ROJ Episode 4 Notes

RETURN OF JETMAN

"Stalking Wolves"
(Episode 4)
Production Notes
by Christopher Elam
© 2003-2010 Christopher Elam

 

These notes are based on material originally posted on March 18, 2003 on the now-defunct OWARI Message Board (formerly http://pub14.ezboard.com/bowari, currently http://owari.yuku.com/).

Episode 4 - "Stalking Wolves" wrapped principal writing on September 3, 2002. An earlier version of this story was written by Lewis Smith and edited by the present author in 1996-1997, but went unpublished. Interestingly enough, I feel that this story, of the six based on his work, hews closest to Lewis' original vision. Whether that was by accident or design is anyone's guess at this late date.

A strange story, this one. You could make the argument that the heroes are woefully ineffective here, which might be due to the fact that Lewis and I were more focused on Jet Phoenix and Green Wyvern when the story was first conceived. But don't worry - the main team will be given a chance to shine again soon.

• Though it escaped my notice at the time, the plot thread of the "hunted Jetman" team was Lewis' homage to JETMAN ep. 47.
  
  
  
• A new version of the Fire Bazooka, Jetman's final cannon which debuted in JETMAN ep. 14, is introduced here. Why? We just liked the way the name rolled out.
  
  
  
• Why is Green Wyvern hiding out in Okinawa? I do believe this was influenced by the fact that GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA (1974) was set primarily in Okinawa. I don't know, it was part of Japan and yet vaguely exotic as well.
  
  
  
• In Lewis' original version of this story, Gohan was playing a video game alone, and it was STREET FIGHTER, not TEKKEN. I added Reiko to emphasize their budding friendship (she had originally been at a mall). As for the video game, it was changed simply because I like the character "King" in TEKKEN (and also because Lewis had Gohan playing "Ryu" in STREET FIGHTER, which I thought was potentially confusing).
  
  
  
• The sequence with Ken and the reporter was originally conceived as being between Ken and his mother Kaori. Obviously, that version played out significantly differently. The change was made to intersect two ongoing subplots.
  
  
  
• Phoenix sighed to himself. He wished he could engage God Wyvern with his Phoenix Fighter Robo. He would have preferred it that way. But the truth was that his mecha was just too small to match up with Green Wyvern's in a fight. This plan was the only way. - This paragraph is a late addition to the story, making its debut when the site was moved to www.returnofjetman.com on August 24, 2004. It was brought into the narrative to bring Lewis' "Phoenix Fighter Robo" into continuity, which would have been otherwise impossible. Why? Because...
  
  
  
• The Phoenix Fighter is destroyed shortly afterward! This was literally a last minute decision, and not part of my original plan for the story. Sometimes, you just have to do what "feels right." However, then you have to do some quick thinking to make everything else work!
  
  
  
• Toranza was one of the Byram invaders from JETMAN, making his debut as the child "Toran" in the very first episode of the series. Later, in episodes 36-37, he aged himself through force of will into "Toranza." Toranza proved to be a force to be reckoned with until his ultimate defeat in episode 47.
  
  
  
• "Maria" (originally Ryu Tendo's girlfriend Rie Aoi) was the name of another of the Byram invaders.
  
  
  
• The flashback to the satellite is a bit of business that I'm saying was going on while Ryu and Aya were escaping Earthship in episode 1 of JETMAN. The "regal-looking blue-skinned man" is Radeige and the "imposing robot" is Grey, two other Byram invaders.
  
  
  
• "Could be," Yellow Owl said as he looked up at the red sky, "or maybe this is a parallel Earth." - this line is a reference to DC Comics' still-controversial mini-series CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS from the mid-1980s.
  
  
  
• The parallel Earth theory explanation owes a massive debt to untold DC and Marvel comic books.
  
  
  
• Not one, but TWO cliffhangers! This strange new parallel world will be discussed in more depth in the notes for Episode 5.
  

 

© Christopher Elam.