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Many American anime fans were drawn to that art form by a mid-1980's series called Bubble Gum Crisis. The stories about the Knight Sabers and their battle against Genom ended after a few films - too early for some fans. Those BGC admirers were delighted to find that the series would be revived for Japanese television, but they were surprised at the changes they saw in the character designs. Why were there changes? According to Hiroki Kayashi, director of the new series, one reason was the new character designer. Hayashi said at a Katsucon panel that he wants to give the designer some freedom to adapt the characters as he sees fit. |
| Hayashi said the characters may look different, but he's trying to create a new series in the spirit of the older series. Hayashi worked on one of the original eight episodes, and he said he felt the first series should have followed some of the plot lines he placed in the episode he helmed. |  |
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Hayashi has directed many fan favorites, including the Sol Bianca, Tenchi-Muyo and El Hazard. That last series had an unusual influence, Hayashi said - his love of 1950's American TV westerns. Hayashi enjoyed those stories so much he ended up emulating them in the El Hazard series. The director also said that when he dropped by the AIC studio one day, he was surprised to find that actors were recording the sound tracks for a new AD Police series. |
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Katsucon Day 1 |
| Katsucon Day 2 | |
| Katsucon Day 3 |