Throwbots

Throwbots (alternatively titled Slizer) is a 1979 Vlokuzuian kadsresatsu superhero film. It is the fourth Technic Heroes installment and first Robo installment.

Plot
In planet Kolas, approximately 200 thousand light years away from Earth, its people were protected by a military force known as "Slizers". Slizers whould take out tasks and these missions all involve a search for a source of power that will give them an edge in combat. One day. the Slizer spaceship crash landed into the Earth through the portal that is located between the Earth and Mars.

Hachirou lives in the El Kadsre City suburb of Matsunoki who studies in the employment school with his friends Malachi and Yuudai. Hachirou was picked up by Topher, Osamu and Tamika and they were driven to Taribee to visit the house of Topher's mum named Lily, later to be stopped by a policeman on a motorcycle named Clay Garey for being caught speeding and the ruins of the Slizer spaceship. While investigating the spaceship, the ship activates and gives Hachirou, Osamu, Tamika and Topher an ability to transform into Slizers. As the result, Hachirou becomes Torch, Osamu becomes Scuba, Tamika becomes Ski and Topher becomes Turbo.

When they arrived to Lily's house, they transformed into Slizers in front of her and later they used the backyard to test out their powers. Hachirou can make discs and throw them like a boomerang and used his sheild to shoot out flames while Osamu can shoot out water with his rifle, Tamika can use her hiking stick as a baton and Topher can transform into a car.

When they return to Matsunoki, they noticed there was a fire in the office building. They used their Slizer powers to rescue all workers trapped in the building and Osamu extingushed the fires in the building. When the Vlokozuian military was aware of the rescue, they destinate them as aliens other than heroes and plan to hunt them down.

Malachi has grew jealous of Hachirou and three of his friends becoming Slizers. This give him a opportunity to make his own Slizer team. Malachi recruited Tuudai, Allyn and Leighton and they drove to try to the find the ruins of the Slizer spaceship. Here, Malachi becomes Judge, who has a ability to fly and draw energy from background energy, Yuudai becomes Amazon, who can cut anything with his black tanto, Allyn becomes Granite, who can used his pickaxes from his shoulders and throw discs with his tail and Leighton becomes Electro, who can produce electricity and also fly.

The next day, Malachi's team found Hachirou's team and his team where they confront each other. They introduced Hachirou's team to the Slizer dome. They accept to fight to the death. They fought until the military enters the scene and Hachirou. Osamu, Tamika and Topher gets arrested by the military while Malachi, Yuudai, Allyn and Leighton escaped. The Hachiou's team were being intergated by General Callum. They managed to be free by making a deal with the military that they will take down Malachi's team in exchange of their freedom.

Malachi's team were later confronted by Hachirou's team and grew into a huge conflict. This time, Malachi destroys the military as part of self-defense and when the military sends a ballistic missile to the Slizers, Hachirou's team managed to escape the blast while the Malachi's team becomes mutated, with Granite (now Flare) becoming a bird hybrid and Judge and Amazon being fused one mutant Slizer giant named "Blaster".

When Malachi's team arrived back to Matsunoki, they caused havoc in the city. Hachirou's team confronted Blaster, saying that it's his fault that they made him that way. As Blaster was about to kill Hachirou, Clay Garey shows up and transforms into Millennia. He managed to take down Blaster as well as Flare and Spark. Hachirou thanked Clay for defeating Malachi's team and convinces him to join the team, but Clay declined the request saying he has other things to do. He drives his motorcycle and drives away from the team.

Cast

 * Shunchi Katou as Hachirou Fujimori/Torch
 * Hayato Nakahara as Osamu Akiyama/Scuba
 * Silvia Ellington as Tamika Boone/Ski
 * Scottie Jewell as Topher Polley/Turbo
 * Jeptha Brewster as Malachi Bisset/Judge/Blaster
 * as Blaster (costume)
 * Yori Fujimoto as Yuudai Itou/Amazon
 * Gearalt Ó Caoimh as Allyn Berry/Granite/Flare
 * as Leighton Tang/Electro/Spark
 * Cash Steffen as Clay Garey/Millennia
 * Donatello Morra as Gen. Callum Leighton
 * Lyn Moorse as Lily Polley

Production and release
Throwbots was El TV Kadsre's second attempt to make a kadsresatsu capable enough to suceed financially. Although Robotman alongside its sequel receive moderate reception in which it isn't enough to keep the company afloat while Nova Orbis, while has a slow start, became a financial sucess in the international market. However, royality payments to Scotty Takehado (creator of the original Nova Orbis arcade game) and Edacra marginalized El TV Kadsre.

The costumes of Throwbots were designed by Susumu Bramley, who was a designer for the Vlokozuian Commonwealth Motor Company and would went on to design the majority of Bionicle and Hero Factory costumes where he would reuse parts of Throwbots costumes to save money and the paintings of some of the faceplates were designed by future Technic Heroes art director Robert Jamison, which took three months to paint.

The shooting of the film lasted from April to August 1978 and it was filmed in downtown Matsunoki, Tonorio, Taribee and the interiors were filmed in the El TV Kadsre Television Centre. The film was released in the El Kadsreian Islands on May 25, 1979, while it was released in Europe, Asia, Latin America and Australia in December of that year as "Slizer" and in the United States and Canada on April 26, 1980. The film was distributed by the Vlokozuian Media Union (who acquired El TV Kadsre on October 1979) overseas.

The film was released by El TV Kadsre Home Video in El Kadsre and MCA in the United States on VHS, Laserdisc and Betamax on October 26, 1979, TVD in 1986, VCD in 1993, DVD in 1997, Videocard in 2001, DVD-HD in 2002 and Blu-ray in 2007.

Reception
The film has received mixed reviews from critics. While the film was praised for its costume design, it was criticized for its story.