Hero of Taisetsuzan: Gaou

だいせつざんのゆうしゃ きばおう

Aired: 1978

A TV-special anime produced by Nippon Animation, a standalone work based on Yukio Togawa's animal-literature novel Kibao Monogatari. Set against the magnificent nature of Mount Daisetsu in Hokkaido, the wolf Taki, born between the circus-escaped wolf Devil and the Sakhalin dog Tetsu, struggles to fit into neither human society nor the wild while learning how to survive in harsh nature. Eventually bonding with a pack of wild dogs, Taki takes on a fated confrontation with Gon, a man-eating bear that menaces people. A sturdy story that earnestly examines animal instinct and dignity and the relationship between nature and humans, it shines with the careful natural depiction characteristic of the World Masterpiece Theater production staff.