Mythology in Slayers
While watching Slayers,
you may have noticed several strange symbols or markings
that look familiar. This is because most of these are
actually based on real-life mythological concepts or
creatures.
Goetia
This consists of many demons with individual
characteristics and abilities. The mazoku sublords of
Slayers are loosely based on these.
Here is a link to more information on Goetia (I quoted
from here):
http://www.deliriumsrealm.com/delirium/mythology/demon_goetia.asp
Astaroth =
Hellmaster Fibrizo
About Astaroth: "It is thought that this powerful
grand-duke presides over 40 legions, and possibly over
the East and is treasurer of hell." In Slayers,
Fibrizo is the sublord who holds up the mazoku barrier in
the east. Like his name implies, he is also the
controller of the souls that reside in the underworld.
Astaroth "believes he received an unjust
punishment." Fibrizo was angry and in disbelief when
the Lord of Nightmares attacked him. He thought that he
was working to fulfill the wishes of L-sama, yet she
still destroyed him.
Bune = Maryuu-ou
Garv
"Bune is a great and a strong Duke, he appeareth as
a dragon with three heads, the third whereof is like to a
man." Garv's mazoku form is a red dragon with three
heads, and after the Kouma Sensou, he was sealed in a
human body. Bune "will give answers to demands." Garv
demonstrated this when he justified his reasons for
turning against Phibrizzo. When Ameria gave him a justice
speech demanding his surrender, he challenged her orders.
Eligos = Dynast
Grausherra
Eligos "knows of the secrets of warfare, of the
future, and can instruct leaders of the ways to earn
their soldiers' respect." This is consistent with
the theorization that Dynast is the most cold and
military-minded of the sublords. Also, "Eligor,
alias Abigor, is a great duke, and appeareth as a goodlie
[handsome] knight," is familiar as Dynast appeared
as a handsome king (not his true human form) in the
Slayers novel series.
Ipos = Juu-ou
Zelas Metallium
"(Ipos) appears as an angel with a lion's
head, a goose's foot, and a hare's tail." Zelas'
mazoku form is said to be an armored mixture of three
animals, giving her a wolf's head, wings, and clawed
feet. Ipos "makes men witty and bold." This
could certainly be applied to Xelloss.
Vepar = Deep Sea
Dolphin
Vepar "appears as a mermaid. He governs the
waters, guides armed warships, and can cause stormy
weather for sailors." Although we don't know much
about Dolphin, this does seem to fit someone with a name
such as hers.
Other Mythology
 
Left: Original symbol. Right: Modified
symbol from Slayers.
The meaning of the picture is that
the angel in the bottom center is spinning the wheel,
turning a soul through its seven incarnations. Several
interesting things to note include that the image from
Slayers has a dragon instead of a knight at the top, and
it is also missing the last incarnation. The second
incarnation was turned from a demon-type creature to an
angel-type. Also, the sixth incarnation appears to be
falling off the wheel. It is not exactly known why in the
Slayers image there are angels and demons flying in the
background; for all we know, the animators could have
just randomly stuck them in there for no reason. Either
way, the symbol appeared in Slayers around the time of
the last episode.
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