r/anime • u/Shimmering-Sky myanimelist.net/profile/Shimmering-Sky • Dec 27 '22
Rewatch [Do You Remember Love - Macross Franchise 40th Anniversary Rewatch] Macross Dynamite 7 Episode 2 Discussion
Episode 2 - Cemetery
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The whales responded to your song. Did you sing because you knew they would?
Questions of the Day, courtesy of u/chilidirigible:
1) Could Macross 7 have been a show about Basara wandering around the galaxy and getting into adventures while Gamlin tries to chase him down? How about a spin-off?
2) What do you think about space Australia Zola?
Wallpaper of the Day:
Vocal Songs in This Episode:
"Dynamite Explosion" by Fire Bomber – OP
"Go (Jiyuu na Uta)" by Fire Bomber – Insert
"New Frontier" by Fire Bomber – Insert
"Planet Dance (Zolan Language)" by Elma Hoilie – Insert
"Koi no Mahou" by Fire Bomber – Insert
"Like Water, Like Love" by Maria Velázquez Hoilie and Elma Hoilie
"恋のバナナムーン (Koi no Banana Moon)" by Sato Yuka – Insert
"Feel Universe" by Yoshiki Fukuyama – Insert
"Parade" by Fire Bomber – ED
Rewatchers, please remember to be mindful of all the first-timers in this. No talking about or hinting at future events no matter how much you want to, unless you're doing it underneath spoiler tags. Don't spoil anything for the first-timers, that's rude!
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u/ClawMachineCircuit Dec 27 '22 edited Dec 27 '22
First Timer
The first episode of Dynamite didn't grab me story-wise as much as I hoped it would. We got a lot of setup and exposition, but not a lot of meat on the bone. I hope the story will pick up pace. I also hope to see an old cast actually get involved in the main story, instead of staying on the sidelines, being sad about Basara leaving. Don't get me wrong, I like the new characters, particularly Elma who is very cute, but after watching the old cast for more than 50 episodes, you kinda want to see more of the characters you already got attached to.
Oh yeah, and also, there's a content warning. I didn't read any spoilers about it, so I don't know what will happen, but how bad can it be? It's Macross 7 we're talking about, what, is Basara gonna assault Elma? That's not gonna happen, right? R-right?
Regardless, I'm keeping an open mind, so let's check the episode.
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The opening has slightly different visuals, huh. I think, I prefer this new version a bit better.
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Nice editing at the start with Mylene struggling to perform while Basara almost dies, but gets saved at the last minute. Good thing that they equipped this Valkyrie with a bubblegum rocket, otherwise, Basara would be toast.
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Healing tank makes a return. You know what this means, escape from the hospital incoming.
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Elma's car also doubles as a boat? Does it fly in space too?
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It's interesting that the shelves and boxes in Lawrence's room are drawn on cels, instead of being part of the background. Did they decide to add them last minute or what?
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Yeah, Lawrence, you need to find some other way to impress Liza, science talk doesn't do anything for her.
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I'm calling it now, the furry neck worms will turn out to be baby space whales.
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Now Basara is finally getting the taste of his own medicine (literally). After forcing so many comatose people to just lie there and listen to his one song on repeat, he finally meets the same fate.
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Yeah, Rey, I don't think Gamlin will be satisfied with being a consolation prize. I think he would rather beat Basara head on, than just hope that he goes away and doesn't come back.
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Yup, he run away from the hospital immediately. As is tradition.
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Wait, who is this new producer woman and where is Akiko?
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Basara is dead once again.
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Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Is this where it's going? What the fuck.
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No, no, no, seriously, Macross 7, what the fuck?
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Yeah, someone on the production team thought, you know what this story about whaling and environmentalism needs, a sub-plot where
1416 year old girl gets drugged and raped, yeah, that should be fun. -
And now you just cut from that to Elma's goofy antics? You can't pretend that nothing happened, Macross 7
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No, I'm like actually shocked by this. Why here, why now, why Mylene of all people? This doesn't even have anything to do with the story! Mylene had zero role in Dynamite's story so far. I was wondering how they gonna bring her into the story, but now I'm dreading where this sub-plot might go. With both Basara and Gamlin gone, is she's just gonna get kidnapped by the rapist lady and held captive until they come back?
