El Cazador de la Bruja

El Cazador de la Bruja (Japanese: エル・カザド, Eru Kazado, Spanish for The Hunter of the Witch), is an anime television series directed by Kōichi Mashimo and animated by Bee Train studio.^[3] It is a spiritual successor of Noir and Madlax and the final installment of Bee Train's "girls-with-guns" trilogy.^[4] The series was aired on TV Tokyo from April to September in 2007. A manga adaptation was serialized in the Champion RED Magazine beginning in March 2007, and the chapters were collected into one volume.^[5]

The series was announced for North American release by Funimation on February 19, 2009.^[6] It was released in two complete season sets in early December 2009 and re-released as a complete set in March 2011. The series made its North American television debut on March 22, 2010, when it started airing on the Funimation Channel.^[7]

Plot

A fateful encounter between Ellis, a fugitive girl with amnesia, a troubled past, and supernatural powers, and Nadie, a feisty bounty hunter, leads to the two of them traveling south together in search of the key to unlocking Ellis's past. The only clues they have are a mysterious stone given to Ellis by a fortune teller she was staying with, and Ellis' notion that she has to go south.

Characters

Nadie (ナディ, Nadi)

Voiced by: Shizuka Itō^[8] (Japanese); Trina Nishimura (English)

A maverick female bounty hunter and a top marksman, she carries an old Colt M1911 .45 pistol as her weapon of choice. She holds an optimistic attitude. She was the sole survivor of an attack on her hometown. Working for Hayward, Nadie accompanies Ellis on her journey. Before killing her opponents, Nadie has a habit of saying, "If you have any last words, say them now". She is feisty and can lose her temper very easily, but she does not joke around when it comes to protecting Ellis. She is willing to please Ellis in numerous ways and even puts up with Squenchy when Ellis keeps the salamander indoors with them overnight. In the beginning, Nadie works for Blue-Eyes to protect Ellis, but Ellis and Nadie grow closer after a while. When Blue-eyes asks Nadie to hand over Ellis, Nadie refuses and resolves to stay with Ellis. Later, L.A. feels fear when she gets "too close" to Nadie. He gets Nadie thrown in jail and tries to kill her, but Ellis saves Nadie. At last, when Nadie and Ellis finally reach the place of eternity, Nadie helps Ellis gets the answers she wants from Rosenberg. Nadie is almost sacrificed to awaken Ellis's powers, but Ellis hires Nadie to kill her, but Nadie refuses. Ellis convinces her to shoot, and Ellis says "I love you, Nadie." before she does. The two appear to have died, as said by Blue-Eyes. Ellis are then resurrected by Blue-Eyes, her powers awakened and made known by Lirio, who speaks for the first time. Ellis heals Nadie and resurrects her after rejecting Rosenberg. Afterward, Nadie and Ellis face Rosenberg for the last time. Rosenberg dies, and they are free. The last episode starts with Nadie who thanks an elderly couple for hiring her and Ellis at their shop. She is called a "she-man" by a young boy. It is soon found a young man named Pedro has a crush on Nadie after Nadie says maybe he should marry Ellis. The two find that they are happy and their journey seemed far away, and it is discovered that Nadie said she would never use a gun again. Peace is disrupted by a visiting Blue-Eyes, who tells them about her new job. The store is threatened by bounty hunters from their past who are now fat. They fight back and defeat them. The couple invite them to stay, but the two decide that they belong on the road. Nadie cries at their offer and tells them thank you. It is Ellis who says they will leave and because "She loves that sparkle in her eye" which Nadie only gets from being on the road. Her name in Spanish means "nobody".

Ellis (エリス, Erisu)

Voiced by: Ai Shimizu^[8] (Japanese); Maxey Whitehead (English)

A girl wanted as a suspect for Dr. Heinz Schneider's murder. She heads south in order to seek the truth of the incident, as well as to find her birthplace; based on the vague memories she holds and an old fortune teller's advice. Ellis has "Witch DNA", but her abilities are accidental and incomplete. These include superhuman strength, temporary levitation, and heating as well as freezing of physical objects. She cannot control her abilities at will, usually becoming active only in times of need. She speaks whatever is on her mind in an almost expressionless way of talking, she could almost be classified as a comic relief character because of some of the things she does. As the series progresses, it shows that Ellis feels guilty over her belief that she killed the doctor (which she didn't do, at the end of the show it's revealed that Rosenberg is the one who killed the doctor). She was created by Rosenberg, along with L.A. She was handed over to the doctor and after years of being with him, she feel in love with him. She gains immense power when they reach the place of eternity. Rosenberg tries to kill Nadie to awaken Ellis's powers, while this goes on, Ellis says she's losing her memories of their time together. She tells Nadie to kill her for a job, Nadie tries to refuse, but Ellis tries to convince her. Before Nadie pulls the trigger, Ellis says "I love you, Nadie." Ellis goes first, but Nadie then follows her to death. They are then resurrected by Blue-Eyes, her powers awakened and made known by Lirio, who speaks for the first time. Blue-Eyes resurrects Ellis first, as Nadie is still dead. Ellis resurrects Nadie after rejecting Rosenberg's "love." They all escape (Nadie, Ellis, Ricardo, Lirio, and Blue-Eyes) but not before Ellis sees the doctor's ghost who says "Thank you, Ellis." Nadie calls to Ellis and the leave the preying grounds of the witches. Ellis has now gained the ability to use her powers correctly, bringing tranquility to the original witches's hearts. Afterward, Nadie and Ellis face Rosenberg for the last time. Rosenberg dies, and they are free. The last episode starts with Nadie who thanks an elderly couple for hiring her and Ellis at their shop. Ellis is later found sleeping when she should be doing laundry. The two find that they are happy and their journey seemed far away, and it's discovered that Nadie said she would never again use a gun. It was also said that Ellis could no longer use her powers, when Ellis finally has control over her powers. Peace is disrupted by a visiting Blue-Eyes, who tells them about her new job. The store is threatened by bounty hunters from their past, who are now fat. They fight back and kick the bounty hunter's asses. Ellis goes back on the road because she "Loves that sparkle in her [Nadie's] eye."

