Battle of The Planets

"Battle of the Planets" was a show I absolutely loved as a kid. I remember vividly sitting on the floor of our family room as an seven-year-old, and my dad sitting on the couch said, "hey Mark...there's a new cartoon starting this week you might like." He handed down the TV Guide to me and there was actually a picture advertisement for "Battle of the Planets." It was to be shown on our ABC affiliate every afternoon at 4:00. I started watching, and I was hooked. I loved that show, and the animation, and the voice acting...everything. I'm sure we're not the only ones, but my brother and I would regularlly play G-Force...using our dad's old t-shirts to make uniforms and capes. Now, as a 34-year-old, I love the show just as much as I did when I was a kid, and I can't wait to share it with my own kids. "Battle of the Planets" has definitely passed the test of time, and will be sticking around for a long time.moreless

This is one of the finest examples of Japanese anime being brought to American audiences ever. Along with Robotech, and Captain Harlock, they did not get much better.

Too bad most of the episodes that were broadcast in the states were so severely edited. The Japanese versions were much more gritty and dark. Luckily most of them are available on DVD now.

I have heard talk of the show being turned into a feature film. I think that after the success of the Transformers movie that the possiblity of G-Force making it's way to the big screen could become a reality.moreless

The brave youngsters of the 'guardians of space' pilot the mighty Phoenix ship, which launces from underwater base Center Neptune (in a secret location which suspiciously resembles the coast of California). The manic Keyop, practical Jason and Mark, stout Tiny and graceful Princess band together under the leadership of Chief Anderson. They must face enemies as varied as robot ants, lava giants, and monsters and aliens galore. The evil genius behind all this is Zoltar of Spectra. Ever crafty, he sends wave after wave of terror, only to be thwarted again. Beware, though--both sides can be counted on to live to fight another day.

Funny, brisk, stylish and wtih clever characters, this was a series which had no trouble finding a loyal audience. I don't know exactly why people who lived on board a submerged station and space rocket needed to dress in winged outfits with beaked helmets, but then again, they never lost points for style.

The themes of unity, intelligence and never giving up made it far better than most animated shows today, which are little more than toy commercials. With BOTP/G-Force, you got plenty of heart for your trouble.moreless

Although it seems fairly dated now, `Battle Of The Planets` is an iconic series in animated TV history, as it helped introduce the japanese art of anime to a much wider audience. It's just a shame that the western version had so much of the show's violence cut out.

I used to watch this show when I was younger. I can remember about six or seven years ago when this show was still on Cartoon Network. In my youth, I would constantly sneak out of bed late in the night just to watch this show. There was a slight problem; at that age I couldn't have cared less about the name of it. I actually just found the show by accident the other day while I was looking at Wal-Mart. Though it had a different name than I though, Gatchaman.

Enough about how I came to watch the show and more about the show. I originally saw the show shown on Cartoon Network late one night and instantly fell in love with it. As I understand, the show was called Battle of the Planets when it was originally shown in the U.S.. But then what is Gatchaman? Well I looked around and found that out, its BotP except its just uncut. Don't get the two show mixed up, as they aren't all the same.

Gatchaman (as it is called by the boxed DVD sets) is an unedited Japanese version of the show. It's the pure, unedited, dubbed version. It contains much of the "gore", "cursing" and even unaired episodes that were cut from G-Force.

BotP is a great show! Likely my favorite anime ever, but if you have the chance to purchase either Gatchaman or BotP, go with Gatchaman. It might take a little bit to get used to the differences, but you may eventually get to see some episodes and scenes that you've never seen before and even episodes you have in the complete uncut, unedited versions!moreless