Super Rescue Solbrain

Super Rescue Solbrain (特救指令ソルブレイン, Tokkyū Shirei Soruburein, lit. Special Rescue Command Solbrain) is a Japanese tokusatsu television series produced by Toei Company. It ran for 53 episodes from January 20, 1991 to January 26, 1992 on TV Asahi. It is part of the Metal Hero Series franchise; a sequel to Special Rescue Police Winspector, it is the second series to follow the Rescue Hero trilogy.

Plot

After the Winspector police team leaves Japan to fight crime in France, Chief Shunsuke Masaki realizes he must create a new police team to defend Tokyo from crime. He creates Solbrain – a high-tech special rescue force, expert in missions requiring rescue and firepower. Its leader is Daiki Nishio, a rookie detective who can use the Plus Up command in his car to transform into SolBraver. Other members are Reiko Higuchi, also able to use the Plus Up command to transform into SolJeanne, SolBraver's female counterpart; and SolDozer, a yellow bulldozer robot. Later in the series, the Winspector team returns to Japan and teams up with Solbrain for a three-part story (episodes 21, 22 and 23). From episode 34 on, Ryouma, the protagonist from Winspector, returns as a member of Solbrain, wearing a suit dubbed the Knight Fire.

The team

• Daiki Nishio/SolBraver (西尾 大樹/ソルブレイバー, Nishio Daiki/Sorubureibā): Daiki is Ryoma's successor. He wears blue armor, and his primary vehicle is SolGallop. He only can wear his solid suit, and his transformation call is "Plus Up" (プラスアップ, Purasu Appu). He is armed with Cerberus Delta (a triangular gun), which can transform into a rod or a sword.
• Reiko Higuchi/SolJeanne (樋口 玲子/ソルジャンヌ, Higuchi Reiko/Sorujannu): Reiko is Junko's successor. She wears red armor, a black-and-white flameproof suit and a helmet without a mouthplate (so she can wear also an oxygen mask). Her primary vehicle is SolDrecker, which also carries Dozer. Her transformation call is also "Plus Up" (プラスアップ, Purasu Appu), and her weapon is a small gun.
• SolDozer (ソルドーザー, Sorudōzā): Dozer is Bycle's and Walter's successor. He is a yellow heavy-duty robot (with design elements from a bulldozer, as the name implies) and can transform into a rescue machine.

Other members

• Jun Masuda (増田 純, Masuda Jun): A Solbrain member, unlike Daiki and Reiko he does not wear a solid suit; however, he is always in action.
• Shunsuke Masaki (正木 俊介, Masaki Shunsuke): Chief of Solbrain. Compassionate and dedicated, he usually goes into the battlefield to help his subordinates.
• Kamekichi Togawa (戸川 亀吉, Togawa Kamekichi): A machine expert, he is Nonoyama's successor.
• Takeshi Yazawa (矢沢 武, Yazawa Takeshi): A pilot of the mothership Solid States-I, he leads the mothership's operating team and is senior to Daiki.
• Midori Aikawa (相川 みどり, Aikawa Midori): One of S.S.-I's crew, she sees computer literacy as a main duty.
• Ryoma Kagawa/Fire, Knight Fire (香川 竜馬/ファイヤー、ナイトファイヤー, Kagawa Ryōma/Faiyā, Naito Faiyā, (21-23, 34-35, 37, 40, 42, 45-47, 51-53)): He first appears in episode 21 with the Winspector robots (Walter and Bycle), when he chased an android. He later transformed into Fire and helped the team with Walter and Bycle. He returns in episode 34 as Knight Fire, and is armed with Cerberus Delta and Pile Tornado.
• Cross 8000 (クロス8000, Kurosu hassen): Solbrain's supercomputer, and Madocks's successor

