Gad Guard
Encyclopedia
is a 26-episode anime
television series directed by Hiroshi Nishikiori and produced by Gonzo, which was broadcast across Japan by the anime satellite television
network, Animax
, and the terrestrial
Fuji Television
network. It has been licensed for North American distribution by Geneon Entertainment, and also aired on Anime Unleashed
in 2005. With FUNimation's "New Show A Go-Go", they have acquired the distribution rights of the anime, and it will be available in early 2009.
Gold Town is the upper-class area, where the wealthy and well-off live in comfort and luxury, and plays host to Global Electronics, the foremost provider of electricity
in Unit Blue, a commodity not everyone can afford to have all the time. The characters Takumi Kisaragi and Aiko Mary Harmony live in Gold Town.
Day Town is a middle-class area, equipped with running water and electricity and is busy and metropolitan in most places. The character Arashi Shinozuka is originally from this area where her father owns a karate
dojo. While not as perfect as Gold Town, Day Town is seen by people on the other side of the tracks as the place where they'd rather be.
Night Town is the ghetto
of Unit Blue, and is called "Night Town" because of the fact that all the electrical power shuts off at midnight and does not come back until dawn. In Night Town gangs and punks run the streets, and all the local kids go to school at a church, taught by a nun and a young teacher, in hopes of giving them what they need to escape their meager living. Leaving something outside at night is guaranteed to have it stolen, and even walking around in broad daylight can be dangerous. Night Town is the dank and grimy setting for most of Gad Guard, where Hajiki and his family live along with Katana, the Jacque Bruno Gang and a host of other characters.
robot roughly 20 feet (6.1 m) tall fueled by the emotional bond between the robot and the owner. These robots are "born" after contact with the Gad's owner while they're having a strong or serious emotion in an area occupied by a lot of metal. On other occasions Techodes have taken the shapes of humans, objects and other things depending on what sort of emotion or will the owner imposed on a Gad.
The five main Techodes of the series; Lightning
, Zero
, Thunderbolt
, Messerschmitt
and Hayate
are all named after World War II
-era fighter planes.
in nature with technological modification. A Gadrian's creation can also be the result of a Gad falling into the hands of someone without any kind of strong, impacting emotions or intentions, such as a young child. The result being a sentient manifestation of whatever the child was thinking about at the time.
Ending Theme:
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
television series directed by Hiroshi Nishikiori and produced by Gonzo, which was broadcast across Japan by the anime satellite television
Satellite television
Satellite television is television programming delivered by the means of communications satellite and received by an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic mirror generally referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an...
network, Animax
Animax
is a Japanese anime satellite television network, dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. A subsidiary of Japanese media conglomerate Sony, it is headquartered in in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with its co-founders and shareholders including Sony Pictures Entertainment and the noted anime studios...
, and the terrestrial
Terrestrial television
Terrestrial television is a mode of television broadcasting which does not involve satellite transmission or cables — typically using radio waves through transmitting and receiving antennas or television antenna aerials...
Fuji Television
Fuji Television
is a Japanese television station based in Daiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, also known as or CX, based on the station's callsign "JOCX-DTV". It is the flagship station of the Fuji News Network and the ....
network. It has been licensed for North American distribution by Geneon Entertainment, and also aired on Anime Unleashed
Anime Unleashed
Anime Unleashed was an anime block that was broadcast on the American cable TV network, G4. The block was placed on the original TechTV in early 2003 and moved to G4techTV after the two networks merged...
in 2005. With FUNimation's "New Show A Go-Go", they have acquired the distribution rights of the anime, and it will be available in early 2009.
Story
Several hundred years in the future, the natural resources of the Earth are exhausted, and the progression of the human race has stagnated. The world is now divided into "Units". A boy named Hajiki Sanada lives with his mother and sister in Unit Blue, in a place called "Night Town", in which all electricity is shut down at midnight. The key in this story is an object called the GAD. GADs have the ability to reconstruct materials while reacting to feelings of an organic life. The size and shape of the resulting product seem to be different depending on the kinds of feelings that the life possesses. When Hajiki comes in contact with one by accident, it transforms into a huge robot–a Techode, or "Iron Giant"—which Hajiki names Lightning. And soon he realizes that he isn't the only one with a Techode, and must find out how to deal with those others who he feels are the "same" as himself.Unit Blue
The central Unit in which Gad Guard takes place is Unit Blue, which is separated into three levels: Gold Town, Day Town and Night Town.Gold Town is the upper-class area, where the wealthy and well-off live in comfort and luxury, and plays host to Global Electronics, the foremost provider of electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
in Unit Blue, a commodity not everyone can afford to have all the time. The characters Takumi Kisaragi and Aiko Mary Harmony live in Gold Town.
Day Town is a middle-class area, equipped with running water and electricity and is busy and metropolitan in most places. The character Arashi Shinozuka is originally from this area where her father owns a karate
Karate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
dojo. While not as perfect as Gold Town, Day Town is seen by people on the other side of the tracks as the place where they'd rather be.
Night Town is the ghetto
Ghetto
A ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
of Unit Blue, and is called "Night Town" because of the fact that all the electrical power shuts off at midnight and does not come back until dawn. In Night Town gangs and punks run the streets, and all the local kids go to school at a church, taught by a nun and a young teacher, in hopes of giving them what they need to escape their meager living. Leaving something outside at night is guaranteed to have it stolen, and even walking around in broad daylight can be dangerous. Night Town is the dank and grimy setting for most of Gad Guard, where Hajiki and his family live along with Katana, the Jacque Bruno Gang and a host of other characters.
Gads
Known in the Gad Guard world only as "powerful stones", everyone desires Gads and believes that they can fulfill people's dreams. However, each corrupted person to handle a Gad soon comes to realize the nightmares hidden inside them. Though the real importance of a Gad is unknown, they are used as very high sums of currency and are usually only owned by the rich in the color-coded sectors and units. A Gad has many peculiar abilities and can take shape into a number of things depending on the personality and thoughts of the owner. These creations are separated into three groups: Techodes, A-Techodes and Gadrians. Upon a Gad's transformation into something, all metal and most other material around it are violently absorbed and used as a base for the final product.Techodes
A Techode is one of the three things that sprout from a Gad, and is also called a "Gadrian" occasionally by characters who aren't aware of the differences between the two. It usually takes the form of a large, humanoidHumanoid
A humanoid is something that has an appearance resembling a human being. The term first appeared in 1912 to refer to fossils which were morphologically similar to, but not identical with, those of the human skeleton. Although this usage was common in the sciences for much of the 20th century, it...
robot roughly 20 feet (6.1 m) tall fueled by the emotional bond between the robot and the owner. These robots are "born" after contact with the Gad's owner while they're having a strong or serious emotion in an area occupied by a lot of metal. On other occasions Techodes have taken the shapes of humans, objects and other things depending on what sort of emotion or will the owner imposed on a Gad.
The five main Techodes of the series; Lightning
P-38 Lightning
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a World War II American fighter aircraft built by Lockheed. Developed to a United States Army Air Corps requirement, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament...
, Zero
A6M Zero
The Mitsubishi A6M Zero was a long-range fighter aircraft operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service from 1940 to 1945. The A6M was designated as the , and also designated as the Mitsubishi A6M Rei-sen and Mitsubishi Navy 12-shi Carrier Fighter. The A6M was usually referred to by the...
, Thunderbolt
P-47 Thunderbolt
Republic Aviation's P-47 Thunderbolt, also known as the "Jug", was the largest, heaviest, and most expensive fighter aircraft in history to be powered by a single reciprocating engine. It was heavily armed with eight .50-caliber machine guns, four per wing. When fully loaded, the P-47 weighed up to...
, Messerschmitt
Messerschmitt
Messerschmitt AG was a famous German aircraft manufacturing corporation named for its chief designer, Willy Messerschmitt, and known primarily for its World War II fighter aircraft, notably the Bf 109 and Me 262...
and Hayate
Nakajima Ki-84
The Nakajima Ki-84 was a single-seat fighter used by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force in World War II. The Allied reporting name was "Frank"; the Japanese Army designation was . Featuring excellent performance and high maneuverability, the Ki-84 was considered to be the best Japanese fighter...
are all named after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
-era fighter planes.
A-Techodes
An A-Techode is a manifestation of one's greed or lust for a Gad. Most Gads take the form of A-Techodes, Techodes being very rare. They generally take the shapes of chaotic-looking monsters and are formed in the same way Techodes are.Gadrians
A Gadrian is what is formed when feelings of hate or greed completely consume the owner of a Gad, and likewise, the Gad itself. The Gad then absorbs these thoughts of greed and anger, usually killing the owner of the Gad and creating a monster, organicOrganic matter
Organic matter is matter that has come from a once-living organism; is capable of decay, or the product of decay; or is composed of organic compounds...
in nature with technological modification. A Gadrian's creation can also be the result of a Gad falling into the hands of someone without any kind of strong, impacting emotions or intentions, such as a young child. The result being a sentient manifestation of whatever the child was thinking about at the time.
Music
Opening Theme:- Boomerang Boogie ~Nanpudou no Ojisan~ by PE'ZPE'Zis a Japanese jazz instrumental band consisting of five men, dubbed "The Samurai Jazz Band." They have been signed onto Sony Music Japan since 2008.-Members:* Ohyama "B.M.W" Wataru, born in Kanagawa, trumpet* Kadota "Jaw" Kouske, born in Ehime, saxophone...
Ending Theme:
- Song for My Buffalo by PE'Z