Macross Zero OVA Episode 04
マクロスゼロ OVA Ep. 04 (OAV)
Macross Zero OVA 04

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:

On Mayan, Shin is beaten while in the nearby skies, Focker is nearly taken out when Ivanov destroys the air tanker Focker is refueling from. As they dual in the skies, the Anti-U.N. forces reveal that the elderly Professor Hasford is working for them with his arrival on Mayan. Seeing him and the beads he offers to Sara again, Sara remembers the mistake of her childhood and her powers cause the rocks to float up. One “rock” looks like cruise missile and begins flying. Shin jumps on it and grabs Sara, who’s lost it for the moment. Above them, Focker gets shot down but as he crashes on the island, he takes out Nora’s fighter as well as a nearby mecha unit.

Focker takes Aries and races off as his fighter is destroyed. Nora manages to shoot down the thing Shin and Sara were riding. However, before they hit the ground, an energy bubble appears around the two. When Shin comes to, he’s in a cave being treated by Sara. Sara, now in control of her senses, demands to know why Shin saved her when she was the one who broke the rule of blood by giving some of hers to Hasford as a child. Shin doesn’t have an answer for that, but he does ask where Mao’s treasure (the head of the artifact) is. As morning dawns, Nora has lost her prey and decides to order a strike on the island with fuel-air bombs.

On the Asuka II, the surviving Mayans, lead by Nutuk, find that Mao’s operation is a success. However, they wish to perform a special ritual for her, and do so. Back on Mayan, Focker and Aries have a long talk about the past and their history. Aries ends up stepping on a land mine, forcing Focker to disarm it. However, after he disarms it, he doesn’t tell her right away, letting her talk. When he kisses her and lifts her off, she thinks it is over, but of course, the mine is safe now. On another part of the island, Shin and Sara come across the wreckage of a VF-0 fighter in Battlroid mode but the pilot is long dead. After this, Shin and Sara also have a long talk about things that end up in Shin coming to a better understanding of Sara. With the breaking of a new dawn, Shin then kisses Sara.

Back on the Asuka II, Mao is now awake and senses a great danger coming. On Mayan, some fighter-bombers have arrived to drop the fuel-air bombs requested by Nora. The bombs going off cause a similar reaction for both sisters.

Thoughts/Review:

The pacing of this episode was much slower, after the break-neck pace of episode 3. I think the only thing I really had a problem with is that even though the Anti-U.N. forces are after Focker and Aries as well as Shin and Sara, both pairs do a lot of things to give up their presence to the enemy. I had no problem with the writers using the time to do a bit of character development, but neither Shin nor Focker came off as competent military pilots trained in survival.

I don’t suppose it was that surprising to see Professor Hasford with the Anti-U.N. forces, but the question is “why?” What deal would he get working with them that he wouldn’t get with U.N. Spacy.

The lolicon fans may have an iku moment as a flashback shows a young, topless Sara. *_*

Hopefully, we’ll get some answers regarding the alien artifacts and stuff as there is only one more episode to go.