Summer 1980

Ganbare Genki

TV / 35 eps / Summer 1980 / Manga

Horiguchi Genki was 5 years old boy. His mother died when he was born, and he was raised only by his father. His father, Shark Horiguchi, was a professional boxer, but he was ruined and become an itinerant boxer. However, Genki believed his father was strong and he would become a champion, and he had a dream to become a strong boxer as his father. After his father’s death, he was adopted by his grandparents. Although they opposed Genki boxing, Genki made up his mind to become a boxer, and he continued training secretly. Meeting with various people, for example, Teacher Ashikiwa who resembles his mother, Mishima who is a high school boxing champion, he made his way to be a boxer. (Source: AnimeNfo)

Sue Cat

TV / 40 eps / Summer 1980 / Other

After an accident, the amnesiac Sue was taken in to live with Torao's family. She always had the urge to become a singer, but didn't know why. As it turns out, Sue is actually part of a band formed with her two twin sisters. But Sue's climb to the top of the charts is a long and hard way. (Source: AniDB)

Space Warrior Baldios

TV / 34 eps / Summer 1980 / Original

After polluting their own planet beyond repair, a race of evil aliens target earth as their next home. Now it is up to a lone outcast and his robotic spacecraft, Baldios, to defend earth. But, first he must convince the distrusting human population of the impending danger. (Source: ANN)

The Rose of Versailles

TV / 40 eps / Fall 1979 / Manga

In a time of class stratification and rising tensions amongst the impoverished population, the Austrian Empire sends Princess Marie Antoinette to France to be wed to Crown Prince Louis XVI. The political marriage is arranged to strengthen the alliance between both countries, but the future queen is deeply unsatisfied with her fate being decided for her. Upon arrival in the country, Marie Antoinette is acquainted with Oscar Fançois de Jarjayes—Commander of the Royal Guard. Due to her father's desire for a son, Oscar is raised as a boy with an expectation to inherit his title as The Commander. Though she is revered by both men and women alike, Oscar cannot help but desire to live life as a woman instead of masquerading as a man. As Oscar reluctantly serves the young, spoiled queen, the growing resentment and suffering of the poor become harder for her to ignore—especially when Marie Antoinette frivolously spends her wealth. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Space Runaway Ideon

TV / 39 eps / Spring 1980 / Original

Mankind has traveled to the stars and come across various alien civilizations, now long dead. Upon discovering the archaeological remains of such a civilization on the planet Solo, humanity finally has its first encounter with a living alien species: the Buff Clan. When Karala Ajiba, the daughter of the Buff Clan's military leader, sets foot on the surface of Solo, the Buff Clan launches a brutal assault on the colony to retrieve her. In order to escape, Cosmo Yuki, Kasha Imhof, and Bes Jordan climb aboard three trucks, which soon transform into the giant humanoid robot Ideon. When the settlement on Solo is destroyed, the survivors board a recently discovered spaceship—the Solo Ship—and flee, endeavoring to get away from the aliens and finally find peace. The relentless Buff Clan, however, is still in hot pursuit and will not give up so easily. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Doraemon

TV / 1787 eps / Spring 1979 / Manga

Nobita Nobi is a normal fourth grade student. This all changes, however, when a blue robotic cat appears from his desk drawer. Calling himself Doraemon, this robot tells Nobita that his future descendants from the 22nd century live in poverty because of all the mistakes he made. Therefore, they have sent Doraemon to serve as a guide and mentor to Nobita, so that their future may change for the better. What Doraemon comes to learn, though, is that Nobita is the weakest and laziest student in the whole school. To assist in his quest, Doraemon has a four-dimensional pocket with him, in which he keeps various machines and gadgets from the future. Unfortunately, these often result in even more trouble for Nobita. Will Doraemon really be able to achieve his mission of changing Nobita, or will he remain as he is? [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Lupin the 3rd Part 2

