Ten Years ago, a revolutionary animated series called "Robotech" premiered on syndicated television in the United States. Robotech captured the imagination of people across the world, and started a revolution that continues to this day. The series has been credited with engendering a heretofore unexpected appreciation of Japanese Animation, and also creating a phenomenon known as "Protoculture Addiction" among it's die-hard fans.

And as many fans of Robotech are aware, Carl Macek was the man at the wheel of developing the series that would become Robotech. While many people were involved in the creation of Robotech at Harmony Gold, it was Carl Macek who ultimately became the driving force behind the series. He had they heavy task of taking three unrelated Japanese animated series, and linking them in such a way that they appeared as one contiguous series.

Somehow, he pulled it off. His engineering of the three plotlines from "Macross", "Super Dimension Calvary Southern Cross", and "Genesis Climber Mospaeda" into a single plotline for Robotech has been able to stand the test of time. Evidence of this can be readily found by just observing the fandom that has been built around the series. Fan appreciation of Robotech continues today and is perpetuating itself in many ways. It can be found on paper in the form of comic books and novels; electronically in the form of fan-based fiction stories, Internet newsgroups and list services, and FidoNet discussion areas; and some lucky individuals can still catch the series on TV today. And it is because of all this that fan appreciation continues to grow with no end in sight.

As we approach the 10th anniversary of the original series debut, new items for Robotech are being brought forth in recognition of that milestone. New toys, comic book series, novels, videotape releases, the eagerly awaited Veritech Simulator video game, etc are finding their way into stores and the hands of fans across the planet. It was in light of this occasion that I took it upon myself to give Carl Macek a call. He gave me an audience, and here's the result of what we discussed.

Some time ago, I had been privy to the fact that Harmony Gold and Streamline were in negotiations to have the soundtrack released again. Then a week prior to this interview, I finally received official word on the status of their negotiations. As many people are aware, this is VERY important because the original CD soundtrack for Robotech sold out several years ago and went out of print. Only a very wealthy few could get their hands on what was left of them. To this day, auctions on the Internet quote prices of at least $100 per CD.

Q: Did Streamline Pictures obtain the official license to produce the soundtrack for Robotech?

A: Yes.

Q: Will the CD be released under the Streamline label, and if so will it have a different format than the original release that was done by US Renditions?

A: Yes, it will be marketed directly from Streamline. And the format will be different from the previous release of the soundtrack.

Q: What are some details of what is planned for the soundtrack?

A: The soundtrack would have the same songs as the original CD, plus a LOT more, and in a different order. The ultimate goal for the soundtrack is to have a 2 CD set release. Also, the tracks would be stereo re-mastered, due to the fact that the original tracks were done in analog mono.

Q: Is there a firm release date?

A: Not really. The goal, however is to try to get it out by the summer so it can get out by Anime convention time and make the deadline of the 10th anniversary of Robotech.

Q: Will this soundtrack include songs from "Robotech the Movie; The Untold Story?"

A: At this time, no plans have been considered to include any of the songs from the movie in the soundtrack.

Many enthusiasts of Robotech know about the video collection produced by Streamline called the Perfect Collection. After some initial problems, Streamline is now planning on continuing the Perfect Collection. For those unfamiliar with it, the Perfect Collection showcases 2 episodes of Robotech, and then the coinciding episodes in subtitled format from the original Japanese series.

Q: Why was the Perfect Collection put on hold?

A: Streamline had to put a hold on the series for a while in deference to another manufacturer who also produced episodes of Robotech for videotape. But Streamline now has regained the ability to produce the Perfect Collection, and we intend to go full steam ahead. We are currently at volume 6 on all 3 Perfect Collections for Robotech.

We started talking about "Robotech II: The Sentinels." I told him about the many debates that people would get into regarding what is officially part of the storyline, and what wasn't. Whenever inconsistencies crop up in the storyline or timeline of Robotech from any of the varied works of Robotech and The Sentinels, people have always deferred to the Macek version of the storyline as 'canon' (primarily the TV series for anything concerning content in the original 85 episodes, and what was outlined in Robotech Art III and the Sentinels OVA for anything regarding Sentinels content).

