Customer Reviews

G-Force: Animated

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This official guidebook is a wealth of information, not only for the 1978 series BATTLE OF THE PLANETS, but the original 1972 Japanese anime series GATCHAMAN from which it was created. I grew up on BOTP, but years later discovered its very different and much more adult oriented series that it was put together from. Did you ever wonder why the show was altered so much when brought to American audiences? Did you ever wonder why a sci-fi space theme was added where it previously did not exist? Did you ever wonder why a very familiar looking robot was needed to host the American version? Whichever version of the show that you are a fan of, this book will satisfy your quest for knowledge.

The first chapter is dedicated to giving a overall history of the original series created by Tatsunoko Productions, providing a rare glimpse into the creation process of the popular Japanese animation studio. Lots of many interesting facts about the series are revealed, from the inspiration for the series to the reasons for its success, as well as the key factor leading to why the following sequel series GATCHAMAN II and GATCHAMAN FIGHTER failed to live up to overall expectations. There are even details of attempts that have been made to re-visualize a brand new series for the future, whether or not it ever actually happens! Many things are revealed here that I never knew previously, which makes this book a must have for any casual GATCHAMAN fan!

The book then shifts gears and details businessman Sandy Frank, who was a pioneer in creating first-run syndicated programming for television, revealing the whole story of how he came into contact with the GATCHAMAN series and what inspired him to bring it to America in a different incarnation. The book sheds light on many of the obstacles that stood in his way, as well as the huge amount of time and effort that were spent putting the new production together. Find out all the details on what was required to bring the new characters to life. If you ever wondered who was responsible for 7-Zark-7 or how Casey Kasem became involved with the project, your answers will be found here! I now understand the thinking that went on behind the scenes and will no longer scratch my head in disbelief when comparing the two versions of the series!

The book is also loaded with plenty of great artwork and clips from the series, as well as previously unreleased materials and early production concepts and designs. Did you ever wonder what the never shown female robot Susan looked like, a picture of her from the French version of BOTP is included as a bonus! There are profiles for all of the main characters and villains of the Sandy Frank series, as well as biographies (and interviews with) the amazing voice cast. There is a section on the music of the show, as well as merchandising. Also included is an interview with Alex Ross as he discusses his ideas for the new comic series currently in release.

All in all, this book is very entertaining and informative if you are a fan of GATCHAMAN or BATTLE OF THE PLANETS, but I wish that it would have devoted a bit more time to the original Tatsunoko incarnation too! It is a fascinating look at how the show was Americanized, but I would like to have seen more information on GATCHAMAN's original Japanese form in conjunction with BOTP!

First of all, *ANYTHING* from Two Morrows publishing is going to be great. They don't solicit anything, they let people who are passionate about their ideas come to them, then TM polishes and publishes it.

G-force: Animated, is not exception to this rule. The book is divided into nine chapters:

Chapter 1: Covers the history of Gatchaman, the early 70's show from Tatsunoko upon which Battle of the Planets (BOTP) was based. It's got fascinating interviews with the original creators from Tatsunoko animation (who gave us Speed Racer, Robotech, and many others). It includes original character sketches and concept art, and is by far the most interesting chapter of the book. In fact, reading this chapter made me wish the book were about Gatchaman and included it's various English dubbed shows, rather than a book about BOTP which touches on Tatsunokos Gatchaman. The interviews reveal that the creators actually had something to say--Science Ninja Team Gatchaman was about man's struggle with technology; Galactor used it for evil, while Gatchaman used it for good. Why was the team dressed up like birds? The original Japanese creators, who were children during the American occupation of Japan after WWII, were heavily influenced by the super-hero comics the GI's would give to them. Again, tons of great info in this chapter.

Chap 2: History of BOTP, shows how Tatsunoko tried to sell the show internationally for a few years (that process is interesting too--apparently there are/were international animation shows were producers shopped around for such things). Finally, after Star Wars came out, Sandy Frank decided to take Gatch and tweak it into BOTP. The largely earth-bound episodes suddenly became cosmic. The gritty violence of the original series (really not that bad by todays standards) was cut, and the replaced with a silly robot narrator with a remarkable similiarity to R2-D2.

