Zetsuen no Tempest

Synopsis

The point of view begins with Hakaze, a witch who ended up on a deserted island. Changing point of views, we now look at Yoshino and Mahiro. Yoshino and Mahiro were best friends, but one day Mahiro suddenly disappeared. Yoshino assumed that he found a clue to whoever murdered his family. Despite the close bond they had, Yoshino has no idea where Mahiro is. However, one day when Yoshino was putting flowers on Mahiros' family's grave, a woman questions Yoshino about Mahiro at gun point. According to the woman, Mahiro got involved with some serious issues that will inevitably put the human race in a catastrophic situation, and the Japanese government is desperately looking for Mahiro. Apparently some sort of "magic" is involved. What happened to Mahiro? And who is this Hakaze girl? What does Hakaze have to do with this?

Main Characters

Mahiro Fuwa (不破 真広 Fuwa Mahiro)

Voiced by: Toshiyuki Toyonaga

A boy whose family was killed one year before the series' start, including his father, mother and step-sister Aika. In exchange for help to find the culprit behind the murder, Mahiro agrees with Hakase's plan to stop the resurrection of the Tree of Zetsuen with Yoshino's help. With little care for the destiny of the world, Mahiro's only desire is to locate and kill the murderer of his family, especially for Aika's sake. Despite not being related by blood with Aika, Mahiro claims he never had any romantic feelings for her, despite his actions imply otherwise.

Mahiro's setup and behavior includes allusions to Prince Hamlet, as just like the main character from Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet, he is prone to abandon all morals and reason for the sake of enacting his revenge.

Yoshino Takigawa (滝川 吉野 Takigawa Yoshino)

Voiced by: Kōki Uchiyama

Mahiro's friend who joins his quest to stop the Tree of Zetsuen in exchange for the means to avenge his family's murder. Just like Mahiro, Yoshino can't overcome Aika's death as he was also her boyfriend, a fact he always kept a secret from Mahiro by her request. Yoshino has a more calm and collected character in contrast to Mahiro's reckless behavior, and usually is the only one able to persuade him when he is too focused on his revenge to pay attention to anything else. Hakase also develops romantic feelings for Yoshino, but refrains from confessing to him upon his claim that he already has a girlfriend, unaware that said girl is the late Aika.

Yoshino's setup and behavior includes allusions to Romeo, as just like the character from Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, he also had a secret love with a tragic fate.

Hakaze Kusaribe (鎖部 葉風 Kusaribe Hakaze)

Voiced by: Miyuki Sawashiro

The leader of the Kusaribe Clan also known as the "Magician of Beginnings" with the task of protecting the "Tree of Beginnings" which is the source of the magic used by her clan. Betrayed by her aide Samon, who intends to halt the Tree of Beginnings' advent by having the Tree of Zetsuen resurrected first, she is left stranded in a barrel which was washed ashore of a desert island. She uses the last remains of her magic to create a pair of wooden dolls with one of them thrown inside a bottle to the sea and the other in her posession. The doll is found by Mahiro, and she uses it to communicate with him, giving him and Yoshino instructions to confront the Kusaribe Clan and prevent the return of the Tree of Zetsuen.

Later it is revealed that Hakaze had long died before she makes contact with Mashiro and Yoshino, and the doll in their possesion is connecting them with a Hakaze from before she perishes in the island and her remains are recovered by Samon. By using the connection between the dolls, Hakaze manages to escape the island and transfer herself from the past to the present by using her powers to send her body to the present except by her skeleton which is left behind in the island for Samon to find, just to have her body and present skeleton successfully rejoined in the current time, thus allowing her to return to life without violating the space-time continuum.

Hakaze's setup and behavior includes allusions to Prospero, the main character from Shakespeare's play The Tempest, who just like her, is a magician betrayed by his servants and left for dead on a desert island.

Kusaribe Clan

Samon Kusaribe

Voiced by: Rikiya Koyama

Hakase's former aide who usurped her position as leader of the Kusaribe clan with the intention of awakening the Tree of Zetsuen to prevent the advent of the Tree of Beginnings. Later it is revealed when he does so because he knows that upon fully awakening, the Tree of Beginnings will recreate the world, fearing that by doing so, all beings previously created (including mankind) may be destroyed.

Natsumura Kusaribe

Voiced by: Junichi Suwabe

Tetsuma Kusaribe

Voiced by: Hiroyuki Yoshino

Other Characters

Aika Fuwa

Voiced by: Kana Hanazawa

Killed along her parents one year before, Aika was Mahiro's step sister and Yoshino's girlfriend. Despite being already dead, both are still far from overcoming her loss, with Mahiro determined to avenge her at all costs and Yoshino still claiming he has a lover.

Evangeline Yamamoto

Voiced by: Nana Mizuki

Junichirō Hoshimura

Voiced by: Hirofumi Nojima

(Source: MangaHelpers)