Soul Taker (anime)

"LIGHTNING... BREAKER!!!"

SoulTaker was created by Tatsunoko Productions in 2001, directed by Akiyuki Shinbo who would later direct the first season of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha. It tells the story of a young boy named Kyousuke Date who... dies in the very first scene of the anime. Killed by his dying mother who loved him very, very much. For essentially no reason.

... And then he gets dug out of a cemetery by a girl named Maya, and things get crazier from there as he has to confront the forces of the Mega Corp Kirihara Group led by Corrupt Corporate Executive Yui Kirihara as well as the enigmatic mutants of "The Hospital". Backing him up at first is the equally mysteriously motivated man named Shiro Mibu, and later on the young Hospital nurse Komugi Nakahara who often cosplays. Kyosuke himself has the power to turn into a demonic creature that the Kirihara Group dubs The Soul Taker and resolves to find his sister while protecting the "Flickers", fragments of her soul given human bodies.

Like Nanoha, it starts out with a basic plot but kicks into high gear in the sixth episode, at which point the series starts bordering on Mind Screw territory at times which is why many consider it Devilman Meets Evangelion. It's still a very good series nonetheless, with a unique aesthetic, a kickass opening which was the fourth song JAM Project made, and a stellar voice acting cast on both sides of the Pacific. Definitely worth a look.

Soul Taker was later followed by Nurse Witch Komugi, which parodies this show.

Not related to the western film of the same name.

This series provides examples of:
"I wanted to feel the pain Maya suffered, even just for a moment. I felt that I should know that pain. But right now, no matter how many times I'm hit, I'm not able to feel the pain. So now, I'm ending it."
 * Barbie Doll Anatomy
 * Big Bad:
 * Brainina Jar:
 * Brad Swaile: Voices Kyosuke in the English version. Became a Hilarious in Hindsight moment since it equates to Setsuna being backed up by a badass Patrick
 * Broadcast Induced Plot Hole: At least in the United States. When Tech TV was broadcasting the series, they removed a few minutes of footage from each episode to make them fit within the timeslot. In some cases this made an episode seemed rushed. In others it made things very confusing. Case in point: near the end of episode 6, But within the last minute,  This last minute was cut from the American broadcast, however, making the beginning of episode 7 seem contradictory and ludicrous.
 * Break the Cutie:
 * Brother Sister Incest:
 * Creepy Cool Crosses
 * Crowning Music of Awesome: Hell yeah!
 * Given who performs it, it's to be expected.
 * Crucified Hero Shot
 * Cruel to Be Kind: Kyosuke's mother stabs him in the beginning.
 * Curtains Match the Window: Komugi.
 * Cute Little Fangs: Komugi.
 * Cute Monster Girl: Komugi, more or less. She even got her own short anime series, Nurse Witch Komugi.
 * Evil Plan:
 * Finishing Move: The Lightning Breaker. Becomes a victim of the The Worf Barrage by episode six, however, and has varying effectiveness for the rest of the series
 * Freudian Excuse:
 * Gratuitous English: Don't the Japanese have a word for "alien"? Also, "Hospital".
 * Hand Wave: More than a few plot elements, like Kyosuke's martial arts training and the fact he subconsciously couldn't step foot in the Kirihara Group's headquarters are glossed over in conversation
 * Heel Face Turn: Komugi at the end of episode 3
 * Improbable Weapon User: Things like syringes are favored by the Hospital mutants.
 * It Was With You All Along:
 * Kill Em All: The power of the Applicon Buster, a material that could wipe out all life on Earth with just a few vials.
 * Lawyer Friendly Cameo: In human form, Kyosuke wields a lightsaber... Er, we mean high-frequency katana.
 * Luke I Am Your Father: Kyosuke,  is your father
 * Mind Screw: Each episode has a bit of one, but episode six takes the cake.
 * Mundane Utility: You don't see a high-frequency katana used as a flashlight too often.
 * One Winged Angel: Essentially, Kyosuke's Mutant form is one of these, as is the Soul Crusher's, Soul Anubis's, and Soul Killer's.
 * Our Demons Are Different: For one, they're all mutants created by exposure to Beta Applicon in the past.
 * Red Eyes Take Warning
 * Red Oni Blue Oni: Kyosuke is the blue one.
 * Shonen Hair: Kyosuke.
 * Spin Off: the ridiculously silly Nurse Witch Komugi.
 * Victim of the Week: The first six episodes involve Kyosuke trying to protect a Flicker.
 * Where Does He Get All Those Wonderful Toys: For one guy fighting along against the Kirihara Group and the Hospital, Shiro has a lot of guns, planes, helicopters, etc.
 * Woobie Destroyer of Worlds:
 * World of Cardboard Speech: While the Soul Anubis is pounding on Kyosuke he is apparently unable to respond due to his guilt over causing her death. Eventually, though, he decides taking the beating is pointless because it's accomplishing nothing.
 * World of Cardboard Speech: While the Soul Anubis is pounding on Kyosuke he is apparently unable to respond due to his guilt over causing her death. Eventually, though, he decides taking the beating is pointless because it's accomplishing nothing.


 * You Killed My Father: