Ryusei Ningen Zoon
Zone Fighter (giant sized)

Stuck In Somebody's Frame

Credits

Zone Junior, Zone Fighter (human sized), Zone Angel

April 2, 1973 - September 24, 1973, 26 episodes

Created by Tanaka, Tomoyuki
Directed by Fukuda, Jun & Honda, Ishirô
Music by Misawa, Go


Character Actor/Actress
Sakimori, Hikaru/Zone Fighter Aoyama, Kazuya
Zone Fighter (giant form) Kusumi, Momoru
Sakimori, Hotaru/Zone Angel Kitahara, Kazumi
Sakimori, Akira/Zone Junior Sato, Takashii
Sakimori, Raita (Zone Great) Amagusa, Shiro
Sakimori, Yoichiro (Zone Father) Nakayama, Shoji
Sakimori, Tsukiko (Zone Mother) Kozuki, Sachiko
Jo, Takeru Ohara, Hideaki
Voice of Gold Garoga Kôda, Munemaru
Gojira (Godzilla) Kawai, Toru & Zushi, Isao
Narrator Kobayashi, Kiyoshi

Gohrudo [Gold] Garoga Garoga Soldiers

Six aliens, the Zone Family, come to earth after their planet, Peaceland, is destroyed by the Garoga Army, a race of goblin like creatures with long antennae. On earth the Zone Family is known as the Sakimori Family. Each member of the family takes a name that is somehow related to light. Zone Great (the grandfather) takes the name Raita ("lighter"), Zone Father takes the name Yoichiro (yo means "sun"), Zone Mother takes the name Tsukiko (tsuki means "moon"), Zone Fighter becomes Hikaru ("to light" or "to shine" "to glow"), Zone Angel becomes Hotaru ("firefly" or "lightning bug") and Zone Junior is Akira (short for kirakira "glitter, sparkle, glisten, twinkle").

    

When the Garoga Army targets their new home, the three children, Hikaru, Hotaru and Akira, become Zone Fighter, Zone Angel and Zone Junior, to defend it. Zone Great (grandfather) leads the family, and with Zone Father and Zone Mother act as advisers to their warrior children.

Zone Fighter does most of the combat, becoming giant sized to fight the giant Terror-Beasts.

Smokeyinside Smokey

Zone Angel and Zone Junior pilot an aircraft called Smokey, firing the "Smokey Beam" at the monsters or they fly under their own power and fire proton beams at the monsters.

Meteor Missile MightMeteor Missile Might

Zone Fighter can of course fly. He can also travel through other dimensions with his Astral Dash. His combat techniques include Meteor Kick and Meteor Spin. He also has several weapons, the two most often used are Meteor Proton Beam and the Meteor Missile Might (bracelets which fire missiles). It is usually the Meteor Missile Might that finishes off the monsters. To protect himself from the monster's attacks he can create two shields Meteor Zone Barrior (which simply blocks the attack) and Meteor Reflective Barrior (which reflects the monster's attack back on it).

The proton beam is introduced in the second episode when it is used not by Zone Fighter but by Zone Angel and Zone Junior. Zone Fighter doesn't use his protron beam until the third episode. Smokey's beam isn't used until the fourth episode.

Zone Fighter's belt

The giant Zone Fighter's belt is an energy level monitor. It's blue when he's fully charged, turns yellow when he's starting to run low and red when he's dangerously low on energy. It flashes red when he is nearly out of energy. Zone Fighter is powered by solar radiation (revealed in episode 5), however during combat he cannot absorb sunlight fast enough (probably because of the Earth's atmosphere reducing the amount of solar radiation which gets through) so he requires a charged energy capsule as a back up power supply. The capsule is on his head. When his belt is flashing red he calls upon Zone Angel or Zone Junior to recharge him. They accomplish this by either beaming energy into the capsule or by replacing the empty capsule with a fully charged one. If they are unable to recharge him he will revert to human sized Zone Fighter. In episode 10 Zone Fighter is drained completly and forced to become Hikaru again.

Human sized Zone Fither, Zone Angel and Zone Junior all carry miniature robots on their belts. These robots are recording devices. Either one of the warriors can record a message then send the robot to their secret headquarters in a hidden rome of the Sakimori home. The robots' feet are rockets. The three warriors also carry pistols which can fire an armor piercing bullet or a proton beam.

Mighty Liner

The Sakimori family car transforms into Mighty Liner (first seen in episode 2), a flying car armed with a cannon used to blast the Garogans and their black cars.

The Sakimori's house is protected by an invisible Proton Barrier which the Garoga cannot penetrate. When Zone Fighter is in jeaporady Zone Great can activate Great Raideki a device which generates lightning like blasts. Using the weapon is dangerous because it drains energy from Zone Great, shortening his life. Sakimori, Hikaru makes a living as a race car test driver. Sakimori, Yoichiro is a toymaker.

Assisting the Sakimori family is a young private detective, Jo, Takeru, He's rather dense. Although he hears them speak of coming from another planet he has some how failed to realise that his friends are actually Zone Fighter, Zone Angel and Zone Junior.


