Hell Girl (地獄少女 Jigoku Shōjo), also known as Jigoku Shōjo: Girl from Hell is an animeseries, produced by Aniplex and Studio Deen. It focuses on the existence of a supernatural system that allows people to take revenge by having other people sent to Hell via the services of the mysterious titular character and her assistants who implement this system.[1] Revenge, injustice, hatred, and the nature of human emotions are common themes throughout the series.
It premiered across Japan on numerous television stations, including Animax, Tokyo MX, MBSand others, between October 4, 2005 and April 4, 2006. Following the success of the first season, the series was followed soon after into a second, Jigoku Shōjo Futakomori (地獄少女 二籠), which premiered October 7, 2006 across Japan on Animax.[citation needed] A live-actiontelevision series adaptation started airing in Japan on Nippon Television from November 4, 2006.[citation needed] A third season of the anime, further continuing the series, was first announced on the mobile version of the series' official website Jigoku Tsūshin.[2] The official title of the third season was announced to be Jigoku Shōjo Mitsuganae (地獄少女 三鼎).[3] and began airing on Japanese TV October 4, 2008.[4]
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PLOT
Most episodes are self-contained short stories in which the series narrates the suffering of a different individual caused by one or more antagonists. In general during each arc, theprotagonists' dramas are explained in detail from the start of their grudges, through the escalation of their torment until it becomes unbearable and they resort to accessing the Hell Correspondence website. Although in general, the client gives the antagonist a chance, he or she usually ends up pulling the string on his or her doll and sending the antagonist to hell. Once they have pulled the string, before taking the antagonist to hell, Ai Enma punishes the person for his or her sins with the help of her companions.
In the first season, the story soon follows a journalist named Shibata Hajime, a former blackmailer, and his daughter Tsugumi who shares a strange connection with the Hell Girl as they investigate the truth behind the Hell Girl. In the second season, a mysterious young girl from Hell, named Kikuri who is able to travel freely between Earth and the Twilight realm where Ai resides, is introduced. Later, the plot centers around Takuma Kurebayashi, a boy who is blamed by his townsfolk for causing disappearances around the town that are in reality caused by the townsfolk using the Hell Correspondence. In the third season, Kikuri returns to recruit Ai's assistants along with a yōkai named Yamawaro, who accepts an old offer from Ai to become her fourth assistant. The story follows Ai's mysterious possession of a young schoolgirl, Yuzuki Mikage.
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HELL CORRESPONDENCE
The medium through which a client contacts Ai Enma has changed over the centuries. Initially clients would write the names of whom they hated on an ema, which later changed to sending a letter to the address appearing in a three-column newspaper advertisement only visible to those with enough hatred. Once the internet became available, people could access the Hell Correspondence website, otherwise known as the "Hotline to Hell". Soon after, the site was adapted into a mobile version that could be accessed from cell phones.[5]
Each medium can only be used at midnight by one who harbors a desire for revenge against their object of hatred. Should someone submit the name of someone against whom they bear a grudge or immense hatred, and their request is accepted, Ai Enma will take them to a realm of perpetual twilight where she offers them a straw doll, one of her companions, with a red string wound around its neck and describe to the client the details of their contract; should the client pull the string tied around the doll's neck, she will ferry the target of the revenge straightaway to Hell. However, once the client's life has ended, he or she, too, will go to Hell, and a black crest-shaped mark appears on the client's chest to serve as a permanent reminder of this and their decision to send someone to Hell. However, this mark is no guarantee that the person themselves won't be sent to hell by another client.
Hell Girl was adapted into a single live-action television drama series that premiered on Nippon Television from November 4, 2006 spanning 12 half-hour episodes. The series was directed by Makoto Naganuma. The theme song for the series is "Dream Catcher" by Olivia Lufkin.[16]
Hisahiro Ogura, the actor who portrays Wanyūdō in the live-action adaptation is also the Japanese male narrator at the beginning of every episode of the anime series. Eriko Matsushima retains her role as Ai's grandmother in the live action series.
The Hell Girl anime series was later adapted into a manga, which featured art by Miyuki Etō (永遠 幸 Etō Miyuki). It has been serialized inKodansha's Nakayoshi shōjo manga magazine since October 2005. While the stories are mostly original, chapters 4 and 10 are adapted from their respective anime episodes (in the first season), while chapter 2 is adapted from anime episode 9. Chapter 17 is adapted from episode 8 of the second season.
Due to the difference in media, Ai's modus operandi in the manga is somewhat different from the anime. Ai has been seen attending the same schools as some of her student-clients. Also, the straw figurine with the string was not featured in the first few chapters. Subsequently, its appearance is no longer as ubiquitous as its anime counterpart. Ai's clients need only to accept the contract, and the victims' torture by Ai and her helpers would then begin. In some cases, the torture begins after she has rung her bracelet in front of her victim (and not before as seen in the anime). The appearance of the boat in which Ai uses to ferry her victims to Hell is reduced as well. Notably, Sentaro Shibata is featured, but Tsugumi and Hajime are not. Also, Kikuri has made appearances from volume 4 onwards. Takuma appears towards the end of the manga, though not as young as his anime counter part. Detective Meshiai and Hotaru Meshiai also appear. Though Hajime doesn't appear, the biography Hajime wrote does, as a source of information on Ai for Meshiai and Takuma, implying that Hajime does have a presence in the manga universe. Subtle nods to the anime are scattered throughout the manga, such as Gill du Ronfell's cameo in volume 6.
The manga has recently been licensed by Del Rey Manga, and the first volume, titled Hell Girl, was released January 2008. The second volume was released in May 2008.
PERSONAL OPINION
This is the anime that hooked me up. I mean the fact about death made me want this anime more. I love hell girl because the series were just brilliant, the horrible reality that people always thought of death when they have problems. The harsh truth of everyday life, some episodes there teaches us lessons about life. I was so desperate to buy it's manga and finally I did find one. I'll post it the next time.
Here are some of hell girls' picture.
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