Brad Bitou
Brad Bitou (ブラッド 尾藤) is a human who founded Machine Robo Rescue.
Chief Bitou worked with Tōru Suidōbashi to build the Machine Robo and hand-picked unit instructors Musashi Miyajima, Koshiro Sasaki and Marie Bitou. No relation. No, just kidding, he gave one of the gigs to his daughter, presumably so she can stand around while he plays piano in his pretentious office. While outwardly kindly, the 50-year old Chief Bitou is big on secrets that endanger everyone around him, and branding.
And the ladies, apparently.
Fiction[edit | edit source]
Machine Robo Rescue cartoon[edit | edit source]
- Voice actor: Kazuhiro Nakata
Along with Doctor Kaiser and Hikaru Suidōbashi, Brad Bitou was one of the major minds behind the Machine AI system. When military funding was needed to move the research for the next stage, Bitou and Suidōbashi saw it as a necessary evil in order to continue the project. Kaiser was furious, and soon disappeared along with the laboratory after a huge explosion. The Secret of the Disasters Bitou and Suidōbashi pressed on and created Stealth Robo; however, the military Machine Robo was far more dangerous than either could have predicted, causing widespread destruction. Good Luck Taiyoh As a result Stealth Robo's K-BOY and Tank Robo were hidden away, though the Leader Robo disappeared. The Invincible Hyper Stealth Robo!
Chastened, Brad instead worked on making Machine Robo just for rescue work with the help of Hikaru's grandson Tōru. Thanks to the Special Talent Development Act he was able to recruit 12 impressive young cadets to make the team a reality, based at the state-of-the-art Rescue Headquarters on an island in Tokyo Bay. After Taiyoh Ohzora's unplanned but successful use of Jet Robo to rescue Jun Mizushima from the Landmark Tower, he called the Prime Minister of Japan to inform him that MRR had been activated. Commence the Rescue Combination!! The cadets were divided into three teams of four, each allocated their own instructor, and Miyajima's Red Wings performed a second successful rescue in the Central Mountain Area Blazing Fire Fighter! and then a third when Blue Sirens successfully helped those affected by a multiple-car accident in the city. Straight Ahead to the Police Spirit! He and his daughter were however absent at a conference when Daichi Hayami took Drill Robo out for the first Yellow Gears mission. It's Party Time! Drill Robo Chief Bitou kept notably quiet when Stealth Robo resurfaced as an agent of Disaster. The Thunderous Stealth Robo While he was away carrying out research Sayuri Suizenji took both the cadets and Leader Robo out to search for a cat belonging to a boy named Hideki. The instructors were unable to get them to return and when Brad arrived his daughter redirected him towards lunch to try and cover up; she was undone when he spotted footage of the escapades in one of Cutie Kumamoto's news broadcasts but, unaware of the purpose, was delighted to see MRR off doing good on their own initiative. Emergency! Enter Battalion Following the team's successful work during the eruption of Kaga Mountain he formally announced the Robo Masters for the units - Taiyoh for Jet Robo; Ace for Fire Robo; Makoto for Police Robo and Daichi for Drill Robo. Aim to be a Robo Master!
Among his ideas to raise the profile of MRR was allowing Charmy Sato to make a TV special from Rescue Headquarters, though he had to console Miyajima after his friend botched his TV debut. Later when Charmy managed to turn a drill at a floating industrial complex into a genuine emergency he backed the suggestion to activate Wing Liner Robo to help. Industrial Complex Panic! Later he opted to let Gyro Robo on a weekend away with Blue Sirens members Susumu, Tsuyoshi and Alice as he had not yet decided who would become the new arrival's Robo Master. The twins' work in saving their father and driving off a Gura Gorro saw him decide that both Utadas could jointly become Gyro Robo's Robo Masters. Finished! Triple Tornado Bitou threw an open day for MRR's family and friends, but generally ignored the emotional angst this caused the orphans and ignored among the cadets. And Taiyoh is Fine! Stealth Robo's full capability was unlocked after Jay recovered his K-BOY from the Machine AI Laboratory. Remembering its' capabilities Bitou warned the cadets against combatting him once he recovered the Tank Robo and entered Hyper Mode. The Invincible Hyper Stealth Robo! Thankfully the cadets were children so no-one really asked any follow-up questions at this stage. Ken's Rescue Spirit! Along with his daughter and Professor Suidōbashi, Brad oversaw trials of the new Submarine Team onboard the Cube 1 submersible. However, one of the craft's cables snapped, trapping them underwater with limited oxygen. Yellow Gears were scrambled to help and Shō was sent down in a second Cube. Brad was calm throughout, even checking out some of the marine life while they were down there, due to his faith in the cadets. Sure enough Shō was able to activate Submarine Robo and save the trio - though he was embarrassed by the newcomer's surfing antics. I am Submarine Robo
Chief Bitou later arranged for Red Wings to undertake MRR's first mission into space, docking at Ikaros 1 before performing satellite maintenance. However, the mission was sidetracked when Stealth Robo attacked. As he was optimised for space combat the attacker was able to defeat Jet Robo, who was sent crashing down to Earth. Debut, 30000 Metres! After a confrontation with MRR during the recovery of the Jet Team saw Stealth Robo counteract their attempts to set up a ZONE, Makoto became suspicious of his origins. As a result of his prodding, Chief Bitou announced his role in the creation of Stealth Robo to the shocked instructors and cadets. Good Luck Taiyoh Due to being in charge of everything he didn't face any consequences for concealing this information from everyone else, and resisted any desire to have MRR operate as a military unit, even after Colonel Hazard's new BL Fire Robo captured the Aider Robo. Combine! Machine Commander Robo Along with Sasaki, he was the only member of staff who had read Daichi's file and knew Saeko Homura was the boy's mother. He also wanted her autograph. I am the Mother of Daichi When Makoto landed a date with Aki Saotome all of MRR (bar Alice) turned out to see him off. Chief Bitou attempted to pass on some of his tips for success with the laydeez but before he could emotionally scar Makoto his daughter dragged him away by the ear. The Story of Makoto's First Love
