Tekkaman Blade

Tekkaman Blade
DVD cover of Teknoman
宇宙の騎士テッカマンブレード (Uchū no Kishi Tekkaman Burēdo)
Genre	Adventure, Science fiction, Drama and Romance.
TV anime
Directed by	Hiroshi Negishi
Studio	Tatsunoko Production Sotsu Agency
Licensed by	Saban (Censored Version) (1995-1996) Media Blasters (Recent, Uncut Version.)
Network	TV Tokyo
English network	Network Ten UPN
Original run	February 18, 1992 – February 2, 1993
Episodes	49
Anime and Manga Portal

Tekkaman Blade (宇宙の騎士テッカマンブレード, Uchū no Kishi Tekkaman Burēdo^?, lit. "Space Knight Tekkaman Blade") or Teknoman is an anime series, released in 1992 and 1995 in both Japanese and English language versions.

Plot

During the year 2300 AD (2087 in the English Dub), otherwise known as United Earth Year 192, the Earth is under attack from an extraterrestrial enemy known as the Radam. The Radam (Venomoid) forces comprise of grotesque bug-like monsters (spider-crabs) that are led by armored soldiers known as the Tekkamen (Teknomen). Surrounding the Earth is an enormous man-made ring-shaped structure known as the Orbital Ring (Space Ring). The Orbital Ring was a space station that once served as a launch point into space and was constructed well before the arrival of the alien invaders. It was thus the first human structure attacked and occupied by Radam, with its human inhabitants having either fled or been killed. Now it serves merely as a battle ground for the military against the aliens and Tekkaman (Teknoman).

Fighting against the Radam and their Tekkamen are the Space Knights. Led by Commander Heinrich Freeman (Commander Jamison), the Space Knights are a special defense force and Earth's last hope for defeating Radam. The Space Knights consist of Noal (Ringo), the pilot of the Space Knights' ship "Blue Earth"; Aki (Star), the Blue Earth Navigator; Milly (Tina), Communications Operator; Levin (Maggie), computer mechanic; and Honda (Mac) mechanic and repairs. The Space Knights have been unsuccessful at repelling the aliens until the arrival D-Boy, a young man who has the ability to transform into an armored warrior known as Tekkaman Blade (Teknoman).

Radam monsters (Venomoid Spider Crabs) at the start of the invasion.

Commanding the alien forces is Omega (Darkon), a Tekkaman general who leads the alien invasion of the planet Earth. Omega's (Darkon's) base is located on the dark side of the Moon, where he waits for the moment to gain enough strength to raise his spacecraft from the Moon's surface, along with his Tekkamen soldiers, preparing for their conquest of the planet Earth and the universe.

Also commanding the Radam armies are other Tekkamen. Once ordinary humans, the Tekkamen were captured and transformed by the Radam to assist in the takeover of Earth. They are endowed with impenetrable armor, super-human strength, and quantum energy weapons. The Tekkamen transform using power drawn from their System Box crystals that are unique to each holder. Blade is one of a handful of Tekkamen. Unlike the others, he fights to defend Earth and for the most part, is free of the brainwashing influence which the Radam imposed over their captives to make them subservient.

Before the arrival of the Radam there was a deep space exploration ship called the Argos. It was the Argos that first encountered the Radam probe ship. Aboard the Argos were the Aiba (Carter) family: Blade's family and their ship crew. Whilst exploring the outer rings of Saturn, the Argos' radar picks up an unusual gravitational disturbance. Going to investigate, the crew discover the disturbance to be an alien ship, and as they get closer, they are drawn in by a tractor beam. Excited at the prospect of encountering alien life, the crew board the vessel and discover the Radam (Venomoid).

Radam "Tek-System" plants rain down upon the crew, beginning the process of turning them into Tekkamen. All of the crew aboard the ship were put into Tek System pods, though only the most ideal humans could become Tekkamen. While this occurred, the Argos was slowly being assimilated into the Radam spacecraft. Over time, Takaya Aiba's (Nick Carter) father was rejected by the process and uses what little time he had left to free one member of his family; Blade, who was the only one still not brainwashed by the Radam. It is through the crew of the Argos that the Radam discovers the planet Earth and plan their invasion. On his last legs, Blade's father helps him into the escape pod and before activating the Argos' self-destruct sequence, he casts Blade off into space telling him that the fate of the Earth rests in his hands. Upon the explosion, the Radam spacecraft crash lands on the dark side of the Moon.

