Thursday, December 8, 2011

ROJ Episode 14 Notes

RETURN OF JETMAN

"Old Endings, New Beginnings"
(Episode 14)
Production Notes
by Christopher Elam
© 2011 Christopher Elam

 

Episode 14 - "Old Endings, New Beginnings" wrapped principal writing on August 31, 2003. The process of transcribing the rough draft was completed on October 2, 2003, and the final edits were finished on November 8, 2003. This was far longer than it took to complete any other installment of the ROJ series. In fact, the huge lead time I had built up during the process gradually dwindled to almost nothing, and I only put the final touches on this one with about a month to spare.

This story was intended to be sprawling and epic, and it is certainly the former. I can't help but feel today that it might be a bit bloated, but that is probably just hindsight. I tried to bring a certain degree of closure to all the threads instigated in the storyline, with varying success. The title is partially indicative of those mixed feelings - I really liked the finale I had crafted, but was acutely aware that I was essentially mirroring the end of the JETMAN TV series. Ergo, "Old Endings, New Beginnings" was my acknowledgment that I wasn't exactly being original in my wrap-up.

  • This story is dedicated to Lewis Smith, the guy who originally created ROJ back in 1995. It's no exaggeration to say that the series would not exist without his numerous contributions in both story and art. I hope I have done his brainchild justice with my efforts.


  • The business with the "secret origin" of the Chaos Coalition as revolutionaries was a seriously belated idea of mine that I am unsure worked. It was an attempt to inject some pathos into their plight, but it strikes me as a bit tacked-on now. The "Order Lords" as their adversaries was one of the more inspired bits here, and even that isn't much. The story could've probably benefited from losing this section entirely, but live and learn.


  • Green Wyvern's hatred of outer space was first established in ROJ Ep. 3.


  • "Turbo Lasers" is a reference to either TURBORANGER or STAR WARS. You decide.


  • It had previously been established (as Etsuko notes) that Helldevil itself had no offensive capabilities, so the missile strike itself was bit out of left field. Making them "duds" seemingly added to the pointlessness, but there was an underlying method to this madness.


  • Speaking of Etsuko, her knowledge of the ship was gained due to her captivity and mind link with Miira, as established in Ep. 12.


  • The true nature of the second Red Kestrel was something I felt would be hidden from her, in order to make her more effective in her role. It seemed logical to me that the Chaos Coalition would create her from Etsuko's memories, rather than just making her up out of whole cloth. Remember, she didn't debut until after the Etsuko/Miira mind link. I also suspected she wouldn't take the news that she was basically a puppet very well.


  • I staged a mecha battle inside a spaceship because Lewis really wanted to see something like that for the sheer novelty. That is a pretty good reason, I think.


  • I will cop to the fact that the climactic finishing move in the Jet Daedalus/Victory Icarus mecha battle is...unlikely, at best. This is one of those instances where I chose what I thought was dramatic and cool over any other concerns. I have no regrets.


  • The confrontation between Green Wyvern and Toranza is somewhat more brutal than average for the ROJ series. The intent was to underscore the personal hatred between the two. And as for Toranza's death wish...this was not something that was planned out from the start. It just made sense to me given the circumstances of his character being marginalized since Episode 8. But more on that shortly.


  • "In fact, this is kind of where the game all started for me." - Green Wyvern's reference to the teleportation chamber here is a callback to her origin from Episode 2.


  • I did like the notion that Green Wyvern could still be cold-blooded despite being "reformed". Denying Toranza's death wish and removing his visor (established in Ep. 3 as crucial to his revival) seemed a fitting coda to both characters' personal story arcs.

    I should also point out that in early drafts of this confrontation, the (logical) conclusion was that Toranza bought it. In fact, he really SHOULD have died with Red Hawk at the end of Ep. 8. However, I wanted to keep him around, despite his not having anything to do. That was what led to his subsequent use in a humiliating supporting role. I ultimately decided to put him back where I found him, so he could technically still be out there if I wanted to use him.


  • The sequence with Lord Xenotos' final descent into madness and the killing of Hedes was one I roughed out back in the 1990s. I even used much of the same wording, which was a surprise since I didn't look at the original version until after the fact! I did need sufficient motivation for this to happen, and I think destroying his home planet would prove sufficient to send him over the top. And see? There really WAS an explanation for those "dud" missiles!


  • I don't know why I decided I needed "Dystron Junior" in the story, but it proved to be an amusing detour for me. His name is influenced by the usage of "Junior" in Japanese sci-fi, which always strikes me as unintentionally hilarious. I was probably thinking of "Uchu Ninja Baltan Seijin Junior" from an Ultra series at the time.


  • The funny thing about the Chaos Claw is that it was just something Lewis drew on Lord Xenotos because he thought it looked cool, without even bothering to give it a name. I decided that I should do something with it if it was there, and the duel with Ken was the first opportunity. I also christened it "Chaos Claw", because all Japanese sci-fi weapons must be named.


  • Black Condor's super-overdramatic pronouncements prior to striking down Lord Xenotos are my attempt to capture the flavor of such battles in actual Japanese superhero shows. How'd I do?


  • The name Xenotos Hakaijin ("Xenotos Destruction God") for Lord Xenotos' monster form was inspired by a tagline in the Japanese trailers for GODZILLA VS. SPACE GODZILLA. Seriously.


  • Intercutting between the action and a countdown to the destruction of Helldevil was an experiment to try to up the ante of dramatic tension. It is perhaps a little forced, but I am relatively happy with the results.


  • Given that this was the climactic story, it felt appropriate to find some resolution to the contentious Black Condor/Green Wyvern relationship. There are little moments throughout this last section that hint at mutual respect between the two. I'd say "affection" is pushing it.


  • Similarly, I wanted to convey that Yellow Owl and Blue Swallow had both gained a confidence through Jetman that they had lacked when the series began. This is most obvious at the end.


  • I now suspect Kei almost drowning is another instance where I was trying too hard to maximize the drama of this finale. Ditto for making the island the same place where Red Hawk had died.


  • The Jetmen reverted to their civilian identities so I could have them transform one more time. You guessed that, right?


  • I brought the Fire Bazooka back for one more round just so destroying it would prove that Xenotos Hakaijin was an impressive foe.


  • Dragon Wyvern/God Wyvern returns for the first time since being shot down in Episode 8 (discounting the dream sequence in Ep. 9). I wanted to take this mecha out of circulation for a bit so that its reappearance here would be somewhat more memorable.


  • Super God Icarus mode (Jet Icarus + God Wyvern) was one of those ideas I had in the mid-1990s, and it was not one that Lewis had originally conceived. To me, it felt like an inevitable culmination of how the robot issue was handled in ROJ. Saving it for the end did give it a certain degree of specialness that is often lacking in the crazy combinations seen in the real stuff. Plus, it provided a suitable explanation for Kei and Etsuko's work in the mecha hangar.

