| The Mysterious Cities of Gold | |
| Ja Kanji: | 太陽の子エステバン |
| Ja Romaji: | Taiyō no ko Esuteban |
| Genre: | Historical fantasy adventure |
| Type: | tv series |
| Director: | Bernard Deyriès Hisayuki Toriumi |
| Producer: | Max Saldinger Kanae Mayuzumi Atsumi Yajima |
| Music: | Shuki Levy Haim Saban Ryuji Sasai |
| Licensee: | Fabulous Films |
| Network: | NHK General TV (Japan) Antenne 2 (France) RTL Télévision (Luxembourg) |
| Episodes: | 39 |
| Episode List: | List of The Mysterious Cities of Gold episodes |
, known outside of Japan as the first season of The Mysterious Cities of Gold (French: Les Mystérieuses Cités d'Or), is a French-Japanese animated series which was produced by MK, NHK, DiC Audiovisuel, CLT and animated by Studio Pierrot.[1]
The series was originally broadcast in Japan and the French version, edited with different characterization and music, was subsequently redubbed and distributed in many countries. It is currently licensed for English-language home video release in the United Kingdom, Australia, and North America by Fabulous Films.
When it was rebroadcast in Japan on NHK BS2 from 1998 to 1999, the animation was imported back from France and the audio was redubbed. NHK had erased the original VTR when their contract expired, and the rights holder had lost the master copy. The voice actress for the main character, Esteban, was the only one to reprise her role.
A sequel, serving as a continuation of the original, premiered in 2012.
It is the 16th century. From all over Europe, great ships sail west to conquer the New World, the Americas. The men, eager to seek their fortune, to find new adventures in new lands. They long to cross uncharted seas and discover unknown countries, to find secret gold on a mountain trail high in the Andes. They dream of following the path of the setting sun that leads to El Dorado and the Mysterious Cities of Gold.
In 1532, a Spanish orphan named Esteban joins Mendoza, a navigator, and his associates Sancho and Pedro, in their search for one of the Seven Cities of Gold in the New World, hoping to find his father. They are joined on their quest by Zia, an Incan girl (who was kidnapped by Gomez, Gaspard, Perez and Mendoza), and Tao, the last descendant of the sunken empire of Mu (Hiva in the English version).
The series is a mix of ancient South American history, archaeology, and science fiction. During their journey, the travelers encounter the Mayas, Incas, and Olmecs. They discover many lost technological wonders of the Mu Empire, including the Solaris, a huge solar-powered flying ship and The Golden Condor, another flying vessel in the shape of a giant bird, capable of travelling considerable distances under the sun's power alone. They are constantly pursued by antagonists Gomez and Gaspard, who are also in search of the Cities of Gold.
The Seven Cities of Gold were built by the Emperor of Hiva out of fear that a global war would destroy all civilizations. Such a war actually broke out, destroying the Empires of Mu and Atlantis when they used the "Weapons of the Sun".[2] The Seven Cities of Gold hold copies of books in their "Universal Libraries" as well as powerful artefacts, including the "Great Legacy", a portable fusion reactor. Other elements of this technology turn up in unexpected places, like the Solaris on Tao's home island, Esteban's and Zia's medallions as keys to the Cities, and Tao's jar as an important piece of the Great Legacy.
Reminiscences of this ancient story are present in Inca legends written on golden quipu, which only Zia can read. This triggers an obsessive quest for the Cities of Gold on the part of the Spaniards Mendoza, Gomez, Gaspard and Francisco Pizarro.
Esteban seeks his long-lost father and he is also tied to Mendoza, who rescued him from a sinking ship when he was a baby. Esteban seems to have a magical ability to make the sun appear, which proves to be an invaluable asset throughout the series. Zia also seeks her father, from whom she was taken and was brought to Spain as a gift for the princess Margarita when she was seven years old. She has a medallion just like the one which Esteban carries.
Tao seeks signs of his ancestors. He possesses an encyclopedia which contains information about their lost technology as well as a mysterious jar which according to the legend, only the High Priest of the City of Gold can open, and it proves to be the Great Legacy's cooling or control rod system. Mendoza, Sancho and Pedro are motivated by their search for gold, but Mendoza genuinely appears to be fond of the three children.
The Olmecs are the descendants of survivors of the global war who hid under their mountain. Only their elite were able to survive, suspended in cryogenic hibernation. The Olmecs have evolved from centuries living an underground existence; they are short and thin, with pointed ears and enlarged frontal bones. They are highly intelligent but insular and distrustful of all others.
Led by their king, Menator, the Olmecs seek an artefact called the "Great Legacy" in order to power their cryogenic systems, as well as samples of healthy cells from the children in order to combat their mutations and their sterility. The Olmecs make use of contemporary devices such as spears and swords alongside elements of their advanced technological heritage; such as stasis and medical technology which allows the elite of the Olmecs to remain in suspended animation, awaiting an opportunity to revive them.
This power system maintaining the Olmecs cryogenic systems is destroyed during an escape by the children and Mendoza, causing the Olmecs to conduct a frantic search for the fusion reactor core (the Great Treasure) which is hidden inside the City of Gold. They also possess a flying machine which appears to have been constructed with the same type of advanced technology which the Golden Condor was constructed with. It is armed with a particle beam or a focused heat weapon which is very powerful.
Eventually, the Olmecs succeed, at great cost, in taking control of the Great Legacy. It begins to melt down without the moderation which is supposed to be provided by Tao's jar. The resulting earthquakes and volcanism destroy the City of Gold. A world-threatening meltdown is avoided by the personal sacrifice of Esteban's father who, acting as the High Priest of the Cities, is presumed to be dead after he replaces the jar. At the end of the series, Mendoza, Sancho and Pedro, who have salvaged some gold before the city's destruction, return to Spain, while Esteban and his friends set out across the Pacific Ocean on the golden condor in search of the remaining Cities of Gold.
The show was first broadcast on NHK in Japan on the 1 May 1982 and in France on 28 September the same year on France 2. The first English language broadcast was on Nickelodeon in the USA on 30 June 1986, with the BBC broadcasting it in the UK on 1 September.[3]
See main article: List of The Mysterious Cities of Gold characters.
The main cast of the series dubbed into American English, includes:
The story was written by Jean Chalopin and Bernard Deyriès, and is very loosely based on the novel The King's Fifth by Scott O'Dell. The series' chief director was Hisayuki Toriumi. The producers were Max Saldinger and Atsumi Yajima (NHK).[6] The musical score was composed by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy in the Western version (Nobuyoshi Koshibe in the Japanese version[6]). Shingo Araki was involved with the series as an animator and some episodes were directed by Toyoo Ashida and Mizuho Nishikubo.
Originally Koshibe's score was to be used for the Western version as well. In contrast, Bernard Deyriès recalled his reaction to the proposed music he heard from Ulysses 31 in that he felt that the score was rather understated as he was expecting a more adventurous feel, something akin to films like Indiana Jones. At that point Haim Saban and Shuki Levy had met Deyriès, and became involved with the soundtracks of Ulysses 31 and The Mysterious Cities of Gold.
The theme song to the Western version was performed by Noam Kaniel, an associate of Levy's.
The Mysterious Cities of Gold was released on both VHS and DVD in France, Belgium, Japan, Portugal, Canada (in French) and Germany.[7] In 2007, Fabulous Films acquired the licence to release the series in Region 2 (Europe), Region 1, and Region 4. All 39 episodes of the series were released in the United Kingdom on June 23, 2008, as a six-disc DVD set with the picture and sound restored. The DVD was released in Australia in August 2008. It was released in North America on April 7, 2009.[8] The show is also available to purchase and stream via digital retailers.
Two games have been produced by Ynnis Interactive. The first, The Mysterious Cities of Gold: Flight of the Condor, was released in 2013 only for iOS users on Apple devices.[9] The second was titled and was made in 2013 for PC after a successful Kickstarter campaign.[10] The game was released in 2014 for iOS, Wii U and Nintendo 3DS.