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Hakuoki

type	tv series
title	Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom
director	Osamu Yamasaki
producer	Asuka Yamazaki Kazuhiko Hasegawa Mitsutoshi Ogura
writer	Ryōta Yamaguchi (#1) Mitsutaka Hirota (#2–3, 9, 12) Yoshiko Nakamura (#4, 6, 8, 11) Megumu Sasano (#5, 7, 10)
music	Kow Otani
studio	Studio Deen
licensee	Crunchyroll (current)
network	TV Kanagawa, Chiba TV, TV Saitama, KBS Kyoto, Sun TV, AT-X, Tokyo MX TV, TV Aichi
first	April 4, 2010
last	June 20, 2010
episodes	12
episode list	List of Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom episodes

Hakuoki (薄桜鬼〜新選組奇譚〜) is a Japanese otome video game series by Idea Factory, first released for the PlayStation 2 on the 18th September 2008 and ported to many other platforms. It has been adapted into an anime series by Studio Deen; the first series was broadcast from April to June 2010, and the second series was broadcast from October to December 2010. An OVA series, titled Hakuoki: A Memory of Snow Flowers and adapting from Hakuoki: Stories of Shinsengumi was released from August 2011 to July 2012. A third series based on the prequel, Hakuoki Reimeiroku was broadcast from July to September 2012. The series has also been adapted as two different manga series.

Two films were released in 2013 and 2014. The first was released in August 2013 and on DVD in February 2014. The film is a retelling of both seasons in greater detail and with a slightly different ending. The second film was released on March 8, 2014. A short anime television series adaptation of a new instalment of the game, titled Hakuoki: Otogisōshi and produced by DLE, aired from April to June 2016. A new OVA series by Studio Deen was released from November 2021 to January 2022.

The anime television series and films have been licensed by Sentai Filmworks in North America.[2][3][4]

Characters

Main

Chizuru Yukimura (雪村千鶴)
[6]
The main female protagonist. Chizuru comes to Kyoto from her hometown of Edo in search of her missing father, Kodo Yukimura (雪村綱道), a practitioner of Western medicine. Unknown to Chizuru, her father under orders from the Shogunate develops the Water of Life (変若水), an elixir that increases the drinker's healing abilities, speed, and strength yet could turn the drinker into a mindless killing monster called Fury. At the beginning of the story, she-(while disguised and mistaken for a young boy) is seen being chased by two men, who were suddenly attacked and killed by two Furies. She witnesses Saito and Okita kill off the Furies and is then taken to the Shinsengumi headquarters by Hijikata, where they allow her to stay, because they too were in search of her father. In the anime series, she eventually falls in love with Hijikata.
Chizuru has a secret: she is fact descended from a vast and powerful Demon clan from the East of Japan, along with her estranged twin brother Kaoru. Chizuru being the sole survivor of the clan by the end of the story. Because demons have scattered and declined in numbers over the centuries, especially the female ones, Chikage Kazama seeks her out as to preserve their race by marrying her. She is the wielder of a kodachi called Shotsuren, which is a mate to Kaoru's katana, Daitsuren. They are part of the Yukimura Family's heirloom.

Toshizo Hijikata (土方歳三)
[6]
The titular character of the series, Hijikata is the vice-commander of the Shinsengumi and makes most of the Shinsengumi's decisions. He is called Demon Vice-Commander and is both feared and respected by his men. He is also often referred to as "Toshi" by Kondo and Iba. Hijikata is the one who brought Chizuru back to the Shinsengumi headquarters the night she witnessed a Rasetsu on the loose that attacked two men chasing her. He is responsible for her welfare, and even though he acts as if this were to his dismay, he cares for Chizuru's safety, and is often shown protecting her during battles. Hijikata drinks the Water of Life and becomes a Fury in order to defeat Kazama, fueled by rage after seeing fellow Shinsengumi warrior Genzaburo Inoue dead at his hand. Near the end of his route, in recognition to his conviction and strength, Kazama acknowledges Hijikata as a true demon and gives him his demon name, "Hakuoki," from the fact that Hijikata's determination to live despite his limited life-span due to Water of Life is like cherry blossom. In the anime and manga series, he is Chizuru's love interest. He is based on the historical Hijikata Toshizō.

