Shadow Skill
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Shadow Skill | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Manga | |
| Authored by | Megumu Okada |
| Publisher | Kodansha |
| Serialized in | |
| Original run | – |
| No. of volumes | 5 (ongoing) |
| OVA | |
| Directed by | |
| Studio | |
| No. of episodes | 3 |
| Released | |
| TV anime | |
| Directed by | |
| Studio | Studio Deen |
| Network | |
| Original run | 2 July 1998 – 24 December 1998 |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
Shadow Skill (シャドウスキル－影技－), is a manga series with anime adaptations, created by Studio Deen and aired on Japanese Television in 1998, and has been released in the United States by ADV Films in 2005. The series is based on the manga by Megumu Okada. A shonen series, it features a lot of combat, especially martial arts. As well as the original 26 episode TV show, three separate OVAs have been produced, which have been released in the United States by Manga Entertainment. The television series, which has a different storyline to that of the OVAs, is distributed by ADV Films.
Contents |
[edit] Characters
The main protagonists of Shadow Skill are Elle Ragu, the 59th Sevalle in the kingdom of Kuruda, and Gau Ban, an orphaned boy that Elle takes up as her adopted brother. He is currently a Valle and is improving his training. Gau is so impressed by Elle's fighting skill, and the stories of Kuruda's greatest fighter Scarface, that he is studying Elle's fighting skills so that one day he would become the greatest Sevalle in Kuruda. But before that, they must face demon beasts, spies, and Elle's debts from drinking, and collateral damage from fighting.
Also in Elle and Gau's life is Faury Maya (Folli Maya in the TV series), a Sui Rame talisman sorceress, and Kyou Ryu, a Septia beastcatcher and niece of Iba Stora, the king of Kuruda.
Main Protagonists
*Elle Ragu (Shadow Skill) Megumi Hayashibara (Japanese), JoAnna MacInenes (English, OVA-Movies), Luci Christian (English, TV) - A.K.A Ella Ragu. Elle Lagu.
Age 17 - Elle Ragu, the 59th Sevalle Shadow Skill is the only female Sevalle alive. She became a Sevalle at the age of 14. She named herself after her fighting style Shadow Skill. She has one hell of reputation. She has gone through a lot of battles and have made a lot of people angry at her. She has a lot of rumors about herself that are spread through out Kuruda, ranging from highly confidential rumors like the one about her battle with Zel Zakulet, to those just common rumors like the one Kaila Rue Luka said about the 59th Sevalle having a brain that's all muscles. She appears as a blond in the OVA, but in the Anime, she is a red head. She may not look like it, but she definitely has a drinking problem and is usually the reason why her posse has a pretty large amount of debts. She is quite impulsive and acts without thinking. She usually destroys public property because of her temper and the fights she gets in. At least she has a job as a waitress and a singer at the Green Octopus. In the mean time she trains together with Gau Ban, her adopted brother in the style of Shadow Skill. She met Gau when he was 10 and she decided to take him in because she wanted to see how strong a person could be if raised by her. On the outside she may seem to be like a punk but deep down, she is soft. She cares a lot about her friends and family but usually has a hard time expressing it.
Elle also has an older brother named Dias Ragu. When Elle was still a child, her parents died from a disease, and later she contracted it. Her brother had to go on various missions in order to get money to buy her medicine but as a result of the extra battles Dias fought, his body was severely weakened. From that moment he gave up his dreams of becoming a Sevalle. Elle feels quite guilty for this and she believes that he should have been Sevalle instead of her, that is why she has problems opening up to him.
As Sevalle, Elle has met many enemies that would not hesitate to take her out. She was once a mortal enemy to Follymayer Razmatizer and her Sue Rame clan. Her reputation isn't squeaky clean either among the ranks of Kisholona since word has leaked out that she killed Zel Zakulet. Others consider her an enemy as well since she is the latest, and least experienced Sevalle so she would be an easier target considered to the likes of Crimson and Scar Face, and they would have more chance of defeating her and attaining the title of Sevalle. She is also often criticised for wasting her time training Gau instead of improving her own skills. Of course Elle ignores all this.
Gau Ban (Black Howling) Voiced by: Akio Matsuoka , Greg Ayres (English, TV)
At ten years of age, Gau was once just an ordinary boy who lived in a small village. Both of his parents were farmers and they all lived in peace. But one day, all that was about to change. His village was attacked by bandits and his parents were killed right before his eyes. At this moment he snapped and he decided to fight back. He killed most of the bandits but his luck ran out. This was when Elle Ragu made her entrance in to Gau's life. She took care of the remaining bandits while gau watched in amazement of her fighting skills. Since he was the sole survivor, Elle asked him "Do you want to be strong?", and when he said yes, she decided to take him with her. Gau's original purpose for following Elle was that he hoped to rob her of all her money and discover the source of her powers. After sometime, Gau came to love Elle like his own sister.
Over the years, he has trained side by side with Elle in an effort to become strong. With his dedication and signs of promise, he quickly catches the attention of Scar Face, who has decided to help Gau become stronger, in an indirect manner. He also catches the heart of Kyo who has fallen in love with him, although he's completely clueless. In a bizarre turn of events, Gau also meets Screebe Lowengren. As the old saying goes, "One man's trash is another's treasure". This applies to the Low+Kyo+Gau love triangle. Gau seems to be blessed by the affections of Kyo but doesn't notice it, but Low on the other hand would do anything to have what Gau has. Since Gau and Low are the candidates for being the next Sevalle, its normal that they view each other as rivals, in more ways than one. Gau and Low had a few battles but in the end Gau defeated Low, and in respect, Low gave him his earrings, which Gau wears in battle.
During the Lightning Battle, he was sent by Scar Face to protect Dias Ragu, who Gau considers as his own brother. In truth, he was actually being tested by Scar Face so that Gau would become stronger. It was during this event that he used the Black Wing boomerang lend to him by Dias, and named himself "Black Howling". During the other fights that came, he successfully defeated every opponent that came his way, including G, the 58th Sevalle. When he was forced to fight Darkness, he was paralyzed by his fear of death and in effect, he indirectly caused Dias his life. But in the end he mastered the Shadow Style Profound Energy Attack, Cannon and blew Darkness into bits.
In the Latest installment of the Manga of which Four volumes have been released so far, It is revealed that Gau Ban and Scarface are blood brothers. Their Father's name is Shere Kahn, the Founder of Inryuu. He told Gau that the people whom he thought were his parents were the people he entrusted him to. He wants to use Gau Ban so that he could destroy the Kuruda 2000 years history. If you don't know who Shere Kahn is,he is the guy who had sent Ren Fuuma to attack Kuruda at the end of the anime series.
*Faury (Folli Maya) Arcana
Fear is the daughter of a famed Sue Rame, who was also the Sue Rame master of Shadow Skill. When she first met Elle, she resented her and looked at her as a rival. When news came that Elle killed her father , that sense of rivalry turned to rage. As a Sue Rame, she had to cast off her real name until the day that she avenged her father. This was when she changed her name to Follymayer Razmatizer. Eventually she hunted down Elle and trapped her in a mine. She tried to kill Elle with the Nothingness Talisman, a forbidden spell used by the Arcana family. As the mine was set on fire as a result of their fight, Folly was trapped in some of the debris and could not escape. Surprisingly Elle came to her rescue and carried her out of the mine. As time passed, Folly had doubts about Elle, whether if she was really the one who killed her father.
In the years that passed, they became close friends and she acted like Elle's older sister. She looked at Elle as a child of light loved by the gods and herself as a child of darkness who envied the child of light. She looked out for Elle and was her conscience, but on one faithful day, she heard a rumor about a village that was completely turned to ice. The man responsible for this was Louie Fransil, her half brother, and the watcher sent by the Sue Rame society who wanted Elle and Folly to settle their fight. Elle considered Folly as the most powerful opponent that she has ever faced. This is where the anime and the OVA split up.
During their battle in the anime version, Kyo and Gau found Doga, the real watcher sent by the society, who was frozen in a river. He soon revealed that Elle Ragu did not kill Folly's father but it was Louie Fransil. As soon as they knew this, Elle and Folly joined forces and kicked the crap out of Louie.
In the OVA, it was Scar Face, who was a witness to the battle between Elle and Folly's father, who revealed that Elle did not kill Folly's father. It was here that Louie revealed his true colors. Gau then immediately fought Louie and beats him to a bloody pulp.
From that moment on, her friendship with Elle became even stronger. In the manga, it was emphasized that Folly was a really bad cook. It was also revealed later on that Folly actually had a husband. His name was Woaks Porelo. They were married in Juliannes 4 years ago, which means she got married at the age of 15. She had to leave him when her father was killed in order to track Elle.
*Kyou Ryu
Kyo was a former member of the Septia unit Phantom. Her grandfather, Jin Stolla was the leader of Phantom and was considered as one of the best. When Phantom decided to go after the legendary demon beast, the Moon King, they had no idea what they were up against. The Moon King, who's power shifted with the faces of the moon, destroyed an entire village. The Phantom unit tried to stop the beast but they were all wiped out just in one night. In the morning she found her grandfather's corpse and buried it.
Kyo returned to Kuruda and hired a bunch of goons to help take down the Moon King, but they had other things in mind (a young defenseless girl alone in a bar, you get the idea). That's when Gau made his first impression. He jumped right in and defended Kyo. When the thugs found out that the 59th Sevalle was on Kyo's side, they ran for the hills. Kyo paid Elle for the help but too bad it all went to repair the damage they had caused in their fight. Kyo offered them more money if they were willing to help her. At first Elle refused to help since she thought that Kyo wanted her help in capturing the beast. It startled everybody when Kyo told them that she wanted it dead (remember that Septias are not allowed to kill demon beasts?). After that Elle agreed.
