InuYasha
InuYasha (Japanese: 犬夜叉, inu "dog" + yasha "demon" from Japanese yasha, derived from masculine Sanskrit yaksha) is a long-running manga and anime series by Rumiko Takahashi (creator of Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku, Ranma ½, and others).
The full title is Sengoku o-togi zōshi InuYasha (戦国お伽草子ー犬夜叉), which roughly translates to InuYasha, A Feudal Fairy Tale.
Overview
InuYasha is a shōnen action/adventure romantic comedy, with elements from the horror and action/adventure genres. The story starts in Tokyo, Japan with a junior high-school girl named Kagome Higurashi, who on her way to school heads to the covered well on the family property (which happens to be a Shinto shrine). She does this to retrieve her cat, Buyo, from the well, since her brother was afraid to go inside. When she approaches the well a centipede demon (dubbed "Mistress Centipede") bursts from the well and grabs her. The demon claims that Kagome possesses the Jewel of Four Souls (四魂の玉 Shikon no Tama) a.k.a. the Shikon Jewel, and attempts to seize it when the demon is driven off and the very confused Kagome emerges in the Sengoku period of Japan. Kagome wanders and meets an old miko (Shinto priestess) by the name of Kaede, who claims that Kagome is the spitting image of Kikyo, her elder sister (and powerful priestess) who had died and had her body burned with the Jewel of Four Souls, taking it with her into the afterlife. Kaede relates the story of how, 50 years earlier, a hanyō named InuYasha had tried to steal the Jewel from Kikyo, mortally wounding her in the process, but Kikyo had managed to strike him with a magical arrow, sealing him into an enchanted sleep and thus retrieving the Jewel before she finally died.
It turns out that Kagome is the reincarnation of Kikyo, and that she does possess the Jewel of Four Souls, embedded inside her body. When the centipede demon rips it from her and swallows it, granting the demon a great boost in power, Kagome is forced to awaken InuYasha so he can defeat it.
Soon after they recover the Jewel, it is lost again, and Kagome accidentally shatters it as she tries to recover it. The pieces scatter far and wide, and the series tells of Kagome and InuYasha's exploits as they search for the shards of the Jewel. As they search, they meet new people who join them on their quest for various personal reasons. Throughout the story Kagome and InuYasha come closer to having deep feelings for each other, though the romance remains a side plot for most of the story.
Explanation of time travel
The modern time is 'X', a period in the Sengoku period is 'Y', and 50 years before period Y 'Z'. At Z, Kikyo died after sealing InuYasha to the tree, where he went into suspended animation, and she was cremated on a pyre with the jewel, according to her wishes. At Y, the well (which exists in both ancient and modern times) drops Kagome, the 20th/21st century incarnation of Kikyo, off from the future. Here, everyone has gotten older but otherwise not much has happened. X is the 'modern' end of the well's wormhole through time.
Animation quality
Most people agree that the artwork in both the anime and manga versions of InuYasha is good, with Akemi's Anime World (http://animeworld.com/readerreviews/inuyashatv.html), Anime News Network (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/reviews/display.php?id=26), and many others saying that it is "excellent". However, some viewers, such as Derrick Tucker, from THEM Anime Reviews (http://www.themanime.org/viewreview.php?id=744), complain that action scenes are often reused and that sometimes a static image moved against a background is used as a substitute for animating action. He concedes, however, that the costs of producing a long anime series like InuYasha often make such compromises unavoidable.
Media and Release information
See InuYasha media and release information.
Title Dispute
There is a long-standing debate about the proper English spelling of "InuYasha", the title character's name. Some spell it "InuYasha", some "Inuyasha", some "Inu Yasha", and some "Inu-Yasha". As Japanese does not use spacing or capitalization, there is no "correct" spelling. The on-line encyclopedia Wikipedia went with 'Inuyasha' for quite some time before changing to 'InuYasha'. 'Inuyasha' is still frequently used.
Both Cartoon Network, the US anime licensee, and Viz Communications, the publisher of the manga and producer of the anime for the U.S. market, use "InuYasha" (Viz formerly used "Inu-Yasha" in the title but switched to the current "InuYasha"; Viz still uses the spelling "Inu-Yasha" in the text of the graphic novels). The issue of ambiguous capitalization and spacing also occurred on protest signs during the Vietnam War - protestors would use any one of "Vietnam", "Viet Nam", and "VietNam". Both stand as shining examples of the difficulties that romanization can cause.
Popularity
Since its introduction on Cartoon Network, the ranks of InuYasha fans have swelled to the point where anime.com (http://www.anime.com/200409.html) calls InuYasha a "cult" and its fans "rabid zealots". The show is so popular that although it has been taken off the air many times in its run (to make way for shows such as Kikaider, Big O, and FLCL) it has always been reinstated due to the demands of viewers. After a while, the people who write the bumpers for Adult Swim became sarcastic about this, and it became something of a running joke that they were on the side of the viewers, but were at the mercy of superior departments ("Suits"). As time progressed, the show was moved to increasingly late viewing hours. As of October 2002, it aired at 11:00 PM. As of March 2004, it aired at 12:30 AM. Presumably, the logic behind this is that the InuYasha fans will not mind staying up later, and other shows can be put between them and their goal.
