Mermaid saga
| Mermaid saga | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| genre | Action , horror | ||||||
| Manga | |||||||
| country |
 Japan
|
||||||
| author | Rumiko Takahashi | ||||||
| publishing company | Shogakukan | ||||||
| magazine | Shōnen Sunday | ||||||
| First publication | 1984-1994 | ||||||
| expenditure | 3 | ||||||
| Anime television series | |||||||
| title | Mermaid Forest | ||||||
| Original title | 高橋留美子 劇場 人魚 の 森 | ||||||
| transcription | Takahashi Rumiko Gekijō: Ningyo no Mori | ||||||
| Country of production |
Japan
|
||||||
| original language | Japanese | ||||||
| year | 2003 | ||||||
| length | 23 minutes | ||||||
| Episodes | 13 | ||||||
| Director | Masaharu Okuwaki | ||||||
| First broadcast | October 4, 2003 - December 20, 2003 on TV Osaka , TV Tokyo | ||||||
| OVAs | |||||||
| |||||||
Mermaid Saga is a manga series by the Japanese illustrator Rumiko Takahashi . The work was filmed several times as an anime and can be classified into the genres of action and horror.
The story about mermaids is based on the Japanese legend of the Yao Bikuni .
content
In Japan , legend has it that anyone who eats the meat of a mermaid ( ningyo ) attains immortality. A young man named Yuta finds out firsthand that this is more than just a legend. Together with the fifteen-year-old girl Mana, who has also become immortal through eating the flesh of a mermaid, the two of them are looking for a mermaid who can take this "curse" away from them. However, the meat is in great demand and many people are after the precious treasure. But very few who eat the meat survive the transformation process unscathed and achieve immortality because it is a deadly poison. Most either die, survive defaced, or become soulless fish people called lost souls . The mermaids are also not good-natured creatures, but cruel beasts, which in turn hunt or keep those few who survived this process of transformation in order to regain their own youth by eating meat.
publication
Originally, the nine short stories from 1984 to 1994, appeared in the manga magazine Shonen Sunday the publisher Shogakukan . They were later summarized in 3 volumes: Ningyo no Mori ( 人魚 の 森 ), Ningyo no Kizu ( 人魚 の 傷 ) and Yasha no Hitomi ( 夜叉 の 瞳 ).
The manga has been translated into English and French, among others. In Germany, the series was published in mirror form in 2001 and 2002 by Egmont Manga & Anime in 4 volumes. The last two short stories of the third Japanese volume were published in Germany as the second volume.
The first volume of Mermaid Saga was filmed as anime - OVAs by the Pierrot studio in 1991 . Directed by Takaya Mizutani , character design designed Sayuri Ikkoku and artistic director was Kazuyoshi Kanemura. The 56-minute OVA was released in Japan on August 16, entitled Ningyo no Mori .
The first OVA was published in English by Manga Entertainment in Australia, broadcast in Spanish by TV3 and translated into Italian and Dutch.
In 1993 a second OVA, produced by Madhouse , followed, directed by Morio Asaka . The character designer was Kumiko Takahashi and the artistic direction was taken over by Hidetoshi Kaneko. The anime has also been translated into English and Spanish.
In 2003, a 13-part television series entitled Takahashi Rumiko Gekijō: Ningyo no Mori ( 高橋留美子 劇場 人魚 の 森 ) was produced, with the last two episodes only being released on DVD. Director was Masaharu Okuwaki , character designer Masaki Sato and artistic directors were Junichi Azuma and Toshiyuki Tokuda. The series was broadcast from October 4 to December 20, 2003 by TV Osaka and TV Tokyo .
The television series was released in Italian by Polygram Video, in Dutch by Kaze Animation and in English by Geneon Entertainment. The anime series by RedPlanet was published in German.
synchronization
The German dubbed version of the series was made by brandt Film Berlin.
| role | Japanese speaker ( seiyū ) | German speaker |
|---|---|---|
| Yuta | Kōichi Yamadera | Sebastian Schulz |
| Mana | Minami Takayama | Julia Kaufmann |
music
The music of the first OVA Ningyo no Mori was composed by Kenji Kawai , the second by Norihiro Tauri. The opening credits of the television series, like an angel , is by Chiaki Ishikawa, the closing titles Mizu tamari of Kayoko.
Soundtrack
A soundtrack was also released for the same year for the OVAs. The soundtrack for the TV series was released together with the Rumiko Takahashi Anthology .
reception
Rumiko Takahashi received the 20th Seiun Prize in 1989 for Mermaid Saga . According to the specialist magazine AnimaniA , Rumiko Takahashi proves with Mermaid Saga that she can also master the mystical. The manga combines the story of human fates with mythology and horror. The story stands out from the other works of Takahashi due to the dark atmosphere. It succeeds in getting the reader carried away and illuminating each individual fate in the course of the plot.
According to Splashcomics, the manga is in typical Rumiko Takahashi's style. The plot is kept mystical, creepy and exciting. The later stories, however, would repeat elements already covered, presumably the author ran out of ideas. However, the end is exciting again and, despite the openness, fitting.
Individual evidence
- ↑ 日本 SF フ ァ ン グ ル ー プ 連 合 会議 ： 星雲 賞 リ ス ト. In: sf-fan.gr.jp. Retrieved February 24, 2012 (Japanese).
- ↑ AnimaniA No. 44, p. 60
- ↑ Review by Splashcomics for Volume 1, by Mario Vuk
- ↑ Review by Splashcomics for Volume 2, by Mario Vuk
- ↑ Review by Splashcomics for Volume 3, by Mario Vuk
- ↑ Review by Splashcomics for Volume 4, by Mario Vuk
Web links
- Official TV Show Website (Japanese)
- Anime News Network about the manga and television series (English)
- AnimePro about the manga