Zelgadis Greywords

Slayers character
Zelgadis File:Slayers-anime-logo.jpg Zelgadis in the far right
Homeworld:	Red Orb, Sea of Chaos
Species:	Chimera, 1/3 Human, 1/3 Golem, 1/3 Demon
Gender:	Male
Hair Colour:	Purple
Height:	5'11"?
Known Relatives:	Rezo the Red Priest, grandfather
Weight:	1 Ton
Age:	19
Religion:	Shaman?
Abilities:	Dark Magic Super Strength Skilled Swordsmen and some Light Magic
Alies:	Lina Inverse Gourry Gabriev Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun Filia Ul Copt Xellos
Love Interest:	The series hints a possible relationship between him and Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun
Loved By:	Amelia
First Episode Appearance:
Voice Actor:	Crispin Freeman
Seiyu:	Hikaru Midorikawa

Zelgadis Greywords (sometimes spelled as "Greywards" or "Graywords") is a fictional character from the manga, light novels and anime Slayers.

Biography

Originally an ordinary human being, Zelgadis was the great grandson of Rezo the Red Priest, (Though due to a translation mistake, he is often mistakenly refered to as either grandson and/or great grandson) a well-respected blind wizard who did good deeds for the people while being secretly tormented by his blindness and his obsession to find a way to restore the sight he'd never had. As a youth, Zelgadis wanted to be the most powerful being of all, so Rezo answered his desire by turning Zelgadis into a chimera - 1/3 human, 1/3 golemn and 1/3 demon. It was later discovered that Rezo's blind eyes were housing the dark lord Shabranigdo, and that the dark lord's presence in Rezo's body might have driven him mad and forced him into doing things like cursing Zelgadis.

In the series, Zelgadis is first seen trying to acquire the Philosopher Stone with the help of his servants Zolf and Rodimus, which brings him into conflict with Lina Inverse and Gourry Gabriev when they happen to acquire it first, albeit by accident (it was in with the treasure Lina had stolen from the Dragon Fangs gang). Rezo is also after the stone, albeit for different reasons (Zelgadis hopes to use it to either destroy Rezo or to change himself back into a regular human). After fighting with one another in addition to fighting Rezo's minions, Zelgadis joins forces with Lina and Gourry to thwart Lord Shabranigdo when the dark lord is released from Rezo's eyes. After that, Zelgadis initially goes off on his own, but when a bounty is placed on his head by Eris, another of Rezo's followers, Zelgadis once again joins forces with Lina and Gourry and also their new companion Princess Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun, this time to thwart not only Eris but also her clone of Rezo (Copy Rezo as they call him).

Throughout the rest of the series, especially in the NEXT series, Zelgadis's main goal is to reverse his condition, thus he seeks out various objects and spell books of magical importance in hopes that he can use it to cure himself.

Personality

Zelgadis is notable for his determination, focus, and strength of will, as well as his obsession with regaining his human form. He is quiet, distant and aloof, very much a lone wolf type. At times he tries to act on his own or leave the group in order to stay focused on his goal when they are either being oblivious to his needs or are just goofing around. He is also the straight man of the group and sometimes the one who either has to be the peace maker or the one who has to calm Lina down in order to get her to think rationally. He can be very commanding and adept at getting people to do what he either wants or needs them to do in order to accomplish the objective at hands, very much an ends-justifies-the-means person. At the same time, he becomes frustrated very easily, especially when his comrades are incapable of focusing themselves long enough to either solve the problem at hand or solve his own.

Another notable aspect of Zelgadis is his arrogance - a highly skilled shaman magic user, Zelgadis is good and he knows it. His confidence and self-assurance often borders on arrogance, but for the most part he has the goods to back it up. He also frequently behaves in a selfish, almost holier-than-thou manner, as if the suffering of others does not even begin to compare with his own, and frequently puts his own needs before his friends. This is most likely another factor in his reactions to the absurdity that surrounds him.

Though he gradually warms up to his friends, and develops a soft spot for Amelia, Zelgadis still maintains a quiet, droll disposition.

Popularity & Controversies

File:Mang Zel & Amelia.jpg

Zel's appearance in the Slayers manga opposite Amelia

Zelgadis, or Zel to fans, is far and away one of the most popular characters of the Slayers series, beloved by fans for his demeanor, his personal problems, and his voice actors (Hikaru Midorikawa in the original Japanese version, and Crispin Freeman, who did the second English voice for Zelgadis in the English dub). Fans argue that he is the darkest, most complex and most intriguing of the four central characters.

An offshoot of his popularity is the controversy surrounding his love life. The series never officially pairs him with anyone, thus leaving his romantic life ambiguous. While the series hints at Zelgadis and Amelia having feelings for each other, some fans have proposed the alternative of Zelgadis and Lina, seeing the more obviously talented sorceress as a better match for him. This has led to some flamewars, with a significant amount of venom aimed at Amelia.

Appearance & Powers

While the third of him that is human maintains his original human form/figure, the thirds of him that are golemn and demon changed the appearance of his skin and hair considerably. The demon half of his being gives him blue skin and the wiry, silver/bluish-purple/violet hair (depending on whether you're reading the manga or watching the anime) and possibly the pointed ears, enables him run faster than the eye can see, and granted him great power in Shamanist magic while the golemn half outlines him with rock and stone. Though he often complains about his freakish appearance, the stone hide has proved useful to him on many occasions, as the stone hide is virtually impenetrable to ordinary weapons such as swords or bombs - he commented early on that nothing short of the Sword of Light would hurt him - while the combination of stone and demon stamina most likely was the only thing that allowed him to endure being struck down repeatedly by Gaav, one blow of which actually caused him to bleed.

On the other hand, the stone hide makes him extremely heavy - so heavy in fact that he was used as an anchor when the gang was seeking a lake dragon that was key to a very special cuisine.

Physically he is much shorter than Gourry, presumably of average height, with a very slight physical build.

Zelgadis is a Shamanist magic user, and also a durable swordsman in his own right. He can do black attack magic, healing spells, and the Ra Tilt.

Voices

Hikaru Midorikawa - Japanese, Crispin Freeman - English