Hikaru Ichijyo
Encyclopedia
- This article is about the character from The Super Dimension Fortress MacrossThe Super Dimension Fortress Macrossis an anime television series. According to story creator Shoji Kawamori, it depicts "a love triangle against the backdrop of great battles" during the first Human-alien war....
. See Rick HunterRick HunterRick Hunter, voiced by veteran voice actor Tony Oliver, is one of the fictional characters in the Robotech anime television series. He begins the series as a naive and headstrong nineteen-year-old civilian pilot, having flown for his father "Pops" Hunter's world-class flying circus...
for the derived character in RobotechRobotechRobotech is an 85-episode science fiction anime adaptation produced by Harmony Gold USA in association with Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. and first released in the United States in 1985...
.
Hikaru Ichijyo (一条 輝 Ichijō Hikaru) is one of the main fictional character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
s of the Macross
Macross
is a series of science fiction mecha anime, directed by Shōji Kawamori of Studio Nue in 1982. The franchise features a fictional history of Earth/Humanity after the year 1999. It consists of three TV series, four movies, six OVAs, one light novel and five manga series, all sponsored by Big West...
Japanese anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series. His voice actor was Arihiro Hase
Arihiro Hase
was a Japanese seiyū. He was the son of seiyū Sanji Hase. His most famous voice work was that of Hikaru Ichijyo from the Macross series.He committed suicide on July 30, 1996 by jumping from his seventh-story window at the age of 31...
in the Original Japanese version and Vic Mignogna
Vic Mignogna
Victor Joseph "Vic" Mignogna is an American Anime Award winning voice actor and musician who has done voice work for many anime series, movies, and video games...
in the English dub by ADV Films in January 2006. After the death of Arihiro Hase in 1996, he was played by Kenji Nojima
Kenji Nojima
is a Japanese seiyū who was born in Tokyo. He is employed by Japanese voice talent agency Aoni Production. He is the son of veteran seiyū Akio Nojima and is the younger brother of seiyū Hirofumi Nojima...
in the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
Macross video game from 2003.
The original animation and the distributors Bandai Visual
Bandai Visual
, is a Japanese anime, film production and distribution enterprise, established by Bandai Co., Ltd. and a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings, Inc., which is based in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Since the reorganisation of Namco Bandai Holdings in 2006, Bandai Visual now heads the group's Visual and...
and Victor Entertainment
Victor Entertainment
is a subsidiary of Japan Victor Company that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It was formerly known as...
romanizes his name as Hikaru Ichijyo, while AnimEigo
AnimEigo
AnimEigo is an American entertainment company that licenses and distributes anime, samurai films and Japanese cinema. The company was founded in 1988 in Ithaca, New York by Robert Woodhead and Roe R. Adams, III. It is now based in Wilmington, North Carolina, and run by Natsumi Ueki, Robert's wife...
and ADV Films also use Hikaru Ichijo and Hikaro Ichijo.
Background
According to the fictional continuity of Macross, Hikaru Ichijyo is JapaneseJapanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
. Hikaru grew up with his father as a talented aerobatic flier, having won seven amateur flying contests by the age of 16 in 2009. When his "senpai
Senpai
and are an essential element of Japanese seniority-based status relationships, similar to the way that family and other relationships are decided based on age, with even twins being divided into elder and younger sibling...
" Roy Focker
Roy Focker
is a fictional character from the Japanese anime science fiction series Macross and the prequel OVA Macross Zero...
invited him to the launch ceremony of the SDF-1 Macross
SDF-1 Macross
The SDF-1 Macross is a fictional interstellar transforming spacecraft from The Super Dimension Fortress Macross, an anime science fiction series that aired in Japan in 1982–1983, and its American adaptation Robotech...
he found himself pulled into a galactic war against an alien race called the Zentradi
Zentradi
The are a fictional, militastic race of alien, humanoid giants and often the main antagonist in The Super Dimension Fortress Macross anime series and its Robotech adaptation....
. He later joins the UN Spacy after a talk with Focker and Lynn Minmay
Lynn Minmay
Lynn Minmay, also spelled Ling Mingmei is a fictional anime character from Super Dimension Fortress Macross television series and Macross: Do You Remember Love? movie. She is also in Macross: Flash Back 2012 music video collection...
. Shortly after joining, he gains a reputation as a skilled pilot and leader, and he is promoted to second lieutenant and later first lieutenant. He pilots the VF-1S Valkyrie
VF-1 Valkyrie
This article is about a fictional vehicle; for the fighter squadron see VF-1.In the fictional Macross Japanese anime series and its English adaptation Robotech, the first mass-produced variable fighter or veritech fighter is called the VF-1 Valkyrie.-Background:The VF-1 was created by the...
"Skull One" after the death of Focker, and is eventually promoted to captain at the end of the series.
Misa Hayase
is one of the central fictional characters of the Macross Japanese anime series. Her voice actress was Mika Doi in the original Japanese TV version, in The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love? movie adaptation, and in The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Flash Back 2012 OVA...
, Hikaru is a rather humble
Humility
Humility is the quality of being modest, and respectful. Humility, in various interpretations, is widely seen as a virtue in many religious and philosophical traditions, being connected with notions of transcendent unity with the universe or the divine, and of egolessness.-Term:The term "humility"...
and jovial type of person, in contrast to the usual hot-headed type of heroes of other mecha
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
series. He displays leadership abilities early on and has a deep sense of responsibility and duty. However, unlike most lead characters, he concedes that his subordinate, Maximilian Jenius
Maximilian Jenius
' is a fictional character in the science fiction television series Macross, voiced by Shō Hayami. In the new English adaptation by ADV Films, he is voiced by Chris Patton.-Macross:...
