Hellsing (anime)
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Led by Integra Hellsing, the secret Hellsing Organization's mission is to protect Britain, its Queen, and the Anglican Church from supernatural threats, mainly vampires. As the series begins, one such vampire is ravaging the English village of Cheddar, turning its inhabitants into “ghouls”. To deal with this threat, Integra sends Hellsing’s most powerful operative, Alucard.
Alucard confronts the vampire as he is about to murder the last survivor of the police forces, Seras Victoria. In order to kill the vampire he shoots through Seras, mortally wounding her. He offers her the chance to become a vampire herself, and she accepts. Alongside Integra, Alucard, and Hellsing’s human operatives, Seras discovers and fights a new kind of mass-produced undead, called FREAKs.
The TV series is told mainly from Seras’ perspective as she adjusts to life as a vampire in the employ of Hellsing, while attempting with the other characters to unravel the mystery of the artificial vampires and the FREAK chips. The first half of the series is more or less faithful to the original manga; however, themes such as what it means to be “human” and character development are explored more in-depth. The latter half of the TV series is where it diverges wildly from its source material, due to it overtaking the manga.
For the original manga and OVA, see Hellsing. The TV series has its own characters page.
Tropes used in Hellsing (anime) include:
- Adaptation Expansion: The series added in more Character Development in the first six episodes, especially for Seras.
- Alas, Poor Yorick: Seras carrying Alucard’s head, twice.
- Altum Videtur
- Ascended Extra: Ferguson presumably dies as a Red Shirt in the Valentine brothers’ attack in the manga, but he survives it in the TV series and acts as a father figure to Seras.
- As the Good Book Says...: Alexander Anderson, naturally.
- Ate His Gun: In a flashback, Alexander is shown attempting this during his first encounter with Alucard. obviously, either it didn't work or he stopped himself.
- The Bad Guy Wins: By the end of the series, the surviving heroes are imprisoned as traitors, the conspirators have won and Hellsing's been disbanded. But the final scene reveals that Alucard is still loose and loyal to Integra, leaving open the possibility of Hellsing taking on the British government.
- Batman Cold Open
- Batman Gambit: Hellsing's plan to lure out Incognito to the Tower of London.
- Big Bad: Incognito
- Big Damn Heroes: Seras has most of them.
- Bloodless Carnage: Instead of bloody deaths, most vampires and ghouls turn to "sand" when they die.
- Body Horror: The sequence where an SAS member is turned into a monster.
- Any scene which features Alucard's powers being used, or Incognito in general. Bonus points for both at once.
- Book Ends: The confrontation with the Vicar vampire takes place in a church. The last episode features Incognito and Alucard finishing their battle in a cathedral near the Tower of London.
- Bound and Gagged: Integra, in a strange dream sequence brought on by Alucard.
- Car Bomb: How Harry dies.
- Carmilla: Bubbancy
- Character Development: Lots more, compared to the manga.
- Cheeky Mouth: Only a few instances, fortunately.
- Chiaki Konaka
- Church Shootout: In the first episode, Alucard confronts the vampire priest in a church.
- Combat Sadomasochist: Incognito
- Crucified Hero Shot: Ferguson
- Dark-Skinned Blond: Integra and Anderson
- Demoted to Extra: Anderson, and the Wild Geese from the original manga. A mercenary group very similar to the Wild Geese shows up in the later episodes, but they don't get nearly the screentime or importance the Wild Geese did in the manga.
- Disposable Woman: Played with in the first episode. A fat, lecherous executive is groping a prostitute. Alucard shows up and calls out the vampire. It's the woman.
- Damsel in Distress: Anime!Integra spends much more time in life-threatening danger than her manga and OVA counterparts.
- Dramatic Shattering: Anderson's glasses
- Fan Disservice: Integra gets partially undressed once, but it's creepy/squicky considering the circumstances.
- Fan Service: The fetish club scene from "Brotherhood".
- Finger-Poke of Doom: Luke dispatches a Red Shirt this way.
- Fisticuffs Boss: Seras VS the last SAS squadmember.
- Freak-Out: Seras when seeing that Hellsing's human personnel had been turned into ghouls.
- Full-Frontal Assault: Incognito
- Gecko Ending: Due to the original anime being produced 7 years before the manga reached its conclusion, their respective endings are radically different.
- Godzilla Threshold: Integra orders Alucard to enter his Level 1 form once Incognito summons a god to destroy London.
- Good Scars: Ferguson
- Gun Porn: There's a lot of pistol close-ups.
