Demonbane
Encyclopedia
is a series by Nitroplus
with mecha
and Cthulhu Mythos
elements. Beginning as an eroge
for the PC, it was ported into a PlayStation 2
non-eroge remake, a sequel visual novel
, a prequel novel, a television anime
adaptation and a conversion to manga
. An English version of the original Demonbane PC game has been released by JAST USA
.
common to several of the Mythos stories, including Herbert West-Reanimator and The Shadow Over Innsmouth
. The majority of the plot is confined to Arkham City, the home and headquarters of the Hadou Financial Group as well as the location of the Miskatonic University
. Arkham City is also the territory of a criminal organization
known as the Black Lodge, which has access to an array of giant mecha as well as a number of powerful sorcerers
that make it difficult for law enforcement to effectively combat. A separate portion of the story is set in the coastal town of Innsmouth
and one of the climactic battles takes place over the sunken city of R'lyeh
. The town of Dunwich
is also referenced.
that specializes in strange and unusual cases. Kurou used to attend the Miskatonic University, majoring in Archaeology
while secretly studying sorcery, but dropped out after an unspecified incident that has caused him to become averse to dealing with occult matters. He has difficulty finding any work and, by the time the events of the story occur, can no longer afford to pay his utility bills. Kurou does have a good heart and tries to help others, usually explaining that he would be bothered by lingering regrets if anything bad happened that could have been prevented by his intervention.
Kurou often approaches Sister Leica, a nun
who runs a church and orphanage in Arkham City, for food. She is very kindhearted and rarely refuses to help Kurou in his times of need but cares deeply about his well-being, constantly pressuring him to go back to his studies, graduate, and find a real job. She takes care of three orphans named George, Colin, and Alison. Ruri Hadou, another of Demonbane's heroines, is Kurou's employer and shoulders a heavy burden as the leader of the Hadou Financial Group following the death of her grandfather. Although outwardly resentful of Kurou for "stealing" her grandfather's legacy, she is also frustrated by her inability to influence the ongoing conflict personally and comes to depend on Kurou's strength.
Demonbane's final main character is Al-Azif, the physical embodiment of the legendary Necronomicon
. Over the millennia, she has fought countless battles alongside countless masters. When one died she would simply discard them and find another, and inwardly feels deep regret for the way she treated them as mere tools even as they did the same to her. She is very short-tempered and arrogant but holds absolute confidence in her ability to confront and destroy evil.
, the Deus Machina Aeon clashes with another unknown machine but due to its lack of a "master" it is defeated and crashes on the surface of the planet. Meanwhile, a starving Kurou Daijūji attempts to acquire food from a local church run by Sister Leica, a nun that he has known since he first moved to the city several years prior to the events of the story. The next day, Kurou is approached by Ruri Hadou, the current head of the Hadou Financial Group and her butler
, Winfield. Ruri offers Kurou a job, citing his familiarity with the occult through his studies at the Miskatonic University: to procure a grimoire
. Unable to refuse the generous pay she is offering, Kurou agrees and begins searching immediately.
The search for an authentic grimoire is fruitless, until Kurou happens upon a previously unknown bookstore with several powerful books. Unfortunately he is turned away by the store's owner, Nya, who cryptically states that a far more powerful grimoire is meant for him. This prediction is later proven true when a mysterious girl falls out of the sky onto him, subsequently introduced as Al-Azif, the physical manifestation of the Necronomicon, one of the most powerful grimoires in existence. Kurou is then attacked by her pursuers, the Black Lodge, under the command of the mad scientist
Doctor West and forced by circumstances to enter into a contract with the grimoire. Doctor West retreats, only to return in one of his giant Destroyer Robots. Kurou escapes with the aid of Metatron, a masked hero that wages a one-man war against the Black Lodge, and stumbles upon an underground hangar containing an imitation Deus Machina, Demonbane. After commandeering
the mech amidst the protests of its owner, Ruri, Kurou and Al-Azif (or Al, for short) are able to defeat the Destroyer Robot.
