Chua Tek Ming~*Anime Power*~ !LiVe FoR AnImE, aNiMe FoR LiFe!

It isn’t every day that you have the main character of a series who is a selfish and greedy type. Gokudo-kun Manyuuki has the titular character being one of the biggest dicks in the land and having such main character as an anti-hero was something you don’t see every day back in the late 90’s. Yup, an old retro anime way back in 1999 right before the turn of the new millennium. I guess human nature never changed. That is why karma has always been our b*tch in hopes that we will remind ourselves of our position and circumstances. But what are the chances of us learning at all? That’s why our Gokudo gets to hop from one misadventure to another without so much turning over a new leaf.

Episode 1
Gokudo Yuccot Kikansky is having is meal. Some old witch bugs him to warn him his life is in danger. He doesn’t give a damn and swipes her money bag before running back home. He thinks he strikes it rich but to his dismay, her money bag is only a stone. Worse, it transforms into a genie, Djinn. 3 wishes to be granted? Okay. Give me babes, honour and money! Unfortunately Djinn lectures him to think about what true happiness means. Oh sh*t… This is going to take a while… For some reason, Djinn transforms himself into a sexy hot babe just so as to be by his side. I guess there are rules to follow if he is going to follow him 24/7 until Gokudo makes all his wishes. This hot version is going to be easy on the eyes. The inn owner then barges in because his daughter, Asraga Onnitsu has been kidnapped and wants him to help save her. Gokudo will not do so unless he pays him upfront. After doing so, sneaky Gokudo intends to go treat himself with the money. Djinn berates him for having no honour. They are attacked by knights. Although Gokudo defeats them, Djinn believes they are monsters since the way they disintegrate. Then the knight leader pops up. Apparently he wants Djinn. Gokudo is happy to give her. Unfortunately the baddie will kill him too. Gokudo flees so Djinn turns into a dragon and burns the baddie. All that is left is his magic sword. Gokudo is now its owner and it seems when he wishes for it, the sword can return to him. Unfortunately this despicable guy decides to sell it for a high price. Yup. Money matters. After doing so, he asks if there is a place for adventurers to hang out. He is told that the daughter of the king, Rubette La Lette has just been kidnapped so there is a big reward for her rescue, hence the gathering of many heroes and adventure seekers here. At this bar, Djinn is already drunk and entertaining the men. Because Gokudo mocks her, Djinn turns him into a woman! Now they have to dance for the men? Too bad some shadowy baddie puts them all the sleep. Gokudo and Djinn find themselves in a cell. Also with them are Asraga, Rubette and Mora. There is some seal so Djinn can’t turn Gokudo back. Asraga is shocked to realize this is Gokudo. He is into cross-dressing?! Uhm, do they accept trannies for sacrifice? Sacrifice? Yeah, that’s why they’re all kidnapped because girls are going to be sacrificed tomorrow in some ceremony.

Episode 2
They are shocked to learn this dungeon is within the king’s castle. The kidnappings are ordered by the king and sacrificing virgins is a ritual to replenish his power. Because Djinn remains useless (her powers can only be unlocked by her master), Gokudo gets this idea to summon that magic sword. With that, he busts out of prison. Rubette has sword skills, Mora’s hunter ability has them avoid traps and Asraga herbs can heal wounds. Wow. What a party. Now if Gokudo stops being a coward… They stumble into a guy who got caught into a castle trap, Seigi. He is supposed to come rescue the girls. Because he too has a magic sword, they think he is the legendary prince. Legend has it that when the king sold his soul to the devil, a prince will rise and save the people with his magic sword. So if Seigi has a magic sword, what does this makes of Gokudo’s magic sword then? They’re both from the same king’s sword. When the king’s knights pop up to destroy them, Mora reveals the truth that the king killed his own son. But Mora used her magic to revive him but some error has them split into Seigi and Gokudo. Huh? Hence both their swords are genuine magic swords. Mora then reverts to her true form, which is that old witch (Granny) and also Djinn’s master. 16 years ago she came to the castle to warn the king about the prince’s future and his but was thrown out and her warning ignored. Gokudo and Seigi power up their magic swords so the knights know they don’t stand a chance to defeat them and escape. Granny unseals Djinn’s power so he could turn back Gokudo into a man. But this counts as his first wish… Yeah, rules, rules, rules… The plan now is to defeat the king if they want to escape from this castle. Gokudo opts out until Granny tells him all the treasures in this castle can be his. You bet he is in. Granny also dupes Rubette by giving her a bow that shoots infinite arrows. She believes she is more reliable to defeat the king than Gokudo. You bet you can count on her to do that.

Episode 3
Evil clones come out from the mirror to abduct the girls. Before the king’s room, the knights pop up again to rid of them so as not to interrupt the ritual. Gokudo wonders why they’re doing all this since only the king benefits. Well, you get all the power and treasures in the universe! Gokudo is interested to they invite him to join their side. You’d think Gokudo accepts only because he is faking it. Turns out he actually defects! When he fights Seigi, both of them get hurt. Granny reveals since they are of the same soul, naturally hurting the other means hurting yourself. Yup, a dastardly plan to eliminate each other. Gokudo has had it and flees. The knights transform into dragons and fire away. Djinn protects Gokudo. OMG. Gokudo concerned and mad at this?! He unleashes some holy light when his sword clashes with Seigi’s, effectively destroying the dragons. Everybody soon becomes disappointed learning that Gokudo is only concerned for Djinn because he still hasn’t finished granting his wish. Once he is done, he can just die!!! Unbelievable… Inside the room, the king puts all of them to sleep. However this spell only works with those with a good heart. With Seigi still awake, this says a lot… So is Seigi going to fight the king alone? WTF he unleashes the biggest fart and wakes everybody up???!!! Because Granny is familiar with the king, it is revealed he is the Demon Lord taking over the king’s body. Also, Granny is married to the Demon Lord. Holy sh*t. So this is just one big marital spat? Gokudo isn’t interested and instead frolics himself with all the gold in the treasure room. With the Demon Lord so formidable, Seigi has no choice but to ask everyone to restrain Gokudo so he can clash their swords and shoot those holy lights. Eventually the Demon Lord is defeated and sealed back to the demon world. Gokudo frolics in gold while some cheesy romance happens between Seigi and Asraga. In the aftermath, Gokudo and Seigi both become double kings. This means a packed schedule for Gokudo as he has to attend meetings and parties. All dressed up nicely and on his best behaviour too. Djinn considers this his second wish granted so Gokudo decides his final wish to revert to his ordinary adventurer life. You sure? No regrets? Okay. Poof. Back to ol’ Gokudo again. Djinn’s role is over but lets him keep the stone for future use. Just in case. Gokudo leaves but it seems Rubette also wants to follow him. Bored of the royal life, she found her thrill in adventuring and wants him as her guide!

Episode 4
Arriving at the outskirts of the kingdom of Parmette, Gokudo accidentally slips off the cliff and dies! The end! Haha! Just kidding! He is now a ghost and there is this hot chick who claims she has been in love with him and watching him. She claims she can bring him back to life and gives him her magic mirror. When Gokudo wakes up, he is in the room of a poor magic student, Issa. He saved him but you bet Gokudo is ungrateful. Because Issa is clumsy and spills soup over him, he is forced to take him out to eat. Noticing the revelry outside, Issa explains that the kingdom’s princesses are of marrying age. Hence a race will be held as candidates will traverse through the desert filled with monsters, return with a relic from a tomb. Of course the candidates who can participate are only chosen by the princesses. At a restaurant, the owner views Issa as a loser and doesn’t want to serve him. Gokudo won’t take this and announces himself as the heir of the Eschallatto Empire. Nobody believes him and laughs. He summons Djinn as proof. However this is only a shell of his as the real Djinn is away at the demon world. When Issa tries to stop Gokudo from picking fights, the magic mirror falls out. It is that hot chick and she is the third Princess Coco. She starts flirting with Gokudo and announces he is her candidate for the race. The winner of the race is bestowed power by the goddess. Rubette doesn’t want Gokudo to participate but since he heard that buzzword, you bet he is going to participate. Coco mocks Rubette for being jealous so Rubette leaves by herself. The race begins as Issa wants to be Gokudo’s guide, claiming he can help navigate the desert. Gokudo doesn’t need him and even blackmails him to pay 100 gold if he really wants to follow him. Issa relents since he also needs to hand in his thesis (he is doing research on the monsters). Along the way, a Chinese dumpling guy attacks Gokudo. Apparently Gokudo owes him money and never paid for the dumplings he ate at his store. This dumpling guy is also the servant of Ya Sager, the candidate for the second Princess Keruna. Since Gokudo won’t pay up, he burps his garlic breath! But Gokudo goes one step better! He farts in his face!!! WTF?! Of course Ya Sager wants to eliminate his competitor and since he is the royal mage for the Parmette royalty, he blasts Gokudo with his magic!

Episode 5
Dumpling guy turns into… A cow?! Ya Sager realizes something messed with his magic. But now they have to deal with… A sand parrot? WTF this hybrid monster? Gokudo gets partially petrified. Ya Sager doesn’t have enough magic to save him and Issa doesn’t know any spell to undo it. So Issa and Ya Sager combine what they have to blast away the sand parrot. When Gokudo comes to, he is healed thanks to Ya Sager. Heck, he even made a tent for him although he himself has departed. As Gokudo feasts on Coco’s food, he asks about the other competitor. First princess Elma’s candidate is a knight on a unicorn? Looks like he is here. Hey, a talking unicorn! The knight can’t speak because of some spell making him a mute and hence horsey here speaking on his behalf. Both fight and Gokudo looks like he has the upper hand when the unicorn intervenes to break the fight. He advises that the hybrid monsters only move during the day and if he wants to know more about the truth, ask the Star of Dawn. Gokudo continues his journey, stumbling into many weird hybrid monsters. Then Ya Sager meets up with him. He suggests they team up to find the source that is messing up their magic and causing the natural monsters of the desert to become hybrid. Of course Gokudo is not interested. Now they arrive at the tomb but they must pass the Sphinx’s riddle. Because Gokudo is being arrogant, the Sphinx gives a hard one. Bring back a moon drop. Failure to do so means she will eat you! Ya Sager thinks of summoning the Demon Lord for help, a reunion Gokudo doesn’t want. But thanks to the messed up magic, he summoned a demon monk kid instead, Ikkyu. Gokudo then kidnaps Ikkyu and wants him to retrieve the moon drop for him. Sure, but Gokudo must give his soul. Gokudo won’t do that. Instead, he can have Issa’s soul! Devilish! Ikkyu likes that part of him. It’s a deal. Ya Sager berates Gokudo for his unethical behaviour and unfit to be a ruler. When he talks about the Daybreak Star given by the goddess as blessing and that mark on the forehead indicates possession of a great power, Gokudo then connects the dots. He calls out Coco and forces her to tell the truth about the messed up magic and all. Of course she tries to play dumb but he knows that the Daybreak Star and Star of Dawn are in reference to her.

Episode 6
After much bugging, Coco reveals that Parmette is going through a crisis. The magic protecting it is disappearing. The source is this desert and one day all the monsters just disappeared. Isn’t this good? Nope. The monsters are a tourist attraction for Parmette. Furthermore, the goddess is sealed, indicating some power is trying to take over this kingdom. The king tries to solve this secretly and so as not to worry the people, hence this race was continued to be held. Prophecy said that a traveller will help save this kingdom. That’s Gokudo, right? Of course he isn’t interested. Ya Sager drops out of the race so he could go help. After much bugging, Gokudo still refuses so Issa tries to shoot him with his fireball. Gokudo deflects but it hits the Sphinx. Bad mood. She’s going to kill them when Ikkyu returns. The moon drop is sealed in this special vial. If opened it turns into normal water. The Sphinx thinks he is bluffing and wants him to go get proof but Ikkyu is smarter because the Sphinx can only ask 1 riddle. With that, the Sphinx just let them into the tomb. Just then, the knight and unicorn just arrive. Inside the tomb, Gokudo is captured. It’s that dumpling dude cooking dumplings for mummies?! WTF?! There’s some explanation how he got in here but I don’t really get it. The truth rears its ugly head when Coco and Issa are shown to be in cohorts. Plus, they are lovers. The real prophecy said that the traveller has to sacrifice his life to save the kingdom. That’s Gokudo, right? At this point, Gokudo allows Ikkyu to take Issa’s soul as part of the bargain. Issa is dead and Coco gets mad. She tries to kill him but is promptly knocked out by the knight who turns out to be Rubette in disguise. I guess the unicorn was smart enough to answer the Sphinx’s question. Then they head to the room with another puzzle. Trying to decipher the puzzle, it ends up both of them arguing and Rubette kicking Gokudo. Apparently that is supposed to be the solution. Huh? A secret door opens. Giant bats attack Gokudo. Rubette and the unicorn go ahead and leave the selfish bastard in a lurch.

Episode 7
Gokudo rides a bat into the next room? Whatever. However there is a dragon guarding it. Luckily it is Djinn in disguise. Something about this is his part time job since the kingdom lacked manpower to guard the relic? Rubette changes her story, claiming she was finding a way out instead of ditching him. Speaking about why Gokudo’s sword didn’t respond to him, it is believed it is sealed inside the treasure room. Djinn leads them in while they leave the unicorn to guard the relic. Uhm, lots of guards waiting for them. Even more so, Coco still wants revenge over Issa’s death. Djinn intervenes and wants to hear to whole story as he plays mediator since both sides are accusing each other of deceiving the other. Learning that Ikkyu was involved, Djinn summons him. He orders Ikkyu to give back Issa’s soul since it is against the law to take a soul without that person’s permission. You mean there’s such a rule in the demon world? Anyway, Issa is back to life. Coco doesn’t like how everyone belittles her Issa so Djinn poses the question if Issa would be happy as king. Issa agrees that he won’t be happy as one. As long as he can continue his monster research, that’s all he needs. With this affair solved, Gokudo is now free to reclaim his sword. Can’t resist trying to steal some treasures, eh? Better check him before he leaves… Regarding the race, if Keruna and Coco are disqualified, this leaves Elma. But because Rubette is a woman, she definitely isn’t the candidate. This means the unicorn is the one? Ikkyu then hints that the unicorn has a true identity. He is actually Prince Niari and the only son of the Demon Lord and Granny. To sum it up shortly, he is a liar and a player. Just like Gokudo. Oh boy. It’s already bad we have one and now another? When they return to the relic room, Niari is gone and so is the relic.

