Cyborg 009: The Cyborg Soldier

Don't blame me, this is my first review. And I'm not american/english, lol.

The story is one of the first of its kind: people transformated in machine, like Astro Boy before and Kyashan after.
Shotaro Ishinomori made out, with an american-like style, a perfect mix of action an drama, in fact in the anime there is more space for feelings and the story isn't centered only on the fight against Black Ghost.
At first, characters weren't well delineated, but they evolved with the art and the flow of the time.
Ishinomori, who was a cinematography fan, put in this work a lot of movie quotes (ex. Jet Link's ... introduction, an evident quote from "West Side Story").

Story
9 people, kidnapped from and evil organization, the Black Ghost, and trasformed in nine cyborgs, rebelled themselves and escaped at the time of freedom.
Don't be afraid if you don't like old anime/manga, because cyborg 009 has a never old story: simple and linear, it can satisfied everybody.
There are serious themes too, like the sad past which everyone have lived or the intolerance to be a cyborg.
There is a bit of romance in it too, so that's a bit of a plus.
I give to this: 7/10

Art:
Well, the art is not the best, even because it's from early 60s, and when a japanese drawed a comics there was a lot of american influence, so it seems be a cartoon than a manga. It improved really much in the final numbers of the manga, and was get the old style back for doing 2001 anime: this was a further improve for the style, but sometimes it looks to be too approssimative.
I give to this: 6/10

Sound:
There aren't characters song, but only a main theme which is put under a fight scene, or when all the cyborgs appear.
In my humble opinion, I didn't hear any other OST under the episodes, so this is one of the defectes.
2001's Openings and Endings are awesome and they fill perfectly with the story.
I give to this: 7/10

Characters:
At the first characters weren't really definieded (like I said before), they had a summary past which entroduced them, but in the anime theirs have an important role, in fact a lot of episodes are centered about their normal life.
In this anime there are a main cast who appear in every episode, and some figurehead, but no one is unsuitable or boring.
I think there aren't hatable characters: maybe 009, for his depressive and sad actitude, or only because he is the hero of the day.
They will be well knowed at the end of the serie, from their past or their habits, but no one evolve in the flow of the serie, perhaps this an other fail from Cyborg.
I give to this: 8/10

This anime is one Ishinomori-sensei's masterpiece, it is enjoyable to watch and the story involve the viewer at the point to say "Oh my God, I MUST KNOW.", there are a lot of black hole because of the early death of the sensei, who was working on the 2001 serie when he is dead, but this doesn't weaken the beautifulness of this work.
Sorry if my review can't make full appreciate Cyborg 009, but for believe you must see ! :3
I want to put a 10/10, but I can't, I should be objective, lol.

So this is an other 8/10.

After watching the both versions, original and English dub, it must be said that this is one of those unfortunate shows that got "dumbed down" or "softened" when it hit the air outside Japan; There are times when English dub adds dialogue that never took place in the original, English version has censorship when it comes to death (though no blood was shown in the original either) and so on. English version also sometimes changes lines completely. For example let's take the last scene in episode 21 [SPOILER FREE]: in the original version couple people of the cyborg group hear unfortunate news and 009 ponders ... to himself "what did we fight for?", then after a slow fade transition the scene shows some statues under a lighting storm to set up the next "adventure", if you can call it that. The English version made me cringe; The same scene goes 009 saying "Dr. Ross gave us an adventure we'll never forget. Meanwhile--" and then he goes on and on narrating about the statues and setting up the next ark when the original let the pictures talk for themselves. Changes like this are all over the series and make the characters way too undeviating.

What I mean to say is: watch the original version! The characters are more believable with their voice acting and the dialogue makes a lot more sense. But if you watch this with English subtitles, I'm almost positive, that you'll end up with the subtitles that are straight copied from the English audio. If you don't know Japanese and can't spot the differences in the general dialogue, then at least you'll notice the non-existing dialogue that according to the subtitles is taking place.

The sound design has become iconic to myself and if any of those sounds used in this show are used in any other installments, I will notice. Cyborg 009: The Cyborg Soldier also has one of the best soundtracks I've come across and I even ended up purchasing the two albums.

I've watched this series 3 ½ times and gotta say, though most likely the suitable demographic is children, this series still holds a special place in my heart. However, it's nowhere near perfect and gets 7/10 from me. Favorite episode: 33 - Frozen time.

This anime kinda takes me back. Not back in 1979 when the original was broadcast, but back when Cartoon Network was still broadcasting Toonami. I remember seeing an episode of this program on Toonami. I don't remember when, but I know it was when Toonami was still airing.
But enough about old memories. Cyborg 009 is the anime for you if you are into retro stuff. You know back in the 70s or 80s. The story is about nine people who were transformed into cyborgs by the evil Black Ghost. And now they are rebelling against him. The characters all seem sort of cartoonist esspeacially 007. ... The one thing that angers me is that 003 dosen't really do any fighting. All she does is locate the enemies standing and the guys just take it from there. I feel like this anime is sort of sexist because of how they make the main female character useless. That's one negative spot about this show.
The music is a different story. It's like the best music I've ever heard in my life. It's just the coolest techno music in anime history.
So this anime about average. Love it. Hate it. Dosen't matter to me.

Cyborg 009 has, in my opinion, one of the greatest endings out of any anime. It also has some of the best stand-alone episodes such as "Frozen time" but this is also mixed with filler. The music and art designs are some of my favourites, especially when the cartoony art contrasts with the dark themes. Each character has a unique backstory and are based from around the world. Some characters are serious while others are usually comedy relief (they can be serious and reliable when called upon) so there is a good variety. This anime has it all: heroism, rebellion, mystery, a great story and ... fight scenes.

I don’t understand why people focus on small things like it’s a show for adults or kids, there are some peeps who keep their kid side even though they’re older. This is a show that is for everyone as it conveys good messages to lil jimmy's and adults (It’s an universal underrated masterpiece ). This show have some crazy adult themes with no sexual content, so It's a safe show to watch with the family. What I like is that It's a show that is smartly done and both the younger and older peeps can enjoy it.

Back in the day saying that you like anime ... is like literally a death sentence for your social life, so I had some fun with that stuff for a while until it began slowly but surely to change later on thankfully. And cyborg 009 is a great example of a show that gives output on how great animation can convey special emotions to the audience. It isn't mainstream by any means but It stays as a true classic that delivers whenever you watch it.
I have many memories with Cyborg 009 as I watched some parts randomly on tv long ass time ago, while being a kid I felt different things at the moment like sorrow, fun, cool heroes, they work as a group complementing each other’s abilities, staying true to themselves, missing their countries, fighting back against evil entities and never giving up when the situation became dire.

This is a rare anime that you could watch with anyone be it young or old which is F*king amazing… They talk about disasters, poverty, war, homelessness, greed, culinary, love, family, unity and much more. It didn't matter to see blood. I didn’t even feel like it was needed to be shown as we have cyborgs here so you can understand when they’re in pain, the way they convey it through little details is easy to understand and follow. It's a smart choice made by animators.
This series is really old by today’s standards and I understand that, it may not appeal to you graphically (visually). however, For me
It's a timeless series that goes beyond the test of time which is powerful.

The cyborg’s as you know have different backgrounds and different personalities so they clash more often with each other on the decision-making side of things, I find it interesting to see the humans side of them which brings up the tension and mindless arguments that make them hate the opposite side without listening nor give a chance to understand situations , find solutions to the matter as an example which is relatable to me. Working with a group of people is always is a hassle and a pain in the ass.
They get emotional when they are forced to kill robots, and they sympathies with them despite knowing that it's needed to be done for peace even if it's painful. Cyborgs 009 and 003 for instance shows it a lot throughout the story.

The SAKUGA parts are extremely well done overall whereas you kind of see the small details , the little bits of creativity sprinkled here and there that display an outstanding art that transcends the usual tropes and barriers between animation and some themes in real life. It has one of the best fight choreographies I’ve seen in anime. I wish to see that kind of dedication on the battle genre as it lacks this level of detail.

The music is powerful! and what I mean by that is It's used carefully. While listening either to the opening, ending or sound tracks. I tend to sing along with it and get hyped up a lot whenever I start anew episode. Additionally, they chose precise moments to use nothing but silence which elevates the emotions & experience altogether. But yeah, the sound design of this show is a great 2nd layer to the animation which despite its antiquity, it still holds the overall atmosphere really well in my eyes. VA’s performance is good for its time, nonetheless it didn’t ruin the experience although I would still welcome a full remaster of the whole show. I still listen to the anime's battle Ost’s, the op's and ed's are fun to listen to, at the same time the action scenes have the best ambiances but also the emotional moments.

The main group of characters have a lot of depth to them apart from 2, 006 and 007, although 007 have a solid background story I still find his role is limited in the show to being a comedy relief character and they got forgotten rather quickly where we focus more on cyborg 009.
The characters design is a matter of opinion so I don't really nitpick too much. I find it good enough, It works well with the shows themes and story.
The different cultures displayed throughout the anime is really outstanding as you get to see different cities around the world which had reminded me of Lupin III franchise, every episode after the death of Skull are small arcs, I find it hella interesting to see every character’s connection to the world through those events. After the incidents with black ghost, they kept visiting countries all over the earth scared that he may get to be revived, searching for clues and solving issues like war and helping humanity as much as they can.