<span id="Jody "Blue-Eyes" Hayward">Jody "Blue-Eyes" Hayward (ジョディ“ブルーアイズ”ヘイワード, Jodi "Burūaizu" Heiwādo)

Voiced by: Aya Hisakawa^[8] (Japanese); Clarine Harp (English)

She first appears as a office worker in the Central Intelligence Agency,^[9] where is tasked with watching Rosenberg and uncovering information on Project LEVIATHAN. After uncovering the true nature of the project she breaks her cover and is assigned to work more directly to disrupt Rosenberg's plans. From this point on, she puts her hair down and is only referred to by her code name "Blue-Eyes". It is later revealed that she hired Nadie to protect Ellis.

Douglas Rosenberg (ダグラス・ローゼンバーグ, Dagurasu Rōzenbāgu)

Voiced by: Kenta Miyake^[8] (Japanese); Ian Sinclair (English)

A director in the Central Intelligence Agency and a shrewd agent, Rosenberg serves as the main antagonist of the story. He appears to have a great number of connections, using them at least once to attack Nadie and Ellis with military forces. He hired Ricardo to observe Ellis and Nadie and to subdue L.A. when he got out of control. While his true intentions and motivations never truly become clear, he always seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. He is with a young woman who he leaves to chase after Ellis. He is the one who killed the doctor and gave her to the Doctor. He controlled L.A. and gave him the capacity to feel. He admits his feelings for Ellis before being rejected by her. They face off one last time and he dies. His last words are "I envy you, Ellis."

<span id="Dr. Heinrich "Heinz" Schneider">Dr. Heinrich "Heinz" Schneider (ハインリヒ "ハインツ" シュナイダー, Hainrihi "Haintsu" Shunaidā)

Voiced by: Shinichiro Miki^[8] (Japanese); Christopher Bevins (English)

A doctor of physics, he is a German immigrant who has no family and thrives on his study. He is a key player in developing and researching "Project LEVIATHAN" and was in charge of caring for and studying Ellis during her childhood. In flashbacks, he appears to have been generally kind to Ellis.

L.A. (エル・エー, Eru Ē)

Voiced by: Mamoru Miyano^[8] (Japanese); Jamie McGonnigal (English)

A mysterious young man who is in love with and harbors a deep obsession for Ellis. He is always constantly watching her but he has a deep hatred for humans. He and Ellis are the last survivors out of the five who were artificially engineered with witch DNA. Though he doesn't have witch-like powers himself, he does possess superhuman agility and strength. He uses metal threads as a weapon.

Ricardo (リカルド, Rikarudo)

Voiced by: Fumihiko Tachiki^[8] (Japanese); Bob Carter (English)

A taciturn bounty hunter who was hired by Douglas Rosenberg. He is a retired mercenary. In the later episodes, Ricardo and Nadie find themselves working together in order to thwart Rosenberg's plans to capture Ellis. He is generally quiet and would do anything to protect Lirio. It is possible that he either lived or worked in Australia as he is teaching Lirio to use a boomerang in the last episode.

Lirio (リリオ, Ririo)

Voiced by: Marina Inoue^[8] (Japanese); Monica Rial (English)

A young girl who is being raised by Ricardo and is seen constantly following him around. Lirio seems to be very attached to both Nadie and Ellis. She is not very talkative, only speaking in episode 25.

Media

Anime

The music is handled by Yuki Kajiura. The opening theme "Hikari no Yukue" is performed by savage genius, while the ending theme "romanesque" is performed by FictionJunction Yuuka.

Manga

A manga titled El Cazador de la Bruja by Hirose Shū started serialization in the shōnen manga magazine Champion RED on March 19, 2007. The manga finished serialization, with only one bound volume released on September 20, 2007.^[5]

References

External links

• Official website (Japanese)
• El Cazador de la Bruja at TV Tokyo
• El Cazador de la Bruja at Funimation
• El Cazador de la Bruja (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• El Cazador de la bruja at the Internet Movie Database

Works by Bee Train
Girls with guns	Noir Madlax El Cazador de la Bruja
.hack franchise	Sign Liminality Legend of the Twilight Roots
Manga and literature	Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Spider Riders Murder Princess Blade of the Immortal Batman: Gotham Knight Psychic Detective Yakumo Hyouge Mono
Other original works	Captain Kuppa Avenger Immortal Grand Prix
Other video games	PoPoLoCrois Arc the Lad Wild Arms Medabots Meine Liebe Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom Halo Legends
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