PROTOCOL is a (fictional) series of Urban Fantasy Role Playing Games that Creative Name 24 believes would be a collaborative effort between Hideo Kojima, Akira Toriyama and Hirohiko Araki. The series centers around an adolescent super-soldier named Leon Sierra and his various exploits and the friends and foes he meets, as well as the formation of the Whiskey-Delta Task Force (WDTF) to face against the legendary special-operations-unit-turned-terrorist-crime-network PROTOCOL.
The series was initially released Japan only for the MSX2 and the Famicom 2 years later. Toriyama wanted to appeal to an American audience, but Kojima felt that it would never catch on outside of Asia, especially since the first game was released a bit into the Super Famicom’s lifespan. Strangely, even though the first three games were only in Japan, they still had a complete English dialogue option.
However, the series got a new lease on life outside of Japan in 2004 with The PROTOCOL Saga. Released episodically in Japan with 5 parts in total, all 5 parts were released together in the U.S. and Europe for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Nintendo GameCube. This quintology’s cutscenes use anime FMVs provided by Toei Animation. The series in general uses many tropes used by both Akira Toriyama as well as those of co-creators Hideo Kojima [. Although initial sales were slow in the U.S., word spread by mouth quickly, and reception and sales skyrocketed.
From Saga onwards, a fairly expansive voice cast was used, ranging from anime regulars like Sean Schemmel, Steve Blum, and Christopher Sabat, to veterans such as Jim Cummings (1952) and Mark Hamill, to celebrities such as Tim Curry and Nicole Kidman, among others.
Here is the list of games:
- PROTOCOL (1989: MSX2) (1991: Famicom)
- PROTOCOL II (1992) (Famicom)
- PROTOCOL III (1992) (Super Famicom)
- The PROTOCOL Saga (Japan: Release dates below, US/Europe: December 12, 2004) (PS2/Xbox/GameCube)
- Part I (Retelling of PROTOCOL II) (JP: 10/2/2004)
- Part II (Retelling of PROTOCOL III; Picks up 2 weeks after Part I) (JP: 10/16/2004)
- Part III (Picks up 3 years after Part I) (JP: 10/30/2004)
- Part IV (Picks up 4 years after Part III) (JP: 11/13/2004)
- Part V (Picks up 3 years after Part IV) (JP: 11/27/2004)
- The PROTOCOL Saga International (All 5 episodes with new features and English language option) (JP: 12/13/04)
- The PROTOCOL Anthology (Xbox 360/PS3) (Japan: Summer 2009) (USA/Europe: November 2009)
- The PROTOCOL HD Collection (An HD Remastering of ‘Saga’ and ‘Anthology’, with a choice both remastered and original music and cleaned up FMVs by Toei Animation. Also marks the official US and European debuts of the original trilogy of games {For Wii U and PC only}.) (World: 2015) (Xbox One/PS4/Wii U/Steam, as well as a 2017 Nintendo Switch port)
In addition to the games, 2006-2007 anime series based on the Saga quintology with many differences and new arcs was released, spanning around seventy five 45-minute episodes, along with 2 sets of OVAs: a four-parter released in 2010 based on Origin, and a 2011 five-parter to serve as a finale (for Leon's story, at least).
Also, in 2005 a non-canon live-action PROTOCOL movie was released in Japan titled "レオンの PROTOCOL" (Leon of PROTOCOL). The film was a bright, campy action/comedy and it was extremely well-received despite taking extreme liberties with the source material. One of the most praised aspects of Leon of PROTOCOL was the authentic costumes and make-up, and it used both conventional effects and CGI along with kick-ass stunts, and Beat Takeshi as Mikado. The film was released in the US in 2006 with an English dub provided by the series' voice actors.
Tropes about the series as a whole
- Affably Evil: Probably Mikado's most defining trait.
- Animesque: Well, considering who designed the characters and animated the cutscenes...
- Anti-Hero: Leon, as well as Mikado from the second half of Part II onwards.
