Kaiketsu Zubat
Kaiketsu Zubat | |
---|---|
Genre | Tokusatsu |
Created by | Shotaro Ishinomori |
Written by |
Shōkei Nagasaka Mari Takizawa Shigemitsu Taguchi |
Directed by |
Hideo Tanaka Atsuo Okunaka Michio Konishi Shigeo Hirota |
Starring | Hiroshi Miyauchi |
Composer(s) | Kensuke Kyō |
Country of origin | Japan |
Original language(s) | Japanese |
No. of episodes | 32 |
Production | |
Producer(s) |
Kōjin Ono Hakuo Kondō |
Production company(s) | Toei Company |
Broadcast | |
Original channel | TV Tokyo |
Original run | February 2, 1977 – September 28, 1977 |
Kaiketsu Zubat (快傑ズバット Kaiketsu Zubatto), translated as Extraordinary Zubat or Magnificent Zubat, was a tokusatsu superhero series that aired in 1977. Created by Shotaro Ishinomori, this 32-episode series (which aired on TV Tokyo from 2/2/1977 to 9/28/1977), harkens back to tokusatsu superhero shows of the 1950s, but with a late-1970s twist. The series began to be released on DVD in 2008.[1]
Story and other details
- "Here with a "zvatt"! Solving problems with a "zvatt"! I call myself the wandering hero! Extraordinary Zubat!" (ズバッと参上、ズバッと解決、人呼んで さすらいのヒーロー! 快傑ズバット! Zubatto sanjō! Zubatto kaiketsu! Hito-yonde sasurai no hīrō! Kaiketsu Zubatto!)
This series is popular with fans of creator Ishinomori, and unique as the title hero Zubat does not "henshin" like the other superheroes he created. Ken Hayakawa (played by veteran Hiroshi Miyauchi[2]), a private detective dressed in black & red gringo cowboy attire, actually just puts on his red & black "Zubasuit" (hidden in his white guitar, which is opened with the push of a button), which looks no different from that of a Sentai hero:
- A helmet with "Z"-themed features and an open/close visor and mouthpiece
- A streamlined rubber jumpsuit with a white scarf (another Ishinomori trademark).
Zubat's name is based on the sound effect "zubatto," which is the sound of something being hit right on target.
Zubat's costume was also a basis for the video game superhero parody Viewtiful Joe.
The villains are also unusual, as there are no monsters, rather they originate from a large criminal organization named Dakker,[3] which has a mysterious leader (who is revealed in the final episode as Fuhrer D), and outlandishly-dressed criminals. Many episodes of this series even had a bizarre Japanese "wild west" setting.
An episode would generally have a single head criminal, and a yojimbo, somehow terrorizing a group of people. Ken Hayakawa would happen upon this, and meet the yojimbo, which would lead to a demonstration of the latter's preferred skill, only for Ken Hayakawa to show that he was much better.
This series would also be parodied by Daicon Films (now Gainax) in 1982, in a series of short films starring the superhero Kaiketsu Noutenki (who also has the same alter-ego, Ken Hayakawa).
Cast
- Ken Hayakawa (早川 健 Hayakawa Ken): Hiroshi Miyauchi (宮内 洋 Miyauchi Hiroshi)
- Midori Asuka (飛鳥 みどり Asuka Midori): Nobuko Ōshiro (大城 信子 Ōshiro Nobuko)
- Osamu Terada (寺田 オサム Terada Osamu): Nobuyuki Nakano (中野 宣之 Nakano Nobuyuki)
- Shingo Tōjō (東条 進吾 Tōjō Shingo): Shin Saitō (斉藤 真 Saitō Shin)
- Leader L (首領L Shuryō Eru): Ryūji Hayami (はやみ 竜次 Hayami Ryūji)
- Narrator (ナレーター Narētā): Shin Aomori (青森 伸 Aomori Shin)
Kamen Rider 40th Anniversary film
Zubat, along with Kikaider, Kikaider 01, and Inazuman made an appearance in OOO, Den-O, All Riders: Let's Go Kamen Riders (オーズ・電王・オールライダー レッツゴー仮面ライダー Ōzu Den'ō Ōru Raidā: Rettsu Gō Kamen Raidā) in commemoration of the Toei Company's 60th Anniversary in 2011. This brief appearance saw the four heroes destroy the Kamen Rider Stronger villain, General Shadow.
References
- ↑ "DVD 怪傑ズバット 特集". Retrieved 2008-03-31.
- ↑ "宮内洋". Retrieved 2008-03-31.
- ↑ "Kaiketsu Zubat: Dakka - Dagger". Archived from the original on 2008-01-04. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
External links
- Kaiketsu Zubat English language fan page
- Zubaken - Japanese language fan page
- 快傑ズバット - Japanese Wikipedia Page
- Zubat (Japanese)
- Kaiketsu Zubat at the Internet Movie Database