Zero no Tsukaima

ゼロの使い魔 (Zero no Tsukaima) (Zero's Familiar) is a light novel series written by Yamaguchi Noboru (also the scenario writer of GROOVER's H-game, "Green Green"). The illustrator for the novel is Usatsuka Eiji. The novel is being distributed by Media Factory under the MF Bunko J label. The first novel was released on June 25, 2004.

Book Covers

The anime adaptation is handled by J.C. Staff (well known recently for the Shakugan no Shana series). The list of main staff/cast is:
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-Staff-
Original Creator: Yamaguchi Noboru
Illustration/Original Character Design: Usatsuka Eiji

Director: Iwasaki Yoshiaki
Series Planning/Script: Yoshioka Takao
Character Design/Director of Arts: Fujii Masahiro
Music: Mitsumune Shinkichi
Music Production: Hapinet
Produced by: GENCO
Anime Production: J.C. Staff
Production: Zero no Tsukaima Production Association

-Cast-
Louise - Kugimiya Rie
Hiraga Saito - Hino Satoshi
Siesta - Horie Yui
Guiche - Sakurai Takahiro
Tabatha - Inokuchi Yuka
Kirke - Inoue Nanako
Henrietta - Kawasumi Ayako
Montmorency - Takahashi Mikako
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Yes, Shana (CV: Kugimiya Rie) and Yuuji (CV: Hino Satoshi) is back as another tsudere girl/abused guy combo again. ^^;

Here's the description of the series, taken from AnimeNfo:
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"A normal high school student, Hiraga Saito, was summoned into another world. The witch who summoned him was Louise. She was very cute, but she was very haughty, and she had no facility for magic so that she was called “Louise the Zero” because of the success rate of her magic. While he was embarrassed, Louise suddenly pushed her lips to his. Soon, mysterious letters appeared on the back of his hand, and he became her familiar spirit.

Then, Saito begins to live with Louise in a boarding house of Tristein Magical Academy. Every day, he is abused, scolded, and loved? by this haughty but cute girl. This is how his exciting days filled with courage, humiliation, and love begin."
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The novel currently has 8 volumes. The latest volume "Zero no Tsukaima: Serenade of Nostalgia" was released on June 23, 2006.

A comic adaptation handled by Mochiduki Nana has also debuted recently on the brand-new seinen manga magazine, Comic Alive, published by Media Factory.

(Homepage Link)

And here is a short review I wrote on the novel and the characters after reading volume 1:
http://forums.animesuki.com/showthread.php...7792#post597792

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The first episode of the anime aired today (7/2/2006)! I'll add some comments here after I see it.

COOL, Thanks Sushi-Y-sama. 8 volume? Umm, anyone think Zero no Tsukaima novel will be in B&N? Since i`m forbidden from orderstuff online .

Cool, this sound interesting ,hopefully it not very similar to most Girl abused guy anime or manga.

ok it has tatshisa suzuki and takahiro sakurai....I`m in!

After looking at a bit of the OP and the raw...


Semi-loli tsundere armed with a whip, check.

Protagonist wielding a large sword, check. (GASP! Blutsauger?)

Markings on the back of said protagonist's hand, check. (Fsn?)


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Damn, seems like I have another series to drop into my "To Watch" list...

Oh, and remind me to get the full OP when it comes out.

http://randomc.animeblogger.net/2006/07/02...no-tsukaima-01/

There, another must watch after TsuyoKiss...this is going to be a tsundere summer >.>

I'm definitely going to watch this

*Laugh after saw Sushi's Avatar

After watching the first episode in High Defintion (that's right HDTV), I couldn't stop laughing.... The headmaster reminds me of myself in school =D

Jalex pointed this series out to me a while ago. Looks good, I'll be waiting for a fansub.

It's not HDTV, unlike Haruhi's hi-res version, the 1280 version that's flowing around for Zero no Tsukaima is just an upscaled version of the regular 704 feed: it looks slightly better than an enlarged 704 feed, but it's not hi-res, and not definitely not HD anything.

Unless your can post a screenshot that proves you have an HD quality video. In that case, I'll be glad to beg you for it.

