A Robotech Manifesto

This website embraces the assertion Robotech is a valid work and is worthy of analysis as a standalone composition. It is not incumbent upon any critic or fan of Robotech to acknowledge the existence of the Japanese source material. Likewise, enthusiasts of the source material are not obligated to acknowledge Robotech. However, studying the source material is encouraged for Robotech fans as it does provide a more thorough grasp of the content. Of course, this is a unidirectional relationship. The Japanese source materials are valuable and can flow to Robotech, but story elements unique to Robotech cannot generally flow back to the original series and are not useful to fans of these series. One exception to the above is Robotech may be useful as a sort of filtration or magnification of the original source material allowing the scrutiny of the successful story elements they contain. Since its 1982 debut, the 36 episodes of Super Dimension Fortress Macross (SDF Macross) have spawned an entire franchise now collectively referred to as Macross, while the other two Japanese series forming Robotech episodes 37 to 85 did not lead to sequels in Japan or elsewhere. For the average Robotech enthusiast, SDF Macross and more broadly, the Macross franchise, represents a valuable resource and offers a wealth of information for teasing out subtleties in plot and character motivation whenever plot holes or questions arise within the Robotech universe. In utilizing the Macross franchise as reference material, the 36 episodes of SDF Macross are weighted with more importance than other Macross franchise material as beyond episode 36 the arch-plots of the Robotech and Macross franchises diverge. The further the material evolves in the Macross franchise, the less relevant to Robotech are any insights gleaned from these later Macross franchise materials. Thus, while the 36 episodes of SDF Macross provide invaluable insights into Robotech, episodes beyond episode 36 provide less and less value for the purposes of the discussion presented here. International audiences of 1985 were presented with a televised entertainment product which took on a life of its own separate and apart from SDF Macross. As painful as it may be to Macross franchise fans, Robotech forged its own path and identity. Individual members of the Robotech audience may each use their own discernment as to how to integrate or not integrate Robotech with its source material. No perspective or outlook is any more valid or invalid than any other. Placing the range of perspectives into Robotech onto a continuum would have two extremes. The perspective of an extreme Robotech purist would be to view Robotech in an isolated vacuum. The opposite extreme would be to view the three source cartoons in a vacuum. The entire continuum existing between these two extremes is valid and in fact sliding along the continuum is beneficial at different times as long as one acknowledges where on the continuum one resides for any given analysis, argument, assertion, or conjecture. This website unapologetically defends the right of any person to study Robotech however they deem fit. Researching Robotech can be compared to the disciplines of anthropology and archaeology in trying to create a genealogy tracing ancient man’s folklore and mythology up to the latest iterations of the American Robotech and Japanese Macross franchises. This website also defends the right of any person to be completely dismissive of Robotech. Additionally, some fans find the Robotech franchise to be more thematically cohesive than the Macross franchise. However, this judgement is likely best left for each fan to determine individually.