Twelve Kingdoms (Juuni Kokki) Discussion

First of all, if you haven't seen this anime, find a way to see it. Now. Seriously. Or Rydia will hunt you down. >__>; See the recommendation for it here!

For those of you who have seen it, you already know there's a lot to discuss. Out of sheer curiousity, has anyone read the book from which this anime is based on? Sadly, as far as I know that book was never reprinted in English, but if it is, someone let me know so I might buy it and read it 30 times.

There were a few loose ends and one rather large one, namely the Taiki arc. I've done a bit of research and found a forum where someone translated the text from the chapter of the book that contained Taiki's arc and its ending. If you haven't seen the series, I'd advise looking away although it doesn't matter -- there are so many terms and what not you probably wouldn't have a clue anyway.

Quote was taken from an amalgamation of posts on another forum.

Spoiler:

"The search for Taiki was conducted by 4 Kirins with the help of magical devices from Han and Ren. Renrin and Hanrin found traces of Taiki�s Shirei which lead them to Taiki. The overall mission leader was En-O.

When they found Taiki, they could not regard him as a Kirin and technically/legally, he could not be brought back to the 12 Kingdoms. There was a debate whether Taiki should be brought back and if yes, how this is going to be lawfully possible. You have to read the details to fully understand why En-O is possibly the only person who can fetch Taiki from Horai.

My sense was that Youko, after realizing the details of Taiki�s predicament did not firmly press for his return. she either asked questions or kept quiet. It was Han-O who firmly said that Taiki should be brought back regardless of whether he will be rejected by this world or otherwise.

Youko's role was that of a host to the search party. En-O requested for help from the 12 kingdoms and sent Enki to confer with the fairy on Mt Ho to make sure this collaborative effort did not violate heaven's rules. Youko accompanied Enki in this trip and clarified the boundaries in which the kingdoms can and cannot act. This whole Taiki incident was like a learning experience for Youko and Keiki. The author reminds us that Youko is only a teenager and Keiki is a young Kirin.

If not for Enki's quick thinking, Taiki would not have made it back -- dead or alive.

Taiki had his horn chopped off by Asen and that removed his mystical powers. Also, his parents were making him eat meat which his body regarded as a foreign substance. His shirei started to starve (they feed off of a Kirins life force) and went mad. This was slowly killing Taiki. When Keiki & co. finally found him, he was a mortal who was (outwardly) healthy but inside he was dying.

If they left him in Horai he would die soon. Bringing him back to Kei would also kill him because only Senin can pass through Shoku. I think they could not use the magic rope from Ren because he was no longer Senin. Basically, he would die no matter what they did, so why not bring him home. En-o temporarily placed him on the En registry as a refugee, then went to Horai to make Taiki a Senin and bring him through Shoku to Kei. From there Risai took him to Mt. Ho and the Goddess Saiobo (spelling) healed him, and said his horn will probably grow back in time.

Risai had to do a lot of begging because the Goddess didn't want to do it and questioned Risai's motives as personal instead of Tai-oriented. She takes away his Shirei (including Sanshe) because they are insane. She said she will cure them and they can return then. She took him back to Kei. When he was well enough to travel En-o removed him from the En registry and Risai and Taiki flew off into the sunset to search for Tai-O.

Taiki and Risai were unnerved by the attempted coup in Kei and decided they should leave - that they were being a burden and they had to get started finding Gyousou anyway. They left by flying above the sea of clouds, where there is no youma. Apparently, only the king is allowed to fly there usually? Not sure why.

Taiki and Youko were talking together when the rebellion stormed into Taiki's room and interrupted them. I'm not sure what they were talking about... couldn't realling understand it. There won't be any chance of relations until Gyousou is back and Tai is stable again."

So, that's apparently what happened to Taiki. If there are other loose ends or points to be discussed, please bring them up!

Jam it back in, in the dark.

It's been a while since I saw this. Was Taiki the guardian who grew up in Japan, came to the other world, and then returned to Japan later?

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i had the whole series in my computer and deleted lol.. didnt know it was going to be that interesting when i saw the first episode.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Fjordor

It's been a while since I saw this. Was Taiki the guardian who grew up in Japan, came to the other world, and then returned to Japan later?

Taiki was the Kirin with black hair. An airborne Shoku tore his fruit from the tree and he wound up in Japan for several years until Hanrin found him and Sanshi pulled him back. Fast-forward after he names Gyousou king and there you have the spoiler stuff.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

That's interesting. The Taiki arc was my favorite, but I wasn't aware that it had some plot holes. I also haven't had the chance to read the book.

I was speaking idiomatically.

So could you lead me to any BT links or is this series already "got the axe" (i.e. licensed)? I've seen this promoted somewhere on a Newtype mag like a year ago, can't say I know anything about it, though.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

It's been licensed. I know where you can get the entire series for about $40 though.

How ya doing, buddy?

I remember getting the series from boxtorrents last summer, so it may still be there.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

It is also on KickAssAnime.
I've been thinking about downloading it for a long time, but it's a 12Gb pack. Twelve Gigabytes is no joke, and since I have a lot of animes that I haven't watched, I'll probably keep pushing it foward.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

One of the best anime I've ever watched -- the character development is stellar.. and the writer has a lot to say about humans, and how they deal with the world.

So, let's start some plot discussion. What is your favorite moment in the series? =)

Spoiler:

Mine is definitely when Yoko stands up to the Demon Monkey, once and for all. It marks the turning point in her character development from insecure schoolgirl to regal queen, and shows how a person should stand up to his or her own doubts and insecurities (personified to Yoko by the Demon Monkey).

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I have two favorite moments in the series.

When Taiki arrives:

I really enjoyed the mood of these episodes. Taiki was very innocent and I found his curiosity with everything very cute. The seiyuu was perfect for this. But despite the relative innocence and joy after his arrival, I already knew that something would eventually happen to disturb the peace.

When Taiki was unable to bow:

I felt relieved when I found out it was just proof of his true loyalty. The scene very intense though.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Rydia

I have two favorite moments in the series.

When Taiki was unable to bow:

I felt relieved when I found out it was just proof of his true loyalty. The scene very intense though.

No doubt. It was a really intense moment waiting to see what was going to happen. I was shocked at how King En was acting -- didn't fit his personality at all.

Youko's Rebellion:

At first, I wasn't sure where this arc in the story was going to lead. Hindsight reveals to me that the seemingly unconnected Shoukei, Suzu, and Youko would eventually lead to one of the coolest rebellions ever.

Suzu makes it to Shoukou's town and watches her friend die, then joins a band of rebels to overthrow Shoukou along with Youko. I was really surprised that Youko kept her identity hidden for so long -- would've thought I lot of people would know what the sword Suiguu looked like. Shoukei, the former princess of Hou, joined up with another band who was playing to scare Gahou.

Through rather odd circumstances, the three of them ended up together which quite a large band of rebels and mercenaries and held back the provincial army of Wa. The best part was when Keiki bowed in front of Youko and everyone suddenly realized what was going on. Youko rode away on Keiki's back and demanded (you go girl) to know why the queen's private army was mobilized without her consent. The whole provincial army and royal army bowed and had that look of "Oh shit we're in trouble" on their faces. Good stuff.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by SouthJag

Youko's Rebellion:

At first, I wasn't sure where this arc in the story was going to lead. Hindsight reveals to me that the seemingly unconnected Shoukei, Suzu, and Youko would eventually lead to one of the coolest rebellions ever.

Suzu makes it to Shoukou's town and watches her friend die, then joins a band of rebels to overthrow Shoukou along with Youko. I was really surprised that Youko kept her identity hidden for so long -- would've thought I lot of people would know what the sword Suiguu looked like. Shoukei, the former princess of Hou, joined up with another band who was playing to scare Gahou.

Through rather odd circumstances, the three of them ended up together which quite a large band of rebels and mercenaries and held back the provincial army of Wa. The best part was when Keiki bowed in front of Youko and everyone suddenly realized what was going on. Youko rode away on Keiki's back and demanded (you go girl) to know why the queen's private army was mobilized without her consent. The whole provincial army and royal army bowed and had that look of "Oh shit we're in trouble" on their faces. Good stuff.

That was without a doubt my favorite part of the series.

Another of my favorites was when:

Spoiler:

Taiki basically defeated and captured that huge beast (I forgot all of the names of the creatures ;_; ) to save everyone

Also, I have about 6 of the DVD's, and have the rest of the episodes somewhere in my system, or backup discs, Spatula.

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Oh yeah! I forgot about Taiki's "little" victory. That was also really cool.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by SouthJag

Youko's Rebellion:

At first, I wasn't sure where this arc in the story was going to lead. Hindsight reveals to me that the seemingly unconnected Shoukei, Suzu, and Youko would eventually lead to one of the coolest rebellions ever.

Suzu makes it to Shoukou's town and watches her friend die, then joins a band of rebels to overthrow Shoukou along with Youko. I was really surprised that Youko kept her identity hidden for so long -- would've thought I lot of people would know what the sword Suiguu looked like. Shoukei, the former princess of Hou, joined up with another band who was playing to scare Gahou.

Through rather odd circumstances, the three of them ended up together which quite a large band of rebels and mercenaries and held back the provincial army of Wa. The best part was when Keiki bowed in front of Youko and everyone suddenly realized what was going on. Youko rode away on Keiki's back and demanded (you go girl) to know why the queen's private army was mobilized without her consent. The whole provincial army and royal army bowed and had that look of "Oh shit we're in trouble" on their faces. Good stuff.

Spoiler:

That last moment, when the truth is revealed, made my hair stand on end. It was awesome.

What I particularly liked about that chapter is that it focuses on how people handle the problems they have in their lives, and how each person is really in control of their own fates.

I like how the novelist makes a very strong case for personal responsibility in this chapter -- that there's no point in blaming other people for one's problems if she doesn't make an effort to make a better life for herself (Shoukei irrationally blaming Yoko for her problems, for example). Suzu's obsession with Yoko also showed that in the end, there's no point in putting all one's hopes into a single person, either.

I think both Shoukei and Suzu had too much self-pity in them -- it took a tragedy, in Suzu's case, to open her eyes up to that fact. It's really cool how their characters developed over this arc, to become really strong, self-assured people.

The uselessness of self-pity seems to be a recurring theme in the series, in general. It's wonderful that an anime can address themes like this with such maturity.. I think that's why I like this anime so much. =)

FELIPE NO

Agreed, Ginko. I was really impressed with the character growth of Youko, Suzu, and Shoukei, but also Keiki. It became obvious that Keiki had some growing up to do of his own, and he did that.

I was, dare I say, proud of Youko once the series ended. She came to the Twelve Kingdoms as a scared, confused high schooler, and turned into an intelligent, thoughtful queen. Her growth was very intriguing to watch.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

This series was interesting, as I didn't really "like" it until about episode 20 but something about it made me keep watching it, as if I could tell it was going somewhere.

It wasn't character development as I thought most of the characters sucked for the first story arc.

Spoiler:

Throughout most of the episodes in the first arc that Sugimoto appeared and/or talked in, I literally could not stop yelling at the screen "Why are you such a stupid, psychotic bitch?" at least once every episode. She's just a jerk who doesn't listen to reason or think for herself at all and I didn't think there was any valid explanation given for it.

Also when Youko was being driven crazy by the sword, I didn't buy it. I seriously did not get the whole "killing is awesome" thing she launched herself into.

It did get very interesting, even if it failed to tie up a lot of things.

Spoiler:

I did like how even when she became queen, the series managed to stay away from becoming anything romantic and focus on the difficulties she had to face and her dealing with them. And when her advisor is accused of being a traitor, takes her hostage, and then gets shot to death? That was definately when I knew things were getting pretty serious

As for some favorite moments, I'd have to agree with SouthJag about

Spoiler:

Youko's rebellion as even though I didn't like the other two girls as characters initially, it came together very masterfully. Episode 39 was my favorite episode, mainly because of the major pwnage Youko lays on the general and then her councilmen, the fact that all the loose ends get tied up, and just the ending when she makes her first decree and we fade into her Asano's grave to the incredibly powerful intro music.

I would love to find the novels this is based on, even if my Japanese had to get a lot better.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Well xanth, a little thing about Sugimoto...

Spoiler:

In the first couple of episodes, Youko saw her reading a novel that had a dragon illustration in it. If you assume that the book is something about mythology or more likely, fantasy-fiction, you can see that Sugimoto believes she's the one who belongs in the other world, not Nakajima.

She's basically really jealous that a creature from her fantasy novels, i.e. Keiki and the Youma that appeared and even the sword Suiguu, went to a girl like Youko whom Sugimoto felt didn't deserve any of it. That was her progression into envy.

Regarding Youko, I wonder why she kept the Minister of Law around. She was just as involved in the coup as Gahou, Shoukou, and the other Ministers. Granted, Youko did have a tighter leash on her, but still. She put the rest of them away.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Yeah, I got all of that when watching SouthJag, that reaction was just was too extreme for my tastes especially when reality kept smacking her in the face and didn't seem to have any effect on her.

Spoiler:

Agreed, you have to take into account the whole trauma of being trapped in a strange world, but even with jealousy, I'd see the character reacting more afraid of Youko and upset, maybe even angry. But not constantly filled with pointless bloodlust just because some king is telling her that going after an old friend will filfill her fantasy.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

In case anyone wanted it, here's the full OP song for Juuni Kokki. When I first heard it, I was surprised it wasn't the typical vocal opening, but was pleased nonetheless.

Junni Kokki - Junigenmukyoku (full version)

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Uoohh... arigatou ne. ^_^

I was speaking idiomatically.

Rydia, do you have the whole soundtrack? I made a request thread for it in Audio Requests, but no one's responded yet.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I do.

I also have the following:

Juuni Kokki OST
Kunihiko Ryo - 12 kokuki Yasougetsuka - Piano Memories - 2003 -
Kunihiko Ryo - 12 Kokuki Yomogi Yama Enkei - Kokyu Memories - 2003 -
Juuni Kokki - Single (ED) - Getu Mei Huu Ei & Zyuuni Genmu-Kyoku
Juuni Kokki Image OST Juuni Genmuemaki

FELIPE NO

If it's at all possible, would you consider placing that Juuni Kokki OST on YSI for a leech like me to latch onto it?

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

I will send you a PM this weekend then.

I actually found these soundtracks on boxtorrents a few months ago. I'm unsure if they're still there though.

Jam it back in, in the dark.