[magnuskn]

Wait, what? Who is this nebulous "we" who knows that he wasn't honest about his desire to defend his home? Sorry, but I don't know where this comes from, because to me that was a crucial scene of Alto admitting to himself (and Klan) that he wanted to defend his home all along, but since he was so hung up about hating it (due to the limited sky, feeling stuck, etc), he couldn't admit this to himself and subliminated his desire to protect Frontier onto Ranka.

Michael's and Yasaburo's remarks get under his skin because he is angry that they are reading him so wrong. An important scene which proves this is when he and Temzin (that Kwamzin clone from Gallia IV) fight each other and Temzin taunts him about war being in the blood of the Zentradi. This induces flashbacks from Alto to his prior conversation with Yasaburo, with Alto finally declaring "An actor's blood, my ass. I don't give a shit about that." This is not the reaction of someone who is running away from his past, but from someone who is defying the expectations of others to comform to what they perceive him to be.

Alto is angry about other people stuffing him into a box, a box he doesn't want to be in. Yes, him admitting to himself that his past as a Kabuki actor also has value is part of his character arc, but that is not a particular "running away" motivation, it is a motivation to be his own man, to be free of the constraints of expectation from his family and friends. And this combines with the other great motivation of the character, to be a protector.

Yasarubo calls this Alto wearing a "hero's mask", but it is a misconception from Yasaburo, coming from his own limited viewpoint as an actor. We never see Alto pretending to be a hero (well, there's that one scene where he lies to Ranka about whom defeated that diseased Hydra, but I think that is not a scene of Alto claiming credit for his own glory, but rather about him trying to protect Ranka from that weirdo with the armblades), we never see him being arrogant about his own heroics. Alto simply nuts up as soon as he hears that he can contribute to protecting Frontier, only that he disguises that desire to himself under the cover of protecting Ranka.

Lastly, that scene in episode four, where he gets called in for his final exam and then he sees his father who disapproves... yes, Alto is trying to prove his independence from his father. Once again, what has that to do with "running away"?

If there is any "running away" going on with Alto, it is from his own real desires, because of his inner hang-up about Frontier. But that is not what Yasaburo or Michael are talking about. And many people who think about Alto's character only see his pretty-boy features, his Kabuki past and his behaviour with the girls and then take Yasaburo and Michael at their words and dismiss Alto as another wishy-washy harem lead. Nothing could be farther from the truth and it is a shame that a subtle and intelligent character arc like his just passes under the radar for so many people. He is my favorite male Macross character (even edging out Max, which is a feat) and I wish more people had actually understood him.