Episode 8
Gokudo doesn’t want any part of this as usual. But Djinn claims he has stolen some treasure and will overlook this if he helps. Otherwise he’ll be thrown into prison for the rest of his life. When Niari returns to the palace, he admits he was the one who sealed the goddess and will take over this kingdom. When Gokudo and co arrive, they see the palace destroyed and many injured. Niari has also kidnapped the princesses. Gokudo and Ikkyu are fooling around with some strange item. This causes a fairy to pop out. This is the goddess? Because her powers are sealed, she is also amnesiac. But she claims Gokudo is the hero who will save Parmette. She follows the strong power source that leads them to a tower where Niari is holing up. They can’t get in so Ikkyu bluffs his way for Niari to open the barrier by claiming he brought Rubette for him. This prince is interested in human chicks so he thinks Rubette wants to join his harem as he opens his barrier. The princesses are being mind controlled to love him. When Rubette rejects this jerk and fires her arrow, Niari is going to teach them a lesson as he summons his mecha! Holy cow! Is this cheating?! Gokudo and co’s attack don’t do anything much. At this point, the goddess regains some of her powers. She claims she knows a way to completely break the seal. She wants Gokudo to kiss him. Oh yeah. He wants more but the goddess claims it is enough. You sure? Because the goddess turns into her true form: GRANNY!!! OMFG! Gokudo just died! So this is the ‘sacrifice’?! With Granny regaining her powers, she destroys the mecha. In the aftermath, Niari is stripped of his magic and must face the consequences in the human world. Granny offers to rebuild Parmette and also nominates Ya Sager as the next king for his selflessness. Then everybody sings praises of Gokudo’s ‘sacrifice’ and will tell future generations of his heroics. Of course Gokudo won’t have that and revives! As reward for saving Parmette, I guess now they’ve got Ya Sager’s flying horse, Pegasus. Also, Niari is tagging along since Gokudo is made to be his guardian. More misadventures coming up…

Episode 9
Gokudo opens a box… And becomes old! Does this story feel familiar? This box of course belongs to Otohime and to get his youth back, they have to travel to Inaho and seek and audience with the Dragon God. I guess gods and demons use a different system of magic so Djinn can’t change Gokudo back. Oh, gods and demons don’t get along too so they must hide all their powers as well as Djinn turning himself and Pegasus into human form to avoid suspicions. At the port, because nobody is willing to lend them a boat, Gokudo’s grand idea is to wait till night fall and steal one. They do so but apparently no boats are out at the dock. In his frustration, he throws a stone which hits a turtle, Nini. Learning that she is a maid of the royal court of the underwater palace, Gokudo tries to get on her good side to introduce him to the Dragon God. But she gets annoyed since she can’t lay her eggs. Gokudo tries to fight her but his age won’t let him. Nini then summons this giant fire breathing turtle to get back at them. Gokudo plays dirty by taking Nini hostage. But then an army of, uhm, Ninja Turtles arrive to take them into custody. In the underwater palace, they meet the Dragon God. He reverts Gokudo’s age back to normal but this will only last for a week. In return, they must find his stolen magic sphere which is the source of his powers. Failure to do so means Gokudo will return being an old man. Regarding the person who stole his magic sphere, his sister is investigating and has some leads. They are to meet her at Fire Land where she is worshipped as the sun goddess. Because Niari insists he wants to see Otohime, Dragon God summons her. This babe… Is an ugly giant!!! I think that’s the fastest way to grow old too!

Episode 10
Otohime takes a liking for Niari and wants to marry him! He tries to give excuse that he needs to go on a mission but Dragon God allows him to stay. Oh God. Otohime won’t let him sleep tonight… And Gokudo laughing his ass off… The rest head out for the mission and meet up with a priest, Nihi who guides them to see Nano. But upon arrival, it looks like the sun goddess is in a bad mood. You can tell when the place is all dark and she has holed herself up in some cave. Of course Gokudo cannot wait until she is in good mood and tries to force his way in. Well, if only he can move the boulder closing the cave mouth. He lets Pegasus do it while the rest feast on the offerings for Nano. Djinn gets drunk and Rubette can’t stop singing. Yeah, horrible singer. Gokudo then lets out the smelliest fart. That is when the boulder opens. You bet Nano is going to complain about that stinker. Eh? Nano is a little chibi bratty girl?! She also has an attitude so you bet she is going to lock horns with Gokudo and throw tantrums. Nano can tell Djinn is also a deity but from a foreign land. They are called Hotoke and are now worshipped in Inaho. Then she narrates some tragic story how their Higashi and Hanishi tribes escaped to the south of Inaho. Gokudo understands it all as they embarrassingly lost some battle. Gokudo then summons his sword just to prove his superiority. Rubette’s ability to talk to animals has her finding out that the magic sphere is somewhere in Inaho. With that, Nano announces she wants to join in this mission. Otherwise she’ll throw a tantrum.

Episode 11
Trekking through the forests, they fight off spiders with demon faces? After a tough fight, Gokudo spanks Nano for still being a brat. She starts crying and the weather turns bad. Fortunately or not, it only affects him. When they get to the seaside town, they see the villagers gathering. Who this mermaid? Eh? Niari?! Turns out Otohime turned him into one to suit her taste and he subsequently escaped. The villagers turn on them thinking they will bring bad luck because previously there was a fox with a ball that came by. Believing it could be the magic sphere, they head to the shrine at the foot of the mountains. Because Djinn continues to act strange and Nano and Nihi know they are from the demon world, Niari gives the green light to tell Rubette and Gokudo the truth. A princess was torn between some demon and a god of Hotoke. But she went with the demon and because the Hotoke felt rejected, he held grudges. You might think it is a romantic story. Turns out that princess is Granny! Oh sh*t! Hence Djinn accuses Nano and Nihi of trying to use them to get back. Then Fox God appears. As you would expect, because she’s such a hot babe, Gokudo and Niari compete for her. Unfortunately she is just a projection as she hints her real body is being held captive by the Hotoke at Inaho’s capital. On the way there, they learn Prince Tsukiha is down with a strange illness. Rumours have it that he is being possessed by a fox spirit. Niari gets this idea to disguise as a doctor with magic to treat him. They are then confronted by a pair of deities, Aa and Un. Uhm, they do their specialty of telling jokes. Nobody finds it funny except Pegasus. Once that is done, they start fighting and their goal is to capture Nano for trying to use these demon people to get the magic sphere.

Episode 12
Aa and Un hypnotizes them till they pass out. When they come to, they realize Nano has been kidnapped. Because Gokudo and Niari aren’t interested in rescuing her, Djinn and Pegasus take this mission while the rest head to the capital. Using Gokudo as a sick patient, Niari disguises as a doctor to heal his wounds. This attracts everyone who wants their sickness or injuries healed. This also catches the attention of a court official. Sneaky Gokudo has him pay upfront an introduction fee if he wants this magic doctor. In the palace, they talk to Prince Hanayo and it seems the emperor will have them rest first. Hanayo then talks to Gokudo because the emperor is interested in Rubette. Gokudo doesn’t care about her and will let them do as he please, shocking them. So Gokudo tells Rubette she is wanted. Look at that emperor’s rape face… Of course Rubette beats the crap out of him. With the gang arguing, the guards arrive. They are about to arrest them for this atrocity but the fox spirit whisks them away to Tsukiha’s room. It seems Tsukiha and the fox spirit are happily coexisting and in love with each other. It seems the fox spirit stole the magic sphere from Hotoke but because they were persistent, she was forced to hide with Tsukiha. Now that they have become one, if Tsukiha dies, the magic sphere will also die. Hence they have bonded so close now that they love each other. Tsukiha knows the magic sphere is the source of the problem as the gods are also fighting over it for unlimited power. So the gods are not all that powerful? He can’t confide in Hanayo as he has sided with the gods and is trying to take the emperor’s place. Tsukiha gives the magic sphere to Gokudo. Then Hanayo comes in and wants it handed over. He has taken Nihi hostage. Hanayo is appalled that Gokudo and Rubette don’t care about each other and have no trust. When he lectures them about bonds and justice, they laugh off at his naivety. Nihi then reverts to his true form. He is actually the Dragon God in disguise. Oh, Hanayo also transforms into his true form. He is the Hotoke, Indra. Gokudo makes a run for it and won’t give the magic sphere, leading to a wild chase. Gokudo manages to give everyone the slip. Now what to do with this magic sphere…

