Shamanic Princess (OVA) DVD

Tiara is a Guardian of the Throne of Yord — a powerful magical artifact from the spirit realm — who has come to the human world to retrieve it after it was stolen. The thief is Kagetsu, her former beloved. The complication: her archrival Lena is already there, and she is protecting him. Why has Kagetsu stolen the Throne? Why is Lena, who competed with Tiara for everything in their world, now standing between Tiara and her mission? As Tiara fights through monsters and illusions using her shamanic powers with the help of her shapeshifting familiar Japolo, the answers emerge slowly — and the truth behind the theft, the Throne, and the sacrifice at the center of it all is considerably more devastating than the mission briefing suggested. Episodes 5 and 6, released two years after the first four, are a prequel that reframes everything that came before.

Shamanic Princess is a six-episode OVA developed by the Princess Project creative collective,  — the studio behind Serial Experiments Lain production. It was directed by Mitsuru Hongo — who also directed Outlaw Star and Pilot Candidate. The series has an unusual structural feature: episodes 1–4 form the main story, while episodes 5–6 — released in Japan two years later in 1998 — are a prequel depicting the events that preceded episode 1, radically recontextualizing the characters. The English dub was produced by Central Park Media in New York and features Crispin Freeman as Kagetsu, Rachael Lillis as Mimi, and Tristan Goddard as Graham.

Originally released in North America on three VHS volumes; the complete series was collected on a single bilingual DVD by Central Park Media / US Manga Corps on July 25, 2001. Media Blasters re-licensed and reissued on DVD in 2013. 

Notable Staff & Voice Talent

Director: Mitsuru Hongo (Sakura Wars The Movie, Outlaw Star, Pilot Candidate, Ghost Sweeper Mikami)
Screenplay: Mami Watanabe, Mitsuru Hongo & Hiroyuki Nishimura
Character Design: Atsuko Ishida
Studio: Animate Film / Triangle Staff (Tenamonya Voyagers, Legend of Crystania, Serial Experiments Lain production)
Music: Yoshikazu Suo

Japanese Cast:
- Sayuri as Tiara
- Rika Matsumoto as Japolo / Graham (Pokémon — voice of Ash/Satoshi, Sol Bianca: The Legacy)
- Koichi Yamadera as Kagetsu (Cowboy Bebop, Evangelion, Elf Princess Rane, Shinesman, Moldiver, Night Warriors, Metropolis, Ghost in the Shell: SAC)
- Tomo Sakurai as Sarah (El-Hazard: The Alternative World, Rurouni Kenshin Reflection, Saint Tail)
- Yuka Imai as Mimi (Burn Up W, Now and Then Here and There, El-Hazard, Haunted Junction, Gestalt, Maze OVA, Revolutionary Girl Utena — Wakaba)
- Mitsuki Yayoi as Lena

English Dub Cast (Central Park Media — New York):
- Tara Jayne as Tiara (Elf Princess Rane, Fencer of Minerva, Maze OVA, Night on the Galactic Railroad, Captain Tylor OVA, Ping Pong Club, Hyper Speed GranDoll)
- Crispin Freeman as Kagetsu (Night on the Galactic Railroad, RG Veda, Descendants of Darkness, Captain Tylor OVA, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Ping Pong Club)
- Rachael Lillis as Mimi (Pokémon, Night on the Galactic Railroad, Maetel Legend, Captain Tylor OVA, DNA², Revolutionary Girl Utena)
- Tristan Goddard as Graham / The Throne of Yord (Descendants of Darkness, Maze OVA, Ping Pong Club, Fencer of Minerva)
- Mary Anne Towne as Sarah
- Suzy Prue as Lena
- P.M. Lewis as Japolo

DVD Features (Central Park Media / US Manga Corps Single-Disc Complete Series, 2001)

- All 6 Episodes on Single Disc — Complete OVA Series
- Character Profiles
- Artist Biography
- Trailers
- DVD-ROM: Art Gallery, Production & Cast Credits, Character Descriptions, Scripts, Reviews
- Central Park Media / US Manga Corps Previews
- Note: Out of print following CPM's 2009 bankruptcy. Reissued with new cover art 2003; Media Blasters reissue 2013.

Spoken Languages: English & Japanese Audio, English Subtitles

Edition Details

Japanese Title: シャーマニックプリンセス (Shāmanikku Purinsesu / Shamanic Princess)
Runtime: ~180 Minutes (Complete OVA, 6 Episodes)
Director: Mitsuru Hongo
DVD Release Year: 2001 (U.S. Single-Disc Complete Series, July 25 — Central Park Media / US Manga Corps); reissued with new cover art 2003; Media Blasters reissue 2013
Original Release Date (Japan): June 25, 1996 – June 25, 1998
Publisher: Central Park Media (US Manga Corps) — out of print; Media Blasters (2013 reissue)
Rating: 13+
Region: Region 1 (U.S. / Canada)
Genre: Action, Drama, Magical Girl

Media assumed VG+ unless otherwise noted.