Blue Seed

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Blue Seed
碧奇魂ブルーシード (Blue Seed)
Genre	Paranormal, Horror, Science Fiction, Romance, Comedy, Drama, Action
TV anime
Directed by	Jun Kamiya
Studio	Ashi Productions Production I.G
Network	TV Tokyo Anime Network
Original run	5 October 1994 – 29 March 1995
No. of episodes	26
OVA: Blue Seed Beyond
Directed by	Jun Kamiya
Studio	Production I.G
No. of episodes	3
Released	1996 September 2003
Runtime	100 minutes
Manga
Authored by	Yuzo Takada
Publisher	Bamboo Comics
Serialized in
Original run	March 1994 – December 1995
No. of volumes	2

Blue Seed (碧奇魂ブルーシード, Aokushimitama Burū Shīdo^?) is a manga created by well-known manga artist Yuzo Takada. It was animated for broadcast on TV Tokyo in 1994.

The story is based on the Izumo cycle of Japanese mythology, the tale of the god Susanoo and the 8 headed monster Orochi no Orochi. The main character, Momiji Fujimiya, is a descendant of the mythical Princess Kushinada (奇稲田姫, Kushinada-hime^?). When Japan is menaced by Aragami (荒神, Aragami^?, lit. "angry gods") spawned by Yamato-no-Orochi (mistranslated as Orochi-no-Orochi in the English dub), Momiji is intended to be sacrificed to appease the Aragami. She instead, however, becomes a member of the secret agency known as the TAC charged with fighting them.

The series ran for 26 episodes, originally airing in Japan from 5 October 1994 to 29 March 1995. An OVA, "Blue Seed Beyond", was made in 1996. The anime is licensed by ADV Films in the U.S.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast of Characters 3 Voice Cast 3.1 Japanese Version 3.2 English Version - TV Series 3.3 English Version - Blue Seed Beyond 4 Trivia 5 Episodes 6 Theme songs 7 Video Game 8 References 9 External links

[edit] Plot

Like most young girls in Japan, Momiji Fujimiya thought she was just an ordinary high school student. One day, she is confronted on her way to school by a man with magatama burnt into his hands, who attempts to kill her. Momiji is confused and terrified to see that the strange man has strange beads on parts of his body and blades that appear from his arms; he refers to her as Kushinada. While she is terrified and uncertain how to react, a pair of government officials appear. The female of the duo shoots the cat-eyed man, who then runs away.

Intrigued and curious as to why she was referred to as "Kushinada", Momiji (because most modern Japanese children are unaware about Shinto and Japanese mythology) decides to do a little research in the school library. She discovers that "Kushinada" refers to an ancient princess with the ability to stop monsters called Aragami by sending them to sleep with their blood. Momiji dismisses the idea that she could be such a person, despite the fact she lives with her mother and grandmother in a shrine in Izumo. However, she soon changes her mind after vines begin to appear from every crack and opening attempting to capture her as they whisper "Kushinada".

Momiji tries to escape, not knowing that the vines are being employed by a powerful Aragami known as Orochi. Fortunately, she is saved by the man with metamas burnt into his hands, who introduces himself as Mamoru Kusanagi. He confronts Orochi using Momiji as bait. The plan fails and the government officials appear again. They reveal themselves to be the Terrestrial Administrations Center (TAC for short), and manage to subdue Orochi. However, with the last of its strength, it makes a final attempt on Kusanagi.

Momiji saves Kusanagi by taking Orochi's blow. Instead of dying, she receives an odd blue bead identified as a mitama which gives Momiji the ability to sense Aragami. The TAC reveal themselves as an organization dedicated to defeating the Aragami, which desire to destroy humanity. The current Kushinada, Momiji, must aid them because the only other Kushinada, Momiji's twin sister, is now dead. Momiji, wishing to discover more about the twin sister she never knew and also to fulfill her destiny, agrees to join the TAC under the protection of Kusanagi, who wishes to destroy his former masters, the Aragami.

In episode 10 a man named Murokumo shows up. He has 8 metama's and is killing off any arigami that act for selfish reasons. Kusinagi continually attempts to take his life until Kadie Shows up after the appearance of a strange field of energy in Tokyo.

It's an ongoing battle that becomes more intense as Kaide's and Murakumo's plans become more clear-- they intend to resurrect the god, Susanowo, and purify the world of humanity's influences. Even more shocking is that the leader of the movement is Kaede Kunikida, the TAC supervisor's adopted daughter, the former Kushinada and Momiji's supposed dead twin sister.

[edit] Cast of Characters

Momiji Fujimiya (藤宮 紅葉, Fujimiya Momiji^?)

