Jetter Mars

Jetter Mars
Jetter Mars Picture Book cover, illustrated by Osamu Tezuka, 1977.
ジェッターマルス (Jettā Marusu)
Genre	Science fiction
Anime television series
Directed by	Rintaro
Written by	Osamu Tezuka
Music by	Nobuyoshi Koshibe
Studio	Toei Animation
Original network	Fuji TV
Original run	February 3, 1977 – September 15, 1977
Episodes	27

Jetter Mars (ジェッターマルス, Jettā Marusu) is an anime series directed by Rintaro and written by Osamu Tezuka. Originally planned by Tezuka as a full-color remake of the original anime adaptation of his popular manga series Astro Boy, unfavorable circumstances during the pre-production phase of the project led him to abandon it temporarily and create Jetter Mars instead. Although it remains as one of Tezuka's lesser known works, it gained a large following and is fondly remembered.

Development

Unlike the vast majority of Osamu Tezuka's characters, Jetter Mars wasn't first published in comic book form, written and illustrated by Tezuka. In 1977, Tezuka's animation studio Mushi Productions faced bankruptcy, leading Tezuka to work as an animation director for Toei Animation for some time. He wanted to produce a color anime adaptation for his landmark manga Tetsuwan Atom, (known to western audiences as Astro Boy), but due to the financial distress of Mushi Productions, the copyrights on some of his characters were in limbo. Due to the deadline imposed on Tezuka by Toei to produce the new series, he wasn't able to secure the copyrights to his characters on time, which forced him to compromise his original project and redesign it somewhat, reworking it conceptually and visually to some extent.

Tezuka then redesigned Atom slightly, and renamed him as Jetter Mars. Some aspects of Atom's original story are taken and used as the origin of Mars, such as him being created as a powerful android in the image of a boy. Two scientists are involved in Mars' creation, one conceiving him as a combat instrument and the other opposing that purpose, conceiving him as an instrument for peaceful pursuits. This element mirrors the disagreement found in the characters Dr. Tenma and Dr. Ochanomizu in Tetsuwan Atom. Some other borrowed concepts can be found across the series.

Some storylines in the episodes of Jetter Mars were remakes of classic and beloved stories Tezuka wrote and drew in his Tetsuwan Atom manga, such as The Artificial Sun and The Last Day on Earth. The series was beautifully animated, and in the Tezuka tradition, it showcased many of his characters from his various manga works in different roles.

In the same manner he wrote and illustrated his Tetsuwan Atom manga, Tezuka stayed away from graphic violence in Jetter Mars, although the typical traits of his works are also present in it, such as the importance of moral values, humanity and strong emotiveness.

The series was received by Japan's population with mixed feelings, as some wanted the original Tetsuwan Atom and some accepted Jetter Mars wholeheartedly as a different character, as it was intended to be. This made Tezuka lose interest in the series and it finished with 27 episodes produced. Having successfully secured the copyrights on all his characters once again, Tezuka founded Tezuka Productions a few years later, and was able to produce the color anime adaptation of Tetsuwan Atom as he wanted initially, which became a hit, much in the same way as the original anime adaptation from the 60's.

Plot

The storyline is set in the year 2015. Two scientist, Dr. Kawashimo and Dr. Yamanoue, have created a robot with advanced capabilities. Dr. Kawashimo created his miraculous artificial intelligence, making him almost human, while Dr. Yamanoue created the robot's body, endowing him with astoundingly powerful weaponry.

Characters

The series featured many of Tezuka's most well-known characters, as well as some specifically-created ones.

As expected from Osamu Tezuka, he put his "character acting company", known as Star System, to use to define the cast of Jetter Mars. He created a few of the characters specifically for the series, such as Mars and Melchi, and the vast majority of the cast was classic and well-known characters from Tezuka's works, playing various roles. In the adjacent picture, it is possible to identify many of Tezuka's characters, from left to right: Daidalos, Shunsuke Ban aka Higeoyaji and Tezuka himself in the upper row; Inspector Tawashi, Rock Holmes and Marukubi Boon in the middle row; and Tamao, Shibugaki, Spider, Chief Nakamura, HamEgg, Acetylene Lamp, Ken'ichi and Hyōtan-tsugi in the lower row; among some others.

The following list describes the characters featured more prominently during the series:

Jetter Mars (ジェッターマルス, Jettā Marusu): The protagonist of the series. A powerful robot built in the image of a boy, he has a body that can be used for destruction of cataclysmic proportions, and a near-human artificial intelligence. He finds himself often in the predicament of choosing to use his gifts for pacific or destructive purposes.

