Spider-Man (tokusatsu)
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The Japanese tokusatsu version of Spider-Man was a television series produced by Toei Company in 1978, based on Marvel's superhero of the same name.
This version of the famous web-slinging hero was part of a deal that Marvel made with Toei, namely that for a four-year period, Toei could use Marvel's characters in any way they saw fit.[citation needed] So in 1978, a Spider-Man tokusatsu series was produced for Japanese television by Toei Company Ltd. While Spider-Man's costume was certainly based on the original, the storyline had nothing to do with the Marvel character. The series had a major impact on other Japanese live-action (tokusatsu) shows, and in particular the Super Sentai series, by popularizing the use of piloted giant robots to destroy giant monsters.[citation needed] This series also introduced the formula of featuring monster battles on two scales in the same episode.
Young motorcycle racer Takuya Yamashiro sees a UFO falling to earth, in fact a combat spacecraft named the "Marveller". Takuya's father Dr. Hiroshi Yamashiro, a space archaeologist, investigates the case. The incident also brings the attention of Professor Monster and his evil Iron Cross Army (Tetsu-Jyuuji-Gun), an alien group that plans to rule the universe.
Cast
- Takuya Yamashiro/Spider-Man : Shinji Todō
- Professor Monster : Mitsuo Andō
- Niiko Yamashiro : Izumi Ōyama
- Hitomi Sakuma : Rika Miura
- Amazone : Yukie Kagawa
- Narrator: Tōru Ōhira
