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Romance Of The Three Kingdoms WITH PANTY SHOTS! But seriously...
The souls of the greatest warriors, generals, and strategists of the era of Chinese history immortalized in Romance Of The Three Kingdoms have continued on beyond their deaths, sealed within magatama beads handed down from generation to generation. For 1,800 years, the gems have dominated the destiny of their holders - the "Toushi", or "Fighters" - increasing their bloodlust and fighting skills while forcing them to re-enact the lives and deaths of their counterparts.
Now, the newest generation of Fighters has gathered around seven high schools in the Kanto region around Tokyo, re-enacting the battles as something in between a semi-organized street fighting tournament and an all-out gang war. And at Nanyou Academy (read: Nanyang and eventually the Wu kingdom), Idiot Heroine Sonsaku Hakufu has arrived.
And she has no clue about anything in the last two paragraphs. All Sonsaku knows is that she likes to fight, and her mom not only gave her a necklace with a pretty magatama, but also told her to make a good impression by beating up fifty Fighters on her first day. She definitely doesn't know that she's the " reincarnation" of Sun Ce, the ruler of Wu known as the "Little Conqueror (Shou Haoh)" - the one who it's said might have united the Three Kingdoms himself if not for his untimely death.
Did we mention she's hot? In fact, it seems that most of the modern-day Fighters are attractive teenage Action Girls who have a habit of suffering massive amounts of Clothing Damage during their fights.
Ikki Tousen (Roughly "Strength of a Thousand") is an ongoing (13 volumes and counting) manga series by Shiozaki Yuji that has been adapted into three anime "seasons" to date, as well as a Fighting Game. The Tokyopop English release of the manga, Battle Vixens, is notorious for its Macekred translation. There was also a controversy about several panels from early in the series that seemed to be traced from Oh! Great's Tenjho Tenge manga. The whole thing originated as story-less PVC figurines in the very late 1990s.
Interestingly, the third season ( Great Guardians) was directed by, of all people, Koichi Ohata. It is quite literally the only thing he has ever directed with more than a small cult following.
Compare Koihime Musou, another series of Romance Of The Three Kingdoms Gender Flip spoof. There's also Ryofuko-chan, in which the same basic premise gets a lolicon twist.
For some reason, this series is now available on Hulu . And has a character sheet.
This series contains examples of:
- Abusive Parents Ten'i (Dian Wei) was sexually abused by her own father. She retaliated by killing him. .
- Accidental Fanservice Girl: In Dragon Destiny, having Ryuubi topless is more or less a Running Gag.
- Action Girl: Of course.
- Action Mom: Hakufu's mom Goei (Lady Wu) isn't a frontline fighter, but can handle herself well if needed. Especially if you hit her Berserk Button by calling her old.
- Adaptation Decay: (A Severe case of adaption decay from Romance Of The Three Kingdoms to original manga then, original manga to licensed manga, and finally original manga to anime.)
- Adult Child: Goei. Though this also counts as Obfuscating Stupidity...
- Affably Evil: To some degree, Toutaku (Dong Zhuo)
- Annoying Arrows: Brutally subverted in Ryoumou's fight with Ten'i, as the arrows nearly end up killing Ryoumou, who probably only survives because of Chouun's interference and the fact that she woke up her dragon.
- Ascended Extra: The first season gives Ukitsu (Yu Ji) more scenes and more interaction with Hakufu, who she's destined to kill.
- Attempted Rape: Chuukou (Xu Chu), in the manga
- Back From The Dead: Ryofu (Lu Bu) in the third season (Great Guardians). Only to die again in the end.
- Little Miss Badass: Ten'i is a damn dangerous Straight Arrow who wears a Gothic Lolita dress when she fights. Also, the the true Saji Genpou, a Chess Master girl who's a powerful magic user.
- Baka: One of Hakufu's Berserk Buttons is being called like this.
- Bare Fisted Monk: Kouchou Kanshuu (Huang Zhong)
- Beach Episode: In Great Guardians, going through all the motions.
- Beauty Is Never Tarnished: So averted, since the girls and the guys get beaten up real hard. As you see, not only their clothes get ripped. Heck, in the manga, poor Ten'i is so brutally mauled that she loses an arm.
