< Mazinger Z

Mazinger Z/Characters


This is a page about the characters appearing in the Manga turned Anime Mazinger Z. Just as a warning, this page probably contains spoilers.

The Photon Lab Institute

Kouji Kabuto

Kouji Kabuto

Kouji: I always thought people doesn't think with their head. They think with their heart. (Shin Mazinger Zero manga)
Kouji: Grandpa's murder... All the people who have been hurt... Japan's peace trampled... All because of Dr. Hell... This time, for sure... This time, I'll destroy Dr. Hell for good! (Go Nagai Great Mazinger manga)

Koji Kabuto (Kabuto Kôji), also written as Kouji Kabuto, is a fictional character featured in the works of manga artist Go Nagai. He is the main character of the Super Robot series Mazinger Z and pilots the title robot. He reappears in the sequel Great Mazinger and helps battle the Mikene Empire. He also features in Grendizer as Duke Fleed's friend and Sidekick/TheLancer.

Kouji was a Ordinary High School Student who lived with his little brother Shiro and his grandfather Juzo after their parents’ death. All of it changed when he was sixteen and his grandfather was murdered by Dr. Hell. Dr. Kabuto revealed Mazinger Z to him and requested him to save the world from Dr. Hell. Kouji vowed he would avenge his grandfather’s death and fulfill his last wish.

Kouji was an atypical main character back then: although he was a mostly good person, he might be rude, insensitive and even somewhat of a jerkass when he was angry, sexist and the poster boy for Idiot Hero given his tendencies to be loudmouthed, talking without thinking, acting BEFORE and INSTEAD of thinking and being very hotheaded and stubborn. However he was also compassionate, caring, friendly, self-sacrificing, cared greatly for his friends and fought for them –even though he constantly teased Sayaka and Boss- and he was utterly hot-blooded.

His character evolved and developed somewhat along the series. His blatant sexism and his impulsive tendencies mellowed down a bit (it is telltale in Great Mazinger he was the one recommended using planning and strategy for fighting the Mykene when Tetsuya wanted nothing else than blowing them up to pieces). He also grew up and matured, and his main motivation to fight Dr. Hell became protecting people instead of petty revenge. Although he refused giving up, he was more willing to follow orders and retreat to reevaluate the situation and fight back than his successor, Tetsuya. However, in the Mazinger Z vs Great General of Darkness movie he refused giving up and backing down, even though he knew he could not win.

He is voiced by veteran seiyuu Hiroya Ishimaru and has appeared in many other series. He is considered one of the stalwarts of the Japanese-exclusive strategy games the Super Robot Wars and appears in nearly every incarnation. In Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z Hen, his voice is played by Kenji Akabane.

  • Accidental Pervert: In the Mazinger vs Great General of Darkness movie, Kouji went in the bathroom right when Sayaka was taking a shower. After getting a Armor-Piercing Slap he apologized and swore it was an accident (although he was half-smirking as he told so).
  • Badass
  • Badass and Child Duo: His little brother usually hangs around him. Needless to say, threaten Shiro and the pain you will feel will depend on whether Kouji is or is not riding his Humongous Mecha in the time.
  • Badass Biker
  • Battle Couple: The male half, with Sayaka as the female.
  • Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Sayaka.
  • Big Eater: Kouji is occasionally shown to be one. Hell, in the Mazinkaizer movie, he eats about ten times as much as the rest of the table combined (yes, those dishes are all his) before insisting that he's still hungry.
  • Big No: Kouji screams one when his grandfather dies.
  • Brainwashed and Crazy: By the Vegans in the UFO Robo Grendizer Go Nagai manga, the UFO Robot Grendizer tai Great Mazinger movie and Super Robot Wars MX in Chapter 10.
    • And by Viscount Pygman in the series.
  • Calling Your Attacks In Gratuitous English: Koji's most famous trait (and indeed, his legacy) is his habit of yelling out weapon names before using them. His most famous battle cries, "Rocket Punch!" (that sent one or both of Mazinger's forearms flying at a foe), "Breast Fire!" (which activated the red heat sinks on Mazinger's chest, melting most enemies to slag) and "Majin Go!" are well-known in Japan, even by people who have never watched Mazinger before. This has since become the trademark of Super Robot pilots everywhere.
    • The only ones that averted this were the Photon Beam, spoken in Japanese as "Koushiryoku Beam", Great Wheel Rocket Punch (Daisharin Rocket Punch), and the Freeze Ray.
  • Chef of Iron: In original Manga. He is shown on screen to be the one that cooks for his household breakfast. It is also implied that his cooking is pretty good no matter how ridiculous it is (his croquette is huge (Sayaka said it’s a Mazinger class croquette referring to its size) and can shoot Rust Tornado (Unleash wind when cut) and Rocket Punch (launch a part of it when its cut, directly to Shiro's mouth), and of course he kicks ass in battle.
  • Combat Pragmatist: Like you wouldn't believe. In his first appearance, in which he just received Mazinger, his fight is filled by abusing the fact that Mazinger really IS invincible (at least for that point). During his second appearance, he is not above tricking his opponent to think that he gives up the fight only to kick ass. And he does this several time during the course of the series.
  • Combination Attack: Double Burning Fire, Triple Mazinger Blade and Final Dynamic Special
  • Delinquents
  • Distaff Counterpart: In the Mazinger Angels Z manga (a sequel to Mazinger Angels, a Charlie's Angels parody starring the female main characters of the Mazinger trilogy, with countless ShoutOuts to other Go Nagai works), Kouji's role was given to Kikunosuke Abashiri, a character of Abashiri Ikka, an early manga from Go Nagai.
  • Drives Like Crazy: Kouji is a not a bad driver. Oh, no. In fact, when he drives he is the only person on the road is absolutely safe. He is a Badass Biker believes traffic regulations are mere suggestions, limit speed is a myth and bikes were made to pull crazy stunts with them.
  • Dub Name Change
    • In Tranzor Z, Koji was named Tommy Davis, which was somewhat confusing as he was unrelated to the counterparts of Sayaka Yumi and her father, whose last names were also Davis. He was voiced by Gregg Berger in the dub.
    • When Grendizer was shown in the United States as part of Force Five, Koji's name was Lance Hyatt.
    • Italian translators never identified Kabuto as the same character in Grendizer and in the Mazinger series. In the Italian version of Grendizer (broadcast for first in Italy), Koji was called Alcor; in Mazinger Z, Ryo Kabuto; in Great Mazinger, Koji Kabuto. As a result, many in Italy thought that the heroes of Japanese cartoons all looked alike. In the Italian version of Mazinkaiser, he was called Koji Kabuto again.
    • The same confusion took place in France: he was called Alcor in the French version of Grendizer (from which the Italian one was taken), and Koji in the French version of Mazinger Z (which was broadcast much later in France).
    • The same kind of confusion took place in Arabic speaking nations: While he was still called Koji in the Arabic version of Grendizer, he was called Maher in the Arabic version of Mazinger Z that was translated after Grendizer's success in the Middle East.
    • And in Spain he was called Carlos Caribe in the Grendizer dub, despite of he was not renamed in the Mazinger Z dub.
  • Heroic Sacrifice: In CB Chara Go Nagai World, Koji blowing up the Mazinger
  • Hot-Blooded: Poster boy for this.
  • Hotblooded Sideburns: Their sideburns are unmistakable.
  • Idiot Hero: ... and for this, too.
    • Genius Ditz: Unlike many similar hot-heads, Koji is actually exceptionally bright when he allows himself to think things through. This is demonstrated both in the Mazinger Z series, when at least twice he had to completely disable mechanical beasts with hostages inside (one of them being Sayaka's disabled cousin, Yuri); and in the Grendizer series, where he builds his flying saucer all by himself and later develops the Cyclone Beam. He is also an excellent shot (demonstrated in the Mazinkaiser VS Ankoku Dai Shogun movie when he shoots Archduke Gorgon in both his tiger head and human head with one shot).
    • It should be noted, that Koji is sent to America in Great Mazinger to study, so he can become a scientist since Kenzo, Koji's father mentions that he has the scientist blood of Kabuto inside him. So, it’s pretty much hereditary
  • Indy Ploy: He is able to think strategically and plotting strategies beforehand. However, given his rash, hotheaded nature, he is VERY prone to impulsively rush/leap/dive headfirst into a dangerous situation and figuring out along the way how he will walk out of it alive. These two pages of the "Mazinger Z: Relic of Terror" one-shot are a godd example:

Kouji: There's no choice but for me to go and take it back!
Sayaka: But you don't even know what the enemy is...!
Kouji: I'll find out along the way!

  • The Lancer: To Tetsuya Tsurugi in Great Mazinger and Daisuke Umon in UFO Robo Grendizer.
  • Large Ham
    • Ham-to-Ham Combat: In the Dynamic Heroes e-manga, Kouji fought the Great Marshall of Hell while riding Mazinger. It is noteworthy as it was, maybe, the first time in the history of the franchise Kouji and Dr. Hell faced each other as both were riding giant robots. Too bad it was a Curb Stomp Battle.
  • Leeroy Jenkins: He is a mild case of this. In one hand, he never listens when someone tells him "Don't go", he is impulsive and hard-headed, falls into utterly DUMB, anybody-could-have-seen-it traps because he is too hasty and eager (a fact Kouji himself lampshades), and he is a determinator has troubles to understand when quitting to fight. On the other hand, he IS capable of listen and follow instructions and plans, he is a Genius Ditz is good devising strategies on the fly, he is capable of deceiving the enemy and he understands sometimes is necessary and even good being stealth (although he is not very good at it, but at least he makes the attempt) or making a tactical retreat. And he is capable of acknowledging his mistakes (once he was forced to retreat. He was angry, but after The Professor Yumi explained the situation to him, he admitted he was wrong and apologized). In a nutshell, he shows some traits of the trope, but he has not let they get him killed.
  • Manly Tears: He has three VERY memorable tears moments. One is in the beginning, when his grandfather dies in his arms. The other two are in the "Mazinkaiser vs. the General of Darkness", with Dr. Morimori's Heroic Sacrifice, and when he finally defeats ALL the Mikene Empire and tearfully screams "My dead friends... I AVENGED YOU ALL!"
  • Meaningful Name: Kabuto means "Helmet", and Kouji pilots his machine by attaching the Jet Pilder to its head.
    • Also, the word “Mazinger” is formed by kanji mean “god”, “devil” and “pilot”, meaning Mazinger may be a god saves the world or a devil destroys it depending on its pilot.
    • According to Hindu Mythology, Ashura were beings with a dual nature.
  • Missing Mom: Tsubasa Nishikori
    • In episode 90, Dr. Hell fabricated a cyborg looked exactly like her and sent it to the Institute in order to wreak havoc while he made preparations for the final battle. Naturally, that stratagem caused much grief, especially to Shiro.
  • No Indoor Voice: Indoor Voice? What is that “Indoor Voice” stuff you speak of?
  • Oblivious to Love: In a way Sayaka finds very infuriating.
  • Put on a Bus: He and Sayaka went to America after the end of the series, and they were not seen again until the end of Great Mazinger.
  • Real Men Wear Pink: Seeing Chef of Iron example above. He is a pretty good of a cook, specially in the original manga. Given that his little brother and he live on their own, it is not surprising he has domestic skills.
  • The Rival: With Boss usually –and Tetsuya in Great Mazinger-, but in many Super Robot Wars games with Asuka from Neon Genesis Evangelion. The two of them always but heads. It is funny when you realize she would be more liable to antagonize Tetsuya (both of them are arrogant Ace Pilot -and Broken Ace- hate when someone showed them up).
  • Scarf of Asskicking: Kouji was going to wear a scarf at the beginning, but Go Nagai removed it when Kamen Rider premiered because he did not want people thought he was ripping it off.
  • Shonen Hair
  • Shut UP, Hannibal

Scirocco: By averting that Colony Drop, you wasted a good chance of getting rid of all those fools whose souls are bound by gravity.

Kouji: Oh, don't give us that crap! We won't let you even touch the Earth we live in!

Char Aznable: But, if things continue this way, people's hatred will consume the very Earth itself. That's why I'm cutting through to the source of the problem.

Kouji: Don't feed me that crap!! I've been listening to this from the start and all you've done is giving a bunch of complicated justifications!!

  • Sidekick: To Duke Fleed/Daisuke Umon in Grendizer. Later graduated to The Lancer
  • Triang Relations: Type 3 with Sayaka and Maria, with Kouji being the Chaste Hero in the middle.)
  • Troubled but Cute
  • Why Don't You Marry It?: Kouji Kabuto has this thrown at him by his little brother after spending just a little too much time gushing over a new support unit for the Mazinger. Kouji's reply is along the lines of a not entirely sarcastic "maybe I will," much to the annoyance of Sayaka.
  • You Killed My Grandfather: Straight after his grandfather’s death, Kouji swore he would get his murderers and he would take revenge.

Sayaka Yumi

Sayaka Yumi

Sayaka: What are you saying, Papa? Are you saying we should let it run wild even more? I can't do that! Even if Aphrodite gets destroyed...! I will fight...! I´ll take down that demon that's destroyed our town!!

Sayaka Yumi (Yumi Sayaka) is the main heroine of Go Nagai's manga and anime Mazinger Z.

She was daughter of Professor Yumi, director of the Photon Lab Institute, and she piloted Aphrodite A, a test prototype giant robot Yumi built. Her mother was deceased and she has a cousin –named Yuri-. Her father was not exactly cold and uncaring, but Sayaka realized that his first priority was his work, and sometimes she felt somewhat alone and craving for proving herself to him.

She first met Kouji when he was rampaging through the valley –or city the original manga-. She was the first person taught who Kouji how to handle Mazinger Z (even though she was more than willing to hit him back after his robot accidentally kicked hers), and always fought alongside him.

She was a bit hot-tempered and tomboyish, and had a habit of clashing with Kouji even though she had a romantic interest in him. She was usually tender and nice, but she was also somewhat prideful and just as hotheaded and hotblooded as Kouji, so his sexist, non-thoughtful, loudmouthed ways always managed to set her off. She was also quite jealous and she did not appreciate it when some beautiful woman –like Hitomi, Misato or Erika- was very familiar with Kouji –especially if Kouji looked like was enjoying the attention-. Still they were very close even if they were bickering and fighting constantly.


Shiro Kabuto

Shiro Kabuto

Shiro is Kouji's younger brother. He is hardheaded, hot-tempered, enthusiastic and nosy. Most of the time, Shiro's role is to add some comic relief to the plot, being the voice of reason when Kouji is doing something dumb or dangerous, and often getting in trouble himself. He remains in Japan when Kouji departs at the beginning of Great Mazinger.

His character acquires a bit more depth in Great Mazinger, as he becomes acquainted with his father Kenzo, who was previously thought to be dead. Toward the end of the series, Shiro finally bonds with Kenzo, who died shortly thereafter.

  • Annoying Younger Sibling: Though he did have good points from time to time, and sometimes was more mature than Kouji himself.
  • Badass Adorable: He could make some impressive feats when he wanted or needed. Once, the Professors Morimori, Sewashi and Nossori had been brainwashed by Baron Ashura to help him. Shiro beat the crap out of them. Agreed, they were brainwashed and they were older men; still, it was one single child against three adult men
  • Iron Woobie : His theme song implies this, he is sad that during Sunday, he doesn't have parents to hang with, and Koji, Boss, and Sayaka are most likely busy with the Mechabeast. And then, you have Lorelei. Yup, it sucks being him. On the other hand, he never Wangsts about it.
    • And have we mentioned in an early Great Mazinger episode he complains his older brother -his only living relative left as far as he knew- did not write him letters? Yes, definitely it sucks to be him.
  • Mouthy Kid
  • Plucky Comic Relief
  • Smarter Than You Look: During his first few appearances, his acts make him looking like Too Dumb to Live (for starters, while Koji is horrified by the Iron Mask, especially after killing it, all he says is that Koji is so cool for killing the Iron Mask). Later on in the series, he learned to pilot the Pilder in relatively short time (bonus points since unlike Koji, he has practically zero experience in piloting the Pilder, while Koji mentions that the control is similar to his motorbike) and pulls a Big Damn Heroes several times, that really says something. (Of course, he IS a member of Kabuto family)
  • Star-Crossed Lovers: His first crush was Lorelei, a Mad Scientist's Beautiful Daughter and Robot Girl. It ends up in tears.
  • Wise Beyond His Years: He seems pretty mature for his age. Then again, maybe it is due to he constantly hangs around his brother, who is somewhat immature for his age.
    • More because he is forced to life on his own without a parents care. Juzo is implied to spent most of his time to build Mazinger Z, and Koji is handling the household jobs, and go to school, thus leaving him alone.
      • And let's not forget his supposedly dead father was too busy building Great Mazinger to take care of them AND tell them he was alive.


