Blue Exorcist



Blue Exorcist (青の) is a manga written and illustrated by Kazue Katō. The manga has been serialized in the Jump SQ magazine by Shueisha since April 2009, with individual chapters collected into 26 tankōbon volumes as of December 4, 2020. A one-shot also written and illustrated by Kazue Katō, entitled The Miyama-Uguisu Mansion Incident (宮山鶯邸事件 Miyama Uguisu Tei Jiken), inspired the Blue Exorcist manga, and was first featured in the September 2008 issue of Jump SQ.

The series was first adapted into an anime television series by A-1 Pictures that broadcasted from April to October in 2011. A film was subsequently produced by the same studio, entitled BLUE EXORCIST THE MOVIE, which premiered in December 2012. In January 2017, a second season of the anime was released, covering the Kyoto Impure King arc of the manga.

Viz Media licensed the manga for North American production, with the first volume being released on April 5, 2011. The series then began a localized serialization in the publication Shonen Jump Alpha on July 30, 2012, starting with Chapter 33 of the manga.

Plot
The world of Ao no Exorcist consists of two dimensions joined as one, like a mirror. The first is the world in which the humans live, Assiah. The other is the world of Demons, Gehenna. Ordinarily, travel between the two, and indeed any kind of contact between the two, is impossible. However, the demons can pass over into this world by possessing anything that exists within it. Satan is the god of demons, but there's one thing that he doesn't have and that's a container in the human world that is powerful enough to hold him! For that purpose, he created Rin Okumura, his son from a human woman, but will his son agree to his plans, or will he become something else...? After killing Rin's guardian, Father Fujimoto, in an attempt to bring Rin back to the Demon world, it led to Rin's journey of becoming an Exorcist in order to become powerful enough to defeat Satan and also face the consequences of being the son of Satan.

Key Terms
Mashou (魔障Mashō? )
 * The Mashou is an ancient Buddhist term, literally meaning demonic hindrances. Any person desiring to become an Exorcist must go through a Mashou as a first step. Ordinarily, humans cannot see demons on a physical plane. However, once a person comes in contact with a demon (normally through physical contact), they have the ability to see demons for the rest of their life. A Mashou rite for an initiate Exorcist who had not experienced one previously is normally done under very controlled circumstances, so as to prevent anyone from being injured or harmed. In the English translation of the Manga, it is called 'Temptaint'.

Meister


 * In order for an individual to become an exorcist, they must obtain the title of a 'meister ' (german word for 'master'). A meister is a general term for an exorcist's style of combat; an exorcist can acquire more than one. The fighting styles are classified into five categories:
 * Knight: A meister specialized in close quarters combat, using a sword to fight. Meisters that have the title of 'knight' are shown to use demon blades as their weapons.
 * Dragoon: Meisters that fight using ranged weapons, mainly guns.
 * Tamer: Exorcists who can summon and control demons to fight. These demons are called 'familiars'. In order to summon a familiar, a magic circle is needed; it can be drawn on the ground or on paper. The meister then draws their blood onto the magic circle and recites any words that come into mind. However, if the magic circle is erased or torn (on paper), it loses its effect and the familiar disappears. It has been noted that the talent to be a Tamer is rare, since sheer spiritual fortitude is needed to tame the demon; natural talent is also essential. However, if the Tamer lacks confidence, the familiar will attack the meister. Tamers can summon more than one familiar.
 * Aria: Many demons have weak points known as "Fatal Verse", in which an exorcist recites a specific passage from holy scripts that causes their death. An Aria fights by finding a demon's "Fatal Verse" and recites holy texts, including the Bible and other sacred scriptures. Arias must have a talent for memorization; however, they are completely defenseless once they begin reciting the demon's "Fatal Verse", for the demon will attack the meister to stop the recital, thus an Aria usually never fights alone, leaving its protection to fellow exorcists.
 * Doctor: A meister who has the knowledge to heal wounds and injuries inflicted by demons.

Ranks
Page


 * Before becoming an exorcist, the individual begins as a 'Page', learning the arts of exorcism. Examples of what Pages study range from Demon and Grimoire studies to Demon Pharmacology, Holy Scripture recitations, magic circles and so on.

Exwire
 * The rank above a Page. To become an Exwire, a Page must pass the Exwire Authorization Exam. The Exam consists of the Pages secretly being put to the test of defeating a demon by working together; the Exam also tests which meister a Page categorizes in. Exwires usually do menial jobs like cleaning a demon's cage, and helping to collect samples, etc. Along with their new responsibilities they also continue to study Demonology.

