Audience reviews
12 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
Ketamigo
Despite what Macross fans may say, most Macross shows work perfectly fine as standalone anime, and while this series in particular is probably one of the strangest and most unique ways to start your Macross journey, it is certainly one of the most artistic and memorable ways to do so. From its unique art style and memorable characters, to its brilliant cinematography and battle choreography, Zero stands as a testament to anime’s ability to be serious and emotionally moving art.
Art style and Story: 10/10
Macross Zero released during a time when the anime industry still retained some of the hand drawn flair of the ‘90s, while it also began to rapidly incorporate CGI, 3D and digital coloring. Zero’s art style is definitely reflective of its time, but I think it actually benefits from tha…
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Horribly dated CGI and photoshop animation ruins what could have been a good show. This is like the worst nightmare for 2000's CGI. Yes, the dogfights are cool, but that's only because so much stuff is happening on screen you can't focus on the terrible CGI. It constantly flips between blurry character models, super low quality models (they almost look like sprites from a 2D game), and 3D that looks worse than the original Initial D. If the original Macross movies are 10/10 then this is 0/10. Without question, this is the worst entry in the entire Macross franchise. It's quite sad that so many shows from the early 2000s fell into this same CGI hell.
Read at the sourcebarsoapguy219
This is not your typical Macross. There is music, missiles, and a love triangle, but the saccharine taste and the glitz has been toned way down. The characters have realistic proportions, the music is not cheery, and we're not getting a beach episode. This is the grounded Macross.
Story
I liked the story. It's the Macross take on the natives-meet-civilization tale that we've seen many times before: Dances with Wolves, Pocahontas, Avatar, . . .
The setting is before the events of the first Macross. There is an alien ship/artifact on a Pacific island and the natives have a mystic relationship with it. The UN and the Anti-UN vie to capture it and exploit its power. The natives get caught up in the conflict and the story unfolds. Pretty fresh territory for this franchise.
I have to give…
Read at the sourceJoeGar96
Tonally very different to its predecessor as it leaves the comedy and idols behind to become a much more serious military drama, whilst that might remove an aspect of what made Macross unique it does fit the story rather well.
Its a pretty good entry, the story was engaging, the themes whilst not unique were still there and handled well and the characters were good. I do think this series could have benefitted from a bit more fleshing out both in terms of its characters and stories but they still did a pretty good job.
It was a bit sad to see the jets in CG as there models obviously look worse, but the choreography and battles with them were still really cool and fun to watch.
The soundtrack actually didn't stand out to me for the most part, apart from one or two pieces here and there, bu…
Read at the sourceAurelisu
Macross Zero is a great entry in the Macross Franchise, a thorough summation of the core themes present in most entries. On the surface, Zero stands out as it primarily takes place on Earth, with most battles much smaller in scale compared to SDF Macross or Frontier. Along with this, the music present is very different than other entries - the j-pop soundtrack is replaced with tribal hymns as well as singular ballads. However, at the end of the day, a young pilot finds himself in a troubling situation that uncovers the very nature of humanity and its origins, reminding the viewer of the commonality between the different Macross entries.
The art direction for Macross Zero is great, as it provides a good contrast between the bright tones of the island and metallic sheen of the VFs and UN te…
Read at the sourcebenjireturns
Macross Zero is very good, but not quite great. The series boasts well fleshed out characters, beautiful art and character design, quality sound and music, interesting storylines, and benefits from a rich universe decades in the making (though watching SDF Macross is unnecessary). It only falls flat at the end, failing to connect its numerous stories and themes in a way that fully satisfies its ambitions.
Zero is a story about the unification wars that took place before the completion of the SDF Macross, focusing on one pilot by the name of Shin, a loner with a painful past wrought from the fire of war. When Shin is shot down over a remote island and saved by a primitive tribe, he begins a slow process of self discovery and healing; unfortunately, a team of scientists looking for an anci…
Read at the sourcekekekeKaj
The story of people from the "civilized world" stumbling upon the peaceful lives of a secluded, spiritual tribe, and bringing with them technology, commodity and destruction, is hardly uncommon. When it comes to anime though, this seems to be relatively unexplored territory, and "Macross Zero" is an anime that helps plug that gap.