Takaya Aiba travels back to Earth for six months, in the confines of his tiny pod, alone with his thoughts. By the time he arrives, the Earth is already under heavy attack from the Radam. Fueled by his hatred for the Radam, Takaya bursts free from his pod and begins to attack them. The attack draws the attention of a Tekkaman called Dagger. The two fight and Blade is sent hurtling towards Earth, however, his armor protects him and he crash lands on Earth without sustaining serious injury. His arrival attracts the attention of two Space Knights, Noal Vereuse (Ringo Vereuse) and Aki Kisaragi (Star Summers) who discover a naked and bleeding Takaya (Nick) walking out of a crater, and take him back to their headquarters.

In the beginning, Takaya (Nick) is mysterious and hostile towards the otherwise helpful Space Knights, however, he has no memory of anything before the battle on the orbital ring with Tekkaman Dagger (Teknoman Dagger) as time progresses, he begins to respect and admire them for their dedication in even the toughest of situations, and eventually develops a relationship with Aki.

The Space Knights, with the help of Takaya is given the nickname of D-Boy by Noal because of his dangerous ideology, slowly begin to repel the Radam troops until, during a battle with Tekkaman Dagger (Teknoman Dagger), Blade's crystal is shattered, rendering him unable to transform again into Tekkaman Blade. Takaya gives up hope, however Levin technically develops a battle robot, who later takes the name Pegas (Short for Pegasus, in reference to the flying horse of Greek mythology). Pegas contains the shards of Blade's crystal and amplifies its power, allowing Blade to transform once more. Pegas and Blade develop a close friendship, despite Pegas being a robot. In his first transformation using Pegas, Blade challenges Dagger and easily overpowers him, destroying him with a blast from his shoulder cannons known as the Voltekka (Tekno-Bolt).

Eventually more Tekkamen arrive on Earth to challenge Blade, led by Tekkaman Evil (Teknoman Sabre), Blade's twin brother, Tekkaman Lance (Teknoman Lance), Tekkaman Axe (Teknoman Axe) and Tekkaman Sword (Teknoman Rapier) are all keen to destroy him. Blade's sister, Miyuki (Shara), also arrives on Earth. However, like Blade, she is not under the control of the Radam. After pulling herself free from Omega's base, she arrives very ill and is given a blood transfusion from Blade and Aki. Evil, Lance, Axe and Sword attacks the Space Knights' base, attempting to kill Miyuki. Although outnumbered, Miyuki strikes back and fights them, eventually self-destructing (in the form of her own Voltekka) in a vain attempt to destroy the other Tekkamen. Blade, now left without a family, is strengthened by these events and resolves to destroy the Radam. He manages to kill Lance and Axe and later gains the power to take on the Blaster transformation (Super Teknoman) mode, but at the expense of having worse effects on his brain and body. Evil is given the same ability to serve as the final line of Omega's defense, while Sword is killed by Balzac as they both burn up in the Earth's atmosphere, preventing the Blue Earth from reaching the Moon.

Towards the end of the war, Blade and Evil meet for one last time to fight. They battle and eventually Blade kills Evil. As he dies, Evil is freed from the Radam's control and hands Blade his crystal, instructing him that he will need its power to reach Omega's base on the Moon. Evil also tells Blade that despite all the events that has led to his death, he is glad to have fought his own brother on equal ground for the first time, and that he is glad that he became Tekkaman Evil.

Blade takes off on Pegas whilst falling further and further into the depths of his rage. He finally arrives on the Moon and confronts Omega, who reveals the whole Radam plan and that he is Kengo (Conrad), Blade's eldest brother. Omega has begun to resurrect the alien mothership, to descend upon Earth. Blade attacks Omega, who proves too powerful and easily defeats Blade. Omega is about to kill Blade when Pegas sacrifices itself for Blade, stepping in front of the killing blow. Pegas' last words are a farewell to Blade.

The destruction of Pegas sends Blade over the edge and he erupts, transforming him into a Blaster Tekkaman mode for the last time. Before striking the final blow of the first Radam War, Blade says to his brother, "Come on, let's go home now." His spaceship explodes; as parts of the spacecraft fall to Earth, so too does Blade, stripped of his armor and crash landing. The series ends with Blade and Aki watching a sunset and Noal recalling what a miracle it was that himself and Blade had survived the war. However, prices were paid, as their comrade Balzac dies during his battle with Sword and Blade is paralyzed and wheelchair-bound, can barely speak and is almost completely amnesiac.

Characters

Tekkaman/Teknoman

Blade/Slade

Voiced by: Toshiyuki Morikawa (Japanese), David A. Thomas (English)

• Japanese name: D-Boy (Ｄボゥイ, D-Bōi^?)/Takaya Aiba (相羽 タカヤ, Aiba Takaya^?)
• English name: Teknoman Blade/Nick Carter (International version)
• English name: Teknoman Slade/Ness Carter (U.S. version)

His name is Takaya Aiba (Nick Carter), although he is more commonly referred to as Dangerous-Boy (D-Boy), a nickname Noal (Ringo) coins based on his recklessness and dangerous ideology. Originally on board the Argos when it was taken over by the aliens, Blade was freed by his father before the process of transformation could be completed, leaving him almost free from the Radam's (Venomoid's) influence. Blade swore to avenge the loss of his family and destroy Omega (Darkon) and the Radam (Venomoid).

