The Transformers

Transform & roll out!

The Transformers is the first animated television series in the Transformers franchise. The series depicts a war among giant robots that can transform into vehicles and other objects. Written and recorded in America, the series was animated in Japan and South Korea. The entire series was based upon the Diaclone and Microman toy lines originally created by Japanese toy manufacturer Takara, which were developed into the Transformers toy line by American company Hasbro. The series was supplemented by a feature film, The Transformers: The Movie (1986), taking place between the second and third seasons.

The Transformers toyline and cartoon/animated series was inspired by the Japanese toyline, Microman (an Eastern descendant of the 12" G.I. Joe action figure series). In 1980, the Microman spin-off, Diaclone, was released, featuring inch-tall humanoid figures able to sit in the drivers' seats of scale model vehicles, which could transform into humanoid robot bodies the drivers piloted. Later still, in 1983, a Microman sub-line, MicroChange was introduced, featuring "actual size" items that transformed into robots, such as microcassettes, guns and toy cars. Diaclone and MicroChange toys were subsequently discovered at the 1983 Tokyo Toy Fair by Hasbro toy company product developer Henry Orenstein, who presented the concept to Hasbro's head of R&D, George Dunsay. Enthusiastic about the product, it was decided to release toys from both Diaclone and MicroChange as one toyline for their markets, although there were eventual changes to the color schemes from the original toys to match the new series.

Marketing demonizes children of the 80's

By 1984, U.S. regulators had removed many of the restrictions regarding the placement of promotional content within children's television programming. The way was cleared for the new product-based television program. Hasbro had previously worked with Marvel Comics to develop G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero for a three-pronged marketing scheme - the toyline, a tie-in comic book by Marvel, and an animated mini-series co-produced by Marvel's media arm, Marvel Productions, and the Griffin-Bacal Advertising Agency's Sunbow Productions animation studio. Given the success of that strategy, the process was repeated in 1984 when Hasbro marketing vice president Bob Prupis approached Marvel to develop their new robot series, which Jay Bacal dubbed "Transformers."

Your virginity is safe with this collection.

Iconic symbols.

Marvel's Editor-in-Chief at the time, Jim Shooter, produced a rough story concept for the series, creating the idea of the two warring factions of alien robots – the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons. To flesh out his concept, Shooter called upon veteran comic book editor Dennis O'Neil to create character names and profiles for the cast, but O'Neill's work – for whatever reason – did not meet with Hasbro's expectations, and they requested heavy revisions. O'Neill declined to make said revisions, and the project was turned down by several writers and editors approached by Shooter until editor Bob Budiansky accepted the task. Hastily performing the revisions over a weekend, Budiansky's new names and profiles were a hit with Hasbro, and production began on a bi-monthly four-issue comic book miniseries, and three-part television pilot.

Japanese designer Shōhei Kohara was responsible for creating the earliest character models for the Transformers cast, greatly humanising the toy designs to create more approachable robot characters for the comic and cartoon. His designs were subsequently simplified by Floro Dery, who went on to become the lead designer for the series, creating many more concepts and designs in the future.

Optimus Prime, the 80's role model.

"More Than Meets the Eye" pilot/mini-series

The three-part mini-series was animated by Japan's Toei Animation studio and it first aired in the United States in September 1984.

The pilot introduced Optimus Prime's Autobots (Brawn, Bluestreak, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Gears, Hound, Huffer, Ironhide, Jazz, Mirage, Prowl, Ratchet, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Trailbreaker, Wheeljack, Windcharger, and Hauler (who was seen only in vehicle mode, had no dialogue and was not seen again in the animated series) and Megatron's Decepticons (Starscream, Skywarp, Thundercracker, Reflector, Soundwave and his cassette spies (Laserbeak, Ravage, and Rumble) and Shockwave (who stayed behind to guard Cybertron under Megatron's orders)), transplanting them from their metallic homeworld of Cybertron to present-day Earth, where they warred for the resources that would take them back home.

The conclusion of the series has the Decepticons defeated and the Autobots poised to return to Cybertron, but this was blurred somewhat when the series was picked up for continuation, and the Autobots remained on the planet to protect it from renewed Decepticon threats. The Autobots make friends with their first two human allies, Spike Witwicky and his father Sparkplug Witwicky. A few episodes later, a paraplegic computer whiz named Chip Chase became an additional ally.

Best toy ever.

Season 1

Thirteen further episodes were commissioned for the first season of the series, and the pilot was re-aired, now with the title "More Than Meets the Eye". Running from September to December 1984, the series established important new concepts that would persist through the rest of its run, such as the Decepticon Space Bridge, and featured the debuts of several new characters that would be available in the toyline the following year—the Dinobots (leader Grimlock, Slag and Sludge, and later Swoop and Snarl), Jetfire (known as Skyfire on the series), a Decepticon cassette named Frenzy, the Insecticons (leader Shrapnel, Bombshell and Kickback) and the Constructicons (leader Scrapper, Long Haul, Mixmaster, Bonecrusher, Scavenger and Hook), and their combined form, Devastator. 

While most of the characters for this and the following seasons were Diaclone and Microman toys from Takara (or based on them), Hasbro also drew on other resources to bulk up the line, acquiring toys from ToyCo (Shockwave), ToyBox (Omega Supreme, Sky Lynx) and Takatoku Toys (Jetfire, Roadbuster, Whirl and the Deluxe Insecticons). The latter company's absorption by Bandai—the main competitor to Takara, which was releasing Transformers in Japan—caused some legal problems, however, and none of their toys featured in the cartoon (save for Jetfire, who was renamed "Skyfire" and received several aesthetic changes).

