Hellsing (anime)

Hellsing Cast and Characters Gallery

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In the name of God, impure souls of the living dead shall be banished into eternal damnation. Amen.

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Information
First released (Japanese)	October 10, 2001
First released (English)	October 4, 2003
Director(s)	Umanosuke Iida (chief) Yasunori Urata
Writer(s)	Chiaki J. Konaka (eps 1-6, 8-9, 11-3) Yuuji Hosono (eps 7, 10)
Character Designer(s)	Toshiharu Murata
Composer(s)	Yasushi Ishii
Studio	Gonzo
Streaming	Hulu Crunchyroll Netflix Amazon Prime

Hellsing (ヘルシング,, Herushingu) refers to the made-for-television anime based upon a manga by the same name created by Kohta Hirano.

It was first broadcast in Japan on Fuji Television from October 10, 2001, to January 16, 2002, and ran in the United States from October 4, 2003, to December 27, 2003, on Starz's Encore Action cable channel. It finished at thirteen episodes long. The series was directed by Yasunori Urata under the chief direction of Umanosuke Iida from a screenplay by Chiaki J. Konaka and animated by studio Gonzo.

The anime follows a different storyline, especially towards the end, but with the same protagonists and main characters. Following the announcement that Funimation would be unified under the Crunchyroll brand, both Hellsing and Hellsing: Ultimate were moved to the platform in 2022.

Summary

Main article: Hellsing (anime)/Cast and Characters

Within the dark and misty city of London, filled with smoke and mystery crawling in the darkest and deepest pits of the city, supernatural creatures are present. To combat this, the late King of England created a small branch of Vampire Hunters called "Hellsing" led by Abraham Van Helsing himself. Decades after the defeat of Dracula, in 1999, the Organisation is led by Van Helsing's descendant, Sir Integral Wingates Hellsing. During this time, its discovered that the vampires nowadays are created using a chip implanted onto their body dubbed "FREAK Chip." Multiple investigations started but all of them results in a fail, that is until the sudden appearance of its creator in the island of England, seeking to bring ruins to all that is.

Central Characters

• Seras Victoria: Seras was a member of the D11 elite police response unit until she was mortally wounded by Alucard in his destruction of a vampire masquerading as a priest. On the verge of death, she chose to allow Alucard to turn her into a vampire. Serving beneath Alucard, she now works for the Hellsing Organisation and deals with the consequences of her decision.
• Alucard: Alucard is a mysterious figure. A supernatural vampire of untold age and power, he acts as the Hellsing Organisation's secret weapon. His reasons for doing so, however, as well as his motivations, remains unknown. His position within the Hellsing Organisation is one of unique status. He is the Hellsing's ace in the hole, answerable only to the Organisation's Chairman.

Episodes

*Episode are referred to as "Orders."

Order #	Title	Release Date

01	The Undead	October 10, 2001
	Integra Hellsing takes command of a small Hellsing unit in Cheddar after hearing reports of people in the village going missing. After D11 teams were deployed to investigate but resulted in several deaths, Alucard is deployed. Seras Victoria, a female D11 operator, is forced to fight her ex-D11 colleagues that are now turned into Ghouls while trying to find shelter. Eventually, she finds a church with a lone Vicar inside who at first appears to be friendly but later reveals himself to be the vampire behind the attack. Alucard soon enters the church and is able to eliminate the ghouls and the Vicar controlling them. However, Seras is critically wounded in the gunfight, and Alucard decides to turn her into a vampire to save her life.

02	Club M	October 17, 2001
	Seras Victoria struggles to realize that her former life as a D-11 officer doesn't exist and that she is now a vampire. However, her thoughts are interrupted as she, Alucard and a unit of Hellsing commandos are deployed to track down and kill two vampire teenagers who murder families with small guns, drinking the blood and using it to write heretical messages. Seras has a crisis of conscience when she is ordered to kill one of the two teenage culprits.

03	Sword Dancer	October 24, 2001
	Hellsing Intelligence has reported that a mysterious computer chip implanted on a human allows them to be artificially turned into vampires. A foreign college student, already deceased, comes back alive after having the chip removed. After armed policemen were killed in the morgue, Seras goes along with a Hellsing paramilitary squad to take him out. A Vatican-based priest named Alexander Anderson appears at the scene and murders the entire unit and incapacitates Seras before Alucard comes to her rescue and fights Anderson.

