Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto

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Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto

幕末機関説いろはにほへと
Genre	Drama, Historical, Mystery, Supernatural
TV anime
Directed by	Ryōsuke Takahashi
Studio	Sunrise
Network	GyaO Internet Streaming
Original run	October 6, 2006 –
No. of episodes	26

Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto (幕末機関説いろはにほへと, Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto^?) is a Japanese anime series, created by Ryōsuke Takahashi and Sunrise. It premiered October 6, 2006 on the Japanese internet streaming channel, GyaO.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

1 Story
2 Characters
3 Staff
4 Theme songs
5 Merchandise
6 External links

[edit] Story

The story begins in early spring 1868, in the midst of the Boshin War. Akizuki Yōjirō, a young samurai swordsman, arrives within the city of Yokohama in search of an elusive quest.

[edit] Characters

Akizuki Yōjirō (秋月耀次郎, )^?, (Seiyū: Daisuke Namikawa)

Age: 17

The legendary Eien no Shikaku (永遠の刺客^? lit. Eternal Assassin), Akizuki Yōjirō is the bearer of the legendary sword, Getsuruitō (月涙刀^? lit. Sword of Lunar Tears), tasked with the quest of utilizing its blade to destroy the Hasha no Kubi (覇者の首^? lit. Head of the Conqueror), a supernatural object said to appear during times of unrest and revolution. Akizuki was once a close confidante, friend and bodyguard of the late Sakamoto Ryōma, whose assassination he failed to prevent and which continues to haunt him to the current day. During the midst of his quest to destroy the Hasha no Kubi, he visits Yokohama and happens to meet the Yuyama troupe, an adventuring kabuki group, and its leader Yuyama Kakunojō. While in the city, Akizuki senses the aura of the Hasha no Kubi within an auction held in the Shanghai Club, soon breaking through its confines in attempting to cut it in half; however, even if its head appeared to have been cut, the spirit of the elusive Hasha no Kubi was not destroyed and still remains, with Akizuki continuing in his quest to find and destroy it.

Yuyama Kakunojō (遊山赫乃丈, )^?, (Seiyū: Rina Satō): A young woman and leader of the Yuyama troupe, Kakunojō's parents were murdered by Hario Genba as part of the Ansei Purges, when she was still a young child, and was saved from death in the same incident by the brave actions of her late father's acquaintance, Zagashira, and apprentice, Ebisu. With her home destroyed in the same fire, Kakunojō, along with Zagashira and Ebisu, formed the Yuyama troupe and visit various regions around the country, to seek Hario, those who murdered her parents and exact revenge upon them. Their group was soon joined by Ibaragi Sōtetsu, an intelligent playwright, and later by Shiranui Kozo and Kakashi no Keishin, both of whom were attracted to the group's ideals.

Ibaragi Sōtetsu (茨木蒼鉄, )^?, (Seiyū: Kazuhiko Inoue): The extremely intelligent playwright of the Yuyama troupe, Ibaragi Sōtetsu is respected by each member of the group, who call him Sensei.

Kanna Sakyōnosuke (神無左京之介, )^?, (Seiyū: Kousuke Toriumi): Born in London to a British royal navy vice admiral father and a Japanese tayū mother, Kanna Sakyōnosuke is tasked with being the bodyguard of Katsu Kaishu, as part of a request from H.S. Parkes, the British consul, and is an extremely talented fighter, armed with two guns, each of the Remington New Model Army Conversion type.

Shiranui Kozo (不知火小僧, )^?, (Seiyū: Junichi Suwabe): An actor of the Yuyama troupe, Shiranui joined the group after one of Sōtetsu's plays saved him from being framed for a crime he did not commit. He is quite popular with the ladies and has taken a deep liking to Kotoha.

