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Giant Robo was a major work that laid the foundation for Tokusatsu (special effects) in the 1960s. It was a television program based on a manga created by Mitsuteru Yokoyama, the author of Tetsujin 28-go, specifically designed for adaptation to television. It featured a hero concept blending elements of Daimajin and Ultraman.
00:22Giant Robo was a major work that laid the foundation for special effects in the 1960s.It was a television program based on a hero concept that combined the Great Demon and Ultraman, and was created by Mitsuteru Yokoyama, the author of Tetsujin 28-go, based on the original manga with the intention of adapting it for television.
00:48Then, in the 1970s, after the show aired, giant robots that inherited the Giant Robo concept began to play an active role in superhero works.
01:01This time, we're featuring Giant Robo, a show that had a huge impact on superhero TV shows.
01:10So let's take a look right away.
01:12The TV show Giant Robo aired from 1967 to 1968 for a total of 26 episodes.
01:27At the same time, a manga version was also released in three parts, totaling 39 chapters.
01:35The story begins when a mysterious alien named Emperor Guillotine comes from the depths of space and forms a secret society called Big Firedan in order to conquer the Earth.
01:48He then secretly completes the robot needed to conquer the Earth, GR-1, a super robot that later becomes known as Giant Robo.
02:01However, in order to thwart a plot to take over the world, its designer, Dr. Gartua, entrusts the wristwatch-type control system he had developed for the GR-1 to a boy named Daisaku Kusama, who was accidentally captured by a Big Fire bullet, before dying.
02:21This control system was a voice registration and voice recognition type, so during the initial training of GR-1, Daisaku Kusama's voice was registered and he was recognized as the pilot.
02:39After escaping from Big Firedan's secret base with GR-1 as a pilot, he becomes U-7, a member of the Japanese branch of the United Nations secret police organization, Unicorn Agency, and fights against Big Firedan in order to protect the Earth.
02:59GR-1 was also officially named Giant Robo, and its mechanical aspects were verified by the Unicorn Institute, giving it further power-ups.
03:13Now, let me explain Giant Robo's specs and weapons.
03:18Giant Robo is 30 meters long, weighs 500 tons, has a maximum flight speed of Mach 17, can withstand temperatures of 3000 degrees, and is powered by nuclear energy.
03:35It is controlled by voice commands using a wristwatch-type radio-controlled device, and during combat it switches to an autonomous automatic enemy search mode.
03:45It does not speak human language, but when given an order it responds with a unique answerback, "Mach."
03:56Furthermore, the electronic brain begins to show growth that was initially unpredictable, and throughout the film it often acts without receiving orders from Daisaku Kusama, that is, on its own judgment.
04:15As for weapons, the most commonly used weapon was a rocket, which was fired from the fingertips after a unique action of swinging both arms from side to side, and was also called a missile rocket.
04:29It can also emit laser beams from its eyes and high-temperature flames from its mouth.
04:37In addition, a bazooka is built into the back of the hand.
04:43In the fights in the film, he mainly uses physical attacks, such as megaton punches and megaton kicks.
04:53As for other weapons, it seems that many of them were prepared for each episode, such as super jet battles and chest missiles.
05:04In one episode of the show, Emperor Guillotine, who has had Giant Robo stolen from him, sends in one monster and robot after another to try to recapture it, but is thwarted every time by the Unicorn Organization, Daisaku Kusama, and Giant Robo.
05:25However, Emperor Guillotine had a secret plan in case he was unable to recapture Giant Robo.
05:32The problem was that the nuclear energy that powered Giant Robo had run out.
05:40And Emperor Guillotine, whose own disc has even been destroyed, predicts this and grows giant himself to challenge Giant Robo to a final showdown.
05:53As predicted by Emperor Guillotine, during the fight Giant Robo's nuclear energy runs out, and it is thought that Banzicus has died.
06:03However, Giant Robo actually has an auxiliary energy system, and thanks to this, Giant Robo is able to revive and
06:13He ignores Daisaku Kusama's orders, flies into space while still holding the Guillotine Emperor, and then crashes into a meteorite, destroying himself and the Guillotine Emperor.
06:25It was as if he had mustered his last bit of strength to protect the Earth and decided his own fate of his own volition.
06:38Although the show was broadcast in this way, it was a topic of discussion at the time that there were some differences between the original manga version and the TV version based on it.
06:52For example, Dakora, who appeared in the first episode of the TV series, had a completely different form in the manga version.
07:01Also, in the TV version, a wristwatch-type control device appears immediately, but in the manga version, a car-mounted control device appears first and then evolves into a wristwatch-type device.
07:15In addition, the enemy robot GR2, in the manga version, has a powerful PlayStation similar to Mazinger Z's rocket punch as its main weapon, but in the TV version, it uses a giant flying horn that separates from its head as its main weapon.
07:35These differences appear to be due to the fact that they were filmed for television, involve special effects, and were adapted for television broadcasting, which demands immediate results such as high ratings.
07:51Unfortunately, this phenomenon seems to be unavoidable even in today's television production.
07:58Now, let's take a look at Giant Robo in action.
08:28Let's see Giant Robo in action.
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10:22Let's see Giant Robo in action.
10:24Thank you for watching
10:54What did you think?
11:04When it was airing, my friends and I had some questions about Daisaku Kusama.
11:12Those questions are: Does Daisaku Kusama post to schools?
11:18Is it okay for elementary school students to own loaded handguns, something that would be unthinkable in Japan?
11:25Do parents approve of such dangerous activities?
11:31Do I get paid because I'm working?
11:35If so, how much would it be?
11:39Hazard pay?
11:39etc.
11:41And I remember concluding that, in the end, it was a TV show, so anything goes.
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