04	Innocent as a Human	October 31, 2001
	The episode begins with a film featuring a man being killed on-screen by a vampire. It has a Hellsing soldier in the background, forcing Integra to deploy Hellsing and Seras to investigate the film and find out who is responsible for broadcasting the film and end further broadcasting before the broadcasters would reveal the true name of the Hellsing Organisation.

05	Brotherhood	November 7, 2001
	Seras and a team of Hellsing commandos raid a warehouse district after reports of a supposed cult emerges, with a dead vampire and a bomb trap set to wear out some of their manpower. Integra attends a covert meeting with a secretive government organization known as the Round Table when two vampire brothers named Luke and Jan Valentine launch a surprise attack on the Hellsing mansion with a large ghoul army armed with guns and riot Shields. As they overwhelm the mansion, Hellsing's soldiers, along with Alucard, Seras, and Walter C. Dornez, fight off the vampires' hordes.

06	Dead Zone	November 14, 2001
	Alucard, Seras and Walter C. Dornez continue their battle against the Valentine Brothers and their ghoul army. However, the deceased Hellsing commandos rise as ghouls to add to the enemies' ranks. Luke fights Alucard, with Alucard emerging victorious. As Seras and Walter continue to eliminate the other ghoul soldiers, Jan faces Integra Hellsing and the Round Table but decides to commit suicide after Integra shoots him with mercury-filled bullets.

07	Duel	November 21, 2001
	Integra attends the funeral of her deceased Hellsing commando subordinates after being forced to euthanize the dying Hellsing commando ghouls. As she and Walter try to figure out how to increase their manpower, Integra is invited by Enrico Maxwell to see her in a museum. Meanwhile, Seras Victoria and a Hellsing squad led by Mason Fox engage in battle against a vampire who turns the civilians in the London Underground into ghouls to hold them off. Anderson appears again and kills off the vampire and several Hellsing soldiers until Alucard intervenes.

08	Kill House	November 28, 2001
	A Hong Kong factory producing the chips dubbed as FREAK Chips was destroyed after Royal Hong Kong Police officers raided it. In order to maintain the manpower of Hellsing, Integra Hellsing and Walter C. Dornez are forced to train new recruits from non-British special forces personnel to handle the issue of the FREAK vampires instead of recruiting from British Special Units such as the SAS and D-11. Seras and Harry Anders, an agent of MI-5, investigate the rise of cases involving FREAK vampires on their own, introducing Seras to the Vampire Helena. After they leave, Harry Anders' car explodes.

09	Red Rose Vertigo	December 5, 2001
	During the middle of a Hellsing raid on a castle, the SAS's 22nd Regiment arrives in their Counter Revolutionary Warfare (CRW) gear and orders them to pull back. The SAS squads in the castle are later converted into FREAK monsters by an unknown party. Meanwhile, Alucard begins to track the Vampire Incognito. Shortly after, Integra's "sister" Laura arrives, but Seras cannot shake the feeling that something is wrong.

10	Master of Monster	December 12, 2001
	Integra collapses after stabbing herself to prevent herself from being turned into a vampire and is rushed to hospital. During the operation to save her life, Alucard tells a concerned Seras to learn from 'Their Master', causing her discomfort. While Integra is being operated on, she recalls the events following her assuming command of the Hellsing Organisation and her initial encounter with Alucard following her Uncle's attempt on her life. She awakens to find Alucard standing over her, addressing her as his master.

11	Transcend Force	December 19, 2001
	Integra Hellsing receives word that the Queen of England intends to attend the next meeting of the Round Table Conference. In order to provide a false lead for their enemies, she gives the order for Hellsing commandos to be deployed to the Tower of London, while she makes preparations to greet the Queen at Hellsing Headquarters.

12	Total Destruction	January 9, 2002
	Integra learns that the Hellsing commandos in the Tower of London are being attacked by assassins wearing CRW uniforms of the SAS's 22nd Regiment, later revealed to be actual SAS members who were converted into a new breed of FREAK vampires that resemble werewolves. The Queen's visit is canceled and the entire Hellsing Organisation is declared armed terrorists. The British Army is deployed to the Tower of London, intent on quelling the battle between the Hellsing soldiers and the FREAKs by wiping out both sides. Commander Peter Fargason attempts to make them stand down, but is shot by a British Sniper.

