is a Japanese
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
television series produced by
Sunrise
Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon and its accompanying atmospheric effects.
Terminology
Al ...
's internal "Studio 7" division alongside Tokyu Agency. It is the eighth and final installment in
Takara
Takara Co., Ltd. (株式会社タカラ) was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. In March 2006, the company merged with Tomy Co., Ltd. to form Takara Tomy. The Takara motto was 遊びは文化」("playing is culture").
Products Toys
In ...
's ''
Brave series
The is a Japanese toy and anime franchise originally produced by Sunrise (now the primary division of Bandai Namco Filmworks), Nagoya TV, Victor Entertainment and Tokyu Agency, originally created by Takara (now Takara Tomy). The franchise ran fr ...
'' franchise. It is directed by
Yoshitomo Yonetani
is a Japanese animator, storyboard artist, and director. Some of his major works directed include ''The King of Braves GaoGaiGar'', '' Betterman'', and '' Brigadoon: Marin & Melan''. He also directed the anime adaptation of '' Food Wars!: Shokuge ...
, with Yoshitake Suzuki handling series scripts,
Takahiro Kimura
is a Japanese animator, illustrator and character designer.
Works
*''City Hunter 3'' (Key animation)
*'' Idol Tenshi Yokoso Yōko'' (Key animation)
*''Dirty Pair Flash'' (Character design, animation director)
*''Mobile Fighter G Gundam'' (Chie ...
designing the characters,
Kunio Okawara
is a mechanical designer in the Japanese anime industry. Okawara was the first in the industry to be specifically credited as a mechanical designer. He designed mecha for the ''Gundam'' and ''Brave Series'' franchises, as well as those of numerou ...
designing the mechanical elements, Tomoaki Okada serving as art director and
Kohei Tanaka producing the music. The series aired in
Nagoya TV
JOLX-DTV, virtual channel 6 (UHF digital channel 22), branded as is the Chūbu region flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the All-Nippon News Network, owned by the , with its headquarters in Nagoya. It is broadcast in Aichi Prefectur ...
and
TV Asahi
JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Compan ...
affiliate stations from February 1, 1997, to January 31, 1998.
Plot
On a winter night, a mysterious mechanical lion came flying in front of a married couple, carrying a mysterious baby with it. As they took the baby in, the lion left them in confusion. About 7 years later, the space shuttle Spirits, in which high school astronaut Guy Shishioh is a passenger, collides with an unknown object bound to Earth. Despite being mortally wounded, he is rescued by the same mysterious lion and returns to Earth. In his hand, he holds a mysterious green jewel as Leo Shishioh uses it to revive Gai into a
cyborg
A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline. .
Two years later in 2005, the mysterious baby under the care of the Amami couple, now named Mamoru, is living his life normally. This until the mysterious group known as Zonders begin their invasion of Earth. As a response, the Earth Defense Brigade Gutsy Geoid Guard, or GGG, was organized to fight against the Zonders. In an attack by the Zonders, the mysterious boy encountered Guy, who is now a member of GGG. Equipped with the green jewel, known as G-Stone, he becomes the pilot of the lion robot that saved him. Named Galeon, he fuses with it alongside 3 assist vehicles created by GGG to become the giant robot GaoGaiGar. After the battle against one of the Zonders, GGG discovered that Mamoru can purify people who became Zonders and wondered about his origins and how it was linked to the appearance of the Zonders.
Development
''The King of Braves GaoGaiGar'' was produced by Sunrise, with Takara promoting the toys for the series. Billed as the final installment of the ''Brave'' series, director
Yoshitomo Yonetani
is a Japanese animator, storyboard artist, and director. Some of his major works directed include ''The King of Braves GaoGaiGar'', '' Betterman'', and '' Brigadoon: Marin & Melan''. He also directed the anime adaptation of '' Food Wars!: Shokuge ...
originally named the series as "The King of Braves Gaggatti" as well as other proposed names such as "GargaiGaa" and ""GO Gieger" until the finalized name is accepted. The series' overall theme was based on the folktale ''
The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter
is a (fictional prose narrative) containing elements of Japanese folklore. Written by an unknown author in the late 9th or early 10th century during the Heian period, it is considered the oldest surviving work in the form.
The story detail ...
'', reflecting on the strange origins of Mamoru Amami, the series' kid protagonist alongside the message of "If you have the courage, you can call in any miracle", woven into the series' narrative.
In order to differentiate it from the other ''Brave'' series, Real Robot terms and concepts alongside Super Robot concepts were woven into the narrative, in which is much more ambitious in execution.
Throughout the whole story, the narrative is made similar to a hot-blooded
manga
Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...
, centering on the battle between a powerful extraterrestrial life form and a giant robot that brings together the best of human science, while incorporating detailed mechanic depictions each time throughout the series.
The creation of such realistic-oriented mecha designs has also influenced the development of toys, and the gap between the depiction of the mechas in animation and the toys that were actually commercialized, which was remarkable than the previous series. In order to fill in the above, the series takes a stance in the animation production side and propose to toy makers more than ever.