Although initally incensed at the prospect of someone outside the Hadou family piloting Demonbane, Ruri agrees to employ Kurou as the Deus Machina's pilot. Al wants to begin instructing him in the use of sorcery immediately, but before he has a chance to prepare, Kurou is attacked by the leader of the Black Lodge, Master Therion. Kurou is immediately overpowered but his use of Demonbane forces Therion to reveal his own grimoire: the Pnakotic Manuscripts
, also known as Etheldreda. Therion spares Kurou's life, claiming that Kurou is the only individual who can alleviate his boredom, and vanishes. Kurou then begins training in sorcery while simultaneously searching for and recapturing pages that Al has lost. These pages eventually take on a life of their own and threaten the population, forcing him to subdue them physically before Al can reconstitute herself. Kurou's interference in the Black Lodge's operations causes Master Therion to send two of his elite Anticross sorcerers, Titus and Tiberius, to attack the Hadou headquarters directly. Doctor West also repeatedly attempts to make up for his failure to capture the Necronomicon, assisted by a self-aware gynoid
of his own creation named Elsa. In one incident, West and Elsa are able to steal the pages relating to the Scimitar of Barzai
and use them to create a copy of Demonbane that is subsequently defeated.
The story then moves to the coastal town of Innsmouth where Ruri has brought Kurou, Al, the Demonbane support team, and Leica on a beach
holiday
. Sensing the presence of evil on an island off the coast, Kurou and Al begin investigating, accompanied by the rest of the group. On the way they are attacked by Deep One
s and separated but each of the group is able to make their way to the island individually where they discover the inhabitants of Innsmouth, all Deep Ones themselves, performing a ritual to revive their god, Dagon
. Overseeing them is another of the Anticross, Vespasianus, along with another powerful grimoire, the R'lyeh Text. The ritual fails but Dagon is revived in an incomplete, bestial state. The monster is only defeated when Demonbane channels the raw power of the Great Old One Cthugha
, which nearly kills Kurou. Kurou is later able to acquire Al's pages concerning another Great Old One, Ithaqua
, and obtains a pair of handgun
s that serve as conduits for their power from a mysterious individual known to the Black Lodge as the Tyrant.
In the meantime, it is revealed that both the Necronomicon and the Tyrant are essential to a major Black Lodge undertaking, the C Project, but Master Therion appears unconcerned by the fact that his underlings have had no success in capturing either of them. He placates the Anticross by explaining that he can use the Pnakotic Manuscripts in place of the Necronomicon and himself in place of the Tyrant but they remain unconvinced and plot rebellion
behind his back. Finally, when the stars are right, the Black Lodge begins a ritual that raises their secret headquarters, the Illusionary Heart Mother, into the sky. They then reveal their full plan, using the R'lyeh Text to summon and bind another of the Great Old Ones: Cthulhu
. Using an army of Destroyer Robots and the wave of insanity that accompanies the summoning, the Black Lodge lays waste to Arkham City. The Anticross betray Master Therion at the climax of the battle, seemingly destroying him along with Etheldreda, while Doctor West defects, disgusted by the perceived misuse of his technology. While Demonbane is able to drive off the Destroyer Robots, the Illusionary Heart Mother is able to teleport away, the Anticross having gained control over Cthulhu through a series of emergency measures.
The Hadou Group is able to locate the missing fortress at 47°9′S 126°43′W
and mobilises a multinational taskforce through its connections to begin an attack. While they engage Cthulhu's forces in the sea, Demonbane is able to penetrate the fortress' defences and defeat the remaining Anticross. Master Therion then reveals himself, reborn as a result of his unique parentage; his father is the Outer God Yog-Sothoth
and the true purpose of the C Project was to sacrifice Cthulhu as the catalyst of a ritual to summon it. Yog-Sothoth, the Gate and the Key, would then act as a portal through which the Outer Gods could then invade the physical universe. Therion challenges Kurou to follow him through the gate and, after saying his goodbyes, Kurou accepts. Demonbane then battles Therion's Deus Machina, Liber Legis, throughout time and space leading to a clash between the most powerful weapon in each mech's possession: the Shining Trapezohedron. Liber Legis is defeated but Al is finally able to access the totality of her sealed knowledge and discovers the identity of the one who orchestrated all of the story's events: Nya, also known as the Outer God Nyarlathotep
. Kurou and Al battle the god and defeat it, preventing the destruction of reality. Nyarlathotep acknowledges its defeat but points out that it can always return with another scheme, leaving Demonbane becalmed in time and space.
. As Kuro searches for the book, he unexpectedly runs into Al Azif, a pretty girl who turns out to be the grimoire Kuro is searching for. While being chased by the Black Lodge, Al forges a contract with Kuro, bestowing him with powerful magic. Soon afterwards, Al also activates Demonbane, a Deus Machina owned by the Hado Financial Group, to combat the mechanical menace from the Black Lodge. With this, the war between the Hado Financial Group and the Black Lodge begins....
The superior quality of the ending to most of the series is attributed to the fact that the animation staff enlisted the aid of the original work's staff for the final episode.
