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103-482: The series follows three eighth-grade girls who find themselves transported from modern-day Japan into a magical world, where they are tasked with rescuing a princess. 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. A new anime project has been announced. Magic Knight Rayearth focuses on three eighth-grade girls:

206-665: 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. In 1997, Tokyopop licensed Magic Knight Rayearth for an English-language translation in North America, and serialized it in its manga magazine MixxZine . The English version of

309-601: A "magical boy" character. Cute High Earth Defense Club Love! (2015) features a cast of male characters parodying the magical girl concepts combined with growing interest in bishōnen shows aimed at a fujoshi audience. Other magical boy parodies include Is This a Zombie? (2011) and Magical Girl Ore (2018). Magical girl series use elements associated with female interests, such as accessories associated with traditional femininity, child-rearing, and romance. Magical girl characters are typically 10 to 14 years old, with cute features and an appearance resembling

412-550: A different New York-based voice cast for its English release, which was produced by Skypilot Entertainment . 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 "Still Embracing Light and Darkness" as the opening for Magic Knight Rayearth 2 episodes 1–22, due to licensing issues. The original openings from episodes 1–22 were included as an extra on

515-402: A feathered headdress and doing a war dance. In the anime series, she is killed by one of Ascot's beast summons. This death happens only in the anime, and unfortunately created a plot hole for the second season when Presea becomes a necessary character in the manga counterpart. In order to fill this plot hole, her twin sister, Sierra, is created to pose as her. The only ones to realize that Sierra

618-525: A female counterpart to tokusatsu series aimed at young boys, such as Super Sentai , Kamen Rider , and Ultraman ; however, interest in the genre declined in the early 1990s due to competing toy sales with Sailor Moon and other magical girl anime. Live-action magical girl series were revived with the Girls × Heroine series, beginning with Idol × Warrior Miracle Tunes! in 2017. Magical girl series aimed at young girls were often marketed with

721-492: A jewelry line. In the years that followed, other magical girl franchises released merchandise lines aimed towards adult women, through collaborations with fashion brands such as Earth Music & Ecology  [ ja ] 's Japan Label, Liz Lisa  [ ja ] , Thank You Mart  [ ja ] , SuperGroupies, and Favorite. In China, Balala the Fairies is an ongoing franchise originating as

824-556: A live-action series before transferring to animation, though it was accused of plagiarizing Pretty Cure . Similar to Japan, the transforming heroine concept coined by Sailor Moon saw popularity when the show was broadcast overseas in the 1990s due to the girl power movement taking place in Europe and the United States at the time. The influence of Sailor Moon has led magical girls to be associated with superheroines in

927-548: A merchandise line, with Kumiko Saito saying that magical girl anime is best understood as "twenty-five-minute advertisements for toy merchandise", highlighting the high production costs and the involvement of Bandai in Sailor Moon and Pretty Cure . Reiko Yamashita also mentioned Ojamajo Doremi as an example of a series with mass toy production. Pretty Cure has become Japan's fifth highest grossing franchise as of 2010 in part due to its high merchandise sales. For

1030-603: A more proactive attitude with him offering and asking him for help on several occasions. They seem to have a special affinity and Mokona shows us that there is a connection between them. It is strongly implied that there is a budding relationship between Umi and Ascot near the end of the story. A relationship with Clef is non-existent in the manga. Curiously, her parents have a minor cameo in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle , another Clamp series that has many crossovers . In some language adaptations, her name

1133-426: A princess or an idol singer. Older women are usually portrayed as villains. Professor Bill Ellis noted that in traditional Japanese folklore , powerful women were depicted to be monstrous, similar to Oni . In magical girl series, the main female characters transform into prettier, more mature-looking versions of themselves who have special powers, an idea originating from Princess Knight . Unlike hero shows,

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1236-459: A remake of the original male-oriented science fiction series Cutie Honey (1973) for a young female demographic; and Wedding Peach . In the following years, the magical girl genre became diversified. While Sailor Moon also drew in male fans, Cardcaptor Sakura (1998) was extremely popular among men in spite of its target demographic for including themes such as cosplay , boys' love , otokonoko , and yuri . Cardcaptor Sakura

1339-505: 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. In this version, Ferio, who

1442-470: A twist of his original character, he is the villain who does battle with Fuu. After eavesdropping on Lantis' conversation with Hikaru and the others, he assists Lantis in fighting Cephiro's spirits, and later delivers Lantis' sword to the combined Mashin to help them fight Eagle. Ferio gets his name from the Honda Civic Ferio , and Ascot's monster from the episode featuring Ferio is named after

1545-494: A weekday basis and with a Tagalog dub produced by Telesuccess Productions. It was released on both VHS and DVD. Discotek Media re-released the series on DVD and Blu-ray on January 31, 2017. Anime Limited announced that they had acquired the series for release in the United Kingdom and Ireland. A new anime project was announced to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the anime series on July 2, 2024. A three-part OVA

