Chargeman Ken!
Chargeman Ken! (チャージマン研!, Chājiman-ken!) is a science fiction anime series created by Eiji Tanaka and animated by Knack Productions. It was directed by Noboru Miura and written by Masaki Wakuda, Toyohiro Ando and Yoshio Tamado. Consisting of 65 7-minute episodes, it originally aired on TBS from April 1, 1974, to June 28, 1974, airing five times a week from Monday to Friday. Discotek Media currently licenses the series outside Japan.[1]
| Chargeman Ken! | |
 Cover for the First DVD Volume. | |
| チャージマン研! (Chājiman-ken!) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Science Fiction |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Noboru Miura |
| Written by | Masaki Wakuda Toyohiro Ando Yoshio Tamado |
| Music by | Kunio Miyaichi |
| Studio | Knack Productions |
| Licensed by | |
| Original network | TBS |
| Original run | April 1, 1974 – June 28, 1974 |
| Episodes | 65 |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Kiyotaka Arashi (1-2) Ryū Morio (3-6) |
| Published by | Tokuma Shoten |
| Magazine | TV Land |
| Original run | March 1, 1974 – August 1, 1974 |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Ikuo Miyazoe |
| Published by | Akita Shoten |
| Magazine | Bōken'ō |
| Original run | April 1, 1974 – July 1, 1974 |
Plot
In a futuristic city, in the year 2074, science has greatly progressed. A race of aliens called the Juralians invade the Earth to steal its resources, and Ken Izumi must become the superhero Chargeman Ken to stop them.
Characters
Humans
- Ken Izumi (泉研, Izumi Ken)
- The protagonist of the franchise, a 10-year-old boy at Yoi primary school, somewhere in Japan. Ken is extremely powerful, able to inflict debilitating punches on a Juralian who has been credibly disguised as a boxing champion. He has the ability to transform into Chargeman Ken when exposed to even a minuscule amount of light, though the total lack of it has prevented him from transforming several times. As Chargeman Ken, he has the mount Sky Rod and carries the Alpha Gun, both of which can instantly kill Juralians by a beam-like attack, and wears the Vizum Belt that can make a lethal vortex of wind. He kills Juralians indiscriminately, even if they are not attacking or are running away. There are several instances of his dispensing with large amounts of hostages in ruthless attacks on Juralian fortifications and transports. Ken's only admitted weakness per se is mathematics, but his hatred for tomato juice has been used to identify his imposter.
- Caron Izumi (泉キャロン, Izumi Kyaron)
- Ken's 7-year-old sister. She has compassion for animals and is often supportive of her brother.
- Hiroshi Izumi (泉博, Izumi Hiroshi)
- Ken and Caron's father. He is described as a physician, though he has never been shown practicing medicine in the anime series. Indeed, his wife has forgotten his profession, and he himself commented on a mental hospital in a derogatory fashion.
- Saori Izumi (泉さおり, Izumi Saori)
- Ken and Caron's mother and Hiroshi's wife.
Juralians
- Maou (魔王, Maō)
- The chief antagonist of the franchise, leader of the Juralians invading Earth. Atypical for Juralians, Maou has two eyes.
- Juralians (ジュラル星人, Juraru Seijin)
- Juralians are vaguely humanoid, maroon-colored, with a slim waist, broad chest, long, tentacle-like limbs, and have a single eye capable of emitting a beam-like attack that can disintegrate any life form it hits and do severe damage to structural members of buildings and towers. They have the ability to transform into other lifeforms, such as humans or horses. Juralians do not have reflections in mirrors, a characteristic used by Ken and other protagonists to distinguish them from humans and robots.