Ending theme: "Modern Rose" by Kanako Ito
Eps 1 "I AM PROVIDENCE" is named after a line in one of the letters HP Lovecraft had written during his life. In 1977 fans of Lovecraft had created a headstone to mark his burial place and on it they put the line from his letter "I AM PROVIDENCE."
Eps 3, "Reaninator" [sic] is likely a reference to Herbert West–Reanimator.
Eps 4, "The Invaders" is also the name of a Cthulhu Mythos story by Henry Kuttner.
Eps 5, "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" is also a story of the same name by HP Lovecraft. The fishlike Deep Ones in the episode also feature in the short story.
eps 9, "The Hunt" is also the name of a Cthulhu Mythos story by Henry Kuttner.
Eps 11 "The Return of the Sorcerer" would but a nod to Clark Ashton Smith's "The Return of the Sorcerer." Clark Ashton Smith was a correspondent of HP Lovecraft while he lived. In the story itself, the Necronomicon is quoted.
Eps 12, "Strange Eons" is a name taken from the book written by Robert Bloch
of the same name. Bloch was a good friend of HP Lovecraft. Bloch is best known for the novel turned movie he wrote called "Psycho." It references a line from the Necronomicon mentioned in several of Lovecraft's stories, "That is not dead which can eternal lie / And with strange aeons even death may die."
Al Azif's name is derived from the Arabic name for the Necronomicon, "Kitab al-Azif."
Azrad's name was taken from the name of the author of the Necronomicon, Abdul Alhazred
.
The Shining Trapezohedron is also the name of an ancient artifact in the HP Lovecraft story "The Haunter of the Dark".
The guns of the Demonbane, Cthuga and Ithaqua, are names of creatures that appear in other Lovecraftian horror stories.
Often, Al is seen either sitting or sleeping on a squishy, large, orange object, with a single eye, which occasionally speaks "Tekeli-li". It is a Shoggoth
named Dunsany.
斬魔大聖デモンベイン 魔を断つ剣 (Deus Machina Demonbane Ma o Tatsu Tsurugi - "The Demon-slaying Sword")
斬魔大聖デモンベイン 明日への翼 (Deus Machina Demonbane Asu e no Tsubasa - "The Wing towards Tomorrow")
斬魔大聖デモンベイン 軍神強襲 (Deus Machina Demonbane Gunshin Kyōshū - "The Assault of the War God"): Sequel to Kishin Taidou, but its relationship to the games is not apparent.
Nitroplus
Nitroplus Co., Ltd., stylized as nitro+, is a Japanese visual novel computer software company that has developed a number of visual novels, including eroge. They have also have been collaborating with TYPE-MOON to create the light novel series Fate/zero. Their works usually have dark themes such...
with mecha
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
and Cthulhu Mythos
Cthulhu Mythos
The Cthulhu Mythos is a shared fictional universe, based on the work of American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.The term was first coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent of Lovecraft, who used the name of the creature Cthulhu - a central figure in Lovecraft literature and the focus...
elements. Beginning as an eroge
Eroge
An or Ero-ga is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content, usually in the form of anime-style artwork. Eroge originated from galge, but unlike galge, they feature erotic/pornographic content.-History:...
for the PC, it was ported into a PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
non-eroge remake, a sequel visual novel
Visual novel
A is an interactive fiction game featuring mostly static graphics, usually with anime-style art, or occasionally live-action stills or video footage...
, a prequel novel, a television anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
adaptation and a conversion to manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
. An English version of the original Demonbane PC game has been released by JAST USA
JAST USA
JAST USA is a licensor and distributor of English-language bishōjo games, some of which are as dating sims or eroge. It was founded in 1997 with Sakura Soft's Season of the Sakura and JAST's Three Sisters' Story as its first eroge titles...
.
List of games
- Also known as Deus Machina Demonbane. The first of the series published on April 25, 2003, the title loosely translates to "Demon-Slaying Grand Saint Demonbane".
- The PlayStation 2 port of the original, published on July 1, 2004, the title loosely translates to "Roar Of The Machine God Demonbane". Both the anime and the manga adaptations are based under this title, as well as using it in their adaptations. The game was also bundled with a one-episode OVA.
- A direct sequel to Zanmataisei Demonbane, the title loosely translates to "Flight Of The Machine God Demonbane". Unlike the original, players can control the actions of the titular machine Demonbane in battle.
- A spin-off racing game released at the 70th ComiketComiket, otherwise known as the , is the world's largest self-published comic book fair, held twice a year in Tokyo, Japan. The first Comiket was held on December 21, 1975, with only about 32 participating circles and an estimated 600 attendees. Attendance has since swelled to over a half million people....
