.hack//Sign
.hack//SIGN is a 29-episode anime series, animated by studio Bee Train, that makes up one of the four original storylines of the .hack franchise. 26 of these episodes were shown on television, and three additional episodes, Intermezzo, Unison, and GIFT (a parody between SIGN and the .hack// games)are only available on DVD. GIFT is not part of the storyline of .hack//SIGN; it's merely a "fun" episode, as can be seen by the comedic drawing style.
The series was initially shown on TV Tokyo between April 3 and September 25, 2002, but has since been adapted for American audiences and shown on Cartoon Network starting February 1, 2003, and has been more recently distributed on DVD by Bandai Entertainment.
.hack//SIGN follows the story of Tsukasa (司) as he struggles to cope with his inner self, his past, and his inability to log out of the MMORPG The World. The storyline is quite slow and layered--the viewer is quite often fed false information and red herrings, making it quite hard to figure out what is going on until it is finally revealed towards the end of the series. Character development is also extremely critical to the series; there are few flat characters, and each of the important characters goes through great change through the story. .hack//SIGN has been commented to be a 'talky' series, both positively and negatively, for a story set in a video game. This is viewed as both a positive and negative aspect: some viewers cannot stand the slow plot and minimal action, while others call .hack//SIGN one of the greatest animes ever for the exact same reason. This controversy has turned .hack//SIGN into a sort of cult anime.
.hack//SIGN is well-known for its soundtrack, all of which was composed by the talented Yuki Kajiura of Noir and Aquarian Age fame. Much of the background music was sung by Emily Bindiger and Yuriko Kaida, whilst the opening and ending themes, Obsession and Yasashii Yoake, were done by Kajiura's musical group See-Saw. Most fans consider the soundtrack to be one of the defining elements of the series, with nearly every scene in each episode having some sort of character-definitive background music.
Characters
The name in the Japanese name comes first, with the name in the English versions after that.
Tsukasa: The main character of .hack//SIGN. At the start of the series, he wakes up to find himself in a dungeon in The World, except that he has no idea why he is where he is, or for that matter, who he is to begin with. In addition, he finds himself pursued by the Crimson Knights for dealing with an illegally modified character, who he remembers seeing, but does not know when, where, or why. At the start of the series, all he seeks is to be alone, but this simply leads him deeper into trouble. He is given a "Guardian," a barbell-shaped monster that defends him. He is also led by the cat-like Macha to a hidden area, where he meets Morganna (who he intitially believes is his mother) and the unborn Aura. Tsukasa eventually brings severeal friends to Morganna's area and angers her. She sends Tsukasa into a temporary trance and moves the unawakened Aura to a new area. At the end of the series, Tsukasa wakes up in the real world, as a girl (yes Tsukasa is a girl), and goes out of the hospital. She encounters a girl in a wheelchair (supposedly Subaru). According to what is known about the series, Bear adopts her and allows her to go to a boarding school which Bear is a sponsor. In The World, her character is a Wavemaster class.
Mimiru: Mimiru plays her character as a "tough-it-out-through-anything", devil-may-care fighter who is poor at planning things out and following through on them. But, very good with a sword. She's the first player to meet Tsukasa, and later tries to form a bond with him in order to protect him from the outside world. Originally she was playing The World as a solo player but decides to team up with Tsukasa in order to help him log out and to find the secret behind the Key of the Twilight. In the real world she is a seventh grade student at a public school. In The World, her character is a Heavyblade.
Bear: An older player of the game as well as an author in real life, he is a friend of Mimiru and B.T. He is cool and collected, and usually is the one to conduct research in the real world on Tsukasa, to try to figure out who he really is. He sees Tsukasa as a child of his supposedly because of how he failed to take care of his own son, whom he meets up with later in the Lambada server root town, Carmina Cadelica. He adopts Tsukasa after she finally wakes up.
B.T.: A Wavemaster in the game. B.T. is the kind of plotting, scheming character that forms friendships just to achieve a goal, only to watch the friendship crumble when the other person finds out that they've been used. She rarely ventures out to fight monsters, but is said to be good with both offensive and defensive magic. In, The World, she teams up with Sora in order to find the Key of the Twilight and uses the other characters in order to find leads. She has met with Bear in the real world several times. In the real world she is a retired model in her late twenties.
Subaru: Leader of the Crimson Knights, a player organization designed to fight injustice in The World. At times she seems to be the only one preventing the Crimson Knights from running wild; she knows that they must restrain from abusing their power. She eventually joins in the search for Tsukasa, and builds a strong relationship with him. In real life, she is physicaly handicapped, which is why she spends so much time in The World; it is the only place where she can roam freely on her own. In The World, she is a Heavy Axeman.
Sora: A ruthless player-killer who isn't afraid to backstab people only minutes after allying with them. He switches sides constantly throughout the story. In real life he is a fourth-grade kid who tries to keep cool (and usually succeeds at it).
Ginkan / Silver Knight: Second in command in the Crimson Knights. Has a strong sense of justice (becoming over-zealous at times), but is also extremely naïve, leading him to end up as more of a tool to be used by whoever is in control.
Crim: A friend of Subaru who founded the Crimson Knights organization with her, but afterwards left it. His stated goal when playing the game is simply to have fun, rather than to simply gain levels or better items. He is an extremely good fighter, as good if not better than Sora, and makes it his job to protect Subaru and the others.
Macha / Maha: A cat-like NPC who tries to help Tsukasa when he (or she, it isn't quite clear) can, although not always directly.
Harold: The creator of The World. Because he was disappointed in himself for failing as a father in real life, he created Aura, an AI, to serve as his "daughter" in The World, and left Morganna to watch over Aura and help her develop.
Morganna: Initially created as an AI to help Aura develop. Using the Eight Phases, Morganna was supposed to feed information to Aura about the thoughts, feelings, and actions of the players in The World in order to teach her what it means to be human. However, Morganna realized that once Aura was born, she would become useless and powerless. Thus, Morganna linked Tsukasa to Aura, and attempted to push him into utter despair to feed only negative thoughts to Aura, destroying her and allowing Morganna's power to grow unchecked.
Aura: The AI "daughter" of Harold. Becomes directly linked to Tsukasa through the actions of Morganna, to the point where Tsukasa's mood alone dictates her development.
Helba: A genius hacker (or a whole team of them using the same account) who even controls her own hidden fields in The World. Out of both concern for Tsukasa, worry about the state of The World, and simple interest in the outcome, she helps guide the other characters on their quest to save Tsukasa.
Songs
Opening Theme Song
- "Obsession" by See-Saw
Ending Theme Song
- "Yasashii Yoake" (優しい夜明け) by See-Saw
Insert Themes performed by Emily Bindiger:
- "A Stray Child"
- "Aura"
- "End of the World"
- "Fake Wings"
- "In the Land of Twilight, Under the Moon"
- "Key of the Twilight"
- "Open Your Heart" / "~Reprise"
- "The World"
- "To Nowhere"
Insert Themes performed by Yuriko Kaida
- "Mimiru"
- "Das Wandern"
- "Warp"
Episodes
- Role Play
- Guardian
- Folklore
- Wanted
- Captured
- Encounter
- Reason
- Promise
- Epitaph
- Compensation
- Party
- Entanglement
- Twilight Eye
- Castle
- Evidence
- Depth
- Conflict
- Declaration
- Recollection
- Tempest
- Despair
- Phantom
- The Eve
- Net Slum
- Catastrophe
- Return
- Intermezzo
- Unison
External links
English
- dothack.com - The official American website for the series, as well as other portions of the .hack franchise.
- YTV's ..hack//SIGN site
- .hack//SIGN preview - A free (video) preview to introduce prospective viewers to .hack//SIGN.
- Template:AniDB-A - The AniDB entry.
- .hackers - Probably the most detailed fansite at this time regarding all aspects of the .hack franchise, including .hack//SIGN.
- topazstorm - has sheet music for major themes in .hack//SIGN
Japanese
- hack.channel.or.jp - The official Japanese website for the series, as well as other portions of the .hack franchise.