is a

light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult novel primarily targeting high school and middle school students. The term "light novel" is a ''wasei-eigo'', or a Japanese term formed from words in the English languag ...

series by

Ichirō Sakaki is a Japanese writer. He writes light novels and manga. Works *''Scrapped Princess'' (light novel, 1999 – 2005; manga, 2002–2004) *''Strait Jacket'' (light novel, 2000 – 2010) *''Magician's Academy'' (light novel, 2003 – 2007; manga, 2 ...

with illustrations by Yō Fujishiro, published by

Fujimi Shobo , formerly , was a Japanese publisher that specialized in light novels, manga, role-playing games and collectible card games. Founded in 1972 and reorganized three times, it was at times an independent company and at times an imprint of Kadokawa F ...

under their

Fujimi Fantasia Bunko is a light novel publishing imprint affiliated with the Japanese publishing company Fujimi Shobo, a brand company of Kadokawa Corporation. It was established in 1988 and is aimed at young adult male audience. Many light novels published under th ...

imprint. It was published in 11 volumes between 2000 and 2010. The series was adapted into a 3-episode

original video animation , abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the first part of an OVA s ...

series in 2007. A film version of the OVA aired in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

on the

Syfy Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Lau ...

channel.

Plot

''Strait Jacket'' is set an

alternate history Alternate history (also alternative history, althist, AH) is a genre of speculative fiction of stories in which one or more historical events occur and are resolved differently than in real life. As conjecture based upon historical fact, altern ...

where

magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

was proven to exist in the year 1899. The use of sorcery spread throughout all facets of society and changed the social and technological development of the world. The location is Tristan, an

urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

that appears to be an amalgamation of turn-of-the-20th-century

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, and

Victorian-era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardi ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Alongside this technology and science exists magic, which has been proven possible in public demonstrations by Dr. George Greco. Although the use of magic is only possible for a few talented individuals, it is very dangerous and highly illegal. Due to an invisible contaminant called the "malediction", or simply the "

curse A curse (also called an imprecation, malediction, execration, malison, anathema, or commination) is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to one or more persons, a place, or an object. In particular, ...

", people who use magic too often are at risk in transforming into "

Demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, ani ...

s", or horrific, malevolent abominations of nature that become immune to ordinary weapons. The Magic Administration Bureau, also known as the

Sorcery Sorcery may refer to: * Magic (supernatural), the application of beliefs, rituals or actions employed to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces ** Witchcraft, the practice of magical skills and abilities * Magic in fiction, ...

Management Bureau, is set up in the attempt to safely explore the nature of magic, officially document it, attempt to provide rational scientific explanation for it, regulate its use and police those who use magic illegally. Magic, utilized in a safe sense by the Bureau, has been used as a viable energy source by the civil service, industry, agriculture, medicine, and the military. Effectively, the Magic Administration Bureau is now in control of every field and every facet of society. The primary enemies of the Bureau are Oddman, a former left-wing terrorist cell, turned mercenary. All of these magic users, even the ones with innocent and well-meaning intentions, are in danger of tapping into the dark side either accidentally or on purpose and themselves becoming bloodthirsty beasts due to accidents or sabotage by Oddman's agents. These Sorcerist agents wear a suit of armor that resists the negative transforming effects of magic. These suits are referred to as "Mold Armor", or more commonly a "

straitjacket A straitjacket is a garment shaped like a jacket with long sleeves that surpass the tips of the wearer's fingers. Its most typical use is restraining people who may cause harm to themselves or others. Once the wearer slides their arms into the ...

", due to the fact they constrain human beings in their natural form. The Sorcerists also use magically tainted bullets from large hand-carried railguns powered by a combination of steam and magic, which are the only weapons capable of effectively stopping the magically transformed monsters. However, the over-stretched Bureau is steadily losing ground and increasingly must rely on outside help. There simply aren't enough Sorcerists to fight the Demons caused by Oddman's sabotage. This leads to an increase in accidental demonic transformations and attacks on the public across Tristan. Among those who fight the Demons is an unlicensed, rogue Sorcerist named Leiot Steinberg, who is viewed as a loose cannon bringing the name of Sorcerists into disrepute and causing as much damage as the Demons in his one-man war against them. Yet the Bureau is forced to reluctantly call upon his services in their losing battle. Because Steinberg fights against a sin he committed long ago, even with his Mold Armor he comes closer and closer to transforming into a Demon every time he casts a spell.

Characters

Media

Light novels

The ''Strait Jacket'' was written by Ichirō Sakaki with illustrations by Yō Fujishiro. The light novel series was published by

in 11 volumes between 2000 and 2010.

Extra

OVA

In 2007 a three-episode

based on the light novel was produced by

Feel Feel may refer to: *Feeling Music Bands * Feel (New York band), a dance and R&B band * Feel (Polish band), a pop rock band Songs * "Feel" (Kendrick Lamar song), 2017 * "Feel", by Phora, 2018 *"Feel", by Mahmut Orhan, 2016 * "Feel" (Kumi Koda so ...

. The OVA series has been licensed for English-language translation and

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

release in the

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Manga Entertainment Manga Entertainment was a producer, licensee, and distributor of anime in the United States and the United Kingdom. Originally founded in the UK in 1987, the UK branch became Funimation UK and Ireland in 2021, also currently known as Crunchyro ...

. A film version was aired on the

Sci-Fi Channel Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. ...

as part of their Ani-Monday programming block on October 20, 2008.

Reception

The light novel series currently has sold over half a million copies.

References

External links

Anime official site
(archive) * * *
Music release
Werd (S.O.S) Concept EP based on film. {{Feel 2000 Japanese novels 2007 anime OVAs Anime and manga based on light novels Feel (animation studio) Fujimi Fantasia Bunko Kadokawa Dwango franchises Ichirō Sakaki Light novels Novels about magic Steampunk anime and manga