All talk, so let’s apply respectful casting and adaptation to an anime property, in this case Robotech which is the American animated series from Harmony Gold that ran in 1985. It adapted several Japanese anime series, The Super Dimension Fortress Macross (1982), Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross (1984), and Genesis Climber Mospeada (1983) from Tatsunoko Production. American cartoons required 65 episodes, so the different series were combined together with a story by Carl Macek, with the thread of Protoculture, and the Zentradi aliens from the first series working for the Robotech Masters in the second against the Invid invaders from the third series. It is currently being developed by Andy Muschetti, it was James Wan, but this is in development hell.
We are going to focus on the first series since it is the most grounded in a future that is more familiar to us. The original Macross series had a battleship spacecraft crash onto an island in 1999. It was rebuilt and ready to launch in 2009 when the series began. It has the introduction of young pilot, Rick Hunter, who was Hikaru Ichijyo in the original. He has the floppy, black hair of other anime heroes. How a writing proposal usually works is not in casting, but I’m working two ends in how to cast respectfully and also how to adapt properly. Let's apply the same kind of dating to find the time, 14 years so this is set in the year 2022 and the SDF-1 launches in the year 2032. I would cast Ryan Potter, he is currently Beast Boy in the Titans streaming show, as Rick Hunter. Ryan has a Japanese father and the boyish look that is perfect.
In the Robotech cartoon, Mitchell “Pop” Hunter served in the Navy and when his friend Dan Fokker died, he adopted his son Roy who later went to fight in the Global War. This is all back story that was filled in over the years and of course a perfect place to start a Robotech movie. The Robotech Graphic Novel (1986) with a story by Carl Macek detailed how Roy Fokker lead the team to investigate the fortress when it crashed on Earth. Roy, I can see being played by Chris Pine, Stephen Amell, or Simon Baker, someone who is slightly older, but can play a hotshot pilot. So the opening is an airfield, high tech planes race past, and we get the young Rick Hunter saying goodbye to his “brother” Roy leaving for the military. Roy tells Hikaru, only his close family members use that name (so we can also nod to the original), that he is too young to join the military. Sunset, Roy gets into the cockpit of his jet and takes off with Rick looking on as the last of the jet’s contrails fade.
We are going to focus on the first series since it is the most grounded in a future that is more familiar to us. The original Macross series had a battleship spacecraft crash onto an island in 1999. It was rebuilt and ready to launch in 2009 when the series began. It has the introduction of young pilot, Rick Hunter, who was Hikaru Ichijyo in the original. He has the floppy, black hair of other anime heroes. How a writing proposal usually works is not in casting, but I’m working two ends in how to cast respectfully and also how to adapt properly. Let's apply the same kind of dating to find the time, 14 years so this is set in the year 2022 and the SDF-1 launches in the year 2032. I would cast Ryan Potter, he is currently Beast Boy in the Titans streaming show, as Rick Hunter. Ryan has a Japanese father and the boyish look that is perfect.
In the Robotech cartoon, Mitchell “Pop” Hunter served in the Navy and when his friend Dan Fokker died, he adopted his son Roy who later went to fight in the Global War. This is all back story that was filled in over the years and of course a perfect place to start a Robotech movie. The Robotech Graphic Novel (1986) with a story by Carl Macek detailed how Roy Fokker lead the team to investigate the fortress when it crashed on Earth. Roy, I can see being played by Chris Pine, Stephen Amell, or Simon Baker, someone who is slightly older, but can play a hotshot pilot. So the opening is an airfield, high tech planes race past, and we get the young Rick Hunter saying goodbye to his “brother” Roy leaving for the military. Roy tells Hikaru, only his close family members use that name (so we can also nod to the original), that he is too young to join the military. Sunset, Roy gets into the cockpit of his jet and takes off with Rick looking on as the last of the jet’s contrails fade.
