Hakuouki: Shinkai Kaze no, Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeti, Hakuoki Junsouroku
Hakuōki(薄桜鬼 〜新選組奇譚〜,Hakuōki ~Shinsengumi Kitan~, Demon of the Fleeting Blossom: The Mysterious Tale of the Shinsengumi) is a video game series by Idea Factory, first designed for the PlayStation 2 and then later ported to PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, and Nintendo 3DS. It has been adapted into two 12/10-episode anime series animated by Studio Deen; the first began airing in Japan on the TV Kanagawa and UHF stations on April 4, 2010. The second season began airing on October 10, 2010 and ended on December 12, 2010. The series has also been adapted as two different manga series. A third series based on the prequel, Hakuōki Reimeiroku aired in summer of 2012.
Two new films were released in 2013–2014. Film 1 was released in August 2013 and is released on DVDs February 2014. The film is supposed to be a retelling of both seasons in greater detail and with a slightly different ending. The second film was released on March 8, 2014. The anime television series and films have been licensed by Sentai Filmworks in North America.
Plot
Chizuru Yukimura heads to Kyoto to search for her father, finding herself attacked by mad men before they are cut down by members of the Shinsengumi who take her into custody for interrogation. Upon learning that she is a girl and the daughter of a doctor who developed the Water of Life elixir that turns those that drink it into invincible blood lusting berserkers called Rasetsu (羅刹, "Furies" in English dub), the Shinsengumi decide to keep her as an aide in their search. In time, as the Shinsengumi aid the shogunate in the Bakufu, Chizuru begins to develop a bond with the Shinsengumi and its aloof member Toshizo Hijikata. However, as time passes, Chizuru and Shinsengumi confront a mysterious faction who call themselves Oni (Devils) and that Chizuru is also an Oni with father revealed to be experimenting on the Water of Life to create the Rasetsu to wipe out the human race.
Characters
Chizuru Yukimura(雪村 千鶴,Yukimura Chizuru)
Voiced by: Houko Kuwashima (Japanese); Brittney Karbowski (English)
Chizuru is the main protagonist of the series. She comes to Kyoto in search of her missing father, Kodo Yukimura (雪村 綱道,Yukimura Kōdō), a practitioner of Western medicine. Unknown to Chizuru, her father under orders from the Shogunate develops the Water of Life (復ち水,Ochimizu), an elixir that increases the drinker's healing abilities, speed, and strength yet could turn the drinker into a mindless killing monster called a Rasetsu. At the beginning of the series, she is seen being chased by two men, who were suddenly attacked by two Rasetsu. She witnesses Hajime Saito kill off the Rasetsu and is then taken to the Shinsengumi headquarters by Toshizo Hijikata, where they allow her to stay, because they too were in search of her father. Eventually, she falls in love with Hijikata Toshizo.
Chizuru has a secret unknown to herself: she is in fact a pureblood member of the Oni Ichizoku (the Demon Clan), and the head of the Oni of the East is of Yukimura descent. Because Oni have scattered and declined in numbers over the centuries, Chikage Kazama seeks her out to create a lineage of pure-blooded Oni. She is the wielder of a short sword which is a mate to with Kaoru's katana. They are part of the Yukimura Family's heirloom.
Toshizo Hijikata(土方 歳三,Hijikata Toshizō)
Voiced by: Shinichiro Miki (Japanese); Andrew Love (English)
Hijikata is the Vice-commander of the Shinsengumi and makes most of the Shinsengumi's decisions. He is called Oni-fukuchou (Demon Vice-commander) and is both feared and respected by his men. He is also often referred to as "Toshi" by Kondo. Hijikata is the one who brought Chizuru back to the Shinsengumi headquarters the night she witnessed a Rasetsu on the loose that attacked two men chasing her. He is responsible for her welfare, and even though he acts as if this were to his dismay, he cares for Chizuru's safety, and is often shown protecting her during battles. Hijikata drinks the Water of Life and becomes a Rasetsu in order to defeat Chikage, fueled by rage after seeing fellow Shinsengumi warrior Genzaburo Inoue dead. Even though Inoue had been killed by Satchō warriors (Satsuma-Chōshū alliance), Hijikata takes it out on Chikage, starting a duel as Chikage goads him. At the end of Season 2 he acknowledge his love for Chizuru. At the end of the anime series he either dies from a combination of the Water of Life and wounds that he attained through a battle with Chikage Kazama, or he lives (as suggested by the fact that his body didn't disappear). His ending is ambiguous. But hinted that he's still alive as wiping Chizuru's tear and saying her name while smiling at her. He is based on the historical Hijikata Toshizō.
Souji Okita(沖田 総司,Okita Sōji)
Voiced by: Showtaro Morikubo (Japanese); Blake Shepard (English)
Okita is the First Division Captain and a peerless swordsman. He suffers from tuberculosis, and is later visited by Nagumo Kaoru who gives him a bottle of the Water of Life to cure his tuberculosis. Driven by guilt at being incapacitated by his illness, Okita drinks the elixir. Although he becomes a Rasetsu, the Shinsengumi discover that he does not benefit from accelerated healing when wounded by silver weapons, thus discovering the weakness of Rasetsu. Souji was sent away because his illness got worse, but he later showed up to confront Hijikata about Kondo's death. He was last seen protecting Hijikata from rogue samurais, and turned into ashes after killing all the rogues. He is based on the historical Okita Sōji.
Isami Kondo(近藤 勇,Kondō Isami)
Voiced by: Tōru Ōkawa (Japanese); David Wald (English)
Kondo is the Commander of the Shinsengumi. He is very emotional, but despite this, he has the trust, respect, and loyalty of his men. He is based on the historical Isami Kondō.
Keisuke Yamanami(山南 敬助,Yamanami Keisuke)
Voiced by: Nobuo Tobita (Japanese); David Matranga (English)
Usually called "Sannan-san" (based on an alternate reading of his surname), he is Vice-commander of the Shinsengumi, along with Hijikata. Both a scholar and a ruthless tactician, he is kind and caring, albeit a bit reserved. After an injury which resulted in him being unable to use his left arm and thus wield a katana, he becomes cold and distant; he proceeds to research and improve on the Water of Life in secret in order to overcome its side effects, eventually drinking it and becoming one of the first few Rasetsu with self control, creating the Shinsengumi's Rasetsu Corps. He is based on the historical Yamanami Keisuke.
Shinpachi Nagakura(永倉 新八,Nagakura Shinpachi)
Voiced by: Tomohiro Tsuboi (Japanese); Kalob Martinez (TV), Scott Gibbs (Movies) (English)
Shinpachi is the Second Division captain of the Shinsengumi. He is usually very cheerful, especially when he is with his comrades. Shinpachi is especially close to Harada and together they often pick on Heisuke. He is very skilled with the sword, but he is also a borderline alcoholic and womanizer, as he is seen breaking the curfew one night to be out drinking. He is based on the historical Nagakura Shinpachi.
Sanosuke Harada(原田 左之助,Harada Sanosuke)
Voiced by: Kōji Yusa (Japanese); Illich Guardiola (TV), Phil Hyde (Movies) (English)
Harada is the Tenth Division Captain and prefers the spear to the sword, but he is seen carrying both. In the anime he has a fierce rivalry with Kyō Shiranui, pitting his spear against Shiranui's pistol. He is based on the historical Harada Sanosuke.
Heisuke Todo
Voiced by: Hiroyuki Yoshino (Japanese); Greg Ayres (English)
Heisuke is the Eighth Division captain of the Shinsengumi. He is around the same age as Chizuru and is very protective of her, before he died. He leaves the Shinsengumi, following Itou along with Hajime Saito, but later returns. He too has taken the Water of Life to recover from injuries. He is based on the historical Tōdō Heisuke.
Hajime Saito(斎藤 一,Saitō Hajime)
Voiced by: Kōsuke Toriumi (Japanese); Leraldo Anzaldua (English)
Saito is the leader of the Third Division who is a master of the left hand sword technique and is a skilled swordsman who evens Okita's skills. He is taciturn but also very loyal, polite, and wise. He often analyzes the situation before attacking to figure out which actions are necessary to complete the mission. Saito left the Shinsengumi apparently to join Itou's group, but later it turns out that he was commanded by Hijikata to infiltrate Itou's group for information concerning Itou's plans. In the anime he is seen making a final charge against the enemy as his comrades are all slain. He is based on the historical Saitō Hajime.
Kaoru Nagumo(南雲 薫,Nagumo Kaoru)
Voiced by: Hasumi Itō (Japanese); Shannon Emerick (English)
First seen as a lovely dressed young woman who was saved by Okita from punks. Okita also notices that she resembles Chizuru, though Kaoru is more prettier, he is actually Chizuru's twin brother who was separated from her during childhood. He's made to dress as a woman but is seen as a boy near the end of the first season of the anime. He is one of the strongest Oni. He wants to make Chizuru suffer because when they were separated, he was taken in by the Nagumo family who treated him harshly for not being a girl. He also hated that Chizuru forgot about him and about her even having a twin brother at all. Because of this, he wants her to feel the pain he felt.
