The Guyver: Bio-Booster Armor (1989 OVA) | Retcon_404 (Anime Retrospective)

[@Wladislav]

_Someone brings up Guyver._ *The theme song from The Guyver is now stuck in your head.* If you're in the mood for more like this, I would recommend the 1992 Tekkaman Blade anime. Great ending too.

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

Best OP ever, and "Guyver, My Other Half" is the greatest ED of all time.

[@wallcity318]

Tekkaman Blade 2

[@Wladislav]

@@wallcity318 But that's the worst Tekkaman!

[@wallcity318]

@@Wladislav ....i love it

[@Wladislav]

@@wallcity318 Imo Tekkaman Blade had the perfect ending, so I just consider II to be non-canon and pretend it doesn't exist.

[@Sp33ddialz]

I remember grabbing the VHS copies of this when I was a kid, and loving the hell out of it, but the abrupt ending always bummed me out. The 2005 redux ended rather abruptly as well. Unfortunately, Yoshiki Takaya never finished the Manga & rumors say that he's a Dentist now. Last photos of him were back in 2020, with a fan , making Guyver models.

[@Wezt334]

I mean as far as anime goes I think the 2005 version ended in a similar way that a lot of anime that doesn’t get picked up for another season does, ended off that particular chapter and left fans wanting more. They could of course always get more from the manga but yeah as of Vol 32 there has not been anything new, that’s not all that strange though it’s a series that has been on hiatus multiple times and being 39 years old it makes getting new fans very hard so I can understand why Takaya would want to move on to something else if they rumour is true. Much like Berserk it’s a series I don’t every expect to see an ending to but still really enjoyed the story and art

[@ohnosmoarlulcatz]

Yep. He was also in discussions to do another Guyver movie back in 2017, but negotiations apparently fell apart at the studio level and it never happened. This is likely because of the failure of the 2005-2007 reboot era.

[@noneed4me2n7]

Manga still gets spotty updates. Last one was April 2023. Maybe it’s dropped now but I’ve seen other mangas go longer without updates then come back. I’m still eager to figure out the character Apollon. Why is he collecting the crystals from the masters. Why is Archfanel interested in Tetsuo and what’s her name. Hate cliffhangers but as a longtime manga reader it’s par for the course.

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

The 2000's series was more faithful to the manga, and the ADV Films dvds had a great side-by-side comparison between the two.

[@Wezt334]

@@noneed4me2n7 that’s Volume 32, they were released more than 2 years ago however they only got English translations in the last year or so

[@vhsmemories504]

I'm once again pleading for a Big-O retrospective! Keep up the great work!

[@raedien]

This.

[@noneed4me2n7]

Agree, good show worth a deeper look.

[@enas_one]

Right on

[@zemox2534]

I agree. Big O is brilliant

[@orinanime]

From the future... Surprise!!!

[@Spartan51692]

Just want to say thanks for covering this. Guyver was my into into Anime with the original OAV and then also with manga later. Been a fan almost 30 years now and it's very close to my heart.

[@c.o.n.collectingofnostalgi889]

This anime, Akira, Cyber City OEDO 808, Ninja Scroll and Legend of the overfiend Urotsukidoji got me into this awesome genre of entertainment 😊

[@jjrilla___2664]

Just remembered Ninja scroll.

[@zabnorg]

ninja scroll TV show isn't bad if u need more Jubei in your life

[@tonykittykilla28]

this series was THE reason I became an anime fan...it was like this crazy dirty little secret getting these tapes at my local Blockbuster and nobody minded because "its only a cartoon"...but it was mind blowing seeing something like this at like...13...

[@noneed4me2n7]

Early on at blockbuster before they had a dedicated anime section Hentai titles like La Blue Gurl would get mixed in the kids cartoons before someone clued them in. They’d still occasionally have hardcore titles even after that in the anime section and considering they never did adult films I found this odd. At some point they had to know.