Episode 13
It’s a battle royale among everybody to find Gokudo and get the magic sphere. Meanwhile Djinn finds Nano locked in a tower. He lets her escape but they have to get away from Aa and Un. Those bozos in their bid to chase after Djinn and Nano, stumble into Gokudo. Fearing they would get scolded by Indra, they even pay Gokudo gold so as to let him tell Nano’s whereabouts. That stupid, huh? Of course Indra is here. Gokudo runs away with all the gold he can carry until Indra corners and captures him. That won’t be long until Dragon God comes back into the scene for another fight, allowing Gokudo to escape once more. This time he bumps into Rubette. Also at this time, he is starting to grow old. WTF he doesn’t care about growing old as long as he has the magic sphere? The Dragon King and Indra fire all they’ve got at Gokudo. He takes a direct hit! OMG! Gokudo dead?! Djinn crying over his dead body and confesses he loves this dude despite being a snivelling bastard! Even Rubette is mad and is about to get her revenge when Gokudo revives! Thanks to the magic sphere protecting him. Nano tries to snatch it from him but the tug of war results in the magic sphere being broke into 2. It was that fragile? Now to gods and Hotoke are panicking. It’s the end of the world. Their world. You see, the magic sphere contains powers that allows them to stay on Earth. Now that it is broken, they can no longer be around. A vortex sucks them all back up to heaven. Now Gokudo wants his youth back? Too late. Yup, an old geezer now. But wait. He turns back young! Because the gods and Hotoke are gone, this means their curse is also lifted. Phew. With no more gods ruling the world, Gokudo is pleased that humans can do anything they want. Heh. It’s no different for Gokudo, right? So he swims in the sea butt naked. And Rubette sings her heart out… Oh God… God has abandoned us!

Episode 14
Gokudo robbing people, Niari chasing after girls and Rubette picking fights with men? The gods have truly abandoned us! Because they are acting like demons, that folklore kid, Momotaro comes by to defeat them. They underestimate him since he is small and chibi. Something happened as everybody gets blasted across the sea. When Gokudo comes to, he is in the hospitality of Ikkyu and his master, Tei who is some ghost reformer? It soon dawns to Gokudo that he is in Rubette’s body! He takes advantage of his female status to get food. When Gokudo introduces himself using his real name, Ikkyu is frightened that it is the same name as a certain ‘monster’. Plus, there is another monster called Goku running around rampaging the city with fire. Hmm… Could be somebody in Gokudo’s body…Tei and Ikkyu are on their way to fight this villain and it seems Ikkyu has already reformed. But Gokudo’s evil plan is to kidnap Ikkyu, turn him back to evil so that he could get his own body back. Meanwhile Rubette is sad because she is in Djinn’s body. Oh, this magic book. Let’s see what transformation magic can be done. Djinn on the other hand is in Niari’s body. He is picked up by a pair of beautiful sisters, Rayuka and Shikinka. They treat him with great sake and food. But of course there is an ulterior motive as they spiked his drink. The real Niari? He is in a monkey’s body and is being a playboy with other female monkeys! Tei and Gokudo arrive at the village. But the mayor tells them that Goku has been treating people nicely instead. He just wants the monster scared away since it is harmless. That night, Gokudo tries to steal Tei’s urn (where Ikkyu is kept) but is caught red-handed. Suddenly a monster (elephant? Penguin?) knocks Tei out and kidnaps Gokudo.

Episode 15
Gokudo doesn’t understand what the monster is telling him so he thought of releasing Ikkyu but opened the wrong urn. Who this Panda hermit?! Asking his help to find his real body, the moment he hears about Goku, Panda becomes scared and doesn’t want to do this anymore. At this point, Tei and the villagers come to attack but the monster fights back and escape. They are then picked up by the sisters. Of course Gokudo eats all he wants so the monster isn’t happy he is getting somebody’s body fat. A weird chase as the monster tries to take away all the food. The sisters then put them to sleep. When they wake up, they find Djinn with them. It is then revealed the monster is actually Rubette! She tried to transform into a dragon but this was what happened. Gokudo makes fun of her body and doesn’t even give a damn about it. Oh Rubette, you gonna beat up your own body like that? Then they realize they have been shrunk into doll size and are made to be the sisters’ play dolls. What’s this about their pet Momo who devours souls? Gokudo needs Ikkyu’s help but he got Panda again. Forcing him to use some repellent magic, Panda instead uses his magic mirror to absorb but instead it turns the house into a giant carnivorous plant. So this is Momo? Now awakened, Momo is hungry and wants to eat. You guys better run! In the sisters’ flying cloud car, they reveal Momo was once a small cute pet but grew too big. So they put it to sleep by turning it into their house and feed it souls of travellers once a week. They are going to Horai Mountain where a sage lives who might help revert their size back to normal and also switch back their bodies. But first they have to escape from hungry Momo. This plant can fly? Anyway after dodging all its acid attacks, Gokudo starts blaming Panda. That is when Panda realizes he was holding the mirror in the wrong direction. This time, the mirror absorbs Momo. The sisters don’t want Momo anymore and throws the mirror away. Okay, now onwards to Horai! But the cloud car has taken damage and it is free falling.

Episode 16
Luckily they fall into some natural hotspring. This turns Rubette back into Djinn’s body. Because she still isn’t happy and after much bugging, Djinn uses his magic to turn her into a hot Chinese chick. Yeah, this looks better, right? The sisters want Panda to guide them to Horai since Rayuka’s fiancé never returned. However Horai isn’t just any place where anybody can go as it is located in another dimension. Only qualified sages can do so. The sisters get this idea to get Jiki to come over here to bring them over. However when they enter the cave, Jiki is not around but Ikkyu! He’s been waiting for them and is back to his devilish ways because of the hotspring effect. As they talk about their swapped bodies (all of them have to be together if they want to revert back), here comes a monkey in Gokudo’s body. Panda points out this is not Goku as that one is real fearsome. Then they realize that Niari could be Goku as he could be stuck in a monkey’s body. This is getting complicated. Ikkyu then remembers Niari has been here before because he was asking to Horai. So it’s in this pot? Time to go down. They arrive in this creepy Horai place. Some call it hell… Guess who is running a business here? It’s that dumpling guy! Of course the monkey causes havoc by eating for free. Dumpling guy tries to get him but stumbles into Djinn (remember he is in Niari’s body). Remembering he is a wanted man, he calls the guards to arrest him. Gokudo gets sneaky. He uses his feminine charms to convince the guards to pay him the reward, leaving the dumpling dude all sad. Gokudo then wants Panda to use his crystal ball to find Niari but Panda gets sneaky and wants him to pay up for more info. Gokudo is sneakier because he distracts Panda and fills the reward bag with stone instead. Looking through the crystal ball, they see this evil monkey. It could be Niari is playing as Goku. He is at Yama Palace who is the caretaker of Horai. The prince is no other than Tei who is also Rayuka’s fiancé. So she never thought he was a prince of the underworld? As no humans can get near the palace, Ikkyu comes up with an idea. He holds a concert and introduces the Chingensai Sisters as idols. Rayuka, Shikinka, Rubette and Gokudo… Yes you, Gokudo.