1648-416: A world of her whims; and Chizeta, an overpopulated world whose sibling rulers Tatra and Tarta plan to use it to make Cephiro into a colony. As the Magic Knights help defend the castle, they each agree that the fate of the planet should not be the responsibility of only one person which, like Princess Emeraude, effectively prevents that person from ever being able to live and love freely. What's more, there

1751-459: A year later, it opens with the three protagonists struggling with their guilt and despair over their role in her death. Meeting again at Tokyo Tower, they find themselves transported mysteriously to Cephiro again, and discover that only a single piece of Cephiro remains, which holds a castle where the survivors gather to take refuge. With the Pillar gone, Cephiro is, for the most part, defenseless, and

1854-411: Is a concept adapted from tokusatsu hero shows (dramas or movies) that was first popularized by Sailor Moon in the early 1990s; it has been a staple of magical girl series since. The transforming heroine features an ordinary schoolgirl who changes into an "adorable" costume with "cute" accessories; she then uses a sceptre (or a similar weapon) to channel magical energy in order to fight against

1957-410: Is a mostly unspoken risk that when a new Pillar is chosen, something may eventually hinder them from praying solely for Cephiro's well-being, cause them to summon new Magic Knights to kill them, and bring Cephiro to near-destruction again until a new Pillar is chosen, causing the cycle of events to continue endlessly. As such, Lantis , a powerful magic swordsman and Zagato's younger brother, wishes to end

2060-488: Is a separate character from Mokona Modoki from ×××HOLiC and Tsubasa -RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE- , though Yūko implies that those Mokonas were based on Cephiro's Mokona, and saying she might not have known about other worlds if she hadn't met him. Mokona was named after Mokona , one of Clamp's artists. Voiced by: Yuri Shiratori (Japanese); Kaeko Sakamoto (English) , Charmaine Cordoviz (ABS-CBN Tagalog) & Filipina Pamintuan (GMA Tagalog). Ferio ( フェリオ , Ferio )

2163-421: Is a sorcerer under Princess Emeraude's command, is not her brother. Eagle Vision fills that role instead, as well as being the main antagonist after he tricked Zagato to commit suicide in order to bring upon a false balance to Cephiro. His ties to Autozam are non-existent in this version, as he is a citizen of Cephiro from the start. He would put a spell on Emeraude to convince her that Zagato is still alive, so that

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2266-614: Is a tall and nice young man who has managed to grow thanks to the lessons learned in the past, the power of his will and the love he feels for Umi. Now his behavior is calm and sweet towards people. While he still summons monsters, he has learned other spells from Clef to avoid using his friends as living weapons. He is able to tell Umi his feelings before she leaves to fight Tarta & Tatra. Umi replies that she loves him as well, but just as much as everyone else in Cephiro, and that she didn't have any romantic feelings for him. This saddens Ascot

2369-454: Is a warrior whom the Magic Knights first meet in the Forest of Silence . A tough young man wielding a sword taller than he is, he quickly develops a soft spot for Fuu and the feelings grow to love near the end of the first arc but by the second season his feelings have evolved into a strong love for Fuu. Never completely honest with others, he made himself difficult for the heroines to trust. In

2472-569: Is an eighth-grader with bright red eyes and scarlet hair, who is small for her age and often teased for her boyishness. She helps her parents and her three older brothers (Masaru, Satoru and Kakeru) to run a school for Kendo . She is headstrong and determined, and in many ways very childish, but she is fiercely loyal to her friends. In particular, she wants to save Cephiro in the first arc in order to return home to her dog, Hikari, her precious childhood friend. She uses fire-based spells, such as Arrow of Fire (Honoo no Ya) and Crimson Lightning . Hikaru

2575-555: Is derived from the Mazda Clef . Voiced by: Nozomu Sasaki (Japanese); Steve Staley (English) , Immy Uncle (English) in OVA. Mokona ( モコナ , Mokona ) is a mischievous, nonsensical rabbit -like creature, possibly a Carbuncle , with a striking similarity to a white manjū bun , with a red gem in his forehead above his eyes. From this gem he can produce a tent for the girls to sleep in, food, and other necessary supplies. He

2678-413: Is elegant with dark blue eyes and long, flowing blue hair. She is an only child of rich parents, the two of which dote on her mercilessly and for whom she has great affection. A fencing champion, she is quick-tempered and at first uncaring (though perhaps the best-suited for the task at hand), as well as the most reluctant of the three Magic Knights: she is under great pressure to attend a fencing contest and

2781-492: Is ever mentioned between them. In the anime he is both loved by Sierra and the deceased Presea. When he first meet the girls, he reacts very unpleasantly to Umi who called him a "child" or 10 years old as stated by Umi; when in fact, he is actually 745 years old. In season 2 of the anime, it was hinted that he cares for Umi when she got abducted by the Twin Princess but he never showed a love interested for her. His name

2884-479: Is her strength in saving Cephiro. She often has moments where she doubts herself, but comes out strong and resolved in the end. Her spells, Winds of Protection , Winds of Admonishment , and Winds of Healing , are air-based and are mostly healing and defensive in nature, though she has some offensive attacks, such as Emerald Typhoon and Emerald Cyclone . Fuu is in love with Ferio, the estranged brother of Princess Emeraude, who has been helping them since they met in

