Queen's Blade

Queen's Blade

Cover of the first series of the Queen's Blade gamebooks released by Hobby Japan featuring Leina.
クイーンズブレイド
(Kuīnzu Bureido)
Genre Action, Adventure, Ecchi
Light novel
Queen's Blade: Sword of Unicorn
Written by Eiji Okita
Illustrated by Eiwa
Published by Hobby Japan
Demographic Male
Imprint HJ Bunko
Original run May 1, 2007 – November 1, 2008
Volumes 5
Light novel
Gekitō! Queen's Blade
Written by Eiji Okita
Illustrated by Hirotaka Akaga
Published by Hobby Japan
Demographic Male
Imprint HJ Bunko
Published March 1, 2008
Manga
Queen's Blade: Hide & Seek
Illustrated by Iku Nanazuki
Published by Kadokawa Shoten
Demographic Seinen
Magazine Comp Ace
Original run October 26, 2007 – May 26, 2010
Volumes 5
Manga
Queen's Blade Struggle
Illustrated by AstroguyII
Published by ASCII Media Works
Demographic Seinen
Magazine Dengeki Black Maoh
Dengeki Maoh
Original run March 27, 2009 – ongoing
Volumes 4
Manga
Queen's Blade: Exiled Warrior
Illustrated by Kabao Kikkawa
Published by Media Factory
Demographic Seinen
Magazine Monthly Comic Alive
Original run February 23, 2009 – January 23, 2010
Volumes 3
Anime television series
Queen's Blade: The Exiled Virgin
Directed by Kinji Yoshimoto
Produced by Hiromasa Minami
Hirotaka Yoshida
Kazuaki Morijiri
Masaaki Yokota
Shinsaku Tanaka
Written by Kinji Yoshimoto
Music by Masaru Yokoyama
Studio ARMS
Licensed by
Network AT-X, Chiba TV, Sun Television, Tokyo MX
Original run April 2, 2009 – June 18, 2009
Episodes 12
Light novel
Queen's Blade: Exiled Warrior
Written by Eiji Okita
Illustrated by Tsutomu Miyazawa
Published by Media Factory
Demographic Male
Imprint MF Bunko J
Original run August 1, 2009 – October 1, 2009
Volumes 2
Anime television series
Queen's Blade 2: The Evil Eye
Directed by Kinji Yoshimoto
Written by Takao Yoshioka
Music by Masaru Yokoyama
Studio ARMS
Licensed by
Network AT-X, Tokyo MX, Chiba TV, Sun Television
Original run September 24, 2009 – December 10, 2009
Episodes 12
Game
Queen's Blade: Spiral Chaos
Developer Bandai Namco Games
Publisher Bandai Namco Games
Genre RPG
Platform PlayStation Portable
Released December 17, 2009
Original video animation
Queen's Blade: Beautiful Warriors
Directed by Kinji Yoshimoto
Written by Hideki Shirone
Michiko Ito
Takao Yoshioka
Toshimitsu Takeuchi
Studio ARMS
Licensed by
Sentai Filmworks
Released August 8, 2010 – January 9, 2011
Runtime 30 minutes (per episode)
Episodes 6

Queen's Blade (Japanese: クイーンズブレイド Hepburn: Kuīnzu Bureido) is a series of visual combat books published by Hobby Japan based on the licensed works from Firelight Game Company's Lost Worlds. First published in 2005, it features sexually suggestive depictions of an exclusively female cast of characters. (There is particular emphasis on the large breasts of many of the contestants.) The overall plot of the game revolves around a tournament called the Queen's Blade, which is held once every four years to determine a Queen.

Since its original release, this title has evolved into a media franchise, spanning four manga adaptations, three anime adaptations, three light novels, and a video game adaptation. This title was followed by a sequel Queen's Blade Rebellion (クイーンズブレイド リベリオン Kuīnzu Bureido Riberion), featuring all-new characters as well as remakes of previous characters, and a supplement called Queen's Gate (クイーンズゲイト Kuīnzu Geito), featuring licensed characters from other games and series. In turn, Queen's Blade Rebellion will be followed by Queen's Blade Grimoire (クイーンズブレイド グリムワール Kuīnzu Bureido Gurimuwāru), a new series featuring a different story, with more details still to come. Figures of the characters made by various manufacturers, such as Kaiyodo with their Revoltech series, have also been produced along with several memorabilia.

