A Memorandum of All 37 Episodes of "Rocket Ken-chan" / Early SF Hero Manga ①

To speak very broadly about Fujiko-sensei's career as an author, the period from 1954, when he began his professional career in earnest, to 1959 was a time when he was active mainly in short stories and short-term serials.

In 1959, "Prince of the Sea", which began serialization in the inaugural issue of "Weekly Shonen Sunday," became a huge hit, and from then on, serialized works centered on grade-level magazines were announced one after another. (One-shots disappeared for a time.)

The main battleground became magazines for children and toddlers from Kodansha and Shogakukan, and coincidentally, works that began at both companies in April 1960 became hits at the same time. They are,

For more details on this, please see the article below.

Both "Tebukuro Tecchan" and "Rocket Ken-chan" were serialized for three years as the grade levels advanced, but "Tanoshii X-nensei" ceased publication, marking the end of Fujiko-sensei's activities at Kodansha.

From then on, with Shogakukan magazines as the main focus, masterpieces were created one after another.

"Rocket Ken-chan", to be precise, was first announced in the 1960 Spring Special Issue of "Yochien" ("Ken-chan Appears"). It is a special issue positioned as preparation for entering elementary school.

"Rocket Ken-chan," which was unveiled in "Yochien," began its full-scale serialization in "Shogaku Ichinensei." It was labeled as a "continued manga", and it is characterized by an ending that connects to the next episode each time.

This concept of "continued manga" is thought to be an adaptation of the development where the story continues in a connected sequence, as seen in the early days of "Prince of the Sea." As an image, it might be good to imagine the style of adventure novels like "Gulliver's Travels" or "Around the World in 80 Days."

The story follows Ken-chan and Mariko as they travel around the world in a rocket called the Hibari-go, which can fly on land, at sea, in the air, and in space, and these episodes are connected.

"Shogaku Ichinensei" featured 7-8 page stories for each episode in the April, May, and June 1960 issues, but from the July issue onwards, they were published separately in the main magazine and a separate appendix, with satisfying episodes of about 40 pages each.

Here is a rough introduction to the main highlights...

July issue "The Girl from the Red Star"
Their first big adventure flying into space. A variety of characters appear all at once, such as Lili-chan, the dog Pipi, a king who loves toys, and a forest ghost.

August issue "Exploration of the Land of Giants"
A modern version of "Gulliver's Travels."

September issue "The Land of Strange Machines"
A bad robot is the villain. A robot rebellion is a favorite theme of Fujiko-sensei.

October Issue 'The Mysterious Kidnapper'
The theme of 'kidnapping,' a familiar motif in Fujiko's works, is depicted. By the way, it is aliens who are kidnapping the children.

November Issue 'Sky Gang'
The Hibari-go is destroyed, and a new rocket appears. The ally and enemy characters, such as Dr. Airplane and King Owl, are charming.

December Issue 'African Desert Exploration'
A character modeled after the insufferable Scanray, a guest character from 'Prince of the Sea,' appears and confuses Ken-chan and his friends.

From the January to March issues, the series returned to being published only in the main magazine, with 15 pages per episode.

January Issue 'Defeat the Ghost Monster'
A story about African natives, which occasionally appeared in Fujiko's works.

February Issue 'The Roughneck of the West'
A story where Ken-chan becomes a sheriff and takes action, which also connects to later works like 'Doraemon's' 'Gunfighter Nobita'.

March Issue 'Rocket Race'
A theme similar to 'Rocket Olympics' in 'Prince of the Sea.' The development is similar, such as prioritizing saving human lives over the race and the final big reversal. And at the end, a 'next episode preview' is included, stating that it will continue in 'Shogaku Nensei'.

By the time it reached 'Shogaku Nensei,' Ken-chan and Mariko-chan are depicted as having grown up a little. And combined with the separate volume, it features a volume of around 40 pages per episode, depicting adventures that are a step up in quality.

In 'Shogaku Nensei,' they adopted a solid setup by appointing Mr. Minoru Kume as the original author. Minoru Kume (real name) was a partner with whom Fujiko-sensei had already teamed up for early picture stories like 'Tap Tap's Adventure' and 'Super Cat', and they had collaborated on a work called 'Rocket Boy' right before this work.

