Dragon Warrior (anime)
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| Dragon Quest | |
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| ドラゴンクエスト～勇者アベル伝説～ (Dragon Quest: Yuusha Abel Densetsu) |
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| Genre | Fantasy, Action, Adventure |
| TV anime | |
| Director | Katsuhisa Yamada, Takeyuki Kanda, Rintaro |
| Studio | Studio Comet |
| Network | Fuji TV |
| Original run | December 2, 1989 – April 5, 1991 |
| Episodes | Japan:43 Usa:13 |
Dragon Warrior known in Japanese as Dragon Quest: Legend of the Hero Abel (ドラゴンクエスト～勇者アベル伝説～ Doragon Kuesuto ~Yūsha Aberu Densetsu~?) was an 1989 anime series based on the video game of the same name by Yuji Horii, Akira Toriyama, and Koichi Sugiyama. It is also referred to as "Dragon Quest: Abel Legend", "Dragon Quest: Great Hero Abel", "DQ: Legend of Abel".
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[edit] Story
The story is about a teenage boy named Abel and his best friend Tiala. On Tiala's 16th birthday she receives a red jewel. Unbeknownst to her, the red jewel has the power to awaken the great dragon, which legend has it can grant eternal life to one who drinks its blood. Baramos, a daemon from the ancient and evil kingdom of Estark, desires to find the stone and gain immortality. After tracking the stone to Tiala's village, Baramos kidnaps her and sets off to find the location of the dragon. Abel, who was injured in a vain attempt to fight off Baramos is revived by his friend Moco and the village elder who gives him the blue stone, which he is told has the power to seal the dragon if it is woken. Baramos then returns again to the village in order to gain more information on the dragon's whereabouts. After doing so he leaves, but not before unleashing a giant anteater on the village. The elder uses a special crest to stun the beast and then Able and Moco finish it off. The elder imparts some advice to Abel before passing away and thus begins the adventure to save Tiala and defeat Baramos.
[edit] Concept
The anime was released based on the popularity of the first Dragon Warrior video game (but contained different story and play elements from the first 3 games of the series). It is a change of pace since most anime are launched from a successful manga or an anticipated toyline. This series signaled a new trend since it was bridged off the popularity of a growing medium in the late 80s.
[edit] Production notes
Saban brought 13 dubbed episodes to the USA and Canada in 1990, titled Dragon Warrior. The show never achieved a prime time Saturday morning time slot in many cities (if any), it received the dubious honor of being on Entertainment Tonight's list of most violent animated programs, and it is rumored that Toriyama sued Saban because his name was not included in the English version's credits. The episodes were also shuffled out of order with the party reaching no more than the "Tower of Najima".
Unlike the Japanese version which featured an original, electronic musical score, the American version "Dragon Warrior" television show featured orchestral Dragon Quest music by Sugiyama.
[edit] Opening Theme
- "Mirai wo Mezashite (未来をめざして; Aim Towards the Future)" by Tohru Furuya (eps 33-43)
[edit] Ending Theme
- "Yume wo Shinjite (夢を信じて; Believe in Dreams)" by Hideaki Tokunaga (eps 1-26)
- "Niji no Miyako (虹の都; Rainbow Capital)" by Kabuki Rocks (eps 27-32)
- "Niji no Brand-New Day (虹のBRAND-NEW DAY; Rainbow Brand-New Day)" by Masako Katsuki (eps 33-43)
[edit] Episode titles
| episode# | Japanese Title | Japanese translation | Air Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | レベル1 | Level 1 | 1989-12-02 |
| 2 | レベル2 | Level 2 | 1989-12-09 |
| 3 | レベル3 | Level 3 | 1989-12-16 |
| 4 | レベル4 | Level 4 | 1989-12-23 |
| 5 | レベル5 | Level 5 | 1990-01-20 |
| 6 | レベル6 | Level 6 | 1990-01-27 |
| 7 | レベル7 | Level 7 | 1990-02-03 |
| 8 | レベル8 | Level 8 | 1990-02-10 |
| 9 | レベル9 | Level 9 | 1990-02-17 |
| 10 | レベル10 | Level 10 | 1990-02-24 |
| 11 | レベル11 | Level 11 | 1990-03-03 |
| 12 | レベル12 | Level 12 | 1990-03-10 |
| 13 | レベル13 | Level 13 | 1990-03-17 |
| 14 | レベル14 | Level 14 | 1990-03-24 |
| 15 | レベル15 | Level 15 | 1990-04-14 |
| 16 | レベル16 | Level 16 | 1990-04-21 |
| 17 | レベル17 | Level 17 | 1990-05-05 |
| 18 | レベル18 | Level 18 | 1990-05-12 |
| 19 | レベル19 | Level 19 | 1990-05-19 |
| 20 | レベル20 | Level 20 | 1990-06-02 |
| 21 | レベル21 | Level 21 | 1990-06-09 |
| 22 | レベル22 | Level 22 | 1990-06-16 |
| 23 | レベル23 | Level 23 | 1990-06-30 |
| 24 | レベル24 | Level 24 | 1990-07-07 |
| 25 | レベル25 | Level 25 | 1990-07-28 |
| 26 | レベル26 | Level 26 | 1990-08-04 |
| 27 | レベル27 | Level 27 | 1990-08-11 |
| 28 | レベル28 | Level 28 | 1990-08-18 |
| 29 | レベル29 | Level 29 | 1990-08-25 |
| 30 | レベル30 | Level 30 | 1990-09-08 |
| 31 | レベル31 | Level 31 | 1990-09-15 |
| 32 | レベル32 | Level 32 | 1990-09-22 |
| 33 | 勇者たちの新たなる決意!! | A New Determination for the Heroes! | 1991-01-11 |
| 34 | 敵か味方か!? 謎の美剣士アドニス | An Enemy or an Ally!? The Handsome Swordsman Adonis | 1991-01-25 |
| 35 | 甦れ!! 不死鳥ラーミア | Revive! Phoenix Lamia | 1991-02-01 |
| 36 | 出現!! 天空の浮遊島 | It Appears!! The Floating Island in the Sky | 1991-02-08 |
| 37 | 青き神殿 アベルよ聖剣を抜け!! | The Blue Shrine - Abel, Pull Out the Holy Sword!! | 1991-02-15 |
| 38 | 突撃! エスターク城の決戦 | Assault! Decisive Battle at Estark Castle | 1991-02-22 |
| 39 | 伝説の竜はアリアハンに!? | The Legendary Dragon is in Ariahan!? | 1991-03-01 |
| 40 | 竜神湖に秘められた謎!? | A Hidden Riddle at Dragon God Lake!? | 1991-03-08 |
| 41 | 怒れる竜VSスーパーバラモス | Angered Dragon VS Super Baramos | 1991-03-15 |
| 42 | 大勇者誕生!! 青と赤の珠の奇跡 | The Birth of the Greatest Hero!! The Miracle of the Blue and Red Ball | 1991-03-29 |
| 43 | 最終決戦!! アベルVSバラモス | The Final Decisive Battle!! Abel VS Baramos | 1991-04-05 |
[edit] Staff
| Roll | Japanese | Japanese translation |
|---|---|---|
| Director | 山田勝久, 神田武幸 | Katsuhisa Yamada, Takayuki Kanda, Rintaro |
| Script | 関島眞頼 | Mayori Sekijima |
| Music | すぎやま こういち | Koichi Sugiyama |
| Character Design | 金沢比呂司 | Hiroshi Kanazawa |
| Animation director | 金沢比呂司, 一川孝久 | Hiroshi Kanazawa, Takahisa Ichikawa |
| Original Character Design | 鳥山明 | Akira Toriyama |
[edit] English Staff
| Roll | Name |
|---|---|
| Executive producer | Jerald E. Bergh |
| Music producer | Andrew Dimitroff |
| Dubbing | BLT Productions, Inc. |
| Producer | Saban Entertainment |
[edit] Cast
| Character | Voice Actor | Voice Actor (US) |
|---|---|---|
| Tiara | Masako Katsuki | Monica Rial |
| Abel | Tohru Furuya | Michael Donovan |
| Baramos | Takeshi Watabe | Scott Mcneil |
| Wizard Moore | Hidekatsu Shibata | Richard Newman |
| Jikido | Katsuji Mori | |
| Daisy | Yūko Mita | Emilie Barlow |
| Prince Frank | Nobutoshi Hayashi | |
| Baharata | Hirotaka Suzuoki | |
| Tiara's Father | Gary Chalk | |
| Village Elder | Gary Chalk]] | |
| Aliahan Guard #2 | Jim Byrnes |
