Noir (TV series)

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Noir
ノワール
(Noir)
Genre Mystery, Action, Heroic bloodshed, Adventure, Drama
TV anime
Directed by Koichi Mashimo
Studio Bee Train
Network Japan TV Tokyo, Bandai Channel
United States Anime Network, ADV Films
France Canal+
Spain La sexta
Germany VIVA
Original run April 06, 2001 – September 27, 2001
No. of episodes 26

Noir (ノワール Nowāru?), a 26-episode anime series from 2001, is a story of two young female assassins who embark together on a personal journey to seek answers about mysteries from their past. While at first they seem to be only vaguely related to each other, there are clues and hints given throughout the series that there are more than meets their eyes. During the course of the series, they are lured into more and more traps by a secret organization named Les Soldats ("The Soldiers" in French). The anime draws inspirations and influences from two prominent films by French director Luc Besson, Léon and Nikita. The amnesia suffered by one of the main characters resembles the story of the protagonist from Robert Ludlum's novel The Bourne Identity.

It was produced by the Japanese animation studio Bee Train and was licensed for American distribution by ADV Films.

In Japan, Noir was broadcast on TV Tokyo, which is known for strict guidelines, including not allowing blood to be shown. Noir circumvented this rule by stylizing the gunfights. Outside Japan, Noir has been well-received, due to its unusual plots and stories which have a strong European style and flavor. It has been broadcasted in France (by Canal+), Germany (by VIVA Television), Latin America (by Animax) and Spain (by La Sexta), dubbed in French, German and Spanish respectively.

"Noir" is also the French word for "black", and noir is a genre of film. Noir takes its title from both of these; it mostly takes place in France and is a fairly serious, dark and violent anime. It is worth to note that the production team stated that their goal with Noir is to create it as realistic as possible. Noir almost has no funny or comic relief scenes, except for some sarcastic remarks. No character is ever animated with super deformed or over-exaggerated style. To make it even resemble a film than a TV series, Noir is filmed in 16×9 aspect ratio instead the usual 4×3 aspect ratio for TV.

Despite the presence of attractive female lead characters, Noir features almost no fanservice (compare this to Najica Blitz Tactics). In Noir, characters' non-verbal expressions play such a significant role that it is quite difficult to come to a common understanding of the show.

Contents

[edit] The series

Noir title screen
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Noir title screen

Noir begins as a fairly generic action anime, but later (with the appearance of Chloe) becomes more psychological. The series has a very small recurring cast, all women. It has been interpreted as having been influenced by the novel Foucault's Pendulum, but it is unknown if this was intentional on the part of the series creators.

In the beginning of each episode, after the opening, a short sequence appears, where Kirika reads a prayer-like poem:

Noir… it is the name of an ancient fate
Two maidens who govern death
The peace of the newly born their black hands protect

The original promotions and DVD covers of the anime has this poem written in French

Le noir, ce mot désigne depuis une époque lointaine le nom du destin
Les deux vierges régnent sur la mort
Les mains noires protègent la paix des nouveaux-nés

In some of the later episodes slightly different versions of this poem are read by each of the other protagonists. Mireille and Chloe each have their own version of it.

Two maidens who govern death
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Two maidens who govern death

Mireille's version:

Noir… it is the name of an ancient fate
Two maidens who govern death
To ward the darkness from the nursing babes their black robes serve as shields

Chloe's version:

Noir… it is the name of an ancient fate
Two maidens who govern death
To the depths of hell's fire their black souls lure the lost children

In the last episode though, the first poem is recited by two of the main characters, signifying the phrase Two maidens who govern death.

Despite the gunplay and a sizeable body count, Noir features no gore and very little blood. Originally a simple consideration for network TV, the DVD release remained bloodless, intriguing fans. It is said this makes the death of many suited agents less troubling, becoming faceless "stormtroopers", popularly termed 'mooks'. However, in limited instances, main characters such as Kirika display blood, perhaps to show their humanity.

