Golgo 13
From Free net encyclopedia
Template:Infobox animanga/Header Template:Infobox animanga/Movie Template:Infobox animanga/Footer
Golgo 13 (ゴルゴ13, also known under the psudeonymn Duke Togo) is a fictional assassin and is the lead protagonist in his own manga series, also titled Golgo 13, created by Japanese mangaka Takao Saito.
The Golgo 13 series is one of the longest running adult manga in Japan and has been adapted into two live action films, two anime movies directed by Osamu Dezaki, and a few video games including Golgo 13: Top Secret Episode and its NES sequel, The Mafat Conspiracy: Golgo 13 II. Since its debut in 1968, it has sold over 200 million copies in various formats, including compilation books.
Golgo 13 has been compared to a Japanese counterpart to James Bond, except with a darker character, a much harder core attitude towards sex, and completely amoral. Golgo 13 is described as a mystery man of undetermined origin, possibily being at least part Japanese, who takes any assignment for any employer (it has been said he has worked for the CIA and the KGB) as long as the right price is given (usually around 1 million dollars for a hit) and will always fulfill his contracts, even if he has two or more opposing contracts at the same time. He is an uncanny sharpshooter, with near 100% (at least over 99.8% with only two misses, a dud and a missed shot) accuracy and capable of lethal trick shooting, and regularly uses a customized, scoped M-16 rifle in his assassinations. He also is a heavy smoker of cigars.
Despite Golgo's "amoral" status, the stories are always set up so that Golgo is at least nominally a "good guy" -- his targets are typically criminals or people who otherwise at least partially "deserve" what they get. There are no stories that involve completely innocent people being assassinated.
Particularly in the later volumes, Golgo himself tends to take a back seat to the other characters involved in the contract. It's not uncommon for Golgo to only appear in a single panel or two out of a 150-page story.
Two movies were created, The Professional: Golgo 13 and Golgo 13: Queen Bee. The Professional: Golgo 13 was once licensed by Orion and Streamline Pictures and now is licensed by Urban Vision. Queen Bee is also licensed by that same company and celebrity voice actor John DiMaggio (Bender of Futurama) plays the role of Golgo 13 in Queen Bee.
Contents |
Golgo's Origin
The origin of Golgo 13 is left in complete mystery, his age and birthplace both completely unknown. Various episodes throughout the Golgo 13 Manga have tried answering this mystery, but all of the 'Origin Series' end with a note of uncertainty that never make set if the stories theory was definitely true, and others end revealing that the theories were false. Some theories state that Golgo 13 is either: Japanese, Japanese-American, Chinese, Chinese-American, Japanese-Russian, or of mixed Asian descent. Some theories even consider that he may be of former Manchurian or Central Asian descent, but these theories are deemed as unlikely.
Manga In English
A few Golgo 13 stories were translated in English and released in the USA. In 1986, Leed Publishing Co.,Ltd. (Saito's own company) releases four trade paperback comics, each with 2 complete stories, called the Golgo 13 Graphic Novel Series:
- No. 1: Into the Wolves' Lair (August 1986)
Into the Wolves' Lair- The Israeli government hires Golgo 13 to rescue a Mossad agent and eliminate Neo-Nazis operating in Argentina and comes face-to-face with Nazi war criminal Martin Bormann.
Fighting Back- Soviet commandos pursue Golgo 13 after he assassinates a Soviet general in Afghanistan.
- No. 2: Galinpero (October 1986)
Galinpero- An peasant villager hires Golgo 13 to kill the Galinperos, a group of vicious criminals hiding out in the jungles of the Amazon Basin.
The One-Ten Angle- The Saudi royal family hires Golgo 13 to find and execute the murderer of one of their own in New York.
- No. 3: Ice Lake Hit (December 1986)
Ice Lake Hit- The CIA sends Golgo 13 to Canada to assassinate a CIA double agent, while Eastern Bloc intelligence agents try to stop him.
