マクロスF Episode 18
Macross F Ep. 18
Macross Frontier Anime

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis: As Luca briefs Leon on his plan to use Ranka’s singing against the Vajra, Sheryl confronts Grace, demanding to know why Grace is managing Ranka now. Grace is amused by Sheryl’s confrontation considering Grace made her to be an idol, having found the orphaned Sheryl as a girl in the slums on Galaxy Frontier. Grace reveals to Sheryl that Sheryl is going to die. Sheryl isn’t going to take such a threat lying down, so Grace clarifies her statement. The illness Sheryl had as a child was never cured and that’s what is afflicting Sheryl. As such, Sheryl will die from the disease.

Leon and the president discuss getting rid of the Vajra and getting back to exploring the galaxy, which they can do when they fold out. On Macross Quarter, the “bridge bunnies” and Cathy are in the private SMS bar discussing the news that the fleet has stored up enough energy to make another fold. Bobby demands to know why the girls are just sitting there when pre-fold bargain sales are now underway. Alto, walking to the SMS hospital, encounters one such sale and gets pissed when he’s mistaken for a woman. In the hospital, he briefed by the still recovering Ozama and Canalia that the Vajra are attracted to fold energy, thus the fleet folding out of their current location would draw the Vajra to follow them. Since Ranka is being used as a weapon, Ozama asks Alto as Ranka’s older brother to protect Ranka.

Alto leaves and discovers that while Ranka is the huge star now, Sheryl is all but forgotten, her music for sale in bargain bins. Sheryl is in a taxi thinking about her conversation with Grace while at the high school, Klan gives Micheal the information he sought about the drug Sheryl was given. Apparently, it is a receptor blocker for V-type infections, the research in this disease being lead by Dr. Mao Nome. The pill would not cure the disease and has side-effects of its own. To their great surprise, they discover a picture of Dr. Nome along with Ranshe Mei (looking like Ranka’s mother) and Grace O’Connor, who’s not aged a whit. Michael and Klan are further surprised to see an image of Sheryl in the hospital as a young child with the V-type infection.

Sheryl arrives on the scene, clearly suffering from her illness. After sharing the information with Sheryl, she begs them not to let Alto know about this and she takes off into the rain. Klan feels badly about the situation and Micheal finds a way to get Alto to find Sheryl without telling him anything. Alto races out into the artificial rain where he finally finds Sheryl, who’s being assisted into a taxi by Alto’s “niisan” Yasaburo. Apparently Yasaburo was contacted by Sheryl and tells Alto to come by the family estate if he’s worried about Sheryl before taking off with the former idol, who’s now unconscious.

An alert from the S.M.S. forces Alto to return (as well as Bobby and the “bridge bunnies” from shopping) as the Vajra are attacking. With Leon’s prompting, the president orders preparations for an emergency fold since Ranka volunteered to sing and stop the Vajra from the König Monster. Only Brera’s weapon as well as the main canons of Macross Quarter and Battle Frontier have any affect on the Vajra, who are stopped by Ranka’s singing. This allows the two warships to clear a path and make a successful fold without Vajra pursuit as Ranka continues to sing while in fold space.

Thoughts/Review: I’m really glad I watched Macross Zero now that Mao Nome’s name has come up again. Figures, Grace would be with her back then. Mao’s entrance into this makes me think again that the Vajra may be tied with the aliens in Macross Zero. So, I guess Grace wasn’t actually trying to kill Sheryl after all, at least not with that pill. I still say that it will be a Ranka-Sheryl combination that will resolve the Vajra problem.

Still, why in the world are Leon, Grace, and whomever else so interested in causing the Vajra attacks? There’s just a lot that doesn’t make sense.

Back to Sheryl, I get the feeling that she’s now hit bottom and will now rise back up. She needed to be knocked down because if she does rise again, I figure she won’t be the annoying, spoiled brat she’s mostly been to date.

The new OP theme music is pretty neat. Considering it is a “Ranka/Sheryl” duet, I wonder if the writers are trying to hint that my theory on a combination of the two girls will be required to resolve the Vajra issue, or is it a red herring? Either way, I do like the song.