Heavenly Delusion (also known as Tengoku Daimyou) has to be one of the most interesting series that have been out in 2023 so far. The year has not even reached its half, and the new release has set out to make a mark for itself. Ever since its trailer got released, the show’s whispers started spreading around in the circles of the anime community.
Heavenly Delusion is the kind of show that is rarely released. The show has definitely got a vibe to itself that is rarely found. This much hype within the cultured circles for a new release definitely raises eyebrows in surprise and curiosity.
With parallels already being drawn between the show and a number of anime series that incorporated psychological horror aspects really well and even science fiction, it will not be wrong to say that Heavenly Delusion has already started off with a statement of its own. The show’s characters, its setting, the ideas represented in it, and the understanding of a viewer’s mind displayed in the show make it nothing less than a rollercoaster. It might remind some of a number of classics, but the newness in it is a breath of fresh air.
Not to leave you hanging, just with the questions in your mind about Heavenly Delusion and the theories related to it, here is something that covers everything from the characters to the setting to the factors that help the anime succeed behind the scenes.
Just to ignite your curiosity about what the show contains beyond the usual looks, have a look at the facts that you must know about the show-Heavenly Delusion. With each fact passing, you will be able to understand and know for yourself what the show’s discussions are all about
Also Read: How To Watch Tengoku Daimakyou Episodes? Streaming Guide!
1. The mangaka originally worked on a comedy manga earlier
The mangaka for the Heavenly Delusion manga has had another manga as his creation earlier. Masakazu Ishiguro has worked on a slice-of-life comedy manga. Titled And Yet The Town Moves (Soredemo Machi Wa Mawatteiru), the work lasted a robust ten years.
It appeared in the Young King OURs magazine. Compiled into 16 volumes, it received its own award-winning animated adaptation as well. The manga originally ran from 2005 to 2016. It managed to make a place for itself in numerous ranking lists and awards as well.
The show’s story is all about the girl Hotori Arashiyama and the people in her life dealing with various paranormal creatures. She works as a part-time waitress at a coffee shop, and the story revolves around her life and fellow people in an enjoyable way.
2. The Heavenly Delusion manga is being serialized in Monthly Afternoon
This new original work of Masakazu Ishiguro found its place in a Seinen magazine published by Kodansha. Even though the manga has had eight volumes of its own, the serialization of the manga started taking place in the Monthly Afternoon magazine.
The serialization began in January 2018, and the same year July saw the very first proper manga volume of the Heavenly Delusion series. The manga compilation of the series was also done by Kodansha only. With the series ongoing, there is a lot more to come.
3. The story is set in a world after the apocalypse
The story of Heavenly Delusion is something that leaves a lot of viewers mesmerized. One major reason is that the setting of the show is set in a world that has been destroyed due to a huge disaster.
The post-apocalyptic setting makes the modern civilization just a group of ruins that are isolated and ignored. The characters are a group of children that reside in a place that is separate from the destroyed civilization.
The walled complex has robots to raise children. It is the outside world that has the scars of a huge disaster that erased an entire civilization and has terrifying creatures lurking out to finish any other signs of existing human life.
The survival struggle display is what makes the show fascinating. It is the security of the complex against the hostility of the outside world that makes the setting really interesting.
4. The anime is produced by Production I.G.
The Heavenly Delusion animated adaptation is the product of Production I.G. The show is the second animated adaptation of a Masakazu Ishiguro work. For those who do not know how reputed Production I.G. is, the production studio has been behind the formation of a number of reputed anime like Attack on Titan, Haikyuu, and Fooly Cooly (FLCL). Hirotaka Mori is the director of the show. He has been behind the movies Psycho-Pass, Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods, and anime like Erased, One Piece, and Haikyuu.
5. The similarities between Heavenly Delusion and The Promised Neverland
The anime that has quite a lot of similarities with Heavenly Delusion is The Promised Neverland. Even with the anime just being out fresh, there have been a lot of similarities that are being talked about between the two shows.
The harnessing of psychological aspects in both series is actually the very first similarity that has been pointed out. The perspectives of the destinations in both shows were also brought into the comparison.
Also Read: 20 Facts About “The Promised Neverland” You Should Know
6. The mythological goddess symbolism
With just four episodes out, a great classic mythological reference has already been brought into the show. A symbol quite similar to the The Owl of Minerva (also called the Owl of Athena) has already been featured in the show.
The owl has always been related to the Greek goddess of wisdom-Athena. There is a lot of philosophy behind the symbol in both the Greek and Roman times. Both Ovid and Aristotle have talked of the symbol.
As pointed out by Maru in the show, there is a deep meaning behind the symbolism of the crows and owls, and it is expected from the show that the symbolism’s meaning will be deciphered at a later point in time. It is Another similarity between The Promised Neverland and Heavenly Delusion that the birds have been used as methods of symbolism.
7. The versatility of the show is exceptional
Heavenly Delusion’s versatility is quite wide when watched. Labeling the show as a definite member of just one genre has been a difficult task as of now. The show’s setting in a post-apocalyptic world with a protected complex full of robots and surviving humans gives it the feel of a science fiction anime. Meanwhile, the use of psychological horror in the show is intelligent enough to make it even seem like a horror show.
The use of suspense, symbolism, and unpredictable points has taken the show to the point where it does not seem wrong when the show is labeled as one of the thriller genres. In all, the versatility is so vast that there can be no definite conclusion as to what category the show simply fits in.
8. Heavenly Delusion’s voice actors have been in Dr. Stone and a lot of other shows
Not all the voice actors of Heavenly Delusion were revealed to the public until a point of time arrived when the suspense was at its peak. But the voice actors have worked in a lot of reputed shows that you must have watched. To start off, we have Maru, who has been voiced by Gen Sato. The voice actor has had the experience of voicing Chrome in Dr. Stone and has also worked in Pretty Boy Detective Club and Stars Align.
Sayaka Senbong has given her voice to the character of Kiruko in Heavenly Delusion. What is interesting to note is the fact that she has also voiced Shuna in the series That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime and Nifa in Attack on Titan.
Meanwhile, Tokio has been voiced by Hibiku Yamamura, who has worked in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders, Noragami, and Assassination Classroom. No surprise that the voice actors have also been highlighted ever since the show’s release came in the news.
9. The show has cleverly used body horror
Heavenly Delusion has already come in talks for the use of various psychologically unsettling depictions of horror. The presence of body horror elements in the show is what makes it really disturbing as well. The scene of Kiruko’s origins and Haruki realizing that survival is possible but in the body of a loved one is what makes it traumatizing.
Finding oneself alive in the body of a loved one is what makes the show unsettling. The very same goes for the gruesome killings done by the maneater creatures. The way they choose to wipe a human out and absorb their bodies just adds to the body horror that has been shown so perfectly.
10. The concepts of Heaven and Hell
The two most interesting terms that the people have found in the show are- ‘Heaven’ and ‘Hell.’ While the term ‘Hell’ is used to represent the ruins of the civilization existing outside the complex, the point of ‘Heaven’ is still being explored. With Maru and Kiruko exploring every single place in pursuit of Heaven, the show has its own bits of adventure and thrill. What Maru and Kiruko still do not know is whether Heaven is just a concept or an actual physical place.
With ten facts clear about the show, we can clearly conclude that there is quite a lot of interesting material to explore in the show. With a huge variety of genres in which the show fits, a lot is there to come. Keeping in consideration that the animated adaptation has just started, it will be safe to conclude that there is going to be quite a lot more material in the discussion.
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