As Macross continues to unfurl across the globe, free of legal restrictions, Udon have taken a big step forward by distributing the first official Macross artbook available outside of Japan. After 3 decades of loving this series, it's almost impossible to describe the feeling of finally seeing this franchise escaping it's ridiculous legal bonds and arriving in my loving arms.
A special shout out to "Gundam Wong" from the Macross Fan Central group on Facebook for hooking me up with this signed edition from SDCC, where the artist was in attendance to receive his richly deserved Inkpot Award.
The result of Macross fans working together
Sitting at 144 sumptuous pages, the book includes a mostly fully painted illustration work of the Macross mecha from Flash Back 2012 through to Macross Frontier - that means you'll find Macross II, Macross Plus, Macross 7 and Macross Zero in there too. Phew.
Even at first glance, it's obvious that Tenjin's love of mecha and aviation is writ large, with lovingly rendered Valkyries gracefully depicted either soaring across azure skies, or sharply placed on white backgrounds so you can appreciate the mechanical detail. Of course , the book covers other mecha too, from enemy units to Macross cannons, civilian units and special editions of the various series, all split up into sections and translated into English. The real treat is seeing Tenjin's own thoughts prefacing each series, which is a lovely insight into the process behind the work.
If you squint, you can see Ranka on the internal platform, giving an epic sense of scale.
I can tell you in all sincerity that I own a lot of Macross art books, an accomplishment that's almost a rite of passage for mecha fans visiting Japan. How can you not just fall in love with the sheer imagination and love of the craft in books like this? The worldbuilding is really quite breathtaking, and while I tend to gush about artbooks generally, the very fact that an official Western Macross book sits on my desk is almost enough to get me tearing up. It is, in all ways, a thing of absolute beauty.
In short, this book is a no holds-barred must for fans of Macross, aviation or mecha in general. It is a tour-de-force of one of the most prolific talents in Japan, fully translated into English and giving a voice to the series in a way hitherto only dreamt of. As grateful as I am to Udon for unleashing this magnificent book, it has only stoked my hunger for more - character design books, series specific art-archives and as many interviews as they can get their grubby mitts on. This deserves to sell off the charts and encourage more releases - the fanbase has been denied too long, and now with the smell of deculture in the air, only a cavalcade of Macross will suffice.
Satiate our hunger Udon! Take our hard earned money! The pact is sealed, now release the beast! Listen to my song!
(Possibly a bit over the top at the end there, but clear enough message I think...)
Recommended. Duh. The book will be released on October 18th.
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