, the title is a parody on the popular racing manga Initial DInitial Dis a manga by Shuichi Shigeno which has been serialized in Kodansha's Young Magazine since 1995. It has been adapted into a long-running anime series by OB Planning, Studio Comet, Studio Gallop, Pastel, and A.C.G.T, and a live action film by Avex and Media Asia...
.
Setting
Demonbane takes place primarily in a region resembling the Lovecraft CountryLovecraft Country
Lovecraft Country is a term coined by Keith Herber for the New England setting, combining real and fictitious locations, used by H. P. Lovecraft in many of his weird fiction stories, and later elaborated by other writers working in the Cthulhu Mythos. The term was popularized by Chaosium, the...
common to several of the Mythos stories, including Herbert West-Reanimator and The Shadow Over Innsmouth
The Shadow Over Innsmouth
The Shadow Over Innsmouth is a novella by H. P. Lovecraft. Written in November-December 1931, the story was first published in April 1936; this was the only fiction of Lovecraft's published during his lifetime that did not appear in a periodical....
. The majority of the plot is confined to Arkham City, the home and headquarters of the Hadou Financial Group as well as the location of the Miskatonic University
Miskatonic University
Miskatonic University is a fictional university located in Arkham; a fictitious town which is said to exist in Essex County, Massachusetts. It is named after the Miskatonic River . After first appearing in the H. P...
. Arkham City is also the territory of a criminal organization
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
known as the Black Lodge, which has access to an array of giant mecha as well as a number of powerful sorcerers
Magician (fantasy)
A magician, mage, sorcerer, sorceress, wizard, enchanter, enchantress, thaumaturge or a person known under one of many other possible terms is someone who uses or practices magic that derives from supernatural or occult sources...
that make it difficult for law enforcement to effectively combat. A separate portion of the story is set in the coastal town of Innsmouth
Innsmouth
Innsmouth is a fictional town in the writings of H. P. Lovecraft, part of the Lovecraft Country setting of the Cthulhu Mythos.Lovecraft first used the name "Innsmouth" in his 1920 short story "Celephaïs" , where it refers to a fictional town in New England...
and one of the climactic battles takes place over the sunken city of R'lyeh
R'lyeh
R'lyeh is a fictional lost city that first appeared in the H. P. Lovecraft short story "The Call of Cthulhu", first published in Weird Tales in 1928. According to Lovecraft's short story, R'lyeh is a sunken city in the South Pacific and the prison of the malevolent entity called Cthulhu.R'lyeh is...
. The town of Dunwich
Dunwich (Lovecraft)
Dunwich is a fictional town that appeared in the H. P. Lovecraft short story "The Dunwich Horror" . Dunwich is found in the fictional Miskatonic River Valley of Massachusetts, part of the imaginary region sometimes called Lovecraft Country...
is also referenced.
Characters
The player assumes the role of Kurou Daijūji, a private investigatorPrivate investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
that specializes in strange and unusual cases. Kurou used to attend the Miskatonic University, majoring in Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
while secretly studying sorcery, but dropped out after an unspecified incident that has caused him to become averse to dealing with occult matters. He has difficulty finding any work and, by the time the events of the story occur, can no longer afford to pay his utility bills. Kurou does have a good heart and tries to help others, usually explaining that he would be bothered by lingering regrets if anything bad happened that could have been prevented by his intervention.
Kurou often approaches Sister Leica, a nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
who runs a church and orphanage in Arkham City, for food. She is very kindhearted and rarely refuses to help Kurou in his times of need but cares deeply about his well-being, constantly pressuring him to go back to his studies, graduate, and find a real job. She takes care of three orphans named George, Colin, and Alison. Ruri Hadou, another of Demonbane's heroines, is Kurou's employer and shoulders a heavy burden as the leader of the Hadou Financial Group following the death of her grandfather. Although outwardly resentful of Kurou for "stealing" her grandfather's legacy, she is also frustrated by her inability to influence the ongoing conflict personally and comes to depend on Kurou's strength.
Demonbane's final main character is Al-Azif, the physical embodiment of the legendary Necronomicon
Necronomicon
The Necronomicon is a fictional grimoire appearing in the stories by horror writer H. P. Lovecraft and his followers. It was first mentioned in Lovecraft's 1924 short story "The Hound", written in 1922, though its purported author, the "Mad Arab" Abdul Alhazred, had been quoted a year earlier in...
