Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Flashback 2012

2009 AD, Humanity engages in a grueling and brutal First Contact War against the warrior race known as the Zentradi.  While the Human race won the war, it lost most of it’s populace. Two years after the end of the war, a new mission into deep space to discover new worlds is about to begin.  Before she joins her friends on this new journey, Lynn Minmei prepares for one final concert on Earth as she reflects on the tragedies and victories that brought her to this point.

Made to celebrate the 5^th Anniversary of the Macross franchise, Macross Flashback 2012 is a 30 minute music video compilation bookended by a newly animated sequence originally intended for the Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love movie.  Is it the worst way to celebrate five years of Macross to this point?  No, after all music is a huge part of the universe that features fighter planes that transform into giant robots.  I just wish there was more to it than just a bunch of Macross AMVs.
 
The special is comprised of 10 songs mostly mixed with footage from the Macross Movie and TV Series.  Each one does focus on a particular part of the story, mostly the love triangle between Hikaru Ichigo, Misa Hayase and Lunn Minmei.  While there is a video dedicated to Roy Focker and Claudia LaSalle, Maximillian Jenius and Millia only get glimpsed here and there (like is their romance not as important?  WTF they’re the first interspecies romance of that universe).  But yeah, this is, at its heart, a Minmei focused special from the music to the clips we see of her.  Like I said, that’s fine.  The girl went through one of the most life changing stories in the series and the clips all showcase that well.  As I said though, the execution of this OVA leaves a lot to be desired.
 
The bookending scenes are the most interesting parts of the OVA.  Seeing an older, more mature Minmei standing in an empty (and kind of beaten up) stadium is kind of powerful in a way.  She’s lost a lot from her humble idol beginnings but she’s endured and gained so much.  It’s kind of nice to see her reunite with Hikaru and Misa and be on good terms with both.  I think it’s also implied that Hikaru and Misa are finally married and are taking command of the expedition into deep space we see in the final music video.  So here’s the thing?  Why not animate some new segments to fill time between songs?  Have some Minmei narraration or see her actually talking with Hikaru and Misa?  The finale at least is effective in giving Minmei time to reflect before leaving Earth, unsure of when she or her friends will be back.
 
I guess there’s not much more to go into about this one.  Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Flashback 2012 is merely a greatest hits AMV compilation with sprinkles of never before seen footage that only strengthen the argument that this should have been a bigger project.  Yeah it’s a five year marker but while some of the videos are edited well, there’s no escaping that this feels like an AMV playlist of Macross and Do You Remember Love video for some kind of competition.  The lost footage is intriguing and should have been more at the forefront of this endevour.  Still, if you love the music of Lynn Minmei and don’t have her albums, it’s not a bad compilation.  For everyone else, just go watch Macross or Do You Remember Love again to get the full experience of how awesome Macross is, cause Flashback 2012 is just an appetizer at best.
 
4/10