Chargeman Ken!
| 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 |
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. Discotek Media currently licensed the series outside Japan.[1]
Plot
The show takes place in a futuristic city, where science has greatly progressed. A race of aliens called the Jurals invade the Earth to steal its resources, and Ken Izumi must become the superhero Chargeman Ken to stop them.
Episode listing
| # | Title | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | "Danger!! The Children's Space Station" (危機!! 子供宇宙ステーション) | April 1, 1974 |
| 02 | "Safe by a Hair!!!" (危機一髪!!) | April 2, 1974 |
| 03 | "The Butterfly Swarm Flutters!" (蝶の大群が舞う) | April 3, 1974 |
| 04 | "The Mysterious Handsome Boy" (謎の美少年) | April 4, 1974 |
| 05 | "Terror! The Mummy Comes by Carriage!" (恐怖! ミイラが馬車でやってくる) | April 5, 1974 |
| 06 | "Uncanny! The Space Botanical Garden" (怪奇! 宇宙植物園) | April 8, 1974 |
| 07 | "Man of the West Ken!" (西部の男・研!) | April 9, 1974 |
| 08 | "Juralian X-6" (ジュラル星人X-6号) | April 10, 1974 |
| 09 | "Enter, the Juralmons!" (ジュラルモンス登場) | April 11, 1974 |
| 10 | "Barican Runs Amuck!" (バリカン大暴れ!) | April 12, 1974 |
| 11 | "Save the Earth!" (地球を守れ!) | April 15, 1974 |
| 12 | "We Can`t Eat Vegetable Salad" (野菜サラダが食べられない) | April 16, 1974 |
| 13 | "Showdown! The Undersea City" (対決! 海底都市) | April 17, 1974 |
| 14 | "The Daibutsu That Vanished into the Night" (闇夜に消えた大仏) | April 18, 1974 |
| 15 | "The Art Gallery Mystery!" (美術館の怪!) | April 19, 1974 |
| 16 | "Murder Record, Melody of Terror!" (殺人レコード 恐怖のメロディー) | April 22, 1974 |
| 17 | "Find Ken's Secret!" (研の秘密を探れ!) | April 23, 1974 |
| 18 | "The Great Escape from Prison Island" (囚人島大脱走) | April 24, 1974 |
| 19 | "Bank Gang: Caron's in Danger!" (銀行ギャング キャロンが危ない) | April 25, 1974 |
| 20 | "Ken Gets a Girlfriend" (ガールフレンドが出来た) | April 26, 1974 |
| 21 | "Caron's Present" (キャロンへの贈り物) | April 29, 1974 |
| 22 | "Time Bomb Fax TV" (時限爆弾電送テレビ) | April 30, 1974 |
| 23 | "Mental Hospital Terror!" (恐怖! 精神病院) | May 1, 1974 |
| 24 | "An Invitation to the Robot Club" (ロボットクラブへの招待状) | May 2, 1974 |
| 25 | "Save Young Yuuichi!" (雄一少年を救え!) | May 3, 1974 |
| 26 | "The Girl Who Lost Her Memory" (記憶を無くした少女) | May 6, 1974 |
| 27 | "The Burning Poison Mushroom House" (燃える毒きのこの家) | May 7, 1974 |
| 28 | "Space Rocket Z9" (宇宙ロケットZ9号) | May 8, 1974 |
| 29 | "Rub Out the Fashion Model!" (ファッションモデルを消せ!) | May 9, 1974 |
| 30 | "Save Caron from the Top of the Tower!" (塔上のキャロンを救え!) | May 10, 1974 |
| 31 | "Crisis! One Second to Blast" (危機! 爆破1秒前) | May 13, 1974 |
| 32 | "The Master Safe Cracker" (金庫破りの名人) | May 14, 1974 |
| 33 | "Is My Dad Old-Fashioned?" (僕のパパは時代おくれ?) | May 15, 1974 |
| 34 | "Sky Rod, Burrow into the Earth's Depths!" (スカイロッド 地底に突っこめ!) | May 16, 1974 |
| 35 | "Dynamite in the Brain!" (頭の中にダイナマイト) | May 17, 1974 |
| 36 | "Shudder! The Devil's Hospital" (戦慄! 悪魔の病院) | May 20, 1974 |
| 37 | "Beat the Hijack!" (ハイジャックをやっつけろ!) | May 21, 1974 |
| 38 | "Operation Juralian Fake Friendship" (ジュラルのニセ友情作戦) | May 22, 1974 |
| 39 | "The Pretty Robot is a Herald of Death" (美人ロボットは殺しの使者) | May 23, 1974 |
| 40 | "Race on Murder Highway!" (疾走! 殺人ハイウェイ) | May 24, 1974 |
| 41 | "Cinderella Girl" (シンデレラの少女) | May 27, 1974 |
| 42 | "The Air Force Base is Targeted!" (空軍基地が狙われている!) | May 28, 1974 |
| 43 | "Peer Through the Camera Viewfinder!" (カメラのファインダーを覗け!) | May 29, 1974 |
| 44 | "Beat the Fake Ken!" (研の偽者をやっつけろ!) | May 30, 1974 |
| 45 | "When the Cuckoo Clock Strikes Three" (鳩時計が3時を指したら) | May 31, 1974 |
| 46 | "Terror! The House of the White-Haired Crone!" (恐怖! 白髪老婆の家) | June 3, 1974 |
| 47 | "The Great Juralian Counterattack" (ジュラルの大逆襲) | June 4, 1974 |
| 48 | "Showdown on the Solitary Island!" (孤島の対決!) | June 5, 1974 |
| 49 | "The Delinquent's True Colors!" (不良少年の正体は!) | June 6, 1974 |
| 50 | "Save the Orphan Center!" (みなし子センターを救え!) | June 7, 1974 |
| 51 | "Stray Dog Koro" (捨て犬コロ) | June 10, 1974 |
| 52 | "Blow Up the Undersea Oil Field!" (海底油田を爆破しろ!) | June 11, 1974 |
| 53 | "The Suspicious Bride" (怪しい花嫁) | June 12, 1974 |
| 54 | "Spooky! The Waxwork Museum" (怪奇! ロウ人形館) | June 13, 1974 |
| 55 | "The Ones They Met in Egypt" (エジプトで出会ったやつ) | June 14, 1974 |
| 56 | "Runaway! Horseback Ken" (暴走! 馬上の研) | June 17, 1974 |
| 57 | "The Antarctic Amusement Park" (南極遊園地) | June 18, 1974 |
| 58 | "Circus of Fiends" (悪魔のサーカス団) | June 19, 1974 |
| 59 | "Forest of Terror" (恐怖の森) | June 20, 1974 |
| 60 | "Tsunami Attack" (大津波の襲撃) | June 21, 1974 |
| 61 | "Barican's Old Friend Pays a Visit" (バリカンの旧友が尋ねて来た) | June 24, 1974 |
| 62 | "Crisis at the Agricultural Complex!" (農業コンビナートの危機) | June 25, 1974 |
| 63 | "Defeat the Murderous Boxer!" (殺人ボクサーを倒せ!) | June 26, 1974 |
| 64 | "Explosion! The Mammoth Control Center" (爆発! マンモスコントロールセンター) | June 27, 1974 |
| 65 | "Victory! Chargeman Ken" (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 on October 31, 2017.[4]
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.
External links
- "Official website (Japanese)". Archived from the original on 2015-09-25. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
- Chargeman Ken! (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia