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Vampire Knight
Vampire Knight anime promotional image
ヴァンパイア騎士 (Vanpaia Kishi)
Genre	Action, Drama, Romance, Horror
Manga
Author	Matsuri Hino
Publisher	Hakusensha
English publisher	VIZ Media Madman Entertainment
Other publishers: Carlsen Verlag Planet Manga Panini Manga Planet Manga
Demographic	Shōjo
Magazine	LaLa Shojo Beat Daisuki
Original run	January 2005 – ongoing
Volumes	9
TV anime
Director	Kiyoko Sayama
Studio	Studio Deen
Network	TV Tokyo
Original run	April 7, 2008 – ongoing
Episodes	26

Vampire Knight (ヴァンパイア騎士, Vanpaia Naito^?) is a shōjo manga and anime series written by Matsuri Hino. The series premiered in the January 2005 issue LaLa magazine and is still on-going. Chapters are collected and published in collected volumes by Hakusensha, with eight volumes currently released in Japan. The manga series is licensed for an English language release by Viz Media. The English adaptation premiered in the June 2006 issue of Viz's Shojo Beat magazine, with the collected volumes being published on a quarterly basis. Image File history File links Gnome_globe_current_event. ... For other uses, see Drama (disambiguation). ... Romance is a general term that refers to an intimate and often sexual relationship between two people. ... This article is about the comics created in Japan. ... Matsuri Hino ) is a Japanese manga artist. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan. ... Hakusensha (白泉社 Hakusensha) is a Japanese publisher that was originally founded by Shueisha, one of Japans biggest publishers. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Viz Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, California, is a major American anime, manga and Japanese entertainment company formed by the merger of Viz, LLC, and ShoPro Entertainment. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Madmans Logo Madman Entertainment is an Australian company that specialises in the distribution of Japanese anime and manga in Australia and New Zealand. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... The Carlsen Verlag is a subsidiary of the homonymous Danish publishing house which in turn belongs to the Swedish media company Bonnier. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... Spectacular Spider Man #100 (UK edition). ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Brazil. ... Spectacular Spider Man #100 (UK edition). ... Page from long running shōjo manga Glass Mask by Suzue Miuchi, demonstrating archetypal shōjo art conventions Shōjo or shoujo ) is a term used in English to refer to manga and anime aimed at a female audience between the ages of 13 and 18. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan. ... LaLa is a monthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Hakusensha, aimed primarily at teenage girls. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Shojo Beat is a shōjo manga magazine published in North America by VIZ Media. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... Tankōbon ) is the Japanese term for a compilation volume of a particular series (such as a manga or a novel series, magazine articles, essays, craft patterns, etc. ... TV redirects here. ... Animé redirects here. ... Kiyoko Sayama , born August 3) is a Japanese director of anime. ... Studio DEEN (スタジオディーン) is a Japanese company that produces anime. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan. ... The logo of TV Tokyo. ... April 7 is the 97th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (98th in leap years). ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... Page from long running shōjo manga Glass Mask by Suzue Miuchi, demonstrating archetypal shōjo art conventions Shōjo or shoujo ) is a term used in English to refer to manga and anime aimed at a female audience between the ages of 13 and 18. ... This article is about the comics created in Japan. ... Matsuri Hino ) is a Japanese manga artist. ... LaLa is a monthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Hakusensha, aimed primarily at teenage girls. ... A Tankōbon compilation book is a set of manga issues which have been collected into a volume for a given author. ... Hakusensha (白泉社 Hakusensha) is a Japanese publisher that was originally founded by Shueisha, one of Japans biggest publishers. ... Viz Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, California, is a major American anime, manga and Japanese entertainment company formed by the merger of Viz, LLC, and ShoPro Entertainment. ... Shojo Beat is a shōjo manga magazine published in North America by VIZ Media. ...

