Tsukihime, Lunar Legend

Tsukihime, Lunar Legend
	Arcueid Brunestud
Genre	Action, Mystery, Fantasy
Video game
Tsukihime
Developer	TYPE-MOON
Publisher	TYPE-MOON
Genre	Visual novel, Eroge
Platform	PC
Anime
Directed by	Katsushi Sakurabi
Music by	Toshiyuki Omori
Studio	J.C. Staff
Manga
Written by	Sasaki Shonen
Published by	Media Works ; DrMaster

This article is about the anime and manga series. For the game on which the anime was based, see Tsukihime.

Tsukihime, Lunar Legend (真月譚月姫, Shingetsutan Tsukihime) is a 12-episode Japanese anime television series, produced by TYPE-MOON and J.C. Staff, and adapted from TYPE-MOON's highly successful visual novel, Tsukihime. Originally broadcast from October 9 to December 25, 2003, it has been broadcast in Japan by TBS, BS-i, and the anime television network Animax, who has also broadcast the series across its respective networks worldwide, including Southeast Asia, East Asia, South Asia, South America and other regions, under the title Lunar Legend Tsukihime. It has been translated into English, Portuguese, Spanish, Chinese and in numerous other languages by Animax, and is licensed for American distribution by Geneon, who have released it in the region under the title Tsukihime, Lunar Legend. The anime also has a subtitle tagline: "Blue Blue Glass Moon Under the Crimson Air".

Plot summary

Template:Spoiler Tsukihime, Lunar Legend is the story of Shiki Tohno, a prodigious 17-year old high school student, with a mysterious and gifted ability to see "lifelines", which, when cut, will destroy them. A product of a fatal, life-threatening injury suffered in his childhood, this unique, yet traumatizing ability of Shiki's is shielded by a pair of special glasses, a childhood gift from a mysterious woman, Aoko Aozaki, which help him in not seeing the lifelines and to live a relatively peaceful and normal life.

After spending years away from his household, the Tohno mansion, from where he was sent, as a result of the fatal injury he had suffered in his childhood and the ill health that followed afterwards, to live with relatives of the Tohno family, the Arimas, for the past eight years, Shiki moves back to the Tohno mansion, following the death of his late father, Makihisa, to live with his younger sister, Akiha, who has been given responsibility of being the Tohno family's new matriarch.

On the day of Shiki's reunion with his sister, Shiki leaves the Arima household and heads for school, where he is extremely surprised to be cheerily greeted by Ciel, a mysterious girl who Shiki himself does not know, but who seems to know him and his friends very well. While talking with his best friends, the cheerful Arihiko Inui and Satsuki Yumitsuka, Shiki learns of a spate of horrific murders to recently rock their city, in which the blood of the victims were sucked out, in a manner which Arihiko suspects to be done by vampires.

Soon, while walking from school to move back to the Tohno household, Shiki sees a beautiful woman walking past, and is drawn, by an urge so sudden and mysterious that even Shiki is unable to fathom later on, to kill her, slicing her into bloody pieces with his knife, Nanatsuya. The sudden impact of this attack results in Shiki fainting, and he wakes, later on, in the Tohno household, to where he was taken, while still unconscious, by one of the two maids, Kohaku. He is reunited with his younger sister, Akiha, and is unable to come to terms with what had happened just moments ago, wondering whether it was all just a horrific nightmare.

Shiki's hope that it was a nightmare was dampened, however, when the next day, while walking to school and visiting the same park in which the murder had occurred the day earlier, the woman appears in front of him, as if nothing had happened to her, demanding retribution for Shiki's actions. He learns that the mysterious woman is Arcueid Brunestud, princess of the Shinso, the True Ancestors of the Vampires, who do not require the craving of blood, and who acts as their executioner, to terminate rogue vampires who suck blood out of human beings. Arcueid enlists Shiki to fight alongside her to defeat Nero Chaos, the rogue vampire who is the cause of all of the horrific murders that are taking place all around the city.

As the story progresses, Shiki gradually discovers his mysterious past, and uncovers the tragic circumstances behind his fatal childhood accident, the cause of his special ability, and grows to love Arcueid, fighting to protect her from Nero and the rogue vampires.

Characters

Main characters

Shiki Tohno (遠野志貴 Tōno Shiki), voiced by Kenichi Suzumura in the original Japanese version and Steve Cannon in the English version

A teenaged high school student, who possesses an unique, yet traumatizing ability in seeing "life-lines" on all sorts of species and animals, which, if cut, will vanquish and destroy them, a product of a fatal and traumatazing injury he had suffered in his childhood. He was given a pair of special glasses by a mysterious woman, Aoko Aozaki, which shield him from seeing the life-lines, and who helps him to control his ability, teaching him to use it one day in the future to protect someone precious in his life. As he unites with Arcueid to defeat Roa, he comes to love and care for her, wielding the blade of his special knife, Nanatsuya, to protect her from her enemies and the rogue vampires.

