Excel Saga (TV)

The name Nabeshin comes from taking the last 4 letters from Watanabe and the first 4 letters from Shinichi. This makes sense considering Nabeshin an animated version of Excel Saga Director Shinichi Watanabe. He even supplied the voice in the original japanese version.

The Doctor who appears in Eps. 12 and 26 is in fact (Norikuni) Iwatta's cousin, Dr. Sekifumi Iwatta. The scars on his face are the result of a prank played by Norikuni when he was young. Dr. Iwatta and his nurse had much larger presence in the original manga, and it's ironic that they only appear for two brief moments in the anime.

The names "Excel", "Hyatt", and "Il Palazzo", are taken from the names of real buildings in F[ukuoka]: The Hakata Tokyu Excel Hotel, the Grand Hyatt Fukuoka and the Il Palazzo Hotel.

While recording the ending theme, which features Menchi bark-singing into a microphone, voice actress Satomi Koorogi actually performed the song while kneeling on the floor like a dog and with the microphone lowered to her level.

Nabeshin is seen driving a Mitsubibi brand car, which is an obvious parody of the brand Mitsubishi;a japanese manufacturer of a large variety of goods ranging from cars to Air Conditioners.

Many of Excel Saga's character designs are based off those from a Power Rangers parody adults-only doujinshi called Municipal Force Daitenzin. It is also by Koushi Rikudou, Excel Saga's creator.

Rikdo mentioned that he couldn't play himself, because he lived too far from the recording studio.

Episode 26 "Going too far" was never aired in Japanese television the series ended on 25th episode. The reason of this is because it's filled with grotesque blood bath, severed limbs and nudity. The creators themselves said that literally: "they wanted to see how far they can go". Episode is present only on DVD release.

The outfit worn by Nabeshin (and also by the director Shinichi Watanabe) is near identical to the outfit worn often by Lupin III in the second Lupin III television series. This is one of countless Lupin III references made in Excel Saga.

in episode 1, when excel is saying her pledge to illplazzo, the nazi symbol appears in her eyes.

In episode 3, the character Tetsuko looks just like Maetel from the classic series by Leiji Matsumoto, Galaxy Express 999.

In episode 5, Excel remarks "You must be a type O Cancer!" Usagi Tsukino from the manga/anime series Sailor Moon, also played by Excel's seiyuu, Kotono Mitsuishi, is a type O Cancer.

in episode 8, there are many references to other anime and manga titles with a large girl cast, including mahoromatic(the picture of mahoro in the newspaper) and lum urusei yatsura(you see lum from behind at the pool horns and all).as well as refeerences to chick-flicks such as the titanic(the scene with excel standing at the rail of a ship with cosette holding her up).

In episode 11, look for a rather blasphemous christian reference in the background of Nabeshin's commentary on the baseball game.

In episode 12 Iwata can be heard saying that several things were sacrificed, including "Love and Peace" while he makes a sign with his fingers. This is a reference to Yasushiro Nightow's famous manga, Trigun.

Also in episode 12, Watanabe tells the female detective that there was a "HOMO-cide." This emphasis is not accidental, as Watanabe continues on to say that the homocide occurred in the Yaoi district.

In Episode 12, at the beginning, Koshi Rikudo is dressed as Zenigata from the Lupin III series, Zenigata is a detective/agent of Interpol who chases Lupin III (who Nabeshin is dressed as) attempting to bring him to justice.

In episode 12, again at the beginning, Nabeshin says something along the lines of solving a puzzle and proceeds to lock two rings together. This is a reference to Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro.

In episode 16, when talking about the next episode, "Take Back Love," Excel exclaims "You are shock!" This is a reference to the chorus line sung in the opening of Fist of the North Star, "Ai wo Torimodose." (Translated roughly to Take Back Love)

In Episode 17 (Animation USA), Excel does a parody of Sailor Moon with the pose and everything. The seiyuu for Excel, Kotono Mitsuishi, is also the seiyuu of Sailor Moon in the actual series (so she is parodying herself).

In episode 18 one of the people in the line on the right is cosplaying as Vash The Stampede from Trigun.

Excel saga also has its Dragonball z momenents! yes in episode 19, Nabeshin powers up and turns into a super-saiyan. In episode 25 Pedro (the one crying with waterfalls) performs a nabehameha! Like from the cell games

In episode 20, Excel and Hyatt say "Mitsuo, Menda, naha naha". They are referring to Mitsuo Senda, a comedian whose trademark gag goes "Senda, Mitsuo, naha naha." It is just a thing he did and has no real meaning to it.

In Episode 21, when Pedro and Sandora are leaving the house, the sign says, "PeDoLo", instead of "Gomez".

In episode 22, Excel says "Moeteru, moeteru!" as she gets in the mech, which means approximately "I'm fired up." In the dub, Excel sings the words "You get to burning!", which is from the opening theme of Martian Successor: Nadesico, a series that like Excel Saga, was dubbed by ADV.

In episode 22, Excel fights a puchuu with a mask. This is an obvious parody of Gundam, but more particularly Gundam Wing. The puchuu is a parody of Zechs Marquise, and Koyasu Takehito, the seiyuu of Il Palazzo in Excel Saga, is also the seiyuu of Zechs Marquise and in form does the voice of the masked puchuu.

In episode 22, there are many references to three of Leiji Matsumoto's works, Space Battleship Yamato, Captain Harlock, and Queen Emeraldas.

In episode 23, the entirety of the episode is a very obvious reference to the classic anime series Fist of the North Star.

In Episode 25, Hyatt is holding a gun which resembles Vash's handgun from the animation "Trigun".

In episode 26, Nabeshin's arm cannon looks exactly like Cobra's from Space Adventure Cobra.