Megatron, the bad guy.

Starscream.

Season 2

With the series having proved a great success, the second season was created with the intent of getting the series into syndication and thus consisted of 49 episodes (and a new version of the theme song), bringing the total number produced up to the 65 episodes needed to meet syndication requirements. Where the first season primarily functioned episodically but had a general continuity from episode to episode, which thus required they be viewed in a specific order, Season 2 and its syndication goals saw this method of storytelling dropped in favor of single-episode tales mostly without lasting repercussions which could hence be generally watched in any order that networks chose to air them. These episodes often served to spotlight single characters and flesh them out more. Most of the new characters introduced in the 1985 toyline were further Diaclone and Microman toys, some of them modified in unique ways.

The first batch of new characters were introduced with no explanation whatsoever of where they had come from. The new Autobots in this group were Beachcomber, Cosmos, Powerglide, Seaspray, Warpath, Grapple, Hoist, Red Alert, Skids, Smokescreen, Inferno, Tracks, the scientist Perceptor,the defense base Omega Supreme and Soundwave's Autobot counterpart Blaster. An Autobot bounty hunter named Devcon appeared in an episode called The Gambler, but he was never seen or heard from again. Another new human character was introduced: Spike's new girlfriend Carly. The new Decepticons were Dirge, Ramjet, Thrust, and the Triple Changers Blitzwing and Astrotrain. Soundwave's original companion, Buzzsaw, was shown for the first time. A young street punk named Raoul appeared in a couple of episodes involving Tracks.

Human alliance.

Autobots know how to have fun.

The tail end of the second season introduced four combining teams of Autobots and Decepticons - the Aerialbots (leader Silverbolt, Air Raid, Skydive, Fireflight and Slingshot who form Superion), the Stunticons (leader Motormaster, Dead End, Breakdown, Wildrider and Drag Strip who form Menasor), the Protectobots (leader Hot Spot, Streetwise, Groove, Blades and First Aid who form Defensor) and the Combaticons (leader Onslaught, Brawl, Swindle, Blast Off, and Vortex who form Bruticus), each team capable of merging their bodies and minds into one giant super-robot. Although debuting in this season, the toys - based on an unmade Diaclone line that was aborted in Japan in favor of importing the Transformers toyline itself - would not be available until 1986.

After Season 2 was produced, Toei Animation worked on Transformers: The Movie, but since the film wouldn't be released in Japan until 1989, they instead had an OVA made, once again by Toei Animation called Transformers: Scramble City. This OVA dealt with the alternative combining abilities of the Aerialbots and Stunticons. The other teams, the Protectobots and Combaticons appeared later on and this would be the first introduction (to the Japanese) to characters like Ratbat, Ultra Magnus, Metroplex and towards the end of the OVA Trypticon. The OVA was unique as it used the original music cues from the American series, though Toei made their own transition effect for this OVA. The OVA however ended on a cliffhanger that was never resolved, where Metroplex and Trypticon looked like they were about to fight one another.

The toy every 80's kid wanted.

Luckily, I own this hero.

The Transformers: The Movie

1986 would prove to be a big year for Transformers, with the summer release of The Transformers: The Movie. The story line is based in the year 2005 and introduces a new cast of characters that were the first to be originally created for the Transformers line, and not derived from other toylines. The new characters were the Autobots Hot Rod, Kup, Blurr, Arcee, the triplechanger Springer, Ultra Magnus, Wreck-Gar, Wheelie, and Blaster's own group of mini-cassette Autobots Steeljaw, Ramhorn, Eject and Rewind. The only new Decepticon was Ratbat, Soundwave's new minion. Other new characters were the ferocious Sharkticons who were owned by a race of evil five-faced robotic aliens called the Quintessons.

Rodimus Prime, the new leader & my favorite autobot.

Free of the restrictions of television, the movie featured many character deaths (including Optimus Prime, Brawn, Ironhide, Ratchet, Wheeljack, Windcharger, Prowl, and Starscream), as the old guard were wiped out to make room for the next generation of toys. Megatron, Skywarp, Thundercracker, and the Insecticons were remodeled into Galvatron, Cyclonus, Scourge and the Sweeps by a planet-sized Transformer known as Unicron. Megatron and Thundercracker clearly became Galvatron and Scourge, but there is debate as to who actually became Cyclonus, Bombshell or Skywarp.

Near the end of the movie, Hot Rod used the Matrix of Leadership to destroy Unicron, save Cybertron and become Rodimus Prime, the new leader of the Autobots, at least until Optimus made his surprise return at the end of the third season. The movie also introduced an adult Spike and his son Daniel.

Season 3

The future setting of the movie continued on into the third season of the series, which debuted in September 1986 and ran to November of that year, picking up right where the movie's events had left off. With the addition of Flint Dille as story editor, the series took on a strong sci-fi orientation, with grimmer story lines and stronger inter-episode continuity that revisited concepts more regularly than past seasons. More new characters were added to the show. On the side of the Autobots, they are the Triplechangers Sandstorm and Broadside, the space shuttle Sky Lynx, the Technobots Afterburner, Nosecone, Strafe, Lightspeed and their leader Scattershot who combine to form Computron, the Autobot city Metroplex and the Throttlebots (Chase, Freeway, Rollbar, Searchlight, Wideload and Bumblebee who was rebuilt into Goldbug). On the side of the Decepticons, the original Predacons (Rampage, Headstrong, Divebomb, Tantrum and their leader Razorclaw who can merge into Predaking), BattleChargers Runamuck and Runabout, the Triplechanger Octane, the Terrorcons (Rippersnapper, Sinnertwin, Cutthroat, Blot and their leader Hun-Gurrr who can merge into Abominus), the Decepticon city Trypticon and finally, Soundwave's new minions Slugfest and Overkill.