Arsenal

• Solid Suit (ソリッドスーツ, Soriddo Sūtsu): Daiki, Reiko and Ryōma's armor
• SolGallop (ソルギャロップ, Soru Gyaroppu): Daiki's car, based on the Toyota Sera
• SolDrecker (ソルドレッカー, Soru Dorekkā): Reiko's car, sometimes also driven by Jun. Based on the Toyota Previa
• Knight custom (ナイトカスタム, Naito Kasutamu): Ryōma's car, based on the Mazda RX-7 FC
• Masaki's undercover car: Chief Masaki's car. Initially, a Third-Generation Mazda Luce seen on Winspector, but in mid-series changed to a Mazda Persona.
• Ryuma's Car: In the episode 21, when Ryoma chases an android, he drives this car, a second generation Lincoln Town Car with all the equipment and transformation mechanisms installed.
• Solid States Ⅰ (ソリッドステイツI, Soriddo Suteitsu wan): the mothership (abbreviated S.S.-I (エスエスワン, Esu Esu Wan)). S.S.-I takes off from Solid Hanger (ソリッドハンガー, Soriddo Hangā) in one minute.
• Cerberus Delta (ケルベロスΔ, Keruberosu Deruta): SolBraver and Knight Fire's weapon. It has two operating modes: Shot Mode (ショットモード, Shotto Mōdo) (used as a ray gun) and Slash Mode (スラッシュモード, Surasshu Mōdo) (used, as a sword, to break obstacles such as girders and fighting enemies armed with knives).
• BosWinder (ボスワインダー, Bosu Waindā): a tool which shoots a special carbon-fiber rope or a special bullet
• SolIndicater (ソルインジケーター, Soru Injikētā): Daiki and Reiko's police license
• O2 Pack (O2パック, Ō tsū Pakku): oxygen cylinder
• Medical Pack (メディカルパック, Medikaru Pakku): emergency equipment used by SolJeanne
• Cuffs Lock (カフスロック, Kafusu Rokku): handcuffs
• GigaStreamer (ギガストリーマー, Giga sutorīmā): the only weapon Solbrain inherited from Winspector (see Tokkei Winspector for details).
• Pile Tornado (パイルトルネード, Pairu Torunēdo): SolBraver and Knight Fire's big gun, with three functions:
  • Super Discharger (スーパーディスチャージャー, Super Disuchājā): shoots a fire-extinguishing beam
  • Caulking Puncher (コーキングパンチャー, Kōkingu Panchā): shoots a special gelatinous, gluey, freezing bullet
  • Tornado Burst (トルネードバースト, Torunēdo bāsuto): a hail of 40 plasma-energy bullets per second, fired by Cerberus Delta. Its power is three times that of GigaStreamer's maximum mode (when SolBraver and Knight Fire fire it at the same time, its power is four times GigaStreamer's).

