Super Dimensional Cavalry: The Southern Cross (DVD)
APPROX. 575 MINS. - PROD. YEAR: 1984 - MPA RATING: MA15
" I can see why this series didn’t take the anime scene by storm like it’s big brother, “Macross”, but by no means is “Southern Cross” a sub-par production.
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Man, here´s a real treat. All twenty-three original, unedited episodes of what was used as the middle portion of "Robotech" have been released in one box set from ADV. It´s been far too long for me to say what was changed and what was not in transforming "Super Dimensional Cavalry: Southern Cross" into "Robotech". At any rate, this classic series should be required viewing for everyone.
To put this series in place historically, "Super Dimensional Cavalry: Southern Cross" is part of the Super Dimensional series, three TV series that were created in the early 1980s. The other two Super Dimensional series are the relatively unknown "Super Dimensional Century: Orguss" and the defining anime series of the 1980s, "Super Dimensional Fortress: Macross". "Southern Cross" was the last of the three to be created.
The basic set up for the show is that the humans on colony planet Gloire are under attack from an enigmatic alien race that call themselves the Zor. The humans possess various transforming vehicles with which to fight the technologically superior Zor. The main character is Jeanne, the charismatic leader of the 15th Tactical Armored Corp. Her squad receives the most screen time, and has the most success in resisting the Zor out of the entire Army of the Southern Cross.
"Southern Cross" focuses almost entirely on the military, and goes into extra detail on the military structure. This is the only anime series I´ve seen where there´s a sharp distinction between the Army, Air Force, and Navy, as well as the Military Police. Also, the mecha design, from the Strategic Armored Corp´s Spartas to the Military Police´s Garums, is fitting to the show´s spare military design. The mecha are rather plain looking, even a little clunky, which feels more realistic to me than some of the more fanciful mecha designs in other series such as "Gundam Wing".
The military is portrayed rather uniquely, compared to any other anime series I´ve seen. I usually see the military portrayed as either the bad guys, or only in a positive light when on the defense. There is also always a strong civilian point of view. In "Southern Cross", the military functions in an offensive capacity without any judgment. There is only passing reference to civilians, and not even so much as a side character who is not in the military. The types of people in the military run the gamut from the career soldier to a pacifist.
Over the course of the series, the members of the 15th Tactical Armored Corp are whittled down, while they try to find a way to end a war that isn´t going well for either side. By the end of the series, it was impossible to really say where things had gone wrong, or how the conflict could have been avoided. The inscrutable Zor eventually tip their hand over why they have picked a fight on Gloire, and the final episodes of the series play out like one continuous episode. I´m glad the entire series is in one box set and can be watched back to back, it must have been pretty aggravating to have to wait a week between episodes when this first aired.
