Saint Seiya

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This article or section has multiple issues. Please help improve the article or discuss these issues on the talk page.
It has been suggested that Saint Seiya (films), Saint Seiya: Next Dimension, Saint Seiya Episode.G, Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas, Saint Seiya: The Movie, Saint Seiya: The Heated Battle of the Gods and Saint Seiya: Legend of Crimson Youth be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)
"Seiya" redirects here. For the title character, see Pegasus Seiya. For Kou Seiya from Sailor Moon, see Sailor Starlights.
Saint Seiya

Cover of Japanese version of Saint Seiya volume 1
聖闘士星矢
(Saint Seiya)
Genre Mythology, Fantasy
Manga
Author Masami Kurumada
Publisher Flag of Japan Shueisha
English publisher Flag of Canada Flag of the United States VIZ Media
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Flag of Japan Shōnen Jump
Original run January 1986 – December 1990
Volumes 28
TV anime
Director Kōzō Morishita
Kazuhito Kikuchi
Studio Toei Animation
Network Flag of Japan TV Asahi
Original run October 11, 1986 – April 1, 1989
Episodes 114
Animated film: Legend of the Golden Apple
Director Kozo Morishita
Composer Seiji Yokoyama
Studio Toei Animation
Released July 18, 1987
Runtime 45 minutes
Animated film: The Heated Battle of the Gods
Director Shigeyasu Yamauchi
Composer Seiji Yokoyama
Studio Toei Animation
Released March 12, 1988
Runtime 45 minutes
Animated film: Legend of Crimson Youth
Director Shigeyasu Yamauchi
Composer Seiji Yokoyama
Studio Toei Animation
Released July 23, 1988
Runtime 71 minutes
Animated film: Warriors of the Final Holy Battle
Director Masayuki Akehi
Composer Seiji Yokoyama
Studio Toei Animation
Released March 18, 1989
Runtime 44 minutes
Novel: Saint Seiya – Gigantomachia
Author Tatsuya Hamazaki
Publisher Flag of Japan Jump J Books
Demographic Shōnen
Published August 23, 2002 – December 16, 2002
Volumes 2
Manga: Saint Seiya Episode.G
Author Megumu Okada
Publisher Flag of Japan Akita Shoten
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Flag of Japan Champion RED
Original run December 19, 2002 – ongoing
Volumes 14 volumes with 68 chapters
OVA: Hades - Chapter Sanctuary
Director Shigeyasu Yamauchi
Studio Toei Animation
Episodes 13
Released 2003
Animated film: Heaven Chapter ~ Overture
Director Shigeyasu Yamauchi
Composer Seiji Yokoyama
Studio Toei Animation
Released February 14, 2004
Runtime 80 minutes
Manga: Saint Seiya – Next Dimension
Author Masami Kurumada
Publisher Flag of Japan Akita Shoten
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Flag of Japan Shōnen Champion
Original run April 27, 2006 – ongoing
Volumes None, with 14 chapters
Manga: Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas
Author Shiori Teshirogi
Publisher Flag of Japan Akita Shoten
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Flag of Japan Shōnen Champion
Original run August 24, 2006 – ongoing
Volumes 8 volumes with 78 of 82 chapters
OVA: Hades - Chapter Inferno - 1st part
Director Tomoharu Katsumata
Studio Toei Animation
Episodes 6
Released 2006
OVA: Hades - Chapter Inferno - 2nd part
Studio Toei Animation
Episodes 6
Released 2007
OVA: Hades - Chapter Elysion
Director Tomoharu Katsumata
Episodes 6
Released 2008

Saint Seiya (聖闘士星矢 Seinto Seiya?), also known as Knights of the Zodiac, is a manga series authored by Masami Kurumada, and later adapted to anime. The story follows five mystical warriors called the "Saints" (or "Knights"; the kanji is properly read as sei-tōshi "holy fighter" but the furigana has it pronounced "saint") who have adopted various constellations as their guardian symbols. The anime series won the Animage Anime Grand Prix prize in 1987, but was cancelled in 1989 due to low ratings of the manga and anime.[citation needed] In 2002 Toei produced Saint Seiya: Hades, which continues adapting the manga story arcs that remained pending to be adapted to animation when the anime was canceled in 1989.

Contents

[edit] Plot

Seven years before the events at the focus of the series, one hundred orphans from Japan are sent to different parts of the world to become a saint of Athena. The story focuses on one of these orphans called Seiya. He is sent to the Sanctuary in Greece to become the Pegasus bronze saint.

After seven years Seiya becomes the Pegasus saint and returns to Japan to find his older sister. Because his sister disappeared the same day Seiya went to the Sanctuary, Saori Kido, the granddaughter of the person who sent all orphans to train but died a few years ago, makes a deal with him to go to fight in a tournament called the Galaxian Wars where the orphans who survived and became bronze saints must fight to win the most powerful cloth: The Sagittarius gold cloth. If Seiya goes to compete there, Saori would start a search to find the sister of Seiya.

During the series the Seiya becomes the partner and friend of the other bronze saints: Shun, Shiryu, Ikki, and Hyoga. As the myth of the saints they must fight together to protect the reincarnation of Athena from any danger.

[edit] Characters

Main article: List of characters in Saint Seiya

The names of most of the characters of Saint Seiya are added the name of their constellations when they become saints. For example, the main character, Seiya starts calling himself Pegasus Seiya when he becomes a saint and he is in a fight. The attacks of the characters also hold a connection with their constellations.

Although in the first episode of the series the only main character is Pegasus Seiya, as the plot goes on many new characters appear.

[edit] Terminology

[edit] Cosmo

Saints' power originated from the understanding of the "Cosmo". Everything in the universe is made up of matter (atoms). The Saints take this knowledge to another level: humans are made of atoms, thus humans should be able to use the mysterious forces behind the atoms.

Each atom within a human body resembles a small solar system, and since the human body consists of billions of atoms, the totality forms a "small Cosmo" or a "small Universe". Each person's Cosmo has its own unique signature. If permission is granted, one can also draw another's Cosmo to amplify one's own Cosmo. The power of the Cosmo can also be channeled through the Saints' Cloths, armors given by gods to mortals.

[edit] Body armor

 This article or section may contain an excessive amount of information with limited interest or intricate details.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. (April 2008)

In Saint Seiya, most characters are warriors who wear different types of "cloth" (armor). The different cloths are fashioned by smiths working for the competing Gods, to be used by their own warriors to defend themselves or attempt to conquer the domain of other gods (more frequently, a god will attempt to seize the human world, which is the possession of Athena). Of note is the fact that none of the actual makers of cloth is ever depicted, although it is explained that Mū (and by inference, Shion and Kiki) are descendants of the tribe who forged Athena's Saints' cloth. It is said that only Mu is capable of repairing cloth.

However, the main attributes of all cloth are highly similar: they are stronger than normal cloth made of regular metals, and, if the wearer has awakened their cosmos, it serves to amplify the wearers' defense, several times over. Below, the main cloth types and their particulars:

[edit] Athena's Cloths

Characteristics: Athena's Cloths were fashioned by a lost tribe of smiths, and were actually the second group of Cloths created (as far as it is presently known). They were created to protect Athena's Saints in her first confrontation with Poseidon. Each of Athena's Cloth represents a constellation. Also, Athena represents justice and righteousness, and as such, if a Saint acts in a severely undignified manner, his Cloth will abandon him (as the Cancer Gold Cloth abandoned Deathmask due to his behavior).

Many Cloths lie "dead" in the "Cloth Cemetery" which is located in the mountains of Jamir. These dead Clothes were left there by perished Saints who wanted to reach the Aries Saint, Mu, so that he could repair their Cloths. The harsh journey before reaching Mu proved dangerous, or even fatal, for most Saints. A theory in the Saint Seiya taizen states that it was actually Mu who moved there because the previous battle with Hades took place there and left all the damaged cloths.