Although one of the more powerful Tekkamen, Blade is disadvantaged by a number of factors: in a previous battle, Blade's crystal was shattered and he was no longer able to transform independently, having instead to rely on the robot Pegas; also, Blade cannot stay in his Tekkaman form for longer than 30 minutes, lest he regress into a primal state in which he becomes uncontrollable. The transformation process itself also puts a considerable strain on Blade's body, increasing his metabolism and, later in the series, threatening his life. These effects are aggravated further when he uses technology derived from a Radam (Venomoid) "Tek-System" plant to evolve into an advanced Blaster Tekkaman (Super Teknoman). This enhanced form is the next step in the alien evolution but, while extremely powerful, is not without its drawbacks: the most perilous one being that the Tekkaman (Teknoman) in question only has months to live upon upgrading and causes temporary blindness. In an ironic twist of fate, while Blade faked an amnesia early on in the series so as to avoid having to talk about what happened to his family, the Blaster Tekkaman (Super Teknoman) evolution causes him to truly develop amnesia, with him losing memories important to him on a regular basis. First he forgets his time spent with the Space Knights, then later Miyuki's (Shara's) favourite flower and other important memories; in one episode, he completely forgets that his crystal was destroyed by Dagger, and that he needs to use Pegas to transform into Blade now.

Despite these weaknesses, Blade is able to defeat Omega (Darkon) and saves the universe at the expense of his remaining mental health as shown at the end of this series. He is last seen being cared for by Aki (Star), having forgotten even language skills and the ability to walk. He has, fortunately, shown to have recovered from it by the events of Tekkaman Blade II, even restoring his crystal.

Evil (Sabre)

Voiced by: Takehito Koyasu (Japanese), Paul Schrier (English)

• Japanese name: Shinya Aiba (相羽 シンヤ, Aiba Shin'ya^?)/Tekkaman Evil (テッカマンエビル, Tekkaman Ebiru^?)
• English name: Cain Carter/Teknoman Sabre

Takaya's twin brother. Evil (Sabre) believes that only one of them can exist because of his disillusioned memory; this drives Evil (Sabre) to become more concerned with defeating his brother than with the invasion of Earth and this gradually becomes an obsession. As Blade becomes more powerful, Evil (Sabre) receives a power increase from Omega (Darkon).

The truth is that the source of Evil's (Sabre's) grudge against Blade in particular even before the Radam (Venomoid) invasion was because he was shown to be resented or looked down on by his father. Not only was he 'helped' during survival training which made him think he only got help because he was inferior, but also during the Burning Clock OVA where he was blamed for his mother's death. Shinya Aiba (Cain Carter) has developed an inferiority/perfection complex long before he was taken control of by the Radam (Venomoid), which only amplified his feelings into direct hatred towards those he held responsible.

Evil (Sabre) seeks to destroy Blade on an equal footing to prove that he can beat him, and in the final battle, when Blade is overcome by his 30-minute limit, Evil (Sabre) allows him to recover before resuming battle. In the battle that ensues Blade eventually impales Evil (Sabre), holding him in his arms as he dies. Evil (Sabre) redeems himself by handing Blade his crystal, explaining that he will need its power to defeat Omega (Darkon). It is revealed that the Radam (Venomoid) Tekkaman (Teknoman) were only working for the Radam (Venomoid) because of a parasite that was implanted into their minds to maintain their loyalty to Radam's (Venomoid's) cause.

Rapier

Voiced by: Yuko Mizutani (Japanese), Wendee Lee (English)

• Japanese name: Miyuki Aiba (相羽 ミユキ, Aiba Miyuki^?)/Tekkaman Rapier (テッカマンレイピア, Tekkaman Reipia^?)
• English name: Shara Carter/Teknoman Rapier

Blade's younger sister. She manages to escape the final part of the Tekkaman (Teknoman) conversion process and leaves Omega's (Darkon's) base to seek out Blade. Arriving on Earth very ill and weak, she is not expected to live for very long due to a fatal virus that has spread through her system as a result of her incomplete Tekkaman (Teknoman) powers. Aware that her life will end soon, she bids Blade a heartfelt farewell and self-destructs in an overloaded version of her Voltekka attack in a vain attempt to vanquish Evil (Sabre) and his Tekkaman (Teknoman) soldiers, Axe, Sword and Lance. It is later discovered that a piece of her crystal remains in Blade's possession, temporarily boosting his speed and strength. This boost in strength was, however, insufficient for Blade to travel to the Moon to fight against Omega (Darkon).

