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--- Gatchaman Episode 59 – The Secret of the Monster Mecha Factory (http://www.gatchamania.net/threadid.php?threadid=2782)

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 04:27:

Gatchaman Episode 59 – The Secret of the Monster Mecha Factory

Gatchaman Episode 59 – The Secret of the Monster Mecha Factory



A ship sails at night on dark ocean waters. Men are lowering fishing nets. The ship approaches a rocky island.

“All right, we should have a great catch tonight!” says the captain in a ‘sea captain’ kind of accent. He’s just short of rolling his rs like a pirate. He reminds me of the Sea Captain from The Simpsons.

“I haven’t seen ay other boats around here in ages.” the captain continues. “We should be able to catch tons of fish without any of that PCB pollution crap.”

I am at his description! But aside from the ‘PCB pollution crap’, we all know what the implication is when we hear that other ships haven’t been seen around here.

“But there’re rumors that no boat’s ever made it back after coming near Ghost Island!” the first mate replies. Ghost Island? Dun dun dun…

“What?” the Captain exclaims. “You’re ready to give up on our chances out here just because you’re scared of some ghosts? It’s just a tall tale among the fishermen.”

And I might be inclined to believe that, except that this is the beginning of the episode, and such conversations never happen in Gatchaman (particularly at the beginning of episodes and between unnamed characters) without a darn good reason.

“You know, Captain,” the first mate continues, “that island’s got a bad reputation. There’s got to be a reason why.”

This makes a lot more sense. But despite this conversation, the boat continues to move by the rocky island. The waves suddenly get higher, and begin reaching the boat’s prow.

“What’s going on out there?” asks the Captain.

The boat rocks around, and larger waves crash over the edge, drowning the sailors.

Cut from BOTP:



Two ships shoot out of the water, heading into the shy. One looks like a rocket, and the other like some kind of plane. Ah, but now we can see more clearly that the rocket isn’t a rocket… it’s a squid. The plane has a long tail and looks more like a manta ray. To be precise, it’s Gezora and Mechanica from episodes 16 and 32/33.



“See, I told you Captain!” says a depressed first mate. “There really are ghosts out here!”

The Captain is now cowering down near the floor, and he can only moan in fear.

“Yep… huh?” the first mate is surprised by the arrival of a massive waterspout, headed in their direction. He has just enough time to scream before the waves break the glass surrounding the pilot room, and he is hit by shards and water.

Cut from BOTP:



The ship is pulled into the waterspout and torn apart.

And now we cut to the Daily Fish Parade (tm) at the Crescent Coral Base, and a blast of trumpets lets us know that it’s time for the Science Ninja Team to get down to business!

Or is it?

“They saw ghosts?” Jinpei is laughing at the fishermen’s tale.



“What’s so funny about it, Jinpei?” Ken wants to know.



“It’s pretty funny! I know there’s no such thing as ghosts!” Jinpei explains, as he continues to laugh.

“Yeah, this ‘ghost’ thing doesn’t make any sense.” Ryu agrees. “Even if they were ghosts, how could a squid and a starfish fly up in the sky, anyway? They can’t! At least, not without the waterspout.”



Um, I didn’t think the other ship looked like a starfish, but then, I’m not on the Tatsunoko Zoological Consultant’s Panel.

For some reason, Ryu sits down on the floor. I guess this room doesn’t have any chairs?



“Those shipwrecked fishermen said the ocean was calm until they saw the ghosts,” says Joe, in a voice which suggests that he disbelieves the story as well, “but the water wouldn’t be calm if something that big was traveling through it. Sorry, but I don’t believe a word of it.”

Ooh, the fishermen (at least, some of them) survived! Amazing!

“Yeah!” adds Jinpei. “I don’t either!”

And now we see why Ryu is sitting on the floor. Dr. Nambu is in the only chair!



“What do you think, Doctor?” Ken asks. “Should we really buy stories from a bunch of shipwrecked fishermen?”

“Well, I don’t really buy the whole ‘ghost’ thing either, but it might be smart to do a little snooping around, to see what we can find.” Nambu replies, lounging in a very Sherlock-Holmes-esque fashion. I almost expect him to pull out a big white pipe.



“So how about it, Team? Who wants to go to Ghost Island?” Nambu invites them.

And now we can see from the long shot that there are actually plenty of chairs, and Ryu has chosen to sit on the floor rather than sit on the couch near Nambu. What, were Joe, Jinpei and Ryu banished to the other side of the room for bad B.O.?



“No thanks, I don’t wanna.” Jinpei says.

“Yeah, I’m gonna pass too.” Ryu agrees.

“I’m not buying it, Doctor!” Joe adds. “Come on!”

Yep, not only do they have bad B.O., but today the Condor, Swallow and Owl are not part of the ‘Get-Along Gang’.

“But the area around Ghost Island is known as fertile fishing ground.” Ken points out as Jun gasps. “If we leave things as they are, it’ll get so nobody ever goes there. That’d be such a waste!”



“Sure would!” Jun agrees.

“All right, G1 and G3, I order you to start exploring the area around Ghost Island. I want you to move out at once!” Nambu commands, standing up.

“Big ten, Doc!”



And now we get the ‘James Bond’ version of the Gatchaman theme music. Very suitable, because you will notice a lot of similarities in this episode to the ‘standard’ James Bond plot, as well as a couple of ‘tributes’. And in true Bond fashion, Ken is driving a speedboat in a studly manner across the water. He’s even wearing his flying gloves.



And in true Bond Girl fashion, Jun is sitting next to him, ready to face certain death with her man!



“Ghost Island, dead ahead!” Jun tells Ken, as the island appears in front of them. Just in case he didn’t see the massive hunk of rock obscuring the horizon.



“So the Doc says that uninhabited island holds the secret to these ghosts.” Ken remarks. “Let’s go ashore.”

And now Ken and Jun’s boat is moving through a small inlet, into the interior of the island. While most of the island appears to be a giant mountain, the part near the water seems to be some kind of jungle. After parking their speedboat. Ken and Jun decide to hide in the jungle.



“This island is really spooky!” Jun says, as if she is really scared. But I think she just wants Ken to put his arm around her.

