Earl and Fairy



"Edgar: Raven, can you think of any girl's name I would say in my sleep?

Raven: Yes.

Edgar: Let's hear it, then.

Raven: Shall I go in alphabetical order?

Edgar: On second thought, maybe not."

The story, set in Victorian England, follows Lydia Carlton, a 17-year-old girl who is a "Fairy Doctor"; human beings with an innate ability to not only see fairies but communicate with them, as well. As the world travels farther into the modern age, Fairy Doctors are becoming rare and people have all but stopped believing in such "fairy tales". Lydia vehemently protests against the denial of their existence, even it it might ostracize her.

Her life suddenly takes a 180-degree turn when she meets Edgar J.C Ashenbert, a man claiming to be a successor to becoming the "Legendary Blue Knight Count" and his crew on a sea voyage to London. Edgar hires her as an advisor during his quest to obtain a treasured sword, that was supposed to be handed down to him by his family, which is needed to solidify his recognition as the Blue Knight Earl by the Queen of England.

Originally an ongoing light novel series, Hakushaku to Yousei (Earl and Fairy in English) has been adapted into anime at a mere 12 episodes; the original run spanned from September 28 to December 23, 2008. There is also a four-volume manga and a Play Station 2 visual novel game titled Hakushaku to Yōsei: Yume to Kizuna ni Omoi o Hasete.

This series provides examples of:

 * Ambiguously Brown: Raven, who's explicitly Ermine's illegitimate half brother. His other half is eventually revealed to be.
 * Bishonen: Edgar, Kelpie/Cain, and Raven.
 * Changeling Tale: Lydia fears that she might be a case for this due to her red hair and ability to communicate with fairies.
 * Eerie Pale Skinned Brunette: Ermine.
 * Green Eyed Red Head: Lydia, much to her displeasure.
 * Hey Its That Voice:
 * Edgar: Hikaru Midorikawa
 * Lydia: Nana Mizuki
 * Raven: Tomokazu Sugita
 * Kelpie/Cain: Takehito Koyasu
 * Ulysses: Mamoru Miyano
 * Nico: Hiro Yuki
 * Paul: Hiroshi Kamiya
 * Ermine: Sayaka Ohara
 * I Am Not Pretty: Lydia has a serious complex over her green eyes and "rusty" red hair. The fact that Edgar complements both is a big deal to her, even if she doesn't believe him.
 * Interspecies Romance: While largely one-sided in this desire, Kelpie/Cain (who is, well, a kelpie) is determined to make Lydia his wife.
 * Manipulative Bastard: Edgar, the Prince and Kelpie/Cain on occasion.
 * Redheaded Hero: Lydia
 * Relationship Voice Actor: Hikaru Midorikawa and Takehito Koyasu have worked together on...
 * Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Heero Yuy and Zechs Merquise
 * Fushigi Yuugi: Tamahome and Hotohori
 * Weiss Kreuz: Schuldig and Fujimiya Aya
 * Super Robot Wars: Masaki and Shu
 * Slayers: Zelgadis and Rezo
 * Truth in Television: Both averted and played straight. A lot of Gaelic, Irish, Scottish, etc., mythology and superstitions portrayed in this series are fairly accurate; especially considering folklore isn't consistent across generations or regions. However, there are a few mistakes (that are probably a mix of Did Not Do the Research and They Just Didn't Care); a good example is that kelpie typically take on the form of beautiful young women, not beautiful young men -- but they do avoid eating the livers of their victims. Another is that brownies by nature don't usually cause any trouble and are actually rather helpful around the household; only when they are misused do they become tricksters or even become downright mean. The brownies portrayed in this series are relatively harmless but seem to be somewhat of a nuisance. Given the entire nature of the series, however, this doesn't call for any sort of Willing Suspension of Disbelief. They're minor and insignificant details, at worst.
 * Lydia's dislike of her red hair and green eyes. While generally considered quite beautiful now, back in Victorian England such colors were heavily discriminated against. Red hair was considered signs of being ethnically inferior due to the color being common in the Irish and Celtic, or in the minds of the more superstitious, a Fae lineage such as a changeling child, hence its association with the Redheaded Stepchild trope.