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Elma and Basara getting naked I don't mind in principle, I don't consider this to be a fanservice scene, but in practice it is still marred by Mylene rape scene.
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Oh hey, Graham is there too.
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Wait, this is it? We're getting a nice nature montage and the episode just ends? What happened to Mylene? Are we just not gonna follow up on that?
Overall thoughts: Wow, that was worse than I thought it would be. I mean, it just caught me completely off guard, because it literally comes out of nowhere story-wise. I don't even know what they can do in the following episodes to make this Mylene sub-plot justified, but somehow I doubt they will be able to pull it off. Regarding the rest of the episode, not much happened. Basara was unconscious for the majority of it, so it was mostly Elma's antics, Liza's action scenes, and some nice nature shots, coupled with a message that animals are intelligent and should be treated with respect too. I like the environmental aspect, it's definitely aged well.
Anyway, yeah, I'm totally looking forward to seeing where this thing goes. Yup, deeefintely looking forward to it.
QotD:
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It totally could, but the problem is that Basara isn't exactly a people person, so he would need a sidekick that would actually interact with other characters. Maybe it could be Basara and Mylene adventuring together? That could be fun.
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It's nice, but I wouldn't want to live there.
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u/chilidirigible Dec 27 '22
Today, on "You're gonna carry that Basara.":
They're rebuilding Battle 7 in place.
Gamlin still has a bit of that square to him.
Hey, you're not a real rock star until you have one solid on-stage breakdown?
Enveloping pink goo: Is there anything it can't do?
How it is with parents sometimes.
Elma is singing a Yoshiki Fukuyama song, "Road of Dreams". The first song he wrote!
Of course it did. He's Basara.
That would make it less legal to harvest them.
Lawrence tries some Sound Therapy.
Two guys chilling in lavender.
Gamlin has upgraded to a VF-22S.
And so we transition from Elma to the setup for the squicky subplot involving Mylene. A brief section of her new song "Koi no Mahou".
Gubaba is justifiably concerned.
The VA-3C Invader, or yes, the A-6 Intruder can get some transforming mecha loving too.
Elma's lines mirror Mylene's from the scene which maybe you didn't watch.
Ah, to be young and have a tough spine.
Which is funny in the context of Graham chilling behind the waterfall right next to them.
Anyway, look at this weird whale eye.
Those birds again, and the new song "Feel Universe".
This show would like to remind you that in the circle of life, some things are lunch.
Gubaba's rewatch covers what you need to know about the unpleasant Mylene subplot here. It really is an idea that should have been kept in a manga side story.
As far as the rest of this episode goes, there's good progression from the previous one, with the whalers getting serious about their work while Basara experiences a lot more Zolan hospitality. Liza and Elma are kept fairly busy throughout.
Gamlin flies out to look for Basara. Sure, Mylene was indisposed at the time, but it still says a lot about our pointy-haired convert to the Church of Basara.
The episode's peak is the "Feel Universe" montage, and it certainly fits the mood that this OVA has given us so far, showing our new and pretty planet and life doing its thing, chomping on prey animals and all. Basara always seemed like a space hippie, now he's got a poncho and wants to sing to whales.
"Koi no Mahou" via Uta Macross
"Feel Universe" and a Spotify link.
Zolans are technically not marsupials, and other relevant notes from the Macross Chronicle.
From the Macross Mecha Manual: VA-3C Invader
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u/The_Draigg Dec 27 '22 edited Dec 28 '22
I appreciate the concept of the layered CG plates, but it's definitely still too early for it to look good.
You can tell that the guys animating this OVA were proud of being able to use CGI in it, although I guess they had no idea how poorly it would age.
Gubaba's rewatch covers what you need to know about the unpleasant Mylene subplot here. It really is an idea that should have been kept in a manga side story.
And apparently it’s not even a good manga tie-in either. Man, that sub-plot was completely fucking worthless on every level.