Boss

Boss

Boss was a high school student attending Sayaka’s old school. He first appeared as a bully with a huge crush on Sayaka and as Kabuto Kouji’s rival at school. When Kouji –someone who Sayaka practically gushed over and also loved bikes- moved to his school, he perceived him as a menace and challenged him. However, after their first fights, he quickly became a friend and ally, often scouting for Mazinger Z on his motorcycle, or getting into some sort of slapstick mischief. He was hot-tempered and hasty, but he also was a loyal friend (and his crush on Sayaka sometimes became cute).

Later he built his own Humongous Mecha, Boss Borot, a quite strong but utterly useless robot made with garbage that provided many funny moments.

He and his gang-Nuke and Mucha- were Tag-Along Brigade and Comic Relief characters in both Mazinger Z and Great Mazinger, and he showed up in two episodes of UFO Robo Grendizer. His cousin Misato was also a supporting character in Mazinger Z.

  • Acrofatic: Boss was pretty fat, but he could be fast when he wanted. Combine that with him being strong and sturdy, and he could deliver a good beating when he needed to on anyone (except Kouji, much to his chagrin and disgust).
  • Adaptational Badass: He was the Butt Monkey and Comic Relief character in the original manga and anime series. In the Super Robot Wars games he and his Boss Borot slowly got upgraded. They were Joke Character tier in the early games, but by the Alpha series had upgraded to low-medium usefulness, and by the J/W/K/L handheld era he got very good if not outstanding.
  • Aliens Made Them Do It: The scene where the Zenteradi abduct the main characters from Super Dimension Fortress Macross and ask "I demand you show me how this 'kiss' process works" gets parodied in a Super Robot Wars Alpha 4koma and Boss is amongst the people they kidnapped in the parody.
  • Boss Can Breathe In Space According to Mazinger Z, the Boss Borot has an open-air cockpit. But when Mazinger Z appears in Super Robot Wars, the Boss Borot can normally be deployed in space just fine without apparent modifications. (It will perform like crap due to having a terrible rating for space combat, but in both Mazinger Z and Super Robot Wars the Boss Borot is a Joke Character anyways.)
    • This actually has a Justification: any mecha (not just Borot) that isn't airtight simply has the pilot wear a spacesuit.
    • In Neo Super Robot Wars (not to be confused with Super Robot Wars NEO) Boss Borot gets a spacesuit of sorts and the moniker Super Boss Borot to get around this. Boss Borot is also not usable in space at all in some of the classic SRW games, usually dealt with by removing it from your party for space levels rather than disallowing it.
  • Big Damn Heroes : Surprisingly, he does. It is Played for Laughs most of the time, but there's just too many situations that if he had not helped Koji, he would be done for.
    • Maybe the best example of it was the Mazinger vs Great General of Darkness movie: he blew Dante up, a monster that had seemed untouchable until that moment, and distracted the Mykene Robeasts for several seconds. It does not sound like much, but it does when you realize those extra seconds saved Kouji's life.
  • Butt Monkey: Often he was the target of many jokes and laughs.
  • Comic Relief: He even lampshades it in a Great Mazinger episode, whining about why he has to be the comedian.
  • Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Boss is the Butt Monkey, Hopeless Suitor and Comic Relief Gonk character. He is mocked and ridiculed by his friends and belittled by the villains, and he gets beaten easily in each battle. Still, when he is angry he can get scarily competent and even Badass. He is Acrofatic and perfectly capable of holding his own on a fistfight, and although his Humongous Mecha is a pile of scrap gets destroyed in every fight, he has blown up some dangerous Robeasts and pulled off several awesome Big Damn Heroes moments. Also, threatening Kouji -his vitriolic best buddy- or Sayaka -his crush- is a bad idea.
  • Delinquents
  • Dub Name Change: To Bobo in Tranzor Z
  • Dude, Where's My Respect?: Treated as a joke, by almost everyone. Even Ashura underestimated him, so much that at one moment, he/she says that he is not a problem, at all. It should be noted that were talking about someone whose Big Damn Heroes moment is second only to Tetsuya. He saves Koji's life so many time during the series, and he is ridiculously helpful during Koji's fight against the mechabeast. Naturally, Koji is the only person that treated him the way he should be.
    • And in the Great Mazinger tai Getter Robo movie, after destroying the monstruous Gilgilgan, Tetsuya and the Getter team shook -their robots- hands, congratulating themselves for their victory ... and then Boss Borot's head -that was the only body part had been left of it!- stumbled between them and remembered them angrily he also took part in the battle. Tetsuya and the Getter team laughed, and the former admited their plan had worked thanks to him. Boss smiled, stating it was about time someone acknowledged his talent.
  • Dumbass Has a Point: More frequently than you'd expect. I.e., when Kouji refuses to help Sayaka after they have a fight and she takes off in Mazinger Z, Boss, Mucha and Nuke are the ones who urge him to stop whining and go for her.
  • Fan Disservice: That crotch shot of Boss in an undersized speedo. So much hair.
  • Fumihiko Tachiki: In Mazinkaiser
  • Gonk
  • Hopeless Suitor: Boss has a painfully obvious crush on Sayaka. Of course, given that she's The Hero's Tsundere girlfriend and he's the Gonkish comic relief, he doesn't stand a chance.
    • By the end of the original Manga, he actualy does have a chance, judging from how Sayaka acts in front of him however by this time, either he realized he has no chance(at first) or he already become such a good friend with Koji, that he doesnt care about it anymore.
    • And in Great Mazinger, to Jun. This time, on the other hand, is played painfully straight.
  • Made of Iron: He had to be to endure the punishment he did and come out of alive.
  • Magikarp Power: He is an example in the Super Robot Wars series. He starts off in a terrible machine with low stats and little value except a cheap repair cost. However, if you level him high enough (usually around 80) his subpilots Nuke and Mucha get a ton of incredibly useful spells for dirt cheap and his stats go through the roof. In addition by this time you'll usually have Mazinkaiser, which means that Boss can get out of his terrible machine and upgrade to Mazinger Z. The trick is that level 80 is absurdly high in a game series where the final bosses rarely get above the mid-70s. There are ways to level him up that high, but they're generally inefficient or a lot of trouble.
  • Mauve Shirt

Boss: We're here to get blown up but somehow never die!

Boss: My nickname's Boss! Even the author doesn't know my real name!

    • That scene actually debuted in the original Manga, only shorter.

Boss: Kabuto's close friend Boss. Even the author doesn't know my real name.

  • Only Sane Man: In episode 7, Sayaka is losing her will to fight and Kouji is playing Achilles in His Tent. Meanwhile Boss is trying to remember them over and again there IS one Mechanical Beast coming, and all of them will die if they don't fight back! Later Kouji and Sayaka are apologizing at each other and Shiro notes boss was the only was right in that situation.
  • Paper-Thin Disguise: Apparently Baron Ashura's mooks can't tell the difference between Boss in a helmet and one of their co-workers. The mooks that were assigned to guard him and Kouji specifically, no less.
  • Pluto Is Expendable: In Super Robot Wars W, Pluto has become all but forgotten (foreshadowed in a scene in which Boss can't even remember it's name), until it's revealed that the Big Bad's base is there. To make matters worse, one of the penultimate boss' attacks features it skewering the victim so hard they go through the planet and out the other side.
  • The Rival: To Kouji Kabuto.
  • Spanner in the Works : The different Mazinger sagas would be so much more different had Boss not interfered with the baddies plans. To clarify:
    • In Mazinger Z, thanks to Brocken Ball, Koji is able to rescue the kidnapped civilians. Not to mention the fact that in the same series, he saved Koji's life several times, gaining Koji's respect in the process. And in the Mazinger-Z versus Great General of Darkness, as a squad of Mykene Warrior Monsters are trashing Mazinger-Z he suddenly interfered. He only deterred them for several seconds, but those seconds were all that Tetsuya needed to intervene with Great Mazinger and save Kouji's life. And because Kouji did not die, he could help to save the world in Great Mazinger and UFO Robo Grendizer.
    • In Great Mazinger, if he would have not flirted with Jun and followed her when she was buying clothes, the good guys would be dead by the THIRD chapter.
    • In the Mazinkaiser movie, he pretty much saved the world (which at that point is a Crapsack World). The Mycene's plan to send one of their general to attack Koji while he is out of Mazinkaiser is completely foiled because Boss attacked the general with Boss Borot.
  • Stay in the Kitchen: In Venus A first battle he got in the way of Jun several times. In one of them he stated "Girls must not fight". The ironic -and frustrating- part is he intervened right when Jun was gaining the upper hand, and because him, she could was unable to defeat the Warrior Beast.
  • Took a Level in Badass (Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z-hen): While most of the time they're there for the audience to have a laugh, he and his two lackeys, Mucha and Nuke (who are revealed to know martial arts), rescue Kouji from Baron Ashura's clutches. In the final battle they help out in their mecha, Boss Borot, by catching a freaking ICBM, stopping Baron Ashura him/herself from flattening the heroes, and pulling Mazinger out of the rubble of the city, enabling Kouji to fight. Boss also becomes Genre Savvy by the end: "Don't worry about us, we're the comic-relief characters who get blown up but still live!"
  • Too Dumb to Live: Sometimes he showed this trait. To be fair, so did Kouji.
  • Verbal Tic: Boss often ends his words with "Da wa sa". He discards it in the Mazinkaiser OVA, da wa sa.
  • Vitriolic Best Buds : With Koji, they often bicker with each other, but they do get along rather well.


Dr. Gennosuke Yumi

Dr. Gennosuke Yumi

Professor Yumi is Sayaka's father as well as the director of the Phtoatomic Institute and Dr. Kabuto's pupil. Dr. Kabuto passed onto him his knowledge of Photon energy and Alloy Z, and Yumi later used that knowledge to build Aphrodite A, a prototype robot created to test the possibilities of both. Aphrodite never was created as a war mecha because Yumi was a pacifist who intended to use Photon enery and Japanium for peaceful goals.

And then he found out that the Photon Institute was the target of villains who intended to use that technology to conquer the world. And his master had built the most powerful robot ever made to protect the place.

Once Dr. Kabuto died, he took the Kabuto siblings in and led the good guys. Although he was a kind person, he mainly was aloof, serene and calculating, traits he needed to be a good scientist and leader. He was highly intelligent and capable of keeping calm during crisis, was willing to hear good advice and could come up with plans quickly. Nobody questioned his leadership –although Kouji undermined him constantly-, and everybody accepted his authority.

Unfortunately he was not a very good father. His work in the Institute and the protection of the world were most important to him that anything, including family. Thus, he neglected Sayaka many times and he was missing when she needed him (the scene in the last episodes of Great Mazinger where he blatantly states he does not want her to sortie in Diana-A because he does not want her to get killed was a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming precisely because it).

  • Badass Bookworm
  • Badass Moustache
  • Genre Savvy: He was pretty Genre Savvy. For example, he made sure they got spare parts for Mazinger-Z ready to be used in case of an emergency (during one battle Mazinger had lost his fists and they launched spare Rocket Punches at its location to help Kouji). In one episode he hesitated several persons were dead why their corpses were not found. And he memorized the plans for the Jet Scrander in case of they were stolen (and indeed, they were).
  • Jouji Yanami
  • Man in White
  • Married to the Job: He spends most part of the time working in the Photonic Energy Research Laboratory or traveling to meet with other scientists. He is a widower, and his daughter Sayaka practically has to twist his arm to force him to go home and have supper. Although she never called him out on it, many times she felt neglected and she regretted not only she was motherless but her father was too busy to be there for her when she needed him. However it may be sort of justified since her Prof. Yumi was trying to save the world.
  • Mission Control
  • Mr. Exposition: He is both The Professor and The Mentor, so he frequently explains to the characters -and the audience- plot points. He was the one guessed first what was Mazinger-Z and who had created it. He explained how Dr. Kabuto had discovered Photon Atomic power and Alloy-Z and built Mazinger-Z with them. He narrated how Dr. Kabuto met Dr. Hell and what happened in Bardos Island. He recognized Minerva-X and explained what she was and how she worked. He explained what were the Mykene and where they came from... And often during the series he explained what strategy the enemy or Kouji was using, how worked the Mechanical Beasts' weapons... or simply what kind of training Kouji was undergoing. In Mazinkaiser he retained that role (he recognized Mazinkaiser as soon as he saw it, he explained how they had modified to Mazinkaiser in the movie...)
  • Omnidisciplinary Scientist: Completely averted. Yumi did not dominate all fields of science, and often he needed the advice or the assistance of other scientists. He and his team could not create amazing breakthroughs out of the air either, needing much testing.
  • Parental Substitute - To Kouji and Shiro
  • Parents as People - He does love Sayaka, but he's too Married to the Job to take care of her as he should.
  • The Professor
  • Team Dad


Professors Morimori, Sewashi and Nossori

Professors Morimori, Sewashi and Nossori

They were three scientists who worked in the Photon Institute under the direct orders of Professor Yumi, replacing him as in charge when he was away. Throughout the whole series, they designed most of the weapons and upgrades of Mazinger Z (they shared chores, but Sewashi was the specialist in designing power engines, whereas Morimori was an expert in weapons such like the Iron Cutter).

The three of them were good-natured and patient (especially when they were dealing with teenagers) and even somewhat goofy, but they were quite rigorous and serious when they were working, being capable of improvising and working under extreme pressure, and being extremely patient when dealing with teenagers. They were good friends, constantly hanging together.

Dr. Juzo Kabuto

Dr. Juzo Kabuto

Dr. Kabuto: Kouji, when you are piloting Mazinger, you will be able to become a god or a devil

Juzo Kabuto is Kouji and Shiro’s grandfather and the builder of Mazinger Z.

Juzo met Hell for first time when he and his fiancée Yumiko Shiozai were exchange students in a German college. Back then he thought Hell was a tad eccentric but not a bad person (until he tried to kill him and Yumiko) and even argued with him about his theories on Photon energy.

Years later, he met Hell again during an archaeological expedition to a Greek island named Bardos. In spite of Hell was already Obviously Evil and had already tried murdering him, he was apparently willing to put the past behind him… until Hell stumbled upon an army of giant robots in the depths of the island and nearly got him killed again.

Juzo managed to run away, but he was unable to warn the world of Hell’s crazy plans. So he hired a maid to take care of his grandsons, revived his newly deceased son Kenzo as a cyborg and tasked him with the chore of getting ready to repel the Mykene invasion he feared would come and began building a Humongous Mecha capable of defeating Hell’s robots, using his two breakthroughs: Photon energy and the Super Alloy Z, an alloy made with Japanium, a mineral he had discovered.

After fifteen years he had just ended construction on Mazinger Z when Hell sent Baron Ashura, his most loyal servant, to murder him.

  • Alternate Character Interpretation: Depending on the continuity, he ranges from kind, well-meaning and pleasant scientist to well-meaning but slightly unhinged to mad like a hatter to Complete Monster.
  • Ignored Expert: Subverted. He did not try to warn the world of what had happened in Bardos and what Hell was planning, opting for shutting himself away to build his super-weapon. Then again, he could have reasonably thought that nobody would believe his story.(Would you?)
  • Large Ham: His original version. He had No Indoor Voice and moved grandiloquently and bombastically when he was thrilled.
  • Mad Scientist: His original version was frightfully akin to Dr. Hell.
    • More than you think. In the manga –the original version- after showing Mazinger to Kouji he told him –after the “God or Devil” lecture- he would able to take over the world with it. It makes you wonder what he thought his grandson would do with it…
  • Mentor Occupational Hazard: He dies in the first episode right after completing Mazinger Z.
  • Not So Different : Imagine if 2 people, both a total genius is accepted in a different way, and you get him, and Dr. Hell.
  • The Professor

The Island of Bardos

Dr. Hell

Dr. Hell

Dr. Hell: Damned imbeciles! You do not deserve being alive! One day I shall purge all of you off this world! And everybody shall kneel before Hell!

Dr. Hell: I shall crush Japan in merely ten days! And the world will witness the true power of Dr. Hell!

He was a colleague of Dr. Kabuto, a well-meaning scientist. He was born in Germany on 9-6-1902. He was an unwanted chaild, a fact his mother reminded him of constantly. Scorned and beaten by his parents, he found shelter in books, and became very smart… however it only served for him to be accused of cheating by his teachers, and to be beaten by his classmates.

In college he did not fare much better. People ignored him and he convinced himself that all of them envied him. Back then he met Juzo Kabuto –Kouji’s grandfather- and fell in love with a Japanese exchange student, Yumiko. He thought she returned his feelings, but when he found out that she and Juzo were a couple, Hell –who was already unstable and was convinced that everybody was envious of him or out to get him- flipped out completely, convinced himself they were pretending being his friends to hurt him and attempted to kill both of them. After that incident people began to stay away him, and he suffered more humiliations and beatings –even when he was trying being nice- and he vowed to himself that in the future he would make them pay.

During the rise of Hitler, he got seduced by the idea of taking over the world and forcing everybody to kneel before him. He secretly built several Doomsday devices for Hitler –but he kept most of his technologic breakthroughs for himself- and performed human experiments with Jews in Auswitchz. When Germany was defeated, he ran away and kept a low profile for a while.

Several years later he ran into Juzo Kabuto –now known as Dr. Kabuto- and accompanied him on an archaeological expedition to the Greek island of Bardos, where ruins of the ancient Mikenese Empire were found. There they discovered that the ancient Mikenese civilization had the technology to build giant robotic warriors. Hell killed all scientists in the expedition –save Dr. Kabuto-, stole that technology and used it to create an army of fighting machines with which he planned to conquer the world.

However, Dr. Kabuto used this technology coupled with a powerfull alloy he'd created to build a robot, Mazinger Z, to halt Hell's plans for world conquest. Again and again Dr. Hell's robots were destroyed by Mazinger Z, sometimes due to the in-fighting between his lieutenants Baron Ashura and Count Brocken. After nearly all of his robots had been destroyed Mazinger Z and his allies traveled to Dr. Hell's island headquarters, and Hell and Count Brocken were apparently killed while attempting to flee in the Gool, their giant airship.

  • Agony Beam Dr. Hell uses a staff that shoots a blast of (usually) non-lethal electricity to punish Ashura when he/she/it screws up.
  • Aliens Made Them Do It: The scene where the Zentraedi abduct the main characters from Super Dimension Fortress Macross and ask "I demand you show me how this 'kiss' process works" gets parodied in a Super Robot Wars Alpha 4koma and Dr. Hell is amongst the people they kidnapped in the parody.
  • Amazing Technicolor Population: He's purple. No indication why, since he's seemingly human.
  • Beard of Evil: It is white, it is bristly, it is long and it is positively epic.
  • Big Bad
  • Complete Monster: a Hammy one, though.
    • It is worth noting that, according to The Other Wiki, he apparently felt some remorse for Ashura when the latter died in the original series, making a statue and a Mechanical Beast in his/her (somewhat) image, and vowing to avenge him/her
  • Dub Name Change: In Tranzor Z, the American imported version, Dr. Hell was called Dr. Demon. In Spain he was called Doctor Infierno (a literal translation).
  • Eyepatch of Power: After being turned into the Great Marshall of Darkness.
  • Faux Affably Evil: He always keeps an educated, polite behavior and mannerisms, even when he is going to dissect someone to turn him or her into his next enslaved Cyborg.
  • From Nobody to Nightmare: Dr. Hell started like an unwanted son born in a pauper, ordinary family was -psychologically and physically- abused by his mother, berated by his teachers and bullied by his classmates. Forty years later he was designing Doomsday Devices by Hitler and experimenting with human beings in Austchwitz. Thirty years later he was trying to Take Over the World and enslaving the humankind with an army of Humongous Mecha. And in Great Mazinger he was handed over the command of the entire army of Mykene Empire.
  • Herr Doktor: Like stated above, he is a German scientist. From the completely mad variety.
  • It's All About Me: Because a lot of people hurt HIM emotionally and physically when he was a little boy and a young man, he wants to make all of humanity to pay, to bow down to HIM and acknowledge HIS genius. The fact all of it happened several decades ago (he was seventy when the series began) does not deter him at the slightest. Oh, and he thought everybody was out to get him (long before everybody were).
  • Kick the Dog: More like grabbing the dog’s tail and banging it repeatedly against a wall until the poor mutt was a bloody pulp. Yes, it really happened (in the Gosaku Ota’s episodes).
    • Disproportionate Retribution: And it happened because he did not like how the dog was looking to him.
  • Kneel Before Zod: His main drive to take over the world is that he wishes to force the entire human race to bow down to him.
  • Kubrick Stare: He displayed this expression quite requently, usually when he was mad or he had just thought of some devilish scheme. It was more disturbing in the second instance.
  • Large Ham
  • Love Dodecahedron – In CB Chara Go Nagai World with Akira, Miki, Siren, Kaim and Ryo
  • Love Makes You Crazy: He was quite unstable and troubled before –seeing Kick the Dog example-, but arguably it was when he found out that his love was unrequited he utterly snapped, and it led him to…
  • Love Makes You Evil: Deciding to Murder the Hypotenuse. People had shunned him out before, but from that day they started giving him a wide berth because he started seeming Obviously Evil (and downright creepy).
  • Mad Scientist
  • Milking the Giant Cow: Dr. Hell was prone to make this when he was monologuing, mainly in the original manga and Mazinkaiser. Especially when night had fallen and he was outdoors. Evil Is Hammy, indeed.
  • Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate: He is an Obviously Evil Mad Scientist and a Complete Monster. To be fair, knowledge or science did not make him evil. In fact he devoted himself to learn Science because it helped him to keep himself sane. However, after his sanity finally slipped out due to too much abuse, he decided using his scientifical knwoledge to make everyone pay.
  • Not So Different : Juzo is exactly like him, but unlike Hell, he is received well by his surrounding, and learned how to love someone, by raising Koji and Shiro. Dr. Hell on the other hand...
  • Obviously Evil: Dr. Hell has pale purple skin, a long white Beard of Evil, and is prone to maniacal laughter. Oh, and his name is Dr. Hell. The bizarre part is that his back-story involves betraying a group of companions in order to get some Phlebotinum, which means that someone, somewhere, was willing to trust him.
  • Omnidisciplinary Scientist: He is a Mad Scientist wants taking over the world! It is practically a requirement!
  • Shirtless Scene: He pulls this at the end of the Mazinkaiser OVA for seemingly no reason, and despite being a very old man.
  • Start of Darkness: When Dr. Hell found out the woman he loved Yumiko Shiozaki, Kouji's grandmother was in love with another man -Dr. Kabuto-, he flipped out completely. It Got Worse from there.
  • Take Over the World: According his Backstory he was abused and belittled by everyone when he was a child until his mind snapped and he decided he wanted to make all pay: he would purge the world off idiots and force everybody to bow down to him. During the rise of Hitler, he realized if he took over the world he COULD do just that. Over ten years after the World War II he finally found the means as he researched several ancient ruins.
  • They Called Me Mad: Subverted. They did not call him mad. They called him dumb and useless. THAT is what set him off.
  • Villain Team-Up: Dr. Hell hires Gauron in Super Robot Wars Judgment, works with the Zeon in Super Robot Wars Alpha and works with the Galra Empire in Super Robot Wars W.
  • The Woobie: He sees himself like this (he may be right).
  • Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: … And he wants to become this!
  • Wrong Genre Savvy: Baron Ashura and Count Brocken hated each other. Dr. Hell thought it would be a good thing, since they would surely try to destroy Mazinger-Z harder to upstage each other. Or course, what happened was many operations and schemes went by the wayside because they constantly fought and got in the each other's way, and they were were unable to work together, ruining many joined missions, too. Hell's mistake was born of him believing he and his troops were a Five-Man Band instead of a Five-Bad Band.


Baron Ashura

Baron Ashura

During Dr. Hell’s explorations through the hidden depths of Bardos Island, he found the mummified remnants of one couple. However, one side of each mummy had been crushed by rubble. Using his knowledge, Dr. Hell sewed the non-crushed halves together and using cybernetic parts, revived the creature, naming it Baron Ashura (Ashura Danshaku).

