Synopsis
The Mamodo of focus is Zatch Bell, who was discovered unconscious at a forest in England by Professor Seitaro Takamine. Seitaro sends Zatch over to his son Kiyo Takamine, an intelligent 14-year-old living with his mother in the fictional city of Mochinoki, Japan,[ch. 2] in hopes of uncovering Zatch's past that he has no memory of.[ch. 1] Kiyo becomes Zatch's preordained partner for the tournament. Over time, Zatch and Kiyo come across other Mamodo, especially Brago and his partner Sherry Belmont, who explain the ongoing Mamodo tournament.[ch. 8] Zatch and Kiyo also discover that some Mamodo do not wish to fight or do so for the wrong reasons; namely Kolulu, who was forced to fight due to the nature of her spells.[ch. 17] Seeing this, Zatch pledges to become a "kind king" and stop the battle from ever happening again.[ch. 18] Zatch and Kiyo also find friendlier Mamodo and build up alliances with them and their human partners. Chief among them are Kanchomé with Italian movie star Parco Folgore,[ch. 27] Tia with pop idol Megumi Oumi,[ch. 38] Ponygon with German engineer Kafk Sunbeam (although the two do not find each other until later in the series),[ch. 122] and Wonrei with teen Hongkonger girl Li-en.[ch. 71]
Throughout the course of the tournament, Zatch, Kiyo, and their allies band together to combat several potent Mamodo with hostile intent. The first major adversary they face is Zofis, who commands a cadre of reanimated Mamodo that were sealed in stone tablets during the previous tournament one thousand years ago. Zofis has also bent the will of his own partner, Sherry's childhood friend Koko, into committing heinous acts such as burning down her own village.[ch. 55] Another enemy to emerge is Rioh, who wields a Mamodo warfare titan named Faudo[ch. 189] that imperils the globe.[ch. 209] Kiyo is nearly killed in a harrowing mission to thwart Rioh and avert Faudo.[ch. 215] However, Rioh is then overpowered by Zeno Bell, Zatch's twin brother.[ch. 259] Zeno is deeply envious of his sibling for procuring the sacred power of Bao from their father King Dauwan Bell,[ch. 272] and had removed Zatch's memories out of spite,[ch. 48] but he soon comes around and apologizes upon seeing the error of his own ways.[ch. 275] The last and perhaps most powerful Mamodo encountered is Clear Note, who intends to commit omnicide against the Mamodo race.[ch. 289] Zatch and Kiyo call upon the spells of all the Mamodo they previously met to quash Clear Note and return him to the Mamodo world.[ch. 319]
In the aftermath, Zatch manages to pull through the tournament unscathed even though all of his allies fall and are brought back to the Mamodo world, leaving himself and Brago as the only remaining candidates on Earth. After Kiyo's graduation, the two ilk engage in a final showdown.[ch. 320] Zatch ultimately prevails over Brago, thereby ending the tournament as the victor.[ch. 321] As Zatch departs for the Mamodo world, Kiyo is rewarded a wish in exchange for all his painful memories of everything that had transpired and then given any fortune he desires, but he rejects the gift not wanting to forget Zatch.[ch. 322] Three weeks after the tournament, the Mamodo send a letter to their human counterparts, with Zatch's letter stating that all is well in the Mamodo world.[ch. 323]
The anime adaptation of Zatch Bell! is spread over three seasons, referred to as "levels", with distinct arcs. The first season takes place in the early stage of the Mamodo tournament and centers primarily on Zatch and Kiyo's character development. The second season follows Zatch and his allies battling Zofis and emphasizes Sherry's quest to rescue Koko from Zofis' throes. The third and final season revolves around Faudo which leads Zatch up to a climatic open conflict with Zeno. The anime observes changes from much of the manga. These include additional subplots and characters not featured in the original story. Certain scenes and key events are also altered or chronologically rearranged. For instance, Zatch and Kiyo first learn about Zeno from another Mamodo they encounterep. 16 rather than directly from Tia as in the manga,[ch. 39] although she and Megumi corroborate the sighting later on.ep. 21 Ponygon also appears earlier in the anime's timelineep. 7 than in the manga's.[ch. 56] Discrepancies in the plot are more pronounced during the third season. In particular, Kiyo's death does not occur, and Zeno never repents even when he returns to the Mamodo world.ep. 150 Because of the changes, some Mamodo who lose out in the manga survive up to this point. The anime skips the events involving Clear Note and leaves the demise of Zatch's main allies and any remaining Mamodo unresolved. Instead, the series closes with an epilogue showing Zatch and Brago preparing to battle each other as the last two Mamodo on Earth, with the winner not revealed.
