Grendizer

Grendizer
Genre	Mecha, Science Fiction, Shounen
Manga
Written by	Go Nagai
Anime
Studio	Toei
Anime
UFO Robot Grendizer vs. Great Mazinger
Anime
Great Mazinger, Grendizer, Getter Robo G: Decisive Showdown! Great Sea Beast

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UFO Robot Grendizer (UFOロボ・グレンダイザー, UFOrobo gurendaizā), also known as Grandizer in English, is a mecha anime show created by Japanese anime artist Go Nagai. It was shown on Japanese TV in 1975 and lasted 74 episodes.

Grendizer is a fictional mecha from the anime and manga series of the same name, created by Go Nagai. Within the story, Grendizer was created by the Vegan Empire and stolen by the Prince of Planet Fleed, who piloted it under the guise of the masked warrior Duke Fleed.

Plot

Template:Spoiler

English Version (as told by Professor Valconian [Dr. Umon in the Japanese original])

'Johnny is the only survivor of the star civilization of Antares. His real name is Orion Quest. The Antareans were a very scientifically advanced people who knew neither war nor subjugation. Then one day Vega the Strong unleashed his merciless saucer squadrons against Antares. His goal was to destroy the Antarean paradise and make its rich natural resources his own. Orion was the only one who survived. Vega immediately confiscated the Antareans' comprehensive science logs and set about using the knowledge to create the ultimate battle robot. He called it Grandizer. Vega's plan was to use it to plunder the universe, but Orion was able to block his evil plot. He stole Grandizer from under Vega's nose and destroyed the computers that held the information of Grandizer's secrets. He fled across space to refuge here on earth, but not before giving the Vegans a taste of their own destruction. Orion chose earth from amongst all the other countless planets because its lush natural environment most reminded him of Antares. I learned of him as he neared earth. I arranged to hide his ship and safeguard his identity. It all happened about 2 years ago."

Japanese version

The Vega homeworld is becoming unstable due to the exploiting of Vegatron, a powerful radioactive ore. Seeking to expand his militaristic empire and find a substitute planet to settle upon, the ruthless King Vega unleashes his armies - composed of flying saucers and giant robotic monsters - and turns first against neighbors such as Fleed, a highly advanced but peaceful world. In a tragically ironic twist, the invaders' blitzkrieg turns against them: the once verdant, idyllic Fleed is turned into a radioactive wasteland. Too late, the only known survivor of the royal family, Prince Duke Fleed, manages to steal the Grendizer, a war robot able to combine with a saucer-ship, Spazer, and is equipped with the most powerful and advanced engine designed by the Vegan forces, which was used in spearheading the assault on Fleed.

Fleeing Vegan space by flying at faster than light speed, Duke enters the Solar system and switches course to Earth, making a rough landing in Japan. He is befriended by Dr. Umon, a noted scientist who oversees a research laboratory (called the Space Science Lab) and owns a small ranch. If some hints present in the French version are to be believed, it seems that Dr Umon owed part of his remarkable scientific achievements to regular contacts with Fleed scientists, and he may have been Duke Fleed's goal from the start of his escape. The kindly Umon takes in the young alien as his son, under the assumed name of Daisuke, and assists him in hiding Grendizer. A rough two years later, Koji Kabuto returns to Japan after studying abroad in a flying saucer he personally designed and built (called the TFO). He heads to the Space Science Lab after hearing of multiple sightings of "flying saucers". He plans to contact the aliens if possible and make peace with them. Daisuke, however, scoffs at the notion and fears that these aliens: the Vegans, led by generals Blackie and Gandal, are ready to attack Earth. Koji ignores his warnings and flies out to meet the incoming saucers, only to discover the horrible truth. In order to save Koji and protect his adoptive homeworld from destruction, Daisuke is forced to return to his true identity as Duke Fleed. He unearths Grendizer from its hiding place under the lab and launches.

The Vegans establish a base on the dark side of the moon and start to attack Earth from there. As the show progresses, Koji discovers Duke Fleed’s true identity and their bitter rivalry soon turns to friendship. The daughter of Danbei Makiba (the man who runs Umon’s ranch), Hikaru, also discovers Daisuke’s secret and becomes a pilot in order to assist him despite his objections. Later on, it is revealed that there were two more survivors from the planet Fleed, Duke’s younger sister Maria Grace Fleed and a man who had rescued her and fled to Earth, raising her under the guise of her grandfather. Caught in a crossfire between Grendizer and a Vegan beast, he reveals to Maria that she is the last survivor of the royal family of Fleed (under the belief that Duke was killed) before dying from his wounds. Maria swears revenge on Grendizer and its pilot. She tries to ambush Duke, Koji & Hikaru at the Space Science Lab, but the fight was short lived. Maria’s attacks brought Duke’s necklace (which is the same as the one she wore) into view and the truth was revealed. The lost siblings were reunited at last and Maria becomes the last addition to the team.

