Gatchamania.net - Print: Gatchaman Episode 90: â€œMatangar, the Armored Iron Beastâ€

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--- Gatchaman Episode 90: â€œMatangar, the Armored Iron Beastâ€ (http://www.gatchamania.net/threadid.php?threadid=3328)

Posted by lborgia88 on 24-08-2010 at 05:06:

quote:

Originally posted by Transmute Jun
LB, what a great review! I was ROFL 2

every time you mentioned the incongruity of BOTP calling the thing an armadillo!

I know they often misidentify mecha-animals in BOTP, but it just seemed so blatantly silly in this episode, with half the characters actually calling it a turtle, while the overall story tried to pass it off as an armadillo!

quote:

Originally posted by Transmute Jun
I also think that Finger's outfit is similar to TNG dress uniforms... and he's wearing red, which is a command color in TNG, but an 'expendable' color in TOS. Interestingly, both are correct for this episode... Wink

When Dr. FInger is sitting in his command chair, he really reminds me of a Bond villain. Certainly the bald head seems like a vague 'homage' to Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

Hey, that's perfect -Finger was both "command" and "expendable!" He did look like a Bond villain too though -maybe he should have had a white cat sitting on his lap?

quote:

Originally posted by Transmute Jun
How appropriate, given the 'create your Science Ninja Team' topic I posted today!

Yes, just wait till Keyop finds out I'm making Joe his new leader...

quote:

Originally posted by Unpublished Writer
First thing: the guy's name is 'Finger'. If Gatch had been made by native speakers of English, I'd wonder if they were having a bit of fun.

For BotP: Mark gets a relative out of the blue. A brother. Not even named. Who was he? How did he die? When did he die? Why haven't we heard about him before? They had to do something with that graveside footage.

An interesting episode in the Gatch original, showing us Ken having serious doubts about his mission and whether the result will be worth it.

Yes, "Finger" has to be one of the odder name choices! And as you probably know, it's not a translation of a Japanese word for "Finger" either -they actually say "finger" in the original dialogue. There has to be some sort of joke or reference that we're missing here...

I too would like to know more about Mark's dead brother! Does anyone know if he's ever referred to in any other episodes?

I very much like Ken's own crisis in this episode. It's not very believable that he'd get to episode 90 and not be starting to suffer from the strain of a long war, and I like the way the series has the characters progressing and changing along the way, such that by episode 105, they're so different in many ways from how they were in the first episode.

Posted by gatchamarie on 24-08-2010 at 08:24:

What a tension-filled episode! Thanks for illustrating it in a magnificent way, as always, LB!

I love such episodes ... when there's a moment of reflection, and interior conflict, over how much a war could be of a detriment, instead of blindly killing and fighting without feeling a bit remorseful! We can well see how the war is taking the toll over everyone ... over Ken, mostly, him being a leader with a conscience! But, all the others aren't left uneffected, either!

The first part of the episode makes me chuckle ... I wonder what the Condor might be able to do with a voodoo doll of Katse in his hands!!!

And, as a Ken/Jun shipper, I also loved how Jun has supported the Eagle all the way through, not even verbally contradicting him when she might have had her own doubts! It would have been nice of Ken to treat her better, though! Perhaps, this time, he can be excused due to his inner turmoil! Maybe, Jun could have not been drawn as attractive as always just to help Ken remain focused on his present situation and on the battle!

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

Posted by Transmute Jun on 24-08-2010 at 14:11:

quote:

Originally posted by lborgia88
That's it -she does look a little less feminine than she usually does.

Her neck is awfully long too! Maybe an artist was taking "swan" a little too literally?

To me, it's her throat that bothers me... she looks a bit dumpy there... not the graceful 'Swan-like' neck I associate with her.

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Posted by Transmute Jun on 24-08-2010 at 14:16:

quote:

Originally posted by lborgia88
He did look like a Bond villain too though -maybe he should have had a white cat sitting on his lap?

But then the cat would have died when the mecha blew up... and even in Gatchaman, they don't like to have pets die. Wink

IIRC, this episode was one of the early ones in BOTP. I suspect they simply put in the word 'Brother...' to explain what Mark was doing at the grave in the first place, not realizing its significance. Although why they couldn't have said 'Father', given that Mark was supposed to be an orphan is beyond me,.

I know that Summer39 took that 'Brother...' line and created a 'family' for Mark in her AU which included an older brother who was killed fighting against the Spectrans.

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Posted by UnpublishedWriter on 24-08-2010 at 21:45:

The BotP writers did have translations, although they were rather so-so. Since they consistently ducked the father-son connection (until they could not avoid it), I think they concocted the brother to explain the gravesite visit.

(Yes, many of the episodes are wall-bangers, but I think they would have done a better job if they'd had more time, and had anticipated the possibility of getting the V2 episodes.)

Except for the uncertainty about locations (is the Spectra mech attacking different cities, or parts of the same one?), this looks like a decent adaptation. Nothing clanks too much, and the older or more thoughtful audience members at the time could have supplied their own reasons for Mark's failure to rush in with missiles and the Fiery Phoenix.

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Benefits, not features; benefits, not features

Posted by nuni on 24-08-2010 at 23:44:

Thanks LB and Saturn for a great episode review. You know, I really look forward to them every week. It's a great way to re-experience each one of them.

I absolutely love this episode. The angst ridden Ken in the beginning adds such depth to his character. The series has really developed into so much more than just "destroy the mecha-of-the-week" by this point.

And Joe being given the challenge of hitting this impossible target. It's as if all of his hatred for Galactor being concentrated into one tiny pinpoint of destruction. What a great line "think of it as Katse's heart." Awesome stuff!

quote:

Originally posted by Transmute Jun
When Dr. FInger is sitting in his command chair, he really reminds me of a Bond villain.

Do you think the name Dr. Finger is an homage to Goldfinger?

Posted by Transmute Jun on 25-08-2010 at 01:58:

quote:

Originally posted by nuni
Do you think the name Dr. Finger is an homage to Goldfinger?

I hadn't thought of that, but you might be right! Goldfinger was by far the most popular Bond movie of the 60s...

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Posted by amethyst on 25-08-2010 at 05:42:

Great job, LB!

Only thing I think I can add is back to your Star Trek comment. Looking at the picture of Picard and Riker and then Finger. Put a white beard on Patrick Stewart and he could easily play Finger in a live action version of this episode.

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Perspective Alters Reality

Posted by lborgia88 on 25-08-2010 at 08:12:

quote:

Originally posted by amethyst
Put a white beard on Patrick Stewart and he could easily play Finger in a live action version of this episode.

True! I can just see him saying "Make it so, Number One!" to the head goon of his bridge crew...

Posted by lborgia88 on 25-08-2010 at 08:23:

quote:

Originally posted by Transmute Jun
When Dr. FInger is sitting in his command chair, he really reminds me of a Bond villain. Certainly the bald head seems like a vague 'homage' to Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

quote:

Originally posted by nuni
Do you think the name Dr. Finger is an homage to Goldfinger?

I think you're on to something there! He might have been intended to reference both Blofeld and Goldfinger.

Now that I think about it, maybe him frequently stroking his white beard is meant to represent stroking a white cat a la Blofeld.

Posted by Transmute Jun on 25-08-2010 at 14:31:

We know that the Tatsunoko writers weren't averse to a few Bond references. Just look at the Ghost Island episode!

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