Lensman (anime)
Encyclopedia
is an anime
TV series and movie based on the Lensman
novels by E. E. Smith
. Although these were produced with the knowledge and consent of Smith's estate, they were so displeased with the result that for several years they rejected any other suggestions of adaptation. There have been several dub-only releases of the movie in North America, and the first four episodes of the TV series were released in a heavily edited form by Harmony Gold USA
. Despite sharing character and organization names, as well as central themes common to the books, heavy artistic license was taken resulting in a final product altogether very different from the source material.
in 1994.
in 1990 and some of the voice actors are the same in both the two versions. There are differences however between the two versions in terms of story and the length of the movie where the Harmony Gold version deleted some scenes that were kept in the Streamline version. Harmony Gold also arranged a whole new soundtrack for their version, with some tracks carried over from their previous failed movies Robotech II: the Sentinels
and Robotech the Movie: the Untold Story
whereas Streamline used the original Japanese Soundtrack.
Back to the story at hand, our young hero found himself escaping from the boskone battleships with the assistance of his friend Van Buskirk. Afterward, the Boskone blew up the Planet Mqueie (an agricultural planet) where Kim and his father Ken lived. Ken was one of the founders of the Galactic Patrol; however, he lost an arm during battle, and if he hadn't, he would have been a Lensman himself. Ken always dreamed of becoming a Lensman, so when he found out that his son became one, he sacrificed his life to save him.
Through the movie's events, Kim meets Clarissa MacDougall, who is a nurse working with the Galactic Patrol and there is an immediate attraction between them.
It's inevitable that the story would have a climactic ending that would provide an encounter between Lord Helmuth and Kim. Imagine the difference between the two: Kim is a new Lensman, young and naive, who bears the responsibility of protecting the universe on his shoulders. Helmuth is a gigantic alien with great powers and entire armies at his disposal, but what Kim didn't know that he had a great weapon which is stronger than any enemy he might encounter.
Eventually Kim realizes that the Lens has the answer, and within it lies great power as well, providing the key to Helmuth's defeat, and he transmits the formula to the Galactic Patrol fleet that is waiting to attack, knowing that they will lose without the answer.
The movie that was made in 1984, and incorporated computer graphics that added a new dimension to anime. The CG was made in cooperation with NYIT.
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
TV series and movie based on the Lensman
Lensman
The Lensman series is a serial science fiction space opera by Edward Elmer "Doc" Smith. It was a runner-up for the Hugo award for best All-Time Series ....
novels by E. E. Smith
E. E. Smith
Edward Elmer Smith, Ph.D., also, E. E. Smith, E. E. "Doc" Smith, Doc Smith, "Skylark" Smith, and Ted was a food engineer and early science fiction author who wrote the Lensman series and the Skylark series, among others...
. Although these were produced with the knowledge and consent of Smith's estate, they were so displeased with the result that for several years they rejected any other suggestions of adaptation. There have been several dub-only releases of the movie in North America, and the first four episodes of the TV series were released in a heavily edited form by Harmony Gold USA
Harmony Gold USA
Harmony Gold is a television production and distribution company established in 1983. It is best known as the “creator” and main distributor of the anime series Robotech. It also partially dubbed the Dragon Ball series in the late 1980s....
. Despite sharing character and organization names, as well as central themes common to the books, heavy artistic license was taken resulting in a final product altogether very different from the source material.
TV
Harmony Gold USA dubbed a compilation of 4 episodes from the original 25 episode series, which they released under the title Lensman: Power of the Lens. The other episodes were never dubbed. This compilation is not available any more on video, it was available in the UK in late 1980s. The series was also broadcasted in Spain by TV3TV3 (Catalonia)
TV3 is the primary television channel of Catalan public broadcaster Televisió de Catalunya, a subsidiary of the CCMA. TV3 broadcasts programs only in Catalan, with an optional dual track in the original language for some foreign-language series and movies...
in 1994.
Production
- Vintage: 1984-10-06 to 1985-08-08
- Original Creator: E.E. Smith
- English Version: Harmony Gold USAHarmony Gold USAHarmony Gold is a television production and distribution company established in 1983. It is best known as the “creator” and main distributor of the anime series Robotech. It also partially dubbed the Dragon Ball series in the late 1980s....
