Welcome to your guide for Robotech music by episode.

Each blog entry lists all the music featured in a specific episode, in the order that it appeared.

Thursday, June 9, 2016

33. A Rainy Night Music Guide

What follows is a list of all the music that appeared in the standard version of Robotech episode 33: "A Rainy Night." Bold text denotes that this is the first appearance of that piece of music.

ADDITIONAL NOTES: There are so few remaining pieces of unused (non-generation specific) background music left on the Robotech 30th Anniversary Soundtrack that I've been seriously wondering if these remaining cuts were ever actually used in Robotech at all, and are actually bonus tracks discovered in the Harmony Gold vaults. But today's episode revealed that at least one of them isn't! "Escalations" (part C) gets used for the first time in this episode!

Robotech Theme
(Red Alert) Resolve
Robotech Love Theme I
Private Time Theme (a1)
Escalations (c)
Robotech Love Theme I
Private Time Theme (a1)
Reflections
Imbeciles
Red Alert
Eyecatch
Private Time Theme (a1)
Escalations (b)
Lifeline (Instrumental)
Private Time Theme (a2)
Red Alert
Broken Heart
Stepping Out
Minmei's Theme
Robotech Love Theme I
Broken Heart
Victory
Escalations (a)
Robotech Love Theme I
Robotech Theme (next episode preview)
Robotech End Title

Wednesday, June 8, 2016

32. Broken Heart Music Guide

What follows is a list of all the music that appeared in the standard version of Robotech episode 32: "Broken Heart." Bold text denotes that this is the first appearance of that piece of music.

ADDITIONAL NOTES: This is another case where a piece of background music was given an episode name that describes the mood of the piece very well, yet wasn't actually used in that episode. (Personally, I always think of the "Broken Heart" music as Marlene's Theme.) This also happened previously with "Sweet Sixteen" and "Showdown."

Robotech Theme
Red Alert
Intirgue
Khyron's Theme
It's You
Catastrophe
Khyron's Theme
(Alien Attack) Resolve
Escalations (b) (slowed down)
Suspense
To Be in Love (a capella)
Suspense
Battlestations
Reflections
Eyecatch
Khyron's Theme
Shocked (b)
Musica's Theme
Zentraedi Theme
Zentraedi Theme (continues after a brief pause)
Intruder
Red Alert
Rick Hunter's Theme
Love Triangle
Alien Attack
Robotech Love Theme I
Robotech Theme (next episode preview)
Robotech End Title

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

31. Khyron's Revenge Music Guide

What follows is a list of all the music that appeared in the standard version of Robotech episode 31: "Khyron's Revenge." Bold text denotes that this is the first appearance of that piece of music.

Robotech Theme
Private Time Theme (b)
Earth Government at Work (a) ("Reprise" portion after break only)
Zentraedi Theme
Intrigue
The Robotech Masters
Battlestations
Red Alert
Intrigue
Boobytrap
Musica's Theme
The Point of No Return
Eyecatch
Musica's Theme
(Alien Attack) Resolve
Catastrophe
Earth Government Debriefing
Showdown
Catastrophe
Private Time Theme (b)
Battlestations
Reconstruction Blues
Escalations (a)
Khyron's Theme
Broken Heart
Showdown
Robotech Theme (next episode preview)
Robotech End Title

Sunday, June 5, 2016

30. Viva Miriya Music Guide

What follows is a list of all the music that appeared in the standard version of Robotech episode 30: "Viva Mirya." Bold text denotes that this is the first appearance of that piece of music.

ADDITIONAL NOTES: Although this is the second time we see the Robotech Masters, this is the first time we see them while hearing the piece of music that would become eponymous with them. It's actually the twelfth time the piece of music has been used, in nine different episodes.

Robotech Theme
Victory
The SDF-1
Private Time Theme (a2)
(Red Alert) Resolve
Private Time Theme (c)
Private Time Theme (b)
The Robotech Masters
Private Time Theme (a1)
Escalations (b)
Boobytrap
Eyecatch
Private Time Theme (b)
Khyron's Theme
Intrigue
My Time to Be a Star
Red Alert
Bliss Theme (a)
Catastrophe
Alien Attack
Robotech Theme
Macross Theme
Victory
Robotech Theme (next episode preview)
Robotech End Title

Saturday, June 4, 2016

29. The Robotech Masters Music Guide

What follows is a list of all the music that appeared in the standard version of Robotech episode 29: "The Robotech Masters." Bold text denotes that this is the first appearance of that piece of music.

ADDITIONAL NOTES: We heard just the bridge portion of "It's You" last episode; today we get to hear the entire song, with only the final repetition of the final line removed to allow the announcer to speak at the closing of the episode.
  
UPDATE - With the "Cliffhanger" segment in "Countdown" now being identified as "Cliffhangers (d)," that makes this episode the fist use of "Clifhangers (b)."

