Hoshin Engi
First tankōbon volume cover, featuring Taikobo
封神演義
(Hōshin Engi)
Genre
Manga
Written byRyu Fujisaki
Published byShueisha
English publisher
ImprintJump Comics
MagazineWeekly Shōnen Jump
DemographicShōnen
Original runJune 24, 1996 – November 6, 2000
Volumes23
Anime television series
Soul Hunter
Directed byJunji Nishimura
Produced by
  • Noriko Kobayashi
  • Masahiro Toyosumi
Written byJunji Nishimura
Music byRyo Sakai
StudioStudio Deen
Licensed by
Original networkTV Tokyo
English network
Original run July 3, 1999 – December 25, 1999
Episodes26
Anime television series
Hakyu Hoshin Engi
Directed byMasahiro Aizawa
Written byNatsuko Takahashi
Music byMaiko Iuchi
StudioC-Station
Licensed byCrunchyroll
Original networkTokyo MX, Sun TV, KBS Kyoto, BS11, AT-X
Original run January 12, 2018 – June 29, 2018
Episodes23
Manga
Hoshin Engi Gaiden: Senkai Dōsho
Written byRyu Fujisaki
Published byShueisha
ImprintYoung Jump Comics
MagazineWeekly Young Jump
DemographicSeinen
Original runApril 26, 2018 – June 14, 2018
Volumes1

Hoshin Engi (Japanese: 封神演義, Hepburn: Hōshin Engi) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Ryu Fujisaki, inspired by the Chinese literary classic Investiture of the Gods, a shenmo novel. The manga was serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from June 1996 to November 2000, with its chapters collected in 23 tankōbon volumes. The story involves Chinese mythology and history of China, in particular the last members of the Yin dynasty, and the plot to overthrow them. In North America, the manga was licensed for English release by Viz Media. Fujisaki also wrote a short gaiden manga, titled Hoshin Engi Gaiden: Senkai Dōsho, serialized in Weekly Young Jump from April to June 2018.

A 26-episode anime television series, released in English under the title Soul Hunter, was broadcast on TV Tokyo from July to December 1999. A second 23-episode anime television series adaptation, titled Hakyu Hoshin Engi, was broadcast from January to June 2018. The first anime series was first licensed in North America by ADV Films in 2001; it was later acquired by Discotek Media in 2016.

The Hoshin Engi manga has had over 22 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best selling manga series of all time.

Synopsis

Setting

Set in a fictional ancient China, during the Yin dynasty, the fantastic world of Hoshin Engi encompass both the pre-historical world—in which primitive human society coexist with the revered divine gods and goddesses—and the futuristic world—in which highly technological weaponry, combat strategy, as well as futuristic visions, are employed. The Sennin (仙人, Sen'nin)[lower-alpha 1] are a group of powerful immortals or hermits with extraordinary abilities and knowledge, who have gained immortality through various means. They possess great wisdom, longevity, and often exhibit exceptional magical or supernatural powers. Each Sennin has their unique skills and abilities, which they use to navigate the world and influence events. The humans who undergo training to become Sennin are known as Doshi (道士, Dōshi). Both Sennin and Doshi use the sacred weapons paope (宝貝, Paopee), versatile instruments that absorb the spiritual energy of their beholders and from their surroundings to amplify their power.

Plot

A female fox spirit, named Dakki, is controlling King Chu and the Yin dynasty, using her power over him to do evil in the nation. A Doshi named Taikobo was given a mission by Genshi Tenson, Taikobo's mentor and the leader of the Sennin World (仙人界, Sennin Kai), to complete the Hoshin Project (封神計画, Hōshin Keikaku), whose mission is to trap Dakki and her minions in a "middle" world between the Sennin World and the Human World, called Shinkai (神界, "Realm of the Gods"). Taikobo's mission is to hunt down the 365 people whose names were written on the Hoshin List. As Taikobo defeats and seals off each of the 365 people on the scroll, their souls are instantly transported to the Hoshindai (封神台, Hōshindai)—a floating island made to trap souls—and sealed there until all the 365 souls are gathered. Alongside his trusty reiju (霊獣, reijū, lit. "Spirit Beast" or "Sacred Beast") Supushan, Taikobo encounter numerous allies and enemies, each with their own motivations and powers. They engage in battles and form alliances, unraveling the complex web of politics and power struggles among the immortals.