    The "Chojin Gattai!" command for Super God Icarus can be interpreted at least two ways. "Chojin" could mean "birdman" (as it does in the Jetman team name) or it could mean "super god" (a reference to the English name of the robot). This is one of the few times I pulled off a Japanese-style multi-level reference. Hold your applause, please.


  • There was no logical reason why Super God Icarus had a time limit, other than for dramatic effect (and to mimic the many giant hero shows with timers). I just had to justify why it was a "last resort", and that was as good a reason as any.


  • Are the weapon names "Sword of Judgment" and "Fire of Heaven" suitably divine-sounding? I was really laying it on thick by this time. Same goes for my clock deciding to start jumping randomly.


  • The solution of Jetman channeling their energy through the mecha and using their combined lifeforce to defeat the big bad once and for all is hokey, but somehow fitting to me. I did throw that little twist in at the end about Super God Icarus losing power to emphasize the inherent message. It is pure sentai, and that is why I embrace it.


  • Gohan and Reiko's wedding felt like the proper place to wrap the story. As I said, I was all too aware that this was the same situation that concluded JETMAN. I even included a nod to this fact in Jet Phoenix's dialogue.


  • Toei is obviously the company that produces the super sentai series, while TV Asahi is the network that has broadcast the many shows since the beginning.


  • The obvious choice would have been to have Ken and Etsuko rekindle their love affair at this wedding. That's exactly why I didn't do that. It felt more natural to leave them in a place where they might, but were still trying to feel their way around who they were.

    I did, however, change Ken and Etsuko in smaller ways (the eyeglasses, the hair) that reflected moments from the series. And then there are their occupations, which were not obvious at all. (The Rokumeikan Foundation was something hinted at in Ep. 2)


  • The appearance by Mötorhead's "Ace of Spades" is because Lewis swears by that song.


  • Jet Phoenix's alias "Shinsei Hinotori" is a pun. The "Hinotori" is derived from Hi no tori ("firebird"), a Japanese term for phoenix and the title of a famous manga by Osamu Tezuka. Meanwhile, "Shinsei" is an authentic Japanese name, but can mean "new life" if you use the right kanji. I am not sure the name is ever written that way, but that is a mere technicality for our purposes.


  • Speaking of Phoenix, it was quite a switch to give him a happy ending after the original plan was to kill him off. Pairing him up with his longtime admirer Michiru just seemed like the perfect capper for his arc.


  • The "akaitaka" in Akaitaka Technologies is Japanese for..."red hawk".


  • The signal device had not been mentioned since Ep. 9.


  • The group photo angle ending was something that just felt right for the conclusion of this series. It opens the door for many possibilities, especially with Shinsei/Phoenix's revelation of his true identity.


  • The closing segment of the story is designed to emulate as closely as possible in prose form the traditional "series in review" type ending of the sentai series that inspired ROJ.

 

© Christopher Elam.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Gai Yuki -- Alive?!

Igadevil was afraid the news would break my mind, and that the accompanying video link might make my computer explode. It was true. Toshihide Wakamatsu was reprising his CHOJIN SENTAI JETMAN role of "Gai Yuki" on KAIZOKU SENTAI GOKAIGER. What's more, the script was reportedly by Toshiki Inoue - the man who defined the characters of JETMAN.

It's a fair question to ask how this makes me feel. After all, I spent the better part of 15 years shepherding a fanfiction story that spun out of JETMAN. I still maintain Return of Jetman and sporadically add content (which is in progress, I promise). What do I think of this return that seemed unthinkable just a few years ago?

I think it's great!

I'm not sure when I will see the full episode, but I am thrilled that GOKAIGER has been allowed to explore one of the great endings in sentai series history. Because whether you love it or hate it, everyone has an opinion on the ending of JETMAN. I am sure the very nature of that conclusion was what led my good friend Lewis Smith to create ROJ, and take it in the direction he chose.

But...what about "Return of Jetman"? Doesn't a Toei-produced sequel invalidate it? Maybe; maybe not. It depends on the specifics, doesn't it? But even if the show contradicts what we created, who cares? The stories, the artwork, and the site itself were created to be fun and entertaining. They build off a specific premise, from a specific reference point. I tried to incorporate nods to other follow-ups featuring Jetman where appropriate (the manga, SUPER SENTAI WORLD, GAORANGER VS. SUPER SENTAI). But in the end, the sentai shared universe doesn't make a lick of sense when you scrutinize it. And that's fine. It's just meant to be an exercise in creativity, not something that changes the world.

Memo to some people in this world: Your fanfiction is not canon. Expecting fidelity to your vision is a fantasy worthy of its own fanfiction. Write what you want, but don't complain if it becomes obsolete later. Just because there's a chance Toei might do something that renders ROJ null and void as far as sentai "canon" goes doesn't mean I can't enjoy GOKAIGER's sequel to JETMAN. ROJ still exists somewhere, and it's not as if the fact that it might not "fit" anymore into some imaginary timeline diminishes that.

As I have said in the past, competing with Toei is hard work. I'm glad I finished ROJ when I did, because I would likely be tearing my hair out trying to figure out what to do. As it is, I can just sit back and be entertained. Oh, and marvel at the fact that Toshihide Wakamatsu still looks like he did when he was filming JETMAN. HOW DOES HE DO IT?!

Monday, July 25, 2011

Ask Commander Tendo

This whimsical piece was an idea I'd had for years, and it was a special delight to actually get to realize it. The fact that I made it into a tongue-in-cheek teaser for a new story made it all the sweeter. I posted it to LiveJournal at http://celamowari.livejournal.com/321493.html on May 17, 2007. Need I add that this one should be considered "non-canonical", even by ROJ standards?

 


Ask Commander Tendo

A special advice column in which I, Supreme Commander Ryu Tendo of Skyforce, answer questions submitted by you, the readers.






Our first letter arrived via time warp from 1993 in a special capsule stamped "If unclaimed, please return to Command Center".

Dear Commander Tendo,

I just recently joined up with the other Rangers, and it's great! Way, way better than being evil, though I seem to be getting beaten up a lot. That's part of why I'm writing. I am constantly losing my morpher, misplacing it, etc. What should I do? Also, I think I have a crush on one of my teammates. Is that wrong?
--T.O., Angel Grove, CA


Dear T.O.,

Your henshin bracelet is your most important possession! Never let it out of your sight, even if you are practicing karate forms. This is just common sense, son, because you never know if that innocent-looking man, woman, child, dog, or vending machine is secretly a monster in disguise.

Love between two sentai teammates is a perfectly natural thing, and I see nothing wrong with it. However, be prepared for the possibility of being punched in the face by one of your fellow members.


***


Our next submission is not technically a question. Rather, it is a message which was burned into the ground of my front yard. I have transcribed it here.

MONGOL EMPIRE MUST FALL! JETMAN MUST DIE! NEMESIS RULES!
--D.D., location unknown


Dear D.D.,

I am not one to judge a person's character based solely on their writing, but you strike me as someone who needs to be shot with a very large cannon.


