sheryl, they have nothing. not as much story, not as much development. sorry but it’s true.
@Ardea
Definitely don’t want death for any of the three. But I do want Alto to end up with Ranka because I see their relationship more developed (forget that Ranka looks like 12). Besides, I never wanted Alto to choose based on looks alone. <.<
The song Triangular really did a great job this episode. The lyrics fit soooo well. X3
@Westlo:
Nothing was confirmed this episode yet. If I were to bet my whole money, I think I’d wait for RankaxAlto conversation first next episode before assuming the pair ending. ^^
@Loliu:
Ranka never looked at Sheryl as an ‘enemy’ because of Alto. Sure she gets depressed that Sheryl is with Alto but she never hated Sheryl for that. They have healthy competition not a fight that wants to push the other person down.
@ani_d
Yay for more Ranka fans (well, I know there are MORE Sheryl ones but still..)! True. I think Alto realizing his feelings for Sheryl just because she’s dying is a bit… unromantic and unreal. If I were Sheryl, I wouldn’t be happy. Besides, maybe Sheryl can still be cured!
The talk was really disappointing (even for me who is not a Sheryl fan). I mean, Alto and Sheryl only clashed and the possibility of a sweet reunion sank and seemed to leave a bitter taste (Alto storming off). On the other hand, Ranka and Alto didn’t interact for almost two episodes now and their reunion broke Ranka’s heart. I hope Alto and Ranka’s conversation will be more meaningful than what happened in this episode with Sheryl and Alto.
And I also loved the cute BreraxRanka moment. Brera really was like an older brother. ^^ Guess even if he doesn’t remember Ranka, he still feels their connection somehow. Their bg music was heartfelt too.
@sia:
Sheryl came their on HER OWN. Klan Klan only told her NOT to run away. So there was no force coming from Klan to bring Sheryl there. Klan Klan only made Sheryl realize that she has to face Alto now instead of running on her own again.
And how can you say Alto and Ranka have nothing? Didn’t you watch the whole Macross F series? Sorry but it’s NOT true. Alto and Sheryl have their connection but Alto and Ranka also have their connection, which is more emphasized too.
Alto and Sheryl didn’t just clash, Alto flipped back at Sheryl the words from episode 3 that played a part in him joining SMS (since he pretty much regurgitated them to Ozma). The manga never had the Aimo hill scene and I think Alto’s reaction to Sheryl saying she never believed that shows those words had an effect on him….
Did anyone else notice the connection with Alto’s mother always pulling his hair back, and how Ranka also did so??
Well I don’t care how the triangle ends…all I really want is to find out what happened to Minmay, Hikaru and Misa! >__< Although I’m sure it’ll never happen….
Klan will confess to Mikhail next episode for sure, especially after his speech to Alto. The preview was probably her telling him right before they take off for a battle or something.
And the cliffhanger, “Do You Remember Love?” pivotal scene anyone? Cuz’ that is totally where that came from. Although I think Sheryl’s head was in his chest either cuz’ she was coughing or crying.
@Westlo: Manga and anime are different anyway. If I’m not mistaken, the anime went first before the manga, right? But going back to the anime, yes Sheryl did impact Alto wanting to join SMS but I still think Alto should have stayed with Sheryl more to know why she’s suddenly saying that. Alto wouldn’t talk to understand Sheryl more. That’s what I’m getting at. He just left her. That’s what I’m disappointed about.
@Naru: Ranka only did that once in ep13. But it was definitely a sweet scene. ^^ When I paused the scene where Sheryl and Alto are ‘hugging’, I saw that they weren’t really hugging. Sheryl was only leaning at Alto. Probably she felt dizzy or something. Alto didn’t have his arms around her indeed. So Ranka misunderstood, I think. (Who can blame her? Alto looked guilty. XD)
yuKime: If Ranka X Alto would happen at this point, it would be a terrible relationship. Ranka is completely leaning on Alto as the focal point of everything she does. It´s like the crush from hell. Imagine that the genders were reversed, wouldn´t a guy crushing to this degree on a girl freak the hell out of you?
And I´m not even taking into account how Ranka looks so disgustingly like a loli.
@Magnus:
Why would it be terrible? Sure Ranka depends on Alto but not completely on everything she does. Sure she realized she’s singing for him but that doesn’t mean she’s forgotten every other reasons. It’s just that she realizes that Alto is the person she’d want to sing for THE MOST. If Ranka’s actions all revolved in Alto, how come she has friends supporting her, and fans cheering her? Ranka has a LIFE that doesn’t only include Alto. Did she complain when she didn’t see Alto for the past few days (when she became famous) especially after her Aimo-saves-Macross-Frontier revelation? Did she run to Alto when her pet Ai-kun is missing? She can stand up on her on at times but being in doubt is only normal too. And when in doubt, of course you consult someone you trust (e.g. friends or family). And Alto is the one Ranka confides to the most because she feels that Alto understands her the most.
It’s not a crush from hell. Crush from hell = stalker. Since when did Ranka show tendencies of stalking Alto in the show? Never.
I just hope next episode will not start with Alto going into “This is not what you think” mode. Because it’s getting really old … and irritating. Make up your mind already!
You know, the problem wasn’t simply that she skipped the parade. At the very worst, she could have tried to notify somebody that she couldn’t come, rather than leave everyone waiting for her to show up. And it’s not that she was even all that worried about Ai-kun: it would have been one thing if she was desperately searching for it, but it seemed like she was just having fun with Brera the whole time. To make matters worse, she quickly forgets about Ai-kun and the whole thing just turns into a date.
The whole thing smacks of a whim. She feels like looking for Ai-kun, so she looks for him. She feels like going on a date with Brera, so she does so. She feels like getting Alto’s attentions… and gets upset when Alto isn’t waiting for her with open arms, because he’s tending to a sick girl.
I think part of the problem is that she’s been basking in so much praise lately that she’s forgotten the basics: the fans are the people who make her who she is, and that she sings for their sake. Back in episode three, she declared that she wanted people to hear her sing. Not just Alto. Everyone. Even the parade, with it’s Ranka floats, reeks of a sort of pomposity that was never present for Sheryl’s concerts. Grace has lead Ranka off course, and it’s high time that Ranka gets her feet back on the ground and remember what she was really fighting for.
yuKime: Again, imagine that Ranka would be a guy, and Alto a girl. View the relationship interactions from that angle? Do you still like it that much as before?
@jacobian: The parade was for the successful folding the made and a thank you too because Ranka helped out by distracting the Vajra. It’s not like Ranka was there to see her fans, she was supposed to go to the parade to celebrate with the people NOT bask in her glory that she’s the almighty singer of hope that everyone loves. Now, of course she will prioritize looking for Ai-kun BECAUSE Ai-kun might be in trouble (the alien pet is LOST who knows what happened to it?). Ranka did her duty of saving people by singing isn’t that enough? Now, if you call ditching a PARTY for looking for a lost friend unreasonable, I think that’s wrong. AND Ranka isn’t having fun ALL the time she was with Brera. It WASN’T a date and didn’t look like it at all. The whole time they were searching for Ai-kun and the only time they did stop was to get ice cream since it was almost time for Ranka’s concert. Of course they had to stop looking since Ranka knew she had her DUTY to do (i.e. the concert). But before that, the scene at the hill where Ranka was depressed, did that look like someone who went on a date? Compare that with how Alto and Sheryl dated in Star Date (now that WAS more like a date since they enjoyed the whoooooole time). Ranka was still worried about Ai-kun till the last minute she was with Brera.
She didn’t feel like getting Alto’s attention. What she did was REALIZE her feelings for Alto and obviously, tell him those feelings. Now, imagine yourself about to confess only to find the guy you like with another girl, ‘hugging’. Would you be cheering? Of course you’d be upset?
@Magnus: Again, interaction wise, it would be disturbing if you switched Ranka’s actions and Alto’s actions and tell me to imagine it. Why? Because Ranka’s actions are feminine and Alto’s are masculine. If a guy suddenly blushed around so much and stuttered to a girl who doesn’t even realize anything at all… well, isn’t it disturbing?
Your argument though doesn’t make sense to me because it proves nothing to me.
But taking Ranka and Alto’s interactions as it is (no switching gender), it’s not disturbing at all but completely normal. Guys often act nonchalant on things and sometimes never notice others’ feelings towards them. Girls tend to seek advice from their friends when in doubt.
yuKime: Okay, then. Let´s play another game.
Switch Altos and Sheryls gender. Replay all episodes with that in mind. Ignore hilarious stuff about male-Sheryl going to female-Alto for “his” earrings. 😀
Interestingly, their relationship *still works* with a gender-swap. While Ranka X Altos relationship *does not*. That should tell you something about the respective quality of those relationships.