There are many possible reasons for the popularity of the InuYasha series. A likely one is that it is eclectic, including elements from many different genres. At first, the series mainly appears to be action-oriented, and it does indeed have a significant amount of action, with at least one confrontation with an enemy in most episodes. However, it also includes a great deal of comedy (frequently slapstick), many monsters that add notes of the horror genre, and occasional romance. Another probable reason that InuYasha is so popular is that it is has rather sympathetic characters who are varied enough that most people can relate to at least one of them.
Characters in the series that exist in the Sengoku period
The names of some of the characters are in Western order (Surname after given name) while others are in Japanese order (surname before given name). If the name is different in the English anime, the English anime name comes after the original Japanese name.
Roughly by order of appearance:
- Kagome Higurashi (日暮かごめ) — The female protagonist, a human from modern times.
- InuYasha (犬夜叉) — The male protagonist, a hanyō.
- Kaede (楓) — A miko and sister of Kikyo who protected the village in the fifty years after her sister's death. She was the first to recognize that Kagome was the reincarnation of her sister.
- Myoga (冥加 Myōga) — A flea who is a retainer of InuYasha.
- Sesshomaru (殺生丸 Sesshōmaru) — InuYasha's brother, a full yōkai, who also despises him. He also despises Naraku, not only for kidnapping his companion Rin but for attempting to manipulate him.
- Jaken — A yōkai (kappa) who is a retainer of Sesshomaru.
- Shippo (七宝 Shippō) — A 7-year old fox demon(狐, kitsune) whose parents were killed by yōkai.
- Kikyo (桔梗 Kikyō) — The dead priestess (巫女, miko) who loved InuYasha. She was brought back to (un)life by the ogress (鬼, oni) Urasue. Her unlife is almost ended at the hands of Naraku after Mt. Hakurei collapses, but she later appears as Hijiri-sama (聖様, 'Her Holyness') and is subsequently brought back to (un)life by Kagome.
- Shinidamachu (死魂虫 Shinidamachū) — Kikyo's aids in collecting souls to sustain her body.
- Miroku (弥勒) — A Buddhist monk (法師, hōshi) who joins Kagome and InuYasha.
- Hachi (八衛門, Hachiemon) — A congenial shape-shifting spirit who has befriended Miroku. In Hachi's default appearance, he resembles a tanuki (raccoon dog) jūjin.
- Naraku (奈落) — An evil hanyō (half-demon) who despises InuYasha. After his time at Mt. Hakurei, he became a full yōkai.
- Sango (珊瑚) — A 'yōkai exterminator (退治屋, taijiya)' whose brother Kohaku is controlled by Naraku.
- Kohaku (琥珀) — Sango's little brother who is under the control of Naraku.
- Kirara (雲母) / Kilala — Sango's faithful cat-like yōkai.
- Kagura (神楽) — A wind sorceress yōkai created as a detachment from Naraku who despises him but is forced to serve him as he holds her heart (and life) in his hands. He later returns her heart only to fatally poison her, bringing her life to an end.
- Kanna (神無) — A detachment of Naraku, she is a yōkai who has the appearance of a little girl and has the power to steal souls in her mirror.
- Koga (鋼牙 Kōga) — The leader of a wolf demon yōkai tribe that is convinced that Kagome loves him and fights with InuYasha for her affections. Also hates Naruku and Kagura after they kill off a lot of his wolf yokai comrades.
- Ayame — The wolf yōkai who Koga promised to marry when they grew up. The northern clan she comes from is later besieged by a mysterious zombie (from the Shichinintai). Ayame only appears in the anime, and not in the manga.
- Rin (りん) — an orphan girl who follows Sesshomaru and Jaken. After Sesshomaru saves her life, she joins them permanently.
- Totosai (刀々斎 Tōtōsai) — A blacksmith that forged Tetsusaiga (Tessaiga) and Tenseiga.
- Goshinki — A telepathic yōkai detachment from Naraku who was slain by InuYasha. His fangs were used to make Sesshomaru's sword, Tōkijin.
- Juromaru (Jūrōmaru) and Kageromaru (Kagerōmaru) — Twin detachments of Naraku who hold no loyalty, but were used by Naraku to attack InuYasha and Kōga. Both were slain.
- Tsubaki — A dark priestess (黒巫女, kuro miko) who made a deal with a yōkai to retain her youth. She attacked Kikyō in an attempt to steal the Shikon Jewel but had her curse reflected back at her. Naraku gave her the almost-complete Shikon Jewel so she would curse Kagome, but Kagome was eventually able to overcome it. Tsubaki then released an Oni and used the Jewel of Four Souls to increase her power in an attempt to defeat InuYasha's group, but was beaten. (The part of Tsubaki fusing with the Oni doesn't occur in the manga) In the anime special "A Fateful Love Song From Before We Met", Tsubaki is shown as originally being Kikyō's rival who placed a curse on Kikyō which deemed that, if she fell in love, she would lose her power as a miko; this is not in the manga.