In a conversation that I had with representatives at Harmony Gold following this interview, they bolstered this position by stating that should there be a move to complete the Sentinels series, it would be done under the storyline as given by Carl Macek.

Q: Is there a completed and detailed set of your version of the storyline of the Sentinels?

A: Yes, I have over 1000 pages of material for the Sentinels series alone. This includes a complete synopsis of the series (most of which is detailed in the Robotech Art III graphic novel) as well as a thorough rundown of every episode of the series.

Q: Would we ever get the chance to see your entire version of the Sentinels in a printed format?

A: In the future I would like to publish a scrapbook which would be a compilation of material that I have for the Sentinels.

Q: Would we see such a thing happen in the near future?

A: No plans at this time.

Many people that I've spoken with on the electronic conferences have mentioned that they were puzzled at the character design changes that occured between the Macross series characters from Robotech and the way they were depicted in the Sentinels.

Q: Why were the characters from the Sentinels so different in appearance from those of the Macross series?

A: The reason that the characters look as they do in the Sentinels animation was simply that Harmony Gold could not use the character designs for the existing characters. Also, we didn't want to commision Haruhiko Mikimoto (character designer for Macross) to create a bunch of new designs for all of the new characters that appear in the Sentinels series.

Q: If Harmony Gold approached you concerning the completion of the Sentinels animation, would you participate in it's completion?

A: Probably, yes.

Another project to which Carl Macek had participated in while working at Harmony Gold was Robotech: The Movie; The Untold Story. However, the movie never made it into wide distribution, and was shelved shortly after completion. Many people have asked if it would ever be released on videotape.

Q: Has Streamline ever thought about pursuing a license to market Robotech: The Movie; The Untold Story?

A: Streamline has absolutely no intention to ask for the rights to release "The Untold Story." The reason being that we have been granted the rights to release the original MegaZone 23 #1, and will be releasing that in its entirety in the very near future. (For those that don't know, the majority of footage for Robotech : The Movie came from MegaZone 23 #1).

Q: Does this MegaZone 23 license prevent some other company from ever marketing the Movie?

A: It does not make it impossible for someone else to release Robotech: The Movie in the future. I just don't want to be the one to do it.

Q: Do you consider the movie to be a part of the timeline of Robotech?

A: I don't consider it to be a part of the timeline of the Robotech era whatsoever. Really, I'd like everybody to forget about Robotech: The Movie; The Untold Story altogether.

Q: Is it true that you were against the production of the movie in the first place?

A: Yes this is true. I did NOT want to do the movie in the first place, and I am not anywhere near impressed with it.

Q: Ironically, Jack McKinney's book the THE MASTER'S GAMBIT (#20) chronicles some of the material that is covered in The Untold Story. That leads me to my next question; In what way do you feel that the McKinney series has contibuted to Robotech?

A: I feel that the McKinney novelizations of Robotech have helped to expand the realm of Robotech, and I appreciate what the books have done for Robotech. While it's true that I wasn't available for the authors to pick my brain for the entire time they were writing these books, they did consult with me in the beginning for two weeks, and occasionally after that. In fact, minor inconsistancies not withstanding, the novels, comic books, and RPGs are all representative of Robotech. I don't discount the validity of any of these works. Also, each work has its own place within the overall realm of Robotech.

Q: What is your opinion of the many fan-fiction writings that have been undertaken by people to furthur define the Robotech realm?

A: I don't mind that fans take the time to express their appreciation of Robotech by enhancing it in story. In fact I find it all fascinating.

Q: Have you had the opportunity to read any of the works?

A: I have not had the chance to read many of them. I don't encourage people to send them to me. I try to discourage that, in fact.

Q: Why discourage the authors from submitting their works to you?

