Movies - Vampire Hunter D

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	Movies - Vampire Hunter D

Vampire Hunter D (吸血鬼ハンターD) is the title character and brainchild of Japanese horror and pulp author Hideyuki Kikuchi.

Beginning in 1983, Kikuchi has so far written 17 "D" novels, illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano. The first and third books were adapted into popular anime movies licensed by Urban Vision, becoming cult classics in the U.S.; the first three novels are now available in English from the prose division of Dark Horse Comics, with three more scheduled for release. At least two art books, a survival-horror video game, Japanese radio dramas and various other official (as well as fan-based) memorabilia exist based upon the Vampire Hunter D series.

Plot

D, a sort of lonely knight-errant, wanders through a far-future post-nuclear Earth that combines the best of pulp genres: western, science fiction, horror and high fantasy with a good dash of Lovecraftian mythos, folklore and occult science. The planet, once terrified by the elegant but cruel Nobles (vampires), ancient demons, mutants and their technological creations, is now slowly returning to a semblance of order and human control — thanks partly to the decadence that brought about the vampires' downfall as a race, to the continued stubbornness of frontier dwellers and the rise of a caste of independent hunters-for-hire who eliminate supernatural threats.

As a dhampir (mistranslated in the films first as dampeal, and later as dunpeal) or half-breed child of a vampire (Noble) father and human (peasant) mother, D makes the ideal vampire hunter. He is renowned for his consummate skill and unearthly grace, but feared and despised for his mixed lineage: born of both races but belonging to neither. Often underestimated by his opponents, D has surprising power and resourcefulness, possessing most of the strengths and only mild levels of vampiric weaknesses. Unlike most dhampirs, D is able to live as a "normal" human, though marked by his extremely pale skin, and rarely accepted by humans. His only notable weaknesses are that he is, while not unfeeling, emotionally remote and will die if pierced through the heart by a wooden stake. He is also (far more rarely than other dhampirs) randomly susceptible to sun-sickness, a severe type of sunstroke, about once every five years. Otherwise, D does not suffer from vampiric weaknesses usual to dhampires, posessing an imposing supernatural aura to his opponents and godlike reflexes surpassing even vampires.

D is the host for a sentient symbiot, Left Hand, a wise-cracking shrivelled old face residing in his left palm, who can suck in massive amounts of matter through a wind void or vacuum tunnel. Left Hand enjoys needling the poker-faced D, but only appears as needed, rarely witnessed or heard by anyone other than D, yet aware of many of D's thoughts and actions. At all other times, D's left hand appears normal. Besides providing a contrast to D's reserved demeanor, Left Hand is incredibly useful, possessing many mysterious powers such as psychometry, inducing sleep, determining the medical condition of a victim, and the ability to size up the supernatural powers or prowess of an enemy, even beyond D's keen senses. Left Hand has its own mind and will, and acts as D's guide and sole permanent companion, providing a reservoir of knowledge pertaining to the lost Noble culture. So far, Left Hand's origins are unknown, and it is unclear how they came to be joined, howevever, some of its nature is revealed in the third book, which features a similar creature.

D rides a cybernetic horse with mechanical legs and other enhancements, wields a long-bladed sword and always wears a mystical blue pendant. The pendant cancels many automatic defenses, such as laser fields and small nuclear blasts, produced by Vampire technology, and will allow him to enter their sealed castles. In the novels and game, he also uses wooden needles which he can throw with super speed. He protects his milk-white face from the noonday sun with long black hair, flowing black clothing and cape, and the shadow of a wide-brimmed hat. Though he appears to be only 17 or 18, D is in fact several thousand years old, and his beauty is mesmerizing.

Very little is known of D's mother, or his past. However, the Vampires whisper dark rumours about the Sacred Ancestor, Count Dracula, and a human...

Dracula's role in the novels is very mixed, appearing both as bane and savior to isolated towns, and as an ancestral god-king to the vampires, many of whom never even met him. D is granted some respect by those who recognize his birth, known to Left Hand, even though he himself refuses to acknowledge it, and quotes his father's precepts in the first novel. Dracula appears both as a lawgiver honored for his intelligence, who showed some interest in preserving humans, and as a ruthless scientist in the second novel, conducting hybrid breeding experiments with humans in order to perpetuate his own dwindling species. Like D, he is also a mysterious and handsome young wanderer, who deals out both life and death.

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