Episode 1: Ryoko Resurrected
- of the 1st OVA series -
Synopses by John 'Furball' Yung
Editing by Scanner
Invaluable help from Takumi Hawa
It's a sunny summer day, and an old man walks up through the woods to a building. Upon arrival, he calls out, "Tenchi! Tenchi! Now where could that boy be?" Looking around, he sees tasks left unfinished.
In a room, a boy searches through a drawer without any success, "Now where could that old man have put it?"
"Looking for this?" asks the old man, jangling a key.
"Grandfather!" exclaims the boy, silently admitting to his crime since he was caught in the act.
The grandfather reprimands Tenchi, telling him that it's forbidden to enter the Masaki Shrine. Since Tenchi still wants to go in there, his grandfather issues a challenge: if the boy can take the key from him, he may go. Tenchi spars with his grandfather but is easily thrown aside. "I guess you still have things to learn. Get back to work." When the old man is gone, Tenchi reveals the key ring in his teeth.
Tenchi goes to the gate of the shrine and pauses to remember that day his grandfather caught him standing at this gate. The old man warned the little boy that there is a demon trapped within the cave. A long time ago, a demon ravaged the land until an ancestor fought it. Using a magic sword, the samurai was able to defeat the demon and seal it in this cave. The demon still sleeps within with the sword standing guard.
With the gate no longer in the way, Tenchi enters the cave. Looking around, he sees a huge stone held up by roots and a small shrine. Within the ordinary-looking shrine, he finds the sword and pulls the blade out of its sheath, he discovers only a rusty length of metal. "This is a sword that could cut through stone?" Trying it out on the nearest available stone, Tenchi breaks the rust encrusted blade, but he also splits the stone.
Tenchi panics, and his panic is heightened by the huge stone dropping as the roots release their hold on it. Wondering what to do now, he notices a new opening in one of the walls. Stepping through, his foot lands in cold water, and his head hits against the ceiling. This distracts from the fact that the floor is steeply sloped, and he slides down partway down the corridor. Before climbing back up, he looks down and cannot see the end of the passage. Then the sword slips from his grasp and slides down near his feet. With a gulp, Tenchi cautiously reaches for the sword but loses his grip and slides the rest of the way.
Landing at the bottom of the shaft ungraciously and getting bopped on the head by the sword, Tenchi finds himself in a strange chamber with a glow coming from the pool in the center. As Tenchi walks toward the light, the gems in the pommel of the sword start glowing. Peering into the pool, he discovers a mummy lying there. Backing off, he accidentally drops the sword and startles himself. As he reaches down to pick it up, his arm is grabbed by a mummified hand.
Tenchi stares into the masked face of the mummy in terror as it caresses his face and wrap its arms around him in an embrace. The sword flashes with energy, separating the boy and the mummy. As his wits return, Tenchi scrambles off and scales the shaft with superhuman effort.
Back in the shrine chamber, Tenchi tries to close the opening to no avail. Seeing the stone that he split, he quickly rejoins the two halves together and ties them up with nearby roots. The wall seals itself up, and the moaning of the mummy can be heard no longer. Tenchi lets out a sigh of relief.
During the night, a nearby sacred tree sends out beams into the pond surrounding it, reflecting the beams upwards into the sky, where they converge and send a signal in to space. The light beams die out, leaving the night as peaceful as before.
Back in school, Tenchi idly looks at the sword as one of his classmates comes over to ask him about it. When Tenchi dismisses the sword as nothing and puts it away, he is asked by the classmate about his vacation. Tenchi answers that it was the same thing as every summer, spending time at his grandfather's shrine doing chores. The classmate inquires about the girls there. When Tenchi tells him that there were just old people at the shrine and the nearby village, his classmate is disgusted that Tenchi just spent time with "mummies". Tenchi rebukes his friend and then remembers the mummy from the shrine. While he is lost in thought, the classmate asks what's wrong and suggests that Tenchi may have had sex with a mummy, at which Tenchi throws a powerful punch, sending the classmate into the lockers at the back of the room.
Up on the school rooftop, Tenchi ponders that day he entered the shrine. Nothing has happened since then, and his grandfather hasn't mentioned anything. He is left wondering how such a legend could be true before drifting off into sleep with the image of the mummy in his mind. Awaking at sunset, Tenchi realizes that he slept through the afternoon classes. He then hears the sound of a bell, and see Chibi, his grandfather's cat. Surprised that the cat is here on the rooftop with him, Tenchi is even more surprised when Chibi runs to him and disappears.
Suddenly hearing Chibi's collar bell behind him, Tenchi turns to find a young woman sitting on the water tower. She tosses the bell to him and introduces herself as Ryoko. When her eyes glow, Tenchi is reminded of the mummy. As he looks on in shock, she comments on how much she suffered while she was sealed away in the dark and cold cave for 700 years. Ryoko disperses globes of amber energy that swirl out into a holding pattern over the rooftop. Understanding that she came for revenge, Tenchi tries to explain that it was his ancestor, Yosho, who sealed her away. The energy globe in front of him pops as Ryoko says that she knows but still wants to vent her anger. With that, she gathers the energy globes into her palm and fires upon Tenchi.
