New ROJ Episode 4 Notes

NEW RETURN OF JETMAN

"Parallel"
(Episode 4)
Production Notes
by Christopher Elam
© 2007-2012 Christopher Elam

 

New ROJ Episode 4 - "Parallel" was begun in September 2006, and wrapped principal writing on May 15, 2007. And what took so long this time? Well, I had a fire in my home and ended up being displaced for several weeks. Add in the clean-up, repairs, etc., and there was very little time to devote to ROJ for a couple of months.

I'm actually ridiculously proud of how this story came out. It delves a bit more deeply into both the Jetman mythos and the idea of the multiverse. Plus, we see the early culmination of a subtle subplot that has been running through the New ROJ narrative. Throw in some of my more effective action sequences, and this story was extremely satisfying for me.

This story is dedicated to the young woman who uses "Kabuki Katze" as her nom de Internet. I do know her real name, but I choose not to reveal it here. She has been a big supporter of ROJ since we first crossed paths, and her advice and inspiration played a major role in the development of this story. Thanks, Kabuki!

• Jeff Kensaki is an actual JETMAN character - sorta. He was created for the Jetman manga series that was originally serialized in B-CLUB. In the manga, he was a popular rock star who gained Birdonic powers and fought side-by-side with the original Jetman as the new fifth member "Green Eagle". He also kindled a very weird romance with Ako Hayasaka/Blue Swallow along the way. He is not considered part of the official JETMAN canon, no matter what some online sources claim.
  

  There was actually no way to tie the manga Jetman stories in with ROJ directly, even if we'd wanted to do such a thing. The two stories were created completely independently of each other, and contradict each other on several key points. Plus, just about every aspect of Jeff in that story reeks of "Mary Sue" Syndrome. Still, there was an urge to acknowledge the manga's version of the future.
  

  The answer came when my pal "Igadevil" suggested that Silver Raven (more on him in a bit) needed at least a sidekick, if he wasn't going to have henchmen. I jokingly tossed out "Silver Raven & Jeff", a reference to the short-lived variety series PINK LADY AND JEFF. When I realized that "Jeff" was the name of Green Eagle, well, that set the wheels in motion. I re-imagined Jeff Kensaki as he might be in a world where all the breaks didn't go his way - until he gained powers belatedly and learned of his much better other life. And lo, Jetman Killer (a name he gives himself later in the story, directly inspired by Ace Killer from ULTRAMAN ACE) was born. The Jetman Killer character includes many incidental details, allusions, and even bits of dialogue drawn from his manga inspiration.
  
  
  

• The Ken/Etsuko relationship takes another turn down a strange road. I actually didn't know this scene was going to play out quite this way until I sat down to write it. Yes, it's true - sometimes the characters really do write things themselves.
  

  I should also point out that the references to poor li'l Mika (New ROJ Ep.1) and Kei's insomnia (a recurring point in ROJ, first mentioned blatantly in Ep. 6) were also not part of the original plan for this scene, but were added in to flesh it out further and give a little more motivation to the various goings-on.
  
  
  

• Ako Hayasaka is, of course, the original Blue Swallow from JETMAN, and the mother of Reiko. One of my greatest regrets from ROJ was that I never found a good way to bring the original team more into the proceedings. The plot of her being kidnapped was first proposed as part of a team-up story that never got past the talking stage. It has been altered a great deal since that time - in fact, the character that was supposed to kidnap her in that version was the guy who evolved into "Duke Disco"! As we saw in New ROJ Ep. 1, he's not able to fill that role now even if I wanted him for it.
  
  
  
• "Saburo Iketani" was the name of an actual Japanese newscaster who made numerous cameo appearances in Japanese science-fiction films, beginning with the original Godzilla film in 1954
  
  
  
• "D. Jigen" is not a real Japanese name, as you may or may not notice. It is actually short for "Dryer Jigen", a Byram monster from JETMAN episode 28 who was not especially good at being evil and ended up reforming. When last seen at the end of that episode, he was working as an apprentice in a barber shop. Because, you see, he's a hair dryer monster.
  
  
  
• The Tokyo Dome and Korakuen Amusement Park are, in fact, relatively near one another. This point is driven home by the commercials for Korakuen's superhero stage shows that are filmed by the "Egg Dome". I went to great pains to research the placement of various landmarks in the park and even the names of some of them. It doesn't add anything to your enjoyment of the story, but it makes me happy if I'm reasonably accurate with little details like that.
  
  
  
• The (approximate) translation to Jeff's song is as follows :
  
  When the past becomes the future
  Claws of evil draw near
  We are the warriors of the great sky
  Five brave young people
  OUR TIME IS NOW!
  

  Not even good by sentai song standards, is it?
  
  
  

• The term "rainbow heads" was an insult tossed about on the comedy English dub of DYNAMAN that aired on NIGHT FLIGHT.
  
  
  
• "Hayasaka Mama-sama" is a very unusual honorific for a very unusual situation. What would a Japanese man call his mother-in-law if he had previously idolized her? There's no real easy answer for that question. It's a strange sort of compromise, and exactly the sort of thing you might expect from Gohan (who still lacks some of the social graces).
  
  
  
• "Cosmic Beartrap" is a rather obvious piece of pseudo-scientific technobabble, and a complete throwaway bit. I only put it in there because it makes me smile every time I read it.
  
  
  
• Silver Raven was not originally the third member of the Paradox Army. That honor was first conceived as going to Grey Shrike. Yes, Grey Shrike - the "evil" Etsuko (though not really) from ROJ Ep. 12. This Grey Shrike, however, would have really been Etsuko Oishi - from a parallel universe where she had turned rogue and murdered her teammates. Her image at the end of New ROJ Ep. 1 coupled with the real Etsuko's disappearance would have created some interesting conflicts.
  