Episode 17
The crowd loves the Chingensai Sisters. It’s mind boggling since Rubette is tone deaf… After their part is done, Panda is up next doing some magic trick. The crowd doesn’t like him and boos him. Chingensai Sisters return to the stage and with Panda being mean to Gokudo, he screams for help so all the unruly fans hop on stage for a free for all. Yeah, the girls getting molested too so Rubette starts beating them up. As they run, they stumble into a talking tree. Joka is a powerful high ranking wizard and offers to hide them but with Gokudo being rude, she changes her mind. But Rayuka and Shikinka plead for mercy, she lets them in. Gokudo drinks some water inside and the sisters warn him too late that it would turn somebody into a sage. Well, if you qualify to be one. And if you don’t? Oh, something is happening to his body… Gokudo passes out and when he wakes up, only the monkey is with him. He goes outside and realizes he can communicate with animals. But how come he can’t understand what the monkey says? This means this is no ordinary monkey and must be Goku. Suddenly they are attacked by Garuda, a servant of Sanzo the monk. They are saved by Jiki who stuck some delusional bamboo in it. Off it flies to Mars? Reuniting with the rest, Jiki then explains about Goku. A monkey ate some immortality peach and caused all kinds of mischiefs after attaining god-like powers. All the sages imprisoned him in a huge rock but recently a meteorite smashed into it and might have awakened Goku. It is assumed the meteorite could be Niari and hence the swap. Because Sanzo is gathering monsters and planning something, what would happen if Goku follows Sanzo? Jiki uses a banana as bait to fish out Goku. But it is Panda who took the bait. Knowing that Niari will not be deceived by a mere banana, what would be the most appropriate bait? Yup, Gokudo! He is in Rubette’s body, right? Rubette must have mixed feelings right now.

Episode 18
Gokudo enters a land with talking monkeys! Threatening them, they take them to their boss who is of course Niari in Goku’s body. But Niari seems to be hiding from somebody. Goku’s wife! This gorilla is going apes that Niari is cheating on her! Even more so with ‘Rubette’ here. Yeah, she’s getting violent. Gokudo signals to Jiki to fish him out. Niari being Niari continues to be flirty as he tries to hit on Rayuka and Shikinka. Rubette senses something amiss when she tries to guess who is in whose body. Then they all realize this monkey in Gokudo’s body isn’t Goku. The real person behind this is Sanzo. Even so, this is not Gokudo’s real body and is just a puppet. The real body is being controlled somewhere else. When they try to attack Sanzo, Gokudo feels pain. As long as the puppet’s curse is activated, if you hurt the body, the original soul of that body will also feel the pain. So nobody can hurt anybody, huh? What does Gokudo do? Protect Sanzo, of course! Sanzo then wants to turn them into his servants and sends them to hell. It seems only Gokudo is feeling all the pain as he is in the body of a human. The rest aren’t human or their bodies aren’t so they don’t feel the hot or cold. Finally they arrive at the desert. Without magic here, Jiki and the sisters revert to their true forms: A turtle and snakes respectively. Then they see Djinn and Pegasus. They don’t respond. In fact, they have become retards! It seems the longer you spend time here, the more you’ll risk becoming retards. Then a hot chick comes up to Djinn (remember, he is in Niari’s body). It seems she is glad she has finally found him.

Episode 19
Jiki recognizes her as Nanya, a servant of the Queen West. She lends them her white tiger fur coat said to help deflect the curse of the desert. Yeah, everybody scrambling to get under it. Nanya leads the gang out of the desert but remains distant with them. She is only helping them because they are Djinn’s friends. Because Djinn is still a retard, Nanya continues to feel sad for his case. Cue for flashback. As Djinn was taken away by the guards, they stumble into Nanya. Learning she is the Queen West’s servant, they attack her. Djinn helps to fight back and escape. Then they encounter King Yama and his monsters. They too attack them but since their numbers are overwhelming, he stayed back to buy her time to escape and get help from his friends, namely Gokudo. Safe to say at this point Nanya has fallen for Djinn. Now that she has found him, her plan is to take her to Konron Mountain and hopes Queen West can cure his state with her supernatural power. Next morning, Nanya and Djinn are gone, leaving the rest deserted. However as Jiki points out, they are already at Konron. Its mist can leave travellers lost if not careful. Also at this point, Gokudo has got used to Rubette’s body so he doesn’t mind staying as her for a while. Because he can make money as an idol! Conveniently here comes Tei. WTF this guy wants to continue his kiss with Gokudo?! Of course Rayuka and Shikinka won’t allow this. Haven’t forgotten he is engaged to the former, huh? You bet they’re going to make him explain himself for this cheating. Then they force him to lead them to the palace since he is Yama’s son. It get worse for him as the rest discover idol merchandises of Rubette (Gokudo). Creepy, huh? How do you like having your first biggest fan? Gokudo throws out all those stuffs. Because Queen West has been captured and being guarded heavily inside the palace, Yama is indiscriminately shooting anybody down who gets near. More woes because Panda is pregnant and going into labour?! Yeah, some weird egg he ate in the desert. I don’t think Tei’s driving skills is evading the beams like a pro. They’re all bad shooters. Thankfully some white light teleports them elsewhere and Panda finally gives birth to… A monster?!

Episode 20
Well, it’s actually a baby Gokudo! He can talk and is an arrogant brat! But when he sees Niari, he wants his body back. This proves this baby is Goku! Meanwhile Queen West chides Nanya for doing this. Even so, Nanya pleads to her to save Djinn and she’ll do anything she asks. Queen West uses her power to bring the gang here. However Gokudo and Goku remains sceptical of her. Because Nanya has fled with Djinn, this means they cannot begin the ritual to return to their original bodies. Remember, all of them must be present. It is believed Nanya is under Sanzo’s power and Sanzo’s plan is to take over the Hotoke. So part of his plan was to summon them here to get rid of the Hotoke after hearing of what they did in Inaho even if it isn’t entirely their doing. Queen West tried to stop him and hence her interfering power was what caused them to swap souls. Gokudo is upset that this is her fault and blames her that she is doing this all for herself. Is he speaking from his selfish experience? Gokudo wants her to go get Djinn but she can’t leave this place, citing house arrest, He tries to attack her but she easily fends him off. The rest try the same but to no avail. Then Tei pleads to them to help save his father. It seems Yama too is under Sanzo’s spell. He noticed Yama was acting weird after meeting Sanzo so he stole an egg he was keeping for Sanzo in hopes he would come back. Of course inside that egg was Goku and perhaps Sanzo failed when he tried to get his soul into Gokudo’s body. Goku remembers Sanzo making a strange doll (that monkey) but complained he couldn’t separate the soul from the body. It is theorized that because separation is impossible if the soul is from a different body, Sanzo ended up reluctantly controlling the monkey and trapped Goku inside an egg after making the doll. It could be the same case for Yama. That night, Queen West sees Niari and gives him a key to some Miroku device that will save the universe. From what I understand, it turns misfortunes into happiness by repairing any imbalance. You bet Niari and Goku want to take this mission by themselves and not tell the rest. After they leave, Queen West tells the rest that Niari and Goku have left. Gokudo is impatient to go after them but it seems the rest has a better way to sneak into Yama Palace. Oh yeah. It’s the return of Chingensai Sisters.

