Gatchaman: The Legend Begins

Reviewed By: Carla Land

ADV Films DVD 2005

Review based on volume 1 (episodes 1-6)

Rating NR

What it’s (basically) all about: The Science Ninja Team, lead by Gatchaman, are on a mission to find the headquarters of the evil Galactor group and stop them from taking over the world. By working together as a team, they are Earth’s only hope. But can a bunch of teenagers in disguise really save us?

Nitty Gritty: Anime Network and Newtype-USA promos kick off the disk.

This is an older anime- in the 1970’s and 80’s it was re-cut and released as “Battle of the Planets” and “G-force,” respectively. This version is the original series.

Violence isn’t graphic, but it’s more than you would normally see on a classic Saturday Morning. People do get killed, but not in gory ways (aircraft gets shot down, or a building gets smashed.) Bad guys who fail are usually executed in some way, too. Language is limited to “damn” and “hell” in the subtitles. The dub has a couple additional words, like “sucks.” Characters also light and smoke cigarettes and cigars on screen.

Special features include clean closing animation, Episode 5 and 6 commentaries with the director and some of the voice actors, Gatchaman Karaoke (not just the theme song, but the entire first episode!), and DVD credits. Previews included are for Gilgamesh, Robotech, DN Angel, Cromartie High School, My Beautiful Girl Mari, and The Place Promised in Our Early Days. There is also a preview for volume 2 on the main menu.

Survey says: This would be fine for teen collections. If it weren’t for the violence, I’d say this was acceptable for children’s/ juvenile collections.

Personal Ad: The retro feel for this show is going to make it popular with adults. Anyone who watched “Battle of the Planets” and “G-force” will remember these episodes, and anyone who didn’t will still feel nostalgic. It’s kind of like a cross between the Super Friends and Scooby-Doo. Older teens might appreciate it, too, but younger teens may feel the animation is too old to be enjoyable.