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Created for the 20th anniversary of the popular Robotech continuity, The Shadow Chronicles Movie picks up where 85-episode series ended. In 2044 A.D., humanity is at war with the alien Invid, who occupy most of the Earth. The Invid ruler takes her people to “a higher plane” to escape the Children of the Shadows, aliens dedicated to the destruction of any race that possesses Protoculture. (Illogically, they fear the power of Protoculture, but they can destroy its users.) New characters and ones from the original series battle the Children of Shadows until a cliffhanger ending that makes it clear a sequel must be in production.

Although it helped to create the audience for anime in America, the original Robotech was an anomaly: a Japanese show that never aired in Japan. Producers at Harmony Gold edited together the unrelated series Super Dimension Fortress: Macross, Genesis Climber Mospeada, and Super-dimensional Cavalry Southern Cross. The Shadow Chronicles Movie is also an anomaly: an “anime” feature made primarily in the U.S. and Korea. Although they’ve added lots of flashy CG effects to the space battles, the film lacks the qualities that made the series a hit. Like Star Wars, Robotech used an interstellar conflict as a backdrop for a tale about friendship, romance, and heroism. The filmmakers spend the first half-hour of Shadow Chronicles filling in background material for new viewers; the rest is so packed with exposition and action, there’s no time to get to know the characters–or care about them. The movie will appeal primarily to fans of the series and its manifestations in games, toys, novels, etc. (Rated TV PG, suitable for ages 12 and older: violence, alcohol use) –Charles Solomon

Product Description

Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles is the latest exciting chapter of the Robotech saga.

A heroic cast of returning characters led by Scott Bernard and Vince Grant fight to end a decades-long struggle against an enigmatic alien race known as the Invid. However the mysterious disappearance of the legendary Admiral Hunter will unfold in a treacherous mystery that could tear apart our young heroes and threaten their very survival!

2 Disc Collectors Edition Contains the full-length Robotech Shadow Chronicles Movie and 90 minutes of extras: 8 Deleted Scenes including Alternate Opening and Closing, Storyboard Animatics,the “Birth of a Sequel” Documentary and Robotech Director Commentary