Voiced by Maaya Sakamoto (Japanese), Kelly Sheridan (English), Julia Meynen (German), and Alma Wilhelme (Latin America)
The heroine and focus character of the series. Hitomi was just a normal high school student with a schoolgirl crush on her track team sempai Amano when a string of events leaves her stranded on Gaea. To add to her problems, her latent psychic abilities (manifesting before only as hunches and surprisingly accurate Tarot readings) begin to explode in power, frequently barraging her with disturbing images of what is to come.Tropes that apply to Hitomi
Action Survivor: Being on the track team sure comes in handy when you have to do things like, say, leaping six meters across a gaping chasm to save Van.
Generic Cuteness: Has rather plain looks, which once or twice trouble her.
Fainting Seer: A rare case where said character is the heroine.
Hair Antennae: Symbolizes her sunny disposition (and is not present in The Movie version where she is an Emo Teen, except in a childhood flashback)
Identical Granddaughter: She and her grandmother Yuri◊ (when the latter was younger, that is) look exactly alike. Appearance-wise, the young Yuri was basically a long-haired Hitomi.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: When Millerna asks Hitomi to do a tarot card reading on which man she should marry, she sees that Millerna's marriage to Dryden will go badly while her marriage to Allen will make her happy. Because Hitomi loves Allen too, she uses her power to switch a card (thereby altering fate) and tells Millerna Dryden would be the better choice for her. As a direct consequence of altering fate, the wedding is attacked by Guymelefs and nearly gets the couple killed.
Passionate Sports Girl: Subverted, as it's hinted that she joined her school's track team because she had a huge crush on the team captain Susumu Amano. Her running skills do come handy later in the story, though.
Power Strain Blackout: Her ability to see into the future, via Tarot Cards, often has this effect on her afterwards. It's eventually revealed that both the duration and the severity of her fainting spells is determined by her emotional state. Meaning, the greater her anxiety, the greater its toll on her following her vision; not to mention the part about her anxiety making those visions come true!
School Uniforms are the New Black: She wears her school uniform despite being on a completely different world. Justified in that the only other clothes she has with her are her running clothes.
She Cleans Up Nicely: When Millerna dolls her up in a dress in Asturia, Van is left dumbstruck.
Spanner in the Works: The only thing that puts the Destiny Prognostication Engine through more hell than the Escaflowne.
The Hero, pilot of the Escaflowne and newly crowned king of the country of Fanelia. Van has the misfortune of having his kingdom burned to the ground on the day of his coronation, and is now forced on the run from the Zaibach Empire.Tropes associated with Van:
Blood from the Mouth: Once after a dragon-induced concussion, and once when somebody starts dismantling the Escaflowne, heart first, while he's still synchronized to it.
Break the Cutie: Van probably goes through more physical and emotional torture than any other character in the series.
Did Not Get the Girl: Hitomi chooses to go back to Earth while Van stays behind in Gaia to help his world heal from the war it just endured.
Freakiness Shame: He is ashamed of his wings because they marked him as a descendant of the Atlanteans, who are universally disdained in the setting, but Hitomi (who comes from another world altogether) just finds them beautiful.
Noble Fugitive: Despite being a king, he spends most of the series on the run from the Zaibach empire, who need him so they take control of the Escaflowne themselves. While the royalty of countries like Austuria are at least somewhat sympathetic to his plight, they're not entirely willing to risk their asses by truly granting him refuge.
Overdrawn at the Blood Bank: If this were the real world, there would have been no chance in hell of Van surviving episode 14, Draconian heritage notwithstanding.
Parental Abandonment: Father is dead, while his mother disappeared in search of his missing brother.
Peek-A-Bangs: Borderline. His hair isn't always there, like most examples, but it tends to entirely cover up one of his eyes -like in the picture- more often than not.
Spanner in the Works: The Escaflowne's existence plays absolute hell on the Zaibach Empire's Destiny Prognostication Engine, which is why they're investing so much into capturing both it and it's pilot.
Synchronization: Halfway through the series, Van applies Hitomi's dowsing technique to gain more control over the Escaflowne. Unfortunately for him, the link works both ways — mentally and physically.
Unstoppable Rage: Van just goes utterly apeshit on the Dragonslayers in the 14th episode.
Warrior Prince: You are not allowed to be King of Fanelia until you kick dragon ass in single combat. This is precisely what Van does in the first episode.
Voiced by Shinichiro Miki (Japanese), Brian Drummond (English), Peter Fletchner (German), and Óscar Flores (Latin America)
A member of the Knight Caeli that happens to bear an uncanny resamblance to Hitomi's crush, Amano. Allen is the sole, impeccable gentleman among a Ragtag Bunch of Misfits that guard one of Asturia's outposts. Despite his near perfect outward appearance and demeanor, he's hiding quite a number of abandonment issues just below the surface.And yes, the Goliath's hero unit in Starcraft is named after him.Tropes associated with Allen:
The Casanova: He even has the bastard son to prove it though he doesn't seem to do it on purpose; he just has a tendency to fall for women he can never be with, even if they do reciprocate, which they usually do.
