Desert Punk

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Desert Punk
砂ぼうず
(Sunabōzu)
Genre Action, Comedy, Science fiction
Manga
Author Usune Masatoshi
Publisher Flag of Japan Enterbrain
Demographic Seinen
Magazine Flag of Japan Comic Beam
Original run August 5, 1997 – ongoing
Volumes 13
TV anime
Director Takayuki Inagaki
Studio Flag of Japan GONZO
Licensor Flag of the United States FUNimation Entertainment
Network Flag of Japan Mainichi Broadcasting System
Flag of the United States Starz Edge
Flag of Brazil MTV
Original run 4 October 2004 – 30 March 2005
Episodes 24

Desert Punk (砂ぼうず Sunabōzu?) is a post-apocalyptic manga series written and illustrated by Usune Masatoshi, serialized in Enterbrain's Comic Beam since 1997. The published chapters have been collected in 13 volumes.

The manga was adapted into a 24-episode anime television series produced by Gonzo and directed by Takayuki Inagaki with character designs by Takahiro Yoshimatsu and music by Kohei Tanaka. FUNimation has licensed the series for distribution in the United States.

Contents

[edit] Plot

After an implied nuclear catastrophe, like many other countries, Japan has been reduced to a desert and the surviving humans seek out a meager living in the hot sands. Desert Punk focuses on the adventures of a desert handyman called Kanta Mizuno, nicknamed Desert Punk (Sunabōzu), due to his seemingly incredible feats of skill and daring while on the job. Throughout the series, he acquires an apprentice and makes a few friends as well as enemies.

[edit] Characters

[edit] Protagonists

Desert Punk (砂ぼうず Sunabōzu?, lit. "Sand Boy")
Voiced by: Chihiro Suzuki (Japanese), Eric Vale (English)
"Desert Punk"'s real name is Kanta Mizuno (水野 灌太 Mizuno Kanta?). He is a lecherous mercenary of the Handyman Guild, overly obsessed with big breasts and sex, but is highly professional, accomplishing his task no matter the cost. Although he is thought of as a despicable person, this has no effect on his capabilities of winning when the odds are stacked against him. His legendary reputation of 'always getting the job done' came around due to his grandiose self-advertisement wherever he goes, as well as being enhanced by his uncanny good luck and practicality, combined with a sharp wit, intellect and specialist equipment. He is 17 years old.
Desert Punk first meets his young apprentice Kosuna in episode four, when she was then apprenticed to the Shimmer Sniper, a man hoping to make a name for himself by killing 'the great Desert Punk'. He fails, and is defeated by Desert Punk, who literally leaves him stranded in the desert with nothing else but the shirt on his back.
Kosuna then deserts her master, and runs after Desert Punk into the distance. Nothing more is heard about Kanta until episode seven, whereby he is seemingly saved from certain death by Kosuna. Although reluctant at first, he manages to be persuaded by Kosuna to accept her as his apprentice after being shown a photo of a beautiful and large breasted woman in a bikini, whom Kosuna claims to be her mother. In his lustful excitement, he hopes that Kosuna will grow up to be the same, albeit selflessly devoted to Desert Punk due to his careful shaping of her personality over the years. His decision is humorously replayed over the series, especially during when he is confronted with Kosuna's initial uselessness and inabilities and has to force himself to restrain his anger in case he damages his future sex slave.
The firearm that Desert Punk uses is an old military Winchester Model 1897 shotgun that his father left him as a memento, which has been modified to hold two additional shells.
Kosuna (小砂?)
Voiced by: Chiwa Saitō (Japanese), Luci Christian (English)
Real name: Taiko Koizumi (小泉 太湖 Koizumi Taiko?). Kosuna is accepted as Kanta's apprentice after Kanta takes down Kosuna's old master who claimed to be a skilled sniper but did not live up to the hype also after showing him a picture of a large breasted woman she claims to be her mother and promising to look like that in a couple years. She's young and flat-chested (Desert Punk has repeatedly teased her about it and she hates huge chested women because of it.). Seemingly unable to complete any task by herself at first, she's surprisingly an able assistant to Kanta and honestly looks up to him, despite his pervertedness. However, she is not above taking her master down a peg when the situation calls for it.
As the series progresses, Kosuna becomes an excellent merc, skillful in desert survival and assessing emergency situations. She seems to have become an excellent marksman as well as she can sometimes hit targets that Kanta cannot, perhaps by luck. After Desert Punk is seemingly killed, she takes his place and her own apprentice. Kosuna is 14 years old. Starting in volume 13, Kosuna is the series' main character.

