Blue Exorcist

The world of Blue Exorcist consists of two dimensions, attached to each other as a mirror and its reflection. The first is the material world where humans live, Assiah (物質界（アッシャー）, Asshā), and the other is Gehenna (虚無界（ゲヘナ）, Gehena), the world of demons, which is ruled by Satan. Originally, a journey between the worlds, or even a contact between them, was impossible, however, any demon is able to pass to the dimension of Assiah through the possession of a living being in it. Even so, demons have historically wandered among humans unnoticed, visible only to people who have had contact with demons before.

In contrast, there are Exorcists, people who train to destroy demons who act in a damaging manner in Assiah. With more than two thousand years of existence, this group has several branches all over the world being secretly under the command of the Vatican itself and acting in a clandestine manner.

The story revolves around Rin Okumura, who, along with his younger twin Yukio Okumura, was raised by Father Shiro Fujimoto, an Exorcist. One day, Rin learns that he and Yukio are the sons of Satan. Witnessing Shiro dying to protect him, Rin draws the demon-slaying sword Kurikara (倶利伽羅), which restrains his demonic powers. From that moment on, Rin not only gains demonic features like fangs and a tail, but also the power to ignite into blue flames that destroy almost anything he touches.

Rin wishes to become an Exorcist like his guardian to become stronger and to defeat Satan. He enrolls at the prestigious True Cross Academy (正十字学園, Sei Jūji Gakuen), an exorcist cram school, which is actually the Japanese branch of the True Cross Order (正十字騎士團, Sei Jūji Kishidan), an international organization dedicated to protect Assiah (human realm) from the Gehenna (demonic realm). Much to his surprise, Rin finds that Yukio is already a veteran Exorcist and is one of his teachers. Thus begins Rin's journey to become an Exorcist, accompanied by his brother and his fellow students who quickly become his close friends.

Blue Exorcist is written and illustrated by Kazue Kato. A one-shot chapter, titled Miyamauguisu House Case (深山鶯邸事件, Miyamauguisu-tei Jiken), was first published in Shueisha's Jump Square on August 4, 2008.[9][10] Blue Exorcist has been serialized in Jump Square since April 4, 2009.[11] Shueisha has collected its chapters into individual tankōbon volumes. The first volume was released on August 4, 2009.[12] As of July 4, 2023, 29 volumes have been published.[13]

The series has been licensed by Viz Media for release in North America, with the first volume released under the Shōnen Jump Advance imprint on April 5, 2011.[14][15] Twenty-seven volumes have been released as of May 3, 2022.[16] The series is also licensed in France by Kazé,[17] and in Poland by Waneko.[18]

A spin-off series written by Kato and illustrated by Minoru Sasaki, focused on Rin's brother, Yukio, titled Salaryman Exorcist: The Sorrows of Yukio Okumura (サラリーマン祓魔師 奥村雪男の哀愁, Salaryman Futsumashi Okumura Yukio no Aishū), started in Jump SQ.19 on April 19, 2013.[19] After the magazine ceased publication on February 19, 2015, the series was transferred to Jump Square.[20] The series finished on April 3, 2020.[21] Its chapters were collected in four tankōbon volumes, released from February 4, 2015,[22] to June 4, 2020.[23]

An anime adaption for the manga was announced on November 27, 2010, on Shueisha's Jump Square official website.[24] 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 a week later on April 17.[25] The anime ended on October 2, 2011.

The opening theme for the first 12 episodes is "Core Pride" by Japanese rock band Uverworld,[26] while the opening theme from episode 13 onwards is "In My World" by Japanese rock band Rookiez is Punk'd. The ending theme for the first 12 episodes is "Take Off" by South Korean boy band 2PM,[27] while the ending theme from episode 13 through episode 25 is "Wired Life" by Japanese singer Meisa Kuroki.

