Episode list

Masane Amaha is a woman on the fringe of society, but her strange destiny was written long ago. She exists as a soul with no memory, bouncing rootless from town to town with her young daughter, Rihoko.

From beneath a pile of rubble that was once the city jail, Masane Amaha emerges reborn a furious force of nature? But freedom remains elusive. Waking from carnage into captivity, the young mother has been conscripted into the service of the Doji Group. Within the glass and steel confines of corporate interest, Masane learns the truth about the artifact that is the Witchblade? And with the taste of death still sweet on her lips, she is subjected to tests and trials of maniacal intensity. While the bizarre and cruel reality of her new life sets in, Rihoko wanders the streets alone - Alone and headed towards Tokyo Tower.

Reiji Takayama of the monolithic Doji Group Industries has Masane trapped like a rat, and the battery of harsh tests continues in clandestine corporate labs. There is no guarantee of her survival, no allusion that those at Doji even care. But a virgin lust for battle courses through Masane's blood - The latest perfect vessel alive to the Witchblade's raw power. A beast stirs within her heart, unleashed with gleeful relish as engineered titans stalk city streets in search of prey. She must face them down in brutal barter for a promised life with her daughter. The perfect weapon as perfect mother? Neither role seems to fit.

Masane's new life as the indentured lethal arm of the Doji Group is wrought with peril, but there are perks as well.

Enter the Cloneblades: Bioengineering and shattered corporate alliances at their best. Having created a breed of powerful woman warriors, confrontation is inevitable when so many desire the same thing - ultimate power.

Masane has been ravaged in her first real bought with her clone contemporaries. Rescued from certain death by the Doji Group, she is whisked away as her savage assailant makes chase, blood lust unquenched.

Despite rigorous testing, sister Shiori's psyche is falling apart and the deviant Cloneblade is now on the loose, a lethal threat on a bloody rampage.

Tozawa has become a willing participant in the hunt for the industrial monsters that are Tokyo's latest plague, and Masane's along for the ride. She is still reluctant to share the truth which he already suspects? Uneasy alliances and shocking images caught on film. But understanding will need to come quick, because a new strain of terror has arrived in the beating heart of the city - A previously unknown model of X-Con, acting and killing in ways that none have before. This technological nightmare exhibits traits that lead down a terrifying path towards madness. Sadness and regret are very human qualities.

Masane and Tozawa have come to a standstill in their standoff, and in the absence true friendship seems to be blooming. Little Rihoko has also found a new friend? A couple of new friends, actually.

Masane leans on Doji Group big shot Takayama to gain the truth behind the X-Cons, and the secrets she unearths are vexing... The dead live on, meant to change the very nature of modern warfare. From disgust to further disgust, the feisty bearer of the Witchblade soon learns that as punishment for Tozawa uncovering her own "little secret," she must pretty up and play nice at a fancy party later that evening. Elsewhere, Reina is growing weary of the Cloneblade project as she seems to be seeking out some deeper meaning to life. But it may not matter much, as a little fresh blood may be all that the project was lacking.

Masane is struggling beneath the weight of forced duality, and the weight of a massive hangover! But she totally loses her cool when little Rihoko falls ill.

The NSWF has Masane in captivity and they're wasting no time to study her, digging for insight into the symbiotic relationship between the bearer and the blade. The agency's intent is to use such knowledge to improve upon the original, and the young Maria just might be the first to benefit... Unlikely allies meet up in interesting places, sending Tozawa up the back entrance and into a hotbed of Cloneblade activity. But ten million magic words revive the Witchblade in the nick of time, with the heavy artillery ready and waiting. Back at the hospital, what should be a joyous reunion with Rihoko may shake Masane to the core.

The Child Welfare Ministry is not quite done with their meddling, and this time they come bearing DNA evidence. So what exactly defines true family? Is it simply shared blood? Or is it the bonds of real life? Whatever it is, there's no running away from this glaring truth.

Mother and daughter may share four walls, but hearth and home are sadly lacking. Reina dryly interprets her role as a maternal caregiver, taking clinical notes along the way. But their happy little façade is not the only thing starting to crack. Masane, an asylum candidate by this point, ignores the incessant calls from Takayama... But Takayama will not be ignored. He arrives to drag Masane off to a derelict old building to prove that she does indeed have a past. Yet not a memory stirs. Elsewhere, Maria has risen to the challenge and embraced the Cloneblades. Her wish granted: To see the family tree laid out with scientific precision.