Along the way, Taikobo uncovers Dakki's influence over the Human World, as she manipulates King Chu and orchestrates chaos and suffering. As the story progresses, Taikobo learns more about the true nature of the Sennin and their connection to the heavens. He discovers the existence of a celestial battle between gods and immortals, and the consequences it has for the Human World. Taikobo becomes embroiled in this conflict, as he finds himself torn between his duty as an immortal and his compassion for humanity. At the climax of the Sennin war, both worlds were completely destroyed with hundreds of souls sealed into the Hoshindai. After defeating King Chu, and officially declaring the fall of the Yin dynasty, Taikobo and company decide to leave the Human World and return to what is left of the Sennin World. However, Taikobo learns that there is possibly a third Sennin World, one that belongs to Dakki, and is probably where she and the last of her minions fled to when the Yin dynasty was finally conquered.

It is later revealed that the real goal of the Hoshin Project is not just about defeating Dakki, but the eternal being behind her and the corruption of the Human World, the powerful Joka, one of the First Persons (最初の人, Saisho no Hito); aliens who landed on the Earth millions of years ago. Joka had a dream to recreate her home world on Earth (which had self-destructed some time ago), but the other aliens disagreed and enclosed her in a glass cage. Later, she was able to move about in her "soul" form and direct the trend of history to her liking. This is when she met up with Dakki, and the two started working together to make Joka's dream of recreating her home world on Earth come true. Each time history diverted from what Joka wants it to become, she completely destroyed the civilization that existed and started all over again. The Sennin retaliate against Joka, and she finally decides to destroy Earth once and for all, and find another world in order to replicate her old home. The battles rages for a while before the deceased Taikobo (who had "died" recently) reappears in front of his comrades again. It is revealed that Taikobo was once one of the First Persons. Using the energy of his friends as well as those souls trapped in the Hoshindai, Taikobo (now renamed Fukki), is finally able to defeat Joka and release the world from her influences.

Prior to this, Dakki manages to take over Joka's body for a time and merges with the life energies of the Earth, becoming the mother of all life. After the fight with Joka ends, Joka selfishly asks Taikobo to disappear together with her, afraid of being left alone again and since Taikobo felt that he had done what he had set out to do, complies. When he was about to fade away, Dakki came and saved his life, thus reviving him.

In the epilogue, when Supushan goes to the Human World to update on the happenings of the Sennin World, he finds out that Taikobo is still alive, and goes in search for him, but to no avail as Taikobo seems keen on avoiding them, to the extent of following them behind their backs without them knowing, and somehow preventing the people he meets from revealing his whereabouts. After lazing around for a while, Taikobo decides to start a journey to unknown places.

Media

Manga

Hoshin Engi, written and illustrated by Ryu Fujisaki, is based on the novel of the same title by Tsutomu Ano, which is a Japanese translation of the Chinese literary classic Investiture of the Gods,[3][4] published by Kodansha between November 15, 1988,[5] to January 15, 1989.[6] The manga was serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from June 24, 1996, to November 6, 2000.[7] Shueisha collected its 204 individual chapters in 23 tankōbon volumes, released from November 1, 1996,[8] to December 22, 2000.[9] The manga was re-released in a 18-volume kanzenban edition from July 4, 2005,[10] to April 4, 2006.[11]

In North America, Viz Media announced at the New York Comic Con 2007 that they had licensed the manga.[12] The 23 volumes were published from June 5, 2007,[13] to June 7, 2011.[14]

Fujisaki wrote a short gaiden manga, titled Hoshin Engi Gaiden: Senkai Dōsho (封神演義外伝～仙界導書～), serialized Shueisha seinen manga magazine Weekly Young Jump from April 26 to June 14, 2018.[15][16][17] A tankōbon volume was released on July 19, 2018.[18]

Anime

Soul Hunter

Hoshin Engi was adapted into an anime television series, titled Senkaiden Hōshin Engi (仙界伝 封神演義), produced by Studio Deen and directed by Junji Nishimura.[19] The 26-episodes series was broadcast on TV Tokyo between July 3 and December 25, 1999.[20]

In North America, the series was first licensed by ADV Films in 2001 under the name Soul Hunter.[21][22] In 2016, Discotek Media re-licensed the series for a single DVD collection release on June 28.[23][24]

Hakyu Hoshin Engi

A 23-episode anime television series adaptation titled Hakyu Hoshin Engi (覇穹 封神演義), produced by C-Station and featuring a new cast aired from January 12 to June 29, 2018.[25][26][27] The series was directed by Masahiro Aizawa, with Natsuko Takahashi in charge of the series scripts, characters design by Yoshimitsu Yamashita and music composed by Maiko Iuchi.[28] Crunchyroll streamed the series, while Funimation produced a simuldub.[29][30]

Video games

Four video games published by Bandai have been released: two for the WonderSwan on February 24[31] and December 21, 2000,[32] respectively; and two for the PlayStation on June 29, 2000,[33] and March 29, 2001.[34] respectively. A video game published by Banpresto was released for the Game Boy Color on November 24, 2000.[35] Characters from the series were also featured in the Weekly Shōnen Jump crossover game Jump Ultimate Stars, released for the Nintendo DS on November 23, 2006.[36]

Stage play

A stage play musical adaptation titled Musical Hoshin Engi: Mezame no Toki (ミュージカル 封神演義-目覚めの刻-, lit. "Musical Hoshin Engi: Time of Awakening") was performed in EX Theater Roppongi in Tokyo and ran from January 13–20, 2019. The play, directed by Kōtarō Yoshitani, included casts such as Shōhei Hashimoto playing as Taikobo, Yuya Asato as Yozen, and Ryū Kiyama as Nataku.[37]

Reception

By May 2018, the manga had over 22 million copies in circulation.[38] On TV Asahi's Manga Sōsenkyo 2021 poll, in which 150.000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, Hoshin Engi ranked 68th.[39]

Notes

  1. ↑ Feminine form: Sennyo (仙女, Sen'nyo)

