| B't X | |
Cover of B't X volume 1 as published by Tokyopop |
|
| ビート・エックス | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Mecha |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Masami Kurumada |
| Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
| English publisher | Tokyopop |
| Demographic | Shōnen |
| Magazine | Shōnen Ace |
| Original run | 1994 – 2000 |
| Volumes | 16 |
| Light novel | |
| Written by | Sukehiro Tomita |
| Illustrated by | Masami Kurumada |
| Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Imprint | Newtype Novels |
| Original run | July 20, 1996 – February 28, 1997 |
| Volumes | 2 |
| TV anime | |
| B't X | |
| Directed by | Mamoru Hamatsu |
| Studio | TMS |
| Network | TBS |
| Original run | 6 April 1996 – 21 September 1996 |
| Episodes | 25 |
| Original video animation | |
| B't Neo | |
| Directed by | Mamoru Hamatsu |
| Studio | TMS |
| Released | 21 August 1997 |
| Episodes | 14 |
B't X (ビート・エックス), pronounced "beat X", is a science fiction mecha manga series, written and illustrated by Masami Kurumada. It ran for 16 volumes in manga and was later adapted to anime with 25 episodes, then concluded with a 14 episode OVA (called B't Neo). The manga was released in America by Tokyopop. The anime was released in America by Westlake Entertainment. When B't X was released in America by Tokyopop, all of the sound effects in the manga were printed in Japanese, just as in the original version and in most other Tokyopop Manga, with the addition of english captions.
Contents |
Teppei ("Tepp") Takamiya is the caretaker of a farm located in Kamui Island, north of Japan. His older brother, Kotarō Takamiya, leaves to study robotics in Germany and becomes one of the most brilliant scientists in the world.
Five years later, the two brothers reunite at a robotics convention in Mechatopia, China, where Kotarō is to announce his latest breakthrough in artificial intelligence. The convention goes awry when Kotarō is captured by the malevolent Machine Empire and taken to "The Area", a mecha base hidden within the sandstorms of the Gobi Desert.
By the means of a mysterious weapon called the Messiah Fist, a cybernetic gauntlet with various technological powers and options, Teppei manages to pursue the kidnappers by grappling onto their "transport", a giant insectoid mecha that is later revealed to be one of the Machine Empire's prized AI machines (known as a B't). Upon reaching the Area, Teppei is attacked by Metalface, one of the Empire's soldiers. Unable to win, Teppei is thrown, bleeding, in the Empire's junkyard. His blood reaches the trashed body of X, who was once considered one of the strongest B't of the Empire, and the disgruntled B't awakens. Faced with unanswered questions and imminent destruction, X reluctantly saves Teppei, and the pair flee the Area with soldiers of the Empire in hot pursuit.
Meanwhile, inside the Area, Kotarō discovers that he has been summoned by another of the Empire's soldiers, Major Aramis, to find a way to stop the ultimate B't - a creation known as Raffaello (ラファエロ) that has begun a terrifying and uncontrollable evolution.
As the series unfolds, the headstrong X and equally brash Teppei develop a brotherly bond, squabbling as much as they look after each other. They slowly uncover the Machine Empire's diabolical plan as they travel through strange lands and battle other B'ts loyal to the Empire, all the while trying to save Kotarō and to resolve the mysteries of their intertwined past.
A B't (pronounced "beat") is the ultimate form of artificial intelligence mechanoid (they are NOT "robotics" since in the Machine Empire, "robot" are considered obsolete terminology that has been replaced by much more modernized terms such as "mecha" and of course the terms "B't" itself) designed for fighting - the B stands for Brain, Blood, Bravery and Battler. They have different forms and powers, usually based on mythological creatures. The B't's source of power is a device called BreakHeart, which is fueled by human blood. Once the BreakHeart is inserted into the B't's body, it creates a link between the blood donor and the B't. A B't is also outfitted with The Guard System, which protects its donor from various dangers and environment changes, such as volcanic heat, the crushing pressures beneath the ocean, or even the depths of space. However, the donor must be in physical contact with his or her B't for the system to work for them. Teppei is able to manifest a suit of protective armor called Battle Gear, through use of the Messiah Fist. This has the additional benefit of activating the usually dormant wings on X's sides, enabling him to reach even greater degrees of speed and mobility.
