Mega Man Star Force (TV series)
Mega Man Star Force, known as Ryūsei no Rockman in the original Japanese language version, is an anime and manga series based on the video game of the same name.
The anime premiered in Japan on October 7, 2006, two months before the game's Japanese release, and concluded March 29, 2008 with a total of 76 episodes. Its debut followed shortly after the conclusion of a preceding Mega Man anime series, MegaMan NT Warrior, which ran from 2002 to 2006.
The manga was serialized in CoroCoro Comic in September 2006. The anime was licensed by Viz Media and first premiered in English on the online streaming video service Toonami Jetstream on July 23, 2007. The series made its only television premiere on Cartoon Network with a 2-hour special on August 25, 2007. The series was later added to Viz Media's Neon Alley digital anime channel on June 1, 2015.
Mega Man Star Force follows the adventures of Geo Stelar and his extraterrestrial partner Omega-Xis, a duo capable of merging through "Electromagnetic Wave Change" to become Mega Man. Together, they combat various EM wave beings that threaten to conquer or destroy the Earth, especially the invading FM Planet's forces.
History
Airing October 7, 2006 on TV Tokyo, the Ryūsei no Rockman anime filled the timeslot that had been held by Rockman EXE Beast+, the series' predecessor. Each of its episodes are approximately ten minutes in length as the program shared the thirty-minute segment Oha Coliseum with the Saru Getchu anime series.On April 17, 2007, VIZ Media announced that they acquired the rights to the anime series, with the title Mega Man Star Force. The press release mentioned that 13 episodes were to be released at lengths of 20 minutes each. During the E3 2007 video-game convention, IGN revealed in their hands-on impressions of the Star Force video game that the English anime would premiere on Toonami Jetstream on July 23, 2007. The show made its television debut on Cartoon Network on August 25, 2007, edited as a 2-hour faux-movie presentation composed of Japanese episodes 1 through 9 and heavily slimmed-down versions of episodes 12, 15, and 16. The series would never air in normal episodic format on television, and subsequent episode airings online revealed that the unusual edits are exclusive to its television appearance.
The series is no longer being shown on Toonami Jetstream as the service is currently defunct. It was later added to Neon Alley on June 1, 2015.
According to the September 2007 issue of CoroCoro Comic, the anime would conclude in Japan on October 27, 2007 and, following the trend of its predecessor, continue with a new series called Ryūsei no Rockman Tribe, premiering on November 3, 2007. The second anime is loosely based on the events of the second video game. According to an interview with Fuyuka Oura at the 2007 Tokyo Game Show, Tribe has a deeper and "cooler" storyline than before, and the new character Solo is a prominent character in the plot.
As of October 6, 2007, the time-slot that had been held by Saru Getchu was replaced with the Zero Duel Masters anime. On March 29, 2008, Tribe concluded with 21 episodes, and its time-slot was replaced with A Penguin's Troubles. There are no known plans for another Mega Man anime in Japan, marking the first time a Mega Man anime has not been on the air in Japan since the six-month hiatus between Rockman EXE and Rockman EXE Axess in 2003.
Although the entire Rockman EXE series was distributed in Japan on DVD, there is no word on Star Force receiving the same treatment in Japan or in the United States. However, Manga Entertainment released a Region 2 box set in the UK on November 3, 2008. The box set contains all 13 episodes of the English dub that aired on Toonami Jetstream.
Production
Mega Man Star Force's animation is overseen by XEBEC, with musical arrangements by Naoki Maeda. Character designs are handled by Mitsuru Ishihara and Shingo Adachi. The art directors usually work independently of each other on any given episode. Shogakukan manages computer-generated imagery.The title sequences of each series are sung by Misato Fukuen as Sonia Sky. In the original series, the theme is entitled "Heart Wave" and in Tribe, the theme is entitled "Bond Wave". Several characters appearing in the original series opening are colored incorrectly.
A background identical to that used for Cross Fusion sequences of MegaMan NT Warrior is employed in the anime's Electromagnetic Wave Change scenes. Easter eggs referencing other series within the Mega Man franchise are also inserted into the program on occasion. Examples include a broadcast of a girl wearing Roll Caskett's clothes from Mega Man Legends, as well as a boy in Shepard's class wearing Lan Hikari's clothes from Mega Man Battle Network sans the headband.
With the premiere of the English version, it was revealed that two Japanese version episodes are combined to create one English version episode to fill a 30-minute time slot. Furthermore, in order to fill more time, a few minutes of footage from various episodes are added at the start of episodes, usually narrated by a particular member of the cast, acting as a recap of previous episodes and slight foreshadow of upcoming events. As voice recording was outsourced to Studiopolis in Studio City, California, Star Force became the first animated adaptation in the franchise to not be recorded in Vancouver, British Columbia.
One noticeable oddity, however, exists in English episode 13. Instead of combining Japanese episodes 25 and 26, the next two episodes in order, Viz opted to fill 26's time with ten minutes of recycled footage with narration by Geo Stelar. This was presumably done because the series ends on an odd number of episodes, with the only other alternative to ending the series with enough footage being to skip an episode entirely. However, this strategy would prove fruitless as the dub was discontinued before reaching that point.
Unlike the English version of the series' predecessor Mega Man NT Warrior, the dub for Mega Man Starforce features a considerably more accurate translation with far less cut footage and censorship. While many names and terms were changed, they mostly coincided with changes first made by Capcom of America for the English versions of the video games. However, there are a number of translation inconsistencies. Some examples include the character of Misora Hibiki, who is referred to as Sonia Strumm in the English games but as Sonia Sky in the English anime. There are also instances where the original Japanese name is used instead of the localized version used in the games, such as an instance where Mega Man shouts "Rock Buster" instead of "Mega Buster." Furthermore, appearances of Japanese text are left untranslated and unedited.
The animation for the introduction sequence is also left completely unchanged. However, all of the original background music is completely removed—including the introduction song "Heart Wave"—and original scores performed by Thorsten Laewe are put in place of the Japanese version's soundtrack. Nevertheless, all the original Japanese sound effects are left intact.
Plot
The year is 220X. Technology has advanced rapidly since the age of the internet, leading to the creation of new and more efficient modes of transportation, as well as the construction of futuristic cities, all linked together by three satellites orbiting the Earth—Pegasus, Leo, and Dragon. The satellites accomplish this by maintaining a network of EM waves around the planet's atmosphere, thereby powering the invisible EM Wave World. The human population carries portable devices called Transers to interface with the EM Wave World and other electronic devices. Problems caused by criminals and EM Wave Viruses manipulating the EM Wave World are commonly dealt with by the Satella Police.Original series
A proud warrior of the FM Planet, Omega-Xis, betrays his kind and escapes to Earth where he makes contact with Geo Stelar. Like his fellow extraterrestrials called FM-ians, Omega-Xis is capable of initiating a process known as "Electromagnetic Wave Change," which transforms ordinary humans of the same frequency as themselves into "EM Wave Humans," allowing them to freely operate in the EM Wave World. With these new powers, Geo becomes known as Mega Man, a hero of Echo Ridge. However, Omega-Xis holds the key to accessing the weapon Andromeda, capable of destroying planets. As such, many FM-ians pursue Omega-Xis with the intent of retrieving the key in their goal to destroy the Earth. Meanwhile, Omega-Xis also knows the secret to the disappearance of Geo's father in a catastrophic space accident months ago.The first half of the series focuses on the FM-ians hunting Omega-Xis for the Andromeda Key. Eventually, they succeed, but by using Star Force, Mega Man is able to sustain Andromeda and destroy the key. In the latter half of the series, the FM-ians band together, taking the guise of their original human counterparts, and seek a way to energize a new Andromeda Key. Eventually, Gemini Spark takes the reins of the operation and succeeds in reviving Andromeda, but the FM-ian king Cepheus descends onto Earth to put a stop to all of the chaos. Geo also has an encounter with his father Kelvin who reveals that he has become an EM wave being and is still exploring space, and that Geo's place is on Earth, fighting for justice as Mega Man.
Tribe
The second series follows the events of the second game focusing on the lost continent of Mu. The ancient civilization vanished ages ago, and a few of its remnants still exist as myths and legends called UMAs. The UMAs begin merging with humans in order to search for the treasures of Mu, the powerful OOPArts, which will give them the power to revive Mu. After Geo and Omega-Xis encounter several unusual enemies, they meet a professor named Doctor Vega who sends them on a quest to find the OOPArts and stop the UMAs. Using the OOPArts, Mega Man is able to take new forms, primarily the sword-wielding Thunder Zerker form. Near the end, Geo discovers that Doctor Vega and her accomplice Hollow are manipulating Geo to use the OOPArts for the revival of Mu and the devastating force known as Le Mu. But Mega Man combines the three OOPArts together, forming Tribe King, and uses this new power to stop Le Mu and seal Mu once more. The series premiered November 3, immediately after the original series' conclusion, and concluded March 29, 2008.Characters
Geo Stelar
Geo Stelar, known as Subaru Hoshikawa in Japan, is the main protagonist of the series. A gentle but a bit lonely fifth-grade student, Geo mourns the disappearance of his father that occurred three years prior, and has neglected school as a result. After being confronted by his classmates who pester him to return to school, he heads to an observing platform where he discovers the fugitive FM-ian Omega-Xis by donning the Visualizer glasses left to him by his father, which allows him to view the EM Wave World. Omega-Xis, having stolen the mysterious Andromeda Key from the FM King, claims to have knowledge of the boy's missing parent. The two are able to merge becoming Mega Man, Rockman in the Japanese version. Geo uses this newfound power to protect his friends and others from the invading FM-ians. Aided by Sonia Strumm and Lyra, they combat such threats as the forces of the FMian king, Cepheus, as well as the minions of Dr. Vega and the Dealers. Sonia and Luna have been shown to have feelings for him, though he is seen to be oblivious. Like any 10-year-old, however, any mentioning of either not only leaves him confused, but embarrassed as well. In Mega Man Star Force 3, he is officially allied with the Satella Police and is registered under Project TC - a registry of those allowed to legally perform Wave Change - as No. 003. In the manga, Geo's back-story remains the same. However, he is more ambitious about building up the strength to find his father. Geo goes after the "Star Force," a power being offered to the winner of the Wave Coliseum, a tournament pitting various radio wave humans against each other in battle. Also, as the manga is aimed at a younger audience, Omega-Xis is a lot more comical.Omega-Xis, known as Warrock in the Japanese version, is an AM-ian; unlike FM-ians, AM-ians are able to turn humans into EM waves without fusing with them. At first, Omega has no feelings towards the Earth or its people, including Geo, with his only concern being the safety of the Andromeda Key; however, he slowly begins to change and care for others.
Geo and Omega-Xis, in their Mega Man form, appear in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as part of Mega Man's Final Smash called Mega Legends alongside MegaMan.EXE from MegaMan NT Warrior, Mega Man X, Mega Man Vulnutt from Mega Man Legends, Proto Man, and Bass.
Sonia Strumm and Lyra
Sonia Strumm, known as Misora Hibiki in the original version and Sonia Sky in the dubbed anime version, is a popular rock star who, like Geo, is depressed over the loss of a parent, her mother, which leads them to establish a friendship. She is similar to Mayl in the Battle Network series. In terms of demeanor, Sonia is quite the opposite of Geo: spunky, outspoken, and mischievous. Sonia seems to be romantically interested in Geo, shown by the fact that she has asked Geo out on dates several times. Sonia also throws herself in front of one of Queen Ophiuca's attacks to protect Geo, and as a result is poisoned. In the second game, Sonia again asks Geo to go to Wilshire Hills. In this game, Sonia seems more blatant about their relationship. She once asked Geo who he likes better between an argument with Luna. She has also shown jealousy when Geo is with a girl alone during his mission of finding the OOPArts. Sonia is constantly pressured by her money-starved manager, leading Lyra to manipulate her into transforming into Harp Note, Lyra Note in the English anime, and attack people throughout the city. In Mega Man Star Force 2, Hollow blackmails her into working for Vega in exchange for Geo's safety. When Mega Man finds her in the Bermuda Maze, she claims that she doesn't want to be found, and cuts off their Brother Band. Later, when Mega Man is lured out by Hollow and Solo, Sonia rescues him and transports him back to Echo Ridge. When Mega Man goes back to the Bermuda Maze, he defeats Sonia. There, she explains she was following Vega's orders to protect to which Geo replies how her betrayal did not protect him. She also helps Mega Man find Mu's location in the Bermuda Maze afterwards. In the third game, she is officially allied with the Satella Police and is registered under Project TC - a registry of those who are allowed to legally perform Wave Change - as No. 004. She also is an actress and appears on a TV drama. Notably, all of the songs sung during the anime are sung by Misato Fukuen, and twice, once during the anime and once during the games, Misora Hibiki is portrayed actually singing the theme songs, the latter case done through printed vocals.Lyra, known as Harp in the Japanese version, is based on the constellation Lyra. She is an FM-ian who used to work for the FMian king and often hides in Sonia's guitar. Her form is a cross between a harp and a note. She is shown to act like a high status old lady, whom gets into arguments with Omega-Xis. When she first met Sonia, Lyra tries unsuccessfully to invade Sonia's heart, so is forced to take control of her while she sleeps. Following her defeat by Mega Man, Lyra becomes an ally of Omega-Xis.
Friends
Luna Platz
Luna Platz, known as Luna Shirogane in the Japanese version, is the perky and bossy fifth-grade class president of Echo Ridge Elementary and wears a short blue dress with a red tie and a green greed jewel. In the beginning of the game and anime, she constantly tries to get Geo to come to school, claiming that it is her job to get him there. When Geo finally comes to school, Luna basically treats Geo like another flunky. Luna openly admits she adores Mega Man from the second he saved her. However, throughout the game, it is constantly implied that Luna has developed strong feelings for Geo, stemming from Geo's declaration that he would protect her, and various times other times. Her English last name is a play on her original last name, the kanji of which mean "platinum". As the class president, most of her friends refer to her as "The Prez", or simply "Prez".In the anime, Luna was infatuated with Mega Man after he saved her life, though unaware of his secret identity. It was this weakness that she is targeted by "Ophiucus" during one of Sonia's concerts, taking advantage of Luna's desire to see her hero and her jealousy over Lyra Note, who she believes may be romantically involved with Mega Man. Even as "Ophiucus Queen", Luna still had retained her crush on Mega Man, and in the fight with Mega Man, actually flirted with him more than attacking. Luna, after witnessing Mega Man change back to Geo goes into self-denial of seeing it though Zack and Bud were present at the time. Luna also seems to like Geo, making food for him and bickering with Lyra Note over who likes Mega Man more.
In the game, because of her involvements with numerous FM-ian incidents, her parents transferred her to a new school. She keeps this painful news away from her friends. At the mall, she observes Geo and Sonia while they attend a jungle exhibit, and tailed them out of jealously. There she has an unexpected run-in with her parents, and the confrontation prompts Ophiucus to appear before her. Ophiucus promises to make Luna's parents pay, and Luna allows Ophiucus to invade her heart, merging the together to create Ophiucus Queen. Queen Ophiucus holds Luna's parents hostage demanding Omega-Xis hand over the Andromeda Key. Mega Man eventually beats Queen Ophiucus, but she tries to persuade Omega-Xis to hand over the key so they may use its power together. Omega-Xis refuses, and Ophiucus is defeated by Gemini on a whim. Luna then regains consciousness, and hugs Mega Man as thanks. However, the Wave World deteriorates as they return to the real world, and shows Luna hugging Geo, who ends up being the second human to know Mega Man's identity. Queen Ophiucus makes a second appearance in Mega Man Star Force 2 as a main story boss. Hyde kidnaps Luna in an attempt to lure Mega Man out. When Mega Man finds Luna, Hyde has Ophiuca's residual waves take over Luna, turning her back into Queen Ophiucus. Upon defeating her, the player unlocks the Tribe-On power.
Vogue
Vogue is the Wizard companion to Luna Platz who appears in the third game. Vogue's appearance is that of a bunny in a hat. Vogue is a support Wizard and Luna is thus unable to perform a Wave Change with Vogue. Vogue helps Luna keep track of important events and her daily schedule.Bud Bison
Bud Bison, known as Gonta Ushijima in the Japanese version, is a gruff bully who attempts to intimidate Geo into returning to school. Bud is very much like Dex from Battle Network, as he is, at first, he is a bully character who eventually makes amends with the main character. He is quite a dim witted student who depends on Luna to get him out of trouble or explaining things to him. He has a crush on Luna. The last name Ushi means cow or cattle in Japanese. His English adaptation of his last name refers to a Bison.In Mega Man Star Force, Bud tried to threaten Geo to go to school for Luna. Omega-Xis's brash personality causes Geo to punch Bud, leaving him embarrassed and his companions questioning their association with him, with Luna threatening to cut off their Brother Band, which Bud feels would make him a nobody. Taurus acts on his anguish, offering him the power to get Geo back. Under Taurus' control, Bud begins randomly destroying red objects in the real world. When he, Luna, and Zack go on patrol, they encounter Geo where Bud transforms and escapes into the cyber network of a truck that Luna and Zack are riding in, driving it recklessly through the city, attempting to run Geo over. Afterwards, Bud has little recollection of the incident, only that he did some terrible things.
Taurus Fire reappears in Mega Man Star Force 2 as a main story boss. Taurus's residual waves take over Bud during an eating competition and transform him back into Taurus Fire. He also re-appears in Mega Man Star Force 3 as a Wizard for Bud. Taurus is loaned to Geo to defeat Diamond Ice. He is registered under Project TC as No. 005.
In the anime, he grows jealous over Luna spending so much time with Geo upon his return to school as Taurus arrived upon sensing Bud. After being thrown into a hallway by Omega-Xis in the first confrontation, Taurus enters Bud's body and uses him as Taurus Fire until he is defeated and Taurus is forced out of him. Later, Taurus takes on the form of W Bud while gathering minus energy to recreate the Andromeda Key. He is the first FM-ian to be ultimately deleted by Gemini Spark in order to refill the real Andromeda Key with minus energy.
In the manga, Bud encounters a gang of street thugs who bully him and an innocent puppy. Taurus subsequently targets Bud who desires the power to overcome the bullies. However, after being defeated by Mega Man, Taurus becomes an ally of Omega-Xis's and reveals that the "Star Force" will help Geo find his father.
Zack Temple
Zack, known as Kizamaro Saishoin in the Japanese version, is a nerdy and condescending student who is more or less one of Luna's flunkies. Zack seems to also have a problem with his height and tries numerous ways to get taller. Zack also appears to be afraid of heights. Zack usually gets information off of his own website, the "Zackpedia". After discovering Geo was Mega Man, Zack starts to admire him more. He, Luna, Bud, and Geo usually help test out Tom Dubius's new upgrade for the Star Carrier. Zack is the only one of Geo's immediate friends who has not Wave Changed, against their will or otherwise, though he does get a Wizard named "Pedia" in the third game, thus making a pun with their combined names, "Zackpedia", the name of his website.Pedia
Pedia is the Wizard companion to Zack Temple. As expected, Pedia is a very intelligent Wizard that supplies Zack and his companions with information.Patrick Sprigs
Patrick Sprigs, known as Tsukasa Futaba in the original Japanese version, was abandoned by parents in a junkyard on Dream Island as an infant; because of that, Pat developed split personality disorder, the other more evil personality named Rey Sprigs, known as Hikaru Futaba in the original version. While generally nice, Pat is pushed by Rey to hate the world, and has also been in contact with Gemini for an extended period prior to Geo's meeting with Omega-Xis. Once merged, Pat and Rey separate into two separate bodies representing the form of Gemini Spark. Pat's personality works as Gemini Spark White, while Rey is personified in Gemini Spark Black. It is their alliance with Gemini that causes Geo to doubt trusting others for a time. His original name is a play on "futagoza", which is the Japanese name for the Gemini constellation.Gemini Spark appears in the game's sequel at Whazzap Village as a friendly, optional boss. He requests Geo to fight him in order to help gain control over his darker personality Rey. Apparently after beating his SP form, he gains near full control, with Rey only bursting out under stress. This means that Pat now has control over the resurrected Gemini. Pat does not make an appearance in the third game; the only explanation given is that he's "gone," and his empty seat at Echo Elementary is filled by Jack.
In the anime, the Rey personality is virtually absent, with Gemini becoming Gemini Spark Black, and with Pat seemingly a willing participant in the FM Planet's plans. Rescued by Gemini after being run over by a truck and left to die in the ensuing blaze, Pat decided to form an alliance with Gemini. Unlike Geo, Pat had already mastered Electromagnetic Wave Change before they met. Gemini Spark was easily the strongest of the FMains, overwhelming Mega Man in their first two battles, and even in later fights the only Mega Man could win was using the Star Force. Although the other FM-ians plan to destroy Earth, Pat and Gemini secretly intend to destroy the FM Planet by taking the Andromeda Key for themselves. They give Cancer a fake Andromeda key after the real was destroyed by Omega-Xis, telling Cancer that the one they gave him was real and recreating the EM Wave Conversion System for the FM-ians. Pat and Gemini then remain behind the scenes waiting for the FM-ians to gather enough minus energy for the Andromeda Key. However, the FM-ian king Cepheus eventually calls the FM-ians back to planet FM, and Gemini then betrays the other FM-ians and delete them all except for Cancer, who manage to escape, and use them as energy to restore the Andromeda Key. Gemini Spark White eventually sacrifices his "Black" counterpart to restore fully Andromeda and destroy Earth when the not at full power Andromeda was stopped by the three Sages of AM. However, Geo and Omega-Xis destroyed the Andromeda Key while Cepheus regressed Gemini Spark White back to human form and erased Pat's memories.
In the manga, Gemini Spark only has one embodiment that alternates between the darker, more aggressive Black and the calmer, more mellow White. When Gemini Spark was a child, he was abandoned in space and found by Crown Thunder. They shared a bond through their control of lightning, and thus Crown Thunder raised him. Considering Gemini Spark has existed as Gemini Spark since his youth, it is unlikely that Pat and Gemini exist independently in the manga.
AMAKEN
Aaron Boreal
Aaron Boreal, known as Mamoru Amachi in the Japanese version, is a good friend of Kelvin Stellar, Geo's father. He is the head researcher and founder of AMAKEN, Aaron delivers the news of Kelvin's disappearance to Geo and his mother, and bestows upon Geo the Visualizer that was left to him by his father. He aids Geo in reaching a space station to prevent the FM King from destroying the Earth by using a transmitter in its debris on Dream Island. He appears in the second game as a minor character, where he upgrades Geo's Star Carrier. In the third game he works in the WAZA command center with fellow AMAKEN employee Tom Dubius, and does his part in helping Geo to get to Meteor G. His English name is a pun on the Aurora Borealis.Tom Dubius
Tom Dubius, known as Shinsuke Utagai in the Japanese version is a worker at AMAKEN laboratory and is paranoid of those around him. This is due to his past where a man used their brother band to steal his work and presented it as his own. Thus, Tom is afraid to open up to others and have his work stolen, specifically his latest invention, the Flap Pack, a flying pack powered by EM waves. Aaron approaches him asking if he'd like to form a Brother Band, which Tom, while happy at the idea, is still a little doubtful, at which time Cygnus approaches him. When he misunderstands coworker Aaron as claiming the jacket as his own, Cygnus reappears before him, telling him that society's nature is to betray, and together they trap Aaron and the tourists visiting the labs in the Space Simulation chamber by forcing them to dance in circles. Hoping to earn Tom's trust, Aaron removes his helmet in the Space Simulation chamber, a shocked Dubius realizes the truth, releasing Cygnus' hold over him.Cygnus Wing reappears in Mega Man Star Force 3 as an optional boss, registered under Project TC as No. 020. Cygnus is now Dubius's wizard.
Tom's anime background is the same as the game, except that Cygnus has him believe that everyone is against him and Tom attempts to crash a satellite on the city in retaliation. Though Tom realized the truth in time, Cygnus took full control over the human's body and escaped. Cygnus acted as the leader of the FM-ians on earth, using Tom to build an "EM Wave Conversion System" that allows his fellow FM-ians to transform into EM Wave Humans without the need for host bodies, directing them to seize the Pegasus, Leo, and Dragon satellites. But eventually, Cygnus reveals his never cared for his minions once he gets the Andromeda Key, almost killing them when he goes to destroy the earth. But eventually, Cygnus was killed by Mega Man.
In the manga, Cygnus Wing appears as an opponent of Mega Man's in the Wave Coliseum tournament. Cygnus Wing's manga personality exhibits a mixture of effeminate mannerisms and slight sadism. Also, Cygnus Wing is lacking his wings for unknown reasons.
FM-ian hosts
;Mitch Shepar;Damian Wolfe
;Jean Couronne XIV
Satellite Admins
The Satellite Admins are survivors of the AM Planet's annihilation, named Pegasus, Leo, and '''Draco. Oddly, their names are 2 words rather than one, titles usually reserved for wave changed humans.Surveyors of the three satellites in Earth's orbit that keep the EM Wave World in check and the wise men of the AM Planet, the Admins question whether Geo and Omega-Xis are strong enough to take on the FM forces, and as a test, Mega Man must battle with one of them in a weakened "shadow" state. When victorious, Mega Man is given the legendary "Star Force," a power which allows him to take on the appearance and abilities of the Satellite Admins themselves. The transformations are Fire Leo, Ice Pegasus, and Green Dragon. The Satellite Admins appear in the secret area in Mega Man Star Force 3.
In the anime, the Satellite Admins save Geo from the hands of Cygnus Wing as he was obtaining the Andromeda Key from Omega-Xis. They then bestowed the power of Star Force to allow Geo and Omega-Xis to harness their power. An example how strong Mega Man got from using the Star Force when he first used it, and easily defeated all the FM-ians in one fight. He never lost a fight when had the Star Force until he fought the Andromeda. The Satellite Admins would not be seen again until Gemini Spark re-activated the Andromeda Key using the minus energy of the deleted FM-ians. In a last-ditch effort to subdue Andromeda, the Satellite Admins used a kamikaze technique to stop Andromeda. This appeared to work until Gemini Spark White deleted his other half in order to harness his minus energy and revive Andromeda.
Kelvin Stelar
Kelvin Stelar, known as Daigo Hoshikawa in the original version, is Geo's father. He is a respected researcher who mysteriously vanished while trying to make friendly contact with extraterrestrials through the use of Brother Band, a type of EM wave technology. He had a desire to visit the FM Planet, but was unable to do so because he was human, so he pleaded with Omega-Xis to be turned into an EM Wave Human. Just as Kelvin was transforming, the space station where he was working was attacked by Taurus and his spirit was left to wander. The event left his wife devastated, though she continued to nurture her son – albeit worriedly – on her own. He was absorbed by the Crimson Dragon while in space, battling it the whole time, but was eventually freed and returns home in Mega Man Star Force 3.Hope Stelar
Hope Stelar, known in Japan as (Akane Hoshikawa, Geo's mother. In both the game and anime, she wishes for Geo to go back to school, but respects his wishes to stay at home. In the anime, she is shown to be a great lover of TV, and to Geo's distaste, likes to order a lot of stuff via television. She is shown to have a love for cooking, though Geo only partially likes some of what she cooks. Hope is also shown to be a bit of a tease with others, especially her son, whom on a few occasions has been teased about his female friends. The anime reduces the time since Kelvin's disappearance from three years to three months. Because of this change, the impact of Kelvin's disappearance is greatly diminished.Claud Pincer and Cancer
Claud Pincer, known as Chiyokichi Hasami in the original Japanese version, is a boy who frequents at the Big Wave store in Echo Ridge. He has no backstory in the game; he simply wished to test his own power against Geo/Mega Man, though Omega-Xis deduced that since FM-ians are drawn to a human's loneliness, Claud met Cancer because he apparently had no friends, which Claud verified. While Cancer does not have evil intentions like many of his FM brethren, he and his human partner are boastful and pride themselves highly on their skills in battle. He also makes an appearance in Mega Man Star Force 2 as an optional boss on the slopes of Grizzly Peak. Cancer Noise is an available Noise Change in Mega Man Star Force 3. In the anime, he is a cocky and determined third grade student who was saddened by his lack of friends, resulting in his encounter with Cancer. He is a die-hard fan of Sonia's and is targeted by Cancer after failing to get into one of her concerts without a ticket where Cancer was trying to target the security guard. Unlike other EM Wave Humans, Cancer Bubble retained Claud's voice and personality, and the transformation is rarely complete.Cancer is based on the constellation Cancer. His form is that of a crab. When fused with Claud, he becomes Cancer Bubble. In the anime, from his bond with Claud, Cancer also ended becoming a fan of Sonia and even seemed to have a crush on her at times. Later in the series, Cancer Bubble takes Cygnus' place as leader to oversee the recreation of the Andromeda Key. He is one of the two FM-ians to evade being deleted by Gemini when it came to powering the Andromeda Key since he went to get Mega Man's help. Later in the Tribe series, Cancer becomes an agent for Sonia, helping around her home. Overall, he's the comic relief of the villains, much in the same vein as BubbleMan in the series' predecessor, MegaMan NT Warrior. Furthermore, in the Japanese versions, Cancer commonly ends statements with the word "buku," very similar to BubbleMan's tendency to end statements with "puku".
Kidd Gruff and Goat Foo
Kidd Gruff, known as Kenta Yagi in the original Japanese version, is a young boy from a small town in the Loch Mess area. He met his FM-ian partner, Capricornus, in Alohaha, but when they combine, they become Kung-Foo Kid''', a wood-based martial artist known for his exceptional speed. Kung-Foo Kid was the winning entry in a Japanese contest sponsored by Capcom. He is an optional boss battle in the game. He doesn't make an appearance in the anime. His Japanese last name Yagi, is the Japanese word for "goat". His English name refers to both a "kid" and to the fairy tale Three Billy Goats Gruff.Detective Bob Copper
Bob Copper, known as Heiji Goyoda in the Japanese version, is a detective and an investigator of incidents involving FM-ians and suspects that Geo, who is often present during the incidents, may be involved. In the anime, Cooper make an incorrect assumption that Mega Man was a criminal and often tried to arrest him. Although like everyone else he was never able to figure that Geo was Mega Man, he did grow suspicious of Geo. In the manga, Copper succeeds in capturing both Mega Man and Gemini Spark, and pits the two against one another in a Wave Battle. Copper is pretty stubborn and refuses to trust EM-creatures. His motto he follows for the EM-creatures are "Once you have seen one you see them all". His last name in Japanese translates to "Trouble all around".Arthur C. Eos and Acid
Arthur C. Eos, known as A.C. Eos, or simply "Ace" is a member of the Zero Satella Police and is partnered with the Wizard being known as Acid. Using the Ace Program, they are able to Wave Change to form Acid Ace, and are registered under Project TC as No. 001.Unlike other EM beings, Acid is more material than EM waves. This is due to him being a man-made Wizard. While normally, Real Wizards cannot wave change with humans, Acid was designed specifically for that purpose, making him more of a Manmade FMian. Despite this, Wave Changing puts Ace's body and mind under extreme stress, tearing his body apart, and only allowing him to stay Wave changed for a short amount of time.
Ace created the Hunter VG, a device replacing the Transer from Mega Man Star Force 2. Acid is infected with Noise by Joker and thus becomes Acid Ace B/Acid Illegal. Mega Man defeats the Noise that infected Acid Ace and he is returned to normal. Later, he absorbs the self-destruct energy emitted by Joker to save Geo and the others, but is deleted in the process. However, he is presumed to be alive when the credits shows a screenshot of Ace in the hospital with Queen Tia and Dr. Goodall at his bedside.
Despite Eos's generally cheerful and goofy demeanor, he used to be a member of Dealers before leaving and joining the Satella Police. In the past, he used to have a relationship with Queen Tia. He has a fondness for candy, particularly the "Mega Snack", an amazingly cheap candy at only 10 Zenny each, but comes in a wide variety of unusual flavors, such as, when noted by Geo and Omega-xis, Pepperoni and Taco Cheese.
Woody Boffin and Magnes
Woody Boffin is an employee of Echo Ridge Elementary, where he works in the rocket lab. His goal is to send a rocket into space. He operates two Wizards to help him in his duties: Magnes and his "brother" Coil. Corrupted by a Noise Card, courtesy of Queen Tia and Jack, Magnes mutates into a battle form known as Spade Magnes, and can attack with dual-wielded swords and missiles. Megaman manages to revert him back to normal, and Magnes resumes his original goal of launching the rocket. The rocket is later used to travel to the Meteor G core.Belle and Ice
Belle is a child TV actress, and Ice is a Wizard who functions as her manager. During the shooting for a TV drama co-starring Sonia Strumm, Jack uses a Noise Card to infect her with Noise, whereupon she mutates into Diamond Ice, a pixie-like battle form that utilizes ice and cold to fight. She sabotages the show's projector and drops the temperature below freezing in order in an attempt to kill Sonia, but with Taurus's help, Mega Man manages to defrost the stage and defeat the crazed Wizard. Afterwards, Ice realizes that she was a little over her head and attempts to resign as Belle's manager because of her actions until Belle points out how much she cares about her.Strong
A Wizard who operates the environmental system in the temple on Alohaha Island. A Noise Card mutates him into the hulking Club Strong battle form. Though Mega Man manages to defeat him and revert him back to normal, Strong is soon deleted by Joker so that Queen Tia can harvest his leftover Crimson energy. He is later restored, albeit not to his original self.Antagonists
FM-ians
;Taurus;Cygnus
;Gemini
;Libra
;Wolf
;Crown
is an FM-ian based on the Corona Borealis. When fused with Jean Couronne's remains, they become Crown Thunder. In the game, he is one of three optional bosses in Mega Man Star Force. In the anime, after being defeated, Crown is later able to take the form of W Couronne, but his body is cold and dead with various arrows protruding from it, causing humans to flee at the sight of him. Like Cancer, he was a fan of Sonia. Gemini Spark ultimately deletes him in order to fill the Andromeda Key with minus energy. In Tribe, Crown reappears alive and appears behind Jean's ghost as he attends Sonia Strumm's concert with the other FM-ians. In the manga, Crown Thunder found Gemini Spark when he was a child, and through their bond of lightning, Crown Thunder decided to raise the child. Crown reappears in the third game as a Noise Change for Mega Man.
;Virgo
;Corvus
;Ophiuca
Cepheus
Cepheus is the FM King. His constellation is based on Cepheus. He is the original holder of the Andromeda Key, a device which permits access to a war-engine made up of EM waves throughout the universe known as Andromeda. Under Gemini's suggestion, he obliterated the AM Planet with Andromeda's assistance, and also ordered the assault on the space station from where Kelvin was trying to contact his home world. Cepheus viewed Brother Band as a means for humans to invade and conquer his planet, thus he sought to stop it by declaring war on Earth. He is rescued by Mega Man when Andromeda begins to overload, and turns over a new leaf when offered a hand in friendship. As a token of his appreciation, Cepheus leaves with the Satellite Admins to rebuild the AM Planet from its remnants. He returns in the 3rd game - after it is beaten. Requesting help from Mega Man, he returns to earth due to a black hole attempting to devour the FM and recreated AM planets.In the anime, Cepheus does not appear until Gemini Spark is defeated. He reverts Gemini Spark White to his human form and erases his memories from after he met Gemini. While at first seeing the Brother Band as a threat, he turns a new leaf after being exposed to it. He comes to Earth to stop Andromeda from destroying it, apologizing to humans for trying to destroy them when they offered friendship.
Solo and Laplace
SoloSolo is a mysterious character introduced during the events of the second game and anime season as the rival character of the series and Anti-hero of the series. He is the last descendant of the destroyed Mu continent, and is able to EM Wave Change without the aid of a wave being. In his transformed state, he is referred to as Rogue, known as Bly in the original Japanese version. In the game, he desires to collect the OOPArts in order to find out how Mu was destroyed, and so works with Vega to do so, crossing paths with Geo and Omega-Xis multiple times, thinking they are after Mu and his power. He prefers to work alone, and detests Geo for his devotion to his friends and his positive attitude towards bonds. Solo's abilities to see EM waves and Wave Change resulted in him being branded a monster and being brutalized and beaten by gangs, resulting in him closing his heart off to human contact, symbolized by the EM Wave Barrier he uses in combat. It is also revealed in the third game that Solo appears to be quite fond of video games as suggested when he calls Geo about his deleted saved game data and gets mad at Laplace for doing so.
In the third installment, he's joined by a new type of EM being named Laplace. Laplace is presumably an EM Being freed from the Remnants of Mu when it was destroyed. Laplace was either drawn to Solo's loneliness, or the fact that he is the last Murian alive. Laplace differs from other EM Beings, being more electromagnetic 'light' than material, making him quite opposite to Acid. Since Solo can already perform Wave Change on his own, he does not Wave Change with Laplace. Rather, Laplace uses his Wizard abilities to transform into a large scimitar that Rogue uses in place of his old broadsword. His goal is to eliminate Dealer, the reason being that they are misusing Murian technology. He somewhat reluctantly joins Geo's side in the struggle against Meteor G, and in the finale deletes Virgo and Corvus when they turn on their hosts and brings Jack and Queen Tia back to Earth. Throughout the game, Solo has saved Geo from a number of dangerous encounters, many of which Geo is oblivious to, though Solo mostly does so as an excuse for saying Geo was in his way. During the post-game content involving Sirius, Rogue shows up outside of the Black Hole Server with the intention of defeating Sirius and reclaiming a stolen piece of Murian metal, but does not intend to do so until after the black hole swallows up Planet FM. Upon being defeated, Rogue says that he and Geo will never see eye to eye, but admits that Geo is strong enough to protect his bonds. Solo has been registered by the Satella Police's Project TC as No. 002, suggesting he attempted wave changing soon after the Hunter VG was installed, and before Geo did. Rogue Noise is a secret Noise Change in Mega Man Star Force 3.
In the anime, Solo is even more of an enigma, as he appears to be working to collect the OOPArts by himself, and rarely speaks. He is shown to be quite powerful in combat, almost effortlessly defeating Geo upon their first encounter, and later again in a three-on-one fight against Geo, Sonia, and Cancer Bubble. However, Geo proved more than a match for Solo when he gained the Berserk Sword. He eventually disappears through a portal to Mu, and is discovered there by Geo and Sonia much later in stasis. He is then revealed to be the protector of the seal on Le Mu, and only pursued the OOPArts so that they could not be used to revive it. Though defeated by Hollow, he reappears to help Geo seal Le Mu back within Mu for once and for all.
Vega
Dr. Vega, known as Doctor Orihime in the original Japanese version, is the primary antagonist of the second Star Force game. She was a scientist from the Tanabata Kingdom whose research led to the creation of Matter Waves, materialized EM waves, but she disappeared after discovering Murian ruins. Her designs for Mu revolve around restoring it and using its power to form the Neo Mu Empire. Those who prove exceptional in some way would be allowed to become a citizen of the new Mu. Her plan required the OOPArt in order to unlock Mu from within the Bermuda Maze. To this end, she recruits Solo, the last living Murian, as well as giving UMA wave beings to individuals to carry out her bidding. After Le Mu is defeated, it is revealed that her primary reason for reviving Mu is so that she could use its power to bring her dead lover Altair, back to life. Altair, who sometimes referred to her by the pet name of "Vegalita", had to leave her in order to fight in a war. He died fighting in the war, and as a result, Vega became bitter, and ultimately blamed the world for his death, leading her to become a scientist, and after discovering Mu, she vowed to unleashed her vengeance leading to the events in the game. She had created Hollow as a replacement for her lover, Altair, hoping it would bring him back in a sense, but it had neither his personality or memories, but the image of him kept her from destroying him. Hollow would be her loyal follower, and Vega viewed him as such, until he sacrificed himself for her, making Vega realize that she had loved Hollow as well, not as Altair, but as his own person.In the anime, she is introduced as a famous researcher who is known for her writings on ancient civilizations as well as the invention of the Radio Composer that Tom Dubius used when he was controlled by Cygnus. She recruited Geo into helping her hunt down the OOPArts because she was worried of what would happen should Mu's "Ultimate Lifeform", Le Mu, be awakened. In reality, she wanted to awaken Le Mu and have it rule over the world as its god, eventually revealing this when she had Hollow take the Berserk Sword from Mega Man. In the end, she stayed behind on Mu rather than face imprisonment, leaving her final fate open to interpretation.
The characters of Vega and Altair are based on the central figures of the Japanese Tanabata star festival.
Hollow
Hollow is Vega's imposing, soft-spoken assistant. His name comes from the fact that he seems almost like an empty shell, with no host. In battle, he attacks by using the four elements and by summoning viruses. Hollow is actually an EM version of Altair, Vega's dead lover. After his death, Vega created a Matter Wave simulacrum of his soul, and placed it inside of a shell body. Hollow, however, had neither the memories nor personality of Altair. Nevertheless, he served Vega faithfully, often acting as a bodyguard, which led to his death when he tried to shield her from Le Mu's power. His final wish was to allow Vega to speak with Altair one last time.In the anime an electrical generator provides him with limitless power, effectively making him invulnerable. In his initial fight in the anime he easily beat Dark Phantom and Yeti Blizzard, then when he turned on Mega Man under Vega's orders not even Berserk Sword's power could stop him. The only downside to this was that his range was greatly limited, and he would be rendered vulnerable if the generator was damaged or destroyed, this likely being the reason Vega had Mega Man collect the OOparts, since Hollow was limited to where the generator was, but when given the OOparts he took from Dark Phantom and Yeti Blizzard he overcame this weakness. Eventually when Geo gained all three OOPArts, Hollow was utterly and epically destroyed by Mega Man's Tribe King form, despite his immense power. Vega does get teary-eyed after witnessing Hollow's destruction, implying that there was a deeper connection between the two.
The characters of Vega and Altair are based on the central figures of the Japanese Tanabata star festival.
Mu EM Body Users
;Hyde and Phantom;Rich Dotcom and Yeti
;Gerry Romero and Plesio
;Chief Osa Agame and Condor
Dealer
;Mr. King;Heartless
;Queen Tia and Virgo
;Jack and Corvus
;Joker
Manga
The Ryūsei no Rockman manga began running in CoroCoro Comic in November 2006.The manga differs vastly from the video-game and anime iterations of the franchise, although the premise is set up similarly. Geo is grieving the disappearance of his father and questioning the unusual partnership he has gained with the "FM-ian" Omega-Xis. By combining their powers, they are able to transform into the EM Wave Human named Mega Man and battle crime. Geo soon learns of the Wave Coliseum, a tournament that awards the champion a power known as Star Force. Geo believes this power will allow him to travel to space and find his father, so he enters the tournament. However, complications occur when one of the competitors, Gemini Spark, steals the Star Force in order to revive Andromeda, the king of the FM-ians. This story arc concludes with Mega Man discovering that Andromeda and his father Kelvin had fused as a single EM Wave Human. Defeating Andromeda, Kelvin is freed and returns to Earth to live with his family and new FM-ian friends.
From chapter 17 and on the story shifts to focus on characters and concepts from the second video-game. However, Geo and Omega-Xis are completely absent. Instead, the three Tribe-On transformations from the second video-game—Thunder Zerker, Fire Saurian, and Green Ninja—are personified as entities of their own. In the past, their tribe was ravaged by a warrior named Rogue. Having grown up, Zerker has taken on the task of invading the continent Mu and hunting down Rogue for revenge. But in order to reach Rogue, Zerker must first traverse an eight-story tower and battle Rogue's underlings every step of the way, including Saurian and Ninja who are under the influence of Mu.
Another manga was also serialized in CoroCoro Comic by Kawano Takumi called Farce, a light-hearted story that appears to focus on two separate Mega Men.
In order to promote the third installment of the video-game series, Ryo Takamisaki produced a new manga series to run in CoroCoro Comic as of November 2008. Entitled simply Ryūsei no Rockman 3', this manga does not reference the previous works by Itagaki and more closely follows the concepts and premises defined by the video-game franchise. The manga introduces A. C. Eos and his Wizard Acid, as well as battles with a Noise-corrupted Spade Magnes and Jack Corvus.
As of the January 2009 issue of CoroCoro Comic, the manga has concluded after only two chapters for unknown reasons. As two chapters is not enough to fill a single tankōbon, it's doubtful Takamisaki's version will receive a separate release unless it is picked back up for serialization in the future.
Releases
Manga by Masaya ItagakiManga by Kawano Takumi