Chap 3: Character Handbook. This chapter has a few sketches and about a page each of description and backstory for the BOTP (not Gatchaman!) characters. It has the five from G-force, Chief Anderson, Zoltar, the Luminous One, and Colonel Chronos. This chapter does all right, but if you watch the new ADV releases of Gatchaman (the original Japanese show), you see how the BOTP characters were really dumbed down.

Chap 4: Art Gallery. Gorgeous sketches, animation cells, and other art. Not much to comment on, but a definite thumbs up.

Chap 5: Music. It didn't sound exciting to me at first, but this is a great chapter and makes you realize how important it is to the show. Despite it being a dumbed-down version, BOTP had FANTASTIC music. Don't you remember the opening score? This is the kind of information you can't find anywhere, even on the few good Gatchaman/BOTP websites out there. It's something I didn't have much interest, but that after I read I found fascinating. That's sort of a calling card for Two Morrows material by the way.

Chap 6: Episode Guide. This has a paragraph description of each of the 85 BOTP episodes in order, and includes the corresponding Gatchaman episode number. This chapter made it clear to me that this is a BOTP book, not a Gatchaman book. As we learned earlier, Sandy Frank wanted a series where the viewer could catch any episode and not need to have seen a previous one. The original Gatchaman had character growth, struggle, and teased the audience with enigmatic plot points that rewarded the viewer for careful attention. Having seen or even just being familiar with some of the orignal arcs (Joe's illness, Ken's father, and Zoltar /Berg Katse's secret, to name a few), it's frustrating to read things like "Joe had a headache and couldn't fight well, but was better later". That's a para-phrase by the way, the write ups are written very well.

Chap 7: Voices. Wow. While the original series was great across the board (voice-acting, story, animation, and music), the dubbed versions have been inconsistent. G-force, Gaurdians of Space was much truer to the original Japanese show, but had HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE music and unenthusiastic voice-acting. Having read that before I'd seen G-Force (a dubbed version different from BOTP), I thought it'd be more enjoyable than BOTP. I was wrong. The voice-acting in BOTP (and the music) actually make it the more enjoyable show. This chapter has interviews with Janet Waldo, Casey Kasem, and others. It shows what they of the series while they were doing it and what they think of it now, plus it's interesting to hear on the production side how the voices are done.

Chap 8: Merchandise. Fascinating look at the international merchandise, with pictures of comics, lunch-boxes, viewmasters, boardgames and everything else--oh, and this is international merchandise, which gives you a great idea of how popular BOTP was (and NOT Gatchaman) in Europe and across the globe. I thought it was very revealing that the Japanese show was sold to Americans, who repackaged it and then sold it around the world. It seemed a bit exploitative almost, although that's certainly not what the book is trying to tell you, it's my own inferrence.

Chapter 9: The future. Talks about the OAV release and update of Gatchaman, plans for a kiddy-friendly version & another more adult version (both of which lost momentum and are no more). It also talks about how in 2000 a Japanese phone company used some live action Gatchaman and 25 years after it originally aired, it was still a great success. Another chapter with information you're not going to get anywhere.

The book also includes an interview with Alex Ross, the artist on MARVELS, Kingdom Come, and other stuff. He's a huge BOTP fan, and provides all the gorgeous paintings of G-force you see. It's very informative.

In Summary: If you're at all a fan of Battle of the Planets, G-force: Guardians of Space, Gatchaman, or Eagle Riders, this is a book for you. If you see the guy on the cover and say to yourself, "man, that's Mark (or Ken, or Ace, or...) than this is a book for you. If you're too young for BOTP but admire the animation style, this is a book for you. I was able to spend plenty of time on the book (I disagree with the "two hour read" review), and think it's well worth it.

So please, get the book, get either the BOTP DVDs from Rhino with Gatch and G-force episodes, or get the ADV releases of Gatchaman. Also, check out Two Morrows and find more stuff you'll love. And no, I don't work there or know anybody who does!

G-Force: Animated is a short, sweet book that gives everything a fan wants. From some background information on Tatsunoko Studio to showcasing worldwide merchandise, this book is necessary for your 'Battle of the Planets' collection!

An official suggested episode running order is included with an extensive art gallery. Pieces of trivia are found throughout the book adding to the understanding of this show which influenced a great many people during their childhoods.

Unless you are a big Battle of the Planets fan DO NOT waste your time buying this book. I wanted to read the history of GATCHAMAN and the related shows and all I got was this retro 70's nonsense. Reading the book made me realize how lame BOTP really was compared to the original show.