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If actions are said to speak louder than words, it looks like Big West, the parent company of the legendary Macross franchise, is getting ready to crank up the volume. After formally resolving its differences with Harmony Gold in 2021, it affirmed a commitment to bring Macross to a global audience. In a press release drafted April 9, 2021 and posted on April 22, 2021, Big West stated would release all Macross works made from 1987 onward to “a worldwide audience.” To underscore the point, the announcement was accompanied by an upload to the newly-reactivated official Macross Youtube channel — the full version of 1987’s Superdimension Fortress Macross: Flash Back 2012.
Check out the video below. According to the description and title, the Macross Flash Back 2012 Youtube upload will only air for a limited time, though how long wasn’t specified. Note: The video does not contain subtitles.
Macross Flash Back 2012 was a 30-minute direct-to-video animation (a.k.a. an “OVA”) released in 1987. It consists of footage that was originally planned to be included at the tail end of the 1986 film Superdimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love?, but was cut for production reasons. That footage is of the original Macross diva, Lynn Minmay singing in a concert at the end of the film, as part of a Goodbye Summer Concert Tour. In practice, it’s a bit a hybrid of “clip show” and music video. Aside from the new concert scenes, Flash Back 2012 runs through a “greatest hits” playlist of original Macross songs, set to footage from the TV series and Do You Remember Love?
The choice to upload Flash Back 2012 rather than a more widely known Macross property is telling. The original Macross TV series and Do You Remember Love? film were produced in 1982 and 1986, which predates Big West’s commitment to releasing post-1987 Macross works. That would mean that fans shouldn’t expect to see the original Macross TV series or Do You Remember Love? to be released by Big West directly, at least not as part of this wave. However, there’s plenty of other Macross to go around, and Big West is pledged to it all, including the upcoming Macross Delta: Absolute Live!!!!!!, a film based on 2016’s Macross Delta TV series.
Macross Flash Back 2012 is immediately available for a limited time on Youtube. Other Macross works can be difficult to access legally outside Japan, but some titles, are available through various retailers and are listed on streaming services like Amazon Prime Video. Games like Uta Macross are available in Japanese app stores and console platforms.
