Run Through the Race of Death!
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| "Run Through the Race of Death!" "死のレースを走りぬけ!"
("shi no REESU wo hashirinuke!") | ||||||
| Production company | Ashi Productions | |||||
| Airdate | 6 November, 1986 | |||||
| Written by | Nobuaki Kishima | |||||
| Directed by | Junichi Yokoyama | |||||
Obligatory race episode alert.
 This Machine Robo: Revenge of Cronos section |
Synopsis[edit | edit source]
Rom, Stol, Blue Jet, Rod Drill and Triple Jim attend a race in Devil's Island where they meet Anna, girlfriend of the champion racer Vanishing Harry. She begs him not to compete but the arrogant and fiercely competitive Harry refuses, with Leina, Jet and Jim trying to console her. Rom has entered the race in Battleflex while Rod Drill is racing under his own power; Harry drives F-1 Robo and is fiercely competitive right from the start, barging Offroad Robo and Double-decker Bus Robo, with the latter helplessly taking out Bike Robo and Bulldozer Robo as a result. Meanwhile a tidal wave takes an impatient Steam Robo as well as Supercar Robo, Police Car Robo, Jeep Robo, Limousine Robo, City Turbo II Robo and Dump Robo out of the race; thankfully Kaman Robo and Battleship Robo are on lifeguard duty. Harry is soon battling with Rom, Drill and Buggy Robo for the lead, much to his displeasure. Anna had warned Rom ahead of the race that she believes Harry will defect to the Gyandlar if he wins the race; Jim, Jet and Leina have noticed her anxious behaviour while watching from a giant spectator airship following the action. After New Shinkansen Robo manages to drive into a lake, Harry injures Buggy Robo battling for the lead - much to the joy of Diondra and Gadess, also viewing the competition; they send Black Bass down to further interfere. Harry leads the others into Black Bass' carnivorous plants where Porsche Robo gets devoured. The plants then Rom and Drill, and though they are no match for the Wolf Sword or Drill's pointy head there are enough of them to surround the pair.
They manage to escape but Harry is now the clear leader of the race. Anna confesses his plans to Jet, who reassures her that Rom with save him. Harry is electrocuted by more of Black Bass' creatures in an underground section of the course just as Rom and Drill catch him and the leaders are then ambushed by the Gyandlar captain. Drill saves Harry while Iron Eater reveals that the Gyandlar they don't care about Harry's survival as long as Rom dies. Finally realising he's on the wrong side, Harry joins in the fight against the invaders while Rom merges into first Kenryū and then Baikanfu and makes short work of the Gyandlar, destroying Black Bass. The trio continue with the race, Harry vowing to win fair and square. Drill takes the win by a tiny fraction but Harry is happy simply to be clear of evil intentions and reunited with a delighted Anna.
Featured characters[edit | edit source]
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Machine Robo | Gyandlar |
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Quotes[edit | edit source]
Notes[edit | edit source]
- F-1 Robo does not transform or show any sign of sentience throughout.
- As well as the Porsche Robo that gets eaten a second is among the spectators.
- Both Limousine Robo and Hearse Robo appear.
- City Turbo II Robo is based on an unproduced Machine Robo Series toy; somehow this wasn't even his debut as the character had featured prominently in an animated commercial for Battle Armor 5. Ashi must have been told off by Bandai ahead of this episode and just grabbed as many character models as they could and thrown them in.
Home video releases[edit | edit source]
- Laser Disc
1992 — Machine Robo: Revenge of Cronos Box (Toshiba EMI)
- DVD
2001 — Machine Robo: Revenge of Cronos DVD-Box 1 (Pioneer)
- Blu-Ray
2022 — Machine Robo: Revenge of Cronos (Discotek Media, USA)
