Lynn Minmei is probably one of the most recognized and famous characters in all of anime. She was introduced to the American anime scene about ten years ago through an afternoon TV cartoon show called Robotech. Minmei was a principal character in the first third of the Robotech series along with Rick Hunter, Lisa Hayes, Max Sterling, Roy Fokker, and, of course, Captain Gloval (Excuse the spelling. It's been a while.). The first generation of the Robotech series was taken from the Japanese classic, Super Dimensional Fortress Macross. Character designs were done by Haruhiko Mikimoto, who is now one of the most sought-after character designers in the world of anime, and Minmei achieved stellar heights of fame through the Macross series. Her perky, happy personality, mixed with an absolutely adorable character design, made her a very likable character and a perfect foil for Lisa (Misa in the Japanese Macross) as they both vied for the affections of Rick (Hikaru in Macross). The fact that she could sing didn't hurt any, either. So if you have never seen Minmei in animation, or if it's been awhile since you've seen her cute song-and-dance routines, be sure to check out Robotech (available through Streamline Pictures), or better yet, get the original Macross (harder to get and untranslated), and experience one of anime's most memorable characters in action.

"She (Minmei) just turned out to be a character that people really liked. That was good for me because she's pretty easy to draw!" -Haruhiko Mikimoto