As a result, elements that have been regarded as "standard" in the ''Brave'' series, such as swords and guns as deadly weapons, power-ups in the form of "Super Combinations", have been eliminated in the series. In both the depiction in the series and the toys, the gimmicks and individuality of each mecha have become more fleshed out.
Media
Anime
''The King of Braves GaoGaiGar'' aired on Nagoya TV from February 1, 1997, to January 31, 1998, consisting of 49 episodes.
Masaaki Endoh
is a Japanese singer-songwriter who is prominent in the area of soundtracks for anime and tokusatsu productions. He is one of the founders of the Anison band JAM Project and has been a regular member ever since its inception in 2000. His nickn ...
performed the series' opening theme while
Satoko Shimonari
is a Japanese singer and occasional actress. She married Seiji Kameda, a musician.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shimonari Satoko
1961 births
Living people
Anime musicians
Japanese actresses
Japanese women pop singer ...
performed the series' ending theme .
Media Blasters
Media Blasters, sometimes abbreviated as MB, is an American entertainment corporation that was founded by John Sirabella in 1997 and is based in New York City. It is in the business of licensing, translating, and releasing to the North American ...
once licensed the series on April 19, 2006, for
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
n territories in DVD format, with only 25 out of the 49 episodes dubbed in English. But due to multiple issues followed with poor sales, the series was dropped. The show was available as part of a digital subscription package from
Daisuki until the service was terminated in 2017.
Muse Communication
Muse Communication Co., Ltd. (also known simply as Muse) is a Taiwanese distributor and licensor that specializes in the distribution of anime. Based in Xinzhuang District, New Taipei City, the company also distributes Asian and European films i ...
later licensed the series alongside its sequel, with Muse Asia's
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
Channel streaming the series in
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
n territories on February 1, 2022.
Discotek Media
Discotek Media is an American entertainment company based in Altamonte Springs, Florida, focused on distribution and licensing Japanese anime, films, and television series.
Formed in 2005, Discotek primarily focuses on licensing retro titles fr ...
later rescued the license from Media Blasters and announced to release the series, alongside the OVA sequel, on Blu-ray in Winter 2023.
The show's popularity later resulted in the production of the eight–part sequel
OVA
, abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the first part of an OVA s ...
''
The King of Braves GaoGaiGar Final'', released from January 21, 2000, to March 21, 2003, and the spinpoff TV series ''
Betterman'', which aired in
TV Tokyo
JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as and known colloquially as , is a television station headquartered in the Sumitomo Fudosan Roppongi Grand Tower in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, owned and operated by the subsidiary of listed certified b ...
from April 1, 1999, to September 30, 1999.
Episodes
Video games
The series received a video game spinoff titled which was published by
Takara
Takara Co., Ltd. (株式会社タカラ) was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955. In March 2006, the company merged with Tomy Co., Ltd. to form Takara Tomy. The Takara motto was 遊びは文化」("playing is culture").
Products Toys
In ...
and released for the
PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
on April 8, 1999. The series also appeared in Takara's other video game series: 2000's ''Brave Saga 2'' for the PlayStation, 2001's ''Brave Saga New Astaria'' for the
Game Boy Color
The (commonly abbreviated as GBC) is a handheld game console, manufactured by Nintendo, which was released in Japan on October 21, 1998 and to international markets that November. It is the successor to the Game Boy and is part of the Game ...
and 2005's ''New Century Brave Wars'' for the
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...
. The series also made appearances in the ''Sunrise Eiyuutan'' series. GaoGaiGar has later appeared in the long running ''
Super Robot Wars
''Super Robot Wars'', known in Japan as is a series of tactical role-playing video games produced by Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Banpresto. Starting out as a spinoff of the ''Compati Hero'' series, the main feature of the franchise is ...
'' franchise, beginning with the ''
2nd Super Robot Wars Alpha
This list provides an index of video game titles in Banpresto's ''Super Robot Wars'' franchise, known as ''Super Robot Taisen'' in Japan. Most of the games in the series are tactical role-playing games, but several games representing other genres ...
''.
Novel
A novel spinoff titled was published by
Media Factory
, formerly is a Japanese publisher and brand company of Kadokawa Future Publishing.
History
It was founded on December 1, 1986, and its headquarters are situated in Shibuya, Tokyo. It is a subsidiary of Recruit Co., Ltd. Media Factory was possi ...
on December 1, 2003, written by Yuichiro Takeda and illustrated by Takahiro Kimura and Seiichi Nakatani. The novel takes place after the events of the series and before the events of FINAL, focusing on Renais Kaldiff Shishioh, her origins and her fight against the criminal organization named BioNet.
See also
* ''
The King of Braves GaoGaiGar Final''
* ''
Betterman''
References
* "Brave Goukin GaoFighter" (November 2006). ''Newtype USA''. p. 126.
External links
*
*
The King of Braves GaoGaiGar pachinko game
{{DEFAULTSORT:King of Braves GaoGaiGar
1997 anime television series debuts
Television series set in the future
Adventure anime and manga
Alien invasions in television
Brave series
MF Bunko J
Muse Communication
Sunrise (company)
Super robot anime and manga
Television series set in 2005
Television shows set in Tokyo
Video games about mecha
Super Robot Wars