Kotoha (琴波, )^?, (Seiyū: Mie Sonozaki): A tayū, highest rank of the oiran, who is the most famed and influential of the Sekkakurō, a pleasure house located in the Yukaku, Yokohama's pleasure quarters. Her influential clientèle include Katsu Kaishu and H.S. Parkes. Kotoha is also a staunch supporter of the Yuyama troupe, and during a discussion with Sōtetsu, arranged for the group to perform during a night at the Sekkakurō.

Ebisu no Zukin (恵比須の頭巾, )^?, (Seiyū: Masashi Yabe): One of the actors of a troupe, Ebisu was an apprentice of Kakunojō's household, who had treated him very well. When the household was being burnt and Kakunojō's parents were murdered before his very eyes by Hario Genba as part of the Ansei Purges, Ebisu attempted to protect Kakunojō, and while doing so, he was burnt by the resulting fire, forced to live the rest of his life with bandages covering his face and body.

Kakashi no Keishin (案山子の恵信, )^?, (Seiyū: Kenji Nomura): The strongman of the Yuyama troupe, Kakashi is a good-hearted person who joined the group for a similar reason to Shiranui.

Zagashira (座頭, )^?, (Seiyū: Takashi Nagasako): The manager of the Yuyama troupe, Zagashira looks after the group's accounts. An acquaintance of Kakunojō's father, Zagashira saved Kakunojō from the fire that destroyed her household.

Benimaru (紅丸, )^?, (Seiyū: Etsuko Kozakura): One of the child actors of the Yuyama troupe, Benimaru, along with Kobako, was saved by Akizuki from a near fatal incident, and are both grateful to him for saving their lives.

Kobako (こばこ, )^?, (Seiyū: Yuki Matsuoka): One of the child actors of the Yuyama troupe, Kobako, along with Benimaru, was saved by Akizuki from a near fatal incident, and are both grateful to him for saving their lives.

Saigo Takamori (西郷隆盛, )^?, (Seiyū: Hiromi Sugino): The leader of the pro-Imperialist Satsuma-han clan, Saigo Takamori is a firm believer in the privileges of the samurai class.

Katsu Kaishu (勝海舟, )^?, (Seiyū: Shouto Kashii): An intermediate between the Tokugawa Shogunate and Imperialists, Katsu Kaishu wishes to negotiate peace between the two warring forces, and holds influence within both factions. Even in his position as navy official of the Shogunate government, Kaishu was mentor to Sakamoto Ryōma (who initially attempted to kill him, however, instead became his bodyguard).

Sakamoto Ryōma (坂本龍馬, )^?, (Seiyū: Kōichi Yamadera): A famous anti-Shogunate samurai, Sakamoto Ryōma was greatly respected by Akizuki, who was his bodyguard and close confidante. Sakamoto negotiated an alliance between Choshu-han and Satsuma-han, two Imperialist clans who had traditionally been bitter rivals towards each other; however, he was later assassinated in a Kyoto inn.

Nakaiya Jūbē (中居屋重兵衛, )^?, (Seiyū: Tetsuo Komura): A mysterious merchant, Nakaiya Jūbē is first seen trying to sell the Hasha no Kubi during a secret auction held in the Shanghai Club. He sent Hario Genba to protect Kawai Tsuginosuke and the Gatling guns the latter bought during the same auction. Nakaiya seems to know about the Ansei Purges, and is well acquainted with British merchant T.B. Glover, from whom he acquires his weapons.

Hario Genba (針尾玄藩, )^?, (Seiyū: Hiromi Sugino): A swordsman who murdered Kakunojō's parents and attempted to kill her, whose face was forever to be remembered by Ebisu. Hario is a bearer of the ancient Jiwari-ken technique of swordsmanship, which attempts to create a continuous fissure within the earth's surface as a result of the vertical movement of one's sword, but which is stopped with the application of water within its path. He later serves in Yokohama as Kawai Tsuginosuke's bodyguard, as ordered by Nakaiya Jūbē, and is instantly recognized by Ebisu, who moves to inform the rest of the troupe and later traces him to an underground auction held in the Shanghai Club, where Hario had been accompanying Kawai. After witnessing Akizuki's attempt to destroy the Hasha no Kubi, Hario becomes very intrigued with Akizuki and attempts to find and kill him the next day, to the extent of even ignoring his job to protect Kawai and his Gatling guns. Later, Hario is cornered by Akizuki and the Yuyama troupe in the midst of a sun-brazen wheat field, and when they attempt to kill him, a sniper, Saiga Magozō, sent by Nakaiya, attempts to shoot him, and Hario soon dies.

Kawai Tsuginosuke (針尾玄藩, )^?, (Seiyū: Takeharu Onishi): A leading samurai of the Nagaoka province, Kawai Tsuginosuke arrives in Yokohama to purchase two Gatling guns in order to ensure the armed neutrality between the Shogunate and Imperial forces that had maintained by the Nagaoka province.

Saiga Magozō (雑賀孫蔵, Saiga Magozō^?): A sniper working for Nakaiya Jūbē, Saiga Magozō is first seen firing a critical shot at Hario Genba, as per Nakaiya's orders. He is a descendent of the Saiga Ikki warrior clan, who once rebelled against Oda Nobunaga during the Sengoku period.

Koma no Shōten-sama (高麗の聖天様, )^?, (Seiyū: Kousei Yagi): The high priest of Koma.

H.S. Parkes (H･S･パークス, )^?, (Seiyū: Tomomichi Nishimura): The British consul, stationed in Japan. He arranges for Kanna Sakyōnosuke to be the bodyguard of Katsu Kaishu.

T.B. Glover (T･B・グラバー, )^?, (Seiyū: Tōru Ōkawa): A British arms merchant, who is acquainted with Nakaiya Jūbē and often sells him weapons.

[edit] Staff

Planning: Kenji Uchida, Kazumi Kawashiro
Original creator: Hajime Yatate, Ryōsuke Takahashi
Series composition and script: Junichi Miyashita
Character designs: Yuusuke Kozaki
Art director: Jirou Kouno, Emi Suzuki
Color design: Takako Suzuki
Cultural advisor: Hidehiko Maki
Design works: Etsonobu Iwanaga, Takayuki Yanase
Calligraphy design: Masumi Narita (Fudejiya)
CGI works: Saori Kibe
Photography director: Tatsuya Nomura
CGI planning and 3DCG: Kentaro Sasaki
Editor: Yukiko Nojiri (Winds)
Music: Hideyuki Fukasawa
Sound director: Sadoyoshi Fujino
Sound effects: Mitsuru Kagayama (Fizz Sound Creation)
Recording adjustments: Norio Nishizawa
Recording assistant: Yoshie Somazawa
Sound effects production: Clues
Music producers: Keiichi Nozaki, Noboru Mano
Music production: Victor Entertainment, Sunrise Music
Producers: Keiichi Matsamura, Koji Morimoto
Series director: Ryōsuke Takahashi
Chief director: Yoshimitsu Ohashi
Production: Sunrise, Bandai Visual

[edit] Theme songs

Opening theme

Kōya Ruten (荒野流転^?)

Performance: FictionJunction YUUKA
Lyrics, composition, arrangement: Yuki Kajiura

Ending theme

Ai no Tsurugi (愛の剣^?)

Performance: TAKAKO & THE CRAZY BOYS
Lyrics and composition: Takako Shirai
Arrangement: TAKAKO & THE CRAZY BOYS

[edit] Merchandise

DVD

Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 1 - episodes 1～2; release date: January 26, 2007
Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 2 - episodes 3～5; release date: February 23, 2007
Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 3 - episodes 6～8; release date: March 23, 2007
Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 4 - episodes 9～11; release date: April 27, 2007
Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 5 - episodes 12～14; release date: May 25, 2007
Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 6 - episodes 15～17; release date: June 22, 2007
Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 7 - episodes 18～20; release date: July 27, 2007
Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 8 - episodes 21～23; release date: August 24, 2007
Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 9 - episodes 24～26; release date: September 28, 2007