Better known in North America for the anime than the games which started the franchise, Galaxy Fraulein Yuna is one example of what happens when you set a magical-girl story three centuries into the future. It was created by Mika Akitaka and developed by Hudson Soft and Red Entertainment.
The main character, Yuna Kagurazaka, is a bit better off than Usagi "Sailor Moon" Tsukino as far as brains and coordination go, and has the good fortune to be winner of an interstellar beauty contest, a teen celebrity, and an Idol Singer even before she gets called to become the Savior of Light, a Magical Girl tasked with saving the entire universe from the forces of Darkness.
As of 2021, the franchise consists of four games (not counting remakes) and two sets of OAVs, a two-episode arc and a three-episode arc, both set before the third game.
Galaxy Fraulein Yuna provides examples of:
- 20 Minutes into the Future: The first game is initially set in 2299 A.D.
- 24-Hour Armor: Played for gags, laughs and lampshades in the first game... especially when Yuna’s dad realizes his daughter is going out in public with it on.Mr. Kagurazaka: N… no. I don’t get your work related clothing. After all, you’re still a pubescent girl.
- A.I. Is a Crapshoot: The villains of the "Abyssal Fairy" OVA are a trio of experimental androids who were created by humans but then turned out to be evil.
- This is all subverted in Lightning Angel when it’s discovered that Ayako, Kyoka, Genmu (as well as their ten other sisters) were originally created to be peaceful life forms by the Machine Empress. However, a civil war broke out on their home planet and the three believed their creator would end the war and bring peace back to the Machine Empire. But, after the three were captured by humans and sentenced to exile, it all went downhill from there.
- All-Loving Hero: Yuna. She will make friends with anyone who hasn't actually killed one of her friends. (Also happens to be literal - her title of "Savior of Light" could also be translated as "Messiah of Light.")Yuna: You go ahead and fight an enemy; I'm going to try to make a friend!
- Ambiguously Gay: Yuna gushes over Polylina and declares her "my one and only love," repeatedly jumps to the (wrong) conclusion that Misaki has a not-at-all-chaste crush on her and seems very excited about this prospect, and when encouraging Ayako to come to school, she advertises it as a place with "so many friends and so many cute girls!" Even by Magical Girl standards, the
Les Yay here is extremely plentiful.Yuna: (to Misaki) Are you the one that put these cuffs on my hands and feet? You know, I've never really done this, especially not for a woman. *lecherous expression*- This also depends which version of the OVA you’re watching. In the original second OVA, Yuna's dialog is silly but the lead is obscure (and, in the games, she even daydreams over guys who ultimately join her group). But, for some unknown reason, the English dub decided to replace completely mundane lines with double entendre, ad-libs, colorful jokes... even adding lines when nobody’s talking at all. Because of this, the English version has Yuna being far more girl-crazy then what she is in the original Japanese series. As for Yuna FX/the first OAV... well, that was written by the same good folks that brought the world the Dragon Half OVA.
- The Anime of the Game: Probably why this series has an American fanbase at all.
- Armor Is Useless: Debatably subverted when Yuna combines with Jiina, Erina, or Marina, as they turn into relatively full body armor, as opposed to the Light Suit's bodysuit, boots and gloves.
- Beauty Contest: The Galaxy Ojosama Contest in Yuna 1, which was really all a ploy to find the new Savior of the Light. Later in the game, its shown that the planet Marina is host an annual swimsuit contest.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Subverted in some of Yuna's squabbles with her friends, when she seems just like an average girl. Played straight in the final OAV; you do not push the Savior of Light ...
- Big, Bulky Bomb: The third game has Teimfou... a bomb so huge it sticks out from the side of the Earth!
- Big Eater: Yuri Cube.
- Biting-the-Hand Humor: Every now and then, the girls complain about Red Hudson's inability to offer them adequate screen time.
- Chekhov's Gun: Ayako’s processor core in Yuna 3.
- Chekhov's Gunman: Lia's very first appearance in the first game is helping Yuna talk to a foreigner with no grasp of Japanese. (Oddly, the foreigner seems like more of a Chekhov's Gunman at the time ...)
- Clear My Name: The plot behind Yuna FX/OVA 1.
- Cooldown Hug: Happens a couple of times. Notably subverted once in the OAVs.
