Those Who Hunt Elves

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Those Who Hunt Elves

English release Volume 1 - Ready Set Strip!
エルフを狩るモノたち
(Erufu wo Karumono-tachi)
Genre Comedy, Action, Fantasy, Adventure
Manga
Author Yu Yagami
Publisher United Kingdom United States ADV Manga
Japan MediaWorks
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Flag of Japan Dengeki Comic Gao!
Original run June 1995 – March 2003
Volumes 21
TV anime: Those Who Hunt Elves
Director Kazuyoshi Katayama
Studio Group TAC
Network Flag of Japan TV Tokyo
Flag of the Philippines Hero TV, QTV 11
Original run October 4, 1996 – December 19, 1996
Episodes 12
TV anime: Those Who Hunt Elves 2
Director Kazuyoshi Katayama
Studio Group TAC
Network Flag of Japan TV Tokyo
Flag of the Philippines Hero TV, QTV 11
Original run October 2, 1997 – December 18, 1997
Episodes 12

Those Who Hunt Elves (エルフを狩るモノたち Erufu wo Karumono-tachi?) is a manga series and an animated Japanese television series by Yu Yagami, released in North America on VHS and DVD by ADV Films. The plot revolves around three travelers, the eponymous "Elf Hunters", and the elven sorceress Mistress Celcia.

Contents

[edit] Plot

Mistress Celcia attempts to return the Elf Hunters to their native Japan.
Mistress Celcia attempts to return the Elf Hunters to their native Japan.

Elf Hunters seek five spell fragments that have been placed on the skin of elves, similar to tattoos, throughout the magical world they have been transported to. When they find them, they will be able to return to Japan.

The Elf Hunters travel by means of a Type 74 tank, which has been transported to the magical world with them.

The reaction of various elves as the team attempts to strip them naked is a primary basis for much of the show's humour, and are more ridiculous than risque. The series is also known for breaking the fourth wall, mostly from Junpei.

In between Seasons 1 & 2, Celcia eventually send the Elf Hunters back home, but accidentally send them ahead (herself included). They woke up in a deserted urban street, greeted by a squad of men dressed in black suits armed with automatic weaponry and 40-metre tall blue Robot. The Elf Hunters landed in Tokyo-3 in the year 2015.

[edit] Characters

[edit] Elf Hunters

Junpei Ryuzouji (龍造寺淳平 Ryūzouji Junpei?)
Junpei Ryuzouji
Junpei Ryuzouji
A 19-year-old Karateka & strongman with incredible fighting ability, Junpei is the muscle of the group as well as being the only male in the group. However, his rather rough way of saying things as well as his eye for beautiful women get him into trouble more often than not. He is constantly arguing with Celcia and obsessed about curry and, briefly, heliocentrism. Junpei abhors fantasy stories and might be atheist or agnostic. He is infatuated with Airi but is clueless to Celcia's own feelings for him as well despite their constant bickering. Junpei carries a wallet filled with membership cards from various dojos, and a condom with the words 'Use with Airi Only!' written on the wrapper and his IQ is about 86.
Ritsuko Inoue (井上律子 Inoue Ritsuko?)
Ritsuko Inoue
Ritsuko Inoue
A 16-year-old high school girl and military otaku. She's a tomboy but not to the point where she loses her femininity. Drives the tank and also acts as a sniper from time to time; she often sets landmines and booby traps. Despite her love of modern military hardware, Ritsuko also displays a more sensitive and innocent side: she falls in love with the cute Pichi and maintained a belief in Father Christmas long after her peers had abandoned it and is also frightened to death of ghosts. Ritsuko carries a Heckler & Koch USP40, G36C Assault Rifle, PSG1 Sniper Rifle, a sheath knife and some C4. Her I.Q is 500. She also speaks fluently in English and German
Airi Komiyama (小宮山愛理 Komiyama Airi?)
Airi Komiyama
Airi Komiyama
A 24-year-old American-born talented actress, Airi is as skilled as she is beautiful. Able to cut from one emotion to another in an instant, and even disguise herself as someone else, Airi's talents come in useful for getting out of sticky situations that require trickery rather than brute force. Airi also has an ability to quickly and accurately assess any given situation and to plan for its eventual outcome. She is clueless to Junpei's blatant affections for her. Airi carries a Katana sword and a make-up compact kit. Her I.Q is 450.
Mistress Celcia Marie Claire (セルシア・マリクレール Serushia Marikurēru?)
Mistress Celcia in panda form
Mistress Celcia in panda form
Mistress Celcia in dog form
Mistress Celcia in dog form
The unfortunate elf who happens to get tied up with her world's new visitors, Celcia offers to transport Junpei and the others back with a spell, but gets distracted in the process and causes her spell book pages to be spread out all over the world. She is a bit psychotic and is constantly at odds with Junpei, but she is just as determined to get him and his friends back to their own world as they are - even despite her own feelings for Junpei (who she's actually in love with but publicly butts heads with). Generally, she wants them to get back home because they tend to cause a LOT of trouble. During the efforts to retrieve the spell fragments, Celcia displays an uncanny knack for getting stuck in animal form - first as a dog (Pochi), into which she'd willingly transformed, and secondly into a panda. The reason for her retention of these forms is that it is she who recovers spell fragments from the bodies of other elves, only for them to become cloven to her. Unfortunately, if they become cloven to her while she is in another form, it traps her in that form. Also, some of these marks are rather annoying. One, for instance, is a goofy looking mark on her eye.
Mike (ミケ Mike?)
Type 74 tank, Miké.
Type 74 tank, Miké.
The Type 74 tank is possessed during the show by the spirit of a cat known as Mike. Mike is first met by Elf Hunters possessing a giant teddy bear, which is then attacked by villagers, who explain that the spirit has been harassing them for some time. Upon the destruction of the bear, the spirit possesses a toy dog, found floating in a river by Ritsuko, before this too is destroyed.
Pichi (ピチちゃん Pichi-chan?)
Pichi
Pichi
A small, white, teddy bear-like interdimensional creature with the ability to produce toilet paper, to whom Ritsuko takes a liking. Pichi ends up proving an incentive for the group, especially due to a plot involving a scarcity of toilet tissue.