If a cloth has been damaged it can be repaired inside its respective "Box of Pandora". However only small damages can be repaired, otherwise one would have to seek out a person who knows how to repair them thoroughly. When a cloth is damaged to pieces along with its owner dead, the cloth will revert to a less powerful state when revived and repaired. There's three different kinds of boxes, 12 Gold for the Gold Cloths, 24 Silver for the Silver Cloths and 48 Stone for the Bronze Cloths. The 48 in Stone have due to their lower power status, a handle with a chain that opens the box whereas the others are relied on the owners cosmo to be opened.

In the Saint Seiya universe, there are 88 Cloths, each representing one of the 88 constellations. They are divided into 3 categories, from the weakest to the strongest: 48 Bronze Cloths, 24 Silver Cloths, and 12 Gold Cloths. The databook named "Cosmo Special" explains that there are also 4 Cloths which are still unaccounted for. However, in the Episode G manga and on some action-figures packaging, it is said that there are 52 Bronze Cloths. The theory is that 4 cloths became God Cloths, in according to Hypnos' statement that there haven't been any since mythological times. Vol. 24 of the manga positions Seiya, Shiryu, Hyoga and Shun under the Argo Navis constellation, which may indicate that the 4 missing Cloths are of the four Argo Navis constellations: Vela, Pyxis, Carina and Puppis. In the Saint Seiya Encyclopedia, it says that the Graad foundation started piecing together some of the Cloths from the "Cloth Graveyard". And thus we got to see the Bronze Caelum cloth and the Sculptor Cloth whose owners has the duty of repairing cloths with. The Silver Cup (Crater) Cloth which owner has the duty of medic. And lastly the Silver Altar (Ara) Cloth, which owner has the duty of following the Pope around like a shadow and be his bodyguard.

  • Bronze Cloths: Granted to the Bronze Saints, the lowest class of Athena's Saints. They are of various colors, and are the weakest in terms of protectiveness. They freeze at minus 150°C. 12 bronze cloths have been confirmed with around 30 unconfirmed demised cloths.
  • Silver Cloths: Granted to the Silver Saints, the middle class of Athena's Saints. They are all Silver colored, though in the anime they are more multi colored. They freeze at minus 200°C. 21 Silver cloths has been confirmed so far.
  • Gold Cloths: Granted to the highest class of Athena's Saints, the 12 Gold Saints, said to be the most powerful warriors of all the Sanctuary. They represent the 12 Zodiac constellations. Distinctive features include the fact that they protect most of the body (unlike many Silver and most Bronze Cloths), and that they are practically indestructible, even when facing the power of a god (except when they were severely damaged or their energy drained). They freeze at absolute zero (−273.15 °C).
  • God Cloths: The most powerful Cloths. They only appeared in the last chapters of the manga. They aren't commonly used by Saints, and appear only seldom and in certain conditions. In this particular case, they were Bronze Cloths, enhanced by a great amount of Athena's blood and Cosmo. Thus they became God Cloths, nearly as powerful as the armors of the gods (Kamui) themselves.

All cloths wear off as a result of battles, and must be repaired by a master smith like Mu (who is the only Cloth smith of his generation). It is possible for a Cloth to slowly restore itself, unless it "dies", that is, if it is completely destroyed or receives too much damage. If that happens, it is impossible to repair unless restored using a great amount of the Saint's blood. However Ikki's Phoenix Cloth can revive itself at a much greater rate, even if it has been reduced to dust (a power that comes from the Phoenix, a mythical bird that could revive from its own ashes).

A Cloth can evolve when the Saint's cosmo increases or under other circumstances. The Bronze Cloths of Seiya, Shun, Ikki, Shiryu and Hyoga were almost destroyed during the Sanctuary arc, but were revived with the blood of the Gold Saints still alive after the battles. However, these Bronze Cloths, due to the "golden" blood with which they were regenerated, acquired different characteristics, becoming as powerful as Gold Cloths, provided a better protection, and even exhibited the shine of a Gold Cloth when the wearer's Cosmo was increased. Indeed, during the Poseidon Saga, the 5 Bronze Cloths actually "became" Gold Cloths temporarily; this effect is seen again at the start of the Hades conflict in the Hades Chapter OVA. In the Hades arc, the Bronze Cloths became even more powerful upon receiving a drop of Athena's blood (in the case of Pegasus and Cygnus, they spawned wings later on) and at the end of the story they became almost divine (named God Cloths), thanks to a few drops of Athena's blood and Cosmo.