Story

In the Continent, a tournament called the Queen's Blade is held once every four years to determine the most beautiful and powerful Queen. Held in Gainos (ガイノス Gainosu, also Gynos), the Queen's Capital, various fighters from all over the Continent travel to the Capital to defeat Aldra, the current Queen. The overall story of Queen's Blade focuses on Leina, the heiress of the esteemed Vance Family and next in line for the throne, as she travels to Gainos, encountering many other warriors also competing in the Queen's Blade for their own intentions.

The original gamebooks feature characters designed by many popular artists, including Hirokazu Hisayuki (My-HiME), Kazuhiro Takamura, and Eiwa.

Media

Gamebooks

At Anime Expo 2010, Hobby Japan announced that English translations of the gamebooks will be released in North America.[20] There exist English versions for the characters Alleyne, Melona, Nanael and Tomoe.[21]

Anime

An anime adaptation of Queen's Blade, entitled Queen's Blade: Exiled Warrior (クイーンズブレイド 流浪の戦士 Kuīnzu Bureido: Rurō no Senshi), was produced by ARMS. Directed by Kinji Yoshimoto, the anime aired twelve episodes in Japan from April 2 to June 18, 2009 on AT-X, with subsequent broadcasts on Chiba TV, Sun Television, and Tokyo MX. The series aired uncensored on AT-X, while being heavily censored on other channels. Six DVD and Blu-ray disc volumes were released by Media Factory between June 25, 2009 and November 25, 2009,[22][23] each DVD/BD volume containing one of six OVAs. A second season, Queen's Blade: Successors to the Throne (クイーンズブレイド 玉座を継ぐ者 Kuīnzu Bureido: Gyokuza o Tsugumono), aired on AT-X and other channels from September 24 to December 10, 2009. Six DVD/BD volumes were released by Media Factory between December 22, 2009 and May 25, 2010,[24][25] each containing six OVAs which continue from the first six.

An OVA series, called Queen's Blade: Beautiful Fighters (クイーンズブレイド ～美しき闘士たち～ Kuīnzu Bureido ~Utsukushiki Tōshi-tachi~), was announced on the May issue of Monthly Hobby Japan.[26] The series takes place after the events of the Queen's Blade tournament but before Rebellion, and chronicles the characters on their separate paths. The episodes were released on six DVD and Blu-ray volumes from August 25, 2010 to March 30, 2011.[27][28]

In North America, the first and second anime adaptations are licensed by Media Blasters under the respective titles Queen's Blade: The Exiled Virgin and Queen's Blade 2: The Evil Eye.[29] The first season was released between May 18 and October 26, 2010 as three DVD volumes, each containing four episodes,[30][31] while the second season was released between May 24, 2011 and July 19, 2011 as two half-series volumes.[32][33] Blu-ray box sets of the two seasons were later released on February 15, 2011 and September 27, 2011, respectively.[34][35] Sentai Filmworks has licensed the Beautiful Fighters OVAs and will release them on digital and home video formats.[36]

The opening theme for the first season is "Get the Door" by Rie Ohashi, while the ending theme is "Memories and Promises" (思い出と約束 Omoide to Yakusoku) by Ayako Kawasumi, Mamiko Noto, and Aya Hirano, the voices for Leina, Tomoe, and Nanael, respectively. The opening theme for the second season is "Empty Sky" (墜ちない空 Ochinai Sora) by ENA while the ending theme is "buddy-body" by Rie Kugimiya, Yuko Goto, and Kanae Ito, the voices for Melona, Menace, and Airi, respectively. For the OVA, the ending theme is "Bitōshi Carnival: Taoreru Toki wa Maemuki ni" (美闘士カーニバル～たおれる時は前向きに～) by All 19 Beautiful Warriors, consisting of the entire female voice cast of the series.

