Last week, severalMacrossseries premiered onHuluand Disney+, butMacross Dynamite 7fans might not be that happy as some footage was censored.
Dynamite 7is a 4-episode OVA originally released in 1997-1998, and this is the first time it has been officially released in the US. However,according toANN,this is not specific to the American release, as the streaming version of the series available in Japan is also censored.
This section of the article contains references to child sexual assault, so refrain from reading if you feel uncomfortable with this topic.
What Exactly Was Censored?
Severalminutes were cut, removing a subplot involving Mylene Flare Jenius,a teenage girl who was originally drugged and then sexually assaulted. Apparently, this segment is still available in pay-per-view or rental versions in Japan, but not in the streaming versions, be it in Japan or overseas (Hulu and Disney+).
Where To Watch Macross Officially
Currently, 16Macrossseries areavailable on Hulu and Disney+in the US and also in other countries (outside the US, it’s only on Disney+). However, the series hasn’t debuted in all territories in which Disney+ is available (likely only in English-speaking countries). BIGWEST had stated that all series produced from 1987 onwardswould debut worldwide on Disney+but later deleted the announcement.
Macrosshas finally reached international audiences after a long legal battle regarding the series rights — Japanese company BIGWEST and American producer Harmony Gold had litigated the rights due to Harmony Gold acquiringMacrossrights from Tatsunoko (alongside two other series) andproducingRobotechediting their footage.
BIGWEST, who also had rights to the series and apparently wasn’t involved in the deal, entered a dispute with Harmony over bothMacrossandRobotech. It was settled in 2021, but while BIGWEST now holds the right to distribute internationally everyMacrosstitle produced from 1987 on and Harmony Gold owns the rights toRobotech, it is still unclear who currently owns the rights to distribute the originalSuper Dimensional Fortress Macross(1982) andDo You Remember Love?(1984).