Chekhov M.I.A.: Both his father and little sister. His father Leon was Dead All Along, and his little sister Selena was forcibly turned into Dilandau.
Stay in the Kitchen: He seems rather chauvinistic at times to Princess Millerna and Hitomi, though this is somewhat explained through his backstory.
Merle
Voiced by Ikue Ohtani (Japanese), Jocelyne Loewen (English), Christin Marquitan (German), and Claudia Mota (Latin America)
Van's closest, and clingiest friend. She has quite the love-hate relationship with Hitomi, thanks to Van's feelings for herTropes associated with Merle:
Childhood Friend Romance: She's a friend of Van's since early childhood, and makes no secret of the fact she's got a crush on him. Unfortunately for her, Van only views her as family.
Clingy Jealous Girl: The main reason she's so hostile towards Hitomi, in the beginning, is because she's afraid she'll try and steal Van from her.
Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: When Merle manages to (literally) slap Hitomi and (not-so-literally) Van out of a dark vision, which saves their lives.
Going Commando: Merle doesn't wear underwear, a fact that is shown quite often.
If You Ever Do Anything To Hurt Him...: Merle begins taking this approach after it becomes obvious that Van is in love with Hitomi. Her anger at Hitomi in the second half of the series isn't because Van likes her more, but because Hitomi's Love Triangle indecisiveness is hurting him.
Voiced by Mayumi Iizuka (Japanese), Venus Terzo (English), Antje von der Ahe (German) and Martha Ceceña (Latin America)
The youngest princess of Asturia who happens to be quite smitten with Allen, but betrothed to Dryden Fassa. Millerna is not quite comfortable being royalty, particularly since it she was forced to abandon her medical studies because of it.Tropes associated with Millerna
Perfectly Arranged Marriage: Played with. She and Dryden are a mild version of Belligerent Sexual Tension. They grow fond of each other as the series advances. The trouble starts after their disastrous wedding. Dryden decides he cares for Millerna, and might be in love with her at that point, but he feels he still has to work hard to become truly worthy of marrying a girl like her.
Perfectly Arranged Marriage: Played with. He and Millerna are a mild version of Belligerent Sexual Tension. They grow fond of each other as the series advances. At the end, Dryden decides he cares for Millerna, and might be in love with her, but after their disastrous wedding, he feels he still has to work hard to become truly worthy of marrying a girl like her.
Bishōnen: Normally a borderline case, due to facial hair and overall unkempt appearance. But on his Wedding Day (clean-shaven, no glasses, Nice Hat, etc.) he's a classic example.
Guile Hero: Very kind-hearted and rich, but also very cynical and manipulative when needed. See how he completely owned Allen with words alone and how he dealt with the creators of Escaflowne and got them to fix it, thus saving Van's life.
Insufferable Genius: He is quite aware of how awesome he is, and is quick to point it out.
I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Dryden gives Millerna back the wedding ring after their disastrous wedding, claiming that he's not worthy of her quite yet.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Abrasive, hedonistic, kinda selfish. Also generous, kindhearted and quick-thinking.
Mad Corrupt Corporate Executive's Handsome Son: Dryden's father makes an appearance before him in episodes 6 and 7, where he pays to have Hitomi kidnapped. Dryden thankfully doesn't take after him in any way.
Merchant Prince: He used his vast fortunes to secure a place at the Asturian court and now uses his political connections to gain even more money.
The Team Benefactor: An Intrepid Merchant, with zero fighting skills, who manages to join Hitomi and Van's little gang by providing funding (read: an ungodly sum of money) for the eponymous mech's mid-season repairs.
Balgus
Voiced by Tessho Genda (Japanese), Don Brown (English), and Thomas Kastner (German)
One of the "three master swordsmen of Gaea" and Van's retainer/surrogate father. Balgus dies while covering Van's escape from Fanelia, but he nonetheless shows himself to be a major influence on both Van and Allen in the past.Tropes associated with Balgus:
Voiced by Masato Yamanouchi (Japanese), Richard Newman (English), Horst Lampe (German), and Federico Romano (Latin America)
Emperor of the Zaibach empire. Through Atlantean technology and a Magitek device known as Destiny Prognostication Engine, Dornkirk seeks to create a future for Gaea free of war — Even if it means burning down a city-state every now and thenTropes that apply to Dornkirk
Dark Lord On Life Support: Dornkirk is perpetually hooked up to a massive life-support machine keeping him alive well past when he should have died of old age. In the last episode, he rips free of it and lets Folken kill him to set in motion his Thanatos Gambit.
Emperor Scientist: He is actually Sir Isaac Newton magically transferred to the fantasy world.
