Queen Emeraldas
Encyclopedia
is a four-episode Japanese anime
OVA
that continues the Harlock
franchise created by Leiji Matsumoto
. The anime was adapted from Matsumoto's 1978 manga
of the same name. Queen Emeraldas is the story of the pirate spaceship, Queen Emeraldas, which is captained by the mysterious and beautiful Emeraldas, a strong and powerful privateer. In practice, the character is also referred to as Queen Emeraldas or Pirate Queen Emeraldas, thus the title refers to both ship and captain.
. As the freighter is flying through space they are attacked by an Afressian ship. However, the train is saved by a mysterious and incredibly powerful spaceship and is able to make it to their destination, a desert planet with a Western atmosphere, complete with saloons and bar fights. The boy meets up with another stowaway, an old man, and becomes friends with him. He tells the old man that he came to the planet in order to become a stronger individual. He gets himself a job in a bar with the roughest reputation on the planet to prove himself.
When the attacking ship, led by Captain Eldomain, lands on the planet to search for whoever attacked him, Emeraldas appears to save the people of the town. In the second episode, after a confrontation with Eldomain and later with Baraluda, the queen of Arfess, Emeraldas presents Hiroshi with the Cosmo Dragoon once owned by Tochiro.
Another divergence from the manga takes place here when Emeraldas states that there are five Cosmo Dragoons in existence (hers and the ones owned by Tochiro, Captain Harlock, Tetsuro and Maetel), whereas in the manga there are only four. Later, Hiroshi Umino and his elderly friend visit a planet whose inhabitants have been forced out by a murderous cyborg. This cyborg killed one of the planet's inhabitants and drove his son mad. Umino meets the son and his sister and with their help and Queen Emeraldas', he kills the oppressive cyborg.
While the story can stand on its own, independent of Matsumoto's other works, it mostly assumes that the viewer has seen the other Harlock titles, especially Galaxy Express 999
(the TV series and the movies), which featured Maetel
, Emeraldas' sister, but had the occasional appearance of Emeraldas (Note: Maetel, for some reason in the English dub is referred to as Mataire, possibly as a translation error). The story of Queen Emeraldas is set five years after the events of the final Galaxy Express 999 movie and was designed to give Matsumoto's fans a further glimpse into what became of Emeraldas. However, of the other characters, most are only mentioned in passing, except for Captain Harlock who has a brief cameo appearance.
Queen Emeraldas first two episodes were produced by Studio OLM and licensed for American
distribution by ADV Films, being one of their earlier releases on the DVD
format. Those two episodes also have regular runs on the Action Channel. In Japan, the remaining two episodes were produced by Multi Access Company and were released the following year after the initial two, indicating that a separate contract (that is not yet forthcoming) would be required for anyone to license the concluding episodes of the story outside of Japan.
television series during flashbacks. She also had a memorable guest appearance in the 1978 Galaxy Express 999 series. This episode, Eternal Traveller Emeraldas, was later turned into an hour long television special expanding on that story. She subsequently appeared as a supporting character in the film Arcadia of My Youth where it is shown how she obtained her facial scar. She also makes brief appearances in Harlock Saga
and Cosmo Warrior Zero
. Her origin and youth is depicted in Maetel Legend
.
As with Harlock and most other characters of the Leijiverse, Emeraldas' appearances in various stories cannot be applied to one consistent timeline. In the 1978 Galaxy Express 999 story, for example, one notable difference from her other depictions is that Emeraldas is suffering from an unknown illness. Her place as captain was taken over by a robot imposter while she was mostly confined to bed. The story suggests that she does not have much longer to live. This illness is alluded to in the recent manga where Emeraldas does not engage in much physical action due to her weakened condition. However, the OVA version shows no sign of any such illness.
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....
OVA
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...
that continues the Harlock
Captain Harlock
is a fictional character created by manga artist Leiji Matsumoto.Harlock is the archetypical romantic hero, a space pirate with an individualist philosophy of life. He is as noble as he is taciturn, rebellious, stoically fighting against totalitarian regimes, whether they be earthborn or alien...
franchise created by Leiji Matsumoto
Leiji Matsumoto
is a well-known creator of several anime and manga series. His wife is also known as a manga artist.-Space opera:Matsumoto is famous for his space operas such as Space Battleship Yamato...
. The anime was adapted from Matsumoto's 1978 manga
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...
of the same name. Queen Emeraldas is the story of the pirate spaceship, Queen Emeraldas, which is captained by the mysterious and beautiful Emeraldas, a strong and powerful privateer. In practice, the character is also referred to as Queen Emeraldas or Pirate Queen Emeraldas, thus the title refers to both ship and captain.
Plot
The storyline follows a young boy named Hiroshi Umino who sneaks aboard a freighter in order to leave EarthEarth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
. As the freighter is flying through space they are attacked by an Afressian ship. However, the train is saved by a mysterious and incredibly powerful spaceship and is able to make it to their destination, a desert planet with a Western atmosphere, complete with saloons and bar fights. The boy meets up with another stowaway, an old man, and becomes friends with him. He tells the old man that he came to the planet in order to become a stronger individual. He gets himself a job in a bar with the roughest reputation on the planet to prove himself.
When the attacking ship, led by Captain Eldomain, lands on the planet to search for whoever attacked him, Emeraldas appears to save the people of the town. In the second episode, after a confrontation with Eldomain and later with Baraluda, the queen of Arfess, Emeraldas presents Hiroshi with the Cosmo Dragoon once owned by Tochiro.
Another divergence from the manga takes place here when Emeraldas states that there are five Cosmo Dragoons in existence (hers and the ones owned by Tochiro, Captain Harlock, Tetsuro and Maetel), whereas in the manga there are only four. Later, Hiroshi Umino and his elderly friend visit a planet whose inhabitants have been forced out by a murderous cyborg. This cyborg killed one of the planet's inhabitants and drove his son mad. Umino meets the son and his sister and with their help and Queen Emeraldas', he kills the oppressive cyborg.
While the story can stand on its own, independent of Matsumoto's other works, it mostly assumes that the viewer has seen the other Harlock titles, especially Galaxy Express 999
Galaxy Express 999
is a manga written and drawn by Leiji Matsumoto, as well as various anime films and TV series based on it. It is set in a space-faring, high-tech future in which humans have learned how to transfer their minds into mechanical bodies, thus achieving practical immortality.The manga won the...
(the TV series and the movies), which featured Maetel
Maetel Legend
is a 2000 anime OVA based on characters created by Leiji Matsumoto, about how the planet La Maetelle becomes the planet Andromeda, or "Planet Maetel," the mechanized world....
, Emeraldas' sister, but had the occasional appearance of Emeraldas (Note: Maetel, for some reason in the English dub is referred to as Mataire, possibly as a translation error). The story of Queen Emeraldas is set five years after the events of the final Galaxy Express 999 movie and was designed to give Matsumoto's fans a further glimpse into what became of Emeraldas. However, of the other characters, most are only mentioned in passing, except for Captain Harlock who has a brief cameo appearance.
Queen Emeraldas first two episodes were produced by Studio OLM and licensed for American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
distribution by ADV Films, being one of their earlier releases on the DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
format. Those two episodes also have regular runs on the Action Channel. In Japan, the remaining two episodes were produced by Multi Access Company and were released the following year after the initial two, indicating that a separate contract (that is not yet forthcoming) would be required for anyone to license the concluding episodes of the story outside of Japan.
Other appearances
Emeraldas appeared in the 1978 Space Pirate Captain HarlockCaptain Harlock
is a fictional character created by manga artist Leiji Matsumoto.Harlock is the archetypical romantic hero, a space pirate with an individualist philosophy of life. He is as noble as he is taciturn, rebellious, stoically fighting against totalitarian regimes, whether they be earthborn or alien...
television series during flashbacks. She also had a memorable guest appearance in the 1978 Galaxy Express 999 series. This episode, Eternal Traveller Emeraldas, was later turned into an hour long television special expanding on that story. She subsequently appeared as a supporting character in the film Arcadia of My Youth where it is shown how she obtained her facial scar. She also makes brief appearances in Harlock Saga
Harlock Saga
is a six-part anime miniseries by Leiji Matsumoto. An adaptation of Das Rheingold, it tells the story of space pirate Captain Harlock and his crew as they try to stop a man who has stolen gold from the center of the galaxy and forged it into a powerful ring.- Overview of the anime :Legend tells of...
and Cosmo Warrior Zero
Cosmo Warrior Zero
is a science fiction OVA series.-Plot:The long war between the planet Earth and the machine men is finally over, resulting in a peace that is more a victory for the machine men than the Earth. Warrius Zero lost his family in the war to the machinemen but despite this he still is a member of the...
. Her origin and youth is depicted in Maetel Legend
Maetel Legend
is a 2000 anime OVA based on characters created by Leiji Matsumoto, about how the planet La Maetelle becomes the planet Andromeda, or "Planet Maetel," the mechanized world....
.
As with Harlock and most other characters of the Leijiverse, Emeraldas' appearances in various stories cannot be applied to one consistent timeline. In the 1978 Galaxy Express 999 story, for example, one notable difference from her other depictions is that Emeraldas is suffering from an unknown illness. Her place as captain was taken over by a robot imposter while she was mostly confined to bed. The story suggests that she does not have much longer to live. This illness is alluded to in the recent manga where Emeraldas does not engage in much physical action due to her weakened condition. However, the OVA version shows no sign of any such illness.
Episodes
- "Departure" (May 6, 1998)
- "Eternal Emblem" (October 7, 1998)
- "Friendship" (August 6, 1999)
- "Siren" (December 18, 1999)