[edit] Characters

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
Kirika Yuumura
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Kirika Yuumura
  • Kirika Yuumura - Kirika is a schoolgirl who has lost all memories of her past, knowing only that her true name is Noir. It is not known whether her real name is Kirika Yuumura, as the only thing that links her to this name is a student ID card with her photo and that name on it. She meets up with Mireille in the first episode with an offer to make a pilgrimage to the past. Ironically, it becomes clear as the series progresses that, when Kirika was a young child, it was she who killed Mireille's family. Before dying, Mireille's mother asked Kirika to take care of Mireille. She is an excellent markswoman and uses a Beretta M1934, but can also use a great deal of mundane objects as well. Kirika's theme music is 'Canta Per Me', Italian for 'Sing for Me'. She is voiced by Houko Kuwashima in the original Japanese version and Monica Rial in the ADV dub.
Noir artwork
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Noir artwork
  • Mireille Bouquet - A Corsican woman born into a powerful crime family, Mireille and her uncle are the sole survivors of a brutal attack on her family. The reason behind the murder of her family was that her parents refused to have Mireille raised by the Soldats to become Noir. After her family's murder, she would later be trained by her uncle to become an assassin. Already a well-established assassin, she receives an email from Kirika with an attachment of a familiar melody. She agrees to work with Kirika because of a watch that Kirika has which is identical to one her father had. However, she tells Kirika that once the truth is revealed, she would kill Kirika. Ironically, the codename Mireille chooses to work under, after teaming up with Kirika, is Noir, assuming the role that her parents wished for Mireille not to have. Mireille uses a Walther P99, a modern firearm developed in the 1990s. Mireille's theme music is 'Corsican Corridor' and 'Salva Nos'. She is voiced by Kotono Mitsuishi in the original and Shelley Calene-Black in the ADV dub.
  • Chloe - A mysterious figure that appears about halfway through the series, she claims to be the True Noir (her name may be significant, given the similarity in pronunciation between "Chloe" and "Kuroi", the Japanese word for black. Though she is about Kirika's age, she is extremely skilled as an assassin, a quite remarkable fact since she uses throwing knives instead of using guns. Chloe is very faithful to Altena and works for the Soldats, enjoying a position of considerable authority. She was witness to the murder of the Bouquet family by Kirika, an event which caused her to look up to Kirika. There are also strong suggestions later in the series that Chloe's feelings for Kirika are actually romantic. Chloe's theme music is 'Secret Game' (in addition to the instrumental song 'Chloe'). She is voiced by Aya Hisakawa in the original Japanese and Hilary Haag in the ADV dub.
  • Altena - A motherly figure who is high-ranking in Soldats, who seems to be working for "Le Grand Retour" (The Great Return). She resides in a place called "The Manor" which is a vineyard run with medieval technology. The Manor is between the border of France and Spain, and is a "forgotten place" to the world. (This is possibly inspired by the microstate Andorra.) She was orphaned during a war and was raped by a soldier. This trauma led her to believe that if excessive love could destroy, excessive hate could perhaps save. Altena's theme music is 'Lullaby'. She is voiced by TARAKO in the original Japanese and Tiffany Grant in the ADV dub.

It is interesting to note that the three female assassin characters in Noir are not quite like stereotypical femme fatales from other shows or animes, say Faye Valentine (Cowboy Bebop) or Fujiko Mine (Lupin the Third). They don't really have cunning personalities or act on the motive of revenge or social injustice toward women. Rather, they are truly professional assassins who are extremely proficient in carrying out their missions, thus similar to the characters in Luc Besson's Léon and Nikita. With exception of one episode, for most of the times all the main characters do no show any serious or romantic feelings toward men. This illustrates the facts that all the characters are unlike common people and have been raised and have grown up in situations which were completely unusual and different than normal. Despite the popularity of the shows among shoujo-ai/yuri fandom, the production staffs themselves do not officially state that Noir is such kind of show. They do, however, admit that there are enough elements in the show which are quite suggestive and they leave it to fans to interpret those elements the way fans would like to do.

[edit] Episode list

No. Title Translation Original Title
1. Maidens with Black Hands 黒き手の処女たち
2. Our Daily Bread 日々の糧
3. Assassin's Game 暗殺遊戯
4. Sound of Waves 波の音
5. Les Soldats レ・ソルダ
6. Lost Kitten 迷い猫
7. The Black Thread of Fate 運命の黒い糸
8. Intoccabile Act 1 イントッカービレ acte I
9. Intoccabile Act 2 イントッカービレ acte II
10. The True Noir 真のノワール
11. Moonlit Tea Party 月下之茶宴
12. Assassin Training 刺客行
13. Season of Hell 地獄の季節
14. A Bouquet for Mirielle ミレイユに花束を
15. The Heartless Assassin Act 1 冷眼殺手 acte I
16. The Heartless Assassin Act 2 冷眼殺手 acte II
17. Return to Corsica コルシカに還る
18. The Darkness within Me 私の闇
19. Two Hands of the Soldats ソルダの両手
20. Sin within Sin 罪の中の罪
21. Morning without Dawn 無明の朝
22. Journey's End 旅路の果て
23. Sentiments for the Remaining Flower 残花有情
24. Return to Darkness 暗黒回帰
25. To the Depth of Hell's Fire 業火の淵
26. Birth 誕生

[edit] Music

The music in Noir is often the most commonly commended aspect of the series, praised for its uniqueness and creativity by mixing a blend of techno, opera, and French-flaired music. It has also been noted as having influenced viewer perceptions on analysis of the series. The battle scenes are intensified by the powerful music which accompanies them. Memorable tracks include Salva Nos and Canta Per Me, which are played in almost every episode.

The series composer for all music except the opening and end themes is Yuki Kajiura, who is accompanied by primary vocalist Yuriko Kaida, secondary vocalist Yuri Kasahara, and Yuki's band See-Saw. Yuki Kajiura is also the composer for several other anime series (including .hack//SIGN and Madlax) and videogames (Xenosaga Episode II and Xenosaga Episode III), which have a similar musical style. The opening song, "KOPPERIA no Hitsugi" (Coppélia's Coffin), is written and performed by Ali Project, and the ending song, "Kirei na Kanjou" ("Beautiful Emotions", along with its piano-only BGM version), is by Akino Arai.

[edit] Track list for official soundtrack

OST I

  1. Kopperia no Hitsugi /Ali Project
  2. les soldats
  3. snow
  4. canta per me
  5. Corsican corridor
  6. ode to power
  7. solitude by the window
  8. romance
  9. silent pain
  10. lullaby
  11. mélodie
  12. chloe
  13. whispering hills
  14. zero hour
  15. liar you lie
  16. sorrow
  17. salva nos
  18. Kirei na Kanjou /Akino Arai

OST II

  1. le grand retour
  2. secret game
  3. fake garden
  4. les soldats II
  5. in memory of you
  6. colosseum
  7. salva nos II
  8. maze
  9. in peace
  10. despair
  11. power-hungry
  12. black is black
  13. canta per me II
  14. at dusk
  15. premonition
  16. killing
  17. a farewell song
  18. Kirei na Kanjou - piano ver.
  19. indio

blanc dans NOIR ~Kuro no Naka no Shiro~

Disc 1

  1. Aka to Kuro
  2. prelude
  3. canta per me - Japanese ver.
  4. lullaby - Japanese ver.
  5. Aime moi
  6. Himitsu
  7. salva nos - dialogie remix ver.
  8. love
  9. Gensou Rakuen

Disc 2

  1. guests B
  2. melody - "salva nos" ver.
  3. jealousy
  4. at dawn
  5. black society
  6. family affection
  7. church
  8. at ease

[edit] External links

 v • d • e 
Anime series and OVAs animated by studio Bee Train
Girls-with-guns: Madlax | Noir
Other original works: Avenger
.hack franchise: GIFT | Legend of the Twilight | Liminality | Roots | SIGN
Other video games: Arc the Lad | Medabots | Meine Liebe | PoPoLoCrois | Wild Arms
Manga and literature: Spider Riders | Tsubasa Chronicle
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