The Twitter page for Toei Animation, the studio revered for landmark anime and tokusatsu shows, has just announced that they are launching a YouTube Channel dedicated to Classic Tokusatsu!
For those who are not familiar with the genre, Tokusatsu (Japanese: 特撮, “special filming”) refers to live action film or TV shows known for a filming technique that makes use of miniatures, costumes, CG, and special effects. It mostly deals with science fiction, fantasy or horror.
Some good examples of tokusatsu shows are the early kaiju shows like Godzilla and Gamera, and the more prolific ones like the Kamen Rider, Metal Heroes, Ultraman and Super Sentai series.
The YouTube channel, called “TOEI TOKUSATSU WORLD OFFICIAL”, will officially launch on April 6, 2020. It will have a lineup of various shows, 70 in all, including “NATIONAL KID” (1960), Super Sentai Series such as “GORENGER” (1975), Metal Hero Series including “SPACE SHERIFF GAVAN” (1982), and robot anime such as “VOLTES V” (1977).
As a special treat, the first two episodes of all 70 shows will be made available on launch date – with English subtitles! Succeeding episodes will be in Japanese, but TOEI will work to get all episodes subbed eventually. TOEI also welcomes any submissions for subtitles in ANY language.
Below is the schedule of the first round of releases:
Date | Show | Episode(s) |
4/6 | ALL | 1, 2 |
4/13 (MON) | NATIONAL KID | 3, 4 |
4/14 (TUE) | SUKI SUKI MAJO SENSEI | 3, 4 |
4/15 (WED) | ROBOT 8-CHAN | 3, 4 |
4/16 (THU) | SPACE SHERIFF GAVAN | 3, 4 |
4/17 (FRI) | SPACE WOLF JUSPION | 3, 4 |
4/17 (FRI) | HARD GUMI | 3, 4 |
4/18 (SAT) | MAGICAL GIRL CHUKANA PAIPAI | 3, 4 |
4/18 (SAT) | SPECIAL RESCUE POLICE WINSPECTOR | 3, 4 |
4/19 (SUN) | CHOUDENJI COMBATTLER V | 3, 4 |
4/19 (SUN) | HIMITSU SENTAI GORENGER | 3, 4 |
Each show in the list above has an assigned day of the week, and new episodes, if any will come out, also becomes available on the same day of the week, for the succeeding week(s).
NOTE: Depending on the show, there may be viewing limitations in certain areas and countries.
TOEI has a new official mascot/character to promote the channel – CONTENMARU!
“Tasked with delivering TOEI TOKUSATSU content to the world, he’ll liven up the channel! (In Japan, fox cries are expressed as “con”.) CONTENMARU’s dream is to study TOEI TOKUSATSU and someday join their ranks as a cool hero. Powered by his favorite food, onigiri (rice balls), he trains hard day after day. “
This is a very exciting promotion from Toei Animation, and will definitely be a welcome trip to memory for many older tokusatsu fans. This will also be a good way to introduce the current generation of toku fans to the roots of the genre.
Visit Toei’s official announcement page for the channel for more details on the new “TOEI TOKUSATSU WORLD OFFICIAL” channel, along with any changes in the series lineup and schedule of broadcast.