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The Heroic Legend of Arslan

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The Heroic Legend of Arslan
Cover of the first novel
アルスラーン戦記
(Arusurān Senki)
Genre
Novel series
Written byYoshiki Tanaka
Illustrated by
Published by
Original runAugust 1986 – December 14, 2017
Volumes16
Anime film series
Directed byMamoru Hamatsu
Produced by
  • Yasuhisa Kazama (#1)
  • Nagateru Kato (#1)
  • Keishi Yamazaki (#2)
  • Mitsuhisa Hida (#2)
Written by
  • Tomoya Miyashita (#1)
  • Kaori Takada (#1)
  • Megumi Sugihara (#2)
Music byNorihiro Tsuru
StudioAnimate Film
Licensed by
Released August 17, 1991 – July 18, 1992
Runtime60 minutes
Original video animation
Directed by
Produced by
  • Noriaki Ikeda
  • Akira Maruta
  • Kazuhiko Ikeguchi (#1)
  • Nagateru Kato (#2-4)
  • Mitsuhisa Hida (#3-4)
Written byMegumi Sugihara
Music byNorihiro Tsuru
StudioAnimate Film
Licensed by
Released October 21, 1993 – September 21, 1995
Runtime35 minutes
Episodes4
Manga
Written byYoshiki Tanaka
Illustrated byChisato Nakamura
Published byKadokawa Shoten
MagazineAsuka Fantasy DX
DemographicShōjo
Original runNovember 1991 – September 1996
Volumes13
Manga

The Heroic Legend of Arslan (Japanese: アルスラーン戦記, Hepburn: Arusurān Senki, lit. Arslan War Records) is a Japanese fantasy novel series written by Yoshiki Tanaka. It was published from 1986 to 2017, with sixteen novels and one side-story in the official guidebook Arslan Senki Dokuhon. Set in ancient Persia, it is loosely based on the Persian epic of Amir Arsalan.

It was adapted into a film duology and a 4-episode original video animation released from 1991 to 1995. It was also adapted into a manga series by Chisato Nakamura, which ran in Kadokawa Shoten's Monthly Asuka Fantasy DX from November 1991 to September 1996. In 2013, a second manga adaptation illustrated by Hiromu Arakawa began in Kodansha's Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine, which was later adapted into an anime television series.

Synopsis

Setting

The story is set in a legendary vision of an indistinct amalgam of over a thousand years of ancient Persia and nearby other countries. While the world in which it takes place is one where magic obviously exists, said magic is of an extremely limited nature. Until the middle of the anime, the only magical happenings involve a few spells and a giant, humanoid monster. There are many evil monsters such as ghouls and winged monkeys, appear in the second half of the novel series. Especially the first half of the series is, at the core, a war story taking place between human nations. In addition, there are underlying themes exploring the repercussions of slavery on a society, having an absolute monarch who treats the poor as cattle, and religious obsession.

Plot

See also: List of The Heroic Legend of Arslan characters

The story follows the exploits of Arslan, the crown prince of the kingdom of Pars ("پارس" or "فارس" is equivalent word to Persia and what the land of Persians "پارسیان" was called), and it is divided into two parts. In the first part, Pars is taken over by the neighboring nation of Lusitania after Arslan's father, King Andragoras III, falls victim to a treacherous plot led by some of his most trusted retainers. After barely escaping with his life, Arslan rejoins his loyal servant, Daryun. Backed up by only a few more companions, including the philosopher and tactician Narsus and his young servant Elam, also Farangis, an aloof, cold priestess, and Gieve, a travelling musician and con-man, Arslan stands against overwhelming odds to assemble an army strong enough to liberate his nation from the Lusitanian army which is led by the elusive warrior known as "Silvermask", who is later revealed to be another contender to Pars' throne. In the second part, Arslan, now king of Pars, divides himself between defending his country against several external threats, including Silvermask, who is still at large, seeking to claim the throne for himself, and addressing the needs and hopes of his subjects.

Inspirations

The protagonist's name appears to have been taken from the popular Persian epic Amir Arsalan. Arslan and his Parsian enemies and allies primarily share many parallels with Cyrus the Great and other historical figures of 6th century BCE Persia (albeit with several liberties taken), whereas the conflicts with the Lusitanian forces (which bear the Byzantium Orthodox cross, also used by the Varangians of Kievan Rus') – despite mostly French names and a certain religious zealotry implying a connection to the (Catholic) Crusades (again, with liberties taken) – appear to be based on the East Roman–Persian Wars, specifically those of the 6th century CE. Furthermore, several names of prominent Parsian characters appear to be taken from known important figures throughout Persian history as well as the historically unsubstantiated legendary parts of the historiographic Persian epic Shahnameh. Additionally, supernatural elements mostly based on ancient Near East mythology increasingly play a role as the series goes on.