[edit] Machine Gun Brothers

Fuyuo Kawaguchi (川口 冬夫 Kawaguchi Fuyuo?)
Voiced by: Jiro Saito (Japanese), Jeremy Inman (English)

Fuyuo is the biggest of the three, and is seen giving orders occasionally. He, along with brothers Akio and Haruo make up the Machine Gun Brothers, and all are very protective of their sister.

Akio Kawaguchi (川口 秋夫 Kawaguchi Akio?)
Voiced by: Otoya Kawano (Japanese), Justin Cook (English)
Haruo Kawaguchi (川口 春夫 Kawaguchi Haruo?)
Voiced by: Yasuhiro Takato (Japanese), Mike McFarland (English)
Childhood friends of Desert Punk back from the days when the Punk was still stealing candy from a hard-working street vendor. Nevertheless, when there is a job to be done, these guys are definitely the tricksters of the trade. Smart-alecks to the max, they are always making fun of Desert Punk even though deep down, they respect him. They are often stuck between saving Desert Punk and finishing him off. They also have a sister, and they are extremely overprotective of her as her intelligence outranks theirs, and they have to do something to protect their manliness.
Their names are based on the seasons of winter, autumn and spring respectively, while their sister's is based on summer.

[edit] Others

Junko Asagiri (朝霧 純子 Asagiri Junko?)
Voiced by: Tomoko Kotani (Japanese), Stephanie Young (English)
A female rival of Desert Punk with extremely large breasts. She first met Desert Punk when she was chased by Mokoto Kawazu. Junko is an object of Kanta's desires, a fact that she continuously takes advantage of in order to manipulate him. She is known as the Vixen of the Desert. Towards the end of the anime series she seems to have become Desert Punk's girlfriend.
Rain Spider (雨蜘蛛 Amagumo?)
Voiced by: Norio Wakamoto (Japanese), Kenny Green (English)
A male rival of Desert Punk, and an equal match for him in combat. He is renowned as a fearsome debt collector who not only collects the money, but even the soul of his victim. While he has earned his reputation through forceful tactics, he is not against running away when the situation turns to his disadvantage. Like when he tried to steal human fecal matter from a tanker Kanta was guarding.
Natsuko Kawaguchi (川口 夏子 Kawaguchi Natsuko?)
Voiced by: Yuko Minaguchi (Japanese), Jamie Marchi (English)
Sister of the Machine Gun Brothers. Natsuko was a childhood friend of Kanta and a crybaby (according to him). She has not been in contact with Kanta and her brothers after leaving to work for the Oasis Government, where she has risen to the rank of captain. She is a proficient hand-to-hand combatant and the current idol of Kosuna.
In a case of real life mirroring art, Kosuna's seiyū, Chiwa Saito, is a good friend of fellow seiyū Natsuko Kuwatani, who shares the same name, in both kanji and romaji, as Kawaguchi.

[edit] Media

[edit] Original Manga

The manga is significantly different from the anime with a more realistic look and far more common use of black comedy as opposed to quirky and sexual humor. Many changes were made to give the anime a more light hearted feel when adapting it from the manga. The manga also has a different ending then the anime. Also notable is that the below chapters are cut or missing from the anime:

  • Chapter 3 is missing.
  • Chapter 13 is missing.
  • Chapter 14 is missing.
  • Chapter 23 is missing.
  • Chapter 33 is missing.
  • Chapter 35 is missing.
  • Chapter 36 is missing.
  • Chapter 43 to 86 are missing.

[edit] Anime adaptation

During the first half, the series has light-hearted overtones as Kanta and his life in the desert are introduced through his humorous adventures. The show adopts a more serious atmosphere during the second half of the anime as Kanta becomes embroiled in political turmoil that erupts over the Great Kanto Desert. This change in tone is reflected in a change of the opening and closing themes of the series.


[edit] Episodes

# Title (Dubbed) Original air date
01 "The Demon and The Double D's"
"Akuma to Boin" (妖怪と、ボイン) 		 October 4, 2004
The introduction of Desert Punk (Sunabōzu), where he is manipulated to fight a gang by Junko. After Desert Punk won, Junko takes all the credit and is responsible for the first failure mission of Desert Punk. 
02 "Sand and Rain (Rock, Paper, Scissors)"
"Suna to Ame" (砂と、雨) 		 October 11, 2004
Desert Punk and Rain Spider (Amagumo) are hired by the same company to collect debt of a family of an old man and his daughter. Rain Spider wanted to sell the daughter as the old man had no assets to which Desert Punk disagreed and they pit themselves in a duel for it. 
03 "Tank and Machine Gun (Fire Dragon Kong)"
"Sensha to Mashingan" (戦車と、マシンガン) 		 October 18, 2004
Junko asks for help of Desert Punk and the Machine Gun Brothers to assist her in a machine. Little did Desert Punk know she upset a man with a tank and has to destroy it to survive the day. 
04 "Sniping and Footsteps (An Ace in the Sand)"
"Sogeki to Ashioto" (狙撃と、足音) 		 October 25, 2004
A sniper tries to hunt Desert Punk considering the reputation he would gather defeating the great desert demon. After the battle is won by Desert Punk, the assistant (Kosuna) of the sniper ditches her old master to join Desert Punk, but is declined. 
05 "Water Well and Trap (The Price of Water)"
"Ido to Wana" (井戸と、罠) 		 November 2, 2004
A village that expects that is soon to have source of water hires Desert Punk to defend the village against expected raiders. In the meantime, Desert Punk lowers the villagers morale by overconsuming their food and water. 
06 "Rocket and Wandering (Wandering Lust)"
"Roketto to Hōrō" (ロケットと、放浪) 		 November 9, 2004
Desert Punk defeats the raiders, but is taken outside of the village while sleeping and left on his own with little food and water. He then tries to return to the village for payment but finds himself on the verge of death, only to be saved by the Machine Gun Brothers. 
07 "Master and Disciple (Age Before Beauty)"
"Shishō to Deshi" (師匠と、弟子) 		 November 16, 2004
Taiko a.k.a Kosuna convinces Sunabōzu to make her his disciple. 
08 "The Dog-girl and Rock (A Dog in Heat)"
"Inuonna to Iwa" (犬女と、岩) 		 November 23, 2004
Desert Punk crushes the cursed seal of the dog woman. 
09 "Life and Game (All That Glitters)"
"Jinsei to Gēmu" (人生と、ゲーム) 		 November 30, 2004
Desert Punk and Kosuna are convinced by Junko to work for an eccentric millionaire to find a lost treasure. When they find it, they are attacked by a robot guardian. 
10 "Keeper and Treasure-seeker (A Little Bit of Wisdom)"
"Bannin to Takara Sagashinin" (番人と、宝探し人) 		 December 7, 2004
Continuing from episode 9, Junko betrays Desert Punk and the millionaire in hopes of keeping the treasure to herself. Desert Punk discovers that the robot guardian is really what the treasure hunter is after, and Kosuna gets revenge on Junko for betrayal. 
11 "Sin and Punishment (Compromising Positions)"
"Tsumi to Batsu" (罪と、罰) 		 December 14, 2004
Desert Punk tries to make Junko his wife and have his children. 
12 "Girl and Rescue (A Change of Heart)"
"Shōjo to Kyūshutsu" (少女と、救出) 		 December 21, 2004
Desert Punk and Kosuna rescue a kidnapped daughter of a government minister. 
13 "Ideals and Reality (Opposites Collide)"
"Risō to Genjitsu" (理想と、現実) 		 December 28, 2004
Desert Punk meets an idealistic young man trained as an elite soldier of the government. Desert Punk finds him allergic as trouble starts to engulf him being with the new guy. At the end, he sells the soldier to a homo for the sake of having twisted fun. 
14 "Fine Sand and Full Auto (Kosuna - Fully Automatic)"
"Kosuna to Furuōto" (小砂と、フルオート) 		 January 17, 2005
Kosuna gets a new weapon to be stronger. 
15 "Sibling and Childhood Friend (The Girl Next Door)"
"Kyōdai to Osanajimi" (兄弟と、幼なじみ) 		 January 11, 2005
Desert Punk and the Machine Gun Brothers are hired to protect a "fertilizer" rig, but there is more going then a simply protection job. 
16 "Curry and Rice (A Load Of...)"
"Karē to Raisu" (カレーと、ライス) 		 January 18, 2005
Continuing from Episode 15, things have gone bad and now the rig has been captured by Rain Spider, so its up to Desert Punk to save the rig. 
17 "Junko and Pursuer (Perv in Pursuit)"
"Junko to Tsuisekisha" (純子と、追跡者) 		 January 25, 2005
Junko comes to Desert Punk for help after Tek a former squeeze in a corporate spying job is looking to force her into marriage. 
18 "Discouragement and Despair (Too Close For Comfort)"
"Zasetsu to Zetsubō" (挫折と、絶望) 		 February 1, 2005
Continuing from Episode 17, Junko has been captured and Tek's former colleages have arrived. 
19 "Up and Down (Scratching the Surface)"
"Ue to Shita" (上と、下) 		 February 8, 2005
Desert Punk has been hired in what is thought to be a search for a missing person, however he finds himself soon dragged into something he did not expect. 
20 "Reverse and Convenience (A Raw Deal)"
"Ura to Ben" (裏と、便) 		 February 15, 2005
Dragged into Kaizuka's organization to overthorw the Oasis Government, Desert Punk and Kosuna must decide on their next move. The end result, however, may not bode well for Punk, though. 
21 "Master and Disciple part 2 (Successor of the Desert)"
"Shishō to Deshi part II" (師匠と、弟子partⅡ) 		 February 22, 2005
With Desert Punk seemingly dead, Kosuna takes his place as Desert Punk II with her own apprentice, Mitsuru. However, transitioning from apprentice to master is a bit harder than expected. 
22 "Rain and Sea (Hidden Agendas)"
"Ame to Umi" (雨と、海) 		 March 1, 2005
Kosuna is ordered to protect a laboratory by Natsuko, but what is the real incentive behind this? Once she returns home, Kosuna finds her old friend Matsu and his family dead as she watches their home engulfed in flames. 
23 "Suspicion and Ambition (Voices in the Wind)"
"Giwaku to Yabō" (疑惑と、野望) 		 March 21, 2005
Kosuna mourns the loss of Matsu and ponders on her current situation. Meanwhile,Underground Mercenaries begin to take action with their cause, but they are interrupted by none other than Junko and a surprise guest: Kanta. 
24 "Taiko and Kanta (The Demon Revealed)"
"Taiko to Kanta" (太湖と、灌太) 		 March 28, 2005
With the thought of Kanta being dead quickly erased from her mind, Kosuna sets out to prove herself as a true mercenary one last time against her old master. Kanta reveals that Kaizuka may not be all that he seems to be, and the Underground Mercenaries are destroyed. Kosuna chooses to forget about her past and Desert Punk, knowing that is the only way she can truly become Kanto Desert's greatest power babe. 

[edit] Music

Opening theme songs
  1. "Sand Mission" by Zetki (episodes 1–12)
  2. "Destiny of the Desert" by Yuka (episodes 13–24)
Ending theme songs
  1. "Sunabōzu Ekaki Uta" ("How to Draw Sunabōzu") by Hideaki Takatori (episodes 1–12)
  2. "Shinkirō" ("Mirage") by Yuka (episodes 13–23)
  3. "Sand Mission" by Zetki (episode 24)
Original soundtracks

[edit] External links