Takehito Harada
Encyclopedia
is a chief executive officer of Studio ToOefuf and video game artist employed by Nippon Ichi whose art has been featured in video games such as Disgaea, Phantom Brave
, and Makai Kingdom
. His art style has been described as "crazy and bizarre" and features everything from cute pre-teen demons, to freaky pigs in royal clothing. His signature character, Pleinair, has appeared in Disgaea and Phantom Brave.
Along with his work for Nippon Ichi, Harada has published several Dōjinshi
under the name of Haradaya. These include his kipple series and a Pleinair Handbook, which consist of short stories interspersed with various illustrations and fanart.
who has made appearances in several games in Nippon Ichi
's tactical role-playing game
series. She is something of a mascot
character for the artist and character designer of these games, Takehito Harada.
The name "Pleinair" is two French words put together; "plein" meaning "open," and "air" as in English. Together, the phrase means "outdoor".
, not much is known of Pleinair outside of her physical appearance. She is typically portrayed as a petite, blue-haired girl with red eyes, wearing a red ribbon, a white dress, white stockings, and sometimes glasses. She is often accompanied by a stuffed rabbit named "Usagi-san" and a stuffed shark named "Same-san." A common motif in images of Pleinair is Usagi-san being eaten (or at least gnawed or bitten) by either Pleinair or Same-san.
Her full name is Plenair Allaprima. A name given by Takehito Harada meaning "Drawing freely in the huge outdoors"
Phantom Brave
is a tactical role-playing game for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software. It was released on January 22, 2004 in Japan, on August 31, 2004 in North America and on February 4, 2005 in Europe...
, and Makai Kingdom
Makai Kingdom: Chronicles Of The Sacred Tome
Makai Kingdom: Chronicles of the Sacred Tome, released in Japan as , is a tactical role-playing game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It was released in 2005...
. His art style has been described as "crazy and bizarre" and features everything from cute pre-teen demons, to freaky pigs in royal clothing. His signature character, Pleinair, has appeared in Disgaea and Phantom Brave.
Along with his work for Nippon Ichi, Harada has published several Dōjinshi
Dojinshi
is the Japanese term for self-published works, usually magazines, manga or novels. Dōjinshi are often the work of amateurs, though some professional artists participate as a way to publish material outside the regular industry. The term dōjinshi is derived from and . Dōjinshi are part of a wider...
under the name of Haradaya. These include his kipple series and a Pleinair Handbook, which consist of short stories interspersed with various illustrations and fanart.
Pleinair
is a fictional characterFictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
who has made appearances in several games in Nippon Ichi
Nippon Ichi
is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. They are responsible for such titles as Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, Phantom Brave, La Pucelle: Tactics and Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure.-History:Nippon Ichi Software was founded in September 1991 in Gifu Prefecture, Japan, as an entertainment...
's tactical role-playing game
Tactical role-playing game
A tactical role-playing game is a type of video game which incorporates elements of traditional role-playing video games and strategy games. In Japan these games are known as , a designation which might seem peculiar to native English speakers...
series. She is something of a mascot
Mascot
The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...
character for the artist and character designer of these games, Takehito Harada.
The name "Pleinair" is two French words put together; "plein" meaning "open," and "air" as in English. Together, the phrase means "outdoor".
Description
Due to her appearances in video games being little more than cameosCameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
, not much is known of Pleinair outside of her physical appearance. She is typically portrayed as a petite, blue-haired girl with red eyes, wearing a red ribbon, a white dress, white stockings, and sometimes glasses. She is often accompanied by a stuffed rabbit named "Usagi-san" and a stuffed shark named "Same-san." A common motif in images of Pleinair is Usagi-san being eaten (or at least gnawed or bitten) by either Pleinair or Same-san.
Her full name is Plenair Allaprima. A name given by Takehito Harada meaning "Drawing freely in the huge outdoors"
Appearances
- Pleinair served as the receptionist to the Dark Assembly in Disgaea: Hour of DarknessDisgaea: Hour of Darknessis a tactical role-playing video game developed by Nippon Ichi Software and published by Nippon Ichi Software in Japan, Atlus USA, Inc. in North America, and Koei in Europe for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console...
, where she first had a speaking part. - In Disgaea DS, Pleinair appears as a playable character after the player has cleared the game at least once.
- In Phantom BravePhantom Braveis a tactical role-playing game for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software. It was released on January 22, 2004 in Japan, on August 31, 2004 in North America and on February 4, 2005 in Europe...
