Series synopsis
Science Ninja Team Gatchaman, also known as 科学忍者隊ガッチャマン is a Japanese animation action & adventure sci-fi & fantasy television series that premiered on Fuji TV on October 1, 1972. It ended on December 30, 1980. It was created by Tatsuo Yoshida. It stars Katsuji Mori, Isao Sasaki, Kazuko Sugiyama and Yoku Shioya.
Science Ninja Team Gatchaman is a five-member superhero team that is composed of the main characters in several anime created by Tatsuo Yoshida and originally produced in Japan by Tatsunoko Productions and later adapted into several English-language versions. It is also known by the abbreviated name Gatchaman.
The original series, produced in 1972, was eponymously named Kagaku Ninja Tai Gatchaman and is most well known to the English-speaking world as the adaptation titled Battle of the Planets ...
Premise
Science Ninja Team Gatchaman is a five-member superhero team that is composed of the main characters in several anime created by Tatsuo Yoshida and originally produced in Japan by Tatsunoko Productions and later adapted into several English-language versions. It is also known by the abbreviated name Gatchaman.
The original series, produced in 1972, was eponymously named Kagaku Ninja Tai Gatchaman and is most well known to the English-speaking world as the adaptation titled Battle of the Planets. The series received additional English adaptations with G-Force: Guardians of Space and ADV Films' uncut 2005 release. Tatsunoko also uses the official translation Science Commando Gatchaman, as shown in numerous related products and media. Because the English-language versions are notoriously inconsistent not only with one another but also with the original Japanese series, viewers most familiar with the English versions often experience some confusion upon re-examining the series after a long hiatus.
The original 1972 Kagaku Ninja Tai Gatchaman series was followed by an animated film, two sequel series, Gatchaman II, and Gatchaman Fighter. In the 90's, episodes from both series were dubbed into English by Saban as Eagle Riders. In 1994, the original series was remade as a condensed OVA series.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Katsuji Mori as Ken Washio, the Eagle (voice)
- Isao Sasaki as Joe Asakura, the Condor (voice)
- Kazuko Sugiyama as Jun, the Swan (voice)
- Yoku Shioya as Jinpei, the Swallow (voice)
- Shingo Kanemoto as Ryu Nakanishi, the Horned Owl (voice)
- Mikio Terashima as Berg Katze (voice)
- Nobuo Tanaka as Leader X (voice)
- Hisayoshi Yoshizawa as Red Impulse (voice)
Supporting cast
- Tōru Ōhira as Dr. Kouzaburou Nambu (voice)
- Aiko Konoshima as Female Berg Katze (voice)
- Masako Nozawa as Seiji Nakanishi (voice)
- Kyoko Terase as Joe's mother (voice)
- Teiji Ōmiya as Director Anderson (voice)
- Toshiko Sawada as Female Berg Katze (voice)
- Hideo Kinoshita
Episodes
This series spans 4 seasons with 208 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 0 | 3 | October 1, 1994 | April 1, 1995 |
| Season 1 | 105 | October 1, 1972 | September 29, 1974 |
| Season 2 | 52 | October 1, 1978 | October 21, 1979 |
| Season 3 | 48 | October 7, 1979 | December 30, 1980 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Dragon King An enormous dragon-shaped warship decimates a city with plasma beams and giant robotic arms. Its target is the Mantel Plan, a network unifying the world's energy resources. As the sinister ship heads for its next target a team of specialists rise to the rescue: the Gatchaman. Piloting their ship, the Phoenix, the Gatchaman launch a counterattack. Once inside the enemy ship they come face to face with the Galactor's entire army of assassins. |
October 1, 1994 |
| 2 |
The Red Specter The Gatchaman are in trouble and receive help from a mysterious group known as Red Impulse. While cruising near a strange island a submarine is vaporized by a large blast. Summoned to avenge the attack the Gatchaman Group comes upon the secret undersea headquarters of the alien Galactor. In a fierce air and undersea battle the Gatchaman struggle against the Galactor's Jupiter Death Brigade and the evil Black Bird Battalion. Battered by combat, the Gatchaman appear to be on the brink of defeat when, out of the sky, a new force appears led by a mysterious warrior in red. |
January 1, 1995 |
| 3 |
The Final Countdown The Gatchaman have to confront Berg Katse in a final battle to save the earth. The huge mechanical devices installed at each of the Galactor's bases are infiltrating the Earth's interior, disrupting weather patterns and transforming the Earth's landscape into an environment hostile to the human race. In the midst of these disasters Joe is beginning to regain his childhood memories and must deal with the realization that he may be descended from the blood of his enemies. Joe decides to use his knowledge of the Galactor society to help save the human race. Joe single-handedly infiltrates the Galactor headquarters and manages to transmit its coordinates to the Gatchaman moments before he is captured by Solaris and his henchman. Meanwhile the Gatchaman group teams up with Red Impulse to attack the Galactor's home base – it's a brutal fight to the death in which both the Gatchaman and the Red Impulse will pay the ultimate price. In the end-credits, it turns out that the Gatchaman team survived thanks to a miracle. |
