Kaiketsu Zubat


Kaiketsu Zubat, is a tokusatsu superhero series that aired in 1977. Created by Shotaro Ishinomori, this 32-episode series, harkens back to tokusatsu superhero shows of the 1950s, but with a late-1970s twist. The series was first released on DVD in 2008.

Premise and plotlines

The star of the show is a private detective named Ken Hayakawa, played by veteran Hiroshi Miyauchi. In the first episode, his best friend Goro Asuka is mysteriously killed. Ken takes over his friend's gear that Asuka had invented: a suit and a flying vehicle, which he names the Zubat Suit and the Zubat Car. He travels the land as a wandering hero, fighting evil and injustice while in the guise of Zubat, and also trying to find Asuka's killer. Zubat's name is based on the sound effect "zubatto," which is the sound of something being hit right on target.
The series is unusual in the tokusatsu genre as the title hero Zubat does not "henshin" like the other superheroes Ishinomori created. Ken Hayakawa normally dresses in black & red gringo cowboy attire, but he just puts on his red & black "Zubasuit" hidden in his guitar when deciding to face his enemies as Zubat. His outfit looks no different from that of a Sentai hero:
The villains are also unusual for the genre. There are no monsters; rather, Zubat fights against a large criminal organization named Dakker and its mysterious leader, as well as other outlandishly-dressed criminals. Many episodes of this series have a bizarre Japanese "wild west" style setting, perhaps to explain why justice is meted out by a traveling superhero rather than lawful authorities expected in a more populated and dense setting like Japanese big cities.
An episode would generally have a single head criminal, and a yojimbo, somehow terrorizing a group of people. Ken Hayakawa would happen upon this and meet the yojimbo, which would lead to a demonstration of the latter's quirky skill they've used to threaten people. Ken Hayakawa would then defeat the villain and their gimmick.

Episode list

  1. Right After the Wandering Blast
  2. Migratory Birds Right in the Flames
  3. The Sorrow Solid-Golden Angel
  4. The Tearful Enemy Breaks Right Through
  5. The Flower Vendor Girl and the White Flour
  6. The Machine Gun Howls in the Sea
  7. The Nefarious Wind Blows Through the Seaport
  8. The Sorrowful Propane Blast
  9. Looking Back at the Tearful River
  10. The Baseball Opponent Flies to the Curb
  11. Don't Die, my Friends! Crisis One Second Back
  12. An Executioner 10 Seconds Ago
  13. The Boy Killer's Ballade
  14. The White-Feathered Arrow's Farewell Tears
  15. The Sorrowful Mother's Lullaby
  16. The Sorrowful Ken's Accused of Murder
  17. The Little Wailing Sister: Two Kens
  18. Look Out! The Soap Bubble's Love
  19. The Tragic Love Breaks the Love Letter
  20. The Female Dragon Vowed to Shed Tears
  21. Farewell, Eyelidded Mother
  22. The Young Boxer: Tearful Father
  23. The Okami Family Home: The Three Sisters and Ten'ichibo
  24. The Tearful Ken: The Unknown Town's Lover
  25. Kojin'yama's Tearful Farewell
  26. Forgive Me, My Child!
  27. Surprise! Is that the Perpetrator who killed Asuka?!
  28. And then, He Becomes Nobody
  29. Orphaned Children: Tearful Revenge
  30. Between the Sorrowful Life and Death
  31. Showdown! Leader L's the Real Culprit?
  32. The Day-to-Day Battle Bids Farewell, And then

Cast

  • Ken Hayakawa: Hiroshi Miyauchi
  • Midori Asuka: Nobuko Ōshiro
  • Osamu Terada: Nobuyuki Nakano
  • Shingo Tōjō: Shin Saitō
  • Leader L: Ryūji Hayami
  • Narrator: Shin Aomori

Songs

;Opening theme
;Ending theme

''Kamen Rider'' 40th Anniversary

Zubat, along with Kikaider, Kikaider 01, and Inazuman made an appearance in the film OOO, Den-O, All Riders: Let's Go Kamen Riders in commemoration of the Kamen Rider's 40th anniversary and Toei Company's 60th anniversary in 2011. This brief appearance saw the four heroes destroy the Kamen Rider Stronger villain, General Shadow.

Legacy

This series would also be parodied by Daicon Films (now Gainax) in 1982, in a series of short films starring the superhero Kaiketsu Noutenki. Zubat's costume was also a basis for the video game superhero parody ''Viewtiful Joe.''