Eagle Riders
| Eagle Riders | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Saban Entertainment |
| Based on |
Gatchaman II and Gatchaman Fighter by Ippei Kuri |
| Written by | R.D. Smithee Marc Handler Dayna Barron Melora Harte Michael Sorich Richard Epcar Ronni Pear Steve Kramer Tom Wyner Winston Richard |
| Voices of | Dena Burton Richard Cansino Lara Cody Bryan Cranston R. Martin Klein Heidi Lenhart Mona Marshall Greg O'Neill Paul Schrier Peter Spellos |
| Theme music composer |
Shuki Levy Kussa Mahchi Jeremy Sweet |
| Composer(s) | Shuki Levy Kussa Mahchi |
| Country of origin |
United States Japan |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of episodes | 65 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Eric S. Rollman |
| Producer(s) | Rita M. Acosta |
| Production company(s) |
Saban Entertainment, Inc. Saban International N.V. |
| Distributor | Saban Entertainment, Inc. (former) Disney–ABC Domestic Television (current) |
| Release | |
| Original network | First-run syndication, Network Ten |
| Original release | September 9, 1996 – January 1, 1997 |
Eagle Riders (also known as Saban's Eagle Riders) is an American animated television adaptation of the Japanese anime series Gatchaman II and Gatchaman Fighter, which have been combined together. The rights to the English-language version of Eagle Riders is owned by Saban Entertainment. All 65 episodes aired in Australia on Network Ten; but in the United States, only 13 episodes were aired.
Earth is under siege from the alien menace known only by the name Cybercon and its legion of android forces, the Vorak. The Global Security Council convenes to address this problem, and calls upon Dr. Thaddeus Keane for assistance. They remember the aid they had received from Keane's special force, the Eagle Riders, in years past. Keane assures them that the Eagle Riders are still together, still strong, and armed with brand new weapons.
Both series were heavily edited when it came to the adaptation process, with controversial elements removed, as well as the entire soundtrack being replaced. As with previous English adaptations of Gatchaman, character names and terms were also changed in the localization.
One notable example of the changes made to the series is the removal of Mallanox (Gel Sadra)'s origin and transformation, which happened in the premiere episode of the original Gatchaman II. The character was also changed from female to male, though her correct gender and origin were reinstated in later dub episodes.
Another change, made to segue the two series together, involved the finale of Gatchaman II and the first episode of Gatchaman Fighter being merged, as well as the death of Gel Sadra being cut. Instead, Mallanox is said to have been transformed into a new form, named Happy Boy (originally, the Gatchaman Fighter villain Count Egobossler).
The final eight episodes of Gatchaman Fighter were never translated, due to the objectionable content involved. Instead, the 15th episode of Gatchaman Fighter served as the series finale.
The renaming of the various characters and terms in Eagle Riders are highlighted as follows (in correspondence to their Gatchaman equivalents, among others):
‡The original Japanese-language version of Gatchaman contains a small amount of words in English.
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