A slightly different version of the theme song was the new intro for the season, first heard in the Transformers commercials. More than fifty percent of the season's episodes were produced by Korean animation studio AKOM, whose work was widely derided by fans.

Enter the Dinobots!

Soundwave.

The grim direction, different animation and new cast of characters ultimately failed to sit well with the viewing audience, who desired to see Optimus Prime return to life after his big-screen demise. The production team ultimately gave in to these demands, and Optimus was brought back in a two-part season finale titled "The Return of Optimus Prime," which aired in March 1987. Starscream would also return as a ghost. Unicron makes a few appearances as well as his head continues to orbit Cybertron. Carly, who is now Spike's wife and Daniel's mother, also appears in the series (Sparkplug is gone from the series with no explanation), along with two new recurring human characters: Commander Marissa Fairborne of Earth Defense Command and the dictator Abdul Fakkadi of the desert nation of Carbombya. The sadistic Quintessons also appear in the series and are revealed to be the creators of Cybertron and the Transformers themselves. The Autobots' volcano base, along with the Ark and Teletraan-1, were all destroyed by Trypticon. And finally, as bit players, Chip Chase and Raoul never appeared in the series again.

The conclusion of this series marks the end of the shared cartoon continuity for western and Japanese audiences. While the U.S. production proceeds to the "Season 4" mini-series, this was ignored in Japan and replaced with several full-length cartoon series, starting with The Headmasters.

Season 4

Finally, Hasbro's attention from the series drifted, and Transformers was not allocated the funds that would allow it to continue. The series was brought to a close in November 1987 with the airing of the fourth season, which consisted solely of a three-part story entitled "The Rebirth." Penned by regular series writer David Wise, who had previously scripted several mythology-building episodes, "The Rebirth" introduced the Headmasters (Autobots Cerebros, Brainstorm, Chromedome, Highbrow, and Hardhead and Decepticons Mindwipe, Skullcruncher and Weirdwolf, plus the triplechanger Horrorcons Apeface and Snapdragon) and the Targetmasters (Autobots Pointblank, Sureshot and Crosshairs and Decepticons Triggerhappy, Misfire and Slugslinger) including the Headmaster cities Fortress Maximus and Scorponok (plus the Autobot and Decepticon clones Fastlane, Cloudraker, Pounce and Wingspan, the Autobot double spy Punch-Counterpunch, and the Decepticon six-changer Sixshot), and restored a new age of peace and prosperity to Cybertron.

Thank god they have a doctor!

Now you can listen to that old Cindy Lauper tape.

But the Decepticons stole the final scene of the episode, just to let viewers know that their evil was not yet crushed, and that the battles would go on. As Arcee becomes a Headmaster with Daniel and Spike pairs up with Cerebros who becomes the head of Fortress Maximus, then Kup, Hot Rod, Blurr, Cyclonus and Scourge all become Targetmasters. After both factions landed on the planet Nebulos, the Autobots sided with Gort and his freedom fighters Arcana, Stylor, Duros, Haywire, Pinpointer, Firebolt, Peacemaker, Spoilsport and Recoil. The Decepticons team up with an evil organization called the Hive, made up of their leader Lord Zarak (who becomes the head of Scorponok) Vorath, Monzo, Spasma, Krunk, Grax, Nightstick, Aimless, Fracas, Caliburst, and Blowpipe.

The theme song was still the same as the one from season three, but the intro had scenes from season three as well as scenes from past Transformers commercials.

Although this was the end of the series in the West, in Japan, three additional animated series were produced to replace Rebirth for Japanese audiences—Transformers: The Headmasters, Transformers: Super-God Masterforce, Transformers: Victory and the single OVA Transformers: Zone.

Here's Season 1 legendary opening:



Here's season 2 opening:



Here's season 3 opening:



And season 4 opening:

Kyaputen Tsubasa/Captain Tsubasa/Flashkicker/Oli et Benji/Oliver y Benji/Súper Campeones

Moete, moete ♪♫

No doubt about it, Captain Tsubasa (or whatever name you've called it before) got everything about football right. The term is football not the Americanized "Soccer" because soccer's for suckers and football is the real thing so 'Merica go home!  I grew up watching this show in Chile when it was called "Súper Campeones", which is Spanish for "Super Champions" but both words being cognates make the translation irrelevant for my fellow connoisseurs, I  guess. 

The story focuses on the adventures of a Japanese youth soccer team and its football captain Tsubasa Ozora, whose name literally translates to "Big Sky Wings". The series is characterized by dynamic football moves, often stylish and implausible. The plot focuses on Tsubasa's relationship with his friends, rivalry with his opponents, training, competition, and the action and outcome of each football match.

The Captain Tsubasa manga series was originally serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump comic book magazine between 1981 and 1988, spanning a total of 37-tankōbon volumes. It was continued onto a sequel, Captain Tsubasa: "World Youth" Saga, which was serialized between 1994 and 1997 in Shōnen Jump, spanning 18 volumes, and another sequel,titled Captain Tsubasa: Road to 2002, which was serialized between 2001 and 2004 in Weekly Young Jump, which spanned 15 volumes. The latest sequel, Captain Tsubasa: Kaigai Gekito Hen En La Liga, was serialized in Weekly Young Jump from 2010 to 2012. The Captain Tsubasa manga has sold over 70 million copies in Japan making it one of Shonen Jump's most popular series ever.

Genzo & Tsubasa, two world class footballers.

Legendary!

The original Captain Tsubasa comic series was adapted soon into an TV animation series, produced by Tsuchida Production, whose first season premiered in Japan on the TV Tokyo network between 10 October 1983 and 27 March 1986. This first series tells only the synopsis of the first 25 volumes. 

Four animated movies followed soon, between 1985 and 1986, continuing the storyline. In 1989 a new animation series, Shin Captain Tsubasa, was produced by Shueisha and CBS Sony Group, Inc. and spanned 13 original video animations (OVAs). Shin Captain Tsubasa tells the comic book's synopsis from volume 25 to volume 36. The animation series was followed soon after into a second sequel, entitled Captain Tsubasa J, produced by Studio Comet, which aired between October 21, 1994 and December 22, 1995 in Japan on the Fuji Television network and spanned 47 episodes, as well an OVA series, Captain Tsubasa: Holland Youth, which was published in 1994. The animated series was continued on further into a third sequel, Captain Tsubasa: Road to Dream, AKA Captain Tsubasa: Road to 2002, the latest animated adaptation of the series, produced by Group TAC and Madhouse Studios, which aired in Japan between October 7, 2001 and October 6, 2002.

All of the versions of the Captain Tsubasa animated series has been broadcast by the animation satellite television network, Animax, across its original network in Japan and later across its respective networks worldwide, including East Asia, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and other regions. It has been broadcast across several other regions over the world, including South America, Europe and the Middle East. The success of the series spurred several Nintendo Super Famicom(the Japanese Super Nintendo for the unaware) video game adaptations. Enoki Films holds the United States license to Captain Tsubasa, under the title Flash Kicker. In a poll conducted by TV Asahi in 2005, the Captain Tsubasa anime series ranked 41 in a list of top 100 anime series.

Tsubasa in action.

Kojiro Hyuga, my favorite character.

Captain Tsubasa (1983-1986)

Tsubasa Ozora is an 11-year-old elementary school student who is deeply in love with football and dreams of one day winning the FIFA World Cup for Japan. He lives together with his mother in Japan, while his father is a seafaring captain who travels around the world.

Tsubasa Ozora is known as the Soccer no Moshigo which translates as "heaven-sent child of football". When he was only barely a year old, he was almost run over by a rushing bus while playing with a football. However, Tsubasa held the ball in front of him which served as a cushion for most of the impact. The force of the bump blew him away, but he was able to right himself with the ball. Hence, Tsubasa Ozora's motto of "The ball is my friend". Ever since he was little, he always went out with a football. His mother concludes that he was indeed born only to play football. At a very young age, Tsubasa Ozora already has amazing speed, stamina, dribbling skills and shotpower, astounding anyone who sees him play.

At the beginning of the story, both of them move to the city of Nankatsu, a town well known for their talented elementary school football teams and where Tsubasa meets Ryo Ishizaki, a football-loving young student who often sneaks out from his mother's public bath houses and chores to play football. He meets Sanae Nakazawa (also known as Anego), his future wife, an enthusiastic girl who also loves football and helps cheer the Nankatsu High team on, and Genzo Wakabayashi, a highly talented young goalkeeper whom he soon challenges to a game in Nankatsu's annual Sports Festival. He also meets Roberto Hongo, one of the best Brazilian footballers, who is a friend of Tsubasa's father, and who arrives in Japan and starts living with Tsubasa and his mother. Roberto becomes a mentor to Tsubasa and helps him to harness his football skills, convincing him to join Nankatsu Elementary and its fledgling high school football team, which Roberto coaches later as he passes his techniques onto Tsubasa.

Tsubasa meets Taro Misaki, who has travelled around Japan due to his father's job and soon joins Nankatsu. The two become the best of friends in the pitch and real life, forming a partnership soon to be renowned as the "Golden Duo" or "dynamic duo" of Nankatsu. Soon Tsubasa and his Nankatsu team start taking on the best of elementary school football, meeting such talented players as Kojiro Hyuga, Ken Wakashimazu, Jun Misugi, Hikaru Matsuyama, and many others. His Nankatsu squad wins numerous youth national championships, and wins the U-17 World Championships for Japan, before leaving the country to play in Brazil...

Genzo Wakabayashi, my other favorite character.

Ken Wakashimazu, another awesome goalkeeper.

Captain Tsubasa J (1994-1995)

Tsubasa leaves Japan for Brazil and starts playing, with his mentor Roberto as the manager, for São Paulo (F.C. Brancos in the anime), in Brazil's premier professional league, Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, winning the final against Flamengo (F.C. Domingos in the anime), 4-3. While in Brazil, Tsubasa gets to meet several talented Brazilian players, such as his teammate and roommate Pepe, who comes from a humble background, and Flamengo star striker Carlos Santana, a prodigious talent.

Enthusiastic football-loving youngster Shingo Aoi, whom Tsubasa once played against while in the high school national championships, leaves Japan to play football in Italy, where he hopes to play for a major Italian professional team. After arriving in Italy, however, Shingo gets tricked by a man who gives him fraudulent promises of getting him selected for an Italian team. After Shingo is taken to a badly furnished field, the man runs away, stealing all his money. Shingo realizes that he is swindled and tries hard to get his money back, doing such jobs as shoeshining, and his enthusiastic attitude catches the eye of one of the coaches of Inter Milan (Intina in the CTJ Anime), who sign him to play for their squad as an attacking midfielder.

The Japan's youth side plays the first phase of AFC Youth Championship without Taro Misaki, Makoto Soda, Hiroshi Jito, Shun Nitta, the Tachibana brothers Masao and Kazuo, and Kojiro Hyuga. After Tsubasa, Wakabayashi and Shingo join the team, it defeats Thailand 5-4 after being 4-1 down at one stage. In the second phase Japan beats Uzbekistan 8-1, China 6-3 and Saudi Arabia 4-1. In the semifinals Japan beats Iraq 3-0. The Japanese win the Asia Youth title beating South Korea 2-0 and qualifying for the FIFA World Youth Championship.

