Eagle 5 Brothers

Eagle 5 Brothers (독수리 5 형제, Dokksuri Hyeongje) is the South Korean dub of the Science Ninja Team Gatchaman franchise, first aired in 1979 on the Tongyang Broadcasting Channel.

It remains popular in South Korea to this day, with all three series having been localized, although multiple dubs exist for the first one.

Overview

The first Korean localized iteration was the Tongyang Broadcasting dub, aired from October 24, 1979 to August 27, 1980. After this, a ban in broadcasting of Japanese TV anime would occur, although six VHS releases of a newer dub made through a deal with Sam Boo Video and Tatsunoko would result in the mid-1980s to early 1990s starting under the title of Eagle Commandos (독수리 특공대, coincidentally the same title used for an earlier bootleg manhwa). Although the episodes would be from the first series, the cover artwork on some would more accurately reflect the sequels.

The next TV airing in 1990 would be on the KBS network, which had an all-new dub commissioned with a different translation and voice cast. It would run from February 7th to November 9th in the year, and another rebroadcast would run from April 25th to September 11th, 1996. Gatchaman II would follow in the same span of 1996 as Eagle 5 Brothers II, and Gatchaman Fighter would be localized as Eagle 5 Brothers F.

The title has offered some occasional humor and questioning among fans, since they will note that the team are certainly not all men nor related (besides Jun and Jinpei being adoptive siblings), and the Bird Styles are multiple different birds, not just "eagles".

Since South Korea was a country not included in the 30-year Gatchaman licensing contract between Tatsunoko and Sandy Frank Entertainment, it was free to adapt both the original and sequels as it pleased and to not have to use the Battle of the Planets title and footage. It would similarly fall outside the contract territory for the G-Force: Guardians of Space licensing as well as that for Saban's Eagle Riders.

The 1994 Gatchaman OVA by Tatsunoko would later be dubbed under the Eagle 5 Brothers branding in 1998, and had its own competing dubs for TV (on channel SBS) and home video.

Eagle 5 Brothers compilation movie

In 1980, Samjung Planning, a sub-contractor in South Korea for Tatsunoko Production, crafted a film version of Gatchaman II. They claim to have had the permission of Tatsunoko, who they had worked for as an outsourcing studio on II, and utilized key episodes to create a simplified sequel movie. Tatsunoko, however, disputes this as they were surprised to learn of its very existence.

While films like Iron Man 007 and Taegeuk Boy White Eagle are infamous even in Korea for being "Gatchaman rip-offs", Samjung Planning's claim causes this unusual off-shoot of II to be seen as holding more legitimacy especially due to being under the Eagle 5 brand itself and the designs being more legitimate. It can also be noted that despite the subpar animation quality, the drawing quality and colors of the film in many scenes appear to more accurately reflect the first series rather than II's thinner lineart and bolder palette, offering more curiosity.

Key Changes in the Adaptation

Though marketed under the same title, there exists more than one dub under the "Eagle 5 Brothers" branding and there may be differences in the adaptation and characters' names. Known information follows below.

Name Changes

• Ken was renamed Dongwook (동욱) in the original TBC dub, but appears under the name Geon Kim (김건) in the KBS redub where his codename of Gatchaman was also changed to Phoenixman (피닉스맨).
• Joe's name was Changsu (창수) in the TBC dub, but changed to Hyeog (혁) in the KBS redub (his real name in his childhood is revealed to be George Arthur/죠지 아서).
• Jun's name was given as Yumi (유미) in the TBC dub, while her name is Suna (수나) in the KBS redub.
• Jinpei was Cheol (철) in the TBC dub, and Ppyeong (뼝) in the KBS redub.
• Ryu was Yongmin (영민) in the TBC dub, and Yong (용) in the KBS redub (his full name is given in episode 94 as Yong Jeong/ 정용).
• Dr. Nambu was Dr. Yoo (유박사) in the TBC dub, and Dr. Nam (남박사) in the KBS redub (his full name given as Young-Sik Nam/ 남영식 ).
• Red Impulse was renamed Flying Leopard (날으는 표범) in the TBC dub, and Red Shock Fighter (적색 충격기) in KBS' redub of the original series. His civilian name, as given in the KBS redub, is Soon-hyung Kim (김순형).
• The Galactor organization was renamed Alector (알렉터) in the TBC dub and the KBS dubs of the sequels, but kept its name in the KBS redub of the original.
• Gel Sadra in II was renamed Gelshya (게르샤), though their name was kept in the preceding compilation film adaptation. Sammie Pandora's name is localized as Sally Pandora and they are treated as a young girl, although Gel Sadra is still dubbed with a male voice actor and there is a sense of gender confusion among viewers.
• Dr. Raphael's name is rendered as Dr. Lapel (펠박사).
• Count Egobossler had his name simplified to Count Bossler (보스라 백작).

Berg Katse and X would seem to have had their names kept, but rendered in Hangul spelling, along with other later enemy characters such as Marstora, Mechandol, and Kempler. Dr. Pandora's name is also retained for her appearances in II.

Terminology Changes

• Bird, Go! is now Eagle, Transform!
• While the team are called the Eagle 5 Brothers, the KBS dub also refers to them as the Earth Special Forces
• The Tornado Fighter technique is now the Vortex Fighter

Manhwa Adaptations

Various manhwa versions of this series were produced through the 1980s. The character designs may differ significantly in some, and there are also some newly-made settings incorporated in specific cases, such as one having Jun and Jinpei depicted as the biological children of Dr. Nambu. Due to the only piece of media of the sequels that existed in South Korea being the compilation film, manhwa that would reference II would usually have this to work off of.

While these would not have been officially endorsed by Tatsunoko, some manhwa would include mentions of TBC as a way to promote the airing of the first series dub that had been broadcast on that network.

A manhwa of the first series differs in being called Eagle Commandos, though the later iterations bear the "Eagle 5 Brothers" name.

The Eagle 5 Brothers and the Phoenix

(독수리 5 형제와 불사)

This specific adaptation was highlighted on Tatsunoko's website, with a particular notable visual being the drastically different civilian appearances for the team members, especially the Condor. It is mentioned that in this manhwa, the Condor had lost his memories after being remodeled as a cyborg. It seems to differ from other II-based manhwa in having adapted the early period, and making note of his cybernetic body.

Some characters may also have their names differ from the Eagle 5 Brothers dub that had aired on TBC at the time:

• The Eagle's name is Baekgeon (백건, transliterated by Tatsunoko as Hakuken/白健)
• The Condor is named Changsu (창수, or Madosui/窓水) as in the series dub
• The Swan is Jun-hee (준희, or Jun/ジュン).
• The Swallow is Cheolgi (철기, or Tetsuki/鉄器)
• The Owl is Bokpo (복포, or Haratsutsumi/腹包)
• Dr. Nambu is Dr. Jang (장박사, Dr. Cho/張博士)
• Leader X keeps his name, and is depicted in his original form
• Gel Sadra is known as Spectre (스펙터)
• The New God Phoenix is called The Eagle