AJAS RETRO EVENT NIGHT #4 - 80s Night PART 1 - 1980-1984

Warning: Contains high levels of corniness, big hair, old-school fighting, police and villains that can't aim, a missile circus with a Budweiser can and a lot of love.

Playlist is not 100% final, because sometimes, life happens.

Playlist will commence at 5.50......because someone forgot to put in something important

LIKELY LINEUP IS THE FOLLOWING:


ARMORED TROOPER VOTOMS - EPISODE 1



Aired: 1st April 1983 to 23rd March 1984

Length: 52 episodes

Description: Caught up in an illegal mission to steal military secrets, Armored Trooper Chirico Cuvie is on the run from his own army. Left to die by his traitorous commanders, Chirico makes his way to Uoodo City - a hive of criminals and refugees - where he'll need all of his battlefield-honed skills to survive. Driven by the image of a mysterious woman whose destiny is linked to his own, Chirico begins a quest that will shake the foundations of the entire galaxy!





FIST OF THE NORTH STAR - EPISODE 1



Aired: 4th October 1984 to 5th March 1987

Length: 109 episodes

Description: A legendary fighter able to call on secret powers, he is an unrivaled practitioner of a martial art that fights violence with worse violence to enforce justice. Kenshiro is the man with the seven scars, the heir to the ancient martial art of Hokuto Shinken. He is the Fist of The North Star. Hokuto Shinken is a masterful technique, based on the secret energy points of the human body that enable life. By striking them in various sequences, the practitioner of Hokuto Shinken can manipulate a persons body. Strike one combination and you cure disease. Another, and you wipe a man's memories away. Strike another, and a persons body will rip itself apart...........




SHERLOCK HOUND - EPISODE 4



Aired: 6th November 1984 to 21st May 1985

Length: 26 episodes

Description: Sherlock Holmes, the brilliant detective of late 1800s London, solves the most difficult and zany of crimes with the aid of his faithful assistant, Doctor Watson, along with the charming widow Miss Hudson. They continually foil the plans of the bone-headed genius villian Professor Moriarty while the equally incompetent yet spirited Inspector Lestrade and Scotland Yard make amusing attempt after amusing attempt to catch Moriarty and his henchmen. It's like the books you read...except the characters are now dogs, they're younger, they have steam punk technology...in fact, this isn't like the books you read! XD




MACROSS MOVIE - DO YOU REMEMBER LOVE?



Theatrical release: 7th July 1984

Description: A reworking of the original Macross TV series (known as Robotech in the West), Hikaru is a Valkyrie pilot aboard the Macross which is in the middle of a cosmic war against the giant Zentraedi. During the battle, he comes across the pop star Lynn Minmay whose singing might be the only hope against the Zentraedi's culture. But can she sing when Hiraku, her love is caught between the pop star and the Lieutenant Misa? Filled with aerial combat choreography and emotional drama, the release of Macross: DYRL was a major event in Japan.

Ive been wanting to watch Macross: Do you remember love for ages. Great to see it on the playlist. I really really hope it doesnt dissapoint me. Old shows tend to do that *sigh*

It won't disappoint you. It's brilliant. Hell, just about about everyone who was there at the end of tonight's meeting said they wanted to see it.

Told you this had to be played at all costs, Greg. Now do you understand why?

I had to go through every Sherlock Hound episode to find one I thought would be best with the crowd, as it is a fairly episodic show that is consistently good throughout, so it wasn't an easy choice. I debated long and hard with myself since Adam told me I should pick the Hound episode and advised me on Votoms and North Star episodes. 3 has the Press Machine/Counterfeiting fiasco was a better Moriarty scheme + that epic scrum by Holmes + Lestrade and was probably the first to do Lestrade and his crew justice, but it was still a bit tame compared to other episodes. 9 had that epic 'War on the River Thames!' and the underwater treasure saga but was really dominated by a couple of one-off characters - Lestrade and Miss Hudson, as well as Holmes and Watson to a degree, didn't get enough airtime despite the mayhem, so it didn't seem a good introduction to the character dynamics. 10 is classic and Miss Hudson just goes berserk in this one with its excess. But again, that's the problem - it's her episode. Lestrade and co. don't even appear, Holmes and Watson are reasonable while Moriarty and co. have had far better moments/schemes, so the character relationships would seem a bit weird for the first timer.

4 makes a lot of sense to a first time viewer - I didn't see the first episode when I first saw this back in the 80s. This was one of the first I saw. Moriarty actually comes up with a brilliant scheme. Holmes and Watson really have to lift their game to a stellar level to avoid losing to Moriarty. Lestrade and his cronies are at their chaotic best. And Miss Hudson throws a spanner in the works that allows her to shine but without detracting from the episode's plot. If I needed to pick one episode to summarise this show best as well as the character dynamics, 4 is the one. Episode 1 is decent but it has next to no Lestrade, no Moriarty (he didn't appear until ep2) and no Miss Hudson. Most Sherlock Hound episodes have their pros and cons. 4 is one of the best, if not the best for a first timer, because it truly displays all of the best aspects of the series, plus was one of the 6 episodes Miyazaki was involved in. (He was in the crew for 3-5 and 9-11)

As for the other series, Adam was of the opinion Episodes 1 and 49 of Ken were the best to show. Tried both - both great but 49 kind of needs backstory in a way, even if it has a classic fight in it. Episode 1 does fill a lot of necessary detail in and has good fights. Votoms - yeah, that betrayl is crucial. Plus that naked chick at the halfway point is crucial to the protagonist's motivations. Not to mention we couldn't have all the 80s fanservice only be on the 2nd night - had to have some on the 1st night, so ep1 was an obvious choice. Because City Hunter and Dirty Pair have a lot.