Or Leader, or Governor, or Generalissimo... whichever you prefer! Since Springie already provided us with some good Gatch I X shots, I thought I'd throw in X from Gatchaman II: And Z from Gatchaman Fighter In case you're curious, this is the fragment of X that turned into Z in the first episode of Gatchaman Fighter:

Great shots TJ. I was looking for some, but was unable to find any at the site I was looking at.

Another one, from Jun's Joint.

Originally posted by Transmute Jun And Z from Gatchaman Fighter

This one is scary!

Thanks for the shots from Gatch II and Gatch F. I've only seen Leader X from Gatch I. He seems to be looking even more scarier as the series progresses.

Yes, Heres a theory, do you think the X reflects the personaility of his underling? This goes for the OAVs and BOTP too.

Well, I think some parallels could be drawn between their appearances, at least. Sosai X's image in Gatch I did look like a chicken (as Katse too resembled an animal, a cat) but had the cleanest, simplest lines and used few colours, as Katse's costume was also (for a super villain) cut along fairly elegant lines, and used just purple, red and black. Gel Sadra's costume was way too busy and all over the place, with too many colours -she looked like a clown- and even Sosai X's image became more complicated-looking but (to me) less effective. As for the scary image of Leader Z in Gatch F, maybe they were shooting for something that would match the sinister/goth/romantic vibe that Egobossler had going, with his fencing swords, wine goblets, castles...

Originally posted by lborgia88 Well, I think some parallels could be drawn between their appearances, at least. Sosai X's image in Gatch I did look like a chicken (as Katse too resembled an animal, a cat) but had the cleanest, simplest lines and used few colours, as Katse's costume was also (for a super villain) cut along fairly elegant lines, and used just purple, red and black. Gel Sadra's costume was way too busy and all over the place, with too many colours -she looked like a clown- and even Sosai X's image became more complicated-looking but (to me) less effective. As for the scary image of Leader Z in Gatch F, maybe they were shooting for something that would match the sinister/goth/romantic vibe that Egobossler had going, with his fencing swords, wine goblets, castles...

Your thoughts seem to explain a lot for me, LB. I personally like the simple design of X from Gatchaman but that could be because it's the one I'm most familiar with. I have a question--was it ever really explained what X was? I know at the end of Gatch I that he was an alien from another planet that had exploded but what was his purpose in attacking the Earth? Was it his idea or was he just representing his planet?

That's a really good question, condorfan. I don't recall that they ever really explained--in the original series, anyway--why he was so fixated on conquering Earth in particular. All the information viewers were given indicated only that he had been sent by his home planet to capture Earth, and he was determined to do that no matter what it took. But near the end of Gatch I's second season, his home planet abruptly blew up. The explosion was observed from Earth (which says some interesting things about either his homeworld's physical proximity to Earth, or the lack of faster-than-light drive in X's spaceship and how OLD his standing orders were!). When X learned that his planet was destroyed, he lost all interest in conquering Earth, packed up his bags, and abandoned Katse and everything he'd built in Galactor. According to James (I had to ask), there is more to the story, but it was sort of retro-fitted in. In Gatch II and also in some of the planning for the movie, X's interest in Earth was revealed to lie in its strategic location halfway between Proxima and Andromeda. X's home planet was embroiled in a war with another planet, and as it turned out, Earth's Sun was the proper type and in the right location to create a special weapon against the enemy. Hence X's determination to conquer Earth in the original series. His return to Earth in II was apparently driven by a desire for revenge: he wanted to strike back at the enemy planet and Earth's Sun still provided the best means to do so (i.e. the Solar Shift Plan). He was also willing to be even more ruthless at this stage. James comments that although in II the Black Hole Plan is clearly outlined as the purpose that X is trying to fulfill, things aren't so clear in Fighter, where we're left with the impression that Z is trying to conquer Earth largely out of spite and ill-will. I haven't seen all of Fighter myself, and what I have seen I can't translate, so I have no idea myself.

Thanks, Barrdwing (and James) -very interesting information about X's motives! I'm a little confused about the "Black Hole Plan" though -wasn't that the Gatch I plan, and the Gatch II plan was called the Solar Shift plan?

Too many plans! So little time..... Thanks for the background information, Barrdwig! That's really interesting! I had no idea about X's inter-planetary war.

Hi all! James here, using Heather's computer while mine is busy...

I'm a little confused about the "Black Hole Plan" though -wasn't that the Gatch I plan, and the Gatch II plan was called the Solar Shift plan?

