Eagle Commandos (독수리 특공대) was a 1980s VHS-exclusive dub of Science Ninja Team Gatchaman in South Korea, as well as the title of an earlier unauthorized 1980 manhwa adaptation.
Later volumes of the dub would also be released under the branding of Gechaman (게챠맨), although the tagline would still mention the "Eagle Commandos" title and team name.
Overview[]
The immortal Eagle Commandos! Who else but the Eagle Commandos? Warriors of justice, unite!
- Tagline from Gechaman: The Ant Robot Corps.
After a ban on broadcasting Japanese anime made it difficult for the rest of the Gatchaman franchise to appear on Korean TV, Tatsunoko and the VHS publisher Sam Boo Video made a deal in 1986 for some of the first series to receive a new dub. There would be six volumes released in total, although the covers would utilize artwork from the then-unadapted sequel series (if not counting the unauthorized Gatchaman II compilation film of Eagle 5 Brothers).
Volumes[]
These VHS tapes would cover the early portion of the series.
- Eagle Commandos (독수리 특공대)
- The Ghost Ship Fleet (유령함대)
- The Monster of Space (우주의 괴물들)
- Gechaman: The Ant Robot Corps. (개챠맨 개미로보트 군단)
- Gechaman: The Blue Hawk (개챠맨 블루 호크호)
- Gechaman: The FX Explosion Operation (게차맨 F.X폭파작전)
Key Changes in the Adaptation[]
Name Changes[]
- Ken is referred to as Cheol (철), otherwise known as Gechaman and No.1
- Jun kept her name, although it would now be represented in Hangul as 준, and her codename is No.3
- Jinpei is Hoon (훈), aka No.4
- The Science Ninja Team as a group are now, of course, The Eagle Commandos (creating similar confusion as the Eagle 5 Brothers in not all of them being eagles)
- Red Impulse's codename is merely The Earth Defense Force (지구방위대).
Manhwa version[]
This manhwa seems to loosely adapt from the episode Gatchaman Versus Turtle King as well as the two-parter of Red Impulse's Secret and Farewell, Red Impulse.
Tatsunoko would highlight it in a November 2004 "Tatsunoko World Heritage" article for their website, noting that it was definitely an illegal adaptation but that it presented what had to be a "dream crossover" between Gatchaman and Toei Animation's robot anime Daimos (with Daimos visible on the cover behind the team).
The characters present in the stories have been drastically redesigned to avoid any resemblance or potential allegations of stealing the Science Ninja Team's likenesses, but their inspirations remain clear.
Copies of this manhwa seem difficult to come by, with Tatsunoko having been lucky to have obtained their own to exhibit.
Characters[]
Hye-seong, aka Captain[]
(혜성)
A Ken counterpart, depicted with short hair outside his battle uniform but still wearing a "1" shirt. As with his inspiration, he wears a white and blue-themed uniform but has a "S" instead of the bird symbol, a taegeuk on his belt, and has a more Superman and sci-fi kind of aesthetic with the elimination of the bird elements.
Tatsunoko's transliteration of his name, as provided in their article, was given as Suisei (彗星), but still carries the same meaning of "comet".
Dongtak, aka No. 2[]
(동탁 )
The counterpart of Joe, seen to wear a deep green uniform and an orange cape. The Tatsunoko transliteration of his name was given as Totaku (童濯).
Bong-hwa, aka No. 3[]
(봉홧)
The counterpart of Jun, who wears a pink mini dress like the original.
Her name means "signal fire", and was given as Hoka (烽火) in the transliterated reading by Tatsunoko.
Woon-ki, aka No. 4[]
(웅기)
The Jinpei counterpart, who wears yellow like his basis. His name was transliterated as Ryuji (竜二) by Tatsunoko.
Taesan, aka Assistant[]
(태산)
The Ryu counterpart, who is not given a number in the team but is treated as more of an "assistant" due to only manning the ship. He appears a bit more muscular and has a bright red suit.
He is called Taizan (泰山) by Tatsunoko.
Turtle King[]
A merger between Berg Katse and the Turtle King commander. He is a wicked yet foolish character, berated by his overlord for his failures.
Kerakkuta the Great[]
The counterpart of Leader X. Rather than a vague alien being present in the screen, Kerakkuta is an evil-looking, bearded general and can even comically reach outside his screen to punch the Turtle King for referring to him as "Demon King".
Rex Impulse[]
The counterpart of Red Impulse, and the father figure for the protagonist who has been missing for several years. As with Red Impulse, he sacrifices himself to stop the V2 plan.
Doctor[]
The Nambu counterpart, whose name is not revealed in Tatsunoko's summary. He is an elderly, balding scientist with thick eyebrows and a long, thick mustache and prominent glasses.