Souji Okita (沖田総司)
[6]
Okita is the First Division Captain and one of Shinsengumi's best swordsmen. He is fiercely loyal to Kondo, and despite his cheerful disposition, he is willing to kill anyone that he thinks would threaten Shinsengumi. He suffers from tuberculosis, and is later visited by Kaoru Nagumo who gives him a bottle of the Water of Life to cure his tuberculosis. Driven by guilt at being incapacitated by his illness and frustrated by his inability to fight for Kondo, Okita drinks the elixir. Although he becomes a Fury, the Shinsengumi discover that he does not benefit from accelerated healing when wounded by silver weapons, thus discovering the weakness of Fury. Also, the elixir doesn't cure illness, only lessening the symptoms. Souji was sent away to Osaka because his illness got worse. He is based on the historical Okita Sōji.

Hajime Saito (斎藤一)
[6]
Saito is the leader of the Third Division who is a master of the left hand sword technique and is a skilled swordsman who evens Okita's skills. He is taciturn but also very loyal, polite, and wise. He often analyzes the situation before attacking to figure out which actions are necessary to complete the mission. However, while usually calm, once something caught his full attention, Saito hardly pay attention to his surrounding, even sometimes to the point of going into his own world. Saito left the Shinsengumi apparently to join Itou's group, but later it turns out that he was commanded by Hijikata to infiltrate Itou's group for information concerning Itou's plans. He is based on the historical Saitō Hajime.

Heisuke Toudou (藤堂平助)
[6]
Heisuke is the Eighth Division captain of the Shinsengumi. He is around the same age as Chizuru and is very protective of her, being one of the first people to treat her nicely since her arrival at Shinsengumi. He is close friends with Harada and Shinpachi, mostly seen together with them. Later on, he became conflicted between his friendship with his Shinsengumi friends and his political belief. Hoping to find his answer from different perspective, Heisuke leaves the Shinsengumi, following Itou along with Saito to become members of Guardians of the Imperial Tomb. However, Heisuke eventually decide to return to protect Chizuru. After being severely injured, Heisuke drank Water of Life to recover, which causes him to struggle between his morality and his vampiric impulse. He is based on the historical Tōdō Heisuke.

Sanosuke Harada (原田左之助)
[6]
Harada is the Tenth Division Captain and prefers the spear to the sword, but he is seen carrying both. He is widely popular amongst women due to his handsome feature and gentleman attitude. He is a close friend of Heisuke and Shinpachi, often hanging out together with them during their free times and together with Shinpachi likes to tease Heisuke. He has a fierce rivalry with Kyō Shiranui, pitting his spear against Shiranui's pistol. He is the only person amongst the human love interests who doesn't become a Fury in his route. He is based on the historical Harada Sanosuke.

Shinpachi Nagakura (永倉新八)
[6]
Shinpachi is the Second Division captain of the Shinsengumi. He is usually very cheerful, especially when he is with his comrades. Shinpachi is especially close to Harada and Heisuke, with him and Harada together often pick on the youngest captain. He is very skilled with the sword, but he is also a borderline alcoholic and womanizer, as he is seen breaking the curfew one night to be out drinking at Shimbara while enjoying the company of women. He resents Furies and refuses to even think of accepting the Water of Life, preferring to die as a warrior in battle. In the original game, he serves as a supporting character, but in Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms, he has his own route. In his route, he became a Fury after the dying Inoue made him drink Water of Life to protect Chizuru when being surrounded by enemies. He is based on the historical Nagakura Shinpachi.