Episodes

1. Tokyo Skies' SOS (東京上空SOS, Tōkyō Jōkū Esu Ō Esu)
2. The Explosive ESP Sisters (爆襲!エスパー姉妹, Bakushū! Esupā Shimai)
3. Is Father an Angel or a Devil? (父は天使か怪物か, Chichi wa Tenshi ka Kaibutsu ka)
4. The Game-Software of Dreams (夢のゲームソフト, Yume no Gēmu Sofuto)
5. The Mutant's Courage (怪人のくれた勇気, Kaijin no kureta yūki)
6. The Storyteller and the Bomb (バクダンと落語家, Bakudan to Rakugoka)
7. The Reincarnated Human Machine (人間再生マシーン, Ningen Saisei Mashīn)
8. The Vanishing Power-Suit (消えた強化スーツ, Kieta Kyōka Sūtsu)
9. Father and Daughter's Red Bond (父と娘の赤い絆, Chichi to Ko no Akai Kizuna)
10. The Naive Arson Team (わしら純情放火団, Washira Junjō Hōkadan)
11. The Elegy of Love and Revenge (愛と復讐の挽歌, Ai to Fukushū no Banka)
12. Birth! The New Dozer (誕生!新ドーザー, Tanjō! Shin Dōzā)
13. Murder Playback (殺人プレイバック, Satsujin Pureibakku)
14. The Love-Calling Bullet (愛を呼ぶ銃弾, Ai o Yobu Jūdan)
15. The Dove Doll (人形は平和の使者, Ningyō wa Heiwa no Shisha)
16. The Disappearance of Mothership S.S.-I (母艦S.S.-I消失, Bokan Esu Esu Wan Shōshitsu)
17. Escape in Handcuffs (手錠のままの脱走, Tejō no Mama no Dassō)
18. Bicycling for Tomorrow (明日に走る自転車, Ashita ni Hashiru Jitensha)
19. Kame-chan and the Detective Girl (亀ちゃんと探偵娘, Kamechan to Tantei Musume)
20. Shoot the Handcuffs of Tears (涙の手錠を打て, Namida no Tejō o Ute)
21. The Returned Winspector (part one) (帰ってきたWSP(PART-I), Kaettekita Uinsupekutā (Pāto Wan))
22. Heartless Fire (part two) (非情のファイヤー(PART-II), Hijō no Faiya (Pāto Tsū))
23. From Ryōma to Daiki (part three) (竜馬から大樹へ(PART-III), Ryōma kara daiki e (Pāto Surī))
24. Rescue the Goshawk (オオタカをすくえ, Ōtaka o Sukue)
25. The Gigantic Mothership Response (巨大母艦応答せよ, Kyodai Bokan Otō seyo)
26. The Trap-Setting Detective (罠をしかけた刑事, Wana o Shikaketa Keiji)
27. The Story Plant's Secret (お話し植物の秘密, Ohanashi Shokubutsu no Himitsu)
28. Hurry! Mothership of Life (急げ!命の母艦, Isoge! Inochi no Bokan)
29. The Revolt of the Children's Empire (子供帝国の反乱, Kodomo Teikoku no Hanran)
30. God is Painful! (神様はつらいよ, Kamisama wa Tsurai yo!)
31. She is a Dream Future Car (彼女は夢の未来車, Kanojo wa Yume no Mirai Kā)
32. Pursue the Murderer Policeman (警官殺人を追え, Keikan Satsujin o Oe)
33. When the Hero Cries (勇者が涙を流すとき, Yūsha ga Namida o Nagasu Toki)
34. New Hero to Kyushu! (part one) (新英雄九州へ!I, Nyū Hīrō Kyūshū e! Pāto Wan)
35. New Hero to Kyushu! (part two) (新英雄九州へ!II, Nyū Hīrō Kyūshū e! Pāto Tsū)
36. The Kidnapper is the Commanding Officer! (誘拐犯は隊長!, Yūkaihan wa Taichō!)
37. The Sad Hitman (哀しいヒットマン, Kanashii Hittoman)
38. The Devil Whispers Death (死をささやく悪霊, Shi o Sasayaku Akuryō)
39. The Space Alien who Delivered the Dream (夢を届けた宇宙人, Yume o Todoketa Uchūjin)
40. Trap the Hero (英雄を罠にかけろ, Hīrō o Wana ni Kakero)
41. Clash! High Speed Machines (激突!高速マシン, Gekitotsu! Kosoku Mashin)
42. Oath of Revenge in Hand (グラブに誓う復讐, Gurabu ni Chikau Fukushū)
43. The Woman with Two Faces (二つの顔を持つ女, Futatsu no Kao o Motsu Onna)
44. The Thief and the Old Doctor (コソ泥と老博士, Kosodoro to Rō Hakase)
45. The Target is the Small Witness (標的は小さな証人, Hyōteki wa Chiisa na Shōnin)
46. The Ingenious Time Machine (瞬間天才製造器, Shunkan Tensai Seizōki)
47. Digression! The Divine Investigation Team (脱線!占い捜査隊, Dassen! Uranai Sōsatai)
48. Today Without Papa Again (今日もいないパパ, Kyō mo Inai Papa)
49. Love Her! The Bad Child (大好き!悪い子, Daisuki! Waruiko)
50. The Devil-Dog's Birth of Hope (希望を生んだ魔犬, Kibō o Unda Maken)
51. Special Rescue: Breakup Order (特救・解散命令, Tokkyū: Kaisan Meirei)
52. Special Rescue: Explosion Order (特救・爆破命令, Tokkyū: Bakuha Meirei)
53. Until We Meet Again (また逢う日まで, Mata Au Hi made)

Video game

A video game for Tokkyū Shirei Solbrain was released in 1991 for the Famicom, published by Angel and developed by Natsume. It was localized into Shatterhand, which was published by Jaleco for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America and Europe shortly after the Japanese release. The differences are mainly cosmetic (changing music and graphics) but there were also several substantial changes, such as which boss appeared in which area. In addition, the theme-park stage from the Famicom version was replaced with a nuclear-submarine stage in the NES version.