- Beast Man: Almost anyone that isn't human is this, such as John.
- Bittersweet Ending: Part I ends on an unambiguous victory for the heroes, but Leon does feel guilty about killing Mikado and almost slips into a minor Heroic BSoD, but a vision of Mikado snaps him out of it. Origin also ends victoriously, but not without a cost.
- Black-and-Grey Morality: Albeit very light grey.
- Dialogue Tree: Uses this for some dialogue scenes. Picking different options will trigger different events with different party members, albeit it usually results in different "dates" or changes in dialogue, and the endings of each episode are the same regardless.
- Fantasy Counterpart Culture: Plenty: Dorado is basically Eagleland Type III meets Spexico and the rest of North America, the and the Southern Continent has the country of Kosimatori, which combines Argentina and Brazil, with a hint of Japan.
- "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: In Part II, Leon does this on Cyber Ninja Mikado accidentally.
- Large Ham: Mikado revels in this, even post-Heel–Face Turn. He's enjoyably hammy no matter what language.
- Laughably Evil: Mikado, as well as Goliath and Elena to a (slightly) lesser extent.
- Optional Party Member: Vincent, Queen, Rebbum, and Soldes.
- Player Character Calculus: Three. During the fight against the Final Boss of Part V, all (or not) 12 party members fight together in 4 parties of 3.
- Precision F-Strike: In the finale OVA's final part, from Leon to Elena.
- Quicksand Sucks: Vincent saves Kingston twice and later Leon from this hazard, since he can walk across the muddy swamps with extreme ease, though in their cases Kingston had lost his strength trying to free himself the first time, and Leon and Kingston were knocked unconscious after a fall the second time.
- Reconstructive Parody: Of JRPGs and Urban Fantasy.
- Sleep Cute: Leon and whoever he takes with him on the gondola in Ciudad del Dorado's park, regardless of
gender. Also, Leon and Kingston on the airship, Leon and Roxanne, and Leon and pretty much everyone at some point. - Strictly Professional Relationship: At least that's how Leon thinks his and Roxanne's relationship starts off.Leon: Oh it's okay Elisa. Roxanne and I only have a professional relationship, right Roxanne?Roxanne:...Y-YES! Exactly! Our relationship is completely professional, and it is in no way romantic whatsoever!
- Suspiciously Specific Denial: As shown above, Roxanne does a poor job of hiding her true feelings for Leon.
- X Meets Y: Metal Gear meets Dragon Ball meets Final Fantasy.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: A common theme in this series. Mikado gives these speeches, combined with So Proud of You, to Leon 4 times: Twice before the Final Boss fights of PROTOCOL I and II, the 3rd from beyond the grave, and the 4th when Leon is made the leader of WDTF at the end of Part V of Saga.
Characters
(Note: Voice actors are hypothetical)Heroes
Protagonist of the series. An adolescent that grew up in Fort Kobe, Port-du-Soleil, and an Ex-PROTOCOL agent new to the WDTF. Armed with his trusty shotgun "Wendy", which is also capable of utilizing the powers of experimental elemental orbs, as well as a rod. His real name is David Connager.
- Adorkable: Leon can be so outgoing and friendly that you almost forget that he’s a decorated war hero.
- Ambiguous Disorder: He's socially-awkward (at first), occasionally Literal-Minded, has a prevalent obsession with cooking and can recall seventeen recipes from memory, at times seemingly oblivious to danger, and he doesn't pick up on some social cues from Roxanne or anyone (at first).
- Anti-Hero: A mild blend of Types I and II
- Badass Adorable: Even as an adult.
- Colonel Badass: By Part III. He’s a full-blown general by Part V.
- But Not Too White / But Not Too Foreign: Leon is of Doradian and Soleian descent (Mexican and French).
- Child Soldier: More like child (or teen) MAJOR! In fact, as stated under Colonel Badass he's an extremely young colonel by Part III.
- Enemy Mine: Twice with Mikado: First in Part II of Saga, which evolves into the latter's Heel–Face Turn, and in Origin of PROTOCOL against Elena.
