The Big O (1999–2003)

A futuristic city with lost memories, an expert negotiator fights threats to the city with the help of an android and his own giant robot.

Creator:

Hajime Yatate

Stars:

Mitsuru Miyamoto, Steve Blum, Akiko Yajima

Cast

Series cast summary:
Mitsuru Miyamoto	...	Roger Smith (26 episodes, 1999-2003)
Steve Blum	...	Roger Smith (26 episodes, 1999-2003)
Akiko Yajima	...	R. Dorothy Wayneright (25 episodes, 1999-2003)
Motomu Kiyokawa	...	Norman Burg (25 episodes, 1999-2003)
Tesshô Genda	...	Dan Dastun (25 episodes, 1999-2003)
Lia Sargent	...	R. Dorothy Wayneright (25 episodes, 1999-2003)
Peter Lurie	...	Dan Dastun (25 episodes, 1999-2003)
Emi Shinohara	...	Angel (19 episodes, 1999-2003)
Wendee Lee	...	Angel (19 episodes, 1999-2003)
Unshô Ishizuka	...	Alex Rosewater (16 episodes, 1999-2003)
Michael Forest	...	Alex Rosewater (16 episodes, 1999-2003)
Alan Oppenheimer	...	Norman Burg (13 episodes, 2003)
Ezra Weisz	...	Additional Voices (13 episodes, 1999-2003)
Milton James	...	Norman Burg (12 episodes, 1999-2000)
Jamieson Price	...	Big Ear (12 episodes, 1999-2003)
Shinpachi Tsuji	...	Big Ear (11 episodes, 1999-2003)

Storyline

Roger Smith acts as a negotiator in a city where everyone has lost their memories and keep it that way. When he isn't helping hostage situations, he's saving the day in a giant robot known as Big O. Although Roger has no idea why the "megadeus" (Big O) responds to his commands or why his butler seems to be a master at fixing the high tech machine, he starts to question the forgotten past after the events started by an unsual case involving an android called R Dorothy. While he and Dorothy begin a Henry Higgins/Eliza Dolittle style of friendship, villains and mysterious characters enter with clues leading up to something that may bring out an emotion Roger has tried to fight all of his known life - fear.

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Plot Keywords:

giant robot | android | robot | futuristic | high tech | 

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Taglines:

One part Batman, one part robot, all hero

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Action

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Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

2 April 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Big O

Company Credits

Production Co:

Animaze, Bandai Visual Company, Sunrise

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 30 min (26 episodes)

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Background music based on the original score from the UK science-fiction series UFO.

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Quotes

Roger Smith: We have choices. Some people like to stand in the rain without an umbrella. That's what it means to live free.

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Crazy Credits

During the closing credits at the end of the first episode, Roger is shown sitting alone on a large hourglass. After R. Dorothy joins his household, subsequent episodes show them sitting together.

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Soundtracks

"BIG-O!"
Opening theme (first season)
Performed by Rui Nagai
Lyrics, music and arrangement by Rui Nagai

User Reviews

Big O is a big success by this great critic

Big O 2001 by Sunrise and Bandai Entertainment who brought Gundam Wing, and who made the Macross and Gundam games is one of the greatest cartoons I've seen in the year 2000.

This is a great series, one of the newest Japan Anime in 2001 and surely one of the best cartoons out there.

American animators cannot emulate the Japan Anime cartoons and Big O is proof.

It's gritty, romantic, touching, action packed and full of stories, and that is in every episode!!

The star is Roger Smith who is the head negotiator in breaking or sealing criminal cases or any cases where the police or military is afraid to get involved in.

He lives in Paradigm city, a dark city that has been torn by crime, military action and corruption.

In only his first days on the job, he catches the idea of an attractive and elegant young lady called "Dorothy".

Dorothy is not you're average woman, she is a whiz on the piano and has a certain way with people. Oh yeah Dorothy is a robot.

She is virtually indestructible,yet her softness in characters reveals she is not made entirely of metal.

Dorothy is cared for by her Grandfather. The Grandfather knows Dorothy is a robot but he protects her like his own daughter.

A hoodlum by the name of Beck Gold plots to steal Dorothy and Smith (having suspicions about Dorothy) tries to intervene. Dorothy's Grandfather is shot and Beck kidnaps Dorothy .

Smith rescues her eventually and they develop a mutual friendship between man and machine.

The series works because of it's likeable characters, musical soundtrack which uses the piano to produce a feeling of what's going on in a scene,and above all incredible animation. The musical scences with the piano also convey a soothing feeling to a long day.

Smith controls an undercover machine knows as "Megadeus" which is Big O.

The series reminds me of Voltron because Megadeus fights many bosses in every episode in spectacular fashion.

The series has been dubbed in English and currently showing in Cartoon Network's lineup.

The dubbing is amazingly good. It's one of the best dubbing jobs, I've seen so far. David Lucas (Roger Smith), Lia Sargent(Dorothy) lend their great voices to this anime.

Made through Bandai and Sunrise which produced Gundam Wing and Macross, these guys just keep making the hits.

Take it from this great critic, Big O is a big success.