, is the best in battle, which makes him a prized wingman
Wingman
A wingman is a pilot who supports another in a potentially dangerous flying environment. Wingman was originally a term referring to the plane flying beside and slightly behind the lead plane in an aircraft formation....
in Hikaru's squadron. His personal feelings tend toward two women: his friend-turned-idol
Japanese idol
In Japanese culture, are media personalities in their teens and early twenties who are considered particularly attractive or cute and who will, for a period ranging from several months to a few years, regularly appear in the mass media, e.g...
Japanese-Chinese girl Lynn Minmay, and Misa. Being a shy person, he seems incapable of defining what he really feels for each of them, creating a tense love triangle that became as interesting and essential to the Macross story as the mecha battles and action sequences amid the alien-human apocalyptic war.
Captain Ichijyo became test pilot for one of the first prototypes of the VF-4 Lightning III
VF-4 Lightning III
The VF-4 Lightning III is a fictional variable fighter aerospace mecha from the Macross universe. It was created by mechanical designer Shoji Kawamori.-Fictional History:...
variable fighter
Variable fighter
A Variable Fighter is a series of fictional transforming aerospace fighter mecha primarily designed by Studio Nue's Shoji Kawamori for the animated series The Super Dimension Fortress Macross and later related projects...
set to replace the VF-1 Valkyrie
VF-1 Valkyrie
This article is about a fictional vehicle; for the fighter squadron see VF-1.In the fictional Macross Japanese anime series and its English adaptation Robotech, the first mass-produced variable fighter or veritech fighter is called the VF-1 Valkyrie.-Background:The VF-1 was created by the...
.
After the war Hikaru eventually wed Misa Hayase
Misa Hayase
is one of the central fictional characters of the Macross Japanese anime series. Her voice actress was Mika Doi in the original Japanese TV version, in The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love? movie adaptation, and in The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Flash Back 2012 OVA...
and together with Lynn Minmay
Lynn Minmay
Lynn Minmay, also spelled Ling Mingmei is a fictional anime character from Super Dimension Fortress Macross television series and Macross: Do You Remember Love? movie. She is also in Macross: Flash Back 2012 music video collection...
boarded the SDF-2 Megaroad-01
SDF-2 Megaroad-01
The SDF-2 Megaroad-01 is a fictional spacecraft from the Macross series. It was first featured in the OVA title The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Flash Back 2012, a 30-minute Music Video production released on June 21 in 1987 in Japan...
in 2012 to leave on a stellar exploration and colonization mission. Hikaru and Misa had a daughter in 2013 which they named Miku Ichijyo. Hikaru Ichijyo was also in command of the new VF-4 Lightning III
VF-4 Lightning III
The VF-4 Lightning III is a fictional variable fighter aerospace mecha from the Macross universe. It was created by mechanical designer Shoji Kawamori.-Fictional History:...
Skull Squadron assigned as defense of the Megaroad-01 fleet, which disappeared 4 years later in 2016 A.D. near the center of the galaxy with him, Misa, Miku and Minmay onboard.
Legacy
Hikaru Ichijyo's legacy within the ongoing future history of the Macross series has been a palpable presence. The new Macross FrontierMacross Frontier
is a Japanese animated science fiction space drama that aired in Japan on MBS from April 3, 2008 to September 25, 2008. It is the most recent Japanese anime television series set in the Macross universe. Animated by Satelight, premiered Japan on MBS on April 3, 2008...
anime TV series contains numerous references to Ichijyo's career on the SDF-1.
- In Macross 7Macross 7is an anime television series. It is a sequel to the show The Super Dimension Fortress Macross that takes place many years after the events of the first series following a cast of mostly new characters. The show ran from October 16, 1994 to September 24, 1995 at 11:00 AM, and 49 episodes were aired...
as well, the Macross 7 fleet make a play entitled "Do you remember love?", which retells the events of Macross: Do you remember love?, and Basara NekkiBasara Nekki' is a fictional character in the Macross universe, the lead singer and guitarist of the band Fire Bomber. He first appears in Macross 7, and also appears in the movie Macross 7: The Galaxy is Calling Me and the OVAs Macross 7 Encore and Macross Dynamite 7. He is voiced by Nobutoshi Kanna...
, the main character of Macross 7 plays the role of Hikaru Ichijyo in the film. - The Mihoshi Academy onboard the Macross Frontier has a VF-1 ValkyrieVF-1 ValkyrieThis article is about a fictional vehicle; for the fighter squadron see VF-1.In the fictional Macross Japanese anime series and its English adaptation Robotech, the first mass-produced variable fighter or veritech fighter is called the VF-1 Valkyrie.-Background:The VF-1 was created by the...
fighter atop the roof. It is not just any VF-1, however - it is Ichijyo's first mount as leader of the Vermilion Squad of Skull Squadron. - Alto Saotome, as most junior pilot of Skull Squadron (a position shared with Ichijyo), has his VF-25 MessiahVF-25 MessiahThe VF-25 Messiah is a fictional space-capable variable fighter, seen in the anime Macross Frontier of the Macross series. The craft was developed on board the space colonization fleet Macross Frontier from the YF-24 Evolution prototype whose blueprint was delivered via the Galaxy Network...
fighter decorated in the same colors.