. Over the millennia, she has fought countless battles alongside countless masters. When one died she would simply discard them and find another, and inwardly feels deep regret for the way she treated them as mere tools even as they did the same to her. She is very short-tempered and arrogant but holds absolute confidence in her ability to confront and destroy evil.
Story
In the space above EarthEarth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, the Deus Machina Aeon clashes with another unknown machine but due to its lack of a "master" it is defeated and crashes on the surface of the planet. Meanwhile, a starving Kurou Daijūji attempts to acquire food from a local church run by Sister Leica, a nun that he has known since he first moved to the city several years prior to the events of the story. The next day, Kurou is approached by Ruri Hadou, the current head of the Hadou Financial Group and her butler
Butler
A butler is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some also have charge of the entire parlour floor, and housekeepers caring for the entire house and its...
, Winfield. Ruri offers Kurou a job, citing his familiarity with the occult through his studies at the Miskatonic University: to procure a grimoire
Grimoire
A grimoire is a textbook of magic. Such books typically include instructions on how to create magical objects like talismans and amulets, how to perform magical spells, charms and divination and also how to summon or invoke supernatural entities such as angels, spirits, and demons...
. Unable to refuse the generous pay she is offering, Kurou agrees and begins searching immediately.
The search for an authentic grimoire is fruitless, until Kurou happens upon a previously unknown bookstore with several powerful books. Unfortunately he is turned away by the store's owner, Nya, who cryptically states that a far more powerful grimoire is meant for him. This prediction is later proven true when a mysterious girl falls out of the sky onto him, subsequently introduced as Al-Azif, the physical manifestation of the Necronomicon, one of the most powerful grimoires in existence. Kurou is then attacked by her pursuers, the Black Lodge, under the command of the mad scientist
Mad scientist
A mad scientist is a stock character of popular fiction, specifically science fiction. The mad scientist may be villainous or antagonistic, benign or neutral, and whether insane, eccentric, or simply bumbling, mad scientists often work with fictional technology in order to forward their schemes, if...
Doctor West and forced by circumstances to enter into a contract with the grimoire. Doctor West retreats, only to return in one of his giant Destroyer Robots. Kurou escapes with the aid of Metatron, a masked hero that wages a one-man war against the Black Lodge, and stumbles upon an underground hangar containing an imitation Deus Machina, Demonbane. After commandeering
Commandeering
Commandeering is an act of appropriation by the military or police whereby they take possession of the property of a member of the public.-External links:*"" at Straight Dope, 25 April 2006*"" at Urban Legends Reference Pages, 6 August 2001...
the mech amidst the protests of its owner, Ruri, Kurou and Al-Azif (or Al, for short) are able to defeat the Destroyer Robot.
Although initally incensed at the prospect of someone outside the Hadou family piloting Demonbane, Ruri agrees to employ Kurou as the Deus Machina's pilot. Al wants to begin instructing him in the use of sorcery immediately, but before he has a chance to prepare, Kurou is attacked by the leader of the Black Lodge, Master Therion. Kurou is immediately overpowered but his use of Demonbane forces Therion to reveal his own grimoire: the Pnakotic Manuscripts
Pnakotic Manuscripts
The Pnakotic Manuscripts is a fictional manuscript in the Cthulhu Mythos. The tome was created by H. P. Lovecraft and first appeared in his short story "Polaris"...
, also known as Etheldreda. Therion spares Kurou's life, claiming that Kurou is the only individual who can alleviate his boredom, and vanishes. Kurou then begins training in sorcery while simultaneously searching for and recapturing pages that Al has lost. These pages eventually take on a life of their own and threaten the population, forcing him to subdue them physically before Al can reconstitute herself. Kurou's interference in the Black Lodge's operations causes Master Therion to send two of his elite Anticross sorcerers, Titus and Tiberius, to attack the Hadou headquarters directly. Doctor West also repeatedly attempts to make up for his failure to capture the Necronomicon, assisted by a self-aware gynoid
Gynoid
A gynoid is anything which resembles or pertains to the female human form. It is also used in American English medical terminology as a shortening of the term Gynecoid ....
of his own creation named Elsa. In one incident, West and Elsa are able to steal the pages relating to the Scimitar of Barzai
The Other Gods
"The Other Gods" is a short story written by American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft on August 14, 1921. It was first published in the November 1933 issue of The Fantasy Fan.-Synopsis:...
and use them to create a copy of Demonbane that is subsequently defeated.
The story then moves to the coastal town of Innsmouth where Ruri has brought Kurou, Al, the Demonbane support team, and Leica on a beach
Beach
A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...
holiday
Holiday
A Holiday is a day designated as having special significance for which individuals, a government, or a religious group have deemed that observance is warranted. It is generally an official or unofficial observance of religious, national, or cultural significance, often accompanied by celebrations...
