Sands of Destruction (anime)

In a World where beastmen are the dominant species and normal humans are treated like second-class citizens (or worse), a girl named Morte claims to want to destroy this world. Wielding a large weapon in one hand and a sphere called the "Destruct Code" in another, she is the leader of the one-person "World Destruction Committee." Reluctantly joining her in this quest are a human boy named Kyrie who used fake cat-ears to get a job until Morte accidentally revealed his identity, and a short bear named Toppy.

However, the beastmen have their own "World Salvation Committee," an armed group which seeks to capture or kill Morte before she can figure out how to unlock the Destruct Code.

Originally a Nintendo DS game that received an Animated Adaptation.

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Tropes used in Sands of Destruction (anime) include:

• Action Girl: Morte and Rhi'a fall under this category. They fight rather often, too.
• Action Girlfriend: Morte is like this toward Kyrie. Of course Kyrie can't hold his own in battle.
• Action Survivor: Kyrie was just happy to finally have a job when he was caught up with the World Annihilation Front.
• Artifact of Doom: Morte carries around with her a little black sphere called the Destruct Code, which supposedly has the ability to destroy the world. However, she has no idea how to use it though it seems to react to Kyrie. Those who have played the game know that Kyrie is the actual "Destruct Code". The sphere is actually a device that Kyrie had used to store his memories (see The Fog of Ages).
• Ax Crazy: Rhi'a seems fairly calm and cool, but once you piss her off, she sprouts horns, wings, and a wicked tail and tries to kill your face.
• Catch Phrase: Toppi repeatedly says "There are two kinds of *blank*". Kyrie eventually parodies it, causing Toppi to say that there aren't two kinds of that.
• Chekhov's Gunman: That guy that appears near the end of the trailer (after the beastlords)? Totally unimportant.
• Curb Stomp Battle: Awakened Kyrie versus the entire World Salvation Committee and the Eagle Master.
• Cute Machines: The sentient robots in the anime have a very unassuming demeanor.
• Cuteness Proximity: Whenever he's in sight of a little kid, Toppy with undoubtedly become a victim of this.
• Dude in Distress: Kyrie. First episode, he gets drugged and is going to be the sacrifice of the village if not for Morte and Toppi saving him.
  • Every other episode he tries his best to prevent this, but every other episode results in him being captured ALONG with Morte and Toppi. However, its to be noted that whenever Morte or Toppi get captured with him, it's always Kyrie's fault because he gets held as a hostage or gets knocked out first.
• Eyepatch of Power: Taupy and Yappi. Not so much that it gives them power, but that they're ridiculously bad ass.
• Faceless Mooks: The World Salvation Committee's soldiers all wear white and blue uniforms with bird-like, white masks that conceal their eyes.
• Fantastic Racism: Like its predecessor, but still in a Mood Whiplash.
• The Fog of Ages: Kyrie. As the "Destruct Code" he's been alive sense the creation of the world, and he carried around a small black sphere with which to store his memories. When he lost it 4 years prior, he developed amnesia as a result.
• Gangsta Style: Rhi'a occasionally combines this with Guns Akimbo.
• Gonk: Fake Kyrie's kinda... ugly.
• Gun Fu: Rhi'a in the opening.
• Guns Akimbo: Rhi'a wields dual pistols in the anime.
• Hey, It's That Voice!: Let's see now: Morte (Maaya Sakamoto), Kyrie (Mamoru Miyano), Taupy (Tohru Furuya), Yappi (Shūichi Ikeda), Naja (Daisuke Ono), Rhi'a (Yuu Kobayashi), the fake Kyrie (Keiji Fujiwara)
  • In the dub, Kyrie is Firo, Allen Walker, Death the Kid and Kimihiro Watanuki.
• Hero Antagonist: The World Salvation Committee.
• Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: Each episode title begins with "There are *insert number* kinds of *insert episode subject*".
• Magic Skirt: Considering how often Morte jumps around, you think you'd see up her skirt. You don't except for perhaps during the opening of the anime.
  • Subverted in one episode where it steadily rips open higher and higher. Morte isn't happy when she finds out.
• Mood Whiplash: A little less inconsistent on the mood, but it still has moments where transitions start to jump without notice. This is unfortunately a side-effect of attempting to deconstruct Fantastic Racism while having a light-hearted premise and attempting to attract a younger crowd. The early prison escape, for example, is able to keep a firm Darker and Edgier mood while toning down the Lighter and Softer. The episodes that contain the "Cave of Memories", however, are pure Mood Whiplash.