Zone Fighter and monster

Episode Titles/Monsters


  1.  04-02-1973  "Destroy The Terror-Beast Missile!"
                             Red Spark & Jikiro
  2.  04-09-1973  "Beat Destro-King!"
                             Destro-King
  3.  16-16-1973  "Defeat Garoga's Subterranean Base!"
                             Dorola
  4.  04-23-1973  "Onslaught! The Garoga Army: Enter Godzilla!"
                             Wargilgar & Spyler
  5.  04-30-1973  "Blast King Ghidora At Point Blank!"
                             King Ghidora
  6.  05-07-1973  "King Ghidora Strikes Back!"
                             King Ghidora
  7.  05-14-1973  "Zone Family's Critical Moment!"
                             Dragon King & Gilmoras
  8.  05-21-1973  "Smash The Terrifying Invader!"
                             Gellderah
  9.  05-28-1973  "Search For The Secret Of Red Spider!"
                             Goro-Gorilla & Spider Uros

Shadorah, Zone Fighter and Jipudoro

10.  06-04-1973  "Zone Fighter Annihilated!"
                             Jipudoro & Shadorah
11.  06-11-1973  "In The Twinkling Of An Eye: The Roar Of Godzilla!
                             Gigan
12.  06-18-1973  "Terrorbeast HQ - Invade The Earth!"
                             Barakidon
13.  06-25-1973  "Absolute Terror: Birthday Of Horror!"
                             Garaborg
14.  07-02-1973  "Insane With Anger! The Garoga Boy's Squad"
                             Deadragon
15.  07-09-1973  "Submersion! Godzilla, Save Tokyo!"
                             Zandolla
16.  07-16-1973  "Counterstrike Of Terror! Garoga-Robot!"
                             Moguranda
17.  07-23-1973  "Go! Fighter Emergency Take Off!"
                             Barugas
18.  07-30-1973  "Directive: Destroy The Japanese Laboratory!"
                             Gondargilas
19.  08-06-1973  "Order: Crush The Earth With Comet K!"
                             Gondorgilas
20.  08-13-1973  "Desperate Struggle! Can You Hear Fighter's Song?"
                             Goramu
21.  08-20-1973  "Invincible! Godzilla's Violent Charge!"
                             Jurah
22.  08-27-1973  "Counterstrike! Strike Down Super-Jikiro!"
                             Super-Jikiro
23.  09-03-1973  "Secret Of Bakugon - The Giant Terror-Beast!"
                             Bakugon
24.  08-10-1973   "Smash The Pin-Spitting Needlar!"
                             Needlar
25.  08-17-1973  "Bloodbath! Zone & Godzilla V.S. The United Terror-Beast Army!"
                             Monster Army (including Uros & Garaborg)
26.  08-24-1973  "Pulverize Operation: Garoga Gamma-X!"
                             Grotogauros
titles and monster names from "Zone Fighter! Episode Guide" by Damon Foster, as printed in Ultra Fan #1

Episode 26 does not seem like a final episode to me, there is no battle between Zone Fighter and the Garoga leader, nothing as far as I can tell indicates that another attack couldn't be coming soon. I cannot be certain, but it is possible Ryusei Ningen Zoon was never finished, but canceled because of the energy crisis Japan suffered in 1973 due to an oil shortage. There were few movies and tv series produced at this time and some of the tv series were cut short.


Zone Fighter and Gojira shaking hands

Five of the twenty-six Ryusei Ningen Zoon episodes feature Gojira (Godzilla) helping Zone Fighter defeat the invading Terror-Beasts. Two episodes feature King Gihdora, Gojira is not in these.


Gojira (Godzilla) Episodes

Gojira and Warugirugar

4. Onslaught! The Garoga Army: Enter Godzilla!


Zone Fighter vs Gigan Gojira and Gigan

"In The Twinkling Of An Eye: The Roar Of Godzilla!"


Gojira and Zandolla

15. Submersion! Godzilla, Save Tokyo!


Gojira and Zone Fighter Gojira-2 monsters-Zone Fighter

21. Invincible! Godzilla's Violent Charge!

In episode twenty-one, before the monsters attack, Zone Fighter and Gojira engage in friendly wrestling.


Gojira and red spider monster Gojira and two monsters

25. Bloodbath! Zone & Godzilla V.S. The United Terror-Beast Army!



King Ghidora Episodes

Zone Fighter vs King Ghidora

5. Blast King Ghidora At Point Blank!

6. King Ghidora Strikes Back!


ShadorahShadorahShadorah

One of the most interesting episodes is episode #10, in which a monster is made from Zone Fighter's shadow. Whenever it is near him it drains his energy. The silliest episode is probably episode #12, in which Zone Fighter battles a giant chicken monster, which is afraid of the dark.


Zone Fighter (giant sized)


Ryusei Ningen Zoon Songs


Back To Henshin Hall Of Fame

Last modified Monday, August 4, 2008

Zone Fighter and Gojira shaking hands

Ryusei Ningen Zoon © 1973 Toho E-B Co., Ltd.
& Mannen Sha Advertising Agency. Images are for viewing only.

Background courtesy of 
Windy's Design Studio