Magic Knight Rayearth
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese manga
series created by Clamp
, a manga artist
team made up by Satsuki Igarashi
, Ageha Ohkawa, Tsubaki Nekoi
and Mokona
. Rayearth combines elements from the magical girl
and mecha anime
genres with parallel world
fantasy.
The manga was adapted into two anime
series in 1994 and an original video animation
(OVA) in 1997.
, Umi Ryuuzaki
, and Fuu Hououji
are on a field trip to the Tokyo Tower with their respective schools. The girls are blinded by a flash of light and hear a voice calling for the Legendary Magic Knights to save Cephiro. They fall through the sky into another world, Cephiro. Once there, they meet Master Mage Clef. Clef explains, "[In Cephiro], one's will has the ability to change reality for better or worse. The dark fear
s in people's hearts become monsters, while a well-intended wish can do miracle
s. One person, the Pillar, whose will is stronger than anyone else's, is responsible for maintaining through her prayers the well-being of Cephiro."
In the first story arc, the current Pillar, Princess Emeraude, has been captured by her high priest, Zagato. The three girls are charged with the task of saving Cephiro by activating the three . They are given a bizarre creature named Mokona to guide them on their journey. After the girls find and destroy Zagato, they finally reach Emeraude, but they learn that she had fallen in love with Zagato, hindering her ability to pray solely for Cephiro's well-being. They at first believed that Zagato had attempted to solve the problem on his own terms by stealing and imprisoning Emeraude, but in truth, she imprisoned herself. Feeling responsible for her actions, she summoned the Magic Knights to kill her since no one from Cephiro could harm the Pillar. Her dark side then took over, seeking to destroy the Magic Knights for killing her love. After a short defensive fight against Emeraude, the Magic Knights had no choice but to kill her.
The second story arc deals with the complications caused by the first season's climax: three warring planets, Autozam, Fahren, and Chizeta, have begun their attempts to conquer Cephiro and a new Pillar must be chosen before the whole planet is destroyed. Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu are once again summoned to Cephiro. It is later discovered that Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu's will to go to Cephiro sent them back once again in the anime, whereas in the manga they were summoned by Mokona.
Eventually, Hikaru is chosen to become the new Pillar. However, she rebels against the Pillar system, deciding that the fate of the planet should not be the responsibility of only one person which, like Emeraude before her, effectively prevents that person from ever being able to live and love freely.
Hikaru, Fuu and Umi return to earth, but still can visit their loved ones in Cephiro.
is an eighth-grader and the only child of a rich family. She is quick-tempered and at first uncaring, though perhaps the best-suited for the task at hand, but is also the most reluctant. It is implied that she is in love with Clef in the anime. She is the Magic Knight of Water.
is an eighth-grader and the voice of reason. She is also highly intelligent, though tends to state the obvious. She often has moments where she doubts herself, but ends up coming out strong in the end. She is also in love with Ferio. She is the Magic Knight of Wind.
, Magic Knight Rayearth appeared as a serial
in the Japanese magazine Nakayoshi
from November 1993 to February 1995. Kodansha
collected the chapters in three tankōbon
volumes. The first was published on July 22, 1994; the last was released on March 6, 1995. The sequel also appeared in Nakayoshi from March 1995 to April 1996.
Since then, the manga has also been released in the United States in English by Tokyopop
in six volumes, with three volumes in each series. The English version of the manga was at first issued in a flipped left to right format, but was re-released in the original right to left format in later editions.
It would appear that Tokyopop has lost their license for the series, as Dark Horse Comics
announced at their San Diego Comic-Con International 2009 panel that they would be publishing the series in a new omnibus
edition in honor of Clamp's 20th anniversary. There will be either three or four of the original volumes in each of the new omnibus versions.
The series is also licensed in French by Pika Édition
.
