The Cruise to Hell (Jigoku Nagashi 地獄流し) is a GeGeGe no Kitarō story that first appeared as a chapter of the Shonen Magazine run. It has been adapted for the 1968, 1996, 2007 and 2018 anime versions of "GeGeGe no Kitarō". An episode of the 1985 is also loosely based on this story.
Characters[]
- Kitarō
- Masakichi (First appearance)
- Mamezō (Salaryman Yamada)
- Bake-Garasu
- Medama-Oyaji (cover art)
- Cameos
- Nezumi-Otoko (First appearance)
- Adobarana (First appearance)
- Kappa (First appearance)
- Bake-Neko (First appearance)
- Tanuki (First appearance)
- Frankenstein (First appearance)
- Mummy (First appearance)
- Kasa-Bake (First appearance)
- Rokuro-Kubi (First appearance)
- Tengu (First appearance)
- Obake Times Editor (First appearance)
- Gaki (First appearance)
Plot[]
Two men, a wanted killer named Masakichi and a career criminal named Mamezō, are on the lam and wander through the GeGeGe Forest. A man tries to warn them about going into Kitarō's house, but they brush off and threaten him. They come across the GeGeGe House, setting off the murder of crows settled around the place. Masakichi shoots one of them dead and the two men enter the house.
Once inside, Mamezō finds a gem and picks it up. Masakichi takes it and examines it. Inside the gem he sees a strange desert-like place, and when Mamezō takes it back he sees a different location. Masakichi then finds a bus ticket that claims to be for Jigoku (Hell). The two figure Jigoku would be the best hiding place, but Masakichi takes the ticket for himself and leaves for the graveyard, where the ticket says the bus will pick him up at midnight.
At the graveyard, a broken down old bus with flames for headlights picks Masakichi. Inside he sees no driver and next to his seat is the crow he shot earlier. He tries to escape but the steering wheel won't budge and the windows won't open. Back at the treehouse, Mamezō is looking into the gem when he suddenly sees the close-up image of an eyeball. He panics and thinks he is being watched, maybe even being watched from the location he sees in the gem. He continues watching and suddenly sees a similar gem atop a very tall and very thin rock formation. He then sees a yōkai climbing the rock and looking into the gem and the image of an eye flashes before him again.
Soon after, Kitarō arrives and asks why Mamezō is holding his TV. Mistaking him for an ordinary child, Mamezō tries to bribe Kitarō away with chocolate to no avail. He then offers him a car ride and leads him back to the graveyard where he left his car. Kitarō says nothing the way there or during the drive. Suddenly, Mamezō realizes he is driving an unfamiliar road. He swerves when he sees some hitodama and drives off of a cliff. Kitarō tells him to stop screaming and Mamezō realizes they are safely on the ground. Kitarō now leads Mamezō, and Mamezō starts to recognize the area as the location in the gem.
They come across a crowd of yōkai surrounding Masakichi and the old bus. Mamezō asks Masakichi what is going on and Masakichi says they are in Jigoku and can't go back. Mamezō turns around to find Kitarō has vanished. He checks his pocket and finds the gem is gone as well. The yōkai inform the two that they have suffered Kitarō's "Cruise to Hell" to pay for the evil deeds. The two embrace in fear as Kitarō watches on the gem back at the GeGeGe House.
Remakes[]
Manga[]
- Bokura - Cruise to Hell (じごくながしの巻)
- 3rd Grade Learning Magazine - Cruise to Hell (地ごく流しのまき)
Anime[]
- 1968 Anime
- Episode 13 - Cruise to Hell (aired March 27, 1968)
- 1985 Anime
- Episode 65 - Yōkai Hyakume's Cruise to Hell (aired February 7, 1987)
- (loose adaptation)
- 1996 Anime
- Episode 35 - Kitarō's Cruise to Hell (aired September 8, 1996)
- 2007 Anime
- Episode 34 - Yōkai Yokochō's Cruise to Hell (aired November 25, 2007)
- 2018 Anime
- Episode 68 - Capital Punishment! Cruise to Hell (aired August 11, 2019)