Dragon Quest: Dai no Daiboken

I stumbled upon this 16 year old anime in crunchyroll. The first episode was re-released (and subbed) by Frenchies-Subs (13/6/2007). My first reaction was OHMYGOD!! This certainly brings back memories; nostalgic indeed! I couldn't remember when I first read the manga (more or less 10 years ago), it was ran together with the all-time famous Dragon Ball manga. However, I loved this manga many times more than Dragon Ball. It is based on medieval RPG adventure storyline. The graphics(in the manga) were definitely top-notch in spite of the fact that it was created almost 20 years ago. The storyline is the main catch; very very well written with suspense, adventure, mysteries, romance, and some well-fit humor. I would think this is one of the best(if not the best) RPG adventure story(of its kind) ever written. Some of the scenes could even move me to tears, where each character has a well developed story. Seriously, you don't find these (storyline) anymore. Game producers only focuses on technology with graphics and game engines, whilst anime/manga writers go for guys who goes crazy over japanese school lolitas or coolness factor in terms of choreographs and whatnots. Nothing beats old-schools! What is it about?

It is hard for me to write a summary on such a great anime/manga. But here goes: The story is mainly about a young kid named Dai, who (typically) lives in a secluded island where only monsters exists. The monsters were remnants of an archaic evil Demon Lord, Hadlar, who were defeated by a Hero - Avan, 10 years ago. After the defeat of Hadlar, all the monsters were free from evil will, some of them moved into the island and live in peace there. Dai was an orphan who ended up in the island accidentally and was subsequently raised by a kindly monster magician, Brass.

One fateful day, the hero Avan visited the island and took Dai in as his apprentice. Dai meets with Pop, who came alongside Avan as his apprentice and soon became best friends. The story begins when the Demon Lord Hadlar who were resurrected by a more powerful Lord, came to the island and sought to kill Avan. Avan confronted Hadlar in his weakened state. To protect his students, he used a self-sacrifice spell to rid Hadlar but to no avail. As Hadlar proceeded to get rid of his students, Dai, suddenly awakened the hidden power inside of him and fends off Hadlar. In order to seek revenge on Hadlar, thus his journey begins.

It is later learnt that Dai is actually an illegitimate decendant of Dragon Knights, as his father, a true Dragon Knight fell in love with a mortal woman, and thus gave birth to Dai (whose true name is Dino). Dragon Knights are not mortal human. Only one Dragon Knight exists in the world in every era. They were granted immense power from the Gods themselves to keep balance in the world, favoring the mortal humans. However, Dragon Knight Baran, father of Dai, were robbed of his wife and child by a human king. Out of anger, he destroyed the whole kingdom single-handedly and dwelves into the path of evil (Anakin/Darth Vader??).

The symbol of descendant on Dai's forehead. The Dragon Knight Symbol.

The interesting thing about the storyline is how each character progresses and grows. From weak pupils to strong heroes. From enemies to strong brotherhood bonds. From cowardly behavior to that of a true hero. Each character develops slowly as experience guides them through times of trials.

Foe turned friend: Hyunkel - The first apprentice of Avan. Betrayed Avan as he thought Avan was the murderer of his father. Upon knowing the truth, joins Dai in the fight against Lord Vearn.

Dai and Gome.

I truely love this manga. Hopefully, the re-release of it would continue until the end!
(due to the fact that the anime was created a very long time ago, it is hard to grasp screenshots of it. Most of the pictures here is from the manga)


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