[edit] Supporting

Annette (アネット Anetto?)
Annette
Annette
A priestly elf and acolyte of Celcia who often appears during the group's adventures. Early in the series, she loses her faith and trust in Celcia for she thought she'd betrayed the elven race for helping out Those Who Hunt Elves and sought to stop TWHE by using a powerful spell, but ended up opening a portal and bringing more earth-originated material through. Subsequently, she ended up stripped and flowing down a river attached to a log. Despite this, she is later seen as a major supporter of Elf Hunters efforts to return to Japan. Probably because this is the best way to stop them.
Einal (エイナル Einaru?)¹ & Beenal (ビイナル Bīnaru?)²
The Bishops
The Bishops
  • They are the two Elven Bishops, with whom Annette and Celcia often consort and often disagree.
Judge (ジャッジ Jajji?)
The Judge
The Judge
The chief elven prosecutor for the world in which Elf Hunters find themselves. He is often looking for ways to end the heroes' reign of terror.
Magistrate (裁判長 Saibanchou?)
  • Voiced by: Rin Mizuhara
The Elven Magistrate
The Elven Magistrate
A female elf presiding judge who heard the case against Elf Hunters, only to award them a license to keep stripping elves as a means to return home.
Regina (?)
Regina
Regina
A powerful elven sorceress residing in Treetown who firstly attempts to lure Elf Hunters into becoming human sacrifices by a trick, in order to save her world from destruction at the hands of the Legendary Sorcerer (subsequently ending up stripped), before imploring their aid when her fears become reality.
Emily (エミリィ Emirī?)
An elven wind-priestess.

Andy - An inhabitant of Emily's village.

Bronco - Andy's younger brother.

Hammerhead - Leader of a group of anthropomorphic sea creatures who hunt elves to sell as stuffed hunting trophies.

Gabriella - An Amazon-like female elf. Her forces would be effortlessly defeated by Those Who Hunt Elves and she herself would fall to Junpei. After which she develops feelings for him for his honor as a fighter.

Dyal - A female elf and leader of a town beset by skeletal warriors, she drinks a magic potion which causes her to grow, thus enabling Elf Hunters to search her naked frame. She spends the rest of the episodes in her giant form.

Rapier - Elf. Accomplished fighter cursed with the numbers of her defeated rivals on her back. It can't come off until she's defeated her 1,000th opponent. She would fall to Junpei but was relieved of her curse because she learned the true way of the fist that her late sensei taught her but refused to listen. She thanks him and Junpei for relieving her of the curse.

Sister Romina - An elven nun.

Emmy - A ghostly elf who is also a lesbian (she says this to keep Junpei from stripping her).

Pierre - Born-again ex-alcoholic hotelier.

Colleena - An elf who works in flower delivery.

Grace - A human dressmaker.

Millia (ミリア Miria?)
An elf cursed to eternally wear a magical suit of armor she donned in order to protect her city from an evil giant.

Millia's grandfather- A short, shriveled-up elf who is also a pervert who holds an antidote for Millia's armor to come off. He resembles Happosai from Ranma 1/2.

Rosa - Mermaid elf leader.

Lana - Elven thief.

Nancy - A healer who has become a recluse after being inflicted with spell fragments.

Dr. Bruno - A scientist and astronomer, developing her father's heliocentric theories, much to the chagrin of the astronomical council.

Beano and Mr. Tomato are two island-based botanists whose experiments with increasing plant growth exponentially end in conflagration.

Lilia - An elf who plays the part of a ditsy schoolgirl in a scenario invented by the Judge to entrap Elf Hunters.

Mr. Wolf - A wolf who bears a grudge against humanity after the death of his parents. His plans are thwarted by Elf Hunters, who later save him from four elven hunters.

Grandma - Grandmother to Red Riding Hood.

Elven Hunters - Four psychopathic hunters who are eventually shown as female elves.

Pulana - An elf bearing an enchanted dress. She is rescued by Junpei and Ritsuko from the Friskers.

The Chairman - Leader of the Friskers, a group who pride themselves on being the primary stripping faction in the Elf Hunters' fantasy world.

Bunny Mask, Mary the Shepherd and the Man Who Stripped the Emperor are all members of the Friskers.

  • There are several Father Christmases in the world in which Elf Hunters find themselves, including Satan, Infomercial and Salary Man Santas, as well as several female Santas - including Annette. There is also a Dog Santa.

Mayor of Treetown

  • Bizarre is an elven master thief with plans for global domination. She is aided by two goblins.
  • Legendary Sorcerer - Having lain dormant for many years under Treetown, the sorcerer has the power to destroy the world.

[edit] Episodes

The series was released as 4 DVDs. The first half was called Those Who Hunt Elves and the second two DVDs were called Those Who Hunt Elves 2.

Those Who Hunt Elves Those Who Hunt Elves 2

Volume 1 - Ready, Set, Strip!

Episode 1 - Those Who Hunt Elves Attack.
Episode 2 - An Invincible Team is Formed.
Episode 3 - The Red One or the Blue One?
Episode 4 - The Search for the 1000th Fighter.
Episode 5 - The Addition of the Fifth Fiend.
Episode 6 - The Most Horrible Spell of All Time.

Volume 2 - Elf Stripping For Fun and Profit

Episode 1 - Catch Me in a Field of Flowers.
Episode 2 - To The End of This World and Beyond.
Episode 3 - Let The Maiden Dance in Beauty.
Episode 4 - The Elf Who Couldn't Undress.
Episode 5 - No Tomorrows for The Captured.
Episode 6 - And Yet Those Who Still Hunt Elves.

Volume 3 - Forgive Me for Stripping You

Episode 1 - Those Who Fish Elves.
Episode 2 - Those Who Wipe.
Episode 3 - Those Who Have Been Animal Cursed.
Episode 4 - Those Who Manipulate Heaven and Earth.
Episode 5 - Those Who Bean.
Episode 6 - Those Who Are Entrapped.

Volume 4 - Still Stripping After All These Years

Episode 1 - Those Who Hunt Wolves.
Episode 2 - Those Who Protect Elves Sometimes.
Episode 3 - Those Who Wait for Noel.
Episode 4 - Those Who Fight for the Spotlight.
Episode 5 - Those Who Dream.
Episode 6 - Those Who Still Hunt Elves.

[edit] Music

Those Who Hunt Elves

Opening Theme:
  • "Angel Blue"
    Lyrics by: Naoko Hamasaki
    Composition and arrangement by: Chihiro Kiryu
    Song by: Naoko Hamasaki
Ending Theme:
  • "The Genius Comes At The End" (天才は最後にやってくる; Tensai wa Saigo ni Yattekuru)
    Lyrics by: Natsumi Tadano
    Composition and arrangement by: Hideki Tsutsumi
    Song by: Naoko Hamasaki

Those Who Hunt Elves 2

Opening Theme:
  • "Round11"
    Lyrics by: Naoko Hamasaki
    Composition and arrangement by: Chihiro Kiryu
    Song by: Naoko Hamasaki
Ending Theme:
  • "To a Place Beyond Miracles" (奇跡の向こう側へ; Kiseki no Mukou Soba e)
    Lyrics by: Naoko Hamasaki
    Composition and arrangement by: Hideki Tsutsumi
    Song by: Naoko Hamasaki

[edit] External links