Akai Koudan Zillion

Zillion (Japanese: 赤い光弾ジリオン, Hepburn: Akai Kōdan Jirion, literally Red Photon Bullet Zillion, fully titled Red Photon Zillion) is a Japanese anime television series that ran from April 12-December 13, 1987 on Nippon Television in Japan and was produced by Tatsunoko Productions. After the production of the anime, Tatsunoko Production and Mitsuhisa Ishikawa, the producer of Zillion, established IG Tatsunoko (which later became Production I.G) to obstruct the dispersing of the excellent staffs of Tatsunoko branch which had done actual production. Therefore, Zillion is considered to be Production I.G's first work. Five of the 31 episodes were dubbed into English and released on VHS in the United States by Streamline Pictures. This anime was featured in the music video for Michael and Janet Jackson's collaboration "Scream". Two games were made based on the series, both by Sega for the Master System: Zillion, an action game similar in play style to Metroid and Impossible Mission and a sequel, Zillion II: The Tri Formation, which was a faster-paced game involving a powered armor mecha which transformed into a motorcycle. A Zillion-based laser tag toy line also by Sega was also released in Japan and Brazil. The design of the gun, which was also featured in the series released in 1987, was reused from the Master System Light Phaser light gun which was released in 1986 in North America, Europe and Brazil.