A: Don't get me wrong. As I said, I appreciate that people write fan fiction stories for Robotech. However, I'd prefer to avoid any potential lawsuits from writers that could crop up if somone sends in a fan fiction story which may contain parts similar to some future project we may have in the works for Robotech. So it's not a matter of not liking fan fiction, but it's a matter of not liking lawsuits.

Q: So you do encourage writers to continue creating their works?

A: Absolutely.

Q: Continuity has been an issue that plagues fans of Robotech endlessly. People have been trying to establish a timeline and a storyline synopsis that will act as the 'canon' backbone of the whole Robotech saga. This is particularly true of fan fiction writers, who love the series and they want to make sure that they are not crossing the line of continuity when they write their stories. We already know about your collection of material on the Sentinels, but do you have some sort of 'master plan' for Robotech on paper?

A: Well, the only complete plan for Robotech is in my head. It would take too long for me to give more than a cursory explanation of it here. As far as the debate over what is 'canon' in Robotech goes; all of the material out there for Robotech should be considered valid, because it is all a part of Robotech. An example from my own work is in the Art book for the Sentinels. The events detailed in "Robotech Art III" were far away from what I had actually planned for Robotech at the time. While the Sentinels do fall within the realm of Robotech, the series itself was more animation-intensive than plot-intensive. In essence, no one should look at my contibutions alone as "THE" Robotech.

Q: Would you be against someone establishing standards for the plotline and timeline of Robotech?

A: Not really.

Q: Was there any truth to the rumor that there was supposed to have been a series called "Robotech III: The Odyssey?"

A: I did have plans on a third series of Robotech back in its heyday. 'Odyssey' was supposed to have been a series which tied together all of the story elements of the previous 2 series. Particularly, 'Odyssey' was to have picked up where Robotech and The Sentinels end, with the disappearance of the SDF-3.

(Ed Note: Unfortunately due to time constraints he did not go into detail concerning the content of the Odyssey series, but he did say that it was supposed to be the largest of the 3 series. In fact, if you were to add up all the episodes of Robotech I, II and III; you should get 260 episodes in all. That would allow for a 30 minute episode of Robotech to occur every weekday for an entire year!)

Also, I wanted to have a big plot 'gotcha' for 'Odyssey' by portraying Lynn Minmei as the mother of Zor. By doing this Minmei would become the focal point in the entire series, in essence making Minmei the mother-creator of Robotech.
And I envisioned the very last scene of 'Odyssey' to be the crash landing of Zor's battlefortress on Macross Island, with the next episode shown being 'Boobytrap.' Doing this would create the effect of a Mobius loop for Robotech, where a viewer could start watching the series at any point, and be able to get the whole thing in about a year's time.

Q: With Minmei becoming Zor's mother, does this imply that the crew of the SDF-3 become the Robotech Masters?

A: Absolutely not. The timeline wouldn't work like that. The Masters are a different part of the puzzle.

Q: Then is there some other fate that awaits Rick, Lisa, Max, Miriya, Vince and Jean?

A: (Chuckles) I guess we'll have to wait for the release of Odyssey to find that out.

Several participants of The Robotech Echo and alt.tv.Robotech made the assertion that the Exo Squad series may have been incorporated with the Robotech universe (or vice-versa). This assertion was made because Playmates Toys is marketing the Robotech line of mecha under the Exo Squad line.

Q: Have you been told or otherwise approached concerning the possibility of tying together Exo Squad and Robotech?

A: I have absolutely no knowledge of a plot tie in of Exo Squad and Robotech, and I do not endorse one. The only part that I acknowledge is the fact that Robotech is being sold as part of the Exo Squad toy line.

Q: Will you be attending Robocon 10?

A: Yes I will be there.

Q: Do you have an Internet e-mail address?

A: No, I do not have an e-mail address.

Me: Well, that ends the interview for now. I would like to thank you for allowing me time to speak with you, and I hope that we can talk again in the future.

Carl: Not a problem.