Japanese manga and anime series
D.N.Angel (stylized as D•N•ANGEL) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yukiru Sugisaki. The manga premiered in Japan in the Kadokawa Shoten magazine "Monthly Asuka" in November 1997. After two extended hiatuses the series concluded in 2021. Kadokawa Shoten has collected the individual chapters and published them in 15 and 5 e-books. The manga series is licensed for English language release in North America and the United Kingdom by Tokyopop, which has released 13 volumes of the series as of 2011.
The story follows an average middle schooler named Daisuke Niwa, who, upon being rejected by his crush, unexpectedly awakens his phantom thief alter ego Dark Mousy. He then realizes that the transformation he undergoes is an inherited trait shared by all the males in his family, and that his mission is to collect and purify the stolen pieces of art of which Dark seeks to maintain from evil.
Xebec adapted the manga into a 26-episode anime series which aired in Japan on TV Tokyo from April 3, 2003, until September 25, 2003. The anime was later adapted into second two volume manga series, a PlayStation 2 video game, and a series of drama CDs.
Plot.
"D.N.Angel" follows the adventures of Daisuke Niwa, an average teenage boy. At the story's opening, Daisuke declares love for his crush, a girl named Risa Harada, on his fourteenth birthday. She rejects him, and later that day, the heart-broken Daisuke undergoes a strange mutation that changes him into another person. He is told calmly by his mother Emiko that, because of a strange genetic condition, all the males in Daisuke's family gain the countenance of Dark Mousy, a famous phantom thief. The transformation occurs every time Daisuke has romantic feelings for his crush or whenever he thinks too long about her. Dark changes back into Daisuke the same way. Daisuke is forced to keep his family's secret and control his alter ego, Dark (whom Risa, Daisuke's crush, has fallen for), while dashing his way out of being caught by the commander of the police. Daisuke learns that in order to return to normality, he must have his unrequited love returned.
The aforementioned commander of the police is a classmate of Daisuke's named Satoshi Hiwatari. Hiwatari suffers from his own version of the phantom-thief curse, and a bond forms between Hiwatari and Daisuke because of their similar afflictions. Hiwatari carries the alter-ego named Krad. However, though Dark and Krad hate one another, Hiwatari and Daisuke maintain a strained but genuine friendship, despite Dark's constant moaning. Dark steals certain artistic objects of value, works made by Satoshi's ancestors, because they contain dangerous magical properties. Some of them, such as "The Second Hand of Time" and "Argentine" also have personalities of their own. Some of the objects that he steals are quite dangerous. Dark's method of stealing is based on garnering attention; before stealing, Emiko will send out a warning of what will be stolen.
Media.
Manga.
Written and illustrated by Yukiru Sugisaki, "D.N.Angel" premiered in Japan in the November 1997 issue of the Kadokawa Shoten magazine "Monthly Asuka". New chapters were serialized monthly until Sugisaki put the series on an extended hiatus after the August 2005 issue. The series eventually returned to serialization, starting in the April 2008 issue of "Monthly Asuka". In 2011 the series went on another extended hiatus and resumed on May 24, 2018. The final chapter was published on the March 2021 issue of "Monthly Asuka", released on January 22, 2021. The individual chapters are collected and published in "tankōbon" volumes by Kadokawa Shoten. The first volume was released on November 13, 1997; a total of 20 volumes have been released.
Tokyopop licensed the series for an English-language release in North America and the United Kingdom, with the first volume of the series released there on April 6, 2004. On November 8, 2005, Tokyopop released a box set containing the first two volumes of the series. A total of 13 volumes have been translated and released as of December 8, 2009. However, Tokyopop announced that its North American division would close on May 31, 2011, leaving the fate of the manga's localization in question. In 2014, Viz Media picked up the digital publication rights to the manga for Kindle.
In August 2003, while the primary series was on hiatus, a second manga series, "D.N.Angel TV Animation Series" began serialization in "Monthly Asuka". Also written by Sugisaki, the short series was based on the anime adaptation, which had diverged from the storyline of the manga series. "D.N.Angel TV Animation Series" finished its serialization in the October 2003 issue. It was published in two "tankōbon" volumes by Kadokawa Shoten.
On March 24, 2018, "Monthly Asuka" announced that the series would return in their May issue, with details to come after the June issue.
Anime.
"D.N.Angel" was adapted into a 26-episode anime series produced by TV Tokyo, Dentsu and Xebec which aired in Japan on TV Tokyo from April 3 to September 25, 2003. The series was directed by Koji Yoshikawa and Nobuyoshi Habara.
The series was originally licensed for release in North America and the United Kingdom by ADV Films. While in the UK the series is no longer licensed, in North America Discotek Media have announced the rescue-licensing of the series. The series is licensed in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment.
Five pieces of theme music are used in the anime adaptation. The song , by Shunichi Miyamoto, is used for the opening for twenty four episodes. Vic Mignogna, the English voice actor for Dark Mousy, covered the opening for the English dub. For the ending theme, is used for the first twelve episodes, and is used for episodes 13-23 and episode 25. Both songs are performed by Minawo. Episode 24 uses the song "Caged Bird", by Shunichi Miyamoto, for its ending, while the final episode of the series uses Miyamoto's song .
Video game.
A PlayStation 2 video game, , was published by Takara. The game was released in Japan on September 25, 2003, to coincide with the conclusion of the anime adaptation. However, the game storyline is closer to the manga, and even mentions past events from the manga that would make it inconsistent with the anime.
Drama CDs.
A trilogy of drama CDs called "D.N.Angel Wink" was released in 1999 between March and December. Some of the scenes follow the manga word-for-word, while others have either minor differences or do not appear in the manga at all. The first CD is called "Target: Sleeping Beauty" and was released on March 5, 1999. The second is "2nd Target: Love Sick" and was released on November 17, 1999. The third is "3rd Target: Love Pleasure" and was released on December 15, 1999. There is another CD, "A Legend of a Vampire" that uses the same voice cast as the "Wink" dramas, though it doesn't relate to the manga. This CD was released in 2001. The plot centers around Daisuke's alter ego, Dark, being a vampire. Krad, who wasn't in the "Wink" dramas, also made an appearance in this CD.
There were also two drama CDs released after the anime titled "Sweet" and "Cute". These CDs use the anime voice actors and are based on the anime with events taking place just before its ending. They also include parodies of scenes in the anime.
Novels.
Three novels were released in Japan between March and October 2000 and were re-released in September 2001. The titles are , , and . Although there was an ad for them left in Tokyopop's translation of the fourth manga volume, they have not been licensed, so little is known about them.
Radio program.
A series of seven broadcasts aired Japan in 2005 called "Decade on Net: Radio D.N.Angel". It was hosted by Miyu Irino and Akira Ishida, who voiced Daisuke Niwa and Satoshi Hiwatari, respectively.
References.
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