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is a 75-episode animated television series, created by Ryosuke Takahashi and Sunrise, and aired in Japan from October 23 1981 to March 25 1983 on TV Tokyo. A 1983 full-length feature film, Dougram: Documentary of the Fang of the Sun, summarized the series.
Plot Malcontents on the Deloyer colony agitate for the independence of their world from the Earth Federation. In an unexpected coup, the elected Governor declares martial law and sets himself up as absolute dictator. With the approval of the Federation, he rules the planet with an iron fist. In reaction, a ragtag group (including the governor's estranged son) rises in open rebellion, using a powerful prototype Combat Armor: the Dougram. Their goal is the end of the dictatorship and total independence from the Federation's influence. The story follows the action of the guerilla freedom fighters known as "The Fang of the Sun." The war is fought across the planet Deloyer as the Federation vigorously pursues the rebels. Characters Combat Armors
Influence Dougram was one of the first successors to the "real robot" (real robots have 3 important characteristics: their weapons rely on ammunition, they must be regularly maintained and their power source is not infinite) genre created by Mobile Suit Gundam. It featured a similar plot centered around a small team fighting a running battle with a powerful enemy, using an advanced mecha. The show was a surprise success, especially considering the heavy emphasis on military tactics which slowed the pace of the story, and further confirmed that military mecha science-fiction was here to stay. Takahashi and Sunrise would go on create a follow-up series, Armored Trooper Votoms, which used similar styling and themes but was otherwise unrelated in plot, characters or setting. Merchandising Toymaker Takara was the show's main licensee. They made a very successful plastic model kit series, a large number of diecast toys, and also released several strategy wargames set in the Dougram world. The latter included tiny, unpainted diecast combat armors as playing pieces; additional scale accessories were available separately. The diecast toys were produced in three sizes. The 1:144 scale "Collection Series" featured a hollow diecast body and leg structure, with plastic detail parts. The "Dual Model Series" (in two scales, 1:72 and 1:48) featured a zinc-diecast endoskeleton upon which plastic armor pieces were attached. Although the imported toys were physically identical to the Japanese ones, the packages were modified for American shelves. The 1:144 scale boxes had sleeves to be hung from pegs, while the larger toys had English-language stickers glued over the original boxes. Takara also produced a magnetically-jointed Dougram and several soft-vinyl toys. Although the vinyls did not have specific scales, they appeared to be between 1:100 and 1:60 scale. Toy manufacturer Seven, a Takara spin-off devoted to low-end toys, produced several plastic and rubber Dougram toys as well. Controversy Neither the film nor the television series were released in North America. However, plastic model kit manufacturer Revell released many of Takara's Dougram kits as characters in their Robotech Defender series, and Takara sold much of their diecast toy line through American toy stores in the mid-Eighties. The detailed construction of the toys, the lack of any background info on the characters, and the revolutionary slogans printed on the boxes ("Fight! Dougram to save independence of the Deloyer!" or "We will never approve independence from our federation!") confused many. In the mid 1980s, American gaming company FASA used the vehicle designs of the show for its Battletech miniature wargame and role-playing game. The first edition, then named BattleDroids, actually included two Japanese 1/144 model kits from Dougram. FASA was later sued for copyright infringement for using mecha designs from Macross (for example, Valkyrie fighters renamed Stinger, Wasp and Phoenix Hawk) and Dougram (among others, Dougram renamed as Shadow Hawk, Crabgunner as Goliath, and Blizzard Gunner as Scorpion), allegedly without the proper copyright license. The related lawsuits were settled out of court, and post-lawsuit Battletech products do not feature the designs under contention. The Dougram tabletop battling game also came out in 1984, a year before (Battledroids)Battletech was released in America. Related links | ||||||||||
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