“Yeah, like, you never know what might jump out at us and scare us and…” Ken teases.

“Ken, please!” Jun squeals. “Just stop it! Stop wigging me out!”

Ken has a satisfied smirk on his face.



Ken and Jun walk through the jungle, ending up at the coastline, looking out at the ocean.

“Let’s chill for awhile.” Ken says smoothly. Ooh, he’s putting on the moves, in true Bond fashion! But his earlier teasing is coming back to haunt him.

“Do you think it’s okay for us to relax in a place like this?” Jun asks.

“We have to stay here, or we won’t see the ghosts and solve this mystery.” replies Ken.

So time passes, and the sun sets. Just what are Ken and Jun doing on the island? Ah, this is the Bond tribute episode. Need you ask?

And now it’s night. Jun and Ken are dressed again and ready for their mission!

“It’s about that time.” Ken says.

“I wonder if any of those ghosts are going to show up?” Jun wonders.



Ken sees something so astonishing that he can’t believe it! He rubs his eyes, to make sure they’re working correctly.



What Ken sees is a bubbling on the water. Instinctively, Ken and Jun crouch down out of view.



“Look over there, too!” Ken tells Jun.



Sure enough, there are more bubbles coming up in other locations.

The waves start forming, and a giant squid bursts out of the water, as Ken and Jun watch.



They are astonished!



“It’s Gezora and Mechanica!” Ken exclaims.

__________________

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 04:28:

“So Galactor was behind the ghost sightings all along!” Jun deduces. Ken grimaces with this revelation.



“You know, I don’t understand,” says Ken, getting up, “the Science Ninja Team destroyed those monsters a long time ago.”



“Do you think that they could be ghosts after all?” Jun wants to know. Okay, as a Swan fan, I am really embarrassed by her stupidity here. Even if you do believe in ghosts, can machines have ghosts? Sigh…

“You know, I don’t know.” Ken replies, humoring her. “There has to be a haunted house somewhere around here.”



“Hey, Ken!” Jun comes up with a much smarter idea. “Maybe Galactor’s mecha factory is hidden on this island!”



“You know, I think we’ve figured out what these ghosts really are!” Ken replies. Um, it was Jun’s idea.



“But don’t you think it’s weird?” Jun asks. “Why would they rebuild mechas that have already been defeated?”

The two watch as the waterspout appears and approaches Gezora and Mechanica.

“Look, it’s a waterspout!” Ken shouts.



The two mecha get sucked into the waterspout, which seems to retract and hover in the air. Then there is a massive explosion, and chunks of Gezora and Mechanica come falling down.

“That was some kind of waterspout!” Jun remarks.

“Yeah, but there was something really tripped out going on in the clouds above it.” Ken adds. “Wish I had G-1!”

“Ken, something’s coming this way!” Jun tells him. “Look!”

It’s some kind of machines that look like a cross between a clawed shellfish and a bug. They are climbing up the rocky side of the cliff that Ken and Jun are standing on.



“Giant hermit crabs!” Jun identifies the mechas’ inspiration.



“It’s got to be Galactor!” Ken exclaims. “They must have discovered our boat and tracked us here!”

“What do we do now, Ken?” Jun asks in true Bond Girl fashion. “They’re coming after us!”



“Quick! Hide, Jun!” Ken orders.



And so they run off. They watch the hermit crabs moving through the jungle.



The crabs stop, and one opens up. Sure enough, a goon pops out.



“According to the report, they should be around here.” he says. I guess he’s talking to the other two crabs? What, was Galactor too cheap to put in radios in thee crabs?

But instead of a response, the goon gets a whack in the back of the head. It’s Ken and a big stick!



“Hey, thanks for coming to pick us up, Snaggletooth!” Ken quips. Ah, the Bond tributes just keep on coming.

I guess the other crabs didn’t notice anything, because Ken only has to knock out the one goon. Despite his Jinpei-esque boxer shorts, Ken and Jun decide to tie him to the wheel of their speedboat.



And this, boys and girls, is why you should never wear underwear with holes in it. You never know when you might be in an accident, and then…

“See you, Skipper!” Ken says. “Watch out for those reefs!” And the boat departs. I guess Ken turned on the motor for the goon. Not only that, Ken is wearing some interesting clothing.



And lest you think that all of this ‘Bond’ stuff is just my imagination, here’s the clincher, as Ken looks inside the goon mask.



Now outside of the labeling here, there’s something else I noticed. This mask doesn’t have eyes! How the heck do the goons see? Are they like bats, with finely-tuned echolocation skills?

“Number 7…” Ken says, putting on the mask. Jun isn’t sure what to make of him, now.



“What do you think?” Ken asks. “Now I’m really ready for the haunted house!”

The hermit crabs make their way underwater, into a hole in the rock. They surface inside of a Galactor base, and the goons start popping out. Ken gives Jun some last minute instructions.



“Jun, whatever you do, don’t leave this vehicle!” Ken orders. “Just stay put!” And that is sooo James Bond. Jun is highly capable, and he’s telling her to stay put like she’s some weeny Bond Babe.

“Be careful! Good luck!” Jun says, holding up a peace sign. How 70s!



Ken gets out of his crab and lines up like the other goons. A man in a lab coat looks down from a window at the top of the room and talks to them.

“What happened to the motorboat?” he asks. “Any sign?”

“It appears they got away while we were searching, so we came back.” one goon reports. “There’s no need to worry, Sir.”

“Lord Katse has arrived, so I want all of you on standby, and for everyone to remain focused until the attack!” the man in the lab coat orders. “Number 6 and Number 7, I want you to accompany me to Dr. Ogawara’s laboratory.”

“Yes, Sir!” Ken and the other goon reply.

“Come on!” Number 6 tells Ken.

“Yeah, right!” Ken agrees. Shortly, the two are following the lab coat man on a moving walkway through the base. Ken ponders the meaning of all this as he travels.



The trio approaches a closed door.

“Who is it?” asks a voice from the wall.

“Your assistant, Nakamura!” replies the man in the lab coat. Ken follows Nakamura and Number 6 through the door, and is amazed by what he sees!



A massive mole mecha!