It is surprising now, but 'Prince of the Sea' also had an original author at first, and the young Fujimoto-sensei was tolerant of incorporating outside influence.

The compatibility between Mr. Kume's ideas and Fujiko-sensei's art style was good, and the works published in 'Shogaku Nensei' are rich in variety and worth reading. Each time, a clear-cut enemy appears, causes an incident, and Ken-chan and his friends solve it.

The following is a brief introduction to the highlights...

April 1961 Issue 'Superhuman Robot Gorigo'
The giant robot Gorigo goes on a rampage in town. Ken-chan and his friends succeed in defeating it with their rocket, but it escapes immediately. When they pursue it, a man appears who targets the kings of the world who built the robot, leading to a battle between the robot and the rocket...

May Issue 'The Mysterious Butterfly Phantom'
Uncle Dr. Ota makes his first appearance. He plays a role similar to Dr. Chieno in 'Prince of the Sea.' The doctor's daughter, Yoshiko, is kidnapped by the Butterfly Phantom, and they head out to rescue her, but...

June Issue 'The Terror of the Monster Garimo'
The monster Garimo attacks the subway and the bank. They are outsmarted once, but using Dr. Oyama's expanding iron, they head to Lake Mashu in Hokkaido, which is Garimo's hideout.

July Issue: 'The Dragon King Appears'
Airplanes and ships are being pulled in one after another by a 'Magnet Whale' that uses a powerful magnet. Ken-chan and his friends must confront the Dragon King who controls the whale.

August Issue: 'Chase the Red Penguin'
A blue penguin is found at the summit of Mount Everest. However, it is kidnapped by a red penguin and a mammoth penguin and taken to the Antarctic continent. Ken-chan and his friends head out to rescue it.

September Issue: 'The Mysterious Mitt and the Baseball Robot'
A unique story with a baseball theme. Nagashima of the Giants also appears. This will be featured in detail under a different theme.

October Issue: 'Dr. Kim the Magician'
A confrontation with Kim, who uses hypnosis and fast-growing plants. They repel his hypnosis by reflecting it back with a mirror.

November Issue: 'The Gas Majin Group'
A confrontation with the Gas Majin Group, who use fluffy gas to steal a 'machine that extracts gold from seawater'.

December Issue: 'The Black Santa Claus'
A confrontation with the 'Black Santa Claus,' who plans to collect 'death ash' scattered by hydrogen bomb tests and use it for attacks. They are in a pinch as the death ash vacuum cleaner made by Dr. Ota is also stolen.

January Issue: 'Skiing Showdown on Snow Planet'
Invited by the Snow Planetians from the snow- and ice-covered Snow Planet, Ken-chan and Mariko are asked by the King of the Snow Planet to participate in a race involving skiing, skating, and snow sledding.

February Issue: 'Rebellion of the Helper Robot'
A major theme for Fujiko-sensei: 'Robot Rebellion.' This will also be introduced from a different angle.

Starting from the March issue of 'Shogaku Nensei 2', the visuals of Ken-chan and Mari-chan suddenly become more mature. They officially become rocket crew members and will fight even stronger enemies than before.

The March issue of 'Shogaku Nensei 2' is structured so that the story continues into the April issue of 'Shogaku Nensei 3', and from then on, it is depicted in medium-length stories of one episode every 2 to 4 months.

The credit for Minoru Kume, who was the original author, is removed from this point on.

Below are some brief highlights.

March 1962 'Shogaku Nensei 2' - April 'Shogaku Nensei 3': 'Rocket Crew Members'
Ken-chan and Mari-chan pass the test to become rocket crew members. Dr. Jones, who invented a space battleship, is kidnapped by 'Black Rainbow', and they head out to rescue him, but they get captured themselves. Dr. Jones is being threatened by 'Black Rainbow' to build the space battleship, and if it is completed, it will be used for evil deeds. The story continues to the next issue at a good point of crisis.

The space battleship is completed and launches to hijack an American hydrogen bomb. Ken-chan and his friends, having escaped the enemy's eyes, rescue Dr. Jones and use the boomerang bomb that the doctor had secretly built into the bottom of the space battleship to blow it up, successfully repelling the Black Rainbow.

May-June Issue 'The Secret of the Phantom Kingdom'
A country reminiscent of the Middle East, Arak. Here, 40 Thieves have appeared, repeatedly committing crimes like bank robberies. Ken-chan, Mari-chan, and Dr. Ota rushed over from Japan, but they are not welcomed by the local police.

The thieves manipulate flying carpets and giant demons. In particular, even if the demon is rammed by a rocket and blown to pieces, it just returns to its original form. When they follow the thieves, they find the palace that serves as their hideout, but after a while, it disappears without a trace.

Disguising himself as a thief, Ken-chan succeeds in infiltrating the hideout, but he is captured by the enemy and thrown into a dungeon. A giant scorpion robot attacks Mari-chan and the Doctor as they head to rescue him...

There are plenty of gimmicks like grand spectacles, swirl bombs, and disappearing demons. Just like in 'Prince of the Sea,' the back-and-forth of attacking and being counterattacked keeps you on the edge of your seat.

July-August Issue 'Phantom Thief Chameleon'
The Phantom Thief Chameleon steals weapons such as Self-Defense Force cannons and tanks. He is a master of disguise, and his true face is unknown. Ken-chan and his friends are asked to arrest Chameleon, but he warns them that he will steal a jet plane instead, and he successfully manages to do so.

Through Dr. Ota's strategy, the Doctor and Ken-chan succeed in infiltrating the enemy base, but they are discovered and captured. They set up a transmitter to call for reinforcements and are rescued by the rocket piloted by Mari-chan, but they are held up by an 'electromagnet'.

From infiltrating by pretending to be a robot to the final one-on-one showdown with Chameleon, it is packed with highlights until the very end.

September-November Issue 'The Curse of Gorgon'
King Polak of the country of Trab visits Japan as a state guest. King Polak is a boy of only 10 years old, and members of the Gorgon Party, who are plotting to assassinate him, also enter the country. Ken-chan serves as a bodyguard for King Polak, but he is put to sleep by the phantom Gorgon's sleeping gas.

They are warned that the King will be killed within three days, and although they set up a strict security system, they allow Gorgon to slip through their guard. Ken-chan plays a major role, such as spotting a time bomb in a clock and nimbly rescuing the King when he is sent flying into the sky.

Ken-chan realizes that the true identity of Gorgon is the King's own attendant, but he manages to escape. Because Ken-chan cannot fully defend against such a cunning and strong enemy, he decides to stop the futile vigilance and comes up with a plan.

Guarding a king of the same age, this work focuses on intellectual battles like deception and trickery, rather than battles between rockets and machines. The development is such that it deceives the enemy's eyes, and in other words, also deceives the reader.

December-March Issue 'The Drug That Eliminates Gravity'
Santa Claus is distributing presents. When they follow him, he enters a large factory-like building. When Ken-chan and his friends enter, the man who was playing Santa appears and turns the room into a zero-gravity space. He says he has created a drug that eliminates gravity.

When they take home and examine the doll given to them by the man, the gravity-eliminating drug is scattered, and Ken-chan and his friends are sent flying high into the sky. They were saved by calling the rocket via radio, but if left alone, they would have been sent flying into outer space.

When they head to the place where Santa was, the factory is completely gone. Dr. Ota realizes that it is the work of aliens who are using a drug that eliminates gravity to send people and buildings on Earth into space in order to take over the planet.

The greatest enemy, fitting for a final episode, appears. Battles unlike any before unfold, including a fight against aliens underground, the sight of a devastated Tokyo, and a final life-or-death showdown in Hakone.

Although the story is serious, Fujiko-sensei's bright touch makes it very easy to read.

As the serialization began in 'Shogaku Ichinensei' (First Grade) and moved up to 'Ninensei' (Second Grade) and 'Sannensei' (Third Grade), the visuals and content became significantly more mature. From this time on, Fujiko-sensei's ability to tailor works to the target audience was being demonstrated.

For Fujiko-sensei, such science adventure manga were a major pillar at the beginning of his career, as seen in works like 'Prince of the Sea.' Although they have become a rare type of work today, I would like to continue introducing 'science adventure manga' like this one, which were mass-produced in the 1960s, in this series.

There are many analyses from his debut up to 'Doraemon'.