title_name=Gigantor
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Gigantor Volume 1 DVD
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鉄人28号
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Gigantor
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Super Robot
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Animanga/Anime| Information
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'' (originally '''''Tetsujin 28-gō''''' 鉄人28号, literally ''Iron Man #28'') was a
Manga by
Mitsuteru Yokoyama published in 1958 which was later made into several
Anime series, the first in 1963. It was the first "giant robot" series.
A live action motion picture with heavy use of computer generated graphics was produced in Japan in
2005 based on the old comics as opposed to the newer version in "New Gigantor" which was translated into many languages including Arabic.
There are many indications that Gigantor is a predecessor to another "
Retro -style" anime,
Giant Robo , including the main characters' design/personality similarities.
Cartoon Network 's
Adult Swim aired the original English version at 5:30 AM (Eastern and Pacific) from Monday/Tuesday overnight to Thursday/Friday overnight, and Saturday/Sunday overnight. It is shown on this block perhaps due to its violent nature for a children's cartoon, and often "comical" portrayals of villain deaths. But others believe it is to attract the adults who once watched this series during its time back in 1968.
The series was shown on as "Animated
Science Fiction series about the world's mightiest robot, and 12 year old Jimmy Sparks who controls the
Jet propelled giant." After the success of Astroboy on the international market, Gigantor became the most popular Japanese export during this time. The idea was simple- a boy named ('''Shotaro Kaneda''' (金田正太郎 ''Kaneda Shōtarō'') in the Japanese version) fights crime around the world with the help of a huge remote controlled robot. Whoever has the remote control, controls Gigantor. The series is set in the year 2000. Gigantor was made of steel, complete with a rocket powered backpack for flight, a pointy nose, eyes that never moved, and incredible strength, but no intelligence. Jimmy is the nephew of '''Dr. Bob Brilliant''' ('''Dr. Shikishima''' (敷島博士 ''Shikishima-hakase'') and lives with him on a remote island. Jimmy usually wears shorts and a jacket, and even carries a
Gun .
Jimmy's voice was that of
Billie Lou Watt (who was female, not male as many people are led to believe). She was also the voice of
Astroboy and
Kimba . The voice of ('''Dr. Oshima''' (大塚署長 ''Ōtsuka-Hakase'')) was
Ray Owens , who also played Dr. Elefun (
Professor Ochanomizu , a.k.a. Dr. O'Shay) from ''Astro Boy'' and Dan'l Baboon from Kimba.
Gilbert Mack was the voice of Dick Strong, who also played Mr. Pompus from ''Astro Boy'' and Pauley Cracker from Kimba.
Peter Fernandez was the voice for many characters as well. In the 2004 version dubbed by
Geneon /
Ocean Group the voice of
Shotaro Kaneda is played by
Reese Thompson (better known as
Taromaru in
InuYasha ).
The names were all whimsical with characters such as Dick Strong who was a secret agent, and a funny policeman named Inspector Blooper who joined with Jimmy, Bob and Gigantor on their adventures against enemies such as the Spider, Ungablob, General Von Que Ball, Dubble Trubble, Dr. Katzmeow, and Prince Abdul Ben Hothead, and there were plenty of other robots that Gigantor had to defeat.
In the last episode titled "The Secret Valley", the Gigantor team decide to holiday in "savages" and, instead of being
Aborigines , are Indians with feathers on their heads riding horses. It showed what little the Japanese knew of Australia at that time. The dubbing team tried to imitate the Australian accents, but didn't come close.
The 1980-81 "Iron Man #28" (Tetsujin Ni Jū Hachi Gō) series was broadcast on America's
Sci-Fi Channel from
9 September 1993 to
30 June 1997 under the name "The New Adventures of Gigantor." There was also a sequel series, "Iron Man #28 FX" (Tetsujin Ni Jū Hachi Gō Efuekkusu), about the son of the original controller operating a new robot (with Daddy and the sound effect-less #28 appearing from time-to-time to help), which ran in Japan in 1992.
2005 saw a rebirth of the ''Tetsujin 28'' franchise. Unlike the past attempts to modernize the franchise, a live action motion picture and accompanying
OVA anime series were produced in the
Retro -style of the original manga/anime series. The new
OVA has been released in the United States under it's original name "Tetsujin 28" by
Geneon , the first time a ''Tetsujin 28'' property has not been localized to "Gigantor" in America. The live action movie remains in Japan only.
