is a Japanese

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

television series directed by Takeshi Mori and produced by

Gonzo Gonzo may refer to: People * Gonzo (nickname), a list of people with the nickname * Radislav Jovanov Gonzo (born 1964), Croatian music video director Radislav Jovanov, also known as Gonzo * Matthias Röhr (born 1962), German musician whose stage ...

. The series is composed by two seasons consisting of 13 episodes each; ''Vandread'', broadcast from October to December 2000, and ''Vandread: The Second Stage'', broadcast from October 2001 to January 2002. The series was also adapted into a

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

and

light novel A is a type of Genre fiction, popular literature novel from Japan usually classified as young adult fiction, generally targeting Adolescence, teens to Young adult, twenties or older. The definition is very vague, and wide-ranging. The abbr ...

series.

Plot

The male-only planet Taraak and the female-only planet Mejeer have been at war with each other for decades. During a military presentation of the Taraak space forces, their new combat ship, the Ikazuchi, is attacked and annexed by female pirates from Mejeer. Not wanting to lose, the commander of the Taraakian forces prefers to remotely destroy his ship with the intruders on board. However, a surprising event occurs. The Taraakian vessel and that of the pirates merge under the impulse of the Praksis crystal, a source of mysterious energy, to create a new vessel, which is later baptized NirVana. The Praksis energy ends up sending the newly formed vessel to the depths of space. This merge also affects Mejeerian combat shuttles, known as Dreads, and a Taraakian mobile "armor", the Vanguard, transforming their appearance and giving the Dreads the ability to combine with the Vanguard, forming the Vandread units. Three men, a third-class worker and two officers who remained on board and were taken prisoner by the pirates, will have to collaborate and learn to coexist with the women pirates of Mejeer, because their survival depends on it.

Broadcast and release

Produced by

and directed by Takeshi Mori, ''Vandread'' was broadcast for 13 episodes on Wowow from October 3 to December 19, 2000. An additional episode, , was released on home video on December 21, 2001. A second season, ''Vandread: The Second Stage'', was broadcast from October 5, 2001, to January 18, 2002. An additional episode, , was released on home video on October 25, 2002.

Songs

Opening and ending songs

* "Trust" ("Vandread" opening; also used as the ending in the last "Second Stage" episode) by Salia * "Himegoto" ("Vandread" ending) by SiLC * "Justice" ("Second Stage" opening) by Aki Kudo * "Yes, Together" ("Second Stage" ending) by Yasunori Iwasaki, sung by Aki Kudo * "Spacy Spicy Love" ("Turbulence" opening) by Mejare Pirates * "Proof" ("Turbulance" ending) by Mejare Pirates

Insert songs

* "

What a Wonderful World "What a Wonderful World" is a song written by Bob Thiele (as "George Douglas") and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong on August 16, 1967. In April 1968, it topped the pop chart in the United Kingdom, but performed p ...

" ("Vandread" insert song) by

Donna Burke } Donna Burke (born 1964) is an Australian actress, singer, and businesswoman. She primarily voices characters in anime and video games including Angela Orosco in '' Silent Hill 2'' (2001), Claudia Wolf in '' Silent Hill 3'' (2003), and has pe ...

* "Somedays" ("Second Stage" insert) by

* "Ikutose Karuka"/"Many Many Tears" * "Good Day Friends" (Dita's song) by

Yumi Kakazu is a Japanese voice actress from Kamifukuoka, Saitama (now Fujimino, Saitama). Filmography Anime series *'' After War Gundam X'' (Sala Tyrell) (voice acting debut) *'' AKB0048'' (Katagiri Tsubasa / Shinoda Mariko The 7th) *'' Ask Dr. Rin!'' ...

* "Kanojo wa Dandysm" (Barnette's song) * "Moon Light Lullaby" (Meia's song) by

Fumiko Orikasa is a Japanese actress, voice actress and singer. She voiced Rukia Kuchiki in ''Bleach'', Meyrin Hawke in '' Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny'', Chun-Li in ''Street Fighter'', Kanade Minamino/Cure Rhythm in ''Suite PreCure,'' Lotte Yanson in '' ...

* "Slow Down" (Jura's song) * "Welcome Home" (Parfet's song)

Related media

A total of seven

volumes, consisting of three ''Vandread'' volumes, three ''Vandread: The Second Stage'' volumes, and a ''Vandread: The Extra Stage'' volume, were released under

Kadokawa Shoten , formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing based in Tokyo, Japan. It became an internal division of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2013. Kadokawa publishes manga, light novels, manga anthology magazines ...

Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko is a light novel publishing imprint (trade name), imprint of the Japanese publishing company Kadokawa Shoten, a Division (business), division of Kadokawa Corporation. It was established in 1988 and is aimed at a male audience. Some light novels p ...

imprint from July 1, 2000, to April 27, 2002. A

adaptation, illustrated by Kotetsu Akane, was serialized in

Fujimi Shobo , formerly , was a Japanese publisher that specialized in light novels, manga, Japanese role-playing games, role-playing games and collectible card games. Founded in 1972 and reorganized three times, it was at times an independent company and at ...

's ' from the July 2000 to the February 2002 issues. Fujimi Shobo collected its chapters in three ''

tankōbon A is a standard publishing format for books in Japan, alongside other formats such as ''shinsho'' (17x11 cm paperback books) and ''bunkobon''. Used as a loanword in English, the term specifically refers to a printed collection of a manga that w ...

'' volumes (including a ''Special Stage'' volume), from January 10, 2001, to March 1, 2002.

References

External links

* at

Funimation Funimation was an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming service. Launched in 2016, the service was one of the leading distributors of anime ...

* {{Gonzo 2000 Japanese novels 2000 anime television series debuts 2000 manga 2001 anime television series debuts 2002 manga Action anime and manga Anime with original screenplays Comedy anime and manga Funimation Geneon USA Gonzo (company) Harem anime and manga Kadokawa Shoten manga Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko Light novels Mecha anime and manga Shōnen manga Single-gender worlds Space opera anime and manga Wowow original programming