Synopsis
2009. Ten years of furious conflict and frenzied construction have turned an alien wreck into a human triumph: the colossal space battleship Macross. On the day of the ship’s launch, the world waits with bated breath to witness mankind’s next giant leap. Hovering above the planet, though, the Zentradi, a merciless warrior race, seek to advance their agenda of destruction and conquest. When long-dormant systems aboard the Macross suddenly fire upon the alien fleet, the ship meant to preserve humanity may become its undoing. A war of attrition erupts, taking mankind across the solar system and beyond in a fight to justify its existence!

Review
A classic. Macross was one of the anime shows that pioneered the anime industry that we have today. Let us get down and dirty. From the get go, the theme song sounded liked it was not suitable for the show, but after an episode in, that theme song begins to evolve into something you would look forward to… especially that background music of the song. It makes you say, ‘Ohh… man here we go! YEAH!’ The animation we have here certainly is not top of the line in this era; it is not Macross Zero by any means, but damn it, I was so impressed of how everything moved. It might be old school, but if you watch this show, you would not believe your eyes. Yep, it is that amazing.

On to the plot. Again, top notch, nothing to complain about. I was immediately dragged in by Hikaru Ichijo’s little prank moment that he had in the air show that was going on to celebrate the launching of the Macross. The transition from calm breeze and peace, to missile flying, buildings crumbling and mechas exploding was just smooth and cool. Some of the action even makes you wonder why recent anime cannot achieve what this has. I was awestruck by the level of detail this series contained; in the story line, the characters and the way they interacted with each other, along with the show’s ability to insert a few practical fun moments at the same time to further enhance the entertainment factor for the viewers.

As mentioned previously, the air show gathering prompted the launch of the long in rebuilding progress, Macross battleship. When all things seemed to go on as planned, suddenly the Macross activates its own self defense system and launched a beam of energy powerful enough to reach space and splash a few alien battleships. When that occurred, the aliens were now interested in what the Macross was about, and of course, the invasion begins! With Ichijo strapped into a Valkyrie for testing purposes, he is forced to take off and follow his sempai, Focker, into the battlefields. That is how the plot begins and by the volume’s end, you will be glad that you finally get a chance to view this epic piece.

The Breakdown
Why are not all, if not most, anime can be like this? You know, less being amazed at the details, but more at comprehending what the situation is at hand. I would rather watch a show with a great plot than to watch something where everything seems like a page long run-on sentence. Macross right here, is not about showing off the details, at least, it is not in this time era, instead it bolsters a superb story and makes everything else work together with the story. This is why Macross Vol. 1: Upon the Shoulders of Giants gets my money and so will the rest of the series.