Characters
Akazukin
Akazukin (Little Red Riding Hood) is a mysterious girl who considers herself immortal. She wants to be eaten by a being known as "Mr. Wolf" though it seems as if she doesn't even know what Mr. Wolf looks like. [1] Akazukin works as an organ harvester for Marco, an Italian butcher. The police inspector noted that Akazukin killed 10 known victims in a year alone and harvested their organs. She works for Marco in exchange for a place to stay. Her powers as a whole are a mystery, but she seems to have many different kinds of powers at her arsenal. She's a good shot with a gun as she's demonstrated quite a few times throughout the manga. She can also bring people into her dream world and transform others' bodies (see: Luca). Her hair seems to be a weapon of its own as well. It can extend at will and has the power to crush a human whole. In reality, she's Astarte, the princess of the Demon World. She is also the mother of Mr. Wolf, who had been conceived as a project to restore balance in the world. Her current childlike form (when she was Astarte, she had a more adult body) is the end result of being thrown out from the Demon World after Bettega tricked her and stole her son. She dies in the final pages of the story after sustaining injuries (i.e. losing her left arm and the lower half of her body) during her descent back to Earth after a confrontation with Bettega/Theos.
"Little Red Riding Hood" is a European fairy tale about a young girl and a Big Bad Wolf. Its origins can be traced back to the 10th century to several European folk tales, including one from Italy called The False Grandmother, later written among others by Italo Calvino in the Italian Folktales collection; the best known versions were written by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm.
- Akazukin seems to be turned on by pain, making her a masochist, until she turns the tables on whoever hurts her (case in point comes during the 2nd chapter, where she kills the policemen who shot at her face and killed them with her hair).
Sadomasochism is the giving or receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation. Practitioners of sadomasochism may seek sexual gratification from their acts. While the terms sadist and masochist refer respectively to one who enjoys giving and receiving pain, practitioners of sadomasochism may switch between activity and passivity.
Vivian
Vivian (more commonly Vivi) is a four armed assassin who was originally hired by Inspector Gentile to murder Akazukin. During their fight she realized she couldn't defeat Akazukin, so she instead decides to join forces with her. She takes up residence at Marco's butcher shop and accompanies Akazukin on body hunting missions. She notes that before she met Akazukin no one has ever laid eyes on her four arms. Vivi also boasts a flawless record as an assassin, although that was before she fought Akazukin. She's referred to as an "artifact" by other worldly beings. The title "artifact" is given to certain people who were failed experiments in creating an artificial host for the being Mr. Wolf. Vivian's name and occupation are contradictions in that her name means "vibrant and full of life" while her job is to take life. She would represent the hunter in the original story.
Luca
Luca was formerly an Incubus before Akazukin transformed him into a cat. As an Incubus he was flying through the skies looking for a woman to have sex with, but was having no luck because all he could find were people who already were having sex and he is only into virgins. He found Akazukin sleeping and thought she was a virgin, so he tried sleeping with her, but instead got sucked into her dream world. In Akazukin's dream world she had her way with him and after it was done, transformed him into a cat. She eventually changes him back to human form.
- Luca isn't his real name; it was a name given to him by Akazukin. His real name is unknown. He would represent a version of the Wolf in the original story, due to his constant sexual harassment/provocation of Akazukin, although the tables are always turned on him.
Asbeel
Astarte's loyal servant. When she lost her memories, Asbeel felt sad for her, and thus is forced to walk the Earth. Thanks to him, however, Astarte (as Akazukin) manages to get her memories back after she was shot in the head by Veruno. He remains loyal to her until she dies.
Lupo
A young orphan who lives in a convent. In reality, he's Astarte's son, Wolf, who Bettega had kidnapped from her. He and his mother (still in her Akazukin form) are finally re-united nearing the end of the story, where she commands her son to eat her (this coming after Lupo kills his friends and other people in the orphanage), thus becoming a huge wolf-like beast. However, this was playing right into the hands of Bettega/Theos, who wanted to create a new world. As a result, Akazukin/Astarte attacks her son, saying "You do not belong here, but don't worry; Mama will take care of it"; however, Lupo begs his mother not to leave him. During the confrontation, Lupo/Wolf, seeing his mother jump to her certain death, jumps in to try to save her, but ends up dying himself. She and her son are reunited in death in the last pages of the comic. He represents an unwitting version of the Wolf in the original story.
Bettega
Real name: Theos (God). The one responsible for Astarte being in her current form, and the one who kidnapped her son, Wolf. He's also very manipulative. At the end of the story, he dies in his car from injuries he sustained after descending to Earth. He would represent a much more crueler version of the hunter in the original story.
Psychological manipulation is a type of social influence that aims to change the behavior or perception of others through indirect, deceptive, or underhanded tactics. By advancing the interests of the manipulator, often at another's expense, such methods could be considered exploitative and devious.
Marco
Marco is an Italian butcher who runs his own meat shop called Stomaco Di Ferro (Iron Stomach). He has Akazukin go out and kill people for him for their bodies and organs. This job he gave her pays off her room and board. It seems he sells the meat for it to be eaten like a normal butcher shop, but he also has various body parts decorating the walls of his shop. Marco has many different piercings and tattoos covering his body. He also has a fetish for monsters, which is confirmed when he fell in love with Vivi. He dies after an attack by a squad from heaven. He would represent the Grandmother in the story, except that Marco died without even meeting Lupo/Wolf.
Arosa
Not much is known about Arosa beside the fact that she's described as a witch and a guru by Mr. Bettega. Marco also calls her a demon in the same ranks as Akazukin. Arosa also seems to be having a budding love relationship with Mr. Bettega. She's the founder of an uprising cult that uses sacrifices from Marco's butcher shop. It's also known that she has some knowledge of magic, through which she created Veruno from various body parts. She is killed by Bettega after it was revealed that he was only using her.
Veruno
A girl necromancer created by Arosa to be her servant. She makes puppets out of human parts. She was sent to kill Akazukin, but failed and was forced to escape, but not before encountering Bettega, who blinds her. She is killed by Bettega/Theos while she was trying to protect her mistress, Arosa.
- Her name comes from a character in the Shiawase no katachi OVA called Beruno Honda.
Inspector Gentile
Inspector Fabrizio Gentile is a man who is obsessed with capturing Akazukin. He works for the police department and is always pressured for her capture because of all the crimes she has committed throughout the city. After Akazukin gives him the slip one too many times he calls in for Vivi, a four armed professional assassin to murder her. While watching their fight he realizes it's impossible to kill Akazukin and commits suicide. He is later made into a living dead puppet by the necromancer Veruno and told to fight Akazukin (ultimately used as a decoy by her to hold Akazukin down, while Veruno lines up a shot to blow Akazukin's head off; he's also rigged with explosives to incinerate Akazukin after Veruno had blown her head off), but is ultimately defeated by Asbeel. He's last seen near the end of the story in Theos's dream world, behind another door, using a self-made doll in the likeness of Akazukin/Astarte like a sex doll. Like Bettega, he would represent a much more sinister version of the hunter in the original story.
Kisa Vanitas
An intersex angel sent down with the mission to kill Akazukin (or "The girl with the black wings", as Kisa refers to her). Kisa wears wings on her arms, which are used as weapons, throwing their feathers as knives, cutting anything it touches. When she faces Akazukin, she and Luca take Kisa into Akazukin's dream world, where they rape her, thus weakening her and then transforming her into a white cat. When Luca asks if their new pet should get a name, Astarte/Akazukin responds that they don't need another pet, and that Luca would do. Having said this, Astarte proceeded to stomp on her in front of everyone, killing Kisa. She's last seen near the end of the story, trying to convince Akazukin/Astarte of Theos's intentions for his world (she says, "If you ask me, I'm fine with a world like this", whereupon Astarte, with a sneaking suspicion of what Theos is planning to do, responds "I don't want that!", and slaps her hand away, thus becoming another portal).
Dantarian
The King of the Demon World (he'd represent the Devil). The one who conceived the "Wolf" plan. He ends up being killed by Asbeel in the final chapter, this coming after several personality clashes with him.
Michael del Marco Lupo was a serial killer originally from Italy, active in the UK. He operated from the Yves Saint Laurent boutique in Brompton Road, London during the 1980s.
Akazukin Chacha is a shōjo manga series by Min Ayahana. It was serialized by Shueisha in the manga magazine Ribon from 1991 to 2000 and collected in 13 bound volumes. The series follows the adventures of a fumbling student magician named Chacha, who habitually wears a red hooded cloak, as she seeks the truth about her family and defend the kingdom against its enemies.
Cry Wolf is a 2005 American slasher film directed by Jeff Wadlow, co-written by Wadlow and Beau Bauman, and starring Julian Morris, Jon Bon Jovi, Lindy Booth, Jared Padalecki and Gary Cole. The film follows a group of teenagers at a remote elite boarding school who find themselves in legitimate danger after playing a group parlor game called Cry Wolf, ensuing in rumors of a serial killer when a young woman is found murdered near their campus. The film was released in the United States on September 16, 2005, earning $15 million worldwide from a $1 million budget.
The Mortal Engines Quartet is an epic tetralogy of fantasy novels by Philip Reeve consisting of Mortal Engines (2001), Predator's Gold (2003), Infernal Devices (2005), and A Darkling Plain (2006). It has also been referred to as the Hungry City Chronicles, although the author has objected to that name, and as the Predator Cities Quartet. It tells the story of two young adventurers on a desolate planet Earth where moving cities roam for resources, eating each other. The novels have won a number of awards.
