Ariel (Robotech)
Ariel is a extraterrestrial female anime character who features in Robotech.
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Biography
Ariel was a female member of an evolved member of the Invid who was transmutated into a humanoid form on April 2043. Her development came after the Invid had conquered the planet Earth in the mid-21st century where they began evolving members of their kind into the form of the dominant species of the planet namely humans. Ariel's birth was made by the Regess where she was made to be a simulagent sent to spy on the human freedom fighters that opposed the Invid's control of the world. However, she came to suffer from amnesia upon her hatching where she was recovered by Scott Bernard's resistance group with them being unaware of her origins. They came to believe her to be a human escapee from the Invid where the horrors she had seen resulting in her inability to speak.
In fact, Ariel was akin to a newly born human being due to the transmutation into human form and so her past life as an invid has been irrelevant, but now she has free will to live independently from the hive in this form, and this initially frightens her. The group took her in their company and Scott named her Marlene, after his fiance who was killed by the Invid. During their quest to the Reflex Point, Marlene becomes an integral part of the group as they fight the Invid. Initially, Marlene believes herself to be a human suffering from amnesia that can sense when the Invid are near.[1] During the journey to Reflex Point she develops feelings towards Scott. They both fall in love with each other until an encounter with the Invid on the outskirts of Reflex Point when the two young lovers discover that she is in fact an Invid. Scott questions his feelings for her throughout the final two episodes of the series until he realizes (thanks to Rand and Rook), in the end, that he is in love with Marlene/Ariel.
In 2044, when the Robotech Expeditionary Force (REF) launches a full scale offensive against the Invid on Earth, the battle slowly turns against the REF, who decide they have no option but to use the Neutron-S missiles, which will destroy the Invid but also wipe out most if not all of life on Earth (although their true power is not yet known). As the missiles are launched and travel towards Earth, Marlene confronts the Invid Regis, who is her queen and mother, and tried to convince her that what the Invid were doing was as wrong as what the Robotech Masters did to them. Together with Sera, she convinced the Regis to leave Earth. The Regis converts her entire race into energy and flies off into space to find a new planet on which to continue their evolution. The Regis grants Ariel's request to stay behind and, as a parting gift, she destroys the Neutron-S missiles.[5] Marlene stayed on Earth, along with another Invid named Sera because she felt more human than Invid. Although she professed her love to Scott, he left her behind and as he went in search of the SDF-3 under the command of Admiral Rick Hunter. Ariel stayed with Jim "Lunk" Austin and Annie "Mint" LaBelle.
Ariel accepts her Invid heritage, attempts to convince the Regis that humans and Invid can coexist. Some time after the Invid depart she receives a premonition of the impending arrival of the "children of the shadow", an ancient enemy of the Invid that are responsible for the destruction of Optera (the Invid homeworld). She has a premonition and immediately teleports herself onto the Icarus to seek out Scott to warn him that his fleet, and the earth face a new alien threat. The Children of the Shadows, who the REF known as the Haydonites, have been plotting the destruction of anyone using Protoculture, specifically the Invid and now the Humans. After the discovery that Ariel is an Invid, Scott is interrogated and is accused of conspiring with the enemy. Scott insists that Ariel is not the enemy but rather is trying to warn the REF that the Haydonites, who are supposedly their allies as they have given the REF shadow technology, are in fact already plotting their destruction. However, Captain Vince Grant refuses to believe him, as does Marcus Rush, who physically assaults Scott over his relationship with Ariel. Marcus, whose sister (and Scott's fiance) Marlene was killed by the Invid in the 21st Mars division assault on Earth in 2042, can't believe Scott is in love with Ariel. Marcus maintains that all Invid are evil and must be exterminated. It is only when the Haydonite fleet attacks the REF at Space Station Liberty that everyone realizes that Ariel is telling the truth. Unfortunately, the delay results in the destruction of a large number of REF ships by the Haydonites. The shadow technology given to the REF by the Haydonites contains concealed weaknesses which they use to easily incapacitate the REF fleet.
During the mission to evacuate Space Station Liberty, Scott finally admits (as Ariel prepares to teleport to rescue pilot Marcus Rush) that he loves Ariel. As Marcus, who decides he has nothing left to live for, launches a suicide run against the Haydonites to hold them off to protect Maia Sterling and the Ark Angel, Ariel uses her teleportation ability to save Marcus' life just before the detonation of the Neutron-S missiles. Marcus later awakens on board the Ark Angel and, shocked that he is still alive, asks Ariel why she saved his life since he has only hatred for the Invid. Ariel responds that "hatred can only breed more hatred. It is not what we seek... any of us." Later, Scott says to Ariel that Marcus owes her his life. Ariel responds "Perhaps now it will make him value the lives of others." Ariel decides to join the crew of the Ark Angel as it begins its search for the SDF-3. As the Ark Angel enters Earth's atmosphere, Ariel and Scott share their first kiss.
Overview
Personality and attributes
In appearance, Ariel seemingly resembled a beautiful young female human with pink hair and red-brownish eyes. Whilst in Scott Bernard's group, they came to refer her by the name of Marlene during the time when she suffered from amnesia and did not know her actual name.
Much of her early life was shaped by the fact that she suffered from amnesia during a failed mission to implant her among the human population. This led to her being unaware of her past and not even having the ability to speak. In that time, she was unaccustomed to human culture with Scott Bernard's band of resistance fighters believing that the trauma accounted for her strange behavior.
She was highly placed within her people's society with her being held as a daughter of the Regess and thus a Princess of the Invid. It was this status that allowed her to appeal to her mother to help end the war with the humans.
Ariel came to develop feelings for Scott Bernard during the time she spent with him. He similarly began to fall in love with her but these emotions were challenged when he found out her origins. At first, he felt that he could not love a member of the Invid for killing his fiancée Marlene. However, he abandoned the enmity and confessed his love for Ariel with the two embracing one another in a kiss.
Powers and abilities
Ariel was an evolved member of the Invid who had been transmutated into a human form. Despite appearances, she had a number of abilities that were superhuman. Among these included the ability to sense the presence of the Invid. She could also see visions of the future and could even share these with others through touch. A more exotic power was the ability to alter her attire and clothing at will. Ariel's most powerful ability was the capacity to teleport even to locations that she had never seen before such as moving from Earth's surface to a facility in lunar orbit. She could even teleport others so long as she had physical contact with them and move groups of people in this manner. In fact, Ariel was once tasked with helping evacuate the crew of a ship and moving them to another vessel through the use of her teleportation abilities where she used them numerous times in the process. In another instance, she also helped save Marcus Rush by teleporting to him and back before his fighter was destroyed in battle.
Notes
- Ariel voiced by Melanie MacQueen in the original series and by Kari Wahlgren in The Shadow Chronicles.
- In the now decanonized Robotech novels by Jack McKinney, it was surmised that the Regis used DNA from Marlene Rush (recovered from the wreckage of the Mars Attack Group) and that was the basis for Ariel's human form. That is why Scott originally viewed her as Marlene. In book 18, "The End of the Ciricle", after she is brought in for questioning the original Marlene Rush's parents (despite the fact her hair is red, and her blood is green) are positive that Ariel/Marlene is in fact their daughter. The incident causes a rift between Scott and the Rushs. At the conclusion of the book Scott, his love declared for Marlene/Ariel, reconciles with Mr. and Mrs. Rush and proposes to Marlene/Ariel.
- As with the other characters in Robotech, Ariel was based on Aisha from Genesis Climber Mospeada.
Appearances
- Robotech: The Next Generation:
- Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles:
External Links
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