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| Claudia recalls the turning point in her relationship with Roy. |
Original Air Date - Super Dimension Fortress Macross: June 5, 1983.
Written by: Hiroyuki Hoshiyama. Directed by: Noboru Ishiguro, Tatsuya Kasahara.
Original Air Date - Robotech: Apr. 17, 1985.
Story Editor: Steve Kramer. Supervising Director: Robert V. Barron.
PLOT - MACROSS:
Misa feels guilty after using her rank to separate Hikaru and Minmay. When she attempts to apologize, Hikaru responds with scorn that borders on open hostility. That night, during a rainstorm, a miserable Misa finds her way to Claudia's house, where her friend fills her in on the start of her own relationship with Roy, which was a lot rockier than Misa had believed...
PLOT - ROBOTECH:
Lisa feels guilty after using her authority as mission commander to separate Rick and Minmei. When she attempts to apologize, Rick responds with scorn that borders on open hostility. That night, during a rainstorm, a miserable Lisa finds her way to Claudia's house, where her friend fills her in on the start of her own relationship with Roy, which was a lot rockier than Lisa had believed...
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| Claudia shares her story with Misa. |
CHARACTERS:
The episode draws heavy parallels between Claudia's relationship with Roy and Misa's would-be relationship with Hikaru. The connection between past Claudia and present Misa works quite well. In flashbacks, we see Claudia responding to Roy's flirtations with protests about appropriate behavior while on duty, which seems very much like the Misa of the present. Roy and Hikaru are less obviously alike; Roy actively pursued Claudia, while Hikaru mainly seems willfully oblivious to Misa's feelings. Still, some similarities become apparent in the final scene of the flashback. When Roy drops his playboy facade and honestly discusses his insecurities, it isn't hard to imagine Hikaru saying (or at least feeling) the same things.
Advantage: None.
NARRATION:
The Macross version is narration-free, and Claudia narrates only as much of the flashback as is necessary for viewers to reliably follow along.
Sadly, the same cannot be said of Robotech. Action-light episodes always seems to make the Robotech writers extra nervous, and the narrator just won't shut up. Worse, some of the narration sounds as if it's been ripped out of a Harlequin romance. In Macross, it's enough to see a distraught Misa running in the rain. In Robotech, the narrator has to tell us that she is "no longer able to distinguish between the rain and her tears."
When narrating the flashback, Robotech Claudia also gets in on the act, telling Lisa that because she was meeting Roy, the "heavy rain outside became a light spring shower." And I go from being genuinely involved in the character story to rolling my eyes at the purple prose. The Macross episode stays out of the way of the story and trusts the viewers to feel the emotions; the Robotech version overeggs the major emotional beats, which actually gets in the way of what we're meant to be feeling.
Advantage: Macross.
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| Hikaru and Misa walk in the rain. Their conversation is a lot more on-the-nose in Robotech. |
CUTS AND ALTERATIONS:
The Tea: The episode begins with Claudia giving Misa a container of herbal tea to reconcile with Hikaru. Macross uses this to do some subtle world building, with both of them noting how rare this kind of tea is after the devastation of the final battle and Claudia admitting to having used her connections to stockpile it. This makes the tea into its own thread in the Macross episode, while the Robotech episode makes it seem like something that can just be purchased at the local grocery.
Rick Complains About His Patrol: Hikaru/Rick is first seen landing at the end of a patrol. In Macross, all indications are that this was a standard patrol, increasing Hikaru's annoyance when Misa asks him to report to her. In Robotech, Rick complains about this having been a "grueling" patrol. Perhaps the Robotech writers were trying to half-excuse his spiteful behavior by emphasizing his exhaustion.
The Bridge Crew Bullies Their Male Co-Worker: In Macross, Vanessa, Kim, and Shammy bully their male co-worker when he dares to laugh at their banter. This is meant to be comical, but it mainly makes them horribly unlikable; call me crazy, but workplace harassment isn't any funnier when it's woman-to-man than when it's the other way around. Robotech changes the scene, which should be a good thing... except that the replacement dialogue doesn't remotely fit with the young man's reactions. Really, this bit should have just been removed entirely.
Misa Gulps Down Wine: Both versions see her asking Claudia for "something stronger" than tea. In Macross, we see Misa gulp down two glasses in a matter of seconds. Robotech de-emphasizes this, I suspect because of the after-school weekday timeslot.
Roy's Banter with Claudia: In Macross, Roy first asks Claudia on a date during a mission, rattling her. Robotech inexplicably replaces this with some generic bravado about how "fun" combat is, with Roy dedicating his last kill to her.
Hikaru and Misa Talk About Tea: Macross circles back to the tea at the end. Misa suggests she and Hikaru share it. When Hikaru expresses regret at having no sugar. she assures him that all they need is hot water. Robotech eliminates this, instead having Lisa bluntly say that they need to talk seriously, because young audiences can't possibly be trusted to intuit what the entire last half hour has been about.
Advantage: Macross
INCIDENTAL MUSIC:
Macross's incidentals, some of which are instrumental versions of Minmay songs, are extremely effective and fit the low-key nature of this episode. By contrast, Robotech's more bombastic score, which often boosts action heavy installments, is badly out of place in this quiet little character piece.
Advantage: Macross.
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| An angry Hikaru berates Misa. |
OVERALL ADVANTAGE: MACROSS:
A Rainy Night is a fine episode in either version. Though the narration in Robotech stifles a few moments, the actual dialogue is pretty good. I suspect the staff writers recognized that: (a) this was a good episode whose adaptation deserved more attention; and (b) that as a purely character-based episode, the dialogue needed to flow well for it to work. As a result, the Rick/Lisa story in Robotech works almost as well as the Hikaru/Misa one in Macross. It helps that all four main voice actors seem to be enjoying the more substantial script, delivering excellent performances.
That said, the American show still sands away several interesting details, notably the little sub-thread about the tea. The Macross episode ends with Hikaru and Misa walking through the rain, talking a little too earnestly about tea, one senses very specifically doing so to avoid talking about other things. This is in character (these are somewhat emotionally closed off characters) and it's rather charming. Meanwhile, the Robotech version replaces the tea discussion with Lisa telling Rick they have to talk seriously. It's fine as a scene in itself... but it feels very on the nose, and it isn't charming at all.
The Robotech version is still a good character piece. But as usual, particularly with character-based episode, the Macross version is simply better.
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| Roy parties with young female officers, leaving Claudia feeling humiliated. |
OTHER MUSINGS:
The flashbacks not only allow us to spend more time with Roy, one of the series' better supporting characters; they also add new layers to his personality, which recolor some of his actions and statements in the early episodes.
While viewers likely remember this as "the flashback episode," it actually takes a full nine minutes (in Macross at least) before the flashback starts. That's just shy of half the running time, and there are also several present-day scenes at the end. This means that, even with the prominence of the flashbacks, the script firmly establishes itself around the Hikaru/Misa relationship. That makes this principally about the main characters, with the Claudia/Roy story granting insight into their problems.
With sharp character writing, a well-balanced script, and (particularly in Macross) a terrific ending, A Rainy Night emerges as a rare gem in what's been an extremely uneven epilogue arc.
Overall Rating - Macross: 9/10.
Overall Rating - Robotech: 8/10.
Previous Episode: Broken Heart
Next Episode: Private Time
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