- Muso (Musō) — Reincarnation of Onigumo as a detachment from Naraku. Attempted to defeat Naraku and gain freedom but was reabsorbed.
- Shichinintai (七人隊) — The seven dead assassins raised from the dead by Naraku's Shikon Jewel shards. Naraku raised them with Shikon shards so that he could distract InuYasha's group long enough to take his new form.
- Akago — Naraku's minion and detachment in the form of a baby that can possess anyone with darkness in their heart. He can talk, reads people thoughts and is later cut in half by a priest, which led to the creation of Hakudoshi from one half, and Akago as the other half.
- Entei — A yōba (yōkai horse) who serves only the most powerful yōkai.
- Hakudoshi (Hakudōshi) — Created from Akago's body, he was Entei's master, and looks like a 10 year old kid. Like Naraku, his heart is not inside his body, so he is able to endlessly regenerate himself. Despite this, his life comes to an end thanks to Miroku's Kazaana after Naraku learns of his betrayal.
- Kocho (Kochō) and Asuka — Kikyō's shikigami that summons Kagome when Kikyō needs to be purified of Naraku's shōki and act as messengers to InuYasha when Kikyō wants to speak to him. Both are powerful and capable of erecting barriers by themselves.
- Goryomaru (Goryōmaru) — A monk who had his arm eaten by a yōkai. He tries to kill Kagura and has his head cut off by Hakudoshi.
- Moryomaru (Moryōmaru) — Is actually Naraku's strongest minion, although he is technically working against him. Due to his telepathic powers, Kagura and Kohaku suspect he is Akago (and he is). He is a 30ft monster with human shape, and can shoot blasts of yōki energy from his arm. He was originally a soulless puppet creation of Hakudoshi made of yōkai life force (haku).
- Koharu — A girl in the series that Miroku asked to bear his child.
List of all yōkai: Yōkai List
Characters in the series that exist in the modern era
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- Sota Higurashi (日暮草太 Higurashi Sōta) — Kagome's little brother, calls InuYasha "Inu no nii-chan", or "dog brother"
- Miss/Mrs. Higurashi — Her first name is a mystery; she is Kagome's mother. She is called "mama" in both the anime and manga. 'Higurashi' could be either her married name or her maiden name.
- Jii-chan (Grandpa) — His name is also a mystery. He is Kagome's grandfather.
- Buyo — Kagome's cat. He is white, with brown spots and is really fat. He attracted Kagome to the bone-eating well in the first episode, which set the series in motion. InuYasha and Buyo do not get along and InuYasha often harasses Buyo.
- Yuka, Eri and Ayumi — They are Kagome's three school friends. They are usually very nosy about Kagome's "boyfriend" and why she isn't interested in Hojo.
- Hojo (北条 Hōjō) — Kagome's classmate. He loves Kagome and does everything to date her. He is a descendant of Akitoki Hojo (Hōjō Akitoki), who also liked Kagome in the anime.
- Mask of Noh — A wooden mask yōkai who absorbed a shard of the Jewel of Four Souls in the beginning of the series. It caused a lot of trouble for Kagome's neighborhood, but it was defeated by InuYasha.
- Mayu (真由) — A ghost girl who died in a fire and tried to kill her younger brother because she felt betrayed. Kagome appeased her and saved her from being sent to hell by the Tatarimokke.
- Tatarimokke — A big, yellow, round yōkai that plays a flute to guide children's souls to heaven or to hell.
Cameo appearances
Shin'ichi Kudo (Jimmy Kudo) and Ran Mori (Rachel Moore) of Detective Conan/Case Closed make a cameo appearance in episode 128; Detective Conan is published in Shonen Sunday along with InuYasha.
Special items and attacks
See InuYasha special items and attacks.
Seiyū/Voice actors
Distributors
Sunrise Ltd. and Columbia Tristar Television own the copyrights.
External links
- Adult Swim - InuYasha (http://www.adultswim.com/shows/inuyasha/index.html)
- Official website in Japanese (http://www.sunrise-inc.co.jp/yasya/)
- YTV website for InuYasha (http://www.ytv.com/programming/shows/inuyasha/?showid=215)
- InuYasha — Sengoku o-Togi Zoushi (http://www.wot-club.org.uk/Inuyasha/)
- Sengoku Jidai (http://web.utk.edu/~bborchar/)
- Detailed information on production and other details (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=159)
- InuYasha Companion (http://furinkan.com/iycompanion/)
- Ear-Tweak (http://ear-tweak.com/)
- IMdB Entry (http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0290223/)
ca:Inuyasha de:InuYasha es:Inuyasha eo:Inuyasha fr:Inu-Yasha ja:犬夜叉 pt:Inuyasha zh:犬夜叉