"Macross Zero" is the prequel to the popular classic "Super Dimensional Fortress Macross", released for the latter's 20th anniversary. The story is set a year before the Zentradi's appearance in the original series, and follows the adventures of the young pilot Shin Kudo after his plane got shot down and he found himself on the remote island Mayan. On Mayan, he stumbles upon the peaceful lives of a secluded, spiritual tribe... and then the rest you can probably…
Read at the sourcezillion29
Despite it's obvious visual splendor and amazing fight choreography, Macross Zero never achieves the high concept that Shoji Kawamori aims for. Even ten years later, the visuals and cinematography still hold their own and aren't the least bit dated. But the ret-conned plot (Roy Fokker was an anthropology student in college?!?!?!!?) is downright silly; introducing tribal cultures, creation myth, and a mad scientist thread. But my real issue comes with the pacing - Kawamori's real downfall. As with Macross Plus, 140 minutes of exposition and narrative are tied up and concluded in the final 10 minutes. And in true anime fashion, that amounts to lots of people dying, some giant thing stomping around, and some head-scratching moralizing.
Read at the sourceggultra2764
While this is a decent chapter in the Macross franchise, it does carry some major flaws that stuck out enough for me. But before I address my issues, I'll address what I did enjoy out of this OAV. The series does do a decent job at incorporating the tribal beliefs of the Mayan Island natives within the mythos of the series as the beliefs become strikingly similar to the Valkyrie mecha used within the franchise and dropping some hints about the Protoculture. In addition, Roy Focker is around to provide some serious and funny moments as he helps out series lead Shin and tries making advances on scientist Aries Turner. After seeing Macross Frontier, I definitely took notice of the Nome sisters as pop idol Sheryl from Frontier is Mao's daughter.
In terms of visual presentation, this is easily…
Read at the sourceArchaeon
When the original Super Dimensional Fortress Macross was released back in 1982, it became an immediate success for several reasons, the main ones being the story, the music, and the variable fighters. Unlike other mech shows, the Macross franchise focused more on human relationships than it did on war and combat, and because of this the series has been able to produce some truly excellent stories. The one thing that has long been missing though, is the story of what came before SDF Macross.
Macross Zero is set in the year 2008, and chronicles the final days of the conflict between U.N. Spacy and the Anti-U.N. forces on Earth. The story takes place in the South Pacific, in an area where an alien spacecraft crashed nine years before, and both sides are looking for it with the hopes of gaini…
Read at the sourceAironicallyHuman
I can safely say that, after watching all five episodes in one sitting, Macross Zero is one of the best animated series in existence that my eyes have viewed. It had pretty much everything, ranging from a man coming to terms with the primitive way the people on the island he crashes on live to the most convincing (and semi-understandable!) battle with a God-like entity to grace anime. The only flaw the series had was the slightly depressing and inconclusive ending. I wanted a happy ending; not one where all the couples end up unhappy and the fate of a certain somebody is left up in the air.
The story of Macross Zero isn't hard to digest: A war is on-going between two halves of humanity. On one side is a pilot called Shin, a rookie who learned about war the hard way as a child and got invo…
Read at the sourceChag
Simply put, Macross Zero is the crown jewel of the Macross franchise. It takes the franchise's staple set of features of songs, love triangles, and transformable fighter jets and produces not only a visually breathtaking experience, but its story also carries a healthy weight in depth and substance, making Macross Zero not only a feast for the eyes, but also a memorable tale as well.
The plot of Zero is noticeably more grounded than its predecessors. Instead of narrating conflict between humans and extraterrestrials, Zero's plot revolves around the war between the UN and Anti-UN forces, as well as the inhabitants of Mayan Island's struggle with the introduction of the outside world, which they have mostly avoided until now. As a result, the story becomes much less detached from reality as…
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