April 1, 1995 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Gatchaman Versus Turtle King A huge turtle-shapes mecha, the "Turtleking" attacks a uranium storage facility. The ISO and the delegates of various countries are very concerned. Nambu, the only person who previously knew of Galactor, now officially anounces the existence of both the criminal organization "Galactor", as well as the Science Ninja Team that has been formed to resist them. The Science Ninja Team receives Nambu's orders, unites in the God Phoenix, and flies off right away to a missile launching base where the mecha was sighted. Ken stops Joe, who's eager to get into his first real fight. Ken takes Jun along and they sneak inside the mecha. With Ken's help the God Phoenix then enters the mecha and Joe, Jinpei and Ryu join the battle against the Galactor members. Elsewhere, the commander of the mecha tells Berg Katse of the Science Ninja Team's existence. Katse then relays the message to Governor X. In accordance with X's instructions, Katse orders the Science Ninja Team to be destroyed. The order is to have the mecha make a suicidal plunge, taking the God Phoenix with it, thus burying the Science Ninja Team. But at the very last moment, the God Phoenix escapes the mecha by using the Firebird Effect. |
October 1, 1972 |
| 2 |
The Apparition of a Demonic Ghostly Airplane Carrier A spaceship disappears, along with a device that can report and record the location of the Earth's resources. The Science Ninja Team receives Nambu's instructions and heads towards the bottom of the sea, in the vicinity of the spot where contact with the spaceship was lost. There, prawn-shaped bulldozers leave a huge aircraft carrier located on the sea bottom to build a uranium factory. Ken stops Ryu who wants to fire a Bird Missile, and sneaks into the aircraft carrier alone. Ken discovers the spaceship's capsule inside the aircraft carrier, but the astronauts have been taken hostage. Ken is caught then too. In reality however, the pilots have already been murdered. Showing them as if they were still alive has been a trap. Jinpei has sneaked into the aircraft carrier following Ken on Joe's orders. He is able to rescue Ken as he is being led underground. The two of them collect the device and escape, destroying the computer in the aircraft carrier. The commander of the carrier gets blamed by Katse, and he gets into the head of the Turtleking to hurl himself at the God Phoenix. But due to Ken's quick thinking, the God Phoenix becomes the Firebird and the flames consume everything. |
October 8, 1972 |
| 3 |
The Giant Mummy that Calls the Storm Deadly crashes involving passenger planes keep happening. Ken, who's investigating these occurrences, encounters a boy named Makoto. The boy is awaiting the return of his father who was reported missing in one of the accidents. Makoto's father is the younger brother of the inventor of Uranless, Dr. Takahara. The string of plane crashes has been caused by Galactor. They are intent on getting the Uranless, since it is capable of neutralizing the means of propulsion of their giant mummy. Ken has encountered the mummy in his Cessna before, and because of that incident, he has data concerning the propulsion system of the mummy. He contacts Dr. Takahara in order to get the Uranless. He meets Makoto's father, who miraculously survived the crash. But it's Katse in disguise. Katse battles with Ken and escapes. Makoto blames Ken for torturing his father and Ken promises him to bring back his father whereupon he gets the pin hiding the Uranless. The giant mummy appears at the airport and Ken is able to defeat it by firing the Uranless into it. But Makoto watches Katse, still in the guise of his father, flee in an escape rocket. He accuses Ken of breaking his promise to bring his father back. Ken accepts Makoto's hate silently since he lost his father ten years before in a similar way and has had the same thoughts - namely that his father would return some day. |