In the first phase Japan defeats Mexico 2-1, Uruguay 6-5 and Italy 4-0. In the quarterfinals, they beat Sweden 1-0 and Netherlands 1-0 in the semifinal. The Japanese win in the "Great Final" the World Youth Championship, defeating Brazil 3-2 after extra time with Tsubasa scoring a hat-trick and the golden goal despite the fact that Brazil used a new player at the extra time called Natureza, who became the third person to score a goal on Wakabayashi from outside the goal area - the first being Karl Heinz Schneider of Germany, and second being Sho Shunko of China.

Tsubasa moves from São Paulo to F.C. Barcelona (FC Catalunya in the anime), in the Spanish Liga, after the end of the FIFA World Youth Championship final, taking his childhood friend and now wife, Sanae. He asked her out before moving to Brazil, and the couple maintained a long-distance relationship before he proposed to her after the World Youth Championship.

The Falcon shot!

Kojiro's unlimited strength.

Captain Tsubasa Road to 2002(2001-2002)

While Tsubasa moves from São Paulo (Brancos in the anime) to Barcelona (Catalunya in the anime), Kojiro Hyuga is bought by Juventus (F.C. Piemonte in the anime). Tsubasa plays very well in training, displaying all his skills, but the Dutch coach Van Saal (Edward in the anime, inspired by Louis van Gaal, who coached Barcelona at the time) demotes him to FC Barcelona B, the reserve team that plays in the second division, because Tsubasa and Rivaul (inspired by Rivaldo) cannot play together whilst Rivaul holds a key position for playmaking.

Meanwhile, Kojiro Hyuga plays for his first game for Juventus (Piemonte in the anime) against Parma in the Italian Serie A but does not score because of his physical imbalance. Juventus coach Carlo Monetti replaces him with David Trezeguet (David Tresaga in the anime), who scores the winning goal as Juventus beat Parma 1-0.

In Germany, Genzo Wakabayashi and his Bundesliga team, Hamburger SV (Grunwald in the anime version), play against Bayern Munich (Routburg in the anime version), led by Karl Heinz Schneider. Wakabayashi makes many great saves, impressing players and coaches from both teams. But in an attempt to win at the final moment despite the coach's decision to aim for a draw, Wakabayashi left the goal area to take a free kick shoot that was stopped at the last second, which give Bayern a chance to counterattack on an undefended goal, allowing them to win 2-1.

The original Nankatsu uniform.

Grown ups.

In Spain the liga championship begins and the match between Barcelona (led by Rivaul) and Valencia (San Jose in the anime) (who have just bought Tsubasa's old rival Carlos Santana) ends 2-2. Tsubasa watches the match from the tribune (in the anime version Tsubasa plays as a substitute in the match and scores a goal).

In the 2nd stage of the Japanese J. League, Júbilo Iwata, led by Misaki, Gon Nakayama (inspired by real player Masashi Nakayama), Ishizaki and Urabe, defeat the Urawa Red Diamonds led by Izawa and Sawada, 2-1. In other J. League matches, F.C. Tokyo, led by Misugi, draws 1-1 with Consadole Sapporo, led by Matsuyama. In Italy, Hyuga and Aoi are bought respectively by Reggiana and Albese.

In Spain, Tsubasa plays three matches with FC Barcelona B and he records 12 goals and 11 assists in three matches. Tsubasa is inserted in the Barcelona lineup because of an injury of his rival Rivaul and the disastrous results of the Barça (one point in four matches), and plays the Súper Clásico against Real Madrid, who have just bought his old rival Natureza. Tsubasa ends the match with three goals and three assists and Barcelona wins 6-5.

Football legends.

World class talent.

Overall, Captain Tsubasa is a true classic from the early 80's era of Animé. The show features a unique story that inspired many knock-offs in the late 80's and to this date. The football facts were mostly based in reality and despite the fact, there were some special super shots, football fans can enjoy it with ease. Behind every match we were introduced to background stories for each of the characters, where poverty and the urgent need to find a goal in life were common ground for most of the characters. The show also spawned a growing need for playing football (ok, soccer for the unaware) through Japan and many world class football stars have stated several times they decided to play football because of the inspiration they got from this awesome Animé. So, if you haven't watched it yet, what are you waiting for? 

Here's the Japanese opening:

Here's the second Japanese opening:

Here's the Spanish opening:

Here's the Latin American opening:

Here's the Captain Tsubasa J opening:

Here's the Captain Tsubasa Road to 2002 opening:

Here's the Captain Tsubasa Road to 2002 second opening:

超時空世紀オーガス /Super Dimensional Century Orguss/Orguss

The opening titles.

Chōjikū Seiki Ōgasu is an obscure science fiction Animé from 1983 that was rarely seen outside Japan. The series was developed by Big West, the same enterprise that would spawn the legendary Super Dimensional Fortress Macross series. The animé was known internationally as Super Dimensional Century Orguss or simply as Orguss. Big West not only developed Macross but also the Super Dimensional Cavalry Southern Cross and Orguss was the final installment into their space adventure trilogy. Like Macross, Orguss was also directed by visionaire director Noboru Ishiguro. The character design was also in charge of another fantastic artist that is well known among Animé fan for being the artwork designer for many mecha kits from the 80's, Mr. Haruhiko Mikimoto. American musician Casey Ranking wrote and performed the music for "Hyouryuu: Sky Hurricane (漂流~スカイハリケーン~)" & "Kokoro wa Gypsy (心はジプシー)" the opening & ending themes respectively.

The series premiered in the Summer of 1983 on July the 3rd and ran until to April the 8th, 1984. After the series was completed "The Super Dimension Century Orguss Memorial File" was made as a two part OVA summarizing the series in 100 minutes.

Years later in 1993, "Super Dimension Century Orguss 02", a sequel, was made as an equally imaginative six-part OVA series which picks up the story some 200 years later and involves the return of one of the key characters from "Orguss 1...". Stay tuned for in the near future we may review this sequel. 

The Glomar crew.

The mighty Orguss.

Orguss was "apparently" discussed as being the third season of Robotech in the USA since the other two Super Dimension series (Macross and Southern Cross) were used for the two first parts. However, the anime Genesis Climber Mospeada was used instead. Additionally, these three series are not sequels, prequels, or even in the same story universe as one another. They do share the drawing style, some mecha design similarities,  "The Super Dimension" moniker in their titles and were all presented by Big West. That was the only connection that each of the Super Dimension shows had with each other.

Out of the 35 Orguss episodes, only 17 of them were available in English in dub-only format in the early 1990s on video tape from U.S. Renditions, before the majority of the company's shows (excluding Orguss) were bought up by Manga Entertainment. Manga Entertainment did however release the OVA sequel Orguss 02 on both video tape and DVD.

On April 16, 2007, ImaginAsian announced that they would broadcast Super Dimension Century Orguss on ImaginAsian TV, and would thereafter give the series its first complete North American DVD release, with the first 17 episodes also having the old U.S. Renditions dub. Unfortunately, due to lack of sales, the program was discontinued.

Kei, our hero.

Kei meets the Glomar crew.

So, what's Orguss about?

The year is 2065. The world is at war. The two superpowers clash over the space elevator. Far more dangerous than atomic, biological, or chemical weapons are dimensional weapons, such as the Space/Time Oscillation Bomb. Despite the tremendous power of this bomb, it must be armed on-site by a team of engineers.

Desperately, the Freedom Space Corps launch an offensive to plant a Space/Time Oscillation Bomb and destroy the space elevator. During this attack, the engineers are forced to abort the mission and destroy the bomb before it can be properly armed. Enraged at the decision to abort and feeling that his comrades have died in vain, brash fighter pilot Kei Katsuragi haphazardly arms the bomb with severe repercussions.

A dimensional explosion transports Kei and his Bronco 2 variable fighter to another world. There he is pursued for unknown reasons by the militaristic Chilam and aided by the Gypsie-like Emaan. Both sides have some unknown interest in Kei referring to him as a "Tokuiten" (the "singular point"). Originally translated by US Renditions as "Differentiated Idioblast", it is more properly translated as "Singularity". In the ImaginAsian version, it has been translated as an "Idiosyncratic Point".

After Kei's fighter is damaged during a fight, the Emaan modify it into the Orguss, the eponymous mecha from the series...

The amazing Orguss.

Orguss, Valkyrie mode.

Crew of the Glomar

Kei Katsuragi 

Second Lieutenant of the Freedom Space Corps. Age 20. He was assigned on a mission to escort and provide cover to a group of engineers who were arming the Space/Time Oscillation Bomb in order to destroy the Space Elevator. When circumstances force the mission to abort, Kei decides to properly arm the Space/Time Oscillation Bomb himself. This resulted with Kei being transported 20 years into the future, where he is found by a group of tradesfolk from Emaan, believing him to be the Idiosynchratic Point. Aside from being a formidable pilot, Kei is also a womanizer, having several different girlfriends which he dates alternately before he met the Emaans, in which he begins a new romantic relationship with Mimsy. Even in his relationship with Mimsy, Kei still tends to flirt with any other woman that catches his eye.

Mimsy Laaz 

 

A 16 year old Emaan girl. In the Glomar, she serves as the Vice-Captain and provides battle info and tactics. Her interest in Kei at first was because he is the Idiosynchratic Point and thus was given orders by her family to return him to the Emaan country. As the series progresses, she begins to develop romantic feelings for Kei, even though she is engaged to Slay in order to bear children as she is at the peak of her fertility (see Shaya Thoov). Mimsy also acts as Kei's guide in learning the culture of the Emaans. Her family, along with Shaya's family, runs the Emaan country.

Mimsi, the lost twin sister of Misa Hayase.

Shaya Thoov 

Captain of the Glomar, she is also the head supervisor in the ship's marketing business as well as the Chief Operator of the Glomar's controls. Upon discovering Kei as an Idiosynchratic Point by Jabby, she is given orders to deliver Kei to the Emaan homeland as soon as possible. Shaya follows faithfully the Emaan customs and culture. Among those customs is dressing and taking baths even with men present and never being shy about it, which gives Kei an uncomfortable position of being a pervert when he and Shaya are together (this is because of the Emaan's biological nature as Emaan women lose their fertility at age 18, which at that point they are no longer courted by Emaan men and are considered no longer as 'females'). Her family, along with Mimsy's family, runs the Emaan country.

Mome

 

An android in the appearance of a little girl whom Kei bought from a small village. Her primary program is to faithfully serve the person who bought her, which in this case, was Kei. She is from the Mu race, a civilization known for its advanced machinery. Having a sophisticated AI, Mome possesses a variety of skills from cooking to nursing to repairing the Orguss with ease. Despite being an android, Mome is capable of expressing emotion and openly expresses her love for Kei and dreaming to be his wife.

