Angelic Layer: Difference between revisions

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A typical shounen [[Tournament Arc]] series, save that it's done by [[CLAMP]], has a predominantly female cast without being a [[Bishoujo Series]], and involves fighting dolls controlled by the player's mind.

Suzuhara Misaki is the new girl at Eriol Academy, living with her aunt Shouko in Tokyo after growing up with her grandparents. Her mother, Shuuko, has been so busy with work in Tokyo that Misaki hasn't seen her since she was five years old, but she refuses to feel sad about it or look into her mom's whereabouts, feeling that she'd be a burden. Upon arriving in Tokyo, she sees a crowd gathered around a screen playing an intense match between two fighting dolls, called Angels, in a game called Angelic Layer. With some persuasion from a [[Mad Scientist]], Misaki jumps at the chance to get her own Angel and start competing nationally.

 

 

The manga treats certain plot elements completely different from the anime, which also makes big changes to the battle system later on. Either is recommended, as while the anime's changes make more sense later on, the manga is still quite good.

 

 

It is also notable for being one of the first [[Shounen]] series to innovatively break genre conventions and feature a ''female'' leading protagonist, a trend which eventually caught on and appeared in franchises such as ''[[Chrono Crusade]]'' and ''[[Soul Eater]]''.

 

{{tropelist}}

* [[Action Mom]]: {{spoiler|Shuuko.}}

* [[Adaptation Expansion]]: The anime expands the roles of several characters, allowing for more in the way of [[Character Development]].

* [[Apologetic Attacker]]: Misaki.

* [[Attack Hello]]: Tamayo whenever she meets Koutarou. ''Every. Single. Time.''

* [[Badass Adorable]]: Misaki, Hatoko, and Kaede, at least as Dei.

* [[Badass Automaton]]: All of the featured Angels.

* [[Clingy Jealous Girl]]: Tamayo towards both [[Les Yay|Misaki]] and Koutarou, more so in the anime for the latter.

* [[Companion Cube]]: The Angels. They may seem like [[Mons]] at first glance, but the whole point is that they're really just dolls who can only move on the Layer. Shuuko points out that treating one's Angel as a [[Companion Cube]] is required to fully enjoy the game.

* [[Continuity Nod]]: The various one-shot characters who Misaki faces over the course of the series all show up as spectators to the final fight between {{spoiler|Athena and Hikaru}}.

* [[Cool and Unusual Punishment]]: Icchan's subordinate Ogata often gets penalized for things that go wrong, with punishments including making him eat spaghetti through his nose and dropping a live octopus down his pants.

* [[Ditto Fighter]]: Hikaru, due to Misaki possessing the gift of [[Awesomeness By Analysis]].

* [[Dogged Nice Guy]]: Kotarou.

* [[Elevator School]]

* [[Emotionless Girl]]: Sai comes across as this.

* [[Explosive Overclocking]]: Kaede's Angel Blanche and Sai's Angel Shirahime both have "Hyper Mode", which maxes their power but risks destroying the Angel's core components permanently the longer it is used. In the manga, where only Blanche has the capability, it's risk-free.

* [[Expy]]: Hikaru is is an expy of [[Magic Knight Rayearth|Clamp's other Hikaru]].

* [[Facial Markings]]

* [[Fighting Series]]: Though the main focus is still the drama that happens ''outside'' of combat.

** In the anime, {{spoiler|Shuuko; she's in a wheelchair, and this is the true reason why she left Misaki}}.

** Also Sai's little sister, who exists only in the anime.

* [[Indirect Kiss]]

* [[Invincible Hero]]: Misaki only faces one major loss in the entire series. [[Justified Trope|Jusified]] in that the series itself takes place during a single tournament. When she lost, the tournament was at a stage were losing didn't immediately result in elimination.

* [[Luke, I Am Your Father]]

* [[Mad Scientist]]: Icchan is a non-evil example.

* [[Meganekko]]: Kaede.

* [[Mission Control]]

* [[Mysterious Parent]]

* [[Mysterious Protector]]

* [[No Guy Wants an Amazon]]

* [[Oba-san]]: Shouko refuses to be called this, despite actually being Misaki's aunt, [[Christmas Cake|because it makes her feel old]].

* [[Pinky Swear]]: Misaki and Hatoko's promise

* [[Power Gives You Wings]]

* [[Replacement Goldfish]]: {{spoiler|Icchan}}'s hidden agenda.

* [[Robot Girl]]: The angels, naturally.

* [[Secret Legacy]]

* [[Serious Business]]: Subverted. There are a number of Dei who treat Angelic Layer as [[Serious Business]], but according to a number of characters, including the man who invented the game itself, they're doing it wrong and should just be having fun.

* [[Shock and Awe]]: Athena.

* [[Shorttank]]: Tamayo.

* [[Shrinking Violet]]: {{spoiler|Shuuko. In the manga, this is more or less the reason why she left Misaki.}}

* [[Smoke Shield]]

* [[Sugar and Ice Personality]]: Probably a more apt description of Sai; as Kaede points out, she is fiercely driven under the ice queen exterior.

* [[Tall, Dark and Bishoujo]]: Sai.

* [[Tomboyish Sidetails]]

* [[Tournament Arc|Tournament Series]]: The entire series is basically one big [[Tournament Arc]].

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Anime]]

[[Category:Manga]]