The parade isn’t the same thing as a gift. If Ranka didn’t want to attend the celebrations, then she could have told them. Even if it was a last minute cancellation, she could have notified someone ahead of time so that everyone wouldn’t be left standing around waiting for her like fools.
Now if Ai-kun was such a big deal, then she would have been looking for him seriously. But instead, she’s got a laid back attitude the whole time. Brera seems to be more serious about looking than she is. Now if they were that pressed for time, then why get ice cream, and then go off to enjoy the view from the hill? They have plenty of time to sit around giving extended chats about why Ranka sings, but not enough time to look for Ai-kun?
You can’t compare Ranka’s situation here with Star Date because Sheryl went out with Alto on her time off, rather than skipping work. The rest of the time, she was busy preparing every last detail of her concerts, and giving out interviews (even when she was tired from her flight!) In fact, I daresay that if Ranka put in the same amount of effort in preparing for her concerts as Sheryl did, she would have known that the heart in the sky was just part of the choreography for her concert.
I would have hoped that Ranka knew about her feelings for Alto beforehand, if she was competing with Sheryl for his attentions earlier.
@Magnus: So this game proves that Alto and Sheryl fit more because they can switch gender roles? Err… is that a criteria you look for so that a relationship will work? You switch qualities and then try to see if you still click together?
I’m sorry but that didn’t tell me anything at all. Switching qualities/gender doesn’t having anything to do with having a relationship. Each quality of both parties should be their own, not switched.
@jacobian: Even if she wasn’t there, the celebration still continued. Sure she bailed out without telling anyone but I think she only did that because she’s afraid she won’t be allowed to bail out if she asked permission.
And where did you see she was laid back? She was as serious as Brera in looking for Ai-kun. In fact, Brera wouldn’t look for Ai-kun if Ranka didn’t so she’s still the one who is most concerned. Why get ice cream? BECAUSE she wanted to show her thanks to Brera even though it was useless searching she appreciated his help. She isn’t some selfish girl who’d drag people in her search for a lost pet without considering their feelings. Of course she knew Brera was already beat and tired so they had to rest. So they got ice cream as a thank you. Well, if you’re asking why Ranka got herself ice cream too instead of just Brera if it was a thank you, well, okay, she’s hungry herself so she felt like getting ice cream. And the hill part, they weren’t there to enjoy the view. They went there since they thought they can find Ai-kun there. After all, Ranka met Ai-kun there most of the time. The conversation afterwards is Brera bringing up the subject. What do you want Ranka to do? Not answer Brera’s question on whom does she sing for and keep saying, ‘Let’s go and look for Ai-kun. Poor Ai-kun is lost!’
I wasn’t comparing the date on terms of ditching work blah blah, I was comparing Star Date to the ‘alleged’ date you are pointing out between Brera and Ranka. Like I said, it was nothing like a date since they are searching for a pet and not relaxing or playing around.
And, like I said before too, Ranka DIDN’T ASSUME anything when she saw Alto putting the arrow through the <3 RANKA sign. She knew it was part of the choreography air acrobatics. The line she said was, ‘That’s it. I knew it. I… after all’ refers to her realizing HER feelings for Alto NOT Alto’s feelings for her. It was just the anime’s staff’s artistic thinking that made Ranka realize her feelings 100% when she saw the sign Alto made. She didn’t assume anything. Not at all.
@yuKime
Why would it be terrible? Sure Ranka depends on Alto but not completely on everything she does.
It’s terrible because neither can grow in that type of relationship. Their roles are set. If either changes, what becomes of the relationship? It’s a dead end affair and nothing other then that. Name one major thing she ever did without some thoughts of Alto, or reassurance of Alto, or just Alto in general. I can’t think of anything.
It’s funny you stay stalkers, since Ranka is barely one step above.
I notice…that most of the Ranka fans that pop out once in a while are like essay writers and very rational. 🙂 When Ranka saw Alto put the arrow, my first impression was that she thought Alto loves her too, but you’re right. She said, ‘I see, as I thought…’atashi’ meaning she’s talking about herself lol! I didn’t catch that.
@westlo
Is it because the subs hasn’t come out yet so you couldn’t tell? Really, leave Mikhail alone, he was even having the time of his life in Ranka-chan’s revenge concert–as expected from Ranka fan #2. He’ll stay that way. If you’re looking for a full pledged Sheryl supporter in MF, then that’s Klan Klan for you. Yay right? Finally an all out Sheryl supporter. 😉 So it looks like Ranka has a new song equivalent to Sheryl’s Northern Cross, and this one doesn’t talk about pain from love. Your Sheryl “super move” better watch out lol
@Naru
“Did anyone else notice the connection with Alto’s mother always pulling his hair back, and how Ranka also did so??”
Yes! It was a cute scene. I thought it was just a random “make AltoxRanka look cute” gimmick from the staff, but it was actually in Alto’s character. This is probably the reason why Alto would endure being called a girl rather than cut his hair. His mom loved his hair.
Anyway, all these criticisms on Ranka are getting silly. =_= The girl is.in.love.with.Alto. Again, she’s in love with Alto. The reason why her fame and fans can’t fulfill her is because her heart is with Alto. She just realized it. Criticize this anime character and it’s like you criticize all of the people for falling in love with their ‘special person’ and acting irrationally. Leave lil ol’ Ranka alone, geez. =/ Discriminating a girl with her pure feelings is going a little overboard.
@yuKime
“Sure she bailed out without telling anyone but I think she only did that because she’s afraid she won’t be allowed to bail out if she asked permission.”
Oh, so she left her fans out to dry because it was more convenient for her that way?
“And where did you see she was laid back? She was as serious as Brera in looking for Ai-kun. In fact, Brera wouldn’t look for Ai-kun if Ranka didn’t so she’s still the one who is most concerned.”
Brera was the one doing more of the searching. She was busy teasing him and flirting with him.
“Why get ice cream? BECAUSE she wanted to show her thanks to Brera even though it was useless searching she appreciated his help. She isn’t some selfish girl who’d drag people in her search for a lost pet without considering their feelings. Of course she knew Brera was already beat and tired so they had to rest.”
Brera is a cyborg. What makes you think that he’d run out of energy so quickly?
“I wasn’t comparing the date on terms of ditching work blah blah, I was comparing Star Date to the ‘alleged’ date you are pointing out between Brera and Ranka. Like I said, it was nothing like a date since they are searching for a pet and not relaxing or playing around.”
But she was playing around, the entire time. We’ve seen Ranka when she’s worried about something, like during the Galia-4 incident. This was not one of those times.
“And, like I said before too, Ranka DIDN’T ASSUME anything when she saw Alto putting the arrow through the <3 RANKA sign. She knew it was part of the choreography air acrobatics. The line she said was, ‘That’s it. I knew it. I… after all’ refers to her realizing HER feelings for Alto NOT Alto’s feelings for her. It was just the anime’s staff’s artistic thinking that made Ranka realize her feelings 100% when she saw the sign Alto made. She didn’t assume anything. Not at all.”
The heart said “RANKA”. How does that relate to her feelings for Alto? It’s obviously the other way around. That was the reason that she was so shocked to see Sheryl: Ranka was expecting Alto to be waiting for her on the roof with open arms.
@ani_d: The problem isn’t that Ranka is in love with Alto. If you love someone and want to sacrifice everything for them, go ahead. But you cannot make others sacrifice for the sake of your love. If Ranka wanted to just sing for Alto, then she didn’t have to try to achieve stardom in the first place. But she decided that she “wanted to be heard”, and she decided to become the saviour of Frontier; and the people depend on her now. To accept that sort of responsibility and then throw it away when you don’t feel like following through is a terrible thing. If she’s truly a hero, she’ll follow this through to the end, and then come back to Alto when the job’s done.
Ouch. Ranka just saw Alto doing something with Sheryl. Alto looked guilty and Sheryl’s face screams “wut beetch?” LOLOLOLOL!!!! Who’s the underdog now? Y’all should get a clue which girl Kawamori will make Alto choose in the end now yet y’all still arguing. After this, it’s hands down Ranka! Stop feeling sorry for Sheryl, she’s not gonna die. She’s gonna enka her way back to the top.
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Ranka got pwned in the end
Mikhail really got hit with the ugly stick this episode.
I think the best thing for to do is to wait until the ending, there are characters that still have room for character development. I find it a bit pointless to debate when we haven’t seen the whole picture yet.
You guys do make this blog interesting though. 😛
@lux
my feelings exactly. and lol did Mikhail get the worst of the ugly stick.
