Science Ninja Team Gatchaman
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.
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Ep 1Gatchaman 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.
Ep 2The 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.
Ep 3The 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.
Ep 4Revenge on the Mecha Mechadegon
During the investigation of an incident, Ken visits the Institute for Earthquake Research. Because of an earthquake caused by a mecha, he falls along with the director of the institute, into a crevice in the earth. Ken transmutes and is saved, but he cannot rescue the director. Ken stands before the director's grave and is attacked by the director's daughter Naomi, who firmly believes he's Galactor. Ken understands her anger at not being able to avenge her father and decides to let her know about his true identity as member of the Science Ninja Team. Consequently, he lets her join the team on the mission. In an investigation it has been calculated which resources the mecha will most likely attack next, and the God Phoenix encounters the mecha there. Inside, Ken wants to let Naomi avenge her father and asks Nambu for permission to fire the bird missiles. Nambu doesn't give permission, but Ken ignores him and tells Naomi to fire the bird missiles anyway. Naomi hesitates to press the firing button, and Ken takes Naomi's hand and makes her fire the missiles. At the director's grave, Ken hands his bracelet to Nambu. He says he wants to take the responsibility for making Naomi press the firing button without permission and resign from the team. However, Nambu says that Ken is needed for world peace and Naomi promises not to reveal his true identity.
Ep 5Ghost Fleet from Hell
Oceangoing ships from the ISO keep disappearing. It always happens in the vicinity of a place called "Cemetery of the Sea". Director Anderson and Nambu ask the Science Ninja Team to go to a base on the ocean floor which is most likely to be struck next. The Science Ninja Team gets Nambu's message and takes the God Phoenix towards the base at the bottom of the sea. Then they encounter a mysterious submarine, which leads them to the Cemetery of the Sea, where they see countless sunken ships. But when Joe says that all the ships are actually battleships, Ken gets suspicious and has the God Phoenix surface. There's fog everywhere on the surface. From the middle of the fog, a ghost fleet attacks them, but the Science Ninja Team guess correctly that the fog is man-made. They destroy the device creating the fog, but from the ghost fleet appear countless disks which attack them using light rays. The Science Ninja Team has to fight a hard battle. Just when all the missiles are used up and they don't know what to do, three red planes appear and shoot down the enemy machines using superior flying techniques. The commander of the fighter plane unit introduces himself to the baffled Science Ninja Team as "Red Impulse". He then flies away, leaving the words "We'll meet again" behind.
Ep 6The Big Maneuver of the Mini Robots
Gold bars are stolen from the vault of the World Bank. It is the deed of Galactor's Mini Robots. The Science Ninja Team get their instructions and start a search on the islands in the vicinity of the place where the gold bars seem to have been taken. Joe makes sure that Ken, Jun and Jinpei, in civilian wear, attract the enemy's attention and get taken off to the base. He proposes that if this is the headquarters, it should be destroyed right away. However, Nambu stops him by saying it's not the Science Ninja Team's duty to attack. Joe leaves a bored Ryu behind in the God Phoenix on the bottom of the sea and sneaks into the base in order to prepare for retaking of the gold bars. While Ken and the other create a lot of confusion in the interior of the base, Joe goes looking for the gold bars. He learns that a missile is about to be fired at the God Phoenix when it is detected by the surveillance cameras. He contacts Ryu in the God Phoenix, right away. Ryu, who is always merely on stand-by, is taking a nap, though manages to evade the missile by a hair's breadth. With Joe's guidance they store the stolen gold bars in the God Phoenix's interior. Ken and the others are contacted and escape from the base. The Galactor base and all its inhabitants are blown up because they didn't manage to prevent the gold bars being stolen back.
Fuji TV
JP