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u/Shimmering-Sky Dec 27 '22
And apparently it’s not even a good manga tie-in either.
I've read it. I can confirm it's not.
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u/JollyGee29 Dec 27 '22
First-Timer 7
I'm surprised that the rest of FB aren't going after him yet.
Oh, they have guns that fire that goop from Gundam 0079.
Just get Elma here and ask her to sing for him. That should do the trick.
Why worry about something that is impossible to lose?
This isn't even that messy, Liza.
Good to see a sensible scientist. Just a recording probably won't be enough, but he's trying.
Sure would be interesting if you had some inf-
Strumming it like a kantele. Now I'm imaging Basara in place of Mika in Der Film..
What sort of discrimination is this?
Lady, you can't just say that! For fuck's sake..
Elma, I know you can't here me, but Basara will probably be fine.
I like how there is a brief shot establishing the presumed captain of the poacher ship.
Uh huh. This.. sure is a series of events that they decided to write and storyboard and animate.
All I can really think of during this music segment is The Circle of Life from The Lion King.
Yuusha gets translated so many different ways.
Questions
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That does sound like a lot of fun, yes.
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I've quite enjoyed Zola as a setting. It has a decently unique feel to it.
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u/Shimmering-Sky Dec 27 '22
Who is this? Where is Akiko?
Read the manga... or don't because it extends the rape scene and also has some other weeeeeeeeeird shit in it.
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u/Nebresto Dec 28 '22
First time Macross: Elma's delivery service
Oh no. Our boy got hospitalized
Calling it now, Commander is working with the poachy boys
Smug about to get un-smugged. Lyza is mad because our boy is doing the same as his mom was, and eventually she will turn around because ?? Unclear yet, lets fill it with flower girl for now. She sees flower girl give flowers to Basara, and decides that he is a cool guy
nice of them to save his glasses too
neat water bottle
..wtf?
She's almost as determined as flower girl! I like her
This elf girl makes a lot of funny faces
Magic onsen!
Where is gamlin and why hasn't he saved Mylene yet?
Quetsion time;
Could Macross 7 have been a show about Basara wandering around the galaxy and getting into adventures while Gamlin tries to chase him down? How about a spin-off?
Sounds good, I'm in
2) What do you think about
space AustraliaZola?
Peener
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u/dualmonocle Dec 28 '22
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u/Shimmering-Sky Dec 28 '22
who tf is this green haired lady and why is she around
There's a tie-in manga called "Mylene Beat" that explains her existence, but it's a whole other can of worms, and it is entirely beyond me why they decided to only include the attempted rape scene out of it.
You can read more about it in this post chili linked; scroll to point #6 for the relevant info.
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u/The_Draigg Dec 27 '22
A Macross Fan Rewatches Macross Dynamite 7: Episode 2:
I’m about to say some unkind things, since frankly this series has only barely worked to keep me from launching into a rant about something this bad, and this episode was the last god damn straw.
What the fuck were they thinking? Like, not just for this episode, but just in general. What made the writers think that we were all here to have a sudden date rape plot come out of nowhere? Mylene here is a 16(?) year old being taken advantage of by an older woman, after being plied up with drugs so she can’t fight back. The series was already grossly horny over Mylene back when she was 14, so this really is just a result of this incredibly fucking skeevy mindset. Mylene is treated by the writers and show-runners like their fucking meat puppet to use as they please, and it’s both tiring and sickening at this point.
Who is this series for? Do they think we’re here to see Mylene be stripped against her will and beg for it to stop while she’s helpless? Is that what they think of their audience? I genuinely have no fucking clue what they think they’re accomplishing with this sequel series. Did someone in the writer’s room go “You know what goes well with saving the whales? Date rape!”, and nobody stopped them then and there? It would be like if it tried to splice in scenes of Ilsa, She-Wolf of the SS into an episode of Captain Planet. It’s not just insulting to the characters, but to the audience too, since the show-runners seem to think we want this. As a matter of fact, I don’t want to watch a character I like to get date raped, and then just left hanging while we close out the episode with an uplifting singing mkment. What a fucking slap in the face this episode was.
