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| Jeanne's triple mirror stirs up Seifriet's memories. |
Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross: Triple Mirror.
Original Air Date - Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross: July 15, 1984. Writer: Jinzô Toriumi. Director: Yuusaku Satsukime.
Robotech: Triumvirate.
Original Air Date - Robotech: May 10, 1985.
Story Editor: Steve Kramer. Supervising Director: Robert V. Barron.
PLOT - SOUTHERN CROSS
Supreme Commander Claude Leon orders an attack on the Zor fleet. This time, he insists they will succeed because now their Auroran attack chopper is ready to deploy. Marie is assigned to lead the Aurorans, while the Zor watch the humans lift off in disbelief that their enemy could be quite this stupid.
As the Zor engage in easy target practice, inspiration strikes Jeanne about how to recover Seifriet's memories. She takes him to the three mounds, the place where she and Bowie first encountered him. Searching the area, they find a cavern - and deeper inside, they uncover a secret that might just be the key to understanding the Zor!
PLOT - ROBOTECH:
Supreme Commander Anatole Leonard orders an attack on the Robotech Masters. This time, he insists they will succeed because now their AJAX attack chopper is ready to deploy. Marie is assigned to lead the AJAX units. The Masters watch the humans lift off in disbelief that their enemy could be quite this stupid.
As the Robotech Masters engage in easy target practice, inspiration strikes Dana for recovering Zor's memories. She takes him to the three mounds, the site of the battle that destroyed the SDF-1. Searching the area, they find a cavern - and deeper inside, they uncover a secret that leaves Zor in a state of terror!
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| Claude Leon decides that a frontal assault against a superior force is a good idea. Because he's an imbecile. |
CHARACTERS:
Jeanne is harboring a planet-sized crush on Seifriet. I continue to wish that some of her anger from Déjà Vu lingered, as that was a character beat that was both convincing and interesting. At this point, though, I increasingly doubt the series will follow up on it.
Jeanne impulsiveness continues to be an effective approach with Seifriet. The instant she thinks of taking him to the mounds, she calls up Bowie and simply does it. She later acknowledges defying orders, earning a sigh from Lana. It's clear that Jeanne's philosophy more or less follows the old saying that it's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.
Charles continues to romantically pursue Marie, and she's thawing in her attitude toward him. I wish I could care, but neither character has received enough attention or been granted enough depth for me to feel at all invested. Oh, and at this point, Claude Leon (and his Robotech counterpart, Anatole) is just an imbecile. One who seems determined to wipe out his own forces a mere three episodes after being told that he'll receive no reinforcements. At this point, Gen. Emerson would save a lot of Gloirian lives, and greatly increase the odds of a successful resolution to the conflict, if he were willing to arrange an "accident" for his superior.
Advantage: None.
NARRATION:
The Robotech episode is restrained in its narration... with one exception. At the midpoint, when Dana decides to take Zor to the ruins of the SDF-1 to jog his memory, the narrator has to tell us why she's doing this. Never mind that she's just said why she's doing it, and never mind that she restates it a minute or so later. I have no idea why the writers felt compelled to add that bit of narration, but it's enough to tip the advantage to the original version.
Advantage: Southern Cross.
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| A cavern full of flowers. Southern Cross's Seifriet reacts quite differently than Robotech's Zor. |
CUTS AND ALTERATION:
The Supreme Commander's Speech: The episode begins with Supreme Commander Leon making a speech about the upcoming attack. In Southern Cross, he full-throatedly stirs up the troops by promising that they will "crush the Zor." In Robotech, Anatole Leonard is more realistic, talking about the dangers of the upcoming battle.
Nova Has Been Assigned to Zor's Rehabilitation: In Southern Cross, Lana tries to persuade Jeanne that she should be part of the effort to recover Seifriet's memories. Robotech changes the scene so that Nova has been assigned to Zor, with her telling Dana: "It's out of your hands."
Subterranean Flowers: Seifriet, Jeanne, and Bowie find strange flowers in a cavern, which Seifriet knows are in some way important. All of this is the same in both versions. In Southern Cross, no sense of malevolence is attached to this discovery. Robotech has a third arc to set up, though, so Zor talks about the flowers as if they are dangerous, saying that he can sense them calling out to something far away.
The Supreme Commander's Aide: At the end of the episode, the Supreme Commander's aide reports the results of the attack. In Southern Cross, he's as pig-headed as Claude Leon, scoffing at how pathetically their troops performed. In maybe the only distinct improvement in Robotech, the aide reports the losses and retreat as a normal person would, and he reacts with appropriate surprise when Anatole declares that they'll follow up with yet another frontal assault.
A Telling Final Shot: Not significant, but worth noting. The final shot of Southern Cross has the camera tilting up to show Gloire's two moons. But since Robotech is set on Earth, the shot is cut short - but not so short that the camera doesn't visibly begin moving upward just before the cutaway.
Advantage: Southern Cross.
INCIDENTAL MUSIC:
I have a basically split verdict on the music in this episode. The first part of the Robotech episode has some odd cues, notably when "adrenaline pumping" music is used right after Dana's conversation with Nova - and then cut short a few seconds later. I also think the Southern Cross music is more generally effective in the pre-battle part of the episode and in the cavern scenes. However, as usual, the Robotech tracks give a substantial lift to the battle scenes, which are a big part of this episode.
Ultimately, I think it works out to being another case of "No Advantage."
Advantage: None.
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| Jeanne, Seifriet, and Bowie reach the three mounds. In Robotech, these are also the ruins of the SDF-1. |
OVERALL ADVANTAGE - NONE:
In this case, the two versions are very close together. Most of the changes are minor, save for those specifically made for the sake of Robotech's continuity. It's basically the same episode, and each variant is about as good as the other.
OTHER MUSINGS:
This was a definite improvement over the previous installment. The story moves along nicely, cutting back and forth between the threads of Marie and the space battle and Jeanne and Seifriet investigating the mounds. It's well paced, and the plot pays off elements from the last episode - notably Claude Leon's rash decision to attack and the entire thread about Seifriet's lost memory.
There are several arresting images: the triple reflection of Jeanne in her mirror, which prompts Seifriet's memory that "the Zor are Trinities"; the tiny figures of our trinity of Jeanne, Seifriet, and Bowie standing before the trinity of the three mounds; the cavern with the flowers; and a number of individual images during the space battle. I could nitpick about recycled shots... but honestly, what show of this era didn't do that? This is a good-looking episode.
I wasn't as invested in the space battle as I'd have liked. First, it's not like there was any question of the attack working. It's been a whopping three episodes since the Zor devastated the human relief forces. The Supreme Commander's all-out assault just serves to make him look even more incompetent than he did already. Nor is there any suspense about Marie's fate; unlike Macross, the regulars in this series have absolute Plot Armor. Between these issues, I found myself just sitting back to watch the 'splosions, and wait for the inevitable result.
The Jeanne/Seifriet material is more interesting. I enjoyed the cavern exploration, and I look forward to seeing where that is going. I remain annoyed at how readily the squad has accepted Seifriet, which feels emotionally false to me, but at least it's an interesting thread.
Overall, this is a good episode that's effective in advancing the main arc and leaving me interested to see what happens next.
Overall Rating: 7/10.
Previous Episode: Lost Memory/A New Recruit
Next Episode: Iron Lady/Clone Chamber
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