October 15, 1972 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Governor X Counterattack A shining object collides with the luxury liner Queen Margareth. A child with special chromosomes is abducted from the sinking ship. Governor X has returned and with the help of his scientific power the child grows very quickly. It is given the name of Gel Sadra and enters on the task of being the new Galactor leader. Soon, numerous scientists and soldiers begin to disappear. Elsewhere, Dr. Nambu has already predicted the counterattack of Galactor. He has had the Science Ninja Team resume their activities at their underwater carrier base G-Town, which capable of changing its location. The revived Science Ninja Team greets Getz as the new G-2 and is ordered by Nambu to investigate some ruins on Easton Island. But Getz is a member of the enemy forces. The ruins are a trap and Gel Sadra is waiting there. The Science Ninja Team ends up in the ruins facing an enemy robot in the form of a statue representing a deity, equipped with laser rays. It shoots at anything that moves. |
October 1, 1978 |
| 2 |
Mysterious Feather Shuriken .. and the team doesn't know what to do. But thanks to a bomb somebody installed in the robot statue it is destroyed, and the team sees Getz killed by a feather shuriken. They pursue a fleeing shadow which looks like Joe. But was it really Joe? Could he be alive? The shadow leads them to a secret Galactor base which uses the ruins of the shrine as camouflage. Galactor continues in its preparations to launch the missile. The Science Ninja Team wants to stop them and they get into their individual mechas The five of them start an all-out attack on the base. Because of the Ninja Team's attack, the Galactor operation ends in failure, but Ken's Eagle Sharp is wrapped in the explosion's flames and crashes in a forest. While losing consciousness, Ken faintly hears Joe's voice. When Ken regains consciousness, a man is standing before him. It's the former Galactor physician, Doctor Raphael. He tells them of his childhood, revealing his hate for Galactor. Then Jinpei notices that Raphael's shadow is similar to Joe's. Dr. Raphael tells them that it was him who saved them from Galactor. |
October 8, 1978 |
| 3 |
Black Knights from Hell Somebody sneaks into Galactor's Headquarters and a plan to build a huge base in San Frangeles is relayed to the Science Ninja Team. Ken and the others are baffled at the voice of the communication. It sounds exactly like Joe's. Elsewhere, Galactor has a corps of knights, clad in black armour made of a special Sigma lightray-strengthened steel, sneak in places to steal nuclear energy. The plan is to have them destroy the city of San Frangeles while the base is still being completed. The Black Knights are actually internationally wanted criminals. Since the Science Ninja Team has been told that the escapees have secretly built a town, they go to the ruins of the prison on Alamo Island by San Frangeles. Jinpei is given precise instructions by a voice that sounds like Joe's and the Ninja Team discovers an enemy base that is still being constructed on the bottom of the sea. They sneak into it and install a time bomb. However, they are captured by Gel Sadra. The Science Ninja Team dares to try the Tornado Fighter to escape. The base explodes and they end up floating on the sea, from where they are again rescued by a mysterious person. |
October 15, 1978 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
New Dark Clouds Weeks after the dust settles from Sosai X's destruction, a tiny fragment of the alien revives and begins to rebuild itself into Sosai Zed. Using the remains of an old shipyard, Zed builds a vast mechanical pyramid fortress and levitates it over the ocean. Meanwhile, the rest of the world quits rebuilding from the wreckage of the thwarted Solar Shift Plan and go back to what they do best: waging war. We meet Count Egobossler, successful ruler of a growing number of territories, and an aspiring megalomaniac. Egobossler meets Sosai Zed, who decides to use Egobossler's brilliant military tactics to his own advantage, and the two strike a deal. In the wake of Chief Anderson's death in Gatchaman II, Nambu is promoted to Chief Administrator of the ISO. The Kagaku Ninjatai cope with the unusual peace. Feeling useless during peacetime, Joe wallows in boredom and self pity while Nambu tries to find a way to recharge him after his near-destruction in G-II. |
October 7, 1979 |
| 2 |
Debut! Gatcha Spartan Egobossler's first attack, backed up by one of Zed's giant mechs, completely startles out heroes. Ken, Jun, Jinpei and Ryu rush to the scene of the battle (leaving Joe behind to quietly expire). The mech is too powerful, and the New Godphoenix is completely trashed in the first skirmish with Egobossler. Fortunately, Chief Engineer Saburo Kamo is waiting in the wings with brand new mechs. With only one problem: the new vehicles need five operators to combine. It's up to Joe, who upon hearing the phrase, "Gallactor has returned," will crawl on his final strength to rejoin the team. TheGatchaspartan saves the day. |
October 14, 1979 |
| 3 | A Tainted Oasis | October 21, 1979 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | Fuji TV |
|---|---|
| First aired | October 1, 1972 |
| Last aired | December 30, 1980 |
| Runtime | 30 minutes |
| Status | ended |
| Schedule | Sunday at 18:00:00 |