Wait, didn’t they already do a mole mecha in the puppy episode? So it’s another ‘ghost’ mecha!

“Oh, man, this place is amazing!” Ken grins goofily he walks through the room.



Eventually they reach another man in a lab coat.

“You’ve kept Lord Katse waiting far too long, Nakamura!” he lectures.

“My apologies, Lord Katse!” Nakamura says, bowing down to the smirking Purple one. “And thank you for coming to visit us! It’s an honor!” I’m wondering why Katse doesn’t have a fluffy white cat in his lap to stroke.



Number 6 bows too, and Ken catches himself just in time. Yep, Gatchaman bows to Berg Katse.



“Nakamura, I hear the new mecha’s quite impressive.” Katse says.

“Yes, my Lord! A masterpiece!” Nakamura replies. “Dr. Ogawara truly is a genus mecha designer! It’s the pride of Galactor!”

“Dr. Ogawara, I’m a little concerned,” Katse admits, “because every other mecha that you’ve built has been destroyed by the God Phoenix! The Turtle King, Mechadegon, Ibukuron, Ice-Kandar, the Mecha Ball, Moskon, Shutterkiller, the Black Lens, Renzilla and Mecha Bhutta! To name just a few!”



I’m at this list! It just goes on an on…

“Lord Katse, you’re being too harsh!” Ogawara replies. “All of the mecha I have designed have been excellent! I’m not responsible for their destruction! They’ve all fallen victim to your troops’ inability to control them! The manner in which things have transpired upsets me to no end!” He hangs his head in shame.

“Now don’t loose heart, Doctor! It won’t happen again.” Katse assures him.



“The Science Ninja Team has ruined your brilliant creations!” Katse explains. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like you to show me your latest masterpiece!”

“Yes, come with me, and I’ll show you Galactor’s deadly new weapon immediately!” Ogawara says happily. The entire group moves into the next room.



“Behold, Komaking!” Ogawara shouts.

“This is splendid!” Katse smirks. “Thank you, Doctor! We’re sure to defeat Gatchaman this time!”

And this splendid mecha looks like… a giant frisbee.



Yep, it’s the Frisbee mecha. Uh, I mean, Frisbeeking. Oops… Komaking.

__________________

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 04:30:

Solid Gold Ken wonders if he can play frisbee during the commercial break, but all too soon he’s back to flesh and bones and in his goon disguise.

“Doctor Ogawara has been collecting data on the God Phoenix.” Nakamura says. “He has equipped this mecha with a special device designed to bring it down. Now let us show you a film we’ve recorded of various tests demonstrating Komaking’s power.” he turns to Ken.

“Number 7, go push that red button.”



“Sir!” Ken salutes and does as he is told. Everyone watches footage on a big screen. The frisbee is spinning as it flies through the air. It extends cutting blades all around it and cuts through a mountaintop. It extends a drill from its bottom and drills through another mecha.

“As you can see, Lord Katse, the Komaking is able to cut through any type of metal with its powerful drill.” Ogawara explains. “It can even bore through rock and burrow underground!”



“Yes, I’m very impressed with its power, Doctor.” Katse replies.



Next, the footage shows the spinning frisbee creating a waterspout that rises into the air and destroys Gezora and Mechanica. It is the scene Ken and Jun witnessed earlier. Ken finally puts it all together.



“Amazing! Good work!” Katse approves. “The Komaking is unstoppable!”

“I am most honored, Lord Katse.” Ogawara replies.

“Yes, Doctor,” says Katse, who suddenly looks like Jay Leno, “now, let us destroy the ISO’s technology workshop!”



“Ready when you are, Sire.” Nakamura says.

“I’m going to direct this operation!” Katse announces. “Dr. Ogawara, I’d like you to come onboard.”

“I would be most honored, Sire.” Ogawara accepts Katse’s generous offer.

“6 and 7, go prepare for launch immediately!” Nakamura orders the goons.

“Sir!” they salute.



But Ken takes a second to run back to Jun in the hermit crab.

“Jun! Jun!” he calls, knocking on the top.

“Ken!” she says, coming out.



“I’m about to go get onboard Galactor’s new mecha, the Komaking!” Ken explains.

“The Komaking?” Jun is apparently confused by the name.



“Yeah.” Ken shrugs. “That waterspout those fishermen saw was created by the Komaking! Katse’s going to be onboard with us.”

“Ken, can you do it alone?” Jun asks.



“I’ll be fine. I think I’ll be able to capture Katse this time!” Ken brags. “Try to get in touch with the God Phoenix, okay?”

“I’ll try!” Jun says, with stars in her eyes at Ken’s display of manly bravado.



“Be careful!” she calls out, as Ken runs off.



But as soon as he’s gone, Jun changes her mind.

“This is Galactor we’re up against! I’ve got to help, somehow!” she decides. And then she leaps out of the crab.



She quickly encounters a goon, but that’s no problem for the Swan!



“Sorry about that, but you looked like you needed a little break!” she quips, as she drags them off. Go Bond Girl!

“Hold it!” yells a familiar female voice, as a pod with two goons in it is about to board the Komaking. A third goon with long green hair approaches. One of the other goons checks out the new arrival.



And Komaking launches!

“This mecha rides like a Caddy.” Katse smirks. I guess he likes American cars.



“Before the God Phoenix has a chance to interfere, let’s annihilate all the ISO’s machinery factories!” Katse suggests. “Now move out!”

“Then Gatchaman will be left helpless against the Komaking!” Ogawara says, and everyone laughs their evil mad scientist laughs.



“Lord Katse,” reports Number 6, “there is a suspicious object approaching us, Sire!”



“Huh?” This is the last thing Katse expected. “How could this happen? It’s the God Phoenix! How could they have possibly found out about our secret plans?”



“My Lord, we couldn’t have hoped for this chance!” Nakamura interrupts. “Let us take this opportunity to change our plans and destroy the God Phoenix first.”

“Good idea!” Katse approves. “Show them the Komaking’s power!”

The God Phoenix approaches, and it has the Komaking on their main viewscreen.

“That’s it?” Jinpei asks, surprised. “It’s just a dumb top!”