Omega (Darkon)

Voiced by: Norio Wakamoto (Japanese), Simon Prescott (English)

• Japanese name: Kengo Aiba (相羽 ケンゴ, Aiba Kengo^?)/Tekkaman Omega (テッカマンオメガ, Tekkaman Omega^?)
• English name: Conrad Carter/Teknoman Darkon

Omega (Darkon) is the leader of the Radam (Venomoid) army. He remained in the shadows as he was physically linked to the alien space ship until he can eventually raise the aircraft from the Moon and descend to Earth. He uses a hologram of himself when he communicates with the others. He is eventually revealed to be Blade's eldest brother, Kengo (Conrad). Omega (Darkon) is also the most powerful Tekkaman (Teknoman), however Blade is able to destroy him by transforming into a Blaster Tekkaman (Super Teknoman) with the help of Evil's (Sabre's) crystal and his own and harnessing his rage over the loss of his family and Pegas's death. He is the only Tekkaman (Teknoman) that never changes into his human form though Kengo's (Conrad's) face can be seen integrated into his final form. Not only was Omega drastically larger than other Tekkamen in size, he possessed numerous other abilities, including tentacles and the ability to generate black copies of the other Tekkamen, though these were easily cut apart by Blade.

Dagger (Gunnar)

Voiced by: Nobuo Tobita (Japanese), John Vickery (English)

• Japanese name: Fritz von Braun (フリッツ・フォン・ブラウン, Furittsu Fon Buraun^?)/Tekkaman Dagger (テッカマンダガー, Tekkaman Dagā^?)
• English name: Fritz Heidenreich/Teknoman Gunnar (U.S. version)
• English name: Fritz Heidenreich/Teknoman Dagger (International version)

Dagger, real name Fritz, is the first to fight Blade upon his return to Earth and sends Blade crashing down. He is extremely cocky and arrogant and believes that Blade could never defeat him. He was, however, responsible for creating the trap which did prevent Blade from Tek-Setting. When Blade's crystal is shattered, Dagger leads an offensive on the Space Knights' base, offering to relent if they provide Blade, knowing he can no longer transform into a Tekkaman (Teknoman). Blade, however, uses Pegas to transform and easily destroys Dagger with a single Voltekka (Tekno blaster or quantum energy beam) attack.

Axe

Voiced by: Yū Shimaka (Japanese), Richard Epcar (English)

• Japanese name: Goddard (ゴダード, Godādo^?)/Tekkaman Axe (テッカマンアックス, Tekkaman Akkusu^?)
• English name: Grant Goddard/Teknoman Axe

Blade and Evil's (Sabre's) martial arts instructor. He's also an electrical engineer and one of the heaviest Tekkamen (Teknoman). He tries to trap Blade and fight him one on one. Blade manages to defeat Axe by stabbing him with his hands in the shape of spears. Even though Axe was dying he tries to grab Blade by bear hugging him and trying to destroy him with his Voltekka blasters. O'Toole (O'Rourke) manages to break into the arena Blade was trapped in and shoots Axe in the head. This allows Blade to escape and Axe self-destructs.

Lance

Voiced by: Jūrōta Kosugi (Japanese), Michael McConnohie (English)

• Japanese name: Molotov (モロトフ, Morotofu^?)/Tekkaman Lance (テッカマンランス, Tekkaman Ransu^?)
• English name: Kengo Moroto/Teknoman Lance

Not much is known about his past except that he was one of the crew on the Argos. In the dub, his name was Kengo Moroto. He is tremendously strong in human form. He breaks into the Alaskan Space Knight Command Center while Blade is upgrading. The Space Knights had to distract Lance long enough so that Blade could finish his evolution. O'Toole (O'Rourke) fought Lance with a grenade. which resulted in a explosion and death of O'Toole (O'Rourke) after Lance stabs him to death in the abdomen with his weapon.

