Makeruna! Makendō
Entry updated 29 December 2025. Tagged: TV.
Japanese animated OVA (1995; vt Don't Lose, Makendo). OLM, Inc. Directed by Kazuya Murata. Written by Yasuhiro Komatsuzaki. Voice cast include Shigeru Chiba, Ryo Horikawa, Mika Kanai, Yasuhiro Komatsuzaki, Hikaru Midorikawa, Kotono Mitsuishi and Yuko Nagashima. 23 minutes. Colour.
After being kidnapped, Kaimyouji Eizan (Komatsuzaki) wakes in the laboratory of Dr Mud (Chiba), a green-skinned, pink-haired Mad Scientist (indeed, some sources give his name as Mad) who has just turned him into a Cyborg, naming him Makenka and insisting that "You'll work for me to conquer both the human and Monster worlds." But he has misjudged Kaimyouji, who refuses to take orders and leaves, crashing through the wall and searching for a surgeon who can restore his old form. The laboratory blows up behind him but Dr Mud survives, revealed to be a small but angry Brain Monster when he exits the skull of the mechanical body to call forth Chukan (Midorikawa), Dinosaur and Shou (Nagashima), instructing them to kill Makenka; these three are a "human cyborg"; a Robot (who does not look like a dinosaur, perhaps a subtitle error) and a woman with deadly, blade-like hair.
Elsewhere, Dolo (Horikawa) of the Monster Police (see Crime and Punishment) is urging schoolgirl Mai Tsurugino (Mitsuishito) to return to fighting the monsters who pester humanity, but Mai – whom we see dismiss a monster with a glare – is not interested. Dolo ends up thrashed by Mai's younger sister, martial artist Hikari (Kanai); impressed, he offers her a Magic wand – when she asks what it's for, her sister answers, "You have to fight something weird in ridiculous clothes" – then grabs it and departs. Later, Dolo also asks Makenka to join his monster fighters, but he is as uninterested in this as he was of Dr Mud's offer. Meanwhile Chukan, Dinosaur and Shou are confronting Hikari and Mai, believing one might be Makenka: Mai cries out "Makeruna! Makendō", undergoing a magical girl transformation (with Fan Service). In the subsequent fight she realizes Hikari – who is fighting Chukan – needs help, so digs up the wand she had buried in the garden and passes it to her (their opponents just watch, a little baffled by events), and Hikari also transforms into a magical girl ... eventually (having some difficulty remembering her transformation cry; Dolo has to write it down for her). The Dr Mud Brain Monster now arrives in his mini-Spaceship, pursued by Makenka; who sides with Hikari and Mai to fight Chukan, Dinosaur and Shou, the latter combining to form a giant Mecha. Individually, Hikari, Mai and Makenka's rays prove ineffective, but Dolo uses his pocket calculator and announces if they pool them they can defeat the Mecha ("You can figure THAT on a calculator?" wonders Makenka) and this proves to be the case, though Dr Mud escapes.
The 1993 Videogame Makeruna! Makendō (known as Kendo Rage in the USA), featured Mai Tsurugino and Dolo (both named differently in the English version); this was followed in 1995 by the sequel Makeruna! Makendō 2: Kimero Youkai Souri (vt Kendo Rage 2), which focused on Hikari. This OVA was intended to promote the release of the latter. The short runtime means there is little time for scene-setting, but this was an enjoyable minor Anime with some Humour. [SP]
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