In Episode 71 It is shown That Duke Fleed wound is from an attack on planet Freed while he was saving his frined Moros Who when they meet heal him before making a suicide attack on Vega.

Near the end, it is shown that Duke Fleed was engaged to King Vega’s daughter, Princess Rubina, prior to the attack on Fleed. When Rubina discovers that planet Fleed was no longer polluted with Vegatron radiation and that her fiancee was alive and well, she rushed to Earth to bring him the good news. Unfortunately, one of King Vega’s generals used this opportunity to ambush Duke Fleed, and Rubina was killed when she took a shot aimed at Duke. This made Duke even more determined to wipe out the Vegan menace once and for all.

When the Vegans’ moon base was destroyed by Vegatron radiation, King Vega had no choice but to gather his remaining forces and make an all-out attack on Earth. Duke and co. went out to intercept them before they reached Earth in Grendizer and the newly designed space combat Spazers. After a fierce battle, they finally manage to destroy the Vegan mothership along with King Vega himself. Soon afterwards Duke and Maria bid a tearful farewell to Earth and return to help reconstruct planet Fleed.

Italian Version: Italian name: Atlas Ufo Robot Goldrake Broadcasted by Rete2 in Italy 4 April 1978 The character names were changed in the Italian series to take the names of stars: Daisuke Umon (alias Duke Fleed) in the original Japanese, was turned into Actarus (alias Goldrake), Koji Kabuto into Alcor, Genzo Umon into Procton, Danbei Makiba into Rigel, Hikaru Makiba into Venusia, Maria was left untouched, Goro Makiba was turned into Mizar, Blacky into Hydargos, Double Spacer in Goldrake 2, Marine Spacer in Delfino Spaziale, Drill Spacer in Trivella Spaziale. Same destiny to the weapon's names. All these names were taken from the French version with some variation. In the French version, Grendizer was called Goldorak as opposed to the Italian Goldrake. The story was left untouched from the Japanese version.

Behind the Robot's Name

Unlike Mazinger Z (which was named after majin), Grendizer is named after the fictional metal "Gren", the hardest material available on Fleed and the main component of the Super Robot's nigh-unbreakable armor. While given a distinctive appearance, Grendizer shares the same basic color scheme (black, white, red, blue and gold) of its famous antecessors Mazinger Z and Great Mazinger.

The name Grendizer may be a reminder of the creature Grendel from the Scandinavian Beowulf story, and the robot has a similarly demonic appearance. The demonic appearance is also a reflection of the weapon's original purpose as a tool to dominate civilizations through force. In this audiences can find a metaphor for fate, destiny and will. Grendizer was born to enslave the world. His name, his face, his body all were built to fulfill this purpose, however, he ends up as the only obstacle against this end.

Additional details about the series

The original concept was shown in a 1975 30-minute pilot movie War of the Flying Saucers. The movie had the same basic plot, with a few changes: Daisuke appears as the Professor's biological son, the enemy was Princess Teronna from Planet Yarban, and the robot's original name was Gattaiger (gattai = Japanese for "combine"). The series, which started later the same year, is considered another sequel to the Mazinger series, partly because of the inclusion of Mazinger Z's pilot Koji Kabuto, and having giant robots, which made it a "Super Robot" mecha anime.

A lot of speculation has been made about the two half-turns executed when the pilot passes from the ship mode to the robot mode. Once asked about it, Go Nagai answered that "Duke being suspicious, he always checks that no one is following him", but it can be assumed that he was joking, leaving the mystery unsolved.

The Grendizer robot and Daisuke have been included in two short Go Nagai cross-over features: UFO Robot Grendizer vs. Great Mazinger, and Great Mazinger, Grendizer, Getter Robo G: Decisive Showdown! Great Sea Beast..

Grendizer is best remembered as one of the first anime shows to have a huge success in Europe and Canada, particularly in France and Quebec (known as Goldorak), Italy and Malta (known as Goldrake), where it holds a strong following even today. Grandizer was also one of the most popular anime series ever shown in Arabic countries. (All the episodes were shown in these countries. It is interesting to note that the Arabic version was identical to the Japanese one, the names remained the same.)

Twenty-six episodes of Grendizer were shown on American TV as part of the multi-mecha show Force Five, out of the total of 74 in the original series. Many character's names were changed: Grendizer spelling was changed to Grandizer, Duke Fleed was Orion Quest, and then changed his name to Johnny Bryant; Planet Fleed's name was changed to Antares, and so on. This corresponds to the first season and story arc (ending with the death of one of the main villains, who is replaced afterwards). Although Mazinger Z was later imported to the United States, Koji's character appearing in both Tranzor Z and Grandizer was not acknowledged.

Trivia

While not created on Earth, Grendizer is considered to be part of the Mazinger canon mostly due to the fact of Koji Kabuto co-starring in the show. This is especially noticeable in the Super Robot Wars series, which gives them a Triple Mazinger attack whenever the three of them appear together. The Triple Mazinger Blade, Triple Mazinger Punch and Triple Mazinger Fire are some examples. Grendizer was also playable in the Mazinger Z arcade game.

Despite the hopes of many fans, Koji Kabuto never piloted Mazinger Z during the series. However, in the Grendizer VS Great Mazinger special, he pilots the Great Mazinger and helps Duke Fleed defeat one of the Vegan Empire's most dangerous officers. On a few occasions, Koji reminisces about his time with Mazinger.

Boss Borot makes a guest appearance in two episodes.

Duke Fleed has a younger sister named Maria Fleed, who he thought was dead (and likewise believed the same of him). She reappears later in the story, becomes the pilot of the Drill Spazer unit and incidentally develops a crush on Koji. In the Super Robot Wars series, it has become something of a running gag to have Maria clash over an oblivious Koji with his girlfriend of sorts since the Mazinger times, Sayaka Yumi.

Oddly enough, while Grendizer has fought alongside Mazinger Z, Great Mazinger, Getter Robo, Getter Robo G and even Shin Getter Robo in the Super Robot Wars, it has never appeared in the same game as the ultimate Mazinger: Mazinkaiser. Some fans believe that this is because Go Nagai does not want to see either prove stronger but when either is in the game they are usually the most powerful Super Robots in the game.

Although all Go Nagai Super Robots vary in size due to "tech specs" in games like Super Robot Wars (ie. Mazinger is 18 meters tall while Getter Robo G is 50 meters tall), they have usually been shown in their own series and crossovers to be roughly the same size.

Grandizer was banned in the Philippines during the term of then president turned dictator Ferdinand Marcos around the early 1980's. Along with other super-robot-anime shows like Voltes V & Mazinger Z, it was banned citing reasons of its negative affects on young people (although he was actually afraid that the shows would make children rebellious of his reign).

Grendizer has been dubbed into Arabic and has achieved a kind of cult status in Arab countries.

A homage to the robot is made in the Sega Dreamcast and Nintendo GameCube game of Evolution: The World of Sacred Device through the gear of character Chain Gun. Her gear looks like the Spazer and even launches a "Spin Saucer" attack.

Statistics

Power Source: Photonic Energy
Armor Materials: Space Alloy Gren
Dimensions
- Height: 30 meters
- Weight: 280 tons
- Neck Circumference: 7.5 meters
- Chest Circumference: 21 meters
- Arm Circumference: 7.2 meters
- Leg Circumference: 8.8 meters
- Arm Length: 10.5 meters
- Leg Length: 16.3 meters
- Foot Length: 5 meters (approximate)
Performance
- Running Speed: 700 km/h
- Maximum Jump Height: 1 km
- Output: 1,800,000 horsepower

Weapons and Attacks

Hand Beam: Grendizer fires a trio of energy beams from the back of its hands. This is one of Grendizer's weaker attacks. Grendizer could also fire missiles called Dizer Missiles from the same openings.
Screw Crusher Punch: A standard Mazinger Rocket Punch attack, Grendizer fires its forearms as blades mounted there flip forward, essentially making the attack a flying drill. The Screw Crusher Punch flies at speeds up to Mach 5 and can achieve 4000 RPM. There are also two more variations on this attack, the Screw Punch in which the blades fold at a 90' degree angle or fan shaped look, plus the Crusher Punch in which the blades fold over the fist in a bullet shape. Grendizer also has a normal Dizer Punch which is basically a normal punch with no blades involved.
Double Harken: A weapon mounted in the shoulders, each harken consists of a reverse-crescent moon blade attached to a handle. Grendizer can use one or both harkens in each hand called Single Harken, or combine them to form a bladed staff. Duke has also been known to throw the Double Harken at enemies.
Shoulder Boomerang: Grendizer launches the Harken blades from its shoulders or Grendizer could grab and then throw them like regular boomerangs.
Hanjuuryoku Storm (Anti-Gravity Storm): A ray of rainbow-colored energy fired from the red emblem on Grendizer's chest. In early episodes it was a disentegration attack, but it was later changed into a repulsar/tractor beam.
Space Thunder: Much like Great Mazinger's Thunder Break, Grendizer can release a burst of electric energy from the horns on its head. Grendizer can unleash up to 600,000 volts for up to 10 hours continuously.
Dizer Beam: Regular eye lasers that Grendizer uses when Duke is unable to use the Hand Beam attack such as when Grendizer is combined with the Drill Spazer.
Dizer Power: Grendizer is running at over 100% efficiency for short periods of time. Similar to Mazin Power that Koji uses with Mazinkaiser.

