ARE you a fan of Mazinger Z? In my case, Mazinger Z was second only to Voltes V as my favorite super robot anime show.
In fact, one of my biggest gripes against UFO Grendaizer (UFO Robo Grendizer, also called Grandizer) was that it demoted Koji Kabuto, the pilot of Mazinger Z, to a second-string character. Grr... OK, I'll stop thinking about it now before I get bitter, heh :)
In the US, they called the show Tranzor Z, but do yourself a favor and don't watch this version.
Mazinger Z was of course also famous for including a female robot, Aphrodite A, which was piloted by Sayaka. You can imagine how many jokes were spawned then and now by the fact that Aphrodite A's weapons were her, uh, boobs :)
Here's a clip of the Mazinger Z opening from javeln.
This clip from Natasha8119 is in Spanish, but it's from one of my favorite episodes -- the one with Minerva X.
And this clip from mcmxc4 shows the final episode of Mazinger Z, which I haven't seen yet (though I've seen "UFO Robo Grendizer vs Great Mazinger"). Mazinger Z was no match for the battle beasts unleashed by the General of Darkness, so it's time for Great Mazinger to save the day.
September 2007 Archives
TO ANSWER reader Jinny's question about the title of a show about these kids that get shrunk in a lab, I believe she's referring to another TV series that was part of the "Krofft Supershow," just like "Electra Woman and Dyna Girl."
Here's the opening sequence of "Dr. Shrinker," provided by 70sKidVid.
Is this the one, Jinny? :)
REMEMBER this dynamic duo? Eat your hearts out, Batman and Robin :)
"Electra Woman and Dyna Girl" featured two lovely ladies who battled crime while spoofing Batman and Robin. You should see their gadgets, heh.
Here's the intro courtesy of 70sKidVid.
For more Electra Woman and Dyna Girl goodness, check out this site.
THIS anime series was known as Hana no Ko Lunlun, which translates to The Flower Child Lunlun, but in the Philippines we knew her as Ronron the Flower Girl (or Ronron the Flower Angel).
Here's a clip of the opening sequence from blaiseliddell.
And here's a video of the ending song from aiiro969.
THIS will always be the real thing for me -- the best Coca Cola commercial in my opinion.
The 1971 "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" jingle was so popular that it spawned the hit pop song (which removed the Coke references) "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (in Perfect Harmony)."
Here's the clip of the "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" or "Hilltop" ad from desireless.
And here's a clip from videoholic2007 of the reunion ad featuring 15 of the original cast members and their children. The ad, which was unveiled during Super Bowl XXIV on January 28, 1990, launched Coke's "Can't Beat the Real Thing" campaign.
MENUDO was huge in the Philippines back in the 80s.
Check out these clips of some of their most popular songs.
Here's "Like a Cannonball" courtesy of sakura086.
"If You're Not Here," courtesy of okees66.
"Explosion," courtesy of alinezetajones.
And "Hold Me" courtesy of hassan2005. Check out the young Ricky Martin heh :)
WE were waxing nostalgic the other night at a drinking session and I remembered this movie, "Melody" (which was also called "S.W.A.L.K." or "Sealed With A Loving Kiss"), which featured a lot of songs from the Bee Gees, including "Melody Fair."
The movie was released in 1971, but no, I didn't see it that year, heh :) Instead, they showed it in our high school auditorium for some reason or other.
How many of you saw this movie? And how many of you loved it?
Here's a clip of the "Melody Fair" scene.
And here's a "Melody" tribute film created by babyshamblesx.
ANYONE else remember eating Royal Chocolate Flavored Margarine?
I do, but for the life of me, I don't know why once upon a time, I actually liked this stuff heh :)
Here's the TV commercial starring the late Rod Navarro.
Video courtesy of ADman1909
IF you grew up in the Philippines during the 80s, then you know "Bagets," arguably the Filipino movie that best captured the spirit of that generation.
Here's the opening scene of "Bagets" courtesy of gncreation.
And here's the opening scene of the sequel, "Bagets 2," courtesy of yamota. Both movies came out in 1984.
How about you, do you still have photos of you and your friends dressed in "bagets" attire? Share them with us :)
TALK about history being made.
They were two of the greatest love teams in Philippine cinema -- Guy (Nora Aunor) and Pip (Tirso Cruz III) and Vi (Vilma Santos) and Bot (Edgar Mortiz). The two young women would become the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful Filipina actresses, whose storied rivalry dominated our movie industry for years. In fact, you could argue that even to this day, a Filipino movie fan is either a Noranian or a Vilmanian :)
Which is why the 1970 movie "Young Love" from Sampaguita Pictures is historic because it was the first and only time that the two love teams starred in the same film.
Here's a clip of the four of them singing the title song, courtesy of stucknd70s.
How about you, which love team did you like more? Are you a Noranian or a Vilmanian?
I ATE a lot of these instant noodles when I was a kid :) along with Royco. I actually preferred Royco, but I can't seem to find the old Royco commercials. Maybe one of you has a copy?
Here's a Royal instant noodles commercial I remember quite well. Clip courtesy of flagwavercharacter.
HOW many of you loved this 1985 song from the English band Vitamin Z?
WITH all due respect to the other actresses who have played Darna over the years, but to me, Darna will always be Ate Vi :)
Here's a funny clip from the 1973 movie "Darna and the Giants" posted on YouTube by VSPRODUCTION. Narda (the alter ego of the superheroine Darna, portrayed by Vilma Santos) and her brother and sidekick Ding (Dondon Nakar) have been captured. Narda needs to swallow her magical stone (it's actually a tiny piece of meteorite) in order to transform into Darna, but first Ding has to give it to her.
How do they do it when they're both tied up? Well, watch the video heh :)
"Ding, pilitin mong ma-i-shoot. Asintahin mong mabuti (Ding, try to shoot it. Aim carefully)."
Talk about grace under pressure :) That was one hell of a shot!
"BOP GIRL," the 1983 hit single by Australian singer Pat Wilson, has to be one of the bounciest songs to come out of the 80s heh :)
Nostalgic bonus: This music video was the first screen appearance of Wilson's fellow Australian Nicole Kidman, who was 15 at the time.
THIS show hosted by Hal Linden made me love animals even more.
One episode of "Animals, Animals, Animals" that I still remember quite well is the one where they told the story of Robert the Bruce and the spider that inspired him to never give up.
Here's a video of the show's opening and closing sequences, courtesy of 70sKidVid.
The show also included a segment with Lynn Kellogg performing a song about the featured animal. Here's a video courtesy of 70sKidVid again.
HOW many of you remember "Marlo and the Magic Movie Machine"? Man I loved that show!
Here's the intro and a portion of one episode.
HERE'S a video of Mitsuko Horie singing "Borutesu Faibu no Uta" ("Voltes V" theme) during a concert in Japan.
She's the singer behind the theme songs for a number of anime shows, including another one that was also very popular in the Philippines back in the day, "Candy Candy."
Here's a video of the "Candy Candy" opening theme.
ONE of the shows I loved most as a kid growing up in the 80s was "Voyagers!" which featured a pair of time travelers, Phineas Bogg (played by Jon-Erik Hexum) and a young boy named Jeffrey Jones (Meeno Peluce). The show started airing in October 1982.
Here's a video clip of the show intro that was uploaded by Koventry on YouTube.
Bogg and Jeff would go from one time period after another, fixing history whenever something was wrong. Their guide was the Omni, a pocket watch-like device that would flash red if something was deviating from recorded history, with the light turning green once everything was back on track again. One of the great things about this show is that you also got to appreciate history while being entertained.
The fun didn't last long, however, as Jon-Erik died in 1984 after accidentally killing himself while joking around with a prop gun on the set of another TV show, "Cover Up," where he played a weapons expert.
Here's a tribute to "Voyagers!" from GDLR, who also put up the Voyagers! Guidebook Check out that fan site for tons of information about the show.
GDLR also posted this clip of a 1982 interview with Jon-Erik.
Anybody want to travel back in time and change history so that we'd still have our "Voyagers!" fix?