| Main Characters | |||
| Name | B't and B't species | Description | Voice Actor (Japanese) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teppei "Tepp" Takamiya | X, Kirin | Main character | Nobuyuki Hiyama |
| Kotaro Takamiya | n/a | Scientist. Older brother of Teppei | Nozomu Sasaki |
| Karen | X, Shadow X (Twin to X, female kirin) | Spirit Knight of the West. Trained and taught Teppei any knowledge regarding combat skills, and technologies | Megumi Ogata |
| Fou Lafine | Je T'aime, Phoenix/Suzaku | Spirit Knight of the South. An ordained priest whose base of operations is a small church near the Machine Empire's capital. | Kazuya Ichijou |
| Ron(=katakana spelling for Chinese name 龍 Long, means "dragon") | Raidō (mandarin: 雷童 Lei Tong, means "Thunder Child"), Chinese Dragon/Seiryuu | Spirit Knight of the East. Childhood friend of Aramis | Keiji Fujiwara |
| Hokuto | Max, Turtle/Genbu | Spirit Knight of the North. Known as "Master Doc" for his principle of repairing any injured human or mecha he comes across | Osamu Sakuda |
| Metalface | Madonna, Triceratops | A lieutenant to the Machine Empire and an almost persistent annoyance in Teppei's way. Old friend of Karen. | Kenyû Horiuchi |
| Secondary Characters | |||
| Captain Hook | Groupie, Worm | First point soldier that Teppei encounters | |
| Camilla | Mirage, Butterfly | Second point soldier, grows medicinal flowers for Nasha | Kappei Yamaguchi |
| Kaos | Lamu, Japanese rhinoceros beetle | Third point soldier, an old veteran and was once one of the four Spirit Knights. | Osamu Kobayashi |
| Death, Aleph | unknown, Bat | Fourth point soldier, perceived as a Shinigami (Death God) | |
| Vem | Cancer, Crab | Fifth point soldier, was easily crushed | Hideyuki Umezu |
| Rai | Falcon, Falcon | Member of the Dark Knights | Sho Hayami |
| Leon | Falcon, Falcon | Member of the Dark Knights | |
| Miru | Falcon, Falcon | Leader of the Dark Knights | Takehito Koyasu |
| Balzac | Savannah, Myrmekoleon (also known as mermecolion; a mythical depiction of the antlion) | Sixth point soldier | |
| Lycaon Troops | Lycaon class B'ts, winged panthers | Generic army troops of the Machine Empire | |
| Imperial Spies | Spy class B'ts, black Crows | Imperial spies and executes traitors | |
| Juggler | Vanilla Fudge, Harpy | Took over the role of Commander Aramis when it was clear that she was a traitor to the Machine Empire | Issei Futamata |
| Myslim | Lalaynya, Hydra | Capable of regenerating lost limbs, member of the 7 Evil Knights | Jūrōta Kosugi |
| Meimu | Halloween, Baku | Uses nightmare manipulation as a weapon, secretly Hokuto's elder brother Subaru. Also a member of the 7 Evil Knights | Shinichiro Miki |
| Quattro | Loreso, Griffin | An old friend and Acquaintance of Fou, who he blames for the death of his sister Lily. Also a member of the 7 Evil Knights | Toshihiko Seki |
| Salome | Halcyon, Unicorn | She uses music as hypnotic, and is one of the machine empire because she lost faith in humanity. Also a member of 7 Evil Knights | |
| Sapphire | Eroica, Basilisk | He adores gems and uses Eroica's abilities to turn people into crystals. a member of the 7 Evil Knights | |
| Dr. Poe | Cadenza, Chimera | He was Hokuto's rival in the academy, and is one of the 7 Evil Knights | |
| Gai | Shendu, Garuda | The philosopher of the Empire, and a member of the 7 Evil Knights | |
| Aramis | Rosemary, Wasp | Commander of the Area. Disguised herself as a man and was later revealed that she was the legendary warrior who never lost a battle before the time of the Four Knights, the Rose Knight | Atsuko Yuya |
| Nasha | Theta, Dog | Representative of the Emperor. Misha's younger sister | Kyôko Hikami |
| Misha | Zeta, Dog | Representative of the Emperor, appears to be the second in command | Ai Orikasa |
| Marcello | n/a | Underhell warden, he wields an electric whip | Naoki Tatsuta |
| Amigo | n/a | Marcello's massive assistant, he assists Kotaro in his escape | Shinpachi Tsuji |
| Raphael | n/a | Ultimate B't, created to grow by absorbing other life forms | |
| Lisa Marie | n/a | A fellow scientist prisoner that helped Kotaro Takamiya solve the formula on how to defeat Raphael | Yumi Touma |
| Karin | A Lycaon class B't | A Warrant Officer of the Machine Empire, and very close to Fou. She is later revealed to be Karen's sister, who lost her memory when attacked by Raphael | Chisa Yokoyama |
| No. | Japanese | English | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Release date | ISBN | Release date | ISBN | |
| 01 | March 1995 | ISBN 4047131024 | January 6, 2004 | ISBN 159182639X |
| 02 | July 1995 | ISBN 4047131091 | March 2, 2004 | ISBN 1591826403 |
| 03 | November 1995 | ISBN 4047131210 | May 4, 2004 | ISBN 1591826411 |
| 04 | March 1996 | ISBN 4047131318 | July 13, 2004 | ISBN 159182642X |
| 05 | June 1996 | ISBN 4047131431 | September 14, 2004 | ISBN 1591826438 |
| 06 | October 1996 | ISBN 4047131660 | November 9, 2004 | ISBN 1591826446 |
| 07 | April 1997 | ISBN 4047131776 | January 11, 2005 | ISBN 1595323775 |
| 08 | August 1997 | ISBN 4047131938 | March 8, 2005 | ISBN 1595323783 |
| 09 | November 1997 | ISBN 4047132012 | June 7, 2005 | ISBN 1595323791 |
| 10 | March 1998 | ISBN 404713211X | January 10, 2006 | ISBN 1595323805 |
| 11 | June 1998 | ISBN 404713225X | July 3, 2006 | ISBN 1595323813 |
| 12 | October 1998 | ISBN 4047132381 | January 9, 2007 | ISBN 1595323821 |
| 13 | February 1999 | ISBN 4047132691 | July 3, 2007 | ISBN 159532383X |
| 14 | June 1999 | ISBN 4047132845 | January 2, 2008 | ISBN 1595323848 |
| 15 | October 1999 | ISBN 4047133027 | July 7, 2008 | ISBN 1595323856 |
| 16 | February 2000 | ISBN 4047133264 | ||
The series was also republished by Home-sha, a Shueisha company, in an edition of more than 300-pages per volume.
| # | Japanese release date | Japanese ISBN |
| 1 | September 2002 | 4834272400 |
| 2 | September 2002 | 4834272419 |
| 3 | October 2002 | 4834272427 |
| 4 | October 2002 | 4834272435 |
| 5 | November 2002 | 4834272443 |
| 6 | November 2002 | 4834272451 |
| 7 | December 2002 | 483427246X |
| 8 | December 2002 | 4834272478 |
| # | Title | Director | Writer | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | "Miracle! The Revival of B't X!" "kiseki! fukkatsu no B'T X (bīto ekkusu)" (奇蹟! 復活のB'T X(ビート・エックス)) |
Mamoru Hamatsu | Sukehiro Tomita | April 6, 1996 |
| 02 | "Rebirth! The Sun Battler" "tanjō! taiyō no senshi (batorā)" (誕生! 太陽の戦士(バトラー)) |
Hitoyuki Matsui | Sukehiro Tomita | April 13, 1996 |
| 03 | "Confrontation! The Machine Empire" "taiketsu! kikai kōkoku no yabō" (対決! 機械皇国の野望) |
Kiyotaka Itani | Sukehiro Tomita | April 20, 1996 |
| 04 | "Appearance! The Legendary Spirit Knight" "tōjō ! densetsu no shirei shō" (登場! 伝説の四霊将) |
Kiyoshi Fukumoto | Yasushi Hirano | April 27, 1996 |
| 05 | "Departure! Desperate Battle Road" "shuppatsu (tabidachi)! kesshi no kyūshutsusakusen (batoru rōdo)" (出発(たびだち)! 決死の救出作戦(バトルロード)) |
Yukio Takahashi | Yoshiyuki Suga | May 4, 1996 |
| 06 | "Fear! The Watch Man, Pirate in the Desert!" "kyōfu! sabaku no pairētsu" (恐怖! 砂漠のパイレーツ) |
Atsushi Yano | Yasushi Hirano | May 11, 1996 |
| 07 | "Frightening! The Mystery of the Machine Emperor!" "kyōgaku! kikai kōtei no nazo" (驚愕! 機械皇帝の謎) |
Yukio Okazaki | Yoshiyuki Suga | May 18, 1996 |
| 08 | "Magnificent! The Dazzling Solder, Camilla!" "karei! genwaku senshi kamīra" (華麗! 幻惑戦士カミーラ) |
