History Anime / EighthMan

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Based on the manga series ''8 Man'' by Jiro Kuwata and Kazumasa Hirai, this 1963 anime tells the story of a private investigator named Hachiro Azuma (Brady in the US), ambushed by criminals and run over by a car. As he lies dying, a mysterious scientist rescues him and gives him a [[WeCanRebuildHim new cyborg body]].

Now empowered beyond ordinary men, Azuma becomes (all by himself) the secret 8th division of the Tokyo Police. His only superior is bureau chief Tanaka (called Chief Fumblethumbs, of all things, in English). Now called 8-Man ("Eighth Man", in English, because according to the dub he was the eighth cyborg attempt -- and the first one to work!), he has the usual array of powers: SuperStrength, SuperSpeed, plus VoluntaryShapeshifting and the unusual ability to [[HelpingHands detach and remotely control his limbs]]. In a detail that would never get past kid-vid censors today, 8-Man recharged his power supply using "special cigarettes". He spent much of his time fighting an array of goofy enemies ranging from communist spies and robot bats to gangsters with bizarre names right out of ''ComicStrip/DickTracy.''

Although the animation was average for a TV series of its time (it ran from November 7, 1963 to December 12, 1964 in Japan), by modern standards it is laughable and crude (like most shows of its era). In addition to being in black and white, its production crew had almost no experience with cel animation and took several episodes to gain any skill with the form. Even then it was of low quality, with a minimal frame rate, low detail, and wooden movement.

Despite this, it is still viewed with a certain amount of nostalgia in both Japan and the United States.

Along with ''Anime/AstroBoy'', ''Anime/{{Gigantor}}'' and ''Anime/SpeedRacer'', ''8th Man'' is historically significant as one of the first anime series to be distributed in the United States. The American version's [[ImportationExpansion newly animated]] [[ExpositoryThemeTune opening sequence]] was the first professional animation work done by Creator/RalphBakshi.

Any similarities to another story about [[Franchise/RoboCop a dying cop revived by Science]] are purely coincidental.

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!! The original series contains examples of:
* ArtShift: the American theme song, mentioned below, is considerably more western-looking than the series itself.
* ExpositoryThemeTune: The theme to the English dub combines this trope and NeverTrustATrailer, as the theme and ([[ImportationExpansion American animated]]) opening sequence described Eight Man fighting aliens (which he never does) and flying (which he can't do). A very young Creator/RalphBakshi was responsible for the new (and OffModel) opening.
* InconsistentDub: To name just one example, one episode features an assassin named Ice Finger. Later he appears again as the brain donor for a killer robot, but for some reason his name was changed to Cold Knuckle.
* ISurrenderSuckers: How the whole thing started. The leader of the gang that Azuma was going after pretended to surrender so that his other henchmen can run him over with their car while he was distracted, killing him. This lead to the scientist retrieving his body and rebuilding him as 8th Man.
* ItRunsOnNonsensoleum: 8 Man recharges his super-batteries or whatever by smoking radium-laced cigarettes.
* {{Ruritania}}: The professor who created 8th Man is said to have defected from a fictional country called Armico, to explain why all his blueprints and written communications are in a weird foreign language (Japanese, of course).
* SdrawkcabAlias: His secret identity is named Tobor.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Eight Man was also built with the ability to use his artifical skin to change his appearance -- usually to his secret identity of Tobor, but frequently for undercover missions. He has the RequiredSecondaryPower of [[VoiceChangeling changing his voice to help impersonate other people]], too.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Eight Man has to smoke (or eat) what appear to be cigarettes to keep his powers running. Great when he's facing a firing squad, but ''what if kids see him smoking and he sets a bad example?''
** Note that the latter issue is only thanks to ValuesDissonance with the time period the character was originally created in. 60s Japan was a time when people still believed cigarettes were ''good for you''.

Despite this, it is still viewed with a certain amount of nostalgia in both Japan and the United States, so much so that there was actually a (reputedly awful) LiveActionAdaptation produced in 1992. There was also a 1991 action game that was one of the first releases for the UsefulNotes/NeoGeo.