Robotech Theme
Showdown
Desolation / To Be in Love (a capella overlapping)
The Point of No Return
Cliffhangers (b)
Private Time Theme (a2)
Miss Macross (My Time to Be a Star Instrumental)
Escalations (a)
Catastrophe
(Alien Attack) Resolve
(Red Alert) Resolve
Escalations (f1)
Private Time (c)
Love Triangle (To Be in Love Instrumental)
Zentraedi Theme
Love Triangle (To Be in Love Instrumental) (resumes in progress)
Eyecatch
Stepping Out
Bliss Theme (a)
Catastrophe
Broken Heart
Catastrophe
Zenttraedi Theme
The Point of No Return
Cliffhangers (b)
Musica's Theme
Khyron's Theme
Escalations (a)
Across the Universe
It's You
Robotech Theme (next episode preview)
Robotech End Titles

Friday, June 3, 2016

28. Reconstruction Blues Music Guide

What follows is a list of all the music that appeared in the standard version of Robotech episode 28: "Reconstruction Blues." Bold text denotes that this is the first appearance of that piece of music.

ADDITIONAL NOTES: A couple of new Minmei songs in a row, as Minmei performs "The Right Move" and "It's You"  in her concert at Granite City.

Robotech Theme
Reconstruction Blues
Robotech Love Theme II
Victory
Desolation
Battlestations
Macross Theme
Bliss Theme (b)
Love Triangle (To Be in Love Instrumental)
Desolation
Earth Government at Work (a)
The Man in My Life
The Right Move
It's You (Minmei Version)
Robotech Love Theme I
My Time to Be a Star
Eyecatch
Escalations (a)
Broken Heart
Cliffhangers (a)
Reflections
The SDF-1
Alien Attack
Red Alert
Intrigue
Alien Attack
Rick Hunter's Theme
Robotech Love Theme I
Broken Heart
Robotech Theme (next episode preview)
Robotech End Title

Sunday, May 15, 2016

27. Force of Arms Music Guide

What follows is a list of all the music that appeared in the standard version of Robotech episode 27: "Force of Arms." Bold text denotes that this is the first appearance of that piece of music.

ADDITIONAL NOTES: Ahh, the big one. "We Will Win," in all it's glory.

This episode is another case where the original broadcast version varies from what became the standard  version. In the standard version, as Rick and Minmei watch the Earth being destroyed Minmei says "Mother... Father..."  and Rick mourns "Lisa..." The scene then cuts to a flashback of Rick and Minmei's visit back to Earth and her family as we hear Minmei sing "To Be in Love," which fades into the current Earth as a desolate ruin. When the song reaches the lines "A world of things we've never seen before, a world of--" Minmei breaks down into tears. It's probably the most dramatic, heart wrenching usage of "To Be in Love" in the entire series, driving home the destruction of the Earth on a personal level.

However the original version works just as well, but in a completely different way. In the original broadcast version, after Rick says Lisa's name, Minmei begins singing the last verse of "It's You" instead (without the Yokohama flashback): "If you still think of me, how did we come to this? Wish that I knew it is me that you miss..." and then she starts crying. After the conversation they just had where Rick told her they never would have worked out anyway because they live in separate worlds now, it conveys that Minmei finally realizes that Rick hasn't been sitting around waiting for her. She's lost her home, she's lost her family, and now she's realizing she's even lost Rick. It may not be as grand as the standard version, but still a crucial turning point on a deeper, more intimate level. Interestingly enough, the It's You EP uses photos from this scene in the CD booklet.

The other thing about this is when assembling a "Perfect Memory" soundtrack, it also affects the order of the songs. Going by the original broadcast version "It's You" would come before "We Will Win." But I've been compiling this list to follow the standard version, which means we won't hear "It's You" until the next episode. Since I have no idea where "The Man in My Life" falls in the original broadcast version, I'll be sticking with the putting them in the standard version order.

Another change in the two versions is in the final scene, when Rick and Lisa hear Minmei's music as the SDF-1 returns to Earth. In the original version, "To Be in Love" was used, while the standard version uses the ending lines of  "We Will Win." The standard version is the only place in the series to use that part of the song.

Robotech Theme
Red Alert
Reflections
Battlestations
Minmei's Theme
Private Time (b)
Alien Attack
Desolation
To Be in Love
Minmei's Theme
(Alien Attack) Resolve
The Point of No Return
Showdown
Victory
Eyecatch
Private Time Theme (a2)
We Will Win
Alien Attack
We Will Win (radio effect)
Minmei's Theme
The Point of No Return
Roy Fokker's Theme
We Will Win
Robotech Love Theme I
We Will Win
Victory
Robotech Theme (next episode preview)
Robotech End Title