TV series / 1983

Aura Battler Dunbine

Episode directors Yoshiyuki Tomino

AnimationSci-fi & fantasyWar & politicsAction & adventure

★ 7.2/10Audience rating

After a motocross accident, Sho Zama was pulled from Japan into the mystical world of Byston Well, where he and others from Earth were reicruited by Lord Drake Luft to pilot his newest weapons, the Aura Battlers, a combination of Byston Well magic and Earthien technology. However, in the heat of battle, Sho is approached by Marvel, a woman from Earth, who convinces him of Luft's sinister intentions.

The story

The seasons

Season 1 TV Series 1983 · 49 episodes Season details

Feb. 5, 1983

The series followed Shō Zama, as he suddenly finds himself pulled to the world of Byston Well during a vehicular incident with one of his rivals. Byston Well is located in another dimension located between the sea and the land, and is populated with dragons, castles, knights, and powerful robots known as Aura Battlers. Once Shō is discovered to possess a very powerful "aura", he is drafted into the Byston Well conflict as the pilot of the lavender-colored Dunbine.

As in other Tomino creations, Dunbine's cast is populated by Nordic-looking military types in elaborate costumes on one side, a young Japanese hero caught in the middle, and freedom fighters on the other side. Beautiful female warriors abound on both sides, and the hero falls for the main female lead. There are romances that cut across battle lines, and the non-stop battles between elaborate fighting craft on land and on the air. Most of the cast pilot Aura Battlers, although there are lots of standard airships, smaller fighters, and large warships as well.

Special episodes