If you think this blog is interesting now, wait til Alto hime-kun finally makes up his mind on who he wants. That should be hontou ni omoshiroi desu ne. (^o^)v
Look at Brera’s face backstage…Hrmm…I smell a siscon!!! It’s gold to see Alto’s dopey look when Ranka found him and Sheryl out. He looked shocked! XO Sheryl was emtionless as always.
I wish Ranka would uppercut Alto to galactic center but I’m too sure she’ll just laugh and say oops pardon! then cry on her own. Alto will follow her later on after he spends some quality time with sheryl. He’ll go ‘H-hey, nice concert’. If he does this….Fail! School days comes to mind. I feel Michael’s pain (i’d want Alto to pick Ranka) but Alto should start making some moves next episode. He shld be aware now.
I love Ranka’s new song!!! Diamond crevasse ED theme next!
yuKime: I just find it very revealing that if you change genders on Sheryl and Alto their relationship still works, while if you change genders on Ranka and Alto, Ranka suddenly becomes “weird stalker guy”. It tells me something about the respective quality of the relationship. I.e. Sheryl and Alto fit much, much better together.
ani_D: One well-written fan doesn´t make “most”.
I typically don’t post but I had to say something.
I know everyone is concerned about the relationship between Alto, Sheryl and Ranka but isn’t the main point of this episode is that there are Vajra partying with everyone at the concert.
https://randomc.net/image/Macross/Macross%20Frontier%20-%2019%20-%20Large%2026.jpg
So…..
A. Vajra aren’t as “mindless” as people want them to seem to be(by the way already knew that from previous eps.).
B. If that is an adult or teen Ai then won’t Ranka be traumatized even more when she finds out she has been mindlessly helping kill his little brothers and sisters.(and maybe her cousins)
Oh, and C. How the *uck to you not know there are Vajra right next to you?
I find this interesting. In the opening each character has their respective color. Alto – blue, Sheryl – pink and Ranka – green. And in ‘heart in the sky’ scene you may notice, that heart is blue and arrow is pink. It’s like Sheryl piercing Alto’s heart. Nice. Although i don’t really think this gives any clue about future plot development.
Ani_d, I think you might remember me back after episode 12 referring to Sheryl’s super move being a “daigo”, now what Daigo did is parry a super attempt when nearly dead and than unleash his own super which he wins with. Everything I know points towards Sheryl doing a daigo, episode titles (notice the order 😉 ), recent information and other stuff.
And I find your Ranka’s new song has no pain comment in it hilarious since you think that bodes well for Ranka. And this new song is like a candle to NC’s sun.
It’s funny how some are trying to cover up yet more Ranka selfishness as being something else. This whole episode just shows that she hasn’t changed much character wise. She has gotten more confidence, but it was always there hidden. It’s not like she had none.
But she’s still thinking about herself and herself with Alto. Even more in this episode. This episode also shows clearly the difference between what the two girls feel for Alto. Ranka is still in the school girl (which she is) crush category. Sheryl has a more mature and all around adult mindset towards her relationship with Alto.
People People! The love triangle plot isn’t as complex as some might think. It’s the typical Macross formula + fluf for added drama. I mean they do need to make it last for 20 something episodes. You have to look in the previous Macross titles to see with whom Alto has the most chances to score with 😛 It’s usually the person the main character spends the least amount of relationship time that ends up with him (or her in the case of Macross Plus). Look at the original Macross Hikaru and Minmey spends tons of time together, Hikaru ends up with Misa. Macross 2 doesn’t count because it wasn’t made by Kawamori (but same rule applies anyway). Macross plus Myung spends more time with Guld and ends up with Isamu (oh yea you see it at the end of the show). Macross 7, actually I don’t know, I haven’t watch this one cause I find it really silly to play guitar in a valkyrie and beat up baddies with Sonic attacks. But I think Basara Gamlin and Mylene were still working out the triangle thing at the end of the series. Macross 7 Trash (manga) was a lot less about the love triangle because the main dude’s flirt with his trainer comes to a rapid halt. Most of all, he spends most of the time without his love intrest so there. Macross Zero, I don’t remember much about this one actually, but he does share a kiss with the sister of the girl he ends up with (even if he dies at the end). So all this to say that those who want Alto to end up with Sheryl are out of Luck, if the formula stays true, Sheryl has absolutely NO chance of being with Alto. Honestly, the first Macross was good, story everything, but the repeated formula made the series go a bit on the crap side. Still I watch it because Macross always show the best designs for mechas.
Dark V
– Ah, but you look at the flow of the story. 😉 The outburst and intensity of Alto and Sheryl’s scenes in this episode is the result of the gradual but firm development they had for the past eighteen episodes. It’s not the formula that decides the outcome, it’s the events that lead up to it, and this also applies to the original Macross. 🙂 Right now, Sheryl is doing her best to push Alto away to face her death alone, while Ranka is doing everything she can to reach Alto. The ball is now in Alto’s court, it’s time for him to confront his feelings.
Yea… I dunno. Seriously, once you’ve seen one you’ve seen pretty much all of them. They stick so much to the formula that you basically look at the same 1984 anime (yep it’s been that long). Different actors same things. I mean if Alto was a real man… he would have been with Sheryl 10 episodes ago at least. But he acts like a princess 1/2 the time! Get it! 😛 No no! In all seriousness, you say the flow doesn’t dictate the outcome, but the formula does and it’s a shame because you start to expect some sort of different story after 5 series. It’s like they have a script that 20 years old and they just have blank spaces on the names of the main characters. Even the origins of the Love triangle is a typical macross formula. Alto the Underdog joins army… hmmm… Hikaru? Ranka a young girl from nowhere becomes Idol? Minmey? (actually in the early drafts of the original Macross, it was supposed to be a comedy and Minmey was originally a noodle restaurant waitress, much like Ranka). You say Sheryl is pushing away Alto? Hmmm… didn’t Misa do the same wih Hikaru because she had the ghost of her Boyfriend (figurative) haunt her? All I’m saying is, why can’t they come up with something different? Why can’t the love triangle be something on a higher degree of thinking? Like Work vs dude vs Woman? That would make the characters more interesting to explore. Anyhow. My 2 cents.
Sorry to say it, but the more I see… the more I think Machael is a dead man next episode. The formula just is all there. This seems like Macross with some formulas being mixed with others along with a few unseen twists that the writers are free to manipulate in order to Rick Roll fans like they did in the episode where Leon was shooting up death flags every 10 seconds… I mean, the moment I saw pineapple anything come up I thought he was the next Skull Leader to die from not being smart enough to seek immediate medical attention rather than bleeding to death.
But now I’m pretty sure Machael is the death that will lead Alto into greater character development since he’s like a brother to him for one (Hikaru matured after his brother figure was killed). Two, he has the only other romantic love interest that might force Alto to stop dragging his feet with Sheryl (don’t see Klan advocating a “go for Ranka” in the event of Machael’s death… okay, my own bias opinion is there too). Third… if someone in that squadron has to die… he’s the odd man out (Luca isn’t developed enough to die yet).
I found it childish when sheryl n ranka’s fans oppose one another for their fav character like they are in real life. It’s just an anime dude. It’s funny when sheryl’s fan point out that Ranka is selfish since she literally forget about ai-kun n have date wif brera bla bla bla. You all thinking too deep dude. Yea yeah, go ahead…put me down 😐
@DarkV and MeowVX: My thought exactly.
“So all this to say that those who want Alto to end up with Sheryl are out of Luck, if the formula stays true, Sheryl has absolutely NO chance of being with Alto. Honestly, the first Macross was good, story everything, but the repeated formula made the series go a bit on the crap side.”
They tend to ignore it but like to compare Misa and Sheryl…
“But now I’m pretty sure Machael is the death that will lead Alto into greater character development since he’s like a brother to him.., he has the only other romantic love interest that might force Alto to stop dragging his feet with Sheryl (don’t see Klan advocating a “go for Ranka” in the event of Machael’s death…”
Ozma didn’t eat the pineapple salad, it’s a hint they will not repeat the story like roy died for Ozma. sheryl is nothing like Misa here in this episode but more like Minmey with alto/Hikaru. It was Misa/Ranka who found them together. So all the stuff said about Sheryl looks like Misa… it’s nothing but wrong supposition…
I don’t think Mikhail support Sheryl/alto but forces alto to make his choice. If there is any n°1 SherylxAlto supporter now, it’s Klan.