Exorcist
 * Lower Second Class: The lowest title for full-fledged exorcists.
 * Lower First Class
 * Middle Second Class
 * Middle First Class
 * Upper Second Class
 * Upper First Class
 * Honorary Knight
 * Arc Knight
 * Paladin

Manga
See also:
 * List of volumes and chapters
 * Salaryman Exorcist: The Sorrows of Yukio Okumura (spin-off manga)
 * List of affiliated books to the series

The chapters of the Blue Exorcist manga series are written and illustrated by Kazue Kato and have been serialized by Shueisha in the monthly manga magazine Jump SQ since April 2009. As of December 2020, the serial chapters were collected into 26 tankōbon, with the first volume having released on August 4, 2009 in Japan. As of April 4, 2021, 129 chapters have been released.

With the success of the main series, a spin-off manga titled Salaryman Exorcist: The Sorrows of Yukio Okumura (サラリーマン 奥村雪男の哀愁 Sararīman Ekusoshisuto: Okumura Yukio no Aishū) was also released. It was written by Kazue Katō and illustrated by Minoru Sasaki. The series officially debuted in the 7th volume of Jump SQ.19 magazine that released April 19th, 2013 as a one shot. The series ended with its 96th overall serialized chapter in the May 2020 issue of Jump SQ released on April 3, 2020. The fourth and final volume for the series released two months later on June 4th, 2020 in Japan.

The main series manga has also been picked up for licensing by Viz Media for North American production. The first volume was published on April 5, 2011 in its Shonen Jump Advance imprint. The series also began its localized serialization with Chapter 33 of the manga in its Shonen Jump Alpha magazine starting on July 30, 2012. Since then, Viz has simul-published the chapters in English in North America.

The series is also licensed in France by Kazé Manga, with the first volume having released on May 27, 2010.

Anime
See also:
 * List of Blue Exorcist episodes
 * Opening and ending themes
 * List of home video releases (DVD & Blu-ray releases)

A anime adaption for the manga was first announced on November 27, 2010 on the official website of Shueisha's Jump SQ. The anime was produced by A-1 Pictures with Hitoshi Okamura as the producer. Originally the series was scheduled to air on April 10, 2011 on MBS; however, due to the March 11, 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, the series' broadcast was delayed until April 17, 2011. Aniplex announced they would simulcast the series in North America through video sites Hulu, Crunchyroll, and Anime News Network starting on April 20, 2011. This first season of the anime contained 25 episodes, and adapted the first 14 chapters of the manga in its first 16 episodes. From the 16th episode on, the anime contained an anime-exclusive story arc that contained the direction of where author Kazue Katō wanted to bring the overall series to its end.

An anime film, entitled BLUE EXORCIST THE MOVIE, premiered in theatres in Japan on December 28, 2012. It was also produced by A-1 Pictures, with Atsushi Takahashi as the director. It had an original story written by Reiko Yoshida.

In June 2016, a second season of the anime was announced, with A-1 Pictures set to return to produce the anime. Named the "Kyoto Saga", the season would cover the Kyoto Impure King arc (Chapters 14, 16-34) of the manga. The show premiered on January 7, 2017, spanning 12 episodes. Koichi Hatsumi directed the sequel season, while Toshiya Ōno wrote the scripts for the episodes.

Reception
The manga has been popular in Japan with the seventh volume receiving first print run of one million copies becoming the first Jump SQ manga to reach such milestone. The release of the anime also drastically increased the manga's sales to the point that Shueisha decided to increase the print run for the seventh volume. Critics have praised the Blue Exorcist manga with Comic Book Bin reviewer Leroy Douresseaux feeling the first volume had potential, enjoying the comedy in the work and the characters and their interactions, recommending it to teen readers.

Danica Davidson from Otaku USA felt that while the series employs disturbing storytelling, Rin's heroic traits despite being Satan's son make the the plot more appealing to the readers. Kato's artwork has been praised by Anime News Network's Carlo Santos for the way each character is distinct traits while background images are well designed. Depite noting that the story uses several cliché, Carl Kimlinger from the same site emphasized how the execution was well performed resulting in entertaining episodes especially its fight scenes which were noted to be one of the anime's strongest parts.