After Jay and Stealth Robo fell into the sea after a battle with BL Drill Robo at the Space Agency, Chief Bitou oversaw searches, eventually discovering Jay as an amnesiac in hospital. Wanting to know more about the Disasters, Chief Bitou collected the boy from trained medical professionals and left him with the 12 kids he had been trying to kill, resulting in Makoto triggering his memories. However as it turned out Jay wanted to redeem himself, and set about recovering the similarly reformed Stealth Robo. Be Reborn, Jay! Chief Bitou offered Jay a chance to return to society but instead the boy decided to enlist in MRR. Jay, Join the MRR! After Stealth Robo was rebuilt as V Stealth Robo everyone argued about which team they would join; frustrated with their difficulty in following orders, the instructors took the view that Chief Bitou would sort it out after he got back from a conference. Birth! V Stealth Robo Despite the pair learning the value of team work by activating the Victory Plan with Machine Commander Robo he ducked the issue and put them on their own team - Stealth Team. Possibly for the merchandising possibilities. The Strongest Combination! Machine Commander Robo V For Jay's welcome party he took a role in a play the instructors put on for the cadets, where Miyajima embarrassed himself by asking his character for Marie's hand in marriage, rather than that of her character. He later accepted Daichi's resignation, but let him rejoin MRR after his brief stint at Hayami Heavy Industries ended. Daichi's Resolution Brad took both his daughter and Sasaki to a World Disaster Prevention Council, leaving Miyajima in sole charge - and ending up hospitalised. Machine Robo Out of Action! Along with the instructors, he was kept largely out of the loop by the cadets when an attempt to send Jay out for a bag of rice ended with the new recruit being sent into space. The Greatest Errand of All Time
Kaiser-G's plan meanwhile was nearing fruition, though a training mishap allowed Jay and Makoto to land on Hell Island and eventually escaped back to base with vital information on the Disasters' origins. The Secret of the Disasters Chief Bitou soon realised his old comrade was behind the aggressors, but largely kept this to himself despite Hell Island menacing the island of Kanemeshima, only sharing his suspicions after the Professor decoded absolute proof from the materials gathered by Jay and Makoto - and after a full-team response had been sent out. Activate, Kaiser-G! With Jay and Taiyoh lost along with V Stealth Robo and Jet Robo, he finally decided to fill everyone in on his past with Doctor Kaiser, which everyone took with relative forgiveness considering it was the second time he'd kept them from the truth and nearly got people killed. Kaiser-G moved on to Tokyo and set the meteorite Tartarus on collision course with Earth. A Looming Catastrophe! With Taiyoh and Jay recovered, Chief Bitou sent MRR in again - but just the cadets, overriding the instructors' desire to join the sortie. Instead he gave a rousing speech on teamwork that inspired the cadets to defeat Kaiser-G and deflect the meteorite. All Hands on Deck, Save the Planet! Later at the cadets' graduation, he announced his intention to hand over MRR's Japanese operation to Miyajima and found International Hyper Rescue with the Professor. Fly, MRR!
Due in part to the skills of his former instructors and students, International Hyper Rescue expanded rapidly. Under Miyajima's auspices Ace, Alice and Shō were installed as the new instructors to train 12 new cadets; Daichi put Hayami Heavy Industries at the service of Professor Suidōbashi, allowing him to build a new generation of Machine Robo; and Sasaki returned to the Metropolitan Police Force where he worked with Makoto to set up a new Machine Robo Division. Sortie! Meanwhile Ken retrained as a doctor to run International Hyper Rescue's new expanded medical wing; the Utadas took Gyro Robo to America to fight crime; Taiyoh established a base in Saba National with the Jet Team; Lin oversaw the roll-out of the Gura Gorro Rescue Squad in Europe, where Marie was also working, while Jay and Kai manned a new orbital station. Finally, Sayuri moved into politics and became Prime Minister of Japan, giving a well-received speech extolling the next set of plans to keep expanding International Hyper Rescue with Brad Bitou present. Machine Robo Rescue Special - New Year's Day!
Notes[edit | edit source]
- It's hard to tell whether the more questionable aspects of Brad's actions are intentional personality flaws that aren't studied closely due to the show's focus on the cadets or just loose writing. He's almost a Japanese Leader-1 in that he is never questioned for his numerous mistakes and that everything pans out his way as much through luck as anything else.
- His wife and Marie's mother is never mentioned. If Brad's as much of a playa as he seems to think he is it could be anyone. Though it should be noted a grown Alice Beckham really looks like Marie, and Mrs. Beckham's husband is never seen. It wouldn't be the biggest secret Chief Bitou kept to himself.