TV / 155 eps / Fall 1977 / Manga

Lupin III chronicles the adventures of Arsene Lupin III, the world's greatest thief, and his partners in crime: master marksman Daisuke Jigen, beautiful and scheming Fujiko Mine and stoic samurai Goemon Ishikawa XIII. Lupin and his gang travel around the globe in search of the world's greatest treasures and riches and always keeping one step ahead of the tireless Inspector Zenigata, who has vowed to bring Lupin to justice. (Source: ANN)

Moero Arthur: Hakuba no Ouji

TV / 22 eps / Spring 1980 / Unknown

Moero Arthur Hakuba no Oji is an anime based on the Arthurian legend and it is a sequel to the earlier series Entaku no Kishi Monogatari: Moero Arthur. This time Arthur conceals his true identity in order to defeat Ziking as he and his four new companions begin a journey of adventures. (Source: Toei Animation)

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

TV / 49 eps / Winter 1980 / Book

Tom Sawyer is a young boy growing up along the Mississippi River in the mid 1800s. Along with his best friend Huckleberry Finn, he spends his days ditching school, fishing, climbing trees and having adventures. (Source: ANN)

Futago no Monchhichi

TV / 130 eps / Winter 1980 / Unknown

Monchichi-chan, the twin sister, loves her twin brother very much. She is a crybaby and always follows her brother. Monchichi-kun, the twin brother, protects his sister. He is a brave adventurer and a fishing champion but sometimes becomes a hasty boy. They enjoy wonderful and mysterious adventures together everyday. When they take a space walk, they ride on a swan of the swan constellation and build a small house with aliens in the space. They can do everything children want to do and dream of. This heartwarming animation series featuring the pretty twins surely gives wonderful dreams, brother-sister love and hopes for the future to all the children in the world. (Source: Production Reed)

Ganbare Gonbe

TV / 77 eps / Spring 1980 / 4-koma manga

Based on the long running (1958 to 1992) gag manga by Sonoyama Shuji. (Source: AniDB)

Galaxy Express 999

TV / 113 eps / Fall 1978 / Manga

In the distant future, humanity has found a way to live forever by purchasing mechanical bodies, but this way to immortality is extraordinarily expensive. An impoverished boy, Tetsurou Hoshino, desires to purchase a pass on the Galaxy Express 999—a train that travels throughout the universe—because it is said that at the end of the line, those aboard can obtain a mechanical body for free. When Tetsurou's mother is gunned down by the villainous machine-man hybrid Count Mecha, however, all seems lost. Tetsurou is then saved from certain death by the mysterious Maetel, a tall woman with blonde hair and a striking resemblance to his mother. She gives him a pass to the Galaxy Express under one condition: that they travel together. Thus, Tetsurou begins his journey across the universe to many unique planets and thrilling adventures, in hopes of being able to attain that which he most desires. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

The Affectuous Family

TV / 1428 eps / Fall 1976 / Unknown

Short comedic stories about events and the daily lives of the members of a large multi-generational family. (Source: AniDB)

Ikkyu the Little Monk

TV / 296 eps / Fall 1975 / Unknown

Ikkyu is a little boy training to be a monk at Ankokuji Temple. Known for being mischievous and a bit of a troublemaker, but also extremely smart, Ikkyu constantly thinks of new ways to outwit his frustrated teachers, helping others at the same time.

Eagle Riders (2)

TV / 48 eps / Fall 1979 / Unknown

After Leader X is seemingly destroyed for good at the end of Gatchaman II, a fragment of him that survived grows and mutates into Z. With the head of the Egobossler family, Count Egobossler (and his two subordinates Mechandol and Kempler), Z is bent on destroying the Earth, and the Science Ninja Team, once more. In the wake of Anderson's death, Dr.Nambu has become the new head of the ISO, while the team is now confined to the Gallatown (aka "G-Town") underwater base. Engineer Kamo is introduced, and after the New GodPhoenix is destroyed early on, the team receives the new Gatchaspartan as their mecha. The Gatchaspartan has a special mode as well, called Hypershoot, that can only be utilized by Ken (with his new "Gatchafencer" sword). As the series progresses, it is learned that the radiation exposure from constant use of the Hypershoot is slowly killing Ken, and that continued use would mean death. Meanwhile, Z plans to destroy the earth with an antimatter asteroid, codenamed "Poison Apple".

Kagee Grimm Douwa

TV / 52 eps / 1980 / Unknown

The 3rd arc of the Chiyotarou Kodomo Gekijou program that aired on TBS. Every episode is a different Brothers Grimm fairy tale told with shadow puppet animation.

Kirin Tomorrow's Calendar

TV / 1306 eps / Winter 1980 / Unknown

Maeterlinck no Aoi Tori: Tyltyl Mytyl no Bouken Ryokou

TV / 26 eps / Winter 1980 / Other

On a snowy Christmas Eve, Tyltyl and Mytyl sit in their home. Normally, they would be caught up in the Christmas spirit, but their mother has taken ill. So that evening, they lie awake, unable to sleep, when through the window crashes a strange, mercurial magical spirit named Berylune, who reveals that the world we live in isn't the only one there is. And so Tyltyl and Mytyl, accompanied by various spirits, as well as their now-humanoid pets, are led on a journey to find the blue bird of happiness and save their mother, and along the way they visit some strange and wondrous places, and finally, must face the spirit of darkness to attain their elusive goal. (Source: themanime.org)

Mahou Shoujo Lalabel

TV / 49 eps / Winter 1980 / Original

Lalabel is a magical girl who arrives in the Human world to stop an evil wizard from stealing various magical objects or items. As a magical girl, she has a kitty for a companion and a magic wand. Coincidentally, she lands on the doorstep of the Tachibana couple and lives in with them during her stay in the human world. She attends the local school and begins to learn about the different things in the human world. (Source: ANN)

Manga Hajimete Monogatari

TV / 305 eps / Spring 1978 / Unknown

An educational program for children featuring various historical events, showing both animation and live action footage. A reoccurring "older sister" and the pink mole Mogutan, will take you on a journey through time.

Manga Nippon Mukashibanashi (1976)

TV / 1471 eps / Winter 1976 / Unknown

An omnibus-format TV series consisting of anime adaptations of Japanese folk tales, this is one of Japan's longest-running TV series, and Group Tac's second TV series (the first was The Road to Munich, a documentary anime about the 1972 Olympics). The governing rule of the series was that the creative staff change from episode to episode. While later other anime series like Nippon Animation's Famous Works of Japanese Literature would attempt the same, none would be as long-lived or successful. The rotation idea was that of director Sugii Gisaburo, a visual visionary unequaled in Japanese film history who has revolutionized anime several times in his career, be it in the 1967 TV series Goku's Big Adventure, in which he sought to shake anime free from the dominance of story development by yanking it back to a more cartoonish form, or The Belladonna of Sadness, where he broke the Disney full-animation mold, creating a full-length animated film in a completely new style that was a hybrid of still drawings and animation. The reason for rotating the staff each episode was so that each episode would have a completely different look and feel from its predecessor, and in this it was eminently successful. This is a series that is genuinely rewarding to watch, and is visually one of the richest in anime history. While this system also meant that quality varied, there were also occasionally superb episodes, as on the staff were many veterans like Group Tac founder SUGII Gisaburo himself, SHIBAYAMA Tsutomu, FURUZAWA Hideo, RIN Taro, and HIKONE Norio. Old episodes started being repeated more and more frequently as the years went on, and production of new episodes finally ceased completely in late 1995, but the series is still widely broadcast. (Source: Pelleas)

Invincible Robo Trider G7

TV / 50 eps / Winter 1980 / Original

Takeo Watta inherits a company upon his father's death. The company focuses on space travel, and the transformable robot Trider-G7 is their greatest creation. When an evil space organization lead by Lord Zakuron starts attacking Earth, Watta has to use Trider in a more combat-oriented way. (Source: ANN)