[edit] Other armors

In addition to the cloths used by the servants of Athena, there are many armors used by other characters in the series, mostly antagonists.

  • Odin's God Robes are used by Odin's warriors. Each robe has a corresponding star in the constellation Ursa Major, and a design inspired by a piece of Norse Mythology, such as the serpent of Midgard Jörmungandr or Sleipnir, Odin's Horse. Odin himself also possesses an armor, along with the legendary sword Balmung
  • Poseidon's Scales are worn by Poseidon's Mariners. They are constructed from Orichalcum, the legendary metal from the sunken city of Atlantis, and inspired by various mythical beasts.
  • Hades' Surplices are the armor of the 108 Spectres, Hades' warriors. They are inspired by hellish myths, such as Cerberus. Hades himself, Thanatos, and the 6 resurrected gold saints also wear Surplices.
  • Titans' Soma are armors created by the goddess Gaia, and specific to the Saint Seiya:Episode G manga. The titan Pontus possesses an especially powerful soma, known as the Ars Magna.
  • Giant's Adamas are gem-based armors worn by the Giants. Their name comes from the Greek adamas, meaning unbreakable.
  • Olympian Kamui are the most powerful armor in the series, used by the gods of Olympus. They are only mentioned, never brought into battle in the series.
  • Black Cloths are corruptions of Athena's cloths, created by rebel alchemists. They are used by fallen saints, who misused their power and were exiled to Death Queen Island.
  • Shadow Cloth In the first Saint Seiya videogame on the NES, as a special boss you could meet a person in a shadow cloth. This cloth was invented by a fan named Onō Toshiya, who won design contest held by Shueisha.
  • Steel Cloths Found only in the anime, the Sky, Sea, and Land Cloths are three high-technology cloths made by a scientist (Dr. Asamori) of the Grado Foundation by order of Mitsumasa Kido. Even though these Cloths were not real so to speak, they were inspired by existing constellations. They and their owner vanished from the series when the Bronze Saints arrived at the Sanctuary at the beginning of the 12 Temples saga.

[edit] Reception

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The original manga series of twenty-eight volumes have sold over 25 million copies in Japan as of 2007.[1] When TV Asahi, a television network in Japan, conducted a nation-wide survey for the one hundred most popular animated television series, Saint Seiya anime came in twenty-fifth place.[2]

[edit] Media

[edit] Manga

Main article: List of Saint Seiya chapters

The first Saint Seiya manga was written and illustrated by Masami Kurumada and was published by Shueisha in the magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from January 1986 to December 1990 and collected in 28 tankōbon volumes. The series has three main parts: Sanctuary (volumes 1 to 13), Poseidon (volumes 14 to 18), and Hades (volumes 19 to 28). Volume 13 also contains a separate short story called "Blue Warriors". The series is licensed in English in North America by VIZ Media.[3]

In addition to the original tankōbon volumes listed below, the series has been reissued four times. The first reissue as 15 bunkoban volumes in 1996 is called the "Deluxe Version". The bunkobon edition was reissued in 2001 with additional color images as the "Library Version". The series was rereleased in 2003 in 19 volumes with Setteis from the anime adaptation, called the "Remix Version". The fourth reissue, in 22 volumes called the "Complete Version", contains additional colored pages as well as colored armor schematics. In addition, the "Remix Version" was republished at the end of 2007 to coincide with the broadcast of Chapter Elysion of the anime.[4]

[edit] Prequels

Main articles: Saint Seiya: Next Dimension, Saint Seiya Episode.G, and Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas

During 2002, after the success of the first ovas of the Hades Arc a new manga called Saint Seiya Episode.G started being serialized. The story is situated 7 years before the events at the beginning of the original Saint Seiya Manga, and 6 years after the death of the Gold Saint Sagittarius Aiolos making Leo Aiolia the main character. This new manga series, is written and drawn by Megumu Okada, under authorization of Masami Kurumada.[5]

Also, during 2006 two new manga series started being published. These two manga the story of the previous Holy War, taking place in the 18th century, 250 years before the original series, in the Saint Seiya universe. The story centers on the relation between Tenma, the Pegasus Saint and his beloved friend, Alone, who would eventually become his greatest enemy, Hades. The first one named Saint Seiya: Next Dimension is drawn and written by Masami Kurumada but at irregular dates.[6] The second one, Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas is written and drawn by Shiori Teshirogi, under authorization of Masami Kurumada.[7]

[edit] Anime

See also: List of Saint Seiya episodes

The anime is based on the manga series of the same title (above). The animation series by Toei Animation first premiered in Japan's TV Asahi on October 11, 1986. Masami Kurumada said that he doesn't like the anime, but agreed to transfer the manga to anime because of a tradition of making an anime from every manga.[citation needed]

The first anime series was produced by Toei Animation from 1986 to 1989. It was directed first by Kōzō Morishita (episodes 1 to 73) and then by Kazuhito Kikuchi (episodes 74 to 114). The character designers were Shingo Araki and Michi Himeno, and Seiji Yokoyama composed the soundtracks. The chief script writers were Takao Koyama and Yoshiyuki Suga.[8] It has three main parts: Sanctuary (episodes 1 to 73), Asgard (74 to 99), and Poseidon (100 to 114). The Asgard arc does not exist in the manga and was made directly for the anime.

[edit] Novel

On November 9, 1988, Shōnen Jump released a Jump Gold Selection Anime Special 2, written by Takao Koyama, with Illustrations by series' Animation Character Designers Shingo Araki & Michi Himeno. This is just a detailed flash back to the saint of Gemini Saga's Assassination attempt to the Newborn Athena.

There is also a series of two novels written by Tatsuya Hamazaki with the name of Saint Seiya –Gigantomachia published by Jump J Books. The first novel was released in Japan in August 23, 2002,[9] while the second was released in December 16, 2002.[10]

[edit] OVAs

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There are a series of OVAs that cover the last arc of the manga that was not adapted into the anime. The first 13 episodes of were broadcasted on Animax (a Japanese pay-per-view channel) from November, 2002 to April, 2003, and then released on DVD during the year 2003. These 13 episodes were named Hades - Chapter Sanctuary (Meiō Hades Jūni-Kyū Hen). This OVA series was directed by Shigeyasu Yamauchi, still with character designs by Shingo Araki and Michi Himeno, scripts adapted from the manga this time by Michiko Yokote, and soundtrack entirely taken from Yokoyama's work on the previous TV series.[11]

Two years after the first part of the Hades saga, Chapter Sanctuary, a second part was produced in 2005. This second chapter was named Hades - Chapter Inferno Part 1 (Meiō Hades Meikai Hen Zenshō) and consists of six episodes. However, most of the original seiyū have not reprised their roles. Hideyuki Tanaka, however, reprises his role as the narrator. Hirotaka Suzuoki, the original voice actor of Dragon Shiryu, passed away on August 6, 2006 due to lung cancer.[12]

Toei Animation released on the same Animax channel the first two OVAs on December 17, 2005, followed by the next two on January 21, 2006. The last pair were released on February 18, 2006. Shortly after their TV broadcasting, (for 2 months) they were released on DVD in 2006. This short OVA series was directed by Tomoharu Katsumata but with the same other staff. Toei Animation officially announces the news on its website on July 18, 2006. Then, Hades - Chapter Inferno Part 2, which contains 6 episodes in total.[13]