- Friendly Enemy: Sees Mikado as this.
- Genius Ditz: Even before he matures, Leon proves to be an excellent strategist, fluent in five languages, and picked up Mikado's fighting style by copying what he did when they first fought in Origin of PROTOCOL.
- Happily Married: From the end of Part III onwards. Strangely, he and Roxanne have already had 2 kids by then.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Except he was never really a jerk to begin with. However, he definitely qualifies in Origin of PROTOCOL.
- Papa Wolf: To Roxanne, his kids, and any of his comrades.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The red to Roxanne's blue.
- Stepford Smiler: Nope. He really is that happy. And it's all genuine. Despite what he's been through, he takes life in stride.
- Young and in Charge: When Part I of the Saga quintology picks up, he’s already a Major and he’s only 17 (He had gone through quite a bit since Part I picks up after the 1st Famicom game).
Leon’s girlfriend and eventual wife. The daughter of renowned scientist Professor Roland, Roxanne admires her father, but decided against following in his footsteps. She uses a submachine gun capable of using the same elemental orbs as Leon. And yes, she was named after the song.
- Happily Married: By Part III.
- The Lancer: Shares this role with Francis and later Mikado, as well as Kingston to an extent.
- Mama Bear: Just as protective of Leon as he is of her.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The blue to Leon’s red, and the red to Elisa’s blue.
- Tsundere: Leon's thin grasp of reality and dorkiness get on her nerves in Part I, but at the same time she is swoon by his looks, selflessness, reputation, charisma, and heroism.
Leon's childhood friend, and a very street-smart young woman almost always seen in a blue dress. She makes her debut in Part I as one of Mikado, Queen, and Vincent's hostages, and once rescued, she proves to be a great ally to the WDTF.
- Love Triangle: In Part I between herself, Leon, and Roxanne.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The blue to Roxanne's red.
The WDTF's weapon and tactical expert at only 20. Operation Callister is his first field operation, and Francis considers it the perfect opportunity to test out his new weapon: An elemental gun similar to Leon's "Wendy" shotgun, except much more potent, and capable of using more elements.
- Revolvers Are Just Better: His elemental gun is modeled after one.
Specimen #6, dubbed “Kingston” by Professor Roland, is a creation of the Professor. He is a cat-like alien resurrected by the doctor after being dormant for several hundred years. Kingston was resurrected during the events of Part I, but doesn’t show up until Part II. Goliath attempts to have him taken and made into a living weapon, but he escapes and is saved from the swamp by Vincent. Soon, he encounters Leon and eventually joins the WDTF, reuniting with Roland. Eventually he starts a romance and has a kid with Roland's colleague Professor Tatyana Clark.
- Cartoon Creature: He does look similar to a cat, but not even he knows exactly what he is.
- Expy: Looks like Mewtwo, acts like Master Miller.
- Hartman Hips: A male example.
- Interspecies Romance: With Tatyana Clark. Includes marriage.
- You Need a Breath Mint: Believe this to be the case after Leon gives him a mint disguised as a pill. And he’s right.
Villains (or characters that start as villains)
Leon’s initial adversary and the main antagonist of the two Famicom PROTOCOL games. Mikado is a green Reptiloid, and the initial founder of the titular PROTOCOL. He abandoned it after Goliath took charge and fucked shit up by razing part of southern Fort Kobe. Because of his involvement, Mikado is painted as an extremist terrorist, which he admits is fairly accurate and is killed by Leon and co. in Callister Fortress at the end of PROTOCOL II (or Part I), but he is revived as a cyborg ninja by Goliath in Part II/PROTOCOL III. After failing to kill Leon and capture Specimen #6 (Kingston), Goliath left him to be killed by Leon again, which he discovers when Leon's radio accidentally intercepts a message between him and Elena. Mikado gets reasonably pissed and decides to join Leon in taking him out. From then on, he becomes a permanent party member, developing a romance with Jacqueline Hunter.
