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InuYasha
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, full title (romanized as INUYASHA), is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. It premiered in Weekly Shonen Sunday on November 13, 1996 and concluded on June 18, 2008. The series follows a time-traveling high school student, a half-demon, a lecherous monk, a fox demon, a demon slayer, and a nekomata during the Sengoku period as they seek to find all the fragments of the Jewel of Four Souls and to keep them out of the hands of evildoers, especially Naraku.
The manga was adapted into a 167 episode anime series produced by Sunrise.
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Encyclopedia
, full title (romanized as INUYASHA), is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. It premiered in Weekly Shonen Sunday on November 13, 1996 and concluded on June 18, 2008. The series follows a time-traveling high school student, a half-demon, a lecherous monk, a fox demon, a demon slayer, and a nekomata during the Sengoku period as they seek to find all the fragments of the Jewel of Four Souls and to keep them out of the hands of evildoers, especially Naraku.
The manga was adapted into a 167 episode anime series produced by Sunrise. Masashi Ikeda directed the first forty-four episodes, while Yasunao Aoki directed the remainder of the series. InuYasha premiered on Yomiuri TV in Japan on October 16, 2000 and ran until September 13, 2004. The television run of the anime ceased without a conclusion to the story.
In 2002, the manga won the Shogakukan Manga Award for best shonen title of the year.
Plot
The story begins in Feudal Japan, when the half-demon InuYasha steals the Jewel of Four Souls—a magical jewel that enhances the power of and can grant a single wish to the one who wields it—from a village. InuYasha desires the gem in order to turn himself into a full blooded demon. InuYasha does not get far before Kikyo, the young miko of the village, shoots him with a sacred arrow that indefinitely seals him onto Goshinboku, a sacred tree in the nearby forest. After being mortally wounded, Kikyo tells her younger sister, Kaede, to burn the jewel with her body to prevent it from falling into the hands of evil.
In modern Tokyo, a junior high school girl named Kagome Higurashi is on her way to school. She stops in the well house of her family's Shinto shrine to retrieve her cat, Buyo, when a centipede demon emerges from the well and pulls her into the Sengoku period of Japan.
Not knowing where she is, Kagome wanders around a forest near the Bone Eater's Well. She spots Goshinboku off in the distance and proceeds towards it. On the tree, she finds InuYasha, who is still sealed in an enchanted sleep. Villagers seize her and take her to the old priestess, Kaede. Recognizing that Kagome is the reincarnation of her sister Kikyo, Kaede tells her the story of Kikyo and InuYasha.
The centipede attacks again, and Kagome is forced to release InuYasha from his enchantment so he can kill it. After defeating the centipede, InuYasha tries to take the Jewel of Four Souls from Kagome. In order to thwart InuYasha and to save Kagome's life, Kaede places magical prayer beads around InuYasha's neck so that Kagome can subdue him.
The Jewel of Four Souls attracts more demons, and in a battle against a carrion crow demon, the jewel is shattered into numerous shards that spread all across Japan. As the individual shards are capable of granting those who embed it in their bodies with great power, it is sought after by many demons as well as some humans.
Kagome and InuYasha set out to collect the shards and restore the Jewel of Four Souls. Along the way, they befriend Shippo, a fox demon; Miroku, a cursed monk; and Sango, a demon-slayer whose brother was possessed and forced to slaughter their father and the other demon slayers. The group encounters many friends and foes during the adventure, including InuYasha's older half-brother Sesshomaru; Kikyo, who died 50 years ago but, was resurrected with part of Kagome's soul; Naraku, who tricked Kikyo and InuYasha into turning against each other; and a wolf demon named Koga, who is in love with Kagome and whenever he and InuYasha meet they constantly bicker.
Eventually, the Shikon jewel is reassembled by Naraku, who is then defeated by InuYasha. Before he dies, Naraku makes a wish on the jewel that Kagome would replace the soul of Midoriko, the jewel's original creator, within the jewel and that his soul would also enter the jewel so he could survive inside as her enemy. This would only work if Kagome made a selfish wish, which Naraku tries to trick her into doing, but confident that InuYasha would rescue her, she refuses to do so. InuYasha rescues her and Kagome wishes for the jewel to disappear forever.
Kagome is thrown back into her own time, and InuYasha is no longer able to see her. However, after three years when Kagome has graduated high school, a portal opens allowing her to return to InuYasha's time. They acknowledge their love for one another and she chooses to remain in the past with him.
Characters
- Kagome is a fifteen-year-old ninth grade student. She is the reincarnation of Kikyo, a miko (priestess) who died fifty years before the time Kagome first emerged from the Bone Eater's Well in the Sengoku period. Because of this, Kagome has powerful spiritual powers and can sense the shards of the Shikon Jewel, an item that is said to balance the forces of good and evil, and resembles Kikyo. Later in the series, she admits that she loves InuYasha, which is also shown when she stays with him at the end of the series.
