Jump to content

Madlax

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Koveras (talk | contribs) at 15:37, 14 December 2006 (→‎Holy Books). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Madlax
The central characters of the series
GenreMystery, Action, Heroic bloodshed, War Drama, Psychological thriller
Anime
Directed byKōichi Mashimo
StudioBee Train

Madlax (マドラックス, Madorakkusu) is a 26-episode anime television series produced in 2004 by the Bee Train animation studio. The DVD version was released in North America by ADV Films, and as of November 2006, it airs on the Anime Network channel. According to the director Kōichi Mashimo, the title is a portmanteau of two English words: MAD and reLAXed, mirroring the authors' intention to portray the two extremes of human being.[1]

The story revolves around two young women, who, at first glance, have nothing in common, nor know of each other's existence. The first and titular heroine is Madlax, a living legend among the mercenaries and assassins in Gazth-Sonika, a small Asian country torn by a civil war. "Madlax" is a code name and a substitute for her real one, forgotten along with the rest of her past before 1999, when the war started. The second girl is Margaret Burton, the sole heir of a wealthy aristocratic family in the peaceful European country of Nafrece. Twelve years before the story begins, an airliner her mother and she were on crashed over Gazth-Sonika, and all its passengers, as well as Margaret's father who lead the rescuers, have been missing ever since. Margaret managed to travel back to Nafrece on her own, though how she made it remains a mystery because she has lost all her memories prior to her return, save one word: "Madlax". This seemingly thin thread linking the two girls turns out to be a much more intense connection when they both independently start investigating the powerful crime syndicate Enfant and its enigmatic mastermind, who, for some reason, shows interest in both of them.

The critics have pointed out multiple similarities between Madlax and Noir,[2][3] an earlier work by the same studio, and according to the authors, these two series are the first installments of a planned trilogy exploring the so-called girls-with-guns genre.[1][4] Still, Madlax differs considerably from its predecessor, as it is very plot driven, pays much attention to the interaction of various factions rather than individual characters,[5][6] and also, in particular contrast to the predominantly realistic Noir, incorporates many aspects of mystery thriller and multiple supernatural concepts,[7] which the audience must often interpret without any further explanation (see Terminology). In fact, Kōichi Mashimo once admitted that the most unusual plot twists, like Margaret and Madlax's connection to each other, were invented by Yousuke Kuroda in a state of alcohol intoxication.[1]

Background

The series is set in an alternate reality very similar to our own: there are many factual intersections, such as in the detailed depiction of existing firearms, but every country and prominent political figure has been renamed. At one point, Madlax's informant mentions that the war in Gazth-Sonika has started in 1999 and has been on-going for twelve years, so the story takes place approximately in 2011.[8] The only two countries described in the series are Nafrece (ナフレス, Nafuresu) and Gazth-Sonika (ガザッソニカ, Gazassonika), whereas other countries are never depicted or mentioned by name.

Nafrece is a tranquil European country apparently styled after France: for example, the Eiffel Tower that can be seen on multiple occasions,[2][9] and in the official English translation (see Releases), the names of these two states are almost exact anagrams of each other. No details on the government or the social structure of Nafrece have been revealed on the series. Notably, no Nafrecian cities are ever explicitly referred by name within the series, either. The currency commonly used in Nafrece is the yur (ユル, yuru), [10], which should not be confused with Euro (ユーロ, Yūro).

One of the world's biggest enterprises, Bookwald Industries (ブッグワルド, Bugguwarudo), is based in Nafrece,[11] and with several central characters being its employees, it plays an important role in the series. Bookwald officially invests into the world's key industries, but also covertly deals with weapons and is, in fact, a subsidiary of a powerful world-wide crime syndicate Enfant (アンファン, Anfan),[12] that controls every information channel on the planet.[13] The leader of Enfant apparently has supernatural powers: he is seen as able to erase a person's memory and alter their personality.[6][13] "Enfant" means "child" in French, wherein this organization parallels a similar one in Noir, called "Soldats" (French for "soldiers").[6]

Enfant's headquarters are located in Gazth-Sonika,[14] a country in south-western Asia, that has been plagued for twelve years by a civil war between a Royalist faction and an armed religious group named Galza (ガルザ, Garuza).[15] This country may have been inspired by or named after the Gaza Strip, since the syllables ga-za (ガザ) in both Japanese: ガザ地区 (gaza chiku, "Gaza Strip") and Japanese: ガザッソニカ are written with the same kana. Gazth-Sonika is geographically separated into two zones: the combat and demilitarized one,[15] with the city of Daman in the latter being the only city explicitly named in the series [16] (it's unknown whether it has been inspired by Daman, India). The Nafrecian yur is used as a currency in Gazth-Sonika, as well, with 50 yur being considered a very large sum by the locals.[17] .

There are multiple general similarities between the real world and the fictional world of Madlax, as well, for example, the Darwin operating system [18] appears throughout the story and the cat statuette that Madlax keeps in her apartment [19] is a traditional Japanese good luck charm called Maneki Neko, though neither Japan, nor its fictional substitute are mentioned in the series. Moreover, all firearms depicted in Madlax (as well as some vehicles, such as the light tank ERC 90 Sagaie) exist in the real world, for example, Madlax's favorite SIG 210-2 or Limelda Jorg's H&K PSG-1 sniper rifle.[20]

Characters

Main article: List of Madlax characters
Margaret Burton
Margaret Burton

Margaret Burton (マーガレット・バートン, Māgaretto Bāton) is a 17-year old schoolgirl attending to an elite private high school in Nafrece. She is sleepy, clumsy, and often alienated from the world around her, so if it weren't for her maidservant Elenore Baker, she'd probably have a lot of trouble even in Nafrece.[21] Margaret is an amnesiac as she doesn't remember anything about her life prior to twelve years ago when she returned home from Gazth-Sonika - in fact, she has even forgotten how to speak, therefore "Madlax" (the only word she remembered) is an important link to her past. Another link is a "picture book" stained with blood that she brought with her from Gazth-Sonika and which, Margaret firmly believes, was given to her by her father.

  • Voiced by: Houko Kuwashima (Japanese); Luci Christian (English)
Madlax
Madlax

Madlax (マドラックス, Madorakkusu) is a very charismatic and kind young woman, who also happens to be the most efficient operative and assassin in Gazth-Sonika.[22] Just like Margaret, she remembers next to nothing of her life before twelve years ago, except the word "Madlax", which she accepted as her code name. Unlike Margaret, however, she has not lost the ability to communicate, and vaguely remembers an image of her father walking away from her. She also possesses her father's military dog tag, but the name on it is illegible. Twelve years ago, Madlax was picked up by SSS who trained her as a mercenary (wherein she displayed some almost supernatural abilities) and she has been working in Gazth-Sonika ever since, hoping one day to find her father and her lost self.

  • Voiced by: Sanae Kobayashi (Japanese); Nancy Novotny (English)
Vanessa Rene
Vanessa Rene

Vanessa Rene (ヴァネッサ・レネ, Vanessa Rene) is Margaret's former neighbor and tutor and currently, a successful manager at Bookwald Industries. Half of the efforts to return Margaret back to normal after her "trip" to Gazth-Sonika is attributed to her (the other half was Elenore Baker's).[23] In 1999, Vanessa's parents were made (falsely, according to her) responsible for the Gazth-Sonikan civil war breaking out and later executed.[24] Therefore, upon discovering that Bookwald not only invests into the demilitarized zone of Gazth-Sonika but also supplies both warring sides with weapons, she immediately travels there to investigate. While in the country, Madlax is assigned as her bodyguard, thus linking to Margaret.

  • Voiced by: Satsuki Yukino (Japanese); Kelly Manison (English)
Elenore Baker
Elenore Baker

Elenore Baker (エリノア・ベイカー, Erinoa Beikā) is Margaret's devoted and sometimes overprotective maidservant. The Baker family has served Burtons for generations, therefore Elenore sees it her duty to protect her absent-minded and clumsy "Miss" from everything remotely dangerous - to the point of exploring all her schoolmates' backgrounds and becoming an expert in hand to hand combat. Elenore is a child prodigy who graduated from high school years ahead of all other students just to be able to spend all her time caring for Margaret.

  • Voiced by: Ai Uchikawa (Japanese); Kira Vincent-Davis (English)
Friday Monday
Friday Monday

Friday Monday (フライデー・マンデー, Furaidē Mandē) is the enigmatic leader of Enfant who single-handedly controls all information channels on the planet.[13] Little is known about him except that he is very skilled with computers, that he hides the right half of his face under a mask and that he is, for some reason, after Margaret's "picture book". He also seems somehow connected to the incident in Gazth-Sonika twelve years ago.

  • Voiced by: Masashi Ebara (Japanese); Mike Kleinhenz (English)
Carrossea Doon
Carrossea Doon

Carrossea Doon (カロッスア・ドゥーン, Karossua Dōn) is officially an employee of Bookwald Industries although, in fact, he works for Enfant and reports back directly to Friday Monday. He is smart and resourceful, and he often plays his own game under Monday's nose. He too, lost his memories in Gazth-Sonika twelve years ago and desperately tries to regain his identity. Although he is certain he has never met Margaret before, the two of them quickly develop mutual trust upon their initial meeting.

  • Voiced by: Toshiyuki Morikawa (Japanese); Vic Mignogna (English)
Limelda Jorg
Limelda Jorg

Limelda Jorg (リメルダ・ユルグ, Rimeruda Yurugu) is an officer of Gazth-Sonikan royal guard and the best sniper in the country (with the exception of Madlax). After Madlax assassinated the Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Army (whom Limelda was assigned to protect) right before her eyes, she made a personal vendetta to kill her.

  • Voiced by: Aya Hisakawa (Japanese); Christine Auten (English)

Plot summary

See also the list of Madlax episodes.

Template:Spoiler The series starts off with a description of everyday life in the war-torn Gazth-Sonika. In the first episodes, Madlax, working alternately as an assassin and a bodyguard, helps various people to either survive in the harsh environment, or leave it for good. Thus, for example, she drags Pete, a Galza freedom fighter, who carries important data, out of a Royalist blockade; she shakes off Chris Krana's pursuers, so that he can meet his father, Galza's general Min Durk; she repeatedly saves the life of Eric Gillain, a bibliodetective (a person whose task is to search for rare books) from Nafrece. At one point, Madlax assassinates the Royalist Commander-in-Chief at his own request, in the hope that it would draw attention to the senselessness of the civil war he fought for years. The first episodes, thus, clearly demonstrate Madlax's initial attitude towards the current situation: she doesn't like it, but doesn't attempt to change anything.

Simultaneously, the everyday life of Margaret Burton is described, a Nafrecian girl who becomes the center of many odd occurrences from the day Vanessa Rene's present awakens her memory about a "picture book given to her by her father". This book - or rather, this Book, - is the ultimate goal of Enfant, a powerful criminal organization controlling all information channels in the world. Operatives of Enfant, for example, drive Margaret's classmate Anne Moré insane, making her first kill her own father, a prominent civil servant who defied their orders by sending Chris Krana to Gazth-Sonika, and then commit suicide. They are responsible for the destruction of detective Maclay Marini's personality, who attempted to prove their involvement in the Moré case, and they hunt down Eric Gillain, when he tries to locate another copy of Margaret's Book. With her involvement in Krana and Gillain's cases, Madlax eventually draws the attention of Enfant's mastermind, Friday Monday, to herself. At the same time, Monday's right hand man, Carrossea Doon, finds that the true owner of Secondari is Margaret, but for a time keeps the discovery to himself.

The situation starts to evolve rapidly when Vanessa Rene, with some luck and a lot of help by an acquainted hacker (Badgis), comes across financial data that unequivocally proves that Enfant is the cause of the continuing war in Gazth-Sonika. Eventually, she must travel there herself and Madlax is assigned as her bodyguard. During the time Vanessa needs to decrypt the data, Madlax fends off multiple attacks and traps set up by Enfant's agents, such as Limelda Jorg, who was formerly in charge of Commander McNichol's safety, and at the same time, under Vanessa's influence, she becomes increasingly enthusiastic about putting an end to the war. But all their efforts turn to be in vain, when both women are captured by Enfant while attempting to publish the data. They are brought before Friday Monday, who believes that Madlax, having withstood his traps, is the one who possesses Secondari, but upon realizing his error, he orders both of them killed. Although Vanessa and Madlax manage to escape, they soon discover that they have been framed for murder of several members of Gazth-Sonikan royal family and forced to go into hiding.

Margaret learns of this from the news and decides to travel to Gazth-Sonika and "help" Vanessa. She is accompanied by her devoted maidservant Elenore Baker and Carrossea Doon, who wants to keep an eye on her Book but also feels an unexpected attraction towards Margaret. Upon their arrival, Elenore and Margaret part ways with Carrossea and begin searching on their own. Eventually, they meet Madlax, who in turn, brings them to Vanessa, and together the four of them make the decision to travel deeper into the Gazth-Sonikan combat zone to find Quanzitta Marison, the only one they know who may tell them more about Margaret's Book and the true reasons of the war.

At this point, multiple mystical concepts (see Terminology) are introduced and the story becomes indreasingly surreal, after Lady Quanzitta tells them about the real purpose of the three Holy Books (Monday's Firstari, Margaret's Secondari, and her own Thirstari) and offers to reveal Margaret's past if she finds the first Book. Madlax receives this right without any conditions, but her memories are still incomplete: it was she who killed Margaret's father twelve years ago, but the reasons and consequences are still unclear to her. Meanwhile, Carrossea storms Enfant headquarters in Gazth-Sonika, claims Monday's Firstari and brings it to Margaret. In return, he asks her to guide him to the Sanctuary and unveil his past, as well. Unfortunately for him, it is revealed that he was, in fact, dead since almost twelve years and only his will to protect Margaret, whom he loved once, allowed him to be resurrected. Upon recovering his memories, Carrossea dies forever.

Afraid of what her own past may contain, Margaret refuses to complete the ritual and loses consciousness, which Friday Monday exploits by taking her and all three Books to his residence and putting her fully under his control. In the meantime, Madlax has to fight off desperate attacks by semi-insane Limelda, who has sworn to kill her. In one of their skirmishes, Vanessa is killed while attempting to protect Madlax, sending her into a clinical depression, as the two of them shared a very close bond. Madlax's will to live, however, is restored by Nakhl and Elenore who help her remember the promise to take care of Margaret, which she gave to Vanessa shortly before her death. While storming Friday's HQ, Madlax and Elenore become separated and the latter, though fatally wounded, reaches Margaret first. Unfortunately, Margaret mind is still under Friday Monday's control, so at first, she doesn't recognize her and when she does, Elenore dies of blood loss.

Three personae of Margaret Burton

As soon as Madlax reaches the residence, Margaret accuses her of killing her father, her tutor, and her devoted maidservant and shoots her, when Madlax doesn't resist at all. Monday decides that it is time to start the ritual that he attempted in 1999 once again and, finally, plunge the world into its "natural state", that is, a global total war. During the ritual, Margaret's memories finally return and reveal that she herself killed her own father, who lost his senses when Friday Monday used the Words of Awakening on him, and to escape her guilt, Margaret had to split herself into three personae: the "memory keeper" Laetitia, the sinful Madlax, and the one who has only retained the Gift and the original name and appearance (Margaret herself).

The series concludes with Friday Monday's death by Madlax's hand and a temporary fusion of all three personae in order to open the Door of Truth for the final time and stop the global war that Monday started. Upon accomplishing that, Margaret once again splits herself in three, judging that after twelve years, she no longer has the right to make decisions for her other personae. In the final scenes, Margaret and Laetitia (who is now known as her sister) meet the dawn in Nafrece, while Limelda, having made peace with Madlax, drives her away from the combat zone.