Two drama CDs were created for the series, as well as a twenty-six episode anime adaptation. Produced by Studio DEEN, the anime series premiered in Japan on TV Tokyo on April 7, 2008 and is still airing. The anime is scheduled to air in the United States in late 2009 or early 2010. The anime uses many of the same voice actors as was used for the drama CDs. A drama CD is form of audio theatre where a collection of audio files presented in one or more CDs consisting of voice actors who act out a set storyline by reading from a script and/or improvising. ... Studio DEEN (スタジオディーン) is a Japanese company that produces anime. ... The logo of TV Tokyo. ... April 7 is the 97th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (98th in leap years). ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ...

Plot

Story

Yuuki's earliest memory is of a snowy night in winter, when she was attacked by a vampire and was saved by another, Kaname Kuran. Ten years later, Yuuki Cross, the adopted daughter of the headmaster of Cross Academy, has grown up and become a prefect (or guardian) for the school, with two purposes: To protect the Day class students (humans) from the Night class student's(vampires) fangs and to protect the true identity of the Night class students from being discovered by the Day class students. Her fellow guardian, Zero Kiryu, a childhood companion whose family (except his twin younger brother) was killed by a pureblood vampire (Kaname Kuran is a pureblood, but not the murderer of Zero's family) is now determined to kill them all and refuses to trust them. Through a cruel twist of fate, Zero becomes a vampire himself, having been bitten by the pure blood vampire four years before, Shizuka Hiou. Kaname, Yuuki's savior, leads the group of Night class, with the help of Takuma Ichijou (the vice president).

Vampires

The vampires in Vampire Knight have the characteristics of a separate species, which contrasts with most vampire stories which portray vampires as transformed humans. In Vampire Knight, vampires can have children among themselves and with humans, and they age, albeit at a much slower rate than humans. Vampires are nocturnal and they dislike sunlight, but exposure to it does not harm them. They are likewise immune to most of the traditional vampire weaknesses such as crosses, garlic, and holy water. They can also regenerate quickly and easily when wounded, therefore, making them very hard to kill unless a weapon made especially for vampire hunting is used. An example of a vampire weapon is a gun called "Bloody Rose". In episode 6, an example of a bullet that contains anti-vampire magic can also be used to kill a vampire.

Vampires organize their society based on the purity of their blood. Level A are the Purebloods - a very small but very powerful minority. Only a bite from a Pureblood can change a human into a vampire. Pureblood siblings sometimes marry each other to keep the bloodline pure, which is not a rare practice. Level B refers to Noble vampires with advanced powers. Ordinary vampires make up Level C, by far the largest group. Level D consists of vampires who were once human; they are a small group, as turning humans into vampires is forbidden and only a handful of Level A vampires would dare to. The final designation, Level E, is separated from the others because it is reserved for former human vampires who have become violently insane. Falling to Level E is considered the inevitable fate of all former human vampires, who can never completely accept their vampiric instincts and their need for blood. Level D or E vampires are left in the care of Level B vampires and purebloods, so they can keep them in check.

Vampires have warred with human vampire hunters for centuries, though the existence of vampires, and the war itself, is kept secret from most humans.

Main characters

See also: List of Vampire Knight characters

Yuki Cross (黒主 優姫, Kurosu Yuuki^?)

Yuki is the adopted daughter of the Headmaster at Cross Academy and is a member of the Disciplinary Committee, also known as a Prefect (Guardian). She, like Chairman Cross, believes that vampires and humans can live together peacefully. She also has been giving her childhood friend Zero her blood to save him from becoming a Level E, a mad and bloodthirsty vampire. Yuki has no memory of her life before she was 5 which is also when she met her hero Kaname Kuran who saved her from a Level E. When Rido Kuran, Yuki's uncle, resurfaces Kaname awakens her vampiric side and pureblood powers in order for her to be protected. Yuki is the beloved hidden daughter of Juri Kuran and Haruka Kuran whose existence was kept secret for her own safety. After Rido kills her parents she is adopted by Headmaster Kain Cross former Vampire hunter. She and Kaname were raised as siblings by Yuuki's parents, Juri and Haruka Kuran, who were also head of the Kuran line of pureblood Vampires, and with Yuuki's parents and her real brother gone, she is the apparent heir of the Kuran vampire throne. She is also Kaname's fiance, whom she remembers as her brother, and Kaname has yet to tell her the truth about his real history. We are told that Juri and Haruka Kuran were also brother and sister.