Blade finishes his transformation and destroys Lance with a Blaster Voltekka (Tekno blaster or Tekno-Bolt) in his upgraded form. Lance is capable of shooting darts out of his shoulder as well as being able to cling onto walls and hang from ceilings.^[1]

Sword

Voiced by: Mari Yokoo (Japanese), Melodee M. Spevack (English)

• Japanese name: Feng-Li (フォン・リー, Fon Rī^?)/Tekkaman Sword (テッカマンソード, Tekkaman Sōdo^?)
• English name: Catherine Aiyana/Teknoman Rapier (Only used in her first appearance in the International version)
• English name: Catherine Aiyana/Teknoman Sword (Used from episode 35 and onwards)

Feng-Li (Catherine Aiyana) is Kengo Aiba's (Conrad Carter's) former lover and fiancée. She is now Tekkaman (Teknoman) Sword. Although she is loyal to the Radam's (Venomoid's) cause, she still has memories of her past life and wishes that Omega (Darkon) was still the man she loved. She saves Evil (Sabre) from being killed by Blade and also destroys all but one of the space ports on the Space Ring. Sword damages the Blue Earth while Noal and Balzac are on a mission. She finally dies when she burns up while entering earth's atmosphere, after being gunned down by Balzac.^[2]

Space Knights

Aki (Star)

Voiced by: Megumi Hayashibara (Japanese), Barbara Goodson (English)

• Japanese name: Aki Kisaragi (如月 アキ, Kisaragi Aki^?)
• English name: Star Summers

A member of the Space Knights, Aki (Star) is the Blue Earth's navigator. She is headstrong yet compassionate, though she sometimes romanticizes situations. Aki (Star), along with Noal (Ringo), discovered Blade when he crashed on Earth and soon developed a friendship that eventually became love. As Blade slips into his primal state after the final battle with Evil (Sabre), he holds on to the image of Aki (Star) to keep him sane. She accompanies the Space Knights on many missions while piloting the Blue Earth and/or as a field commander.

Noal (Ringo)

Voiced by: Yasunori Matsumoto (Japanese), Kerrigan Mahan (English)

• Japanese name: Noal Vereuse
• English name: Richard 'Ringo' Vereuse (International version)
• English name: Ringo Richards (U.S. version)

A member of the Space Knights, Noal (Ringo) is a tough joker who initially doesn't trust Blade at all and shows it. He seems to like Aki (Star) as seen in the first episode and cares for her a lot as seen in the episode "Falling Star" when he bashed up Blade for indirectly causing Aki (Star) to be hospitalized. He is also willing to destroy him in the fifth episode, as seen when he is fully prepared to blow Blade out of the sky when it seems that his time is up. As the series goes on, however, they become firm friends, playing a strong part in breaking Blade out of the military confinement center where Blade had been taken and constantly telling him to reveal his feelings about Aki (Star), such as advising him to buy flowers, and so on. Some time into the series, when he is breaking Blade out of the confinement center, he steals the second 'Sol-Tekkaman suit' ('Tekno-Suit') and participates in almost every battle after that, fighting alongside Blade and sometimes alone. While the suit is strong, he is more often than not defeated when battling Tekkamen (Teknomen), although he puts it to good use against the more vulnerable Radam (Venomoid). Unfortunately, it can't match either the strength or firepower of the Tekkamen (Teknoman) armor, who can easily counter or avoid all of the suit's weapons.

He is also a member of well known and rich family. His mother died when he was young. Noal's father was a high-rank officer in the army but died in battle soon after the invasion began. (Before that happened he ordered all the servants to hide inside Vereuse residence underground bomb shelter.) He wanted Noal to become a soldier too and sent him to military academy, however Noal refused.

Noal is also a good soccer player. Inside his family house at least four trophies and two photos can be seen. In two episodes he can be seen playing with local kids as well.

Milly (Tina)

Voiced by: Chisa Yokoyama (Japanese), Julie Maddalena (English)

• Japanese name: Miletta Le Rouge
• English name: Tina Corman

She is a bright and young Space Knight, and seems to be the one that Blade trusts at first, he certainly confides in her the condition of his 30 minutes time limit in a more compassionate way than he does to anyone else, even Aki (Star). She looks like Blade's younger sister, Miyuki (Shara), a coincidence not left unused. When Blade exceeded his 30 minute time limit and became a Radam (Venomoid) warrior, she was the only one who could bring him back and he reverted back to his normal state, horrified at what he had done.

Heinrich Van Freeman (Jamison)

Voiced by: Hirotaka Suzuoki (Japanese), Michael Forest (English)

• Japanese name: Heinrich Van Freeman
• English name: Commander Jamison

A strong, tall commander, who leads the Space Knights well. He is extremely concerned with the safety of his military squad, as shown by his absolute unwillingness to force Blade into battle, or to undergo the evolution process. He is the one who discovered the information on the Argos, prompting Blade to fill in the rest of the gaps. Freeman (Jamison) seems to suffer from a form of albinism: he has red eyes and white hair, although his skin is not unusually pale.