Aniplex announced they would simulcast the series in North America through video sites Hulu, Crunchyroll, Anime News Network and Netflix starting on April 20, 2011.[28] Aniplex of America released Blue Exorcist on DVD in four sets, starting by releasing the first DVD on October 18, 2011.[29] An OVA was released in 2011, called Ao No Exorcist: Kuro no Iede. The series began broadcasting in the United States and Canada on Viz Media's online network, Neon Alley, on October 2, 2012.[30] The series began airing on Adult Swim's Toonami block on February 23, 2014, and finished airing on August 10, 2014.[31]

After six years, a second season titled Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga was announced in June 2016 and premiered on January 7, 2017.[32][33][34] Koichi Hatsumi directed the sequel, while Toshiya Ōno wrote the scripts, Keigo Sasaki designed the characters, and Hiroyuki Sawano and Kohta Yamamoto composed the series' soundtrack. A-1 Pictures returned to produce the animation.[35][36] The opening theme is "Itteki no Eikyō" (一滴の影響, lit. "Drop's Influence") by Uverworld, while the ending theme is "Kono Te de" (コノ手デ, lit. "With This Hand") by Rin Akatsuki.[37] The series has been licensed by Aniplex of America.[38]

In December 2022, it was announced that the series will receive another television series adaptation.[39] It was later revealed as Blue Exorcist: Shimane Illuminati Saga which will adapt volumes 10–15 of the original manga. The series will be produced by Studio VOLN and directed by Daisuke Yoshida, with scripts written by Toshiya Ōno, character designs handled by Yurie Oohigashi, and music composed by Hiroyuki Sawano and Kohta Yamamoto. It is set to premiere in January 2024.[40] The opening theme is "Eye’s Sentry" by Uverworld.[41]

An anime film, Blue Exorcist: The Movie, was released on December 28, 2012, in Japan.[42] The English dub cast reprised their roles for the movie.[43]

A stage play based on the series titled Live Act Ao no Exorcist: Mashin no Rakuin, ran for nine performances at the Nippon Seinenkan hall in Tokyo's Shinjuku ward from May 11–17, 2012. Satoshi Owada directed and wrote scripts for the play. Main characters Rin and Yukio Okumura were portrayed by Ryou Kimura and Kimito Totani respectively.[44] A light novel titled Ao no Exorcist: Weekend Hero was written by Aya Yajima and illustrated by Kato. It was released by Shueisha on September 2, 2011.[45] A visual novel for PlayStation Portable, Ao no Exorcist: Genkoku no Labyrinth was released on April 26, 2012, by Bandai Namco Games.[46] A smartphone game, Blue Exorcist: Damned Chord was originally announced in December 2018; however in November 2020, it was announced that the game was canceled.[47]

By November 2016, Blue Exorcist had over 15 million copies in circulation.[48] By December 2022, the manga had over 25 million copies in circulation.[39] The manga has been popular in Japan with the seventh volume receiving first print run of one million copies becoming the first Jump Square 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.[45]

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.[49] Danica Davidson from Otaku USA felt that while the series employs disturbing storytelling, Rin's heroic traits despite being Satan's son make the plot more appealing to the readers.[50] Kato's artwork has been praised by Anime News Network's Carlo Santos for the way each character has distinct traits while background images are well designed.[51] Deb Aoki of About.com praised Kato's art and the series' "multi-dimensional world that melds European architecture, Japanese culture, modern technology and Tim Burton-esque whimsy", also stating that it is a "multicultural mishmash" of Harry Potter, Cirque du Soleil, Blade Runner and Alice in Wonderland, but she called the action scenes "a bit chaotic, and sometimes hard to follow".[52]

Carl Kimlinger from Anime News Network 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 points, and described it as "Great action, fun characters, and an occasional tug at the heart as well; every episode without fail is a blast".[53] Sandra Scholes of active Anime noted similarities to other series like Trinity Blood, Fullmetal Alchemist and Bleach, but wrote that the story and characters have "plenty of their own to tantalize us to watch" and wrote that it is "a truly shōnen series, but there is room for some emotional scenes".[54]