And I wouldn’t claim the end of RankaxAlto end so early if I were you(Sheryl fan) you risk to to be dumbfounded 🙂
Hopefully we will see in the next episode who was wrong 🙂
It’s funny how people Accusse Ranka of being Selfish while it’s okay for Sheryl to be selfish herself, no, don’t bring me the “She has a disease and is in a crisis she can’t be selfish now”, many of the past Macross F episodes showed Sheryl’s own selfishness, but it seems that it’s OK for her to be Selfish and no for Ranka, uh?
Seriously Shippers are so pathetically biased, if at least they went “I just prefer Girl A but i don’t mind Girl B” instead of going far to demonize the other girl and in the worst cases wish for death, bad ends, sadness, being hated, etc.
This isn’t Code Geass were like 90% of the Cast are annoying douchebags incluiding the Main Characters.
@mel
I don’t get it actually. Their roles are set? What roles? And if it changes? So what? People change but they still compromise if they really want a relationship to work. If there’s love, you can do anything to save or make a relationship work. About Ranka, I told you she doesn’t always depend on Alto. I just cited instances in my previous post. Reassurance is something people need from time to time. Ranka is human, it is only natural for her to doubt. She isn’t all-knowing that she’d always go thinking that what she’s doing is the right thing that’s why she seeks advice. AND like I said, she thinks Alto’s the one who understands her the MOST so she seeks out his help. It’s not like she’s always saying, “HELP ME, ALTO-KUN!” The only time she did that was when she rebelled against Ozma then went off to Formo. She decided to accept singing under Vector Promotions WITHOUT Alto’s consent whatsoever. Isn’t that a major thing she decided on her own? And don’t point out that telling Alto afterwards is the same thing as thinking about Alto or reassurance from Alto. Of course she wanted to tell him. Alto was the one who supports her in realizing her dream, isn’t it just fair for him to know that she’s making progress in achieving it?
‘It’s funny you stay stalkers, since Ranka is barely one step above.’
I didn’t get this statement. If this is a reply to me equating crush from hell to stalker, I’m telling you Ranka is NOT a stalker. Just point out one stalker-like thing Ranka did that Sheryl didn’t do. When Ranka is in her down times, she asks for Alto BECAUSE she trusts and knows he understands her. During ep 18, didn’t Sheryl think of Alto too when she was down? It’s not like Ranka’s getting Alto pictures and posting them all over her room.
@jacobian
“Oh, so she left her fans out to dry because it was more convenient for her that way?”
Um, yes because she prioritizes Ai-kun and she knows her fans aren’t shallow enough to curse her for not attending a parade. Besides, she will be at her concert, they’ll see each other later. But Ai-kun, who knows what happened to him?
“Brera was the one doing more of the searching. She was busy teasing him and flirting with him.”
If you watched that, the episode only played the audio of Ranka laughing and teasing Brera BUT at the same time they SHOWED that Ranka AND Brera were BOTH looking for Ai-kun. Do you think Brera would comfort Ranka and say, “Don’t worry he’ll come back.” if he didn’t see that she was THAT depressed about losing him? If Ranka didn’t care, I don’t think Brera would care much. Ai-kun is not Brera’s pet, you know.
“Brera is a cyborg. What makes you think that he’d run out of energy so quickly?”
Just because he’s a cyborg you have to treat him like one? A cyborg still has human parts and Ranka wants to treat him as HUMAN with FEELINGS. It’s not the literal sense of being tired that is pointed out here but the concern that is shown here by Ranka. Makes Ranka a nicer character since she (like I said) doesn’t drag people around selfishly AND treats people equally. Not caring if you have a mechanic arm or turbo legs or heat sensitive vision.
“But she was playing around, the entire time. We’ve seen Ranka when she’s worried about something, like during the Galia-4 incident. This was not one of those times.”
The entire time? Like I said, if you’ve seen it, they were searching for Ai-kun! Ugh!! Can’t you see it? If Ranka really enjoyed it, do you think Brera would be worrying about her and saying, “Don’t worry he’ll come back.” I think he’ll be saying, “That was fun, huh?” The only thing closest to fun was the ice cream and like I said, it’s a thank you. -___-
“The heart said “RANKA”. How does that relate to her feelings for Alto? It’s obviously the other way around. That was the reason that she was so shocked to see Sheryl: Ranka was expecting Alto to be waiting for her on the roof with open arms.”
Yes the <3 said RANKA all right. But she had this talk with Brera that made her think about Alto as her reason for singing. THEN when she sees Alto again in the air, smiling at her, that’s when she thought, “Sou ka.. Yappari… ATASHI…” If you can translate that, it means, “That’s it. I knew it. After all, I… (do love)” It’s like she finally realizes hundred percent that she sings for Alto BECAUSE she LOVES him. If you’re not convinced, I can’t convince you more since I have laid my case.
AND, she’s not throwing away her career. Did she? I mean, she just realized that she likes to sing for Alto the MOST. If she abandoned her fans and her stardom tralala, she wouldn’t be giving out that concert she just did before running to the stairs.
“If she’s truly a hero, she’ll follow this through to the end, and then come back to Alto when the job’s done.”
If you seen the episode, she did finish her concert before running to Alto. And you know what, I think she’s still singing to help fight off against the Vajra. She didn’t say, “Since I want to sing for Alto, I’m not singing for anyone else. Deal with it.”, did she? Don’t assume beyond the episode yet… We still haven’t seen her ditching a concert or big save-the-world plan.
@Magnus:
How did Ranka get stalking characteristics? Mind pointing them out? ^^;
Man, they just love shoving the love triangle in our faces. With the OP and the ED
Totally off topic of wat u guys were talkin ’bout but…
did anyone notice tht Ranka’s outfit just changed after Seikan Hikou?
When Ranka had to confirm to herself in this episode not once but twice that she loved Alto I just had to facepalm at it because didn’t she already know this. Wasn’t this why she took on the role of Mao Nome in episode 10? Wasn’t this why she went to Gallia IV? Wasn’t this why she didn’t let Sheryl swept Alto out from under his feet in episode 15? It’s like wow Ranka what amazing observation will you come up with next? And while she’s busy reconfirming her feelings for Alto for the 4th, 5th and maybe 6th time hopefully she gets around to remembering that she can communicate with the fucking Varja. I just hope that if she remembers that she doesn’t get Brera to escort her because on the way to telling someone she might decide to have some fun and do Ranka Star Date version 2.
When you contrast the actions and feelings of Ranka to Sheryl she in no way deserves to win this though I have to admit that atm Alto isn’t exactly a great prize. SherylxAlto as well as RankaXCharacterGrowth confirmed.
“Yes the <3 said RANKA all right. But she had this talk with Brera that made her think about Alto as her reason for singing. THEN when she sees Alto again in the air, smiling at her, that’s when she thought, “Sou ka.. Yappari… ATASHI…””
Does Ranka have bionic eyes that can see hundreds of feet into the sky?
Why Sheryl keeps her act of the big sister or friend when she’s with alto and the role of the rival like “he’s my guy ” with Ranka?
In the 10 when she kiss him knowing Ranka is just in front of them… she doesn’t care.. So Egoist…
In 12 she said to Ranka, Alto will be glad if Ranka gives him the ticket for her concert and what ? she runs after him to offer him the perfect gift: the endless sky which we know Alto couldn’t refuse…. How lame….
In episode 15 she looks at the mirror to see if she’s good and when Alto enters she acts like she wasn’t waiting for him ? How sneaky ! In 16 she fainted on the bridge and when Alto was about to ask her if she came to see him she immediately deny it! Annoying..
She is so shallow and selfish… so @ Westlo:” When you contrast the actions and feelings of Ranka to Sheryl she in no way deserves to win “.
Sheryl is such a liar to others and to Alto too… she doesn’t deserve him either 🙂
“Why Sheryl keeps her act of the big sister or friend when she’s with alto”
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/kayaus/PicardWtf.jpg
“In 12 she said to Ranka, Alto will be glad if Ranka gives him the ticket for her concert and what ? she runs after him to offer him the perfect gift: the endless sky which we know Alto couldn’t refuse…. How lame….”
So she should not give Alto a present that she knows he would love for Ranka’s sake?
“In episode 15 she looks at the mirror to see if she’s good and when Alto enters she acts like she wasn’t waiting for him ? How sneaky !”
So you’re never fixed yourself up before seeing someone before? lol?
“In 16 she fainted on the bridge and when Alto was about to ask her if she came to see him she immediately deny it! Annoying..”
It’s called tsundere, look it up.
“She is so shallow and selfish… ”
Sheryl’s about as far from being shallow as Ranka is from having a d cup but she is selfish at times. The true test of ones selfishness or lack of… though is when it comes to matters of real importance. Sheryl trying to distance herself from the person she loves because she does not want to burden him with his death is far from selfish…
yuKime: I used “stalker” metaphorically. Examine Rankas actions in the past, and tell me that if she´d be a guy and Alto a girl, the behaviour of that supposed male Ranka wouldn´t freak you the hell out.
Do the same for the Sheryl and Alto interactions, and it still works.
Bah to the triangle. I blame Mikhail for playing devil’s advocate on everything, in ep 12 he convinces Alto to go for Ranka..NOW he convinces him to go for Sheryl.
Dayam this series is playing with my emotions!
Make up your mind Hika……Alto.
Can we stop over analyzing these miniscule movements of these characters?
I think Alto x Ranka would be more fitting in the sense that it stuck to the general scheme of ‘we both wanted to achieve of dreams and look how far we’ve come’ etc. I think in an sub context, Alto and Ranka have been supporting each other in their goals.
I think Alto x Sheryl is just more compatible in terms of personality.
@Westlo: No Ranka dóesn’t have bionic vision. What I mean is she saw Alto in the air. The phrase ‘smiling at her’ is an adjective describing what Alto was doing, NOT what Ranka saw exactly. Grammar wise, it’s correct. Sorry for the misunderstanding.
@Magnus: Told you I still don’t see the point of switching the gender in the possibility of a relationship between the two. You don’t need that as a criteria. Not at all.
“Bah to the triangle. I blame Mikhail for playing devil’s advocate on everything, in ep 12 he convinces Alto to go for Ranka..NOW he convinces him to go for Sheryl.”
Well Michael was right in telling him to consider Ranka’s feelings for coming to Gallia IV, that was admirable of her even though her reasons for going where focused on only one person. I just think this scene has been completely blown out of proportion by Ranka fans considering that this is the Macross universe. The massive amount of danger they seemed to think she faced is laughable considering the Zentradri’s history with miclones showed that an idol of her caliber faced no real danger.
Anyway getting off track… now at this stage Michael knew that Sheryl had an interest in Alto, you can see in his conversation with Alto in episode 8 that he knew. Of course at this stage he probably thought it was a passing interest, something to pass the time. If he had scene Sheryl’s near breakdown scene during her concert than maybe he wouldn’t think like that but he didn’t. Now in episodes 12-13 he saw that Sheryl actually cared for him quite a bit so this probably changed his mindset on things. Now in episode 18 he finds out she’s dying and Sheryl begs him not to tell Alto, Michael probably knows she did that because she doesn’t want to burden the person she loves.
So really I find nothing wrong with Michael’s behaviour at all.
What ever happened to the central story of Macross Frontier. This is all getting off track by the romance subplot. It’s good to have some sort of romance but to even assume an anime characters emotions/feelings isn’t just right for a proper discussion. You can assume all you want but you only need to look at the context clues all through out the series.
So I saw this show from some anime forum–goodlooking male lead and a cyborg why not? I had high expectations from Sheryl since everywhere I go I see everyone saying “oh it’s so obvious alto’s going to pick Sheryl” and the likes. Lo and behold the romance in the show is a walking Ranka and Alto love story with Sheryl as the salt. I’m starting to think if everyone is just really dense or in denial whenever they claim that episode 19 is a point towards Sheryl’s favor. Now I’m no newbie when it comes to Kawamori and it looks like he’s going to reverse SDF Macross through Macross Frontier. Spare me the Macross gospel. I can’t get enough of this show now and I atleast want to see Alto face his feelings soon. Between Ranka and Sheryl, Ranka’s character is more emphasized. This is a show that has Romance as one of its central themes, if the director were to choose which girl he’ll want the main character to be paired with, it’s going to be the girl who has been more developed by the story. Ranka Lee. She’s not that bad. I didn’t like her at first but her innocent love for Alto is endearing in its own light.
i hope stanka eats dog food and dies
“I’m starting to think if everyone is just really dense or in denial whenever they claim that episode 19 is a point towards Sheryl’s favor.”
The reason why myself and others think that this episode bodes well Sheryl is that the way they have depicted Ranka. In this episode and the previous ones shows they are clearly setting her up for character progression/growth through defeat. Atm she leans on Alto for everything, the few steps forward she took in the relationship in regards to dependence have dissipated since episode 12. To be blunt she uses Alto as a crutch, how will she ever evolve as a person if she ends up with Alto? With Alto the “protector” by her side she will just continue to use him as a crutch. She has clear issues in being self centered and a lack of maturity.
Sheryl otoh is displaying a selfless love for Alto in that she’s trying to distance herself from him because she doesn’t want to burden him with her death. I said on irc after 19 aired that sheryl and alto’s talk would be heated, it was. I said that Alto would flip Sheryl’s destiny lines from episode 3 back at her she did. I also said that IF Sheryl tried to push Alto to Ranka you might as well consider this triangle over period and break out the victory cigars.
Now Sheryl didn’t want to talk to Alto in the first place and had to be talked/pushed into it by Klan who got have a good lyrical beating by the sounds of it. Now with Ranka’s interruption doesn’t this give her a good excuse to not confess her love and/or illness to Alto?
I know you said not to mention the original Macross but Minmei was another character who had to lose for the sake of personal growth, same with the “losers” from True Tears and KGNE if you want some out of franchise examples. And also a Sheryl win does not equal a Misa Mark 2 win since they spun Sheryl Vs Ranka as Macross Do You Remember Love Minmei Vs Macross TV Minmei.
Anyway let’s see what happens 😉 Though episode 22 should be an eye opener for some characters as well as viewers 😉 Will they wrap up this triangle early before the final battle like they did in DYRL….
“I said on irc after 19 aired that sheryl and alto’s talk would be heated, it was. I said that Alto would flip Sheryl’s destiny lines from episode 3 back at her she did.”
I mean after “18 aired” and “episode 3 back at her he did”
wtb edit button 🙁
@Westlo
They didn’t make the 2nd ED all Sheryl for nothing. Putting her in the back lines for quite sometime now is also an indication of something.
@Westlo- I am a bit surprised at your interpretation of Ranka’s feelings for Alto. A crutch. Nowhere in the story did I feel that coming from her. Forgive me but I think you’re just trying hard to see her in a negative light. This may be so in the real world, but this is not shown here. Her feelings for Alto is depicted as her strength not her weakness. Please rewatch 14:28-15:34 if I somehow can’t make my point across through words. The scene was very straight to the point and had no ill feelings underneath.
I’m suspecting that they’re going to make the love triangle unresolved in the end. Alto may lean on one girl than the other, but he’ll choose to not pursue a romantic relationship with either girl. They can stir more discussion from the fans if the ending is something that is up to interpretation. One of the interviews from Alto’s seiyu hints this. I swear to Shiva if I see another reincarnation of the nasty FF7 LT…
Alto: “Watch Sheryl! *goes to make <3 Ranka and pierces it*”
Ajajajajaja!
[ID SOJOURNER]
SPOILER
Show Spoiler ▼
This show has lolicon as a running theme. MikhailxloliKlan, Captain WilderxMonica, LucaxNanase, RankaxAlto. CathyxOzmaxLeon is just a breather from the small amount of population who likes adult looking relationships…!
Ai-kun has become a golden crab?! TAT
Lana: Funny, seeing how on AnimeSuki we have a big group of people, all very literate, who completely agree with Westlo. And it´s not as if we have some sort of hive-mind, but we came up with our interpretation with long discussions. ^^
Lana: You’re arguments remind me of someone else’s here…
@ Lana “. I’m starting to think if everyone is just really dense or in denial whenever they claim that episode 19 is a point towards Sheryl’s favor”
I don’t know how they came to that conclusion. This is really bad for sheryl because she was like the intruder in the middle of the relationship( the girl who steals the guy) because they made Ranka appear at that time ( when sheryl was in his arms). Alto doesn’t belong to Ranka but cares a lot about her. He spended more time with Sheryl in the last episode due to her illness. This episode is the beginning of a one sided love from sheryl nothing else.
And @ westlo : “Anyway let’s see what happens 😉 Though episode 22 should be an eye opener for some characters as well as viewers 😉 Will they wrap up this triangle early before the final battle like they did in DYRL…”
I was just talking about a unrequited love. I suggest you to watch intensively after the episode 22, sheryl’s love confession, especially Alto’s reaction.
@Bigtime
“They didn’t make the 2nd ED all Sheryl for nothing. Putting her in the back lines for quite sometime now is also an indication of something.”
Her ED is when she tells alto that she likes him but this is going to be(Alto ‘s answer) painful for her , because it’s a sad song unlike the rythm which make you think the contrary:
“Won’t someone please softly stroke the outline of the void ?
The words of love that couldn’t be saved were erased by the waves of time
So I want the answer once more” So, a broken heart because of Alto’s answer ?