- Yuna cranks this up a notch in the third game when she hugs the Black Empress in order to rid her of darkness and to calm her down so that her processor won't explode, taking down everybody with her.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Due to Unstoppable Rage in reaction to Ayako's death, Yuna only takes about 30 seconds to to kill the Big Bad who had previously seemed nigh unbeatable.
- Defeat Means Friendship: Almost every enemy Yuna fights becomes a friend later on. Slightly subverted in that this only happens directly a couple of times.
- Destructive Savior: Yuna's battles with other girls tend to end in surprisingly high amounts of collateral damage. Lampshaded in the very first scene of the first game after the intro, as Yuna's wondering how she'll show her face around the neighborhood when she'd destroyed several houses.
- Dreadful Musician: Played with. In the first game at least, a few characters note that Yuna's singing isn't all that great. However, when paired with the right song, she shines.
- Dialogue Tree: The conversation set-up for every game.
- Elaborate Underground Base: Lia built "Polylinia's" massive underground hideout right under the Kagurazakas' house... and the Kagurazakas didn’t even know.
- Expy: The series as a whole is heavily influenced by Mika Akitaka's "Mobile Suit Girls" artworks, with Yuna herself being based on the Gundam F91 girl
◊. - Fairy Companion: Elner, who looks the part, sci-fi style. Notably does not cause problems.
- Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: Yuna slaps Ayako to snap her out of her electricity-shooting meltdown, then follows it up with a hug and a befriending.
- A funnier version of this happens in the first game, when Jiina attempts to wake up Yuna by stretching her face out like silly-putty.
- Girlish Pigtails: Ayako. She's the youngest and cutest of the Abyssal Fairy villains, but she's also a Killer Rabbit who likes to "play" with people by curb-stomping them, so the pigtails are more of a subversion.
- Gratuitous German: The series's official (sort of) English title.
- Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Yuna. Lia even describes her as being pure-hearted and free of guile.
- Hard Light: Yuna's armor and weapons are made of "photon object", essentially this.
- Heavy Sleeper: Yuna. Played for humor in the first game, used more conventionally in the anime. Officially, if she has a day off she's as likely to sleep it away as spend time with her friends.
- Herald: Elner, in the prologue to the very first game. Becomes the Fairy Companion almost immediately thereafter, as well as trying to keep Yuna on-task.
- Humongous Mecha: El-Line, which appears roughly once per storyline. Debatably Combining Mecha as well, since the Matrix of Light shapeshift, merge, and grow in size to become El-Line (although this sequence is glossed over in the anime)
- Hypocrite: Mari becomes enraged when she sees Yuna has accidentally trampled upon a flower, but Elner points out that Mari has trod upon several flowers already. Mari claims that she's a friend to the flowers and they love it when she treads on them, but Yuna's not buying it.
- Idol Singer: Yuna's side career, when she's not in school or saving Earth/the universe. Lia's career seems to surpass hers later, but Yuna still does concerts.
- There's also Kaede the Idol. However, she lives in America so you don't hear too much about her singing career.
- I Know Madden Kombat: A few of Yuna’s enemies-turned-friends base their combat styles and tactics around their favorite sports they practice: Ako and Mako (Ping-Pong), Mai (Golf), Mami (Softball), Midori (Figure Skating), Rui (Soccer) and Serika (Go-Kart Racing).
- And then there are the ones based on other activities: Mari (flower arranging), Yoshika (tea ceremony), Aleftina (violin), Himeko (punk rock) etc.
- Improbably Female Cast: Yuna's father is one of a handful of male characters to appear in the franchise at all. Most of the others are unnamed.
- It Began with a Twist of Fate: The series begins with Yuna winning a Galactic Beauty Contest, leading to her becoming a Savior of Light so that she can defend the universe from evil.
- Kill the Cutie: Poor Ayako
- Magical Girl Warrior: Yuna is this subtype of ...
- Magical Girl: with (apparently) technology, but still.
- Martial Arts and Crafts: See the I Know Madden Kombat trope, above.
- Medium Awareness: Yes, they know they're video game characters...
- Minor Injury Overreaction: Well, losing your hand is hardly a minor injury, but Ayako's reaction still qualifies for this trope.
- Mysterious Protector: Polylina is an homage/parody of Tuxedo Mask, even throwing roses as a means of announcing her arrival and making a flowery speech every time she shows up. Of course, the only reason she's still "mysterious" is that Yuna is too dense to figure out that Polylina is really her friend Lia.
- The second OVA continues the Sailor Moon homage/parody by giving Polylina a white robot cat who can transform into a weapon.
- Neo-Tokyo Is the Center of the Universe: Well, except for Yuna 2.
- Noblewoman's Laugh: More than one opponent in the (game) series will announce her presence this way.
- No Fourth Wall: Oh, they know you’re watching them...
- Non-Human Sidekick: Elner. Also, the rest of the Matrix of Light (Yuna's android "doubles"), although they can appear human later on. Very debatably, Yuri Cube as well (as a human-looking android).
- Ojou: Subverted, inverted and deconstructed, especially by the first game - the original Japanese title was Ginga Ojousama Densetsu Yuna, or "Galaxy Lady Legend Yuna" ... but very few of the "ojousama" in the game are Ojou. Especially Yuna herself - she's an ordinary girl from a not-rich family. Roppongi no Mai, on the other hand, acts like this to the hilt.
- And Luminaev cranks the concept of ‘ojou’ to a whole new level…
Yuna: Hey, I wonder if she means “ojousama” not as “young lady” but as “my queen” like those disreputable women on TV... - Parental Obliviousness: Yuna’s parents are clueless about her job as the universe’s protector. Of course, they do chalk up Yuna’s long absents form home, her power suit and the fact that people are always trying to blow up their neighborhood as is all part of her television career.
- Plot Coupons: Much of the first game revolves around finding Yuna's partners/"doubles." Then she needs to access the Dark Realm, and needs to go find a book with the proper incantation first. The second game plays it similarly straight, looking for the Eternal Princess's navigational beacons, and then the keys to get at one of said beacons.
- The Power of Friendship: Tends to come to Yuna's aid for the final battles.
- The Power of Love: Usually played straight, but horribly subverted in the second OVA when Ayako tries to convert her oldest sister to the good side and it looks like it's worked as the sister draws Ayako in for a hug... and then she plunges her hand through Ayako's heart, rips out her reactor core, strangles her, and hurls her corpse at Yuna.
- Secret Identity: Subverted a lot in the first game. Also played with thereafter in that Yuna has no idea that Lia and Polylina are the same person.
- Sexy Santa Dress: Yuri wore one at the beginning of the second OVA.
- Shopping Montage: There's one in the second OVA, when Yuna takes Ayako shopping.
- Show Within a Show: The Masked Maiden Polylina.
- Situational Sexuality: Given the Improbably Female Cast, might explain Yuna's Fangirl crush on Polylina; her fantasizing about Misaki being a Stalker with a Crush would fall into this category as well. (Her official profile does list her favorite and least favorite types of guy.)
- Tragic Monster: The sometimes-ignored finale of the Abyssal Fairy OAVs has all three of the Devil Sisters' cores pulled into one giant monster plant big enough to eat El-Line. Notably, Yuna is the only one who insists on trying to save Ayako ... when even Ayako's "ghost" wants Yuna to pull the trigger.
- Transformation Sequence: Subverted gloriously in that pretty much any character who needs to transform can do so in the time it would take to throw a punch or draw a gun. Used straighter in at least one cutscene from the third game, but it's still fast and relatively practical.
- Unstoppable Rage: Do not, under any circumstances, kill one of Yuna's friends. It doesn't matter how powerful or badass you are, she will utterly destroy you.
- Verbal Tic: Yuri's habit of ending all her sentences with -desu.
- Wave-Motion Gun: The Mirage Cannon, The Eternal Princess' main gun that has enough firepower to obliterate a planet. In Yuna 3, it becomes one of Yuna's special game attacks.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: Yuna. Almost none of her friends can touch her in this regard. She has yet to meet either of the fates usually associated with this trope.
- Worthy Opponent: This is Lia's stated reason for assisting Yuna throughout much of the first game: she wants Yuna to become a Worthy Opponent so that they can fight it out fairly, Yuna for the side of Light and Lia for Darkness. After they finally have their duel, Lia's Heel–Face Turn kicks in and they become straight allies, with Lia frequently aiding Yuna in later battles (and storylines).