Episode list
| # | Title | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | "Danger!! The Children's Space Station" (Japanese: 危機!! 子供宇宙ステーション) | April 1, 1974 |
| 02 | "Safe by a Hair!" (Japanese: 危機一髪!!) | April 2, 1974 |
| 03 | "The Butterfly Swarm Flutters!" (Japanese: 蝶の大群が舞う) | April 3, 1974 |
| 04 | "The Mysterious Handsome Boy" (Japanese: 謎の美少年) | April 4, 1974 |
| 05 | "Terror! The Mummy Comes by Carriage!" (Japanese: 恐怖! ミイラが馬車でやってくる) | April 5, 1974 |
| 06 | "Uncanny! The Space Botanical Garden" (Japanese: 怪奇! 宇宙植物園) | April 8, 1974 |
| 07 | "Man of the West Ken!" (Japanese: 西部の男・研!) | April 9, 1974 |
| 08 | "Juralian X-6" (Japanese: ジュラル星人X-6号) | April 10, 1974 |
| 09 | "Enter, the Juralmons!" (Japanese: ジュラルモンス登場) | April 11, 1974 |
| 10 | "Barican Runs Amuck!" (Japanese: バリカン大暴れ!) | April 12, 1974 |
| 11 | "Save the Earth!" (Japanese: 地球を守れ!) | April 15, 1974 |
| 12 | "We Can't Eat Vegetable Salad" (Japanese: 野菜サラダが食べられない) | April 16, 1974 |
| 13 | "Showdown! The Undersea City" (Japanese: 対決! 海底都市) | April 17, 1974 |
| 14 | "The Daibutsu that Vanished Into the Night" (Japanese: 闇夜に消えた大仏) | April 18, 1974 |
| 15 | "The Art Gallery Mystery!" (Japanese: 美術館の怪!) | April 19, 1974 |
| 16 | "Murder Record, Melody of Terror!" (Japanese: 殺人レコード 恐怖のメロディー) | April 22, 1974 |
| 17 | "Find Ken's Secret!" (Japanese: 研の秘密を探れ!) | April 23, 1974 |
| 18 | "The Great Escape from Prison Island" (Japanese: 囚人島大脱走) | April 24, 1974 |
| 19 | "Bank Gang - Caron's in Danger!" (Japanese: 銀行ギャング キャロンが危ない) | April 25, 1974 |
| 20 | "Ken Gets a Girlfriend" (Japanese: ガールフレンドが出来た) | April 26, 1974 |
| 21 | "Caron's Present" (Japanese: キャロンへの贈り物) | April 29, 1974 |
| 22 | "Time Bomb Fax TV" (Japanese: 時限爆弾電送テレビ) | April 30, 1974 |
| 23 | "Mental Hospital Terror" (Japanese: 恐怖! 精神病院) | May 1, 1974 |
| 24 | "An Invitation to the Robot Club" (Japanese: ロボットクラブへの招待状) | May 2, 1974 |
| 25 | "Save Young Yuuichi!" (Japanese: 雄一少年を救え!) | May 3, 1974 |
| 26 | "The Girl Who Lost Her Memory" (Japanese: 記憶を無くした少女) | May 6, 1974 |
| 27 | "The Burning Poison Mushroom House" (Japanese: 燃える毒きのこの家) | May 7, 1974 |
| 28 | "Space Rocket Z9" (Japanese: 宇宙ロケットZ9号) | May 8, 1974 |
| 29 | "Rub Out the Fashion Model!" (Japanese: ファッションモデルを消せ!) | May 9, 1974 |
| 30 | "Save Caron From the Top of the Tower!" (Japanese: 塔上のキャロンを救え!) | May 10, 1974 |
| 31 | "Crisis! One Second to Blast" (Japanese: 危機! 爆破1秒前) | May 13, 1974 |
| 32 | "The Master Safe Cracker" (Japanese: 金庫破りの名人) | May 14, 1974 |
| 33 | "Is My Dad Old-Fashioned?" (Japanese: 僕のパパは時代おくれ?) | May 15, 1974 |
| 34 | "Sky Rod, Burrow into the Earth's Depths!" (Japanese: スカイロッド 地底に突っこめ!) | May 16, 1974 |
| 35 | "Dynamite in the Brain!" (Japanese: 頭の中にダイナマイト) | May 17, 1974 |
| 36 | "Shudder! The Devil's Hospital" (Japanese: 戦慄! 悪魔の病院) | May 20, 1974 |
| 37 | "Beat the Hijack" (Japanese: ハイジャックをやっつけろ!) | May 21, 1974 |
| 38 | "Operation Juralian Fake Friendship" (Japanese: ジュラルのニセ友情作戦) | May 22, 1974 |
| 39 | "The Pretty Boy Robot is a Herald of Death" (Japanese: 美人ロボットは殺しの使者) | May 23, 1974 |
| 40 | "Race on Murder Highway" (Japanese: 疾走! 殺人ハイウェイ) | May 24, 1974 |
| 41 | "Cinderella Girl" (Japanese: シンデレラの少女) | May 27, 1974 |
| 42 | "The Air Force Base is Targeted!" (Japanese: 空軍基地が狙われている!) | May 28, 1974 |
| 43 | "Peer Through the Camera Viewfinder!" (Japanese: カメラのファインダーを覗け!) | May 29, 1974 |
| 44 | "Beat the Fake Ken!" (Japanese: 研の偽者をやっつけろ!) | May 30, 1974 |