- Because Destiny Says So: Its never really explained why people keep passing on those damn magatama beads and consigning their loved ones to brief and violent lives.
- Berserk Button: Both Sousou and Ryuubi released their Superpowered Evil Sides upon seeing their friends get badly beaten to protect them.
- Big Damn Heroes: Dragon Destiny has at least three. First, Chou'un intervenes in Ryoumou's fight with Ten'i. Later, Kan'u rescues Ryuubi from Gakushin (Yue Ji) and Chuukou (Xu Chu) as she joins the final battle. And in the end, Hakufu pulls trhe last one during Sousou and Ryuubi's fight.
- Big Eater: Hakufu, Ryuubi, Chouhi.
- Big Fancy House: Shuuyu (Zhao Yu) Koukin's house (where Hakufu and Goei are staying as guests.)
- Blade On A Stick: Kan'u Unchou carries the original Guan Yu's legendary Blue Dragon Crescent Blade.
- Blond Guys Are Evil: Saji
- Blood Knight: Hakufu just wants to fight people. However, unlike her Superpowered Evil Side, she doesn't want to really hurt anyone. Permanently, anyway.
- Bodyguard Crush: Koukin for his cousin, Hakufu (no matter how much he tries to hide it); Kan'u (Guan Yu) for Ryuubi (Liu Bei).
- Boisterous Bruiser: Several, specially Chouhi (as the expy of Zhang Fei), Kakouton and Hakufu.
- Boobs Of Steel: LOTS of them.
- Bokukko: Ukitsu
- Brainwashed And Crazy: Lots of people in Great Guardians. Ryoufu, Hakufu, Myousai, Ryoumou...
- Cake Eater: Kakouton (Xiahou Dun) is mistaken as one of these, much to his embarrassment.
- Can Not Spit It Out: Kan'u (Guan Yu) towards Ryuubi (Liu Bei) in Great Guardians, the third season.
- Captain Ersatz: Sonsaku is basically Asuka Soryuu but a bit taller and with a hilariously massive bust (oh, and replace the word 'bitch' with 'idiot'). Ryoumou is Rei Ayanami, as noted below, straight down to the effing eyepatch.
- Car Fu: Shiba'i does this in desperation in the last episode of Dragon Destiny.
- Charles Atlas Superpower
- Clothing Damage: The female characters' clothing seems to disintegrate at the drop of a hat. Somehow averted by Chou'un (Zhao Yun), who practically is the only female who never had her clothes torn in a fair fight (the only time her clothes was torn was due to an interruption), this possibly being a symbol of her Lady Of War status.
- Coitus Uninterruptus: In Dragon Destiny, Kaku Bunwa (Jie Xu) and Kakuka Houkou (Guo Jia) discuss strategy... while doing the nasty.
- Cooldown Hug: Used by Chuukou, on Sousou. And by Sousou himself, on Myousai (Great Guardians only)
- Creepy Child: Shokatsuryou Koumei (Zhuge Liang), combined with Little Miss Snarker
- Crouching Moron Hidden Badass: Several
- Cute Bruiser: Chouhi (Zhang Fei), Ukitsu, Kyocho Chuukou (Xu Chu) who mixes this with Huge Schoolgirl. Though, this being a voluptuous schoolgirl version of Romance Of The Three Kingdoms, they're more like Hot Bruisers.
- Cute Little Fangs: Hakufu
- Damsel In Distress: Ryuubi is in this position at first, due to her klutziness and lack of fighting skills. Until her ultra powerful Superpowered Evil Side shows up, that is.
- Dark Skinned Blond: Saji Genpou (Zuo Ci) and Chouryou Bun'en (Zhang Liao)
- Dark Skinned Redhead: Sousou (Cao Cao) And in Great Guardians, Saji, when he retakes his original role as Ouin Shishi)
- Little Miss Snarker: Koumei
- Defeat Means Friendship: Hakufu often befriends those she defeats
- Depraved Bisexual: Ryofu Housen (Lu Bu) skirts the line, especially in the first season of the anime. She rapes Ryoumou after rendering her helpless during a fight (only in the anime, in the manga Ryofu just gropes her), has had sex with Saji and Toutaku, even claiming at some point that Saji raped her in Battle Vixens and is also Schoolgirl Lesbians with her best friend, Chinkyuu (Chen Gong). The last relationship actually counts as Pet The Dog.
