To preface this I have been a fan of the 1960's tokusatsu Giant Robo for a long while, and I always admired it for its likable characters, genuinely suspenseful battles (especially for the era it came out in) and the overall impact it had on the mecha and tokusatsu genre.
The show revolves around an alien named Emperor Guillotine who invades the Earth and builds an evil robot who inadvertendly falls into the hands of a child named Daisaku and with the help of his friends, the UNICORN Agents, fights Guillotine's army of robots and monsters every time they arrive.
Though the special effects (and it's English dub) may not have aged terribly well, the actors did well enough in both versions, the stories are actually brilliant for the time and the titular Robot himself is a legitimate hero in the series. Giant Robo goes from being just a mindless machine following the orders of his master to developing a conscience by the end of the series and a loyal friendship with Diasaku right until the shocking last scene he is in.
Toei themselves cite the show, was the moment their style of tokusatsu writing was perfected and is held in high regard by them. Hopefully someday we can see this watershed tokusatsu get a subtitled release for a new generation.
Review on Giant Robo (or the toku)
To preface this I have been a fan of the 1960's tokusatsu Giant Robo for a long while, and I always admired it for its likable characters, genuinely suspenseful battles (especially for the era it came out in) and the overall impact it had on the mecha and tokusatsu genre.
The show revolves around an alien named Emperor Guillotine who invades the Earth and builds an evil robot who inadvertendly falls into the hands of a child named Daisaku and with the help of his friends, the UNICORN Agents, fights Guillotine's army of robots and monsters every time they arrive.
Though the special effects (and it's English dub) may not have aged terribly well, the actors did well enough in both versions, the stories are actually brilliant for the time and the titular Robot himself is a legitimate hero in the series. Giant Robo goes from being just a mindless machine following the orders of his master to developing a conscience by the end of the series and a loyal friendship with Diasaku right until the shocking last scene he is in.
Toei themselves cite the show, was the moment their style of tokusatsu writing was perfected and is held in high regard by them. Hopefully someday we can see this watershed tokusatsu get a subtitled release for a new generation.