Melchi (メルチ, Meruchi): Mars' non-speaking younger brother, with the body of a baby. Endowed with tremendous physical strength, his only word is "Bakaruchi!" (バカルチ, Bakaruchi) (a word invented by Tezuka with no real meaning), which he always utters after displaying his power.

Miri (美理, Miri): A robot made in the image of a young girl by Dr. Kawashimo. She possessed powers that enabled her to restore destroyed robots and machinery. Protector of Mars and Melchi, and "daughter" to Dr. Kawashimo.

Dr. Kawashimo (川下博士, Kawashimo Hakase): Creator of Jetter Mars' incredible artificial intelligence and heart, and creator of Miri and Melchi. Opposing fellow scientist Dr. Yamanoue, he desired Mars to live a life of good purpose and peace.

Dr. Yamanoue (山之上博士, Yamanoue Hakase): Creator of Mars' body. He designed him as a machine for war, and thus named his creation after the Roman god of war. Mars looked up to him as his father. He disappears after being buried during atomic tests and is left for dead.

Dr. Tezuka (手塚博士, Tezuka Hakase): In many of his works, Tezuka drew himself as a character, immersed in the universe of his creations, and interacted with his characters. He included himself also in Jetter Mars, appearing as friend and advisor to Mars.

Spider (スパイダー, Supaidā) and Hyōtan-tsugi (ひょうたんつぎ, Hyōtan-tsugi): Two cartoony little characters, that appeared whimsically in nonsensical situations, as comic relief. Tezuka's signature, they appeared in all of his works, be it manga or animated, as they were a form of dialogue between Tezuka and his readers, developed during the years. Hyōtan-tsugi usually appeared falling in front of a character at the most inappropriate of times, and getting kicked out angrily by them, and Spider usually appeared in moments of tension, repeatedly uttering his trademark phrase, Omukae de gonsu! (おむかえでごんすﾞ, Omukae de gonsu), roughly "Here ta meet ya!". Additionally, Hyōtan-tsugi appeared in each episode during the opening intro and end credits sequences.

HamEgg (ﾊﾑｴｯｸﾞ, Hamueggu): One of Tezuka's most recognizable characters in his Star System, he appeared playing non-praiseworthy roles, as usual for him.

Episode list

The series had 27 episodes, each lasting 24 minutes approximately. Broadcast by Fuji TV, on Thursday nights. As with all Tezuka's works, the series made use of his Star System cast technique, featuring many of his characters from previous works (manga or animated) as guests performing various roles. The following list includes the episode title, airing date and guest characters.

Episode #	Title	Guest character	Aired	Short Summary
1	Mars is born, year 2015 2015 nen Marusu tanjō (2015年マルス誕生)	Faitan	February 3, 1977	Today's is a special day as Jetter Mars is activated. However, this causes an argument between Dr. Yamanoue and Dr. Kawashimo. Dr. Yamanoue, Mars' father, made Mars to fight while Dr. Kawashimo finds this extremely inhumane. Later on, Dr. Yamanoue sends Mars to get Dr. Kawashio and his daughter Miri. Mars gets carried away though and throws their car around like nothing. It becomes apparent that Mars has no idea about the outside and can't tell what good or bad. When Miri starts crying because she's afraid Mars will hurt her father, he becomes confused. He doesn't know why she cares about her dad since his own is very harsh on him. However, a storm picks and causes an energy crash. So Mars and Miri are sent to fix it and stop the island from sinking into the ocean. It's also here that we learn that Miri is actually a robot like Mars. Mars and Miri are able to stop the island from sinking, but Mars ends up having to fight a practice battle robot. He easily defeats it though, and that wraps up the episode.
2	Counterfeiting robot gang Robotto mitsuyudan (ロボット密輸団)	none	February 10, 1977	It's another day full of nothing but studying for Jetter Mars. He soon becomes fed up with it and while having to assemble a Tv for his father he comes across a News show. It reports that a boy has run away from home, however, Mars doesn't get to see the rest of it for Dr. Yamanoue makes him turn it off. So, Mars decides to run off and see Miri. He comes through their ceiling and while getting scolded, he sees the end of the News report. The boy is hugging his mother and she crying and saying that she'll never upset him again. Mars gets the idea that if he runs away, then his dad will apologize and hug him too. Mars takes off and flies over the sea. He ends up on a boat full of Counterfeiters. Realizing Mars value he's captured, although he doesn't know that. They decide to brainwash him and sell him as a stealing robot. Meanwhile, Dr. Kawashio and Miri decide to look for Mars. Miri follows Mars' signal to the ship. Mars isn't gonna allow for himself to be brainwashed though, but only because it reminds him of studying. When the crooks try to take Mars apart, he realizes that it means he'll never be able to see Miri again. Luckily, Miri saves him just in time. The two escape into the sea and Mars redirects missiles that were shot at them into the boat. The coast guard then arrives and take them home. Mars learn about fear and how it feels to be afraid.
3	Why is Mars crying? Marusu naze naku (マルスなぜ泣く)	Mad Mask	February 17, 1977
4	Goodbye, little brother! Sayōnara, otōto! (さようならオトウト!)	Tack	February 24, 1977
5	Talent, the greatest robot in history Shijō saikō no robotto Tarento (史上最高のロボットタレント)	HamEggs	March 3, 1977
6	The girl that came from the star of dreams Yume no hoshi kara kita shōjo (夢の星から来た少女)	Dori	March 10, 1977
7	Missing Miri Kieta Miri (消えた美理)	Skunk Kusanagi	March 17, 1977
8	Where did dad go? Otōsan doko okonatta no? (お父さんどこ行ったの?)	No.1, No.2	March 24, 1977
9	Lamp, the space trader Uchū no shimatsujin Ranpu (宇宙の始末人ランプ)	Acetylene Lamp	March 31, 1977
10	My lil' brother's name is Melchi Otōto no na wa Meruchi (弟の名はメルチ)	Dr.Spice, Mrs. Tabasko	April 7, 1977
11	Freshman Mars Shin'nyūsei Marusu (新入生マルス)	Mason	April 14, 1977
12	Jam Bond, Secret agent Himitsu chōhōin Jamu Bondo (ヒミツ諜報員ジャムボンド)	Jam Bond	April 21, 1977
13	Honey, robot exchange-student Robotto Tenkōsei Hanī (ロボット転校生ハニー)	Honey	April 28, 1977
14	The vampire from outer space Uchū kara no Kyūketsuki (宇宙からの吸血鬼)	Kuroro	May 5, 1977
15	Melchi likes Mouster Meruchi no sukina Mousutā (メルチのすきなモウスター)	Mouster	May 12, 1977
16	Zaza, the wandering planet Samayoeru wakusei Zaza (さまよえる惑星ザザ)	Zazians	May 19, 1977
17	The samurai robot from the seventh year of the Tenpō era Tenpō shichi-nen Samurai robotto (天保七年サムライロボット)	Yumi, Samurai robot	June 2, 1977
18	Resurrect, ancient robot Yomigaeru kodai robotto (よみがえる古代ロボット)	Daidalos	June 16, 1977
19	Mars' first love Marusu no hatsukoi (マルスの初恋)	Agunea, Marukubi Boon	June 23, 1977
20	Mars becomes a young boss Marusu waka oyabun ni naru (マルス若親分になる)	Black, Dr. Jin	June 30, 1977
21	Mighty Robot Joe Tetsuwan Robotto Jō (鉄腕ロボット・ジョー)	Joe Asnaro	July 7, 1977
22	Android Lullaby Andoroido no komoriuta (アンドロイドの子守唄)	Mayumi	July 21, 1977
23	The wandering robot Sasurai no robotto (さすらいのロボット)	Adios	July 28, 1977
24	Miri, alone again Mou hitori no Miri (もう一人の美理)	Saromi	August 18, 1977
25	The wolf-boy from space Uchū no ōkami shōnen (宇宙の狼少年)	none	September 1, 1977
26	Adios returns Kaettekita Adiosu (帰ってきたアディオス)	Dr. Kuromaru	September 8, 1977
27	The flight beyond tomorrow! Ashita ni mukatte habatake! (明日に向かって羽ばたけ!)	Sari	September 15, 1977

Manga Adaptation

The anime series also was adapted into a few manga issues published as one-shot stories, based on the storylines shown in the anime. They weren't written or illustrated by Osamu Tezuka, but by various licensed artists. The issues are listed as follows:

• Televiland Comics Issue

One-shot story illustrated by Shigeto Ikehara, published in the first issue of the magazine in 1979.

• Bōken-ō Manga Magazine Issue

Illustrated by Rentarō Iwata for the defunct Bōken-ō manga magazine.

• Televi-Magazine Issue

Illustrated by Kai Nanase and published in 1979.

• Chū'ichi Jidai Magazine Story

Illustrated by Saisuke Hiraga, published from April to August, 1979. Short-story divided in five chapters.