2987-451: Is influenced by one's will and that the Pillar maintains Cephiro through prayer. The girls are then tasked with rescuing the current Pillar, Princess Emeraude , from her abductor, the high priest and antagonist Zagato , after which they will be returned to Tokyo. Guided by the creature Mokona on their quest, the girls discover their respective element-based magic and awaken the three Rune-Gods ( 魔神 , Mashin ) , creatures who can take

3090-547: Is killed shortly after by Debonair for her betrayal. In the Sega Saturn game, Alcyone is apparently killed by Rafaga. She survives despite her injuries and, after realizing that Zagato loves Emeraude, Alcyone loses her sanity and dies fighting the Magic Knights one last time. Her name is occasionally misromanized as "Alcione" – this was featured in the first run of the English-language manga. Her name comes from

3193-480: Is not Presea are Clef, Mokona, and Alcyone, who recognizes Sierra's deception as stemming partly from her love for Clef. When Clef confronts Sierra about why she is posing as her sister, Sierra replies that it is to help the Knights with their mission and continue her sister's legacy, but does not reveal her own feelings for him. Presea's favorite food is listed as V-tek, a kind of candy from Cephiro (though she enjoys

Magic Knight Rayearth - Misplaced Pages Continue

3296-515: Is notably the only Magic Knight whose hair and eyes do not share the same color base). She is more quiet and reserved than the other two members of the group and serves as the voice of reason. Along with specializing in archery, she is also highly intelligent and logical, though this is more akin to book-smarts than street-smarts. Fuu often states the obvious and is very blunt in a fairly humorous way, much to Umi's dismay in some situations. Fuu deeply believes that her belief, along with Hikaru's and Umi's,

3399-479: Is regarded as the first magical girl anime. This anime adaptation introduced the idea of using a compact to transform, a characteristic that is still present in modern series in the genre. Toei Animation produced most of the magical girl series of the 1970s, collectively known as the Majokko Series  [ ja ] . This popularized the term majokko ( 魔女っ子 , lit. "little witch") for

3502-558: Is unable to speak, aside from repeating the sound "puu", although Hikaru seems to be somewhat able to understand him. In the manga, Mokona is revealed to be the Creator of the Earth, Cephiro and the other planets, as well as the laws for each planet. In the ending of the second arc, Mokona and the rest of the Mashin announce that they will be traveling to other dimensions. Mokona of Rayearth

3605-463: Is unsure of the land of Cephiro. Umi tends to go slightly ballistic at times, and provides a bit of comic relief during her fights with Mokona. Initially she seems to dislike Mokona, and even when she does become fond of him, occasionally still seems annoyed by his behavior. However, Umi is very dedicated to Hikaru and Fuu, wanting nothing more than to save Cephiro and return home. She uses water-based spells called Water Dragon and Azure Hurricane . In

3708-481: Is very popular with fans, especially with boys, because of her sometimes childish behavior; for example, in the manga, where Fuu is "asking" Ferio to help them, Umi catches on to what she's doing, but Hikaru has no idea what's going on. When Ferio agrees, Umi cheers, as does Hikaru, though she still doesn't get it. It's also mentioned that she's the most popular girl in her all-girls school by her classmates in both adaptations. She becomes best friends with Umi and Fuu in

3811-556: The Girls × Heroine series, Shogakukan project manager Reiko Sasaki stated that she had to create scenarios on how to integrate the toys into the show. Himitsu no Akko-chan was the earliest example of having a merchandise line and was a "huge hit". Toys from the 1980s were commonly in bright colors and were mostly compact cases or sticks, with the character's face sometimes printed on them. From 1990 to 1994, toy sets began including pendants as part of transformation items, along with feminine motifs, such as hearts and stars; most of

3914-596: The Super Robot Wars T game, released in 2019, as well as 2021's Super Robot Wars 30 . Magic Knight Rayearth has been well received by English-language readers. According to Dark Horse Comics, almost 200,000 copies of the series have been sold in the United States. The first volume of Tokyopop's re-release of Magic Knight Rayearth II placed 44th on the list of the top 100 bestselling graphic novels for February 2004, with an estimated 1,446 copies sold. The first volume of Dark Horse's omnibus edition appeared at

4017-478: The Mitsubishi Pajero . Voiced by: Takumi Yamazaki , Arnold Abad (ABS-CBN Tagalog Dub), Terrence Stone , Jim Ensz (English) in OVA. Presea ( プレセア , Puresea ) is the top blacksmith in Cephiro, known there as a Pharle or "artisan". She is one of Clef's students and seems to have a crush on him. She aided the Magic Knights by making their legendary swords from the mineral escudo . In both

4120-467: The Subaru Alcyone SVX . Voiced by: Yuri Amano , Dada Carlos (GMA Tagalog), Barbara Goodson , Angora Deb (English) in OVA. Ascot ( アスコット , Asukotto ) One of the followers of Zagato, is a young child with the ability to summon monsters, whom he considers to be his friends. Although hideous, they have no ill will, but villagers still fear them. Homeless and without parents, Ascot