For reference, here's the 1280 upscaled version:

For what it's worth, Ruiz (Louise) is 16, a lot older than Shana (yet the voice is no different ^^; )

And the master x dog relationship will become more apparent in vol.2. ^^;

Saito's sword there is called Derflinger. Trash talking sword. Just like a certain talking book from Shana. This one is constantly suffering from Alzheimers though. ^^;

The markings are the symbols of a servant. Saito's symbols are quite special. You'll learn more about it in the next episode.

Ep. 1 is out now, fansubbed by Froth-Bite....I's still downloading this along side with Tsuyokiss

This series is so awesome! It's the ultimate mix of Shakugan no Shana and Harry Potter! Best of all, it gives very little possiblity for Saito to build a harem!

My favorite character so far: Louise, Saito/Yuji, and the headmaster!

I know everyone said it was like Shana with magic school and all that tossed in, but it didn't really sink in that it was like that till I watched it.

It really does feel that way. I'm already thinking of Louise as Shana and Saito as Yuji. Although, gotta say the VAs have a hell of a chemistry cause I found myself smiling and enjoying this show that much. Can't wait for next episode.

Do tell me that Iwata Mitsuo voices that same sword. All the better when it tries reprimanding/egging Saito for getting too intimate with his master.

Can't wait, can't wait...

Err.. wait, do I see more light novel translations in the horizon or is it just me?

Er, kind of the opposite.

In the beginning of vol.2, when Derf saw Saito sneaking towards Ruiz's bed in the middle of the night, he(?) called out to Saito to ask what he was doing. Saito then tried to shush Derf's big mouth by sharing his "master plan" to "conquer" Ruiz with Derf.

I'll write out a small snippet as an example:
(from p.19-20 of vol.2)

=============
Saito: "Hey, Derf, who's the coolest guy in this world?"
Derflinger: "You of course, partner."
Saito: "In this diry world where the mages swagger all over the place, who's the greatest guy?"
Derflinger: "You of course, partner."
Saito raised his chest even more. Some unknown confidence is rising within him for absolutely no reason. He felt as if the entire world is blessing him. Saito is obviously lacking in the IQ department.

Saito: "To be violated by such a cool and great dude like me, Ruiz sure is lucky."
Derflinger: "That arrogant noble girl sure is lucky. But why won't you try hitting on her normally? If she's falling for you, then you don't have to wait for her to be asleep to do this, no?"
A very reasonable opinion. However, Saito shook his head.
Saito: "She's stubburn, can't be honest."
Derflinger: "Sure looks like it."
Saito: "If I try hitting on her normally, her shyness will just get the better of her, and she'll just say something like "what are you talking about? You familiar!", and look away for sure."
Derflinger: "You're totally right. My partner sure is a clever man."
Saito: "Right? That's why violation. Even though her mouth is saying all those arrogant things, at the bottom of her heart, she wants to be conquered by me. After all, she's in love with me, you know. That's the kind of girl Ruiz is."
Derflinger: "Ohh, my partner is a genius."
Saito: "Therefore, as the representative of Earth, I shall now violate a bishoujo of this alter-world Halkeginia. That why I want you to be quiet, alright?"
Derflinger shook slightly, as a sign of agreement.
Derflinger: "In that case, I'll be quiet."
Saito saluted him, and snuck closer towards Ruiz's bed.
=============

Classic Yamaguchi Noboru-style comedy. ^^;
Just so you know, there IS a proper love story here. ^^; The serious moments were quite serious, and the "kyaa~~~ they did it >ヮ<" moments were great too. ^^;

For what it's worth, I think Yamaguchi-san's portrayal of the love-hate relationship between Ruiz and Saito is better than Takahashi-san's portrayal of Shana and Yuuji's relationship. How do I put it... a better sense of believability?

It won't be by me, that's for sure. ^^; I'm busy enough just trying to catch up (currently halfway though vol.3).

Fansub out, getting now.

Will edit with details <3

:EDIT: Got Kuroneko's 'cause my computer's too shitty to play anything in H264, and the .mp4 hinted towards said compression. I'd rather be watching Froth-Bite's releases, as Kuroneko leaves quite a bit to be desired in the whole "English" department. Oh well, beggars can't be choosers.

Uh, so Guiche was a bit of a homo, but in a funny way. Much fanservice (and we like that. We like that very much), Shana/Yuuji combo again, more or less the same roles but with some changes. Should be interesting. Uh, there were bouncing boobies and also massive cleavage, so this is a definite winner in my book. Also, Louise is hawt.

I'll be waiting for episode 2 with great anticipation.

:EDIT2: much tracematerial, there is

I finally got a subbed version of it and I liked it.There are 2 groups doing it but one is using an mp4 format. I liked the voices and I liked the story and if I am not mistaken isnt the old man the same as the one from Negima?

Sounds like him only more perverted

I liked hearing the voices Shana and Yuuji's actors again.

Louise's character design, seiryuu actress and that fact she is a pancake made me think Shana!

Hearing her say Urusai was a treat.

@Sushi-Y:

WTF?
*laughs for a few minutes, then looks at the post again, then laughs again for another few*

So Saito and the sword are more like "partners in crime", huh? Frankly, I think I'll really enjoy reading this as a novel... Truly, that snippet made me grin for a while...

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On the more recent episode..

Well said, my man.

*Tsukuyomi reads around the topic*

A manga for young men??? Probably something I wouldn't be much interested in... But the screeny does look good...

ep1 seems fun, i want to read the book can any give me the chinese title for the books plz.

Just watched the first episode. Funny but kinda weird.

I dont know if you will love or hate me for this Sushi-Y, but how does Louise talk to Saito, in other words what form does she use with him? Sorry, but I am just trying to establish the social structure between them.

Why would I? It's a perfectly normal question.

Standard feminine casual language. A little strong with the commands, but well, he's her servant, after all.

Speaking of which, there's really a wide range of Japanese used in this level. When Louise talks to Henrietta (the princess or Tristein, a childhood friend), formal language is used (not just polite, but formal). Actually, a lot of royalties/politicians will be involved in the story, so formal languages are almost as common in the novel as the casual/polite language that Louise and the others use among themselves.

===========================
Next, some novel comments after finishing vol.3, there are some spoilers below, so don't read unless you don't mind.


I'm halfway though vol.4 now. (umumumu... Siesta...)

Vol.3's finale (which will be the anime's ending) was pretty much a rush of adrenaline until the very end. The ending was certainly grand enough. It makes perfect sense to choose it as the anime's cutoff point.

Honestly though, the WWII Zero fighter was a little too much. ^^; Ever since Saito got it, I should've known that some poor dragons were going to get it eventually.

Novel-wise, the story is really only beginning though. With Louise's newly awakened power and status, and Saito's... well, nothing's different about Saito, besides a pocket full of money ^^; the story is gearing up right into another plotline.


Surprisingly, right now I'm actually more of a Siesta x Saito supporter right now rather than for a Louise x Saito combo.
I mean, I really have to give credit to this girl's boldness and aggressiveness, yet still maintaining such a wonderful personality. She didn't get much appearances until vol.3, but once she did, she had enough momentum to cast a shadow even over Louise.

Example:
(vol.3, at Saito's outdoor bath)

...
(vol.4, a present for Saito)


It's true that there were a few Louise x Saito scenes that were quite "aww~" or "ooh" as well, but Louise's tsundere-ness held the line tight...

...Speaking of which, Saito is a little too popular with the ladies. (；´Д`)
*supports Louise's decision to collar Saito*

Now that you mention it, seems like Siesta has that perhaps nearly-perfect mix of meido and schoolgirl charm...

Maybe one day, she'll rise through the ranks of the Meido Power Rankings, even streaking across the maids from Hanaukyo, Hisui and Kohaku(?), or even Wilhelmina and Meido Margery(gasp?).

Now wait just a cotton-pickin' minute. I think we have our "Yoshida" right here. At least, she seems to be doing far better charming the lead guy. Or so I think.

EDIT: BTW, that first picture looks mighty cute. No really.

I need more regarding this franchise. Anything. Now. >_>

The World's Smallest Pantsu?

I would believe that its not just small, but has to fit awfully freaking tight around ... um... well, there. Ya know where the there is that I'm talking about.

Maybe it's a magical one size fits all panty.

(I think I shouldn't made that comment. Makes me sound like a total perv.)

I have to admit what the headmaster did was one of the more "creavitve" uses of a familiar i have ever seen. Remember zero it's not just the nuber of spells she has cast but also her underwear size.

HER ANKLES

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooh snap

It wasn't that I was needlessly staring at her when she was wearing it and ignoring the meaningful dialogue during that scene, I assure you. I just couldn't see that being comfortable when I saw Saito holding it, cause of how small it is.

I mean, I know Louise is small, but I don't think she can be that small.

you must stretch the limits of your imagination just like how those panties are stretched across her hips mmmmm~ I bet they're really tight.

http://danbooru.lolitron.org/data/danbooru...56247588546.jpg

Louise is *&#@ing serious lolibusiness

I just saw the second episode (in English) and I am starting to like Saito, he has guts. They are already hinting about possible romances for him to have.

Well he has the power but lacks the stamina

Louise seiryuu's line really make me think of Shana.

Guiche doesn't know that a wizard's role is to support the frontline.

He's really pathetic.



Say Sushi-Y will there be conflicts with the Wizard/Noble - Commoner/Normal classes?

Seems to me Saito will sooner or later challege the class structure.

Does this servant have unlimited blade works too?

No but from Sushi-Y's description he does have a perverted talking sword.

That didn't sound right...

*saves picture*

Ahem, yes, yes she seriously is seriously loli. Now watch her age be like 16, just so we can all laugh at her foray into puberty hasn't hit just yet.

Sushi-chan's probably gonna tell me she's like 12 or something.

No, his is probably more akin to like Beserker's God-like status for taking damage.

Why is it that we always make the FSN comparison these days?

Meh, its a catch 22. Screwed by sword if you speaketh, screwed by the sword if you don't speaketh.

You'll learn more about Saito's power as a Gandolfr (weapon master) as the story proceeds along, but he's certainly a tough guy (in battle, at least ^^; ).

Guiche is actually a pretty cool guy, different from the average "arrogant bishounen" type. Too bad he's doomed to being a gag character throughout the story.

The main conflict in the story will be between the countries in Halkeginia. Specifically, the war between Tristein and Albion. As a matter of fact, there's a lot of politics, conspiracies, and warfare involved in Zero no Tsukaima. Most of them are modeled after real-life European events. In fact, Zero no Tsukaima's world is pretty much a fantasy world version of the real-life Europe in the 15-16th centuries.

For example, if most of you haven't noticed yet, Louise de La Valliere is a real person. Tristein (Louise and Saito's "home country") is modeled after France. Albion is modeled after England (even its capital is called Londonium). Germania (Kirche's homeland) is modeled after Germany. Henrietta's (Louise's childhood friend, the princess (and later, queen) of Tristein) lover is Albion's Prince of Wales. Even down to the finer settings like Henrietta being forced into an unhappy marriage, as well as Louise being named her maid of honor, etc. etc. etc. There are a lot of uncanny resemblances between Zero no Tsukaima's story and real-life European history, which makes the story very interesting to follow through.

No, but he has unlimited maid works and unlimited sailor uniform works.

However, Saito also has an unfortunate combination of an A-rank passive skill called "Sexual Encounters" but an F rating for his Luck attribute.

====================================
I finished vol.4. And I just want to say that it's a pity(?) that the anime won't cover it all.

First of all, the love potion thing is BEYOND fan service, it's just downright erotic. ^^; If Zero no Tsukaima was an H-game, this is where a billion H-scenes would've came in. ^^;
A 200% dere Louise is unbelievable. Talk about a lethal level of moe radiation.

It went as far as having Louise in bed together with Saito, wearing nothing but a shirt, sucking on Saito's neck and chest, leaving kiss marks all over him, and then asking him to do the same to her (repeat)


Saito-san... that's some superhuman restraint you have there. ^^;

And Siesta turns totally DARK when she's jealous. I knew it! ^^; Crushing Saito's foot while wearing a big smile on her face.

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On the other hand, Tabitha finally gets her time in the spotlight in vol.4, with quite a surprising and tragic story indeed.


Which reminds me that Tabitha got almost no coverage at all in vol.1-3. Hopefully the anime will go over this section of vol.4, at least in part, so that she won't end up as nothing but a minor subcharacter.
====================================

She IS 16. Saito is 17, so is Guiche and Henrietta, while Kirche is 18.

First, I don't get shot for calling Sushi-sama, Sushi-chan! Awesome. ;; I got away with one.

But she's seriously 16? Holy crap, I was just assuming stuff. She really hasn't hit puberty has she... Man, I'd so be dead if I said that in front of her. Actually, no Saito would probably do the killing for her.

And wait. A love potion that actually has the erotic parts played out with the guy having to resist at every turn? You mean someone actually went that far? Damn, that's just... Ok, Saito has to be a God, cause even I-a mere mortal-would crumble in an instant.