Robotech - The Shadow Chronicles Movie (2007)

COuld've been a lot better...

Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles has some very nice eye candy, as far as the combat sequences are concerned. One might wish that the whole original series was redone with the computer-generated graphics and effects.

But, Harmony Gold has not given up its belief in painful dialog and confusing story lines... it's difficult, at best, to follow what happens in this story without knowing the previous story lines.

Also, the story leaves you hanging for more, with the ending of the Shadow Chronicles leaving a lot of unanswered questions. If Harmony Gold chooses to producew a sequel, then I hope they make it the last 'Robotech' production.

Overall, it's not bad, but I cannot say it's good either... August 14, 2008

so its not the sentanls big deal

I have read lot of negetive reviews of this movie so i thought id add my two cnets ok this movie served to perpuse's tieing up the loose ends from the exsisting story and introduicing a new arc and new charecters which to me this movie did well now to those that griped about this movie saying it wasnt Robotech or dident have that classic Robotech feel I say what was missing ??? It had the love story of scott and Ariel the sweeping orchestra soundtrack and epic space battles sounds like Robotech to me but what about Rick ??? if they gave you every thing in one movie their be no need for sequels which it what ya really want so quit griping and just enjoy this great flick July 21, 2008

Amazing movie! The next chapter in Robotech saga that I was waiting for!

When I order this item I also order Robotech, The Protoculture Collection and I wait for see this movie until I saw the last chapter of "Robotech, the new generation", I just can say that the waiting is worthy and the level of action, drama and continuity of Robotech saga is awesome!.

Excellent choice if you are not a fan of Robotech but you are looking for a brand new intergalactic adventure and A MUST if you are a Robotech fan. July 7, 2008

A disappointment

This film attempts to be a continuation from where the Robotech television series left off. The first third of the film runs concurrently with the ending of the television series, but the scenes are shown from different points of view. Also, characters who appeared in these scenes in the television version are conspicuously absent in the film version, and are only mentioned briefly in passing in the dialogue. The only characters to remain from these scenes are Scott Bernard, Ariel, and the Regis.

There are some serious continuity issues between this film and the original series, as well as between this film and the Sentinels film. For example, I have a hard time buying that Maia Sterling is Dana Sterling's sister. There's just really no way for this to be possible, especially when you factor in Maia's age and just how high up in the ranks Maia is. Another issue is the android Janis Em. In this film, she is portrayed as being developed using Human and Haydonite technology. However, in the Sentinels film, Janis was created by Dr. Emil Lang, and is strictly a product of Human technology.

Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles attempts to blend 2D animation and cel-shaded CG mecha animation. However, this blending as its used in this film does not work. These two animation styles do not mesh well, so it's very jarring when the animation jumps between the 2D and cel-shaded CG mecha animation. The CG animation looks "clunky" and "cheap" (it looks more like what would have been considered "top of the line" CG animation about ten years ago).

There is a featurette included on this DVD called, "Robotech: Birth of a Sequel -- The Making of Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles." Personally, I think the featurette was a little on the long side, and that some of the interviews could have been cut back on.

As a long-time Robotech fan, I was very disappointed in this film. There's continuity problems, a weak story, and rather unimpressive CG animation.

If you're a Robotech fan who must own everything related to the property, then you'll want to acquire this film. However, if you aren't, then it's best to avoid this DVD. June 26, 2008

The 1980s nostalgia continues...

Let's talk about what you actually see on the disk.


First, there's a 2 minute, 15 second Dragon Ball Z promotional spot. You can not skip it, you can not fast-forward through it, and you can not go straight to the menu. You can go to the "top menu" to skip it, if your DVD player remote has that button.

There are three items on the disk, the movie itself, a 45-minute behind the scenes feature, and some trailers.


The 45-minute behind the scenes feature contains alot of fans (many of whom are overweight) gushing about how much they love ROBOTECH. It made me squirm. Then the producers, directors, and writers go into a very long talk about the show's production history since 1985, the failed production of "ROBOTECH 3000" in 1998, and the production of the current feature. It is very informative. It is nice to see the faces behind the product. But it just seems very long.

The trailers are a trailer for this movie, and a few funimation trailers strung together (funimation channel, Galaxy Railways boxset, Origin: Spirits of the Past, Burst Angel, Fullmetal Alchemist movie).


The movie:
This film combines computer animation and cell animation. If that offends you (I don't see why it should) then you should skip this movie. Both types of animation are done at a moderate quality, so don't go expecting something on par with the Star Wars prequels. It's still a good film for something that didn't have a $100 million hollywood blockbuster budget. Many of the original voice actors return, and two celebrity voices are featured.

This show is a bridge between the end of the third part of ROBOTECH, the New Generation, and the next (unwritten) part of the saga. The battle for Reflex Point, the last two episodes of the New Generation, are replayed from the perspective of the returning expeditionary force as they take back the Earth from the Invid. The Invid queen, the Regess, recognizes the new enemy, who gave the expeditionary forces their new technology, and leaves Earth. The survivors of the expeditionary force then have their first battle with the new enemy at Space Station Liberty. The movie is fast paced - many events happen in a relatively short period of time.

This disc is a dual layer DVD. How can you tell? When the alpha-beta combos are flying towards Space Station Liberty for the first time (at the 1:01:02 mark), the scene may pause for a half-second while switching layers (depending upon your player). Most DVDs are dual layer these days.


This is much better quality than the New Generation portion of the old ROBOTECH series, but it is definitely not hollywood blockbuster quality. Still, it's nice to see an old series continued.
June 15, 2008

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