Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Victory (cartoon)

The name or term "Victory" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Victory (disambiguation).

Japanese Generation 1 continuity

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Victory

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Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Victory (戦え!超ロボット生命体トランスフォーマーV Tatakae! Chō Robot Seimeitai Transformers Victory) ran from March 14, 1989 to December 19, 1989 in Japan for 38 broadcast episodes, in support of the toyline of the same name. "Transformer V" is the opening theme and "Cybertron Banzai" as its ending theme.

Overview

By the power of Grayskull, I have...THE POWER!!!!!.

After the conclusion of the daring, unusual Super-God Masterforce, Victory took the continuing animated saga of the Transformers back to a much more basic approach, restoring an unmoving status quo of small groups of Autobots and Decepticons battling over energy on Earth. Like Masterforce before it, the series takes a fresh-start approach, focusing on a cast of entirely new characters, although the connections between the previous series are a lot more clearly drawn than they were between Masterforce and The Headmasters, with repeated appearances by members of its cast.

For an unknown reason—be it a rushed schedule, a diminishing budget (perhaps caused by Victory's uncommonly well-done animation) or something else—Victory's 38-episode run features a full six clip shows, containing no new footage or story at all. As if that wasn't enough, a further six were released directly to video after the end of the series, bringing the total up to 44.

Victory was planned out by Masumi Kaneda, who had also been responsible for The Headmasters and Super-God Masterforce, but in this instance, his involvement with the actual production of the show appears to have been comparatively less, with Hiroyuki Hoshiyama credited as the head writer. Kaneda did, however, work on the Victory manga, with the massive storytelling gulf between it and the anime illustrating how few of Kaneda's ideas for the series actually made it into the anime.

Storyline

In the year 2025, following the defeat of the Decepticons on Earth in the Masterforce War, the villains have begun aggressively attacking other planets in the universe. To counter this threat, the Autobots join with many other civilizations and lifeforms (including Humanity) to form the Galactic Peace Alliance, which strikes back against the Decepticons with its military Galactic Defense Force. Recently appointed Supreme Commander of the Autobots, Star Saber heads up the Sector One Defense Force, backed up by the Brainmasters and Multiforce, while God Ginrai takes charge of Sector Two.

Seeking the energy necessary to free his massive Planet-Destroying Fortress from imprisonment in the Dark Nebula where Star Saber sealed it years ago, the Decepticons' new Emperor of Destruction, Deathsaurus, attacks Earth with his Dinoforce, prompting Star Saber and his team to set up residence on the planet. Accompanying them is Jean Minakaze, Star Saber's adopted human son, whose parents died in a Decepticon attack when he was just a baby, and Holi, head of the Micromaster Rescue Team, who soon arrive on Earth to be with their leader. The Decepticons, meanwhile, are progressively joined by more and more members of the elite Breastforce squad, including their scheming leader Leozack, who seeks to take leadership of the Decepticons from Deathsaurus, and the sneaky Hellbat, who's only looking out for himself.

After a series of energy-raiding adventures on Earth, the Breastforce target the Micromasters' homeworld of planet Micro, where they liberate their teammate, Guyhawk, enabling the team to combine into the mighty Liokaiser and finally defeat Star Saber in battle for the first time. Despite the addition of the six-changing samurai Greatshot to their ranks, the Autobots are weakened by this turn of events, and when God Ginrai arrives on Earth to aid them, he is fatally wounded by Deathsaurus and recreated as Victory Leo. When Deathsaurus finally reactivates his fortress and turns it upon the Earth, Star Saber and Victory Leo combine together into Victory Saber to end the threat of Deathsaurus once and for all.