Special Armored Battalion Dorvack facts for kids
| Special Armored Battalion Dorvack | |
Promotional artwork
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Quick facts for kids 特装機兵ドルバック(Tokusō Kihei Dorubakku) |
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| Genre | Action, Adventure, Mecha anime, Real robot, Military science fiction |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Hisatarou Ooba |
| Written by | Shigemitsu Taguchi |
| Studio | Ashi Productions |
| Network | Fuji TV |
| Original run | October 7, 1983 – July 6, 1984 |
| Episodes | 36 |
Special Armored Battalion Dorvack (Japanese: 特装機兵ドルバック, Hepburn: Tokusō Kihei Dorubakku) is an exciting anime TV show from Japan. It aired for 36 episodes between 1983 and 1984. This series was also shown in Hong Kong around the same time. You might hear it called by other names too, like "Dorvack" or "Armored Trooper Dorvack." It's all about cool robots and thrilling adventures!
Contents
The Story: Earth Under Attack
The year is 1999, and something big is happening. A group of aliens called the Idelians have been traveling in space for thousands of years. They are tired and need a new home. Their only hope is to settle on Earth.
Soon after reaching Earth's orbit, the Idelians launch a big invasion. They land a huge attack force in the beautiful Alps mountains.
Fighting for Earth's Future
Earth's brave defense forces fight back with their special powered armor suits. But they are not having much luck against the powerful invaders. Only one special team can really hurt the enemy: the Special Armored Battalion Dorvack.
This brave team is led by Colonel Takagi. Its main members are Masato Mugen, Pierre Bonaparte, and Louie Oberon. They fight hard to defeat the alien invaders.
Awesome Transforming Robots
The Dorvack team has amazing special mecha (giant robots). These robots can change from tough all-terrain vehicles into humanoid (human-like) forms. This helps them move fast and fight effectively in any situation.
How the Show Was Made
Special Armored Battalion Dorvack was created to show off a cool line of toys. These toys were made by a company called Takatoku. The awesome robot designs were drawn by Katsumi Itabashi and Nobuyoshi Habara. Model company Gunze Sangyo then made the actual models. The show's story was kept simple, but it had lots of exciting action and great animation!
Who Made It Happen?
- Studio: Ashi Productions
- Director: Masami Anno
- Story Writer: Shigemitsu Taguchi
- Original Idea: Takeshi Shudo
- Character Designs: Osamu Kamijo
- Robot Designs: Katsumi Itabashi, Nobuyoshi Habara
Music of Dorvack
The show had some catchy songs that played at the beginning and end of each episode.
- Opening Song: "Chikyuu Ni I Love You" by WELCOME
- Ending Song: "Kimi Ni Okuru Lullaby" by WELCOME
Cool Toys and Merchandise
Even though the show had cool robot designs, the story was a bit slow for some fans. This meant that the toys and models didn't sell as well as hoped. Toymaker Takatoku Toys had already struggled with toys from other shows. Sadly, the low sales of Dorvack toys caused Takatoku Toys to close down.
Dorvack Robots Become Transformers!
After Takatoku Toys closed, an American toy company called Hasbro bought the molds for two of the bigger Dorvack toys. These were the Mugen Calibur and the Ovelon Gazzette. Hasbro then released them in North America as part of their famous Transformers toy line!
- The Mugen Calibur became "Roadbuster"
- The Ovelon Gazzette became "Whirl"
These two characters became very popular in the British Transformers comics. Later, they also appeared in other Transformers comics from companies like Dreamwave Productions and Transformers (IDW Publishing).
Another American company, Select, also repackaged smaller Dorvack toys. They called their toy line "Convertors".
- Mugen Calibur became "Wheels"
- Oberon Gazzette became "Chopper"
- Bonaparte Tulcas became "Tanker"