Episode 21
If Gokudo said he is more than happy to be an idol, why is he not looking forward to this concert? I guess there’s no money in this, huh? And so we see recycled scenes of Chingensai Sisters on stage. Then there’s the handshake event but they are approached by Sanzo’s men, Hakkai and Gojou to pick them up and go see the monk himself. Sanzo claims that West Queen has tricked and brainwashed them into thinking he is the bad guy. It is her who has the ulterior motive. He shows Djinn and Nanya being confined in Queen West’s prison. Niari and Goku are having a feast with babes in the next room. The guys quickly defect and join this party while the women are furious and remain sceptical. Sanzo will show his goodwill by returning them to their rightful bodies. He starts with Gokudo but some slip up has him shoot his beam at Tei who then turns into an egg. Now that they know Sanzo is lying, they fight him but everybody gets turned into an egg. Only Gokudo, Ikkyu and Goku are left so they escape. They even have time to argue that they deserve to get that device. Arriving in a room with lots of eggs, they throw them at their enemies. It hatch lots of monsters who were forcibly turned into eggs. Then they bump into a giant egg that turns out to be Yama. Yama learns what is going on and tells them the location of the device. Sanzo desperately tries to warn them it is not what they think but you think Gokudo is going to listen at this point? Yama stalls them as they get to the device below. After inserting a key, a giant Buddha appears. It then begins to suck in everything. It seems this is the final weapon of the Hotoke. Because the Hotoke want fairness, hence everything will be return to nothingness. So nothingness = happiness? Not the kind of happiness that Gokudo wants. What to do? Everybody gets sucked in!

Episode 22
Inside this giant, Gokudo and co see an awakened Miroku. Gokudo and Goku argue to let Miroku grant their happiness. When Miroku asks their definition of happiness, here comes Sanzo to denounce whatever Miroku is going to do. He claims Miroku is not supposed to wake up for another 5.6 billion years. By that time, humans might not exist anymore. Even so, the Hotoke will not have a reason to wake him up. Sanzo believes he is created out of Hotoke’s pure arrogance. When Sanzo met Queen West, they talked about salvation but the latter didn’t believe the Hotoke will save humans now despite they are suffering. This is why their promised salvation is so far in the future. In the end, the gods and Hotoke never had plans to save humans. They are just doing so that they could control humans at their convenience in the future. That is when Sanzo had a thought. He should become mankind’s saviour! Why does that me him sound like a villain? Gokudo becomes impatient with this and wants Miroku to quickly grant happiness. So Gokudo’s definition of happiness is free food? Miroku finds him interesting and wants to look from his point of view. Gokudo looks like he has returned to his body but it is a just a light illusion from Miroku. With them still arguing about happiness, Miroku now doubts if he can do that since he is unwanted by everyone. Gokudo then tells him off to stop being a Hotoke and do as he wishes. You don’t say. Because Miroku now wants to fuse with Gokudo’s soul and see the world through his eyes! Now Sanzo wants that too? Too bad Miroku chooses Gokudo. A sore Sanzo won’t lose out so he uses the device to go beyond God. Uhm, can you go beyond God? I’m so confused. So now he is controlling the statue and trying to destroy everything? As usual, Gokudo runs away but since Miroku is inhabiting him, he forces him to turn around and fight. Gokudo remembers he drank Joka’s holy water. This has Joka popping up because it’s like he summoned her? Her true form is a giant serpent and was cursed to become a tree. Because Gokudo called for her, the curse is broken. Huh? How does this simple thing even work?! Joka fights Sanzo but he is spewing souls to fight on his behalf. Kill them and they die. Luckily, there is Ikkyu to suck them all up. Sanzo turns his attention to destroy humans. With Gokudo wanting to kick Sanzo’s ass, Miroku understands how he feels. Believing those who try to rule others in the name of God is despicable, Miroku turns into some missile flame and launches himself into Sanzo. He is going to send Sanzo to see God as he wishes. And just like that, they go to heaven. Phew. I’m glad the complication to destroy the world is over. Gokudo returns to Rubette’s body and Nanya is seen charging at them.

Episode 23
It seems Nanya is jealous of Gokudo? Rather, she wants Rubette’s body so she can be with Djinn forever. Because Nanya’s body will return into a white tiger someday, possessing Rubette’s body means she can forever remain human. This is so we can have some weird comical fight and dodge scene. Right before Nanya kills Gokudo, Djinn got his sanity back and stops her from doing the unthinkable. Nanya repents her ways and we have this weird cheesy love thingy going on between them. Interrupted when Goku gets kidnapped by Sanzo. Isn’t this dude supposed to be dead? Yeah, he wants to drag Gokudo down to hell with him. And so he turns into a monster to attack them. Nobody can attack him because each attack he absorbs, he becomes stronger. Then when all of them are clinging on to Djinn who is clinging onto the ledge, Nanya is possessed by Sanzo as she tries to kick them down to their doom. Only, Nanya’s conscious is stronger so she jumps off herself. All for nought because the ledge gives way. Free fall! But thankfully Miroku’s light saves them all. He finally tosses Sanzo into the black hole, supposedly the door to the underworld. But he warns if this hole isn’t sealed, it might collide with their world and bring disaster. Only Joka can do it. So Gokudo reluctantly calls Joka to do the same. She seals up the hole and it’s goodbye to everybody. Everyone wakes up back at Queen West’s place. She mentions all this was just a test to see if Nanya would inherit Konron but apparently she failed as she gave into her desires. Gokudo wants Ikkyu to call Granny to switch back all their bodies since everybody is here. When Ikkyu calls her, Queen West’s phone rings. Oh no. Queen West turns out to be Granny in disguise! She has trolled us for the last time! A simple magic returns everyone to their original bodies. Man, it’s going to take some time to see Rubette in her own body again… Nanya still loves Djinn because of his soul. Granny suggests they go on a journey together as Nanya has still lots to learn. And Gokudo… He is a little baby! Oh boy. Going to take a few more years for him to grow up. Even as a baby he is so selfish and bratty. Some things never change. In the aftermath, Shikinka went solo as an idol. Jiki and Panda become her side entertainers? Tei marries Rayuka and they both entered some construction business. The rest journey to Yamu to find the Spring of Life for Gokudo.

Episode 24
A tribe is worshipping the Fire God, Ryu Gee as they let the fire burn before the Spring of Fire. Because Gokudo and co are flying over, they think it is their rival tribe that worships the moon goddess, Negana Luna. It’s amazing how their puny arrows can make them lose their balance. Gokudo and Rubette fall off but a giant black bird saves them. Riding it is a little girl, Lee Ho who brings them back to her moon tribe village. She believes Gokudo is the Holy Infant who will help save Negana Luna. You see, the Spring of Fire was previously the Spring of Life until Ryu Gee took over. So basically in order to turn the spring back, they need to find a maiden as a host for Negana Luna and they have to conduct the ritual using this necklace. The original host, Kikue got possessed by Ryu Gee and Lee Ho herself is too young to be qualified. Of course sneaky Gokudo offers Rubette who has been out cold ever since. Each time she wakes up, he knocks her back to slumber. That night as they sneak to the Spring of Fire, a guard attacks them. Gokudo has a hard time fighting him off until he cracks his mask. His gaze upon the moon causes him to black out. Using the necklace, Gokudo must summon 4 magical items from what he sees in the necklace that will aid in the spring’s resurrection. Firstly, something that flies. Pegasus with Niari on it? Next, a snake. Shikinka? Sorry to cut your idol performance short. Third, something from the wilderness. A tiger. Like, Nanya. Finally, something that breathes fire. Thinking Djinn in dragon form would be it but it turns out to be Gokudo’s sword. With everything in place, Negana Luna now possesses Rubette as she returns the Spring of Life to what it was. Happy Gokudo dips in and returns to his adult size. Before he wants to monopolize this spring and make a fortune out of it, Ryu Gee pops out to attack them. Lee Ho is distraught because she is supposed to be her mom. But Negana Luna easily owns her and Ryu Gee who is possessing her leaves her body and takes a form of his own. Is he a dragon or crocodile with wings? Gokudo charges at him but gets eaten!