. Sensing the presence of evil on an island off the coast, Kurou and Al begin investigating, accompanied by the rest of the group. On the way they are attacked by Deep One
Deep One
The Deep Ones are creatures in the Cthulhu Mythos of H. P. Lovecraft. The beings first appeared in Lovecraft's novella "The Shadow Over Innsmouth"...
s and separated but each of the group is able to make their way to the island individually where they discover the inhabitants of Innsmouth, all Deep Ones themselves, performing a ritual to revive their god, Dagon
Dagon
Dagon was originally an Assyro-Babylonian fertility god who evolved into a major northwest Semitic god, reportedly of grain and fish and/or fishing...
. Overseeing them is another of the Anticross, Vespasianus, along with another powerful grimoire, the R'lyeh Text. The ritual fails but Dagon is revived in an incomplete, bestial state. The monster is only defeated when Demonbane channels the raw power of the Great Old One Cthugha
Cthugha
Cthugha is a fictional deity in the Cthulhu Mythos genre of horror fiction, the creation of August Derleth. He first appeared in Derleth's short story "The House on Curwen Street" .-Description:...
, which nearly kills Kurou. Kurou is later able to acquire Al's pages concerning another Great Old One, Ithaqua
Ithaqua
Ithaqua is a fictional character in the Cthulhu Mythos of H. P. Lovecraft. The titular creature debuted in August Derleth's short story "Ithaqua", which was based on Algernon Blackwood's tale "The Wendigo"....
, and obtains a pair of handgun
Handgun
A handgun is a firearm designed to be held and operated by one hand. This characteristic differentiates handguns as a general class of firearms from long guns such as rifles and shotguns ....
s that serve as conduits for their power from a mysterious individual known to the Black Lodge as the Tyrant.
In the meantime, it is revealed that both the Necronomicon and the Tyrant are essential to a major Black Lodge undertaking, the C Project, but Master Therion appears unconcerned by the fact that his underlings have had no success in capturing either of them. He placates the Anticross by explaining that he can use the Pnakotic Manuscripts in place of the Necronomicon and himself in place of the Tyrant but they remain unconvinced and plot rebellion
Rebellion
Rebellion, uprising or insurrection, is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors aimed at destroying or replacing an established authority such as a government or a head of state...
behind his back. Finally, when the stars are right, the Black Lodge begins a ritual that raises their secret headquarters, the Illusionary Heart Mother, into the sky. They then reveal their full plan, using the R'lyeh Text to summon and bind another of the Great Old Ones: Cthulhu
Cthulhu
Cthulhu is a fictional character that first appeared in the short story "The Call of Cthulhu", published in the pulp magazine Weird Tales in 1928. The character was created by writer H. P...
. Using an army of Destroyer Robots and the wave of insanity that accompanies the summoning, the Black Lodge lays waste to Arkham City. The Anticross betray Master Therion at the climax of the battle, seemingly destroying him along with Etheldreda, while Doctor West defects, disgusted by the perceived misuse of his technology. While Demonbane is able to drive off the Destroyer Robots, the Illusionary Heart Mother is able to teleport away, the Anticross having gained control over Cthulhu through a series of emergency measures.
The Hadou Group is able to locate the missing fortress at 47°9′S 126°43′W
R'lyeh
R'lyeh is a fictional lost city that first appeared in the H. P. Lovecraft short story "The Call of Cthulhu", first published in Weird Tales in 1928. According to Lovecraft's short story, R'lyeh is a sunken city in the South Pacific and the prison of the malevolent entity called Cthulhu.R'lyeh is...
and mobilises a multinational taskforce through its connections to begin an attack. While they engage Cthulhu's forces in the sea, Demonbane is able to penetrate the fortress' defences and defeat the remaining Anticross. Master Therion then reveals himself, reborn as a result of his unique parentage; his father is the Outer God Yog-Sothoth
Yog-Sothoth
Yog-Sothoth is a cosmic entity of the fictional Cthulhu Mythos and the Dream Cycle of H. P. Lovecraft. Yog-Sothoth's name was first mentioned in his novella The Case of Charles Dexter Ward...