Honda (Mac)

Voiced by: Shōzō Iizuka (Japanese), Richard Epcar (English)

• Japanese name: Honda (本田^?)
• English name: Mac MacElroy

A wide, caring mechanic. He designed Pegas with Levin's (Maggie's) help. He is brave and will not step down from the line of Duty. After the attack on the Space Knights HQ, he chose to stay with Freeman (Jamison) and build the new command center rather than travel with Aki (Star), Noal (Ringo) and Levin (Maggie) to destroy the Tekkamen (Teknomen).

Levin (Maggie)

Voiced by: Shigeru Nakahara (Japanese), Mari Devon (English)

• Japanese name: Levin
• English name: Maggie Matherson

Levin (Maggie) is a transsexual and a highly skilled mechanic.^[3] Levin also fantasizes about Tekkaman Blade's armor calling him "Sexy" in earlier episodes, to have herself brought back to reality by Honda (Mac). She is extremely talented in mechanics, cooking, and history. She chooses to travel with Aki (Star) and Noal (Ringo) in the land vehicle, the 'Green Earth'.

Pegas

Voiced by: Nobuo Tobita (Japanese), Tom Wyner (English)

• Japanese name: Pegas
• English name: Pegus/Teknobot

The mobile support unit used by Blade to transform into Tekkaman (Teknoman) Blade after his crystal is shattered. Pegas has a deep, bland strong voice which is easily recognizable. He can be activated by voice command, or by remote from the Space Knight Central Command. He was named "Pegas" from the beginning in the original version, but the dubbed versions instead state that O'Toole (O'Rourke) named him "Pegus" after the mythological flying horse Pegasus. His trademark is singing a soldier's song The Irish "Danny Boy" ("Bold Soldier Boy"), a tune which O'Toole (O'Rourke) always sings; to Levin's (Maggie's) annoyance, O'Toole (O'Rourke) saves the song in Pegas' memory banks, although Blade requests that it be left in, much to the surprise of the other Space Knights. In the English dub, Pegas sings the same tune ("Bold Soldier Boy"), but with different words to the original Japanese version.

Pegas is destroyed by Omega (Darkon) in the final episode.^[4] He is later rebuilt and used by Aki (Star) in Tekkaman Blade II.

O'Toole (O'Rourke)

Voiced by: Masaru Ikeda (Japanese), Bryan Cranston (English)

• Japanese name: Barnard O'Toole
• English name: Sergeant Miles O'Rourke

The leader of a special commando unit, who was stranded on the Space Ring. At first, he didn't believe in Tekkaman (Teknoman) Blade's abilities until he was saved by him. He teaches Blade about how soldiers have lives too. When he lost three of his soldiers, he asked him how would the families of those lost soldiers would feel, which made him realize that he can put trust in others, specifically the Space Knights. In addition, he taught Pegas to sing the song "Danny Boy" ("Bold Soldier Boy") Unfortunately, he is killed by Lance in order to give Tekkaman (Teknoman) Blade the time needed to upgrade into Blade's Blaster (Super Teknoman) form. He was buried in the flower field hidden deep under the Antarctic Space Knight Base.

Balzac

Voiced by: Kenyuu Horiuchi (Japanese), Steve Bulen (English)

• Japanese name: Balzac Asimov
• English name: Balzac St. Jacques

An arrogant soldier who was a spy for the military commander, General Colbert (General Galt), who maliciously taunted Blade and the Space Knights. Freeman (Jamison) intentionally gave him the data of the Tekkaman (Teknoman), implying that the Space Knights will need all the help they can get, leading to the creation of the Sol-Tekkaman suits (Tekno suits), with Balzac piloting the first one. He led a strike team on the Space Ring thinking it was the main base; however, it wasn't and fell into a trap set by Evil (Sabre), who proceeded to annihilate Balzac's military squad. Balzac escaped the massacre and returned to Earth where he was saved by a woman named Rachael and her young brother Rick. For several months, he stayed with Rachael and Rick, finally understanding what it feels like to have people care for him, but also seeking revenge for the death of Marlou, his best friend. He ends up helping the Space Knights, giving extra firepower to the team, which already had Blade and Noal (Ringo). He and Noal (Ringo) still show rivalry towards each other, but without a sense of grudge against each other unlike before. Near the end, both he and Noal (Ringo) take on Tekkaman (Teknoman) Sword. Balzac used Noal's (Ringo's) suit to use a special cannon designed by Freeman (Jamison) to negate the Tek Set. He managed to kill Sword in battle, however, she grabbed Balzac at the last moment, taking him along with her. As they descended, Balzac thought of Rachael one last time before shooting her in the chest. As they both plummeted towards Earth, Balzac burns to death on his entry towards the earths atmosphere, with Sword burning up along with him. In the dub, Balzac survived in the final battle.

