— IDENTITY —
Original Name
銀河烈風バクシンガー (Ginga Reppū Bakushingā)
English Title
Galactic Gale Baxinger (also translated as Baxingar, Galaxy Gale Baxingar, Cosmo Rangers)
Debut
July 6, 1982
Studio
Kokusai Eigasha (MIC)
Network
TV Tokyo
Director
Takao Yotsuji
Character Design
Kazuo Komatsubara
Producer
Shigeo Tsubota
Classification
Super Robot — Combining Vehicle type
— DEVELOPMENT HISTORY —
Franchise Position
Second entry of the J9 Series — a sequel to Galaxy Cyclone Braiger, followed by Galactic Whirlwind Sasuraiger
Narrative Inspiration
Loosely based on Japan's late Tokugawa period and the story of the Shinsengumi, the legendary corps of wandering samurai who defended the shogunate during its final years
Baxinger openly invokes the doomed fate of the historical Shinsengumi — since the audience already knows how that story ends, the show carries a sense of tragedy uncommon for a toy-driven Super Robot series of its era.
— CONTROL SYSTEM —
Pilot Team
J9-II, a five-member unit of outer-space commandos assembled by Diego "Don Condor" Kondo
Combination
Formed by combining five individual Cosmo Bikes piloted by the J9-II team
— PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS —
Height
48.0 meters
Components
5 individual Cosmo Bike units
Visual Design Features
- Ornate, ceremonial-style chest plating inspired by samurai armor
- Colorful, almost Byzantine detailing uncommon among its combining-robot contemporaries
- "Expanding-plasma" combination effect during transformation
Baxinger, assembled from the five Cosmo Bikes of team J9-II
— COMBAT CHARACTERISTICS —
Primary Combat Style
Melee-focused combat reflecting its cast's individual weapon specialties — firearms, blades, and hand-to-hand styles carried over from each pilot's personal Cosmo Bike
Notable Enemy Forces
- Shin Wakusei Rengu Battleship
- Krauwanka combat units
— ASSOCIATED ORGANIZATIONS —
J9-II
The five-member outer-space commando unit piloting Baxinger, assembled by Diego "Don Condor" Kondo to defend the Bakufu government
Bakufu Government
The ruling authority of the fifty-planet Solar System, 600 years after the destruction of Jupiter, whose fragile peace is threatened by revolutionary factions
— TV SERIES INFORMATION —
Broadcast
TV Tokyo, July 6, 1982 – March 29, 1983
Episodes
39
Baxinger was marketed in the United States as a bootleg toy under the name "Mustanger" in the early 1980s, long before any official Western release of the series existed.
— MAIN CHARACTERS —
Diego "Don Condor" Kondo
Aristocrat and leader of J9-II, who invokes the spirit of the original J9 team to defend the Bakufu government against growing unrest
Mahoroba "Billy the Shot" Shiro
Firearms specialist of the team
Samanosuke "Slugger Sama" Dodii
The team's supercool samurai-styled swordsman
Lily "the Butterfly" Mineri
Melee weapon stylist of J9-II
Shtekken Radcliffe
Fifth member of the J9-II unit
— LEGACY —
Genre Classification
Super Robot — Combining Vehicle type
Franchise Legacy
Part of the J9 Trilogy alongside Galaxy Cyclone Braiger and Galactic Whirlwind Sasuraiger; Baxinger later appeared alongside its two J9 siblings in the video game Super Robot Wars GC
Music Legacy
Its ending theme, "Asteroid Blues" by Naomi Masuda, is frequently cited by longtime fans as one of the finest anime ending themes of its era