The White Whale of Mu

TV / 26 eps / Spring 1980 / Original

In ancient times, the continents of Atlantis and Mu fought a war, and Atlantis lost. After losing the war, Atlantis transformed itself into a small planet and timeslipped to the present-day to try to take over the world again. But five warriors from Mu assemble on Easter Island, and together with giant cyborg white whale that houses the brain of the ancient queen of Mu, fight Atlantis off at various famous ruins around the world. (Source: AniDB)

Wonderful Adventures of Nils

TV / 52 eps / Winter 1980 / Novel

Nils Holgersson is a young boy on a farm who is cruel to the animals. But when he catches the farm's little goblin it becomes one prank too many. He is magically shrunk and suddenly the farm animals are out for revenge. He flees on the back of the goose Morten and they join up with a flock of wild geese. Together they travel all over Sweden, with Nils hoping to find a way to become big again. (Source: ANN)

にんぎょうげき

TV_SHORT / 510 eps / Spring 1956 / OTHER

Puppet-animated show made for elementary school students in the lower grades with the aim of teaching children life lessons and morals while also nurturing healthy imagination. It adapts a wide array of stories; originating from foreign folktales, comtemporary fairytales and classic books.<br> The name originally was Puppet Show (人形劇) but in 1966 it was changed to "Ningyougeki" in hiragana.

Mrs. Sazae

TV / Fall 1969 / 4-koma manga

The main character is a mother named Sazae-san. She lives in a house with her husband, her kids and her parents. The show is the ultimate family program and tends to follow traditional themes. Think of this show as the Japanese equivalent to "The Partridge Family" and you'll get a good feel for this show's atmosphere. Don't expect to see things like violence, swearing, kung-fu action or magical girls. The plots are more like "Today, Sazae-san goes to the new mall and gets lost". Such "boring" plotlines and the simplistic art are often a turn-off to non-Japanese audiences, but most Japanese find the show incredibly good. As a result, it continues to be one of the top ratings grabbers on TV and is one of the few anime that is considered "acceptable" by adults. (Source: AniDB)

Time Bokan Series: Time Patroltai Otasukeman

TV / 53 eps / Winter 1980 / Unknown

Burning with ambitions to become the most beautiful woman, the most renowned scientist, and the greatest hero the world has ever known, three villains, Atasha, Sekobitchi and Duwarusuki, unite. The trio are Time Patrollers, the keepers and protectors of the annals of history. But, this is only a cover for the trio, as the villains are league with a nefarious leader, who is trying to alter the course of history to suit his desires, and, under his instructions, the trio travel in time with the aim of tampering with recorded history. Only Hikaru and Nana, disguised as the Otasukemen, stand between the villains and their goals. (Source: Wikipedia)

Gordian Warrior

TV / 73 eps / Fall 1979 / Original

The Earth had become a wasteland of deserts as the survivors work to rebuild communities. Daigo Otaki is a young orphan raised by his uncle. Becoming an adult, Daigo discovers that Victor City was in fact planned by his father who was a genius scientist. Daigo's sister Saori had been managing it. She plead Daigo to take on the inheritance that Daigo's father left him, a super robot system known as Gordian. Daigo would join the Mechacon mechanic combat 18th regiment unit, an organization of law enforcers that defend Victor City against attacks from the Madokuta organization. (Source: Gordian Warrior, Wikipedia)

Sanpei the Fisherman

TV / 109 eps / Spring 1980 / Manga

Mihira Sanpei talks with a Tohou accent and is a down-to-earth boy with a cheerful and optimistic personality. However, when it comes to fishing, he becomes very serious and is a youth who enjoys fishing more than anything else. The village where he lives in is a natural environment which provides different kinds of fishing challenges. Despite his lack of experience, Sanpei has a first-rate sense with regards to fishing and decides to maxmise his potential by entering into different fishing contests. As he faces various challenges, he learns to solve difficult problems and learn from his mistakes to the extent that he is able to fish anything out of the waters. Along the way, he encounters all kinds of rivals and companions who increase his experience points and help him in his growth. (Source: ANN)

