Gatchaman Episode 62: “The Snow Demon King, Blizzarder”

BOTP Episode: “Decoys of Doom”







The episode begins with Ken, in birdstyle, standing beneath a spotlight.







There appears to be two lines running down his chin, one on each side of his mouth. Whatever could this mean? Did he-

Suddenly guns protrude from the walls all around the room. Bullets fly at Ken from all directions. For an instant, he drops to a crouch, shielding himself with his cape.







But then he leaps high into the air with a cry of “Bird run!” His boomerang flies in an arc, slicing through the guns and destroying them.

But a new weapon now emerges from another hole in the wall and this one shoots a blast of flames straight at… Joe –he’s here too. Joe also shields himself with his cape and leaps into the air.







Still in the air, he turns and fires his cablegun at the flamethrower and it explodes and is destroyed.

Elsewhere in this same large room, Jun soars through the air, dodging bullets.









She throws her yoyo such that it wraps around another weapon protruding from the wall and detonates it, making another fiery explosion. We don’t get a good look and her or Joe’s chins.

On the floor, Jinpei is readying his bolas as a missile zooms towards him. He throws them such that they wrap around the missile and slow its flight such that he catches it carefully in his arms.







Hmm, Jinpei has the same lines as Ken on his chin-

Now Jinpei hurls the missile back into the hole in the wall from whence it came, where it explodes.

Now, a massive ball covered in very large spikes drops from the ceiling above Ryu. But he catches it with his arms over his head –not without some straining, though, as it’s clearly very heavy. He drops to his knees-

Say, he’s got lines on his chin too.

But Ryu is able to stand again, even though the spiked ball he’s holding is so heavy that Ryu’s feet are now causing the floor under them to crack and break.






He lifts the ball aloft and then brings it down on his own back, causing it to break into pieces. Quite the major feat, even for the mighty Owl!

Having vanquished all the weapons massed against them, the victorious Ninjas all hastily convene in the middle of the room, illuminated by spotlights and lined up according to rank. And now, they all recite their ranks –G-1, G-2 etc.- aloud.

We get a clue as to why this whole scene seems not-quite-right when two panels in the wall slide away to reveal windows –behind one stands Dr. Nambu and behind the other, the Ninjas in their civvies (and without any lines on any of their chins).












“The test results are passable,” says Dr. Nambu, “Now we just have to install memory circuits into their electronic brains.”

Yes, we’ve been watching robots.

Jinpei is excited and impressed with this “Kick-butt team of Wonder Twins!” but Ryu is worried that they’ve just been superseded (and considering what his robot double accomplished with that massive ball of spikes, he might have good cause to be worried –he’s probably praying that it’s lousy at flying the God Phoenix.)

Joe has his arms folded and an interesting expression on his face –sort of a cross between amused and skeptical- as he says “So we’re finally going to get the axe, huh?”

Joe doesn’t really sound worried but Dr. Nambu says “No,” and proceeds to explain that the robot doubles are intended just for a particular mission.

We get a good look at all the robot doubles’ faces now, and they all look just like the human Ninjas except for the lines they all have on their chins.






“Their electronic brains enable them to act on their own will,” continues Dr. Nambu, “With these, we can kill two birds at once by locating a secret Galactor base while also protecting the lives of the Team.”

Ken doesn’t like this implication that the Team needs help, and demands to know if Dr. Nambu thinks they’re no longer up to snuff. Jun interjects, insisting that Dr. Nambu is merely concerned about their safety.

“I know that,” replies Ken, frowning, “But we’ve already agreed that we’re ready to die for the cause, so come on!”







Really, Ken, the frequency with which you make such declarations leaves me wondering sometimes if you actually want to die!

But Dr. Nambu insists that there’s plenty of danger to go around and that the human Ninjas have an important mission too.

“We’ll let Galactor capture these decoys,” explains Dr. Nambu as the floor immediately beneath the said decoys begins descending down, taking them away with it, “So that their electronic brains can transmit their secret base’s location back to us.” Then, explains Dr. Nambu, the real Ninjas will move in and take action.

Ken is somewhat mollified by this assurance that he will get a chance to risk his life for the cause.

Dr. Nambu announces that the decoys will be deployed immediately in a “sting operation.” Everyone salutes and says “Roger!” but Ken is not in unison with the others –he lags a second behind with his “Roger!”







Now we cut to scenes of ordinary people standing around watching news broadcasts, radio towers transmitting and computers churning out printed messages.








The narrator explains “A few days later, the International Police Federation announced that they would hold a ceremony to pay tribute to the Science Ninja Team’s outstanding achievements,” and that the Ninjas, previously veiled in secrecy, would be making their first public appearance. The news, continues the narrator, “was spread worldwide in a great public campaign, sure to attract Galactor’s attention.”

As the narrator concludes, “Anticipation was high –heroes on parade!” we see what is seemingly a publicity photo of the Science Ninjas. In it, Jinpei has clearly just committed a gaffe of some kind; Ken and Joe look annoyed, Jun is clutching her head in dismay and Ryu looks amused. Couldn’t Dr. Nambu have released a more dignified and heroic looking group image than this one?








But now we cut to Leader X, who is intoning “The perfect opportunity to test the power of our new mecha has arrived, Berg Katse!” Katse, of course, is standing before him, and nervously asking what Leader X means, explaining that he’s been “working round the clock” and hasn’t “been able to watch any news.”

So, Leader X (who must not be working as hard) has to explain that the Science Ninjas will be making a public appearance in New City.









Katse at least grasps immediately what Leader X is getting at, saying “So if we release our new mecha, we can get that obnoxious Gatchaman and his feathered freaks!”

“Exactly,” replies Leader X, adding “The new mecha is complete, correct?” in a tone that implies it had better be, or else…

Katse hastily assures Leader X that the mecha has been completed, but admits that its performance tests have not.

“I don’t care!” declares Leader X, “Deploy it now! Destroy the Science Ninja Team!”

Katse says “Sire,” and does one of his sweeping bows to Leader X before pausing, hand on chin, to happily contemplate the demise of the Science Ninjas.

Next, we cut to New City and the streets are lined with spectators watching a parade as confetti flies everywhere.

As part of the parade, a chauffer is driving a red convertible car and standing in the back of it are all five decoy Ninjas looking stiff and solemn as the crowds cheer -I guess their programming doesn’t include “smile and wave graciously.”









Meanwhile, in an observation room high above the street, the real Ninjas are watching the parade and their decoy counterparts.









Jinpei declares “We look pretty cool, huh?” while Jun wishes they could really be down there in the parade. Joe is wondering if Galactor will really be fooled by the decoys and abduct them, but Ryu feels that the decoys resemble them enough for the plan to work.

Ken, conspicuously silent and unimpressed-looking, turns away from the window and makes for the door. Jun, concerned, wants to know where he’s going and he claims that he’s “just going to take a little walk.”








Jinpei jokes that Ken must be feeling self-conscious, watching “himself,” and Jun laughs, accepting this as the reason for Ken’s departure.

But Ken’s not taking a walk at all –he’s taking a run. As soon as he’s out of the room, he pauses a moment and then goes dashing down the hallway.

At a stadium in New City, 80,000 people, according to an announcer, have gathered to see the Science Ninja Team. A circular stage has been set up in the center of the stadium and Dr. Nambu and other dignitaries are also in attendance.

Meanwhile, below ground, the decoys are moving along a conveyer belt to an elevator that will, presumably, lift them up to the stage in the center of the stadium. But Ken is here, in birdstyle now, and he pulls his own decoy aside, covers its mouth and instructs it to switch places with him and go back to the observation lounge to await Dr. Nambu’s orders.









The decoy repeats Ken’s instructions dutifully and complies.

“Hurry!” Ken calls after it, and he enters the elevator himself. As the elevator is rising, Ken glances at the other four decoys and thinks to himself “The robots will be discovered right away –Galactor isn’t that easy to fool.”









So, the elevator reaches the stage above and the crowds in the stands all applaud and cheer with great enthusiasm. The four decoys just stand there, but at least Ken raises an arm to acknowledge their audience.









He’s more than a little worried though when Dr. Nambu comes striding over to the stage and proceeds to shake hands with each of them. Ken averts his face, but clearly is thinking that he’ll never fool Dr. Nambu up close.









Fortunately, just before Dr. Nambu gets to Ken, something happens to distract everyone –a mass of thick black clouds moves in over the stadium.









The clouds clear to reveal a giant horned and winged demon looming over the stadium. Dr. Nambu, Ken and even the decoys react in alarm at this sight, and the crowds in the stands begin to flee in a panic.

Some of them don’t get too far, though, as the demon, “Blizzarder,” opens its mouth and emits a freeze ray that leaves its victims frozen stiff, coated in ice.










Blizzarder fires this freeze ray all around the stadium and then smashes the frozen places to pieces with its fists.

Dr. Nambu is fleeing from the stage, as Ken and the decoys all run in the other direction, and he contacts Joe and the others –who are still in the observation lounge- with a walkie talkie and he tells them that Galactor’s mecha monster has arrived. They all leap to their feet and Joe turns on a TV –and what they see on it is Blizzarder, and numerous frozen spectators at the stadium.

“What the hell is that?” demands Joe, and Jinpei is all ready to rush to Dr. Nambu’s aid. In fact, now they’re seeing Dr. Nambu on the TV too. But Dr. Nambu, pausing to look back at Blizzarder, who is still stomping around inside the stadium, insists they stay where they are lest they “jeopardize the operation!”

Ryu protests that they have to do something but Dr. Nambu is adamant that they all stay put and then he cuts out and the TV screen goes blank.

Joe is yelling “Damn it!” and banging down his fists and Jinpei is still insisting they could take down the Blizzarder mecha when “Ken,” in birdstyle, returns to the observation lounge.








“Where have you been?” asks Jun, and Jinpei adds “Hey Bro, we’ve got a problem!” but decoy Ken just stands there, head bowed, and doesn’t say anything. Joe takes this to mean that they all should all follow his example and get ready too –and apparently this entails more than just transmuting as he, Ryu and Jinpei all go running out of the room. Jun protests that their orders are to “stand by,” but Jinpei insists that they’re just getting ready and nothing else.

Jun lingers behind and approaches “Ken,” who hasn’t moved, and asks “Aren’t you going to come along with us?” She gasps in shock when “Ken” lifts his head, and tonelessly declares “The order is to stand by and wait.”








She touches his face with one hand.









“I knew it!” she cries, “Oh no! This means the real Ken is out there, in danger!”

“Out there,” in the stadium, it looks like Blizzarder has hit mostly everything and everyone with its freeze ray and is in the process of smashing it and them all up.

When you decided to lure in Galactor with a decoy Science Ninja Team, Dr. Nambu, did you really have to use a stadium of 80,000 people as your setting? This part of the “sting operation” is pretty rough on it and them!

UN tanks and fighter jets arrive on the scene and open fire on Blizzarder, but they accomplish nothing except to get hit with the freeze ray themselves and to be destroyed.

But we get a look now at the Captain of the Week, whose appearance suggests someone mutated a man, an insect and Kermit the frog into one. He’s busy gloating over the power of Galactor’s mammoth Blizzarder. However, one of the goons with him has noticed that the Science Ninja Team is escaping.









In fact, they’re escaping by driving away in the red convertible they rode in during the parade.








It’s not clear if this is Ken’s idea, but he is the one driving the car (and no doubt, obedient decoy-Joe didn’t argue about who gets to drive.) Perhaps he realized it would be a good idea to draw Blizzarder away from the stadium before it freezes or smashes up still more people.

Before long, Ken sees in the mirror that Blizzarder is coming after them.









He smiles to himself and thinks “Ah company… But I’ve got an anti-electricity suit.” It’s not entirely clear if he’s referring to his birdstyle, if he’s wearing something else underneath it, or if he’s got on some kind of transparent suit (like what Jun wore when inside that Jigokiller) over his birdstyle. It’s also not entirely clear what makes him think that an anti-electricity suit is going to protect him from a freeze ray, but I suppose a ray of any variety is akin to electricity.

Blizzarder starts firing the freeze ray at the car, and Ken swerves around on the road to avoid it. Unfortunately, he scrapes the car against the guardrail on one side of the road and then careens into the rock face on the other side –maybe you should have told the Joe-decoy to drive, Ken!

“Damn it!” yells Ken. Now, Dr. Nambu’s plan is that the decoys are supposed to be captured by Galactor, but I guess Ken was hoping it wouldn’t happen quite like this. Either that or he’s crashed the car on purpose and is trying to lend some verisimilitude to the whole scene.

The car is jammed against the rocks and can’t go forward, and before Ken has a chance to try moving in reverse, Blizzarder hits the car with its freeze ray.








The car, the four decoys and Ken all end up encased in ice, but Blizzarder doesn’t try to smash them –instead it picks up the frozen car and its occupants with its hands and flies away.

Now we see that, somehow, Dr. Nambu has been watching all this on-screen. Were there hidden cameras built into the rock wall alongside the road?

“Good, that went very well,” says Dr. Nambu. I wonder how much was planned in advance and how much was improvised by Ken.









Now Dr. Nambu starts tracking where the decoys –and therefore the mecha- have gone on a radar screen. The line curves and weaves all over the place –either the goons who are flying it are terrible pilots or they’re trying to throw anyone who’s tailing them off their trail.

“Dr. Nambu!” cries a very anxious Jun, appearing on another screen, “Give us permission to move out! Ken…”

“What about Ken?” replies Dr. Nambu rather densely. You’d think that Jun’s demeanor, along with the fact that she –and not Ken- is requesting orders to move out would tip him off as to what’s really going on. “The robots are about to tell us the exact location of Galactor’s secret base,” continues Dr. Nambu, “The Team can mobilize after that.”







“No, it’s- I mean-” stutters Jun, clearly torn between her reluctance to rat Ken out to the Doctor and her fear for his safety, “It’s just…” She sighs.

“What is it?” asks Dr. Nambu a bit testily, but Jun’s made up her mind now.

“Roger that. Standing by,” she replies, and turns off the screen. Joe, Ryu and Jinpei are standing behind her but they don’t comment.







Jun walks over to “Ken,” who’s standing in the doorway out of the room, and puts a hand on his shoulder and to direct him forward. They both leave the room. (A wicked little part of my mind can’t help but wonder what Jun might have in mind for this robot that looks exactly like Ken and that will do anything she wants… But, its utter lack of personality would be off-putting, and she’s probably not in the mood anyway.)

Once they’re gone, Jinpei remarks “Big Bro’s been acting a little strange but now even Sis is tripping out.” Ryu looks unconcerned but Joe is staring after Jun and “Ken” as though he too thinks something’s going on.

Meanwhile, Dr. Nambu paces impatiently while some ISO techs or scientists continue to monitor the path taken by Blizzarder and its decoy prisoners. “Come on,” he demands, “Can’t we zero in on the location of Galactor’s secret base yet? Try running the circuit again!”

This time, it yields results.

“Latitude is still 90 degrees. It looks like it’s stopped at the North Pole,” says the ISO tech.






Dr. Nambu ponders the significance of a latitude of 90 degrees and has an “aha!” moment.

“Galactor’s secret base must be buried somewhere beneath the polar ice cap!” he declares, with grim triumph.


Commercial break!