Armored Fleet Dairugger XV

Armored Fleet Dairugger XV

Box art from the Bandai Dairugger XV model kit
機甲艦隊ダイラガーXV
(Kikō Kantai Dairagā Fifutīn)
Genre Mecha
TV anime
Directed by Kozo Morishita
Studio Toei Animation, Daewon Animation
Licensed by Media Blasters
Network TV Tokyo
Original run 3 March 1982 – 23 March 1983
Episodes 52
Anime and Manga Portal

Armored Fleet Dairugger XV (機甲艦隊ダイラガーXV Kikō Kantai Dairagā Fifutīn?) was an anime series aired in Japan from 1982 to 1983. It is also referred to as "Dairugger 15", "Dairugger XV", "Armored Armada Dairugger XV", "Armored Squadron Dairugger XV", or "Machine Platoon Dairugger".

In the United States, it was heavily edited to become part of the Voltron series.[1] The Dairugger footage was the primary source for the "Vehicle Voltron" episodes, though various footage was inserted into "Lion Voltron" episodes as well.

Contents

Story

The Rugger Team is an exploration, planetary survey, and defensive force. The Earth is in a time of prosperity. The president of the Terran League launches a mission to explore the galaxy and build a complete map of the stars. Soon after commencing the mission, the Rugger Team and their starship, the Rugger Guard, are attacked by the Galveston Empire. Dairugger, the super robot, must defend the Rugger Guard and its fleet as they attempt to continue their mission. When Galveston repeatedly refuses to accept peaceful coexistence, their mission turns to finding the Galveston homeworld, liberating its people from their despotic Emperor, and helping them find a new planet before their world collapses.[1][2]

Concept

The Rugger Team is made up of three smaller teams of 5 members each: Air, Sea, and Land, referred to alternately as "Aki Team", "Keats Team", and "Walter Team" after each team's leader. Aki is the overall leader of the Rugger Team. Each of the 15 parts is referred to as "Rugger", and can combine into larger machines as separate teams called Kurugger (Air), Kairugger (Sea), and Rikurugger (Land), as well as together to form the super-robot Dairugger. The 15 separate Rugger units as well as the name come from the sport of rugby, since 15 players are required to form a rugby union.[3]

Staff

Characters

Dairugger pilots

Air Team uniforms are dark blue and white.

Sea Team uniforms are black and aqua.

Land Team uniforms are white and red.

Function Pilot Name Voice actor Team Vehicle Dairugger Body
Rugger #1 Pilot Manabu Aki (安芸 マナブ Aki Manabu?) Toshio Furukawa Air Team Command Jet Explorer head
Rugger #2 Pilot Shinobu Kai (甲斐 シノブ Kai Shinobu?) Ryōma Yamamoto Air Team Strato Weapons Module upper torso
Rugger #3 Pilot Shota Kreuz (ショーター・クロイツ Shōtā Kuroitsu?) Kōzō Shioya Air Team Advanced Recon Helicopter right upper arm
Rugger #4 Pilot Yasuo Mutsu (陸奥 ヤスオ Mutsu Yasuo?) Satomi Majima Air Team Advanced Recon Helicopter left upper arm
Rugger #5 Pilot Patty Ellington (パティ・エリントン Pati Erinton?) Keiko Han Air Team Falcon VT Fighter chest plate
Rugger #6 Pilot Miranda Keats (ミランダ・キーツ Miranda Kītsu?) Hideyuki Hori Sea Team Communications Module torso mid-rif
Rugger #7 Pilot Haruka Kaga (加賀ハルカ Kaga Haruka?) Harumi Iizuka Sea Team Space Prober right thigh
Rugger #8 Pilot Saruta Katz (サルタ・カッツ Saruta Kattsu?) Masaharu Satō Sea Team Space Prober left thigh
Rugger #9 Pilot Tatsuo Izumo (出雲タツオ Izumo Tatsuo?) Shō Hayami Sea Team Multi-Wheeled Explorer right lower leg
Rugger #10 Pilot Baros Karateya (バーロス・カラテヤ Bārosu Karateya?) Ken Yamaguchi Sea Team Multi-Wheeled Explorer left lower leg
Rugger #11 Pilot Walter Jack (ワルター・ジャック Warutā Jakku?) Katsuji Mori Land Team Jet Radar Station hips
Rugger #12 Pilot Moya Kirigas (モーヤ・キリガッス Mōya Kirigassu?) Nana Yamaguchi Land Team Rotating Personnel Carrier right forearm
Rugger #13 Pilot Mack Chakker (マック・チャッカー Makku Chakkā?) Banjō Ginga Land Team Armored Equipment Carrier left forearm
Rugger #14 Pilot Tasuku Izu (伊豆 タスク Izu Tasuku?) Shingo Hiromori Land Team All-Terrain Space Vehicle right foot
Rugger #15 Pilot Kazuto Nagato (長門 カズト Nagato Kazuto?) Hiroshi Ōtake Land Team All-Terrain Space Vehicle left foot

Other characters

Japanese Name Voice actor
Shinji Ise (伊勢 シンジ Ise Shinji?) Hideyuki Tanaka
High Commander Wakasa
Supreme Commander Dewa
Dick Asimov Kōji Yada
Doctor Search
Commander Socrat Teles (テレス司令?) Kōji Totani
Drake
Internal Commissioner Socrat Tes
Sirk
Luciano
Supreme Commander Al Caponero Banjō Ginga
Emperor Corsair

Dairugger specifications

Dairugger is made up of 15 vehicle parts. Dairugger is 60 meters tall.