| 45 | "When the Cuckoo Clock Strikes Three" (Japanese: 鳩時計が3時を指したら) | May 31, 1974 |
| 46 | "Terror! The House of the White-Haired Crone!" (Japanese: 恐怖! 白髪老婆の家) | June 3, 1974 |
| 47 | "The Great Juralian Counterattack" (Japanese: ジュラルの大逆襲) | June 4, 1974 |
| 48 | "Showdown on the Solitary Island!" (Japanese: 孤島の対決!) | June 5, 1974 |
| 49 | "The Delinquent's True Colors" (Japanese: 不良少年の正体は!) | June 6, 1974 |
| 50 | "Save the Orphan Center!" (Japanese: みなし子センターを救え!) | June 7, 1974 |
| 51 | "Stray Dog Koro" (Japanese: 捨て犬コロ) | June 10, 1974 |
| 52 | "Blow Up the Undersea Oil Field!" (Japanese: 海底油田を爆破しろ!) | June 11, 1974 |
| 53 | "The Suspicious Bride" (Japanese: 怪しい花嫁) | June 12, 1974 |
| 54 | "Spooky! The Waxwork Museum" (Japanese: 怪奇! ロウ人形館) | June 13, 1974 |
| 55 | "The Ones They Met in Egypt" (Japanese: エジプトで出会ったやつ) | June 14, 1974 |
| 56 | "Runaway! Horseback Ken" (Japanese: 暴走! 馬上の研) | June 17, 1974 |
| 57 | "The Antarctic Amusement Park" (Japanese: 南極遊園地) | June 18, 1974 |
| 58 | "Circus of Fiends" (Japanese: 悪魔のサーカス団) | June 19, 1974 |
| 59 | "Forest of Terror" (Japanese: 恐怖の森) | June 20, 1974 |
| 60 | "Tsunami Attack" (Japanese: 大津波の襲撃) | June 21, 1974 |
| 61 | "Barican's Old Friend Pays a Visit" (Japanese: バリカンの旧友が尋ねて来た) | June 24, 1974 |
| 62 | "Crisis at the Agricultural Complex!" (Japanese: 農業コンビナートの危機) | June 25, 1974 |
| 63 | "Defeat the Murderous Boxer!" (Japanese: 殺人ボクサーを倒せ!) | June 26, 1974 |
| 64 | "Explosion! The Mammoth Control Center" (Japanese: 爆発! マンモスコントロールセンター) | June 27, 1974 |
| 65 | "Victory! Chargeman Ken!" (Japanese: 勝利! チャージマン研) | June 28, 1974 |
Production and cult status
Most of the staff had previously worked on Knack’s Super Robot anime Astroganger, which had a very similar plot and character design. Due to lack of credits, the identities of its voice cast (save for the main villain) remain unknown to this day.
After its initial broadcast, the show remained obscure until 2007, when it was released on DVD and uploaded to the video-sharing site Nico Nico Douga. The show quickly gained a cult reputation as “so bad it’s good” due to its ridiculous dialogue, limited animation and sound effects, the ineptitude of the villains and the cruelty of Ken, the “hero” of the show. It then became a popular internet meme, leading to dozens of video remixes and MADs.[2] An original soundtrack was released in 2010.[3] Discotek Media released the entire series on DVD in North America on October 31, 2017.[4]
A stage musical based on the series ran from October 31 to November 6, 2019, in Tokyo.[5]
References
- http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2016/08/13-1/discotek-licenses-charge-man-ken-urusei-yatsura-beautiful-dreamer-arcadia-of-my-youth-and-more-lupin
- Cartoon Research. "Worst Anime Ever: "Chargeman Ken" (1974)". Retrieved 19 February 2014.
- Amazon Japan. "Chargeman Ken! Tribute to Soundtracks. Vol. 1". Retrieved 19 February 2014.
- @discotekmedia (2017-07-17). "The action-packed unintended comedy CHARGEMAN KEN Complete series set, coming to DVD on Halloween Day (Oct 31)!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- Anime News Network. "Chargeman Ken! Anime Gets Stage Musical Adaptation This Fall". Retrieved May 30, 2019.
External links
- "Official website (Japanese)". Archived from the original on 2010-08-22. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
- Chargeman Ken! (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
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