and the true purpose of the C Project was to sacrifice Cthulhu as the catalyst of a ritual to summon it. Yog-Sothoth, the Gate and the Key, would then act as a portal through which the Outer Gods could then invade the physical universe. Therion challenges Kurou to follow him through the gate and, after saying his goodbyes, Kurou accepts. Demonbane then battles Therion's Deus Machina, Liber Legis, throughout time and space leading to a clash between the most powerful weapon in each mech's possession: the Shining Trapezohedron. Liber Legis is defeated but Al is finally able to access the totality of her sealed knowledge and discovers the identity of the one who orchestrated all of the story's events: Nya, also known as the Outer God Nyarlathotep
Nyarlathotep
Nyarlathotep, also known as the Crawling Chaos, is a malign deity in the Cthulhu Mythos fictional universe created by H. P. Lovecraft. First appearing in Lovecraft's 1920 prose poem of the same name, he was later mentioned in other works by Lovecraft and by other writers and in the tabletop...
. Kurou and Al battle the god and defeat it, preventing the destruction of reality. Nyarlathotep acknowledges its defeat but points out that it can always return with another scheme, leaving Demonbane becalmed in time and space.
Kishin Houkou Demonbane OVA
A one episode OVA bundled with the PS2 Game Kishin Houkou Demonbane, it was released on July 1, 2004.Plot
Lily Bridge, a young journalist, arrives at Arkham City, hoping to find a big scoop. However, with all the strange things occurring around the city, only the exceptional findings are news-worthy, such as the mysterious mecha known as Demonbane. However, upon finding a small piece of machinery that seemed to be connected with the Hadou Combine, Lily is determined to find the truth. Little does she know, she enters into a dark world, involving herself with Demonbane and the powerful forces that control the city.Kishin Houkou Demonbane TV Anime
Kishin Houkou Demonbane TV is an animated adaptation of Kishin Houkou Demonbane for the PS2, which began airing on May 18, 2006, and ended on August 17, 2006. The characters showcased in the TV series differ slightly from those in the PS2 Game. For example; Metatron has a few seconds of screentime in the first few episodes then never shows up again, Sandalphon is never seen, Ryuuga is seen only in the ending sequence, and Dagon's design was changed entirely.Plot
Kuro Daijuuji is a poor detective living in Arkham City. One day, he is asked by Ruri Hado of Hado Financial Group, to search for a magic grimoireGrimoire
A grimoire is a textbook of magic. Such books typically include instructions on how to create magical objects like talismans and amulets, how to perform magical spells, charms and divination and also how to summon or invoke supernatural entities such as angels, spirits, and demons...
. As Kuro searches for the book, he unexpectedly runs into Al Azif, a pretty girl who turns out to be the grimoire Kuro is searching for. While being chased by the Black Lodge, Al forges a contract with Kuro, bestowing him with powerful magic. Soon afterwards, Al also activates Demonbane, a Deus Machina owned by the Hado Financial Group, to combat the mechanical menace from the Black Lodge. With this, the war between the Hado Financial Group and the Black Lodge begins....
Ending
Demonbane TV's ending is entirely original, made up for the TV series. It at first takes after Al's good ending, but instead of having her drift through space for aeons, it has the Elder Gods Kurou and Al-Azif (from Al's true ending) rescue her and bring her right back to Arkham, and Kurou's waiting arms.The superior quality of the ending to most of the series is attributed to the fact that the animation staff enlisted the aid of the original work's staff for the final episode.
Episodes
| # | English Title | Original airdate |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | I AM PROVIDENCE | May 18, 2006 |
Daijūji Kurou is a broke detective who is unexpectedly hired by a woman from the city's most respected leaders. He's asked to search for a powerful grimoire and is paid handsomely for taking the case. In searching for the magical item(a book) he stumbles into a strange bookstore, where the mysterious proprietor predicts that his future will change dramatically. He stumbles out onto the street where a lovely young girl falls from the sky and directly into his lap. He has no time to react as she is being chased by villains known as the Black Lodge, intent on killing and claiming her true form. Kurou witnesses her use magic and save his life from the bullets fired towards his car. When a crazy-psychotic doctor begins firing with heavy weaponry, Kurou is able to speed away in his car, taking the strange girl with him. The doctor discovers them just as the young girl decides to turn the tables. |
| 02 | EVIL SHINE | May 25, 2006 | |
| 03 | REANINATOR | June 15, 2006 | |
| 04 | THE INVADERS | 2006-06-22 | |
| 05 | THE SHADOW OVER INNSMOUTH | June 29, 2006 | |
| 06 | QUO VADIS | July 6, 2006 | |
| 07 | BIG "C" | July 13, 2006 | |
| 08 | SHADOW IN THE DARK | July 20, 2006 | |
| 09 | THE HUNT | July 27, 2006 | |
| 10 | METALLIC WARCRY | August 3, 2006 | |
| 11 | THE RETURN OF THE SORCERER | August 10, 2006 | |
| 12 | STRANGE EONS | August 17, 2006 |
Theme Songs
Opening theme: "Man God Machine" by Yuuichi IkuzawaEnding theme: "Modern Rose" by Kanako Ito
Kanako Ito
is a female Japanese singer from Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Japan. She has sung many songs that have appeared in video games and anime. One of her notable songs in games is , the "bad end" ending theme to the visual novel School Days. Itō has also sung songs for a drama CD and anime adaptations of School...
