Saru no Gundan

[Zone Fighter]

Saru no Gundan [Army of the Apes] 1974-1975)

This was Tsuburaya Productions' version of Planet of the Apes. Since the DVDs are not subtitled I'm not sure if the entire planet is effected or just Japan. Thanks to Arislan I have 16 out of the 26 episodes.

Hatakeyama Baku, the first Kiranger, plays Gebâ, one of the apes so his face is not recognisable, although his voice is.

This series was editted into a tv movie in 1987 titled Time of the Apes.

Note: I will refer to all the non-human characters as apes since I'm not sure exactly what species they all are. There are gorrillas, monkeys, chimps, at least one orangatan and the friendly Pepe is some kind of white-faced species. There does appear to be species rivarlies as well as political. There are civilans but the primary hunters of the humans appear to be military police (they carry military style weapons and handcuffs).

Episode 1: A boy (Sakaki, Jiro) and a girl (Yurika) are allowed to visit a lab where cryogenics is being researched. They witness a monkey being unfrozen. I'm not sure if the scientist was working for the Americans or in competition with Americans but Americans are mentioned a couple of times. Jiro climbs into one of the cryogenic chambers. He's told to get out (I think) but a volcanic eruption causes an earthquake which seals him in. As the building is falling apart the lady lab assistant (Izumi, Kazuko) places the Yurika in a cryogentic chamber to protect her, then enters one herself. Falling debri activates the chambers, so the woman and two children are frozen. The earthquake destroyes the lab, buring the ruble under tuns of rock, but the steel capsules survive. Some time passes, since there are no subtitles I don't know how much. Eventually the three capsules are dug up and taken to another location where the three people are defrosted. They're horrified to find themselves in the hands of apes who walk upright like men and wear clothing. The three humans are about to be executed when a voice orders their release. Thinking a human male has come to their rescue they're happy until they discover it was actually an inteligent talking ape and that he's no more friendly than the others. The three humans are tossed in a cell. Again, I really wish this was subtitled so I'd know what the apes told the humans, it didn't sound good and made the girl cry. I think I've seen the girl in something else but with all the tokusatsu I've seen its hard to recall what. I'm not sure about the boy or the lab assistant, but its likely I've seen them in something else too.

Episode 2: Jiro frightens the ape guards with his toy snake. This nearly gets him killed when they blast his toy to pieces with their pistols but it gives the Kazuko an idea. Using bed sheets and leaves plocked from plants growing outside the cell window the three humans make a snake which they use to trick the guard. Getting his gun and locking him in their cell they escape. They eventually meet an ape child (Pepe) who is not hostile and helps them to get away from the other ape villagers who are hostile. The episode ends on a cliffhanger. Yurika is caught in a snare and as Jiro attempts to cut her down someone appears out of the woods to hold a gun on the three escapees. All the camera shows is the gun.

Episode 3: The gun turns out to belong to a human male, Gôdo. According to the IMbd its Ushio Tetsuya star of the Kaiketsu Lion Maru and Fuun Lion Maru but this bearded and moustached man doesn't look Shishimaru to me. But of course his hair is cut shorter which makes a difference as well. In any case, the traps were meant for the apes as this lone man has been fighting for his survival. The police apes know about Gôdo and his trape and are reluctant to enter his territory but Gebâ using his electric wand force them into it. The friendly child (Pepe) spies on Gebâ. A flying saucer is seen in the sky. All four humans are eventually captured. Gebâ would have shot Gôdo immediatly but his superiour stops him. A dispute arrises among the apes as Gebâ, is disobediance to his superior, tries to stir the villagers into killing Gôdo and Pepe tries to convince them to save Gôdo. Then the village witchdoctor appears and sides with Gebâ. Gôdo is about to be executed by firing squad when someone higher up the chain of command arrives to take custody of him. As Jiro tries to help Gôdo the new ape grabs him by the throat. The flying saucer appears over head.

Episode 4: The new ape takes the humans to his headquarters, Gôdo in chains. Gôdo is unchained and released into a room surrouned by invisible electric force fields, he discovers this when he runs into one and gets a shock. The others are looked in a room with food on a table. Jiro eats. Pepe has stowed away in the van and is in the building looking for Gôdo. While the adult apes are arguing, I guess over what to do with the humans, Pepe moving around the airducts finds the woman and children. Jiro climbs into the ducts with Pepe. The two males find Gôdo. The single minded Gebâ talks another ape into giving him a pass which allows him into the building and tries to shoot Gôdo but is knocked out by Jiro and Pepe. Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe make it out of the building, without Kazuko or Yurika. The episode ends with the three males on a train full of apes. The humans do their best to hide their faces, but the conductor is coming and they don't have tickets.

More later, don't want to get overloaded on one show.

Two full length vocal versions of songs from this series are on the Super Hero Chronicle - Tokusatsu Hero Theme/Insert Song Collection 2 three CD set.

[Xenorama ™]

i've endured "Time of the Apes" once or twice, and while it looks interesting the comp is badly handled all around- nothing makes sense, which can be hard doing a movie out of a series. thanks for these reports!

