F A Q

When Rayearth OVA was first released, only a handfull of people who knew both English and Japanese (myself included) got the chance to watch and understood the story (fansubs weren't that common back then). As you'd expect, we were bombarded with lots of questions. Here's a list of the questions that were asked by people in the past, maybe your question is included in the list as well. If it's not, just use the Submission Form to see if I have an answer.

  Questions

1. Well, since everyone has stressed that the OVA and the original series are different, then how do the girls become the Magic Knights in the OVA? From what I've read, they are still on Earth and not Cefiro.
2. Do they control Mashin? Do they have magic? Do they have their swords?
3. Since when was Emeraude Eagle's sister? Does anyone know what happens to Ferio and Ascot at the end of part 2?
4. I know its an alternate reality but how come Ferio is working against the Knights?
5. Did anyone realize that Clef has grown a bit? Is that really Clef?
6. Why did the Cefiro people come to Earth and not the other way round?
7. What's Eagle and Lantis doing here so early in the story? I could have sworn I saw Zagato putting a sword to Emeraude's throat in Episode 1. Are they still in love?
8. What did Clef say to the girls when they found him?
9. Is it OAV or OVA? This has been bugging me for a while now...
10. Why does Hikaru say 'Sainoz' or 'Cynos' or whatever when she first call Lexus and go inside him, is it a kind of special magic?
11. Did Lantis ever show affection to Hikaru?
12. What is the opening theme of the OVA? I heard it's All You Need Is Love, but isn't that the ending theme?
13. Is there a love plot in the OVA? Like Hikaru and Lantis, Ferio and Fuu, Umi and Clef...
14. Why does Eagle become a bad guy?
15. Are there only 3 OVAs?
16. What does OVA mean?
17. I am wondering where I can get really good copies of OVAs VHS fansubbed. Please tell where I can get them.
18. I read that Eagle is Emeraude's brother in the OVA. So who is Ferio in the OVA? Just some guy?
19. I recently saw a Rayearth movie and it sure had lots of nudity scenes, which was cool for me and disgusting for my sisters. Is this movie Rayearth or not? Because I never heard Rayearth have any nudity scenes or making out scenes like this movie I saw.
20. Why don't we see Hikaru and Lantis having a good time as sweethearts before the end of the OVA?

  Answers

1. Well, since everyone has stressed that the OVA and the original series are different, then how do the girls become the Magic Knights in the OVA? From what I've read, they are still on Earth and not Cefiro.

   Here's how they become Magic Knights (note that nobody calls them "Magic Knights" as they were referred to in the TV series):

   First, Hikaru spotted Mokona and was told by Lexus that "you must safe the world" and all that stuff. Then Hikaru got this little red ovum on the back of her hand that comes with all her magical powers. Cefiro was heading for Earth and will destroy everything when it arrives, but before it did, Alcyione popped up with her Mashin. Lexus "talked" to Hikaru again and she summoned him. That's how Hikaru became a Magic Knight.

   For Fuu and Umi, their understanding was you get that little ovum on your hand, you get magic, you become a Magic Knight, and you die fighting :P So they didn't want to become one, but since they saw that everybody is disappearing and it's not going to get any better if they just keep running away, Fuu went up to Mokona and asked for the ovum. She was "talked into" becoming a Magic Knight by Windam. Then Windam said Fuu must find him before she can summon him. Ferio then shows up with his little metal bugs and finally got Fuu into a desperate situation when she manages to find Windam in a stadium.

   Umi did not want in to become a Magic Knight at all, but did become one after Asscot threatened to kill her after he seemingly killed Clef. Umi ran for her life towards a habor (it's a deadend, but was the only way to run). Then as she was nearly crushed by the big crab like bug of Ascot's, Seresu "told" her to summon him in order to survive. Umi had no choice but to do so. Seresu turned into a Mashin and the rest, as they say, was history.

   And who said you can only become a Magic Knight by going to Cefiro?

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2. Do they control Mashin? Do they have magic? Do they have their swords?

   Yes, they do control Mashin and they do have magic, but they don't have swords anymore. They soley fight in their Mashin.

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3. Since when was Emeraude Eagle's sister? Does anyone know what happens to Ferio and Ascot at the end of part 2?

   You see, since the OVA has nothing to do with the original series, there's no reason to get worked up about Emeraude being Eagle's sister. As for Ferio, his Mashin was destroyed by Windam, but we find later in episode 3 that he survived. Eagle used some spell on Ascot that turned more aggressive when he lost his initial fight to Umi, but was killed in the end anyway.

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4. I know its an alternate reality but how come Ferio is working against the Knights?

   This may answer a few of the other questions as well... The plot of the OVA is TOTALLY different from the TV series. In this story, Cefiro is invading Earth, to fulfill the 'Wish of the Princess'. Therefore, everyone from Cefiro is against the Knights. With the exception of Clef, and Lantis.

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5. Did anyone realize that Clef has grown a bit? Is that really Clef?

   Yes, it is Clef, and he is on Earth's side... Which is why he helps Hikaru, Umi and Fuu.

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6. Why did the Cefiro people come to Earth and not the other way round?

   Read this answer.

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7. What's Eagle and Lantis doing here so early in the story? I could have sworn I saw Zagato putting a sword to Emeraude's throat in episode 1. Are they still in love?