Kaname Kuran (玖蘭 枢, Kuran Kaname^?)

Kaname is a pureblood vampire (Level A) that saved Yuki from a Level E vampire ten years prior to the events of Vampire Knight and brought her to the headmaster. Also, he is the president of the Night Class and Moon Dormitory, both respected and feared by the members of the Night Class. He has a deep love for Yuuki and it hurts him to see that she has been giving blood to Zero. He has loved Yuki ever since they were children and he was raised as her sibling. They are also engaged which it is a common practice of pureblood siblings to marry as it is essential to keep the bloodline pure and their parents were also siblings. Also, a fact yet to be revealed to Yuuki, Kaname is not her "true brother". Rido Kuran killed Yuuki's real brother and placed the soul Kaname, who is actually an ancient ancestor of the Kurans, in his body (which their parents mentioned in a flash back later in the manga) making Rido his master and making him unable to kill him.

Zero Kiryu (錐生 零, Kiryu Zero^?)

Zero's family was killed by the pureblood vampire Shizuka Hiou. He was taken in by the headmaster of Cross Academy, and became a Prefect (Guardian). He has a great hatred for vampires even though he is revealed to be one himself a Level D(former human vampire), due to Shizuka's attack four years ago. He also has a younger twin brother named Ichiru who was living faithfully by Shizuka's side as her manservant. Even though Kaname killed Shizuka Ichiru, he blamed Zero and assumingly wanted revenge but instead wanted death so he let Zero "eat him" making Zero complete putting him at a tier of power above vampires and hunters and possibly saving him from becoming a Level E indefinatly.

Media

Manga

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

Vampire Knight, written by Matsuri Hino, premiered in the January 2005 issue LaLa magazine. Chapters are collected and published in collected volumes by Hakusensha, with eight volumes currently released in Japan. The series is licensed for an English language release by Viz Media. The English adaptation premiered in the June 2006 issue of Viz's Shojo Beat magazine, with the collected volumes being published on a quarterly basis. The English translation of the manga appears once a month. Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Matsuri Hino ) is a Japanese manga artist. ... LaLa is a monthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Hakusensha, aimed primarily at teenage girls. ... Tankōbon ) is the Japanese term for a compilation volume of a particular series (such as a manga or a novel series, magazine articles, essays, craft patterns, etc. ... Hakusensha (白泉社 Hakusensha) is a Japanese publisher that was originally founded by Shueisha, one of Japans biggest publishers. ... Viz Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, California, is a major American anime, manga and Japanese entertainment company formed by the merger of Viz, LLC, and ShoPro Entertainment. ... Shojo Beat is a shōjo manga magazine published in North America by VIZ Media. ...

Drama CDs

Two drama CDs have been released for Vampire Knight. The first, LaLa Kirameki was released as a bonus with the September 2005 issue of LaLa Magazine. The second, Vampire Knight Midnight CD-Pack was released only via mail order. A drama CD is form of audio theatre where a collection of audio files presented in one or more CDs consisting of voice actors who act out a set storyline by reading from a script and/or improvising. ... LaLa is a monthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Hakusensha, aimed primarily at teenage girls. ...

Anime

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

Main article: List of Vampire Knight episodes

Studio Deen produced a twenty-six episode anime adaptation of the Vampire Knight manga, using many of the same voice actors featured on the drama CDs. The anime premiered in Japan on TV Tokyo on April 7, 2008 and is still airing. It is scheduled to air in the United States in late 2009 or early 2010 Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Studio DEEN (スタジオディーン) is a Japanese company that produces anime. ... The logo of TV Tokyo. ... April 7 is the 97th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (98th in leap years). ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ...

Opening theme song (1-): On/Off - Futatsu No Kodou To Akai Tsumi -

Ending theme song (1-): Kanon Wakeshima - Still Doll

References

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Vampire Knight

• Hakusensha's official manga website (Japanese)
• Viz's official Vampire Knight manga site
• Vampire Knight (manga) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Anime official website (Japanese)