Alexander - War Chronicles of Alexander the Great

Alexander - War Chronicles of Alexander the Great (in the Japanese original: ア レ ク サ ン ダ ー 戦 記, Hepburn: Arekusandā Senki), was released in North America as Reign: The Conqueror, in Europe as Alexander the Great and in South America as Alexander Senki, is a Korean-Japanese animated series (anime) first released in 1999 for television and home video. In Italy it was first released in VHS e DVD published by Dynit, and later broadcast on MTV beginning on January 6, 2000. The story is a retelling of the life of Alexander the Great, based on the novel of the same name by Hiroshi Aramata, the series was produced by an international crew that drew on the resources of the worldwide animation community.

This animated cartoon series set in the lV century. BC begins with a vision of the apocalypse by the priestess Olympias, queen of Macedonia. This dream portends the coming of a man who will destroy the world. After 18 years from that event, the young Alexander shows all his charisma and wisdom, so much so that the people admire him as if he were a deity. This frightened politicians of the time, as they saw this figure as a potential threat to the fate of Macedonia itself, which city tried to expand its borders, against Athens and Thebes, in order to re-establish Magna Graecia. Through King Philip II, he fights against the Turks and the Persians, freeing the coastal cities. This anime will catapult us into a fascinating and mysterious historical period, where the battles and the charismatic figure of Alexander and his characters will show us the potential of an adventurous genre so far little exploited in the world of cartoons.

There is also a film version of Alexander - War Chronicles of Alexander the Great , made almost entirely in the assembly of scenes taken from the series, with the only exception of short opening and closing scenes. The film covers the first ten episodes of the anime, ending with Alexander's victory over Darius and the Persian army.

The story of Alexander - War Chronicles of Alexander the Great

Alexander is the son of Philip II, king of Macedonia and Olympia, a serpent witch. Eager to reach "speed", Alexander heads into the woods with his allies Philotas and Hephaestion, where he tames a man-eating wild horse. There he meets and befriends Cleitus and Ptolemy I Soter, recruiting them to join his cavalry.

The war begins

 Macedonia goes to war with Athens, led by King Philip and his best advisors, Attalus, Parmenion (father of Philotas) and Antipater. Philip worries about Alexander's absence, but Alesxander and his cavalry arrive at the last moment, taking advantage of a break in the Athenian lines and leading Macedonia to victory. After their defeat, the ambassadors of Athens head to Persia, where they hope to ally with the new king Darius III of Persia. Alexander and his friends however sneak in as Athens slaves kill the guards, making Persia believe that Athens is betraying them. While Ptolemy is captured and ready for the death sentence, Alexander manages at the last minute to save him from execution, freeing all the city's horses from their stables. While in Persia Alexander also meets a woman named Roxanne.

Philip is deceived by Attalus

Attalo tricks Philip into believing that Olympia and Alexander are trying to betray him. Philip banishes Olympias and marries Eurydice, the daughter of Attalus, who gives birth to a son whom Philip wishes to become king in place of Alexander. Philip holds a grand ceremony, to introduce his new prince to the people and also builds a huge golden statue of himself, declaring himself a god. During the ceremony, however, the statue crumbles and a guard hypnotized by Olympia kills Philip.

Alexander becomes king

After Philip's death, Alexander is crowned king and Attalus is executed. Athens plots to fight back against Macedonia, doubting Alexander's strength, but gives in when Macedonia defeats Thebes in battle. Alexander places severe demands on Athens, but relies on most of them after meeting the philosopher Diogenes of Sinope. Alexander then plans an attack on Persia and begins leading his troops towards it. In this period Parmenion reveals to Philotas a secret about Alexander. Before her birth Olympia proclaimed that she would destroy the world. Additionally, Aristotle sends his niece, Cassandra, to join Alexander's cavalry. Macedonian forces continue to head through the territories of Persia thanks to multiple victories. Along the way Alexander recruits Doctor Phillipas to join him, having untied the "Gordian knot" which he was told can only be undone by the king. In their next battle with Persia, Macedonian troops are hopelessly outnumbered by those of Persia, which are 10 times those of Macedon, but Darius tells his forces to withdraw when members of the Pythagorean cult intervene. During the battle, Philotas falls from his horse and has a vision of Olympias summoning demons.

Alexander in Egypt

While in Egypt Alexander meets Dinocrates, a member of his army who tells him about the great city he would rather create and call Alexandria. Alexander has a vision of himself in Alexandria 100 years after his death, where he visits the place where he was buried by Ptolemy. Before leaving Egypt, Alexander and his men visit the Temple of Ammon where they are told that Alexander will be killed by the one he trusts most. Ptolemy witnesses a separate prophecy, which will become the Great King of the world. By plotting with Persia, the members of the Pythagorean cult make another attempt on Alexander's life, but he manages to repel them. Darius leads the armies of Persia against those of Macedonia. Aristotle meanwhile meets Diogenes, asking for the Plato-Edro, the device that contains the knowledge of the whole world. Diogenes, however, claims to have put it aside. The two watch the battle. The Macedonian army gains new strength when a lunar eclipse arrives, and the Plato-Edro appears and ascends to heaven. As the battle nears its conclusion, Alexander kills Darius, defeating the Persians once and for all.

Alexander conquers Persia

With Persia now part of his empire, Alexander recruits Satibarzanes, the former adviser of Darius and Satrap, to become one of his best advisors. The Macedonian army worries that Alexander wants to continue heading east rather than returning to Macedonia. Philotas opposes the complaints of the army, but does not tell Alexander. Aristotle is also worried about Alexander's actions and tells Cassandra that she will be forced to kill him if he wants to keep advancing east.

Alexander is poisoned

 Phillipas, a member of the Pythagorean cult, secretly plots with them to kill Alexander during his marriage to Roxanne, through a ballerina who possesses a poison. During the battle she poisons Alexander, but is killed before finishing him. Satibarzanes blames Parmenion and Philotas for the betrayal. Parmenion is killed by the conspirators and Philotas is tied up and stoned to death. When Alexander arrives during the stoning, Philotas asks him to let him die so as not to show weakness to the Persians. Phillipas, who deals with Alexander, has the opportunity to poison him, but instead reveals the truth to him and provides Alexander with the antidote to heal from the poison, so he kills himself with the poison intended for Alexander.

Alexander reaches India

After executing Satibarzanes and the other Persian traitors, Alexander leads his forces to India. Aristotle gives Cassandra a parchment which she is asked to read when they reach India. Reached India where they see large numbers of horse-like men, known as the Brahman priests. Cleitus becomes increasingly suspicious of Alexander and questions his motives. At this moment, the Brahman suddenly attacks, interrupting them. As Alexander and Cleito push them back, Cassandra reads the scroll, placing it under Aristotle's spell to kill Alexander. When she lunges at him, Cleitus steps in front of him and takes the mortal wound upon herself.

Alexander fights the ghost army

Alexander and the others continue to traverse India, where they encounter a massive army made up of all the soldiers they have killed over the years. During the battle, Hephaestus is killed when Alexander battles the ghost of Darius. Alexander rides in a pillar of light and faces King Porus, who takes on Alexander's appearance. Claiming that the world tells him to destroy himself, Alexander defeats his doppelganger in combat. He then meets Pythagoras at the end of the world, but Pythagoras has no interest in preventing Alexander from destroying the world. It echoes Diogenes' words to Alexander that by destroying the world, Alexander will create it again. Alexander seems to embrace his destiny as the destroyer of the world, but the world does not end: instead, the dark sky clears and Alexander emerges from a pillar of light facing west. He decides that fate now directs him in that direction and embarks for Macedonia.

Alexander returns to Macedonia

After Alexander and his army return to Macedonia, Aristotle receives a letter from Cassandra informing him that he has chosen to stay with Alexander of his own accord. Later, a maid tries to find Alexander to tell him that Roxanne is pregnant. Elsewhere, Alexander is asked to step out of the light by a child who draws geometric shapes and writes formulas on the ground. Motivated by his own prophecy, Ptolemy attempts to stab Alexander, but Alexander prevents him. He then lets Ptolemy escape, stating that Ptolemy's prophecy is unchanged. Alexander goes back to the baby's work and Cassandra asks him what he's looking at. Alexander replies that he is witnessing the rebirth of the world he has destroyed.

Trailer of Alexander - War Chronicles of Alexander the Great

Characters of Alexander - War Chronicles of Alexander the Great

Alexander
Philotas
Cleitus
Haphaestion
Tolomeo
Olimpia
Filippo
Aristotle
Cassandra
Parmenion
Attalos
Dario
Roxanne
Antipater
Narrator

Technical data

Author Hiroshi aramata
Regia Yoshinori Kanemori
Film script Sadayuki Murai
Music Ken ishii
Studio Madhouse
Episodes 13
Duration 30 min
Broadcast in Italy MTV January 6 - March 30, 2000

Titles in various languages

English - Reign: The Conqueror
Spanish - Alexander Senki
French - Alexander (série télévisée d'animation)
English - Alexander - War Chronicles of Alexander the Great
Japanese - ア レ ク サ ン ダ ー 戦 記
Portuguese - Alexander Senki
Chinese - 亞歷山大 戰記