Robotech II: The Sentinels - The "Sentinels Curse"

The "Sentinels Curse"

Because of the consistent problems plaguing new Robotech releases, especially animation, there has been a joke among fans regarding a "curse" towards further Robotech projects. The curse has also applied to Sentinels-based works that ended prior to completion. Not included on this list are projects that were planned but never reached any stage of production, such as Robotech III: The Odyssey, which only existed as a vague idea in Carl Macek's personal notes during The Sentinels' production. Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles broke the curse in November 2006, when it was released in US theaters, and on February 6, 2007, when it was released on DVD. However, there is concern among fans that the curse may have revived itself with the announcement in mid-2008 that production of Robotech: Shadow Rising, a planned sequel to The Shadow Chronicles, has been indefinitely postponed. The proposed live-action adaptation of Robotech, which is to be produced by Warner Bros. and actor Tobey Maguire's production company, is speculated to face the same fate.

• The Sentinels animation (aborted after three episodes)
• The Sentinels comic series (cancelled in 1996 when 80% complete, continued in 2005 through Robotech: Prelude to the Shadow Chronicles)
• The Sentinels: Rubicon comic series (unrelated to The Sentinels story, aborted in 1998 after two issues)
• Robotech: The Movie (wider release aborted in 1986 after failed test-screening in Texas)
• Robotech: Crystal Dreams video game (cancelled in 1998, when developer GameTek went bankrupt)
• Robotech 3000 (canceled in 2000, after negative feedback towards trailer and bankruptcy of developer Netter Digital).
• Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles (several delays in release, released February 6, 2007 by Funimation).
• Robotech: Shadow Rising (production has been postponed indefinitely).