Dragon Half

Dragon Half
North American DVD cover of the anime adaptation
ドラゴンハーフ (Doragon Hāfu)
Genre	Adventure, Comedy-drama, Fantasy
Manga
Written by	Ryūsuke Mita
Published by	Kadokawa Shoten
Demographic	Shōnen
Magazine	Dragon Magazine
Original run	March 1988 – June 1994
Volumes	7 (List of volumes)
Original video animation
Directed by	Shinya Sadamitsu
Studio	Victor Entertainment
Licensed by	ADV Films
Released	March 26, 1993 – May 28, 1993
Episodes	2
Anime and Manga Portal

Dragon Half (ドラゴンハーフ, Doragon Hāfu^?) is a manga created by Ryūsuke Mita and serialized in Monthly Dragon Magazine from 1988 to 1994. It was adapted into a two episode anime OVA series in 1993. ADV Films licensed the anime series in North America.^[1]

The story follows Mink, a half human/half dragon teenage girl on a quest for a potion which will turn her into a full human so that she can win the love of the legendary dragon slayer Dick Saucer. In the manga, in order to get the potion, she must slay Azetodeth, the greatest demon in the land.^[2][3]

The story (which is a parody of the Dungeons and Dragons genre^{[citation needed]}) is very tongue-in-cheek, and pokes fun at a number of anime clichés,^[3] most notably its overuse of super deformation and its wide range of genres in a similar way to anime such as Excel Saga. Much of the manga contains references to role-playing games and occasionally either other manga or anything that begins with the word 'dragon'. Ryūsuke Mita's favorite animal is the dragon. As a result, several dragons play an important role in the manga, most notably Mana and her father, Titan.

Plot

See also: List of Dragon Half characters

Mink was born to a man who used to be a skilled swordsman and a female imperial red dragon. At age fifteen, she falls in love with a singer named Dick Saucer; but because he is also a dragonslayer, she has no choice but to get a potion that can change her into a pure human. She can only get the potion, however, if she can slay the most powerful Demon Lord in the land, Azetodeth, and go to his palace known as the Demon King's island. Not only does she have to reconstruct the Gourd of the Saints, an item that can seal Azetodeth, she also has to be aware of Princess Vina, her rival for Saucer's affections. Mink is aided by her friends Lufa, Pia, and a fairy mouse named Mappy on her quest.

After a number of adventures, mainly a conflict with a vampire and her four handmaidens and discovering Dick Saucer's past, Mink finally comes face to face with Azetodeth. She manages to seal the Demon Lord away with the Gourd of Saints, and although she gains the potion, she chooses to remain half-human, half imperial red dragon forever. Instead of using the potion herself, she gives the potion to her friend Lufa, who had been turned into a toad by the Demon Lord's magic.

Terminology

Locations

The Demon King's island

A island where Azetodeth and his three sons live. This island has tall rugged rocks and is surrounded by a wall that prevents anything that goes through unless it goes into the main entrance which is difficult to find or a gate guarded by a receptionist named Suzuki who is beaten by Mink and runs off. The island is first seen at the end of Chapter 13. After making several more cameos, Mink finally gets on the island in Chapter 50. There is also a castle which is completely destroyed by Azetodeth in Chapter 64.

Village of the Red Lightning

The village where Mink and her family and friends live. It is shown in the beginning having a river flowing through it and mountains surrounding it, and is shown again in the credits.

Items

The Gourd of the Saints

The Gourd of the Saints is a bottle that took 200 years for Mink's dragon great-grandfather to make. It was broken into three pieces which transformed into three holy artifacts 2000 years ago. The artifacts were Parza's holy grail (a goblet), Lorelo's Ball (a black ball that 'provides super-screw') and Gill's crown. The Gourd of the Saints is extremely important as it is the only one that can seal Azetodeth away.

The three holy artifacts

There are three sacred treasures required to resurrect the gourd known as the three holy artifacts(Sango no Jingi in the Japanese version). They are loosely based on the Imperial Regalia of Japan. Parza's holy grail represents the mirror of wisdom, Lorelo's ball represents the Jewel of Benevolence and Gil's crown represents the sword of valor. However only Lorelo's ball and the jewel of balevolence correspond to each other in the story.

Media

Manga

Main article: List of Dragon Half chapters

The comic was released in two versions. The first was as seven standard tankōbon, and the second was a wideban release comprising three volumes which included extra galleries and interviews with Mita not found in the original releases.^[4] The manga consists of 65 chapters. After Dragon Half ended, Ryūsuke Mita created a sequel one-shot called Dragon Half Z about Mink's seven-year-old daughter Pink.

Anime

An two-volume anime OVA adaptation was produced by Victor Entertainment. It was directed and written by Shin'ya Sadamitsu, with character designs by Masahiro Koyama and music by Kōhei Tanaka. The first OVA, Dragon Half: Mink's Journey (ドラゴンハーフ～ミンク旅立ち, Doragon Hāfu: Minku Tabidachi^?), was released on March 26, 1993. The second, Dragon Half (Final): The Brutal Killer Martial Arts Tournament (ドラゴンハーフ(後編)～凶殺武闘大会, Doragon Hāfu: Kyōsatsu Butō Taikai^?), was released two months later on May 28, 1993.

The OVA series is based on sections of the first two volumes. There were originally going to be 4 OVA episodes but there was not enough interest so only two episodes were produced. The ending theme song, My Omelette, was written to the music of Beethoven (Symphony No. 7, 4th movement) and sung by Kotono Mitsuishi while in character.

References

1. ^ Beveridge, Chris (2002-09-05). "Dragon Half". Mania.com. http://www.mania.com/dragon-half_article_74723.html. Retrieved 2007-10-11. 
2. ^ Guder, Derek (2004-12-16). "Dragon Half Essential Anime". Mania.com. http://www.mania.com/dragon-half-essential-anime_article_76391.html. Retrieved 2007-10-11. 
3. ^ ^{a b} "Dragon Half". Animefu. 2003-02-24. http://www.animefu.com/index.pl?node_id=10267. Retrieved 2007-10-11. 
4. ^ Mita Ryūsuke English Fan page(English)October 20, 2007

External links

• Dragon Half (manga) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Dragon Half (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia