Spider-Man (Japanese TV series)

The Japanese Spider-Man costume

In this series, Spider-Man's civilian identity is Takuya Yamashiro (山城 拓也, Yamashiro Takuya), a 22-year-old motocross racer. He has the ability to perceive threats from the Iron Cross Army with his spider-senses. He fights the Iron Cross Army in order to avenge his father's death. To conceal his superhero identity, Takuya acts as a weakling in front of his friends. Takuya gets chastised by his friends whenever he runs away from danger and is often compared unfavorably to Spider-Man. Moreover, his financial income as a motorcycle racer decreases after becoming Spider-Man due to his reduced participation in races, forcing him to assist Hitomi in her job to pay for his expenses.

Takuya assumes the identity of Spider-Man when he dons the protective suit known as the Spider-Protector. He is genetically altered as a result of the Spider-Extract injected into his body by Garia, gaining spider-like abilities such as being able to stick to and climb up walls. He can also detect the activities of nearby enemies with his Spider-Senses, and his physical strength is greater than the average person. However, he has also inherited some of the same weaknesses actual spiders have, such as a strong sensitivity towards cold.

Spider-Man keeps his true identity a secret from the public, although his reputation as a defender of justice is established early on. Spider-Man even gets a hit song named after him called the "Spider-Man Boogie" in Episode 7. Only Juzo Mamiya and the staff of the Interpol Secret Intelligence Division know of Spider-Man's true identity, starting with the movie and every episode in the series from 11 and onward. They cooperate in various instances to thwart the schemes of the Iron Cross Army.

Spider-Man spends most of the series fighting off Ninders (the Iron Cross Army's foot soldiers). He rarely finishes the Machine BEMs by himself, as they usually turn giant, forcing Spider-Man to summon Leopardon. Spider-Man thus occupies a peculiar position in the Japanese superhero genre of having no signature finishing move or weapon, such as Kamen Rider's Rider Kick or Kikaider's Denji End.

When Spider-Man faces the enemy in each episode, he introduces himself while performing a dramatic pose. A version of the show's theme song then plays as background music as Spider-Man begins to fight. The same shot of Spider-Man conducting the pose would be used repeatedly a couple of times before battle. Toei's version of Spider-Man rarely uses his web shooter to swing between buildings, as his main mode of transportation is a car called the Spider Machine GP-7, along with an aircraft called the Marveller. His web shooter instead shoots a rope which he latches onto things and he swings with it using both hands like Tarzan.

Spider Protector (スパイダープロテクター, Supaidā Purotekutā)

Takuya's Spider-Man costume. Unlike his Marvel counterpart, Takuya keeps his outfit stored inside his Spider Bracelet and wears it only when changing identities. When Takuya releases it from his bracelet, it instantly wraps onto his body, allowing Takuya to change into it easily.

Spider Bracelet (スパイダーブレスレット, Supaidā Buresuretto)

A bracelet worn around Spider-Man's left wrist, used to shoot webbing and to store the Spider Protector when Takuya is not wearing it.[5] The Spider Bracelet's webbing takes the form of nets and strings made from "Spider Fluid", which is stored within the bracelet and is produced indefinitely. The bracelet is also equipped with a homing device that allows Spider-Man to summon the GP-7 or Marveller. No toy version of the Spider Bracelet was ever made during the run of the show's airing, while related products and manga adaptations omitted the bracelet altogether. A lighter version of the Spider Bracelet prop was built specifically for action scenes, since the one used in close shots was too heavy for the suit actor to wear during stunts.

Spider Strings (スパイダーストリングス, Supaidā Sutoringusu)

A rope made of spider webbing shot from Spider-Man's Spider Bracelet. It can pull objects that weigh more than a hundred tons.

Spider Net (スパイダーネット, Supaidā Netto)

A net made of spider webbing also shot from Spider-Man's Spider Bracelet. It is used to capture a group of enemies at once.

The Spider Machine GP-7 (スパイダーマシンGP-7, Supaidā Mashin Jī Pī Sebun)

Spider-Man's flying car. The car is equipped with machine guns and missile launchers inside its bonnet. It is usually stored inside the Marveller aircraft.[5] The name GP-7 is a reference to the name of the American producer Gene Pelc.[1][2]

The Marveller (マーベラー, Māberā)

The spacecraft that Garia came to Earth with. It is 45 meters (approx 150 feet) tall and weighs over 25,000 tons. It is usually stored underground and surfaces by cracking the ground whenever Spider-Man summons it. The ship's bridge is shaped like a leopard's head, which is where Leopardon's head is stored, and cracks left and right when transforming into robot mode. It is capable of flying to outer space at the speed of light. Because Marveller is usually transformed immediately into Leopardon whenever Spider-Man boards it, it is rarely seen in spacecraft mode. The Marveller is primarily equipped with cannons on its bow, which are capable of destroying most Machine BEMs.

Leopardon, Spider-Man's giant robot.

Leopardon (レオパルドン, Reoparudon) is a giant robot that Marveller can transform into. It is over 60 meters (approx. 200 feet) tall and has a weight of over 25,000 tons.

Only the first few episodes of the series featured actual battle scenes between Leopardon and the giant-sized Machine BEMs. As the series progressed the dramatic portions of the episodes were made longer, while battle scenes were made shorter in order to keep up with the running time. Because of this, there were numerous episodes in which Leopardon would throw his sword immediately after transforming from Marveller, finishing off the Machine BEM in a single blow. A few episodes did not even feature Leopardon at all. Leopardon does not suffer any damages, not even during the final battle against the giant version of Professor Monster, who is finished off with the Sword Vigor throw like most of the previous Machine BEMs.

