Series Recommendation: Macross Delta Movie: Passionate Walkure
If the blue sky, if the clear wind,
If even the stars were to betray you
you can count on us to never betray you
If even the stars were to betray you
you can count on us to never betray you
As tradition dictates, modern Macross tv series will get a movie (or movies) with a sort-of alternate storyline to change up stuff from the broadcast version, and Macross Delta is no exception. 2 years after the end of the tv series, the first Delta movie – Passionate Walkure (Gekijou no Walkure) – was released. The movie is an alternate retelling of the events of the tv series. The movie is just a first part of two movies planned for Delta (just like Frontier), and with the second movie BluRay getting released this September, now is a good time to check out this movie as well as some new amazing Walkure songs.
Gekijou Walkure starts at a different point compared to the tv series. In the movie, Hayate is already a member of the Delta Flight, accompanying the idol group “Walkure” on their interstellar tour to cure the Var Syndrome. The Var Syndrome is a mysterious disease that can drive people insane and violent, which led Hayate’s team to rescue a certain individual from a Var-infested ship: Freyja Wion – a Windermerian. The fateful meeting of Hayate and Freyja led to the discovery of a new member for the Tactical Sound Unit Walkure – as well as a plan to take control of the whole universe.
+ Plot: There are some changes to the story and characters – mostly for Hayate, but the movie stick pretty close to the main event of the tv series for the first movie. Frontier’s False Songstress has much more drastic changes compared to this movie, but the things that were changed are still significant. The movie essentially cram the tv series into a movie with a brand new finale that setup for the 2nd movie. In terms of relationship, it’s clear as day that who’s gonna claim the throne in Hayate’s heart, so not much change there. The rest of the cast are pretty much the same from the tv series, and they get minimal screen-time (which is just a natural thing for movie), though Mikumo get the better end of the stick this time considering she was also the more developed characters in the series.
+ Plot: There are some changes to the story and characters – mostly for Hayate, but the movie stick pretty close to the main event of the tv series for the first movie. Frontier’s False Songstress has much more drastic changes compared to this movie, but the things that were changed are still significant. The movie essentially cram the tv series into a movie with a brand new finale that setup for the 2nd movie. In terms of relationship, it’s clear as day that who’s gonna claim the throne in Hayate’s heart, so not much change there. The rest of the cast are pretty much the same from the tv series, and they get minimal screen-time (which is just a natural thing for movie), though Mikumo get the better end of the stick this time considering she was also the more developed characters in the series.
+ Animation: Being a movie, Satelight really touched up the animation compared to the tv series. There are some fight scenes that were reused from the tv series, but all of those also get polished with better quality, including some “new” sequence as well. The new addition are all done very well with the same choreograph and animation quality as the BluRay version. What set the movie apart from the series is a fully CGI Walkure song – which can be kinda weird if you havent seen any vocaloid/v-tuber concert before. The decision to use CG was said to be an “experimental” experience for viewers, as character CGI is becoming more and more common – so the studio wanted to try incorporating it into the movie. Being a experiment, only one song is CGI and the rest are still 2D. To be fair, it isn’t perfect and needs a lot of improvement as it still has the same disadvantage as other human CG series.
+ Mecha Design: The design is basically the same in the tv series, which we have discussed here. However, it’s not like the movie doesn’t bring anything new to the table. A new “pack” for the VF-31 Siegfried (2 if you count that weird setup for the 31F at the end). The movie mostly add more to the existing design just like how Frontier’s first movie added the Tornado Pack, while keeping the rest the same as the tv series.
+ Mecha Design: The design is basically the same in the tv series, which we have discussed here. However, it’s not like the movie doesn’t bring anything new to the table. A new “pack” for the VF-31 Siegfried (2 if you count that weird setup for the 31F at the end). The movie mostly add more to the existing design just like how Frontier’s first movie added the Tornado Pack, while keeping the rest the same as the tv series.
+ Music: Well, more Walkure goodness is the gist of it. There are several recurring songs from the tv series, but there are many new songs as well (par for the course for a Macross movie). Some notable songs include “Walkure ga Tomaranai”, “Walkure ga Uragiranai” and “Change!!!” (which is the 3D concert one). If you’ve seen Delta and/or listen to Walkure songs before, the tracks in the movie is basically that but taken up one more level.
+ Conclusion: The first Delta movie is basically a soft reboot of the series, with characters largely unchanged, just the main plot as a setup for the 2nd movie to deviate completely from the series. It does a good job of establishing a standalone cast and storyline that doesn’t rely too heavily on watching the tv series to understand. Furthermore, the music is a cut above (which is similar to Frontier’s case). The animation quality is basically the same as the tv series so nothing to debate over. Overall, watching this movie is a good alternate way to experience Delta and prepare for the upcoming second movie.
+ Conclusion: The first Delta movie is basically a soft reboot of the series, with characters largely unchanged, just the main plot as a setup for the 2nd movie to deviate completely from the series. It does a good job of establishing a standalone cast and storyline that doesn’t rely too heavily on watching the tv series to understand. Furthermore, the music is a cut above (which is similar to Frontier’s case). The animation quality is basically the same as the tv series so nothing to debate over. Overall, watching this movie is a good alternate way to experience Delta and prepare for the upcoming second movie.
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