Battle to the Death!! God Ginrai VS Darkwings Reborn
From Transformers Wiki
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| Another death battle?! | ||||||
| "Battle to the Death!! God Ginrai VS Darkwings Reborn" (Shitō!! God Ginrai Tai Shinsei Darkwings) | ||||||
| Production company | Takara, Toei | |||||
| Airdate | 7 February 1989 | |||||
| Writer | Toyohiro Andō | |||||
| Director | Hiromichi Matano | |||||
| Animation studio | Toei | |||||
| Continuity | Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity | |||||
Hydra and Buster turn to Devil Z in a final attempt to gain the power they need to destroy Ginrai.
Contents |
Synopsis
Continuing to hopscotch around the globe as they pursue the Decepticons, the Autobots set Grand Maximus down at the foot of Mount McKinley in Alaska. While Ginrai hands out orders, Cancer attempts to prevent Wilder and Bullhorn from leaving. Despite having been rescued by Ginrai after being left to certain death thanks to Devil Z, the two punks have no designs on joining the Autobots like Cancer. There is a hint of doubt in Bullhorn's eyes, but Wilder pushes Cancer out of his way and orders Bullhorn to follow him. The Autobot Headmaster Juniors arrive to try and convince them, but the pair board their transtectors and depart. Ginrai tries to console the tearful Cancer, telling him that he must believe that they will come to understand the friendship they share.
Meanwhile, with their base destroyed, the Decepticons have relocated to the jungles of the Amazon. There, Devil Z, now inhabiting the body of BlackZarak, announces his intent to revisit his plan of wiping out humanity on Earth, this time using his own powers. Giga again voices his concern over this excessive course of action, but Devil Z silences him. Giga stalks off in rage, vowing to do things his own way. Hydra and Buster, on the other hand, have come to a different conclusion regarding humanity. They believe that they are weakened by their human bodies, and that is why they have thus far been unable to defeat Ginrai. They petition Devil Z to use his powers to recreate them as wholly robotic beings, and the alien complies, using his "Devil Power" to fuse the brothers with their transtectors. They reveal their new forms to a horrified Giga and Mega, and Devil Z then orders the Decepticons to begin their next attack.
Soon, news of bizarre disasters all over America reaches the Autobots, and Ginrai realizes that these reports—involving the obliteration of cities by devastating purple lightning—are the work of the Decepticons. (Duh.) Grand Maximus traces this "Devil Thunder" to the Grand Canyon, and the Autobots immediately roll out. Leaving the Godmasters to help in the disaster areas, Ginrai and the Headmaster Juniors venture into the Grand Canyon, where Ginrai is promptly attacked by the reborn Hydra and Buster. The brothers display the new abilities their forms grant them by blasting him with beams of "Devil Power", but Ginrai fights back, appalled at what they have done to themselves.
At the same time, the Juniors and Godbomber come under attack from a swarm of Krakens and Sparkdash drones, but when Godbomber detects that Ginrai is in trouble, the Juniors instruct him to go to their commander's aid. With their numbers reduced, things look bad for the Juniors... until the surprising arrival of Wilder and Bullhorn! With the aid of their former enemies, the Juniors defeat the Decepticon drones, and Cancer is overjoyed to have his friends beside him once more.
Meanwhile, Godbomber speeds to the aid of Ginrai, and the pair fuse into God Ginrai to battle the brothers in the form of Darkwings. With a defiant cry, Ginrai subjects the brothers to massive blast of the power their loss of humanity means they will never be able to use again—Jinchōkon Power! Hydra and Buster take the blast, and return with the flaming "Hellfire Attack", diving right at Ginrai, who activates his God Fire Guts and collides with the Decepticons at high speed, causing a colossal explosion. All the combatants emerge from the blast smoking and scarred, and Hydra and Buster pull out, declaring the bout a draw. The Juniors soon arrive at Ginrai's side, but there will be no respite for the wounded warrior, as, out of the stormy skies, Overlord descends...
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Autobots | Decepticons |
|---|---|
Human Autobots |
Human Decepticons |
Quotes
"Buster, time to say farewell to being human maggots!"
- —Hydra
"What?! You have reborn as robot lifeforms?"
"Reborn through the power of Devil Z"
"You-you fools! You do not understand anything!"
- —Giga reacts as he hears the news that Hydra and Buster have gotten themselves converted to robots.
Notes
Animation and technical errors
- The character model used for Ginrai's super mode in this episode seems to be different from usual, sporting a noticeably elongated midriff and, during the Grand Canyon fight, a prominent chin on his mouthplate.
- As Cancer dabs at his eyes, his hand is tiiiiiiny. It's also coloured in flesh tones, yet two shots later, he's shown to be wearing magenta gloves.
- When Ginrai and Godbomber are taking off for the Grand Canyon, Godbomber's Autobot symbol is horribly mangled.
- Grand Maximus in robot mode is shown to be just slightly taller than Super Ginrai. While his transtector is not as big as that of his brother's, he's not that small. His waist should be at least up to Super Ginrai's shoulders.
- As Ginrai walks though the Grand Canyon, lightning flashes light the landscape. Unfortunately the two painted backgrounds do not match very well, so when the lightning-lit one is used, the rocks appear to move.
- In the first shot of the Sparkdash, the fire coming from a Sizzle's mouth is drawn too low, making it appear to be coming from the Sizzle's chest.
Continuity errors
- It's not uncommon for the Pretenders to be off somewhere else, busy not being in the spotlight, but, uh, where's Clouder?
Continuity notes
- Clips from "Super Ginrai Gets Blown Away in the Desert!?" and "Disaster! The Autobot Base Explodes" are used to illustrate Hydra and Buster's repeated defeats at the hands of Ginrai.
- The fusion of BlackZarak and Devil Z, the betrayal of Wilder and Bullhorn and the destruction of the Decepticons' underwater base all occurred in the previous episode.
- Devil Z last attempted the destruction of human life in "Crisis! The Day of Human Extinction". Giga didn't think much of it then, either.
- The Sparkdash previously appeared in "God Ginrai - Save Cancer!?" where only one of each type appeared. This episode establishes that, like the Seacons, they're mass-produced drones.
Trivia
- The insert song "Super Ginrai no Theme" is reprised for this episode.
- Having started the series as the Autobot Commander on Earth, Metalhawk is now relegated to patrol duties.
Foreign localization
English
- Title: "The New Being Has Come Alive" (Omni Productions dub)
- Original airdate: March 24, 1991
Home video releases
- DVD
2003 — Transformers: Super-God Masterforce — DVD Box 02 (Pioneer LDC) — Japanese audio only.
2006 — The Takara Collection Vol 2 — Transformers: Super-God Masterforce (Metrodome)
2007 — Transformers — The Complete Takara Collection (Metrodome)
2008 — The Transformers: Super God Masterforce (Madman Entertainment)
2009 — The Transformers: Japan Generation 1 — Complete Collection (Madman Entertainment)
2012 — Transformers: The Japanese Collection (Shout! Factory)
2012 — Transformers Japanese Collection: Super-God Masterforce (Shout! Factory)