ROJ Episode 6 Notes

RETURN OF JETMAN

"Hearts And Minds"
(Episode 6)
Production Notes
by Christopher Elam
© 2003-2010 Christopher Elam

 

These notes are based on material originally posted on May 19, 2003 on the now-defunct OWARI Message Board (formerly http://pub14.ezboard.com/bowari, currently http://owari.yuku.com/).

Episode 6 - "Hearts And Minds" wrapped principal writing on October 28, 2002. It is loosely based on the sixth and final "Return of Jetman" story written by Lewis Smith in 1996. That story, entitled simply "Hearts", never went through the editing process either. But there is more to the story than just that.

That sixth ROJ story came in a bit on the short side. Though he didn't know it at the time, Lewis had largely exhausted his interest in the series with Part 5. We made plans to rework the sixth installment, but they never happened because OWARI was effectively dead at that time and Lewis had gone on to other things. Based on my notes from that period, it was just as well.

When it came time to do my version of Part 6, I firmly intended to keep the basic elements that had formed Lewis' story, but filter them through my own ideas about the story as it had evolved. This led to a story that followed most of the same beats as Lewis', but in a radically different fashion. I only gave Lewis' story a casual re-read before I began. For good or ill, this installment displays more and more of my thinking than ever before as far as the overall series is concerned.

• The opening sequence reprises the first cliffhanger from Episode 4, for those of you who might've forgotten it. This sequence is based on the fight scene that was interspersed between the parallel world scenes in Lewis' Part 5; however, it follows an entirely different course of events. This scene is intended to show how Jet Phoenix and Green Wyvern, once bitter enemies, could plausibly come together as allies.
  
  
  
• Toranza, as you might expect, does not take to being a "puppet" very well. Lord Xenotos makes a special point to mention that Toranza's power play in the TV series ultimately got turned back on him. Strangely enough, I realized later that this scene has echoes of a scene Lewis cut from his Part 4, but this was unintentional.
  
  
  
• Jet Phoenix and Green Wyvern's scene in the infirmary was a tough nut to crack in terms of getting it just "so". I was especially pleased with the way it ended up playing out, including the "de-aging" gimmick. That particular bit is a nod to the fact that Kei is probably older in this series than either Lewis or I originally envisioned her. In the old version, she was only slightly older than the members of the new Jetman team.
  
  
  
• Gai and Ken's argument was a nice little exercise in contrasting these two a bit more strongly than usual. Ken not only cheats on his girlfriend (WITHOUT telling Etsuko about her), but then he breaks up with her over the phone. He might be a superhero, but Ken is also a deeply fallible person - as are all of the characters, really. The offscreen girlfriend Jun is named after the heroine from KAGAKU NINJA TAI GATCHAMAN, in much the same way Ken is named for the hero. This scene also makes passing mention that the Jetman team have received a "waiver on school" without going into further detail. Honestly, I felt I should acknowledge their education status without being required to deal with it.
  
  
  
• Somewhere in the story (I forget precisely where, but I think it was between the Gai/Ken argument & the Gohan/Reiko scene), there was to be a sequence with Jet Phoenix and Etsuko. The purpose of that scene was to have Etsuko volunteer to help Jet Phoenix in making sure things ran smoothly. This scene was written, but scratched because I was unhappy with the way it played out.
  
  
  
• The "Tiger Burai" characters first came to my attention in an outline Lewis had prepared around the same time as Part 6. Tiger Burai was the third series (preceded by "Burai" and "Burai X") of a lengthy saga Lewis had planned. Alas, that outline and some artwork are apparently all that ever came to be of the various Burai permutations. I asked Lewis' permission to include Tiger Burai in ROJ as a story within the story. My take is likely radically different than what he had in mind, but still adheres to the basic Kamen Rider/Guyver influence that shaped his thinking. Ordyne and Dorado both come from that outline, as does Tiger Seven (Lewis little realizing a Japanese superhero existed with that name already - at one point, I dubbed him "Tiger Go", but changed it back during a later revision). The tagline "I am the villain who fights for justice!" is inspired by a similar line (translated as "If you are justice, then I am evil!") from MECHANICAL VIOLATER HAKAIDER. Tiger Burai's alter ego was originally given as "Shingo Tachibana", but was also altered in a later revision to Lewis' original "Saigo Tachibana". The name "Burai" ("villain") was also the name of Dragon Ranger from KYORYU SENTAI ZYURANGER.
  
  
  
• The meeting signals the turning point of Green Wyvern going from adversary to ally. The meeting scene, oddly enough, was originally written by me way back in the day! Yep, it was one of the scenes I submitted to Lewis back in those heady 1996 days. He reworked my version to fit his story and did so quite well. This version is influenced by both incarnations.
  
  
  
• Interestingly enough, when Lewis wrote the scene with Gai and Kei, Kei walks in on Gai's training session. Honestly, I just remembered it wrong when I wrote mine, but it worked out rather well. I am especially pleased with the largely innocent sexual tension that develops. I think some of that comes from watching SPIELBAN at the time - a Japanese superhero show loaded with unstated and unexplored tension between the two leads Spielban and Diana.
  
  
  
• Chaos is finally, at long last, ready to unleash monsters on the helpless public. I'll discuss those particular monsters mentioned when they play a larger role in the story. Oh, and is anyone surprised that Lord Xenotos picked Tokyo?
  
  
  
• I'm sure everyone expected Green Wyvern to join after the build-up - including Lewis. But nope, she's still a bit of a wildcard. Her departure amply demonstrates that.
  
  
  
• "One thing was certain - things would never be the same again." -
  No they won't, because my plots are on the horizon. This line was written specifically to signal the end of Lewis' arc and the beginning of my continuation. From here on, all the blame lies on my shoulders.
  

 

© Christopher Elam.