Space Emperor God Sigma

TV / 50 eps / Spring 1980 / Unknown

The story is set in the year 2050 AD, and mankind has been steadily advancing its space technology. However, the planet is suddenly set upon by a mysterious enemy: the forces of Eldar, who came from 250 years in the future. In their time, 2300 AD, their planet Eldar was invaded by Earth, and soundly defeated by Earth's Trinity Energy, a mysterious energy used in their weaponry that possesses power many times that of a hydrogen bomb. The Eldar people's objective is to steal this Trinity Energy before it can be used against them. The Eldar forces begin by taking over Jupiter's moon Io, one of the places humanity has immigrated to by then. After that, they begin to attack Trinity City with their legions of Cosmosauruses in order to steal the Trinity Energy. Toshiya and his friends use God Sigma to protect the planet and the Trinity Energy, and the battle evolves into a long war to retake Io. (Source: Wikipedia)

Don Quixote

TV / 23 eps / Spring 1980 / Novel

Don Quixote, that infinitely popular character, travels the countryside battling windmills and attempting to win the love of his Dulcinea.

Eleven Cats

Movie / 1 eps / Summer 1980 / Picture book

A gang of eleven stray cats wreak havoc in a small town, costing them much trouble. They defend themselves by stating they were just 'hungry'. The cats hear of an urban legend about a scary, giant fish. They decide to take on the challenge to find and catch that fish, proving the citizens of the town that they're not all useless after all. The task is pretty tricky and the path they have to cross is stony and danger lurks everywhere. Will our little furry heroes be brave, confident and strong enough to master the challenge of challenges?

Spooky Kitaro: The All Seeing Eye

Movie / 1 eps / Summer 1980 / Unknown

An abbreviated 12 minute version of episode 37 from the 1971 TV anime. This was shown as part of the summer 1980 Toei Manga Matsuri and uses entirely recycled footage. (Source: TSHS)

Mahou Shoujo Lalabel: Umi ga Yobu Natsuyasumi

Movie / 1 eps / Summer 1980 / Original

During the summer, Lalabel and her friends, Teko and Toko, arrived at the hostel owned by Teko's uncle. Teko's uncle and aunt have gone to the operation of their acquiantance, leaving their son, Ryota, to manage the hostel all by himself. Lalabel decides to help the boy out and together, all of them become involved in the management of the hostel. (Source: ANN)

Be Forever Yamato

Movie / 1 eps / Summer 1980 / Original

The Black Nebula Empire attacks Earth and threatens to blow up the planet with a bomb they placed on Earth if counter attacked. Earths hopes rest on the Yamato crew as they go to the Black Nebula Planet and try to find a way to difuse the bomb before it's too late. (Source: ANN)

Fumoon

TV Special / 1 eps / Summer 1980 / Manga

Nuclear testing has resulted in the abrupt evolution of the Fumoon, a tiny but highly intelligent humanoid race on a small island, who are detected by Dr. Yamadano. Except for a few witnesses including the detective Shinsaku Ban, and the young men Rock and Kenichi and Kenichi’s sister Pichi (Pinoko), no one believes him. The Fumoon are kidnapping animals from around the world to bring with them as they use their space ships to evacuate the earth, because they know Earth is shortly to be destroyed by an enveloping cloud of black gas created by a stellar explosion. The Fumoon intend to abandon mankind, but one Fumoon, Rokoko, who becomes good friends with Kenichi, tries to help Dr. Yamadano and the others to develop a space ship to allow a few humans to escape, with the help of Dr. Ochanomizu and Dr. Frankenstein. (Source: Tezukainenglish.com)

The Legend of Marine Snow

TV Special / 1 eps / Summer 1980 / Unknown

This little-known and poorly documented Leiji Matsumoto TV movie, tells the story of the revolution of the people of the ocean which are being invaded by the humans from the surface. (Source: Senscritique)