Very soon Baron Ashura became the main henchman of Dr. Hell. Given his/her split nature, Ashura could be stupid, hasty, careless… or scheming, manipulative, devious. When he/she talked to Dr. Hell, his/her voice was female, submissive and soft-spoken… but when he/she addressed his/her troops, his/her voice was male, commanding, loud, stern and harsh.

The most of time Ashura is portrayed as absolutely loyal to Dr. Hell, but in some adaptations (such like Gosaku Ota’s manga) he/she gets fed up with Dr. Hell’s treatment and Count Brocken’s mockery and rebels. He/she was not above committing ruthless, sadistic acts, but usually they were made with a purpose (avoiding Kick the Dog scenarios... most of the time). Although his/her sheer incompetence blew up several of Dr. Hell’s operations, his schemes were the closest ones to succeed, razing many Japanese cities to ruins.

Leader of the Iron Masks and commander of Dr. Hell’s submarine fortresses, he/she plagued the hero Kouji Kabuto for much of the series' run, until finally being killed in one of the later episodes. After his/her death, his/her memory was honored and respected by both enemies and allies. Mazinger's most persistent enemy, he/she made regular appearances in the Super Robot Wars series as Dr. Hell's loyal underling.

  • Agony Beam: The villainous Baron Ashura often uses this, in the form of a staff that shoots a blast of (usually) non-lethal electricity. Dr. Hell also uses that staff ON Ashura when he is pissed enough.
  • Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: He briefly grew into a giant in one episode, after exposure to a size-changing ray gun invented by Dr. Hell.
  • Buried Alive: The two corpses Hell found had been buried alive.
  • Complete Monster: Baron Ashura is a sadistic and cruel creation with murderous impulses and genocidal lust. In the original manga, after a Mechanical Beast sinks a ship, Ashura surfaces his/her submarine and personally machineguns the survivors to death as yelling he’ll turn their corpses into brainwashed, cybernetic zombies under his/her command. In the anime, he/she confronts the Kabuto family's maid Rumi and murders her in cold-blood when she is unable to tell him where Juzo Kabuto is.
    • Actually, he/she's slightly less of a Complete Monster than most. His/her loyalty to Dr. Hell was very genuine and /she went to many lengths to fulfill his/her duty to his master. Other than that, yeah, he/she's a complete bastard.
  • Disguised in Drag: Done at least twice (in episodes 7 and 36). He/she disguised like a woman to manipulate a mob or frighten nosy people away one of his/her operations. Fortunately he/she was a shape-shifter, so it was not so hard looking like a woman how it would be to him/her (on the grounds of Ashura being half-male, half-female). It overlapped with Creepy Crossdresser since it was pretty squicky -and eerie-.
  • Do Not Adjust Your Set
  • Dub Name Change: Baron Ashura was renamed Devleen in Tranzor Z. And Baron Ashler in the Spanish dubbing.
  • Enemy Civil War: Between Baron Ashura and Count Brocken
  • Evil Laughter: He used it more often than Dr. Hell.
  • Fan Disservice: Mazinkaiser. Naked Baron Ashura. AGGGGGHHHHHH.
    • For clarification, Baron Ashura is semi-artificial construct, with a man's body on his left side, and a woman's on her right. We repeat: AGGGGGHHHHHH!
    • Lovingly recreated in episode 12 of Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z-hen.
      • Both scenes were inspired by a similar scene shown in the original Go Nagai manga. In the manga however you get to see the full nakedness of Asura in all it's glory Does anyone have some Brain Bleach handy?
  • Grand Theft Me (Takes over Tifa Adil's body in a Super Robot Wars Alpha Gaiden 4koma)
  • Half the Man He Used To Be: Appropriately enough, this is how Baron Ashura (as Hell King Gordon) is finished off in Mazinkaiser
  • Hidekatsu Shibata (the male half. His ex-wife Haruka Kitahara voices the female one)
  • I Owe You My Life: See Together in Death.
  • Ironic Birthday In Mazinkaiser, Baron Ashura infiltrates the Photon Power Laboratory disguised as Professor Yumi, and walks in on Dr. Yumi's surprise birthday party. To make matters worse, all the presents remind him of Baron Ashura, including a Baron Ashura-themed dartboard. He/she dashes out, screaming that he/she is, in fact, Professor Yumi.
  • Meaningful Name: In Hindu Mythology, Ashura were god/demon warrior creatures with dual natures.
  • Psycho Supporter
  • Shape Shifter: Ashura could alter his/her appearance, although he only used that power sometimes. It can be of interest remarking that, in the odd occasion he swapped forms, he donned a female likeness.
  • Smug Snake
  • Taking You with Me: He died when he attempted to crash Guru –Brocken’s flying fortress- into the Institute to kill all of his/her enemies.
  • Talking to Themself (In CB Chara Go Nagai World, example of one scene)
  • Together in Death: Hell found the bodies of a man and his lover who had been Buried Alive together for being caught trying to break their Star-Crossed Lovers destinies. One half of each body was destroyed, so he stitched them together to create Ashura.
  • Two-Faced: His left half is male, and her right half is female.
  • Villainous Widow's Peak: It is harder spotting it cause his/her cowl, but if you observe his/her picture, you'll notice he has one.
  • Voice of the Legion: Baron Ashura could speak in a female voice when only his/her female half was visible, a male voice from the other side, and both at once when both sides of his/her face were visible.
  • Worthy Opponent: Kouji and his friends remembered him like that. And at the end, he earned Gorgon’s respect.


Count Brocken

Count Brocken

Ashura (freaked out after seeing Brocken’s floating head): What is that? A ghost?
Brocken: Hah! If I am a ghost then what are you? A two-faced goblin?

Count Brocken (Brocken Hakushaku. Sometimes spelled as Blocken) was a particularly bloodthirsty Nazi officer. In the last days of World War II, his head was hewn from his body during a car accident. Hell found his body and revived him by turning Brocken into a cyborg. After that, Brocken carried his head around with him. He sometimes carried it under his arm, but it had the ability to float on its own.

Several years later, he met Hell again. His “savior” had already found Mykene’s ancient robots and was planning on using them to Take Over the World. But he needed a lot of money to modify the ancient robots. Brocken vowed to help him in return for saving his life. He cold-bloodily murdered the leaders of several European mobs and took them over, using their money to fund Dr. Hell’s schemes.

He surfaced in episode 39, when Dr. Hell, fed up with Ashura’s endless strings of failures, decided to turn him/her into Brocken's lieutenant and right hand. Brocken never missed a chance to mock and insult Ashura and his/her troops, but soon he proved he was just as incompetent. He commanded Hell’s flying fortress and the Iron Cross troops.

Although he was as cruel like Ashura, he was shown to be less intelligent, and he preferred directly striking the enemy with strength rather resorting to underhanded strategies and schemes. He was the only one Dr. Hell’s henchman who served the demented scientist longest, dying in the final battle.

  • Complete Monster : Yes, his records might be small in comparison to everything Ashura and Hell do, but you need to remember that in the original manga, he, instead of Ashura is the first person that actualy killed an innocent person on screen. And you have to remember that he was considered very bloodthirsty by the standards of Those Wacky Nazis, so this qualified him right off the bat.
  • Dirty Coward : Pretty much the only thing that he has when compared to Ashura in terms of intelligence. And yes, it works, at least during his earlier appearances.
  • Dirty Old Man: If you attack Count Brocken with a woman in Super Robot Wars Z 2: Saisei-Hen, he'll make a comment about opening their (the mecha's) cockpits to see the beauties inside, and suddenly, a lot of ZEXIS girls will start calling him names. Some of them talk about abusing Brocken's head. Especially, Kallen even wanted to use Brocken's head as a soccerball. Brocken becomes surprised at their reactions.

Brocken: I didn't do anything yet!

Archduke Gorgon

Archduke Gorgon

Archduke Gorgon (Gorgon Taikou) was a Mykene and a loyal servant of the Emperor of Darkness, ruler of all Mykene. He reported to the Great General of Darkness, even though he was under the command of Minister Argos, chief of Intelligence. He was a bizarre, cybernetic being. His upper half was a blue-skinned, muscled, bearded man wore armor resembled those worn by a Roman soldier, and his lower half was a huge, long-fanged tiger.

Shortly after Dr. Hell murdered his colleagues, Gorgon showed up before him, accusing him –and rightly so- of stealing Mykene’s technology and demanding that he forfeit the robots he had stolen. Hell was able to calm him down, striking a bargain with him: he would use Mykene’s technology to take over the world but if he had troubles, he would ask Gorgon for help.

In episode 57, Dr. Hell was on the verge of succeeding, but he was humiliatingly defeated. Humiliated and disheartened, he thought of giving up, but finally he chose swallowing his pride and asking Gorgon for help. Gorgon agreed in fact, he just pretended he did. In reality, he intended to watch Dr. Hell, weakening him as he pretended to be helping him, and finally destroying him and Mazinger-Z to allow the unopposed rise of the Mykene.

Gorgon was prideful, boasting and daring, and despite his supposed alliance with Dr. Hell, he constantly showed his scorn for Hell and often showed contempt towards his henchmen. Ashura and Brocken were terrified from him, and only Pygman talked back (However he showed respect towards Ashura after his/her death). His Robeast were more powerful than Hell’s ones and actually they succeeded where Hell’s monsters failed and their shapes and powers were inspired on creatures of Classic Mythology. He had no troubles showing his strength and power, but above all he was a deceitful schemer.

  • Badass: He is a muscled, armor-wearing, sword-wielding man whose lower half is a freaking, saber-toothed tiger. You tell me that it is not badass.
  • Beard of Evil
  • Co-Dragons: With Ashura until his/her death, Brocken and Pygman. However he never treated them like equals.
  • Dragon with an Agenda
  • Magnificent Bastard: He manipulated everyone in the series to achieve his goals.
  • Spanner in the Works: His master plan almost fully succeeded, but he could not getting all of his enemies killed because he did not knew about Kenzo Kabuto and Great Mazinger. That faulty intelligence brought about the defeat of the Mykene Empire.
  • Xanatos Gambit: His plan was pitting Mazinger Z against Dr. Hell, expecting they destroyed each other or the survivor was so weakened that it would be easy destroying him/her. He could not lose, not matter what happened, and he almost succeeded.

Viscount Pygman

Viscount Pygman

Pygman (to Gorgon): What a show-off.
Gorgon: What was that? Would you care to repeat it?
Pygman: I’ll repeat it as many times as you want!

Pygman (Pygman Shisaku) was arguably the most bizarre –and most dangerous- of Dr. Hell’s servants. He was a huge cyborg who looked like a huge tanned warrior, dressing ragged animal hides and brandishing one spear and one shield. However, he had two bodies: the upper half of the smallest body –where was his head- lacked legs and was attached to the neck of the largest body. He could use hypnosis, breath fire and often fought alongside the Kikaiju instead of remaining on the rear. His two bodies also could divide and fight separately, and he could levitate.

Dr. Hell built him to replace Ashura after his/her death. However he soon rebelled against Hell, and was the only one of Hell’s lackeys who dared to call Gorgon out on his arrogance. He only showed up in five episodes, but he brainwashed several friends of Kouji, killed and hurt many guards and workmen working in the Institute, infiltrated the Institute several times and even took it over, and finally challenged Mazinger Z to a duel to death where he perished.

Iron Masks/Iron Cross

Iron Masks/Iron Cross

The Iron Masks and the Iron Cross are Dr. Hell’s assault troops. Originally they were corpses Dr. Hell revived by transforming them into cyborgs. As he transformed them, Dr. Hell completely wiped out any shred of independent thought to ensure their utter loyalty. Unfortunately, it also meant their intelligence was considerably dwarfed.

The Iron Masks served Baron Ashura whereas the Iron Cross troops were under the command of Count Brocken. Maybe it is due to the different origins and background of their commanders that their appearance and weaponry was so different: the Iron Masks’s costumes roughly resembled the armor of Greek soldiers, and even though they used guns and cars, they favored broad long swords and spears and often rode robotic horses; the Iron Cross on the other hand wore clearly militaristic costumes, and used guns.

Kouji: "You idiot, such a thing wouldn't even be human!"

  • Cyborg: All of them.
  • Empty Shell: Due to their origins they have no name, no identity, no personality (and they barely have half face left under their helmets) and no family. They don't feel hesitate or fear and they don't fear death. And they don't mind.
  • Fate Worse Than Death: Baron Ashura clearly stated that people he slew were turned into his/her soldiers. So basically they are corpses turned into slaves serving the same monster that murdered them.
  • Hypercompetent Sidekick: They are mostly useless against adversaries that actually fight back, even if they are unarmed. However some of them were more competent than their “comrades”, and were good for spying or sabotaging missions.
  • The Mole: Several of them infiltrated in the Institute, disguised like ordinary people.
  • Mooks
  • Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: They are essentially cyborg zombies. And the Iron Masks look like Ancient Greek soldiers.
  • Those Wacky Nazis: The Iron Crosses’ costumes resemble those worn by Nazi soldiers, which is understandable given that their commander was a Nazi officer.

Gamia Q1, Q2 and Q3

Gamia Q1, Q2 and Q3

They were three identical, blonde cyborg girls Baron Ashura treated like his/her daughters.

They were tall, slender, and each wore twin ponytails reached the ground. Their hair was sharp and they flayed their ponytails like whips could slice and dice anything, including rocks, cars… or human flesh. Besides, they had more-than-human strength, speed and agility.

They showed up only in the Go Nagai manga, and their first animated appearance was in Mazinkaiser. Usually their role is assassinating Kouji Kabuto when he is out of Mazinger and –supposedly- defenseless.

  • Blondes Are Evil
  • Cyborg
  • Emotionless Girl: Their expressions could be utterly aloof, unchanging and bereft of any emotion when they were chopping and dicing people. It was downright eerie.
  • Girlish Pigtails: They are long enough to touch the ground, and each strand is lethal Razor Floss.
  • Prehensile Hair
  • Razor Floss: What their hair seems being made of. It can cut blocks of stone at lightning speed.
  • Ridiculously Human Robot
  • Robot Girl
  • Running Gag: Every time they show up, one of them is always killed in the next fashion: someone –usually Kouji- shoots one bullet or laser beam through her head before slicing her in two symmetrical halves. It even happened in a Super Robot Wars manga.
  • Ryoka Yuzuki: In Mazinkaiser
  • Uncanny Valley: They look right like human girls… but their appearance and their cold expressions –including when they are slicing and cleaving people are very unsettling.

Mechanical Monsters/Kikaiju

Mechanical Monsters/Kikaiju

They were the war mechas Dr. Hell built, modifying the Mykene robots he found in Bardos using modern science and his own knowledge.

Other Characters

Rumi

Rumi

(Voice) Actor(s):

First Appearance: Episode 1

Rumi: Wait a minute. Someone is knocking on the door.

Rumi was a maid hired for Dr. Kabuto for taking care of his grandsons while he was designing and building Mazinger-Z. She showed up in the first episode, and shortly after she was murdered by Baron Ashura sfter being interrogated about Dr. Kabuto’s whereabouts.

Tropes:

  • Disposable Woman: She took care of Kouji and Shiro as their grandfather and father was too busy designing and building Humongous Mecha for raising them properly. She was murdered in the first episode, few minutes after her first appearance, and after crying over her corpse, Kouji and Shiro (who affectionately called her “sister”) never mentioned her again.

Professor Gordon and his family

Professor Gordon

(Voice) Actor(s):

First Appearance: Episode 18

Professor Gordon was an expert in robotics and personal friend of Juzo Kabuto.

In one episode, a submarine Mechanical Beast was sinking all ships sailed throughout the Pacific ocean. He traveled to the Photonic Institute to help them with his expertise, but as he traveled by plane, his wife Mary and his daughter Lisa traveled by ship. In hindsight it was not a good idea.

Glossam X2 cut in half the ship where they traveled. Lisa survived, but only because her mother sacrificed herself to save her.

Later in the Institute, Gordon and his daughter -who also was a scientist- helped upgrade and improve Mazinger-Z to turn it into a machine capable move underwater, swim and dive, hoping it helped Kouji to avenge Mary and prevent that kind of tragedy of happening again.

