Details
Shin Kyuseishu Densetsu Hokuto no Ken Yuria Den, released in France under the title Hokuto no Ken : La Légende de Julia, is a Japanese OAV of approximately 60 minutes directed by Ueda Hidehito, produced by North Stars Pictures and animated by TMS Entertainment. Released directly on DVD on February 23, 2007 by Amuse Soft Entertainment, it constitutes the second installment of the Shin Kyuseishu Densetsu (Legend of the True Savior) pentalogy, telling the events from Yuria's point of view.
Taken in as a child by Ryuken after the great cataclysm that devastated the world, Yuria grows up alongside the Hokuto brothers and falls in love with Kenshiro. But when he is defeated by Shin, who inflicts the seven scars upon him, the young woman is abducted by the master of Nanto Koshuken. A prisoner of her captor and then taken in by the Five Stars of Nanto, Yuria discovers the destiny that awaits her: to succeed Dharma and become the last general of Nanto, around whom an army capable of standing against Ken-oh will rise, awaiting the heir of the Big Dipper.
Produced from 2006 to 2008 for the 25th anniversary of Hokuto no Ken, the Shin Kyuseishu Densetsu pentalogy alternates between theatrical films and OAVs. Yuria Den is the first of its two installments released directly on DVD, between the two films devoted to Raoh. Centered on its heroine, it contains few combat scenes and covers the period from Yuria's childhood through the events of the first film, from which it also reuses shots of the battle between Kenshiro and Souther.
The OAV develops several elements absent from the manga: Yuria is given a gift of premonition, her dog Tobi is assigned a protective star, "the star of loyalty," and it is she who orchestrates Rei's capture to push him toward meeting Kenshiro. The Five Stars of Nanto appear around the character of Dharma, Yuria's predecessor in the role of the Last General. A small detail that has remained in fans' memories: between the earliest and latest trailers, Yuria's dress changed from white to red.
Direction was entrusted to Ueda Hidehito, with a screenplay co-written by Nobuhiko Horie and Tabe Toshiyuki. Ishikawa Tetsuya handled both character design and animation direction, with studio Actas serving as a production partner alongside TMS Entertainment. On the casting side, Ishida Yuriko voices Yuria. Following Abe Hiroshi, Ukaji Takashi, and Shibasaki Ko, she was the fourth performer from film and television announced at the project's unveiling in 2005. Actor David Ito plays Jagi, who makes his first appearance in the pentalogy here, and the narration is provided by Tsukayama Masane.
The original soundtrack reprises the compositions written by Kajiura Yuki for the first film. The main theme, "Yuria... Eien ni ~Movie ver~," is a newly recorded version by Crystal King of their ending theme from the 1984 television series, following the cover of "Ai wo Torimodose!!" for the first film. The OAV also features an insert song, "Hikari no Yukue," performed by FictionJunction WAKANA, a vocal project by Kajiura Yuki.
| Yuria | Ishida Yuriko (石田ゆり子) |
|---|---|
| Kenshiro | Abe Hiroshi (阿部寛) |
| Raoh | Ukaji Takashi (宇梶剛士) |
| Shin | Kirimoto Takuya (桐本琢也) |
| Jagi | David Ito (デビット伊東) |
| Toki | Horiuchi Kenyu (堀内賢雄) |
| Souther | Otsuka Akio (大塚明夫) |
| Ryuken | Otsuka Chikao (大塚周夫) |
| Rei | Miki Shinichiro (三木眞一郎) |
| Souga | Ishizuka Unsho (石塚運昇) |
| Dharma | Yara Yusaku (屋良有作) |
| Rihaku | Hoki Katsuhisa (宝亀克寿) |
| Fudo | Gori Daisuke (郷里大輔) |
| Shuren | Hiyama Nobuyuki (檜山修之) |
| Hyui | Tsuchida Hiroshi (土田大) |
| Tou | Kaida Yuko (甲斐田裕子) |
| Narration | Tsukayama Masane (津嘉山正種) |
| Direction | Ueda Hidehito (うえだひでひと) |
|---|---|
| Screenplay | Nobuhiko Horie, Tabe Toshiyuki |
| Executive production | Imoto Mitsuru, Nobuhiko Horie |
| Character design, animation dir. | Ishikawa Tetsuya (石川哲也) |
| Art direction | Sakamoto Nobuto (坂本信人) |
| Sound direction | Koyama Satoru (小山悟) |
| Music | Kajiura Yuki (梶浦由記) |
| Editing | Takuma Jun (田熊純) |
| Production | North Stars Pictures |
| Animation | TMS Entertainment, Actas (cooperation) |
| Video publishing | Amuse Soft Entertainment |
| Video distribution | Toho |
In Japan, the OAV was released on DVD on February 23, 2007 by Amuse Soft Entertainment in two editions: a limited edition (8,190 yen) including the film, a cross-interview of Tetsuo Hara and Ishida Yuriko, two film strips, four postcards and the animated music clip of "Yuria... Eien ni"; and a standard edition (6,090 yen) limited to the film and trailers. The OAV was remastered in high definition as part of the Blu-ray BOX set Shin Kyuseishu Densetsu Hokuto no Ken, released on February 26, 2021 under the KINEMATICS label (reference KTCS-001, 23,000 yen before tax): four discs in a limited print run collecting the five installments of the pentalogy, Yuria Den and Toki Den sharing one disc in 1080i, with an acrylic plate and a 32-page color booklet.
In France, Kazé released the DVD on June 10, 2009 under the title Hokuto no Ken: La Légende de Julia, in French and subtitled Japanese versions, accompanied by animated clips and the 25-minute interview of Tetsuo Hara and Ishida Yuriko (24.95 euros). A collector's edition exclusive to the Fnac (70 euros) offered the same DVD along with the Kaiyodo bust of the last Nanto general. A reissue was released on September 24, 2014, again by Kazé, which included in addition to La Légende de Julia the other OAV from the project (La Légende Toki).
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