Yes, it was. Heather noticed her error and edited it just before she left for work, but a little too late, apparently. Much of the vagueness regarding X's motives in the original series stems from the original concept behind X. In the series Planning Establishment, X is described as follows: "[Gallactor's] headquarters is hidden deep underground within the Himalayan mountains. From here, they give orders to their cells in other nations. At the heart of the headquarters is Berg Katse, the man claiming to be the leader, as well as several hundred of his subordinates. The headquarters is completely automated. But, Berg Katse is only seen as the leader on orders from the enigmatic Governor, who actually gives Berg Katse his orders. No one except Berg Katse is allowed to see the appearance of this Governor. The Governor's voice is ominous, and absolute in its authority. It even keeps Berg Katse in complete submission. Who is this dreaded, mysterious man X, the Governor......? In reality, he is a super-size computer produced to the best of Berg Katse's proud super abilities. The viewers will only be informed of this in the finale. Until then, the Governor will be kept vague." This is slightly hinted at in episode #21, "Who is Governor X," when Dr. Henjinman apparently realizes that X is nothing more than a computer. Chief Director Hisayuki Toriumi explained part of what led to the change in direction regarding X in a 1978 interview when he said, "...Katse was supposed to have been the real X, having built up this fictitious character in order to manipulate people. That was how they were first envisioned. But it's difficult to express a notion like that in animation. So we ended up taking that image and used it as the starting point for what to do with this fellow. Hence the interpretation of Governor X gradually drifted away from this concept." This notion of X being a Katse-created computer was even used when the series staff did their initial outlines for the finale. In it, Katse has switched sides and is now working with the Science Ninja Team to defeat X. When Katse helps them get to X's control room, X shoots Katse with a beam, and as he dies, Katse explains, "Governor X is a computer I created. But the computer multiplied itself, until finally it began giving me orders. Then it took command away from me." Obviously, this was not the way things turned out when they actually got around to producing the final episodes. But their apparent reluctance to entirely abandon this concept is likely part of the reason why we don't learn of X's alien origins until the very end of the series. By that point, there wasn't really time to delve into his exact motivations. As Heather mentioned, there was some thought given to this when Tatsunoko began working on the movie and the second series. In an early scenario draft of the movie, the newly-created prologue was going to include the Narrator saying, "Two million light years in space is the Andromeda Nebula. It is said to hold 200 billion worlds. This one is the planet Select Star. For a long time, Select Star has continued a furious war with the planet Fueless Star. Impatient for victory, Select Star launched an operation to change the solar system into a Black Hole, planning to draw Fueless Star into the vortex. Bearing this mission, the mysterious being X was secretly sent to Earth. Within the mountains of Earth, the mysterious being X constructs a secret headquarters, and choosing male and female humans to create a mutant, he appoints the leader of the secret society Gallactor. The name he is given is Berg Katse. Calling himself Governor X, the mysterious being X commands that the International Science and Technology Organization's ongoing Mantle Plan be destroyed. While Berg Katse burns with desire to be Earth's conqueror, pledging to obey Governor X's orders, he is unaware of X's true intention to change the solar system into a Black Hole. Berg Katse immediately launches into action." Much of this would have taken place over visuals that were very similar to what eventually appeared in the prologue of the film, of X flying through space, landing in the Himilaya, and creating Katse, though the film played these scenes without narration. Instead, the first voice we hear is X himself after he has reached Earth and is creating Katse, where he explains that he is X, a "messenger from space," and that he is creating Katse to be his arms and legs, but neglects to get into pesky details about why he came to Earth in the first place. All mention of the planet Fueless Star might have vanished into the ether had at article about the Gatchaman movie in the August, 1978 issue of Animage (Which was published in early July, 1978, just before the movie was released) hadn't mentioned this excised story idea as part of the "Story Digest" portion of the article. By the way, as an aside, it should be noted that X's homeworld in the first series was named Selector Star. For reasons unknown, when the radio drama was being produced, the name of this planet was shortened to Select Star. It remained Select Star through the Gatchaman movie and the runs of Gatchaman II and Gatchaman Fighter. Anyway, when Gatchaman II was being developed, the Planning Establishment explained the reason for Governor X's return as follows: "At the conclusion of the previous production, Governor X's homeworld, Select Star, was unexpectedly destroyed. The Milky Way is in-between Select Star, within the Andromeda Nebula, and Proxima, in Centaurus, whose border is nearest to our solar system, and which was in a lengthy war that caused the destruction of Select Star. Governor X is a lunatic warrior of space, but his ability to fight was not destroyed along with the world of his birth. His main goal is to destroy our solar system, turning it into a Black Hole, so that both Proxima and our solar system will be buried in a different dimension with a single stroke. This is the reason Governor X returned to Earth, made Gel Sadra the leader of Gallactor, and manipulated numerous Earthmen (High government officials from various countries of the world, scientists, guerilla leaders, and more, people from every field); to use Earth as a base from which to make the sun into a Black Hole. The outcome of this plan is not known to Gel Sadra or to viewers. It is slightly understood only by the cyborg Joe, the Condor, and Dr. Raphael." This description was accompanied by this handy graphic: As you can see, they did actually intend to use another Black Hole Operation, this time titled "Solar System Black Hole Operation," in the second series. Most likely, someone figured that going with another Black Hole Operation would seem a bit too redundant, and chose to change the master plan to the Solar Shift Plan instead. When the Gatchaman II was actually in production, it was not until the last episode of the series that we found out exactly why X had crafted the Solar Shift Plan. While the idea of destroying the world that destroyed Select Star remained intact, this world was not named Fueless. Instead, the only designation we are given for it is "Planet 013,001 of the Proxima System." The Planning Establishment for Gatchaman Fighter gives a single sentence explanation for the motivations of Governor Z, "In order to avenge Governor X, Governor Z is working to cause the destruction of the Earth." Pretty basic, but we are talking about a being whose core is nothing more than a small leftover fragment of Governor X, so maybe we shouldn't expect too much from him. Again, this is probably more than you cared to know, but I hope it helps explain a few things! James