He returns to the hangar where Pops is working on a plane for their aerial circus and his mother comforts the young pilot. Pops could be played by John Goodman, obvious choice, if he is not too busy, or Jeff Garlin from The Goldbergs. Michelle Yeoh could play the mother, but it is a cameo role, also Joan Chen from Twin Peaks, Ming-Na Wen, or I would like to see Yuko Moriyama from the Japanese sci fi Zeiram. Heck, the name of the mother should be Yuko regardless. We get Roy flying his fighter jet over the North Pacific with his wingman, Steve Arnold. He gets into a dogfight with rival, T.R. Edwards, same age as Roy also with blonde hair, but a jagged scar on the right side of his face. I would open cast Edwards with any ethnicity. Edwards flies for the Greater Northeast Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. He clips Arnold’s jet and Roy’s wingman crashes into the sea.
Roy inverts his jet to fire on Edwards, but he pulls away getting recalled. Roy is able to land his fighter on the aircraft carrier, the Kenosha, and meets with communications officer, Claudia Grant. Claudia could be played by Sonequa Martin-Green, Naomie Harris, or Tessa Thompson. Outside of San Francisco, the Pops airfield, Rick lands his flyer and goes to check on Pops, he says the flying circus has to be put on hold. He is shifting to transporting fuel supplies for the military. We pick up with the war filling up the skies with explosions, missiles, and two fighter jets. Roy is dogfighting with T.R. Everyone gets a warning that something is breaking atmosphere. Roy has Edward’s jet in his sights when he is told to scatter. He gets a collision warning and breaks off. Edwards jet also pulls away. Air raid warning sirens blare in San Francisco. The citizens take cover in shelters and then look up. There is a rumbling. The dark clouds begin to part and we see the burning mass of the alien fortress plunge to the Earth. The fiery comet has Rick and Pops taking cover. It is starting it’s descent and rips apart San Francisco buildings, it hurtles over the Pacific, parting the waters.
Roy inverts his jet to fire on Edwards, but he pulls away getting recalled. Roy is able to land his fighter on the aircraft carrier, the Kenosha, and meets with communications officer, Claudia Grant. Claudia could be played by Sonequa Martin-Green, Naomie Harris, or Tessa Thompson. Outside of San Francisco, the Pops airfield, Rick lands his flyer and goes to check on Pops, he says the flying circus has to be put on hold. He is shifting to transporting fuel supplies for the military. We pick up with the war filling up the skies with explosions, missiles, and two fighter jets. Roy is dogfighting with T.R. Everyone gets a warning that something is breaking atmosphere. Roy has Edward’s jet in his sights when he is told to scatter. He gets a collision warning and breaks off. Edwards jet also pulls away. Air raid warning sirens blare in San Francisco. The citizens take cover in shelters and then look up. There is a rumbling. The dark clouds begin to part and we see the burning mass of the alien fortress plunge to the Earth. The fiery comet has Rick and Pops taking cover. It is starting it’s descent and rips apart San Francisco buildings, it hurtles over the Pacific, parting the waters.
The fortress impacts with Macross Island in a blinding explosion. We see the ruined fortress creating a massive crater around the island lush with vegetation. There are pock marks of debris from the ship. Pops airfield, he is scrambling to check on the fuel supplies, one tank is burning. We get the reaction around the world to the crash, including a young cadet Lisa Hayes and Lyn Minmei with her family. Edwards takes advantage of the confusion to head toward enemy territory. We get him targeting Pop’s airfield. Roy lands his fighter on the Kenosha and is said to report to Captain Gloval. Then, we get the airfield which is burning. Teen Rick has lost his parents in the attack. This is all new to the story to offset expectations of Robotech fans, establish the family dynamics, and the Global War. This is to show the divisiveness of humans before the arrival of the fortress and contrast to the greater conflict of the rest of the universe. It is never explained what happened to Rick’s parents in the animated series so this is a short episode to lead into the Robotech War.
The debriefing of Roy at the war room of the Kenosha, Captain Henry Gloval, is to be played by Iain Glen from Game of Thrones. He is there with other officials. Gloval meets privately with Roy to tell him of the death of Pops Hunter, Roy at first wants to leave, but Gloval convinces him to listen to the conference before leaving. He explains that there has been an immediate ceasefire to all hostilities around the world with the appearance of the fortress. Negotiations are under way with a tentative agreement that the NEACPS is sending a representative to the research team. The representative is T.R. Edwards. Roy is angry and says he wants on the team. Gloval announces that the teams will be led by Doctor Emil Lang. I think an actor like Brent Spiner or Peter Capaldi would be interesting to play Dr. Lang. Roy is about to put on his radiation suit and remarks how can Edwards work for NEACPS. He replies that it is not personal.
