Marvel Tokusatsu! How Spider-Man in Japan, Super Sentai and Power Rangers All Connect
468In 1978, Spider Man went to Japan! He came back empty handed, but set the stage for what eventually became the Power Rangers (Chapter markers and more below...)
0:00 Up Next!
0:14 GTV ID: ‘Nuff Said!
0:20 Prologue: East Meets West
3:37 CM 1: Go Ranger Challenge Machine (Japan, 1975)
3:55 Act 1: Spiderman
10:39 CM 2: Leopardon DX (Japan, 1978)
11:11 Act 2: Battle Fever J
20:43 CM 3: Battle Fever Robo (Japan, 1979)
21:00 Act 3: Denjiman
26:50 CM 4: Denji Tiger (Japan, 1980)
27:22 Act 4: Sun Vulcan
34:02 CM 5: Big Scale Jaguar Vulcan (Japan, 1981)
34:34 Epilogue: The Long Game Never Fails
37:36 NG Scene!
Episode Information
GTV 149 "Marvel Tokusatsu" Season 8 Episode 6
Original Airdate: June 9, 2023
Produced May 18-June 8, 2023
All 193 (or so) episodes were watched between July 2022 and May 2023, often at night, but not muted with subtitles on!
Recorded at Butsudan Studios and edited on my 14” MacBook M1 Pro! Edited and produced with Photoshop, Final Cut Pro, and Topaz AI. All paid for with Gainful Employment™
This video is a follow up to last year's Jetman, based on viewer response and requests
Missed that video? Watch here! https://youtu.be/IPE9Sy1Ofxw
Other GTV episodes with celebrities in them
Double Identity https://youtu.be/sVx-e4obQc0
Guts Pose https://youtu.be/I02u8Br0yhs
For The Record Altered Beast https://youtu.be/cIIw-ypy8Tc
Who Are Kato & Ken? https://youtu.be/CtKuKTSjF_g
Rational Ebullience https://youtu.be/z6psyKzdY4s
Elec-Man VS. Journey https://youtu.be/7GSx_0yMuXo
The Story of Tetris World Champion Evets Kainzow https://youtu.be/Q1BlbGdtGoY
Hulk Hogan Manga Mania! https://youtu.be/ei7wxfKkMnQ
Meet Mr. Sega https://youtu.be/bkOsNYAx90I
Zelda 2 and the 1988 Chip Shortage https://youtu.be/H6zYKiueCEA
Monkey Magic https://youtu.be/V5nmAnmOe7g
Segata Sanshiro https://youtu.be/NBPNcI9OMbk
The Legendary Mother https://youtu.be/7mpAdSpXb0E
Club Nintendo https://youtu.be/TM3oL-xoCO0
Ken Uston: The Gamer Gambler https://youtu.be/4ww3Uy_RHPs
King of Keirin https://youtu.be/LKRjZfKeFsg
Ten Years of Funassyi! https://youtu.be/D1yQfzTO3fc
Kyoro-chan’s Nebulous Journey https://youtu.be/vY-HW2aoKqY
Partial Transcript
On May 17, 1978 a new show, simply titled “Spiderman” Debuted on Tele Tokyo, channel 12 on the old analog dial! And let’s just get it out of the way early, its like nothing you’ve ever seen before! Truly a bizarre case of East meets West!
The story is centered on a young man, Takuya Yamashiro, an up an coming professional motorcycle racer. In the first episode, he witnesses a UFO crash to earth. Lucky for him, Takuya’s father is space archeologist… I had no idea there was such a thing. Together the father and son duo investigate the crash. The ship, named “The Marveler” carries the last survivor of the planet Spider, a man named Garia. Planet Spider was destroyed by the evil army of The Iron Cross, a powerful evil force led by Monster, who plans to conquer the entire universe!
Humans do not have the powers needed to defeat The Iron Cross, but Garia passes on his abilities by injecting his blood into Takuya. Now, becoming the “spider man,” Takuya is given the Spider Bracelet, which holds the Spider Suit and produces an infinite amount of Spider String. Garia, also passes on The Marveler spaceship. Stored inside, is the Spider GP-7, a flying vehicle. The Marveler also transforms in to the Leopardon, a giant fighting robot!
After instructing Takuya to save humanity and the entire universe from Monster, Garia, the final survivor of the planet Spider dies! While all of that would be a lot for anyone take in, Takuya’s father, is killed by Monster while investigating the crash site! The dichotomy of having the weight of the world on your shoulders, unbeknownst to all, while also seeking vengeance against your father is a great setup for the series as well as motivation for Takuya, aka Spiderman.
With his father now gone, Takuya assumes the head of the household, caring for his sister, Shinko and brother Takuji. Takuya also has a girlfriend, Hitomi, who works as a newspaper photographer, though she aspires to be a proper journalist. She is a pivotal character in the series, as her work allows news of the battle between Spiderman and The Iron Cross to reach the public.
Takuya keeps his identity a secret. Even his brother and sister don’t know the truth, setting up some funny situations where Takuya gets admonished for not being a brave man like Spiderman is!