Leopardon and the giant-sized Machine Bems rarely appeared together in the same shots; most of the giant-sized battles involved Leopardon in one shot and the Machine BEM in another launching projectiles at each other. This was because the large Leopardon model often dwarfed the stuntmen in the Machine BEM suits. Due to structural problems, the Leopardon suit was difficult for the stuntman to move in and during the course of the series, the suit was damaged and later lost. As a result, all future fight scenes with Leopardon could only be made using stock footage of previous fights.

Hitomi Sakuma (佐久間 ひとみ, Sakuma Hitomi)

Takuya's girlfriend, a 20-year-old freelance photographer. She is the only main character besides Spider-Man to ride the Spider Machine GP-7.

Shinko Yamashiro (山城 新子, Yamashiro Shinko)

Takuya's 18-year-old younger sister, who takes care of the household chores for the Yamashiro residence.

Takuji Yamashiro (山城 拓次, Yamashiro Takuji)

Takuya's 7-year-old younger brother.

Dr. Yamashiro (山城博士, Yamashiro-hakase)

Takuya's father. An astronomer who is killed during the first episode after his research led to the discovery of the Iron Cross Army.

Garia (ガリア)

An alien from Planet Spider. 400 years prior to the events of the first episode, he pursued the Iron Cross Army in search of vengeance after they destroyed his homeworld, but crash-landed into the Earth and was imprisoned in a cave for centuries. He is the one who injects Takuya with the Spider Extract. Garia died in Episode 2.

Juzo Mamiya (間宮 重三, Mamiya Jūzō)

An investigator in charge of Interpol's Secret Intelligence Division. He manages to uncover the fact that Spider-Man is Takuya and asks for his assistance in their mutual battle against the Iron Cross Army. Upon agreeing, Takuya receives a radio transmitter from him, which allows Spider-Man to rendezvous with Interpol and vice versa.

The Iron Cross Army (鉄十字団, Tetsu Jūji Dan) are the main villains of the series. They are an alien army that has destroyed numerous galaxies in their path of conquest.

Professor Monster (モンスター教授, Monsutā-kyōju)

The leader of the Iron Cross Army. He was responsible for the destruction of Planet Spider and 400 years later, he seeks to conquer the Earth as well. The blood of other lifeforms serves as the source of his immortality. In the final episode, he enlarges himself and turns into "Big Monster", but is defeated by a single strike of Leopardon's "Sword Vigour" attack. He resembles Doctor Doom though it has never confirmed he was be the inspiration.

Amazoness (アマゾネス, Amazonesu)

The female commander of the Iron Cross Army. She is in charge of espionage and the planning of attacks. From the beginning of the series, she assumes the identity of Saeko Yoshida (吉田 冴子, Yoshida Saeko), the editor of Weekly Woman (週刊ウーマン, Shūkan-ūman) magazine. After Spider-Man sees through Saeko's true identity, she disappears from her job and Weekly Woman is discontinued shortly afterward. Although she suspects that Takuya is really Spider-Man, she is unable to prove this without a doubt until the final episode. Her outfit changes throughout the course of the series: she wears a black leotard with her own natural hair for the first 18 episodes; a silver mini-skirt outfit and a red hairpiece for episodes 19 throughout 30 and 32; the same outfit but with a black hairpiece for episodes 31 and 33 to 38; and her original leotard outfit with a hairpiece for the final three episodes.

Bella and Rita (ベラ＆リタ, Bera to Rita)

Two ancient female warriors from an uncharted region of the Amazons whose mummified bodies were resurrected by Professor Monster. Bella uses a bow with poisoned arrows, while Rita wields a machine-gun.

Ninders (ニンダー, Nindā, subtitled only as Iron Cross Army henchmen in Marvel website)

The foot soldiers of the Iron Cross Army. They disguise themselves as humans while conducting undercover missions in public, but are still identifiable by the exposed circuits behind their ears and their metallic hands.

Biological weapons created by the Iron Cross Army. A new Machine Bem (マシーンベム, Mashīn Bemu) is usually created for each plot, usually to carry out the Iron Cross Army's plans or to serve as a bodyguard. The origins of the Machine Bems are never fully clarified, although a few of them (like Samson) are actually genetically modified humans, while others (like the Monster Cat) were apparitions brought back to life. The Machine Bems have the ability to change size at will, changing not only to giant size, but also to small palm sizes as well (such as the case with Kabuton).

Apart from the costume and powers of the main character, this TV series is unrelated to Ryoichi Ikegami's earlier manga adaptation of Spider-Man or the original Spider-Man comics. However, several manga adaptations of the Toei version were published by different magazines, such as TV Land, Tanoshī Yōchien, TV Magazine, and Bōken'ō.[12]

Takuya Yamashiro and Leopardon appeared in several issues of the 2014 and 2018 comic book events Spider-Verse and Spider-Geddon, alongside other alternate universe versions of Spider-Man such as Miles Morales and Miguel O'Hara (Spider-Man 2099), thereby allowing Yamashiro to interact with his fellow Spider-Men for the first time in Marvel canon.[13]

A version of Spider-Man's giant robot, Leopardon, appears in Ernest Cline's novel Ready Player One.