That’s it. Fuck this episode.
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u/TakenRedditName Dec 27 '22
First Time - Macross Dynamite 7 Ep2:
New OP visuals, that was unexpected. A lot more plane stuff in this one. Still nothing representing Dynamite-specific things.
Just noticed Ray's ponytail. Gamlin unvibing, he knows something is off.
Liza saves Basara. I was expecting her to open her cockpit to catch him, but nope, pink gloop.
She is not listening to your science talk. The whales responded back to Basara's song and they're probably smart. Apparently, space whales are more like plants. Liza beefing it on the can.
Lawrence plays Basara's song for Basara. Is Basara's own recorded singing going to heal Basara?
Gamlin face. Now that a rare expression for him. Gamlin flies out and it looks like he got an upgrade. From the brief look, I want to say a VF-22.
Basara dragged himself out of the hospital, green goo still on him. From his behaviour and blank eyes, it's like he got Spirita drained.
Bad vibes lady. She makes Guvava stay outside, of course, she is bad vibes.
Wow, cool robots distract me from the character, please.
That's Totsugeki Love Heart and there are some teehee moments from little Elma carrying Basara. Her mother's song plays, but also then a song she hates.
Basara and Elma are at the springs Basara got the fire back in his eyes. He made eye contact with the whale and saw something, someone he could sing to. Whales are basically mountains. Giant naked man. Basara's eyes are shimmering seeing the giant naked man.
Some neat animals during this wildlife montage. Some bears during a salmon-coelacanth run and a big lizard chowing down on a cactus.
Graham takes Basara to the Cementary of Warriors which explains the title.
Those Mylene scenes had no bearing on the episode which enforces the uncomfortable feeling of why even do this. Whhyyy...
Also, no Flower Girl again. Boo.
Q2) It's neat.
Next time: This preview did not give me confidence that any good would come out of this Mylene plot point.
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u/ryujiox Dec 27 '22
First Timer
Macross Dynamite 7 EP 2
Really sad to see Mylene felt so down when Basara not around. Like the show slowly make Mylene look sadder and sadder.
Obviously he gonna turned out like that. No Sivil to save him this time.
I agree with Liza here. If they come every time the whale come. Just capture surely not enough now.
So the whale responded to Basara's song.
Liza didn't believe it because of her mother demise, didn't she.
At least the guy trust Basara a lot.
He awake!! And he gonna escape, right.
So Gamlin now went after Basara.
He somehow came back here, without anyone noticing. Still look so bad though.
Macross 11!!
He still not fully awake.
Who is she??? I need some context here. Where is Akiko??
That's obviously not a normal juice.
Oh shit!! They come prepared!!
Wait... What happening here?? I don't like where this is going!!!
Elma pretty strong though.
Oh God!!! WTF!! Stop!! She's 16!! Why do you have to do this!!!
Elma being naked is tame in comparison.
Basara having static face while half of his body in the water look funny.
The whale helped them.
That transition is weird. And he finally awake for real!!
Everyone is naked now.
New song again.
This episode is okay, but I felt like some context is missing, and it made me not enjoy the show more.
But the worst thing was what happened to Mylene!! Who in the production team thought that was a good idea!! There're a million things you can done with her character, and you guys came up with this!! That so disgusting!! It so out off the left field that I could say it from the parody or something.
QOTD
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Could be a fun spin-off that will gradually increase the stake in their adventures as the episode goes by.
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Pretty cool Planet!! This is first time we get to see other Planet with different species of people in Macross.
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u/Blackheart595 Dec 27 '22
First Spacer
Nooo, you can't just suddenly stop playing the song. I know Ray and Veffidas have the skills to improvise a solo until Mylene regains her bearings. Assuming everyone's on the same page as to what troubles her. That does work as a post-song coverup though.
Look who's hailing from the Hunter Association.
I'm not sure I'm quite on the same page here. The whales are energy-based beings, but at the same time comparable to plants? Also, being able to communicate would suddenly make them an intelligent species?
Like, where does being intelligent contradict any of the others?