“Jun sent us a full report on Komaking’s special tactics.” Joe reminds them. But how did Jun get that information? It was Ken who saw the test footage. Hmmm…

“Ryu, we’re counting on you.” Joe says.

“Just leave it to me! Ryu replies confidently. “I wouldn’t even be at the top of my game if I couldn’t even defeat a top!”



You know, now that they’re calling it a top, this does remind me of Jinpei’s Gatchaman Fighter weapon, which actually was a top.



What do you think?

Komaking sends out its whirling cutting blades, but the God Phoenix avoids them.



Meanwhile, Ken is sneaking around the Komaking. He enters what looks like the engine room and knocks out the goon at the control panel.



“What’s going on?” ask the other goons in the room, and they come running.

“Hey, what happened?” they ask Ken. Their response is a few kicks and elbow thrusts. Not to mention a punch.



A gun goes skittering across the floor in all of the commotion.

But then, another gun is pressed into Ken’s back. It’s Dr. Nakamura!



“Hold it right there.” Nakamura smirks. “Show me your face, you imposter!”

He reaches for Ken’s mask…



But another green goon hand grabs Dr. Nakamura’s arm and pulls the gun away from Ken! Nakamura is shocked!



“How dare you?” he asks, before getting punched out by a goon with long green hair.



And for good measure, the goon knees him in the family jewels as well.



“You won’t get away with this!” Nakamura vows, crawling off in pain. Ken gasps and stares at the newly arrived goon who just saved his sorry hide.



The goon removes her mask… and it’s Jun!

“Oh! Hey it’s you!” Ken exclaims. “Why didn’t you stay put like I asked?”



“I’ll explain later.” Jun brushes him off. “The God Phoenix is here.”

“Let’s do this thing!” Ken smiles, removing his own mask.



But then they both turn, gasping in surprise! They jump into the air and out of sight, just before a horde of goons rushes into the room!

The goons open fire with their rifles, but it’s Gatchaman and the Swan who leap down to meet them!



Meanwhile, outside, the God Phoenix is easily avoiding all of Komaking’s attacks. The frisbee/top/koma mecha has switched to the drill, but it’s not doing any better than the cutting edges did.

“When will that damn God Phoenix learn its lesson?” Katse rants.

“My Lord, Komaking’s latest weapon has yet to be used!” Dr. Ogawara reminds him.

“Good point.” Katse acknowledges. “Let’s attack the God Phoenix with the waterspout!”

Komaking dives into the water.



“Come on, we’re in danger!” Joe tells Ryu. “Get us out of here!”



“I know…” Ryu replies in a quavering voice.

__________________

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 04:32:

The waterspout rises and goes after the God Phoenix.



The God Phoenix is being pulled in by the G-4 Pod!

“What a waterspout!” Jinpei shouts. “I just wish we could blast a Bird Missile at it!”



And of course they can’t do this, because they know that Ken and Jun are onboard.

“We’ve got to get out of here!” Ryu yells. “The ship can’t take much more of this!”



Nobody on the God Phoenix seems very happy.



Unaware of this development, Ken and Jun are having a good old time onboard the mecha.









The God Phoenix is sucked into the waterspout, and it begins rising up toward Komaking and its drill.



Joe groans in pain.



Meanwhile, Ken and Jun are shaking hands with the goons.



And there are more cool fight scenes.





“Cool!” agrees Jun, as the combat ends.

“Jun, hurry up and stop the Komaking’s spinning!” Ken orders.

“Roger!” Jun giggles, as she rushes to the mecha’s engine.



She looks inside, formulating a plan.



Onboard the God Phoenix…

“What the hell is Ken doing? He’d better hurry up and stop this thing!” Joe shouts.



But it’s Jun who’s stopping the mecha with a well-placed yo-yo bomb. For good measure, Ken has picked up a rifle and is shooting at the other control panels.



“It’s good to go, Ken!” Jun tells him.



She rushes over to Ken as they shelter themselves from the blast.



Ooh, snuggly!

Komaking stops spinning, and the God Phoenix escapes the waterspout. But the people onboard don’t seem very elated by this development.



“We’re still alive!” Jinpei shouts happily, as he finally realizes what has happened.

The Komaking begins to smoke and fall out of the sky. In its control room, Dr. Ogawara is confused.

“Something’s wrong! Komaking has stopped spinning!” he tells Katse. Gee, how many PhDs do you need to come to that conclusion, Einstein? I guess that 284 IQ is good for something!

“Komaking is finished, Sire.” Nakamura says. “There’s nothing we can do but escape!”

“Crap.” is Katse’s eloquent response.



“Looks like the Komaking’s going to crash!” Jinpei gloats.



“It worked!” Joe shouts. “We’ve got to rescue Ken!” I guess Jun isn’t worthy of rescuing? Ah… more likely she didn’t share her plan to join Ken when she was speaking with Joe.

Meanwhile, Ken has gained the ability to tear through metal doors with his feet!



Ken and Jun take out the few goons on duty here.

“You’re not getting away this time, you rat!” Ken shouts.



The room is littered with goons, and Katse and Ogawara are taken aback by this sudden entrance.



But the crashing Komaking causes everyone to lose their balance and fall to the floor! As the mecha turns, they all slide to the other end of the room.



Ken isn’t too happy about Katse’s landing position. Recall when we were all making fun of this screenshot last year? I still want to know what the animators were thinking…



“God damn!” Katse swears. I guess he didn’t like this positioning either.

Ken puts on his best Condor face and grabs Katse by the throat.





And if you remember this episode and know what’s coming, there’s a pretty good hint in this shot.

“I’ve been waiting for this!” Ken shouts.

The Komaking continues falling, and an escape pod shoots off the top of the mecha. Ken and Jun depart with a captured Katse. I’d imagine Katse is peeing his pants about now.



The unlikely trio land on the God Phoenix, and lower down to the Bridge. Komaking crashes into Ghost Island, and the place is destroyed in a massive explosion.



“Now we finally see your pathetic face!” Ken rants, as he grabs for Katse’s mask.





But to Ken’s surprise…



“Huh! But you’re not…”

Yep, it’s Nakamura in Katse’s costume.