Keisuke Sanan (山南敬助)
[6]
He is the soft-spoken vice-commander of the Shinsengumi, along with Hijikata. Both a scholar and a ruthless tactician, he is kind and caring, albeit a bit reserved. After an injury which resulted in him being unable to use his left arm and thus wield a katana, he becomes cold and distant; he proceeds to research and improve on the Water of Life in secret in order to overcome its side effects, eventually drinking it and becoming one of the first few Fury with self control, creating the Shinsengumi's Fury Corps. He serves as supporting character or even an antagonist depending on the route taken in the original game, but has his own route in Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms. He is based on the historical Yamanami Keisuke, the name "Sanan" is based on the alternative reading of the kanji on his name.

Susumu Yamazaki (山崎烝)
[6]
He is a member of the Watch, a squad whose duty is to observe the conditions of the Shinsengumi members and specialized in gathering information. He also serves as a doctor for Okita, taking care of his tuberculosis. He later shares this role with Chizuru, who also has medical knowledge due to assisting Kodo on his work. He is also assigned to protect Chizuru from afar whenever she goes out. He is quiet and rarely speak unless it's necessary, but is very loyal to the Shinsengumi, always reminding Hijikata of his responsibilities. Due to his role in the Watch, Yamazaki often laments for unable to help his comrades in battle and can only watch them die. He serves as a supporting character in the original game, but his role is then expanded in his own route in Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms. He is based on the historical Yamazaki Susumu.

Hachiro Iba (伊庭八郎)
Introduced in Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms, he is the eldest son of Iba Gunbei, the master of one of the most respected dojos in Japan and an old friend of Hijikata and the others during their times training at their respective dojo. A skilled swordsman despite never having killed anyone before, he is appointed as an okuzume (bodyguard) for the shogunate. He is also Chizuru's childhood friend and the one who convinced Chizuru to keep her ability hidden to avoid bullying. Determined to protect her, he began training to become swordsman in his dojo. He is reunited with Chizuru 11 years later when he helped her preventing Takeda from harassing a civilian. Even though he is disappointed that Chizuru didn't remember him, he's still in love with her and determined to protect her. In his route, he lost his left arm at Takeda's hands who became a Fury. To fight against Takeda, Iba becomes a Fury and then replaced his lost left arm with a demon arm provided by Sen. He is based on the historical Hachiro Iba.

Kazue Souma (相馬主計)
Introduced in Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms, he was a soldier in shogunate's army before joining Shinsengumi. He is a passionate and hardworking young man who aims to become a true warrior. Disappointed with his colleagues in his assigned domain army and inspired by the Shinsengumi, Souma accepts Kondo's invitation to join the police force as his assistant under Chizuru's guidance together with fellow new recruit Nomura Risaburo while initially oblivious of Chizuru's real gender. Once he learned of her secret, Souma is promoted to become Kondo's page, officially becoming a member of Shinsengumi. In his route, he clashes against Itou's close younger brother, Saburo Miki, which eventually leads him into becoming a Fury after being forced to drink the Water of Life by the latter who believed it to be a poison. He is based on the historical Kazue Souma.

Ryouma Sakamoto (坂本龍馬)
Introduced in Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms, originally a samurai from Tosa, Sakamoto is the ronin responsible for negotiating the alliance between the Satsuma and Choshu in an effort to overthrow the shogunate. He is also acquainted with Shiranui when they worked together as bodyguards for Shinsaku Takasugi. Sakamoto believes that the Japanese government should become more like a democracy and does weapon business with several foreign countries. His controversial ideals have garnered him animosity from several other factions, including the Shinsengumi, which causes him to be at odds with the Shinsengumi members, especially Hijikata. He initially approaches Chizuru under alias Umetaro Saitani in order to get information about Shinsengumi, only to immediately grow fond of her. On the night of his assassination, the dying Sakamoto, together with his close friend Nakaoka, is turned into Fury by Kaoru and he is publicly declared dead. Using this to his advantage, he assist Chizuru in stopping Kodo, Kaoru, and Nakaoka who are building a Fury army. Despite carrying two swords, Sakamoto prefers to use gun, making him the only main character to use long-range weapon. He is based on the historical Sakamoto Ryōma.

