BASTARD!! (1992 OVA)

BASTARD!! (1992 OVA)

BASTARD!! -暗黒の破壊神-
1992 -1993 Anime International Company OVA 6 episodes Completed
Dark Fantasy Action Sword and Sorcery Comedy
Details & Synopsis
The kingdom of Meta-llicana is under attack by the Four Lords of Havoc, former followers of the legendary wizard Dark Schneider. Their campaign is tied to the seals restraining Anthrasax, an ancient god of destruction, and the kingdom's defenders are running out of options. High Priest Geo finally turns to the weapon he fears almost as much as the invaders: Dark Schneider himself, whose soul has been sealed inside the gentle boy Lucien Renlen.

Awakening Dark Schneider requires a kiss from Geo's daughter Yoko, and bringing him back does not produce an obedient hero. He is arrogant, vindictive, absurdly powerful and perfectly willing to settle old grudges while the kingdom burns around him. Yet his attachment to Yoko repeatedly pulls him toward protecting the people he claims not to care about, while encounters with Gara and Arshes Nei force him to confront the former comrades who once helped him try to conquer the world.

AIC's six-episode OVA, released from 1992 to 1993, compresses the early BASTARD!! manga into a fast run of sorcery, monsters, heavy-metal naming jokes and escalating magical battles. It ends after the conflict with Abigail rather than adapting the full manga, making this a distinct 1990s version of the story rather than a substitute for later adaptations.
Alt Title BASTARD!! -暗黒の破壊神-
Studio Anime International Company
Network OVA
Aired 1992 - 1993
Episodes 6
Genre Dark Fantasy, Action, Sword and Sorcery, Comedy
Status Completed
← All lore

BASTARD!! Watch Guide

What to Watch on a First Pass

Dark Schneider Is the Emergency Weapon, Not the Chosen Hero

Meta-llicana does not summon Dark Schneider because anyone trusts him.

Geo helped stop him fifteen years earlier and then sealed him inside Lucien. When the Four Lords of Havoc push the kingdom past what its normal defenses can handle, the old enemy becomes the weapon nobody wanted to use again.
How you can tell
Dark Schneider's first instinct after returning is not to save the kingdom. It is to settle an old score with Geo. Yoko has to redirect him toward the actual attack.
Why it matters
The OVA gets its basic tension from using a former conqueror as the kingdom's last line of defense. Every victory solves one problem while reminding everyone why he was sealed away in the first place.
Dark Schneider Geo Noto Soto Tia Noto Yoko Lucien Renlen

Yoko Controls Dark Schneider Without Being Stronger Than Him

Yoko cannot overpower Dark Schneider and rarely wins an argument by matching his ego.

What she has is leverage nobody else does. Her kiss awakens him, another kiss can return him to Lucien, and her emotional reactions repeatedly matter more to him than threats from priests, kings or enemies.
What changed
The kingdom thinks it is reviving a weapon. Yoko immediately turns that weapon into a relationship.
Why it matters
Dark Schneider can ignore authority. He has a much harder time ignoring the one person whose disappointment actually reaches him.
Tia Noto Yoko Dark Schneider Lucien Renlen

Lucien Is More Than the Place Dark Schneider Is Stored

The Lucien and Dark Schneider switch is funny on the surface because their personalities could hardly be further apart.

But the shared body keeps the series from treating Dark Schneider as an outside monster that can simply be pointed at an enemy and dismissed afterward. Lucien's ordinary life, his bond with Yoko and the body's ability to change back all remain present inside every decision to unleash the sorcerer.
Why it matters
The story never lets Dark Schneider become a clean superhero identity. Saving Meta-llicana always means putting Lucien back inside the same danger.
Lucien Renlen Dark Schneider Tia Noto Yoko

The OVA Turns Old Enemies Into the Party One Fight at a Time

SPOILER!
Episodes 2 through 5 are not just a line of stronger bosses.

Gara begins as the enemy who abducts Yoko, then comes back to Dark Schneider's side after their duel. Di-Amon survives defeat only by being forced into obedience. Arshes Nei begins under a curse and ends free of the people using her against Dark Schneider.
What changed
Each confrontation adds another piece of Dark Schneider's past to the group defending Meta-llicana.
Why it matters
By the finale, the kingdom is being protected partly by the same people who were attacking it. The party is built out of repaired or forcibly redirected relationships, not recruitment speeches.
Dark Schneider Gara Di-Amon Arshes Nei

How the Six-Episode OVA Is Built

Each Episode Is Built Around One New Threat

The six-episode structure is unusually easy to read once you notice the pattern.

Episode 1 revives Dark Schneider. Episode 2 introduces Efreet. Episode 3 resolves Gara. Episode 4 centers Di-Amon. Episode 5 centers Arshes Nei. Episode 6 turns Abigail into the immediate final threat.
How you can tell
The episode titles almost function like a boss list.
Why it matters
The OVA compresses a larger manga arc by making each episode carry one major opponent and one relationship change. That is why transitions can feel abrupt even when the overall direction is clear.
Dark Schneider Gara Di-Amon Arshes Nei Abigail

The Ending Stops Abigail, Not the Whole War

SPOILER!

Myth: Episode 6 is a complete ending to BASTARD!!

Episode 6 gives the OVA a real climax, but it does not close the larger conflict.

Dark Schneider returns, the Cyclops is destroyed and Abigail is defeated. Kall-Su is still outside the immediate battle, the larger threat around Anthrasax remains, and the manga story continues far beyond what these six episodes adapt.
Why it matters
The OVA works best as a complete 1990s adaptation of one early movement, not as a substitute for the entire BASTARD!! story.
Dark Schneider Abigail Kall-Su