“No.” smirks Nakamura, as everyone gasps.



“Katse! That bastard tricked me!” Ken shouts, throwing Katse’s mask to the floor. “Damn it!”



“Lord Katse is safe, you fool!” Nakamura brags. Ken responds angrily.





Nakamura goes flying across the room. For a scientist, this guy sure has taken a beating this episode!

“Well…” he laughs as a tear falls down Ken’s face. Jun runs to comfort Ken.



The narrator comes on to tell us that Gatchaman wept tears of rage and frustration. Yet in his heart, Ken hears the encouraging words of Red Impulse.

“Stay healthy, and be strong, my son…”

Believe in tomorrow, Gatchaman! And let blaze the fire of your courage!

__________________

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 04:34:

BOTP Episode 37 – Secret Island

Center Neptune is located deep in the ocean. But its function is to keep an eye on everything above and far out into the universe.

And in the depths of Center Neptune, 1-Rover-1 is sitting awfully close to Zark. Are they snuggling?



Zark tells us that one of his many duties has little to do with his primary job as constant guardian against enemy aliens from outer space.

“I also monitor severe weather manifestations on the Earth, such as earthquakes, floods, and tornadoes!” he says brightly, before flying across the room to his control panel.

“If some enemy power, such as Planet Spectra, were to use weather as a weapon, then of course I’d have to alert G-Force.” Zark reminds us.



Rover flies over to Zark by whirling his tail.



“1-Rover-1 is very helpful at times like these.” Zark informs us. “He’s a small whirlwind himself.” Groan…

Zark chooses this moment to wash his monitors, while Rover looks on adoringly.



“I thought it was dusty, but it’s just a cloud formation.” Zark says. “At least that’s better than smog!”

He returns to his usual height, just in time to get an emergency alert from Weather Control.

“There’s an advisory of intermittent typhoon activity in Sector 11, southeast of Cape Hatteris(?).” Zark responds to the alert. “Please transmit pertinent data immediately, velocity of rotary ascendant. Use data line A14, main computer. T.Y. over and out!”

T.Y.? Does he mean ‘thank you’? Who knew Zark was capable of texting?

A ship sails across dark waters at night. Men lower fishing nets into the sea.

“The weather’s been with us this whole voyage.” says the old sea captain. He sounds like a deep-voiced Cronus. “I can remember storms in this area so bad that my first mate’s hair turned white overnight. This time we’re in luck!”

And even though this is BOTP, and not Gatchaman, I still know that he’s not very smart, saying things like this at the beginning of the episode. Especially as his character has no name.

“So far!” says the first mate, who sounds a lot like Tiny, but less ‘dumb’. “I’ll feel a lot better when we’re out of the Bermuda Triangle!”

“Bermuda Triangle? Nonsense!” pooh-poohs the Captain. “You don’t believe ships disappear in thin air?”

“Uh, maybe Captain.” the first mate replies. “But still, I’ll breathe a lot easier tomorrow.”

The waves pick up.

“I spoke too soon!” admits the Captain.

The waves crash over the ship, and a giant squid and a manta ray come shooting out of the water.

“Did you see that, Captain?” asks the first mate. “What was it?”

But we don’t get to find out, as instead we are treated to the sounds of Ready Room Disco and the sight of the Daily Fish Parade. Next we cut to the Ready Room, and for a change, we’re actually panning left to right today (that’s ping pong table to drum set) instead of the other way around. Everyone is hanging out in their usual places.







“It doesn’t seem right for all of us to be sitting here eating and playing games and making music when another ship has disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle!” declares Tiny.



To empathize with the sailors, he eats another Spaceburger.

“When the word comes down to us, there’ll be plenty to do, Tiny.” says Jason. And OMG, no matter how many times I see it, I have to crack up laughing at his ping-pong playing.



Check out this low crouch and limp-wristed point! John Travolta, eat your heart out!



“We can’t jump the gun!” agrees a constipated Mark. “Zark’s getting more information for us right now.” Mark does his own limp-wristed point.



Hey, I never realized that there was a display case of ping pong paddles behind Mark before! Is that what he’s pointing at?

“They don’t want to tie up the whole G-Force Team on what might be an unfortunate, but completely normal weather condition.” Mark explains.

“They don’t have to tie up the whole Team!” counters a man-shouldered Princess. “Couldn’t just a couple of us volunteer?”



Hey, is that a guitar she’s holding, or a mandolin? Of course, what do I know? I’m not on the Sandy Frank Musical Instruments Advisory Panel.

“Me!” Keyop shouts, after an unacceptably long stream of broops and burbles. He begins drumming.



Aaaand… you guessed it. Mark misses a shot with the ping pong paddle, and the ball shoots over to Tiny’s Spaceburger, knocking it out of his hand.





Tiny’s not too happy about this.



But to cheer everyone up, Zark appears!

“Attention, G-Force!” Zark says, without any preamble. “I have new information on the Bermuda Triangle situation. “We’re not certain there’s a real problem in that area, but it bears investigation.”



“My differential pressure meter indicates that the center of the disturbance seems to be located in the vicinity of Shipwreck Island.” Zark tells the Team. Really? Shipwreck Island? And no one ever suspected it to be the center of the disturbances around the Bermuda Triangle before? Sheesh!

“I suggest you take one of your Team and check it out immediately, Commander.” Zark says. Notice how he’s only suggesting. It’s Mark’s job to make the actual decision because after all, he is the Commander.

“Good hunting, and have a nice trip.” Zark says, not even waiting for a response from Mark before fading out.

“G-Force!” everyone shouts.



Suddenly Mark is off and driving a speedboat, with Princess by his side. They’re even playing the Gatchaman James Bond music.

“Looks weird!” Princess says, as Shipwreck Island appears in front of them.

“Yeah, it’s kind of gloomy and mysterious.” Mark agrees. “Well, we’ll see!”

They move into an inlet and disembark to explore the jungle.

“It’s so deathly quiet!” Princess comments, amid the noise of cawing birds.

“The kind of quiet that comes before the storm.” Mark agrees.

“It looks so threatening.” Princess gasps, while Mark looks inexplicably smug. “It makes my skin creep!”