(now TMS Entertainment). The anime had 2 seasons, lasting 49 episodes altogether. The TV series is licensed in the U.S. by Media Blasters
and is dubbed by Bang Zoom! Entertainment
. It was released on both VHS and DVD. The DVDs contain both the Japanese and English language tracks, as well as bonus features including interviews with the English voice actors (Julie Maddalena
(Hikaru), Wendee Lee
(Umi/Emerald), Ellen Wilkinson
(Fuu), Kaeko Sakamoto (Mokona) and Lex Lang
(Zagato/Lantis), respectively) on each disc in the first season.
was released in Japan a few years after the end of the manga and the TV series (July 25, September 26, and November 24 1997). The OVA was named simply Rayearth and its story was quite different from the original. The characters are all the same, but the relationships, places and events changed radically. Here we find that Hikaru, Umi and Fuu are already friends who go to the same school and will soon be leaving for high school. Suddenly, a strange fairy
(which turns out to be Mokona, the creature from the original series) appears in front of them. At the same time, strange monsters and wizards start to appear in the city of Tokyo. One of them is Clef, who tries to guide the three girls in order to let them become the Magic Knights, awaken their Mashin and fight against the evil wizards from Cephiro, who are trying to invade the human world. The OVA is licensed in the U.S. by Manga Entertainment
, who opted to use a different New York-based voice cast for its English release.
Three opening themes were used in the series and one in the OVA Rayearth:
Magic Knight Rayearth:
Magic Knight Rayearth 2:
Media Blasters' early English DVD release used "Hikari to Kage o Dakishimeta Mama" as the opening for Magic Knight Rayearth 2 Episodes 01-22. The original openings from episodes 01-22 were included as an extra on the early DVDs, and was only in Japanese, however this isn't the case with the remastered sets, in which the dubbed openings were removed meaning, all three openings are left intact.
Ending Themes
Three ending themes were used:
Magic Knight Rayearth:
Magic Knight Rayearth 2:
Media Blasters' early English DVD release used "Rarabai ~ Yasashiku Dakasete ~" as the ending for Magic Knight Rayearth 2 Episodes 23-29. The original ending from episodes 23-29 was included as an extra on the early DVDs, and was only in Japanese, this again was eventually rectified in the remastered sets, in which, like the openings the dubbed endings were removed meaning all three endings were left intact.
In the early English releases of the TV series, Sandy Fox
sang both the opening and the ending themes in the English dubbed version.
Rayearth:
. It was the last officially released game for the console in the US. All other games based on the manga were released exclusively in Japan, including a Super Famicom
role-playing game
(RPG), a Sega Pico
title called Magic Knight Tanjou, two short RPGs for Game Boy
, a raising sim, and another RPG for Sega Game Gear
.
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series created by Clamp
Clamp (manga artists)
, is an all-female Japanese manga artist group that formed in the mid 1980s. Many of the group's manga series are often adapted into anime after release. It consists of their leader , who provides much of the storyline and screenplay for all their works and adaptations of those works respectively ,...
, a manga artist
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
team made up by Satsuki Igarashi
Satsuki Igarashi
is a member of the all-female manga-creating team Clamp. Her duties in the team are Nanase Ohkawa's sounding board, and the character designer of Chobits and line artist for Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle....
, Ageha Ohkawa, Tsubaki Nekoi
Tsubaki Nekoi
is a member of the all-female manga-creating team Clamp. She is the co-director and her duties in the team include applying screentones and correcting manga illustrations. She was also the lead artist on Legal Drug, The One I Love, Wish, Suki and xxxHolic...
and Mokona
Mokona
is the pen name of the lead artist, colorist, and composition designer of the all-female manga-creating team Clamp. She was formerly known as . Clamp has had a huge impact on the "manga explosion" according to an account in the New York Times in 2006. Their artwork has been characterized as "fluid"...
. Rayearth combines elements from the magical girl
Magical girl
belong to a sub-genre of Japanese fantasy anime and manga. Magical girl stories feature young girls with superhuman abilities, forced to fight evil and to protect the Earth. They often possess a secret identity, although the name can just refer to young girls who follow a plotline involving magic...
and mecha anime
Mecha anime
Mecha anime cover all series that revolve around the use of piloted robotic armors in battle, which is broken down into two subcategories of Super Robot and Real Robot. Mecha series cover a wide variety of genres from comedy to drama, though are always fantastical and larger-than-life in nature and...
genres with parallel world
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
fantasy.
The manga was adapted into two anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series in 1994 and an original video animation
Original video animation
, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...
(OVA) in 1997.