During the hunt, Kyo showed a remarkable talent for setting traps. Soon the Moon King appeared and a fierce battle followed. Elle and Gau split the beast in half, but they didn't know that when under a full moon, the Moon King had super regenerative powers. It was Kyo's effort in the end that saved them. After that Kyo had no where to go, so Elle invited her to join the group, and she has been with them ever since.
During her stay with the gang, its was emphasized that she was the weakest in the group. She also revealed horrific scars on both her arms that was a result of her mishandling her chulinks. Later on she met Lowengren, a Valle, who fell madly in love with her, yet she seems clueless too. After the Lightning Battle, Kyo was getting some quality time alone with Gau, but it seemed that Gau was getting stronger by each day and she was afraid of getting left behind because she was weak. That's when she decided to practice with her Chulink. One night when she was practicing, a familiar face appeared out of the shadows, it was her grandfather, or so she thought. It was actually Iba Stolla, Jin Stolla's twin brother and the king of Kuruda. He revealed to her that he was her granduncle and that he would protect her until the day that she would find a man that would love and protect her. During the attack of G she didn't want Gau to get hurt that's why she placed herself in the frontline in order to stop G before Gau had to fight. As expected she got beaten up pretty bad with all the blood spilling out. When Gau found her, he snapped again and went into a rage and fought G.
Towards the end of the series, she had suspected that Gau was more than a brother to Elle but it was actually during the attack of Solurafon that she decided to confront Elle (what bad timing). Of course their little quarrel was cut short. There was scene where she beat a guy twice her size in an arm wrestling match. At the end, when Elle was exiled along with Gau, she followed them from the shadows to keep an eye on them.
Fighters of Kuruda
*Dias Ragu (Black Wing)
Dias Ragu, or more commonly known as The Black Wing, is considered as one of the strongest fighters that Ashliana has ever seen. Dias has thirsted for strength since he was boy. He earned a reputation during the war as cold blooded killing machine. He didn't care who he fought or killed. He fought side by side with Vy Low and Kai Shinks, which explains why they are such close friends. When Dias turned 16, he was on his way to becoming the 58th Sevalle when his parents contracted a rare disease and died. Later on his younger sister Elle was also infected. After losing both his parents, he would not stand by and watch his sister die. He decided to put his ambitions aside and went to fight as a mercenary so he could earn enough money to buy medicine for Elle. Eventually, he got enough money and was able to save Elle's life but fate dealt him all the wrong cards. As a result of the extra battles he fought in, his body was greatly weakened so he decided to give up his dreams of becoming a Sevalle. Due to this, he gave way to Kain Phalanx who later became the 58th Sevalle ,G. Elle, feeling guilty decided that she would take her brother's place and become Sevalle. A few years later, she earned the title as the 59th Sevalle, Shadow Skill.
After Elle left, Dias stayed in his home town, Blorahan where he lived a quiet life as a weapons smith. It was hinted that Vy and Kai visited him frequently bringing him booze. As years went by, his condition worsened. Slowly, his eye sight was fading and his body was deteriorating. Even in his weakened state, he is still pretty powerful, so powerful that Sorulafon wanted to capture him so that he would make weapons for them and at the same time fight on their side. Obviously, Dias refused so Sorulafon had no choice but to use force. This was the beginning of the Lightning Battle. A few weeks before Sorulafon approached Dias, he met Elle for the first time since she left and was introduced to Gau Ban. Dias took quite a liking to Gau and considered him as family. Dias told Gau to protect Elle for him. When the Lighting Battle broke out, Gau was sent by Scar Face to protect Dias, and unknowingly, Kai Shinks was on his way as well. When they were reunited at Blorahan, Sorulafon already surrounded them. Kai offered Dias some medicine that would delay the deterioration of his body. Dias refused because he believed that everything that happens has a reason. He lend Gau his black wing so that Gau could use it to protect his own life, while Kai escorted him to Kuruda.
After the Lightning Battle, Dias lived in Kuruda alone. Everyday, Kyo went over to wash his clothes and cook him food. He also told Gau that there are certain battles that can be only fought by oneself. During the attack of G, Dias decided to make a come back and volunteered to protect Kuruda as a proud Valle. Dias, Vy, and Kai extinguished the fire that blazed in Kuruda while Gau fought G. As Gau grew stronger, Scar Face, started planting seeds in him, which Dias didn't like. He threatened Vy that if he was to harm his family, he would not hesitate to fight back. This did not stop Vy one bit. When Vy asked Darkness to teach Gau the fear of death, Dias being the protective brother went to Gau's rescue. The upcoming battle was out of this world. Tons of secret moves were revealed as Dias and Darkness duked it out. Dias, realizing that his death was near, decided to put everything into this fight. He showed that he was an all-time bad ass when he started throwing his black wing. Due to his condition though, the strain on his muscles were 7 times greater than normal, yet he was able to protect his thoughts from Darkness (yes, Darkness can read minds) with his will power. His finishing move was the Rapier sped up by his blackwing. Dias won the battle but he also died due to the injuries that he sustained.
