The Green Cat v2

One of Orphan's earliest Tezuka Osamu projects was the set of six OVAs known as the Lion Books:

1	The Green Cat	1983
2	Rain Boy	1983
3	Lunn Flies into the Wind	1985
4	Yamatarou Comes Back	1986
5	Adachigahara	1991
6	Akuemon	1993

The project took 18 months, from the middle of 2013 to the end of 2014. Except for Adachigahara and Akuemon, Orphan used existing raws from other teams. I've always been less than happy about the quality of those raws. Last month, I was able to purchase a complete set of the Lion Books R2J DVDs, and Orphan will be redoing the OVAs with new encodes.

Tezuka Productions started the Lion Books as a speculative project for a 26-episode TV series. When there were no takers, the project was shelved, and individual episodes were eventually released as OVAs. The Green Cat was actually completed before Dallos, but because there's no proof of its release date, Dallos (also a speculative TV project) is generally regarded as the first OVA.

The Green Cat (Midori no Neko) is one of two Lion Book OVAs based on a Tezuka Osamu manga. (The other is Adachigahara.) It tells a fanciful science fiction tale (tail?) about green cat-like creatures from outer space. As the story opens, Ban Shunsaku is a partner in a dry cleaning business with his friend Yuno. Their mundane existence is shattered when Susan the Gangster and her thugs burst in and take hostages. Susan is toting a green cat and seems to believe it makes her immune from capture. In the ensuing mayhem, Yuno is killed. With his dying wish, he asks Ban to care of his son, Sanbo. Then, the green cat deserts Susan, and so does her luck; she is killed in a shootout with police.

Intending to return to Japan, Ban drives across the country with Sanbo. He is spooked by an encounter with a UFO. In the aftermath, he finds that little Sanbo has acquired a green cat. On the trip to Japan, Sanbo and the cat disappear. Ban dedicates his life to tracking down Sanbo, a task which will take decades. He finds Sanbo, still with the green cat, racking up a fortune through increasingly shady means, while a mysterious Professor observes the pair. Ban must now rescue Sanbo from the cat and from his descent into outright criminality.

The Green Cat is the only Lion Book OVA that uses Tezuka Osamu's star system extensively. Ban Shunsaku is Higeoyaji, who appeared in many of the Love Will Save the World TV specials and the movie Metropolis. Sanbo is Rock Holmes, who was often used as a villain. Ben Heck, a criminal rival of Sanbo, is a minor character in the system. The voice cast reflects the recurring appearances of some of the characters:

• Tomita Kousei (Ban Shunsaku) played the same role (Higeoyaj) in the TV specials Fumoon, Marine Express, Ginga Tansa 2100: Border Planet, Tezuka Osamu Monogatari: Boku wa Son Gokuu, and Tezuka Osamu Ga Kieta?! 20 Seiki Saigo no Kaijiken (all Orphan releases), the movies Jungle Tatei and Metropolis, and in several Astro Boy properties. He also played Watson in Sherlock Hound.
• Shiozawa Kaneto (Yuno Sanbo) played Takuma in Milky Passion: Dougenzaka - The Castle of Love, Kohei in Karuizawa Syndrome, Shin in Hiatari Ryoukou, Iason in Ai no Kusabi, Rock Holmes in Fumoon, Shiina in Chameleon, Sanzou in I am Son Goku, and Kurahashi Eiji in Nine, all Orphan releases. He also played Joe in Tokimeki Tonight, Yoshio in Miyuki, Takeshi in Touch, D in Vampire Hunter D, Narsus in the Arslan Senki OVAs, Rosario in Dragon Half, and Abriel senior in Crest of the Stars.
• Nozawa Masako (Green) is a legend. She played the leads in 30000 Miles Under the Sea, The Adventures of Gamba, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry no Bouken, Billy Inu nan demo Shoukai, and Hey! Bumboo. She was Enma-kun in the original Dororon Enma-kun, Son Goku in the original Dragonball, and Kitarou in the 1968 and 1971 versions of GeGeGe no Kitarou, as well as Hakaba Kitarou. Even though her first role was in 1965, she is still active, appearing as Obaba in Ping Pong the Animation, Madame Curie in Marie & Gali, and of course, Medama Oyaji in the most recent version of GeGeGe no Kitarou. She won a lifetime achievement award in 1997. She played the title role in Manxmouse, Lek in Cool Cool Bye, and Costar in 15 Shounen Hyouruuki, all Orphan releases.
• Takiguchi Junpei (Professor) brought his distinctive voice to the roles of Dr. Yamanado in Fumoon, Scratch in Techno Police 21C, the villainous king of Kanemacchi Castle in Grim Douwa: Kin no Tori, the Mouse Thief in Stop!! Hibari-kun!, and Dong Zhung in the first Sangokushi movie, all Orphan releases. He also played the Millennium Earl in D.grayman, John Trelawney in Treasure Island, and Dr. Laughton in Metropolis.
• Shima Shinsuke (Sanbo's father) played the Messenger in Amon Saga, an Orphan release, and Director Tanimura in the Oishinbo TV series and movies.
• Takizawa Kumiko (Susan the gangster) played Glinda the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz (movie). She  was in several prior Orphan releases, playing Elena in Techno Police 21C and Kanako's mother in Boyfriend, and appearing in Fumoon, Makoto-chan, and Scoopers.
• Yada Kouji (Ben Heck) is best known as Dr. Gero in the Dragonball franchise. He appeared in A Penguin's Memories and the three Sangokushi movies, all Orphan releases.
  

The Green Cat was directed by the master himself, Tezuka Osamu.

The original subtitles were from Viki but needed additional work. convexity did the translation check. archdeco timed the original version; the new one required only minor tweaks. I edited and typeset both versions. CP and Saji QCed the original version; Nemesis and Uchuu QCed this version. Skr encoded from an R2J DVD.

It's a real pleasure to revisit the Lion Books after more than seven years. When I opened the new encode and watched the charming opening - when some of Tezuka Osamu's most beloved characters (Astro Boy, Unico, Princess Sapphire) jump out from the pages - I was once again swept up into the world of "the god of manga." The six Lion Book episodes show differing facets of his talent, but their short running time makes them more focused than the later, and longer, Love Will Save the World specials. Whether you downloaded the original release or not, I strongly urge you to get this one and rediscover the joys of Tezuka Osamu's shorter works. You can get The Green Cat from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.

P.S. This time around, the files use the English rather than the Japanese titles. Consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds, after all.