Kiyoshi Fukumoto | Yoshiyuki Suga | May 25, 1996 |
| 09 | "Fear! Evil Flower!" "kyōi! ebiru furawā" (驚異! エビル・フラワー) |
Yoshihiro Oda | Yoshiyuki Suga | June 1, 1996 |
| 10 | "Chase! Metal Face Counterattacks!" "hakugeki! metarufeisu no gyakushū" (迫撃! メタルフェイスの逆襲) |
Kiyoshi Fukumoto | Yasushi Hirano | June 8, 1996 |
| 11 | "Invincible! Spirit General of the East, Ron" "muteki! higashi no reishō ron" (無敵! 東の霊将ロン) |
Kiyotaka Itani | Nobuaki Kishima | June 15, 1996 |
| 12 | "Formidable Enemy! The Warrior, Kaos" "kyōteki! takeshi shō kaosu" (強敵! 猛将カオス) |
Hitoyuki Matsui | Yoshiyuki Suga | June 22, 1996 |
| 13 | "Buddy! The Bond of a Passionate Soul" "aibō! (badei) atsuki kokoro no kizuna" (相棒!(バディ)熱き心の絆) |
Koitaro Aozame | Yoshiyuki Suga | June 29, 1996 |
| 14 | "Tragic! Maria Who Lives in the Graveyard" "higeki! hakaba no shōjo maria" (悲劇! 墓場の少女マリア) |
Yukio Takahashi | Ryo Katsuragi | July 6, 1996 |
| 15 | "Blast! Message to the Reaper" "sakuretsu! shinigami e no ichigeki" (炸裂! 死神への一撃) |
Yoshihiro Oda | Ryo Katsuragi | July 13, 1996 |
| 16 | "Revived! The Prism of Aura" "fukkatsu! goshiki no rinkō" (復活! 五色の燐光) |
Kiyoshi Fukumoto | Nobuaki Kishima | July 20, 1996 |
| 17 | "Appear! Shadow X!" "shutsugen ! kuroi ekkusu" (出現! 黒いエックス) |
Kiyotaka Itani | Yoshiyuki Suga | July 27, 1996 |
| 18 | "The Dark! Fear of the Underhell" "ankoku! andāheru no kyōfu" (暗黒!アンダーヘルの恐怖) |
Atsushi Yano | Nobuaki Kishima | August 3, 1996 |
| 19 | "Desperate! X's Death" "kesshi! ekkusu no saigo" (決死! エックスの最後) |
Ryo Yasumura | Yoshiyuki Suga | August 10, 1996 |
| 20 | "Life! Break Heart" "seimei! (inochi) bureiku hāto" (生命!(いのち)ブレイク・ハート) |
Yukio Takahashi | Nobuaki Kishima | August 17, 1996 |
| 21 | "Reborn! The Neo B't X" "Shinsei! B'T ekkusu tanjō" (新生! B'Tエックス誕生) |
Kiyoshi Fukumoto | Nobuaki Kishima | August 24, 1996 |
| 22 | "The Worst! The Area's Seven Evil Knights" "saikyō! eria no shichi mashō" (最凶! エリアの七魔将) |
Kiyotaka Itani | Yoshiyuki Suga | August 31, 1996 |
| 23 | "Flash of Light! Shining Knuckle" "senkō! shainingu nakkuru" (閃光! シャイニング・ナックル) |
Atsushi Yano | Nobuaki Kishima | September 7, 1996 |
| 24 | "Burn! A Piece of the Sun" "enjō! taiyō no kakera" (炎上! 太陽のかけら) |
Hitoyuki Matsui | Nobuaki Kishima | September 14, 1996 |
| 25 | "Overthrow! B'T Raphael" "datō! B'T rafaero" (打倒! B'Tラファエロ) |
Mamoru Hamatsu | Yoshiyuki Suga | September 21, 1996 |
| # | Title | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | "The Four Knights vs. The Evil Knights" "reishō vs mashō" (霊将VS魔将) |
August 21, 1997 |
| 02 | "The Land of Love and Hate" "ai to nikushimi no chi!" (愛と憎しみの地!) |
August 28, 1997 |
| 03 | "Burning Red Flame!" "guren no honō" (紅蓮の炎) |
September 4, 1997 |
| 04 | "Miracles of the Blood" "buraddo no kiseki!" (ブラッドの奇跡!) |
September 11, 1997 |
| 05 | "Fear of the Illusions" "mugen no kyōfu!" (夢幻の恐怖!) |
September 18, 1997 |
| 06 | "A Streak of Light" "ichijō no hikari!" (一条の光!) |
September 25, 1997 |
| 07 | "Mehr Licht (more light)" "mēru rihito! (motto hikari o)" (メール リヒト!(もっと光を)) |
October 2, 1997 |
| 08 | "Confessions of a Mask" "kamen no kokuhaku!" (仮面の告白!) |
October 9, 1997 |
| 09 | "Blood Bonds" "chi no kizuna" (血の絆) |
October 16, 1997 |
| 10 | "The Lair of the Beast" "akuma no hōkō" (悪魔の咆哮) |
October 23, 1997 |
| 11 | "Search for a Lost Era!" "ushinawareta kako o motome te!" (失われた過去を求めて!) |
October 30, 1997 |
| 12 | "One for All" (ONE FOR ALL!) |
November 6, 1997 |
| 13 | "Memories of the Future!" "mirai no kioku!" (未来の記憶!) |
November 13, 1997 |
| 14 | "A Piece of the Sun!" (A PIECE OF THE SUN!) |
November 20, 1997 |
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