DVD Release

Jetter Mars was released by Avex on March 27, 2009, as a five-disc DVD Box set which contains the complete series.

Merchandise

Several records containing the musical score of Jetter Mars were released during the series run. These are listed as follows

1. Mars LP Record (マルスのLPレコード, Marusu no LP recōdo)

Jetter Mars' only LP record, it contained several songs along a mini-drama. The songs included in the record:

• Mars, year 2015 (マルス2015年, Marusu 2015 nen)
• Mars' dream (マルスの夢, Marusu no yume)
• Melchi, Let's Bakaruchi (メルチバカルチガンバルチ, Meruchi Bakaruchi Ganbaruchi)
• Goodnight, Mars (おやすみマルス, Oyasumi Marusu)
• Fighting Mars (戦いのマルス, Tatakai no Marusu)
• Boy Mars (少年マルス, Shōnen Marusu)
• Hate! Love! (キライ!スキ!, Kirai! Suki!)
• Wandering robot (さすらいのロボット, Sasurai no robotto)
• The March of Mars (マルスのマーチ, Marusu no Māchi)
• Space Scat (宇宙のスキャット, Uchū no Sukyatto)

2. Single Releases

Several records containing single songs were released. These are listed as follows:

• Mars Single Record 1, included the songs:

• Mars, year 2015 (マルス2015年, Marusu 2015 nen)
• Boy Mars (少年マルス, Shōnen Marusu)

• Mars Single Record 2, included the songs:

• Goodnight, Mars (おやすみマルス, Oyasumi Marusu)
• The March of Mars (マルスのマーチ, Marusu no Māchi)

• Mars Single Record 3, a re-release of the first single record, it also included a track containing the sound effects of the anime:

• Mars, year 2015 (マルス2015年, Marusu 2015 nen)
• Boy Mars (少年マルス, Shōnen Marusu)

• Mars Single Record 4, with the same content of single records 1 and 3, except it didn't include the sound effects track. It also contained a Drama track, with the voices and sound effects of the first episode of the anime:

• Mars, year 2015 (マルス2015年, Marusu 2015 nen)
• Boy Mars (少年マルス, Shōnen Marusu)
• Drama track: Mars is born, year 2015 (2015年マルス誕生, 2015 nen Marusu tanjō)

• Mars Single Record 5, its contents were practically the same as Single Record 4, only with some editing variations.

• Mars, year 2015 (マルス2015年, Marusu 2015 nen)
• Boy Mars (少年マルス, Shōnen Marusu)
• Drama track: Mars is born (マルス誕生, Marusu tanjō)

• Mars Single Record 6, included the opening and ending songs of the Jetter Mars anime, along the theme song for the anime adaptation of Yumiko Igarashi and Kyoko Mizuki's classic shōjo manga Candy Candy:

• Mars, year 2015 (マルス2015年, Marusu 2015 nen)
• Boy Mars (少年マルス, Shōnen Marusu)
• Candy Candy (キャンディ・キャンディ, Kyandi・Kyandi)
• I love tomorrow (あしたがすき, Ashita ga suki)

Staff

Involved in the production of the series:

Original concept, creator: Osamu Tezuka
Planning: Kōji Bessho (Fuji TV), Takeshi Tamiya
In charge of production: Kiyoshi Ono (first season), Kichirō Sugahara (final season)
Series composer: Masao Maruyama
Script: Masaki Tsuji, Shunichi Yukimuro, Yoshitaka Suzuki, Masaru Yamamoto, Hiroyuki Hoshiyama
Chief Director: Rintarō
Producers: Sumiko Chiba, Noboru Ishiguro, Wataru Mizusawa, Masami Hatano, Katsutoshi Sasaki, Yugo Serizawa, Jihiro Taizumi, Rintarō
Character Design Supervisor: Akio Sugino
Animation Supervisors: Akio Sugino, Toshio Mori, Satoshi Jingu, Wataru Mibu, Tsuneo Kashima, Toyō Ashida
Graphic Designer: Liang Wei Huang
Art: Shohei Kawamoto, Liang Wei Huang, Tadao Kubota
Photography: Masaaki Sugaya
Editing: Masaaki Hanai
Audio Director: Ryōsuke Koide (Arts Pro)
Recording: Hideyuki Tanaka
In collaboration with production: Mad House
Production: Fuji TV, Toei Animation
Music: Nobuyoshi Koshibe

Read also

• List of Osamu Tezuka manga
• List of Osamu Tezuka anime
• Osamu Tezuka's Star System
• Tezuka Award
• Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize