Tensai Bakabon (lost colored pilot to anime series; 1968)

Status: Lost

Tensai Bakabon (Also known as "Genius Bakabon" in English) is a gag manga created by Fujio Akatsuka, dating back in April 9th, 1967, in Weekly Shonen Magazine. The story centers around a father, only known as Papa, who isn't too bright, and is often pulled in crazy adventures, along with his son and family. This famous manga spawned five animes throughout the years, including Tensai Bakabon in 1971, Ganso Tensai Bakabon in 1975, Heisei Tensai Bakabon in 1990, Rerere no Tensai Bakabon in 1999 and Shinya! Tensai Bakabon in 2018.

However, before the first anime aired in 1971, a pilot was produced in color around 1968, a year after the manga first came out. It was planned to air on Nippon TV Douga in October 1968, but it was rejected for a full series, so it was never released to the public. Later, another pilot for the 1971 series was created, and can be seen in the DVD release for the series.

To this day, it is uncertain if any parts of this pilot exist.

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