Ryunosuke Ibuki (井吹龍之介)
He is the main protagonist of Reimeiroku. He was found by Kamo Serizawa when he was beaten by thugs and took him to Shinsengumi. As he is indebted to Serizawa, Ryunosuke begrudgingly became Serizawa's personal attendant to pay him back. Even though he is made attendant, he is treated more like a servant being ordered around by Serizawa's whim. As times passed, he became closer with the other Shinsengumi members, but eventually parted ways with them to live his own life. In the enhanced port of the original game, Ryunosuke makes an appearance in several routes assisting the Shinsengumi. It's revealed that after leaving the police force, he lives together with a former maiko whom he is in love with, Shizu.

Supporting

Isami Kondou (近藤勇)
[6]
Kondo is the Commander of the Shinsengumi. He is very emotional, but despite this, he has the trust, respect, and loyalty of his men. Prior to forming Shinsengumi, Kondo opens a dojo called Shiei Hall that welcomed poor people and teach them free of charge. He dies by surrendering himself to the enemy to buy some times for Hijikata and the rest of their comrades to escape. He is based on the historical Isami Kondō.

Genzaburo Inoue (井上源三郎)
He is the Sixth Division captain of the Shinsengumi. Polite and gentle, he is one of a few people who is kind to Chizuru from the very beginning. He usually helps Chizuru in getting accustomed to live with the Shinsengumi and gradually considers her as his daughter. In return, Chizuru also comes to see him as her second father figure. In all routes, he is killed during the battle of Toba-Fushimi. He is based on the historical Inoue Genzaburo.

Kai Shimada (島田魁)
He is the corporal of the Second Division of the Shinsengumi and member of the Watch like Yamazaki. He is one of a few people other than the captains and Yamazaki who knew of Chizuru's real identity and the existence of Furies. He is based on the historical

Antagonists

Kodo Yukimura (雪村綱道)
He is Chizuru's father who went missing a month before the story. He is the one who creates the Water of Life under the shogunate order that resulted with the birth of Fury. He approached Shinsengumi and used several of its members as test subject before he left. It's later revealed that he's actually a member of Yukimura clan and is not related to Chizuru by blood; he adopted Chizuru after the Yukimura clan's massacre and raised her without telling her of her real heritage. Chizuru remembers her father as kind and loving man who would help people in need, while in reality Kodo deems the way demon lives in isolation outdated, resulting in his obsession to create Furies. His motivations in building a Fury army differs depending on the routes that the player choose.

Kaoru Nagumo (南雲薫)
[6]
First seen as a lovely dressed young woman who was saved by Okita from ronins who greatly resembles Chizuru. Kaoru is actually Chizuru's older twin brother who was separated from her during childhood when their clan was massacred. When they were separated, he was taken in by the Nagumo family who mistreated him for not being a girl, and thus, unable to produce heirs for them; which lead him to crossdress as a woman. The loss of his entire clan and the abuse he suffered under the Nagumo family had caused Kaoru to develop mixed feeling for Chizuru, hating and loving her at the same time for living a happy life without remembering him. He has been working with Kodo on his research on the Water of Life to create a Fury army so they can conquer Japan and restore the Yukimura clan. Kaoru is the wielder of the katana that with Chizuru's kodachi forms a set, both of which are the Yukimura clan's heirlooms.

Media

The Hakuoki series of otome visual novels were released for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Switch, iOS and Android by Idea Factory. Two of the games have been published in English by Aksys Games in North America on PlayStation Portable. Rising Star Games renewed partnership with Idea Factory to bring two of their Hakuoki games to PAL territories. The first game is a port of Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom with added story content.[7] Two more ports, Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds and Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms, were released with additional routes and story contents.