Arcueid Brunestud, voiced by Hitomi Nabatame in the original Japanese version and Michelle Ruff in the English version

The White Princess of the Shinso, the True Ancestors, Arcueid lived and slept a pure life, but after Roa, the magician, entices her to drink blood hidden with a white rose, she falls from her castle and seals herself away, spending the past 800 years hunting Roa's shadows, living in an endless cycle of awaking from a deep slumber, executing Roa's incarnations and the rogue vampires, and then going back to her slumber, never knowing any connection with anyone. Blonde, with scarlet eyes, she grows to love Shiki and together with him, fights to defeat the serpent, Roa.

Ciel, voiced by Fumiko Orikasa in the original Japanese version and Wendee Lee in the English version

A mysterious girl, who is apparently one year senior to Shiki in his high school, Ciel is the only member of the Japanese tea ceremony club. She is actually a vampire hunter for the Roman Catholic Church and finds Arcueid detestable (but is torn, because she likes Shiki). Her body was used in Roa's last incarnation, and until Roa dies, she cannot.

Akiha Tohno (遠野秋葉 Tōno Akiha), voiced by Shizuka Ito in the original Japanese version and Julie Anne Taylor in the English version

Shiki's beautiful younger sister and the new head of the Tohno household. She is very prim and proper and carries a grace and nobility about her. As the story progresses, the viewer discovers that she has had mysterious powers since childhood.

Hisui (琥珀), voiced by Yumi Kakazu in the original Japanese version and Kate Davis in the English version, and Kohaku (琥珀), Voiced by Kana Ueda in the original Japanese version and Leah Allen in the English version

The only two maids in the Tohno mansion. They are twin sisters but act very differently. Hisui seems to be very cold and emotionless while Kohaku is always smiling and cheerful. They even wear different dress; Hisui wears a western maid uniform while Kohaku wears a Japanese kimono.

Nrvnqsr Chaos, voiced by Kenta Miyake in the original Japanese version and Taylor Henry in the English version

Pronounced as "Nero", this vampire is known as the tenth of the twenty-seven Ancestors of Dead Apostles, the highest in rank of the vampires in Tsukihime. Has 666 beasts on his body, from deers and wolves to mythological creatures like unicorns. Nrvnqsr is a word play: If you add each letter in the Hebrew numbering system, it becomes 666. Shiki fights him along with Arcueid by the first third part of the story.

Michael Roa Valdamjong, voiced by Hiroyuki Yoshino in the original Japanese version and Todd Crump in the English version

Known simply as Roa. Not much is known about Roa at the start of the series, only that he is a vampire on a killing spree. Later on, Shiki discovers that the modern incarnation of him was his ex-stepbrother who had the same name as him.

Minor characters

Aoko Aozaki (蒼崎青子 Aozaki Aoko) voiced by Akiko Kimura in the original Japanese version and Mia Bradly in the English version

A mysterious red-haired woman who always carries a suitcase. She met with Shiki eight years prior to the start of the series, and to this day, is the only person he will call "Teacher". She gave Shiki a pair of glasses, the Mystic Eyes Killer, that block out the life lines and allow him to live a normal life.

Arihiko Inui (乾有彦 Inui Arihiko) , voiced by Takahiro Sakurai in the original Japanese version and David Lelyveld in the English version

Shiki's classmate and best friend. His parents died when he was young.

Makihisa Tohno (遠野槙久 Tōno Makihisa)

The patriarch of the Tohno family. Dies just prior to the events of Tsukihime.

Satsuki Yumizuka (弓塚さつき Yumizuka Satsuki) , voiced by Kaori Tanaka in the original Japanese version and Carrie Savage in the English version

Shiki's classmate, who secretly has a crush on him.

Episodes

Episode	English Title	Japanese Title
1	Reversal Impulse	反転衝動
2	Black Beast	黒い獣
3	Mystic Eyes of Death Perception	直死の魔眼
4	Garden of a Cradle	揺籠の庭
5	A Bow of the Sky	空の弓
6	White Dream	白い夢
7	Blue Sin Mark	蒼い咎跡
8	Origami	檻髪
9	Death	死
10	Vermilion Crimson Moon	朱の紅月
11	Misfortunate Night	凶の夜
12	Lunar World	月世界

Music

The music for Shingetsutan Tsukihime was conducted by Toshiyuki Omori and has been released in three soundtracks, The Moonlit Memoirs - Part One, The Moonlit Memoirs - Part Two, both consisting of the OST featured in the series, as well as Rinne No Hate Ni, a single consisting of the ending theme featured in the series, performed by Fumiko Orikasa.

External links

Official sites

Anime Profiles

Fan sites