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Spider Riders

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Spider Riders (スパイダーライダーズ ~オラクルの勇者たち~ (Supaidaaraidaazu ~ Orakuru no Yuusha Tachi (~Spider Riders ~the heroes of Oracle~))) started as a series of science fiction novels first published in December 2004, published by Newmarket Press which are authored by Tedd Anasti, Patsy Cameron-Anasti, and Stephen D. Sullivan (books 2-3). The stories became the basis of the animated television series produced by Cookie Jar Entertainment of Canada and Bee Train of Japan (licensed & distributed by FUNimation in the USA).

Spider Riders
File:Spider riders.jpg
Spider Riders logo
StarringEnglish cast
Japanese cast
Country of originCanada/Japan
No. of episodes52 episodes ordered
Production
Running time22 minutes approx.
Original release
NetworkTeletoon (Canada)
TV Tokyo (Japan)
Kids WB (USA)
ReleaseApril 4, 2006 –
present

Plot introduction

Following instructions in the journal of his grandfather, thirteen year old Hunter Steele searched for the underearth in a mysterious cave. He finds a mysterious manacle that attaches itself to him. When Hunter sees a spider he falls and ends up falling straight down to the center of the Earth, into the fantastic subterranean world of Arachna. Here, he discovers a small band of elite warriors struggling to survive and to save Arachna from the attack of giant insect mutants. The warriors are kids, just like Hunter, each fighting with the help of their own three-ton, ten-foot battle spiders. They call themselves "Spider Riders."

Changes made to the English TV series included lowering ages of characters (for example, Hunter Steele is 11 instead of 13 in the book and in the Japanese language version of the TV series).

There is a prophecy that says an "Earthian" (someone from the Outer World or Earth) will bring about a change. Sparkle mentions it in the beginning of the TV series, but it's not known whether the Earthian will be a savior or a source of doom.

Web Manga

On May 31, 2006, the Spider Riders manga (comic) premiered at TV Tokyo's ani.tv website, illustrated by Junji Ohno of Studio 23.

The web manga has an alternate beginning, where Hunter Steele enters a spider-shaped monument and discovers the manacle (which looked different from the one in the TV series) floating above a spider web. Hunter wears the manacle when it flies to Hunter's hand (in TV series, it simply fell into his hand out of nowhere) and falls into Inner World through a gap between web strings (in TV series, Hunter falls into Inner World when the pyramid collapses). Inside the Inner World, Hunter discover Shadow after peeking at the bathing Corona and trying to rescue a cart of caged humans by himself (neither has happened in the TV series).

Each chapter of the web manga ends with the Sparkling Sparkle section, following the adventures of Princess Sparkle and Hortala in 4-square comic format.

Characters

Riders

Spider Riders are elite warriors that ride huge metal spiders. To bring their Spider out the Manacle, they say the name of the spider and "Spider Out." When shouting "Arachna Power", the Manacle brings their armor onto them alongside their weapons and shields. Among the most known of them are:

  • Hunter Steele - A boy who falls into the subterranean Inner World, and becomes a Spider Rider with his newfound battle spider "partner", Shadow. They both argue quite a lot, mainly because of Hunter's cluelessness and ignorance and Shadow's pride and desire to work alone as well as the belief that he doesn't need the help of others. Hunter's weapon is a double-bladed staff. It is unknown whether the prophecy refers to him, thus it is unknown of he is destined to be Arachnia's salvation or its destruction. It is also shown in the TV series that he has affections for Corona and admires her good spirit but is too shy to share them. In the episode "Smells Like Team Spider," he unknowingly stares at Corona while she is marvelling at the flowers; then when they are battling the Invectids, his mind is calmed by the image of Corona's face. Lastly, when Igneous asks what changed Hunter's mind about the flowers, he becomes a bit embarrassed as it was Corona's image that changed him. Also, since Corona was the first person to discover Hunter, he has known her for the longest time, besides Shadow. It is possible that Hunter may have a romantic relationship with Corona.
  • Corona - Discovering Hunter and Shadow, she escorts the new team to Arachna so they may be officially inducted to the ranks of the Spider Riders. She seems to care a lot for Hunter, as does her spider for Shadow. She becomes especially worried when Hunter is hurt or in danger and becomes quite jealous when Hunter's guy nature foolishly allows him to mention spending some time the night before with an unknown girl (Princess Sparkle) by pushing him into the fountain he slept next to that night. In "Hunter's Holiday" Corona clearly expresses her desire to spend some time with Hunter alone but when he refuses she takes out her rage by practicing on targets with Hunter's face on them. Her weapons are the bow and arrows. Though she is taller and more mature than Hunter, both are the same age (stated to be eleven, though they act around twelve to thirteen years old). She and her battle spider, Venus, make a great team. She has no family and was adopted by twins. When they found her, Corona had a manacle.
  • Igneous - A leading Spider Rider and captain of the Arachna military. His name, like Flame's, has a meaning to do with fire. Igneous is calm, gentle and has with quite a strategic mind. His weapon is a cavalry lance and one of his attacks is a flamethrower coming out of the tip of the lance. Igneous takes Hunter's training seriously and almost acts as a mentor to Hunter, to his annoyment. He challenged Hunter and Shadow to a duel when they joined the Riders, but it was all to see if both could cooporate. Igneous was part of the Arachna Knights, where he teamed up with a long-time friend Slate. Both were known as "Claw" and "Fang" and they proved to be quite powerful, especially since Igneous didn't call his spider Flame to assist. Regardless of his grade, Igneous is proud to serve the royalty of the Arachna Kingdom, and always offer his help to prince Lumen and princess Sparkle.
  • Prince Lumen - Leader of the Spider Riders and prince of Arachna. He is rather lazy for a ruler, preferring diplomatic solutions over fights, even against the Invectid. Some say it is because his spider, Ebony, is so powerful that he is afraid to let it loose. Lumen is bright, talkive, and loves cute girls. Ebony, his spider, also loves to talk and always advises Lumen on how to rule Arachna, his battle technique, and on dating! His weapon is a sword.
  • Princess Sparkle - Lumen's younger sister, also a Spider Rider. She is the one who points out that Hunter might save, not destroy, the Inner World; she also visits Hunter in the night and advises him to bond with Shadow and when Hunter first sees her, he blushes while she giggles. Sparkle is very adventurous. Her spider's Hotarla, and is very small.
  • Magma - Not affiliated with the Arachna military, he is a "lone rider" with his partner, Brutus. He made a promise to find the purple spider Portia, supposed to be Brutus's younger sister, and this promise keeps him joining the ranks of Arachna. He later joins up with Hunter and the others to prevent the Invectids from stealing the Oracle Keys. His weapon is a mace that can switch to a flail. He is somewhat obsessed with rescuing Portia from the Invectids. Aqune may be his sister but that has not been proven.
  • Aqune - A Spider Rider in the service of the Invectid, under Buguese. Aqune wears a mask that covers her face, which might contain a mind control device. She has a deep sense of honor: while fighting Hunter and being unmasked, they both fell from a cliff, and Aqune took care of Hunter and refused to fight him because he was injured and weakened. She did this in front of Buguese's eyes, by stepping between him and Hunter right before Buguese delivers a fatal blow. She has a Mantid weapon ready to use against the riders. She also is trying to gain something from a sphere. She uses a glaive when unarmored, but her weapon of choice, when transformed, is a longsword. It seems that Buguese found her and her spider lost in the Forest of Bewilderment where anyone who enters become disoriented and cannot find the exit. He seems to call her "Oracle's Chosen" and uses her to find the Oracle Keys.

Spiders

Here are the Spider Riders' spiders:

  • Shadow - Hunter's spider (though Shadow disagrees in the beginning), a prideful warrior who thinks he doesn't need a rider (i.e., he distrusts and underestimates all others), especially one who may be destined to bring disaster to Arachna (i.e., Hunter). He also hates large crowds. He is said to have legendary strength. He complains about most of the things Hunter does. Shadow is a direct descendant of the Ancestral Lord of Spiders.
  • Venus - Corona's spider. She is soft-spoken and gentle, but is fearless in battle.
  • Flame - Igneous' spider, has the ability to shoot webs made out of fire. He doesn't talk much but what he says is wise.
  • Ebony - Lumen's spider. Said to be very powerful and destructive, which restrains Lumen to call it out. He is also very talkative.
  • Hotarla - Sparkle's spider. Unlike the other spiders, she's not a spider ready for battle and has distinctive large eyes. She'd rather not take risks.
  • Brutus - Magma's spider, has tremendous strength, and is looking for his sister, Portia.
  • Portia - Aqune's spider. She is Brutus's missing sister. Like Aqune, Portia wears a mask over her face that controls her.

Invectid (Insector)

The main bad guys of the series who plot to conquer Arachnia. Among the members of the Invectid Empire are:

  • Lord Mantid - Mantid, a mantis-type Invectid, rules the loose-knit nation of Insects. From the top floor of his fortress, he directs his invectid troops to remove the wasteful and hated humans from the Inner World and find the Oracle Keys. Although it is assumed by his followers that he is the ultimate in Invectid evolution, Mantid actually wears a covering of high fidelity mechanics, which encases the body of a human! Anyone who finds out, must be slain.
  • Buguese - Mantid's right hand man, he is a masked humanoid Invectid with many plans to defeat the Spider Riders. He is the leader of the Big Four. He seems to care little about the Oracle, as he once sliced in half a memorial with his crimson-bladed sword. Personally, he hates Hunter Steele for the many defeat at his hands. He is also Aqune's mentor. He wields a long sword for a weapon.
  • Larva P. Grasshop - One of the Big Four, he is a grasshopper-type Invectid who uses many technological devices to defeat enemies. So far, he hasn't really fought the Riders; letting his minions do the fighting for him instead. He has (unfortunately for him) seen little success against the Spider Riders, and is seen with disdain and disappointment by the other members of the Invectids.
  • Beerain - She is a bee-type Invectid who uses a whip to fight. She is a member of the Big Four and commands the buzzrays (flying manta ray-like creatures). She has a certain charm about her. She wields a whip for a weapon.
  • Staggs - All muscle and no brain, but is very loyal to the Invectid cause. He is considered by many as the most powerful of the Big Four. He has a strong sense of honor, and cannot stand when it is disrespected. Corona and Igneous have once faced him, but barely managed to escape with their lives. So far, Hunter is the only one who has ever harmed him.
  • Dungobeet - A dung beetle-type Invectid and spy.

Invectid Machines

Giant metal insects used by the Invectids. Among those are:

  • Smashopper - A giant metal grasshopper that battles Hunter in episode 1 while Grasshop rides on him.
  • Praying Mantech - A giant metal praying mantis that Buguese rides on in his battle against Hunter and Corona near the memorial of King Arachna I. Praying Mantik has a weak spot if attacked once his missile launcher in his chest opens up.
  • Billbug - A giant metal pillbug that fought Magma and Brutus in the Forest of Bewilderment. It is indestructible when in it's ball form.
  • Celpido - A giant metal centipede used by Buguese. Celpido caused sinkholes in a village to destroy it. Celpido is the first Invectid Machine to have the power of speech.

Other characters

  • The Oracle - The Oracle is a beautiful woman, who united both human and spiders together. All the time, she has her eyes closed and moves her hands. Hunter was the only one to have seen her (or at least until the very end, because the Japanese theme song suggests the Spider Riders saw her). She is the goddess of the "Inner World." Whenever anything sacred to her is destroyed, it hurts her.

Oracle Keys

The Oracle Keys are fractions of the Oracle's power. They take the form of a card that can be split in two. The Invectids hope to gain them for Mantid who wants to use their power to rule Arachna. The Oracle uses much of her strength to protect them. The Spirit Oracle Key passed its power onto Hunter and Shadow, giving them new armor and weapons as well as a new attack called the Elektra Twist. To activate these keys, the holder must shout "Oracle's Light!"

Cast

English voice actors (Riders)

English voice actors (Spiders)

English voice actors (Invectid)

Others Credited

Japanese Cast

Seiyuu (Riders)

Seiyuu (Spiders)

Seiyuu (Insectors)

Others credited

Web games

Tribal Nova produced the tie-in online game based on the show, available on the official site.

Differences Between the English and Japanese Versions

  • The Insectors are known as Invectids in the English version
  • In the English version, Hotarla can speak in full sentences while in the Japanese version, her vocabulary consists of "Kyu"
  • Aqune is referred to as a priestess in the Japanese version and an enchantress in the English version
  • In episode 6 of the English version, the scene of Lumen calling Sparkle cute while watching her play is removed. This is likely because of Lumen and Sparkle's sibling relationship.
  • Some dialogue in the English version was altered, often for the inclusion of puns or English slang, but none have effected the plot so far.
  • The Opening theme in the Japanese version (Alright) differs from the OP in the English version (Calling All Spider Riders.) None of the Japanese ending themes are used in the English version. As there is no current DVD release, it isn't certain whether they will be used or an original ED will be created.
  • The eyecatch in each version is the same, with the exception of the language that the logo is written in.
  • The character Ignus is called Igneous in the English version. This is not an edit, because his name was Igneous in the original novel series. It's debatable whether his name was meant to be Igneous in both versions, however it is written as "イグナス" (I-gu-na-su) on the official Japanese site.
  • In the English version, the song "Calling All Spider Riders" plays frequently during the series as an insert song.
 

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