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| The first inter-species romance: Max and Milia marry. |
Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Virgin Road
Original Air Date - Macross: Apr. 10, 1983.
Written by: Sukehiro Tomita. Directed by: Noboru Ishiguro, Hiroshi Yoshida.
Robotech: Wedding Bells
Original Air Date - Robotech: Apr. 5, 1985.
Story Editor: Steve Kramer. Supervising Director: Robert V. Barron.
PLOT - MACROSS:
Max meets Milia for their date, only for her to immediately attack him. He manages to disarm her and, while she is weeping and begging him to kill her to end her shame, he declares his love for her. The new couple immediately announces a desire to marry.
Hikaru sees the potential for their union to act as a bridge between the warring races. Capt. Global agrees, broadcasting the wedding not only within the ship but also to both Earth and the Zentradi fleet. But the festivities spark fear and outrage in Lord Boldozaa, who orders Lord Britai to launch an all-out assault to destroy the Macross!
PLOT - ROBOTECH:
Max meets Miriya for their date, only for her to immediately attack him. He manages to disarm her and, while she is weeping and begging him to kill her to end her shame, he impulsively proposes marriage.
Rick is flabbergasted... until he sees Miriya and is overwhelmed by her beauty. Capt. Gloval sees the potential for the union to act as a bridge between the warring species, broadcasting the wedding not only within the ship but also to Earth and the Zentraedi fleet. But the festivities spark fear and outrage in Lord Dolza, who orders Bree'tai to launch an all-out assault to destroy the SDF-1!
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| Britai and Exsedol react to the wedding. |
CHARACTERS:
In the wake of the desertion of several soldiers, Macross's Britai expresses sympathy with their reasons for defecting. It's also Britai who calls off the attack when the dissatisfaction in the ranks becomes clear. By contrast, Robotech's Bree'tai insists that there can be no excuse for disobeying orders, and he has to be persuaded by Exedore to call off the assault.
I think the marriage is a bit too sudden to be fully dramatically satisfying. Even so, I actually would consider Max and Milia to be a good couple. In Max, Milia has met the one rival she cannot defeat; in Milia, Max has met someone who is almost his equal. I have some objections to how rushed it all feels in this episode, but I like them as a couple just fine.
Advantage: None.
NARRATION:
This episode is a rare case: The Robotech narration is better written than the Macross voice over! The Macross opener has that sense that I sometimes get from its Americanized counterpart: That it's trying to squeeze too much exposition in. The Robotech narration flows better into the main action, and is even used to paper over some of the rushed pacing.
Advantage: Robotech.
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| Max and Milia duel. Amazingly, the Robotech version of this scene is better written. |
CUTS AND ALTERATIONS:
The Duel: Robotech's Max is genuinely confused when Miriya attacks, while Macross's Max recovers from the surprise a little too quickly. The Robotech fight also ends with Max making his proposal while acknowledging that it is crazy. It doesn't make the events less rushed, but at least it serves to lampshade it.
Hikaru Sees a Chance for Peace; Rick Just Ogles a Hot Chick: One of the few Robotech changes that's definitely for the worse. Both Hikaru and Rick argue with Max that it's too soon to marry a woman he's just met. Hikaru recovers from his shock and recognizes the opportunity to lay groundwork for peace. By contrast, once Miriya arrives, Rick just drools over her. Hikaru tells Max to take her to see the captain; Rick just says something about wanting to kiss the bride. In short, Rick is made horny, dumb, and honestly a little creepy.
The Captain's Speech: In both versions, the captain starts by recounting the aggressions of the Zentradi before making a heartfelt plea for forgiveness and peace. Amazingly, it's the Robotech version that is better-scripted, with Gloval's pivot to peace coming across as more natural and his words seeming more persuasive.
The Idol Sings: Macross's Minmay sings a version of Runner, the end credits song, only with more optimistic lyrics to suit a couple just getting married. It's a lovely piece, beautifully sung... unlike Robotech Minmei's The Man in My Life. I was all set to say that at least Robotech gave Minmei a new song. The song is too short to cover the full scene, though, leaving her switching to her old standby, To Be in Love, to make up the difference.
The Sobbing Maitre'd: A comedy moment in Macross, as the venue employee collapses to his knees to sob over the damage, demanding to know why the Zentradi had to attack now. Robotech turns this into a dramatic moment, with the man instead terrified and praying. Both versions work - but I think I prefer the moment of comedy in Macross.
Ending Contemplation: Both Hikaru and Rick think of Misa/Lisa. In Hikaru's case, he's thinking of how they might actually be moving toward the peace wanted by both him and "Captain Hayase." Notably, Hikaru does not refer to her by her first name even in inner monologue. Robotech's Rick seems to be mainly wishing for Lisa's return. He reflects on Roy's (offscreen) advice that before you can love somebody, you first have to like them - and he observes that he likes Lisa. Again, both versions work... but this time, I prefer the Robotech scene.
Advantage: Robotech. Though it's closer than it would have been, because of that one very misjudged scene of Rick the Idiot Horndog.
INCIDENTAL MUSIC:
Robotech uses the track that sounds like a march during the wedding scene. This proves to be a perfect match of music and visuals, and is enough on its own to win the category this time.
Advantage: Robotech.
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| A wedding in space. |
OVERALL ADVANTAGE: ROBOTECH:
This particular Macross script feels as if it was churned out in a hurry, with the Max/Milia relationship skipping a step or several. It's impossible for Robotech to completely correct that, but the writers do what they can to minimize the problem. The whole thing still feels a bit rushed, with a sense that an extra episode was really needed to get the couple from duel to nuptials, but it plays out just that little bit better in the American version.
OTHER MUSINGS:
Virgin Road/Wedding Bells is important in terms of the overall arc. Max and Milia go from rivals to a couple. Their marriage, broadcast to the Zentradi fleet, adds further fuel to the unrest among the aliens, which from the "next time" blurb seems likely to be the focus of the next episode.
Unfortunately, it's not one of the series' better offerings.
Prior episodes haven't done enough to build the Max/Milia dynamic. The two didn't even share screen time until last episode's arcade scene. I think it would have played better had Milia been arrested, with Max going to talk to her afterward and then proposing. Just one more conversation, but it would have made the difference between it feeling insanely rushed and feeling like a more natural plot turn.
Other aspects of the episode feel equally rushed. The captain, Hikaru, and Misa all hope this marriage will become a bridge between species, while Lord Boldozaa and Misa's father both see it as a potential threat to their plans... but since there is so much plot for the episode to get through, their viewpoints receive barely any exploration.
So that this review doesn't come across as a complete bashing, I'll end by talking about something that was well-executed: The spreading chaos within the Zentradi forces, with some soldiers refusing to join in the attack. Because the foundation was carefully laid in previous episodes, this crisis for the Zentradi feels like a natural next stage in the story. I just wish the rest of it worked as well.
OVERALL:
I have the same opinion of this episode that I remember having of too many installments of Star Trek: The Animated Series - namely, that this should have been a two-parter. There are good ideas, but they get no room to breathe because there's too little time and too much story. As a result, the entire 25 minutes feels like a mad dash to the next plot point.
It's far from my least favorite episode, and the Robotech version does improve on the worst of the rushing. But the events here really needed a little more time to play out.
Overall Rating - Macross: 4/10.
Overall Rating - Robotech: 5/10.
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