Official Stats: Name: Condor Joe AKA: George ("Joji") Asakura (Gatchaman), Jason (Battle of the Planets), Dirk Daring (G-Force), Joe Thax (Eagle Riders) Age: 18 Birth Date: Officially unknown, but some Japanese fans guestimate it at November 15th. Height: 185 cm (6'1") Weight: 60 kg (132 pounds) Note: Yes, this is hard to believe, but the specs were done by Japanese writers in the 1970's who probably thought everyone was this skinny. Maybe it's why he flies so well. Nationality: Sicilian (Birthplace: the fictitious BC Island) Hair: Reddish brown Eyes: Blue Side Occupation: Private small-time race driver Residence: Small trailer which he tows to his race locations Strengths: Excellent marksman; acts as chief gunner for the team. Good at mechanical solutions to problems (as opposed to Ken's strength in strategy), and uses the drill, blowtorch and cable attachments on his airgun to best advantage. Excels at throwing darts and knives; every member of the team carries feather shuriken, but use of these weapons becomes Joe's trademark. Weaknesses: Apparently he's not much of a pilot--when forced to fly the Godphoenix during Ryu's absence, he drives the ship like a tank. History: Joe is the son of Giuseppe and Katarina Asakura, both prominent figures in the Gallactor syndicate. Giuseppe had a high leadership position, possibly as high or higher than Katse. His motives for betraying Gallactor are unclear--he could have been a victim of politics or he could have suddenly developed a conscience and sought asylum for his family through the ISO. In any case, he and Katarina were waiting to meet with Dr. Nambu on a private beach when they were gunned down by a Gallactor Devil Star. Eight-year-old George, who had been playing on the beach several yards away, witnessed the shootings and tried to pull his father's gun on the Devil Star when she hit him with a rose bomb. Dr. Nambu's appearance kept her from finishing the boy off. The doctor found he was too late for the parents, but he declared George dead and smuggled the boy off BC Island. Later, he began training George--now Joe--for inclusion in the Kagaku Ninjatai. For a long time, Joe had no clear memories of his parents' deaths or Gallactor's motive for their assassination--he only knew he wanted revenge for their deaths. Learning the truth did not lessen his resolve. Joe's career seemed doomed to be short and painful. He suffered horrible head injuries while rescuing a puppy and later suffered multiple gunshot wounds when he returned to BC Island to trace his roots. After one or both of these incidents, he retained shrapnel in his brain, which led to his failing health at the end of the series. Faced with worsening symptoms and realizing his time was short, he decided to end his life in one last desperate battle at Gallactor's motherbase. After he said his final farewell to his team at the end of the first series, his body disappeared, and all assumed he was dead. He was transformed into a cyborg and brought back for the sequel series, Gatchaman II and Fighter. Since he's nearly indestructible and believes he is a machine whose only purpose is to fight, he often throws himself into dangerous situations before allowing the rest of the Team to be endangered.

What is it about Joe that makes him such a popular character? There are probably several explanations: the anti-hero quality, the dark aura of danger; those piercing predatory eyes and that growling baritone, courtesy of singer Isao Sasaki. Maybe it's the way he was forced to face his demons and later his own death--something American viewers rarely saw in animation. Or the way, despite all his short-tempered machismo, Joe remains utterly dedicated to his team in his own. understated fashion.

According to the Tatsunoko Productions spec sheets, Joe was fashioned after actor Steve McQueen, which probably accounts for his sharp driver's/marksman's squint. Initially, Joe was to take a backseat role to Ken, Jun and Jinpei; in fact, Jun was slated to be G-2 until their positions were switched at the last moment. However, from fairly early in the series, the character figuratively took the bit in his teeth and ran away with a major share of the popularity, until the end of the series, where his painful demise put him in the spotlight. It was also said that his voice actor yearned for a little more of the action. Initially, Isao Sasaki had tried for Ken's part, but was placed in the second's position instead. He chafed at the bit part, eager for more character development. Joe became a decisive role for him; no other character Sasaki has played in his ongoing career has had as much visibility.

Joe stands out as a character who, in a world full of fashion mannequin designs, is not pretty. His face is too harsh, too craggy, too unfriendly. Yet in the anime universe, where big-eyed, inhuman beauty is obligatory, this harshness makes him special, human... and hard to draw. In contrast to Ken's heroism, he struggles with the ugly side of war and revenge. Ken fights for justice in a dazzling display of shouted commands and martial arts moves. Joe witnesses the bullet-riddled bodies and smashed civilian corpses and expresses his outrage as he mows down his enemies. He appeals to those of us who root for the underdog, the not-quite-hero.

Interestingly enough, Joe is at his best when left to his own devices. Any attempt to improve or popularize the character fell flat, as evidenced in a few episodes of Gatchaman II and especially the Gatchaman remake OAV. The OAV character designer, Yasuomi Umetsu, had worked on Gatchaman in the past and was more than capable of drawing Joe as he had been in the first series. Instead, he chose to incorporate all the latest fashions and styles and wound up with something that looked like a refugee from an 80's rock tour. Add a stereotypical, "tall, macho guy with attitude" personality, and the result was a glaring paper doll that said "Huh" a lot. Jason from the Top Cow BotP comic line began as a foul-mouthed, oversexed psycho, and it took 10 issues and a special character issue to tone him down.

I've heard fans describe him as a Christ-figure (because of his death and rebirth in Gatchaman II) and as a raging, testosterone-crazed psychopath with a soft spot for orphaned puppies, a "Mother complex" and a sexual interest in Ken. To me he is none of these things. I see him as an elemental force, battered, independent and unpredictable. He is also strong enough to be what he is, to feel rage, loyalty and friendship for others without any extra connotations.

Enjoy the gallery--some of the best screen shots I could find in the series (still working on image quality, though). And tell me what you think at wendy@chronicsite.com.

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Credits Department: Condor Joe (c) Tatsunoko Productions (and special thanks to Tatsuo Yoshida, Ippei Kuri, Jinzo Toriumi, Isao Sasaki, Tsuneo Ninomiya and many others for bringing him to screen). Special thanks to Jane Lebak and Veronika Henkels for helping me obtain the screen shots. Thanks to Gloria, Sarah, Heather and Katharine for proofs and feedback. Titles created and art downsized with the help of Adobe ImageReady. This site was first put online July 13, 1998, last modified September 12, 2003.

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