- Affably Evil: Speaks politely to even his enemies, especially Leon and co.
- The Atoner: Part of the reason he teams up with Leon from Part II onwards.
- Benevolent Boss: The main reason why Vincent and John are willing to work for him? He rescued both of them after Goliath razed southern Fort Kobe.
- Big Bad: Of PROTOCOL I and Saga Part I.
- Blood Knight: Mikado lives to fight. In fact, shortly before the Final Boss of Part I of Saga, Mikado exclaims that, win or lose, he won't go down without a good fight.
- Cyber Ninja: Rebuilt as this by Goliath after his death. His suit ramps up his urge to fight, and Goliath sends him after Leon. However, Leon and Kingston accidentally snap him back to normal, though he decides to keep most of the cyborg implants.
- Evil Is Hammy: Not very surprising. His bouts of hamminess continue even post Heel–Face Turn.
- Happily Married: Marries Jacqueline Hunter in between Parts II and III.
- Interspecies Romance: With Jacqueline Hunter.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Even as a villain.
- Knight of Cerebus: Although he is never malicious or cruel, and even playful and charming as a villain, he's still not one to be trifled with.
- The Lancer: Post-Heel–Face Turn
- Laughably Evil: “Evil” is debatable, but either way he is extremely witty and has plenty of humorous lines, which even Leon admires.
- Lizard Folk
- Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: He's a cyborg-ninja-dragon-soldier by Part II.
- "Not So Different" Remark: Comes to this realization during his official Heel–Face Turn in Part II. He and Leon are very similar: They're both selfless, charismatic, natural leaders (though he claims HE is better-looking), as well as the fact that he and Leon really are the best at what they do and live to fight, but believe that even though The Power of Friendship isn't always an instant trump card, it is at least the best placebo.
- Our Dragons Are Different: Reptiloids in general are people who evolved from lizards or dragons instead of apes.
- Prehensile Tail: His long, powerful tail has many functions, including helping him balance or using it as a rudder when swimming, attacking, or simply as a third arm.
- Reptiles Are Abhorrent: Nope.
- Rugged Scar: Three of them: One on his face, another on his chest, and the third on his tail.
- Tail Slap: One of his strongest melee attacks. He even uses it in Origin to break Hero Antagonist Leon's arm to disarm him.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: Wanted to Take Over the World and unite it under his rule, but only to maintain peace. This lead to the creation of PROTOCOL, and it turned out to be a very bad idea.
A pair of assassins rescued and recruited by Mikado, Vincent Lugosi is a possibly supernatural man who has a fondness for knives, and he guards a spring known for healing any injury (which Goliath used to revive Mikado). John Queen, who goes by “Queen” for the sake of avoiding confusion, is a female wolf-person who met Vincent when they were both rescued by Mikado. She is armed with a gatling gun. They frequently try to finish off Leon and co. After Part I, they disbanded from Mikado and went their separate ways, reuniting in Part II.
- Co-Dragons: To Mikado.
- Deadpan Snarker: They both qualify.
- Femme Fatale: John.
- Heel–Face Turn: Along with their boss, but they don’t officially join the team until they are recruitable from Part III onwards.
- Our Vampires Are Different: Vincent doesn't seem to feed on the blood of humans, doesn't eat only blood, isn't able to turn others into vampires, isn't affected by crosses, garlic, or water, nor does he seem to be immortal or undead. However, he is capable of super-strength, healing himself, walking on water, thick mud, or quicksand without sinking, and becoming invisible for a short time.
Word of God says he is part vampire, so he can't do everything a regular vampire is capable of. - Our Werewolves Are Different: In this universe, werewolves exist separately from humans entirely, and are people who evolved from wolves or huskies rather than primates, similar to reptiloids evolving from lizards.
- Sassy Black Woman: Queen.
- Scary Black Couple: Though this gets toned down eventually.
- Shout-Out Theme Naming: Vincent ‘s first and last names are taken from Vincent Price and Bela Lugosi respectively.
