I remember this day back in 1999, I was at SM North
Edsa with my two best friends and we were trying to
get something to eat from a quaint Smokey’s hot dog
stand near the cinemas. Everything was, as usual,
bustling and close to being raucous, as it was a
weekend, a time when most people who didn’t have
airconditioning in their houses flocked the malls just
to cool off. I did have an aircon in my room, so
suffice it to say that cooling off wasn’t my reason
for going to SM City.
I recall being unmindful of the marginal chaos
happening around me, and being focused with just a
thought:
“20 YEARS.”
Twenty years. The thought keep echoing in mind as my
friends and I trooped back to the car park after
seeing that day’s showing of VOLTES V: THE LIBERATION.
And the words seemed to refuse to quit, as I was
still intermittently muttering it between
conversations with the guys, which was mostly still
about the movie. I couldn’t help it, I was
overwhelmed, though I wasn’t sure by what: the fact
that I’ve finally seen the much coveted last episode
of the greatest anime series in the world, or the fact
that I waited twenty years for it.
There was much to discuss after seeing the film: like
how the audience was composed mostly of adults and not
children - which wasn’t unexpected considering whose
generation was it that was first captivated by the
magic. There was the subject of Zandra’s demise, and
how until death she was still loyal to Zardoz. That
in my book just destroyed Zandra’s image of the cold
and cruel villainess, a she was in reality just
someone who endeavored to serve her superior (side
note: it’s interesting to consider how Zandra might
have been infatuated to Zardoz, yes?). The plot twist
(SPOILER) of Zardoz turning out to be Dr. Armstrong’s
son by his first wife didn’t surprise me, since by
that time I have already gotten accustomed to similar
turns - we Filipinos have become good at that. But
still, that didn’t take away any luster from the story
- retroactively it was still brilliant and inventive.
And also quite tragic, as it was excruciating to see
Zardoz succumb to the enormous weight of guilt and
loneliness instead of accept the love offered him by
the three brothers, whom he had been fighting for so
long. It was really, really sad, how Steve, Big Bert,
and Little John called Zardoz “Brother”, and how he
accepted it repentantly before deciding that he had
given them too much grief to stand by their side as a
brother. As an eight-year old, the saddest moment on
TV I have ever seen was the death of Mrs. Armstrong -
I really bawled when I first saw it, and food tasted a
little bitter during the next couple of days. The
Zardoz death scene would have topped it convincingly
had the series run its entire course on its first
outing.
And of course, there was the happy albeit tearful
reunion between the Armstrong brothers and their long
lost father. Truthfully, I think it was perhaps the
most anticipated family reunion in the entire physical
universe. I recall the audience having a good laugh
during that scene on account of the exaggerated tears
pouring out of the brothers’ eyes as they raced
towards Dr. Armstrong. But if I didn’t know better, I
wouldn’t suspect they laughed only to cover up the
“corny” truth that the scene touched them almost to
the point of tears. At least I admit it happened that
way for me.
I could go on and on and probably use up a great chunk
of my time raving about Voltes V’s last five episodes,
but I wouldn’t really be saying anything other Voltes
V lovers didn’t already know. So let me just say that
now, I can die happy.
It’s a wonder how we could grow up and still retain
some of the most cherished elements of our childhood,
and yet it’s also burdensome when we end up lugging
them for the rest of our lives because we didn’t get
any closure. I may not always have thought about it,
especially with the arrival of new pop icons that
seized my fancy in an almost similar fashion - most
notable of which are the Final Fantasy games. But in
the back of my mind, I guess I never really fell out
of love with the kata-in-the-air performing
ultra-electromagnetic super-robot and its diverse cast
of characters. I still find myself humming the “Tato
de aya shima” (or whatever the hell the lyrics are)
song once in a while, or wondering how could those
five massive volt machines do the Spinning Top
technique, or thinking how come none of the four
frigid mooks ever showed the slightest bit of
attraction to the hottie that is Jamie Robinson (or
smiling because after all this time, I still have a
crush on her).
I guess this old line has been said a million times
before, but I’m still taking my turn at repeating it:
Voltes V left its mark on me, and perhaps there is no
hope in the world that it will ever be erased. Many
fans like me say that they love Voltes V because it’s
a part of their childhood. But I’m slightly
different: I love my childhood because Voltes V was a
part of it.
Thanks for building this Voltes V Shrine of yours. It
sure brought back a lot of good memories.
Soul Hunter
01. Mar 2004 00:16:15
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