***


Our last question this time comes from a faithful reader who claims to be writing for the first time ever.

Dear Commander Tendo,

I am a big fan of the "Return of Jetman" website! I am going crazy waiting for the next episode! Do you have any idea when it will be coming out? Also, would you mind plugging my website in your column?
--P.S., www.igadevil.com


Dear P.S.,

I share in your frustration over the lengthy delays in the ROJ saga. However, my sources tell me that the next episode will definitely premiere on May 29th, 2007. Mark your calendars now!

Your request for a plug is reasonable, but I have a standing rule never to link to websites that are run by former Shocker kaijin.


***


That's all for this installment of "Ask Commander Tendo". If you have any questions which you would like answered, please feel free to leave a comment.

Monday, May 30, 2011

History of ROJ - Part 5

Part 5 - Today's Lesson, Boys & Girls

A lot has happened with both ROJ and its co-creators - such as the "New Return of Jetman" series - since the original "History of ROJ" was penned in 2002. While the revised version prepared in 2007 touched on some of that, there's really no way this series was designed to cover all those bases. The relevant portions are chronicled (or eventually will be) in the Production Notes featured on this site. However, there's still a need to provide a certain sense of closure to the saga related in History of ROJ.

"Return of Jetman" was always, for good or bad, one of the central components of OWARI - even when we tried to shuffle it to the side. One of the reasons for OWARI's birth was to publish ROJ, and the fact that most of it never saw the light of day was always a sore spot for me. Getting the chance to do justice to it and the characters I grew to love, was one of the highlights of my writing...well, "career" is far too strong of a word. Let's say "hobby" instead. It was tricky making sure Green Wyvern didn't take over the whole thing again (insert giddy laughter here), but that was a challenge I was willing to take. It wasn't necessarily brilliant, but I never intended it to be. I only wanted it to be faithful to the material and a good read. In the process, I learned a lot about writing, and myself.

Lewis didn't come out too badly from the ROJ experience, in my estimation. The positive reinforcement and collaboration seemed to spark more and more creativity in him. When ROJ went away the first time, parts of it were reincarnated in "Seven Spheres Legend". When Lewis self-published GUNMETAL BLACK #1 in 2002, it took months for me to realize that it was (unintentionally) his upscale version of the book I had promised him in 1999. Stray influences from the story still pop up here and there. If the original ROJ made Lewis' subsequent artistic triumphs possible, it was a success.

So, how to sum up ROJ? Well, Lewis Smith started this series rolling way back when, so it's only fitting that he has the last word. In OWARI #11 (August 2002), in his "More Truth Than Reality" column, Lewis wrote:

"It was good for me. It gave me the confidence to go on and do later stuff, and there's always a part of me that wants to go back and do the old number one last time. Because like all good rock and roll songs, it takes you back to a time when it was fresh and you had a power over life you never knew you had. A time when it felt like you could take on the world with what little you had...and win."

 

THE END

 

© Christopher Elam.

Monday, May 16, 2011

History of ROJ - Part 4

Part 4 - Reborn! Return of Jetman

ROJ never really went away for us. During the summer of 2001, Lewis did four new pictures for it just for his own amusement. Both of us wrote reflections on the series in various places. But we had, by and large, consigned it to the past. At least for a little while.

Assorted personal issues had sort of left me adrift in the early months of 2002. I was scrounging about looking for something new, something different from what I had been doing. In the midst of this lack of direction, my thoughts returned to "Return of Jetman".

On April 7, 2002, someone with the username "Ali24" began a thread on the now-defunct Xenorama ezboard message board asking about Return of Jetman. To say this left me flabbergasted is a bit of an understatement. When I replied to this thread, I opined, "It's unlikely at this point the story will ever be finished."

As far as I knew at the time, that statement was true. And yet...the more I thought about ROJ and the potential it held, the more I became gripped by a sensational idea. I could take the series and finish it myself. I could use its familiar territory to return to fiction writing in earnest for the first time in years. And then - I could post it on the Internet!

I did what I usually do when I have a radical idea - I started to work on it in secret. No sense in getting anyone excited if nothing came of it. I sat down with Lewis' originals and determined that my best course of action would be to revamp the whole thing from the ground up, using his plot structure as my guide. This was no knock on his storytelling, but rather an acknowledgment of the fact that we are not going to approach a story the same way. If this new ROJ was to have any stylistic continuity, it would have to be me from start to finish.

My plan was ambitious - TOO ambitious. I wanted to write an elaborate, 52 story epic that would emulate the basic structure of the Japanese "sentai" shows that inspired the story. As I worked my way through the planning process, I came to understand that such lofty goals were setting myself up for failure, or at best mediocrity. I wasn't ready to do something of that scope. I scaled back gradually until I arrived at the present total of 14 stories for ROJ.

The glue that bound my new story structure together was something I called "Uchu Sentai Galaxyman" years ago. Basically, while Lewis was creating ROJ, "Galaxyman" was a similar concept that I was toying with in my head. I never set any of it down in writing, but I developed a general plotline for "Galaxyman" that I found satisfying. I incorporated workable elements from that plotline into my new ROJ concept, with modifications.

(Ironically, in between my creation of "Galaxyman" and my relaunch of ROJ, one of Toei's sentai series was named GINGAMAN, which translates as..."Galaxyman". I guess it was too good a name to go unused forever.)

Well, when I had something solid, I presented it to Lewis for his approval. He was surprised but enthusiastic. Of course, he couldn't realize what he was getting himself into by greenlighting the thing. You see, I had loved Lewis' 4 new ROJ pictures. So much so, I wanted to put them up on the 'net. The story gave me a perfect excuse. But he had only done four characters. I would need the rest. This led me to actually commission Lewis to do new versions of those characters he had created so long ago. I think "dumbfounded" would be the best way to describe his reaction. But Lewis came through with flying colors, turning out some sensational new pictures.

While Lewis worked on his art, I was toiling away on recreating the magic of 1995. No one was more surprised than me that it was working. The new ROJ was coming together better than I could have dreamed possible. I came to realize that the ROJ site was not just a faraway possibility. It was something that HAD to happen and SOON.

I quietly posted early drafts of the first two episodes of the "new" Return of Jetman series on Lewis' late lamented ESB/GMB Forum in June 2002. They didn't garner much notice there, but seeing them online was a start. It also gave me the opportunity to work out a few kinks that I had let slip in due to a lack of attention and/or inspiration. But I had much bigger things in mind.

I would found my own message board, dubbed "OWARI Message Board", on July 30, 2002. This board was created for a myriad of reasons, but one of the main ones was for me to have a place to promote the new ROJ material and get feedback on it. It proved to be an excellent vehicle for those purposes, first in the separate "Return of Jetman" forum and later in the "OWARI" forum when I merged the forums together.

The "Return of Jetman" page made its official debut as a subsection of my old OWARI site on August 20, 2002. A new episode debuted every month from November 18, 2002 until ROJ reached its conclusion on December 23, 2003. The message board hosted a number of fun and enlightening discussions about the series, but it began to wind down after the narrative finished. I ultimately decided to shut the board down entirely in October 2004.

However, the wrap-up of the ROJ series didn't mean the end of ROJ. I continued to bring in new content until I decided that my small ROJ webspace was much too limited to hold it all. This led me to launch www.returnofjetman.com in 2004, with the hopes of having all relevant ROJ content in one easy to find location.

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

© Christopher Elam.

Monday, May 2, 2011

History of ROJ - Part 3

Part 3 - Not With A Bang...

ROJ Part 6 was a strange animal. Lewis had mentioned the big plans he had for it - it was to be a turning point of sorts. When it arrived, it was only 3 pages long. Coming on the heels of the epic Part 5, this was a shock.

What I didn't know then was that Lewis' own personal life was taking its toll on him. By the time he began work on Part 6, it had pretty much overwhelmed him. He felt like it would be best just to try to work his way through it. It didn't quite pan out.

After what he had already done in ROJ, I didn't feel like we could get away with Part 6 as it was. I discussed the matter with Lewis at length. At first, he was convinced he could rework the story into something a little more elaborate. A letter dated July 9, 1997 includes a list of 17 (!) replies to suggestions I had made. Most of these have faded from my memory, but one was to call the baddies "The Chaos Coalition" - the first use of that name. I was thinking it might be useful when we restarted.

Yes, as incredible as it sounds, we considered redoing the whole thing from the ground up only two years after we began. I don't know why either. That ended up falling by the wayside quickly. Eventually, Lewis decided that he just couldn't go any farther with the series.

At this point, I apparently volunteered to PLOT the rest of the series, with Lewis writing the actual stories. It sounds good in theory, but the evidence indicates otherwise. The plot notes I wrote out - the rewrites of Parts 3 & 4 (with plenty of gratuitous ideas added on) - some of my suggestions - all of it points to the inescapable conclusion that ROJ would've gone to hell in 1997 if we had been able to make our plan work. I kid you not, I cringe when I read some of it today.

It was all academic. I stubbornly continued to work on the next issue of OWARI even though I knew I really couldn't publish it. Lewis still wanted to do ROJ, but his heart wasn't in it anymore. Eventually, the whole thing just petered out. Though neither of us ever came out and said it, I think we both knew the truth. ROJ was dead.

Or was it? By January 1999, I had abandoned the idea of ever publishing OWARI again. Naturally, a new issue came out not too long afterward.

Lewis and I had continued to correspond, but we hardly ever discussed ROJ. I clung to the notion of bringing OWARI back for a long time, but finally discarded it as unworkable. Then I was struck by a thunderbolt of inspiration ("Change the format!") and completed OWARI #4 (April 1999) in one week. OWARI #5 (July 1999) followed close on its heels.

The triumph of reviving my almost totally forgotten fanzine led me to consider the fate of ROJ. I conferred with Lewis and we hatched a cunning plan to bring it back. ROJ would return - but NOT in OWARI itself. It would instead be reprinted, completed, and expanded as a separate publication of its own (though still under the "OWARI" banner to try to avoid legal entanglements). Each story would be accompanied by brand-new spot art by Lewis. Lewis turned out two magnificent drawings in short order and I wrote a teaser that I dropped into OWARI #6 (October 1999). We were off and running!

Er, or maybe not. After a strong start, the new ROJ proposal stalled. In the time since ROJ, Lewis had established his own little fiefdom on the Internet and he was turning out material on a regular basis. I'm not sure the exact timeframe on it, but his much-storied "Seven Spheres Legend" was coming out in this period.

So, why am I telling you this? Because Lewis had volunteered to complete ROJ not because he wanted to finish it, but because he felt like he should finish it. He didn't have a clear idea of the direction he wanted and literally had started over with every new letter. I backpedaled a little in OWARI #7 (March 2000), saying that we were "working on it".

Well, as 2000 progressed, even dense ol' me sensed that something was wrong. I pressed Lewis more than once, but he always insisted everything was fine. I told him, in essence, "I don't want you to do this if it isn't something you want to do."

Inevitably, the other shoe dropped. Lewis' letter dated October 15, 2000 declared the ROJ revival "stillborn". We tossed around some publishing ideas in subsequent letters (Nov. 26, 2000, Dec. 26, 2000 & Feb. 23, 2001) involving Seven Spheres Legend, Lewis' Ronin character, the relatively new Kienan series (soon to be tagged "Gunmetal Black") and perhaps some sort of ROJ article. Nothing came of it, due largely to difficulties I had encountered on other projects.

I regretted that I wasn't able to give Lewis the publication I had promised him. However, I was relieved that we'd quit bashing our heads into walls over ROJ. Clearly, its time had passed.

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

© Christopher Elam.

Monday, April 18, 2011

History of ROJ - Part 2

Part 2 - Behold! Green Wyvern

Lewis' letter dated July 29, 1995 turned out to be a pivotal one. Midway through page 1, he says, "I've got a sixth member, why not push the envelope and add a seventh?" Well, my fear was that the story might become too crowded and not do justice to all the characters already floating around. Still, it was Lewis' baby, so he had final say. He outlined his plans for a character then named Kujaku. "Kujaku" is Japanese for "peacock" and also the name of a character in GOSEI SENTAI DAIRANGER. Lewis had even gone so far as to design a chariot mecha for Kujaku based on a peacock motif. But he was not satisfied with what he had done and felt it needed alteration. I inadvertently set him on a different path with my unlikeliest contribution to ROJ as a whole - art I did when I was 12 years old.

It's probably not surprising that I loved the cartoon BATTLE OF THE PLANETS as a kid in the late 1970s-early 1980s. I even had my very own BATTLE OF THE PLANETS lunchbox, which went M.I.A. years ago. BOTP was an "Americanized" version of the hit Japanese show GATCHAMAN, but I didn't know that at the time. All I knew was that I loved the style and I loved the characters. In fact, I loved them so much, I did something that was rather rare for me - I concocted my own stories about them.

Oh, I was always making up tales of superheroes in those days, don't get me wrong. But my superhero stories always involved original characters, even if they were blatant copies of established characters. BOTP was the only series where I felt the urge to extend their adventures through my own imagination. I blame my spotty exposure to the show and its comic book tie-in for leading me down that path.

How did this fanfiction lead to an influence on ROJ? I'm glad you asked. It's all due to one of the innumerable characters I made up for my BOTP adventures. His name was David the Green Condor.

David was an ordinary guy who was given powers by Zoltar (Berg Katse) and the forces of planet Spectra to be an evil counterpart to the heroes of G-Force (Gatchaman). Certainly not a bad plan, except for the fact that David was not inherently evil. A bit of a rebel, sure, but far from a villain. Plus, he developed a crush on G-Force member Princess (Jun). David ended up turning on his evil masters and the Green Condor (I thought Jason/Joe was a hawk then, rather than a condor) became a hero. Though he never officially joined G-Force, he was ready to fight by their side whenever they needed him.

Does any of this sound vaguely familiar to you? It should if you remember the early years of MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS. I was stunned by the parallels between my BOTP "fanfiction" (it mostly existed in my head) and the Green Ranger storyline as it first played out on MMPR. I don't think it was a case of my idea being ripped off (how?); it was just a lot of odd similarities. This was only driven home when Green Ranger actor Jason Frank started using his middle name - David.

The Power Rangers were going strong when ROJ was being developed, so I told Lewis during one of our conversations about the weird Green Condor/Green Ranger story. I even confessed to having done crude sketches of David and many other of my BOTP characters. Lewis somehow convinced me to photocopy that art and send it to him. I wonder if there was drinking involved?

I suppose my work had an effect on Lewis, because "Kujaku" soon became "Green Wyvern". Her picture arrived in short order and on August 14, 1995, Lewis provided me with a few details (Brackets are additions by me) :

"Green Wyvern's bird is a Japanese RPG standard and was thought up at the spur of the moment because the only bird I could think of that was green was a peacock. It's described different ways, but the best I can describe it is as a cross between a bird and a dragon. Jet Wyvern [rechristened Dragon Wyvern for the current series] is serpentine, like Ryusei-Oh [Ryu Ranger's mecha/robot from GOSEI SENTAI DAIRANGER], and converts to humanoid form. ...By the by, what did you think of Green Condor's final form? It's amazing what you set in motion, huh?"

I'll say. And I was willing to admit that I was wrong to have doubted Lewis' instincts. I liked Green Wyvern quite a bit, even though she tried her level best to be dastardly at every turn. She was a rogue Jetman, with a vendetta against the team. But she turned on her evil masters too and became a lone wolf. Ultimately...well, I suspect you may have an idea of where that was heading. Getting there is part of the fun.

A funny thing happened as ROJ continued to develop. Both of us began to put a lot of thought into Green Wyvern. We pondered her backstory, her motivations - the things that made her tick. As we did so, ROJ sort of became her story.

If you'll recall, ROJ was originally planned as a short fanfiction series for a Japanese superhero fanzine. While Lewis did a superb job of creating it and shaping it, I'm pretty sure that was how we both continued to view it - as a tribute to Japanese superheroes. But as Green Wyvern grew as a character, she somehow became...REAL to us.

This was a significant turning point for ROJ. I can't speak for Lewis, but this was the first time a character I had a hand in took on a life of their own. "Profound" is probably not too strong of word to describe that development. I think the focus on her increased as we went along because we were so fascinated with her. As we focused more on her, the story itself began to drift away from its origins as a Japanese superhero fanfic. This wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Although ROJ still had the trappings and characters, it ceased to be just a fanfiction and was transformed into its own story. Heady stuff.

Of course, there was still the matter of publishing this li'l epic. OWARI soon became a reality, with the first issue dated Oct./Nov. 1995. Strangely, there is absolutely NO "Return of Jetman" in it!

You see, by mutual agreement, Lewis and I decided to "hold" the first installment of ROJ until #2. We felt like the extra time would give us the chance to polish the story and make it something special. While that turned out to be true, it proved to be a double-edged sword.

OWARI #1 did have plenty of work from Lewis, including the story "Mysterious Shadow: Guyver 3". Today, that initial effort is a fascinating artifact, full of vitality but generally poorly planned and laid out. Still, the orders were decent and the feedback was encouraging. I set out to make the second issue an improvement in all respects.

As I sat down with ROJ Part 1 in preparation for OWARI #2, I made the decision to "re-edit" it for publication. At that juncture, all I did with the story was smooth over some rough spots in the narrative. Lewis gave me his approval, so that altered version was the one that saw print in OWARI #2 (May 1996). At last, months of work had led to something tangible. The reaction? Almost total silence.

OWARI #2 was somewhat better in most respects, but it still was a long way from looking good. I had also miscalculated a bit in that the contents were extremely limited (ROJ, two articles, and some artwork). The toughest part, however, was the lack of enthusiasm. Very few people who ordered #1 took the time to order #2. OWARI had failed to grab them as something they needed to continue getting.

Would it have made a difference if ROJ had run in #1? I really don't know, but the story would have reached a far wider audience than it did in #2. OWARI #2 had a print run of 50 copies and I never quite got rid of all of them.

For his part, Lewis was ecstatic to have gotten into print, even if it was only in a cheap fanzine. The stories and art he was turning out just got better and better with each passing month. His artwork especially became more daring. He was really finding his voice as a creator.

I continued to offer Lewis advice and suggestions for the story and, to his credit, he listened - even when they were bad. Despite the discouraging results of #2, I pressed ahead with work on OWARI #3. My "re-editing" on ROJ Part 2 was a bit more extensive in that I reworked portions of the story, but the lion's share of what saw print was Lewis Smith through and through.

While I was laboring over OWARI #3, Lewis was turning out some of his best work to that point - ROJ Parts 4 and 5. I can't even begin to describe how excited I was as I read them. Lewis had taken the story to a new level. Part 5, in particular (completed in two parts on July 11, 1996 & September 19, 1996), upped the ante of the story tremendously. With this new work in hand, I was really eager to see the project reach completion.

Alas, this amazingly fertile creative period coincided with one of the hardest periods of my personal life. I wasn't able to do any kind of justice to OWARI #3 (Nov. 1996). My well-intentioned efforts to cram as much as possible in it resulted in it being cluttered and hard to read in places. My own articles, so promising in my head, fell short of what I wanted. And promotion and distribution? Forget it. OWARI #3 was seen by less than 20 people. It was a disaster.

I felt horrible that not only was my 'zine failing before my eyes, but all the hard work Lewis was putting into ROJ was barely reaching anyone. This wasn't what I had envisioned at all. As I was struggling to figure out what to do, Lewis sent me ROJ Part 6. Unfortunately, that welcome arrival soon compounded our problems.

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

© Christopher Elam.

Monday, April 4, 2011

History of ROJ - Part 1

PREFACE : In the weeks leading up to the launch of the original "Return of Jetman" website in 2002, I teased the project with a thread entitled "History of ROJ" on the now-defunct OWARI Message Board. This thread (located as of this writing at http://owari.yuku.com/topic/386/History-of-ROJ) outlined the evolution of "Return of Jetman" from its humble beginnings in 1995 up to the then-impending debut of the new site. This "Making of" feature was something that I enjoyed creating, and I feel like it generated excitement for ROJ. This series is an adaptation of that material, with numerous additions, adjustments, and what have you. Special thanks to series creator Lewis Smith and number 1 fan Amy Elam for sharing their insights into the days when ROJ only existed as a special secret among us.

Part 1 - The Coming of "Jetman 2"

"Dear Mr. Elam. I saw your classified ad in SENTAI #5." With those words, I began my association with Lewis Smith back in 1995.

First, a bit of background. After a few false starts, I had finally made my way into Japanese sci-fi fandom in 1994. I began receiving fanzines devoted to the subject and even wrote for a few of them. I was motivated to see new things and learn about all the fascinating movies and TV shows that were out there. In the latter part of that year, I decided to place classified ads seeking penpals and/or video traders in two of those fanzines - G-FAN and SENTAI.

This proved to be an incredibly smart move on my part. Those two ads brought me into contact with a lot of people and opened a lot of doors for me. Probably the most important certainly didn't seem all that momentous at the time.

Lewis Smith's first letter to me arrived from Chowan College (which?) in North Carolina probably sometime in January or February of 1995. I wish NOW I had saved the envelope, but oh well. It was printed from a computer (dot matrix!) and probably the most noteworthy thing he mentions in it is the KAMEN RIDER ZO video game that was released over here. There's nothing within that first letter to give any indication of things to come.

I wrote back to him, of course, and enclosed my video list. I was heavily into video trading at that point in time. Lewis didn't really have anything I needed, but I ended up making a deal with him and taped some stuff after he sent me some blank tapes. It seemed to work out fairly well and those early letters are filled with discussions on all sorts of Godzilla and sentai matters. We later worked out a system where he traded me computer printouts (I was a long way away from computer access) for tapes. We were already talking on the phone too, and we had hit it off pretty well.

Everything was going great, but there was still nothing too out of the ordinary. Our letters were getting longer though, and the discussions were getting more involved. Then, in a letter dated July 1, 1995, Lewis mentions my "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers vs. Godzilla" fan story which saw print in G-FAN #15 (May/June 1995). (NOTE : This story is kind of cute, but failed to be as humorous as I'd intended. I still kind of like it though). Lewis said, "I thought it was really cool, and I might try writing something like that soon. After all, what I'm writing now isn't that much different." He later discusses JETMAN and mentions a couple of times that it is one of his favorite sentai shows.

The handwriting was on the wall. By his next letter, Lewis had something to show me. That letter arrived in mid-July 1995 and starts out much like his previous ones. However, he quickly lets me know he's included a couple of things that would change everything (though neither of us knew it at the time). One was the story "Mysterious Shadow: Guyver 3", a short fan-fiction sequel to the two live-action GUYVER films. The other? Well, this is how he described it then:

". . .a top secret early sketch for a possible H-fan feature. . .Jetman 2!"
(For those of you unaware, "H-fan" refers to a working title for the Japanese sci-fi magazine that would be ULTRA-FAN, later KAIJU-FAN.)

Well, I was duly impressed and let Lewis know in no uncertain terms. In fact, I did more than just that - I asked him to contribute to a fanzine I was planning. I even offered him the guarantee of publishing JETMAN 2 instead of the uncertainty of a blind submission.

I had entertained the notion of publishing a fanzine at least as far back as 1994, but the idea had never amounted to anything. That was mostly because of the work it would have taken to do the whole thing on my own. Now, armed with Lewis' stories, art, reviews, etc. - done strictly for his own amusement, mind you - I knew I could put together a fanzine if he agreed to let me use his work. I was an incredibly prolific writer in those days and combining my work with Lewis' work would give me plenty to publish in the fanzine I would end up naming OWARI.

In a letter dated July 26, 1995, Lewis enthusiastically agreed to my proposal and outlined his plan for the as-yet-unwritten "main story" (i.e., first chapter) of JETMAN 2. He explained in rough detail the new team (such as the fact that they had capes like the heroes in GATCHAMAN, a big influence on us and the makers of the original JETMAN), their adversaries (who were in a constant state of flux), the story (the idea was for it to run 10 parts or so), and his "Jet Phoenix" character (who threatened to steal the show all by his lonesome). When the next envelope arrived, it contained the first draft of THE RETURN OF JETMAN.

Heh, that's another thing. Lewis HATED the name JETMAN 2 almost from the start and was determined to change it. He usually called the characters "Neo-Jetman" in the early going, blissfully unaware then that the series had a team by that name, too. My memory tells me that I was the one who coined the "Return of Jetman" title, but I have no written record of this. One title I DID suggest (because Lewis mentions it) is "Zoku Jetman", which roughly translates as "Jetman Continues." As you may have guessed, it was an unwieldy title that faded away almost immediately. My best guess at this late date is that the ROJ moniker was born in a telephone conversation. It's probably a play on the "Return of Ultraman" English title for KAITEKKA ULTRAMAN (for, like that series, the story focused on new characters rather than an actual return of the original).

Names aside, I really loved the first draft, and was suitably flattered when Lewis insisted on naming me co-author. After all, he was the one doing the really hard work. I took the first draft and decided to do something to earn that title. I did a little reworking on the prologue and added a couple of new scenes. I also wrote copious notes on the story as a whole (they're dated August 10, 1995). This was my first stab at writing ROJ, but it wouldn't be my last. Lewis took what I did to heart and in fact adapted some of it when he turned in the second draft of the story.

The story itself is actually pretty much the same story as the first episode of the current ROJ series. It's somewhat more primitive, of course, and a lot less detailed. More characterization would be added as time went on, and there would be more elements to flesh out the fictional world of ROJ. But the basics of what captured our imagination are all there.

The letters Lewis and I exchanged at that point were running several pages each. We were rambling about much of what we had before, but we were also bouncing all sorts of ideas for ROJ back and forth. It's fascinating to me to see the evolution of concepts which now seem so fundamental to the story. We had to work to get such things as Jetman's base and mecha the way we wanted them. And we were constantly hashing out the development of the plot and the characters.

As it turned out, the single most important element of the story to develop from that give-and-take of ideas was a particular character who would ultimately steer the course of the entire series, not to mention changing our outlook on it in the process. Ironically, I initially thought her introduction into ROJ would be a serious mistake. To paraphrase Lewis from an early ROJ story, I couldn't have been more wrong.

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

© Christopher Elam.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

The Disaster In Japan

(The following is reposted from Christopher Elam's OWARI.)

Though I briefly mentioned it on Twitter, I feel like I would be remiss if I didn't discuss the disasters which befell Japan last week. This is being written in advance, so I'm not sure what the latest developments have been since I put this entry together. However, I do know that what we've already seen has been devastating, unbelievable, and gut-wrenching.

No disaster is more "important" than another, but it's hard to not be affected by what's happening in Japan if you're someone like me. I have a deep affinity for that country, which is probably obvious considering I gave this very blog a Japanese name. Japanese pop culture opened my imagination, and that led to an interest in the real world place that shaped those films and TV shows.

That's important to remember in a time like this. Japan is not a fantasyland, but a real place that is filled with both good and bad. We do all of ourselves a disservice if we forget that distinction. There's a Japan that exists just like the world outside your window, and it only has the vaguest connection to tokusatsu, or anime, or manga, or any of the other dozens of hobbies we pursue connected to that country.

I find everything that is happening especially poignant considering my interest in Japan was born through Godzilla. Obviously, what's happening is far more nightmarish than anything that could have been conceived in a movie studio. And you know, it's not even a monster movie that bobs to the front of my consciousness; it's a particularly dreadful movie called PROPHECIES OF NOSTRADAMUS. In that one, one disaster after another keeps getting piled on, and you think it just has to end sooner or later.

I mean, it does, doesn't it?

I haven't donated money yet, though I fully intend to do so. I am waiting a little bit until things get sorted out. You know there's going to be a need for all kinds of aid for months, and probably years, to come. However, if you would like to make a donation that will go directly to Japan, my friend Igadevil has some links over on his site you should investigate. Iga is not only a fellow fan, but he lived in Japan for a time in the affected area. So this hits closer to home for him than your average person.

I don't have a wise wrap-up for this entry. Let's just all do our part, and show a little compassion and empathy for the country that is the home to some of our favorite pop culture diversions. They can sure use it.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

ROJ Episode 13 Notes

RETURN OF JETMAN

"Ashes To Ashes"
(Episode 13)
Production Notes
by Christopher Elam
© 2011 Christopher Elam

 

Episode 13 - "Ashes To Ashes" wrapped principal writing on May 28, 2003. If you're paying attention, you might notice that this is less than a month after the completion of the previous episode. Episode 13 came together rather quickly when I sat down to write it. The title rather obviously references the phrase "ashes to ashes, dust to dust" and implies something dire will happen. The word "ashes" also ties in nicely with the origins of Jet Phoenix's name.

 

  • The "international scientific team" is composed of scientists who are named for foreign actors who appeared in classic Japanese science-fictions productions of the 1950s, '60s, and '70s. There was, for example, a REAL "Franz Gruber"! "Conway" is named for Harold S. Conway, "Hughes" for Andrew Hughes, "Dr. Ito" for Jerry Ito, and "Dr. Yusuf" for Osman Yusuf. Look those names up if you're curious about their many and varied roles, as listing them is beyond the scope of these notes.


  • "Nein" is the German word for "no".


  • Three months have passed since the end of Episode 12, and a lot has happened in the interim. This is the second such "jump" in the ROJ narrative (the first occurred between Ep. 7 & 8), and it was crucial in getting the darn thing completed in a timely fashion.


  • One of the consequences of the jump is that Etsuko and Kei have become fast friends after the events of Episode 12. Making a direct line from "hating each other" to "best friends" made no sense to me, so the gap allows their friendship to develop off-camera. By this point, they are comfortable enough with one another to be playfully teasing.


  • Another consequence of the jump was that the Reiko and Gohan relationship that was blossoming at the end of Ep. 12 became much more established while we've been away. I've always disliked fiction that rushes relationships unrealistically, so I wanted to give these two time to solidify their romance.


  • "MOROBOSHI DAN NO..." is a snippet of the lyrics to the theme song from ULTRASEVEN.


  • Ken's webpage was last discussed in Episode 8. It didn't go over very well with Etsuko.


  • Gohan's Tiger Burai excerpts return and reach a conclusion. As before, there was an attempt to tie the Burai story into the happenings in the main plot.


  • The crack about Godzilla in relation to Mt. Mihara is quite appropriate, as I utilized that particular volcano specifically because of its key role in THE RETURN OF GODZILLA/GODZILLA 1985. However, what I forgot at the time is that Mihara is located on the island of Oshima. As you may recall, "Oshima" is also the name I attached to Michiru, thereby giving certain events in this story a subtext I hadn't really intended (but will happily embrace).


  • African vulcanologist Dr. Roland is named for Chico Roland (Rolando?), yet another foreign performer in Japanese movies. The nation of "Wester Island" is a callback to his role in the 1970 film GAMERA VS. MONSTER X (GAMERA VS. JIGER). Meanwhile, the ambassador Dorsey is my tribute to Willie Dorsey, one more foreign actor in Japan. This character mirrors the real Dorsey's role in 1974's PROPHECIES OF NOSTRADAMUS (THE LAST DAYS OF PLANET EARTH). And finally, the Roland/Dorsey scene drew inspiration from Roland's part in Shochiku's GENOCIDE (WAR OF THE INSECTS).


  • The Japan Astro Development Center is a very specific reference to THE X FROM OUTER SPACE, as the notation of the JADC/FAFC complex should clarify. I don't spell out that FAFC is the Fuji Astro-Flying Center seen in that film, but the implication is pretty blatant.


  • Amazingly, this episode was Dr. Masaru Komyoji's first speaking role since Episode 1! He gets us up to speed on Jet Phoenix's condition, and maybe lets Green Wyvern off the hook a little. I admit that I did some backpedaling here to lessen her culpability as far as Phoenix's condition.


  • "Jiro, Ichiro, Mari - they're all androids and yet they're more 'human' than most people." - In the discussion of Jet Phoenix's identity, and whether he was a "person" or not, it seemed fitting to name check the three best-known androids from the KIKAIDA franchise. In order, they are the alter egos of Kikaida, Kikaida 01, and Bijinda.


  • The excuse as to why our heroes aren't in uniform while investigating the volcano is just that - an excuse. I tried to justify why seemingly-intelligent characters would go out into potential danger without their uniforms; it happens too much in authentic sentai to not portray it.


  • "I was just going to discuss alien cellular structures with Dr. Ryusaki," - This is a nod and a wink to a possible future for the counterpart to the heroine of Igadevil's "Kamen Rider Sigma" series.


  • Jet Hawk being decommissioned after "the Rakushasa affair" in 2001 refers to GAORANGER VS. SUPER SENTAI, a video that gathered together an army of sentai heroes, including Red Hawk (albeit mostly via stock footage).


  • And yes, in case you have forgotten or did not know, Aya Odagiri did invent Jet Hawk! In fact, she was the first person shown flying it!


  • "Nearly getting killed by my psychotic double Red Kestrel two months ago made my decision that much easier." - No, you didn't miss anything; this is an allusion to one of the untold stories that occurred between Episodes 12 and 13.


  • The Skyforce Supreme Council was first mentioned in Ep. 10. They are one level higher in the chain-of-command, and supplied me with a plausible entity to receive Odagiri's resignation. As for the resignation, it and Odagiri's chosen replacement were elements designed to create a dramatic status quo change for Jet Phoenix that would upset his apple cart.


  • Chaos Manticore was one of the first ROJ characters invented primarily by me. His debut came in a handwritten proposal for a later sequence in this story (more when we get there!) that I submitted to Lewis during 1996-97. Lewis later designed a character around the name, and this design is what served as the basis for the current interpretation of Chaos Manticore.


  • "Anti-Birdonic Wave Ray" is a delicious bit of pseudo-scientific terminology, possibly inspired by the "anti-electric wave paint" mentioned in GAMERA (1965; but not GAMMERA THE INVINCIBLE, just to be clear).


  • Jet Phoenix referring to Commander Odagiri as "Aya" shortly after he protested that he would "rather not" was originally a continuity error on my part. Upon further consideration, I decided that it demonstrated that Phoenix had let his guard down and lost his cool. I left it in the story.


  • Phoenix's angst over Kaori (a residual memory of Gai Yuki) needed to be cast in a different light in this episode, since there was no way any "love" issues could be requited.


  • The usage of metal crosses is a homage to their frequent (non-religious) appearances in Japanese superhero shows.


  • "So - are you trying to tell us you're in league with a toy company?" Ken inquired sarcastically./"Not Bandai, I hope!" Gohan chimed in, with absolutely no irony. - Bandai, as most folks reading this surely know, is responsible for producing many of the toys associated with the super sentai franchise.


  • ""We have them...no, wait." - A callback to a line of Hedes' from Episode 1.


  • Daedalus Kenjo, the flying fortress of Kurokaze Sentai Jetman, was not seen previously in Episode 5. It is, as the name implies, the vehicle stage of the giant robot Jet Daedalus. I felt that it would be interesting to change things up and have Jet Daedalus be formed from one giant ship as opposed to a combination of smaller ships (as in Jet Icarus).


  • "Osore Formation!" as the command to change Daedalus Kenjo into Jet Daedalus was designed to invoke a sense of villainy even in the subtle details. "Osore" means things like "fear", "horror", and "terror".


  • The members of Jetman fighting the villains sans costume is a sentai convention that pops up from time to time whenever the heroes are deprived of their powers. I was specifically inspired by a sequence from the last few episodes of GOSEI SENTAI DAIRANGER.


  • It was Gai Tendo who defeated the original Red Kestrel at the end of Episode 5, so it makes sense that Kestrel would be especially bitter towards his brother Ken. And it makes equal sense that Kei, who loved Gai, would not take kindly to his name being invoked by the enemy.


  • Chaos Manticore's revelation regarding the true nature of his mission was an effort on my part to give Jet Phoenix a little extra incentive during their battle. The fallout from it carries over to the end, and into the final episode.


  • The Final Flare attack evolved from "Phoenix Flare", an energy power that Phoenix exhibited in the original version of ROJ. I elected to dial that sort of thing back, to make it more special when it did happen.


  • The destruction of Chaos Manticore returning Jetman powers to them was a nice solution to a potentially difficult problem. It also served to tie together two completely different fight scenes.


  • I probably went overboard with all the robot weapons and attacks I piled on during the mecha sequence, but it seemed appropriate. I should single out "Daedalus Tector" for special mention, as I picked up the word "tector" from some of Toei's 1980s sentai shows. I am pretty sure it wasn't a force screen in that context.


  • Yes, yes, I had to have Jet Icarus and Victory Icarus fight side-by-side at least once. One of my pet peeves in sentai is that the older mecha gets cast aside when the shiny new one appears. I wanted to give the impression that Jetman now had something of a robot arsenal at their disposal.


  • You thought I was going to kill Jet Phoenix, didn't you? Well, oddly enough, that was originally the plan. Hear me out here.

    As conceived by Lewis Smith in 1995, Jet Phoenix was always a character meant to die at the end of the story. The intention was to bring Gai Yuki back, and then send him off with a more appropriately "heroic" death than he had been afforded in the JETMAN series. Interestingly, I had a hand in working up the framework that would have finally dispatched him. This was the handwritten proposal mentioned earlier in these Notes, and was part of the same batch of material that yielded the first draft of the meeting scene in Episode 6. In that particular excerpt, it was the as-yet unnamed prototype version of Miira who supervised the scheme which saw Jetman strapped to the life-draining crosses. The main difference was that this operation actually KILLED our heroes, and Jet Phoenix (still an energy being at that point) surrendered his lifeforce to bring them back to life. This echoed a similar sequence with the original Jetman team in the first draft of Episode 2. The end result was Phoenix revealing all and urging his charges to fight on for the sake of the Earth before he winked out of existence.

    That was all well and good, but the decision to kill off Gai Tendo earlier in the narrative led me to rethink this strategy. Another mitigating factor was that the concept of Jet Phoenix had changed considerably by the time I had to actually write Episode 13 for real. The issue of whether he was even Gai Yuki at all had become a major sticking point.

    (I should point out that I was also uncomfortable with the message I was sending about my Jetman team by essentially having Phoenix save their bacon in the penultimate chapter of their story, with minimal involvement on their end. I wanted to give them an increased role, and that necessitated not killing them off even briefly. Seems obvious, and yet...)

    Given the tragedy already heaped upon these characters during Episodes 8-9 and 11-12, I found myself reluctant to pull the trigger. Besides which, I had been foreshadowing Jet Phoenix's "death" since Episode 3. Wouldn't it be a surprise to not have him die after all?

    So he didn't. I still needed a strong ending for that scene, and at the eleventh hour hit upon the inclusion of the ghost of the "real" Gai Yuki to exhort Jet Phoenix to hang in there. This seems super-logical in retrospect, but it wasn't part of the original plan. That said, it was a lot of fun to attempt to mimic Yuki's style in prose. I threw in the ghost of Gai Tendo as an afterthought, but it gave the scene a little extra oomph.

    Another aspect of the scene that was a late addition was Phoenix's apology to Michiru, seemingly out of nowhere. After being called on the carpet by Commander Odagiri over the Kaori thing, I liked the idea that he had finally realized - maybe too late - that he loved Michiru and could have found happiness with her. This definitely added a new twist to the fact that he survives.

    I did want to preserve the notion of Phoenix giving the team a final pep talk, and his sacrifice motivating them. The addition of Chaos' genocide plan gave him something to reveal, and gave them a reason to confront the bad guys on their home turf. All in all, I think the reworked climax did a far more satisfying job in paving the way for the finale.

    But wait - did Phoenix really see the ghosts of Gai Yuki and Gai Tendo? Is he really a separate being entirely from Gai Yuki? Or was it all a hallucination?

    I don't know the answers. I just tell these stories. I leave it up to you to make up your own mind.

 

© Christopher Elam.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

The Elam Art Archive

If you are a long-time follower of ROJ, you may have noticed that I have omitted a portion of the old site in this upgraded version. In fact, until now, I have neglected to even mention it. Rest assured, this was deliberate.

I'm speaking of my art.

I'm not REALLY an artist, you understand. I draw, but not particularly well. Most of the ROJ pieces I have done were created for one special reason or another, without any thought to making a big deal of them. However, before I knew it, I had enough that I had given myself my own gallery.

I was never especially happy with this development. While I have no intention to stop drawing, it didn't feel right to feature my work alongside folks who had put so much skill and care into their pictures. So, when I launched this new version of the site last year, I quietly phased out my gallery.

But fear not! If for some reason you want to see my ROJ art, I have organized a folder of it on my deviantArt account. Now, all of the pieces can be found in one handy location, for your viewing convenience.

Visit "My Return of Jetman Artwork" on deviantArt--if you dare!