Terminology

Due to the specifics of the genre, many terms and concepts remain unexplained even upon finishing the series, so the audience has to guess their meaning and nature by their visible effects.[7][25]

  • The Gift (性質, Seishitsu) is a rare affinity found among the humans who possess paranormal abilities, such as altering the reality by entering the spiritual space called the Sanctuary. Those who have the Gift can be recognized by the lack of common reaction to the Words of Saruon from the Holy Books, however, experienced mystics like Friday Monday, Lady Quanzitta and Nakhl can also tell a Gifted person by simply looking at them. Apparently, there is a gradation of power among those who possess the Gift, since abilities accessible by some of them, cannot be used by others:
    • The only person within the series who can reach the Sanctuary on her own and subsequently use the Gift to its full extent, applying global changes to the reality, is Margaret Burton. In 1999, Friday Monday had the same magnitude of power, but has lost it because of his facial injury.[26] Colonel Richard Burton entered the Sanctuary but was unable to resist the Words of Awakening, so whether he has had the Gift is arguable. The least prominent but obvious Gift belonged to Carrossea-Poupee, who could only reach the Sanctuary with Margaret's help. Madlax does not have the Gift, but is able to follow her other persona, Margaret, to the Door of Truth. Quanzitta Marison can communicate with the Sanctuary residents, but has never displayed any other abilities commonly associated with the Gift.
  • The Door of Truth (真実の扉, Shinjitsu no Tobira) is a metaphysical construct that separates the Sanctuary from the material world as most humans know it. Only those with the Gift can reach and go through it.
  • The Sanctuary (聖都, Hijiri Miyako) is a spiritual dimension, where the power of those with the Gift reaches its limits. Such things as splitting oneself into multiple personae or starting a global war are only possible within the Sanctuary, though the latter also requires the presence of all three Holy Books and a very powerful Gift in a person.
  • A "persona" (multiple: "personae") is a living being that is created when a person possessing the Gift wishes to separate themselves from certain parts of their personality and to accomplish that, draws upon the power of the Sanctuary. Such beings receive a physical form that is rarely similar to the original and a number of peculiar traits, such as Madlax's supernatural battle skills and regeneration. The nominal "main" persona is the one that retains the Gift since only they can merge the others back together.
    • A "memory keeper" or a "memory ghost" is a special type of personae that appears when a Gifted person loses or forcibly rejects their memories while within the Sanctuary. Memory keepers cannot leave the Sanctuary without assistance from other personae in the material world, however, they do appear to them in dreams and visions. Aside from that, only the mystic Quanzitta Marison can communicate with them directly. In the series, only two memory keepers are depicted: Laetitia and Poupee.

Holy Books

Firstari (ファースタリ, Fāsutari), Secondari (セカンダリ, Sekandari), Thirstari (サースタリ, Sāsutari) are the three Holy Books (三冊の本, sansatsu no hon, lit. "a book in three volumes") written in the extinct language of Saruon (サルオン) with the Elies script (エリエス文字, Eriesu moji). The term "Holy Books" wasn't used in the Japanese original but is, instead, a neologism coined by the English-speaking fandom in attempt to merge the terms "a book in three volumes" and "the Holy Words of Saruon" (サルオンの真言, Saruon no Shingon), which was used by the authors. The origin of the Books is unknown even to Lady Quanzitta Marison, and it is said that none of Four Great Ancient Civilizations (Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, and India, according to the eponymous theory by Chinese historians) could have created them.[27]

Each Book contains one of the three powerful incantations necessary to reach the Sanctuary and use its power. For humans who don't have the Gift, the incantations are of grave danger because they put those who hear or read them into deep trance [7] (an effect similar to the fnords found in The Illuminatus! Trilogy [28]), making them first murder everyone they can (starting with their own relatives and friends) and then commit suicide.[29][30] This effect has been explained so that a person in the trance is "freed" from moral and ethical restrictions of their upbringing and therefore genuinely enjoys acting cruel and inhumane, or "naturally", as Friday Monday firmly maintains.[31] In rare cases, such as Eric Gillain and Madlax's, the Words of Saruon simply make a person remember once committed, but later selectively forgotten crimes that were so amoral that a mere memory of them can result in their suicide.[32][33]

The only humans who didn't have the Gift but were able to resist the incantations throughout the series are Madlax,[33] Elenore Baker,[34] and Vanessa Rene, though the latter required Madlax's help.[31]

  • Firstari contains the Words of Awakening - Elda Taluta
  • Secondari contains the Words of True Nature - Sarks Sark
  • Thirstari contains the Words of the Truth - Ark Arks

Themes

Like most anime series of such length and genre, Madlax raises several recurring philosophical and psychological questions and themes.[35]

A leitmotif spanning throughout most of the episodes, especially at the beginning, is the contradiction embodied by the idea of "civil war" and its destructive effects upon people's lives.[36] By constantly contrasting the tranquil Nafrece and war-torn Gazth-Sonika, the authors present the consequences of the uncontrolled violence, mass murder and anomie.[37] Effectively each of the early episodes tells a story of a person's life destroyed by the war,[36] which is later used as a backdrop for the detailed life stories of Madlax, Limelda Jorg [38] and Vanessa Rene.[39]

The second half of the series is dedicated to researching the possible reasons and causes of war.[12] Friday Monday, while playing the role of a mad villain,[40] expresses the belief that the intrinsic nature of all humans carries only destruction, death and chaos in it.[41] It is not specified in the series, but it is not unlikely that this conviction was partly caused by his contact with the Holy Words of Saruon and their effects upon those without the Gift.[31] It was, however, certainly the reason why Monday opened the Door of Truth in 1999 and granted the people their "wish" by starting a rationally senseless civil war.[42]

Such belief is not new among anime antagonists, for example, the main opposing characters in the series The Vision of Escaflowne (1996) and Mobile Suit Gundam SEED (2002-03) have also plunged their worlds into total war, while believing to have granted the people's wishes.[43] However, on all three occasions, it were the actions of single individuals with strong and positive ideals that ultimately thwarted the antagonists' plans.[44] In Madlax, such individual was Madlax herself, whom Margaret Burton has defined as a "kind murderer".[45][46]

Madlax's personality is interesting [47] because of her ability to gain sympathies of everyone she meets, be it other characters [48] or the audience,[49] while her work not only doesn't invoke any rejection, but instead naturally fits into her image.[45] Thus, staying a kind and empathetic person despite having to kill people,[46] Madlax represents a living denial of Friday Monday's theories, embodying the real "true human nature" that he is vainly searching for.[50] Moreover, at the very end of the series, it is implied that kindness and the ability to pull the trigger are inseparable, since Madlax "inherits" both murderous and empathetic traits of Margaret's personality.[46]

On the other hand, Madlax can also be interpreted as a story of Margaret Burton's search for a psychological identity: for example, based on the available to her Mashimo Menu theme titles,[51] Yuki Kajiura has once suggested that while searching for her memories, Margaret meets the other characters ("Gatekeepers") one after another and gets to know the lifestyles ("Gates") they represent. In the end, she finds her own "Gate", which is her new identity that finally replaces the one she lost twelve years ago.[52]

Another recurring theme in Madlax is Elenore Baker's loyalty towards her "miss" Margaret Burton. While it's common in pop-culture for a servant to show some ill will towards their employer or master[citation needed], Elenore is constantly presented as an utterly devoted and compassionate maidservant of Margaret. Thus, she comes to Margaret's rescue on many occasions, such as when the latter is harassed by the playboy Maurice Lopez on a private party,[21] or when Elenore reaches the Enfant headquarters, where Margaret is held, on her own despite a severe gunshot wound.[34] Elenore later recounts making a promise over her dying grandfather that she would protect Margaret forever[citation needed].

Shoujo-ai

File:Madlax and Vanessa.jpg
Madlax and Vanessa

Although the series does not depict any obvious lesbian relationships, it has gained some fame among the yuri fandom,[53] following their enthusiastic reception of Noir. However, with the influences of Noir put aside, the only true source of shoujo-ai speculations in the series is the relationship between Madlax, Vanessa Rene and Limelda Jorg,[16][54] that partly mirrors the "love triangle" between Kirika Yuumura, Mireille Bouquet and Chloe.[55] Without getting too deep into the story details, one can notice that in both cases the conflict was resolved by two of the girls (unintentionally) killing the third one.[56][57]

As for the second heroine, Margaret, the ambiguous hints in the final shots of the opening animation never come true,[58] as the relationship between her and Madlax never progress past acknowledging each other's right to exist.[58] Additionally, contrary to the speculations of particularly inventive fans, Elenore Baker's affection towards her "miss" isn't romantic, either: shortly before her death, she admits that Margaret is "her family".[34] On the other hand, throughout the story there are multiple hints towards a heterosexual mutual attraction between Margaret and Carrossea Doon.[59][60]

Template:Endspoiler

Production

According to the director Kōichi Mashimo, he has always envisioned Noir and Madlax as part of a trilogy belonging to the girls-with-guns genre,[4] and soon after the release of the latter, he has revealed that the third installment is already being planned.[1] In late 2002, Mashimo invited Shigeru Kitayama, the producer of Noir who once came up with its original idea, to discuss a new series entitled Madlax. Kitayama greatly expanded Mashimo's original screenplay plan, but it wasn't until Yousuke Kuroda was put in charge of the script that the series took its final appearance. It took Kuroda about one year to finish the screenplays for all 26 episodes, during which he was constantly encouraged by Mashimo to add his own original ideas to their initial plan. Kuroda has admitted that at the time he received Mashimo's invitation, he felt frustrated after his first project has been canceled by the publisher, so he decided to make Madlax "really extravagant", blending as many genres at once as he could.

By comparison with Noir, Madlax features a much larger primary cast, including multiple recurring male characters, who were effectively absent in the former. It wasn't so in the original screenplay draft written by Mashimo and Kitayama: for example, "Madlax" was Margaret's own nickname and Charlie (Vanessa's colleague at Bookwald Industries) had one of the central roles similar to Speedy's in Avenger. However, only the "draft" characters' names remained, when Kuroda has rewritten the script. A total of three character designers collaborated on Madlax cast: Satoshi Ohsawa (who also worked on Noir) created the central heroines, Margaret and Madlax; Minako Shiba drew the agents of Enfant led by Friday Monday and Carrossea Doon; and Satoko Miyachi was entrusted with the "mysterious" characters, Laetitia and Poupee.[52]

Many seiyūs who voiced characters in Madlax have also participated in earlier projects by studio Bee Train, for example, Houko Kuwashima and Aya Hisakawa who played Kirika Yuumura and Chloe in Noir also voiced Margaret Burton and Limelda Jorg.[61][62] Kotono Mitsuishi (Mireille Bouquet in Noir), on the other hand, has received only a minor role (Margaret's mother in episode 21),[63] while the titular lead of Madlax was voiced by Sanae Kobayashi, previously involved with .hack//Liminality (Mai Minase).[64] Masashi Ebara (Friday Monday) also had a major role in Liminality (Junichiro Tokuoka).[65] Monica Rial (Kirika Yuumura in the English translation of Noir) didn't appear as a voice actor in Madlax, but has instead translated the screenplay for ADV Films release,[66] earning some praises from the critics at that.[40]

