“Denjin Zaborger” (電人ザボーガー), Complete Set of 17 Original Hand-Painted Illustration / Production Boards (“Genga”), in the Original Inscribed Envelope, circa 1973–74
A complete set of 17 original hand-painted illustration / production boards, each approximately 29 x 39.5 cm, preserved in the original inscribed envelope, and distinguished by the exceptional fact that both the cover sheet and page 1 are hand-signed in Japanese by Ushio Soji. Rich in saturated colour, bold brushwork, airbrushed effects, crop marks, page numbering and original production handling, this is an extraordinary survival from the golden age of Japanese tokusatsu: a coherent, presentation-quality archive that stands far beyond ordinary surviving studio material.
First broadcast on Fuji Television from 6 April 1974 to 29 June 1975, Denjin Zaborger ran to 52 episodes and remains one of P Productions’ most distinctive creations. Official series materials describe the story of secret detective Yutaka Daimon, whose father is murdered by the criminal Sigma organisation after developing the new energy source Daimonium; revived by a device implanted by his father, Daimon fights back alongside Zaborger, the voice-responsive machine that transforms from motorcycle to robot and deploys weapons including the Chain Punch, Boomerang Cutter and rapid-fire destruction gun.
The importance of the present archive is inseparable from that of its creator. Ushio Soji—the pen name of Tomio Sagisu—was the visionary founder of P Productions, the independent studio that offered a more experimental, imaginative and at times wilder alternative to the larger mainstream tokusatsu houses. On its official site, P Productions describes him as at once a manga artist, animator and tokusatsu creator; its company history records that he joined Toho in 1939, where he learned animation from Ikuo Oishi and special-effects technique from Eiji Tsuburaya, before founding P Production in 1960. The same official profile notes that he was the father of Shiro Sagisu, the current P-Pro representative, while official Evangelion materials note that Shiro Sagisu has been responsible for the music of the franchise since the 1995 television series.
What makes this archive so compelling is not only its rarity, but its completeness and narrative force. Across the seventeen boards, the viewer moves through a fully realised world of laboratory intrigue, cyborg conspiracy, violent attack, transformation, pursuit, ambush, rescue and final reckoning. The cover sheet presents Zaborger, Daimon and the series’ visual universe in a superb master composition; page 1 opens with explosive action and is again hand-signed by Ushio Soji. The sequence that follows carries the eye through the Sigma organisation’s plots, Dr Akunomiya’s menace, Miss Borg’s appearances, the theft of Daimonium, the suffering of Daimon’s father, Machine Zaborger’s dramatic intervention, and the climactic destruction of the enemy. As photographed, the archive is also accompanied by the surviving hand-drawn title / logo master, complete with visible paste-up corrections, an especially evocative reminder of pre-digital print production.
In the digital age, and especially in an era increasingly dominated by frictionless screen imagery and AI-generated visuals, it is profoundly moving to encounter work of this kind: bright, physical, handmade, story-driven, and unmistakably touched by the artist’s own hand. These boards preserve the material intelligence of their making—the movement of the brush, the density of the colour, the airbrushed atmospherics, the compositional instinct of a born mangaka and image-maker. They are not merely collectibles; they are a museum-grade archive of 1970s Japanese visual culture.
According to the previous owner, these hand-painted boards were produced by Ushio Soji for the purpose of marketing the series overseas, including France. The same provenance states that the archive was acquired around forty years ago by a friend of Tomio Sagisu directly from Sagisu’s office, and that the signatures were obtained at that time; the set was later acquired privately by Japan Poster Shop directly from that source. The original brown envelope is inscribed 「電人ザボーガー」（原画）17枚 — “Denjin Zaborger (original art), 17 sheets” — confirming the integrity of the archive as a preserved group.
Provenance
Acquired circa the 1980s by a friend of Tomio Sagisu directly from Sagisu’s office in; cover and page 1 signed at that time by Ushio Soji; subsequently acquired privately by Japan Poster Shop directly from that source. Previous owner further stated that the set was created for overseas promotional use, including France.
Condition
Overall very good for period production material of this type, with bright surviving colour and strong visual impact throughout. The boards show expected marginal toning, light handling wear, minor edge and corner wear, occasional scuffs, and production-related marks consistent with original studio or publishing use. The envelope shows creasing, fraying, small losses and age wear commensurate with over half a century of survival. Please review the photographs carefully, as they show the exact set for sale.
Authenticity
This is an original period archive of hand-painted production / promotional material by Ushio Soji. It is not a reproduction or reprint. Certificate of Authenticity Included.
Age
These works are now over 50 years old.