Related Machines

Spazer

The original support craft for Grendizer, the Spazer is a saucer-shaped craft that allows Grendizer to fly and travel through space. Prince Fleed stole it from the Vegans along with Grendizer before heading to Earth.

Length: 34 meters
Length (docked with Grendizer): 40 meters
Weight: 150 tons
Weight (docked with Grendizer): 430 tons
Atmospheric Flight Speed: Mach 16
Space Flight Speed: Lightspeed
Weapons:
- Spin Drill: A drill-shaped missile fired from the discs on the Spazer's wings.
- Spin Saucer: The discs attached to the Spazer's wings fly off and sprout blades, turning them into deadly slashing projectiles.
- Melt Shower: The Spazer can fire a blast of highly corrosive liquid from ports above Grendizer's docking port.
- Anti-Radar Fog: The Spazer can emit a purple fog which scrambles radar.

Double Spazer

A newly designed Spazer, the Double Spazer functions as a fighter craft as well as an atmospheric flight system for Grendizer. It features a Photonic Energy reactor and VTOL fans and is piloted by Kouji Kabuto, the former pilot of Mazinger Z.

Height: 30 meters
Weight: 90 tons
Speed: Mach 4
Ceiling: 60 km
Weapons:
- Cyclone Beam: A set of 300,000 volt energy beams fired from the Double Spazer's wings.
- Double Missile: A set of missiles fired from the Double Spazer's main body. The Double Spazer can hold up to 25 of these missiles.
- Double Cutter: The blades on the Double Spazer's wings can be fired as projectiles, either separately or combining to form a V-shaped blade.

Drill Spazer

A Spazer designed to give Grendizer underground combat abilities, it is piloted by Duke's sister Maria Grace Fleed.

Wingspan: 25 meters
Weight: 130 tons
Tunneling Speed: Mach 2
Flight Speed: Mach 4
Weapons:
- Drill Missile: The Drill Spazer can fire its drills as projectiles, similar in fashion to the Rocket Punch. The Drill Missiles are used to break through tougher rocks and metals.
- Spark Bomber: A high-energy projectile fired from the fin on top of the Drill Spazer's main body.
- Laser: An armor-piercing laser attack fired from the Drill Spazer's front section.

Marine Spazer

A Spazer designed to allow Grendizer to fight effectively underwater, it is piloted by Hikaru Makiba, a young woman who learned Daisuke's secret and wanted to help him instead of just watching him fight from the sidelines.

Wing span: 25 meters
Weight: 90 tons
Aquatic Speed: 40 knots
Weapons:
- Marine Cutter: A bladed projectile mounted on top of the Marine Spazer.
- Marine Missile: A missile fired from the Marine Spazer's wings. The Marine Spazer carries up to 25 of these missiles.
- Marine Beam: A high-energy beam fired from the Marine Spazer's main body.
- Underwater Missile: A remote-controlled underwater missile.
- Chain Anchor: Fires two chains for towing.

UFO Submarine

Seen in only one episode, the UFO Submarine was, basically, a giant Jet-Ski that Grendizer could sit in and pilot. It also had a separate cockpit for humans to pilot it, and it could fly as well.

Weapons:
- Submarine Missile: Basic Missile/Torpedo attack.
- Submarine Drill: A large drill that would protrude from an opening in front.
- Submarine Storm: A jet of water that would fire from the same opening as the Submarine Drill.
- Chain Attack: Four chains that were fired from four openings below the Submarine Missile opening.

Cosmo Spazer

Three ships that could combine into one ship for space travel. Did not combine with Grendizer, but was more of a support vehicle. Piloted by Koji, Maria, and Hikaru.

Weapons:
- Cosmo Missile
- Cosmo Laser
- Bolt Bomber

DVD release controversy

The licensed dubbed version for all French-speaking countries was officially announced in 2006. In 2005, a major crisis led Toei to take legal actions against DVD customers, all French megastores, and two major French anime publishers in, France, Belgium, Swiss and Luxembourg. The crisis started with the official release of unlicensed Goldorak DVD by Manga Distribution and Déclic Image websites and on Ebay. By November 28th 2005 the Manga Distribution and Déclic Images publishers were sentenced to pay 7.200.000€ to Toei and Dynamic Plannning for selling unlicensed DVD boxset.

upcoming section material:

External links

Grandizer.Net An Arabic/English Grendizer site that helps you understand the impact of this anime upon the Arab and other generations. Contains all the music, complete episode guides, detailed character bios, and the relation of Grendizer with other animes. Offers the best remastered Grendizer series in English (all 26 translated episodes) as well as in Arabic with OPTIONAL ENGLISH SUBTITLES (all 74 episodes: 1-24 released, the rest coming soon). Starvengers is offered as well, and Danguard Ace and Gaiking series are coming soon. Checkout website for details.