[Zone Fighter]

Episode 5: Jiro and Gôdo are discovered and a fight breaks out. Gôdo gets a gun from somewhere and shoots out the light. Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe exit the train. Yurika and Kazuko are interrogated. Gebâ is called before the white faced ape in the suit, who orders Gebâ stripped of his rank. Gebâ cries. Between tears he curses Gôdo, failing to recognise that he alone bears the responsability for going against orders. Gebâ is locked up but one of the guards gives him a gun instead of a meal and leaves the cell unlocked. Later an alarm sounds and all the guards leave. Yurika and Kazuko assume that Gôdo and Jiro will soon be coming to their rescue. Most likley Gebâ's escape had been noticed. A red plane, which looks like the plane which turns into a giant robot warrior in another Tsuburaya series, shoots up a bunch of apes before itself being shot down. When they see the plane Gôdo and Jiro assume the pilot is human (ningen) and are pleased to see it. As the plane crashes that mysterious flying saucer appears overhead. Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe head off in the direction of the plane crash. They find the pilot's parachute tangled in a tree. The pilot is not human. Gebâ's brother tries to capture Gôdo and Jiro but they escape. Meanwhile, back at the base, a guard lies to Yurika and Kazuko, claiming that Gôdo has been killed. Leaving the girls to worry over the fate of Jiro. Gebâ catchs up with the fugitives but loses a fight with Gôdo. (in reality an enraged chimp would leave the man broken and bloody.) This episode began with Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe on a train it ends with them running to catch a train.

Episode 6: Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe wait until guards search a train before bording it. The apes have another meeting, at which an ape wearing an eye patch and who keeps using the word "chimpanze" has a plan for capturing Gôdo. As Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe are climbing around on some rocks the flying saucer flies by. We find out there are still some non-talking, unclothed monkeys around. Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe swipe some apples from these animals. They're spoted, through binoculars two apes who look through books trying to identify their species of ape. Apparently, the military police have not made a public announcment about the escape of 2 human males. Once they discover the strange creatures are human the younger of the two apes makes a phone call. I get the feeling the older ape wanted to study the humans but the son is afraid of them and stirs up the villagers to hunt the humans. Gebâ joins the hunt. The father ape finds the fugitives first and tries to make friends with them. When the others catch up and Gebâ pulls a gun the father jumps in the way and is shot. Gebâ then proving that he's a heartless sob shoots the son, in the back. Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe get away, lose the hunters and eventually double back. The son crawls towards his father and dies. Gôdo lifts the dead apes paws to let them touch his dead father's. The episode ends at a grave. When Gôdo and Jiro put their hands together and close their eyes Pepe "apes" them (sorry I couldn't resist the bad joke) and does the same.

[Zone Fighter]

Episode 7: The ape leader has Kazuko and Yurika driven to a resteraunt but the unfriendly reaction to the humans by the customers upsets Yurika who runs back to the car. Someone is heard strumming a guitar and singing. The two humans are taken to a hotel, where again the hear the guitar and singing. Kazuko asks an ape about the guitar music. The guitarist is brought to the room, of course he's an ape. He's surprised when they know words to the song ("Somewhere Love"). He has them hum along with him. That night Yurika dreams of happier times and wakes calling her mother. Meanwhile, Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe have found a village of apes who are heaving some kind of festival during which members of the village where masks that make them look human. Gebâ shows up and starts looking under masks. When he goes too far, fires a shot in the air and tries to break up the party the villagers grab him, which allows Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe a chance to sneak back out of the village. The villagers drug Gebâ, tie him up and leave him on a slab. From the bushes Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe watch to see what will happen.

Note: the song "Somewhere Love" is track #14 on CD #2 (of 3) from Super Hero Chronicle - Tokusatsu Hero Theme/Insert Song Collection volume 2. I don't know the name of the female vocalist but I like her voice. Track #13 is of course the series theme song, main vocals by Shimon, Masato. The booklet doesn't list the name of the background vocal group.

Episode 8: Two men, dressed in white and carrying swords walk down stairs towards Gebâ. When it looks like they are goint to stab him Gôdo intervenes. He pulls off their masks revealing two apes. When he removes his mask revealing that he's a real human they kneel before him. Gôdo takes one of their swords and cuts Gebâ lose. Gebâ still under the effects of the drug collapses. The two apes in white leed Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe to a stream. Gôdo recovers and makes his way back the village. The villages are not pleased to see him and give chase. He just manages to make it to his vehicle and the rifel he kept in it. Now the villagers, armed only with farming tools, have to do as he orders. Down stream Yurika finds some leaves that have been formed into a tiny boat, she believes (correctly) that Jiro made it. While Gôdo and Gebâ fight, Jiro and Pepe cross a revine on a rope. After Gebâ is knocked down Gôdo starts across. Gebâ recovers and cuts the rope but Gôdo swings across. Meanwhile, the ape leader and his passengers have arrived in the village. Kazuko realises that the hair on the more realistic of the human maks is made from actual human hair. Gôdo, Jiro and Pepe find a hidden outpost. Jiro's hopes of finding other humans are dashed when they only find human skeletson. Then Pepe discovers that the radio works and a voice is heard but the old band which on the hand turned electric generator breaks and the radio stops function. Gôdo attempt at reparing the system fails. Back at the village Yurika is kidnapped!