@ The sojouner It was clearly said in the interview from September unlike many people may think.
@Magnus Let’s see how far they can stay literate after alto picks Ranka.
Kei: We´ll leave you you delusions. :p
“This episode is the beginning of a one sided love from sheryl nothing else.”
This is a rather foolish opinion considering in the most effective triangles the one in the middle is torn between his/her love for both of the people fighting for his/her affections. Alto has feelings for both girls, underdeveloped though they may be, to say otherwise is just lolz. By the way I thought the intruder/third wheel in a relationship is the one who continues to interrupt the “canon” couple.. but ignoring that anyone who considers Sheryl or Ranka a third wheel.. or “salt” is either suffering a case of wishful thinking or is an idiot period.
Also why Ranka fans seem to think the lyrics for NC is a bad thing for Sheryl is hilarious, you only have to read the comments from interviews, look at the timing of episodes to realize that NC is the relationship trump card. A public song that is a not only a confession to Alto but Sheryl’s return to the stage, a song filled with pain, anger and hope.
Kawamori said that while Alto is dense as soon as Alto realizes his feelings for the girl he loves (more) he will move in the direction fully, now that points towards a slightly early ending to the triangle as opposed to a last minute thing. Now what wake up call will Ranka give him to realize his feelings for her? If it’s 25 episodes NC is the trump card period.
@ Lana
I don’t know how you couldn’t see that Ranka has been using Alto as a crutch throughout this entire series with the exception of episode 12. You might think I’m in denial but girl you’re on the same river as me.
Goddamn Alto – chose already! (I at least would like one intense romantic episode before its done)
Fight o….fight o……little queen Ranka!!! The only person who always saves Sakura Hime Alto is you..onegai
Come on people, Ranka has the glowing abdomen of doom. The most likely outcome for her is pulling a macross zero/Diebuster, going out with a bang while protecting Frontier, she can even become the galactic ghost of the first OP. Integrating in society and getting a normal guy seems more in the league of a struggling, determined normal girl like Sheryl.
In any case, I suspect Alto end the serie grieving because both girl die or leave. True end.
Aside from that, the childish depiction of Ranka (both physical and mental) is increasingly disturbing to me. It’s like they are trying to pull a romantic triangle between a college girl and a middle school one. I know they are all supposed to be close in age but it sure as heel doesn’t look that way. Was a bit more independence, and less plushies hard to pull? Or different clothes and accessories for what matters. I want to punch the guy who had the bright idea to give Ranka a backpack making her look like an elementary school brat, that any teenage girl would be ashamed to carry. Are lolis so popular in Japan that they have to be everywhere even if it makes the relations so much less credible?
@ Westlo and Magnus : Seeing how everyone thinks it’s the end of Rankaxalto pair( except some lucid people( Ranka or Sheryl fan included))makes me think, the more you believe in your sherylxalto pair confirmed the more what Nakamura said it’s becoming more clear each day : “I guarantee you that the conclusion of love triangle will surprise everybody”
At first I though they talked about one of the three dying but reading your post made me realize that Kawamori just knew sheryl fan will be full of ” it’s a v-day, a total victory, relastionship triumph card, kampai “. See how Ranka’s fan admit that ranka didn’t grow that much, she thinks too much about Alto.Even in Ranka’s camp people start to have doubts.
“Now what wake up call will Ranka give him to realize his feelings for her? If it’s 25 episodes NC is the trump card period.”
Well it’s more 28 than 25 episode if I’m right which is bad for your so called triumph card and your sheryl move/win so expexted by the majority because too early if it left 9 episode to go. All Your sheryl’s win post will turn into an episode 17 like goodbye sister. Ozma didn’t die, now you are waiting for sheryl’s win ? Disturbing, knowing how they love misleading us.
IS IT SURPRISING FOR AN END(altoxsheryl) NOW THAT EVERYONE IS MAKING A FOOL OF RANKA ?
I think you will be the first to be surprised by Ranka’s come back 🙂
You can insult me like you want (delusions?, foolish opinion…) but I assure you here, I had watch a lot of anime and my conclusion at the end is based on fact not like @magnus said on one literate discussion 🙂 ” Funny, seeing how on AnimeSuki we have a big group of people, all very literate, who completely agree with Westlo. And it´s not as if we have some sort of hive-mind, but we came up with our interpretation with long discussions”
So those people who come to an Sherylxalto end are literate and MORE : ALL AGREE WITH WESTLO ” This is why you’re right and we’re wrong? Excuse me but being literate or not have nothing to do in watching anime, and if the fact to concur with Westlo( we came up with our interpretation with long discussions) = he’s always right, well no comment.
JUST WATCH and stop doing propaganda everywhere to persuade yourself you’re right 🙂
Actually, it seems more favorable for Ranka from the outset, since Sheryl is dying and trying to push Alto away. The only thing that reflects poorly on Ranka is her behavior this episode. Aside from that, she’s struck it rich! She’s the most popular idol, and her rival in love is out of the picture.
So if what you say is true, I wouldn’t mind a surprise, myself!
“IS IT SURPRISING FOR AN END(altoxsheryl) NOW THAT EVERYONE IS MAKING A FOOL OF RANKA ?”
Not really, but a Ranka x Alto would not be surprising either. Really, “surprising everyone” he said? In that case Alto cannot end with either of them, considering the lack of anything close to decision so far.
Besides, you mean that the ending will come out of the blue and not make sense with the whole character development prior to that? Being “surprising” is not a virtue in this case. I have some faith in the director to make the decision believable, and thus not come out of nowhere, if decision there is.
zerooooo @ Besides, you mean that the ending will come out of the blue and not make sense with the whole character development prior to that?
Altoxranka end is confirm by two things, 28 episodes and “surprise” ending. Very weak. Someone is slowly desperate.
@Zerooooooooo ““IS IT SURPRISING FOR AN END(altoxsheryl) NOW THAT EVERYONE IS MAKING A FOOL OF RANKA ?”
Not really, but a Ranka x Alto would not be surprising either ”
If everyone expected sheryl x Alto it can be but there is something else, what, I don’t know!
“Besides, you mean that the ending will come out of the blue and not make sense with the whole character development prior to that?”
don’t forget the scene in episode 13 with Ranka and Alto gazing at each other a romantic scene. After that we saw Alto and Ranka talking in her room in a friendly way and Sheryl comes and is always with Alto.
It’s clear they dropped Altoxranka relationship to start with SherylxAlto.
Do you think they will let this like that ?
Ranka had obviously more screentime and spends a lot of time with Alto since episode 1.
The sheryl growth character here is needed if not the choice was obvious.
You will see that sia Westlo and cie are too far away from what can possibly happen because they are so biased that they will put the fault on the cliche, it’s loli who wins nowadays.. Can’t expect much from them.
@sia keep your good work. I will laught hard when you will have nothing to say 🙂
Don’t reply it’s useless.
Kei @ Don’t reply it’s useless.
I wasn’t even talking to you. 😀
Do everyone a favor and quit yer idiot ranting. Your posts went stale long ago.
@ sia or sial(stupid in malay): seriously speaking, you r damn immature pudden-head sheryl’s fan that i ever saw yo. i will laught hard at you if she lose in the end. Ahhh, I’m waiting for the excitement :D.
Heh, can’t wait how will they react if sheryl lose after so many tiresome arguments with ranka’s fan 😀 😀 😀
jacobian said
“I think part of the problem is that she’s been basking in so much praise lately that she’s forgotten the basics: the fans are the people who make her who she is, and that she sings for their sake. Back in episode three, she declared that she wanted people to hear her sing. Not just Alto. Everyone. Even the parade, with it’s Ranka floats, reeks of a sort of pomposity that was never present for Sheryl’s concerts. Grace has lead Ranka off course, and it’s high time that Ranka gets her feet back on the ground and remember what she was really fighting for.”
Lol as Basara said to Elma who wanted to be his student. “Sing what you want to sing that is what singing is.”
Think of of Alto as the unmovable mountain that Basara sung at as a kid.
Did Basara make the mountain move? No he didn’t. But the point is he tried.
Both Ranka and Sheryl did the same thing in their duet.
This is bad for Sheryl. THe way they ended the triangle scene in Ranka’s POV is too cliche for the chosen girl. Sheryl even has to be dying to get Alto’s favor. Alto acted like Sheryl had AIDS when Ranka found them. Very bad.
All is expecting for Alto to run after Ranka or Sheryl to push Alto to Ranka. I’ll laugh at everyone if none of this happens. Neither will happen, Vajra will attack and Glass is be going to RIP with Michael following shortly after.
“I wasn’t even talking to you. :D”
“Do everyone a favor and quit yer idiot ranting. Your posts went stale long ago.”
Kei, you are right :D. Poor sia. She’s got nothing to say, haha. It’s funny how she’s get easily annoyed with your vivid and formulate statement. I’m fucked up with her/him gibberish talk eventho i’m not in ranka’s camp. Yep, it’s true. Lolis always win in anime these days. Can’t deny it 😀
This little bug wants to bite off more than it can chew? Immature pudden-head sheryl’s fan = epic LULZ. I be calling myself that from now on. 😀
jacobian @ The only thing that reflects poorly on Ranka is her behavior this episode
Her change in behavior was distasteful in Ep 17 too. I stopped thinking about her motives long ago.
It’s fun overly analyzing anime characters. It must be tough thinking how a fictional character feels.
Less romance and more Mech Pron please?
Bleah yeah I agree please more Mech action and more of the integral plot line please…I know that this is Macross, not Ghost in the Shell SAC, but I’m getting a little tired of the love triangle being dragged out like this and keeping it the focus of the episode.
LOLz at the shipping war.
The brief interaction between Luca and Michael during the flying performance was interesting. Not sure if Michael suspects him, or if was just a dramatic effect to emphasize the path Luca has chosen and foreshadow what the consequences could be.
Magnus are you in love with Westlo ?! I mean … everywhere i see him posting i also see you defending him from anyone who disagrees with his opinion! And give me a break, if you think giving animesuki forum as a good example is something to be “proud” you are very delusional and calling animesuki forum users “literate” was the most funny thin i heard today thank you 😉
I have to agree with Kei, if the is someone with a “foolish opinion” is you, not because you’re wrong but because you think you, and your love partner, are the only ones correct.
I also believe there’s more of a chance that Alto will choose Sheryl, the story just fits that way, but your little speeches are pointless …
Neus:
Considering many of the posts in RC, I would say without hesitation, that Animesuki’s users are considerably more literate. Take the comments from here, and from AS, and give them to a college professor, and ask him which group is more intelligent with their arguments.
You won’t like his answer.
I have to agree with Mikhail: enough with Alto’s denseness and blindness.
It was fine in the first episodes, but we already reached ep19 and we are still stuck in *almost* square one.
This Macross series is strangely turning into a shojo story about two girls fighting over one oblivious guy ¬__¬ Ok, so I’m pushing it, I know, there is still, thankfully, more to it that RenkaxAltoxSheryl but the fact is a big part of the fandom can’t help but focus on those, not that I dislike romance, I love it, but this is draining me out and tiring me out at the long run, and I personally feel I am loosing two things :
1-while I wonder who gets who, I don’t have ‘truly deep romance scene’ between two people in love, not just one dense baka and one blushing chick.
2-my attention to the plot and the actions about the vagra and all the fighting is lesser and divided, since my mind is elsewhere, wondering just how the triangular party will turn…More mech?
As for the end of this particular episode, so very cliché, a pure traditional thing. The girl goes to confess and she finds the guy with her rival, and misunderstands. Just for this I want for Sheryl to be The One, to break with the ‘usual conclusion’=the guy runs after the crying girl and blablabla
Exactly, less romance and more central plot movement + Mech Pron. Which is what macross is all about really plus music of course. Just end the pairings and get on with the REAL questions…hello?
Varja?
Grace’s Plan? and who are those she talking too.
SMS owner’s plan?
and a lot more
@Kei:
Either you argue that the decision and thus relationship has been prepared and is expected, in which case it is not surprising, or you argue that it is not expected and thus it is surprising. You cannot both argue that RankaxAlto would be unexpected and that it was prepared and can be expected.
And you another point, too. If everyone expected AltoxSheryl, it would be because RankaxAlto would make no sense at that point, how would that be good storytelling to make one outcome totally improbable just for the sake of being “surprising” and making it happen? Do YOU like deus ex machina in the last episodes totally doing away with everything that’s happened before? (see: Mai Hime, Evangelion, or Shcool rumble manga ending for examples)
Good thing the lead will soon choose Misa, and we’ll only have to deal with Minmei’s jealousy while the serious plot is unfolding, and about time.
@JustinStrife:
“Considering many of the posts in RC, I would say without hesitation, that Animesuki’s users are considerably more literate. Take the comments from here, and from AS, and give them to a college professor, and ask him which group is more intelligent with their arguments.
You won’t like his answer.”
Oh sure, I bet the college professor will say, “Oh yeah there are more literate people here in Animesuki.”
Well, there are more posts there since it’s a forum! Duh! But not all posts in AS are considered sensible. Actually, posts in forums tend to go off-topic more often and I know what I’m talking about because I lurk there often. And at least we don’t often see people here call Ranka ‘puppy-eared Vajra queen’ just to degrade her and make their almighty Sheryl-sama the best. If you compare the number of sensible statements in AS to the immature ones like (‘Die Ranka DIE!’ or ‘Sheryl is a bitch’), I think you’ll be surprised by how much there are more of the immature ones. Now, tell me again that AS people are more literate than people here. Don’t kid yourself. We all have immaturity tendencies, so don’t use that as an argument.
@Kei
all your childish ranting means only one thing, that you really don’t like the idea of a possible ending where Ranka is not picked by Alto… geez big deal. Let others express their ideas without being so annoying 😛
As to whom will Alto choose, I am not fussed, I am currently enjoying the character development as well as the usual Macross love triangle. I am quite interested in the KlanxMichel relationship too… but rumours are pointing towards a very sour end for this pair. I’ve been a Kawamori fan for the last 25 years and MF does not dissapoint at all!
@ Zeroooooooo “Either you argue that the decision and thus relationship has been prepared and is expected, in which case it is not surprising You cannot both argue that RankaxAlto would be unexpected and that it was prepared and can be expected.”
I think you didn’t understand me. the Rankaxalto pair would be unexpected because of what everyone is waiting for. You clearly seems to think it will be a sherylxalto end like the major part of people if you surf on the web. It’s not necessary to add that if you take a look on Macross China’s website you will see how they are sure of sheryl’s win( she has a huge fan base there). After seeing episode 19 sompe people start to say ” kampai, victory” because for them not only she is like a child but she is also the annoying girl who didn’t grow at all since episode 1 with her Alto this ,Alto that.
Tell me if I’m wrong but, I’m sure that you think Alto can’t end up with Ranka because he will be a fool since he can’t end up with a immature green hair kid next to the gorgeous Sheryl who is finally opening up and becoming a more likeable character.
So Ranka becomes the not so pretty character who regress because of her annoying,preposterous behaviour and Sheryl, more radiant than ever who became an amazing character because of her love for Alto and her will to not burden him with her illness.
Now can’t you see how Rankaxalto is very unexpected both due to the character and to the major part of people on the web who are expecting her win just because of how the serie is leading at this point(Sheryl more lovely,strong.. VS Ranka the puppy)?
I don’t know for you but I think, like other people, that it was prepared and can be expected because I’m not a part of people who though since the beginning Ranka has no chance to win due to her body and mind. On the contrary, I think like I already said in a post on episode 15 that Sheryl’s appeal is a big disadvantage for her since the beginning : the moral lesson of this serie is don’t judge a book by it’s cover.
Sheryl was a pest in episode 1/2 but she is more friendly and not so detestable . Ranka was cowardly but now we see that is was because she was too protected by her brother.
“how would that be good storytelling to make one outcome totally improbable just for the sake of being “surprising” and making it happen?”
Like I said it might become improbable for you but not for everyone. I don’t know what’s the surprise so I will not make assummption. All I can say is that people should be more fair with Ranka. Kawamori takes probably more time to do her character than others ( he knows well she is not beautiful and made her like that, it’s the same for her behaviour) you expect her to be done since 19 and 1 for some. This is well orchestred from his part, now Ranka will have a new phase in her character.
You said “In that case Alto cannot end with either of them, considering the lack of anything close to decision so far.” In a interview from september he clearly said once alto realizes his feelings, get ready to see things change in a big way. He will choose someone for sure.
I’m glad to see I’m not the only one who is annoyed by some reflexion from some people here 🙂
@DYRL fan “all your childish ranting means only one thing, that you really don’t like the idea of a possible ending where Ranka is not picked by Alto… geez big deal. Let others express their ideas without being so annoying 😛 ”
You totally misunderstood me 🙂
I’m not worried for the relationship Ranka will have with Alto I though it was clear.
I don’t like the idea of a people’s group who came from a forum which we know is sheryl centric just for doing their propaganda. If you think I’m annoying for clearly make them realize this isn’t Animesuki here and no, here people don’t think Ranka should die or is a puppy with green hair then so be it .