Cho and Tozawa learn about family ties within NswF, and Maria learn about who her real mother is. Reina Soho learns what it means to be a real mother and what she is willing to go to to save one of her daughter from another. Rihoko and Masane understand that they are connected by something more, even though they are not blood relatives, and Takeyama confesses to Reine that he always remembered the feelings for her that bound them together.

Even warriors need rest, to recover their spirits as much as their physical selves. And as the residents of the Natsuki Building head off for some fun in the sun, beach party style, Masane's left with her own little rain cloud to darken the day...

Takayama struggles to maintain the upper hand against his rival, Wado, and Tozawa digs up all the dirt he can on Father. Meanwhile, the Cloneblade project may have goals more sinister than mere profit.

The police are on the scene of yet another brutal murder, but this time the clues point to Doji Group Industries. Meanwhile, the media has gotten hold of the footage cleaning up the earlier jail incident, and the police are no longer the only ones out for blood. Between protestors and search warrants, Masane makes it inside Doji to check on Takayama. But she's too late, for Takayama has decided to step forward and claim responsibility for the incidents... And resign! She now reports to Wado! Poor Masane's head isn't the only one spinning, as researchers watch in awe as Maria takes over training the new generation of Cloneblades.

When a leader comes to power through means of deception, double-dealings remain on the agenda. Wado holds the reigns to control both Masane and Segawa, but their loyalty is an altogether different matter. Concern - and Rihoko's insistence - drive Masane into Takayama's arms at last, but only after reaching new levels of lust and rage to protect him. Over at the NSWF, work has begun on the next generation of sisters, but Father's joy will be short-lived as his latest little Cloneblade pulls a coup. True allegiance is nowhere thick as blood, and Maria unleashes a flood as she vows to claim the power of the Witchblade.

Maria has gained control of the NSWF, but the business of running the organization is the last thing on her mind. Her intent is singular and sinister, her mind unstable: Possess the Witchblade. Aware of the threat, Nishida and Wado work together to attempt the very same thing. Elsewhere, Takayama and Rihoko are out having a not-so-fun-filled day, but things pick up as soon as Masane arrives. She's relieved that Takayama would protect her daughter should something happen in her line of work, for those dearest to the destined seem to be in the greatest danger? But the bond between mother and daughter remains safe in its strength.

The emotional strain is nothing when compared to the physical strain of the Witchblade, and it looks like Masane is fast approaching the end. Refusing to accept this as fact, Takayama and even Tozawa head out for Doji Group Industries, both with the hopes of finding some hint as to how to stop or reverse the internal destruction. Elsewhere, the farce of normal life continues. Masane sneaks off to try and take things into her own hands, but there's no removing the Witchblade? Nothing short of her death. Desperate and disheartened, Masane vows to take the weapon with her to Hell. Some enemies are without, others within.

As all plot and plan around her, Masane's only concern is how best to tell Rihoko of her impending death. But their outing is interrupted by X-Con's attempting to take down the newest public threat, none other than Masane herself! Tozawa arrives to plead that she turn for this battle and run, but blood lust is already in the air and it's far too late. As Rihoko grasps her mother's message at last, she can only stand by and watch helplessly as the battle heats up. Meanwhile, Maria's chosen the next Sister to take on the Witchblade and there's even more trouble approaching from offshore.

In a daze, Masane stumbles home from battle to get some much needed rest. But her rest is to be short-lived as forces begin to gather around her. The good news: Wado's been unseated and Takayama's taken charge. The bad news: This time the lives of everyone in Tokyo are at stake! Takayama has reprogrammed the malfunctioning I-Weapons at Doji, but there's several thousands more approaching by boat. Three twisted Cloneblades head into the fray, planning to take the Witchblade by force. Masane is not alone and her few allies are prepared to join the battle, but another apocalypse hangs on the horizon.

While the city heads for shelter, a deteriorating Masane fights off thousands of rogue I-Weapons. And all the while, Maria and her two Sisters are drawing near. Rather than seeking safety, Tozawa has tracked down the media to spill the full story out to the hidden public. The NSWF, Doji Group Industries, all of their dirty little secrets. A break in the battle and it's the Witchblade versus the Cloneblades, but Maria's madness may prove their own undoing. And high atop Tokyo Tower, as events recommence, a solitary soldier takes her place in the cruel history of the Witchblade?