13	Hellfire	January 16, 2002
	Within the Tower of London, Alucard returns to fight against the true Nosferatu Incognito, with Integra's permission to unlock his most powerful form. The duo eventually fights in the sky but eventually falls down to the Cathedral below, causing a massive explosion that caused the building to light up inside. Meanwhile, Seras Victoria searches for Integra while Walter C. Dornez is revealed to survive the crash. Worthy enough, Alucard reveals his true identity to the Nosferatu.

Staff

Director

• Akihiko Nishiyama (ep 8)
• Kaoru Suzuki (eps 2, 7, 12)
• Manabu Ono (ep 3)
• Ryoki Uetsubo (ep 6)
• Ryouki Kamitsubo (ep 6)
• Shin Itagaki (ep 11)
• Shinya Hanai (ep 5)
• Tomio Yamauchi (ep 9)
• Umanosuke Iida (Chief Director)
• Yasunori Urata (Series Director; OP; eps 1, 13)
• Yoshikazu Miyao (OP; ep 10)
• Yutaka Takeda (ep 4)

Series Composition

Chiaki J. Konaka

Script

• Chiaki J. Konaka (11 episodes)
• Yuuji Hosono (eps 7, 10)

Storyboard

• Hiroyuki Kakudou (eps 4, 6)
• Kaoru Suzuki (ep 2)
• Koki Kudo (ep 8)
• Manabu Ono (ep 3)
• Naori Hiraki (ep 5)
• Rokurō Jinga (ep 11)
• Ryouki Kamitsubo (ep 7)
• Umanosuke Iida (eps 12-13)
• Yasunori Urata (ep 1)
• Yoshikazu Miyao (OP; ep 10)

Music

• Tatsuo Tabei (Guitar)
• Yasukasu Tabei (Composition Assistance)
• Yasushi Ishii

Original Manga

Kohta Hirano

Character Design

Toshiharu Murata

Art Director

Shinji Katahira

Animation Director

• Hironobu Saitō (eps 2, 8)
• Hiroyuki Kanbe (ep 11)
• Kinzo Tooyama (ep 7)
• Masaki Hinata (ep 5)
• Shinobu Tagashira (ep 12)
• Shizuo Kawai (ep 4)
• Tomoaki Kado (ep 3)
• Toshiharu Murata (OP; eps 1, 13)
• Yoshikazu Miyao (ep 10)
• Yūji Yanase (eps 6, 9)

Mechanical design

Yoshitaka Kohno

Sound Director

Yota Tsuruoka

Director of Photography

Atsushi Takeyama

Executive producer

• Akihiro Kawamura (Pioneer LDC)
• Shinichiro Ishikawa
• Shouji Murahama (GONZO Digimation)
• Yasuyuki Ueda (Pioneer LDC)
• Yoshinori Kumazawa (Pioneer LDC)

Producer

Daisuke Kawakami (Fuji Television)

3D

Sadanori Kaneda (ED)

Assistant Animation Director

Takaomi Kanasaki (eps 11, 13)

Assistant Music Engineer

• Naohei Kashiya
• Shouhei Katsuya

Assistant Producer

Mie Ide (Pioneer LDC)

Background Art

• Eri Nakamura (ep 1)
• Miyoko Kohama (ep 1)
• Norifumi Nakamura (ep 1)
• Takashi Aoi (ep 1)

Color design

• Keiko Kai
• Takae Iijima

Digital Color

Keiko Kai (ED)

Digital Editing

• Kengo Shigemura
• Ryuta Muranaka

Editing

Kengo Shigemura

In-Between Check

• Masahiro Motoki (eps 2, 8)
• Yasunori Matsumura (10 episodes)

Key Animation

• Akemi Hosono (ep 2)
• Fumitoshi Oizaki (ep 1)
• Hideyuki Yoshida (ep 1)
• Hiroki Mutaguchi (ep 9)
• Hironobu Saitō (ep 2)
• Hiroshi Mimata (ep 1)
• Hiroyuki Horiuchi (ep 1)
• Hiroyuki Imaishi (OP)
• Keiichi Sasajima (ep 1)
• Kenji Yamazaki (ep 2)
• Masami Goto (ep 13)
• Mitsuru Obunai (ep 1)
• Miwako Yamamoto (ep 1)
• Seiji Masuda (ep 1)
• Shinobu Tagashira (ep 1)
• Taizo Yoshida (ep 2)
• Takaomi Kanasaki (ep 13)
• Toshiharu Murata (ep 1)
• Yoshitaka Kohno (ep 1)
• Yuji Hosogoe (ep 1)
• Yusuke Yoshigaki (OP; ep 1)

Logo Design

Noriko Nezu (G-Square)

Music Mastering Engineer

Shigeo Miyamoto

Music Mixing Engineer

Masashi Yabuhara

Music producer

• Toshiaki Ohta
• Yasuyuki Ueda

Photography

• Atsushi Takeyama (ep 1)
• Mitsue Motomiya (AMGA; ep 1)
• Naoyuki Taniguchi (AMGA; ep 1)
• Yuki Okada (AMGA; ep 1)

Production Advancement

Masashi Otokawa (5 episodes)

Production manager

Koji Kajita

Recording Adjustment

Shōji Hata

Setting Production

Masashi Otokawa (eps 2-13)

Sound Assistant

Fumiaki Tanaka

Sound Design

Koji Kasamatsu

Sound Effects

• Koji Kasamatsu (eps 1, 3)
• Yoshimi Sugiyama

Soundtrack Coordinator

Minako Kato

Soundtrack Cover Illustration

Toshiharu Murata

Soundtrack Design

• Keiko Kai
• Norihiko Netsu (G-Square)
• Shinji Katahira

Soundtrack Promotion

Takashi Iida (Pioneer LDC)

Soundtrack Sales Promotion

Jun Nishimura (Pioneer LDC)

Supervising Producer

Yoshiyuki Fudetani (Shōnen Gahōsha Co., Ltd.)

Theme Song Composition

Yasushi Ishii (OP)

Theme Song Lyrics

• Richie Kotzen (ED)
• Richie Zito (ED)
• Yasushi Ishii (OP)

Theme Song Performance

• Mr. Big (ED)
• Yasushi Ishii (OP)

Visual Effects

Atsushi Takeyama

Music

• Opening Theme - A World Without Logos by Yasushi Ishii
• Ending Theme - Shine performed by Mr. Big

Hellsing Opening - A World Without Logos - Creditless

Hellsing TV Creditless Ending

Soundtracks

RAID	RUINS

Production

Shouji Murahama, the CEO of Gonzo, approached Shōnen Gahōsha; seeking to produce an adaptation of the Hellsing series by Kohta Hirano as he thinks that it would be a perfect "property" for his company. The request was approved by Gahōsha, and the production of the series begun. The involvement of Hirano himself is very little as he does not know much about anime, stating that he's just an "otaku." The cast of the main characters were decided even before the release of Volume 1. Pioneer LDC (Geneon), the producer of the anime, brought in many staffs who had worked with each other before to work on this project. Talented staffs with the likes of Umanosuke Iida (known for Devilman) and Yasunori Urata served as the series' director. A commentary on the site Gonzo released for the Hellsing anime stated that this is a suitable work for Gonzo's first "terrestrial" broadcasting work, and it was also one of their biggest projects yet.

Chiaki J. Konaka, the writer and screenwriter of the series, tried to avoid using elaborative phrases and instead try to go for a normal lines for Alucard, while for Seras herself, Konaka uses the words used by an "ordinary" girl back then. Wanting to explore the characters and give them more depths then ever, this is shown when Konaka himself expanded on the part about Seras' colleagues in episode 1, whose names are never revealed in the manga, although the characters were all short-lived, they made a huge impact on Seras herself compared to the original manga. Regarding the new and added "dramatic" scenes that were not from the original manga, Konaka states that he expanded in it to fill in the story told too quick in the original work.

In short, the lines written are described as "powerful signature words" with a hidden meaning under the "words that colors the darkness." Konaka stated that proper character names are given to character who doesn't have any in the original work, in which, serves a purpose so that the characters can feel alive and not treat death "lightly." Within the many changes in the episodes that were adapted from the manga, Konaka states that most lines are the same since the original work have a lot of "momentum," but in some cases, minor changes were made in order to match the lines of the play, and to make it more "nuanced" when it is voiced by the actors themselves. Konaka also finds reading the lines that he would typically not write refreshing.

In designing the characters in his own style, Murata stated that it was difficult as he struggled when he was drawing all the settings of the characters. Though in retrospect, all characters were generally difficult to design, Seras and Integra was the one who Murata said he struggled finalizing. Alucard and Anderson was the easiest because the art of the original manga matched his vision perfectly.