She's the main protagonist of the series. She's the descendant of the "Kushinada" who actually lives in Izumo where Princess Kushinada lived. Attending high school she was unprepared to understand her destiny to battle against the Aragami. She becomes a member of the T.A.C. in order to stop the Aragami from destroying humanity and the world. An ironic twist of fate has Momiji carry a Blue Seed, an "unborn Aragami", embedded in her chest. At awkward times, Momiji is the recipient of panty shots and jokes about the type of panties she wears.

Mamoru Kusanagi (草薙 護, Kusanagi Mamoru^?)

Mamoru is a man born of mystery and angst. He was chosen by the Aragami to protect the "Kushinada" from harm. He was very close to Kaede before her sacrifice. He somewhat has a crush on Momiji and at times can be a pervert. He always pokes fun at Momiji's choice of panties, making Momiji more aggravated. He has 7 Blue Seeds embedded in his body.

Daitetsu Kunikida (国木田 大哲, Kunikida Daitetsu^?)

Daitetsu, or Mr. Kunikida, is the Chief Director of the TAC. When Kaede and Momiji were born, Mr. Kunikida raised Kaede like his own daughter, but he exploited her ability to track down and kill the Aragami. However, when Kaede sacrificed herself, he felt heartbroken. With Momiji in the TAC, Mr. Kunikida decides not to exploit her abilities like he did with Kaede and instead treated her like a normal girl.

Azusa Matsudaira (松平 梓, Matsudaira Azusa^?)

Azusa is the science officer and experimental biologist in the TAC. Azusa is rarely on the field due to her research and development background. She constructs biological weapons for the TAC to use against the Aragami.

Ryoko Takeuchi (竹内 涼子, Takeuchi Ryōko^?)

A former member of Tokyo Metropolitan Police, Ryoko uses her police instincts to help the TAC. Ryoko uses her standard police issue weapons in conjunction with weapons modified to be used against the Aragami.

Koume Sawaguchi (沢口 小梅, Sawaguchi Kōme^?)

Kome wears a pink jumpsuit, but never acts feminine. She's loud, brash and aggressive due to her stint in the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Unfortunately, she left on bad terms for insubordination and was transferred to the TAC as a result. Her philosophy is based on the "bigger gun" theory and uses her military mind and muscle to destroy the Aragami, hopefully without excessive damage. Her motto is "if it still has bullets, keep shooting!".

Yoshiki Yaegashi (八重樫良樹, Yaegashi Yoshiki^?)

The stereotypical computer nerd, Yaegashi does computer analogy for the TAC. On off days, he enjoys hentai games on his computer. He also has a program that pinpoints the Aragami's weak points and attacks. It also doubles as to what animal would appear on Momiji's panties, much to the disdain of Momiji.

Sakura Yamazaki (山咲 桜, Yamazaki Sakura^?)

Sakura is unlike any other miko having spent most of her training in America. She uses Shinto magic and magic seals to stop the Aragami. She often flirts with Kusanagi just to get under the skin of Momiji, but when the chips are down, she helps Momiji deal with the Aragami.

Kaede Kunikida (国木田 楓, Kunikida Kaede^?)

Kaede is the twin sister of Momiji and Mr. Kunikida's adopted daughter. Her talents were used to detect Aragami for the TAC, but after realizing she was merely a tool and not a person, she sacrificed herself. Months later, a new strain of Aragami is unleashed upon the world in order to resurrect Susanoo and Kaede is their leader.

Lord Susano-oh

Susano-Oh is an all-powerful god who is the guardian deity of the Aragami. In the legend, Susano-Oh slew the monster Orochi no Orochi and married the Princess Kushinada. Kaede and Murakumo awakened him as part of their plan to create a world of nothing but plants.

Murakumo Yagami (八神 ムラクモ, Yagami Murakumo^?)

Like Kusanagi, Murakumo was also chosen to protect the Kushinada. Murakumo has embraced the power of the Aragami and plans on unleashing that power against humanity. Murakumo has 8 Blue Seeds embedded in his body while Kusanagi has 7. In order for Kusanagi to stand a chance, both he and Momiji must team up to attack Murakumo.