“It’s a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live here.” Mark says, as they walk around the island.

“Sorry you volunteered?” Mark quietly asks Princess, as they look out at a romantic ocean view. And my little girl’s heart begins a-pounding…

“No, but now that we’re here, what do we do?” Princess asks innocently. Ah, my big girl naughty mind is conjuring up suggestions…

“Use our eyes and ears, and do a lot of waiting.” Mark says. Awwww…. he took all of the fun out of it!

And then it’s night.

“Still nothing.” Mark says.

“It could be a wild goose chase.” Princess suggests.

Mark rubs his eyes as the water begins to bubble. Princess gasps, and they both crouch down.

“Something’s starting.” Mark announces, in case the ‘creepy’ background music hasn’t helped you figure this out for yourself. And sure enough, the squid and the manta ray burst out of the ocean, much to the astonishment of Mark and Princess.

“We’re getting action now.” Mark says.

“Someone’s using this island as an underwater base.” Princess deduces.

“I’ve got a pretty good idea who that someone is.” Mark replies. “This is just the kind of place Zoltar would pick for a new secret base.”

“I have a cold feeling that tells me you’re right.” Princess says.

“Well, we’re jumping to conclusions.” Mark backtracks. “Zoltar can’t be everywhere.”

“If there are Spectra forces on the island, they’ll have lookouts posted.” Princess notes.

“Hmmm… yeah…. we’d better keep out of sight.” Mark agrees. So, have they been keeping out of sight all of this time?

“The moon is so bright we should stay in…oh, Mark, look!” Princess interrupts herself as a giant waterspout attacks the giant squid and manta ray. “Those things… they’re back!”

“Along with something new.” adds Mark, as the waterspout gets closer.

The squid and the manta ray are destroyed by the waterspout.

“That was no accident!” Princess gasps.

“No, the twister and those things were all weapons.” Mark agrees. “It was some kind of test.”

“And there’s a lot more coming!” Princess says, looking over the edge of the cliff. Sure enough, an army of hermit crabs is crawling up the rock.

“Vehicles of some kind!” Princess says.

“They could be tanks.” Mark replies. “In the shape of weird lobsters!”

“Do you think we can follow without being seen?” Princess asks.

“Let’s try!” says Mark, as they both run off into the bushes. They watch the lobster tanks from the trees.

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 04:41:

“If we could only find a way to get inside one of those things and ride along with it!” Mark says. And conveniently, one stops right next to Mark and Princess.

“He’s giving us the perfect chance!” Mark notes. “We’ll tie him up in the speedboat.”

The goon pops his head out and… we see him in his skivvies, tied to the speedboat wheel.

“He shouldn’t have stopped to admire the scenery long.” Mark comments. He is wearing the goon’s uniform, and he looks inside the goon’s mask.

“Number 7…” he notes, before putting it on. “Looks like I’ve been demoted from Number 1!”

Note that we don’t see what happens to the goon tied up in the speedboat, just as we didn’t see how Mark knocked him out.

Instead, we cut to a shot of the lobsters moving underwater and surfacing in the base.

“Okay, Princess, keep your fingers crossed.” Mark tells her, as he prepares to go.

“Good luck!” Princess says, showing a ‘peace’ sign.

A man in a lab coat is looking out at the lobster tanks.

“We watched the test on the monitor. It was perfect!” he says.

“Thank you, Sir!” one of the goons replies. He sounds like Mark putting on a deep accent, but it’s not supposed to be Mark. How confusing!

“Our typhoon can demolish any weapon!” the goon adds. “Or aircraft for that matter.”

“Dr. Wold would like to have a word with you, Leader Timook.” the man in the lab coat tells the goon. “And bring along one of your men. You! Number 7! I would think that congratulations are in order. Good work is always appreciated by Spectra.”

Mark follows the lab coat man and Leader Timook on a moving walkway.

Lab Coat Man uses an identification code to enter the room at the end of the walkway. Leader Timook and Mark follow behind him. Mark gasps as he sees a massive robot under construction. And since the puppy episode never made it into BOTP, you know he’s never seen a mole mecha before.

Mark smiles goofily as he walks along, but doesn’t say or ‘think’ anything.

“Come in! Come in, Killion!” an older man in a lab coat says as the three enter an office. “I believe you’ve met my friend here.”

“Yes, Dr. Wold.” says Killion. “I’ve had that great honor. It’s a pleasure to see you again, Zoltar.” he bows to the Spectran Leader, who is smiling smugly from a chair.

Timook and Mark bow too.

“So much for the amenities. Let’s get down to business!” Wold suggests.

“Zoltar, we believe that showing is better than telling.” Killion says. “And so we’ve arranged a demonstration of our latest weaponry.”

“Excellent!” Zoltar says. “If they are everything you say, Doctor, the grateful Planet of Spectra will reward you handsomely with the highest position of authority. Your voice will command the entire scientific community… when, of course, I am the Earth’s overlord.”

Mark appears to be astounded by Zoltar’s plan. What, he didn’t know that Zoltar wanted to take over the Earth?

Everyone enters into another room, overlooking a giant frisbee robot.

“What you see before you is a piece of the most advanced technology known to man.” Wold says. “When you see its capabilities, Zoltar, you will know that I am handing you the Earth on a silver platter!”

And on that ominous note, we head to a commercial break. And of course, that means that we come back to Zark. He’s pacing.



“Mark and Princess have been on Shipwreck Island for quite awhile, now, and I haven’t heard a word from them!” Zark pouts. “The rest of G-Force is standing by in the Ready Room in case they’re needed.”

“Uh oh!” Zark exclaims. “There’s a signal from one of them now!” He flies over to his monitor.

“This is 7-Zark-7! Come in, Princess! I read you!” And yep, we get to see Princess on his monitor. Notice that she’s in full uniform.



“We’ve discovered that the island is being used as a secret base by Spectra!” Princess reports. “Mark has managed to infiltrate their operation in disguise, and he could be in great danger!”



“Big ten, Princess!” Zark replies. “I’m flashing Jason, Tiny
and Keyop right now. They’ll be in the Phoenix and on their way to you in a minute! Over!”