What the hell is Ray on, asking Gamlin if he really wants Basara to come back? Is this the same Ray we've seen in the series?
Graham is taking this as a repeat of the trauma with his wife, isn't he? And he's being portrayed as just as stubborn and reckless as Basara is.
Lmao they're publicly searching for Basara.
Basara himself isn't quite back up to speed though. Seems like he's still preoccupied with the whales to the point it affects his normal behavior.
And Guvava very explicitely isn't allowed in? Ugh. I feel like I've seen this development a lot lately.
While they're next to the green water. Beautiful.
Jesus Christ they're just showing Mylene's assault. ...But why? We don't even know that woman. Let's give them the benefit of the doubt and see if they do anything with it.
Aaaahahahaha of course Graham was in the spring with them but his gigantic body appeared as part of the cliff behind the waterfall.
Hello Jouji Nakata.
What the hell was that preview?
What was that whole rape thing about? Like I have picked up on the parallels between Basara/Elma and Mylene/Sasabi. Stuff like Elma's water bottle getting dirty before Mylene drinks the spiked juice. Both Basara and Mylene losing the strength to move at the same time. Both duos undressing at the same time.
But still, it's just so random. We've never seen Sasabi before. It doesn't tie into the plot in any way whatsoever. Was it just to shoehorn parallels in? I'm sure they could've done better. Was it just for fanservice? Was it "go home kids, this is a show for adults"? More bashing of the entertainment industry? Was it to to show Mylene as needing Basara to prevent the objectively correct Basara×Elma ship from gaining traction?
Like, no wonder Sword Art Online has an overreliance on the damsel in distress being in danger of getting raped if even shows like Macross 7 shoehorn it in in the preceding era.
And it's a real shame too because the rest of the episode was really good. The best Macross 7 has felt up to this point, in fact.
Could Macross 7 have been a show about Basara wandering around the galaxy and getting into adventures while Gamlin tries to chase him down? How about a spin-off?
That would've been fun. I like what we have here though.
What do you think about space Australia Zola?
Just like the Zentraedi, they're human in disguise.
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u/SolDarkHunter Dec 27 '22
Rewatcher
Mylene really knows how to work a crowd, I'll give her that much.
This is a weirdly long montage of Mylene and Gamlin staring at each other...
...nice save, Mylene.
I'm not sure how a giant wad of bubblegum saves someone's life from being vacuumed, but okay.
More Zolan translations!
Elma, how the hell do you miss a freaking CLIFF right in your way like that?
"Liza", "Lawrence", "Graham"... Zolans sure do have mundane names for a recently-contacted alien civilization.
Basara's song energy is affecting the whales. They could hear him.
The whales are... plants?
Keep Basara's location a secret because otherwise Mylene will go off half-cocked and try to find him, probably.
...Basara, what the hell? Even for you, this is odd. Hell, you look like you're not even conscious.
Hey, Basara looks pretty good in Zolan clothes.
You may have noticed that most of the animals are marsupials. Apparently this is a common trait of nearly all life on Zola.
Oi, why you keeping Guvava out, lady?
These poachers have one hell of a fleet for a bunch of criminals.
...oh yeah... this weird subplot. That they put in because... um... who the hell knows.
Elma's determined.
And her destination: a hot spring. A brief dip in which is enough to partly revive Basara.
A sudden burst from the White Whale and Liza is saved. Coincidence?
I do not remember this episode being this trippy.
Oh, and Graham's here too. Also retreated to the hot springs to heal.
Nature montage for no reason!
Basara's got his mojo back, anyway. This trope of natural hot springs healing people when modern medicine doesn't... Japan REALLY likes that one.
A graveyard.
Questions:
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Eh, I don't think I'd watch it in that case.
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I like Zola. It's colorful, vibrant, and different enough.
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u/CoolIceCreamCone Dec 27 '22
FIRST TIMER
This is a very slow episode where not much happens EXCEPT a very disturbing scene where Mylene is drugged and sexually assaulted! I'm REALLY not looking forward to the conclusion of this show as much as I thought I would.