Episode 25
Ryu Gee disappears while Negana Luna falls into an unconscious state. Kikue explains Ryu Gee and Negana Luna were both gods of the night and day respectively. Their authority was equally divided until Ryu Gee tried to eradicate Negana Luna. But now both gods are trying to take over their human hosts and Kikue is in a dilemma as her tribe has always been worshipping and passing down Negana Luna’s teachings. Gokudo finds himself in the dream world whereby Ryu Gee tries to convince him to be possessed by the Fire God forever. Of course Gokudo won’t allow that. Stranger, Ryu Gee tries to force himself inside Gokudo but just can’t. Thus Gokudo sees visions of all the past characters he crossed before. Time to get their payback. With Gokudo remembering his entire life is one big misfortune, Ryu Gee tries to convince him to give up and let him take over. But you know Gokudo. He won’t budge an inch. He isn’t going to ask for help even when he has fallen. Meanwhile, Rubette is also in the dream world and Negana Luna is also trying to possess her. However she fights her way and wakes up. Everyone is shocked to learn that Rubette actually possessed Negana Luna instead. As proof, she has got a mark on her butt! Meanwhile Gokudo isn’t afraid of any god. Remember, he eradicated the entire Hotoke! Realizing this is his own dream world, Gokudo has the advantage and fights back. Ryu Gee realizes his strength and wants to join forces. In the sense that he allows Gokudo to use his powers as he sleeps inside his body. But he warns him that he intends to take over him fully when he is stronger. With that, Gokudo returns to reality and reunite with the rest. He too has a mark on his butt as proof he has possessed a god. Gokudo and co part ways with Kikue and Lee Ho who now believe in the power of humanity and will pass down the true teachings of what they saw today to future generations. On their way back, the gang is suddenly teleported back to Eschallatto. Ikkyu didn’t summon them but Granny. Looks like there is trouble brewing.

Episode 26
Granny views Gokudo and Rubette getting the power of the gods to be troublesome. She reveals ever since they defeated the Demon Lord, the gods started to do as they wish. Hence Granny has plotted and used them to go around defeating the gods. Yup. Everything was a setup by her. She wants them to give up those godly powers or else. Of course they won’t. With Gokudo and Rubette going all out at her, Granny transforms into her actual form. So she is smoking hot goddess?! WTF is she an angel too?! Suddenly Indra drops down from heaven in an alien ship?! Can he return from heaven? Bewitched by Granny and recognizing her as the Madonna of the universe, he is willing to get rid of those pest in exchange for her hand in marriage. She agrees. So what about the Demon Lord she is married to?! The spark’s over a long time ago. I guess human divorce laws don’t apply to such beings. When the rest tries to oppose Granny, she turns them into stone. Gokudo and Rubette are left to deal with Indra but his powers are too great despite their anger gives them the godly powers to fight on part with Indra. When the going gets tough, Gokudo gets going! So typical. But Indra won’t let him. He even transforms into a mecha form! The humans are no match for this. Time for Niari to step in. He doesn’t like how things are turning out so with that frustration, this breaks Granny’s seal as his original powers return to him. With that, he summons his own mecha! Now we can have a real giant power mecha fight! Try not to destroy Eschallatto… Oh, too late… Eventually, the combined powers of Gokudo, Rubette and Niari defeat Indra and send him back to heaven. Damn, a god defeated by humans who are using the powers of the gods. Granny then congratulates the young ones. Trolled us again, huh? She tricked everyone by pretending to be on Indra’s side and it is a good thing they managed to defeat this creep. As for their godly powers, Granny allows them to keep it. She hints she is quite fond of them so Gokudo doesn’t want some MILF romance and kicks her away. Kick her as far and hard as you can. She shall return. Oh, you mean I’ll be back? In the aftermath, Gokudo and Rubette are wanted fugitives of Eschallatto since Seigi saw them during the fight and thinks they are responsible for the destruction. Oh well, another excuse to go on another adventure. Gokudo thought Rubette won’t follow him anymore and felt worried. But she trolled him just to see his reaction. Niari is also following them since where Rubette goes, he goes. Shocking last scene: Rubette gives Gokudo a quick peck on his cheek! Why is this loser the winner?!

Big Anti-hero Sux: Despicable Me
They really go all out in this final episode, huh? I suppose after breaking the fourth wall, they really wanted to go out with a big bang instead of a sputter. I’m sure we’ll remember it for quite some time. Oh Gokudo, considering your selfishness and greed that never change, we’ll always remember you for the wrong reasons. As long as you haven’t found your golden goose or fortune making mechanism, keep on adventuring. Tune in next time as Gokudo tries to find more fame and fortune coming to a city near you!

Even if this is a retro series, the plot and stories itself feel silly. Of course, it is so because it is meant to be funny. Each arc sees the misadventures and misdemeanours of Gokudo and his team and that the whole adventure could be one big zero sum game. In the sense that because of Gokudo is being greedy and selfish, whatever his intentions to capitalize and make a fortune out of it often turns out badly and hence the misadventures and all the nonsense he had to go through. Had he not been this self-centred and egoistical, he might not have gotten into so much trouble. You could say it is like a double edged sword as this is where all the fun and silliness come into. Is this what you call his ‘pleasure trip’ AKA ‘manyuuki’? Pleasure of seeing him getting into trouble. Weird.

So like I’ve said, despite all the silliness in the arc that sometimes don’t make sense, I have this feeling that the author just made things up as they go along. Take for instance the Chingensai arc. Because it is the longest arc in the series spanning for 10 episodes, I find that the more the plot thickens and the twists revealed, the sillier and crappy it sounded. Come to think about it, the whole thing just doesn’t make sense. From the body swapping just to confuse us (perhaps to give us some eye candy variety to see Rubette as a hot Chinese babe – because certainly we’d be feeling weird if she was to be shown as Djinn’s body for the rest of the arc) to unnecessary characters like Jiki and Panda, it’s just bizarre to say the least. Then there are some that is illogical like Gokudo summoning his magic sword. I just think that during the body swapping, the sword was being stupid rather than comical when it couldn’t detect Gokudo’s spirit instead and only became a servant of the master who looks like Gokudo. Just dumb.

I also noticed that each of the story arc is, uhm, how should I put it? Is international the right word? I don’t know, diversity sounds like a dirty word in this point in time. If you have observed, each of the story arc takes place in a different kind of cultural setting. The first in Eschallatto, which is your typical western medieval fantasy. Then the next arc has the gang visit Parmette which is of Arabian and Middle Eastern setting. Can’t forget that Japan has their own culture too and hence the next story of Inaho gives us some Japanese folklore. Then it is off the Chingensai for some ancient Chinese setting before hitting Yamu as the African finale. Or is it Pacific? I’m not sure. Primitive tribes like that all look the same to me but I’m guessing it is Africa since Yamu looks like deep inside the land instead of an island. So did we miss out any other international cultural fairytale setting here? Maybe some Inca or Mayan adventure next time, huh?

On to the characters, Gokudo as the titular and main character, we have come to expect him to be so. I don’t think Gokudo isn’t necessarily a bad guy and is nowhere being Hitler material. You see, everyone is not perfect and has their bad points. Gokudo just has more than your average human and he is not shy to flaunt them. Because of that, Gokudo is the truest character who stays to himself. It is that freedom that allows him to do as he wishes but also the double edged sword that causes him problems. Like a reminder that there is only so much he can do and he should not overstep his boundaries. He may be despicable and has undesirable traits that do not befit a hero but then again, who are we to judge what is good or bad? As said, it is that attitude that often gets Gokudo into further trouble but seeing that he has survived this long and how almost nothing could kill him, I’d say he is a pretty lucky adventurer. I mean, this guy has come face to face with death himself, banishing the Hotoke altogether and he still comes back alive stronger. And with the same nasty attitude. Hence it is with much dilemma for us to want Gokudo to remain as he is. Because this is the Gokudo we know and the Gokudo that we love and loath. Seeing a change in character whereby he really turns over a new leaf and becomes good for the sake of everybody else, I don’t think we can stomach that. We’d rather have our old slimy Gokudo anytime!