- The Ditz: Ryuubi
- Dojikko: Ryuubi, again. And according to Hakufu, Ryoumou also is one of them when the two work as waitreses.
- The Dragon: Ryofu (Lu Bu) is introduced as one for Toutaku (Dong Zhuo). (She betrays him later, though)
- Dub Text: Battle Vixens features several examples, such as the subplot about Saji raping Ryofu, Kan'u and Ukitsu showing interest in Koukin, and making Ryuubi into a Transparently Closeted homophobe constantly worrying about Kan'u lusting after her.
- Emotionless Girl: Koushaji (Hue Che Er)
- Ensemble Darkhorse: Kan'u is pretty popular... hell, sometimes all of the Seitou (Shu) characters (Kanu, Ryuubi, Chouhi, Koumei...) are considered more popular than the Nanyou (Wu) characters.
- Erection Rejection: Believe it or not, the plot and characters are appealing enough for some fans to become annoyed at the Fanservice distracting them. Even when Word Of God states the series was created mostly for fun.
- Evil Costume Switch: Kan'u after going to Sousou.
- Evil Cripple: Shiba'i (Sima Yi) is one of the more ruthless strategists in the series and she's confined to a wheelchair. It was all fake, though: she can walk, but uses her supposed disability as Obfuscating Stupidity
- Evil Redhead: Toutaku, Sousou after his "awakening" (and even more so in the manga)
- Expository Hairstyle Change: The short-haired Ryoumou used to have long hair, as a picture featuring her, Saji and Teifu shows.
- Eyepatch Of Power: Ryomou (Lu Meng) wears a medical eyepatch to Seal Her Inner Evil In A Can. Later, Kakouton (Xiahou Dun) starts wearing one as well, after messily losing his eye during his and Sousou's fight against Koushaji (Hu Che'er).
- Eyes Always Shut: Chou'un Shiryuu (Zhao Yun)
- Eye Scream: Poor Kakouton!
- Facial Markings: Koushaji has a small flower-shaped one on her left cheekbone
- Fan Disservice: Koushaji has a pantyshot-laden battle against Sousou (Cao Cao), which she loses. She then gets killed by having her head crushed against a wall by Sousou, who went absolutely APESHIT after she injured Kakouton's eye with a throwing needle.
- Fastball Special: Chouhi grabs and tosses Kan'u towards the tower where Ryuubi and Sousou, along with their Superpowered Evil Sides are fighting, in the last episode of Dragon Destiny.
- Fetish Fuel Station Attendant: Ryomou - a Tsundere Rei Ayanami lookalike with an eyepatch, wearing a maid outfit, who fights by grappling her opponents...
- Finger Twitching Revival
- Five Bad Band: Rakuyou. Kyoushou was more of a Three Amigos Power Trio in the first season, but becomes a Five Bad Band in Dragon Destiny.
- The Big Bad: Toutaku (Rakuyou), Sousou (Kyoushou)
- The Dragon: Ryoufu (Rakuyou), Kakouton (Kyoushou)
- The Evil Genius: Kaku (Rakuyou and later Kyoushou), Shibai (Kyoushou)
- The Brute: Ryoufu and Rikaku (Rakuyou), Kakuka and then Myousai and Chouryou (Kyoushou)
- The Dark Chick: Chinkyuu (Rakuyou), Ten'i and Chuukou (Kyoushou)
- Sixth Ranger: The Three Pillared Gods (Kyoushou)
- Sixth Column: Saji, in the first season, for both Rakuyou and Nanyou. Later is the genuine Sixth Ranger for Nanyou.
- Five Man Band: Nanyou and Seitou.
- The Heroine: Hakufu (Nanyou), Ryuubi (Seitou)
- The Lancer: Ryoumou (Nanyou), Kan'u (Seitou)
- The Smart Guy: Koukin (Nanyou), Koumei (Seitou)
- The Big Guy: Gakushuu (Nanyou), Chouhi and Kanshou (Huge Guy Tiny Girl duo, Seitou)
- The Chick: Goei and later Chuubou (Action Mom and Yamato Nadeshiko, Nanyou), Ryuubi (Seitou, doubles as Chick and Heroine)
- Sixth Ranger: Saji, in Dragon Destiny (Nanyou), Kanshou (doubling as Big Guy, Seitou), Chou'un (Seitou).