Princess’ image fades out.

Back in the Spectra secret base, Wold tells Zoltar that he will show him a videotape of ‘the Whirlyknife’ in action. Yep, the frisbee is called the Whirlyknife. Who comes up with these names?

“In particular, the rotary knives, the giant bore, and the waterspout generation effect.” Wold continues. “Killion!”

“Unfortunately, this tape doesn’t have the impact of a live demonstration.” Killion apologizes. “Yet you will activate the monitor screen, Ozek.” He points at Mark. Cool! Mark’s goon identity has an actual name!

Mark salutes and moves to press a red button on a nearby panel. We see footage of the Whirlyknife cutting through a mountain and boring into a robot.

“Excellent!” Zoltar smiles. “But I’d like to see your Whirlyknife in operation from onboard the vessel.”

“That can be arranged.” says Killion.

“Then what are we waiting for?” Zoltar wants to know. “Forgive my impatience, but how soon can we do it?”

“Immediately!” Wold replies.

“Men, see that the Whirlyknife is prepared for launching!” Killion orders Mark and Timook.

But Mark takes a quick break to go back and see Princess in the lobster tank. She’s back in civilian clothes now.

“They’re about to launch their Whirlyknife again.” Mark whispers to her. I’m sorry, I’m every time I hear the name ‘Whirlyknife’…

“And I’m going along for the ride.” Mark tells Princess. Then he runs off, before she can answer. She calls after him, but he ignores her.

“Why am I letting him do this by himself?” Princess wonders. She hops out of the lobster and runs off into the base.

Meanwhile, the Whirlyknife is launching. It creates a small waterspout as it does.

“You’ve convinced me!” Zoltar exclaims. “I must have a fleet of these remarkable aerodynes. We will meet your conditions, Dr. Wold! The presidency shall be yours.” Waitaminute. Didn’t Zoltar offer the ‘head of the scientific community’ position not long ago? He must be really impressed with the Whirlyknife for that kind of promotion!

“And in return, Zoltar, the Earth will be yours.” Wold agrees. Everyone laughs their evil laughs.

“Forgive the interruption, Sir, but I’m getting an odd blip on the radar.” Timook reports.

“What’s that?” asks Zoltar, shocked. Why, it’s the Phoenix, of course!

“Oh no!” Zoltar cries in distress. “How does that meddlesome G-Force Team know my every move?”

“Don’t concern yourself!” Killion says. “This is the perfect chance to demonstrate the ship’s effectiveness. And we will win! I’ll stake my reputation on that!”

“You’re also staking my life!” Zoltar snarls.

This is actually kind of a neat setup for the ‘switcheroo’ at the end.

“Lawnmower!” Keyop broops, as he spots the Whirlyknife from the Phoenix. At first I was very confused by this, but now I think I get it. The Whirlyknife kind of looks like the rotary blade of one of those lawn/grass edger things. I think.

“That’s the ship! Just like Princess’ description!” Jason says. When did Princess have time to give them a description? When did she see it to be able to give it the description? We don’t know…

“Are you ready, Tiny?” Jason asks.

“Hey, am I ready?” Tiny laughs, “We’re going to make that pinwheel turn in the opposite direction!”

The Phoenix easily avoids the rotary blades. Meanwhile, Mark is sneaking around the Whirlyknife. He enters the engine room. But someone sticks a gun in his back. It’s Killion, laughing nastily!

“I didn’t trust you right from the start!” Killion says, although he gives no justification for this attitude. He reaches for Mark’s mask, but another goon-green hand grabs his arm and pulls the gun away.

“No! You…” but the goon who grabbed him punches him out. Yep, punches! And we see it! I’m traumatized…

As an aside, this is a very effective cut. We only see a brief flash of the goon, and not enough time to register it’s Princess, so her reveal comes as a surprise to the viewer, just as it does to Mark. It’s much more obvious in Gatch who it is, even before she pulls off the mask.

“You’ll pay for this!” Killion groans, crawling off. Princess removes her mask and winks at Mark.

“Princess!” Mark exclaims. “Where did you get that Spectra outfit?” Duh. She belted a goon, just like you did, Mark. Sigh…

“From a man who put up an awful fuss.” Princess replies.

“I’m glad you showed up.” Mark says, taking off his mask and smiling at her. Awwww….

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 04:44:

Back to the Phoenix, which is now avoiding the bore drill attack of the Whirlyknife.

“Wold, they have outmaneuvered us every time!” Zoltar complains.

“Then we’ll give them a taste of the waterspout!” Wold replies. “There’s no way they can escape that!”

“You told me the Whirlyknife was invincible!” Zoltar accuses. “And it isn’t!”

The Whirlyknife dives into the water, and the ocean starts swirling.

“It’s forming a waterspout!” Jason notes.

“Sheesh!” is Tiny’s eloquent response.

The Phoenix is caught in the waterspout. Jason, Keyop and Tiny don’t look too happy about it.

We cut to some goons holding rifles.

“Hold it!” one of them shouts. Mark and Princess, in full G-Force uniform, drop down from the ceiling. We actually get about three seconds of footage of them kicking the goons. Whoo hoo! BOTP extended fight scene!

The Phoenix is pulled completely into the waterspout.

We get more fight scene… Princess and Mark throw a goon, and Mark throws his sonic boomerang around, knocking out goons. Princess runs to a control panel. She puts her yo-yo bomb inside.

“Mark, it’s set!” she cries, as she runs away. The engine blows up. The Whirlyknife stops whirling and flies away, smoke pouring out.

“Made it!” Keyop shouts happily, as the Phoenix escapes.

“I don’t understand!” Wold shouts, punching buttons. “We seem to be completely out of control!”

“We’re losing power! Everybody abandon ship!” Killion yells.

Onboard the Phoenix, Keyop points at the smoking Whirlyknife.

“Fire!” he burbles.

“It’s going down!” says Jason. He sounds surprised.

On the Whirlyknife, Mark and Princess seem to just jump into the control room.

“So! You never learn, do you, Zoltar?” Mark accuses.

But the ship starts shaking, and everyone slides down to the end of the room. When Zoltar crashes into Mark, the Commander grabs the Spectran Leader by the throat and holds up his fist menacingly.