Machine Cowboy- A horse rancher hires Golgo 13 to hunt down horse thieves in Texas.
- No. 4: The Ivory Connection (February 1987)
Ivory Connection- On behalf of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Golgo 13 hunts ivory poachers in Africa and ends up facing the FNLA.
Scandal! The Unpaid Reward- The leader of a West German political party hires Golgo 13 to assassinate his political rival, to secure his lobby for a defense contractor with the government of West Germany.
These four books are out of print and are very rare and hard to find.
In 1989 and 1990, Leed Publishing returns with two new Golgo 13 comic books, this time in association with Vic Tokai as part of the promotion of the two Golgo 13 video games produced by them for the NES, Golgo 13: Top Secret Episode, released in 1988 and The Mafat Conspiracy, released in 1990. The comics were released to the US public via a mail-in offer with the purchase of the games and were later even found packaged with the video games.
Each issue contained one complete story and had nothing to do with the storylines of the video games themselves.
- No.1: The Impossible Hit (1989)- In Manhattan, New York, Golgo 13 kills an financier with Mafia connections but is soon hounded by detectives when the single shell casing from the bullet used in the killing is found!
- No.2: Hopper The Border (1990)- Swiss authorities hire Golgo 13 to kill a criminal who is well-known for smuggling people on the run out of Switzerland.
In 1991, Leed Publishing returns once again with another Golgo 13 series, now released by VIZ Media, formerly VIZ comics, under the title, The Professional: Golgo 13.
This series ran for only 3-issues and featured a 3-part story called The Argentine Tiger.
- The Argentine Tiger- In 1982, in the middle of the Falklands War, the British government hires Golgo 13 to assassinate the ex-president of Argentina, Juan Perón, who was supposedly dead but is alive in Buenos Aires.
In January 2006, Golgo 13 was brought back by VIZ Media in their Viz Signature collection. These volumes of the Golgo 13 manga are taken not in order of their release, but in a seemingly arbitrarily way that is decided by Viz Media. The first Volume is entitled Golgo 13, Supergun, and it features two stories as well as a dossier on Duke Togo, AKA Golgo 13.
- Story #364, The Gun at Am Shara, May 1997
This story is based on Saddam Hussein's program, entitled Project Babylon. It involved creating a Supergun, not unlike the gun designed by Germany to launch artillery strikes on Great Britain during World War II.
- Story #144, Hit And Run, April 1979
This story revolves around a Private Investigator named Ed Miglinoe in San Francisco. After his fiance was hurt in a hit and run, he vows vengeance on the purpetrators. Using his knowledge of the freelance assassin Golgo 13, Ed is able to scare the crime boss and the person who struck his fiance, George Andreou, into admitting all of his crimes.
Trivia
- Golgo 13's name is derived from the 13th hill of Golgotha, where Jesus was crucified.
- As the writer did not know if a dark character, almost an anti-hero theme would catch on, Golgo 13 laughed, made funny jokes, and displayed more emotion in earlier episodes.
- Golgo 13 rarely shakes hands with others to avoid the risk of his right arm being harmed in anyway.
- He refuses to take a job if the contractor does not explain the reasons for contracting the hit (perhaps a plot device to allow background explanation).
- He does not allow anyone to contact him twice, nor does he "report back" after a successful hit.
- The first animated Golgo 13 movie, was released in 1983 and called simply Golgo 13. During its releases in the U.S. it was given the title The Professional: Golgo 13. Not to be confused with live action The Professional which also had a hitman as a protagonist.
- Both live action Golgo 13 films were produced by Toei Co. Ltd.,. In the rarely seen first live action film, Golgo 13, produced in 1973, he was portrayed by actor Ken Takakura. In the second live action film, Kowloon Assignment, produced in 1977, Golgo 13 was portrayed by actor and martial artist Sonny Chiba.
- Golgo 13 was two video games for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1988.
Top Secret Episode and The Mafat Conspiracy