They board two teams in radiation suits into two helicopters. The helicopters approach the island and find the strange craft leaving a massive trail from the beach. The teams deploy from the helicopters and set up equipment; lights, boxes of supplies, and weapons. Dr. Lang sends out a robot probe, a two-legged scout robot with a lamp-like head, it staggers towards the ship, a portal opens, and Lang loses control of the probe. It slips into the portal, Lang sets guards to watch the portal, and enters with Fokker and Edwards. The interior of the fortress is dark, the broken shards in hull streams in light, all is silent. Something skitters above the teams. Lang checks the interior with his multi-optics visor, but it is distorted, surreal with green and red bands. Roy and Edwards draw their rifles. The scout comes out of the dark and faces them. Lang with Roy and Edwards covering him checks it out with lights from their radiation suits.
He pulls apart the circuit board on the probe and finds the wires writhing, they reach out to enwrap Lang’s arm, but Edwards uses a knife to cut through them. The probe turns and continues into the ship. Strange lights approach. There is a distorted message from some language. Roy and Edwards look to Dr. Lang, but he doesn’t know how to respond. The last part is based on Robotech the Graphic Novel, but is to establish the space fortress and it’s technology on almost Mythos level like H.P. Lovecrafts’s “At The Mountains of Madness.” This is the set-up that will lead into the first episode, “Booby Trap.” So we have not cast everyone yet! For Lyn Minmei, I’m thinking of Liu Yifei who is going to play the live action Mulan, otherwise Jing Tian from The Great Wall. Lisa Hayes? Anna Kendrick or Nina Dobrev. Let’s get to the Zentradi, for Khyron, Peter Dinklage or Warwick Davis, a smart, advisor to the military types, Breetai, Doug Jones or Rory McCann from Game of Thrones, tall, powerful, but thoughtful. This would be an interesting, diverse cast tackling a massive story, unfolding over several films.
They board two teams in radiation suits into two helicopters. The helicopters approach the island and find the strange craft leaving a massive trail from the beach. The teams deploy from the helicopters and set up equipment; lights, boxes of supplies, and weapons. Dr. Lang sends out a robot probe, a two-legged scout robot with a lamp-like head, it staggers towards the ship, a portal opens, and Lang loses control of the probe. It slips into the portal, Lang sets guards to watch the portal, and enters with Fokker and Edwards. The interior of the fortress is dark, the broken shards in hull streams in light, all is silent. Something skitters above the teams. Lang checks the interior with his multi-optics visor, but it is distorted, surreal with green and red bands. Roy and Edwards draw their rifles. The scout comes out of the dark and faces them. Lang with Roy and Edwards covering him checks it out with lights from their radiation suits.
He pulls apart the circuit board on the probe and finds the wires writhing, they reach out to enwrap Lang’s arm, but Edwards uses a knife to cut through them. The probe turns and continues into the ship. Strange lights approach. There is a distorted message from some language. Roy and Edwards look to Dr. Lang, but he doesn’t know how to respond. The last part is based on Robotech the Graphic Novel, but is to establish the space fortress and it’s technology on almost Mythos level like H.P. Lovecrafts’s “At The Mountains of Madness.” This is the set-up that will lead into the first episode, “Booby Trap.” So we have not cast everyone yet! For Lyn Minmei, I’m thinking of Liu Yifei who is going to play the live action Mulan, otherwise Jing Tian from The Great Wall. Lisa Hayes? Anna Kendrick or Nina Dobrev. Let’s get to the Zentradi, for Khyron, Peter Dinklage or Warwick Davis, a smart, advisor to the military types, Breetai, Doug Jones or Rory McCann from Game of Thrones, tall, powerful, but thoughtful. This would be an interesting, diverse cast tackling a massive story, unfolding over several films.
#Robotech, #CarlMacek, #RickHunter, #SDF1.
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