, Inc. (1987) - Executive producer: Soji YoshikawaSoji Yoshikawais an animator, a scriptwriter, a director of anime, and a stage director. He has worked under the aliases , , and . He dropped out of senior high school, entered an Mushi Production, and became an animator...
& Frank AgramaFrank AgramaFrank Agrama , also known and credited by his birth name Farouk Agrama, is a director, producer and writer. He is the founder and chief executive officer of Harmony Gold USA, Inc... - Director: Hiroshi FukutomiHiroshi Fukutomiis an anime director born July 25, 1950 in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. After leaving Tokyo Designer Gakuin in the middle of his studies, he joined A Production...
- Producer: Ahmed Agrama
- Script: Joe Ellison, Tom WeinerTom WynerThomas Halperin "Tom" Wyner is an English-born voice actor for anime series who usually gets tough guy or villain roles. He is also a producer, director, and writer...
- Key Animation: Shinya Ohira, Yasuomi Umetsu
Voice talents
- Ray Michaels - Admiral Haynes
- Ryan O'FlanniganKerrigan MahanKerrigan Mahan is an American voice actor, also known as Ryan O'Flannigan.Mahan was born in Los Angeles, California. His voice ranges from young and exuberant to sneering and Lee Van Cleef-ish...
- Kimball Kinnison - Dave MallowDave MallowDave Mallow is an American voice actor. One of his known aliases is Colin Phillips.-Life and career:Mallow was born in Park Ridge, Illinois. His father worked in radio and television and was a thirty year on-air veteran at Chicago's WGN. He attained a BFA in Theater Arts from Drake University in...
- Thorndyke - Leonard Pike - Sol
- Jeremy PlatMichael McConnohieMichael D. McConnohie is a voice actor and is the President of the Nevada-based Voxworks voice-acting corporation. He is known for his recognizable deep booming voice and is generally known for playing more charismatic characters...
- Van Buskirk - Doug StoneDoug Stone (voice actor)Douglas David Stone is a voice actor who is most notable for his representation of the character Psycho Mantis from the popular video game Metal Gear Solid, as well as the voice of Matt Trakker and several other characters in M.A.S.K., and Dragonborg in Beetleborgs Metallix...
- Drew ThomasSteve Kramer (actor)Steven M. Kramer is an American voice actor for many anime titles. He has also done voice acting for various Power Rangers series in the past, with the best-known of those roles being the voice of Darkonda in Power Rangers in Space. His wife, Melora Harte, is a voice actress...
- Aline Leslie - Clarissa MacDougall
Movie
Lensman: Secret of The Lens was a version dubbed by Harmony Gold USA in 1988. This is the same movie that was re-dubbed by Streamline PicturesStreamline Pictures
Streamline Pictures was an American media company that was best known for its distribution of English dubbed Japanese animation. -Founding:Founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1988, Streamline Pictures was one of the first North American companies that was created primarily for the intention of...
in 1990 and some of the voice actors are the same in both the two versions. There are differences however between the two versions in terms of story and the length of the movie where the Harmony Gold version deleted some scenes that were kept in the Streamline version. Harmony Gold also arranged a whole new soundtrack for their version, with some tracks carried over from their previous failed movies Robotech II: the Sentinels
Robotech
Robotech is an 85-episode science fiction anime adaptation produced by Harmony Gold USA in association with Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. and first released in the United States in 1985...
and Robotech the Movie: the Untold Story
Robotech
Robotech is an 85-episode science fiction anime adaptation produced by Harmony Gold USA in association with Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. and first released in the United States in 1985...
whereas Streamline used the original Japanese Soundtrack.
