Saint Tail
Encyclopedia
, is a magical girl
manga
and anime
series. Originally a twenty-four part manga by Megumi Tachikawa
, the story was brought to television anime by producer Tokyo Movie Shinsha
, with forty-three episodes and one short, broadcast by ABC
. Tokyopop
translated the manga series, and subtitled and partially dubbed the anime series.
Video Games were released for the Sega Saturn
and Sega Game Gear
in Japan, and are considered collectors items by Saint Tail fans.
Saint Tail, and steals back what was stolen or taken dishonestly. She's assisted by a classmate and sister-in-training, Seira Mimori, whose position in the church after school each day allows her to hear the troubles of those who have been wronged and have come to pray to God.
While Saint Tail steals to right the wrongs done to innocent people, she's a thief to the police force. Her classmate Daiki Asuka Jr., called Asuka Jr., and son of Detective Asuka, is hot on her trail. Saint Tail delivers notices of her planned capers to Asuka Jr., to give him a fair chance to catch her.
Daiki Asuka Jr.(飛鳥大貴 Asuka Daiki; アスカＪｒ Asuka Jr.)
The first seven dubbed episodes were loosely based on the original dialogue and, perhaps in an act of political correctness
, removed references to God. (This is especially awkward because the story follows students in a private religious school, and because Saint Tail's stealing is sinful to her religion, she always asks for God's forgiveness before a caper).
In the Italian dub, when Asuka Jr. reads a notice from Saint Tail, rather than display the notice written in Japanese
, a short scene of Saint Tail running in the dark is shown while her voice reads out the notice's message. The notice scenes are cut from the Korean dub, presumably due to the Japanese text.
In Korea, several episodes were cut entirely (they had not been broadcast) because there was so much content with Japanese culture or text. The 12th episode was broadcast just after 3rd episode to match with the real Christmas season when it was broadcast in Korea.
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...
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...
and 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. Originally a twenty-four part manga by Megumi Tachikawa
Megumi Tachikawa
is a Japanese shōjo manga artist, best known for the manga Saint Tail, which was also adapted into an anime series. She made her manga debut in 1992 with 16-sai no Tiara, which was nominated for the 'New Face' manga award.-Works:...
, the story was brought to television anime by producer Tokyo Movie Shinsha
Tokyo 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...
, with forty-three episodes and one short, broadcast by ABC
Asahi Broadcasting Corporation
is a regional radio and television broadcaster headquartered in Osaka, Japan, serving in the Kansai region.-Offices:*Headquarters: 1-30, Fukushima Itchome, Fukushima-ku, Osaka-shi, Japan...
. 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...
translated the manga series, and subtitled and partially dubbed the anime series.
Video Games were released for the Sega Saturn
Sega 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...
and 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....
in Japan, and are considered collectors items by Saint Tail fans.
Story
The story of Saint Tail follows a simple formula: school girl Meimi Haneoka transforms into the mysterious thiefKaito
Kaito or Kaitō is most commonly a Japanese given name, and may refer to:In music:* KaitO, an independent rock band from the United KingdomAs a Japanese male given name, it may be written in numerous ways, for example as:...
Saint Tail, and steals back what was stolen or taken dishonestly. She's assisted by a classmate and sister-in-training, Seira Mimori, whose position in the church after school each day allows her to hear the troubles of those who have been wronged and have come to pray to God.
While Saint Tail steals to right the wrongs done to innocent people, she's a thief to the police force. Her classmate Daiki Asuka Jr., called Asuka Jr., and son of Detective Asuka, is hot on her trail. Saint Tail delivers notices of her planned capers to Asuka Jr., to give him a fair chance to catch her.
Characters
- Voiced by: Tomo SakuraiTomo Sakuraiis a Japanese voice actress and a former idol singer. Sakurai is a member of I'm Enterprise.- Debut :At the age of 14, Sakurai debuted as a sub-member for "KISS Fairlies," a group that worked as campaign girls for KIJIMA Motorcycle Racing Team...
(Japanese), Mela LeeMela LeeMela Lee is an American singer and voice actress. She is known for voicing roles in Japanese anime and video games...
(English) - The main character of the series. Meimi is a typical cheerful orange-haired fourteen-year-old student at St. Paulia's Private School. By night she transforms into the mysterious (yet magical) thief, Saint Tail. In this guise, she takes back what bad people have stolen. She is given information by her classmate, and nun-in-training, Seira, of misdeeds.
Daiki Asuka Jr.(飛鳥大貴 Asuka Daiki; アスカＪｒ Asuka Jr.)
- Voiced by: Kousuke Okano (Japanese), Joshua SethJoshua SethJoshua Seth Freedman is an American entertainer and voice actor. He was born in Kent, Ohio and attended the New York University film school. He has voiced dozens of well known anime characters and is sometimes credited as "Jeremiah Freedman", but has retired from voice acting in 2005...
(English) - Daiki Asuka is a detective boy fourteen-year-old student at classmate of Meimi, and is a top student in his class.
- Voiced by: Kikuko InoueKikuko Inoueis a popular Japanese voice actress and singer. She has been part of the singing groups DoCo and Goddess Family Club, among others, and is the manager of her voice-acting company, Office Anemone. Inoue tends to play the "perfect girlfriend" or "motherly" role in many series, but she has also played...
(Japanese), Anjuli Cain (English) - Seira is a quiet and mature, fourteen-year-old student classmate and best friend of Meimi. She is a nun-in training at the school's church. she is the only person who knows the real identity of Saint Tail.
Dub variations
Only the first fifteen episodes and the short were dubbed into English, although all of the episodes were released on DVD (with English subtitles).The first seven dubbed episodes were loosely based on the original dialogue and, perhaps in an act of political correctness
Political correctness
Political correctness is a term which denotes language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social and institutional offense in occupational, gender, racial, cultural, sexual orientation, certain other religions, beliefs or ideologies, disability, and age-related contexts,...
, removed references to God. (This is especially awkward because the story follows students in a private religious school, and because Saint Tail's stealing is sinful to her religion, she always asks for God's forgiveness before a caper).
In the Italian dub, when Asuka Jr. reads a notice from Saint Tail, rather than display the notice written in Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, a short scene of Saint Tail running in the dark is shown while her voice reads out the notice's message. The notice scenes are cut from the Korean dub, presumably due to the Japanese text.
In Korea, several episodes were cut entirely (they had not been broadcast) because there was so much content with Japanese culture or text. The 12th episode was broadcast just after 3rd episode to match with the real Christmas season when it was broadcast in Korea.
Title names in dubbed versions
| Language | Title |
| English | Saint Tail |
| Italian | Lisa e Seya, un solo cuore per lo stesso segreto (Translated as Lisa and Seya, a single heart for the same secret) |
| Japanese | 『怪盗 セイント・テール』(かいとう せいんと・てーる) (Translated as Mysterious Thief Saint Tail) |
| Philippines | Sweet Tales of Saint Tail |
| Portuguese | A Ladra Meimi (translated: Meimi, the thief) |
| Russian | Грабительница Святой Хвост |
| Spanish (Los Angeles) |
Las Aventuras de Saint Tail (Translated as The Adventures of Saint Tail) |
| Spanish Re-dubbing (In process) |
La Misteriosa Ladrona Saint Tail (Translated as Mysterious Thief Saint Tail) |
| Korean | 천사 소녀 네티 (translated literally Angel Girl Neti |
| Chinese | 怪盗 St. Tail (Translated as Mysterious Thief St. Tail) |