Thursday, March 18, 2010

Minor Allies

  • Goodenough Girls X, Ōedo Chakichaki Musume (大江戸ちゃきちゃき娘?, lit. "Genuine Great Edoite Girls" or "Leading Girls of the Great Edo") in the Japanese version: Three girls who protected Edo from Him, as revealed in episode 30 (Edo eventually became Tokyo City; see History of Tokyo). A long time ago in Townsville, when Him was terrorizing its citizens, a man named Professor Pithium (Kennai Hiraga in the Japanese version), who is modeled after Hiraga Gennai, created the special substance "Chemical X". In the Japanese version, it is called "Kennainum He," the original Chemical Z. Professor Pithium poured it on three girls: Momo, Omiya, and Okou. The substance changed their appearance, giving them new hairstyles (now similar to their present day counterparts) and kimonos (the bottom portion is shorter than normal, resembling mini skirts, the colors match the Powerpuff Girls Z, and their sashes are black with the symbols of the Powerpuff Girls Z), as well as their own powers and weapons. The three were given the name Goodenough Girls (Ōedo Chakichaki Musume in the Japanese version) and their purpose was to stop Him from causing more damage to Townsville. The three faced and successfully defeated Him, whose weakness to the cold became his undoing. Together with Professor Pithium, they were able to drain Him's powers and seal his body in a coffin. The Goodenough Girls can be seen as the heroines who preceded the present day Powerpuff Girls Z and may in fact be their ancestors. Because of his defeat, Him has a deep hatred towards the Goodenough Girls and directs that hatred towards the Powerpuff Girls Z for their resemblance to them. Similarly to the Steamypuff Girls from the original Powerpuff Girls cartoon, they both stopped a great villain from a previous era.
  • Momo (もも?, Seiyū: Emiri Katou, English Dub Voice: Nicole Bouma): The Goodenough Girls' version of Blossom and possible ancestor of Blossom. Her personality is a little different from Blossom's as she appears to act as the voice of reason (she tries to stop an argument between Omiya and Okou about who should say the most in their intro). Her hair is brown and her pony tail is shorter. Her weapon is a coin tied to a red thread and is used similarly to Blossom's Yo-yo. Her main attack is: "Special Move! Mitarashi Dango Attack".
  • Omiya (おみや?, Seiyū: Nami Miyahara, English Dub Voice: Maryke Hendrikse): The Goodenough Girls' version of Bubbles and possible ancestor of Bubbles. Her personality is similar to Bubbles' as she acts polite, enjoys her new kimono, and is very cheerful and innocent. Her hair style is similar to Bubbles' except that her pig tails are replaced with buns, and she wears a flower on her bangs (where the blue hair clip usually is when Bubbles transforms). Her weapon is a fan which allows her to blow gusts of wind at her opponent. Her main attack is: "Windy Fan".
  • Okou (おこう Okō?, Seiyū: Machiko Kawana, English Dub Voice: Kelly Metzger): The Goodenough Girls' version of Buttercup and possible ancestor of Buttercup. Her personality appears to be somewhat similar to Buttercup's as she argues with Omiya and, like Buttercup, enjoys the new power she received. Her bangs are similar to Buttercup's, but her hair is more tidy and, in comparison to the other girls, changes the least when she transforms. Her weapon is a mallet that is powerful enough to nearly deform Him on contact. Her main attack is: "Special Move! Daruma Otoshi".
  • Powerpuff Boys Z: Only appeared in episode 37. This team consists of Ken, Professor Utonium and Poochi. It was formed because the girls had to take the final exam, and the school principal didn't want them to transform during the exam. Ken, Professor Utonium and Poochi's alter-egos are Ken Kitazawa Z, Utonium Z and Peach Z respectively. They fought the Gangreen Gang, Fuzzy Lumpkins, Mojo Jojo and the Amoeba Boys. They won, but it was only luck. Ken Kitazawa Z has no main attacks and he uses gadgets like a chewing gum, a bowling ball and a broomstick to fight. Utomium Z, inspired by PowerProf from the original series, is the most powerful member of the team. He uses his cyber suit to fly and fires lasers from his gloves (Similar to Iron Man) and his forehead. His main attack is the "Uto Beam." Peach Z fights with a nunchaku made of bones. While he has no main attacks, Peach Z is roughly a combination of Bruce Lee and Yoda from Star Wars: Episode II in fighting style. He also wears an outfit similar to Beatrix Kiddo from Kill Bill.
  • Dy.Na.Mo Z: First shown in the second opening, it makes its first appearance in episode 50. Originally thought to be a fighting mech by the PPGZ, the Professor actually tells them that it's a time machine to be used to collect the white light to seal Him. Dy.Na.Mo Z is composed of three fighter craft that look like the heads of Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup (the individual machines are never named). A homage to Go Nagai's Getter Robo series, Dy.Na.Mo Z's individual parts can combine into three different forms; a 'Blossom' mode (Getter-1), a 'Buttercup' mode (Getter-2), and a 'Bubbles' mode (Getter-3) (the forms are also never named). Like Getter-1, Blossom Mode is the standard mech and is also the most articulate of the three forms. Blossom controls it using a split two-handle bar similar to those used in modern airplanes. It is in this form, when the PPGZ were about to be attacked by Mojo's mech, that the white light gave life to Dy.Na.Mo Z allowing it to fight Mojo's mech without a pilot. In Buttercup Mode, it has a drill for the right hand and a hammer for her left. Buttercup controls the mech using a two-lever control system similar in design to the many mechs found in Real Robot anime series such as Gundam. The final mode, Bubbles Mode, is a tracked mech with clamp-like hands (similar to Getter-3). Bubbles controls this form with a steering wheel. In all three modes, Dy.Na.Mo Z's main ability is "Time Warp". Professor Utonium, Ken, and Peach are able to keep in contact with Dy.Na.Mo Z through different time eras by using a Sync Helmet which transmits their voices to Dy.Na.Mo Z. Dy.Na.Mo Z is not without her glitches. While time traveling, the girls have no control as to where the time portal will open up in the target era. This proves problematic, as they tend to crash into objects or appear in inconvenient locations like underwater. A short circuit in the time engine (caused by Him as a way to stall for time) can reprogram Dy.Na.Mo Z to travel to alternate universes.

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