Synopsis
The story is about a dying Lensman who transfers his Lens to a young man named Kimball Kinnison. To his best knowledge, Kim wasn't aware of how big the responsibility of holding the Lens is. This Lens contains vital information that would enable the Galactic Patrol to face the deadly DNA weapon created by the Boskone Empire. The Arisians initially were the ones who created the Lens in order to stand up to the evil Eddorians, because in spite of their great power, they alone could not vanquish the Eddorian menace. Through the Lens, the Lensmen minds were merged with the cosmic conscientiousness of Arisia. On another side is Lord Helmuth, the ruthless, merciless Boskone leader, who would stop at nothing to get his hands on the Lens.Back to the story at hand, our young hero found himself escaping from the boskone battleships with the assistance of his friend Van Buskirk. Afterward, the Boskone blew up the Planet Mqueie (an agricultural planet) where Kim and his father Ken lived. Ken was one of the founders of the Galactic Patrol; however, he lost an arm during battle, and if he hadn't, he would have been a Lensman himself. Ken always dreamed of becoming a Lensman, so when he found out that his son became one, he sacrificed his life to save him.
Through the movie's events, Kim meets Clarissa MacDougall, who is a nurse working with the Galactic Patrol and there is an immediate attraction between them.
It's inevitable that the story would have a climactic ending that would provide an encounter between Lord Helmuth and Kim. Imagine the difference between the two: Kim is a new Lensman, young and naive, who bears the responsibility of protecting the universe on his shoulders. Helmuth is a gigantic alien with great powers and entire armies at his disposal, but what Kim didn't know that he had a great weapon which is stronger than any enemy he might encounter.
Eventually Kim realizes that the Lens has the answer, and within it lies great power as well, providing the key to Helmuth's defeat, and he transmits the formula to the Galactic Patrol fleet that is waiting to attack, knowing that they will lose without the answer.
The movie that was made in 1984, and incorporated computer graphics that added a new dimension to anime. The CG was made in cooperation with NYIT.
Staff & production
- Directed by: Yoshiaki KawajiriYoshiaki Kawajiriis a critically acclaimed writer and director of Japanese animation. He is the creator of titles such as Wicked City, Ninja Scroll, and Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust.-Career:...
- Executive Producer: Soji YoshikawaSoji Yoshikawais an animator, a scriptwriter, a director of anime, and a stage director. He has worked under the aliases , , and . He dropped out of senior high school, entered an Mushi Production, and became an animator...
& Frank AgramaFrank AgramaFrank Agrama , also known and credited by his birth name Farouk Agrama, is a director, producer and writer. He is the founder and chief executive officer of Harmony Gold USA, Inc... - Written by: Soji Yoshikawa & Frank Agrama
- Based on: The Lensman Novels by E. E. SmithE. E. SmithEdward Elmer Smith, Ph.D., also, E. E. Smith, E. E. "Doc" Smith, Doc Smith, "Skylark" Smith, and Ted was a food engineer and early science fiction author who wrote the Lensman series and the Skylark series, among others...
- Produced by: Ahmed Agrama
- Animation Executive Producers: Michihiro Tomu, Tadame Watanabe, Masao MaruyamaMasao Maruyama (film producer)is a Japanese film producer, animation developer, the co-founder, board of directors member, and producer of Studio Madhouse, one of the leading animation production companies in the world...
- Supervising Producer: Hiroshi Sudo
- Associate Producer: Michael Haller
- Character Design: Yoshiaki KawajiriYoshiaki Kawajiriis a critically acclaimed writer and director of Japanese animation. He is the creator of titles such as Wicked City, Ninja Scroll, and Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust.-Career:...
, Kasuo Tomizawa, Nobuyuki Kitajima - Art Director: Katsushi Aoki
- Mechanical Design: Takashi WatanabeTakashi Watanabeis a Japanese director. He is best known for directing the anime seies Boogiepop Phantom and Ichiban Ushiro no Dai Maō.-Director:*Boogiepop Phantom*Ichiban Ushiro no Dai Maō*Ikki Tousen*Kino's Journey Life Goes On...
- Film Editing: Osamu Tanaka
- Sound Effects: Susumu Aketagawa
- Additional Sound Effects: Michael Bours
- Effects Editing: Hideo SasakiHideo SasakiSasaki Hideo was an influential American landscape architect.-Biography:Sasaki Hideo was born in Reedley, California, on 25 November 1919. He grew up working on his family's California truck farm, and harvesting crops on Arizona farms. He began his college studies at the University of California,...
- Studio: Harmony Gold USAHarmony Gold USAHarmony Gold is a television production and distribution company established in 1983. It is best known as the “creator” and main distributor of the anime series Robotech. It also partially dubbed the Dragon Ball series in the late 1980s....
, Toyo Labs - Computer Graphics: New York Institute of Technology, Nanajima Center, Century Research Center, Optical Imaging Research Center
- Written By: Tom WeinerTom WynerThomas Halperin "Tom" Wyner is an English-born voice actor for anime series who usually gets tough guy or villain roles. He is also a producer, director, and writer...
- Music by: Peter DavisonPeter Davison (composer)Peter Davison is a composer and instrumentalist whose works range from meditation and yoga music to well known TV and film themes and scores.- Discography :On the Davisounds Label*Possibility*Release*Future, Present, Past*Take Me Back to Eden...
- Theme by: Peter DavisonPeter Davison (composer)Peter Davison is a composer and instrumentalist whose works range from meditation and yoga music to well known TV and film themes and scores.- Discography :On the Davisounds Label*Possibility*Release*Future, Present, Past*Take Me Back to Eden...
, Randall Rumage - Executive Music Producer: Randall Rumage
- Additional Music by: Michael BradleyMichael Bradley (singer)- Life :Michael Bradley was formerly the lead singer for the American rock band Paul Revere & the Raiders. He is also known among anime fans as a composer and singer for Robotech.- Biography :...
, Steve Wittmack - Music & Sound Recording: Gold Screen, Inc.
- Music Editor & Final Mix: George Bours
- Video Post-production & Re-recording: Intersound, Inc.
- Executive in Charge of Post-Production: Kent Harrison Hayes
- Post-production Manager: Tony Pinker
- Post-production Coordinators: Stephen Bradley, Oscar I. Diaz, Carlos Stevenson Jr.
- Chief Engineer: Bryan Rusenko
- ADR Recordist: Ruth Adelman
- Videotape Editor: Guillermo Coelho
- Videotape Operators: Jorge Allia, John Carver
- All the Material mentioned above is property of their Respective owners.
- Copyright @ 1988 Harmony Gold USA, Inc.Harmony Gold USAHarmony Gold is a television production and distribution company established in 1983. It is best known as the “creator” and main distributor of the anime series Robotech. It also partially dubbed the Dragon Ball series in the late 1980s....
& M.K. Company, LTD.
Voice talents
- Ben Gibson
- Mickey Godzilla
- Ray Michaels - Admiral Haynes
- Ryan O'FlanniganKerrigan MahanKerrigan Mahan is an American voice actor, also known as Ryan O'Flannigan.Mahan was born in Los Angeles, California. His voice ranges from young and exuberant to sneering and Lee Van Cleef-ish...
- Kimball Kinnison - Collin PhillpsDave MallowDave Mallow is an American voice actor. One of his known aliases is Colin Phillips.-Life and career:Mallow was born in Park Ridge, Illinois. His father worked in radio and television and was a thirty year on-air veteran at Chicago's WGN. He attained a BFA in Theater Arts from Drake University in...
- Thorndyke - Leonard Pike - Sol
- Jeremy PlatMichael McConnohieMichael D. McConnohie is a voice actor and is the President of the Nevada-based Voxworks voice-acting corporation. He is known for his recognizable deep booming voice and is generally known for playing more charismatic characters...
- Van Buskirk - Greg SnowGregory SnegoffGregory Snegoff is an American voice actor, writer and dialogue director who frequently works on English anime-dubs, known for providing the voice of Scott Bernard in Robotech, Taki Renzaburo in Wicked City and Master Roshi in Dragon Ball . He is also known by the names Greg Snegoff, Gregory Snow,...
- DJ Bill - Doug StoneDoug Stone (voice actor)Douglas David Stone is a voice actor who is most notable for his representation of the character Psycho Mantis from the popular video game Metal Gear Solid, as well as the voice of Matt Trakker and several other characters in M.A.S.K., and Dragonborg in Beetleborgs Metallix...
- Philboyd Studge
- Drew ThomasSteve Kramer (actor)Steven M. Kramer is an American voice actor for many anime titles. He has also done voice acting for various Power Rangers series in the past, with the best-known of those roles being the voice of Darkonda in Power Rangers in Space. His wife, Melora Harte, is a voice actress...
- Aline Leslie - Clarissa MacDougall