Later on, he admits that he truly loves Chizuru and everything he did was to meet her again. In addition, he asks Chizuru to go with him, because he thinks he is the only one who has the power to protect her. She refuses, since she had promised to the Shinsengumi that she would protect Kondo, though the main reason was because she liked Hijikata. Kaoru decides that if things had come to that, his only option would be to kill her. Right after they start fighting, Chizuru is cornered and saved by Chikage, who kills Kaoru.
Kaoru is the wielder of the long sword that with Chizuru's short sword form a set, both of which are the Yukimura clan's heirlooms.
Chikage Kazama(風間 千景,Kazama Chikage)
Voiced by: Kenjirō Tsuda (Japanese); Corey Hartzog (English)
Member of the Bakumatsu, enemies of the Shinsengumi. He is the strongest Oni of the West and is after Chizuru, so that they can mate and create stronger Oni. His reasons for this are unknown, but his attempts to take Chizuru have so far been thwarted by the interference of the Shinsengumi. Despite being arrogant and cynical, he is not entirely cold-blooded as he later saves Chizuru (although this might have been for his own purposes) and even escorted her back to the estate rather than harassing her. Kazama is usually followed by his two demon companions Amagiri and Shiranui, and it is implied by Sen-hime that he is a royal blood, like her. In his Oni form, he grows white horns and his hair fades to match. His eyes also become yellow. But later in the series and OVA he is seen to truly love Chizuru.
Kyuju Amagiri(天霧 九寿,Amagiri Kyūju)
Voiced by: Ryū Yamaguchi (Japanese); Steven Fenley (English)
Kyūju Amagiri is a very strong red-haired Oni, who prefers to fight with his fists instead of a sword. He's usually seen by Kazama Chikage's side, since he works for him. Strangely, Amagiri seems to dislike fighting needlessly and often tells his opponents not to fight him, in a polite manner. He is rather respectful of his enemies, not even taunting them when in battle. He is also a member of the Satsuma Clan.
In the second season of the anime adaptation, Kazama, Amagiri, and Shiranui unite against Kodo and his army of Rasetsu, which he manages to improve and now can fight efforlessly in broad daylight. Moreover, Amagiri reveals to Saito that, since the source of the Rasetsu's power is not of divine origin unlike the power of true Oni, the superhuman strength, reflexes and regenerative abilities of Rasetsu are fueled from life energy. Therefore, Rasetsu are simply using in advance energy that was originally meant to be expended over the decades of an ordinary human life, and their lifespans are shortened every time they use their powers.
Kyo Shiranui (不知火 匡,Shiranui Kyō)
Voiced by: Hiroaki Yoshida (Japanese); Houston Hayes (English)
Kyō Shiranui is a cocky, arrogant Oni who prefers guns to swords. He has long, purple wavy hair which he wears in a ponytail. Initially, he fights alongside Kazama Chikage and Amagiri Kyuuju against the Shinsengumi (and particularly, Harada), in order to abduct Chizuru under Kazama Chikage's orders. Later on, Harada and Shiranui call it a truce and join forces to defeat Kodo's newly created Rasetsu, after his betrayal. Shiranui serves as a rearguard so that the Shinsengumi can escape the battlefield, opening a path for them. Afterwards, he informs Harada that Kodo is willing to start a war only to get blood to feed his Rasetsu army.
Sen-hime(千姫)
Voiced by: Ayano Ishikawa (Japanese); Hilary Haag (English)
She is a pretty young girl around Chizuru's age, with long brown hair. She is the princess of oni and protected by her faithful bodyguard, Kimigiku. Sen is first introduced when she protects a child and is threatened by a group of men. Chizuru jumps in, forgetting that she cannot fight very well, and Saito Hajime steps in, knocking the men out with the blunt side of his blade. She later reveals Chizuru's real heritage, even offering twice for Chizuru to come with her and Kimigiku to be better protected.
Video games
The Hakuōki series of otome visual novels were released for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS by Idea Factory. Two of the games have been published in English by Aksys Games in North America on PlayStation Portable. Rising Star Games renewed partnership with Idea Factory to bring two of their Hakuōki games to PAL territories. The first game is a port of Hakuōki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom with added story content.
Hakuōki: Shinsengumi Kitan(薄桜鬼 〜新選組奇譚〜)
PlayStation 2: September 18, 2008
PlayStation Portable: August 27, 2009
Nintendo DS: March 18, 2010
Nintendo 3DS: November 24, 2011
Hakuōki: Zuisouroku(薄桜鬼 随想録)
PlayStation 2: August 27, 2009
PlayStation Portable: August 26, 2010
Nintendo DS: February 17, 2011
Hakuōki: Yuugiroku(薄桜鬼 遊戯録)
PlayStation Portable: May 13, 2010
Nintendo DS: April 28, 2011
Hakuōki: Junsouroku(薄桜鬼 巡想録)
PlayStation 3: June 17, 2010
Hakuōki: Reimeiroku(薄桜鬼 黎明録)
PlayStation 2: October 28, 2010
PlayStation Portable: July 28, 2011
Nintendo DS: April 26, 2012
Hakuōki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom (Release for North America, published by Aksys Games)
PlayStation Portable: February 14, 2012
Hakuōki: Warriors of the Shinsengumi (Release for North America, published by Aksys Games)
PlayStation Portable: February 19, 2013
Hakuōki: Memories of the Shinsengumi (Release for North America and Europe, published by Aksys Games (North America) and Rising Star Games (Europe))
Nintendo 3DS: September 19, 2013
Hakuōki: Stories of the Shinsengumi (Release for North America, published by Aksys Games)
PlayStation 3: May 6, 2014
Hakuōki: Bakumatsu Musouroku(薄桜鬼 幕末無双録)
PlayStation Portable: March 22, 2012
Hakuōki: Reimeiroku Nagorigusa(薄桜鬼 黎明録 名残り草)
PlayStation 3: June 28, 2012
Hakuōki: Yuugiroku Ni – Matsuri Hayashi to Taishitachi(薄桜鬼 遊戯録弐 祭囃子と隊士達)
PlayStation Portable: October 18, 2012
Urakata Hakuōki(裏語 薄桜鬼)
PlayStation Portable: June 27, 2013
Hakuōki: Kyoukaroku
PlayStation Vita: December 19, 2013
Hakuōki SSL: Sweet School Life(薄桜鬼 SSL)
PlayStation Vita: March 27, 2014
Urakata Hakuōki: Akatsuki no Shirabe(裏語 薄桜鬼～暁の調べ～)
PlayStation Portable: August 7, 2014
Hakuōki: Zuisouroku - Omokagebana(薄桜鬼 随想録 面影げ花)
PlayStation Vita: February 19, 2015
Hakuōki: Reimeiroku - Omouhase Kara(薄桜鬼 黎明録 思馳せ空)
PlayStation Vita: July 2, 2015
Hakuōki: Shinkai - Kaze no Shou(薄桜鬼 真改 風ノ章)
PlayStation Vita: September 25, 2015
Hakuoki: Yuugiroku Tai-shi-tachi no dai enkai(薄桜鬼 遊戯録 隊士達の大宴会)
PlayStation Vita: November 17, 2016
Manga
There are two manga adaptations of Hakuōki: Shinsengumi Kitan. The first, entitled Hakuōki Junrenka, is serialized in the shōjo manga magazine Dengeki Comic SYLPH, and is an anthology of the different endings available in the video games. Another adaptation is currently serialized in Comic B's Log Kyun!!.
Anime
The following is a list of episodes of all three seasons of the anime series: Hakuōki, Hakuōki: Hekketsuroku (the second season) anime and Hakuōki: Reimeiroku (the third season and a prequel of the original anime series). The series uses six pieces of theme music, one opening and ending per season. The first season's opening theme was "Izayoi Namida" by Yoshioka Aika and ending was "Kimi no Kioku" by Mao. The second season's opening is "Maikaze" by Yoshioka Aika and its ending theme is "Akane Sora ni Negau" by Mao. For Hakuōki Reimeiroku, the opening theme is "Reimei" (黎鳴-reimei-) by Maon Kurosaki and the ending theme is "Hana no Atosaki" (花のあとさき) by Mao.
List of episodes
Hakuōki-Shinsengumi-Kitan
Hakuōki Hekketsuroku
Hakuōki: Hekketsuroku(薄桜鬼 〜碧血録〜,Hakuōki ~Hekketsuroku~, Demon of the Fleeting Blossom: The Record of the Jade Blood) is the second season of the previous season, opening with a recap episode of season one that is labeled "episode 00."
Hakuōki Sekkaroku OVA
Opening: Yume no Ukifune By Aika Yoshioka
Hakuōki: Sekkaroku(Hakuōki ~Sekkaroku~,Demon of the Fleeting Blossom: A Memory of Snow Flowers) is the OVA collection.
