Brave of the Sun: Fighbird was the second Brave Series, which aired from 1991 to 1992 in Japan. The series centered around the adventures of Yutaro Katori, an android possessed by an energy-based lifeform from space, and his fellow Space Police officers, in their fight against the evil being known as Draias.
Unlike the previous Brave series, Brave Exkaiser, which featured the hero as an energy being which inhabited a car, Fighbird focused more on self-parodying humor by having the robot leader take possession of a humanoid-simulating android instead (which interfaces with the Fire Jet to form the robot Fighbird). This forces him to coexist with humanity on their terms, causing a great deal of trouble as he attempts to adapt to human life. The concept of the "Space Police Force" otherwise remains intact (though not connected to the earlier series), a key difference being that the mecha that Fighbird and one of the combiner teams use was developed previously by a human scientist, whose grandson accompanies the Space Police in their battles.
Is this the examples line?:
- Absent-Minded Professor: Hiroshi Amano has his moments of being this.
- Aloof Ally: Guard Wing. While he does cooperate with the other Space Policemen for the most part, he tends to go off on his own tangents.
- Animal Mecha: The Death Team, as well as most of the Mecha Beasts.
- Animal Motifs: While it doesn't go for Animal Mecha, Fighbird has a lot of Phoenix motifs put on him, including a phoenix-like symbol and a flaming bird that materializes behind it while charging up the Flame Sword.
- Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: Guard Wing covers the "arrogant" part of the trope, as he claims to be the strongest member of the Space Police Force. Even after being summarily trounced by Draias.
- Attack Drone: All barons are seemingly controlled
- Bald of Evil: Shura and Zol.
- Betty and Veronica: Yoshiko is the Betty and Momoko is the Veronica. Which may also explain nicely that the sensible Yoshiko was easily trusted with the secret of Fighbird once she found out by accident, while the Space Police, especially Kenta, did their best to keep the secret from the more nosy Momoko.
- BFG: The Gran Cannon.
- BFS: The Flame Sword. Great Fighbird's version of it is even bigger. On his end, Draias has the Death Blade.
- Big Bad: Draias.
- Big, Thin, Short Trio: Zol, Shura, and Jango respectively.
- Busman's Holiday: Any time Katori and the Amanos go out on a trip, it just so happens that the location they visit is where Draias' men decide to carry out their latest plan...
- But Now I Must Go: After the final battle, Fighbird and the other Space Police must leave Earth for other missions like the heroes in the previous series before them. It doesn't help that the robot forms they'd been using on Earth were near totaled in the final anyway. But then suddenly averted in the final minutes of the episode when they return in new bodies a few months later. Apparently they'd grown so attached to Earth they decided to make it their home and travel to and from it as needed instead.
- Chest Blaster: Super Guardion's Finishing Move.
- Chronic Hero Syndrome: Out of all the Space Police officers, Ace Baron is the one most likely to display this.
- Clark Kenting: Apparently a pair of glasses and a lab coat are all it takes to prevent anyone from noticing that Fighbird's human form and Katori are one and the same.
- Co-Dragons: Shura and Zol.
- Collapsible Helmet: The land based Guard Team members used them in the early episodes. Weird considered they already have helmets on their heads.
- Cool Boat: Aqua Baron.
- Cool Car: Road Baron, Guard Star, Guard Rescue, Guard Fire.
- Cool Jet: Fighbird, Sky Baron, Guard Wing, Fire Jet, and Draias Jet.
- Combining Mecha: Duh. In this case, the Guard Team, Baron Team and Fighbird himself (via the Fire Jet, Flame Breaster and, later on, Fire Shuttle and Breaster Jet).
- Drill Tank: Drill Baron.
- Eagleland: Generally portrayed as Type 1 during the America arc. While they generally end up being the victim, the multiracial American citizens were depicted as good people and their president willingly gave himself for even more work just so his people wouldn't suffer.
- Elaborate Underground Base: Underneath the Amano Peace Labs.
- Energy Beings: What Fighbird, the Space Police, Draias, Shura, and Zol technically are.
- Evil Counterpart: Draias is one to Great Fighbird.
- Evil Old Folks: Dr. Jango is the only human character who is megalomaniacal and evil, and he's old. Really old.
- Evil Tower of Ominousness: Draias tries to make one as his main goal in the series, literally named Devil's Tower.
- Fictional Country: One episode had Katori end up impersonating a spoiled prince from Talbador, an equivalent of India. The people dressed like traditional Indian (complete with turbans) and there are also statues of Ganesha.
- Fiery Redhead: Momoko.
- Final Boss Preview: Happens whenever Draias decides to directly interfere with the Space Police's efforts.
- Flaming Sword: Fighbird's finisher is the Flame Sword, a BFS that can turn into fire.
- Fountain of Youth: Happens to Dr. Jango in the finale.
- Friend on the Force: Inspector Satsuda, although he is also a bit of a Jerk with a Heart of Gold.
- Friend to All Children: Katori, as you might expect.
- Ghost Pirate: Featured in episode 37.
- Hospital Hottie: Dr. Yoshiko Kunieda, although extremely indirectly.
- Hot-Blooded: Katori and Momoko. Fighbird/Great Fighbird and Guard Fire are literally so.
- Humans Are Good: With the sole exception of Jango, you can be assured that humans characters default to good, even the two thief siblings eventually convert to good. Aliens depend, if they're the Space Police like Fighbird, they're good, if they're part of Draias, then they're evil.
- Idiot Hero: Due to his lacking knowledge of Earth's culture, Katori comes off as this.
- Intrepid Reporter: Momoko, natch. It doesn't help that she's infatuated with Fighbird, whom she is trying to interview and has a tendency to appear in whatever trouble that Draias pulled off which required Fighbird and Kenta to be there. If she couldn't interview Fighbird, she would hound Kenta for interview instead, much to his annoyance.
- Invisible Parents: While Kenta's mother and Haruka's parents do appear in a few episodes (one in the latter's case, as they are abroad in Germany), Kenta's father is never seen or mentioned.
- Jerkass: Guard Wing, to the point that Kenta himself wonders how the other Space Police officers can be friends with him.
- Large and in Charge: Draias, which is only apparent when he has the 3-unit Death Team combined. Katori follows suit once he acquires his Great Fighbird form.
- Large Ham: Dr. Jango.
- Letting Her Hair Down: Dr. Yoshiko normally has her long hair tied into a bun and only lets it down in the last arc. Her hair is also seen this way in both of the openings.
- Love Triangle: Dr. Yoshiko and Momoko both have feelings for Katori. There is no clear winner.
- Mad Scientist: Contrasted between Prof. Amano and Dr. Jango. Amano is definitely an eccentric scientist who makes up crazy inventions, but he always makes sure that his creation is used for good deeds. Dr. Jango is the evil version, using his creations to wreck havoc in humanity.
- Made of Evil: Draias, Zol, and Shura are composed of minus energy. The last arc features Draias harvesting this from space in an attempt to restructure the universe.
- Mecha-Mooks: The Teshitas, 'nuff said.
- Mid-Season Upgrade: By episode 29, Fire Jet got damaged and so Katori transferred the data into the newly constructed Fire Shuttle and formed the Granbird. Of course, that later got upgraded too into Great Fighbird.
- Monster of the Week: The Mecha Beasts, not to be confused with mechanical beasts or mecha-boosts. They're not AI-controlled, however. Zol and/or Shura (and sometimes Jango) always pilot them.
- Mythology Gag: 'Gatherway' Blaster? Well, the quoted part was the title of the predecessor series' theme song...
- Near-Villain Victory
- New Powers as the Plot Demands: Displayed from time to time, given that the heroes are Super Robots, though the Gatherway Blaster in episode 43 is a particularly blatant case
. - Nice Guy: Katori and Ace Baron, but especially the former.
- Obviously Evil: It's an early Brave Series installment. Especially whenever Zol and Shura appear in public, they don't even bother to hide their inhuman appearance, might as well wearing a label with "Hello, I am evil" written on it. Also Dr. Jango's look also screams 'evil' despite being fully human.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Ace Baron, who was given that name by Professor Amano before he could introduce himself and decided to just go with it.
- Orcus on His Throne: Draias contents himself as staying in Jango's base and relaying orders. But when he DOES get off, he's giving a great ass-kicking to the good guys.
- Our Vampires Are Different: Episode 36 has the Teshitas disguise themselves as vampires in Germany.
- Paranormal Episode
- Playing with Fire: Fighbird's Finishing Move.
- Police Are Useless: Try as they might, the police is clearly helpless compared to the Space Police. Ironically, Inspector Satsuda becomes far more useful after finding out the Amanos' secret and formally deciding to support them.
- Played With in one episode where Draias' minions are robbing banks, and Satsuda has suspicions about where they're going to hit next, but the only one who believes him is Guard Star. In the end, his suspicions turn out to be correct.
- Pragmatic Villainy: For once, Dr. Jango decide to leave the protagonists' home turf and invades a different nation, America and actually succeeded for one and a half episode.
- The Professor: Hiroshi Amano.
- Ramming Always Works: Thunder Baron's Finishing Move, the Thunder Crash.
- Rescue Romance: Momoko desperately tries to invoke this with Fighbird. No such luck.
- Ridiculously Human Robot: Katori, again.
- Rousseau Was Right: The vast majority of humans encountered in the show are good-natured and well-meaning, with the only two notable exceptions being Dr. Jango and one would-be usurping monarch who sided with Draias.
- Running Gag: Inspector Satsuda getting annoyed at his police car (really Guard Star in disguise) suddenly vanishing/being "stolen".
- Secretly Wealthy: Professor Hiroshi Amano, so much so that Inspector Satsuda hounds him because of it.
- Shonen Hair: Katori, but only when he's geared up to fight the villains.
- Shout-Out: The space episode where they have to fight a Zeong Expy.
- Space Police: Similarly to Exkaiser.
- Spell My Name With An S: When it comes to the series itself, Fighbird alternately gets referred to as Firebird, Fyvard or Fightbird.
- Supervillain Lair: Dr. Jango's Underwater Base in the Pacific ocean.
- Tagalong Kid: Kenta, though he gets to take a more active role.
- Tank Goodness: Ace Baron and the Baron Team.
- Team Mom: Haruka essentially fulfills this role for Katori and the Amanos.
- Team Pet: Champ the squirrel monkey, although he curiously doesn't make many appearances.
- The Starscream: After Draias attempted to be less of an Orcus on His Throne, Dr. Jango discovered the Devil Stone which would damage Energy Beings like the Space Police and Draias himself. He decided to take it and plans to use it not just on Fighbird, but also to take over the true Big Bad position from Draias. Fighbird then proceeded to destroy the majority of the stone, and then Draias destroyed what remained of it.
- The Voiceless: The only robot who speaks in the Baron Team is just Ace/Thunder Baron. The rest of the Baron Team (which consist of around 5 people) do not speak and let their actions do the talking.
- Transforming Mecha: Of course! This is the Brave Series, after all.
- Vile Villain, Saccharine Show: This series is pretty lighthearted and occasionally had a lot of bumbling villains, even Dr. Jango occasionally stumbles. But if Dr. Jango is given a chance of succeeding, he'll definitely show himself as an absolutely petty and destructive villain, and his 'co-Big Bad' Draias is quite close in terms of competence and threat like his predecessor Dino Geist, since he's Made of Evil and doesn't even bother in participating in fumbling around. By the end of the series, he's already on the way to become an universal threat with his Devil Tower project, bringing the world under his knees and would likely expand to the galaxy if Fighbird didn't interfere.
- Wise Beyond Their Years: Why Haruka is so effective as a Team Mom despite being a grade schooler like Kenta. She's just that responsible and down to earth, as compared to Kenta's more gung-ho and irresponsible tendencies or the much older Amano's eccentricness AND absent-mindedness. It's not that rare to see Haruka scolding an older man less responsible than her.
- Would Hurt a Child: If it helps him achieve his plans, Dr. Jango won't hesitate to put children's lives in danger.
- White-Collar Crime: The reason Professor Amano was able to fund all his inventions is because he didn't pay any taxes to the government.