Character names

Japanese version (name)	English version (name)
Balzac Asimov/Sol-Tekkaman 1	Balzac Saint Jaques
Honda	Mac Mackelroy
Levin	Maggie Matheson
Noal Vereuse/Sol Tekkaman-2	Richard 'Ringo' Vereuse
Miyuki Aiba/Tekkaman Rapier	Shara Carter/Teknoman Rapier
Takaya Aiba/D-Boy/Tekkaman Blade	Nick Carter/Slade/Teknoman Blade/Blade
Aki Kisaragi	Star Summers
Milly	Tina Corman
Chief Heinrich Van Freeman	Commander Jamison
Barnard O'Toole	Sergeant Miles O'Rourke
General Colbert	General Xerxes Galt
Kengo Aiba/Tekkaman Omega	Conrad Carter/Darkon
Feng-Li/Tekkaman Sword	Catherine Aiyana/Teknoman Sword
Shinya Aiba/Tekkaman Evil	Cain Carter/Teknoman Sabre
Fritz Von Brown/Tekkaman Dagger	Fritz Heidenreich/Teknoman Dagger (Gunnar)
Goddard/Tekkaman Axe	Grant Goddard/Teknoman Axe
Molotov/Tekkaman Lance	Kengo Moroto/Teknoman Lance
Radam	Venomoids

Analysis of armor

Armor stats

Japanese version (name)	English version (name)	Height (m)	Weight (kg)
Sol-Tekkaman 1 (Original and Custom) (Balzac Asimov)	Tekno-Suit 1/Balzac Saint Jaques	2.30	181
Sol-Tekkaman 2 (Noal Vereuse)	Tekno-Suit 2/Richard 'Ringo' Vereuse	2.30	181
Miyuki Aiba/Tekkaman Rapier	Shara Carter/Teknoman Shara (Rapier)	1.95	70
D-Boy/Takaya Aiba Tekkaman Blade	Nick Carter/Teknoman Blade	2.32	81
Blaster Blade	Super Teknoman Blade/Teknoman Plus	2.38	87
Kengo Aiba/Tekkaman Omega	Conrad Carter/Darkon	2.41	108
Shinya Aiba/Tekkaman Evil	Cain Carter/Teknoman Sabre	2.36	90
Fritz von Brown/Tekkaman Dagger	Fritz Heidenreich/Teknoman Dagger (Gunnar)	2.40	89
Goddard/Tekkaman Axe	Grant Goddard/Teknoman Axe	2.32	90
Molotov/Tekkaman Lance	Kengo Moroto/Teknoman Lance	2.42	86
Feng-Li/Tekkaman Sword	Catherine Aiyana/Teknoman Sword	2.20	70
Pegas	Teknobot/Pegus	2.70	6500

A Tekkaman (known as a Teknoman in the English version) is a human who has been biologically altered by the Radam's (Venomoid) "Tek-System" plants. Not all humans are biologically compatible with the "Tek-System" plants. Incompatible candidates are eventually ejected from the plants and die shortly afterwards.

Those that do survive gain the ability to transform into a powerful armored form. The armor is capable of self-propelled flight, functions as an environmental suit, and is virtually invulnerable to most forms of attack, Blade withstood a nuclear explosion at ground zero without apparent ill effect.

All Tekkamen (Teknomen) transform into their armor by use of a crystal that is stored in their bodies while not in use, known as a System Box. Blade's crystal is shattered early on by Tekkaman (Teknoman) Dagger and he is forced to use Pegas to transform. In addition, the crystal is capable of enabling the Tekkaman (Teknoman) to travel through space at high speeds (without his crystal, Blade is Earth-bound without the assistance of the Blue Earth).

The armor also has a number of built-in offensive systems. First, physical strength is enhanced considerably. (Tekkaman Lance also demonstrated extraordinary strength in human form, lifting a man of the ground one handed, and throwing him hard enough to crack concrete). For melee combat, a Tekkaman uses a spear-like weapon called a Tekk Lancer (テックランサー, Tekkuransā^?) (called Tekno-Lance in Teknoman). The lances wielded by some Tekkamen had special abilities: Dagger's could double as a bow capable of firing energized arrows, Blade's had launchable boomerang blades, and his and Evil (Sabre's) could generate an electrical charge in addition to being used as a throwing star. Blade also had a grappling spike that could be fired out of the right wrist of his gauntlet as was shown at the end of episode three when he tows the Blue Earth. Miyuki (Shara) and Evil (Sabre) are later shown using similar tools.

Most Tekkamen have access to Voltekka (ボルテッカ, Borutekka^?) (known as Teknopower Blasters and later Tekno-Bolt in Teknoman), massively powerful energy cannons. Evil (Sabre) is capable of using his blasters to power a controllable "ball lightning" blast known as a "Psy-Voltekka", and Blade is later able to boost the power of his blast using Pegas' expansion to create the "High-colt Voltekka" attack.