It also prompted a DarkerAndEdgier {{Revival}} {{OVA}} series in 1993, ''8th Man After''. This has joined its originator as a CultClassic due to its unique blend of dark CyberPunk and over-the-top SuperHero themes. It is also remembered for its mock-worthy DrugsAreBad themes - CyberneticsEatYourSoul because they are unusable without PsychoSerum. Eight Man is resurrected to fight them, fueled by SuperSerum. Just Say NO to PsychoSerum - Use SuperSerum! This could have all been avoided by [[FridgeLogic simply distributing the "safe" serum.]] Then lots of people could have cybernetics. But ReedRichardsIsUseless. [[MST3KMantra It's just an anime, I should really just relax]] and enjoy the ultraviolence. ''8th Man After'' was released in English by Creator/StreamlinePictures in the Nineties; Creator/DiscotekMedia re-released it on DVD in 2016 with both the original Japanese language track and Streamline's dub.

** Note that the latter issue is only thanks to ValuesDissonance with the time period the character was originally created in. 60s Japan was a time when people still believed cigarettes were ''good for you''.

!! 8th-Man After contains examples of:
* CyberneticsEatYourSoul: Cyborgs routinely run rampant because the cybernetic link to the nervous system along with the massive boost in strength unhinges most people's minds. Eight Man, being a ({{Bishonen}}) PhlebotinumRebel with "good cybernetics" is able to escape these effects (mostly) and battle the evil MegaCorp producing them.
* DragonAscendant: [[spoiler:After sabotaging the football team, Tony Gleck is able to stage a hostile takeover of the Biotechno MegaCorp, and force his former boss Mr. Halloween (Daigo) to be turned into a cyborg suicide bomber.]]
* DrugsAreBad: Used by the OVA in place of CyberneticsEatYourSoul: it's not the cybernetics per se that drives the users crazy, but the massive quantities of PsychoSerum they have to take to use the implants effectively. Eight Man makes do with good-old SuperSerum. [[spoiler:Which turns out to be closer to "I Just Get These Headaches" Serum, because of the overreaction Hazama has to the memory of his (fiancee/sister)'s murder.]] The metaphor becomes a little on-the-nose when Eight Man has to fight a football team that was augmented, [[spoiler:and later help his sidekick's DisappearedDad, a team member, fight through withdrawal symptoms]].
* DubInducedPlotHole: In the first episode (or act of the CompilationMovie), Tanaka mentions that Hazama's fiancee was killed. Much later, when Hazama actually flashes back to the incident, several characters mention that his ''sister'' was the one killed.
* FlashStep: Eight Man's superspeed is portrayed as this trope, with the sparks of his footsteps often the only sign that something struck an opponent.
* [[spoiler:KilledOffForReal: In ''8th Man After'' it's revealed that Azuma was deleted from his cyborg body with no explanation as to how or why he was deleted, the only remaining trace being his name, and his successor Hazama inheriting the body. However, combining statements from Sachiko and Professor Tani suggests that Azuma eventually wasn't able to cope with his situation and died. Since Tani had the body to begin with, it's possible that he ended up ''euthanizing'' Azuma.]]
* NonstandardCharacterDesign: Tanaka ("[[DubNameChange Fumblethumbs]]") from the original series (and his rookie cop nephew Ichiro) have noticeably more cartoony designs than the other characters.
* PutOnABus: Azuma disappears not a minute into the OVA, never to be seen again.
** [[spoiler: BusCrash: We later discover that Hazama isn't a totally new Eight Man, but inhabits the original body. Azuma's mind had been deleted by persons and methods unknown.]]
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: In ''After,'' Hazama remembers the night his fiancee ([[DubInducedPlotHole or sister?]]) was murdered [[spoiler:by Tony Gleck]], and how he promptly hunted down and killed those responsible. The memory of the murder unfortunately can trigger UnstoppableRage.
* SuperSerum: Used in the OVA; Professor Tani has a higher-quality serum that allows Hazama to function without going crazy. [[spoiler: At least, without going ''as'' crazy.]]
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Hazama still has this ability as the new Eight Man; however, besides changing to and from his secret identity, he only uses it to distract Sachiko from discovering his secret. When she realizes that Hazama had been stabbed before his EmergencyTransformation, Hazama uses his powers to produce the scar that Sachiko expected.
* WhatTheHellHero: Sachiko chews out Eight Man for using excessive force in killing a rampaging cyborg football team, going so far as to call him scarier than the cyborgs he killed. The cyborgs that were in the midst of slaughtering dozens of innocent fans in the stands and were just about to do the same to Sachiko before Eight Man arrived. Of course, it could be a DubInducedPlotHole because Eight Man not only [[CoupDeGrace killed cyborgs that he'd already disabled]], but grabbed Sachiko by the collar and was about to do the same to ''her''. Eight Man and Professor Tani comment that the incident ''was'' a rampage; Hazama and Eight Man aren't really that compatible due to his UnstoppableRage, and there's an ever-present threat of Hazama tearing people to pieces just because he's in the grip of a violent flashback.
----

Now empowered beyond ordinary men, Azuma becomes (all by himself) the secret 8th division of the Tokyo Police. His only superior is bureau chief Tanaka (called Chief Fumblethumbs, of all things, in English). Now called 8-Man ("Eighth Man", in English, because according to the dub he was the eighth cyborg attempt -- and the first one to work!), he has the usual array of powers: SuperStrength, SuperSpeed, plus the unusual ability to [[HelpingHands detach and remotely control his limbs]]. In a detail that would never get past kid-vid censors today, 8-Man recharged his power supply using "special cigarettes". He spent much of his time fighting an array of goofy enemies ranging from communist spies and robot bats to gangsters with bizarre names right out of ''ComicStrip/DickTracy.''

* NonstandardCharacterDesign: Tanaka from the original series (and his rookie cop nephew Ichiro) have noticeably more cartoony designs than the other characters.

* SuperSerum: Used in the OVA.

Despite this, it is still viewed with a certain amount of nostalgia in both Japan and the United States, so much so that there was actually a (reputedly awful) LiveActionAdaptation produced in 1992. There was also a 1991 action game that was oe of the first releases for the UsefulNotes/NeoGeo.

[[quoteright:150:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lt/eighthman.jpg]]

* WhatTheHellHero: Sachiko chews out Eight Man for using excessive force in killing a rampaging cyborg football team, going so far as to call him scarier than the cyborgs he killed. [[MoralDissonance The cyborgs that were in the midst of slaughtering dozens of innocent fans in the stands and were just about to do the same to Sachiko before Eight Man arrived.]] Of course, it could be a DubInducedPlotHole because Eight Man not only [[CoupDeGrace killed cyborgs that he'd already disabled]], but grabbed Sachiko by the collar and was about to do the same to ''her''. Eight Man and Professor Tani comment that the incident ''was'' a rampage; Hazama and Eight Man aren't really that compatible due to his UnstoppableRage, and there's an ever-present threat of Hazama tearing people to pieces just because he's in the grip of a violent flashback.

Now empowered beyond ordinary men, Azuma becomes (all by himself) the secret 8th division of the Tokyo Police. His only superior is bureau chief Tanaka (called Chief Fumblethumbs, of all things, in English). Now called 8-Man ("Eighth Man", in English, because according to the dub he was the eighth cyborg attempt -- and the first one to work!), he has the [[StockSuperpowers usual array]] of powers: SuperStrength, SuperSpeed, plus the unusual ability to [[HelpingHands detach and remotely control his limbs]]. In a detail that would never get past kid-vid censors today, 8-Man recharged his power supply using "special cigarettes". He spent much of his time fighting an array of goofy enemies ranging from communist spies and robot bats to gangsters with bizarre names right out of ''ComicStrip/DickTracy.''

Despite this, it is still viewed with a certain amount of nostalgia in both Japan and the United States, so much so that there was actually a (reputedly awful) LiveActionAdaptation produced in 1992.

Based the manga series ''8 Man'' by Jiro Kuwata and Kazumasa Hirai, this 1963 anime tells the story of a private investigator named Hachiro Azuma (Brady in the US), ambushed by criminals and run over by a car. As he lies dying, a mysterious scientist rescues him and gives him a [[WeCanRebuildHim new cyborg body]].

* ArtShift: the American theme song, mentioned below, looks considerably more western-looking than that of the series itself.

* ArtShift: the American theme song, mentioned Below, looks considerably more western-looking than that of the series itself.