- Flanderization: Happens to most characters in the third anime season, but the treatment of Kan'u is especially egregious. Be thankful that this somehow stops after Episode 4.
- The Fool: Hakufu, Ryuubi.
- Gecko Ending: The first two seasons (Ikki Tousen and Dragon Destiny) each have an original ending. The third season (Great Guardians) is 100% Filler.
- Gender Flip: This is almost a complete Gender Flip of Romance Of The Three Kingdoms.
- Genre Savvy: The characters are all aware of Romance Of The Three Kingdoms, and even try to use that knowledge to their advantage. Yes, even Hakufu breaks out the Cliff Notes when things get serious on her.
- Gentle Giant: Gakushuu (Yue Jiu); he even has a sweet tooth. Also Kouchuu Kanshou, who blushes intensely when he touches Kan'u and Chuhi's clothes which he had to wash per instructions of his master.
- Girly Run: Ryuubi
- Glowing Eyes Of Doom: If you have a dragon spirit inside you, you'll have these eyes when your other side manifest. Also, Saji, when he brainwashes people
- Go Out With A Smile: Ryoufu, in the anime. Twice, if we count Great Guardians.
- Guilty Pleasures: Needless to say.
- Handsome Lech: Saji, so much.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Ukitsu, in the Dragon Destiny anime, revives the practically dead Hakufu at the cost of her own life.
- Heroic Sociopath: Ryomou started as one of these, evolving into a Type A Tsundere.
- Hey You: Hakufu calls others (except Goei, Chuubou and Koukin) by nicknames
- Hot Blooded: Indeed.
- Hot Shounen Mom: Goei (Lady Wu), Hakufu's mother.
- Ho Yay: Or better said, Les Yay
- Huge Guy Tiny Girl: Kanshou and Chouhi, Kaku and Kakuka. In a platonic sense, Gakushuu and either Hakufu or Ryoumou.
- Huge Schoolgirl: Kyouchu Chuukou. In the manga, she was even bullied for her huge size by the boys in her and Sousou's ex judo club. And the first time Sousou's dragon ever appeared, it was to protect Chuukou from said sempais when he thought they tried to rape her.
- Ki Attacks
- Kikuko Inoue: Goei
- Kissing Cousins: Koukin crushes on his cousin Hakufu. In the anime, Goei actually approves and encourages it to some degree, much to Koukin's embarrassment.
- I Have Your Wife: In Episode 12 of the first series, Toutaku tells Hakufu to kill Ryoufu. When she refuses, he grabs her teammate Ryoumou and forces her to fight. Later, Gakushuu and Koukin are captured and held hostage to force Hakufu to fight Saji. And in Dragon Destiny, Kan'u surrenders herself to Kyoushou when Ryuubi, Chouhi, Koumei and Kanshou are threatened by practically all the Kyoushou fighters.
- Ill Girl: Ryoufu has a fatal illness and knows her days are numbered. Whereas Teifu is a Crippled and Blind Boy, and Kakuka is an Ill Boy in the manga.
- I Just Want To Be Normal: Ryuubi tells Chouhi and Kan'u that, even when she knows she's the reincarnation of Liu Bei, she'd rather live normally like she always has.
- I Know You Are In There Somewhere Fight: Used quite often, with varying results.
- Subverted: Koukin tries this on Hakufu, who's being used by Toutaku as his Soul Jar. He fails and she brutally beats him up, but then Ukitsu appears and is the one who hits Hakufu's Berserk Button and lets her get free of Toutaku's grip.
- Played straight: When Ukitsu and Hakufu fight and Hakufu is dominated by her Superpowered Evil Side, Koukin tries again despite Ukitsu's warnings. This time, he succeeds.