- InuYasha is a hanyo (half-demon), the product of an and a human. He wields Tetsusaiga, a supernatural sword made from one of his deceased father's fangs. When properly wielded, the sword can destroy one hundred demons with a single swing. InuYasha can quickly recover from injuries that would be fatal to a human, largely due to his demonic blood. During the first night of each lunar month (new moon), InuYasha changes into a normal human with black hair and black eyes and loses his demonic powers. InuYasha was bound to Goshinboku by Kikyo's arrow for fifty years until Kagome freed him. InuYasha wears a special bead necklace that forces him to respond to Kagome's command "Osuwari!", which translates to "Sit!" in English. In the English-dubbed version, "InuYasha, sit!" or "Sit, boy!" are sometimes used instead. Following the command, InuYasha is thrown to the ground. Kaede had placed the necklace upon InuYasha because he had threatened to kill Kagome if she refused to give the Jewel of Four Souls to him. As the series goes on, he begins to like Kagome more and more, shown when he will leave a battle to save her from being hurt.
- Miroku is a Buddhist "hoshi" (low-ranking, itinerant monk) who travels the countryside performing services such as exorcisms and yokai exterminations to earn his living. He suffers from a hereditary curse originally inflicted upon his grandfather Miyatsu (also a Buddhist monk) by Naraku. The curse created a hole in his hand that became a that sucks in anything that is not nailed down, regardless of its mass. However, absorbing poisons or sharp objects harms him and can decrease his total life-span, a fact Naraku takes advantage of by creating highly poisonous insects whose presence prevents Miroku from using his kazana on Naraku or his allies. Miroku uses the kazana as a powerful weapon against yokai, but if the curse is not broken (by defeating Naraku), it will grow too large to control and will consume Miroku himself. Miroku is a talented con artist who does not hesitate to invent fictitious supernatural menaces, which he can then offer to combat in return for food and shelter. He has a distinct weakness for single women. He makes a point of asking every attractive woman he meets if she will bear his child, and he habitually strokes the buttocks of attractive women. Miroku eventually proposes to Sango, though this does little to curb his flirtations with other women. At the end of the series, they are married with three children.
- Sango is a serious "yokai taijiya" (demon slayer) who hails from a village of professional demon slayers. Sango wields the Hiraikotsu, a massive boomerang made of yokai bones, and uses a broad repertoire of tools and tricks to battle yokai. Sango seeks revenge against Naraku for the death of her family and her entire village. In addition, Sango seeks to rescue her brother Kohaku from Naraku's influence and somehow save his life, even though Kohaku's life is tied to the jewel shard embedded in his back. She eventually develops romantic feelings for Miroku. Despite the fact that everyone, even InuYasha, notices her interest, she refuses to admit it exists. The manifestation of her interest often takes the form of hitting Miroku when he flirts with other single women. Miroku eventually returns her feelings and proposes to her. At the end of the series, they are married with three children.
- Shippo is a young orphan kitsune (fox demon) whose father was killed by the Thunder Brothers, Hiten and Manten, and the first character in the story to join InuYasha and Kagome in their travels. Shippo can shape shift, but his forms are temporary and often incomplete and ineffective, such that he is usually given away by his tail. His other noteworthy abilities are using illusionary tricks with toys like his giant spinning top attack, using his race's notable foxfire magic, and duplicating things, such as leaves or his own body. He tends to be naively observant and often makes pointed and cheeky comments directed towards InuYasha, earning him a retaliatory rap on the head for his unsolicited "advice".
- Kirara is Sango's faithful nekomata. She has cream-colored fur, black ears, two black stripes on each of her two bushy tails near the tip, and black-tipped paws. Kirara can change between two forms: a ferocious lion-sized yokai with the ability to fly, and a cute kitten. Sango, Miroku, and Shippo often use Kirara's flying ability as transportation in order to keep up with InuYasha. (In the English dub, her name is pronounced "Kee-Lah-Lah", because the Japanese language treats "r" and "l" as one phoneme.)
- Sesshomaru is the yokai son of the powerful Inu no Taishou and InuYasha's half-brother. Sesshomaru believes that struggle is the only way to survive, and throughout most of the series, he shows his contempt for InuYasha. Although Sesshomaru inherited his father's Tenseiga, which can bring a hundred people back to life with a single swing, he originally coveted InuYasha's inheritance, a powerful sword. However, a spell was cast on the sword so that a full yokai cannot touch it without burning his flesh. Despite knowing that he cannot touch the sword, Sesshomaru still desires to take it from InuYasha. Throughout the series, Sesshomaru's compassion gradually grows as his rivalry with InuYasha decreases.
- The main antagonist, Naraku (literally means "underworld", or "hell") is responsible for nearly every character’s suffering throughout the series. He is a hanyo that originated from a bandit named Onigumo ("Demon Spider"). Unlike InuYasha, he can choose the time of the month when he becomes his weak human form. Like InuYasha, Naraku's main goal is to collect all of the shards of the Shikon no Tama in order to become a full yokai. He had feelings for Kikyo because of Onigumo's love for her while he was alive. Later, he expels his human heart and with it his feelings for Kikyo and his human half, making him a full demon.