Jabby  

 

A dragon-like talking creature of the Glomar crew who came from an alternate Earth. Jabby appears having brown skin, large hind legs, long arms with three fingers, a tail, and a long neck. Jabby's tail is capable of detecting any dimensional activity nearby and thus allows him to sense Kei as an Idiosynchratic Point. It was him that proposed the name "Orguss" on Kei's newly built unit, named after the war god of his world.

Slay 

Mimsy's fiancé. Slay serves as the secondary operator of the Glomar whenever Shaya takes a break or if the ship is not on auto-pilot. Slay highly dislikes Kei, blaming him for all the trouble and loss of the Glomar's crewmembers from the Chilam because of his status as a Tokuiten. Slay also dislikes Kei for forming a romantic relationship with Mimsy, making them rivals for her affections.

Maaie & Lieea  

 

Twin sisters and the only members of the Glomar crew who are fighter pilots, aside from Kei. The Morabbas are the sisters' personal Drifand Class ships.

Misa Hayase nude!

Sharing the bath.

Goovu 

The oldest member of the Glomar crew. His primary role in the ship is to negotiate with customers, persuading them to purchase whatever items the Glomar is selling. When asking for the name of Kei's newly built unit, he proposed the name 'Gamon'. He forms a close relationship with Kei.

Leeg 

Chief Engineer of the Glomar who oversaw the building of the Orguss. Like Slay, Leeg blames Kei for the Chiram's attempt to pursure the Glomar and the death of some of its crewmembers. However, upon learning of Kei's role as an Idiosynchratic Point, he accepts him as part of the crew.

Papty

Papty is a mother of two Emaan children and is often seen raising them. Her husband is killed in the first Chiram attack on the Glomar. When she is not raising her children, she works by providing maintenance and repairs to the Orguss and the Glomar. In one episode, she is seen putting her two children to sleep while simultaneously firing the Glomar's Machine Guns against enemy units.

Taii 

A Mu fighting robot. Taii's remains were recovered and later was rebuilt by Mome. Taii has a personality of an old veteran soldier and strictly observes the combat tactics in his programming, which makes him a nuisance to most of the crew. Taii is equipped with multiple missiles in his chest that gives him enough firepower to destroy a Chiram unit. His name means "Captain" in Japanese.

The original Bronco 2 valkyrie.

Orguss 80's toy collection.

But, what is Orguss about?

Without giving too much away, Super Dimension Century Orguss' basic plot centers around two pilots, Kei Katsuragi and Olson Verne, whose mission is to set off a "time oscillation bomb". It's the "near" future and the two factions that govern the world are fighting over the control of an orbital elevator. When it comes to this conflict, we don't get much more detail than that, but we don't need it, because as soon as the bomb goes off, Kei is transported to another earth, one where dimensions phase in and out and the earth's atmosphere is affected by some sort of extreme greenhouse effect.

Kei is immediately discovered by a group of people who call themselves Emaans, a business-minded people who typically travel from place to place selling goods in sort of a floating spaceship-esque caravan, the Groma. Kei soon learns that he is one of two "differential points" (I kind of wonder if this could've been translated another way) -- this basically just means is that Kei is key to the restoration of the earth, which is becoming increasingly unstable. There is an antagonistic faction on the planet called Chiram who want Kei for their own purposes, and to complicate things, our heroes also have to contend with an entire civilization of genocidal robots hell bent on destroying all humans. 

Mimsi sunbathing.

Ready for some sports!

From there, politics get a bit more complicated, as to be expected from an anime directed by Noburo Ishiguro; it's not as sophisticated as some of the other anime he has directed such as Legend of the Galactic Heroes or even Macross, but it's still complex enough that the story plays more like a pulpy late 60s sci-fi novel than your typical 80s mecha anime. Unfortunately, due to the pacing of the show (there is some filler and the last handful of episodes seem rather rushed, and the ending is completely abrupt) the story suffers a bit. The story really begins to pick up around episode 15, after Olson is reintroduced into the show (my favorite character by far and probably the best example of a "main hero b" I've seen in a mecha anime). I also feel like the conflict with the Muu robots could've been introduced a lot sooner than it was. With some better pacing this show could've been a lot better, but it's not hard to see what they were shooting for and the show is still enjoyable to watch. There are several WTF moments (Palm tree monsters! Gigantic grapes!) but those just add to the charm of the series and are imaginative, I mean, in a world where different dimensions phase in and out, why not have fun with it?

The characters in this show are fun. Most of them are deeply flawed, but to get into detail about their flaws would spoil a lot of the show. The protagonist, Kei, is a "player" type of guy but has more charm than your typical Ataru Moroboshi-ish horny male anime lead. I started off really disliking him as his constant attempts to get with Mimsy were really annoying me, but over time you get to see a softer side of the character, a guy who is attracted to women but simultaneously genuinely cares for and respects not only women but everyone around him. In fact, this proves to be a major problem for him later in the series.

Nudity is nothing to be ashamed of onboard the Glomar.

Orguss features a lot of ass shots.

Basically, Orguss is a really fun show with some great art (great example of early 80s Haruhiko Mikimoto character designs, which I absolutely love) and sporadic bits of decent animation, with an intriguing and original story, and really good music. (My absolute favorite OP and some of the BGM is actually quite good -- listen for the Morricone-ripoff theme!) Watch and judge for yourself, don't listen to the haters.

​Being made right after Macross you can see how similar it is and how much they improved. The cels are a lot more detailed, the plot is just as complex. It wasn't until last year that I discovered this anime and I enjoyed it as much as I did the original Macross many years ago. It has everything you need, action, suspense, aliens and robots just like Macross.