- Hey, It's That Voice!: In addition to Alucard, Captain Ferguson is clearly voiced by Colonel Hargrove.
- A House Divided: Honestly, at least half the bodycount on the good guys' side is caused by each other. Police, special forces, the army, various paramilitary groups, everybody treats them as anywhere from expendable through collateral damage all the way to mandatory targets.
- I Hate You, Vampire Dad: Seras has her moments.
- I Have You Now, My Pretty: Integra's last encounter with Bubbancy brings this trope to mind...
- I'm a Humanitarian: Incognito eats Helena alive. Alucard also counts, especially when he kills Luke Valentine.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Incognito’s fate.
- Invincible Hero: To a degree, Alucard is this. He's not completely invincible but being beheaded was only an inconvenience.
- The Abridged series gives an excellent nod to this trope when Alucard and Integra talk on the phone. "Oh what are you going to do, call that guy that can stop me? What was his name? Michael McDoesn'tExist?"
- Killed to Uphold the Masquerade: Kim
- Kiss of the Vampire: In "Brotherhood", the victims are shown to have very...suggestive expressions.
- Lesbian Vampire: Bubbancy
- Lighter and Softer: Partly due to the anime's departure from the original storyline, Alucard’s sadism is toned down and his relationships with Integra and Seras are emphasized.
- Limited Wardrobe: Actually averted in the case of Seras. When she's not in her blue uniform, she has a variety of civilian clothes. Played straight with everyone else, though.
- The London Underground: In "Duel".
- Makes Just as Much Sense in Context: How Incognito dodges a gunshot in episode 13.
- Masochism Tango: Integra and Alucard. Their dynamics (and characterizations) changed from Bodyguard Crush in the Manga to Masochism Tango in the TV series.
- The Masquerade: Keeping supernatural activities secret is emphasized in the TV series.
- Mauve Shirt: Ferguson
- Murder.Com: In "Innocent as a Human".
- My God, What Have I Done?: Walter, after he is hypnotized into nearly killing Seras.
- Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: Holy Knights Templar Dracula with Guns Akimbo!
- Incognito takes it further: African Black Magic Nosferatu.
- No Swastikas: Avoids the issue entirely by excluding the later Millennium arc, but this is due to production timing rather than censorship (but the shape of the circuitry in the FREAK chips in the series is pretty suggestive).
- Not Quite Dead: Alucard pulls this off twice.
- Incognito does this as well, also twice, and both after being shot by a gun that should have killed him.
- Now That's Using Your Teeth: Anderson briefly wields a bayonet with his teeth.
- Alucard also uses his teeth to cock his gun once.
- Off with His Head
- Old Soldier: Ferguson
- Ominous Latin Chanting: Part of the soundtrack.
- One-Winged Angel: Alucard’s Level 1, his most powerful state (in the anime only).
- Out-Gambitted: Integra's Batman Gambit technically succeeds, but Incognito outmaneuvers her.
- Overtook the Manga
- Real Song Theme Tune: "Shine", the ending theme of the television series. Performed by Mr. Big.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Integra, Ferguson
- Shout-Out: Possibly to the Wilmarth Foundation in the Cthulhu Mythos, which may have influenced the portrayal of the Hellsing Organization. The show's writer is known for being a fan of the Mythos, and often adds Lovecraftian themes or references to his works.
- Take That, too - The dub of Episode Four of the anime references The Sun, a British tabloid, when a newscaster is being chewed out over a broadcast of Hellsing operatives.
- Snuff Film: In "Innocent As a Human".
- Spared by the Adaptation: In more ways than one - Walter not only survives thanks to the series quickly overtaking the manga's storyline, he also never has a Face Heel Turn.
- Stages of Monster Grief: Seras goes through most of them.
- State Sec: The paramilitary aspects of the Hellsing Organization is played up more in the Anime. Here, the Redshirt Army actually goes around and take out vampires.
- Time Bomb: One of the many dangers Hellsing's Redshirt Army faces.
- Undead Child: Helena
- UST: There seems to be even more of it between Alucard and Integra in the anime. Emphasis on "sexual".
- Official Couple, if you take into account Studio Gonzo's statements and interviews.
- Vampires Own Nightclubs: The Valentine brothers
- Whole-Episode Flashback: Episode 10 depicts Integra and Alucard’s first encounter.
- Wolf Man: The SAS squadmembers, once turned into monsters, gain the ability to transform into these.
- You Monster!:
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Alexander Anderson: You monster. |
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