alt title(s): Rayearth
This
Shojo series is one of the most popular creations of the creative collective known as
CLAMP, blending
Magical Girl,
Humongous Mecha and high fantasy into a unique and entertaining mix.
Schoolgirls Shidou Hikaru, Ryuuzaki Umi and Hououji Fuu are visiting the Tokyo Tower with their respective middle-school classes when a mysterious force addresses them as "Magic Knights", begs for their help, and then transports them to another world. The three thirteen-year-olds find themselves in the magical world of Cephiro, brought there by a wizard named Clef. Cephiro, he explains, is held stable and safe by the constant attention of the Pillar, a princess named Emeraude. But Emeraude is now the prisoner of her former high priest, Zagato, and monsters have begun to overrun the countryside. Clef informs them that they are the Magic Knights of prophecy, who will save Cephiro from its impending doom. He gives them mystic armor and magical powers to use in their quest. But before he can explain how to use them, agents of Zagato appear on the scene, and the girls are dispatched on their mission with only the faintest idea of what they have to do.
In the course of their adventures, the three girls must discover their magical gifts and hone them while fighting their way across the countryside through hordes of monsters. They encounter Presea, the Master Smith, who sends them on a quest to find the materials for their magic weapons. And they learn that to accomplish the prophecy they embody, they must find and awaken the great
Mashin, the elemental god-creatures who sleep and waken only to protect Cephiro. In the process the girls, initially strangers, must learn about each other, and how to trust and depend on their teammates; they soon become fast friends. Dodging, defeating and even subverting the deadly agents of Zagato, they finally come to the point of fulfilling the ancient prophecy — only to discover that what they must do is nothing at all like what they expected.
Magic Knight Rayearth, despite its deceptively simple "schoolgirls on a quest" appearance, is a surprisingly complex story, with layers of motivation and
backstory behind the events of Cephiro's crisis. What seems at first to be a simple, straight-line adventure/quest plot turns out to be darker and far more complex, and the final revelation of the prophecy's true meaning forces Hikaru, Umi and Fuu to make mature, grown-up choices that belie the earlier impression of "fairytale fun".
One of the story's greatest strengths is characterization. The girls are unique and clearly drawn —
Genki Girl Hikaru, snobby
Rich Bitch Umi and the bookish, excessively-polite Fuu (who addresses every creature they kill as "monster-san") are about as disparate a trio as can be found; how they work through their differences and forge a determined and skilled team of fighters is one of the show's triumphs of character development. But even the villains are surprisingly complex and even sympathetic on some levels.
Although ultimately a drama,
Magic Knight Rayearth leavens its serious storylines with occasional mild doses of slapstick and
Super Deformed action. Much like the gravedigger scene in
Hamlet, this comedy doesn't detract from the story but instead throws its more serious aspect into sharper relief. Although supposedly targeted at young teen girls, it is easily watchable by adults of all ages.
There's also an OVA, which changes around the plot to be set in the real world, and the manga has a sequel. The second season of the anime was adapted from the manga sequel, which primarily dealt with the aftermath of the Magic Knights' actions in the first season.
There is also a video game adaption of it for a couple systems in Japan, with the Saturn version released in the United States by
Working Designs. This version is noteworthy not so much for the actual game, but for the
Development Hell that it went through.
There's also the Character Sheets.
This show provides examples of:
- Adaptation Decay: Where does one start? The TV series created all kinds of crazy plot holes and Character Derailments, which progressed further into the second season which had even less to do with the source material. The OVA had nothing in common with the manga, or even the TV series.
- A God Am I: Subverted. Hikaru actually becomes the Pillar of Cephiro, but immediately uses her powers to get rid of her status and the Pillar System, and allow Cephiro to be shaped by all its inhabitants instead of one person.
- Anime Anatomy: The first episode where they get their magic.
- As Long As There Is Evil: Is Lady Debonair's claim to immortality as The Heartless of Cephiro. Averted, however, after Hikaru pretty much rations out her godhood to everyone, and the combined Spirit Bomb blasts her into true nothingness.
- Backup Twin ( When Presea is killed in the anime, a HUGE plot hole appeared since she was alive in the manga. CLAMP fixed it by introducing Sierra, Presea's twin younger sister, who pretends to be Presea so she and Clef can keep the girls under a sort-of illusion that Emeraude revived Presea as her last wish, lest they'll be even more broken.)
- Because Destiny Says So
- Big Bad (Zagato in the first season (probably), and Debonair in the second.)
- Bishonen
- Bishoujo
- Bodyguard Crush (One of the most heartwretching cases ever in CLAMP manga and anime: Zagato and Emeraude.)
- Brainwashed: Lafarga, by hypnotic tattoos, while Caldina uses magical music.
- Calling Your Attacks
- Chekhovs Skill (All three of the main girls, when they pick out their initial weapons. Hikaru's parents run a kendo dojo (broadsword), Umi was on the fencing team at her school (saber), and Fuu was on the archery team at hers (longbow).)
- CLAMP
- Cool Big Sis: Presea, Caldina (after her Heel Face Turn.)
- Creepy Child: Ascot, before his Heel Face Turn.
- Cross Popping Veins (Umi, Clef.)
- Cutesy Dwarf (Clef.)
- Darker And Edgier (The second season, where Cephiro is mostly falling apart.)
- Dark Skinned Redhead (Tarta and Tatra. If we count pink hair, Caldina.)
- Defeat Means Friendship (Caldina, Ascot and Lafarga.)
- Demonic Invaders (roughly speaking.)
- Determinator (Hikaru, most of the time.)
- Distressed Damsel (Subverted: Princess Emeraude could've escaped if she wanted, but she didn't because she actually loved her captor from before he imprisoned her... and because she was the true Big Bad. Sorta.)
- Draco In Leather Pants (Okay, Zagato had his reasons, but he was an asshole when necessary.)
- The Dragon (Alcyone (and in the anime, Innouva), for Zagato. Nova, for Debonair.)
- The End Of The World As We Know It (What will happen if Cephiro doesn't have a Pillar.)
- Everythings Better With Princesses (Emeraude's position is the protector of Cephiro, but she's called a princess anyway.)
- Evil Minions
- Evolving Weapon (As the girls grow in skill and awake the Mashin, their weapons and armor also evolve.)
- Extraordinarily Empowered Girl (The three girls.)
- Facial Markings
- Femme Fatalons (Alcyone.)
- Fisher King (The Pillar.)
- Frills Of Justice (Justified, since their armor is made of escudo, and grows as their spirit grows stronger.)
- Genki Girl (Hikaru.)
- Genius Ditz (In the anime, Princess Tatra of Chizeta is a big fan of tea and a Cloud Cuckoo Lander. Who also happens to be quite the badass fencer with her Whip Sword.)
- Glowing Eyes Of Doom (Alcyone in her first appearance in the second season.)
- God Was My Co Pilot (In the manga, Mokona is revealed to be the Creator of Cephiro and Earth.)
- Go Go Enslavement (In the second season of the anime, when the girls are caught by their enemies, they're forced to dress up in their typical clothes. Fuu and Hikaru don't have much problems, but Umi (captured by Tarta and Tatra from Chizeta) has to wear an odalisque outfit and is not amused. )
- The Heartless (Most monsters in Cephiro are created from negative emotions. So is the Big Bad of the second season.)
- He Is All Grown Up (Ascot, in the second season.)
- Hellish Horse (Lantis' horse.)
- Hermetic Magic
- Huge Guy Tiny Girl ( Lafarga and Caldina, Hikaru and either Lantis or Eagle. Genderflipped (and the romance/platonic nature a bit more debatable) with Clef and either Umi and Presea or Sierra.)
- Humongous Mecha (The Rune Gods; there's also several mechas from Autozam.)
- I Cannot Self Terminate (Emeraude; the girls thought she was the Damsel In Distress and wanted to rescue her from Zagato, but then turns out she summoned them so they could kill her because she wasn't fit to be the Pillar anymore and only death would release her.)
- Impossibly Cool Clothes
- Impossibly Cool Weapon (the swords, and the way they ensure on their users can wield them)
- Incurable Cough Of Death (Eagle Vision in the anime.)
- Instant Awesome Just Add Mecha (The Rune Gods could have just bestowed powers to the girls, but making them mecha was just cooler.)
- Joshikousei
- Kansai Regional Accent (Caldina, Tatra, and Tarta)
- King Of All Cosmos (The manga version of Mokona. Really.)
- Lady Of War (Umi, Fuu)
- Love Makes You Evil (Princess Emeraude and Alcyone, both for the same person.)
- Luke I Am Your Father (Ferio, Princess Emeraude is your older sister.)
- Magic Knight (the Trope Namer - it's even in the title!)
- Magical Girl
- Martyr Without A Cause (Hikaru.)
- Medieval European Fantasy
- Meganekko (Fuu.)
- Moral Event Horizon (Alcyone was crazy and probably psychotic, but did she really deserved death at hands of Zagato when all what she was trying to do is make him happy?)
- Mr Fixit (Presea.)
- Narm (We get it Debonair, you're evil... You can stop laughing now.
- Nice Hat (Ascot)
- Nietzsche Wannabe (Debonair.)
- Non Human Sidekick (Mokona.)
- The Ojou (Umi and Fuu, each in their ways.)
- Older Than They Look (Anyone in Cephiro can invoke this trope.)
- Omake
- Otaku (Fuu sure loves her RPGs.)
- Personality Blood Types (Lampshaded when Fuu introduces herself to Hikaru and Umi.)
- Pettanko (The Magic Knights. Justified that they're just 14...)
- Planet Of Hats: Cephiro has a relatively varied environment and culture for a fantasy-RPG world, but the Invading Countries...
- Autozam: Dedicated to high-technology based on mental power. Its primary exports are Humongous Mecha, interstellar warships, and ultra-advanced weaponry.
- Fahren: An entire world dedicated to Chinese motifs and mythology, with a few concessions to Japanese Onmyodo. Makes abundant use of the Asia Rune Chant, magic circles, and paper doll summoning. And, for some reason, ninja.
- Chizeta: An oddly-shaped world with a teeny-tiny habitable biosphere, inspired by Arabian Nights motifs. Even the Princessess' starship is shaped like an oil lamp, and, true to form, two muscular and unsettling djinn burst from its spout at their masters' command.
- Power Trio
- Psycho Lesbian Stalker With A Crush (Nova.)
- Psychopathic Manchild (Nova, again.)
- Punny Name (Eagle Vision.)
- Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Clef.
- Reverse Shrapnel (Nova uses them.)
- Samurai (Loosely speaking; all three girls are accomplished swordswomen by the end of the show.)
- Secret Test Of Character (That's how you obtain both your Phebotinum and your Power Upgrades.)
- Schrodingers Cat (Some characters who the anime killed off but were alive and well in the manga had to be "brought back" in the second season because they were needed for the plot. There's just one problem...it goes against CLAMP rules, you know.)
- Shojo
- Spirit Advisor (Clef.)
- Spot Of Tea (Tatra loves drinking her tea.)
- Straight Arrow (Fuu, at first.)
- Suicide By Cop
- Summon Everyman Hero
- Super Deformed
- Teen Genius (Fuu.)
- Tenchi Solution (Hikaru decides she's going to marry Lantis and Eagle in the manga.)
- The Sweat Drop (Several.)
- Theme Naming
- Tokyo Is The Center Of The Universe
- Tokyo Tower (It's CLAMP, dammit.)
- Trapped In Another World
- Visible Sigh
- Well Intentioned Extremist (Zagato, maybe Lantis.)
- Wham Episode (The end of the first season. Maybe one of the best plot twists CLAMP has ever used.)
- White Haired Pretty Boy (Eagle Vision.)
- You Should Know This Already (the ending of the first series)
Rayearth OVA provides examples of:
- Alternate Character Interpretation: Eagle has gone from trying to save his country to being willing to destroy Earth to save Cephiro. He's also Emeraude's brother instead of Ferio. Hikaru has gone from a Genki Girl Determinator from a kendo family to a particularly Wangsty Broken Cutie in the gymnastics club.
- Alternate Continuity: This is described as a shortened retelling of MKR. That is really inaccurate. There are so many changes to the plot, it's another story entirely.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: The girls attend the same school and don't want to be separated after graduation. They wish to stay friends forever, and this story really tests that wish.
- Darker And Edgier: Cephiro is dying; Zagato sacrificed his life in a vain attempt to avert this. Emeraude is alive, but is clinging to a dream that Zagato is with her. The actual story has more violence, some blood, and about half the characters from Cephiro are killed off (although Emeraude lives).
- Enfant Terrible: Ascot isn't in to save his friends in this version. He just wants to kill everyone.
- Family Unfriendly Violence: The Rune God battles are bloody and nasty.
- Fan Disservice: As mentioned below, the Magic Knights appear naked within their mecha. But add horrible bloody injuries and it quickly becomes Squick of the highest caliber.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Lantis sacrifices himself to empower his sword, to be used by the Knights. Doesn't make much sense.
- Hope Spot: Oh, so many times.
- Humongous Mecha: Again, the Rune Gods.
- Nightmare Fuel: Emeraude pines for and throws herself at the feet of a dead Zagato, who still sits on his throne. Emeraude's castle is filled with the dead souls of Cephiro, who scream and lash at anything living.
- Older Than They Look: Averted. There is no mention of appearance-changing in this story, so Clef looks like a grown man, and Ascot is actually a young boy.
- Out Of Clothes Experience: While "piloting" the Rune Gods, the girls appear entirely naked (their foes are never shown, however.) Also, their invocation of the final attack starts with them floating naked in the void.
- OVA
- Pimped Out Dress: Emeraude's dress is far fancier than in the main story.
- Product Placement: There is a Subway restaraunt, but it's actually used for an important scene in the story.
- The Tokyo Fireball: Large sections of Tokyo receive a pretty thorough trashing in the duration of the OVA.
- Trapped In Another World: Inverted. Instead of being sent elsewhere, the girls are the only living things on Earth after Clef whisks everyone else to another dimension, for safekeeping.