4223-405: The "Rayearth" part of the title, while Ohkawa thought of the rest. At that point, Clamp had completed a "basic" idea of the plot. For the names of the characters, they drew on car names, feeling that they would be interesting and memorable for children, who might otherwise have difficulty learning the names of characters in katakana . The inclusion of giant robots gave the artists some difficulty, as

Magic Knight Rayearth - Misplaced Pages Continue

4326-554: The 1960s is romance that eventually results in marriage. While heterosexual romance was present and received focus in magical girl series, post– Sailor Moon works saw a diminished presence in male characters in favor of focusing on the friendships between the main female characters. Akiko Sugawa suggests that the future of magical girl shows may include rebellion against sexual norms, using Puella Magi Madoka Magica as an example of yuri relationships favored over heterosexual relationships. In 1989, Shotaro Ishinomori produced

4429-482: The 2003/2004 re-release's Magic Knight Rayearth II volume 1). It would appear that Tokyopop has lost their license for the series, as Dark Horse Comics announced at their San Diego Comic-Con 2009 panel that they would be publishing the series in a new omnibus edition in honor of Clamp's 20th anniversary. Dark Horse published the omnibus editions from July 6, 2011 to April 12, 2012. After Dark Horse Comics' license expired, Kodansha Comics licensed it and released

4532-439: The 2010s with the advent of Puella Magi Madoka Magica (2011), whose mature themes and darker approach earned acclaim from viewers and critics outside the conventional audience group. Other examples of late-night magical girl anime include Day Break Illusion (2013) and Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya (2013). Though transforming heroine shows remain popular, traditional magical girl series featuring witches demonstrating

4635-606: The 83rd place of the list of the top 300 bestselling graphic novels for July 2011, with an estimated 1,069 copies sold. The second volume placed 109th on the list for April 2012, with an estimated 942 copies sold. Magical girl Magical girl ( Japanese : 魔法少女 , Hepburn : mahō shōjo ) is a subgenre of primarily Japanese fantasy media (including anime , manga , light novels , and live-action media) centered on young girls who possess magical abilities, which they typically use through an ideal alter ego into which they can transform. The genre emerged in 1962 with

4738-580: The Magic Angel . In the 1990s, Sailor Moon introduced the concept of a "transforming heroine" who fights against forces of evil , a synthesis of elements from tokusatsu hero shows that became a staple for magical girl series that followed. The growth of late-night anime in the early 2000s led to a demographic shift for the genre, where series with more mature themes such as Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha (2004) were created and marketed towards an older male audience. Despite no presence of magic,

4841-428: The Magic Knights to kill her, as no one from Cephiro could harm the Pillar. Her dark side then takes over, seeking to destroy the Magic Knights for killing her love. After a short defensive fight against Princess Emeraude, the Magic Knights have no choice but to kill her. They then find themselves transported back to Tokyo. The second part of the series deals with the complications caused by Princess Emeraude's death. Set

4944-443: The Pillar system for those reasons. Eventually, Mokona narrows the candidates down to two: Hikaru and the sickly Eagle Vision of Autozam, who is friends with Lantis and, as such, wishes to end the Pillar system for him with his eternal sleep. As the two undergo the test to become the new Pillar in a recreation of Tokyo, Mokona reveals itself to be the creator of Cephiro and its laws, both of which it had created after sadly witnessing

5047-519: The Pillar to destroy the Pillar System and allow Cephiro to function on its own. In some language adaptations, her name was changed to Lucy and Luce . Voiced by: Hekiru Shiina (Japanese); Julie Maddalena (English) , Aya Bejer (ABS-CBN Tagalog) and Mitchiko Azarcon-Tiongson (GMA Tagalog), Venus Terzo in original English dub & Tara Jayne (English) in OVA. Birthday: March 3 (Pisces) Umi Ryuuzaki ( 龍咲 海 , Ryūzaki Umi )

5150-953: The West. Notable examples include W.I.T.C.H. (2001) and Winx Club (2004) in Italy; and Totally Spies! (2001), LoliRock (2014), and Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir (2015) in France. Animated series from the United States, including The Powerpuff Girls (1998), Bee and PuppyCat (2013), Steven Universe (2013), Star vs. the Forces of Evil (2015), and Magical Girl Friendship Squad (2020), have been influenced by magical girl themes and reference them. Characters in My Little Pony: Equestria Girls are described as "full-time students and part-time magical pony girls". The influence of

5253-466: The affection is entirely one-sided. In the manga she is killed after failing Zagato twice by his own hand. In the anime she lives on until near the end of the second season; moments after Zagato and Emeraude's deaths, she's captured by the evil witch Debonair, who brainwashes her into becoming her slave. Lantis captures Alcyone in battle, but she has lost her memories. When she recovers them, she reveals Debonair's plans for Cephiro and Debonair's location, and