[edit] Voice Cast

[edit] Japanese Version

• Momiji Fujimiya: Megumi Hayashibara
• Mamoru Kusanagi: Kazuhiko Inoue
• Daitetsu Kunikida: Akio Ohtsuka
• Azusa Matsudaira: Yoshiko Sakakibara
• Ryoko Takeuchi: Ai Orikasa
• Koume Sawaguchi: Kotono Mitsuishi
• Yoshiki Yaegashi: Yuji Ueda
• Sakura Yamazaki: Sakiko Tamagawa
• Kaede Kunikida: Mitsuki Yayoi
• Shunichi Sugishita: Keiichi Nanba
• Murakumo: Jouji Nakata
• Susano-o: Jun Kitagawa
• Valencia Tachibana (OVA only): Junko Iwao

[edit] English Version - TV Series

• Momiji Fujimiya/Kaede Kunikida: Amanda Winn Lee
• Mamoru Kusanagi: Jason Lee
• Daitetsu Kunikida: Rob Mungle
• Ryoko Takeuchi: Marcy Rae
• Koume Sawaguchi: Tiffany Grant
• Yoshiki Yaegashi: Kurt Stoll
• Sakura Yamazaki: Allison Keith
• Shunichi Sugishita: Matt Greenfield
• Murakumo Yagami: Aaron Krohn

[edit] English Version - Blue Seed Beyond

• Momiji Fujimiya: Monica Rial
• Mamoru Kusanagi: Matt Kelley
• Daitetsu Kunikida: Rob Mungle
• Ryoko Takeuchi: Marcy Rae
• Koume Sawaguchi: Tiffany Grant
• Yoshiki Yaegashi: Kurt Stoll
• Sakura Yamazaki: Allison Keith
• Shunichi Sugishita: Matt Greenfield
• Valencia Tachibana: Kira Vincent-Davis

[edit] Trivia

• The names of Momiji (紅葉) and her twin sister, Kaede (槭), both mean maple in Japanese. Most of the characters are named after plants.
• The series is based on elements of Japanese mythology regarding the province of Izumo.
• Susanowo is the God of Storms in Japanese mythology and the brother of the Sun Goddess, Amaterasu, who was banished from Heaven to the province of Izumo.
• Princess Kushinada refers to the eighth daughter of a pair of earth gods, who was about to be devoured by a dragon/serpent with eight heads like her seven sisters before her. She is saved from sharing their fate thanks Susanowo's cunning and timely arrival in Izumo
• Orochi refers to Yamata no Orochi, the eight headed dragon/serpent, which was slain by Susanowo
• Murakumo and Kusanagi are both references to the sword Susanowo pulled from the tail of Yamato no Orochi. The sword was initially named Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi (Sword of Billowing Clouds) and later renamed Kusanagi (Grasscutter Sword or Sword of the Snake). A replica of Kusanagi is part of the Japanese Imperial Regalia along with a sacred mirror and jewels.

[edit] Episodes

1. Princess Kushinada
2. It's Cruel! It's mysterious! It's My Destiny!
3. It's Spring! It's the Capital! I'll Do My Best!
4. More Bad Luck! Why Does This Always Happen to Me?
5. Surprise! She's the Mother of Science!
6. Complicated & Hard to Understand! Being a Man Puts You Into Such a Difficult Position!
7. I'm Fired Up! I'll Do It! Because I'm the Kushinada!
8. What? How Strange! A Rival Appears!
9. Are You Serious? Is This a Dream? An Exciting Date!
10. Innocence! Love! My First Kiss!
11. Irritating! Jealous?! Unbelievable!
12. Can You Feel It? I Can't Ignore It! An Ominous Premanition of Catastrophe!
13. I Love You! This is so Extreme! It's Time to Confess!
14. A Chase Down Yamato Highway! Love Under Fire!
15. Lost & Trembling on a Trip to Michinoku!
16. Japan is a Paradise! Tears in Wakasa
17. Let it Bloom in Japan! A Blizzard of One-Sided Love!
18. Geez! Oh Man! Sakura's Not Good Enough!
19. Heat Haze! Start on a Journey! Love, I Won't be Far From You
20. I'm Home! Izumo! The Prologue of Hope!
21. Goodbye? No Way! Separation with Tears?
22. Sadness, Fate, Momiji Kushinada
23. Meeting Again, Starting the Journey, I Won't Give Up!
24. The Setting Sun, the Coming Day, a Private Time for Everyone
25. All or Nothing! Decision! My Fate!
26. New Soul

Blue Seed Beyond

1. Mission: Eradicate Kushinada, Operation Mitama, Phase I
2. Mission: Eradicate Kushinada, Operation Mitama, Phase II
3. Six Babes Bathing in a Killer Hot Springs

[edit] Theme songs

Opening

1. Carnival Babel by Takada Band (Fumihiko Tachiki and Ami Mitsumatsu) (remade by Megumi Hayashibara as "CARNIVAL BABEL 2003 VER." also known as "CARNIVAL BABEL REVIVAL"} ^[1]

Endings

1. Touch and Go!! by Megumi Hayashibara
2. Life by Megumi Hayashibara (Ep. 26)

[edit] Video Game

An RPG for the Sega Saturn was developed by Sega of Japan in 1995. It followed a mission format, and utilized a card-based battle system.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Miscellaneous

• Blue Seed at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Blue Seed Beyond at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Blue Seed Manga (manga) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia