Cyborg 009: Conclusion GOD'S WAR: Prologue is a 2002 three-episode OVA which served as the final episodes to the 2001 series Cyborg 009: The Cyborg Soldier.
The story is a loose adaptation of the late Shotaro Ishinomori's then unfinished final chapter of the manga. It was co-written by Shinsuke Onishi and Joe Onodera, and would mark the first time that Onodera would attempt to finish his father's work.
Although these episodes are counted as part of the series order (and span from 49-51), they are not counted as part of the overall continuity of the 2001-2002 series and are intended to be separate, other than sharing the same production staff and voice cast. This explains the lack of continuity carried over from episode 48, along with the characters suddenly and inexplicably wearing blue uniforms.
Due to Onodera having difficulties in adapting and finishing off his father's story in an animated format, the OVA arc concludes with an open, cliffhanger-style ending. In 2007, Akira Onodera (Ishinomori's second son and the VP at Ishimori Productions) had discussed of and anticipated there being a follow-up OVA to the story, as well as other anime adaptations of his father's works, but none of these projects came to pass.
Story[]
Shotaro Ishinomori is awoken from his sleep by Professor Gilmore, who tries to say that he needs his help. The cartoonist freaks out and thinks his constant overworking is causing him to hallucinate. After calming him down, Gilmore explains to him that the stories he's made about Cyborg 009 are telepathic messages from Cyborg 001, chronicling the adventures of the team in their world. He then explains that the team is in grave danger and that only he can help. Gilmore then tells the story of recent events in their world, in the hopes that Ishinomori will send his message to mankind that could alter the course of the future.
Episodes[]
- The Goddess Scheme
- The Fluttering Light
- Birth of a New Universe
Production Staff[]
Voice Cast (Japanese)[]
- 009: Takahiro Sakarai
- 001: Kana Ueda
- 002: Showtaro Morikubo
- 003: Satsuki Yukino
- 004: Nobuo Tobita
- 005: Akio Ohtsuka
- 006: Chafurin
- 007: Cho
- 008: Mitsuo Iwata
- Dr. Gilmore: Mugihito
- Shotaro Ishinomori: Hiroshi Iwasaki
- Tobe Kagariya: Rokuro Naya
- Hisui Kagariya/Himiko: Kikuko Inoue
- Shiori Takagaki: Eri Saito
- Person of Light: Toshihiko Seki
- Demons: Tomoya Kawai
Voice Cast (English)[]
Note: This section is incomplete due to the lack of existing copies of the God's War episodes. Only the main actors would be known at present.
- 009: Joshua Seth
- 001: Robert Klein
- 002: Sparky Allen
- 003: Midge Mayes
- 004: Jim Taggert
- 005: John Daniels
- 006: Steve Kramer
- 007: Michael Sorich
- 008: Mario
- Dr. Gilmore: Sy Prescott
- Shotaro Ishinomori: Jamieson Price
- Tobe Kagariya: Tom Wyner
- Hisui Kagariya/Himiko: Melodee Spevack
- Shiori Takagaki: Barbara Goodson
- Person of Light: Michael Sorich
- Demons: Bob Papenbrook
Notes[]
- The OVA arc loosely adapts from the "Prologue" and "Conspiracy of the Goddess" chapters of Ishinomori's plot notes for "GOD'S WAR", as well as incorporating the plot element where 001 unlocks his teammates' powers in order for them to go fight the Gods. However, elements of the overall story are also abridged, with Queen Himiko becoming the single final enemy that the team must fight against.
- The English dub and adaptations sourced from it attempt to treat these episodes as being in the same continuity as 1-48, though provide no explanation to link the events of 48 to 49. The custom opening and ending sequences are discarded in favor of Sony's opening, and the "Genesis of Next" ending credits. The cyborgs referring to each other by their actual names was also changed to them referring to each other by their numbers, as the other episodes had done. The English dub of these episodes did not air on Cartoon Network USA, but was only relegated to Australia's airings in 2005. No video rips have surfaced of the episodes, and it is unlikely they will for the time as Sony's rights to Cyborg 009 have expired, with IshimoriPro putting the "Cyborg Soldier" series in a licensing freeze.
- This has since changed, as Discotek has licensed the entire series including God's War and its dub.[1]
- Prior to this OVA, Joe Onodera had been involved in the screenplay for the film Shin Kamen Rider: Prologue, intended to start off a Kamen Rider reboot. The film was heavily criticized due to its writing and for straying from the franchise's roots, along with the darker elements.
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