A Darkling Plain is the fourth and final novel in the Mortal Engines Quartet series written by author Philip Reeve.
Necronomicon is a 1993 French-American anthology horror film. It features three distinct segments and a wraparound directed by Brian Yuzna, Christophe Gans and Shusuke Kaneko and written by Gans, Yuzna, Brent V. Friedman, and Kazunori Itō. The film's ensemble cast includes stars Jeffrey Combs, Bruce Payne, Richard Lynch, Belinda Bauer, Maria Ford, Dennis Christopher, Gary Graham, and David Warner. The extensive special makeup and animatronic effects were supervised by Tom Savini and were created by John Carl Buechler, Christopher Nelson, and Screaming Mad George.
The Italian wolf, also known as the Apennine wolf, is a proposed subspecies of grey wolf native to the Italian Peninsula. It inhabits the Apennine Mountains and the Western Alps, though it is undergoing expansion towards the north and east. As of 2005, the Italian wolf population is estimated to consist of 500 individuals. It has been strictly protected in Italy since the 1970s, when the population reached a low of 70–100 individuals. The population is increasing in number, though illegal hunting and persecution still constitute a threat. A 2016 survey conducted by the Istituto superiore per la protezione e la ricerca ambientale showed that probably between 1,269 and 1,800 wolves remained in Italy in 2009-2013. Since the 1990s, the Italian wolf's range has expanded into southwestern France and Switzerland. Although not universally recognised as a distinct subspecies, it nonetheless possesses a unique mtDNA haplotype and a distinct skull morphology.
Chelsea Fox is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Tiana Benjamin. She first appeared on 5 May 2006 and was joined by her mother Denise Fox and her half-sister, Libby Fox. Benjamin announced her departure from the show in April 2010. Her final episode was broadcast on 5 August 2010.
Otogi-Jūshi Akazukin is a 2005 anime OVA as well as a 2006-2007 anime television series.
Zenki is a Japanese manga series written by Kikuhide Tani and illustrated by Yoshihiro Kuroiwa. It was serialized in the Shueisha publication, Monthly Shōnen Jump from 1992 to 1996. Zenki was adapted into a fifty-one episode anime television series in 1995 by Studio Deen and also spawned five video games. Enoki Films handles the English language version of the anime.
Lupo the Butcher is a 1987 three-minute animated short comedy film directed and written by Danny Antonucci. The short follows the story of a psychotic butcher who has a huge temper and swears at his meat when the smallest things go wrong. Produced by Marv Newland's International Rocketship Limited, Lupo the Butcher was a successful short and has earned itself a cult following.
"Tsarevich Ivan, the Firebird and the Gray Wolf" is a Russian fairy tale collected by Alexander Afanasyev in Russian Fairy Tales.
The Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale has often been adapted, and into a wide variety of media.
Hana to Akuma is a Japanese manga series by Hisamu Oto. It was serialized in the shōjo manga magazine Hana to Yume, which is published by Hakusensha.
The Hunt is a 2012 Danish drama film directed by Thomas Vinterberg and starring Mads Mikkelsen. The story is set in a small Danish village around Christmas, and follows a man who becomes the target of mass hysteria after being wrongly accused of sexually abusing a child in his kindergarten class.
Blood Lad is a manga series created by Yuuki Kodama and serialized in Young Ace. The manga series has been licensed for distribution in English by Yen Press. Blood Lad follows Staz, a vampire from the surreal Demon World, who meets Fuyumi Yanagi, an ordinary Japanese high school girl who accidentally wanders into the Demon World through a portal. Shortly after their meeting Fuyumi is killed by a carnivorous plant and turned into a ghost, causing Staz to take responsibility and pledge to help bring her back to life.
3 Days to Kill is a 2014 action thriller film directed by McG and written by Luc Besson and Adi Hasak. The film stars Kevin Costner, Amber Heard, Hailee Steinfeld, Connie Nielsen, Richard Sammel, and Eriq Ebouaney. The film was released on 21 February 2014. The film received poor critical reviews but grossing $52.6 million against its $28 million budget.
Il lupo e l'agnello, also known as Le Coucou, is a 1980 Italian-French comedy film directed by Francesco Massaro.
"Worse Than a Crime" is the eleventh episode of the second season, 33rd episode overall and the mid-season finale from the FOX series Gotham. This episode is also the last episode to use the subtitle "Rise of the Villains". The episode was written by series developer Bruno Heller and directed by Jeffrey Hunt. It was first broadcast in November 30, 2015 in FOX. In the episode, Gordon has his final showdown against Galavan, who has kidnapped Bruce to end the legacy of his family.
