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Profile:
Nagai Go
The first thing that
most people think of when they hear the name Nagai Go is the
blood-soaked world of his popular Devilman. Others
might think of his many giant robot anime that dominated the
landscape of the 1970s. Maybe then Go is just another standard
action genre manga-ka, and his work has no real substance?
It would be highly unfair to discredit such a diversely talented
man whose anime touch on quite a few poignant subjects; anime
such as Neon Genesis
Evangelion, Gundam
and RahXephon
all owe credit as Nagai Go invented the giant robot concept
back in 1972 with his seminal Mazinger Z.
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Go-ing
where few have gone before
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Nagai Go was born in
Wajima City on September 6th, 1945, and relatively early in
his life he decided to pursue his dream life as a manga-ka.
This decision was largely based on his brother introducing
him to Tezuka "God
of Manga" Osamu's Lost World. A nineteen-year-old
Go became deathly ill, and during this bleak time he created
Black Lion. This modest success led to Ishimori Shotaro (Cyborg
009, Sarutobi Ecchan) taking Go in as his apprentice.
After five years and
a couple of manga released under Shotaro's tutelage, Go decided
it was time to strike out on his own. In 1970, he set up his
studio Dynamic Productions and began work on the creations
that would bring him undreamed fame. 1972 was going to be
a big year for Go, as the world was about to see the birth
of his biggest works.
Probably his most well-known
and beloved creation is Devilman. Telling the story of Fudo
Akira and how he joined with the demon Amon to protect mankind
from legions of demons, Devilman was a breadth of fresh air
for the industry in that Go refused to censor his ideas. Demons
fighting were bound to be a bloody and brutal affair, and
Go drew it that way. This led to constant clashes with various
parents groups, but despite the uproar, the manga proved so
popular that an anime was created that same year and ran 39
episodes before finishing in 1973. Devilman, which in a recent
poll was picked by the Japanese public as one of their most
beloved anime characters, is continued to this day in the
Violence Jack sequels, Devilman Lady spin-off
and the occasional Devilman
OVA.
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As
cute as honey
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Showing that he wasn't
just a horror maven, Nagai Go also released Mazinger Z in
1972. The manga chronicled Koji and his giant robot Mazinger
Z as they fought against the evil Dr. Hell. Not surprisingly,
the then fresh idea was a runaway hit. For the second time
that year, one of Go's immensely popular manga was turned
into an immensely popular anime, this time running for 92
episodes before finishing up in 1974.
Yet another genre he
tackled was the idea of a magical girl show; though a little
more adult-oriented, Cutey Honey shares many of the signature
magical girl elements of today, including the ever-popular
nude transformation. Not surprisingly, the hugely popular
manga went on to be an anime the same year, making Nagai Go's
three biggest characters running in manga and on television
at the same time.
Nagai Go continues to
produce manga to this day with one of his more popular work
being the Devilman Lady spin-off. Live-action versions
of Cutey Honey and Devilman continues the hopes
that the end of the Devilman saga will be animated
somewhere down the line. I'll leave you all with a quote from
Nagai Go himself, one which I hope will allow some of you
to see that his work indeed has meaning to it and isn't just
about ripping flesh:
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A
rare touching moment in Amon
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"The theme of Devilman
is antiwar. When humans transform into devils and demons, what
they really are doing is taking up murder weapons and
embarking on war. The 'indiscriminate melding of demons with
humans' that we see in Devilman refers to the draft system.
There is no justice in war, any war, nor is there any justification
for human beings killing one another. Devilman carries
a message of warning, as we step toward a bright future".
Production Credits
Abashiri Family
Amon: The Apocalypse of
Devilman
Black Lion
Cutey Honey
Cutey Honey Flash
Daikyu Maryu Gaiking
Demon Lord Dante
Devilman Lady
Devilman
Devilman OVA
Dororon Enma-kun
Getter Robo
Getter Robo G
Getter Robo Go
Getter Robo: Armageddon
God Mazinger
Grandizer, Getter Robot
G, Great Mazinger Decisive Battle! The Great Sea Monster
Great Battle of the Flying Saucers
Great Mazinger vs. Getter Robo
Great Mazinger vs. Getter Robo G: The Great Space Encounter
Great Mazinger
Groizer X
Iron Virgin Jun
Jushin Riger
Kama Sutra
Kekko Kamen
Kotetsu Jeegu
Majokko Tickle
Mazinger Z
Mazinger Z vs. Devilman
Mazinger Z vs. Dr. Hell
Mazinger Z vs. The Grand General of Darkness
MazinKaiser
Mazinkaiser: Shitou! Ankoku Daishogun
New Cutey Honey
Psycho Armor Govarian
Robonimal Panda-Z: The Robonimation
Shin Getter Robo
Shin Getter Robo vs. Neo Getter Robo
Shuten Doji-The Star Hand Kid
UFO Robo Grandizer
UFO Robo Grandizer vs. Great Mazinger
Violence Jack
Violence Jack II
Violence Jack III
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