Plot
Hikaru ShidouHikaru Shidou
' is a fictional character from the anime/manga series Magic Knight Rayearth created by Clamp. She is one of the three protagonists of the series and represents the element of Fire. In the Rayearth anime, she's voiced by Hekiru Shiina in Japan and Julie Maddalena in English. In the OVA, she has the...
, Umi Ryuuzaki
Umi Ryuuzaki
Umi Ryuuzaki is a fictional character from the anime/manga series Magic Knight Rayearth . She is one of the three protagonists of the series, and represents the element of Water. Umi is an elegant, yet a bit of a short-tempered girl with flowing long blue hair...
, and Fuu Hououji
Fuu Hououji
Fuu Hououji is a fictional character from the anime/manga series Magic Knight Rayearth . She's one of the three protagonists of the series and wields the element of Wind...
are on a field trip to the Tokyo Tower with their respective schools. The girls are blinded by a flash of light and hear a voice calling for the Legendary Magic Knights to save Cephiro. They fall through the sky into another world, Cephiro. Once there, they meet Master Mage Clef. Clef explains, "[In Cephiro], one's will has the ability to change reality for better or worse. The dark fear
Fear
Fear is a distressing negative sensation induced by a perceived threat. It is a basic survival mechanism occurring in response to a specific stimulus, such as pain or the threat of danger...
s in people's hearts become monsters, while a well-intended wish can do miracle
Miracle
A miracle often denotes an event attributed to divine intervention. Alternatively, it may be an event attributed to a miracle worker, saint, or religious leader. A miracle is sometimes thought of as a perceptible interruption of the laws of nature. Others suggest that a god may work with the laws...
s. One person, the Pillar, whose will is stronger than anyone else's, is responsible for maintaining through her prayers the well-being of Cephiro."
In the first story arc, the current Pillar, Princess Emeraude, has been captured by her high priest, Zagato. The three girls are charged with the task of saving Cephiro by activating the three . They are given a bizarre creature named Mokona to guide them on their journey. After the girls find and destroy Zagato, they finally reach Emeraude, but they learn that she had fallen in love with Zagato, hindering her ability to pray solely for Cephiro's well-being. They at first believed that Zagato had attempted to solve the problem on his own terms by stealing and imprisoning Emeraude, but in truth, she imprisoned herself. Feeling responsible for her actions, she summoned the Magic Knights to kill her since no one from Cephiro could harm the Pillar. Her dark side then took over, seeking to destroy the Magic Knights for killing her love. After a short defensive fight against Emeraude, the Magic Knights had no choice but to kill her.
The second story arc deals with the complications caused by the first season's climax: three warring planets, Autozam, Fahren, and Chizeta, have begun their attempts to conquer Cephiro and a new Pillar must be chosen before the whole planet is destroyed. Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu are once again summoned to Cephiro. It is later discovered that Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu's will to go to Cephiro sent them back once again in the anime, whereas in the manga they were summoned by Mokona.
Eventually, Hikaru is chosen to become the new Pillar. However, she rebels against the Pillar system, deciding that the fate of the planet should not be the responsibility of only one person which, like Emeraude before her, effectively prevents that person from ever being able to live and love freely.
Hikaru, Fuu and Umi return to earth, but still can visit their loved ones in Cephiro.
Differences in the anime adaptation
The first season remains mostly faithful to the first arc of the manga aside from the inclusion of the original character Inouva and a multitude of subplots, however the second season shows a rapid departure. Most notable differences are the creation of two anime only antagonists, Nova and Lady Debonair, who were born from the intense despair of Hikaru and the people of Cephiro respectively after the death of Princess Emeraude. It is also revealed by the Rune Gods that the girls were summoned back to Cephiro by their own will, most notably Hikaru's as her strength of heart also allowed her to become the new Pillar, a position she rejects in a similar fashion to the manga.Characters
is an eighth-grade girl, small for her age and often teased for her size and "boyishness". She is headstrong, determined and loyal. She is in love with Lantis (Zagato's younger brother), but it is also implied that she is in love with Eagle Vision, the son of the president of Autozam. She is the Magic Knight of Fire.is an eighth-grader and the only child of a rich family. She is quick-tempered and at first uncaring, though perhaps the best-suited for the task at hand, but is also the most reluctant. It is implied that she is in love with Clef in the anime. She is the Magic Knight of Water.
is an eighth-grader and the voice of reason. She is also highly intelligent, though tends to state the obvious. She often has moments where she doubts herself, but ends up coming out strong in the end. She is also in love with Ferio. She is the Magic Knight of Wind.
Manga
Written and illustrated by ClampClamp
Clamp may refer to:*Clamp , a device used to hold an object in a fixed position*Wheel clamp, a device used with road vehicles to prevent theft or enforce parking restrictions*Riser clamp, a device used to support vertical piping...
, Magic Knight Rayearth appeared as a serial
Serial (literature)
In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous installments—also known as numbers, parts, or fascicles—either issued as separate publications or appearing in sequential issues of a single periodical...
in the Japanese magazine Nakayoshi
Nakayoshi
is a shōjo manga magazine published by Kodansha in Japan. First published in December 1954, it is a long-running magazine with over 50 years worth of manga publication history. The target demographic for Nakayoshi is aimed at young girls between...
from November 1993 to February 1995. Kodansha
Kodansha
, the largest Japanese publisher, produces the manga magazines Nakayoshi, Afternoon, Evening, and Weekly Shonen Magazine, as well as more literary magazines such as Gunzō, Shūkan Gendai, and the Japanese dictionary Nihongo Daijiten. The company has its headquarters in Bunkyō, Tokyo...
collected the chapters in three tankōbon
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
volumes. The first was published on July 22, 1994; the last was released on March 6, 1995. The sequel also appeared in Nakayoshi from March 1995 to April 1996.
Since then, the manga has also been released in the United States in English by Tokyopop
Tokyopop
Tokyopop, styled TOKYOPOP, and formerly known as Mixx, is a distributor, licensor, and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa, and Western manga-style works. The existing German publishing division produces German translations of licensed Japanese properties and original English-language manga, as well...
in six volumes, with three volumes in each series. The English version of the manga was at first issued in a flipped left to right format, but was re-released in the original right to left format in later editions.
It would appear that Tokyopop has lost their license for the series, as Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
announced at their San Diego Comic-Con International 2009 panel that they would be publishing the series in a new omnibus
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
edition in honor of Clamp's 20th anniversary. There will be either three or four of the original volumes in each of the new omnibus versions.
The series is also licensed in French by Pika Édition
Pika Édition
Pika Édition is a French publisher headquartered in Boulogne-Billancourt, specializing in manga. Founded as a daughter company of Media System Editions, it was taken over by Hachette Livre in 2007.-Distribution:...
.
Magic Knight Rayearth
Magic Knight Rayearth II
Anime
The anime series aired first on Japan's Yomiuri TV on October 17, 1994 and ended on November 27, 1995. It was directed by Toshihiro Hirano and co-produced by Yomiuri TV and Tokyo Movie ShinshaTokyo Movie Shinsha
, formerly known as , is a Japanese animation studio, founded on October 1946. One of the oldest and most prominent anime studios in Japan, it has also produced numerous animated series airing in other countries such as France, the United States, and Italy. The company currently uses "TMS...
(now TMS Entertainment). The anime had 2 seasons, lasting 49 episodes altogether. The TV series is licensed in the U.S. by Media Blasters
Media Blasters
Media Blasters is an entertainment corporation founded by John Sirabella and Sam Liebowitz, based in New York City. They are in the business of licensing, translating, and releasing to the North American market manga compilations and anime and live-action movies and television series to home-video...
and is dubbed by Bang Zoom! Entertainment
Bang Zoom! Entertainment
Bang Zoom! Entertainment is an audio post-production studio, located in Burbank, California, that has worked on several anime, video games, feature films, and directly-to-DVD projects...
. It was released on both VHS and DVD. The DVDs contain both the Japanese and English language tracks, as well as bonus features including interviews with the English voice actors (Julie Maddalena
Julie Maddalena
Julie Lynn Maddalena is an American voice actress, sometimes credited as Julie Kliewer.-Anime Roles:* 3x3 Eyes - Ken-Ken * Battle Athletes Victory - Tanya Natdhipytadd...
(Hikaru), Wendee Lee
Wendee Lee
Wendee Lee is an American voice actress. While she has done voice work for many video games as well as several episodes in the Power Rangers franchise, she is particularly prolific in the dubbing of anime. As of April 2009, with 223 credits to her name, she has more credits in this medium than any...
(Umi/Emerald), Ellen Wilkinson
Bridget Hoffman
Bridget Hoffman is an American actress best known for her work as an anime voice actress. She also serves as an ADR scriptwriter and ADR director...
(Fuu), Kaeko Sakamoto (Mokona) and Lex Lang
Lex Lang
Walter Alexis "Lex" Lang is a two-time Emmy Award–winning American voice actor, producer and entrepreneur. He is the cofounder of The Love Planet Foundation, a non-profit organization which creates educational materials for children on the importance of recycling, world water awareness, and the...
(Zagato/Lantis), respectively) on each disc in the first season.
OVA
A three-part OVAOriginal video animation
, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...
was released in Japan a few years after the end of the manga and the TV series (July 25, September 26, and November 24 1997). The OVA was named simply Rayearth and its story was quite different from the original. The characters are all the same, but the relationships, places and events changed radically. Here we find that Hikaru, Umi and Fuu are already friends who go to the same school and will soon be leaving for high school. Suddenly, a strange fairy
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
(which turns out to be Mokona, the creature from the original series) appears in front of them. At the same time, strange monsters and wizards start to appear in the city of Tokyo. One of them is Clef, who tries to guide the three girls in order to let them become the Magic Knights, awaken their Mashin and fight against the evil wizards from Cephiro, who are trying to invade the human world. The OVA is licensed in the U.S. by Manga Entertainment
Manga Entertainment
Manga Entertainment is a producer, licensor and distributor of Japanese animation in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, Australia and New Zealand...
, who opted to use a different New York-based voice cast for its English release.
Theme songs
Opening ThemesThree opening themes were used in the series and one in the OVA Rayearth:
Magic Knight Rayearth:
- Episodes 01-20: by
Magic Knight Rayearth 2:
- Episodes 01-22: by
- Episodes 23-29: by Naomi Tamura
Media Blasters' early English DVD release used "Hikari to Kage o Dakishimeta Mama" as the opening for Magic Knight Rayearth 2 Episodes 01-22. The original openings from episodes 01-22 were included as an extra on the early DVDs, and was only in Japanese, however this isn't the case with the remastered sets, in which the dubbed openings were removed meaning, all three openings are left intact.
Ending Themes
Three ending themes were used:
Magic Knight Rayearth:
- Episodes 01-20: by
Magic Knight Rayearth 2:
- Episodes 01-22: by
- Episodes 23-29: by Keiko Yoshinari
Media Blasters' early English DVD release used "Rarabai ~ Yasashiku Dakasete ~" as the ending for Magic Knight Rayearth 2 Episodes 23-29. The original ending from episodes 23-29 was included as an extra on the early DVDs, and was only in Japanese, this again was eventually rectified in the remastered sets, in which, like the openings the dubbed endings were removed meaning all three endings were left intact.
In the early English releases of the TV series, Sandy Fox
Sandy Fox
Sandra Marie "Sandy" Fox is an American voice actress who has had numerous roles in various animated cartoon and Japanese anime series, and video games....
sang both the opening and the ending themes in the English dubbed version.
Rayearth:
- OVA: "All You Need is Love" by Naomi Tamura
Video games
A number of video games have been released that are based on Magic Knight Rayearth. Magic Knight Rayearth, an adventure RPG set in the first TV season, was released for the Sega SaturnSega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
. It was the last officially released game for the console in the US. All other games based on the manga were released exclusively in Japan, including a Super Famicom
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
role-playing game
Role-playing video game
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
(RPG), a Sega Pico
Sega Pico
The Sega Pico, also known as , was an electronic toy by Sega. The aim of creating the Pico was to get more young children to use video game systems....
title called Magic Knight Tanjou, two short RPGs for Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
, a raising sim, and another RPG for Sega Game Gear
Sega Game Gear
The was Sega's first handheld game console. It was the third commercially available color handheld console, after the Atari Lynx and the TurboExpress....
.
External links
- J-pop.com review of OVAs
- Animerica review