   Remember, this is a totally different story line, so it doesn't really matter when they show up. And it was Lantis putting the sword to Eagle's throat. As for the Emeraude and Zagato, as far as I can tell they were in love, but Zagato was dead before the OVA started. See the Summary of Episode 3 for more details.

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8. What did Clef say to the girls when they found him?

   When he first speaks to them, he realizes that Hikaru is the one that he saw earlier at Tokyo Tower, and that she has received the Ovum (the pearl thing on her hand). He then says that she'll be given a test, but the girls don't understand. As he begins to explain the situation, Alcyione shows up.

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9. Is it OAV or OVA? This has been bugging me for a while now...

   OVA stands for Original Video Animation. Anything that's an OVA only gets released on tape, LD or DVD and they don't get broadcasted on TV (usually). Usually, the quality of the OVA of a series is better compared to a TV series, however, OVAs tend to be shorter in episode count. The typical length of an OVA is 3-5 episodes, but varies from series to series. Some publishing companies call it OAV, which stands for Original Animation Video - just another name for the same thing.

   Japanese sources then use OVA over OAV, so I'm sticking to OVA.

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10. Why does Hikaru say 'Sainoz' or 'Cynos' or whatever when she first call Lexus and go inside him, is it a kind of special magic?

    It's really just a thing to say to merge with their Mashin. Umi and Fuu says it too in the 2nd episode. As for the bad guys, they say something entirely different. They say a whole bunch more - you'll get to hear them when Ascot and Ferio merges with their Mashin. But really, I think they say it just to sound cool :P

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11. Did Lantis ever show affection to Hikaru?

    In the OVA, we only see Lantis pity Hikaru when he was looking at her and addressing her as the "legendary sacrifice". He surely cares for her and tries to stop her from going into battle again after Lexus was blown away. He placed her into a maze to stop her from going anywhere, but she broke free in the end of the second episode. Lantis also got himself killed when he was attempting to rescue the girls from the Eagle. From what it seems, Lantis is more concerned about stopping Eagle than Hikaru, but given how short the OVA is, there isn't enough scenes dedicated to character relations to give make any further guesses.

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12. What is the opening theme of the OVA? I heard it's All You Need Is Love, but isn't that the ending theme?

    The OVA's theme song is All You Need Is Love. There is no opening or ending theme - it's only got one song. Due to the fact it's played in the end of each episode, some people mistaken it for being the ending theme. If you look at the credits in the end of each episode, you will see (it's written in Japanese) that All You Need Is Love is the 'Main Theme'.

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13. Is there a love plot in the OVA? Like Hikaru and Lantis, Ferio and Fuu, Umi and Clef...

    There are hints, but no clear answer like in the original series. It's safe to say Fuu and Ferio are affected towards each other, but for Hikaru x Lantis and Umi x Clef...there are just too few scenes avaliable to debate with. Most of the plot is concerned about telling the main "Rayearth story" than character relationships.

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14. Why does Eagle become a bad guy?

    Eagle is Emeraude's "dark side" which she "ditched" when she was unable to accept Zagato's death (kind of like the end of the first season in the original series). Eagle then worked to ensure Emeraude will stay in a never ending dream so can be with Zagato forever. Eagle thought he was doing as his sister wished until Emeraude finally "woke up" at the end and told Eagle they should "try and start anew". So...Eagle is not exactly a bad guy...more like a misguided young man.

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15. Are there only 3 OVAs?

    Yes, but there's also an "editor's cut" subtitled the "Wings of Hope". It's basically the 3 OVAs stuck together as one long movie. It has around 5 minutes of new footage, but some old footage was taken out to make up for the time. This version gives a bit more insight to Eagle's character. As far as I know, this edition is only avaliable in Japanese.

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16. What does OVA mean?

    Read this answer.

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17. I am wondering where I can get really good copies of OVAs VHS fansubbed. Please tell where I can get them.

    The OVA has been licensed and released by Manga Entertainment on both VHS and DVD. You won't find fansubs around anymore, go get the commercial release.

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18. I read that Eagle is Emeraude's brother in the OVA. So who is Ferio in the OVA? Just some guy?

    Yes, Eagle is Emeraude's brother in the OVA. Ferio is one of the 3 "beast handlers" who were sent by Eagle to complete their trials on Earth. Although Ferio is no longer Emeraude's brother, he still takes an important role in the story line (well, there's only a handful of characters in the OVA). Ferio and Fuu also seem affected to each other in the OVA like the original series.

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19. I recently saw a Rayearth movie and it sure had lots of nudity scenes, which was cool for me and disgusting for my sisters. Is this movie Rayearth or not? Because I never heard Rayearth have any nudity scenes or making out scenes like this movie I saw.

    I don't know where you saw the "make out scene" (there isn't one), but Rayearth OVA does contain some nudity (the girls are nude while inside their Mashin). It's more of a fan service thing, it doesn't have any adult content.

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20. Why don't we see Hikaru and Lantis having a good time as sweethearts before the end of the OVA?

    The OVA sets the mood for a dark story, I never expected to see a happy ending. As stressed before, the OVA has nothing to do with the TV series in terms of storyline, so you shouldn't assume what happened in the TV series should also happen in the OVA. Anyway, Lantis dies before anything can happen, and we aren't even sure if Hikaru likes Lantis either (there are only scenes that suggests it). So there's no real answer. If you really need an answer, go ask CLAMP :P

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