For the animation, Atsushi Takeyama, the director of Photography for the series, expressed that he does not want to emphasize the digital effects, rather he wants to use digital technology in order to achieve the feel of traditional cel and film animation. In the same interview, Yasunori Urata said that he planned to use hand-held camera-like effects. He planned to try and use dark visuals; lots of fade in or fade out to black. He also wanted to create several unique patterns that are different from the ordinary fade in/out or white in/out. Hellsing is an early digipaint show, with muted colors given to the characters and background to give the show its "aesthetic" and "gothic" feel that they were aiming for. The animation uses a NTSC-PAL conversion, with a soft, lower resolution image, the expected ghosting and blended frames, while pans and scrolls are a little uneven.

Regarding the digital animation, Hellsing would often switch to traditional cel art, in which, was scanned in computer and was then colored digitally. In addition to the digital format that the production team uses, the anime also uses 16 or 35 mm film reels, with scenes digitally edited and/or through super16/super35 cinematographic process and then printed on Betacam. Due to deadline issues, the sky's colors would change occasionally. Lighting the sky properly would mean using contrasting shades of blue and black for everything in the frame, which would take far too long. Their solution was to color the sky red, to avoid having to light everything. A replica of Alucard's gloves was made by an anime goods maker in Japan, so Gonzo used their inscriptions for reference as Alucard's gloves inscriptions on the manga was only a bunch of gibberish written by Hirano to mimic English words.

The show was made far before the manga had even finished, and because the anime was funded overseas, Konaka stated that it was impossible for them to depict "Nazi Germany," so in response, Hirano allowed for them to do whatever they want with the show. Even so, the first three episodes of Hellsing was based upon the manga however featured many differences due to the budget. In a staff interview on one of the DVDs, Umanosuke Iida, stated that if they were to faithfully adapted the fight between Alucard and Anderson, then the studio would go bankrupt. Yasuyuki Ueda, one of the producers of the anime and a member of Pioneer, stated that there was no way for them to adapt the manga faithfully as production started early on, way before the manga was even finished.

Due to the restrictions because it was aired on television, changes has to be made; violence were reduced, most of the blood coming out of ghouls and vampires were turned into piles of dust rather than blood and fight scenes were shortened. Other censorships includes some shadow over a character's wound and colors getting inverted. So to contrast, the general tone of the anime was made much darker compared to the manga itself, reducing the amount of "light-hearted" scenes.

The soundtrack was largely composed by Yasushi Ishii, and it's also his first notable work within the anime industry. Ishii previously had been active to provide music for commercials and more, so Hellsing was his first attempt at an animation soundtrack. The sound and music were later mixed in by Yabuhara Masashi, who's known for his work on Cowboy Bebop. Ishii was given a lot of creative freedom, and Hellsing had been his most unrestrictive works he had ever produced. Yasunori Urata said that he wants to make it visually sharp, and use rough music to serve as a contrast.

The production team was given a name as "Hellsing K.G.." An original song made by Yasushi Ishii, the composer for the Hellsing series, titled "A World Without Logos," was made to be the opening of the series. In a slight contrast, Mr. Big's "Shine" was used as the series' ending theme. Three variations of the ending (only differs near the end of the ending) was made that would play every 3 consecutive episodes.

In 2000, a trailer promoting the then-upcoming Hellsing anime by Gonzo released. The main villain of the manga, The Major was also featured within the promotional video. The trailer however, was produced even before the episodes were animated, therefore, original shots in which belonging to the trailer are mainly left unused, however some brief sequences were eventually re-used in the episodes of the anime. Despite Psalsm of the Darkness being shot in a 16:9 ratio, the episodes broadcasted on TV used 4:3 shots. In order to re-use the animation from the trailer for the anime, the animators would crop the 16:9 footage into 4:3. However, mistakes were made and some shots weren't fully cropped. The trailer was later given to dubbing companies to let them know what type of show they're buying the rights to.

The website for the Hellsing anime launched in 2001. Official companies like Shōnen Gahōsha featured a link that sends visitors to the Hellsing website. In 2003, Pioneer USA launched its own Hellsing website that announces releases of DVDs, with character profiles and episode summaries. The Japanese site was later archived by NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan after merging with Geneon.

The series was made under the assumption that a sequel could be made, but it was eventually never would be produced. Instead, the producer opted to redo the series entirely in an "OVA" format so that they could adapt the manga faithfully without any restrictions on the budget, or the TV regulations for Japan.

Casting

In the Character Introductions on the back of Volume 1 of the Hellsing manga, characters voice actors were announced. Hirano said that Anderson's VA is Nachi Nozawa, and says that Yoshiko Sakakibara is beautiful as Integra's voice. Humorously, Hirano also said that his favorite voice actor is "Nachi Nozawa" because of the "Nachi," in reference of Nazis of course. The trailer of the anime revealed that Jouji Nakata was playing Alucard, followed by the official announcement of Yoshiko as Integra. Fumiko Orikasa was then announced to be playing as Seras Victoria on the official site of the Hellsing anime, with Walter C. Dornez being played by Motomu Kiyokawa. The main villain, Incognito, was due to play by Takumi Yamazaki.

In addition to the casting of the series, producer Yasuyuki Ueda stated that an advice for the casting by Hirano was given at times, however it was mostly left for the staff to do. In the same interview, Hirano said that the only thing he's involved on is with the casting of the characters.

For the English dub of the series, Crispin Freeman was first brought by Jaffe to play the role of Alucard, with Seras' role being given to singer K.T. Gray, and Sir Integra being portrayed by Victoria Harwood due to a suggestion made by Steven Brand, who played Alexander Anderson to the producer of the series, as he needed a voice actor that has the same kind of "gravitas" as the original Japanese voice actor. Isaac C. Singleton Jr. was hired by Taliesen Jaffe, the voice director, to play the role of Incognito as he thought that he was a good foil to Crispin Freeman.

Regarding the full British cast of the English dub of Hellsing, Jonathan Klein pitched this idea so that the cast would be more believable and "convincing," which is why they didn't hire American voice actors to do a fake accent. In addition, he stated that the biggest challenge of this was finding an actor that was right for the voices, and while there were some in Los Angeles, there really weren't a huge number of voice actors to choose from. He also mentioned how most of the Voice Actors cast were from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, which is a very prestigious school in England.

Production Presentation

The production presentation, with most important staff and cast appearing on the stage

In 2001, the production team held a production presentation in Tokyo on July 10, and announced that there would be 13 episodes and will be airing on October of the same year on Fuji TV at midnight. Most of the important staff members appeared at the presentation, expressing their enthusiasm on the anime, along with a promotional video titled "Hellsing: Psalms of the Darkness" being played before the interviews. First appearing on stage was Gonzo Digimation's production team, Shōnen Gahōsha's editor-in-chief, and Pioneer LDC's production manager; each of them talking about their hopes about the project, whilst during the midst of this, reporters gathered to ask whether it was difficult to release this "controversial" work outside of Japan, to which, GONZO Digimation Holding's president stated that they were careful about the political and religious aspects, so he does not think that it would be a problem, and instead thinks that enthusiasts would appreciate it.

Next appearing on stage was producer Yasuyuki Ueda and Shouji Murahama, series director Yasunori Urata and character designer Toshiharu Murata, along with director of photography Atsushi Takeyama, composer Yasushi Ishii and finally, chief director Umanosuke Iida. Yasuyuki Ueda, the manufacturer and producer of the series, said that Hellsing, to him, was interesting for a long time, and thought about adapting it, and that it was recently decided to be aired Fuji TV's CX late night. Murata Toshiharu, the character designer, said that he feels like it's something that's never been seen before, while Yasushi Ishii, the composer, said that he'd like to use Hellsing as an opportunity to present anime music around the world; feeling like it hasn't been presented enough.

Umanosuke Iida, the chief director of the series, said that even though it'll air at midnight, it's going to be aired on terrestrial TV; expressing his interests in keeping the balance between the anime and the original series. Iida also found it interesting to think about "how to bring out the general mood of Hellsing," and in addition, commented about how hard it was to decide how to separate the "cruel" scenes from the "exciting" ones. Yasunori Urata, the director of the series, said that he'd been working all night long on the anime, and stated that he wants to explore on the characters more.

Last ones to appear on stage was Alucard's voice actor, Jouji Nakata, Seras Victoria's voice actor, Fumiko Orikasa, and the original author of the series, Kohta Hirano. Jouji Nakata, the voice actor of Alucard, said that he wants to enjoy the unique world of Hellsing, while Fumiko Orikasa, the voice actor of Seras, said that she hopes to be able to express her "life-sized" self, and looks forward to the series while worrying about how she could convey the "world view." Hirano was the last one to appear on the presentation. Regarding one of his work to be made into a TV anime for the first time in his mangaka carrier, Hirano said that he's been an "otaku" his entire life, so to see this, he thinks that it's unbelievable and it's overwhelming for him, so he's looking forward to see his characters being brought back to life on screen. Hirano also encouraged the staff to do the best they could.

