REST IN PEACE: ACTOR SHUNSUKE IKEDA November 11, 1940 - June 11, 2010

『キカイダー０１』俳優の池田駿介さん死去


As Takeshi Minami in RETURN OF ULTRAMAN ©Tsuburaya Productions

I received the sad news very early this morning, even before the sun rose in San Francisco, that beloved actor Shunsuke Ikeda, best remembered for his roles in the superhero series KIKAIDA 01 (1973) and RETURN OF ULTRAMAN (1971), had passed away on June 11 (Japan Time) due to stomach cancer. Complaining of abdominal pains in January 2009, Ikeda was diagnosed with cancer in February. While undergoing treatment, but wanting to get "right back to work", he attended the press conference to publicize the new "Kikaida 01" Pachinko game in April. But, the cancer had spread by October. Ikeda leaves behind his wife, Toshie, and their daughter, Miri. Ikeda was only 69 years old.

Shunsuke Ikeda, born as Norio Ikeda, was best known to tokusastsu fans for starring as the android "Ichiro" in the superhero series KIKAIDA 01 (1973-74). His early interest in motion pictures was instilled by his father, respected swordfight choreographer, Tatsuo Ouchi (the Sensei of Ono Ken Yukai founder, Kotaro Ono). After studying with the Bunka-za Theater, he was accepted in Toei’s "New Faces" competition in 1961. Ikeda's first on-screen appearance was in Kiyoshi Saeki's HIBARI'S GUITAR OF MOTHERLY LOVE (1962).

In 1963, under his real name, he was given his first featured role in Koji Ota's SPECIAL MOBILE INVESTIGATION UNIT as Akanuma. That same year, under his stage name of Shunsuke Ikeda, he appeared as professional baseball player Shinohara in Saeki’s FASTBALL. And while Ikeda only made a handfull of films, he found his niche on television. He played Airman Hajime Fujimura in COMRADES (1963), Michio Kawashima in STORY OF COMING WIND (1963), Detective Minamimura in ABOARD WITH 27 PEOPLE (1964), and Yamada in ONIHEI HANKACHO (1969-70).

While expanding his acting chops, Ikeda continued with his aspirations for a higher education, and went on to graduate from Hosei University’s Department of Economics in 1967. During this time, he also guest starred in the television series ZERO FIGHTERS: BLACK CLOUD SQUADRON (1964), MR. DETECTIVE (1966-68) and LONE WOLF (1967-68). He went on to appear in numerous series including SANTARO FUJI (1965-91), TOKYO BYPASS COMMAND (1968-79), MITO KOMON (1969- ), MY DAD IS A FRESHMAN (1969), HEARTLESS LICENSE (1973-77), RUN, SECRET SAMURAI! (1973), ZATOCIHI (1974-79), FIGHT! DRAGON (1974), THE GORILLA 7 (1975).

Ikeda's tokusatsu appearances include OPERATION: MYSTERY (1968-69), SILVER MASK (1971-72), SECRET TASK FORCE: GORANGER (1975-77), PRO WRESTLING STAR: AZTEKAIZER (1976-77), VIGILANTE ZUBAT (1977) and STARWOLF (1978). Ikeda is best remembered as the regular supporting characters in four notable tokusatsu roles: Monster Attack Team officer Takeshi Minami in RETURN OF ULTRAMAN (1971-72), Radio Investigation Team officer Ippei Hanagata in EMERGENCY COMMAND: 10-4/10-10 (1972), Hiroshi Akiyama in SILVER MASK (1971-72), and Kensuke Mitsuya in CONDORMAN: SYMBOL OF JUSTICE (1975).

His biggest and best tokusatsu role was that of Ichiro, the human form of the titular combat android in KIKAIDA 01 (1973-74). In his later years, Ikeda became a fashion model with the SOS Modeling Agency, a commercial spokesman for Toshiba, and also appeared in several notable stage productions. In 2001, Ikeda and KIKAIDA star Daisuke Ban made a personal appearance in Hawaii at the All-Hawaii Collectors Show, to meet with fans who grew up watching the Honolulu broadcasts of KIKAIDA and KIKAIDA 01.

This led to the return of both series and their release on DVD by JN Productions and Generation Kikaida. This was followed by many more live appearances, special events, and autograph sessions over the last decade, in both Japan and Hawaii, and Ikeda was held in high regard by those who met him. Before his passing, Clips of Ikeda as Takeshi Minami were incorporated into Kazuya Konaka’s theatrical feature ULTRAMAN MOEBIUS & THE ULTRA BROTHERS (2006), and his final role was a special featured appearance in Hitoshi Matsumura's horror film, THE ONI-GARA (2009).

Shunsuke Ikeda, both the man and the actor, will be greatly missed.

THE RETURN OF "KAMEN RIDER V3"! JNP Reissues "Complete Series" DVD Box Set

©Toei Company Ltd./Ishimori Productions

Honolulu-based JN Productions/Generation Kikaida is re-releasing their KAMEN RIDER V3 DVD Box Set on May 18! This is one of the DVD projects I had the pleasure of doing for JNP/Generation Kikaida over the last decade (including KIKAIDA and INAZUMAN) released in 2005, and it's my all-time favorite superhero series from 1970s. We really went overboard with the extras on this set: I wrote detailed behind-the-scenes factoids (including biographies on all of the Guest Stars and Production Staff), two essays on the series, two complete sets of English Subtitles (one for children and the other for adults), and 71 Character Profiles (with sound bytes)! The set also boasts an exclusive interview with star Hiroshi Miyauchi, six Karaoke Music Videos, and much, much more!

According to the press release: We have answered your call. Due to numerous requests for KAMEN RIDER V3, JN Productions is proud to release a newly issued, fully-loaded “Special Edition” six-disc set which contains all 52 exciting episodes—digitally remastered, complete and uncut—and bonus features found on the “Collector’s Edition” box set. This new "Special Edition" set will be priced at $149.50—if you didn't catch the first release of this action packed series, be sure you don’t miss it this time around! The KAMEN RIDER V3 Special Edition DVD Box Set will be available exclusively in Honolulu at Shirokiya, Ala Moana Center or through the Generation Kikaida website for shoppers outside of Hawaii. Online shoppers will receive a free gift for a limited time only!

Produced by action film purveyors, Toei Studios (THE KILLING MACHINE), and the hit-making team of creative producer Tohru Hirayama Tohru (JOHNNY SOKKO) and manga author Shotaro Ishimori (CYBORG 009), KAMEN RIDER V3 is not just a superhero saga, it's a superhero opera! After witnessing the brutal murder of his family at the hands of the demonic, secret society known only as "Destron", motorcross phenom Shiro Kazami is reborn as a cyborg warrior! Exploding with breakneck action by the Ono Ken-Yukai (YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE), an exciting score by Shunsuke Kikuchi (DRAGONBALL Z), and the electrifying presence of action star Hiroshi Miyauchi (SISTER STREETFIGHTER), KAMEN RIDER V3 defined the superhero genre for a generation of Japanese television viewers.

The coolest Japanese superhero series of the 1970s, KAMEN RIDER V3 rocks!

LIGHTNING STRIKES! INAZUMAN IS HERE!! The Complete 25-Episode Series DVD Box Set

’７０年代変身ヒーロー『イナズマン』のアメリカDVDに新発売！


Dynamic cover packaging by Erwin Baracao & Billy Ching of JNP.

The colorful and action-packed INAZUMAN (1973) was one of many live-action superhero series produced in the early 1970s, during an unprecedented boom of such programs on Japanese television, lead out of the gate by P-Productions' SPECTREMAN (1971-72), Tsuburaya Productions' RETURN OF ULTRAMAN (1971-72), and Toei's KAMEN RIDER (1971-73). Developed for television by the KAMEN RIDER team of creative producer Tohru Hirayama (JOHNNY SOKKO) and manga author Shotaro Ishimori (CYBORG 009), INAZUMAN featured the key elements of Toei's popular progenitor, but unlike KAMEN RIDER and KIKAIDA, the hero was nether a cyborg nor an android, but rather an metamorphosing mutant with psionic powers. From it's funk-based score by Michiaki "Chumei" Watanabe to its bizarre creatures and non-stop action, INAZUMAN is pure '70s superhero gold!


Bold back cover design for JNP's release of INAZUMAN.

Goro Watari (Daisuke Ban), a seemingly normal university student, saves two youngsters from the clutches of the Neo-Human Empire, a secret society of mutants who plot to subjugate the world with their Fantom Army. The children bring him to the headquarters of the Youth League, a group of pure-hearted young mutants with psionic powers, led by Captain Sarra (Hideo Murota). Goro is awakened to his own extrasensory abilities, allowing him to transform — first into a pupal form, Sanagiman, and then — into the mighty, Inazuman. Drawing from symbolic powers of moth, like the Greek god Pysche, Inazuman wields lightning bolts against his enemies, and with the aid of the amazing flying car with a mind of its own, Raijingo, he challenges the evil minions of Emperor Bamba to liberate mankind.


The fantastic jacket and disc art for INAZUMAN.

Starring Daisuke Ban of KIKAIDA fame, INAZUMAN follows a string of fantastic classic tokusatsu releases on R1 DVD, KIKAIDA (1972-73), KIKAIDA 01 (1973-74) and KAMEN RIDER V3 (1973-74), beautifully produced and released by Honolulu-based JN Productions. Packaged in a glossy four-disc box set, INAZUMAN is digitally remastered (and superior to Toei Video's R2 release), completely unedited and uncut, and fully subtitled in English for the first time. This electrifying set also includes interviews with actor Daisuke Ban and Japanese and Hawaiian fans, Inazuman Karaoke, and more — I provided Character Profiles and Series Factoids, which feature exhaustive details on the guest stars and other behind-the-scenes minutia. With cool animated menus, superior image quality, and wonderfully produced extras, INAZUMAN comes highly recommended.

During its original run, INAZUMAN was an extremely popular series, and remains one of the pillars of the Henshin Hero genre to this day. If that's so, one might ask, why are there only 25 episodes? When INAZUMAN was originally broadcast, the saga was told in two parts, totaling 48 episodes. This DVD release features the first 25-episode "chapter", which then dovetailed into an immediate — and much darker — sequel, INAZUMAN FLASH (1974), for an additional 23 episodes. I'm hoping that — fingers crossed — INAZUMAN FLASH will be scheduled as the next release on the roster from JN Productions & Generation Kikaida for 2009. Meanwhile, the INAZUMAN Complete Series Box Set is available through the Generation Kikaida website for $99.95 (plus $7.00 Shipping & Handling).

Region Code 1 • NTSC • 4:3 Original Aspect Ratio • Japanese with  English Subtitles • Dolby Digital • 10 hours 27 minutes • Unrated