Macross Frontier episode 12: Fastest Delivery

Episode 12 begins with Ogotai and his advisor discussing the situation about Temjin and the division amonst the 33rd marines. Tension is high and they hope that a charity concert might ease the soldiers nerves.
Alto and Sheryl defold at Gallia 4 and enter the planets atmosphere. As Sheryl disembarks from the shuttle she collapses and Temjin calls off the cease fire. Meanwhile aboard the Frontier Nanase, Luca and Mikhail hang out on the steps of Mihoshi, Nanase wonders how Ranka is doing after getting stood up by Alto, Ranka surprises them when she shows up at school, Elmo gave her the day off before her debut live concert. Here Nanase meets Ai-kun and Ranka makes her swear not to tell anyone. Suddenly Luca yells over to the others, he's received news of a hostage situation on Gallia 4, Ranka shows her concern for Alto but because of the distance Mikhail tells her they'd never make it in time. Luca mentions their might be a way...
Back at the SMS hangar Luca shows Mikhail a working prototype of a new fold booster that theoretically could reduce the size of the galaxy by a 1/10th of what it is now travel-wise.
Back on Gallia 4 Sheryl lays bed-ridden as Alto looks over her, he questions why she'd go if she was this sick and Sheryl explains she wanted to show Alto a real sky.
Alto asks Grace to watch Sheryl while he's gone, across the airfield Temjin rallies the troops in his rebellion reminding them of their glorious past, as he stands infront of a reaction warhead storage facility. During his rousing speech he gets a call from an informant...
Alto sneaks across the airfield in an attempt to reach his valkyrie, just as he fires it up Temjin shows up and holds him at gun point. Ogotai gives his troops the ok to open fire to give Alto cover and the two factions open fire on each other. Just as Ogotai gives the command to fire the main guns on the capital ship Mikhail arrives with Ranka in his retro fitted VF-25G complete with speaker pods. Ranka performs her newest song, Seikan Hikou (Interstellar flight)and the Zentradi troops begin to be distracted by Ranka's song, Temjin hops aboard one of the Queadluun-Rea and targets Ranka but Alto slams his VF-25 into him and draws his attack the two have a breif dog fight where Temjin taunts Alto about the true nature of the Zentradi, this reminds Alto of what Yasaburo told him about the the actors blood that flows thru his veins which throws Alto into a rage. The fight ends with Alto driving his PPB blade into Temjins Queadluun-Rea, as he plumets out of the sky he tells Alto the galaxy isn't large enough for both species to co exist. Meanwhile back at the hospital Sheryl sits in her bed as Ranka is signing Aimo and Grace comments on how great Ranka's voice is , Alto returns and runs to Ranka concerned and asks why she came all the way to Gallia4, Ranka replies to give him his birthday gift. Later Alto and Ranka fly across the Gallian sky aboard the VF-25, Ranka signs a bit of Neko Nikki (cat diary). Alto thanks her and tells her her gift was the best of all the moment is interupted suddenly when Alto's Valkyrie stalls and they make an emergency landing in the jungle, the episode ends with a huge surprise as the two stand on a precipice looking out at what appears to be the SDF Macross!
This was a fun episode with some nice homages to series past, Temjin certainly resembles Quamzin! And what a surprise at the end, seeing the SDF Macross was a unexpected to say the least!