Hakuoki: Shinsengumi Kitan (薄桜鬼〜新選組奇譚〜)
PlayStation 2: September 18, 2008
PlayStation Portable: August 27, 2009
Nintendo DS: March 18, 2010
Nintendo 3DS: November 24, 2011
Hakuoki: Zuisouroku (薄桜鬼随想録)
PlayStation 2: August 27, 2009
PlayStation Portable: August 26, 2010
Nintendo DS: February 17, 2011
PlayStation Vita: February 19, 2015
Hakuoki: Junsouroku (薄桜鬼巡想録)
PlayStation 3: June 17, 2010[8]
Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom (Release for North America, published by Aksys Games)
PlayStation Portable: February 14, 2012
Hakuoki: Warriors of the Shinsengumi (Release for North America, published by Aksys Games)
PlayStation Portable: February 19, 2013
Hakuoki: Memories of the Shinsengumi (Release for North America and Europe, published by Aksys Games (North America) and Rising Star Games (Europe))
Nintendo 3DS: September 19, 2013[9]
Hakuoki: Stories of the Shinsengumi (Release for North America, published by Aksys Games)
PlayStation 3: May 6, 2014[10]
Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds (薄桜鬼真改風ノ章)
PlayStation Vita: September 25, 2015
Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms (薄桜鬼真改華ノ章)
PlayStation Vita: June 16, 2016
Hakuoki: Chronicles of Wind and Blossom (薄桜鬼真改風華伝)
PlayStation 4: July 13, 2017[11]
Nintendo Switch: September 6, 2018[12]
Hakuoki: Shinkai for iOS & Android (薄桜鬼真改 for iOS & Android)
iOS/Android: December 12, 2018[13]

Prequel

Following the success of the original game, a prequel titled Hakuoki: Reimeiroku (薄桜鬼黎明録) is released on October 28, 2010, for PlayStation 2.[14] The prequel focuses on a young man named Ryunosuke Ibuki, who is saved by the leader of Roshigumi (the old name of Shinsengumi), Kamo Serizawa, and then forced to join Roshigumi as his page to repay his debt. Similar to the original game, it consists of six routes of the same characters where Ibuki is required to make the right choice to form friendship with each main characters of their respective routes. In all routes, Ibuki always ends up leaving the Shinsengumi to start a new life of his own. Reaching the good ending of the routes would show the continuation of the ending of respective Shinsengumi members with Chizuru from the original game after war ends. Two updated versions of the game, Hakuoki: Reimeiroku Nagorigusa (薄桜鬼黎明録名残り草) and Hakuoki: Reimeiroku - Omouhase Kara (薄桜鬼黎明録思馳せ空), are released for PlayStation 3 on June 28, 2012, and PlayStation Vita on July 2, 2015, respectively.[15][16]

Spin-offs

Several spin-off were released not long after the original game, ranging from mini games to action RPG. The first spin-off, Hakuoki: Yuugiroku (薄桜鬼遊戯録) is released for PlayStation Portable on August 26, 2010.

Reception

Game

Hakuoki received positive review. Metacritic gave the PSP version of the game the score of 79 based on 4 Critic reviews, which is a generally favorable review.[36] The game is praised for its story-telling, character designs and development, and CG art. But has mixed review about the music and Kazama's route that is deemed too short compared to the other routes. The updated remake of the game, Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms also received positive review. Kyoto Winds is given the score of 83 from the same site based on 8 Critic reviews, once again praising the remake for its solid characters and story-telling.[37] Edo Blossoms is given the score of 75, also from the same site, based on 9 Critic reviews, praising the inclusion of new characters that give fans new perceptive, but feels that the story's finale is not quite as interesting as its beginning. The decision to split the remake into two games also gained mixed review.[38] Similarly, Hardcore Gamer praised the game for its story-telling, finding the focus of political and fantasy aspects in historical background is a different approach in otome game. The characters are also well-received, finding their struggle throughout the game relatable. The site also praised the inclusion of additional events and terminology highlighted during conversations for an easy glossary look up, though criticised the lack of interactive element within the game.[39]

Anime

Theron Martin from Anime News Network give the first season a positive review. He praised the studio's way of properly integrating fantasy element into the actual history, the design of the male characters, and the music for using heavy, dark tones for its action and dramatic scenes, which "lends intensity and even an occasional amount of creepiness to the content." However, he criticised the plotlines about Chizuru looking for her father and the motivations of the various devils afoot in the setting are not handled properly due to the history portrayed in the series. He also criticised Chizuru's role as a heroine for following the typical reverse harem protagonist being damsel-in-distress that needs to be rescued.[40]

THEM praised the well-executed art and the amount of depth and genuine drama in the story and the action scenes. The site also praised the studio for balancing Chizuru's character as being more dynamic than the standard female samurai era character tropes without anywhere near an idealized Mary Sue. The site finds the use of Rasetsu plot device repetitive, causing a lack of plot twists and surprise revelation in the series.[41] The second season is praised for the characterization, while still finds the pacing and animation quality not balanced properly.[42]

Stage play and musical

Since April 2012 Hakuoki is adapted as a musical. Up till now there are thirteen productions. Nobuhiro Mori has written the script and were responsible for the whole production. Toshihiko Sahashi wrote the music. The musical includes aside from the usual dancing and singing also sword fights, which were supervised by Yuta Morokaji, Shinnosuke Motoyama and Yasuhiro Roppongi.

The productions so far were:

1.→ Musical Hakuoki - Hajime Saitou's Route『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』〜斎藤一篇〜』 27. April - 8. May 2012

2.→ Musical Hakuoki - Souji Okita's Route 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』〜沖田総司篇〜』14. - 24. March 2013

3.→ Musical Hakuoki - Toshizou Hijikata's Route 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』〜土方歳三篇〜』2. - 11. October 2013

4.→ Musical Hakuoki - HAKUMYU LIVE 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』HAKU-MYU LIVE』4, 5 January 2014

5.→ Musical Hakuoki - Chikage Kazama's Route 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』〜風間千景篇〜』16. - 18. May, 23. May - 1. June 2014

6.→ Musical Hakuoki - Heisuke Toudou's Route 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』〜藤堂平助篇〜』10. - 12. January, 25. - 17. January 2015

7.→ Musical Hakuoki - Reimeiroku 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』〜黎明録〜』 - 2015年5月23日〜31日 23. - 31. May, 10. -14. June 2015

8.→ Musical Hakuoki - Shinsengumi Kitan 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』〜新選組奇譚〜』4. - 11. January, 15. - 17. January 2016

9.→ Musical Hakuoki - HAKUMYU LIVE 2 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』HAKU-MYU LIVE　2』12. -13. August, 16. - 17. August 2016

10.→ Musical Hakuoki - Sanosuke Harada's Route 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』〜原田左之助篇〜』14. - 16. April, 26. - 30. April 2017

11.→ Musical Hakuoki Shitan - Toshizou Hijikata's Route 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼志譚』〜土方歳三篇〜』21. - 23. April, 28. April - 1. May 2018

12.→ Musical Hakuoki Shitan - Chikage Kazama's Route 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼志譚』〜風間千景篇〜』5. - 11. April, 18. - 21. April

13.→ Musical Hakuoki Shinkai - Kazue Souma's Route 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼真改』〜相馬主計篇〜』previously scheduled 2. - 5. April, 9. - 12. 2020, but due to the situation caused by the COVID-19-Pandemic postponed to 1. - 4. April, 8. - 11. April 2021

14.→ Musical Hakuoki Shinkai - Hajime Saitou's Route『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼真改』〜斎藤一篇〜』22. - 27. April, 1. - 5. May 2022

15.→ Musical Hakuoki - HAKUMYU LIVE 3 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』HAKU-MYU LIVE　3』29. - 30. October, 11. - 13. November

16.→ Musical Hakuoki Shinkai - San'nan Keisuke's route『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼真改』～山南敬助篇～』8. - 16. April, 22. - 23. April 2023

17.→ Musical Hakuoki Shinkai - Hijikata　Toshizou's route『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼真改』～土方歳三篇～』13. - 29. April 2024

18.→ Musical Hakuoki Shinkai - Toudou Heisuke's route『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼真改』～藤堂平助篇～』21. - 29. June 2025

19.→ Musical Hakuoki - HAKUMYU LIVE 4 『ミュージカル『薄桜鬼』HAKU-MYU LIVE　4』19. - 21. December, 27. - 28. December 2025

Cast

The blue background marks the main role