The Amazing 3
Encyclopedia
The Amazing 3, known in Japan as , is an Osamu Tezuka
Osamu Tezuka
was a Japanese cartoonist, manga artist, animator, producer, activist and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion and Black Jack...

 manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 and a black and white anime
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....

 series from the 1960s. It involves the adventures of three agents from outer space who are sent to Earth to determine whether the planet, a potential threat to the universe, should be destroyed. The agents (Captain Bokko, Nokko, and Pukko) are originally humanoid
Humanoid
A humanoid is something that has an appearance resembling a human being. The term first appeared in 1912 to refer to fossils which were morphologically similar to, but not identical with, those of the human skeleton. Although this usage was common in the sciences for much of the 20th century, it...

 in appearance, but upon arrival on Earth they take on the appearances of a rabbit (Bokko), a horse (Nokko), and a duck (Pukko) that they had captured as examples of Earth life forms. While on Earth they travel in a tire-shaped vehicle capable of enormous speeds called the Big Wheel, which can travel on both land and water (and, with modifications, through the air).

The series was first released in manga print format in Japan in 1965, and then spawned a Japanese anime television version, with different stories. This version was then dubbed in English and released in the United States, with a different theme song, as well as different closing and opening elements. The American version was also aired in Australia in 1969, and in Spanish-speaking countries as Los tres espaciales. The Japanese anime version was first released on DVD in 2002, and then a full 10-DVD set in 2005.

The series tackles a number of issues which were surprisingly progressive for an animated cartoon of that period; particularly ecological concerns and poverty.

Conclusion

In the final episode of the series the decision is made by the galactic council that mankind is irredeemable and that the Earth is to be destroyed. Although Pukko is in favor of this as much as ever, Bokko puts off the order as long as possible, and eventually decides to disobey the council's decision. However, prior to Bokko's decision to disobey her orders, Shinichi is appalled at the likelihood that his friends would obey the order and runs to Koichi to ask Phoenix to intervene.

Although dozens of Phoenix agents fight the Amazing 3 in their saucer, they are unable to destroy it, and Shinichi appeals to Bokko, Nokko, and Pukko to take him back to their home planet to plead Earth's case. During the trip Bokko, Nokko, and Pukko revert to their humanoid forms for the first time, much to the surprise of Shinichi, who had never seen their true appearances before (perhaps not clearly, anyway - he had also seen them through the window of their saucer in the first episode, though it's suggested in the episode that he could only see their silhouettes).

Shinichi is particularly surprised by Bokko's beauty in her actual form. A3 are presented to the galactic council on charges of disobeying orders. Shinichi is given a chance to plead Earth's case and the council offers him the opportunity to stay on their planet with all the rights and privileges of other citizens. Shinichi becomes angry and attacks a guard, thus proving mankind's inherently violent nature to many there.

The order is given to wipe out Shinichi's memories, but before this can be done Bokko pleads for him to be released, and for the Earth to be given more time to develop. The council eventually decides to return A3 to the Earth and re-examine the matter when Shinichi reaches adulthood.

Upon their return to Earth Pukko is ashamed of his attitude toward humans before that point, Shinichi is reunited with Koichi, and Bokko is transformed by Nokko and Pukko into an Earth girl so she'll have a chance to be with Shinichi as the human girl she really wants to be - for a short time, anyway. The closing shot of the series is of the now-human Bokko walking towards Shinichi's home to find him.

Characters

Bokko is the cute one, and the brains of the group. She is capable of great powers of hypnosis, has extremely sensitive hearing, and can also control the inner workings of machines by pressing her ears against them. She likes humans and sees no need to destroy the planet because of the actions of a few bad eggs. Despite the fact that in her humanoid form she is somewhat older than Shinichi (their human friend who is probably in his early teens, while she is probably in her 20s), and the fact that she's a rabbit in her animal form, her feelings for Shinichi are considerably more than platonic
Platonic love
Platonic love is a chaste and strong type of love that is non-sexual.-Amor Platonicus:The term amor platonicus was coined as early as the 15th century by the Florentine scholar Marsilio Ficino. Platonic love in this original sense of the term is examined in Plato's dialogue the Symposium, which has...

. Her deepest desire is to be an Earth girl so she can be with Shinichi.

Nokko is capable of creating inventions incredibly quickly, and is extremely fast and strong. Nokko would also prefer to see the Earth not destroyed - largely because he likes the food. He has a girlfriend named Felina who is also a member of the Galactic Patrol. She is seen once in the series when sent to Earth on a mission and takes on the form of a cat.