- And again, in Great Guardians: Not only the returned Sousou de-brainwashed Myousai like this (plus Cooldown Hug) and Saji did the same to Ryoufu, who then returned the favor by de-brainwashing Ryoumou... Hakufu's "sister" Chuubou gets her Crowning Moment Of Awesome by doing this to none other than the Big Bad, the *real* Saji Genpou, convincing her to abandon her evil ways and stop fighting.
- Intimate Healing: Ryoufu, on a bed-ridden Saji.
- I Owe You My Life: Myousai, to Sousou, who took her in when she was a child soldier. Ten'i, to Shibai, who rescued her from particularly cruel school abuse.
- I Want My Beloved To Be Happy: In Great Guardians, Chuubou tells this to Hakufu and Koukin so they can hook up.
- Lady Of War: Chou'un, Kan'u.
- Les Yay: Quite a bit of it.
- Loads And Loads Of Characters
- Loving A Shadow: Chuubou
- Macekre: Tokyopop's English-language release of the manga, Battle Vixens was liberally rewritten by Keith Giffen - who added large amounts of Dubtext on the side.
- Mac Guffin: The Imperial Seal, the Jade Dragon.
- Magnificent Bastard: Saji. He's also Man Behind The Man after he manipulates Kannei to kill Enjutsu and takes Enjutsu's place as Nanyou leader.
- Male Gaze: Lots of it.
- Manipulative Bitch: Kaku Bunwa (Jia Xu), Shibai.
- Meganekko: Ryuubi, Rikuson (Lu Zun). Kaku is a subversion, since her manipulative personality is very atypical for a Meganekko.
- Meido: Ryomou's fighting costume.
- Medium Awareness: In Dragon Destiny, Goei complains to Koukin that her screen time has disminished and wonders what's the reason.
- The Messiah: Ryuubi, Chuubou to some degree.
- Mind Control Eyes: Abundant in Great Guardians, as a side effect of characters ending up Brainwashed And Crazy.
- Mind Probe: Gakushin (Yue Jin) can use her kiss to dive in the minds and memories of her victims. When she uses this power on Kan'u in Dragon Destiny, it does NOT go well; not only she discovers Kan'u's Les Yay crush on Ryuubi, but also has a bloody vision involving Sousou's past self that causes her a huge Freak Out.
- Moment Killer: Koumei pulls this at least twice towards Kan'u when she wants to be with Ryuubi.
- Mooks
- Most Common Superpower: LOTS of it
- My God What Have I Done: Kan'u in season 3, after realizing that she's been flanderized. She tried to atone with death, until Ryuubi stops her using an Armor Piercing Slap.
- Out Of Clothes Experience: Kan'u and Hakufu
- Overshadowed By Awesome: Koukin, although he borders on being a Faux Action GUY.
- Panty Fighter: You need to ask?
- Panty Shot: And according to some tropers, it has some of the most realistic skirt physics around. See Shown Their Work, below.
- Peek A Bangs: Kan'u's left eye is always hidden under her bangs
- Pet The Dog: Ryofu softens quite a bit around her old friend (and girlfriend) Chinkyuu.
- Pretty Freeloaders: Hakufu and Goei (for Koukin). At least Goei handles the housework and the cooking, so...
- Psycho For Hire: Kannei (Gan Ning)
- Public Domain Artifact
- Rape As Drama: Poor, poor Chinkyuu and Ten'i.
- Razor Floss: Myousai's Weapon Of Choice
- The Real Remington Steele: A BIG Revelation of Great Guardians is based on this. The "Saji" we know is actually Ouin (Wang Yun) Shishi, which we already knew. But what the audience was NOT told is that the big bad of Great Guardians is the Fighter with the real magatama of Zuo Ci, a Little Miss Badass young woman who is the true Saji Genpou, whom the "other" Saji might be in love with.
- Recycled In Space \ Setting Update
- Reincarnation: For all practical purposes, at least.
- Rescue Romance: Genderflipped. It's hinted that Koukin loves Hakufu ever since, as children, she protected him from bullies.
- Sarashi: Ryuubi uses this once in a while.
- Schoolgirl Lesbians: Ryofu and Chinkyuu. In the beginning of the third season, Kan'u thinks like this, Covert Pervert style, towards Ryuubi (who's oblivious) Until almost the end, where she reciprocates Kan'u's feelings
- School Of Hard Knocks: AND HOW.
- Screening The Call: In the manga, Goei tried to keep Hakufu from picking fights to save her from her fate as a Fighter. In the anime, she goes as far as actually telling Kakouton how to defeat Hakufu in the tournament. It didn't work in any of these cases.
- Screw Destiny: Many of the major characters try to do this. Try.
- Senseless Violins: Ten'i carries her bow in a cello case.
- Shout Out: Goei likes to proclaim herself to be 17 years old... exactly the habit of her seiyuu Kikuko Inoue.
- Shown Their Work: One of the DVD extras for the first season shows a "reference photos" session, wherein the anime staff managed to recruit an actual schoolgirl to do a bunch of panty-flashing high kicks.
- Skinship Grope: Hakufu seems to like groping Ryomou quite a bit. Same goes to Koumei, when she bathes with Ryuubi.
- Soul Jar: The ones with the dragons inside. Also, in the first season Toutaku transfers his soul to Hakufu's body as he dies, to settle his score with Saji.
- Straight Arrow: Ten'i
- The Strategist: Koumei, Rikuson, Kaku, Shibai Chuutatsu (Sima Yi).
- Thou Shalt Not Kill: Unlike her Superpowered Evil Side, Hakufu explicitly rejects fighting just to kill her opponents.
- Stripperiffic: Ryofu, Kan'u
- Strong Flesh Weak Steel: The stronger characters regularly survive attacks that leave craters in concrete.
- Super Drowning Skills: Ryuubi
- Superpowered Evil Side: Hakufu, Ryuubi, Sousou (Cao Cao), and Ryomou contain "dragons", berserker spirits, within them.
- Sword In The Stone: The Hyakuhekitou swords.
- Taking You With Me: Ryoufu's ultimate Screw Destiny act in the anime is this. Toutaku survives... only to die few minutes later.
- Tall Dark And Bishoujo: Kan'u (Guan Yu), Kaku (Jia Xu).
- Theme Naming: All of the characters have the same names as the Japanese reading of their counterparts from Three Kingdoms.
- This Is Something I Have To Do Myself: Hakufu tells this to Goei in the first season, before she goes to face Toutaku
- This Is Unforgivable: Hakufu's Catch Phrase, when she seriously gets pissed off.
- Three Amigos: Saji, Ryoumou and Teifu. All female version: Ryuubi, Kan'u and Chouhi. All male version: Kakouton, Kakuka and Sousou.
- Tomboy And Girly Girl: Ryoufu and Chinkyuu, Chouhi and Ryuubi, Chuubou and Hakufu.
- Tokyo Is The Center Of The Universe
- Tournament Arc
- Tsundere: Ryomou
- Two Teacher School: Of the No Teacher variety.
- Unlucky Childhood Friend: Teifu, to Ryoumou. Chuubou is an odd variation: she was "destined" to marry Koukin per their reincarnations and was pining for him before they even met.
- The Vamp: Kaku often uses her sexiness to get what she wants. Then again, so did Toutaku and Saji...
- Victorious Childhood Friend: Koukin, in the anime. Not as lucky in the manga, yet. Also in the anime, Kan'u is a Les Yay version for Ryuubi, and so was Chinkyuu for Ryoufu before she bit the dust.
- Villains Out Shopping: Toutaku is often seen tending to his small watermelon and flower patches.
- Weirdness Censor: Hey, nobody seems to notice that hot schoolgirls and schoolboys are beating up each other.
- The Worf Effect: Poor Gakushuu, Koukin and Kakouton...
- Wounded Gazelle Gambit: A really nasty one happens in the manga.
- White Haired Pretty Girl: Chou'un Shiryuu, Koushaji
- Yamato Nadeshiko: Hakufu's "sister" Sonken Chuubou (Sun Quan) or to be exact, Shoukyou (Xiao Qiao). Parodied in Dragon Destiny where the Where Are They Now Epilogue has Chou'un trying her hand at ikebana and failing miserably, as she uses the scissors like a katana of sorts.
- You Cant Fight Fate
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: In Dragon Destiny, Sousou (or better said, his Superpowered Evil Side) severely injures and presumably kills Kakouton half because of this, half because he let Kan'u go. He gets better.
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