"You can't install that remotely, it involves safe mode!" "Versus dangerous mode?"

[dolari]

It's been right under my nose the whole time, and I didn't think about it until now. One of my favorite anime series is Robotech. It's multigenerational, taking place over about 60 years. It does this by focusing on three generations, each running about a year in time (although Macross does about four). In each generation, there's usually some kind of link to the next story, just a few mentions here and there that lead into the next generation.

After remembering how it was done, suddenly several story ideas popped like popcorn kernels, as did images and visions, and characters. And while Robotech used mentions of alien races to link their generations together, for me, it will be characters. A character born in one story, will be the main character of the next, except for Nena who is a main character in three stories (she'll be the main connection thread for those)

That said, I have my thread:

[Origin Story]

[We're Lost] -> [Exus Story] Greata (Tribal Chief)
[Exus Story] -> [Han'a Story] Ayrtos (Tribal Chief)
[Han'a Story] -> [Mountain Story] Sist (Tribal Chief)
[Mountain Story] ->[Plains Story] Nena (Medicine Woman)
[Plains Story] -> [Settling Story] Antjyo (Tribal Chief)

[The End of Creation]

I've spent nearly the whole day massaging this story, and watching the newly created characters go through their roles, and come up with conflicts and places and decisions. We'll even see a replay of the Manwaz/Han'a/Emm'a/Nen'a story, with more emphasis on the tribe's role in it, and Manwaz's journey home and back.

Those of you who wanted me to expand the tribal story? Looks like you're gonna get your wish. :)

Now, where to find an extra day in the week to do this....

Comments

[debbie-ann.livejournal.com]

Well, the producers of Robotech came up with the multigenerational angle to connect three unrelated anime series (which I'm sure you may already know.)...you have the advantage (or disadvantage) of being able to come up with your own story, versus trying to get three unrelated shows to connect somehow. Plus you don't have to write dialoge to fit into pre-existing animation.

[jenndolari.livejournal.com]

I do know about the three seperate series. In fact I have the whole Mospeada and Southern Cross episodes on DVD, as well as the Macross Movie and the MAcross OVA.

Although I only have a few episodes of Macross in the original Japanese, and only on old old old VHS.

[debbie-ann.livejournal.com]

I think it must have been a challenge creatively, to connect all those series (and I have to admit, I haven't seen any of them, either in english or japanese). But after seeing some of the artwork from the shows, I can see it's influence on your artwork (most people's artistic influences aren't as obvious as mine is, though...I am a little embarrassed sometimes that there is so much that is obviously "Peanuts" inspired in my own work).

[jenndolari.livejournal.com]

One of the funny things is, my artwork really isn't based on the series...it's based on the COMIC BOOK version of the series, since I didn't have any VHS tapes of Robotech until 90s. While the Macross and New Generation comics are really faithful to the source material, the Southern Cross ones are more Americanized and a LOT less anime than the series was. MAcross, also, had an incredible artist/writer team that took the anime look of the series and detailed it to something more akin to an american series. Very good stuff there. :)