Pukko is a curmudgeon with an occasional heart of gold, can generate shockwaves
Shock wave
A shock wave is a type of propagating disturbance. Like an ordinary wave, it carries energy and can propagate through a medium or in some cases in the absence of a material medium, through a field such as the electromagnetic field...

 with his wings, and is also quite a capable guitarist. He is also quite a bit stronger than his duck appearance would suggest. However, he is the member of the Amazing 3 who is most in favor of destroying the Earth, and this increasingly brings him into conflict with Bokko as the series progresses, also criticizing her for her feelings regarding Shinichi (it's implied on occasion that he harbors his own feelings for Bokko). Pukko has what appears to be either a Beatles haircut or a Beatles wig; probably added by Tezuka due to the Beatles' enormous popularity in Japan at the time.

Bokko, Nokko, and Pukko are all conversant in Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...

 - and apparently English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 - and can also talk to other animals. They also possess a gun called the time reversal gun. It can be used to reverse the flow of time in a small area.

An Earth boy named Shinichi Hoshi (named after Tezuka's longtime friend, the Japanese science fiction writer Shinichi Hoshi
Shinichi Hoshi
Shinichi Hoshi was a Japanese novelist and science fiction writer. He is best known for his "short-short" science fiction stories, often no more than three or four pages in length, of which he wrote over 1000...

) becomes their ally throughout the series. He is the only person who knows what they really are, or that they can talk. Shinichi's girlfriend Kanoko also figures prominently in the manga, but is absent from the anime; possibly because her presence would have detracted from Tezuka's plan for the ending of the series.

Koichi Hoshi, Shinichi's older brother, is a secret agent
Secret Agent
Secret Agent is a British film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, loosely based on two stories in Ashenden: Or the British Agent by W. Somerset Maugham. The film starred John Gielgud, Peter Lorre, Madeleine Carroll, and Robert Young...

 for an organization called Phoenix, whose cover is a manga artist
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...

. His primary adversary is Interspy, though he also fights against others as well. He sometimes uses guns, but primarily relies on martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....

, and his watch, which contains a small hammer and chain, a radar, and a flashlight, which also can also be used as a beam to blind his opponents. His pipe also contains a smoke gas which can conceal his whereabouts. Within Phoenix he is known as Agent P77. Koichi joined Phoenix in order to avenge the death of a friend (who had previously been Agent P77) who had been killed by Interspy.
The policy of Phoenix is to avoid violence when possible, but recognizes that it's sometimes unavoidable.

Three other characters who show up regularly in both the manga and anime are Shinichi and Koichi's mother and father, who operate a small hotel. Their mother is a heavyset woman, and their father is something of a milquetoast who is domineered by their mother. The third major supporting character is the mysterious M, the head of Phoenix and the person from whom Koichi takes his orders. Only the back of his head is ever seen.

Episodes

  • 01. Three Beings from Outer Space
  • 02. Evacuation in 24 Hours
  • 03. The Mystery of Shangri-La
  • 04. Camphor Tree Story
  • 05. The Floating Fortress
  • 06. Zoo on a Skyscraper
  • 07. The Queen of Siva
  • 08. Phantom of the Circus
  • 09. Sun, Don't Set
  • 10. The Mummy Factory
  • 11. The Duel in the North Valley
  • 12. Mole Plan
  • 13. The Iron-Eating Fish
  • 14. Fort of the Wild Dogs
  • 15. Sacrifice is Not Allowed
  • 16. My Name is X
  • 17. Black Extract
  • 18. Explode the Barn
  • 19. The Phoenix Story
  • 20. The Mad Target
  • 21. Adventure in the Volcano
  • 22. The Dangerous Stage
  • 23. Duel in the Storm
  • 24. The Mysterious Inventor
  • 25. The Deadly Auto Race
  • 26. The Trans Ocean Tunnel
  • 27. Invitation of the Diamonds
  • 28. Valley of the Thunderbolt
  • 29. A Day Blotted Out
  • 30. The Penguin Campaign
  • 31. Something Very Strange
  • 32. The Kiddie Battle
  • 33. Four Witches
  • 34. The Snow Fairy
  • 35. The One-Eyed Gray Wolf
  • 36. The Pledge in the Jungle
  • 37. The Mystery of the Amazon
  • 38. The Horrifying Skiing Competition
  • 39. The Hero in the Desert
  • 40. The Secret of the Grand Piano
  • 41. Jump out, Pukko!
  • 42. The Wonder 3 Go West
  • 43. Mice from the Universe
  • 44. The Moving Buddha
  • 45. The Satellite Swag
  • 46. The Alligator Incident
  • 47. The Mexican Bandits
  • 48. Adventures on a Balloon
  • 49. The Smog Missile
  • 50. Beat Them with the Strange Machine
  • 51. The Underground Whale
  • 52. Goodbye, Wonder 3

Stations

  • KCOP-TV
    KCOP-TV
    KCOP-TV, channel 13, is a television station in Los Angeles, California. Owned by Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, KCOP is a sister station to Fox network outlet KTTV , and is affiliated with the MyNetworkTV programming service...

     / Channel 13 Los Angeles, California
    Los Angeles, California
    Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

  • WPIX-TV / Channel 11 New York, New York


In the American version of the series (released in syndication through Erika Productions in 1967), Bokko's name was changed to Bonnie. Nokko became Ronnie, Pukko became Zero, Shinichi was renamed Kenny Carter, and Koichi was given the name Randy.

Japanese voice actors

  • Bokko: Shiraishi Fuyumi
  • Nokko: Kojima Yasuo
  • Pukko: Chikaishi Shinsuke
  • Shinichi: Sawada Kazuko
  • Koichi: Kanauchi Yoshio
  • Shinichi's and Koichi's mother: Sakurai Ryoko

American voice actors

  • Bonnie: Bobbie Byers
  • Ronny: Neil Patrick
  • Zero: Paul Brown
  • Kenny and Randy Carter: Kurt Nagel

Differences between the manga and anime

The premise of both the manga and the anime was the same, and the characters looked nearly identical in both, but the stories differed greatly. Stories which appeared in the manga were not used again for the anime - and vice-versa. In addition, the manga version has Shinichi's schoolfriends and teachers playing more of a role than they would in the anime.

Theme music

Unlike Astro Boy, where the opening theme music was the same in both the Japanese and American versions (with only the lyrics changed), the Japanese and American versions of The Amazing 3 had different theme music, as well as considerably different opening and closing segments. The American version borrowed part of its melody from the Japanese version, but any similarities ended there. The Japanese theme (sung by a group called Vocal Shop) was considerably more playful and complex than the American version.

The lyrics (by Don Muller) for the American version are as follows:

Space men with a mission

You must make a very big decision

With your solar bomb you could destroy us

Or save the world...

Or save the world...



Space men must be wise men

Strange in human eyes, you'll be disguised then

Bonnie Bunny, Pony Ronny laughed when

Zero had no luck

And became a duck...



Space men with a mission

They must make a very big decision

Earth boy Kenny Carter knows their secret

Away they go

To meet the foe

Amazing Three...

Amazing Three...

Amazing Three...

Production notes

This series was the first Tezuka production in which Tezuka adopted a method of animation which had long been used by Disney and Warner Brothers in which each animator was responsible for drawing a single character instead of the team of animators each taking a piece of a show and drawing everything.

Pilot

In the pilot for the series a few characters looked slightly different. Bokko's appearance was more rabbit-like and less feminine, and she didn't yet have the black tips on her ears, or the tuft of black hair on her head. Pukko didn't have his Beatle haircut. And Koichi looked much the same, but his face was altered slightly for the series. The pilot for the series is largely the same as the first episode - and some footage was reused for the first episode - but differs in a few respects; mostly with regards to how Bokko, Nokko, and Pukko first meet Shinichi. It is also only about 15 minutes long, and ends with Koichi's discovery of a hidden base, which isn't part of the first episode.

Revival?

There was a brief report from the 2000 Anime Expo
Anime Expo
Anime Expo, abbreviated AX, is an American anime convention held in Los Angeles, California and organized by the non-profit Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation . With rare exceptions, the convention is traditionally held on the July 4th weekend and lasts for four days...

 in Anaheim, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 that Studio Pierrot
Studio Pierrot
is a Japanese animation/animation studio, founded in 1979 by former employees of Tatsunoko Production. Its headquarters is located in Mitaka, Tokyo.The company has a simple logo of the face of a clown...

 and a newer company called Digital Manga were considering the idea of teaming up and producing a new version of the series to be streamed on the internet. However, it appears that the project never got past the initial design stage.

Availability

The Japanese version of this series was first released on DVD in Japan in two volumes in 2002 and 2003, which are now out of print. A complete single-volume 10-DVD set was released in 2005. A lower priced (¥15,000) 10-DVD set was released for a limited time in 2008 in honor of what would have been Tezuka's 80th birthday. Though the negatives for the series were damaged in a warehouse flood, the episodes on the Japanese DVDs were taken from the best existing sources.

During the 1990s the series was also available both on two sets of laserdisc
Laserdisc
LaserDisc was a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium. Initially licensed, sold, and marketed as MCA DiscoVision in North America in 1978, the technology was previously referred to interally as Optical Videodisc System, Reflective Optical Videodisc, Laser Optical...

s and on a series of thirteen VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....

 videocassettes. These are, of course, now out of print.

The American (English-dubbed) films are rumored to have been either lost or destroyed, so an official DVD release in the United States seems unlikely, though bootlegs of varying quality exist which were taken from videotaped 1975 KCOP broadcasts of the series using an early pre-Betamax
Betamax
Betamax was a consumer-level analog videocassette magnetic tape recording format developed by Sony, released on May 10, 1975. The cassettes contain -wide videotape in a design similar to the earlier, professional wide, U-matic format...

 home video recorder, the Sanyo
Sanyo
is a major electronics company and member of the Fortune 500 whose headquarters is located in Moriguchi, Osaka prefecture, Japan. Sanyo targets the middle of the market and has over 230 Subsidiaries and Affiliates....

 V-Cord
V-Cord
V-Cord was a analog recording videocassette format developed and released by Sanyo in 1974. V-Cord was released in two versions: V-Cord I , which could record a maximum of 60 minutes on one V-Cord cassette, and the later V-Cord II, released in 1976, which could record a maximum of 120 minutes on a...

. Approximately half of the series' episodes exist in this format.

The English-dubbed version of the series also aired on Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

's Channel 9 beginning in 1969, so the possibility exists that English dubs of the series might be found there.

The series is also known to have been dubbed in Spanish and broadcast in Spanish-speaking countries as Los tres espaciales.

The complete Japanese-language manga is available in two volumes. A late '70s three volume set can also sometimes be found. The manga has never been released in English.

Other appearances

  • A talking duck with an alarming similarity to Pukko also made a brief appearance in Episode 26 of Astro Boy
    Astro Boy (1980s)
    is a remake of the 1960s anime series of the same name; both series are adapted from the manga by Osamu Tezuka.This series, which first aired during the 1980s, placed more focus on Astro's robotic skills and a somewhat darker storyline than the previous incarnation of the series. While mostly...

     (1980). The story also brought together an adult version of Princess Sapphire
    Princess Knight
    is a Japanese manga that ran through four serializations from 1954 to 1968, as well as a 1967 Japanese children's animated series. It was dubbed into English and brought over to Western audiences in 1970, where it was called Choppy and the Princess. In 1973, this series was dubbed in Portuguese and...

     with alternative versions of Black Jack
    Black Jack (character)
    is a fictional character created by Osamu Tezuka, introduced in Weekly Shōnen Champion on November 19, 1973.-Character:Black Jack is a medical mercenary, selling his skills to the highest bidder. He is a shadowy figure, with a black cape, eerie black-and-white hair, and stitched-up scars worming...

     and Pinoko. The episode was notable for being Black Jack's first televised appearance and for bringing an unofficial close to the Princess Knight
    Princess Knight
    is a Japanese manga that ran through four serializations from 1954 to 1968, as well as a 1967 Japanese children's animated series. It was dubbed into English and brought over to Western audiences in 1970, where it was called Choppy and the Princess. In 1973, this series was dubbed in Portuguese and...

     saga (although how Pukko ended up in 15th Century Europe is anyone's guess).

  • Bokko, Nokko, and Pukko make a cameo appearance in the 2004 game Astro Boy: Omega Factor
    Astro Boy: Omega Factor
    is a beat 'em up video game developed by Treasure Co. Ltd and Hitmaker, and published by Sega. The game was released for the Game Boy Advance console on December 18, 2003 in Japan; August 18, 2004 in North America; and February 18, 2005 in Europe. The game is based on Osamu Tezuka's manga and anime...

    game created for the Game Boy Advance
    Game Boy Advance
    The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...

    , along with a number of other characters created by Osamu Tezuka.

See also

  • List of Osamu Tezuka anime
  • List of Osamu Tezuka manga
  • Osamu Tezuka
    Osamu Tezuka
    was a Japanese cartoonist, manga artist, animator, producer, activist and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion and Black Jack...

  • Osamu Tezuka's Star System
    Osamu Tezuka's Star System
    Over the course of his career, Osamu Tezuka reused the same characters in different roles in different stories. The way that Tezuka used the characters in his "star system" can be seen as somewhat analoguous to a film director frequently casting members of a regular "stable" of actors in different...


External links

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