Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai

Dai (ダイ)

Voiced by: Toshiko Fujita (1991), Atsumi Tanezaki (2020)[3]

Twelve years old, Dai grew up as the only human on Dermline island. He gains some fame after defeating a group of fake heroes who had kidnapped his friend Gome and protecting Princess Leona from some assassins. When the Dark Lord Hadlar is resurrected, the previous hero, Avan, comes to help train him to be the next hero. Dai possesses the ability to gain super strength and a better control of magic when the emblem of the dragon appears on his forehead (or later in the manga on his hand), which is a mark of the Dragon Knight's lineage. Dai managed to learn the Earth and Wave Slashes with Avan, but had to acquire the Sky Slash on his own. Notably, Dai can infuse his weapon with magic (Zap or Sizz) to create more powerful sword techniques, such as Flaming Earth Slash. He can do the same thing with his Draconic Aura, but ordinary weapons cannot take the strain; Hyunckel's Demon Magic Sword breaks after Dai performs a crest-assisted Avan Strash. To suit this ability, Dai acquires an orichalcum sword from the legendary swordsmith Lon Berk, which can take the pressure.

Popp (ポップ, Popu)

Voiced by: Keiichi Nanba (1991), Toshiyuki Toyonaga (2020)[3]

The son of the weapons merchant Junk, fifteen-year-old Popp (ポップ, Popu) left his home in Lankarks village and decided to become an apprentice of Avan, training to become a magician. Coward and lazy at first, he slowly changes for the better after befriending Dai and the others. He is a specialist in fire spells, mainly those of the Sizz type, but as the story progresses he learns more powerful spells such as a gravity pressure attack. He can use Kamikazee and Crack type spells as well. Later on in the series, Popp becomes a Sage, one of the highest class of magicians who can use both attack and healing spells. Throughout the series, Pop uses various weapons, but later on in the series he acquires a staff from Lon Berk with the same power that rivals Vearn's staff, the ability to turn magic power into attack power, along with his signature spell, Frizz Cracker (メドローア, Medoroa), after training with Matoriv. In addition to this, Pop's staff can transform to any shape.

Maam (マァム, Maamu)

Voiced by: Miina Tominaga (1991), Mikako Komatsu (2020)[3]

Sixteen years old, Maamu is the daughter of Leyra and Loca, the priestess and warrior who helped Avan in the original fight against Hadlar. Maam trained under Avan and is proficient with healing spells (such as Heal), but never could successfully learn any offensive ones. Avan gave her a magical gun that shoots magic spells, which helped her compensate for her lack of expertise with any of the other schools of magic. When the gun gets destroyed she decides to change to another class, fighter, and temporarily leaves the party to train under Brokeena, known as the God of Martial Arts. Under Brokeena, Maam learns one of her ultimate techniques: the refractor fist, an attack that mimics excess use of Mahoimi, which results in the degradation of the opponent's body. Later on in the series, Maam acquires a transforming armor weapon from Lon Berk, which allows her to increase the destructive power of her techniques.

Hyunckel (ヒュンケル, Hyunkeru)

Voiced by: Hideyuki Hori (1991), Yūki Kaji (2020)[3]

Twenty-one years old, Hyunkeru was raised by monsters after his parents were killed in a monster attack. When Avan killed Hadlar and Hyunckel finds his adoptive father dead, he secretly holds a grudge against Avan, whom he believes killed his father. Hyunckel then becomes Avan's first pupil but, after graduating, unsuccessfully tried to kill his teacher with a technique he invented himself, Bloody Scraid. He was then taken in by Myst-Vearn who brought him up to become General of the Immortal Army, one of the six main armies under Hadlar and Vearn's control, known as "Leader of the Undead Knights Hyunckel". After discovering that Hadlar had killed his adopted father instead of Avan, he joins Dai's party. Hyunckel originally used a demon magic sword that could transform into armor (Amudo), but it is broken when Dai fought Baran. Thereafter, Hyunckel has been using a spear with the same properties and created by the same person. Hyunckel can use all the basic Avan techniques also in addition to Demon Puppet Grab. Due to changing his weapon from a sword to a spear, he had to learn Avan's elemental techniques for spears.

Leona (レオナ, Reona)

Voiced by: Aya Hisakawa (1991), Saori Hayami (2020)[3]

Fourteen years old, Leona is the princess of Papnica. She is training to be a sage and is well-versed in the magic arts. Her country comes to near destruction after the return of Hadlar by the hands of Hyunckel, whom she forgives and sentences to become a "true disciple of Avan". Her father is missing and presumed dead, leaving her in control of rebuilding her kingdom and helping in the fight against the Ultimate Demon King. She is friends with Dai, although it is hinted Dai feels something more for her. Leona is proficient in both Sizz-type spells and Crack-type spells; however she is best at healing spells such as Fullheal, which she uses effectively in the fight against Baran. Despite she was never a student by Avan's, later on in the series, she becomes an official member of Avan's disciples when she inherits the 5th mark of Avan from the Queen of Carl, Flora.

Avan De Zinuar III (アバン＝デ＝ジニュアール3世, Aban De Jiniuaaru Sansei)

Voiced by: Hideyuki Tanaka (1991), Takahiro Sakurai (2020)[3]

Thirty-one years old, Avan was the previous hero who defeated the Demon King Hadlar. When he was younger, he befriended princess Flora, the ruler of the kingdom of Carl, and Loca, the general of Carl's army. He usually spent time goofing around while wearing thick glasses to hide his true power from everyone. When Hadlar tried to murder Flora, Avan decided not to hide anymore and protected her and the whole kingdom from the Demon King. After temporarily defeating him, he embarks on a journey with Loca where he would meet with Leyra, Maam's mother, and Matoriv, a powerful magician to finish off Hadlar for good. After their victory, he decided to become a trainer for a future generation of heroes. When Hadlar is resurrected and comes to defeat him, Avan casts the self-sacrifice spell Kamikazee to protect Dai, Brass and Popp. It is later revealed that Avan had worn a protective talisman (given to him by Flora) that saved his life from the effects of Kamikazee by taking the damage on his behalf. Having survived, he then chose to level up to be of more use to Dai and his other students in their fight against Vearn.

Gome (ゴメ, Gome)

Voiced by: Yumi Touma (1991), Ai Furihata (2020)[4]

Gome, also known as "Gomechan", is a one-of-a-kind creature, a Golden Metal Slime. Dai's first friend, Gome is immune to the Dark Lord's influence unlike other monsters, thus he leaves the island with Dai to accompany him in his adventures. Capable of producing small miracles throughout the story that help Dai and his friends, in the end it is revealed that Gome is a wish-granting item created by God to help pure-hearted people.

Crocodine (クロコダイン, Kurokodain)

Voiced by: Banjou Ginga (1991), Tomoaki Maeno (2020)[5]

Thirty years old, Crocodine is a massive anthropomorphic crocodile who used to be the known as "Beast King Crocodine", general of the Hundred Beasts Army. After having been defeated by Dai and Popp's teamwork, he is inspired by Popp's courage and joins the party. He has many beasts still under his control, despite Hadlar's influence throughout the world. He has a powerful weapon called the "Void Axe", which allows him to cast Whoosh, one of the two wind spells available. He later acquires an even more powerful axe from the legendary swordsmith Lon Berk when the Void Axe is destroyed in the first fight with Vearn.

Brass (ブラス)

Voiced by: Junpei Takiguchi (1991 film), Isamu Tanonaka (1991), Kenichi Ogata (2020)

Brass is Dai's adoptive grandfather. It is a monster that belonged to The Demon Lord's Army but, after Hadlar died, lived in peace along with the other surviving monsters on the island of Dermurin. He picked up Dai from a shipwreck that came to the island when he was a child and raised him. He is unable to leave the island due to the influence of The Dark King Vearn, as he would turn into an evil monster by leaving the magic barrier that Avan created. He participated against his will in Crocodine's fight against Dai. He would be rescued from this trap by Pop and return to the island.

Matoriv (マトリフ, Matorifu)

Voiced by: Shin Aomori (1991), Kazuhiro Yamaji (2020)

Matoriv is a lecherous old sorcerer and a former member of Avan's party. Reluctantly he agrees to help the heroes again and trains Popp for a while.