“I’ve been a Kawamori fan for the last 25 years and MF does not dissapoint at all!”
Sure! Maybe people are like the joker and batman here 🙂 but we all agree that Macross Frontier is an amazing show 🙂
I’m with neus, Kei, and the others who have a problem with this group.
@justinstrife- Are you talking about the Sheryl fanclub in Animesuki forums? Oh boy. You have got to be kidding. The only ones saying that the people there are literate and college level are the people that are in that faction, you included. I’ve lurked at a lot of Macross Frontier forums and I have never seen such a batsh.t display of Sheryl fanaticism. Here’s a list of why something is wrong with that macross sub-forum:
-giving negative reputation for every post that offends Sheryl
-calling other posters a troll if they negate their general opinion.
-the pro-Sheryl posts are oozing with biasness
-keep spouting SHERYL-SAMA, QUEEN SHERYL, Sheryl this, Sheryl that and screw Ranka
-hating on Ranka because of her looks and her devotion to Alto, can’t even acknowledge it higher than a stupid crush resulting to an irrational bashing of her
-claiming that they’re acting just when any bystander can see they’re all messed up
-hating side characters because they support Ranka (hahaha the hell?)
The youngsters in crunchyroll are a better trooper than that nightmarish Sheryl fanclub from AS. I can say that. Stop it with the condescending jokes that a college professor would be impressed with you. Noone is laughing.
Moving on….After Yuuichi Nakamura said that the ending will surprise everybody, that can only mean that Alto will not choose anyone or will choose both. Boring end.
Again, more central plot development/mech pron please?
Over analyzing “anime” characters isn’t really getting anywhere.
Just end the romance already it’s getting repetitive already. It really doesn’t matter who Alto picks (IF he picks one) at this point. Alto picks one, ok fine and continue with the main story, no need for a big fuss.I
@BigTime
am with you with that one >.> I don’t begrudge people fanship of one or other side of the love triangle because it’s also what makes it fun, but sometimes the overemphasis on the triangle just grates while we’re waiting for the plot to move along. But it’s not like there’s anything we can do since ultimately how it all swings is what the producers and the director decides. I have to say though that I’m disappointed in how slowly they’ve developed Alto’s character, but to their credit they’ve at least made him pretty consistent.
As for the plotline, it’s been hinted at this ep that Grace has figured out the mystery of the Queen and is currently applying it to further their schemes. I’m sure they’re planning on using Ranka some more to this end, but my hunch is she’s figured out how to recreate Ranka’s ability to affect the Vajira to some extent and that possibly means she’s become disposable as well.
Next ep looks like Frontier will take a major beating and with around 4 eps left, I’m wondering how they’re going to quickly tie up all these dangling threads, let alone explain Alto’s eventual choice between the two girls (if at all he’s meant to choose one). Either way, this series has been a favorite this year so I hoping they’ll live up to expectations and give us all some good viewing time ahead.
I haven’t seen anyone mention this yet, but could these Vajra (who are about to hatch and PWN everyone) have come from Sheryl’s blood? In episode 15, Grace swapped a vile of Sheryl’s blood and tossed it down a sewer/garbage disposal thingy. Did they ever show Vajra eggs hidden in Frontier before this?
@Paris – I agree with most of what you are saying except for the second half of #5, and #7. The second half of #5 is just a character analysis, the same way when people say that Sheryl exists only for herself. Some people read things in the animation differently and can discuss things in a civil fashion if they wish to (Now I hope this is what happens, sadly it usually results in bashing and name-calling…). #7 is supposed to be directed to Nanase, isn’t it? I don’t think it’s just because she supports Ranka – these people might also like other Ranka supporters like Michael, Bobby, and Ozma.
On a personal note, the first half of #5 is an argument that I personally take as a negative point for Ranka. I don’t dislike “her character”, it’s her “character design”. She looks intentionally designed to “look like” jail bait (the keyword being “intention”) :c I really don’t get this aspect of Japanese culture, I wish I understood it more :c
Finally, I’d just like to say to everyone to perhaps tone down a little, spread the love, not hate. The guideline is, if you’re about to write a negative comment describing the person you’re talking to, don’t write it down. Write a comment describing the anime character, not the person behind the other computer 🙂
@Kei
“I think you didn’t understand me. the Rankaxalto pair would be unexpected because of what everyone is waiting for. You clearly seems to think it will be a sherylxalto end like the major part of people if you surf on the web.”
The simple fact that there are shipping wars means that one side is not overwhelmingly more powerful than the other, in my eyes.
“Tell me if I’m wrong but, I’m sure that you think Alto can’t end up with Ranka because he will be a fool since he can’t end up with a immature green hair kid next to the gorgeous Sheryl who is finally opening up and becoming a more likeable character.”
Can’t? No, Alto clearly could end with either of them, the director clearly showed that even if I wouldn’t think of Ranka as a credible love interest he does, and thus Alto does. My preference has nothing to do with what’s possible here.
Now can’t you see how Rankaxalto is very unexpected both due to the character and to the major part of people on the web who are expecting her win just because of how the serie is leading at this point(Sheryl more lovely,strong.. VS Ranka the puppy)?
No, in fact I cannot. “People on the internet” are not directing the show, and besides, despites flaws I find crippling, Ranka has had plenty of traditional romance gotcha, including that scene on the roof.
Like I said it might become improbable for you but not for everyone.
So It won’t be surprising. Look, I’m not saying that RxA is improbable, I’m saying that you are harping on how improbable/surprising it is only to say in the next sentence that it is not. Well, it’s one or the other, not both depending on what you need in your argument.
My point is: in a romance triangle where the guy is clearly hesitant, none of the girls are improbable. Not shipping/flaming one couple is the kinda opposite of thinking they have no chance. I don’t see anyone having a holy war against AltoxKlan.
In a interview from september he clearly said once alto realizes his feelings, get ready to see things change in a big way. He will choose someone for sure.
He better do it fast, after 20 episodes of school days.
Macross Frontier will only have 25 episodes. When did Macross Frontier become 28 episodes? 6 more to go. The new breed of Vajra in Frontier is planted by Grace. She’s the one who led the Vajra to Frontier. It has nothing to do with Sheryl’s space AIDS.
YUKIME.. where are you??? LOL!
My opinion on the romance, Ranka will win. Why do I think so? Because they want us to empathize with her character by exposing her feelings and showing how true it is. It’s hard for me to think that there will only be heartache at the end of her struggle because the writer really wants us the audience to understand her. This is the story of every anime romance. The more exposure of her. The more truer she is. The more the guy will pick her at the end. You can say it’s a reward for being true.
@BigTime- It’s pointless to whine about the shipping war. Pointless.
@nezumibento- Grace probably figured out that the remains of the queen in the lab is somehow connected to Ranka since in the beginning of Ranka’s dream, that certain Vajra approached her. Did anyone notice that Ai-kun’s belly glowed and somehow he got mindlessly attracted to Brera’s song. Ai-kun has something in his belly just like Ranka. I’m 102% sure that Ranka and Brera are siblings. I’m sensing deathflags from Mikhail, but they didn’t kill Ozma so…
Anata no Oto and Norther Cross are best described as black and white, up and down, day and night. Very opposite but both as good. Since I see the glass half full, I’m leaning towards Anata no Oto. It’s growing on me more and more. I can’t wait till they play it again.
The more truer she is. The more the guy will pick her at the end. You can say it’s a reward for being true.
Now she’s true and pure? Actually the more her feelings are exposed, the more I dislike her and the more I think if she wants to grow and change she’ll have to let go of those feelings and move past them.
Not even Sheryl’s death can keep from feeling bad for Ranka this episode. Me thinks that Alto’s mikata-dakedo-aishitenai treatment of Ranka is more interesting than the cliche love/hate relationship with Sheryl. It’s too common, blech. Chiba’s supporting Ranka all the way. Ganbatte Ranka. Go get your boy!
mel And when she will grow,change let go of those feelings and move past them you will want her to regress because Alto will definitely will go towards her , not Sheryl.
Chiba you’re soooo right !
Maybe the ending is obvious one. Alto will end up with both but not at the same time. Alto will be with Sheryl until she dies then Alto will be with Ranka. Now while that is the obvious ending for me, it can be the “surprise” ending for both Sheryl and Ranka fans. Everyone seem to bet on Sheryl getting cured, but what if they choose to do the depressing ending?
Or it’ll end with Sheryl’s death with some hint that Alto might end up with Ranka or not.
I don’t see what the girls see in alto I really don’t I like that fact he was a kabuki actor and the fact he can kick ass when mobile fighting is going on and that’s it -_- I really don’t like alto aside from that.