After the gigantic success Macross had, Orguss was next in line, and a shoot 'em up game based on the original TV series was released in 1984 for the Sega SG-1000 game console in Japan and Europe. You can play the game if you find the right emulator, realizing it's pretty decent for its time, and you can even transform the Orguss!

The original SG-1000 Orguss game.

Sega SG-1000, a rarity.

Here's the above mentioned very first Orguss videogame:

But the videogame adaptations didn't stop there! Orguss was also included in the PlayStation 2 game Super Robot Wars Z released in 2008. In this game the plot of Orguss plays a central role, as it is the detonation of the Space-Time Oscillation Bomb (an event dubbed "Break the World") that unites the heroes, villains, and locales from the various anime featured in the game. Kei and Athena return in the game's sequel, Z2. Moreover, the Anime characters also appear in the 2010 videogame Another Century's Episode: R for the PlayStation 3.

The Super Robot Wars Z Orguss attacks:

Here's a complete video of the first mission from Another Century's Episode R:

 

The Macross cameo. 

A mecha from the Orguss series can be seen fighting alongside other Macross Destroids in front of the bridge of the SDF-1 Macross in the last episode of Television version of The Super Dimension Fortress Macross. The mecha in question was Kei's Orguss which was shown holding a shield and a rifle in the other arm for a moment before being shattered by incoming enemy fire.

The Orguss cameo.

In episode 2 of Orguss, several Macross characters makes an appearance at different times. Lynn Minmay, Shammy, and Vanessa are shown at 15:16 as the main character recalls past girlfriends. Misa Hayase appears for a brief second on the monitor of the alien fighter as it turns on at 20:28 among other images of apparent static. The image of Misa on the monitor is shown to not be wearing any clothes.

So, is it worth the try?. and moreover, does it withstand the passage of time?

Orguss has a lot more to offer than big Mecha fights and more big mecha fights. The love-triangle between Kei and the apparently happy couple of Sley and Mimsy is perhaps the strongest, most original sub plot in the story, hiding a firm society critic towards marriage and parenthood that is, or was unparalleled at the time Orguss aired for the first time in Japan. Kei’s feelings for the Emaan girl end up making her doubt her choice of fiance and putting off her impending marriage, while he questions whether it is right for him to pursue someone who is ultimately not human. His being of a different species while still trying to pursue a romantic attachment is an interesting spin on the questions of inter-species relationships raised in SDF Macross  with its characters of Max and Miria (incidentally, Kei’s voice actor also played the role of Max). Seeing the development of this – from his initial insensitivity to Emaan customs to his eventual arguments with Sley – provides a focus for in-depth worldbuilding while avoiding exposition. Kei learns of Emaan customs via his attempts at maintaining a laddish, oversexed personality in a culture with very different attitudes to gender and at first this simply contributes to the “alien-ness” of the new world. When the Glomar's captain, Shaia, invites him to share a communal bath with her he cannot understand the apparent lack of taboo over nudity – which seems inconsistent with his continued rebuffing by the younger women for flirtation.

This presents an implicit contextual cue for the viewer; the society being depicted has firmly differentiated non-sexual contact (simply seeing a woman naked) from sexual contact and so Kei is an antique and transgressor. As the love-triangle plot progresses, and Mimsy proves unable to decide between Kei’s attentions and her loyalty to Sley, she appears to be being pressured into marrying young – providing another clue to a somewhat intimate setting detail that may normally be ignored. Kei’s integration into this new world is providing a background for explanation of the Emaans’ sexualities and marriage-traditions and the love-interest character (a genre staple) is thus somewhat more significant that perhaps would be expected if the story were a more traditional militaristic one.

Are you talking to me?

Magnificent 80's Mecha.

What this steady building up of clues about what seem to be strange societal traditions ultimately leads to – and with it a new development of the love-story – is the explanation of one of the idiosyncrasies of the Emaans as a species. Their women are only fertile for a short period of their lives, and so the social pressure to marry young is a result of the need to procreate and further the species. Kei’s interfering in Mimsy’s relationship results in her almost missing her chance to marry and have a child, and his response to realizing this – attempting to reconcile himself with Sley – provides a major turning-point in the personal story. From this revelation, the apparent oddities previously seen (the lack of concern about Shaia’s nudity from male crewmembers) are thus contextualized – as Shaia is no longer fertile (and thus no longer marriageable), she is seen differently to a younger woman like Mimsy (who, being capable of having children, is desirable for marriage). With this, the entire love-story plot – and with it the Emaan culture depicted so far in the series – almost takes on a social commentary role, showing the endpoint of society’s obsession with parenthood, marriage and youth. Social pressures fetishise fertility, youth and beauty and marginalise women who do not conform; in Orguss this is made literal with women who do not marry young ostracised by society and seen as completely non-sexual.

Thus Orguss shows its ambition as a piece of science-fiction; for all its oddities, robot combat and amusing escapades, its apparently sympathetic species at the center of the plot – the Emaan – can be seen as subtle commentary on the flaws of human society. The Emaan culture with its biologically-necessitated social pressures is an extreme extension of more real pressures to conform to a family ideal and the idea that an unmarried woman past her “prime” is a failure. Kei enters this culture with a different set of social attitudes and a different form of conduct, and rather than the cultural clash being a gesture of peace (as Max’s progress in Macross is) it risks turning Mimsy into a social pariah.

So, is it worth the watch? Absolutely! This is one of the few super robot shows that are not only about a teenage rookie piloting a super secret weapon to save the world. Orguss is definitely like an onion, it has many layers, and each of them tangles and untangles the main story arch with some very interesting sub plots that will go unnoticed if you don't pay close attention to each episode.

Here's the U.S. Renditions opening and ending:

Here's the Japanese opening:

The Japanese ending: