Imee Marcos explains why her father had to ban Voltes V in the '70s


Sen. Imee Marcos (Facebook)

Senator Imee Marcos recalled she was angry when the popular Japanese anime series Voltes V was banned on television in 1979.

"Nagwa-wala talaga ako noon. Galit na galit ako bakit tinanggal yun," said Imee, when asked about the sudden disappearance of Voltes V on GMA 7, during an interview with the entertainment press at the Marcos Mansion in San Juan recently. (I was angry when it was banned on television.)

But the senator explained why her father, former President Ferdinand Marcos, had to stop the show from airing on national television.

Imee continued: "We all love Voltes V. We were very sad about it but at that point in time, my dad was advised by a lot of child psychologists and educators na yung behavior ng bata, nagiging robotic na at wala ng iniisip kundi violence…parang mechanical na."

"Until today, I will argue that it's one the greatest stories in the world. Ang galing! Ang lupit ng kwento talaga. Until today, ipaglalaban ko na ang ganda ng kuwento ng Voltes V," she said. "Kaso nga raw, yung mga bata e sobrang in love sa Voltes V at nagbabatukan at nagsusuntukan na."

Imee, who loves to read comics, said the same thing happened to Sesame Street, a popular educational children's series in the US.

"Sila Ernie at Bert mahilig din magbatukan. Even Oscar The Grouch na pinapasok sa trash can. So for me, the banning of Voltes V was the first incident of political rectitude," she said.

The Voltes V series was near its finale when it suddenly disappeared. But times have changed and a live-action television series adaptation entitled "Voltes V: Legacy" is set to air on GMA Network in 2023.