Connections to HP Lovecraft in the Anime
Miskatonic University is a fictional university in the fictional town of Arkham, Massachusetts created by HP Lovecraft, an author of horror from the early 20th century. The Necronomicon is also a creation of HP Lovecraft who used the book of forbidden and maddening knowledge in several of his short stories. http://www.mythostomes.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=72 Other lovecraftian tomes that appear in the story include the Pnakotic Manuscripts, the Book of Eibon, De Vermis Mysteriis and many others.Eps 1 "I AM PROVIDENCE" is named after a line in one of the letters HP Lovecraft had written during his life. In 1977 fans of Lovecraft had created a headstone to mark his burial place and on it they put the line from his letter "I AM PROVIDENCE."
Eps 3, "Reaninator" [sic] is likely a reference to Herbert West–Reanimator.
Eps 4, "The Invaders" is also the name of a Cthulhu Mythos story by Henry Kuttner.
Eps 5, "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" is also a story of the same name by HP Lovecraft. The fishlike Deep Ones in the episode also feature in the short story.
eps 9, "The Hunt" is also the name of a Cthulhu Mythos story by Henry Kuttner.
Eps 11 "The Return of the Sorcerer" would but a nod to Clark Ashton Smith's "The Return of the Sorcerer." Clark Ashton Smith was a correspondent of HP Lovecraft while he lived. In the story itself, the Necronomicon is quoted.
Eps 12, "Strange Eons" is a name taken from the book written by Robert Bloch
Robert Bloch
Robert Albert Bloch was a prolific American writer, primarily of crime, horror and science fiction. He is best known as the writer of Psycho, the basis for the film of the same name by Alfred Hitchcock...
of the same name. Bloch was a good friend of HP Lovecraft. Bloch is best known for the novel turned movie he wrote called "Psycho." It references a line from the Necronomicon mentioned in several of Lovecraft's stories, "That is not dead which can eternal lie / And with strange aeons even death may die."
Al Azif's name is derived from the Arabic name for the Necronomicon, "Kitab al-Azif."
Azrad's name was taken from the name of the author of the Necronomicon, Abdul Alhazred
Abdul Alhazred
Abdul Alhazred is a fictional character created by American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. He is the so-called "Mad Arab" credited with authoring the imaginary book Kitab al-Azif , and as such an integral part of Cthulhu Mythos lore....
.
The Shining Trapezohedron is also the name of an ancient artifact in the HP Lovecraft story "The Haunter of the Dark".
The guns of the Demonbane, Cthuga and Ithaqua, are names of creatures that appear in other Lovecraftian horror stories.
Often, Al is seen either sitting or sleeping on a squishy, large, orange object, with a single eye, which occasionally speaks "Tekeli-li". It is a Shoggoth
Shoggoth
A shoggoth is a fictional monster in the Cthulhu Mythos. The being was mentioned in passing in sonnet XX of H.P...
named Dunsany.
Novels
There are currently 5 novel adaptations, three of which retell stories covered in Zanmataisei/Kishinhoukou, and the other two feature new story contents.Zanmataisei's story retold
斬魔大聖デモンベイン 無垢なる刃 (Deus Machina Demonbane Muku naru Yaiba - "The Innocent Blade")斬魔大聖デモンベイン 魔を断つ剣 (Deus Machina Demonbane Ma o Tatsu Tsurugi - "The Demon-slaying Sword")
斬魔大聖デモンベイン 明日への翼 (Deus Machina Demonbane Asu e no Tsubasa - "The Wing towards Tomorrow")
New stories
斬魔大聖デモンベイン 機神胎動 (Deus Machina Demonbane Kishin Taidō - "The Embryonic Movements of Machine God"): Direct prequel to Zanma Taisei/Kishin Houkou.斬魔大聖デモンベイン 軍神強襲 (Deus Machina Demonbane Gunshin Kyōshū - "The Assault of the War God"): Sequel to Kishin Taidou, but its relationship to the games is not apparent.