Wow. An amazing amount of information here! So the initial idea of Sosai X was that he would be purely a computerized figurehead created by Katse, but who would later seize power from Katse. The more I learn about the ideas that Tatsunoko had but did not use, the more I try to imagine what the series would have been like if they had used them, if Jun was G2, and Joe was a gardener, and Sosai X was a creation of Katse's...

Hi all!

The more I learn about the ideas that Tatsunoko had but did not use, the more I try to imagine what the series would have been like if they had used them, if Jun was G2, and Joe was a gardener, and Sosai X was a creation of Katse's...

Not just Jun as G-2 and Joe as G-3, but also Ryu as G-4 and Jinpei as G-5. People tend to forget about that one. James

Joe as a gardener? I've never heard of that one? Is that why the early drawing of Joe with a dart in his teeth looks like a flower? Thanks again James, for your insights. This went above and beyond. I am amazed! Incidentally, I like the idea of a computer that took over Katse, and having him join up with the KNT.I guess they used a lot of those ideas in the finale of Gatch II (in that Gel Sadra realized what had created HER, and she switched sides).

Hi all!

Joe as a gardener? I've never heard of that one? Is that why the early drawing of Joe with a dart in hius teeth looks like a flower?

In an early planning stages for the series, a basic chart describing the main cast of characters was drawn up. Part of that chart listed things like their hobbies and their goals in life, just to give the staff an idea of what they were like. Much of it was changed or altered as the planning, and eventually the series, progressed. For Joe's goals, as listed on that chart, he wanted to go into landscape garden management and flower making. That is indeed why the model sheets for Joe in his civilian clothes show him with a flower in his mouth (Not a shuriken that looks like a flower, but an actual flower). That flower in Joe's mouth actually appears in episode #23, "The Giant Raging Mecha-Ball," though much of that can probably be blamed on that episode having a Director and Key Animators who had never worked on the show before and were simply following the model sheets provided to them.

I guess they used a lot of those ideas in the finale of Gatch II (in that Gel Sadra realized what had created HER, and she switched sides).

Kind of, only the series finale outline gives different reasons for Katse switching sides (Since, of course, that version had X being created by Katse, not the other way around). In it, Katse finally loses favor with X, and is replaced by 8 Executive Captains, all of whom he is subordinate to. Once he is captured by the Science Ninja Team, he has no reason to remain loyal to X, and tells his captors where Gallactor's Headquarters is located. This sets things up for a drawn out final series of battles as the Ninja Team fights their way past the Executive Captains to finally reach Governor X. James

Originally posted by tatsunokofan For Joe's goals, as listed on that chart, he wanted to go into landscape garden management and flower making.

Boy, did they make some radical changes with Joe's character. I would associate gardening with those who are careful, nurturing and very patient -not Joe's most obvious qualities!

Thank you James. You always seem to know or can locate some of the most interesting stuff. I know when ever you post I am always going to learn something new.

Thanks James for all the background information!!! I never understood why X wanted the Earth... Joe a gardener...

Thank you James for your wealth of expertise knowledge. It really helps to fill in the gaps of character motivations. You mentioned in the early planning stages of the teams hobbies and interests. Were they different from what was shown in the series or basically the same? I still can't get my head around the idea of Joe being a gardener--"Damm Galactor bastards! They stepped all over my Azaleas!"

