Elfen Lied
Also known as エルフェンリート
TVSummer 2004Source MangaR+ - Mild Nudity
ActionDramaEcchiHorrorPsychologicalRomanceSupernaturalSuspense
6.8/10
Community score
#2381
Rank
1.6M
Members
25.3K
Favorites
Synopsis
The Diclonius, a mutated homosapien that is said to be selected by God and will eventually become the destruction of mankind, possess two horns on their heads and have a "sixth sense" which gives them telekinetic abilities. Due to this dangerous power, they have been captured and isolated in laboratories by the government. Lucy, a young and psychotic Diclonius, manages to break free of her confines and brutally murders most of the guards in the laboratory where she is being held, only to be shot in the head as she makes her escape. She survives, falling off a cliff into the ocean and manages to drift along to a beach where two teenagers, Kouta and Yuka, discover her. Having lost her memories, she was named after the only thing that she can now say, "Nyuu," and the two allow her to stay at Kouta's home. However, it appears that the psychotic side of Lucy is not dead just yet...
(Source: ANN - Revised)
Production Notes
Elfen Lied follows the source manga through the first seven volumes, with several alterations to the story, and concludes with an original ending. In an interview, director Mamoru Kanbe expressed his disappointment in having to condense the story into 13 episodes and felt that more were needed to include significant plot details that would have made the series more emotive. The artistic design of both the opening and ending sequences are heavily inspired by the works of Austrian symbolist painter Gustav Klimt. Colors and patterns resembling Klimt's distinct style were used and characters of the series were drawn to recreate several paintings from the artist's golden period, including The Kiss. The opening theme, "LILIUM," which is sung in Ecclesiastical Latin, uses lyrics taken from The Bible, the Renaissance hymn "Ave mundi spes Maria," as well as the alchemical compendium Theatrum Chemicum.
Theme Songs
Openings
"LILIUM" by Kumiko Noma (野間久美子)
Endings
"Be Your Girl" by Chieko Kawabe
If You Liked This
Quick Facts
FormatTV
Episodes13
Duration25 min per ep
SourceManga
RatingR+ - Mild Nudity
SeasonSummer 2004
AiredJul 25, 2004 to Oct 17, 2004
StatusFinished Airing
Recommended
Monetizing Content
Ranking And Reach
Popularity#81
Scored by926.4K
BroadcastSundays at 22:30 (JST)
ApprovedYes
Title Variants
English title
Elfen Lied
Romaji title
Elfen Lied
Japanese title
エルフェンリート
Synonyms
Elfen Song, Elfic Song, Elf Song
Production Team
Main studio
ARMS
Producers
VAP, Genco, Zack Promotion
Licensors
ADV Films, Sentai Filmworks
Japanese title
エルフェンリート
Themes And Audience
GorePsychologicalSuper PowerSeinen