Cast

• Daiki Nishio (西尾 大樹, Nishio Daiki) - Kōichi Nakayama (中山 幸一, Nakayama Kōichi)
• Reiko Higuchi (樋口 玲子, Higuchi Reiko) - Mitsue Mori (森 みつえ, Mori Mitsue)
• SolDozer (ソルドーザー, Sorudōzā) - Seizō Katō (加藤 精三, Katō Seizō)(voice)
• Shunsuke Masaki (正木 俊介, Masaki Shunsuke) - Hiroshi Miyauchi (宮内 洋, Hiroshi Miyauchi)
• Jun Masuda (増田 純, Masuda Jun) - Hidenori Iura (井浦 秀智, Iura Hidenori)
• Kamekichi Togawa (戸川 亀吉, Togawa Kamekichi) - Mitsuru Onodera (小野寺 充, Onodera Mitsuru)
• Ryōma Kagawa (香川 竜馬, Kagawa Ryōma) - Masaru Yamashita (山下 優, Yamashita Masaru)
• Takeshi Yazawa (矢沢 武, Yazawa Takeshi) - Kaname Kawai (河合 要, Kawai Kaname)
• Midori Aikawa (相川 みどり, Midori Aikawa) - Mayuko Irie (入江 まゆこ, Mayuko Irie)
• Norio Tsuruoka (鶴岡 則夫, Tsuruoka Norio) - Mitsutaka Tachikawa (立川 三貴, Tachikawa Mitsutaka)
• Hiroshi Tsuruoka (鶴岡 浩, Tsuruoka Hiroshi) - Kunihiro Tomita (富田 晋寛, Tomita Kunihiro)
• Cross 8000 (クロス8000, Kurosu hassen)(voice)/Ryūichi Takaoka (高岡 隆一, Takaoka Ryūichi) - Masaki Terasoma (寺杣 昌紀, Terasoma Masaki)
• Narrator (ナレーター, Narētā) - Takeshi Kuwabara (桑原 たけし, Kuwabara Takeshi)

Crew

• Original story by Saburo Yatsude
• Screenplay by: Noboru Sugimura, Nobuo Ōgizawa, Takahiko Masuda, Junichi Miyashita, Susumu Takahisa, Takashi Yamada, Kyōko Sagiyama, Mayumi Ishiyama, Akiko Asatsuke
• Music: Kaoru Mizuki
• Photography: Susumu Seo, Takakazu Koizumi
• Assistant Director: Hidenori Ishida, Masashi Taniguchi
• Action Directors: Junji Yamaoka, Jun Murakami
• Special-Effects Director: Nobuo Yajima
• Produced by: Kyōzō Utsunomiya, Atsushi Kaji (TV Asahi), Nagafumi Hori (Toei)
• Directed by: Masao Minowa, Michio Konishi, Takeshi Ogasawara, Kaneharu Mitsumura, Kiyoshi Arai, Hidenori Ishida
• Production: TV Asahi, ASATSU, Toei

Songs

Opening theme

• "Tokkyū Shirei Solbrain" (特救指令ソルブレイン, Tokkyū Shirei Soruburein)
  • Lyrics: Akira Otsu (大津 あきら, Ōtsu Akira)
  • Composition: Kisaburō Suzuki (鈴木 キサブロー, Suzuki Kisaburō)
  • Arrangement: Tatsumi Yano (矢野 立美, Yano　Tatsumi)
  • Artist: Takayuki Miyauchi (宮内 タカユキ, Miyauchi Takayuki)

Closing theme

• "Ai ni Dakarete" (愛に抱かれて, "Embracing in Love")
  • Lyrics: Akira Ōtsu
  • Composition: Kisaburō Suzuki
  • Arrangement: Tatsumi Yano
  • Artist: Takayuki Miyauchi

External links

• Super Rescue Solbrain at the Internet Movie Database