- Wolf Man: John is a wolf-woman.
A blonde, muscular man, and the current leader of Neo PROTOCOL and founder of the base LOCOTROPOLIS. He joined PROTOCOL to essentially destroy it from the inside out. He claims to be a "freedom fighter", but he is simply an anarchist. He is also Leon's older brother.
- Arch-Enemy: To Leon.
- The Bad Guy Wins: In Part I, he indirectly succeeded in killing Mikado, but it comes back to bite him later on.
- Big Bad Duumvirate: In Part IV, when Lobar Kriskoff invades, Goliath and Elena join forces with him to defeat Leon.
- Dragon-in-Chief: Though Elena leads him, Goliath is the bigger personal obstacle for Leon.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Doesn't share Elena's sexual gratification for murder, but he doesn't mind since she gets the job done.
- Expy: Toriyama and Kojima deliberately based him on Liquid Snake, right down to the same English voice actor.
- Faux Affably Evil: Although Goliath is rather well-spoken it's overshadowed by his warped ideology and sociopathy.
- Younger Than They Look: Even though he looks as though he's in his late 30s, Goliath is actually around 25 by the time Part II rolls around. However, he looks about the same by the end of the series.
- Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: Except he really is a terrorist using "freedom fighting" as a justification for his actions.
A red-haired woman who is every bit as beautiful as she is deadly. She is Goliath’s lover and main henchwoman, though she appears to be serving under Mikado when she first appears in Part I. After Mikado is killed, Elena brings Goliath his body. Much earlier, during the razing of the city of Fort Kobe, Goliath caused most of the destruction, while Elena was the one responsible for most of the deaths, including Leon’s mother and sister, Roxanne’s mother, and Nikolai’s fiancée.
- Arch-Enemy: To Mikado and eventually everyone in the WDTF.
- Big Bad: Although Goliath is the main obstacle of the WDTF, it's Elena that's the main driving force of Neo-PROTOCOL.
- Bling of War: Her dress and battle armor are adorned with diamonds made from human bodies.
- Final Boss: Along with Goliath in Parts II and V of Saga, piloting Gunship Gerdanlant, as well as in Origin of PROTOCOL.
- Lady Macbeth: Sort of. Goliath is just as willing to go with her dirty deeds as she is of his.
- Large Ham: See Immodest Orgasm.
- Laughably Evil: Knight of Cerebus she may be, but she can also be downright hilarious when she's not terrifying, or sometimes when she is.
- Love Makes You Crazy: Not in this case. Even before Elena encountered Mikado, she was plenty insane.
- Manipulative Bitch
- Real Women Don't Wear Dresses: At least not when she's in combat.
- Yandere: To Mikado in Origin at first, but when he refuses...
- You Killed My Father: Killed Leon's mother and sister during the Razing of Fort Kobe.
A blue skinned, human-like extraterrestrial warlord who lands on the planet. Goliath convinces Lobar to make him into a second-in-command along with Elena to accomplish his goals. When Lobar dies, Goliath deliberately lets his personality be taken over/merge with Lobar's, becoming "Lobar Goliath". "LG" is Goliath with Lobar as a split personality, blue tinged skin, more muscle mass, and much more power.
- Big Bad Duumvirate: With Goliath in Part IV and V.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Even though he has a body count of possibly several million across the universe, even he questions Elena's sanity and morality (or lack thereof).
- Final Boss: Of Part IV.
- Laughably Evil: Almost as much as Mikado.
Others
A dorky but extremely highly-regarded scientist. He is the creator of Kingston and is extremely protective of him, as well as his daughter Roxanne. When he becomes a party member, he uses a rifle.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Very protective of Roxanne and Kingston. This is Played for Laughs early in Part I where he jokingly threatens Leon not to hurt Roxanne.
- Expy: He's basically a (slightly) more badass version of Otacon, right down to the same English voice actor.