Shortly after his death, he was given the title of "The Sword of Ashliana" by Princess Lilivelt Lu Biju. Later on though, in the manga, it was revealed that after Dias died, Darkness sealed his soul in his Black Eye until such a time Kai Shinks tells him what to do. During Gau's battle with Ren Fuuma, the efforts of Kai, Darkness and Lunaris finally paid off. Dias came back as an angel to give his brother "a little push" to victory. That is the last we see of Dias until a mysterious dialogue between Darkness and Lunaris about someone who suddenly disappeared because his mission was over, to bring courage to a boy.
*Vy Low (Scarface) Vy Low, the 57th Sevalle Scar Face is the most powerful warrior in the history of Kuruda. Receiving the title of High-Sevalle at the tender age of 16 when he defeated King Iba Stolla, the 55th Sevalle Hawk Eyes, he became the heir to the throne. He was the role model for the new generation of young warriors to follow. He seems to take a liking to Gau and Elle. Like all Sevalle, he tends to put up the tough guy act whenever he's in public. He wouldn't even glance at his own wife, Folstise, the Ordo Codex of Juliannes. And how can we forget about the drinking problem. He seems to always have an extra bottle of booze snuck in his cape.
When Gau Ban first traveled to Kuruda, Vy immediately recognized his potentials. Through out the series, Vy has played a prominent role in the molding of young Gau. He usually influences Gau in an indirect manner, like setting him up in battles. At other times he would act like a father figure and give him advice which are totally in contrast to the ones given by Dias. He is actually obsessed in making Gau in to the ultimate warrior that he constantly tests him.
Thanks to his actions, he has earned himself the reputation of being a manipulative bastard. But if you look at things in a different perspective, you'll notice that he's actually doing it for Gau's sake (the boy is too naive). Thanks to his influence, Gau has become stronger especially after the Lightning Battle. Dias doesn't believe that this is the first time Vy has manipulated someone so cruelly. Dias actually had suspicions that Vy had an influence on G's obsession that drove him mad (check Kain's bio for the full story) when he said "I wouldn't want to think that he (G) fought for nothing". He also played an important role in the OVA where he shared the secrets about the origin of Shadow Skill.
Now lets get to his soft side. It doesn't show, but Vy is a very submissive husband. You can say that Folstise has him under her thumb. In the end of the series, you can see Vy begging and pleading in front his wife for forgiveness, most probably because he is always out on journeys and doesn't spend "quality time" with her. It is also hinted in the series that he doesn't have a good relationship with his father in law. It just goes to show that behind every tough guy, there's always a tougher gal.
Unknown to Gau and others, he is actually the elder son of Shere Kahn, founder of Inryuu and older brother of Gau.
- Kain Phalanx
- Kai Shinks
- Iba Stolla
- Screebe Lowengrin (White Lightning)
Holy City of Julianess
- Lilivelt Lou Biju
- Folstice Lowe
Kingdom of Lekitor
- Kaila Rua Luka
Kingdom of Felisha
- Giian Tease
Kingdom of Kishuruna
- Sai-Oh Zakulet
- Zel Zakulet
The Organization behind the Plan to Exterminate Ashiliana
- Sha Kahn
- Ren Fuuma
Misc. Characters
- Fiorina
- Gana Geeg
- Darkness
- Lunaris Umbra
[edit] Character Classes in the World of Shadow Skill
- Valle
- High Valle
- Sevalle
- High Sevalle
- Sue Rame
- Hue Rame (Hulinn)
- Raze Rame
- Ordo Codex
- Kouga-oh
- Gouken-shi
- Lunater
- Septia
- Civilian
- Non-human
- God
[edit] Combat Styles in the World of Shadow Skill
[edit] Kuruda Ryuu Kossapo
Open Skill (Kyougi)
- Harken
- Katana
- Mace
- Clay
- Seven Sacraments
Shadow Skill (Eigi)
- Sword
- Chainsaw
- Rapier
- Shield
- Hachiru
- Shieru
- Tomahawk
- Cannon
- Kamui
Ying Style (Ying Ryuu)
- Screw
- Bolar
- Cougar
- Katar
- Saber
[edit] Lekitor Ryuu Kossapo
Sand Fist
[edit] Felisha's Koumafouin
[edit] Kishurana's Fang
[edit] External Links
- English
- Japanese