Tropes:

  • Dumb Blonde: Subverted with Lisa. She was just so good of a scientist like her father.
  • Get a Hold of Yourself, Man!: Thankfully it was done without slapping. When Lisa woke up in an hospital and remembered what had happened, she started weeping. Her father encouraged her to stop crying and working alongside him to pay Dr. Hell back. After listening to his words, she calmed down.
  • Happily Married: As far as we can tell, he was.
  • Hot Scientist: Lisa.
  • Mad Scientist's Beautiful Daughter: Subverted. He is, in fact, quite sane.
  • Mama Bear: Mary was very protective from her daughter.
  • Missing Mom: After the events of the episode, Lisa found herself in that situation.
  • Oh Crap: Gordon's face when he realized his family was in danger.
  • The Professor: Gordon
  • Tempting Fate: You know a giant monster is sinking ships and yet you travel by sea?

Yuri

Yuri

(Voice) Actor(s):

First Appearance: Episode 23

Yuri was Yumi’s niece and Sayaka’s cousin. She was a disabled kid whose parents were never on home, and she was yearning for attention. Hence, she was stubborn, cranky, was always demanding everybody paid attention to her and oblige anything she wanted or asked (she refused going through therapy to walk again because she thought everyone would ignore her then). And she had a crush on Kouji. Kouji remarked she was, indeed, Sayaka’s cousin, much to the anger of his battle partner.

Tropes:

  • Bratty Half-Pint: She fulfilled all aspects of the trope.
  • Ill Girl: She was disabled and walked on a wheelchair.
  • It's All My Fault: She thought this when Dam Dam L2 was running over Mazinger once and again. She was right. Because she refused staying in Kouji and Shiro’s house where she was safe, Baron Ashura kidnapped her to blackmail Kouji in not fighting back.
  • Parental Neglect - At least Prof. Yumi tried to take care of Sayaka, Yuri's mom and dad never were there for her.
  • The Woobie: When you get down to it, Yuri is an emotionally-damaged pre-teen girl who simply doesn't know how to treat others and refuses therapy due to being terrified of being abandoned again.

Drs. Kasuya, Kata and Yokoi

Drs. Kasuya, Kata and Yokoi

(Voice) Actor(s):

First Appearance: Episode 31

They were three scientists worked in the Photon Research Institute under the orders of Yumi, performing chores of maintainance. The three of them were married and Kasuya had a son called Hiroshi.

They were kidnapped by a squad of Iron Masks and hypnotized in piloting the latest batch of Mechanical Beasts Dr. Hell had built. Part of Baron Ashura plan consisted of informing Kasuya's son his father was alive and inside one of the Kikaiju, so Hiroshi pleaded Kouji he did not fight back.

Tropes:

  • Brainwashed and Crazy: At least the first part.
  • Disappeared Dad: Hiroshi never just accepted his father was dead.
  • Never Found the Body: That is the reason Genre Savvy Prof. Yumi suspected they might be still alive.
  • Off with His Head: Kouji saved the three of them by blasting the head of the three Beasts off their bodies with missiles.
  • Rule of Three: The three scientists and the three Kikaiju: Megaron P1, P2 and P3.
  • You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: One of the weapons of Megaron generated such a heat blast would surely kill whoever was sitting in the cockpit. Hell and Ashura knew the three men surely would die during the battle. They did not care.

Dr. Smith

Dr. Smith

(Voice) Actor(s):

First Appearance: Episode 33

Dr. Smith was an American scientist and an expert in aeronautic engineering. When Prof. Yumi was designing the Jet Scrander, he traveled to New York to consult him. Smith was very kind and helpful. He advised Yumi, and helped to correct his plans, fixing mistakes and improve the design. He also stated he wished someone would bring Hell down.

In a later episode, Dr. Hell fabricated a robot resembled Smith and tasked him with infiltrating into the Institute and blowwing up the Jet Scrander.

Tropes:

Minerva-X

Minerva-X

First Appearance: Episode 38

Minerva-X: "For the record: A jealous Sayaka Yumi is an extremely dangerous beast."

Minerva-X was a robot conceived by Dr. Kabuto while he was designing Mazinger-Z. Since Juuzo was a staunch supporter of the Battle Couple trope, he thought Mazinger-Z had to be supported in battle for a female partner would fight by its side. Unlike Mazinger-Z, Minerva-X would be fully autonomous and capable to act, think and feel on her own. She was meant to coordinate with Mazinger-Z during a battle: her brain would receive the data Mazinger's main CPU would send and she would choose one strategy according that information. However he never got around to build her.

A while after the beginning of the series, Dr. Kabuto's lab was looted by Hell's servants, and they found Minerva-X's plans. Dr. Hell build her, replacing Alloy-Z with super-steel, putting a nuclear engine inside her instead of a Photon power engine, and adding the remote control device he used to command his Mechanical Beasts. However he could not ascertain what was the function of the hexagonal device embedded on the waist. He need to include it anyways because Minerva would not work without it.

That hexagonal device was the partner circuit received Mazinger's signals. When Mazinger showed up, the device began working and she stopped fighting and started acting like its partner. Of course, when Dr. Hell realized she had allied with Mazinger, he decided she had to be destroyed quickly.

Minerva-X only showed up in that episode, but one of the Mazinger Z spin-offs expanded on her role and personality. In Shin Mazinger Zero, she appears like an humanoid-sized Robot Girl, and it is strongly implied she is the reincarnation of the original Minerva-X.

Tropes:

  • And I Must Scream: In Shin Mazinger Zero Mazinger-Z became a demon -Eldritch Abomination is more like it- and caused The End of the World as We Know It. Minverva sent Kouji back in time to prevent both disasters from happening, generating so an alternate timeline. However, Kouji has failed every time so far, and she has gone through hundreds of different worlds, reincarnating over and again only to see Mazinger becoming a demon and the humanity being exterminated over and over and over and over and over again...
  • Batman Can Breathe in Space: Justified, since she is a robot.
  • Battle Couple: She was supposed to be Mazinger-Z battle partner.
  • The Berserker: After a Mechanical Beast broke down her partner circuit, she lost control and went on a uncontrolled rampage.
  • Boobs of Steel: A very literal example.
  • Breath Weapon: Rust Hurricane.
  • Broken Bird: She has gone through at least 2798 cycle of life of despair by witnessing the events where Mazinger become a demon in all of them, what can you expect?
  • Calling Your Attacks: Only in Shin Mazinger Zero
  • Cargo Ship: A... mind-screwing example. Minerva-X is in love with Mazinger-Z, a machine. But she is also a machine. However she is sentient and she should be considered a living being.
  • Clingy Jealous Girl: A mild case, but she taunted Sayaka, and later explicitly said she did it because she had seen Aphrodite fighting alongside Mazinger and she got jealous. She seems to regard a Humongous Mecha and its pilot like two parts of the same being.
  • Companion Cube: She talks to and about and treats Mazinger-Z like if he was a sentient being instead of an inanimate object. Nonetheless, given what it was revealed in Shin Mazinger Zero, she has a point.
  • Despair Event Horizon:

Minerva: At my wits' end, I can only watch...


Bakarasu

Bakarasu

Voice Actor:

First Appearance: Episode 69 (in Mazinger Z); episode 4 (in Great Mazinger)

Bakarasu was a male raven Boss and his gang met in episode 69 form Mazinger Z. Later he was a semi-recurrent secondary character for one third of Great Mazinger. He resembled a normal crow, but his beak was yellow and wide, and his eyes were surrounded by two distinctive yellow circles made it looked like if he wore glasses. He was clever enough to talk and repeat what someone else told. Unfortunately he was a trickster loved messing with humans -especially Boss-. Boss used him like a lookout to spy the enemy or a courier to carry messages around. However Bakarasu paid no allegiance to the group and apparently he only worked with them because he enjoyed making a fool of Boss. He could not be trusted with a message, either. He is basically a Comic Relief character.

Tropes:

Boss: There's a certain Jun over there. Tell her this... A weird peanut-shaped object fell from the sky into the forest.
Bakarasu: Boss has a message for you: Boss says that giant peanut in the forest is for you!

    • And later...

Boss: Tell her, sorry for the delay, but just let it slide. Let's join forces and fight together.
Bakarasu:Jun, Boss has a message: Boss is angry. Now you're rivals!

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