Episodes

  1. "Galactic Clash"
  2. "The Isolated Regiment"
  3. "Farewell, Achilles"
  4. "Rescue Mission To Hell"
  5. "Battle of the Experiment Planet"
  6. "Fall to the Meteor Shower"
  7. "Annihilation of the Reinforcement Fleet"
  8. "Specters of the Binary System"
  9. "The Glorious Suicide Corps"
  10. "Sneak Attack on the Space Fortress"
  11. "A Momentary Truce"
  12. "Legend of the Space Forest"
  13. "The Enemy Within the Mind"
  14. "The Earth Fleet's Counterattack"
  15. "Breakdown of the Space Talks"
  16. "The Two Rebellions"
  17. "Orders For Asimov's Return"
  18. "A Touch and Go Situation"
  19. "Red Moon Rising"
  20. "Desperate Struggle for Planet K"
  21. "Arise Galaxy Garrison"
  22. "Ex-Commander Teles"
  23. "The Mission to Recapture Planet K"
  24. "Riot on Galveston"
  25. "Bitter Struggle on the Planet of Light"
  26. "The Snare of the Hell Planet"
  27. "Storming the Space Fortress"
  28. "Eldora's Plea"
  29. "Uprising of the Space Fort"
  30. "Earth's State of Emergency"
  31. "Locate Enemy Headquarters"
  32. "Destruction of the Front Line Base"
  33. "The New Allied Fleet to the Rescue"
  34. "Planet of the Burning Cave"
  35. "Get Yourself Together, Mutsu"
  36. "A Desperate Undersea Combining"
  37. "Air Rugger Vanishes"
  38. "Emma, the Female Captain"
  39. "The Tears of a Rugby Player"
  40. "The Boy Denon and the Elk"
  41. "Discovery of the New World"
  42. "Impending Crisis on the Inhabitable Planet"
  43. "Teles and Asimov"
  44. "Aki Team Gets Caught"
  45. "Defend the Third Planet"
  46. "The Fall of the Survey Base"
  47. "The Invisible Super Weapon"
  48. "Get Past the Tenth Planet"
  49. "Entering the Final Zone of Defense"
  50. "The Struggle for Galveston"
  51. "Fierce Battle in the Underground City"
  52. "Galactic Dawn"

Merchandise

In the early 1980s, the original ST Dairugger toys were released by Popy Pleasure under the toy release number of GB-72, as part of the Chogokin label, and constructed of high-quality die-cast materials. A GB-73 would follow, with a transforming DX Dairugger, which could separate only into the three larger combined vehicles. A larger version of Dairugger XV was also released, which did not contain die-cast materials, as the metal content was too heavy for the design and for the Friction motors installed in many of the vehicles. The smallest non-transforming ST Dairugger and the fully transforming plastic Dairugger XV would be resold in the US as part of the Voltron series by Matchbox, entirely under the Voltron name. However, the Popy version came with a sword, missiles, and stickers that the Matchbox version did not.

Because Dairugger had 15 pieces, and was a highly playable figure compared to many of the other fixed-state super robots of the early '80s, there were countless imitations and bootlegs of Dairugger. Some are cheap plastics, some do not assemble well, some have neon-glowing colors that are completely misaligned with the show. Even approved brands such as "Big Bear" were spawned to rejuvenate the toyline.[4] No version, however, is identical in quality, packaging, and comes with all the pieces like the Japanese original.

DVDs

The entire series, in 3 volumes, has been released on DVD in region 1. Collection 1 was released on February 23, 2010,[5][6] Collection 2 on May 25, 2010,[7] and Collection 3 on January 4, 2011.

Changes for Voltron version

Note: names in parentheses are Voltron names

Korean version

There is a South Korean knockoff anime of Dairugger XV called Super Titan 15 (슈퍼타이탄15).[9] It also cribs characters and vehicles from Galaxy Express 999.

Appearances in Other Media

The show was spoofed on an episode of Robot Chicken.

References

  1. ^ a b "Armored Fleet Dairugger Collection 1 DVD Review". Mania.com. http://www.mania.com/armored-fleet-dairugger-collection-1_article_118686.html. Retrieved 2010-06-12. 
  2. ^ "Armored Fleet Dairugger Collection 2 DVD Review". Mania.com. http://www.mania.com/armored-fleet-dairugger-collection-2_article_120713.html. Retrieved 2010-06-12. 
  3. ^ Clements, Jonathan. McCarthy Helen. [2006] (2006). The Anime Encyclopedia: Revised & Expanded Edition. Berkeley, CA: Stone Bridge Press. ISBN 978-1-933330-10-5
  4. ^ BigBear Dairugger. "BigBear Info." Dairugger Toy Re-release. Retrieved on 2006-11-06.
  5. ^ mediablasters.com
  6. ^ "Media Blasters & Kitty Media February Solicitations". Mania.com. 2009-11-04. http://www.mania.com/media-blasters-kitty-media-february-solicitations_article_118687.html. Retrieved 2009-11-20. 
  7. ^ mediablasters.com
  8. ^ "Voltron -Anime News Network". Anime News Network. 2002-03-14. http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/feature/2002-03-14. Retrieved 2008-10-20. 
  9. ^ glwwf.egloos.com/656755

External links

Episodes • Fleet of Doom (1986 film) • The Third Dimension (1998 TV series) • Force (2011 TV series) • Characters • Related: Albegas · Armored Fleet Dairugger XV · Beast King GoLion · Mirai Robo Daltanious · Voltron: The End · video game