Broadcasting and Release

The series' first episode aired on Fuji TV on October 10th of 2001, with each episode airing weekly. It ended with 13-episodes; the final episode airing on January 16, 2002. The series was licensed by Geneon Entertainment for its English release, and Geneon's dubbed episodes in the United States aired on Starz!'s Encore Action channel from October 4 to December 27, 2003. ADV films later licensed Hellsing to become its European distributor. The closure of ADV however, led to the series become unlicensed in Europe. Madman Entertainment licensed the series for its Oceania release.

In 2002, Pioneer started to collect all 13 Hellsing episodes into four separate DVD boxes, with each titled "Impure Souls," "Blood Brothers," "Search and Destroy," and "Eternal Damnation" respectively. Each boxes contains special booklet which includes information about characters, organizations and even species. The first DVD of the series, titled "Impure Souls," released on July 23, 2002, which was then followed by the release of "Blood Brothers" on September 10, and "Search and Destroy" on November 12, with the final DVD, "Eternal Damnation," releasing on January 21, 2003.

In the US, the original DVD volumes were rereleased and specifically used the English Dub for the release, with the first DVD releasing on June 7, 2005, followed by Blood Brothers' release on September 6th and Search and Destroy's release on 1st of November respectively, and the final DVD releasing on January 10th in 2006. Pioneer Entertainment (now Geneon) collected all DVD pieces into one single box set on, which was later released on August 1, 2006.

Five DVD sets of the Hellsing titles, titled "Hellsing Rescript" was made to correct animation mistakes made during the original production of the series, serving as the official "Blu-ray" version. The first DVD of the Rescript Edition releasing on January 25, 2002, followed up by a second release on February 22, a third release on March 22, a fourth release on April 25, and a fifth and final release on May 24, all in the same year. Pioneer then collected these Rescript boxes up in a single Limited Edition special. Later on, these DVDs were later rereleased. It later serves as the official version to watch the Hellsing TV series on streaming platforms and further broadcasting on television.

After having rescued Hellsing after the defunct of both Geneon (then Pioneer Entertainment), Funimation collected all DVD volumes of Hellsing up in a single box which was released on November 13th 2012 titled "Hellsing Series (Classic)." In addition to the closure of ADV Films, Hellsing was rescued by Manga Entertainment who released a single box-set on 2013. The merge between Funimation with Crunchyroll caused the Hellsing series, including the OVA, to move over to Crunchyroll.

Reception

Audience Viewership and Sales

Soon as it was aired, and during the month of November in 2001; Anihabara posted its monthly list of top Anime, in which, was based upon votes from viewers in Kanto region of Japan. In the list, Hellsing made its way to top 5 of the list, passing Inuyasha, Vandread the 2nd Stage, and is behind Najika Dengeki Sakusen. Later in February of 22nd of 2002, a list of top 20 televised anime in Japan was made by Anihabara, with Hellsing tying with Kasumin for 12th place. In addition, the Search and Destroy DVD made it to the ten best selling anime DVD back in 2003, ranking number 7th.

Critical Response

The series was noted for having a tone that differs from the manga, with its elements of comedy being removed and a general focus given to the horror aspect of the series. The anime original ending of the series was not well received by fans of the manga, and retrospective reviews on the series itself was mixed. General praise however, was given to its soundtrack composed by Yasushi Ishii.

Hirano openly prefers the OVA over the anime. The casting of Nozawa as Anderson is quite controversial as Hirano himself particularly does not like the decision for him to play Anderson. Due to this, the OVA casted a completely different actor for Anderson; with the website itself announcing "Brand new Anderson." Hirano stated that they change the part they needed to change, however kept voice actors that does not need to change; like Nakata as Alucard for example. However, Hirano does like some aspect of the anime; like Alucard cocking his gun. Hirano also said that he's very much moved about his work being made into an anime.

Trivia

• Incognito does not appear in the manga and his name comes from the literal definition of the word "incognito." In episode 9, Alucard responds to Incognito's introduction by saying his name's "quite an enigma as well."
• Because of the exclusion of the Millennium Organization, Walter C. Dornez never betrayed Integra and the Hellsing Organisation.

External Links

• Official Site (Japanese)
• Official Site (English, Archived)

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