User:TheEye
The Twelve Kingdoms Guide
The Twelve Kingdoms, written by Fuyumi Ono, is among my favorite works of fantasy. It's often thought of by fans as eastern fantasy's Lord of the Rings, and has rather amazing character development and world-building. Questions about the light novels and adapted anime are frequent enough that I wrote this guide to help people explore the Twelve Kingdoms world as much as possible.
Anime
The Twelve Kingdoms anime aired between 2002 and 2003, and consists of 45 episodes. Originally, 70 were planned, but the series went on hiatus to wait for additional novels and was later canceled. The episodes are split into four arcs, with each arc adapting a different novel. Two between-arc episodes are based instead on two short stories. See the novel table below for details.
Novels
There are currently eight released Twelve Kingdoms novels, two of which are actually short story collections, and one additional related novel from before the series began. All were published between 1991 and 2001, except the last short story collection, which was published in 2013 along with a republishing of the previous novels. Tokyopop released the first four novels in English before going out of business. (Note: The summaries below may contain anime spoilers.)
| Novel | Japanese Title | English Title(s) | Volumes | Anime Episodes | Summary | Official Translation | Fan Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Masho no Ko | Demon Child | 1 | 15 & 20 (partly) | Published before the Twelve Kingdoms series, chronicles Taiki's second time in Japan, as a high schooler. | Tu Shu Guan | |
| 1 | Tsuki no Kage, Kage no Umi | Sea of Shadow (official)
Shadow of the Moon, a Sea of Shadows (fan) |
2 (Japanese)
1 (English) |
1 - 14 | Keiki brings Youko to the Twelve Kingdoms to become empress/queen of Kei. | Amazon | Eugene Woodbury |
| 2 | Kaze no Umi, Meikyuu no Kishi | Sea of Wind (official)
Sea of the Wind, Shore of the Maze (fan) |
2 (Japanese)
1 (English) |
15 - 21 | Taiki is swept to the Twelve Kingdoms after growing up in Japan, learns about kirin, and selects the emperor/king of Tai. | Amazon | Tu Shu Guan |
| 3 | Higashi no Watatsumi, Nishi no Soukai | The Vast Spread of the Seas (official)
Poseidon of the East, Vast Blue Seas in the West (fan) |
1 (Both) | 41 - 45 | Shouryuu, chosen to be the emperor/king of En, must rescue Enki from kidnappers. | Amazon | Eugene Woodbury |
| 4 | Kaze no Banri, Reimei no Sora | Skies of Dawn (official)
A Thousand Leagues of Wind, the Sky at Dawn (fan) |
2 (Japanese)
1 (English) |
23 - 39 | Youko, after becoming empress/queen, joins with Suzu and Shoukei to fight corruption in Kei. | Amazon | Eugene Woodbury |
| 5 | Tonan no Tsubasa | The Wings of Dreams | 1 | Shushou becomes empress/queen of Kyou. | Eugene Woodbury | ||
| 6 | Tasogare no Kishi, Akatsuki no Sora | The Shore in Twilight, the Sky at Daybreak | 2 | Youko and Shouryuu join with a team from other kingdoms to attempt to return Taiki from Japan. | Eugene Woodbury | ||
| 7 | Kasho no Yume | Dreaming of Paradise | 1 | 22 & 40 | Five short stories: "Toei", "Jougetsu", "Shokan", "Kasho", "Kizan" | Eugene Woodbury | |
| 8 | Hisho no Tori | Hisho's Birds | 1 | Four short stories: "Hisho no Tori", "Rakushou no Goku", "Seijou no Ran", "Fuushin" | Eugene Woodbury |
Additional Materials
A short story, "Hyouhaku" ("Drifting Ship"), was published in the booklet of the anime soundtrack CD for the Higashi no Watatsumi, Nishi no Soukai arc. It remains unreleased elsewhere, but has been translated by o6asan.
Several spoken drama tracks have been released as part of the multiple anime soundtracks. An additional drama CD called "A Dream in Three Chapters" was released and contained three dramas ("Eight Kirin", "Sister Empresses", "Among Beasts"). Some of these dramas have been transcribed/translated or fansubbed. It is unknown if the dramas were written by Fuyumi Ono or anime staff.