Voiced by Minami Takayama (Japanese), Andrew Francis (English), Claudia Urbschat-mingues (German), and Victor Ugarte (Latin America)
A complete and absolute psycho, Dilandau is the man put in charge of capturing Van and the Escaflowne. He his happy to oblige to this order — provided he gets to blow a lot of shit up on the way.Tropes that apply to Dilandau
Char Clone: An Ax Crazy variant. He acts as The Rival to Van and even Allen to an extent, pilots custom red Guymelefs, and turns out to be Allen's little sister Celena. Basically, imagine if it was Sayla Mass who went nuts.
Cosmic Retcon: This is basically what Fate Alteration does: it turns you into a totally different person, physically and mentally.
Fan Nickname: Quite a few, both in the show and out, from the civilized and fitting "The Diabolical Adonis" (It's one of the episode titles for crying out loud!) to stuff that's just childish and downright silly, like "Dilly" (it even rhymes with silly!).
Freak Out: The Break the Haughty process somehow manages to make Dilandau even more fucked up. He spends several episodes freaking out in epic and continous ways.
Gender Bender: He's actually a girl named Celena Schezar that was mutated by Zaibach's fate alteration machines.
Hates Being Alone: The sole idea of being alone makes him more crazy than he already is.
Meaningful Name: The name "Dilandau" is a pretty clear nod to Durandal, the legendary sword tainted with a curse of insanity to prevent it from being wielded by the wrong hands.
Mid Series Upgrade: Well, more like end-of-series upgrade, but. He upgrades to a Guymelef called the Oreides four episodes from the end of the series. It appears to be a souped-up, stylized Alseides with dual flamethrowers/even more liquid metal claws (his only remaining soldier Jajuka also receives one, albeit in rank-and-file blue). In an aversion to this trope, however, the Oreides doesn't appear to do him much good, due to his increasingly-unstable nature, at least against main characters. Van pretty much takes it apart during the final battle with Escaflowne.
Minor Injury Overreaction: Dilandau has what has got to be the most epic freak out ever over the cheek scar Van gave him.
Moral Myopia: Only Dilandau's allowed to fuck with Dilandau's Dragonslayers, understand?
The Ophelia: Becomes a male version post Freak Out. Then again, he is actually female...
The Power of Friendship: The only thing keeping him sane. Yes, that is his sane mode. He might beat the shit outta the Dragonslayers, but if one of them is wronged by somebody else, the attacker will DIE. Just as a certain Master of Disguise.
Voiced by Joji Nakata (Japanese), Paul Dobson (English), Bernd Vollbrecht (German), and Jorge Santos (Latin America)
Van's long-missing brother. After his dissappearence ten years ago, Van finds his brother — only to find that he's serving as The Dragon in Emperor Dornkirk's plans.Tropes that apply to Folken
Equal-Opportunity Evil: He employs cat people and even doppelgangers - a race even Dilandau despises - and treats them with the same high standard of respect and courtesy that he does for all of his men.
Evil Genius: Since he's the Strategos (tactician and strategist) for the Zaibach army.
Facial Markings: He has a purple tear drop shaped tattoo under his right eye.
Good Wings, Evil Wings: Folken's wings are revealed to be black when he finally shows them.
Handicapped Badass: After he failed to kill a dragon, he lost an arm to the beast.
Heel Face Turn: He defects Zaibach and joins the good guys near the end of the series.
Heel Realization: He finally realizes Zaibach's methods are wrong.
Knight Templar Big Brother: Failing to pass the Dragon rite, Folken joined Dornkirk in hopes that he can create a world where his brother Van won't have to fight as king.
Your Days Are Numbered: When Hitomi reveals that confronting Dornkirk will kill him, Folken tells her that the result of all of his Deadly Upgrades mean that he doesn't have much longer to live anyhow.
Jajuka
Voiced by Kouji Tsujitani (Japanese) and Scott McNeil (English)
A soldier in the Zaibach tropes, and a very special one. First, he's an anthropomorphic canine of sorts, having the looks of a dog (more seemingly, an Afghan hound. Second, he took care of little Selena Schezar in her early Zaibach days, and was a sort of Big Brother Mentor to her. Jajuka feels horrendously guilty because he was powerless to save Selena from the horrid treatment that turned her into Dilandau, and becomes Dilandau's follower in hopes that he'll be able to fix his error someday...
Animal Motifs: He has the face and head of a dog, is also loyal and devoted as a well-trained one.
Chekhov's Gunman: We see him first during Dilandau/Selena's brief stunt as The Ophelia. Later, he reappears with a vengeance.
Heroic Sacrifice: Shields Dilandau in the middle of the final battle, and dies begging him to become Selena again. His death triggers Dilandau's last Villainous Breakdown... and switches him back to Selena, the gentle girl he used to be.
Second, he took care of little Selena Schezar in her early Zaibach days, and was a sort of Big Brother Mentor to her. Jajuka feels horrendously guilty because he was powerless to save Selena from the horrid treatment that turned her into Dilandau, and becomes Dilandau's follower in hopes that he'll be able to fix his error someday...