As of June 28, Masami Kurumada' announced on his personal blog that production of the Elysion chapter has begun. It was thought that the release was to be on mid December 2007 as of the last two years with the performance of the two Inferno chapters (Zensho and Kosho) but no preview or released images were available as of the end of October.[14]

In November 2007, Toei Animation announced that the official release of the Elysion Chapter will be on March 2008 and not December 2007 as originally planned[15]

[edit] Movies

Main article: Saint Seiya (films)

A fifth movie came out in Japanese theaters in 2004, Heaven Chapter - Overture (Tenkai-hen Josō), which is supposed to follow the regular chronology right after the end of the manga (which has not been entirely adapted to anime yet) as a prologue to a new chapter. Toei Animation first announced that this new chapter would be a new animated series, but later Kurumada stated that he wanted the movie to be part of a trilogy, but unfortunately Masami Kurumada cancelled the whole project since Toei Animation had diverted from his original script and was unhappy with the result. Thus the conclusion of the heaven chapter will only be revealed when Kurumada starts on the manga again.

During Tōru Furuya's July 2007 visit to AnimeCon in Brazil, he revealed what Kurumada's wishes for the series are during a press conference. After Pegasus Seiya eventually defeats Zeus, he is to go on and face Chronos the titan of Time. Toru was not allowed to say anything more.[citation needed]

[edit] Musical

In August 1991 a musical sponsored by Bandai, was performed at the Aoyama theater in Tokyo, Japan. The story recalls the Sanctuary and Poseidon chapter. Cast included members of SMAP as the 5 bronze saints and Poseidon. Mu, Aiolia and Milo were portrayed by members of another band Tokio.[citation needed]

[edit] Other

In the mid-80's a line of Saint Seiya Action figures were produced by Bandai, featuring most of the series characters. The toy line was a huge success inside of Japan but also in some other countries like Hong-Kong, France, Spain, Brazil and Mexico[citation needed]. Those figures have now acquired collector status and the Japanese originals are very sought for, some like Odin's God Cloth or Kraken Isaac having a very high value.[citation needed]

In 2003, Bandai created a new line of figures called Cloth Myth, which also sell very well internationally.[citation needed] As for October 2006, there are 36 figures available and Bandai continues releasing one figure per month.[citation needed]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Comipress News article on "The Rise and Fall of Weekly Shōnen Jump". comipress.com (2007-05-06). Retrieved on 2007-02-14.
  2. ^ Japan's Favorite TV Anime. Anime News Network (2006-10-13). Retrieved on 2008-02-13.
  3. ^ Saint Seiya (manga). Anime News Network. Retrieved on 2008-02-04.
  4. ^ Shueisha official website (Japanese). Shueisha. Retrieved on 2008-02-04.
  5. ^ Saint Seiya Episode.G (manga). Anime News Network. Retrieved on 2008-05-10.
  6. ^ Saint Seiya: Next Dimension - The Myth of Hades (manga). Anime News Network. Retrieved on 2008-05-10.
  7. ^ Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas - Meiō Shinwa (manga). Anime News Network. Retrieved on 2008-05-10.
  8. ^ Saint Seiya (TV). Anime News Network. Retrieved on 2006-01-03.
  9. ^ 聖闘士星矢　ギガントマキア　血の章 セイントセイヤ｜BOOKNAVI｜集英社 (Japanese). Shueisha. Retrieved on 2008-05-03.
  10. ^ 聖闘士星矢 ギガントマキア　盟の章 セイントセイヤ｜BOOKNAVI｜集英社 (Japanese). Shueisha. Retrieved on 2008-05-03.
  11. ^ Saint Seiya: The Hades Chapter - Sanctuary (OAV). Anime News Network. Retrieved on 2008-02-04.
  12. ^ Gundam Voice Actor Dies. Anime News Network (2006-08-10). Retrieved on 2008-02-04.
  13. ^ Saint Seiya: The Hades Chapter - Inferno (OAV). Anime News Network. Retrieved on 2008-02-04.
  14. ^ [1] Accessed 2007-06-29.
  15. ^ [2] Accessed 2008-11-01.

[edit] External links

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