[@jjrilla___2664]

Me too, this and fist of the North Star, legend of the four kings, Akira and of course the street fighter anime were my introduction to Anime. But guyver was my favourite age 10 😂

[@trollingisasport]

Same here. If it weren't for Guyver I would never have gotten into anime most likely.

[@XenoJehuty84]

I was 11 when I found those Guyver tapes and yes.... it was the best 'dirty secret' ever. Guyver, Devil Hunter Yohko, the 80's Devil Man OVA, Project A-Ko, Tank Police. Man I got lucky my first foray was with the best OVA's of the 80's from the land of the rising Sun.

[@gokugoma3258]

@@noneed4me2n7 I bet you didn't tell them either

[@brentw.2574]

Good timing. Unearthed Films just announced a US release of the first live-action film on 4K/BD. It will have the longer R-Rated cut.

[@hurrayforvideogames]

Jumping up and down while I holler and beat my chest like a chimpanzee every time a new Retcon video drops

[@hurrayforvideogames]

HEAR ME: You’ve got the goods. If you keep doing what you’re doing you’ll end up at 500k subs, eventually. My impression is that these things happen slowly at first and then sort of come together all at once, very quickly. You can go that distance, it’s obvious. Good luck

[@chrismosley4689]

Omg you made a guyver video essay. This was my first ever anime. I was like 8 years old. Definitely molded my youth

[@anime-mun]

Yes, do give the live action movies a look as well as that 25 episode mid 2000s series. The first one is prime B-movie schlock while the sequel is rather well acted for what it is. Honestly I think we can all do with some more Guyver in our lives.

[@bajra79]

RIGHT? better than i expected for a 90s era american adaption of any japanese series.

[@Seiryu64]

Dark Hero also makes a stronger effort to be a more faithful adaptation even going as far as recreating a portion of the anime's intro in a fight scene

[@xerothedarkstar]

No matter how creepy Hamill gets as the joker, that grasshopper haunts my dreams.

[@theilouminati]

This was a fun one, such sick designs and that old school ova style. Hope you’re feeling better, excited for what’s next

[@EnerKaizer]

I've long come to terms with the fact that the Guyver will probably never got a proper ending, considering the extremely long hiatuses and what not. But I wish that one day one studio, in case everything else falters, decides to animate the entire manga and then at least attempt to give the show some resolution. Still have the personal theory arcanfel in reality was the first human who got to wear a Guyver armor for example.

[@ryanweston6182]

This is still hands down my favorite anime creation. Such an amazing design for a organic Ironman. Ive watched all the anime 20x over.

[@shaunttorosian8498]

I remember Guyver! God that was a blast from the past

[@MrRBX]

I found this anime while with my dad going to his coworkers house. Their son has the entire set on VHS and I was amazed. Later I rented both the American movies from blockbuster and fell in love

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

This was my first real experience with hardcore anime that wasn't Americanized, and still one of the best. Sadly, the story remains unfinished.

[@ghettofigurereviews5056]

I have both Figma Guyver figures

[@martinhennigan1113]

I love Guyver and discovered it back in 07 when I was very sick. I devoured the show and it got me through a rough patch. I have tried to show my friends but every attempt fails because they think it's too slow to get started. Anyhow thanks for encouraging more people to give it a watch.

[@omegaminus]

I wasn't aware of Guyver at all until I watched the OVA on KZbin several years ago.... such a cool concept where you really feel the 'power' of the Guyvers on full display, not to mention it has one of the most hype anime openings of all time!

[@BensonInABox]

Love your content, my guy. It’s basically a review of my childhood. Keep up the good work.