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5356-462: The anime Umi is totally clueless of Ascot's affections for her and she has feelings for Clef but he seems not to be too interested in love. She's friends with Tatra and Tarta, the princesses of Chizeta, whom she defeated in sword fights at different points in the second season. During the same arc, Umi appears to be slightly more mature. In the manga, she is apparently a fan of Häagen-Dazs ice cream, Denny's and MOS Burger (she becomes panicked at

5459-419: The anime and manga series, she shows something of a sadistic side, plotting ways to punish Mokona for making a mess in her study (including yanking his ears, hanging him upside-down while she dances about him dressed as a Native American, and prying his ever-closed eyes wide open). Her trap captures the Magic Knights by mistake, so she ponders whether to stretch their cheeks or boil them in a big pot, again wearing

5562-443: The anime he gives Fuu a jeweled orb. Since he has one identical to it, he uses it to communicate with her throughout the first series. In the manga series, he gives her a ring identical to the one on his ear. Fuu loses it when the three go home to Tokyo in the first series, but in the second series, when they return, he gives it to her for a second time. Both items were given to him by his older sister Princess Emeraude in his youth. In

5665-491: The anime's first season, Ferio once pretended to join Ascot, Lord Zagato's child summoner, who set a trap for the Magic Knights using his sound-sensitive monster, Pajero. Also, while the Magic Knights are facing Innova's true form, Ferio regains his memory from his younger years. He realizes that he was Princess Emeraude's only brother, and hears his sister's voice coming from his own orb telling him how to defeat Innova. Ferio relays

5768-438: The beginning of the first series. In the second arc, she grows closer to Ferio, and though she is torn knowing she helped kill his sister, his feelings for her never waver. In the second season, Fuu wins an archery contest against Lady Aska, after which they become friends. Fuu is very polite and calls people Sir or Miss ( -san in the Japanese version). Fuu also has an older sister named Kuu. In some language adaptations, her name

5871-520: The candy from Earth that Hikaru gives her as payment for using her weapons). Named after the Nissan Presea . Voiced by: Emi Shinohara ,Maripette Narvasa (ABS-CBN Tagalog) and Dada Carlos (GMA Tagalog) & Mari Devon . Alcyone ( アルシオーネ , Arushiōne ) is an ice sorceress who tutored under Clef and was intended to attend to the Pillar. However, she fell in love with the high priest, Zagato, and for this love became his servant, although

5974-465: The celebration of the publication of the Soryuden novels, which Clamp had illustrated, the group was asked by Hideki Yamaguchi, editor for the Japanese shōjo (targeted towards girls) manga magazine Nakayoshi , to do a series for the magazine. The editor-in-chief wanted a story that could appeal to elementary readers and older, while Clamp wished to bring in younger fans. Without direction from

6077-934: The characters' use of magic only exacerbated social conflict. A key attribute of the transformations in Sailor Moon is that they focused on exaggerating the characters' beauty through make-up and fashion, negating the link between cuteness and weakness traditionally seen in women. In addition, unlike previous magical girl series, Sailor Moon featured a team of magical girls as the main characters, with male characters supporting them in battle. The format of using fighting, transforming heroines became popular and were used in other magical girl series following Sailor Moon . Series that attempted to capitalize on Sailor Moon 's success include Akazukin Chacha , whose anime adaptation created an original arc featuring "transforming heroine" characteristics; Cutie Honey Flash (1997),

6180-428: The early 2000s, magical girl shows aimed at an older male demographic were produced, a notable one being Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha (2004), a spin-off originating from the adult game series Triangle Heart . As the series were targeted towards older audiences, this allowed for dark and mature themes to be explored, including death and the price of magical power. The magical girl genre earned renewed popularity in

6283-482: 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. Three ending themes were used: Magic Knight Rayearth : Magic Knight Rayearth 2 : Media Blasters' early English DVD release used "Lullaby ~ Yasashiku Dakasete ~" as the ending for Magic Knight Rayearth 2 episodes 23-29, due to licensing issues. The original ending from episodes 23-29

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6386-456: The editors, the group decided on a series combining robots, as they were fond of robot anime ; role-playing games (RPGs), which saw popularity in Japan at the time; and fantasy, to counterbalance the robots, which they thought alone would be off-putting to their target audience. According to Ohkawa, the magazine's success with the magical girl manga Sailor Moon (1991–97) made it possible for

6489-413: The fate of the planet should not be the responsibility of one person. Mokona accepts their decision and leaves with the three Mashin. The manga concludes with the three girls' returning to a new Cephiro to visit their loved ones, as they work with the rulers of the other planets to solve their planets' problems, and contemplate Mokona's wish to allow the three protagonists to bring change to Cephiro. During

6592-521: The first TV season, was released for the Sega Saturn . It was the last officially released game for the console in the North America. All other games based on the manga are Japan-only releases, including a Super Famicom RPG, a Sega Pico title called Magic Knight Tanjou , two short RPGs for Game Boy (the second one titled Magic Knight Rayearth 2nd: The Missing Colors ), a raising sim , and another RPG for Sega Game Gear . The series appears in