“Let’s look at you!” Mark growls. Um, if the ship is crashing, shouldn’t Mark have other priorities?

An escape pod jettisons from the Whirlyknife. Mark and Princess jump off of the Whirlyknife with Zoltar as their prisoner.

You know, I remember watching this episode as a kid, and I was really convinced that they had caught Zoltar! I was so surprised… But I recall watching this scene with great excitement.

The Whirlyknife crashes into Shipwreck Island, but we don’t see the island destroyed.

We cut to the Phoenix, where Mark is ripping off Zoltar’s mask.

“At last, we’ve got Zoltar!” Mark shouts. “I’ve waited a long time for this.” But of course, it is Killion who is revealed.

“No! It’s Killion!” Mark exclaims. “He got away again!” Mark throws down Zoltar’s mask angrily.

“Mark…” Princess says soothingly. Suddenly, her hand is on Mark’s shoulder, and Mark is glaring angrily, his hand clenched into a fist. Zark comes on in voiceover, to take the tension out of the scene.

“Once again, Zoltar has managed to elude us,” Zark says, “after forcing Killion to pose for him, so he could escape. But once again, he’s been defeated by G-Force in his constant attempt to conquer Earth and gain its resources for Spectra, his slowly dying planet.”

We cut to Zark on his oil-changing platform.

“And now, I can take a ten second oil break with no worry, since the Team is safely back at Center Neptune.” Zark sighs, reaching for his oil can. And he oils himself.



“Ah, that lightweight oil!” he says. “There’s nothing like it to relax your thermo-couples after a hard day at the binary automatic analyzer.”

And fortunately, that’s all we get, as the episode comes to a close.

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 04:44:

And here are some Gatchafunnies Sosai Tim made from this episode.

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Posted by gatchamarie on 11-01-2010 at 11:50:

<- this is me whilst reading this recap! Great work and comments, TJ ... plus the Gatchafunnies! Jun communicating to the others all data regarding the Mecha was too odd ... I agree ... and I so like an episode in which Ken and Jun are working together (all alone!)! And I always when seeing where Katse had fallen ... or should I say it was Nakamura?! I wonder how he had the time to change his lips from ...



to



... in such a short time!

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To be or not to be a gatchamaniac - that's the dilemma!

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 14:44:

How did he change his lips? Simple! He just wiped the lipstick off with the back of his glove? I'm sure Katse applied it personally....

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Posted by gatchamarie on 11-01-2010 at 17:41:

quote:

Originally posted by Transmute Jun How did he change his lips? Simple! He just wiped the lipstick off with the back of his glove? I'm sure Katse applied it personally....

... maybe with a kiss?!!!!

__________________
To be or not to be a gatchamaniac - that's the dilemma!

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Posted by lborgia88 on 11-01-2010 at 19:18:

Excellent recap! It's been awhile since we had an episode where Ken and Jun pair up together on a mission ("pair up," in all senses ) and they do work well together. I like that fact that the "Bond girl" didn't do as she was told and got to save #7's ass.

quote:

Originally posted by Transmute Jun What do you think?

Years ago, helping the BF clean stuff out of his mother's attic, we came across a toy just like what Jinpei's got. I'd never seen one, but the BF called it a "top" and said it had been his when he was little.

quote:

Originally posted by Transmute Jun

I think this is some BOTP animation I've never seen before -she looks like she's on drugs!

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 11-01-2010 at 21:06:

Also, she's looking UP at Zark, even though he's below her. Maybe she's just desperately trying not to actually have to *look* at him...

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Posted by UnpublishedWriter on 11-01-2010 at 23:51:

I believe Zark was talking about Cape Hatteras, which is in Florida (I think).

Notice that BotP wasn't shy about using real locations. Only a few made-up nations (such as in 'Demons of the Desert') appear. Other times, they just leave places unnamed.

Yeah, I snickered at where 'Katse' landed, also. I'm sure Ken wasn't pleased, either.

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Benefits, not features; benefits, not features

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Posted by tatsunokofan on 12-01-2010 at 00:50:

Hi all!

quote:

You know, now that they’re calling it a top, this does remind me of Jinpei’s Gatchaman Fighter weapon, which actually was a top.

Actually, this mecha is a top too. "Koma" is the Japanese word for top toys, so "Komaking" would be a "Topking," if they translated the meaning behind the name.

James

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 12-01-2010 at 00:56:

quote:

Originally posted by tatsunokofan Actually, this mecha is a top too. "Koma" is the Japanese word for top toys, so "Komaking" would be a "Topking," if they translated the meaning being the name.

So they really are naming mecha after toys... good thing they never made a Barbie mecha!

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Posted by UnpublishedWriter on 12-01-2010 at 02:26:

'Komaking' is still not as goofy as 'Whirlyknife.' Imagine how much tape was filled with voice actors laughing over that.

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Benefits, not features; benefits, not features

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Posted by tatsunokofan on 12-01-2010 at 08:05:

Hi all!

quote:

'Komaking' is still not as goofy as 'Whirlyknife.' Imagine how much tape was filled with voice actors laughing over that.

Very little, I would suspect. You've got to remember that these were veteran actors with decades of combined experience behind them. In the field of voice acting alone, they had spent years working on such series as The Jetsons, Space Ghost, Scooby Doo, Wacky Races, Super Friends, Josie and the Pussycats, Charlie Chan and the Amazing Chan Clan, and numerous others. When you consider what they were exposed to during all those years, I would figure that something like "Whirlyknife" was just another day in the recording studio for them.

James

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Posted by UnpublishedWriter on 12-01-2010 at 10:33:

Even seasoned professionals get the giggles. Of course, it could also happen when the microphone is off.

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Benefits, not features; benefits, not features

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Posted by clouddancer on 12-01-2010 at 13:35:

I don't know why Whirlyknife would give them the giggles. It suited the name of the Mecha, and at the time, as James said, it was very common to give things names that suit them in a child's mind. I think even today they still do that type of thing - give names that describe the item rather than some name that seems "way out."

Although perhaps with Video games these days, kids are seeing more of those "way out there" names.

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Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.

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