Manga

An anthology comic of Queen's Blade was published by Hobby Japan with four volumes released between April 25, 2007 and February 25, 2008.[37][38] A manga adaptation centered on Leina illustrated by Kabao Kikkawa was serialized in the October 2008 issue of Media Factory's seinen manga magazine Monthly Comic Alive.[39] Three volumes were released between February 2, 2009 and January 23, 2010 under Media Factory's Alive Comics imprint.[40][41]

Another manga adaptation of Queen's Blade illustrated by Iku Nanazuki called Queen's Blade: Hide & Seek (クイーンズブレイド -Hide&Seek-), began serialization in the December 2007 issue of Comp Ace. A spinoff of the original, the series centers on Elina searching for her older sister Leina, and it introduces Frolell, a servant of the Vance family who travels with Elina on her journey to bring Leina back. Five volumes were released by Kadokawa Shoten between June 26, 2008 and June 26, 2010.[42][43]

A third manga adaptation, called Queen's Blade Struggle (クイーンズブレイド ストラグル Kuīnzu Bureido Sutoraguru), is illustrated by AstroguyII and began serialization in the December 2007 issue of Dengeki Black Maoh, and continued in Dengeki Maoh after the latter stopped circulation, albeit with new chapters delivered bimonthly. The first volume was released by ASCII Media Works on March 27, 2009,[44] with four volumes currently available as of February 27, 2012 under their Dengeki Comics imprint.[45]

Light novels

A light novel adaptation of Queen's Blade, called Queen's Blade: Sword of Unicorn (クイーンズブレイド　ソード・オブ・ユニコーン Kuīnzu Bureido: Sōdo obu Yunikōn), is written by Eiji Okita with illustrations by Eiwa. The first volume was released on April 27, 2007 by Hobby Japan under their HJ Bunko imprint,[46] and released five volumes until November 1, 2008.[47] A bonus novel called Fierce Battle! Queen's Blade (激闘！クイーンズブレイド Gekitō! Kuīnzu Bureido) was published on March 1, 2008, with illustrations provided by Hirotaka Akaga.[48]

A light novel based on the first anime series, written by Okita and illustrated by Tsumotu Miyazawa, was also published by Hobby Japan, and released two volumes between August 1, 2009 and October 1, 2009.[49][50]

Video game

A role-playing game called Queen's Blade: Spiral Chaos (クイーンズブレイド スパイラルカオス Kuīnzu Bureido: Supairaru Kaosu) was developed by Bandai Namco Games for the PlayStation Portable. It was released on December 17, 2009, and features all-new characters and an original storyline exclusive to the game in addition to recurring characters from the original series. A limited edition of the game, called the Gekitō Pack, was also released, featuring a Cute figure from Figma and a bonus character voice CD.[51]