- Took a Level in Badass: Decides to do this after he, Leon, Roxanne, Vincent, Queen, and Mikado carry Kingston to Vincent's healing lake. He becomes an actual party member from Part III onwards.
Tatyana is Prof. Roland's colleague, and later the lover of Kingston, with whom she bears a child.
- Expy: Rumor has it, like Toriyama, Kojima was visited by his future self and was told to make a character identical to Para-Medic.
Jacqueline Hunter is a retired ex-WDTF agent who trained Leon upon his entry into the WDTF, and later becomes the lover of Mikado when he joins the team, bearing a child with him.
Funny Moments
Part I
- Mikado's grand entrance, and everyone's dumbfounded reactions.Roxanne: THAT'S the military genius Mikado?!Mikado: You'd better believe it!
Part II
- After Leon, Roxanne, and Kingston save Mikado from Elena's kinky torture.spoiler:Mikado''': Have you ever considered a safeword?
- Leon kissing Kingston on the lips to snap him out of his Heroic BSoD.
- Leon's journal that he makes while imprisoned. He fills it full of sketches of the others with annotations.
- Samples:
LEON: That's me. Aren't I sexy?ROXANNE: I don't really have anything to complain about her, but I'll just draw a moustache right hereGOLIATH: "Hi I'm Goliath and everyone is stupid and dumb and lame except for me and blah blah blah"ELENA: Bitch
Part III
- Mikado tries to show everyone the scar on his chest, but they wind up distracted by his abs. Even the guys are distracted.
Trivia
- In a more benign example, in the scene when Leon kisses Kingston, Robin Atkin Downes was unexpectedly kissed on the lips by Nicole Kidman in the recording booth to get a natural reaction.
- Playing Against Type: Tim Curry does play a villain, but that character later becomes an Anti-Hero later on, and Nicole Kidman plays a Femme Fatale that is an utterly sadistic, sociopathic, and pure evil Psycho for Hire.
- Rule 34 – Creator Reactions: Kojima, Toriyama, and the actors are all fine with it, as long as it's not incest related. At the Anthology launch party, the actors spent time reading shipping fanfiction in-character.
YMMV
- Designated Villain: Mikado is not this. He admits that, redeemed or not, he's still a wanted criminal, and he doesn't want Leon's WDTF training to go to waste.
- Germans Love David Hasselhoff: See "Superlative Dubbing".
- Ho Yay: Leon and Mikado occasionally delve into this, especially in the later episodes. Hell, Leon has some of these moments, whether intentional on his part or not, with (almost) ALL of his male party members at least once (except for his kids), sometimes more than one at a time. It's kinda nice to see Leon and Mikado cuddled next to Kingston after comforting him. D'awww...
- Launcher of a Thousand Ships: Leon's confirmed bisexuality makes him this. Elena as well to a lesser extent.
- Narm Charm: The entire PROTOCOL franchise runs on this. The series, even in the more dramatic moments, never takes itself completely seriously; whenever comedy is absent, high Camp takes over, and sometimes the two go hand in hand.
- Superlative Dubbing: The English dub is incredibly popular in the series' native Japan since Saga International's release, so much that Japanese fans successfully petitioned to have Anthology's HD port have the English language track as an option. It helps that from the anime onwards, future games/projects would be recorded in English first.
- The Woobie: Sure, Mikado wanted to Take Over the World, but only maintain peace in the world, albeit in a very misguided and convoluted method that was destined failure, but PROTOCOL was a success. TOO MUCH of a success. Fortunately, he eventually gets his second wish as well.
- Iron Woobie: Leon and Mikado. Despite what the world has thrown at them, whether intentionally or not, both of them have maintained their honor, sense of humor, and moral code, for better or worse.
- Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: There's no denying that Goliath is a bastard, but he started off almost exactly like Leon (to an extent). However, unlike Leon and Mikado, Goliath was driven insane by his inability to measure up, and when given enough power, unleashed it onto the world with the Razing of Fort Kobe.
Oh yeah and Leon and Mikado made it into Bizarro-World's version of Super Smash Bros..
