Henry J. Gloval

Henry J. Gloval is a male character that features in Robotech.

Biography

Henryk Jozef Glovalsky was a male human born to a Russian father and a Lithuanian mother in the 20th century. By adulthood, he joined the military where he distinguished himself as an officer in the Russian Navy where he served aboard both surface vessels and submarines as he led a life as a career military man.

During the Global War which raged on Earth in the late 1990s, American forces moved to stabilize an out-of-control political and military situation in the Asian Pacific. The Russian Navy was ordered to deter American forces, which pitted Gloval against former allies he had worked with during the hopeful days following the end of the Cold War.

It was while leading an American carrier task force on a chase across the Pacific Ocean that Gloval was caught up in the most important event in human history up until that point - the crash landing of an enormous alien battle fortress, later named the SDF-1 in July 1999. After surviving the initial shockwave, Gloval and the crew of his Oscar-class nuclear submarine, the Minsk, were the first humans to arrive on the crash scene and were responsible in securing the site before an international team of scientific experts could arrive to examine the wreckage. Knowing that his own government would not be able to control the site, Gloval defied orders and allowed an international team of experts to investigate the wreckage. This precedent helped to broker an international ceasefire, and eventually helped lead to the formation of the United Earth Government. Gloval became a leading figure among Earth’s military, and his unblemished reputation allowed him to reach consensus among fellow military officers around the world. Among his key supporters was Donald Hayes, who had been both ally and adversary in the past. Hayes' daughter, Lisa Hayes, would become Gloval's first officer on the SDF-1. For 10 years, Gloval marshaled the resources of the entire planet to rebuild the battle fortress. It was only natural that Gloval was appointed as commander of the Earth’s first Super Dimension Fortress, now renamed the SDF-1. The now refitted SDF-1 was launched in February 2009 at a huge ceremony. Gloval's new bridge crew consists of First Officer Lisa Hayes, Commander Claudia Grant, and bridge operators Vanessa Leeds, Sammy Porter and Kim Young, all of whom are women and under the age of 25. Consequently, they regard him as a father figure and a source of advice and inspiration.

Gloval would immediately be thrust into combat as the Zentraedi arrive to reclaim their lost ship on the same day that the SDF-1 was launched. Gloval would guide the SDF-1 during the next two turbulant years of the First Robotech War. Gloval commands the SDF-1 throughout the First Robotech War, leading the ship, and the people aboard, through numerous battles against the Zentraedi. Gloval routinely clashes with the United Earth Government (UEG) regarding their belligerent and uncompromising attitude toward the Zentraedi and their refusal to try and make peace. In addition, Gloval is visibly furious when the UEG refuses to allow the 70,000 civilians aboard the SDF-1 to return to Earth. In April 2011, Gloval makes a plea for peace with the Zentraedi as he speaks at the wedding of Max Sterling and Zentreadi defector Miriya Parina. However, Zentraedi Supreme Commander Dolza, realizing the threat that human emotions and culture now pose to his command, orders his entire fleet to fold into Earth orbit to destroy the planet, the SDF-1 and all of the Zentraedi under Breetai who have rebelled. Although Gloval is unable to stop Dolza's Grand Fleet of 4.8 million ships from devastating Earth, he develops and commands an operation, utilizing the singing of Lynn Minmay and the Daedalus attack developed by Lisa Hayes, in a daring operation which ultimately leads to Dolza's defeat and the destruction of virtually the entire Zentraedi fleet.

Gloval becomes an Admiral following the defeat of Dolza's grand fleet and oversees the reconstruction of Earth and the reestablishment of the United Earth Government (UEG). The challenges are immense: 95% of the Earth's surface has been devastated, with all major cities destroyed and most of planet's vegetation reduced to endless deserts. The population of the world is reduced from billions to only 70,000. Yet despite the challenges, Gloval successfully leads Earth through its recovery. In 2013, new challenges emerge including Zentraedi rebellions, the military threat posed by Khyron's rebels and the capture of the Zentraedi factory satellite. Gloval provides leadership through all of these threats. He decides to appoint Commander Lisa Hayes, his second in command during the war, to command the newly built SDF-2 . In January 2014, in the final battle against the rebel Zentraedi under Khyron, Gloval leads the bridge crew of the SDF-1 into battle despite the massive damage the ship sustained during the war. Using all of the SDF-1's remaining power, it is able to fire one shot which cripples Khyron's warship. However, Khyron is determined to have his revenge against Gloval and the SDF-1, even in death and rigs his warship for a suicide run at the SDF-1. The resulting collision destroys both ships. Admiral Gloval, along with Claudia Grant, Vanessa Leeds, Sammy Porter, Kim Young and the rest of the crew aboard the SDF-1 die in resulting explosion. Gloval's last act before the impact is to push Lisa Hayes into the last functioning escape pod on the bridge Gloval becomes a celebrated hero, and even 15 years later (during the Second Robotech Saga), he and his crew are still held as examples for new military recruits to follow.

Notes

• Henry J. Gloval was voiced by actor Greg Finley.
• The character was adapted from Bruno J. Global from The Super Dimension Fortress Macross.
• Much of his early backstory was not established in the Robotech series but is provided by the Robotech Infopedia.

Appearances

• Robotech:

This article is a stub. You can help Multiversal Omnipedia by expanding it.