Staff and cast

Voice actors:
Character Japanese English
Badgis Nozomu Sasaki Chris Patton
Elenore Baker Ai Uchikawa Kira Vincent-Davis
Margaret Burton Houko Kuwashima Luci Christian
Richard Burton Tohru Ohkawa Ben Hamby
Charlie Tokuyoshi Kawashima John Gremillion
Chris Krana Miyu Irino Braden Hunt
Carrossea Doon Toshiyuki Morikawa Vic Mignogna
Eric Gillain Hiroaki Hirata Andy McAvin
Limelda Jorg Aya Hisakawa Christine Auten
Laetitia Tomoko Kaneda Cynthia Martinez
Luciano Yū Mizushima Illich Guardiola
Madlax Sanae Kobayashi Nancy Novotny
Guen McNichol Kinryū Arimoto Rick Piersall
Margaret's mother Kotono Mitsuishi Kimberly Prause
Maclay Marini Masaki Terasoma Jason Douglas
Quanzitta Marison Mako Hyōdō Allison Sumrall
Friday Monday Masashi Ebara Mike Kleinhenz
Nakhl Chikayo Nakano Brittney Karbowski
Poupee N/A Ben Hestus
Vanessa Rene Satsuki Yukino Kelly Manison
SSS (Three-Speed) Jin Urayama Jay Hickman

Music

Like with many other studio Bee Train's works (first of all, Noir), the entire Madlax soundtrack was composed by the famous Yuki Kajiura, marking it her and Kōichi Mashimo's fifth project together. Kajiura and Yuuka Nanri's duo FictionJunction YUUKA has recorded the series' opening and ending themes, "Fragments of an Eye" (瞳の欠片, Hitomi no Kakera) and "inside your heart", respectively, as well as two insert songs: "nowhere" and "I'm here". Aside from the opening sequence, "Fragments of an Eye" is featured in the series itself: at the end of episode 18 and in the episode 24, when Margaret is humming its tune to herself in the flower field.

The entire OST has been released on two albums in 2004. Additionally, two singles were published in the same year by FictionJunction YUUKA, each containing an opening/ending theme and one insert song, as well as their respective karaoke versions.[67]

In the insert song "nowhere", there is a frequently repeated background refrain "Yanmaani" (ヤンマーニ, Yanmāni), that is not a word at all, just meaningless chanting. However, since the song usually plays when Madlax is fighting, "Yanmaani" has become something of a joke to many Madlax fans: its loud singing has come to symbolize Madlax's apparent invincibility - some see it as a kind of "magic word" that powers Madlax up for battle, in accordance with the magical girl genre canons.[52]

Releases

Boxed set (all volumes) released by ADV

Originally, Madlax was broadcast in Japan by TV Tokyo from 5 April to 27 September 2004, from 1:30 to 2:00 AM every Tuesday (formally, Monday night).[68] Shortly before the series finished airing, it has been licensed in North America and Europe by ADV Films,[69] who has previously licensed Noir and .hack//SIGN. The official English dub has been released under the trademark MADLAX on a total of seven DVDs from 12 April 2005 to 28 March 2006 and received a TV-14 rating, though it has been lowered to TV-PG for the consequent cable network broadcast.[70] Madlax has become the first series on which ADV Films' director and producer David Williams tested the technology of distributing promotional materials via P2P network BitTorrent.[71]

The North-American DVD release contains many extras available in English only, such the controversial Conversations with SSS [35][37][72] and Sock Puppet Theater, an Easter egg live action about Madlax going after Chris Patton, Badgis' voice actor and an annoying womanizer.[40] To access the latter, one should press "Up", "Down", "Left", and "Right" buttons when the second eye-catch of episode 21 (DVD volume #6) comes on.

Since 7 February 2006, Madlax is aired on Anime Network (which is, like ADV Films, a subsidiary of A.D. Vision) on Tuesdays from 20:00 to 20:30 (each episode is repeated on 23:00 the same day and on 19:30 the next Tuesday). On 4 April, shortly after the last DVD volume has been released, the consequent airing was put on halt and until 27 June, only the first 8 episodes were repeated. Since then, the series has been relaunched twice: on 1 August and 7 November 2006.[73]

Episodes

Main article: List of Madlax episodes

The Bible

MADLAX the Bible (ISBN 4-89425-375-5) is a 95-page artbook that was published in Japan on 2005-05-21 by Hobby Japan.[74] Aside from color and BW illustrations and artworks for the series, it contains interviews with its authors and seiyūs, as well as diverse additional information about the show in Japanese.[75] The artbook has never been published outside of Japan. Since the word "Bible" is derived from Ancient Greek: "τὰ βιβλία τὰ ἅγια", meaning "holy books", it is likely that the artbook's title contains a hidden reference to the Holy Books that play an important role in the series' plot.

Reception

Unlike Noir, that became instantly successful in Japan and many Western countries despite controversial opinions about it, Madlax has never been able to match it in fame and received only moderate (though generally approving) attention from the critics. It has often been accused of being secondary and reusing many of Noir's stylistic solutions, such as the story premise, the two heroines' appearance, and musical performance,[3] but on the other hand, the story as a whole was praised for being more monolithic and consequent than its predecessor's, in other words, because all its episodes and subplots are tightly intertwined and held together by the primary A-Plot.[72] By comparison, most of the "middle" episodes in Noir can be separated into story arcs, which are only loosely connected to each other.

Although the majority of reviewers has perceived the early episodes of Madlax as boring and too slow-paced (many have claimed the same of nearly all Noir episodes, as well),[2] the same critics later remarked that the prolonged exposition is crucial to the unusual finale of the series, which fully establishes the series' own identity and sets it apart from other competitors.[40][72][76] According to them, after the initial volume, the story gets better and better with every new episode,[59][77] though some have been dissatisfied with its "pseudo-existentialistic" ending.[35]

The initial slow pacing, especially compared to the first episodes of Noir,[3] is the main reason why the audience often dropped watching Madlax before it could present its more exciting and interesting story turns, which eventually resulted in the moderate success of the series. Among other suggested reasons of the show's rather mediocre popularity were following:[78]

  • Market saturation. Since 2001, many other studios have tried to repeat the success of Noir, so when Madlax was aired, its style wasn't unique any more and it was much harder to draw attention to itself. Additionally, an expectable prejudice against a "Noir remake", found among the fans of the first series, played a certain role.[2]
  • Unconventional genre. An untraditional blend of mystical science fiction and Noir's strict realism prevented Madlax from gaining popularity among the fandoms of both these macro-genres.[7]
  • Lack of polarizing effect. Unlike Noir, that has been polarizing its viewers into two camps, fans and detesters, for years, Madlax has spawned much more diverse opinions and, thus, failed to achieve the cult status.

The professional reviewers welcomed the increased number of sympathetic characters,[7] especially of the distinguishable male ones (Friday, Carrossea, Colonel Burton), as opposed to stormtrooper-like operatives of Soldats in Noir,[2] although it has been observed that female character designs are much more detailed (to the point of subtle fanservice in case of Madlax) than more generic male ones.[40] On the negative side, some named the episodes that involve computer use and hacking, criticizing them for lack of realism (admittedly, it's a common problem in fiction).[16]

In terms of soundtrack, Madlax has not become as innovative as Noir,[79] with some critics suggesting its OST to be a blend of Noir and .hack//SIGN styles.[80] Nevertheless, the reviewers admitted its superiority over the majority of contemporary works.[2][3] The English translation released by ADV Films has been praised for keeping most of series' original stylistic aspects preserved and inviting veteran voice actors for the dub.[59] Some reviewers went as far as to suggest that certain English voices (especially Mike Kleinhenz's) match the characters better than the Japanese ones.[40]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wong, A. (March 2005). "Inside Bee Train". Newtype USA: 8–15. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); External link in |date= (help)
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Madlax DVD #1 review at AnimeJump.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  3. ^ a b c d "Madlax DVD #1 review at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  4. ^ a b See also the article about the girls-with-guns on Bee Train Fan Wiki.
  5. ^ "Madlax DVD #2 review at DVDVerdict.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  6. ^ a b c "Madlax DVD #2 review at AnimeOnDVD.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  7. ^ a b c d e "Madlax DVD #6 review at AnimeOnDVD.com". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  8. ^ Madlax, episode 3 (5:43): The dialogue about Guen McNichol.
  9. ^ Madlax, episode 14: The Eiffel Tower can be observed at approx. 6:25.
  10. ^ Madlax, episode 2 (7:22), the auctioneer: "I'll open the bidding at 1,400,000 yur".
    Madlax, episode 7 (05:58): Elenore and Eric Gillain discuss the latter's payment.
  11. ^ Madlax, episode 2 (11:18): Charlie tells Margaret about Bookwald.
  12. ^ a b Madlax, episodes 12-26: Vanessa and Madlax's investigation.
  13. ^ a b c Madlax, episode 4: Maclay Marini's investigation of Enfant and its consequences.
  14. ^ Madlax, episode 24 (13:45): Madlax and Elenore reach Enfant HQ without leaving Gazth-Sonikan combat zone.
  15. ^ a b Madlax, episode 11 (1:39): The article about Gazth-Sonika that Margaret reads.
  16. ^ a b c "Madlax DVD #3 review at AnimeOnDVD.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  17. ^ Madlax, episode 1 (7:46): Madlax overhears a soldier reporting on outcome of the negotiations with a Galza fighter.
  18. ^ Madlax, episode 4 (2:50): A "Welcome to Darwin!" message can be seen on the screen of Anne Moré's laptop.
  19. ^ Madlax, episode 13 (12:43): Maneki Neko can be seen on Madlax's desk.
  20. ^ See also the list of firearms in Madlax on Bee Train Fan Wiki.
  21. ^ a b Madlax, episode 6.
  22. ^ Madlax, episode 1 (3:29): Galza fighters discuss the "super-skilled agent".
  23. ^ Madlax, episode 6 (9:44): Vanessa and Elenore's discussion of Margaret's mental state.
  24. ^ Madlax, episode 13 (8:21): Vanessa tells Madlax about her parents.
  25. ^ "Madlax DVD #4 review at DVDVerdict.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  26. ^ Madlax, episode 25 (7:47): Friday explains the significance of his wound.
  27. ^ Madlax, episode 7 (11:47): Eric Gillain's informant on the Elies script.
  28. ^ "The Golden Apple: an excerpt on fnords". Retrieved 2006-11-10. The first conditioned reflex was to experience the panic reaction (the activation syndrome, it's technically called) whenever encountering the word fnord.
  29. ^ "Madlax DVD #2 review at AnimeBoredom.co.uk". Retrieved 2006-12-14.
  30. ^ Madlax, episode 4: The Moré case.
  31. ^ a b c Madlax, episode 22 (13:16): Vanessa is subjected to the Words of Awakening by Friday Monday (16:59) after a short conversation.
  32. ^ Madlax, episodes 7 and 8: Eric Gillain's life story.
  33. ^ a b Madlax, episode 14 (1:38): Madlax's reaction to Enfant's trap.
  34. ^ a b c Madlax, episode 24 (16:21): Margaret, Elenore, and Friday Monday's conversation.
  35. ^ a b c "Madlax DVD #7 review at DVDVerdict.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  36. ^ a b Madlax, episode 1: Pete's life story; episode 3: Guen McNichol's life story; episode 5: Chris Krana's life story; episodes 7 and 8: Eric Gillain's life story; episode 9: Luciano's life story.
  37. ^ a b "Madlax DVD #1 review at DVDVerdict.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  38. ^ "Madlax DVD #5 review at AnimeOnDVD.com". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  39. ^ Madlax, episodes 3, 12-22, 25-26.
  40. ^ a b c d e f "Madlax DVD #6 and #7 review at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  41. ^ Madlax, episodes 25 (17:01) and 26 (9:51): Friday Monday's explanation of his ideals.
  42. ^ Madlax, episode 21 (16:56): Conversation between Friday Monday and Colonel Burton; Madlax, episode 16 (19:15), Madlax: "Why do you continue a meaningless war?"
  43. ^ The Vision of Escaflowne, episode 26 (6:02), Emperor Dornkirk: "Once set in motion, the fate can't be stopped. If it is for destruction that people wish, we can but accept it";
    Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, episode 49 (15:21), Rau Le Creuset: "This is mankind's dream, mankind's desire, mankind's destiny! To be the strongest, to go the farthest, to climb the highest! [...] To compete, to envy, to hate each other, and to devour one another!"
  44. ^ The Vision of Escaflowne, episode 26 conclusion; Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, episode 50 conclusion.
  45. ^ a b Madlax, episode 20 (5:12): Madlax and Margaret's first prolonged conversation.
  46. ^ a b c Madlax, episode 26 (20:38): Final conversation between Madlax and Margaret.
  47. ^ "Madlax DVD #1 review at AnimeOnDVD.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  48. ^ Madlax, episodes 13 (13:44) and 14 (11:16): Vanessa demonstrates her affection towards Madlax;
    Madlax, episode 20: Margaret says that she likes Madlax and describes her as a "kind person" (5:55); Quanzitta Marison expresses personal interest in Madlax (7:06); Limelda confesses her love for Madlax (13:12);
    Madlax, episode 23 (8:50): Nakhl denies her duty to follow Madlax into battle.
  49. ^ "Madlax personality poll at Bee Train Fan forum". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  50. ^ Madlax, episode 26 (16:56): Final stand-off between Madlax and Friday Monday.
  51. ^ See also the article about Mashimo Menu on Bee Train Fan Wiki.
  52. ^ a b c Booklets supplied with each volume of the series' North-American DVD release by ADV Films.
  53. ^ A fanfic collection about Madlax and Noir at the Shoujo-Ai Archive.
  54. ^ Madlax, episode 20 (13:12): Limelda confesses her love for Madlax.
  55. ^ "Madlax DVD #7 review at Mangaminx's Lair blog". Retrieved 2006-11-10.
  56. ^ Madlax, episode 22 (19:36): The outcome of Madlax, Limelda, and Vanessa's three-way duel.
  57. ^ Noir, episode 25 (18:49): The outcome of Kirika, Chloe, and Mireille's three-way duel.
  58. ^ a b Madlax, episode 26 (21:12): In the depicted scene, there are no romantic topics raised.
  59. ^ a b c "Madlax DVD #4 review at AnimeOnDVD.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  60. ^ Madlax, episode 20 (16:40): Margaret and Carrossea's dialogue before setting off for the Door of Truth.
  61. ^ "Houko Kuwashima's profile at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  62. ^ "Aya Hisakawa's profile at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  63. ^ "Kotono Mitsuishi's profile at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  64. ^ "Sanae Kobayashi's profile at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  65. ^ "Masashi Ebara's profile at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  66. ^ "Monica Rial's profile at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  67. ^ See also the complete track listings for OST 1, OST 2, OP-single, ED-single on Bee Train Fan Wiki.
  68. ^ "TV Tokyo program lineup (as of April 2004)" (PDF). Retrieved 2006-10-29.
  69. ^ "Official ADV Films press release". Retrieved 2006-10-29.
  70. ^ Madlax at IMDb. Retrieved on 2006-10-29.
  71. ^ "News for 14 July 2005 at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-10-29.
  72. ^ a b c "Madlax DVD #7 review at AnimeOnDVD.com". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  73. ^ Anime Network program lineup for 7 February, 27 June, 1 August, and 7 November 2006, retrieved on 2006-11-15.
  74. ^ "Madlax the Bible in Otaku.com online catalog". Retrieved 2006-10-29.
  75. ^ "Madlax the Bible official website". Retrieved 2006-10-29.
  76. ^ "Madlax DVD #6 review at DVDVerdict.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  77. ^ "Madlax DVD #3 review at DVDVerdict.com". Retrieved 2006-11-08.
  78. ^ "Madlax obscurity discussion thread on Bee Train Fan forum". Retrieved 2006-11-09.
  79. ^ "Madlax OST I review at ActiveAnime.com". Retrieved 2006-10-29.
  80. ^ "Madlax DVD #2 review at Anime News Network". Retrieved 2006-11-08.

Template:Link FA

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Madlax&oldid=94296450"