  Upon further consideration, I felt the evil Etsuko angle was just too much melodrama for what I wanted to do. It upped the emotional stakes to an almost unbearable level, and that torpedoed the chance for any fun at all afterward. So, Silver Raven was created and given a somewhat different (though similar) origin. Honestly, I think this worked out for the best, because Silver Raven developed his own distinctive personality, and turned out to be quite sinister in his own right.
  

  The idea of Silver Raven being a "gestalt clone" (as I phrased it everywhere but the story - next time) was possibly born from the RED DWARF episode "Legion". It's certainly one of the few times that something like this has been made an actual part of a character, at least in the sentai genre.
  
  
  

• "I was supposed to be the green member!" - As noted above, technically true! In the manga, Kensaki becomes "Green Eagle", who was the new fifth member of the original Jetman team
  
  
  
• The mystery of Mr. Hoshi deepens, as he plays Captain Exposition for Ken and pretty blatantly demonstrates that there is more to him than meets the eye. There can be little doubt now that Mr. Hoshi is not just some random stranger, but someone involved in this matter far more deeply than he is telling.
  
  
  
• OK, the thing with the merry-go-round horse? That is one of my favorite fight scene bits ever. I don't know if anyone has ever done that in a real program, but I would love them forever if they did.
  
  
  
• The reference to a "Chinese Jetman" called Fighter Man that is based in Taiwan is a double-sided inside joke. On the one hand, it is a homage to the "Super Riders" movies - Kamen Rider films that were produced in Taiwan with a mixture of stock footage and new scenes. On the other hand, "Fighter Man" was the name of bootleg Jetman action figures that surfaced during the initial Power Rangers toy craze in the 1990s. Anybody out there have any of these rarities?
  
  
  
• The Wyvern Power Drain is not a power that lends itself to a lot of uses in the narrative, for obvious reasons. It actually came in handy here as a way to set up Jetman Killer's final fall.
  
  
  
• "Seven Force" was a mecha concept conceived by series creator Lewis Smith circa 2003-2004, originally intended for Grey Shrike. And that, my friends, is how Silver Raven ended up with it. Lewis' idea was a bit different, but the core was identical - a machine with seven distinctive modes all by itself. Though they aren't all utilized in this story, those modes are : Ichidai - Armor Mode (tank), Nidai - Miner Mode (drill vehicle), Sandai - Aqua Mode (submarine), Yondai - Gyro Mode (gyroscope), Godai - Jet Mode (jet), Rokudai - Rocket Mode (rocket), and Nanadai - Robo Mode (robot). Please note that those seven modes are in numerical order, only in Japanese (because it sounded cooler to me). The -dai in each mode name is a Japanese counter word used for counting vehicles or machines.
  
  
  
• Super God Icarus was the big secret mecha combination from the climax of ROJ Ep. 14. Not having it work due to the Jet Fighters being new models (which I established in passing in New ROJ Ep. 1) is just an example of me being difficult for the sake of dramatic tension.
  
  
  
• The climax to this battle includes a very deliberate callback to ROJ episode 2's finale between Green Wyvern and the members of Jetman, with Wyvern's musing that it led to nothing but more trouble.
  
  
  
• I think anyone with a passing idea of who "Itto Ogami" is probably will laugh at the assertion that it's an "old legend". He's the protagonist of Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima's manga series KOZURE OKAMI, better known in the West as LONE WOLF AND CUB. Now, whether the story is really a legend in the world of Jetman is open to interpretation. Gohan could certainly be stretching the truth just a mite.
  

  As far as the bit about Jigoku-dani ("The Valley of Hell"), that is absolutely a real location in Japan. The idea to tie the two things together came from the amazing narration to the trailer for LIGHTNING SWORDS OF DEATH, the English dub of one of the KOZURE OKAMI films. I don't know if it takes place in the actual Jigoku-dani, but it's pretty vivid all the same.
  
  
  

• Kazuo Fujita is named for "Kazuo Fuji", Akira Takarada's astronaut character in GODZILLA VS. MONSTER ZERO (1965). The "JADC" is the Japan Astro Development Center (named for a similar facility in the 1967 film THE X FROM OUTER SPACE) and was previously mentioned in ROJ Ep. 13.
  
  
  
• "Ken-bo" is a nickname that actor Akira Kubo coined for fellow actor Kenji Sahara when he felt he had reached his level, as noted in the interview at http://www.historyvortex.org/InterviewAkiraKubo.html. It is translated as "boy Ken", so you might understand why Ken Tendo wouldn't necessarily be happy about it!
  
  
  
• The relationship between Etsuko and Kei is an interesting matter, and one I did not approach lightly. It was an idea that I first developed in passing way back in 2003, but I chose not to pursue it (beyond a comedy bit in ROJ Ep. 13 where I more or less dismissed it) because I did not feel I could do it justice at that time. Basically, I thought it would probably be tacky if I tried it.
  

  So, why the obvious change of heart? Well, times change, people change, and after a lot of consideration, I felt I could do something positive with the idea and not have it look like a horrific misstep. Plus, Etsuko had to have disappeared for some reason, and it proved to be the perfect, somewhat shadowy catalyst without throwing even more darkness into the series than needed.
  

  I suppose you could still look upon the way I've executed things as a bit...odd. My defense is that I don't look upon it as a girl/girl thing, but rather a person/person thing. Kei and Etsuko were two adults who made a decision and are dealing with the repercussions to their relationship. I'm quite proud of how it turned out, and personally have no regrets about including it as part of the series. Others may disagree, but I hope they can respect my reasoning.
  

 

© Christopher Elam.