Lon Berk (ロンベルク, Ron Beruku)

Lon Berk is a darkling and the world's best blacksmith.

The Dark Lord Hadlar's army was created by the Demon Lord Vearn to conquer the surface world of humans and is split into six different regiments to maintain control over their vast numbers. Every group is focused on conquest with the exception of the Sorcerer Regiment, which dedicates itself more with studies and experiments to help further the Dark Lord's plans:

• Hundred Beast Regiment: Composed of animal, plant, insect and other common monsters, led by Crocodine.
• The Undead Knights Regiment: Composed of skeletons, zombies, and other undead monsters, led by Hyunckel.
• Ice and Fire Demon Regiment: Composed of monsters with elemental properties, led by Flazzard.
• Sorcerer Regiment: Composed of monsters skilled with magic, led by Zaboera.
• Super Dragon Regiment: Composed of dragons and other giant monsters, it is considered the strongest of the six regiments, led by Baran.
• Shadow Regiment: Composed of shadow attackers who fight without revealing their form, animated by a soul they received from the demon lord, led by Myst-Vearn.

Hadlar (ハドラー, Hadorā)

Voiced by: Takeshi Aono (1991), Tomokazu Seki (2020)[5]

357 years old, the leader of the Great Demon King's Army. Hadlar was the previous Dark Lord until he was defeated by Avan. Hadlar was resurrected by the Great Demon Lord Vearn, and thus turned to serving him. Two of Hadlar's strongest spells are Kaboom and Kasizzle, the highest level spell of the two respective types. After Hadlar was killed by Avan, Vearn resurrected him into a stronger body that could be revived countless times by Vearn's magic, with each revival increasing his power. This body proved to be too weak in the face of Dai and his companions, so Hadlar uses Zaboera to transform him into a hyper demon, which allows him to acquire a massive increase in power and gives him regenerative properties. When Hadlar uses this newfound power to defeat Dai, Vearn rewards him by giving him 5 Orhicalcum chess pieces, which Hadlar uses forbidden magic on to create his Orhicalcum Royal Guard warriors. Hadlar was killed when his body was too damaged to regenerate anymore after his final fight with Dai, and turned into dust.

The Dark King Vearn (大魔王バーン, Daimaō Bān)

Voiced by: Kenji Utsumi (1991), Takaya Hashi (2020)[5]

The Dark King Vearn is the supreme leader of the Dark Army and the main antagonist of the series who calls himself the god of the Darklings. Vearn hates that the gods gave humans the surface world to live while the Darklings have to live without the sun. Thus his goal is to blast away the surface using a hexagonal Black Core explosion field to both rid the world of weak humans while also giving the sun to the Darklings. Near the end of the manga, it was revealed that in order to achieve immortality, Vearn separated his body into two parts. The body he directly controls retains the intelligence and magic power, while the body that was given to Myst retained his physical strength. The second body became Myst-Vearn. Vearn used his great magic power to use the spell of Frozen Time on Myst-Vearn. As Myst is a unique case of being able to manipulate a body that is affected by that spell, Myst-Vearn's body effectively acquired immortality, while Vearn's body, while growing in intelligence and magic power, kept aging. After being defeated by Dai, Vearn decided to restore his original body and became more powerful than ever. He was defeated again with great difficulty by Dai and turned into stone. Vearn has the ability to cast almost every type of magic available, including one of his strongest types: Frizz-type magic (his Frizz is stronger than Popp's Kafrizzle). Because Vearn can also cast healing spells, he is considered a Sage class, one of the highest class of magicians. Vearn also had a staff given to him by Lon Berk, which can turn magic power into physical attack power, though it eats power at an immense rate. Vearn's most powerful attacks are a phoenix-shaped Kafrizzle, Kaiser Phoenix, a palm heel strike with touki that can repel or reflect attacks and spells called Phoenix Wing, a touki hand chop that is as sharp and deadly as Dai's sword, called Calamity End, Calamity Wall, a wall of rushing energy created by either his legendary staff or his barehand, and finally, the Tenchi-Madou, an ultimate counter move that unleashes Kaiser Phoenix, Phoenix Wing, and Calamity End simultaneously.

Flazzard (フレイザード, Fureizādo)

Voiced by: Ken Yamaguchi (1991), Tōru Nara (2020)[5]

Flazzard was created by Hadlar using forbidden magic. His body is a combination of fire and ice and he can uses both elements to attack. Flazzard cares only for glory and winning, doing whatever to achieve it and taking no interest in fair fights. Because he was created and not born like other beings he takes to living in the moment since he feels a long life without glory is meaningless. He was killed by Myst-Vearn after failing to defeat Dai.

Zaboera (ザボエラ, Zaboera)

Voiced by: Naoki Tatsuta (1991), Mitsuo Iwata (2020)[5]

About 800 years old, Zaboera is small and highly intelligent, relying on trickery to get what he wants. He does not care for anybody and regards everyone as his tools, including his son Zamza, who he used to acquire essential information on the development of hyper demons. He has his troops fight for him since he does not like to get his hands dirty. He hides in the shadows and will claim anyone's accomplishments as his own if it helps further his plans. He can cast Thwack, which can cause instant death to a group of opponents, and Morph, which can assume the form of anyone. He also has poison related arsenals. He was killed by Crocodine in one of the last battles in the series.

Baran (バラン, Baran)

Voiced by: Unshou Ishizuka (1991), Show Hayami (2020)[5]

The commander of the Super Dragon Brigade and Dai's biological father, Baran is a fierce fighter with strong morals. He is the true Dragon Knight of the era and in his youth he defeated Velther. After the fight he was mortally wounded and would have died if not for the help of Soara, the princess of Alkeed who nursed him back to health. The two fell in love, but when her father the king discovered that Baran was not human he was thrown out of the castle (after being accused of being a follower of a demon) only to be followed by Soara, who announced to him that she was pregnant. Some months later, Baran and Soara lived happy and without concerns, taking care of baby Dai (whom they named Dino). When the king found the two, Baran voluntarily gave himself up to protect his wife and child. He was brought back to Alkeed and sentenced to death. When Baran was to be executed with fire spells, Soara jumped in the way to protect him and was fatally wounded. Soara's father claimed her to be a disgrace, and in a rage Baran destroyed the entire kingdom of Alkeed. He then desperately tried to search for his son but was unable to find Dai. Having lost his wife and his child by the hands of humans, whom he was tasked to protect, he decided that all humans should be exterminated. He was later reunited with Dai as enemies. Upon seeing Dai's dragon knight symbol, he realized that he is his son and wipes Dai's memories. He tried to persuade Dai to join him but Dai refused to believe he is Baran's son. Popp sacrifices himself to return Dai's memories during the second time they fight, but fails to scratch Baran with Kamikazee. Later, Baran joins with Dai to fight against Vearn but is killed when he shields Dai from the explosion of a Black Core Crystal when fighting Hadlar. Baran has a high mastery of his crest and can transform into a Ryuumajin, the ultimate form of a Dragon Knight, which is a combination of a demon, human, and dragon. In this form, he is unable to discern between friend and foe until everything is dead. He also has Giga Break (a powerful move utilizing the ultimate electricity spell, Kazap ("Gigadein" in Japan), and his legendary sword, the Demon Dragon Blade), Zap-type magic, and Draconic Aura. Baran's ultimate spell is Draura (Dragon Touki Cannon). This spell channels Draconic Aura into a cannon blast that can annihilate a whole country, and can only be used in his Ryuumajin form.

Myst-Vearn (ミストバーン, Misutobān)

Voiced by: Keiichi Nanba (1991), Takehito Koyasu (2020)[5]

One of the Commanders of the Great Demon King Vearn's army, Myst-Vearn was Hyunckel's evil teacher. In one of the twists near the end of the manga it is revealed that Myst-Vearn is really a ghost-like being inhabiting one half of Vearn's body while at the same time protecting it. While he has no physical fighting ability of any kind in his true form, he has the ability to possess anyone and turn them into his puppet (Shadow Puppet Grab). He is possibly one of the oldest creatures to exist. Was killed in Hyunckel's body during an attempt to possess him.

Kill-Vearn (キルバーン, Kirubān)

Voiced by: Hideyuki Tanaka (1991), Hiroyuki Yoshino (2020)

Called the shinigami, Kill-Vearn (キルバーン, Kirubān) is an assassin whose task is to dispose of members of the Great Demon King's Army that have betrayed Vearn. He is accompanied by his small helper Piroro. In the end it is revealed that Kill-Vearn was actually working for Vearn's rival, Velther. His job was to kill Vearn once he had a chance. It is also found out that Kill-Vearn is just Piroro's mechanical puppet, and that behind Kill-Vearn's mask is a Black Core. Piroro was killed by Maam while the Kill-Vearn puppet was destroyed in the Black Core explosion triggered by Piroro.

Hadlar's Guardian Knights

The personal bodyguards of Hadlar Leader of the Demon Lords army. Hadlar created them from chess pieces made of orihalcon provided by Vearn to replace the defeated leaders of the six regiments. Since they were created like Flazzard their core must be destroyed in order to defeat them, which is located in the left chest just like a human's heart and can only be damaged by something also made of orihalcon.

• Pawn Warrior Hym - Since he was created from a pawn piece he fully understands that there will always be someone better than him. He, like the rest of the knights, fight fairly and praises worthy fighters. He mostly seems to live by the concept of "an eye for an eye" since he said he would not be satisfied until he punched a hole in Hyunckel's forehead as Hyunckel had pierced a hole in his. He had his own arm cut off after it became limp since he believed it would become a distraction during a fight, and has shown that he is a bit of a hot head getting lost in the heat of battle and not wanting to stop even if it was not his prime objective. He is an expert in mera (fire) spells but only uses them to increase the power of his fists. In the final part of the story, Hym discovers he actually is the reincarnation of his master, acquiring Hadlar's silver hair and the ability to generate Touki as an organic being.
• Knight Warrior Sigma - He has the Mirror of Shahal on his chest. This object can repel enemy spells and Sigma can also use as a shield. With his horse legs he has the highest speed and jumping ability of the group, which also allows him to perform a double jump in any eight directions. He attacks using a lance. He is also very perceptive to the point of pointing out the flaw in any action someone may take against Hadlar. Sigma was killed by Pop.
• Bishop Warrior Fenbren - He calls himself the perfect hunter because his body is made of eight bladed sections. He has mastered all bagi (wind) type spells. He is unlike the rest of the knights since he himself stated that he is cruel in battle. He can use his sword arms as drills to tunnel underground to avoid attacks but he will not use it to attack from behind. He lost his eyes when Baran attacked him but afterwards he gained the ability to sense where his enemies and other objects of orihalcon are. He was cut in half by Dai while guarding the underwater door to the Demon Lord.
• Rook Warrior Block - The physically strongest of the group, with strength surpassing Crocodine's, he can't fully speak so he relies on the others to speak for him (the only thing he can say is "buroom"). To protect his fellow knights he threw himself over them to take a powerful magic attack. His one technique comes from the castling move in chess which causes him to split in two revealing a more human body underneath that can quickly switch places with the king (Hadlar). The one time he used this move was to save Hadlar from Vearn before transporting Hadlar and his fellow knights to safety but not before saying his first and last words "Everyone take care of Hadlar-sama".
• Queen Warrior Albinass - Albinass is who coordinates the group's attacks, acting as the group's voice of reason and reminding them that they fight for Hadlar. While she is considered the only female of the group she has stated that the group members have no gender and that each is powerful in they own way. She treats every battle as a game of chess, going as far as calling those fighting "pieces". She attacks using needles (called Needle Thousand) which are hard to dodge since they cover a very large area; the only flaw is that Albinass cannot or does not move when using it, making her a sitting duck for anyone lucky enough to escape her attack. She normally keeps her arms and legs sealed under her metallic cloak but when she does use them her speed and strength increase dramatically. Additionally with her arms unsealed she uses her magic in a compressed ball (called Thousand Ball) for more precise attacks in place of her normally wide range needle attack. Her loyalty to Hadlar is second to none, even to the point of being mistaken for loving devotion. Albinass was killed by Maam.

Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai is written by Riku Sanjo and illustrated by Koji Inada. A short story Derupa! Iruiru! (デルパ!イルイル!) was first released in the 25th and 26th issues of Weekly Shōnen Jump in 1989.[6][7] Issues 35–37 included the short story Dai Bakuhatsu!! (ダイ爆発!!!).[8][9][10] The serialization of The Adventure of Dai began that same year in the 45th issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump, published on October 23.[11] It continued on for seven years before ending in the 52nd issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump on December 9, 1996.[12] The manga was collected into 37 tankōbon volumes published between March 9, 1990 and June 4, 1997.[13][14] It was later released in 22 bunkobon volumes published from June 18, 2003 to March 18, 2004.[15][16] A 25-volume edition that includes the color pages from its original magazine run and newly drawn covers by Inada will be published between October 2, 2020 and July 2, 2021.[17]

A prequel manga series illustrated by Yūsaku Shibata, with Sanjo credited for original work, began serializing in Shueisha's V Jump manga magazine in the November issue on September 19, 2020.[18][19] The series is centered around Avan before he met Dai and his companions.

A spin-off manga written and illustrated by Yoshikazu Amami, titled Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai - Cross Blade, launched in the November issue of Shueisha's Saikyō Jump manga magazine on October 1, 2020.[18]

Produced by Toei Animation, the anime adaptation of Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai aired for 46 episodes on TBS from October 17, 1991 to September 24, 1992. Despite no official Japanese DVD release, the show reran in 2007 on Toei's channel with a new master.[55] The series uses two pieces of theme music, both composed by Koichi Sugiyama and performed by Jirou Dan. "Hurry, Heroes!!" (勇者よ急げ!!, Yūsha yo Isoge!!) is used for the opening theme, while "This Road is My Journey" (この道わが旅, Kono Michi Waga Tabi), which was the original ending theme for Dragon Quest II, is used for the episodes' ending theme.[56] The series adapts the events of the first 10 volumes of the manga, with initial plans to continue onward until scheduling and time slot changes at TBS lead to the series ending after 46 episodes. To accommodate the abrupt ending, Sanjo helped to provide an adjusted finale to the anime. [57]

On January 6, 2020, the whole series was released in Japan for distribution on several video on demand (VOD) services, the first time the series has become officially available after the VHS release of the 1990s. In March 2020 it was announced that the 1991 anime will be getting a Blu-ray Box for the first time, released on July 3, 2020. The set contained all 46 episodes, and the 3 Jump Festa short anime films, (including the first film never before released on home video) which have been scanned from their original 35 mm negatives with high resolution and recorded as high-quality full HD remastered images.[58][59]

It was announced during Jump Festa 2020 that there would be a new anime adaptation that would premiere in fall 2020. The anime is produced by Toei Animation and is a hybrid of 2D and CG animation.[61] The series premiered on TV Tokyo and other affiliates on October 3, 2020. The band Macaroni Enpitsu will perform the series' opening theme song "Ikiru o Suru".[62][63] Muse Communication licensed the second series in Southeast Asia.[64] Toei simulcasts the series with English subtitles in North America, Latin America, New Zealand, Africa, the Middle East and Europe via Crunchyroll, as well as Hulu in the United States and Anime Digital Network in France.

Three theatrical movies were produced based on the first TV series, all of which premiered at the Toei Anime Fair film festival.

During Jump Festa '20, a video game based on the series has been announced.[69]

Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai - Xross Blade, an all-new arcade game with collectible trading cards will release on Japanese arcades in 2020.[70]

Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai - Tamashii no Kizuna, a smartphone RPG for iOS/Android is in development, and will release in Japan in 2021.[71]

Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai - Infinity Strash, an action RPG for an unannounced console, and a 2021 release.[72]

Dai appears as a playable character in the 2019 video game Jump Force, marking the first appearance of a Dragon Quest character in a Weekly Shōnen Jump crossover game.[73]