Like I’ve also said, Gokudo isn’t really such a bad guy and he shows it through his actions. He might say or put things that sound he is only looking out for himself but if you look deeper into his words, you might find that meaning that he still somewhat cares for his comrades. He doesn’t necessarily needs to care about the rest of his friends if he was 100% so self-centred. But he still fights back for them although giving excuses that his intentions for doing so only meant for his own future and benefit. As seen in the final episode. He doesn’t necessarily have to go all out like that. Sure, he is pissed but finally admitting he had a good time with his pals? So enjoyed those bad times too? Like as though he is one big tsundere who can’t admit that he does care for his friends. Or maybe he is just a big jerk after all. That is why sometimes I make a pun out of his full name, Gokudo You-got-to-be Kidding-me-can’t-you-see?! Hahaha!!!

As for the other characters, I can’t say that their relationship and interactions among each other is dynamic. Amusing to a certain point but nothing more than that. It feels like they’re there to soften the big jerk face that Gokudo is. Like Rubette being the strong independent female character that we all need. Yup, even way back in the 90’s we already have feminism. Nothing new. Niari is like tagging along only because he has got his eyes set on Rubette but rest assured that Rubette will never return his love no matter how many cheesy ‘romantic’ lines he spews. She’s just not interested into you. Take a hint. Oh well, you know what they say about persistence. Yeah, we need some perverted playboy in the group. Because we finally know whose heart Rubette belongs to.

They really threw us off that Rubette had feelings for Gokudo right in the final scene with that kiss. Seeing all that they’ve gone through, it is plausible since it’s the only reason why she continued to follow him on his adventures and tolerate his selfishness. So she’s just being mean to him at times to hide her feelings, huh? I mean, she knows his behaviour and yet… Why do girls like her like jerks like him?! Seeing that she was once a princess and he is a free commoner, maybe that’s where the connection is. Weak indications of Rubette may harbouring a thing for Gokudo made us just overthinking and this is just part of the comedy. Like the time when Gokudo almost died, she got so emotional and wanted revenge. I mean, a kickass babe like her wanting to avenge a jerk like him? So you really have to ask yourself is she really in love with this jerk?! Nah. I wouldn’t put my hopes on it like how I would on Gokudo being a considerate gentleman. Because Gokudo somewhat attracts trouble, she can still have fun staying by his side as the idiot too can be her punching bag. And the time Gokudo turned into a baby and she was happy babysitting him? Nah. Just a cute baby boy, that’s all. Who would have really thought she had a thing for him. Love works in the strangest of ways and to the strangest of all people. It’s not like this series is supposed to be of the romance category, right? Is it?!

So naturally I brought up this Gokudo x Rubette romance thingy, it is because I happen to notice that in each of the story arcs, there is a pair of minor characters for that arc who are deeply in love with each other. Do you still remember in Eschallatto that Seigi and Asraga eventually ended up together? Then in Parmette we have Issa and Coco. Back in Inaho, we’ve got Tsukiha and the fox spirit albeit a short one, Chingensai we have Tei and Rayuka finally having a happy ending together. Yamu is too short to have anything. Lack of characters, lack of a story. It was just a simple plot to change Gokudo’s size back to normal. And our very own Djinn x Nanya. Enough said. Meanwhile Niari continues to be single and still trying to flirt around. I bet Otohime is open if he ever changes his mind!

Granny feels like the joker card among the group. Although I don’t really consider as part of the group, she has been the biggest troll for Gokudo ever since the start of the series. I don’t know, she has fooled me everything too because the biggest ‘plot twist’ turns out to be her in disguise. From Mora to the goddess of Parmette and finally as Queen West, we should have known better that she was the one who is behind it all. Nobody saw it coming, huh? She’s like the puppet master pulling the strings and manipulating everybody right till the very end. At this rate of using Gokudo and co to get rid of the gods, she might become the Almighty One herself. Then there is the good hearted Djinn who really looks out for everyone especially Gokudo since that idiot is his master. Could have been a better character if he had more fleshing out but we can’t have him outdo Gokudo, can we? We have Nanya finally joining the gang but that is too late to showcase anything. Ikkyu feels like a fringe member of the pack, only summoned when the plot requires him to move it forward. There is also another character but she is just mostly relegated to just changing scenes. That bunny girl I thought was going to be part of Gokudo’s group seeing I had this impression of so as she does appear in the opening and ending credits. I don’t think she is Gokudo’s guardian spirit either… The rest of the minor characters only appear for that story arc but once it is over, they are mostly forgotten because we need to move on.

On a trivial note, I believe there was some sort of mistranslation for some of the terms in the series. The most obvious one being the magic kingdom. I could be wrong but I believe the demon kingdom would have been a much more accurate translation where Granny, Niari and Ikkyu come from. I mean is it not obvious? That is the realm where the Demon Lord rules, right? You see, the kanji word for magic and demon are the same. At least for the ‘ma’ portion. So I think back then there were no Google Translate to get things around (not to say that tool is pretty accurate these days but pretty hilarious still to laugh at as some translations are still inaccurately funny) and hence they mistranslated the demon world as the magic kingdom. Also, when you have gods and the Hotoke in this world, isn’t it only right to have demons as their counterpart as well? I think magic kingdom sounds kids friendly for a cartoon (yes people, anime is considered cartoon back in those days by the ‘uneducated’!) but I don’t think that’s the case… But with Granny being an angel or a goddess, now I’m really confused. Fallen angel, perhaps?

Art and animation, well there’s nothing else for me to add on here seeing that it reeks of 90’s retro style anime. You’ve seen one anime from that era, you’ve probably seen them all. So don’t be surprise if you start to see shades of other anime characters from that era in this anime such as Slayers and Bakuretsu Hunters. The voice acting is pretty decent and okay too and hearing Akira Ishida as Gokudo and Shinichiro Miki as Prince, it dawned to me that these guys have been in the industry for more than 20 years! That’s a long time! And they are still active today especially Akira Ishida. Even Megumi Ogata had a cameo as Miroku. Then there is also Houko Kuwashima as Coco and Ryotaro Okiayu as Sanzo. I think the former has already semi-retired but it just made me think that those old veterans really came a long way. Yeah, there are so many other casts in the list, many whom I have never heard of already retired and some already passed on (RIP).

More retro feel as the opening theme, Prism by Baiser has all the ingredients of being a retro theme fitted for this series. Simple rock music with simple lyrics. Ah, life was so much easier then. Same thing for the first ending theme, Wake Up by Chisato. This is what retro anime rock feels. The second ending theme is Silent Moon by Ellemo and if I haven’t stress this enough already, the song really feels dated and retro from that era. Not bad songs actually and honestly I would prefer to listen to this more than more contemporary anime music.

Overall, this retro anime is fun the watch if you can put aside all the silly randomness and that the main character acts more of an anti-hero (though some would go so far as to paint him as a villain, but I digress). The art style and storyline may not fly in today’s standards but having an anti-hero as the main protagonist is now a dime a dozen in today’s form of entertainment (though the anime industry have churned out dozens of anti-hero characters and series throughout). I’m sure everybody is familiar with Deadpool, right? Oh, he isn’t an anime character, sorry. I guess I’ll go with Accelerator then. This is what happens if Gokudo is made in today’s era and given a fearsome power. Heh. Sounds more like a joke, right? No wonder when the series got licensed in USA, it was renamed as Jester the Adventurer. Ugh… I don’t think Gokudo would appreciate this dick move…