References

  1. ↑ "The Official Website for Hoshin Engi". Viz Media. Archived from the original on June 14, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2017.
  2. ↑ Beard, Jeremy A. "Soul Hunter". THEM Anime Reviews. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  3. 1 2 Thompson, Jason (July 3, 2012). Manga: The Complete Guide (Kindle). Del Rey Books. pp. 383–384. ISBN 978-0-345-53944-1. Ryu Fujisaki's Hoshin Engi (1996), a sci-fi/fantasy title with all the nonstop slugfests and occasional comedy associated with Weekly Shônen Jump, was based on Tsutomu Ano's fantasy novels, which were in turn based on the ancient Chinese novel Fengshen Yangyi ("Creation of the Gods"). Fusing fantasy, history, martial arts battles, and science fiction, Hoshin Engi represents the new wave of fantasy manga that resist categorization into a single genre.
  4. ↑ Thompson, Jason (July 26, 2012). "Jason Thompson's House of 1000 Manga—Hoshin Engi". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  5. ↑ 封神演義（上） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on September 21, 2004. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  6. ↑ 封神演義（下） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on September 21, 2004. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  7. ↑ 週刊少年ジャンプ 封神演義(藤崎竜). Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  8. ↑ 封神演義/1 [Hoshin Engi/1] (in Japanese). Shueisha. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2009.
  9. ↑ 封神演義/23 [Hoshin Engi/23] (in Japanese). Shueisha. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2009.
  10. ↑ 封神演義 完全版 1 (in Japanese). Shueisha. Archived from the original on February 11, 2007. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  11. ↑ 封神演義 完全版 18 (in Japanese). Shueisha. Archived from the original on February 11, 2007. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  12. ↑ Bamboo Dong (February 24, 2007). "Viz Media—Manga—New York ComicCon 2007". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on July 29, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  13. ↑ "Hoshin Engi, Vol. 1". Viz Media. Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  14. ↑ "Hoshin Engi, Vol. 23". Viz Media. Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  15. ↑ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (December 16, 2017). "Ryu Fujisaki Draws New Short Hoshin Engi Manga". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on January 13, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2018.
  16. ↑ Loo, Egan (March 18, 2019). "Hoshin Engi Fantasy Manga's New Series Slated for April 26". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  17. ↑ Ressler, Karen (June 7, 2018). "Hoshin Engi Gaiden Manga Ends on June 14". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  18. ↑ 封神演義外伝～仙界導書～ (in Japanese). Shueisha. Archived from the original on October 20, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
  19. ↑ "SOUL HUNTER". King Records. Archived from the original on August 13, 2006. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  20. ↑ -仙界伝- 封神 演義. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 25, 2018. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  21. ↑ "ADV aquisitions [sic], coming releases and dates". Anime News Network. February 6, 2001. Archived from the original on May 8, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  22. ↑ Green, Scott (October 3, 2001). "Soul Hunter Date". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 24, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  23. ↑ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (April 9, 2016). "Discotek Adds A Wind Named Amnesia, Pilot Candidate, Soul Hunter Anime". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  24. ↑ "Soul Hunter: The Complete Series". Discotek Media. Archived from the original on April 19, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  25. ↑ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (July 31, 2017). "Ryu Fujisaki's Hoshin Engi Manga Gets New TV Anime With New Cast". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on July 31, 2017. Retrieved July 31, 2017.
  26. ↑ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (September 29, 2017). "New Hoshin Engi Anime Reveals January Premiere, 3 More Cast Members". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on September 30, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
  27. ↑ 第23話老いたる象徴と風の分岐 (in Japanese). Tokyo MX. Archived from the original on December 8, 2018. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
  28. ↑ Loo, Egan (November 1, 2017). "New Hoshin Engi Anime Reveals Staff, More of Cast, Title, Video, Debut Date". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  29. ↑ Ressler, Karen (January 9, 2018). "Crunchyroll, Funimation Stream Hakyu Hoshin Engi, The Silver Guardian 2 Anime". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  30. ↑ "SimulDubs Coming to FunimationNow in Winter 2018!". Funimation Blog. December 21, 2017. Archived from the original on January 10, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
  31. ↑ 仙界伝 TVアニメーション 仙界伝封神演義より. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  32. ↑ 仙界伝 弐 TVアニメーション仙界伝封神演義より. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  33. ↑ 仙界大戦. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  34. ↑ 仙界通録正史 TVアニメーション仙界伝封神演義より. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  35. ↑ 仙界異聞録 準提大戦 ～TVアニメーション「仙界伝封神演義」より～. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 22, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  36. ↑ 『ジャンプアルティメットスターズ』公式サイトオープン. Inside (in Japanese). IID, Inc.. November 6, 2006. Archived from the original on June 23, 2023. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  37. ↑ "Hoshin Engi Manga Gets Musical in January". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on September 13, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
  38. ↑ アニメ「覇穹 封神演義」のキャラクターたちがスマホゲームで登場 スマートフォン向けゲーム『覇穹 封神演義 ～センカイクロニクル～』5月25日（金）より事前登録受付開始！. PR Times (in Japanese). May 25, 2018. Archived from the original on December 8, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  39. ↑ テレビ朝日『国民15万人がガチで投票!漫画総選挙』ランキング結果まとめ！ 栄えある1位に輝く漫画は!?. animate Times (in Japanese). Animate. January 3, 2021. Archived from the original on January 3, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

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