The Mentor: Nambu Hakase

Dr. Kozaburou Nambu

At 48, Dr. Nambu is a scientist and administrator at the International Science Organization and responsible for the coordination of the Kagaku Ninjatai, whose creation he personally funded in part or whole. The team sometimes meets at his mansion rather than ISO headquarters.

His Past

Nambu reportedly has a number of doctorates from a variety of prestigious institutions, including Oxford, Cambridge, and Harvard, but he specializes in astrophysics.

He fought in WWIII, but fans don't get to see his military prowess until the end of Gatchaman Fighter, right before he's killed by Count Egobossler. Some sources believe that he got the technology for the Kagaku Ninjatai from benevolent aliens (hence the end of the 94OAVs), but this was never confirmed by the original series.

(Though marriage is an important aspect of Japanese culture, Nambu is clearly single. But if it takes an average of 5 to 8 years to get a doctorate and he fought in WWIII, even if he only has 3 doctorates, it's no darn wonder he's single. He hasn't had any time to meet anyone. I've wondered why he doesn't go for Dr. Pandora in Gatch II, but I've been told that Pandora is much too young for him. (Her age is never given but she is old enough to have developed a reputation as a scientist but young enough to have a young daughter and husband, so I'd put her in her early 30s. And I have yet to meet the man who thinks a woman over 18 is too young for him.)

Relationship with the Team

The team refer to Nambu as "Nambu Hakase," which literally means "Nambu Doctor." The Japanese put titles after personal names rather than before.

Nambu is an authoritarian, and he's rarely caught in anything but a suit. He comes across as very masculine in the original series, and more than a few fans find him attractive. (For those folks—is Allen Rowe the artist for you! Find someone with back issues of Bird Scramble.) He seems to be able to deal with just about anything; rarely do we see him break down, and then only in extreme circumstances, as when he learns that Joe is dying.

Nambu is, in a lot of ways, the brains of the operation. He figures out how to destroy the Jigokiller. He understands the way the team's transformation works...far better than they do. He's the one who figures out what Katse is. Without him, the series seems to suggest, the team could not really function, though with Director Anderson's help they do manage to limp along after his death.

In one of the most memorable episodes of the entire 205 Gatchaman episodes, Nambu is taken prisoner by Count Egobossler, tortured for information, and finally killed in front of the team.

Gatchapin

The most bizarre iteration of any of the characters that I've ever seen is in Gatchapin, and the new Nambu wins first prize (and that's saying something, given what the other characters look like). The rest of the characters look like bookworm/turtle/dinosaurs, but Nambu, who is called Dr. Mukkun, looks like Gossamer from the old Bugs Bunny cartoons. AAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Voices for Nambu Hakase

Gatchaman Oohira Tohru
ADV Gatchaman dubs Andy McAvin

Battle of the Planets Alan Dinehart
G-Force Jan Rabison
Eagle Riders Greg O' Neill

OVAs Sawaki Ikuya
OVA English dubs Michael McConnohie