Other

References

  1. ↑ クイーンズブレイド「流浪の戦士レイナ」 (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  2. ↑ クイーンズブレイド「荒野の義賊リスティ」 (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  3. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 「牙の暗殺者イルマ」 (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  4. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 「森の番人ノワ」 (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  5. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 武者巫女トモエ (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  6. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 歴戦の傭兵エキドナ (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  7. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 古代の王女 メナス (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  8. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 近衛隊長 エリナ (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  9. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 冥土へ誘うものアイリ (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  10. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド 高貴なる戦士レイナ3D" (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  11. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 光明の天使ナナエル (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  12. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 武器屋カトレア (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  13. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 炎の使い手 ニクス (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  14. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 帝都の聖女 メルファ (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  15. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 千変の刺客 メローナ (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  16. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 雷雲の将 クローデット (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  17. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 鋼鉄姫ユーミル (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  18. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 逢魔の女王アルドラ (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  19. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 戦闘教官アレイン (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 11, 2011.
  20. ↑ "Hobby Japan to Print English Queen's Blade, Hyakka Ryōran". Anime News Network. 2010-07-03. Retrieved 2010-12-03.
  21. ↑ "Queens Blade Lost Worlds Books in English". Flying Buffalo. Retrieved August 5, 2012.
  22. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド 流浪の戦士 第1巻【DVD】" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  23. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド 流浪の戦士 第6巻【DVD】" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  24. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド 玉座を継ぐ者　第1巻【DVD】" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  25. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド 玉座を継ぐ者　第6巻【DVD】" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  26. ↑ "Queen's Blade Utsukushiki Tōshi-tachi OVA Announced". Anime News Network. March 23, 2010. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  27. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド 美しき闘士たち「信義！エリナ揺るぎなき絆」【DVD】　メイン出演：エリナ、レイナ、エキドナ、ほか" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  28. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド 美しき闘士たち「堕天！逸楽のナナエル」【DVD】" (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  29. ↑ "Media Blasters Adds Queen's Blade, Ikkitousen Great Guardians (Updated)". Anime News Network. November 5, 2009. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  30. ↑ "Queen's Blade: The Exiled Virgin, Vol. 1: A Single Step". Amazon.com. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  31. ↑ "Queen's Blade Exiled Virgin: Beaten Path". Amazon.com. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  32. ↑ "Queens Blade 2: The Evil Eye Series Part 1". Amazon.com. Retrieved April 7, 2011.
  33. ↑ "Queens Blade 2: The Evil Eye, Part 2". Amazon.com. Retrieved June 23, 2011.
  34. ↑ "North American Anime, Manga Releases for February 2011". Anime News Network. January 15, 2011. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  35. ↑ "Queens Blade 2: The Evil Eye Complete Series". Amazon.com. Retrieved September 9, 2011.
  36. ↑ "Sentai Filmworks Licenses Queen's Blade Beautiful Warriors". Anime News Network. 2014-08-14.
  37. ↑ クイーンズブレイドアンソロジーコミックス (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  38. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド アンソロジーコミックvol.4" (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  39. ↑ "New Queen's Blade, Chaos;Head Game Manga Announced". Anime News Network. August 4, 2008. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  40. ↑ クイーンズブレイド ～流浪の戦士～(1) (in Japanese). Media Factory. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  41. ↑ クイーンズブレイド~流浪の戦士 3 (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  42. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド －Hide&Seek－ (1)" (in Japanese). Kadokawa Shoten. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  43. ↑ "クイーンズブレイド －Hide&Seek－ (5)" (in Japanese). Kadokawa Shoten. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  44. ↑ クイーンズブレイド ストラグル (1) (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  45. ↑ クイーンズブレイド ストラグル(4) (in Japanese). Dengeki Maoh. Retrieved March 14, 2012.
  46. ↑ クイーンズブレイド　ソード・オブ・ユニコーン (in Japanese). Hobby Japan. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  47. ↑ クイーンズブレイド ナイト・オブ・ユニコーン (in Japanese). Hobby Japan. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  48. ↑ 激闘！ クイーンズブレイド (in Japanese). Hobby Japan. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  49. ↑ クイーンズブレイド－流浪の戦士－（１） (in Japanese). Hobby Japan. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  50. ↑ クイーンズブレイド　流浪の戦士（２） (in Japanese). Hobby Japan. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  51. ↑ "Queen's Blade PSP Game: Queen's Blade Spiral Chaos ~Gekitou Pack~ Premium Box w/ Limited New Character "Cute" figma Action Figure + Character Voice CD there is another game based on queens blade titled Scarlet blade(citation needed)". Amazon.com. Retrieved February 3, 2011.
  52. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 美闘士列伝 第一弾「武者巫女絵巻」 (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  53. ↑ クイーンズブレイド 美闘士列伝 「古代王女の書」 (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  54. ↑ クイーンズブレイド美闘士列伝「流浪の戦士冒険記」 (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  55. ↑ クイーンズブレイド パーフェクトビジュアルブック (in Japanese). Amazon.com. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  56. ↑ "Vertical Adds Stan Lee & Tamon Ohta's Heroman, Keiko Suenobu's Limit Manga". Anime News Network. February 24, 2012. Retrieved April 3, 2012.

External links