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| Capt. Global prepares his report on the events of the last year. |
Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Global Report
Original Air Date - Macross: Jan. 16, 1983.
Written by: Ken'ichi Matsuzaki. Directed by: Noboru Ishiguro.
Robotech: Gloval's Report
Original Air Date - Robotech: Mar. 21, 1985.
Story Editor: Steve Kramer. Supervising Director: Robert V. Barron.
PLOT:
The ship has returned to Earth, splashing down in the ocean. As the captain prepares to face the world's politicians, he takes this moment of calm to prepare a report on the events of the past year, including some of what the humans have learned about their alien pursuers.
CHARACTERS:
This is a clip show, and as such offers relatively little in the way of new characterization. The main area of note is in minor differences in how Captains Global and Gloval deliver their report, with Macross's Global more willing to give credit to subordinates and Robotech's Gloval more regretful of cases where his choices resulted in loss of life. I don't think these differences are meant to be deliberate character beats (I'm pretty sure this episode was cobbled together in a rush)... but characterization consists just as much of the writers' unconscious choices as their conscious ones, and so I still think they're worth observing.
Advantage: None.
NARRATION:
There is a short, unobtrusive bit of narration at the start of the Macross episode. There is no narration at all in the Robotech episode. Of course, the entirety of the episode is narrated by the captain, in the context of preparing his report - so depending on point of view, this is either the episode with the least voice over of the series or the one with the most.
Advantage: None.
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| Capt. Global and Misa watch the sunset, which they thought they would never see again. |
CUTS AND ALTERATIONS:
As a clip show, this was probably the easiest episode for Robotech to trim: Just pare down a few of the clips, using the captain's narration to cover the differences. The Robotech episode is a good two minutes shorter than the Macross one; but since the difference mainly comes out of recycled clips, those cuts really don't make a difference.
Within the frame of the captain's report, there are two items worth noting:
Gloval Acknowledges His Responsibility for Damage and Deaths: When relating the events of Space Fold, Capt. Gloval acknowledges that his decision to fold in Earth's atmosphere had dire consequences to the civilian population of Macross City. Macross's Global also expresses regret for lives lost, but he insists that his decision was necessary. For what it's worth, the decision certainly seemed necessary, but it's interesting that Gloval seems to feel the weight of it a lot more than his Japanese counterpart.
Global Gives Credit to Misa; Gloval Does Not: When reporting on the events of Daedalus Attack, Capt. Global credits Misa Hayase for coming up with the plan that saved the ship; while Gloval does not claim credit for himself, he also doesn't acknowledge Lisa.
Advantage: None.
INCIDENTAL MUSIC:
The Robotech music helps to carry the viewer through the various clips. Most of the primary incidental tracks are used, and all are used to good effect.
That said, Macross is more willing not to use music. This is particularly evident in the final scene, as Global and Misa watch the sunset. Robotech uses a perfectly appropriate track for this moment. Macross, however, allows the moment to play without music, only slowly fading in the instrumental version of the theme after the viewer absorbs the image of the sunset. That restraint makes the ending for Macross work better.
Advantage: Macross.
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| Capt. Global's first sunset in a year. |
OVERALL ADVANTAGE: NONE:
In both versions, this is just a clip show, using excerpts to summarize the journey thus far. As a result, it's impossible to declare either episode as better than the other; both versions are equally forgettable.
OTHER MUSINGS:
Global Report/Gloval's Report is the definition of a bog-standard clip show. I've seen better of the type (Stargate SG-1 managed a couple of genuinely creative ones during its run), and I've seen worse. In the end, the entire installment amounts to nothing but an extended recap.
It did provide the Macross animators with a much-needed break. The recent run of episodes has seen the animation quality frequently falling down - missing frames, visual inconsistencies, a lack of detail in character art, and scenes that just didn't feel complete. My hope is that the break provided by this episode allowed for suitable catch-up, and that the next episodes will see a return to the series' previous visual standards.
Still, I'm rating this as an episode, not as a production tactic. As an episode... there's not much to say. Even within the limits of a clip show, there is no creativity in the way the format is utilized. Global Report replays events that viewers have already seen, adding nothing to our understanding and no particular new context. It's honestly rather boring.
Given that this installment adds nothing to the overall experience, I can't think of a single reason for modern viewers not to just skip right over it (well, except for the final scene, which I quite like). This may have been a necessary evil, but it's still the series' worst episode to date, and by a considerable margin.
Overall Rating: 2/10.
Previous Episode: Blue Wind
Next Episode: China Town/Homecoming
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