6695-518: The first instance of the term " mahō shōjo (magical girl)" being used. In the following years, other studios besides Toei began producing magical girl anime series, such as Magical Princess Minky Momo (1982) and Creamy Mami, the Magic Angel (1983), the latter of which was the first installment of Studio Pierrot 's Magic Girl Series  [ ja ] . A characteristic of Minky Momo and Creamy Mami showed girls transforming into grown-up images of themselves, which has been linked to

6798-555: The first live-action magical girl series, Mahō Shōjo Chūka na Pai Pai!  [ ja ] , as part of the Toei Fushigi Comedy Series . The popularity of the show led to five more installments produced, including La Belle Fille Masquée Poitrine and Yūgen Jikkō Sisters Shushutrian  [ ja ] , with all of them categorized as the Bishōjo Series ( 美少女シリーズ ) . The shows were viewed as

6901-441: The first season. In the second season, she falls in love with Lantis, and becomes friends with Eagle Vision of Autozam. However, in the manga, Hikaru is only hinted at being romantically involved with Lantis, despite him hinting that he has strong feelings for her. Hikaru claims to love everyone, and due to her innocent nature, probably loves everyone equally. In the anime, Hikaru's affection for Lantis becomes much more apparent. In

7004-595: The forces of evil. This format has allowed magical girls to be viewed as superheroines , especially in the West during the girl power movement of the 1990s. Comparisons have been drawn to Western superheroines like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Wonder Woman , but unlike the former, "transforming heroine" series use femininity to weaponize and also features young girls instead of women, while older women are typically portrayed as villains in magical girl series. A common goal for magical girl characters since

7107-540: The form of giant robots that the girls must pilot. As the girls progress on their journey, they overcome their differences, learning how to work together and accept each other as friends. After the girls find Zagato, they fight and are able to destroy him. After this, they finally reach where Emeraude is imprisoned, but the three learn that she had fallen in love with Zagato, which had hindered her ability to pray solely for Cephiro's well-being. Feeling responsible for her actions, she had imprisoned herself, and eventually summoned

7210-510: The genre has also been seen in Western comics and graphic novels, such as Agents of the Realm (2014), Zodiac Starforce (2015), and Sleepless Domain (2015). Magical girl series have been linked to female empowerment since the 1970s, from exploring female sexuality to weaponizing femininity. Aside from feminine gender norms from the genre's defiance against female gender roles,

7313-476: The genre, especially with Mahōtsukai Chappy (1972) and Majokko Megu-chan (1974). Megu-chan has been noted in particular for its portrayal of multiple magical girls and the friendship between girls. Coinciding with the influence of the women's liberation movement in Japan , magical girls began displaying a "certain coquettishness" in the 1970s. In 1980, Toei released Lalabel, the Magical Girl ,

7416-500: The girls are saddened to learn that a new Pillar must be chosen by the Pillar system before the whole planet is destroyed. Not only that, three warring planets have begun their attempts to conquer the Pillar-less Cephiro: Autozam, a technologically advanced world which intends to use the Pillar system to remove the pollution in its air; Fahren, whose childish ruler Lady Aska plans to use it to turn Cephiro into

7519-487: The group to pitch a serial with robots to its editors. Rayearth intentionally traces out an RPG world, but I don't consider it an RPG world, myself. You can tell it's not a simple world, the kind where there's a princess, a villain who kidnaps her, and the main character who saves the day and lives happily ever after. Even if the main characters thought that's the world they got into ... —writer Nanase Ohkawa A friend of Clamp, illustrator Takeshi Okazaki, created

7622-399: The importance of hopes and dreams, such as Tweeny Witches (2004) and Little Witch Academia (2013) were still produced. In addition to late-night magical girl series, media exploring the idea of male characters as magical girls (colloquially known as "magical boys" ) were introduced, most of them as comedic parodies. Kimagure Orange Road (1985) introduced audiences to the idea of

7725-620: The increasing prominence of women at this time including politician Takako Doi , the all-female band Princess Princess , and pop idol Seiko Matsuda , as well as the passage of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act in 1985. Yuji Nunokawa , the producer of both Minky Momo and Creamy Mami , noted that male fans of the magical girl genre increased after Creamy Mami due to the shows' use of transformations and they enjoyed watching girls using magic to solve their problems in ways men traditionally could not. Due to

7828-401: The info to the Knights and they manage to kill their enemy. In the manga Ferio knows of his origins and meets the Magic Knights on his way to try and save his sister, using his fighting skills in exchange for passage out of a forest he had become lost in. In the OVA, he is initially a villain who can summon and control swarms of insects. He appears to have a close relationship with Ascot, and in

7931-419: The items used to initiate transformation are often "cute" accessories associated with femininity and beauty. The first example of an item used to aid the transformation is the anime adaptation of Himitsu no Akko-chan , in which Akko uses a compact to transform; since the broadcast of the series, compacts are commonly used as a transformation item. The "transforming heroine" ( 変身ヒロイン , henshin hiroin )

8034-515: The magical girl genre has also influenced a shift in male gender norms as the stigma between traditional femininity and weakness were removed. Akiko Shimada's 2011 dissertation Representations of Girls in Japanese Magical Girl TV Animation Programmes from 1966 to 2003 and Japanese Female Audiences' Understanding of Them references Yokokawa (1991) and Murase (2000) who state that in Japanese language,

8137-463: The manga Himitsu no Akko-chan , followed by Sally the Witch in 1966. A wave of similar anime produced in the 1970s led to majokko ( 魔女っ子 , lit. "little witch") being used as a common term for the genre. In the 1980s, the term was largely replaced by "magical girl", reflecting the new popularity of shows produced by other studios, including Magical Princess Minky Momo and Creamy Mami,

8240-558: The manga series Princess Knight (1953) is seen as a prototype for the magical girl genre, as it set forth the appeal of girls who transform to do things they normally cannot perform. Himitsu no Akko-chan (1962), serialized in the shōjo manga magazine Ribon , is credited as the earliest magical girl manga series. Sally the Witch followed in 1966, with a concept inspired by the American sitcom Bewitched . Its 1966 anime television adaptation produced by Toei Animation ,

8343-413: 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. The English version of the manga also at first continued the volume numbering through the two series, such that Magic Knight Rayearth II volumes #1–3 were numbered as volumes "#4–6" (i.e., the 2000/2001 release of Magic Knight Rayearth volume 4 has the same content as

8446-437: The massive scale of the robots made it impossible to depict the characters and robots in the same frame. The artists also omitted the cockpit of the robots, to show their faces instead. Greatly anticipating the ending to the first part of the series, Clamp found the protagonists' initial adventures in Cephiro "really easy" to create. Ohkawa noted that, had their target audience been older or male, they would have considered stopping

8549-513: The popularity of Minky Momo and Studio Pierrot's shows, the term " majokko " had largely fallen out of use in favor of "magical girl". Sailor Moon (1991), whose anime adaptation was broadcast from 1992 to 1997, revolutionized the magical girl genre by combining "transforming hero" elements from live-action tokusatsu hero shows like Super Sentai and Kamen Rider with traditionally feminine interests, such as romance and fashion. Up until then, magical girl series were comedic and

8652-409: The poverty of his soul and the lack of affection. In the anime he destroys Presea's house with his monsters, and essentially causes her death. Later, he confronts the Knights again but Umi slaps him for using his friends and causing them pain. This causes a change of heart in Ascot, he learns the true meaning of friendship and he then forsakes Zagato. In the second series, his appearance changes, now he

8755-490: The second season, when the need for a new Pillar of Cephiro is urgent, people from many different lands flock to Cephiro to become the Pillar. It is apparent from the first moment the girls are told they will be Magic Knights that Hikaru is the most strong-willed and passionate of the group; this leads to her eventually becoming the new Pillar at the end of the season. Hikaru decides that she would rather Cephiro not have to depend on one person's self-sacrifice, and uses her power as

8858-689: The series digitaly and in two hardcover box sets containing three volumes each in honor of the manga's 25th anniversary from November 26, 2019 to December 29, 2020. At Anime NYC 2022, Kodansha USA announced that they would release a paperback edition, with the first volume released on December 12, 2023. The series is also licensed in French by Pika Édition and in Spanish by Planeta DeAgostini and later by Norma Editorial . The anime series aired first on Yomiuri Television and other NNS stations in Japan on October 17, 1994, and ended on November 27, 1995. It

8961-498: The series with the conclusion of part one. The second part, however, proved difficult for the group to create, as they felt as if they had "written [them]selves into a corner". Magic Knight Rayearth explores "fate, grim destiny, and sacrifice," as do many of Clamp's works. According to Ohkawa, who believes in choosing one's fate, humanity's fate is caused by one's actions; Cephiro is merely an exaggeration of Earth. Written and illustrated by Clamp , Magic Knight Rayearth appeared as

9064-444: The sorcerers of Cephiro can continue to exist on Earth as the two worlds would soon merge and each sorcerer would battle against the Magic Knights. Lantis is also introduced right away as being an ally to the Magic Knights and against Eagle's plans. The only other characters that are in the OVA are Ascot and Alcyone, with none of the other characters are featured. The OVA is licensed in the U.S. by Manga Entertainment , who opted to use

9167-569: The thought that Cephiro does not have any of these – similar to Miaka Yūki in Fushigi Yûgi , who, upon hers and her best friend's arrival at another world, complains about the absence of her favourite restaurants). The brand names were removed from the anime dialogue, presumably to avoid copyright infringement. Her lovestory in the manga is very different, she develops a very close relationship with Ascot who blushes whenever they are together. Although she doesn't realize Ascot's feelings she has

9270-432: The three girls in the first episode, although he fights the spell and communicated with them through Mokona. In the manga he is referred to as Guru Clef and is not turned to stone. In the second arc he also leads all of Cephiro until a new pillar can be found. In episode 48, he used all his willpower to create a castle to hold the castle from further collapsing. In the manga Clef is often seen with Presea, but nothing special

9373-474: The tomboyish, headstrong but short Hikaru Shidou ( 獅堂 光 , Shidō Hikaru ) ; the quick-tempered and no-nonsense only child Umi Ryuuzaki ( 龍咲 海 , Ryūzaki Umi ) ; and the intelligent and ladylike Fuu Hououji ( 鳳凰寺 風 , Hōōji Fū ) . While on a field trip to the Tokyo Tower with their respective schools, the girls find themselves drawn into another world, Cephiro. There they learn that Cephiro

9476-508: The toys were pink at the time. From 1995 to 1999, the toys became more colorful. For Sailor Moon 's 20th anniversary, in 2013, Bandai , the producer of their toy line, released a cosmetics line based on transformation items seen in the series, aimed at adult women who grew up with the show. This was followed by a life-sized replica of Sailor Moon's Moon Stick, which Bandai produced as part of their Proplica  [ ja ] merchandise line aimed at adult collectors, as well as

9579-468: The violence and destructive nature of the people on its earlier creation, Earth. It was responsible for bringing the three girls back to Cephiro. In the end, Hikaru becomes the new Pillar of Cephiro, and brings Eagle Vision back to Cephiro from the Tokyo recreation with the help of Fuu and Umi, against Mokona's insistence that only one may return. Hikaru then rejects the Pillar system, decreeing once and for all

9682-581: The word "shojo" is always used in third person. Young girls do not refer to themselves as "shojo". This reflects on how narratives about shojo are crafted from a third-party, often male lens . List of Magic Knight Rayearth characters#Eagle Vision The list of characters from the Magic Knight Rayearth anime and manga series by CLAMP . (Note: many characters' names are either taken from or related to cars ). Birthday: August 8 (Leo) Hikaru Shidou ( 獅堂 光 , Shidō Hikaru )

9785-607: Was also aired on the Philippine television network ABS-CBN in 1996, dubbed in Tagalog and airing every Sunday at 9:00 am for the first season and 10:30 am for the second season in 1997. It was popular with Filipino female children and became one of the Philippines' highest-rated anime series of the 20th century, helping to revitalize Filipino interest in anime. It was later aired on GMA Network on November 26, 2001, but on

9888-397: Was also one of the series that influenced the idea of moe , which was integrated into later magical girl series aimed at an adult male audience. Likewise, Cutie Honey Flash also drew in a male audience who were fans of the original Cutie Honey series. After the end of Ojamajo Doremi (1999), Toei Animation's first original magical girl anime series since 1985, Pretty Cure

9991-494: Was broadcast in 2004, with new installments broadcast yearly. Similar to Sailor Moon , Pretty Cure drew influences from tokusatsu hero shows, but unlike the former, it was heavily focused on action and used the same talents who worked on Kamen Rider and Super Sentai . This helped the series achieve widespread demographic appeal outside of young girls. At the same time, the target demographic of magical girl shows expanded. With more late-night anime being produced in

10094-406: Was changed to Anemone , Anaïs and Anne . Voiced by: Hiroko Kasahara , Cynthia Villanueva (ABS-CBN Tagalog) and Charmaine Cordoviz (GMA Tagalog), Bridget Hoffman , Lisa Ortiz (English) in OVA. Clef ( クレフ , Kurefu ) is the chief of all sorcerers in Cephiro, and was formerly Princess Emeraude's attendant. In the anime, he is turned to stone by Zagato shortly after being introduced to

10197-414: Was changed to Marina and Marine . Voiced by: Konami Yoshida (Japanese); Wendee Lee (English) , Daisy May Carino (ABS-CBN Tagalog) and Grace Cornel (GMA Tagalog), Amy Birnbaum (English) in OVA. Birthday: December 12 (Sagittarius) Fuu Hououji ( 鳳凰寺 風 , Hōōji Fū ) has snapping green eyes and short blonde hair (light brown in the anime) and wears glasses, except when in full armour (Fuu

10300-429: Was directed by Toshihiro Hirano and co-produced by YTV and Tokyo Movie Shinsha (now TMS Entertainment). The anime had 2 seasons, lasting 49 episodes altogether. The TV series was licensed in the U.S. twice, first by The Ocean Group , which was supposed to air on Fox Kids in a test pilot run in the 1990s, and second by Media Blasters and was dubbed by Bang Zoom! Entertainment from 1999 to 2000. The anime series

10403-658: 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 available opening and ending themes in the English dubbed version. Rayearth : A number of video games have been released that are based on Magic Knight Rayearth . Magic Knight Rayearth , an adventure role-playing game (RPG) set in

10506-408: Was never well received anywhere with his monsters until Zagato offered to give him and his friends a home in exchange for serving under him. Consumed by hatred and loneliness, his heart is full of selfish feelings reflected in a poor image and attitude of evil and cruel child. His real age is unknown so we don't know if Ascot is really a child and it's possible that his physical appearance is produced by

10609-441: Was released in Japan a few years after the end of the manga and the TV series (July 25, September 26, and December 10, 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. In the OVA, Hikaru, Umi and Fuu are already friends who go to the same school and will soon be leaving for high school. Suddenly,

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