Black ghost is like a mixed representation of all human villains which can be interpreted as a lot of entities throughout human history. As he keeps popping up in different shapes and forms Because people are evil by nature, I think that's one of the most important view points that came across and stuck with me while viewing this anime.
The misuse of robots is a topic that I really love about this show because it may happen in the near future (in real life) that’s why I always feel that it's a timeless masterpiece on steroids, I may have had exaggerated a little but personally as a kid back then and as an adult now there's different perspectives to catch and dive in with which brings out different meanings to the world and conflicts as a whole, also the deeper side of human emotions materialized by the created cyborgs that initially were human as well, although tempered with by scientists to create emotionless instrument. Adds a lot of substance to the main cast, as a result there's a whole package of different personalities that gives the feel of unity. Moreover it's a beautiful message to indulge in.

In my childhood I looked at it in a simpler way, seeing it like "super heroes saving the day", but now I see it as a way to represent our world in the future like Climate change or lack of application of human rights in some countries, the endless wars that still ravages this planet since humans put foot on it etc...
I personally love how they made this show close to home like for an example when they went to Africa where people were fighting for their life to free their countries of tyrants, bad leaders. by contrast when they've gone to an another world with some kind of Aliens looking like children where they tried teaching them on what it means to be a man, stand up for yourself and fight back.

If you pick this show though, watch it in Japanese because it's just better than the dubs imo. Back in the day the translation wasn’t the same as the original script because they tend to change everything to fit their narrow mind thus making it seem look like dumpster fire. I hated how they’ve done that and thanks to these individuals behind the dubs they fucked up any chance this show had to be successful, they love to censor everything sadly.

All in all, This masterpiece will always get negative reviews about its ways of representing things or because it isn’t violent enough or it shouldn’t be recommended to anyone… On the contrary! I believe that This show should be given a chance mainly being an enjoyable ride minding the time it came out of course. But at the end of the day, It's great to share the experience I love about anime using this series as an example and many other classics to bring the medium closer to all people.

‘It’ll always have a special place in my heart.’

Story 6/10

To tell a great superhero story, a great hero needs a great villain to fight, but that's where this show's problem lies.

Black Ghost is a great villain; he's ruthless and doesn't even care if his own henchmen get killed. He's also smart and devious which are all great qualities in a villain, but the problem is, despite being the main antagonist, Black Ghost only appears in a handful of episodes leaving all the other episodes just feeling like filler.

The cyborgs do fight other villains besides Black Ghost with some cool fight scenes, but the other villains are all just forgettable with nothing ... that interesting about them.

Characters 6/10

While all the cyborgs do have some cool powers (009 having super speed, 006 breathing fire, and 007 being a shape shifter) that doesn't make them great characters.

It's not that I don't like any of the MC's, but they just all feel like tokens with 009 being the token leader and 003 being the token girl and 007 being the token comic relief character.

It doesn't help that the characters don't have the best chemistry either or demonstrate the best teamwork. Good team members should compliment each other and work together, but whenever there's a fight it's like everyone splits up and does their own thing.

Art 5/10

The fight scenes are well animated and I do like this 1960's SciFi aesthetic they use for things like the ray guns and giant robots. However, the character designs are another story.

There are some characters that look fine like 009 and 003, but then there are other characters like Dr. Gilmore and 007 that just look plain ugly. Gilmore's nose is the size of a watermelon and 007's eyes are way too close together.

I understand that this what the characters looked like in the 1968 version, but, in my opinion, they just look ugly.

006 is even worse, however. I understand that 006 is Chinese and anime artist like to draw Chinese people with weird looking eyes like Brock from Pokemon, but seriously, what are those things? Those aren't eyeballs! They look more like little mouths!

I know it may seem like I'm making a big deal about it, but it's an understood rule of character design that it is extremely important that you get the eyes right because, as they say, the eyes are the windows to the soul.

Sound 5/10

I don't want to use the word robotic to describe the voice acting, but I does sound like the actors aren't putting much emotion behind their words which really hurts the characters.

Also, I can't really explain it, but I feel like there's too much silence in each episode. What I mean is there's too many moments where there are no characters talking and no background music playing or a character is talking, but with no background music. I know that may seem like a nitpick, but I do think it hurt the quality of the show.

Overall 6/10

I'm glad I watched Cyborg 009, if only because it's such a classic anime in the same way Astro Boy is, but I don't know if I'd recommend it to anyone. If you want to watch some good superhero anime, One Punch Man and My Hero Academia would probably be a better choice.

i have on and off watched up to about ep 35. here's what i gotta say. might be spoilers.
i've held an interest in the show for the longest time given the contributions that shotaro ishinomori have made to japanese media as a whole- the idea of an international superhero team (esp in the 60s!) combined with raygun sci-fi, as well as the general anti-war leftist tone made me feel like the show should be reasonably up my alley. but does it hold up for a new viewer in 2024? well...
it's a 7 at best doe
let's face it. when the show hits, it swings out of ... the park. the first half of the series is pretty tightly told, with a general overarching story about needing to beat black ghost driving the first 18 episodes. all throughout, the driving goal helps thread together some otherwise quite distinct character stories, which gives us the best of both worlds, really- we get to learn more about each character and their individual struggles pre-black ghost, which, when there's nine main characters, is a necessity, believe it or not. there are a few stinkers here and there, with that one episode before joe fights scar or the one with the dinosaurs coming to mind, but for the most part the good outweighs the bad. the time spent exploring the characters in this half of the story were very well spent, the tone being generally consistent, grounded and in some ways, heartfelt. in particular, i think reintegrating the vietnam arc as pyunma’s backstory was a very clever move, helping set apart and modernise the work from prior adaptations. i can confidently say i genuinely enjoy the vast majority of the first half of the anime. theres a short lull, and then we return to the mythos arc. [write more later, dont feel like covering this rn. i liked it doe]
the second half of the show post recap ep is more than a little shakier. as i understand it, more of these episodes are based off works from post the initial manga conclusion (that'd be vol 10 of the tokyopop translations). the works in this half just tend to be... well, sometimes, they're great! but there are many times where i was watching and. y'know. there's aliens now. fine. a supercomputer tried to bang francoise. okay. now joe's time traveling and a bright blue dog just telepathically beamed the entirety of earth's history into g. junior's head. i don't fucking care anymore man.
i get that part of cyborg 009 has always been heavily tied to shotaro ishinomoris fascination with esoterica and the occult, after all, ishinomori only decided 001s powers would be psychokinesis-related only because he knew the russian government was experimenting with psychic powers (look up nina kulagina, i'm not kidding on that)... take it from someone into that sort of stuff, one doesn't pick up on that unless they have an active interest in it. but, 009 becoming the sounding board for this interest, as well as being an episodic series as a whole, is to its own detriment precisely because ishinomori clearly wanted to tell more dramatic stories than he could with the limitations he had. since these stories are episodic, they have to be ended off cleanly, and ishinomori more often than not has a few stock endings which get tiring after a while. with few exceptions, either black ghost did it, the character of the week dies tragically (cause war is bad!) or its just straight up magic that won't ever be explained or touched upon again. this last one opens up a whole other can of worms- because characters don't really look back and reflect on these events past the episode itself... or even giving a reaction of "that was weird lol" like a normal human would, it creates a sense of passivity that pervades the show. characters have things happen to them constantly- rarely is the conflict STARTED by them, and most of the time, even that's just jet running off only to get whooped for the twentieth time.
the characters are wooden at best, and downright offensive at worst. there's no real contrasting views or friction between characters after the first few episodes, which feels strange especially for a group of nine people all from different places, and when there are, there aren't any long term consequences. even something basic like ONE character going "hey, why are you calling me by a number instead of my name? this feels dehumanising" vs say, one going like "whoa this is cool... it's like a spy movie... it's my codename :]" would go a long way in showing the difference in personality between characters, but then again, in comparison to the original manga, we should be lucky we have the amount of characterisation we do at all. then, there’s francoise’s role as the only woman basically boiling down to ‘mother figure’ or the secondhand embarrassment-inducing “YOUR PHONE LINGING” type soundtrack that plays whenever chang shows up. thank god they changed pyunma's appearance at the least.
while the anime pares down and collates the stories of 009 in such a way that the average watcher is to get a broad base of what ishinomori did with the series, it is precisely because of that that it replicates the same issues... and the severe dropoff of animation quality in the second half doesn't help matters. i regret to say this, especially since i’m coming up on the adaptation of the yomi arc which i heard is supposed to be decent, but i felt like after such a strong start, my time as a watcher was being wasted, and i don't know how many more ishinomori-isms (see: being preachy and tragically killing off every side character that could have potential future relevance) i can take. for now, i'm putting this series on indefinite hold.