View source for Jigoku-Dōji (lost animated pilot of "Saishinban Gegege no Kitarō" manga series character; mid-1990s)

{{InfoboxLost
|title=<center>Jigoku-Dōji (pilot)</center>
|image=JIGOKU01.jpg
|imagecaption=An image from the pilot, posted on co-creator Masumi Kaneda's Twitter account.
|status=<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>
}}
Jigoku-Dōji (地獄童子, lit. Hell Boy) was a character created by artists Tatsuya Morino and Masumi Kaneda for the manga series ''Saishinban Gegege no Kitarō''. Although the character of Jigoku-Dōji belonged to Mizuki Pro, Morino and Kaneda were granted permission to use the character in their own work after they became independent.<ref>[https://mobile.twitter.com/37eWBvYBKB4hMhZ/status/1171972156227350529 An interview with Morino explaining the ownership of Jigoku-Dōji.] Retrieved 27 Sep '21</ref><ref>[https://twitter.com/KanedaMasumi/status/1043331941032898560 A tweet by Masumi Kaneda about the origins of Jigoku-Dōji.] Retrieved 27 Sep '21</ref> In 1994, they would go on to make a manga series based on the character.<ref>[https://bunshun.jp/list/author/600685c177656169eb010000 Information about Tatsuya Morino and his various works.] Retrieved 27 Sep '21</ref> After this, '''a pilot animation was made'''. Many details about the pilot are unknown, but Kaneda has openly discussed it on his Twitter account, and even has a still frame from the short as his Twitter icon. As of now, all that’s surfaced of the pilot have been images shared by Masumi Kaneda himself.

==Plot==
The plot of the pilot film is currently unknown, as much of the information provided by Masumi Kaneda has focused more on its production history. From the still images that Kaneda has provided, it’s shown that Jigoku-Dōji’s girlfriend, Reimei, was set to appear. According to Kaneda, she transformed into an evil version of herself, known as Jigoku-Reimei, due to a curse placed on her by a snake known as Inferno.<ref>[https://twitter.com/KanedaMasumi/status/1054285152279388161 A tweet by Masumi Kaneda about the supposed central conflict of the pilot.] Retrieved 27 Sep '21</ref> It’s believed that this would’ve been the central conflict of the pilot.
[[File:JIGOKU02.jpg|thumb|right|All of the publicly available images of the pilot have been provided by co-creator Masumi Kaneda on his Twitter account.]]

==Information==
Masumi Kaneda has disclosed some information regarding the pilot on his Twitter account. According to Kaneda, it was quite common for Toei to make pilot films (known as PVs) during this time period.<ref>[https://twitter.com/KanedaMasumi/status/1051476292707614720 A tweet by Masumi Kaneda about different pilot films made by Toei.] Retrieved 27 Sep '21</ref> Kaneda states that the Jigoku-Dōji pilot was produced before the 1996 ''Gegege no Kitarō'' anime, and featured many of the same animators and staff members. These include Series Director Daisuke Nishio, and Series Producer Shinji Shimizu.<ref>[https://twitter.com/KanedaMasumi/status/1189611802616721408 A tweet by Masumi Kaneda about the staff members involved with the pilot.] Retrieved 27 Sep '21</ref> There have also been claims that animator Hideki Hamasu worked on the project.<ref>[https://animatorswiki.blitedesu.net/Hideki_Hamasu A website stating that Hideki Hamasu worked on the Jigoku-Dōji pilot.] Retrieved 27 Sep '21</ref> Kaneda also boldly states that the pilot was responsible for reviving the ''Gegege no Kitarō'' anime series,<ref name="JG">[https://twitter.com/KanedaMasumi/status/1043855962195390464 A tweet by Masumi Kaneda about the pilot's impact on the ''Gegege no Kitarō'' franchise.] Retrieved 27 Sep '21</ref> and many aspects of the Jigoku-Dōji pilot were later used in the 1996 ''Gegege no Kitarō'' anime’s opening animation.<ref name="JG"/> The length of the pilot is unknown.

==Availability==
Although Masumi Kaneda has provided various information about the pilot throughout the years, the full short has yet to surface. Some speculate that ownership rights regarding the character of Jigoku-Dōji may be the reason as to why the pilot still remains lost. Since Jigoku-Dōji was/is still partially considered a ''Gegege no Kitarō'' character, an anime adaptation based on Morino and Kaneda’s version of the character could possibly result in legal issues, even though they were on good terms with Mizuki Pro. Others speculate that the pilot is currently being kept by Toei. As Masumi Kaneda stated, it was common for pilot films like this to be made during this time period, and many of them remain lost or incredibly obscure. As of writing this, the Jigoku-Dōji pilot currently remains lost, with only the images provided by Masumi Kaneda giving us a glimpse of the short.

==Gallery==
<gallery mode=packed heights=250px>
JIGOKU03.jpg|Reimei, Jigoku-Dōji's girlfriend.
JIGOKU04.jpg|Reimei is transformed into Jigoku-Reimei.
</gallery>

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:Lost animation]]
[[Category:Completely lost media]]