Originally posted by Condorfan I still can't get my head around the idea of Joe being a gardener--"Damm Galactor bastards! They stepped all over my Azaleas!"

"But I see my prized long stemmed roses got the better of them", notes Joe as he sees drops of blood and scraps of galactor green material tangled in the thorns.

Hi all!

You mentioned in the early planning stages of the teams hobbies and interests. Were they different from what was shown in the series or basically the same?

They were different. Remember, this was a very early character chart, done as an exercise to help flesh the characters out and give the staff some idea of who they were. Much of what was on it was altered as pre-production on the series progressed. Regardless, the few hobbies listed in the chart were as follows: Ken - Rifle Marksmanship Jun - Cake making Joe - Enjoys gambling, dabbling with flowers, wants to possess a handgun Berg Katse - Raises ferocious animals James

How does Jun go from cake making to burning water?

Yes, I like the fact that they made Jun into someone who, at least according to Jinpei, can't cook -it makes me feel better since I too am a bad cook.

Originally posted by clouddancer "But I see my prized long stemmed roses got the better of them", notes Joe as he sees drops of blood and scraps of galactor green material tangled in the thorns.

Good one CD!

Or perhaps Joe would be raising carnivorous plants?

Originally posted by Transmute Jun Or perhaps Joe would be raising carnivorous plants?

Or poisonous ones -there's got to be something toxic on all those shuriken of his. Nice avatar -you're back to being a Swan again!

Are we sure the planners didn't look at these initial traits and say "Ok, now let's make the characters the exact opposites of these" Though it is kinda nice to know that even the pro's change their characters/storylines almost up until the very end. It makes me feel better that all that fic editing/changing I do is just par for the course! BTW, thank you yet again, James, for all the wonderful information. The insight and understanding you give to us is amazing and most highly appreciated!

Originally posted by Condorfan

Originally posted by clouddancer "But I see my prized long stemmed roses got the better of them", notes Joe as he sees drops of blood and scraps of galactor green material tangled in the thorns.

Good one CD!

I was just trying to keep your story going Condorfan.

Originally posted by clouddancer

Originally posted by Condorfan I still can't get my head around the idea of Joe being a gardener--"Damm Galactor bastards! They stepped all over my Azaleas!"

"But I see my prized long stemmed roses got the better of them", notes Joe as he sees drops of blood and scraps of galactor green material tangled in the thorns.

I can just see it now... "Joe! I told you to keep your damned plants away from me!"

Originally posted by lborgia88 Nice avatar -you're back to being a Swan again!

I love the Ken one you made me, but I felt the need to go Swannie again... at least for awhile. But I love that pictures....

Joe sometimes has a hard time dealing with his plants too.

Bad plant! Sit! Now stay!

Originally posted by lborgia88 Bad plant! Sit! Now stay!

Notice how Jun is frozen in fear the whole time? If Joe the gardener can't get out of this one, then what hope does she have?

Originally posted by Transmute Jun

Originally posted by lborgia88 Bad plant! Sit! Now stay!

Notice how Jun is frozen in fear the whole time? If Joe the gardener can't get out of this one, then what hope does she have?

Poor Joe... I don't think I'll ever see him in the same light again... Maybe that's why he's so angry all the time... He's trying to cover up his more "sensitive" side.

Good point, Hino! He has already cracked and let it slip that he likes puppies and deer. He must be terrified at letting this final secret out about himself. Will the team be able to accept him once they know the truth?

Everyone, thanks for the great pics and animations! It's so weird what they orginally thought as hobbies for the team. With the news of Joe being a gardener I almost expected Ken to do knitting in his spare time!

I so love the pics/animations on this subject!

I am LOL at all these comments about the teams hobbies. Poor guys, I think Ryu need to take them

That would be another question: does Ryu actually catch fish, or does he enjoy just taking the boat out and napping?

Originally posted by Barrdwing That would be another question: does Ryu actually catch fish, or does he enjoy just taking the boat out and napping?

Depends on the fanfic you're reading.... On a more serious note, presumably he is ABLE to catch fish, because he did so with his father and brother for a living. As to whether he enjoys catching the fish... you may have a point about just enjoying the boating. The only ep that's coming to my mind off the top of my head where Ryu was actually out fishing was the Aurora ep... I just checked it out. He is actually fishing in that one, and THEN decides to settle down for a nap (before being turned into a wild animal).

Is fishing and napping not the same thing? It seems to me when ever I see a fisherman they are always resting. Except for those few fishing TV shows I have flipped through, on those the fishermen seem to be a little more active.