Blade and Evil (Sabre) later evolve into a Blaster Tekkaman (known as Super Teknoman/Teknoman Plus/Penultimate Embodiment in Teknoman). During battle, they can change their armor into an enhanced form which boosts their Voltekka weapons and speed considerably, and in Blade's case, he is able to perform variations of the Voltekka such as the "Lancer Voltekka" where he throws a Voltekka charge using his Tekk-Lancer (a technique also used by Axe) and the powerful "Blaster Voltekka", where the energy is built up in front of Blade before he unleashes it in the same manner as his original Voltekka attack. This form is temporary, as they are shown reverting to their original armors either when they don't need the boost in power anymore, or when they simply lack the strength to uphold it. This enhancement also has serious neurological effects for both of them, especially Blade as he was suffering from excess fatigue and strain before he even gained this ability.

Blade had a technique called Crash Intrude (クラッシュ イントルード, Kurasshu Intorūdo^?) (Tekno Battle Mode in Teknoman) in which his armor generated a bird-shaped aura of green energy, allowing him to destroy enemy targets by crashing into them. Miyuki (Rapier) is also shown using this technique.

Episodes

Main article: List of Tekkaman Blade episodes

Video games

There have been a total of three video games based on the Tekkaman Blade anime series. The first one was on Game Boy and is a simple scrolling action game. The next Tekkaman Blade game was on Super Nintendo and is a side-scrolling action game mixed with player vs. computer fighting scenes. The final game was released on the Japanese home computer system the PC98 and is a strategic game.

The Tekkaman Blade characters have been incorporated into the Super Robot Wars video game series, a long-running series of turn-based strategy games operating under the premise of a crossover between various mecha anime. Tekkaman Blade has been featured in the Super Robot Wars Judgement and Super Robot Wars W games.

The Super Robot Wars W game merged aspects of the series' backstory with that of The King of Braves GaoGaiGar anime series by making the Radam and the Zonders enemies, and explaining that the Tek-System was created specifically to protect against Zonderization. The Tek System is also said to be the basis behind the Evoluders from Detonator Orgun, who also war against both the Radam and Zonders. The game follows parts of the story up until the battle with Tekkaman (Teknoman) Axe, switches to the plot of Tekkaman Blade II, and then picks back up with the original story with Blade's mental and physical deterioration. After the battle with Omega (Darkon), Blade is thought lost when the ZAFT superweapon GENESIS is redirected to fire on the rising Radam (Venomoid) ship, but Blade is saved and cured by Miyuki (Shara), who survived due to interference from the Zonders (who attempted to capture her and study the Tek System), with the help of Shinya's (Cain's) Tek Crystal.

Both Tekkaman Blade and the original Tekkaman: The Space Knight (which the series is based on) appear as playable characters in the game Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All Stars. A Tekkaman Blade-themed stage, based in the Cargo Bay of the Space Ring, is featured as well.

Theme songs

Japanese version

Openings

1. "Reason" by Yumiko Kosaka (Eps. 1-26)
2. "Eternal Loneliness"(永遠の孤独) by Yumiko Kosaka (Eps. 27-49)

Endings

1. "Energy of Love" by Yumiko Kosaka
2. "Lonely Heart" by Yumiko Kosaka

English version

• "Teknoman Theme" by Saban

See also

• Tekkaman: The Space Knight
• Tek System Box

References and notes

1. ^ NOTE: In his first appearance the English language version, Lance is credited as Teknoman Rapier. This error was corrected in subsequent appearances and was fixed for the International version.
2. ^ NOTE: In her first appearance the English version, Sword is credited as Teknoman Lance (with Teknoman Lance being credited as Rapier) and speaks with a male voice. This error was corrected in subsequent appearances and was fixed for the International version.
3. ^ NOTE: While biologically male in the Japanese version, this character is female in the English dubs. Levin's (Maggie) fascination with Blade was one of the more notable characteristics carried over to the English dubs. As a result, Levin (Maggie) would often gush over Blade and even attempted to assist him in battle at one point by blasting a Spider Crab with a turret gun, only to be saved at the last minute by Balzac in the Sol-Tekkaman 1. (Tekno-Suit 1)
4. ^ NOTE: In the original Japanese version and International version, an oil tear floats from Pegas' eye when saying his final goodbye after he is killed, but this was removed in the U.S. version.

External links

• Tekno-mania
• Space Knight: Tekkaman Blade TV
• Tekkaman Blade (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Tekkaman Blade Editing Report
• Uchû no kishi tekkaman bureido at the Internet Movie Database