Media

Novels

The original novel, Arslan Senki, was written by Dr. Yoshiki Tanaka. There are sixteen novels in the Arslan Senki storyline. These novels were illustrated by manga artist and character-designer Yoshitaka Amano (whose other works include the character design for several Final Fantasy games and for Vampire Hunter D).

Manga

Main article: The Heroic Legend of Arslan (manga)

The novels were adapted into a manga illustrated by Chisato Nakamura. The manga was published by Kadokawa Shoten in the Asuka Fantasy DX shōjo magazine from 1991 to 1996 and compiled into thirteen volumes, adapting the first seven novels.

A second manga adaptation of Arslan Senki started serialization in Kodansha's Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine in July 2013, illustrated by Hiromu Arakawa, best known for the manga titles Fullmetal Alchemist and Silver Spoon. This adaptation is simul-published by Crunchyroll,[4] while Kodansha Comics is publishing the manga in North America since 2014.[5][6]

Films and OVA series

The popularity of the novels led to the creation of two films and subsequently a series of OVAs with character designs adapted by Sachiko Kamimura. The films were released in 1991–1992, which is why each one is hour long, rather than the traditional half-hour, and were produced by Kadokawa Shoten and Sony Music Entertainment Japan. An OVA series of four episodes that followed up the first OVAs was released in 1993–1995.

Both the films and OVA series were licensed by Central Park Media and were released on DVD and VHS.[7] The English dub for Part 1 was produced by Manga UK (who had also licensed the anime in the same region), while Part 2 was dubbed by Central Park Media themselves.[8] This caused a lot of inconsistencies in both dubs.[citation needed] Because of the aforementioned issues regarding translations and names, as well as possible issues with funding the project, it took an extremely long time for the final 2 episodes of the Arslan anime to make its way to the United States.[citation needed]

Anime

Main article: List of The Heroic Legend of Arslan episodes

Due to the continued popularity of the novels, an anime was created by Liden Films and Sanzigen, based on the manga adaptation by Hiromu Arakawa. The anime consists of 2 season, released between 2015 and 2016. The first season consists of 26 episodes and started airing on the 5th of April 2015, running until the end of September of the same year.[9] The second season consists of 8 episodes and aired between the 3rd of July 2016 and the 21st of August of the same year.[10]

The first season covers volume 1-4 of the novels, while the second season covers volumes 5 and 6 of the novels.[11]

Video games

Main article: Arslan: The Warriors of Legend

The first video game based on The Heroic Legend of Arslan was released in 1993 for Sega Mega-CD. A strategy RPG in the vein of similar titles of the era such as the Fire Emblem series, it serves as a companion to the OVA series.[12]

Arslan: The Warriors of Legend, a hack and slash video game developed by Omega Force and published by Koei Tecmo in 2015, serves as a companion to the anime TV series.

The Heroic Legend of Arslan: Warrior's Qualification, a game for smartphones distributed by Sakura Soft. The game was launched on April 27, 2017 and terminated on August 16, 2018. It was based on the manga adaptation by Hiromu Arakawa.

See also

References

  1. ^ Toole, Mike (October 7, 2013). "Heroic Legend of Arslan: Age of Heroes". Anime Jump. Archived from the original on November 7, 2007. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  2. ^ Ross, Carlos. "Heroic Legend of Arslan (1991)". THEM Anime Reviews. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  3. ^ Legulalp, Serdar (May 28, 2014). "Sword & Sorcery Fantasy Anime (Top Best List)". About.com. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  4. ^ "Crunchyroll Releases Aijin, Koe no Katachi, Arslan Manga". Anime News Network. 2014-03-14. Retrieved 2015-01-03.
  5. ^ Loveridge, Lynzee (2014-03-22). "Kodansha USA Announces Heroic Legend of Arslan Manga Release". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2015-01-01.
  6. ^ "Kodansha USA to Publish Arslan Manga by Fullmetal Alchemist's Arakawa". Anime News Network. 2014-02-26. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
  7. ^ "Multiple Announcements From CPM, Animeigo, Pioneer". Anime News Network. 1998-12-01. Retrieved 2015-01-03.
  8. ^ Justin Sevakis (2007-12-13). "Buried Treasure – Heroic Legend of Arslan Part 1". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2015-01-03.
  9. ^ The Heroic Legend of Arslan (TV Series 2015– ) - IMDb, retrieved 2022-06-25
  10. ^ The Heroic Legend of Arslan (TV Series 2015– ) - IMDb, retrieved 2022-06-25
  11. ^ "Arslan Senki Season 3: Renewed Or Canceled? Release Date & Spoilers!". TechRadar247. 2020-09-07. Retrieved 2022-06-25.
  12. ^ "The Heroic Legend of Arslan/Arslan Senki". Hardcore Gaming 101.

Further reading

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