Ryoko seems content to play around with Tenchi, firing near-misses that make him run all over the rooftop. She taunts him, saying that it's boring because he only runs away from her shots. This touches a nerve, and Tenchi grabs a metal rod from a pile of rubble. She crooks a finger, inviting him to charge her, which he does. Ryoko first easily catches Tenchi's swing, and when he strikes again Ryoko jumps up as he makes his attack, when he turns around to yell at her, the rod falls into pieces. Losing all courage, Tenchi makes a break for the stairs. Ryoko laughs with glee as she blows up the rooftop entrance, making him lose his footing and fall down the stairs.
When Tenchi stops rolling down the stairs by crashing into a wall, he takes a moment to express his pain before starting to run, but he backs up and slips into the science lab. Sliding the door shut as quietly as possible, he lets out a sigh of exhaustion and relief before catching his breath as Ryoko's shadow passes over the classroom windows. As he considers what to do next, he smells something. "Oh, that's just gas," says Tenchi to himself, "GAS?!?" Tenchi tries to sneak out of the room, but Ryoko finds him by sticking her head through the chalkboard. He bolts but is stopped by a stool sticking out of the wall that wasn't there before.
Ryoko walks through the wall into the room, preparing to finish off Tenchi with a sword made of energy. He panics, yelling at her about the gas. When she shows ignorance of gas ("Gas? What is that?"), Tenchi worries about being in the headlines of tomorrow's newpaper. In a desparate move, he tries to distract Ryoko by asking what is that outside the window. He then thinks that no one would be stupid enough to fall for that trick when Ryoko starts asking what and where is this thing outside. She turns around to discover Tenchi missing and gets angry, electrifying the air...
Tenchi is hightailing down the hallway when an explosion goes off at the science lab, knocking him off his feet. Believing that no one could possibly survive the explosion, Tenchi mourns her senseless death with a prayer, lamenting the fact that she was pretty before catching himself for being so crass. Then he sees a silohuette approaching through the flames.
Tenchi speeds around the corner and begins to creep sideways down the stairs as Ryoko starts flying down the hallway in anger. She passes by a mirror and backs up to gaze at her reflection. She gets concerned about her looks and starts cleaning herself. Tenchi makes it to his classroom and starts packing up his school books before making an escape from the school. Ryoko finishes straightening her looks and phases outside the building for a better fix on Tenchi's location. The fire alarm rings, startling the boy before he realizes what it is. Looking at the bell, he realizes the source of Ryuoko's power, a gem located at her wrist. Confident that if she loses the power gem then she will just be an ordinary female, he shouts out that it's so simple. Then he realizes his mistake of speaking out loud as Ryoko figures out his location. Ryoko fires a blast at the classroom, just as Tenchi gets out in time.
Outside the school, Tenchi runs until he bounces off Ryoko. Confident that she has him now, she swings her sword down saying that "this won't hurt!" As Tenchi screams "liar" a bright flash of light comes from his now split book bag. The light grows, revealing the sword from the shrine. Ryoko swears and fires a blast which is deflected by the sword. She moves in to slash, but the sword emits an energy blade. The sword seems to move of its own volition, and the two exchange sword blows. Tenchi tries to apologize for starting the sword fight, saying that he didn't intend to fight a monster like her. Ryoko is insulted at being called a monster, and Tenchi sputters out the reasons, "Yousurviveexplosionsyouwalkthroughwallsyoublowholes inceilingsandyouflyaround!!!" She is still not appeased and while moving closer, steps on a rake, flipping it up. As she makes a dent in the handle, the sword moves again and cuts off Ryoko's hand which combusts in mid-air. The gem lands on the ground and then explodes.
Ryoko looks displeased with herself at losing again, lamenting the fact that it was also such an ungraceful defeat. She notices her missing hand, and Tenchi stammers out excuses, ending up apologizing with a bow. With the showmanship of a magician, Ryoko brings up her other arm, puts her wrists together, and pulls them apart, revealing a brand new hand. Tenchi is impressed and claps his hands as she takes a bow and sinks into the ground. The school explodes, engulfing itself in flames, and the sound of approaching sirens can heard. Tenchi decides not to stay around, not wanting to take responsibility for the destruction.
Arriving at home, Tenchi slips into his room, sliding the door shut behind him. He is amazed that the sword has such power. Wondering if his troubles are indeed over, he falls back into bed. Then he notices a lump on his bed. With growing horror, he pulls back the covers to discover a sleeping Ryoko in his bed. She awakes and rolls onto her back, welcoming Tenchi. Tenchi, believing that he is doomed, claps his hands and bows his head in prayer.
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