Gowappa 5 Godam
Encyclopedia
is an anime
series aired in 1976. There were 36 episodes. It is also referred to as Gowapper 5 Gundam, Godam, Go Wapper 5 Go Dam, Gowappa 5 Gordam.
The series has also been aired on Italian
television under the title Godam.
anime to feature a female as the leader and main character. The concept of a group of young adults gathering to fight evil can be seen in other Tatsunoko works such as Science Ninja Team Gatchaman
and in manga written by Tatsuo Yoshida
and Ippei Kuri, but as of 2008, the only other Tatsunoko production featuring a female lead is Time Bokan 2000: Kaitou Kiramekiman
. Gowappa 5 Gordam has a bright theme song and light-hearted situations, but the story also includes more serious parts, and there are episodes that end on a rather bitter note.
Because Gowappa 5 Gordam was competing with another robot anime, UFO Robo Grendizer(on Fuji Television
), as well as a popular television game show called Up Down Quiz(on Mainichi Broadcasting System
), both in the same timeslot, it faced an extremely difficult ratings battle, and was later moved mid-broadcast from Sunday's "Golden Hour" to a weekday evening timeslot, where its ratings suffered. After moving, Tatsunoko attempted to broaden the scope of the series by making Gordam itself into a combining robot, but this didn't bring viewers back, so it ended after 3 seasons(36 episodes). Before and since this series, there have been many Tatsunoko-made series broadcast on the same channels that had to fight for ratings in the same manner.
"Gowappa", the name of the group of five main characters, is an abbreviation created from two of the kanji in the phrase "five children"(五人の小童, gonin no kowappa) to create 五童(gowappa). However, one of the candidates for the series name was "Abaranger", and many media outlets actually used this name before the series aired. The Abaranger name would go on to be a candidate name for the later series Golden Warrior Gold Lightan
, and would finally be used for the 2003 Super Sentai
series Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger.
There is a mistake in the opening animation sequence where Gordam fires its missiles and its other weapon, the Bocunder, hits the enemies instead; Gordam then fires the Bocunder and the missiles explode.
's Magnemo toy line in Japan
in 1976. From its first incarnation, Gordam could both combine and transform, like in the show.
The Magnemo line encompasses was Takara Tomy
calls the "Magnerobo" series. Included in this series are Steel Jeeg
, Magne Robo Gakeen
, Chojin Sentai Barattack, and Machine Zaurer.
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....
series aired in 1976. There were 36 episodes. It is also referred to as Gowapper 5 Gundam, Godam, Go Wapper 5 Go Dam, Gowappa 5 Gordam.
The series has also been aired on Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
television under the title Godam.
Outline
Gowappa was the first super robotSuper Robot
is a term used in manga and anime to describe a giant robot or mecha, with an arsenal of fantastic super-powered weapons, extreme resistance to damage unless the plot calls for it, sometimes transformable or combined from two or more robots and/or vehicles usually piloted by young, daring heroes,...
anime to feature a female as the leader and main character. The concept of a group of young adults gathering to fight evil can be seen in other Tatsunoko works such as Science Ninja Team Gatchaman
Science Ninja Team Gatchaman
is a 5-member superhero team that is composed of the main characters in several Japanese anime created by Tatsuo Yoshida and originally produced in Japan by Tatsunoko Productions and later adapted into several English-language versions...
and in manga written by Tatsuo Yoshida
Tatsuo Yoshida
was a Japanese cartoonist, writer and anime pioneer who founded the anime studio Tatsunoko Productions.Born in 1932, Yoshida grew up in the hardship of war-torn Japan. A self-taught artist, his first job was as working for local newspapers in Kyoto...
and Ippei Kuri, but as of 2008, the only other Tatsunoko production featuring a female lead is Time Bokan 2000: Kaitou Kiramekiman
Time Bokan 2000: Kaitou Kiramekiman
Time Bokan 2000: Kaitou Kiramekiman is the eighth isntalment in the Time Bokan series. In it set in the near future, when the world is shaken by a couple of young thieves named Kiramekiman, who issue warnings before they go into action. Once they set their sights on a target, they never fail to...
. Gowappa 5 Gordam has a bright theme song and light-hearted situations, but the story also includes more serious parts, and there are episodes that end on a rather bitter note.
Because Gowappa 5 Gordam was competing with another robot anime, UFO Robo Grendizer(on 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 ....
), as well as a popular television game show called Up Down Quiz(on Mainichi Broadcasting System
Mainichi Broadcasting System
is a broadcasting station in Osaka, Japan, affiliated with Japan Radio Network , National Radio Network , Japan News Network and TBS Network, serving in the Kansai region. MBS is also one of the major stockholders of Tokyo Broadcasting System Holdings, Inc...
), both in the same timeslot, it faced an extremely difficult ratings battle, and was later moved mid-broadcast from Sunday's "Golden Hour" to a weekday evening timeslot, where its ratings suffered. After moving, Tatsunoko attempted to broaden the scope of the series by making Gordam itself into a combining robot, but this didn't bring viewers back, so it ended after 3 seasons(36 episodes). Before and since this series, there have been many Tatsunoko-made series broadcast on the same channels that had to fight for ratings in the same manner.
"Gowappa", the name of the group of five main characters, is an abbreviation created from two of the kanji in the phrase "five children"(五人の小童, gonin no kowappa) to create 五童(gowappa). However, one of the candidates for the series name was "Abaranger", and many media outlets actually used this name before the series aired. The Abaranger name would go on to be a candidate name for the later series Golden Warrior Gold Lightan
Golden Warrior Gold Lightan
is a popular anime series that aired in 1981 to 1982 in Japan and Hong Kong. There are 52 episodes that were aired at 30 minutes each.-Original story:...
, and would finally be used for the 2003 Super Sentai
Super Sentai
The is the name given to the long-running Japanese superhero team genre of shows produced by Toei Co., Ltd., Toei Agency and Bandai, and aired by TV Asahi...
series Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger.
There is a mistake in the opening animation sequence where Gordam fires its missiles and its other weapon, the Bocunder, hits the enemies instead; Gordam then fires the Bocunder and the missiles explode.
Story
Five youths from Edo City explore a strange rocky island and discover the mecha that Doctor Hoarai had been creating in order to resist the impending attack by a race of subterranean rock people. Doctor Hoarai was ridiculed by the scientific community for his predictions that such an attack would take place. The youths decide to join the doctor (who was dead but had transferred his mind into a computer) in piloting the vehicles and protecting Earth. The Gowapper 5 Godam team is born! With the aid of the giant fighting robot Godam, the Gowapper team under the leadership of Yoko Misaki must face the hordes of the inhuman subterranean people.Staff
- Planning: Jinzo ToriumiJinzo Toriumiwas a Japanese screenwriter who first began his career during the "revolutionary era" of Japanese animation on Mac Go Go Go , Science Ninja Team Gatchaman and Yatterman....
, Akiyoshi Sakai - Original Work: Tatsunoko Planning Office
- Magazine Serialization: Tanoshii Youchien, Otomodachi, Bouken'oh
- Director: Hisayuki ToriumiHisayuki Toriumi, sometimes credited as Eiko Toriumi, was a Japanese director best known for having directed the television program Science Ninja Team Gatchaman...
- Character Design: Yoshitaka AmanoYoshitaka Amanois a Japanese artist. He began his career as an animator and has become known for his illustrations for the anime Vampire Hunter D and for his character designs, image illustrations and title logo designs for the Final Fantasy video game series developed by Square Enix . His influences include...
- Mechanical Design: Kunio OkawaraKunio Okawarais a mechanical designer in the Japanese anime industry. A mechanical designer is similar to a character designer, but the design is for robots, ships, and other mechanical items found in a particular show. Okawara was the first in the industry to be specifically credited as a mechanical designer...
- Art Direction: Mitsuyoshi Kozugi, Tsuneo Nonomiya
- Recording Director: Kan Mizumoto
- Editing: Hajime Taniguchi, Tomoko Kita, Yoko Nidome
- Music: Bob Sakuma
- Producers: Masatsuku Nagai, Takehiko Goto
- Production Collaboration: SunriseSunrise (company)is a Japanese animation studio and production enterprise. It is a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings. Its former name was Nippon Sunrise, and prior to that, Sunrise Studios...
- Production: Tatsunoko Pro, ABC TV(first part), Japan Educational TV(NET TV, now TV AsahiTV Asahi, also known as EX and , is a Japanese television network headquartered in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The company writes its name in lower-case letters, tv asahi, in its logo and public-image materials. The company also owns All-Nippon News Network....
)(latter part)
Characters
| Japanese Name | Vehicle | Voiced by |
|---|---|---|
| Yoko Misaki | A-Plane | Terumi Niki Terumi Niki is a Japanese actress from Tokyo. Since a child, she has been a member of the Japanese Theatrical Company Gekidan Wakakusa, of which she has joined in 1953... |
| Go Tsunami | Gasomashin | Yoshito Yasuhara Yoshito Yasuhara is an actor and seiyū born on November 17, 1949 in Aioi, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. He is a member of Theatre Echo, a theatre troupe and talent management firm known for its comedy sketches... |
| Godaemon | Heli-Marine | |
| Norisuke | Yadokari Jeep | |
| Daikichi Kameyama | Turtle Tank | |
| Doctor Hoarai | ||
| Jo | ||
| Maguda Shogun | ||
| Kida | Rihoko Yoshida Rihoko Yoshida is a Japanese voice actress. Among her most noteworthy roles are Megu-chan in Majokko Megu-chan, Monsley in Future Boy Conan, Maria Grace Fleed in UFO Robo Grendizer, Michiru in Getter Robo, Klara in Heidi, Girl of the Alps, Rosalie Lamorliere in The Rose of Versailles, Miwa Uzuki in Steel Jeeg, ... |
Music
- Opening theme song: "Ikuzo! Gordam" (行くぞ! ゴーダム)
- Sung by: Ichiro Mizuki, Young Flesh
- Composition: Asei Kobayashi
- Lyrics: Ichiro Wakabayashi
- Arrangement: Nozomi Aoki
- Ending theme song: "Song of Gowapper 5" (ゴワッパー5の歌)
- Sung by: Ichiro Mizuki, Young Flesh
- Composition: Asei Kobayashi
- Lyrics: Ichiro Wakabayashi
- Arrangement: Nozomi Aoki
Merchandise
The Gowappa 5 Gordam characters and mecha were released in TakaraTakara
Takara Co., Ltd. was a Japanese toy company founded in 1955, that merged with another prominent Japanese toy company, Tomy Co., Ltd., on March 1, 2006 to form Takara Tomy, also known in English as TOMY Company Ltd....
's Magnemo toy line in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 1976. From its first incarnation, Gordam could both combine and transform, like in the show.
The Magnemo line encompasses was Takara Tomy
Takara Tomy
is a Japanese toy, children's merchandise and entertainment company created from the March 2006 merger of two companies: Tomy and long-time rival, Takara...
calls the "Magnerobo" series. Included in this series are Steel Jeeg
Steel Jeeg
, more commonly known as Kotetsu Jeeg or Koutetsu Jeeg, is a super robot anime and manga series created by manga artists Go Nagai and Tatsuya Yasuda. The TV anime was produced by Toei Doga. It was first broadcast on Japanese TV in 1975. The series lasted for 46 episodes...
, Magne Robo Gakeen
Magne robo gakeen
is a Japanese anime television series that aired from 1976 to 1977 in Japan. There were 39 episodes. It is also referred to as "Magnerobo Ga-Keen", "'Gakeen Supermagnetron", "'Gakeen Magnetic Robot", "Robotman Gakeen", "Gakeen"...
, Chojin Sentai Barattack, and Machine Zaurer.