Alright, well, as you knew if you'd been reading my news pages I was really looking forward to this CD, and it has turned out to be quite a dissapointment for me sadly.

Like DYNAMITE FIRE!! that the CD comes in two editions, a special first pressing edition, and a regular one. The case and presentation on both the 1st pressing and the regular version of the CD are lovely. The 1st pressing edition comes in a large double CD case, surrounded by a black card shell with a fireball shaped cut-through so you can see the golden guitar pick included. As I can't play guitar, I'm not going to remove that pick! (It would spoil the look of the case too). The booklet inside the 1st pressing case is the same as the CD inlay in the normal version, and that has a much nicer cover, the "cat-like" Basara picture by Mikimoto also shown at the top of this page. The 1st pressing also has another inlay booklet with information about Fire Bomber (all in Japanese of course) with some very nice NEW artwork of Bomber.
Ok! So far it all sounds good!!

But its what's on the actual CD that dissapoints me. Now, I am only going to review this CD from my own perspective, and thats someone who owns all those other Fire Bomber CD's already... but I think that my perspective is quite a valid one, since most people interested in Ultra Fire!! are very likely to already own a number of FB CD's - and thats the problem.. it is JUST a collection of tracks from other CD's. - I was hoping for a lot more myself.
There are two "new" tracks. The Live version of Planet Dance is a new one, and is pretty good! Much better than the one on "Live Fire!!" however it is still very close to a normal version of Planet Dance.
Then there is "I Call Your Name".
This is NOT a Fire Bomber song!
Now, don't get me wrong, its really quite nice, but it doesn't sound anything like the Bomber style, it sounds like a track straight from the middle of a Humming Bird album, and in fact I suspect thats what it is. Now there have been NEW tracks recently that HAVE been totally Fire Bomber styled, the most prominent example being "Starlight Dream" from Radio Fire. Starlight Dream deserves to be the new track on a FB Best Collection CD. I Call Your Name, nice as it is, simply doesn't deserve this billing.

There's another thing too. My track listing actually has a mistake in it. Well, thats because the back of the CD does too. I may be accused of being a pedantic git, but the version of "Remember 16" is NOT the [Acoustic Version] but this is in fact the version from Acoustic Fire!! which is completely different. And again, a track from Acoustic Fire doesn't really deserve to be on a Best Collection - well, definately not this one, when the REAL Remember 16 [Acoustic Version] is soo much better and is still only found officially on the Heart+Soul CD single which is really hard to get... that stinks.

In fact, I am most dissapointed with the laziness shown in putting this CD together. It had the potential to be fantastic with lots of classics but with much more variety (see below for what I mean).. but instead the producers have taken the easy, lazy option and just stuck on all the same tracks again, albiet in a different order. Hmm. Just not good enough in my opinion. Even when a CD contains mostly repeat tracks, like for example, Macross Plus ~ for fans only, that is still a great and very worthwhile CD as the tracks are almost all different in some way from the versions on previous CD's. For Ultra Fire they have made no such effort.

If you think I'm being a moaning git, for comparison, here's what I would put on my own "ULTRA FIRE!!" -

1. Try Again (TV Edit) - the same track but with the intro removed as its used in the series.
2. Totsugeki Acoustic Love Heart - full length version of the track used many times in the series, but not on any CD's still.
3. My Soul For You (A Capella Version) - Basara belting it out, with only very light guitaring.
4. Remember 16 (Acoustic Version) - the REAL acoustic version!
5. Starlight Dream
6. Seventh Moon (Extended TV Version) - full length version of the bigger beat TV intro, but for the whole song.
7. Power to the Dream (Duet Version) - Gigile and Basara duet! Incredible!!
8. My Friends (Vocalist Version) - the version of My Friends used in Mac7 the Movie with louder, crisper vocals.
9. Light the Light (Myria Version) - as seen in Macross 7 Encore, starts with Myria singing, but by the end Gamlin and Fire Bomber are also joining in. Could use multiple repeats of "love will save.." chorus going round the different singers heard each time.
10. Dynamite Explosion (OVA Version) - a short 1.30 minute track as on the OVA's.
11. Parade (OVA Version) - a short 1.30 minute track as used on the OVA's.
12. ..Dakedo Baby!! (TV Version) - again, a short version of Dakedo.
13. Kimi ni todoke (A Capella Version)
14. Remember 16 (Mylene Version) - Mylene solo as heard in the series many times, and still unreleased on CD, I might have to drop the Acoustic version from the CD for this.
16. Holy Lonely Light (Live Version) - if there is a live recording of this, its not on any CD's yet!
17. Submarine Street

Bonus Tracks:
18. Veffidas Fire!! - medley track of about 4/5 mins of drum beats from various Bomber songs, as used a number pf times in the series.
19. Angel Voice (OVA Version) - the almost acoustic version actually used in Dynamite, which I prefer greatly to the recorded version!

I'm sure you could also stick on some from - Wild Life, maybe Hello or Goodbye, Pillow Dream, Rock'n'Roll Fire, Go, Feel Universe (Acoustic maybe), or New Frontier (Acoustic Version).

I should also note I am hoping to get an "alternative" review of Ultra Fire!! by someone that doesn't have all of the CD's, as I can't really see it from that perspective.