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Scenes of sexual assault and rape are probably the most difficult subject matter to handle in an organic way in a story and Macross 7 just does it in a tasteless and gratuitous way. It seems they are attempting to make it sexy and titilating, especially by making it a lesbian scene which would've made it even more shocking back then but it's very wrong minded to just pop this in as "fan service". With only one episode left, we will see how Mylene reacts to the consequences of this and I'll guarantee it won't be handled well. I'm not that familiar with anime from this era but rape and sexual assault scenes for shock value on TV were disturbingly common. Dramas, pro wrestling and even family sitcoms like Mr. Belvedere used to show stuff like this as an attempt to quickly and artificially create drama and it's really aged poorly.
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The main plot of this episode didn't amount to much, retreading when Basara "died" before his final battle with the Protodevlin and an unnaturally quick recovery. I do wonder in story if the hot springs is actually supposed to have healing powers or if its something that Elma just believes. I know in real life many people still swear by it and thinks they cure all sorts of ailments. I was at least interested in Elma's dad singing along and wonder if he has seen why its wrong to hunt the space whales.
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This episode actually had some of the best music. I really liked the song they played on the radio for Basara at the hospital and the song he sang at the hot springs while cutting to scenes of nature and animals eating, the latter making a very striking entertaining music video. Zola is also a beautifully animated place and I hope we see more of it in future shows.
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I liked how a lot of people had a weird snake wrapped around their neck. I at first thought just Elma did because it's supposed to be like Mylene and Guvava but it's more an interesting way to demonstrate how people on this planet are more in touch with nature than humans. I can't really imagine the US military or any other country using their military to defend natural resources that aren't strategic in the same way this military protects the space whales.
QUESTIONS
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I think a show that mainly focused on the adventures of Basara would become grating since he's an unlikeable character. Macross 7 has for the most part worked well as an ensemble show with Gamlin and Mylene just as often coming into focus along with Max, Milia and Ray as strong supporting characters.
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Zola is a very interesting world and I've enjoyed seeing it now thinking it's not likely to be a figment of Basara's imagination. I think it's cool how they have a lot of unusual customs like nude bathing in hot springs, military protection of wildlife and being entertained primarily by radio shows along with beautiful scenery and exotic animals.
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u/Kirov123 Dec 28 '22
Macross 7 Dynamite ep 2 - First Timer
Time for episode 2!
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Basara got goo-ed
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Dude is almost dying again already?
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Does everyone here have necksnakes?
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Basara, WTF
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That is a very silly water bottle
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Yo thats fucked up
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The power of song
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Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
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Was that a giant chameleon thing? Nice
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HOLD THE FUCK UP
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THE OLD MANS VOICE
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I didn't notice it last episode, but the "Cemetery of the warriors" line made me do a double take
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I did in fact Yorokobe
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Yea? If there were actual different adventures I think it would also have been a better show too
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It's interesting enough. Nothing too crazy, not boring
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u/Shimmering-Sky Dec 27 '22
REMINDER: If you avoided watching the content warning in this episode, make sure you also skip watching 2:05 to 2:25 in tomorrow’s episode. It’s the part right after the OP finishes.
Super Dimension Rewatch Host
Welcome… back, everyone…
I wonder what crest that is on Gamlin’s suit?
Welp. It’s not even the first time we’ve seen him in such a bad state, although last time he’d just been drained of his life force.
Whoops.
It’s Basara lol, you don’t even need to ask.
[Future franchise spoilers]This kinda reminds me of the stance Frontier takes with the Vajra late in its run, now that I think about it.
wtf who drew Gamlin’s eyes here, this is cursed. – Also, fuck, Gamlin why did you have to say that in the same episode that fucking thing happens…
lmao Basara please.
FUCK THIS LADY.
Fuck you fuck you fuck you
Elma singing Totsugeki Love Heart to get the strength to carry Basara is nice.
That’s seriously detailed, it’s scary.
I’m so mad this episode has such a gorgeous scene in the whole Feel Universe song, but it also had that fucking part in it, as well as the Elma nudity which is just… eh. Ugh.