Daiku Maryu Gaiking (1976-1977)
Production: Toei Produtions
Episodes: 44
By Jeffrey Couto

Introduction

When I first saw Gaiking I must have been 6 or 7 years old, it aired in Puerto Rico as part of the Force Five block. Its Spanish dub name was "El Gladiador", which literally translated into "The Gladiator", not sure what that had to do with the series, but my guess is that they didn't want kids to confuse this show with Gakeen, which ran as part of the same animation block.

During its TV run I was a huge fan of the program and would often do my best not to miss any episodes. Sadly the show didn't stay on the air for too long and it would not be till I went to college in Maryland that I would get a chance to see it again, this time with the original voice cast and Shunsuke Kikuchi's BGM soundtrack.

The Story

After the planet Zela was swallowed by a black hole, its remaining survivors led by the evil giant Black Darius began preparations to invade a new planet that they would then rebuild as their own, planet Earth.

Thankfully Dr. Daimonji had been preparing for this invasion and was able to create the only weapons powerful enough to defend the planet and strike back at the invaders, the giant blue dragon known as Daiku Maryu and the powerful super robot Gaiking, which was piloted by the famous baseball player Sanshiro Tsuwabuki after he was incapacitated by Zelans who saw his special powers as a threat to their plans. Ultimately it was this special throwing ability that would save the Earth, as Sanshiro channeled it through Gaiking's Hydro Blazer weapon.

Review

Gaiking aired on Japanese television during the golden age of super robot shows and as such encapsulated everything that made these programs so much fun to watch. It had the colorful characters, the physics defying weapons and the classic alien invasion storyline that seemed to be a favorite theme of so many of these programs (Voltes V, Combattler V, Daimos, Grandizer, Ufo Robo Apollon all come to mind).

The show like many others started by introducing us to the main character, Sanshiro Tsuwabuki, who was unknowingly/unwittingly thrown into Gaiking's pilot role by Dr. Daimonji and his staff, at first refusing to accept the job, but eventually agreeing to pilot the giant robot. As the series progressed Tsuwabuki became a more confident pilot and developed new techniques for Gaiking, some of which were crucial to our heroes being able to defeat Black Darius' evil machinations.

Overall, Daiku Maryuu Gaiking's storyline was well paced, with many episodes moving us closer towards the series dramatic conclusion, while still having enough room for one-shot story episodes that allowed the writers to round out and develop the characters further.

The animation is classic Toei quality, with smooth movement and pencil-like shading (if you've seen Mazinger, Grandizer, Gaiking you know what I mean). Shunsuke Kikuchi's BGM for Gaiking is also a stand out collection of heroic super robot music, in the same spirit as those used in Grandizer, Danguard Ace and Kotetsu Jeeg . The opening and closing theme songs are catchy pieces of classic anime music and should be part of every anime fan's soundtrack collection.

Conclusion

Gaiking is one of the most memorable super robot shows ever made and should be part of any animation fan's collection. I also highly recommend it to fans of classic Japanese anime mecha, as the series included many different pieces of arsenal to complement Gaiking and Daiku Maryu. Overall a great series that should be seen by all!

Jeff