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| Stig and his group hide from Inbit forces. |
Genesis Climber Mospeada: Survival Song Feeling.
Original Air Date - Genesis Climber Mospeada: Oct. 23, 1983. Writer: Ryo Yasumura. Director: Masayuki Kojima.
Robotech: Survival.
Original Air Date - Robotech: May 30, 1985. Story Editor: Steve Kramer. Supervising Director: Robert V. Barron.
PLOT - MOSPEADA:
While Yellow Belmont waits in the group's camp, Stig and the others make a supply run to a nearby town. This does not go well, with them finding themselves on the run from Inbit forces. They make a detour into a forest to hide. No matter what they do, however, the Inbit keep finding them. And in the wild, the aliens aren't the only danger...
PLOT - ROBOTECH:
While Lancer waits in the group's camp, Scott and the others make a supply run to a nearby town. This does not go well, with them finding themselves on the run from Invid forces. They make a detour into a forest to hide. No matter what they do, however, the Invid keep finding them. And in the wild, the aliens aren't the only danger...
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| Ray and Houquet bicker. Since this is an '80s show, that probably means they're in love. |
CHARACTERS:
This episode offers a chance to see the newly formed group working as a team. Country boy Ray gets to show some competence, first in dealing with leeches and later in catching fish for the group to eat - though he gets lost in his enthusiasm for the latter activity that he nearly gets caught by the Inbit. Ray and Houquet spend much of the episode bickering, which by '80s TV rules means that they will end up becoming a couple, though some of their "fight/flirting" here points to real resentment from Ray. I guess we'll see if that last trait gets developed or forgotten.
Advantage: None.
NARRATION:
Robotech opens with a full recap, consisting of bits from the previous episode with the narrator introducing the new characters and letting us know that Scott and company found a Veritech fighter. The main body of the episode is very restrained in its narration, however, with no moments that irritated me, leaving this category a wash.
Advantage: None.
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| Ray figures out how the Inbit keep finding them. Robotech adds voice over to spell it out for us. |
CUTS AND ALTERATION:
Scott Admits That He Was Wrong about "Breaking Through": The episode begins with the party surrounded by Inbit fighters. Stig urges the group to break through; Ray dismisses that as suicide and cuts to the side, with the others following. The scene is almost identical in Robotech - except that when Scott looks at the Invid blocking the path he had been urging, he admits that he was wrong in wanting to keep going.
Mint Asks Ray to Marry Her: While fleeing the Inbit, Mospeada's Mint laments that she doesn't want to die without being married and demands that Ray marry her (he refuses). Robotech has dialed back on her marriage obsession, so Annie merely wails that she's too young to die, with the subsequent exchange removed entirely.
Food vs. Protoculture Energy Cells: Jim's jeep is damaged during the escape. He tries to recover the spilled food stores that he got from the town before fleeing. That apparently is too mundane for Robotech, with Lunk instead trying to gather up "Protoculture Energy Cells."
Rook Snaps at Lunk: After evading the Inbit in Mospeada, the group hides in tall grass and wonders exactly how the aliens are managing to follow them. Robotech changes this, with Lunk asking about food and Rook snapping at him. This does introduce the idea of tension within the group a bit earlier, but at the cost of having the main characters actually think about the problem of how they're being tracked.
Internal Monologue When Rand Figures It Out: Ray hides in the trees as the Inbit pass. He begins charging his weapon, at which point the Inbit turn toward him. He swiftly turns the power off, and the aliens move on. Since Robotech doesn't fully trust its audience to follow along, Rand has an internal monologue spelling out his realization. I think my fingers may have gotten bruised from the aggressive handholding.
Rook Is Angrier Than Houquet: File this one under pointless changes. In Mospeada, Houquet wonders exactly why Ray is so reflexively nasty toward her. Robotech changes this so that Rook is every bit as rude to Rand as he is to her.
Advantage: None. A couple of changes that I like are canceled out by changes that I don't like.
INCIDENTAL MUSIC:
Both scores are well applied, but I think Robotech's is more effective. Surprisingly, the Robotech score works best not in the ending action scene, but in the moments that show the group hiding from and evading the Invid. Mospeada's incidental music is fine, and I appreciate the moments that play out with no music - but I think that Robotech wins this category this time.
Advantage: Robotech.
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| The Inbit relentlessly search for Stig's group. |
OVERALL ADVANTAGE - NONE:
Changes made to this episode are minor: an internal monologue to (over-) clarify one point, a slight change in the attitude of Robotech's Rook vs. Mospeada's Houquet, a bit of extra technobabble involving protoculture. It's basically the same viewing experience in either version.
OTHER MUSINGS:
Aside from a few decent character moments for Ray and Houquet, Survival Song Feeling is entirely unmemorable. There's some initial suspense in watching the group evade the Inbit... but that drains away fast, because there's only so many times you can watch the characters hide behind trees before the thrill is gone.
There just isn't much here. The group hides in the forest, Ray goes fishing, they evade the aliens and a couple of threats from nature, and then they share a meal. There's merit in seeing the newly formed group working together, but not enough to keep this from feeling like filler.
It's watchable enough. Overall, though, this occupies 22 minutes, it passes the time more or less adequately, and then it ends. I strongly suspect that if you accidentally skipped it while watching the series, you'd never even notice it was missing.
Overall Rating: 4/10.
Previous Episode: Showdown Concert at High Noon/Lonely Soldier Boy
Next Episode: Live Inn Plunder Operation/Curtain Call
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