Daitetsujin 17 | 大鉄人17 | Giant Iron Man 17 | Yūji Hosoi (1977)

Daitetsujin 17 | 大鉄人17 | Giant Iron Man 17

Actionpacked original page by Yūji Hosoi

Size : 25.3 x 36 cm
Media: pencil, ink & zip-a-tone on paper
Very good condition

Created by Shotaro Ishinomori and produced by Toei, Daitetsujin 17 was broadcast in Japan from 18 March to 11 November 1977. Its central character is the giant robot One Seven, created by the supercomputer Brain, which ultimately concludes that humanity must be destroyed.

The series occupies an interesting intersection between live-action tokusatsu and Japan's rapidly developing giant-robot culture of the 1970s. Daitetsujin 17 dates from 1977, right in the Japanese 1970s super-robot era. UFO Robot Grendizer / Goldorak was broadcast in Japan from 1975–77, so visually they're contemporaries. Both have that very 1970s combination of a humanoid body, massive chest, helmet-like head, bold geometric shapes and almost heraldic facial/chest details.

Daitetsujin 17 was produced by Hosoi as a manga version for "TV Magazine" special issue (April 1977), again placing his adaptation directly alongside the original television production.