, the player visits the bustling city of Monetopia on several occasions. Random characters litter the background scenery, and Pleinair can often be found. Usagi-san has a separate cameo as a stuffed animal in Castille's bedroom. - In Disgaea 2: Cursed MemoriesDisgaea 2: Cursed Memoriesis a tactical role-playing game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the PlayStation 2 video game console. Disgaea 2 is the sequel to 2003's Disgaea: Hour of Darkness for the PlayStation 2 and was released in Japan on February 23, 2006 and North America on August 29, 2006...
, short scenes are shown between chapters in which Pleinair, Usagi-san, and Same-san serve as the crew for a news program. Usagi-san and Same-san both have speaking parts, while Pleinair is only credited with the occasional ellipsisEllipsisEllipsis is a series of marks that usually indicate an intentional omission of a word, sentence or whole section from the original text being quoted. An ellipsis can also be used to indicate an unfinished thought or, at the end of a sentence, a trailing off into silence...
. After conquering Dark World in a side quest Pleinair is the only one to deliver the news. After several ellipses and facial expressions she utters the word "Congratulations." - Harada's personal website contains many images of Pleinair as well as an oekakiOekakiis the Japanese term to describe the act of drawing, meaning "doodle or scribble".-Ekaki uta/drawing songs:In Japan, songs that describe how to draw animals and/or favorite characters are called "Ekaki Uta". These songs are supposed to help children remember how to draw something by incorporating...
Bulletin Board SystemBulletin board systemA Bulletin Board System, or BBS, is a computer system running software that allows users to connect and log in to the system using a terminal program. Once logged in, a user can perform functions such as uploading and downloading software and data, reading news and bulletins, and exchanging...
where fans draw pictures of Pleinair and other characters designed by Harada. - A full section on Harada's site was devoted to Pleinair until it was taken down in 2004.
- Pleinair is occasionally featured in doujinshi or fan artFan artFan art or fanart is artwork that is based on a character, costume, collage, item, or story that was created by someone other than the artist, such as a fan, from which the word is derived from. The term, while it can apply to art done by fans of characters from books, is usually used to refer to...
by other artists. Figures of Pleinair have also been created by fans. "PLEINAIR HANDBOOK," A compilation of Pleinair fan art by many different Japanese artists, was published in Japan in 2003. - Pleinair makes a brief appearance in episode 22 of Pani Poni Dash!Pani Poni Dash!, also known as through its anime adaptation , is a Japanese manga series that uses parody, frequently referencing Japanese and American pop-culture in many ways...
, walking along a hallway. - In the recent publication of the Disgaea 2 manga published by Broccoli Books by Hekaton, Pleinair has a comparatively vocal part again as the Dark Assembly Receptionist.
- In Disgaea 3, Pleinair takes a role similar to that which she had in the original, serving as the "Class Rep" and allowing the player to enter the Dark Assembly-like classroom. She is also one of the last downloadable characters on the PlayStation Network.
- In Disgaea 4Disgaea 4is a 2011 Tactical role-playing video game for the PlayStation 3 and is the fourth in the Disgaea series by Nippon Ichi Software. The game tells the story of Valvatorez, a former tyrant leading a party to rebel against the president of the Netherworld...
, Pleinair returns once again to a role similar to her roles in Disgaea and Disgaea 3. She allows the player to enter the Cam-pain HQ.
Trivia
- Pleinair's appearance and personality may be what inspired the character Rin from the manga Bunny Drop, which is also the name of her special attack in Disgaea DS.
See also
- Phantom BravePhantom Braveis a tactical role-playing game for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software. It was released on January 22, 2004 in Japan, on August 31, 2004 in North America and on February 4, 2005 in Europe...
- Makai Kingdom
- Disgaea: Hour of DarknessDisgaea: Hour of Darknessis a tactical role-playing video game developed by Nippon Ichi Software and published by Nippon Ichi Software in Japan, Atlus USA, Inc. in North America, and Koei in Europe for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console...
- Disgaea 2: Cursed MemoriesDisgaea 2: Cursed Memoriesis a tactical role-playing game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the PlayStation 2 video game console. Disgaea 2 is the sequel to 2003's Disgaea: Hour of Darkness for the PlayStation 2 and was released in Japan on February 23, 2006 and North America on August 29, 2006...
- Disgaea 3: Absence of JusticeDisgaea 3: Absence of Justiceis the third video game in the Disgaea series by Nippon Ichi. It was released on January 31, 2008 in Japan for the PlayStation 3 video game console. The North American version was released by NIS America on August 26, 2008...