[@SoulStarSketchin]

And just last month I did a review of the second live action for this too. I watched these ovas on and off all the time from my local Blockbuster and grew into a big fan of it. The reboot series was solid too but I do wish they come back to this series again it's such an underrated series

[@Keshin4539]

I'm a day late, but finally! Glad you got a chance to experience this. The Live Action movies are a whole other beast entirely, but still fun Popcorn movies to watch. I do truly wish they went further with the show, because Guyver Gigantic is absolutely insane and the power scaling grows with the Guyver(s) rather than the enemies. A rarity in shows and animes to begin with. Thanks for all your hard work bro and hope you're feeling better by now! I'll be here for anymore Guyver stuffs that may be coming. BioBoosted also ends before it's time, but at least it's English VAs do a bit better than the original OVAs (arguably) 😅

[@michaelsong3733]

I have never been so upset that i wasn't subscribed earlier. I wasn't around when Guyver came out, but it is for sure my favorite anime of all time. I watched the 2005 show a few years back, and it has been my favorite anime since. Though there are shows that give it a run for it's money.

[@lorcannagle]

As an interesting aside, when Manga entertainment released this in the UK they sold it as a "monthly video comic" - one episode for tape when the standard for OVA releases was 2, but sold for I think it was £6-7 when most anime releases were £12-14. And the inside of the tape sleeve had a comic from the late Tony Luke

[@johnkelley7194]

The Guyver, as a whole, is my 2nd favorite anime property. The only one I like more is Space Battleship Yamato. I loved this series back in the 90s, but the 2000's era remake was superior in almost every way. The 2nd live action movie is really quite good, and I always hoped they would make a 3rd.

[@richardludwick5716]

Yes yes yes please review the live action movies and the 2005 series. The original movie is one of my earliest memories and am so happy whenever I see it getting attention

[@fangjokerLS]

Oh man, one of the all time greats. Also, the first time i heard Steven Blum in a dub cast. Also, GUYVER: DARK HERO is pretty damn good, considering.

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

My best friend got to meet him at an anime convention and when Steve asked him how long he was a fan, his answer was "since you were Guyver III."

[@jmfowler9062]

I've been hoping to see you discuss this! Thanks for your hard work once again!

[@johnnygutierrez41]

This anime was my first ever VHS gifted to me. The first 3 VHS English dub will forever have a place in my heart. The reboot anime of this was even better. Hope you check it out.

[@karlmueller1980]

You definitely should take a look at the both movies, especially Guyver two dark hero.

[@brentatbluenovaproductions2136]

This was the series that got me into anime as a child in the very early 90s.

[@nhaprophet]

Thanks for all your hard work. Hope you get better soon. Make sure to stay hydrated and get plenty of rest.

[@zekecontreras77]

Flippin awesome breakdown man. Really enjoyed the video!

[@Jediblue11]

Thank you! This is the video I forgot I needed 🙏

[@Distrunner5k]

I just had a flash back to the Guyver movie with Mark Hamill from 1991

[@mightaswhale]

Guyver: Dark Hero was the better of the live action films by far. You should definitely watch it!

[@MrWhiplash7x]

I watched these VHS tapes at a friend's slumber party when I was in elementary school. I loved it! It also gave me nightmares and made me wake up in the middle of the night to wake his parents up in bed due to being scared. Yeah, embarrassing. No regrets though, as this was one of the first animes I watched. Talk about jumping into the deep end of the pool.

[@Zachattack1212]

It's always a good day when recton drops a new video. By the way I'm very much sorry to hear you caught covid man. I'll pray that you'll have a quick recovery brother.

[@boogerman908]

Man, i really hope the creator lives long enough to finish this series.

[@orinanime]

Yoshiki Takaya hasn't done any more work on Guyver since 2016. I think he's just done. I don't think he plans on going back to it and finishing.

[@boogerman908]

@@orinanime shhhhh let me cope

[@orinanime]

@@boogerman908 I'm trying to cope too. I want him to finish too. I love The Guyver. I want a conclusion.

[@bdablader95]

You would love the 2 live action movies, I genuinely think its one of Mark Hamel's best performances.

[@JackHammer-e4x]

Sure as hell beats The last Jedi

[@xerothedarkstar]

The grasshopper transformation is still absolutely horrifying.

[@residentgrigo4701]

My anime box note from MU to explain what was based on what: Starts at Vol 1, Chap 1 (1986/1989/2005) Ends at Vol 1, Chap 4 (1986) / Vol 5, Chap 33 Page 4 (1989) / Vol 10, Chap 59 (2005)

[@ChuckART]

Yessss I been waiting for this!!

[@shr00m7]

After seeing the movies a wee lad, I determined that Guyver was adult power rangers. I then went out and found the OVA and have been a fan ever since. The 2005 series is pretty good as well.

[@twelfthknight]

I've been playing through Final Fantasy VII recently. While watching this I was thinking "Square clearly took inspiration from Cronos for Shinra on several levels" from the general evil overpowered Japanese corporate high-tech aesthetic to the oddly similar-looking grunt soldiers and the general alien/mutant body-horror elements. After looking it up, apparently the lead character designer for Bio-Booster - Hidetoshi Omori - went on to work on FFVII as the animation director.

[@xnflg3074]

This is awesome trivia.

[@lucasbechtol4126]

I love this franchise. Working on rereading the manga.

[@dillasoul2228]

I still have this on VHS, such an amazing anime

[@kam6642]

I got my grandmom to rent me this on vhs when I was about 9. She thought it was just another cartoon lol.

[@SimpleGeekReviews]

Dude, hope you get to feeling better. Always love your stuff. And yes, please please cover the Guyver movies. They're so 90s cheese.

[@alexanderford3831]

In the 90's, I was convinced that GUYVER and GENOCYBER were somehow related. They're not, as the latter doesn't involve an alien plot, but virtually everything from the evil organization, to the human evolution, and monstrous design elements of the protagonist overlap nicely. Even Murakami's psychic powers and transformation resembles that of Diana and Elaine. GENOCYBER goes WAY harder in the paint though (at the cost of any real plot). 😂 I'd love to see an episode on 8 Man. There's enough media with the classic show, it's stateside adaptation (Tobor: The 8 Man), a live-action adaptation, and legacy sequel, 8 Man After (featured prominently in the amazing Streamline "State-of-the-art Japanese Animation" trailer set to it's theme music), but it has all but disappeared from anime discourse.

[@ItsDeebs]

My first Anime. I was 9 and fell in love with anime that day.

[@rubbershark3833]

Oh my God thank you so much

[@danteericdraven]

absolutly watch the movies. the effects and costume work are surprisingly good.

[@skyefox]

Oh god yes, please review the live action movies. Granted only one really holds up, but the costumes and designs are exceptional (Screaming Mad George is a true special effects genius).

[@Gat720Dua]

It's always great to see more people talking about Guyver. I can't help but feel that it's super niche.

[@agentlongwood]

The Guyver live action movies are definitely worth doing a video on! Seriously look up who did the visual effects. They were done by Screaming Mad George and Steve Wang. Those guys are practical effects LEGENDS. They worked on the original Predator, some of the nightmare on elm street movies, Gremlins 2... the list goes on. So the practical effects are legitimately good, even if other parts of the movies are not as good. Guyver 1 is a fun watch, just to see Mark Hamill. Guyver 2 isn't filmed as cinematically, but holy shit the martail arts are actually well done. They got some incredible people to do the fights. The final battle feels like it's out of an old Jackie Chan movie. Definitely worth the watch.

[@PPsqueezer]

Guyver goes CRAZY!🔥

[@Gigas0101]

I love the Guyver dub, Sho's voice actor screams like an absolute pro. While the live action movies aren't that great overall, I think they're the best tokusatsu work done in America, they're a sorta proof of concept that US studios could do some good sentai stuff. Definitely show that Mark Hamill clip down the line. You know the one.

[@rayhayes7701]

Ah yes The Guyver. The first mature anime I watched. But I didn’t watch the OVA though or this one you are reviewing from the 80s I never saw it. I remember the anime from the early 2000s however though since I did find the 80s anime on KZbin I believe so hey I’ll put it on my list to watch. And yes please look at the two live action movies. Also Zector is a Kamen Rider reference.

[@retrorockerross]

I came about The Guyver through the live action American films as a kid. The first one was on TV quite a bit and I loved anything with monsters and dudes in armor fighting them. The second one was a frequent rental from my mom-and-pop video store in my little hometown. Of course, only years later would I find out the main character in the second was played by David "Solid Snake" Hayter. It wasn't until the early 2000's and the rise of web 2.0 that I was able to find the original manga and anime. Still, definitely one of my cult classic favorites!

[@rodrigomartintereso]

I remember seeing these OVA's back in 2008 at a friend's house. The whole grupo was there to watch these and them we watched the Genocyber OVA's as well xD kind of the Gory weekend

[@Blackferret66]

The very first gray-market anime tape I ever got was the OVA Bio-Booster Guyver: Out of Control. It was amazing and awful at the same time. So many reused action sequences in the final fight.

[@XenoJehuty84]

Bio Booster Armor Guyver was the first uncut Anime I got my hands on at age 11 in 1995. Found it in a Blockbuster Video, all three volumes of the first OVA series and it was a love affair since. I just hope the mangaka finishes the series before we lose him.

[@andrewmclachlan4242]

Loved this back in the day!😎👍

[@itsdantaylor]

11:52 it's also stated ( i think) that the control medal for Guyver 2 was already damaged in the initial explosion that separated the 3 guyver units, hence why Sho was able to damage it further so easily during their fight.

[@DragonStar524]

90's style animation for anime will never be topped. It's just got a certain charm to it.

[@VertexTuner]

The 'US Renditions' and 'Manga Entertainment' releases, if I remember correctly, have two different dubs. The 'US Renditions' was dubbed at a Canadian non-union studio, while the Manga Ent (which appears to be the version you checked out) was recorded in the UK with a cast of US-expats to fill the roles (in a similar manner to the Resident Evil PS1 actors and voice actors). Manga Ent did this quite a number of times, such as Sohryuden having a UK dub and US dub (US-expats for UK and Canadian VA's for US) or it was the UK's voice acting used outright (such as Cyber City OEDO 808, which also had a custom OST while the US version used the original OST but the UK provided voices).

[@Lyvein1]

I always loved guyver as a kid. We had the first half of the series on vhs. If I ever met David hater I would so be like. Hey... you the guy from the Guyver movie right

[@Solbadgreg]

The original Guyver was one of 3 animes my uncle showed me one night, and it became one of the reasons i became an anime fan.

[@doyouwanttoplayagame4503]

I am here once again begging thee rights holder to greenlight a full adaptation of guyver

[@breakingbasha]

prob not anytime soon considering the manga is still ongoing

[@doyouwanttoplayagame4503]

@@breakingbasha oh yeah that's right it's on hiatus... Going on 6 years now damn

[@davidscott9257]

Guyver Dark Hero is awesome and im sure it has plenty of interesting production history worth digging into and making a video about, i would def watch it.

[@DarkKniteZ]

Thank you

[@Btk4813]

MA checking in and it's cold.

[@barryvercueil2346]

This was an amazing show. I'm still looking for the Manga to finish the story. Get well soon. Looking forward to Broken Blade.

[@christopheraustin5915]

I remember picking up the live-action movie as a kid because I thought it looked cool. I didn't get to watch it until i was in my teens because my parents saw it was rated R. They saw the anime version on shelves and suggested getting that instead, believing that since it was a cartoon it **must** be appropriate for children. I wasn't an anime fan as a kid, but knew enough that it was "weird cartoons" and declined. When I did watch it, I got the nagging feeling like I was watching something speeding through a longer plot, considering in the 3rd act we're introduced to ancient aliens. It wasn't until *much* later I found out the pedigree of the franchise as a dark-and-gritty reimagining of Kamen Rider, a mainstay of Japanese superheroes the same way Batman or Superman is in the US. On that note; Android Kikaider, the anime that appeared on Adult Swim in the late 00s was a neat mecha series that could be worth a Retcon_404

[@AntonSh-dq6ez]

The music in the 89-92 series creates the atmosphere of total badassness!

[@GrimmShane]

A cool thing to always remember, is that the reason Guyver Unit 2 didn't return from the dead like Sho did after being killed by Enzyme, is because Sho didn't just Rip off the Control Medal and let the armor eat its host, but instead Completely Disintegrated the thing with a Mega Smasher, Control Medal included

[@RedJoeTramp]

The truck driver at the start reminded me of Sleepy from Mad Bull 34. Which now makes me want to see Mad Bull 34 covered here because ho boy, its peak 80s anime, even the dub is pretty fun

[@oliverrichardson4429]

That clip you showed of the English dub reminds me a ton of the Transformers Headmasters anime dub. Which I think only had 3 voice actors (or something like that)

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

I honestly liked the dubbed cut, Tom Fahn's howling screams still trumps Spike Spencer's screaming from Evangelion. The gross part of the dub though is Tom's sister Melissa Fahn plays Sho's love interest Mizuki.

[@MrDarksol]

Oh yeah that's right the original OVA ended on a cliffhanger meaning we never get a full resolution that actually made sense........ Yeah I know the anime version existed but that was so wishy-washy that it hurts. I really do need to get around to watching the OVA series especially now that I met David Hayner in a convention a few years ago and I should also make time to even watch the second movie which by the way if you do plan on watching the movies I can only say the first movie is not that good but the second movie is fantastic.

[@net_spider]

I'm guessing Project ARMS took a loooot of inspiration from this. Its almost a beat for beat in some cases in terms of story.

[@curtisjordan5303]

The updated Guyver remake series from 05 was very good worth thr watch/review. The movies were pretty good B movie entries all worth covering on this chanell. Please and thank you.

[@itsdantaylor]

I love the concept of the Guyver. Basically some aliens find/make a creature like the symbiote from marvel comics but it's SO destructive it just outright murders the host so they have to bind it to a super computer/mini starship engine, then they give it too one of their bio weapon experiments just to see what happens and what comes out terrifies them so much they just abandon the whole thing.

[@slouischarlesYT]

For some reason, this reminded me of 3x3 Eyes

[@trollingisasport]

Some of the best opening and ending songs ever.

[@DragonStar524]

My favorite episode from this OVA is episode 6. Sho just got so brutalized and it was honestly a bit disturbing. And then the armor somewhat consuming him/keeping him alive in a zombified form of the guyver suit. Overall a great and tense episode.

[@jcman-lp6lg]

damn, i kinda want to go and rewatch it now. Its been over a decade since i last seen it.

[@skotyb]

Love the Guyver. Finally got done reading the manga and I wish that it continues eventually but it looks highly unlikely! 😢 We need a reboot!

[@Princessdorkness]

God I freaking love Guyver

[@ninjamalec]

Welcome to the Cyber Punk collection

[@suprizeoptomist4680]

That time your superpower was back acne...

[@josephjimenez3395]

I would definitely recommend the second Guyver live action movie over the first one. Guyver: Dark Hero is a closer adaptation to the anime than the first one. Dark Hero also carries the dark tone that the anime has while the first movie has a more goofy/action tone to it.

[@HiddenEnt]

For years… this armor design has stuck in my head I maybe saw the live action tv show a couple times but could never remember what this was. Anytime I’d try to search it I’d end up at Beetleborgs >.

[@TheJediOtaku]

Love the Guyver. Gateway into Anime.

[@primusvsunicron1]

first live action movie is getting a Bluray release this year

[@StarOutlaw9]

Aptom gets SO cool later in the manga.

[@DragonStar524]

Sho vs Enzyme is probably my favorite sequence in this OVA.

[@milktenders6219]

I fucking LOVE Guyver

[@zabnorg]

the terrible dub is part and parcel of the '90s anime experience my dude. I have that poster from my DVD copy where he's tearing the cheek off of his face (helmet) armor.

[@fatal-vice8145]

It was love the moment I bought saw the anime.most of my left forearm is a guy very tattoo.

[@jamespaguip5913]

Guyver deserves more love.

[@Issabellmoondew]

I live in The North East too and danm did we get some snow