• Non-Action Guy: Kyrie definitely. The other male members Agan and Naja rarely fight but they had at least one instant where they can knock the villains out of the way whereas Kyrie just whines the entire time.
• Not What It Looks Like: Toppy gives Kyrie mouth-to-mouth after he nearly drowns in sand in episode 8. The standard confusion happens.
• Oddly Small Organization: The World Destruction Committee consists of three people, total. Though it is hinted that the World Salvation Committee actually started to believe their own propaganda, and began referring to the three protagonists as "Three members OF the World Destruction Committee".
  • The game has the World Destruction Committee being less than ten people in number.
• Omnicidal Maniac: Morte does want to destroy the world. Then averted at the moment of truth, when she decides the world isn't so bad after all.
• Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Rhi'a/Lia is actually about 300 years old. Kyrie has been alive since the creation of the world.
• Redemption Equals Death: Subverted in the case of Elephas Rex.
• Ridiculously Cute Critter: Taupy counts. Kinda.
  • Much to his dismay.
• Robot Buddy: 28 functioned as this for Taupy in one episode.
• Shout-Out: Taupy played by Furuya Tooru meets Yappi in Episode 5. Who is played by Shūichi Ikeda. These two play rivals in the original Mobile Suit Gundam anime as Amuro Ray and Char Aznable. Coincidence? I think not.
  • Taupy also pulls the line 'Ore wa dare to omotteiru' from Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
    • That line has been in anime and manga (and I imagine other forms of Japanese media) forever, so that may just be a coincidence (if not necessarily the above).
  • The ending of the opening may remind some people of the poster for End of Evangelion.
• Sand Is Water: We have a sand submarine (which filled an entire episode), sand boats, sand pirates...
• Spell My Name with an "S"/Inconsistent Translation: Majorly Depending on the Writer Translator. Both the fansubs, and the official translation by Funimation spell the character names differently from the English version of the game, resulting in what could now be called "Mega Man syndrome". Examples from the fansubs include Morute/Morte, and Kirie/Kyrie. Examples from the Funimation version include (but may not be limited to) Urshela/Ashera (Morte's last name), Illnis/Illunis (Kyrie's last name), Toppy/Taupy, Nadja/Naja, and Lia/Rhi'a. In addition, there are two different "official" translations for "Sekai Bokumetsu Iinkai" (世界撲滅委員会). Sega calls it the "World Annihilation Front", while Funimation calls it the "World Destruction Committee". The former name is technically a Woolseyism (or a Macekre, depending on who you ask), while the latter name is truer to the original Japanese. Keep in mind that it was a video game to begin with.
• Team Chef: Kyrie is a damn good chef, despite all appearances.
• Team Mom: Kyrie, despite being useless battle-wise, is fairly domestic.
• The Anime of the Game: Quite a good one, too.
• Theme Naming/Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: The titles typically start with 'There two kinds of (insert thing here)'.
  • There Are Two Kinds of People in the World
• Trigger Happy: Rhi'a. She reaches for her guns whenever she's provoked.
• Tsundere: Because Morte isn't Ax Crazy as she is in the video game or manga, she would fit this troupe more. Type A around everyone.
  • Morte is more of a Jerk with a Heart of Gold; she doesn't have any love interests (note that when she thinks Kyrie is propositioning her, she just gets mad). Rhi'a is a better example, and is type A towards Kyrie.
• Verbal Tic: Taupy ends most of his sentences with the word 'kuma' (and he really wants to get rid of it). His rival Yappi ends his sentences with the word 'bear'.
• Villain Protagonist: The three members of the World Annihilation Front, though Kyrie and Toppi are just along for the ride.
  • Its worth noting that this a rare case where the "villainous" protagonists are absolutely right. Yes, they want to destroy the world, but its made clear throughout the game that its such a horrifyingly bleak Death World that destruction or recreation really is the best option.
• White-Haired Pretty Boy: Naja.
• Winged Humanoid: Rhi'a gets wings during her dragon transformation sequence.
• Yasunori Mitsuda: Composed part of the music.
• Zettai Ryouiki: Rhi'a definitely counts. Morte not so much since she wears thigh-high boots.