Media
Manga
Written by Rumiko Takahashi, InuYasha premiered in Japan in Shonen Sunday on November 13, 1996 and concluded June 18, 2008. The chapters are also being published by Shogakukan in collected volumes, with the first volume released in May 1997. As of November 2008, 55 volumes of the series have been released in Japan.
Viz Media licensed the series for an English translated release in North America. The first volume was released in March 1998. At the time, manga was normally published "flipped"--that is, printed in exact reverse order-- to conform to the American convention of reading books from left to right. This resulted in the individual pages being mirrored from the original, so the images seen are also mirrored leaving right-handed characters appearing to be left-handed. Though Viz has since stopped flipping their manga releases, as InuYasha was already well into printing by the time this change was made, it continues to be released in the flipped format. New volumes of the series are released quarterly, and as of January 6, 2009, 36 volumes have been released in North America.
Viz Media is also releasing a separate series of "manga" volumes, called "ani-manga", which are derived from the anime episodes using colored frames from colored frames. These volumes are slightly smaller than the regular manga volumes, are oriented in the Japanese tradition of right to left, feature new covers with higher quality pages, and a higher price point versus the regular volumes. Each ani-manga volume is arranged into chapters that correspond to the anime episodes rather than the manga.
Anime
Based on the first thirty-six volumes of the manga series, the InuYasha anime adaptation produced by Sunrise premiered in Japan on Animax on October 16, 2000 and ran for 167 episodes until its conclusion on September 13, 2004. It also aired Animax's English-language networks in South Asia and East Asia and it was broadcast on Yomiuri TV and Nippon Television.
The anime is licensed for release in North America by Viz Media. The English dub of the series was broadcast on Cartoon Network as part of its Adult Swim programming block from August 31, 2002 through October 27, 2006, with episodes continuing to air in reruns. The series aired on Canada on YTV's Bionix programming block from September 5, 2003 through December 1, 2006, with reruns continuing to run until October 12, 2007.
Movies
Four movies, which exist separately from the anime time line, have been released in Japan. All four movies have also been released as Region 1 DVDs by Viz Media. The first movie, , was released in Japan on December 16, 2001. In the movie, InuYasha, Kagome, Shippo, Sango, and Miroku must face Menomaru, a demonic enemy brought to life by a jewel shard, as they continue their quest for the Shikon Jewel shards.
was released on December 21, 2002, and depicts the group defeating Naraku and returning to their normal lives. Their short period of peace is interrupted when a new enemy emerges: Kaguya, the ruler of the eternal night.
was released on December 20, 2003. It gives some background into the story of Inu no Taishou's love for Izayoi, InuYasha's mother. So'unga, a legendary sword that belonged to InuYasha's father, is unleashed from its centuries-old seal and seeks to destroy the Earth and all life on it. Thus, InuYasha must join forces with his brother, Sesshomaru, and destroy the sword before it destroys the world.
The fourth movie, , was released on December 23, 2004. The reappearance of the mysterious island of Houraijima after fifty years incurs the wrath of the four gods, the Shitoushin. With their eyes set on the powers that protect and sustain the island, the Shitoushin must be defeated while InuYasha and his friends try to help the children that are trapped on that island escape.
Credits
Directors
- Masashi Ikeda (Episodes 1 - 44)
- Yasunao Aoki (Episodes 45 - 167)
Original Creator
- Rumiko Takahashi
Character Design
- Yoshihito Hishinuma
Art Director
- Shigemi Ikeda
Director of Photography
- Kumiko Ito
- Yoichi Ogami
Music
- Kaoru Wada
Producers
- Hideyuki Tomioka (Sunrise)
- Michihiko Suwa (Yomiuri TV)
Production
- Kyoto Animation
- Sunrise
- Yomiuri TV
Photography
- Anime Film
Music
All the music that was used in the series and films were licensed from the Japanese record company, Avex Trax.
Opening themes
"Change the world"
- Opening for episodes: 1 - 34
- Lyrics by Rie Matsumoto, music by Miki Watanabe and arranged by Keiichi Ueno
- Performed by V6
"I Am"
- Opening for episodes: 35 - 64
- Lyrics by hitomi, music by Masato Kitano and arranged by Zentaro Watanabe
- Performed by hitomi
"Grip!"
- Opening for episodes: 96 - 127
- Lyrics by Kaori Mochida, music by Kazuhiro Kara and arranged by Hal
- Performed by Every Little Thing
"One Day, One Dream"
- Opening for episodes: 128 - 153
- Lyrics by Hideyuki Kohata, music by Kei Yoshikawa and arranged by Chokkaku
- Performed by Tackey & Tsubasa
- Opening for episodes: 154 - 167
- Lyrics by Bounceback, music by Bulge and arranged by Yasuaki Maejima
- Performed by Hitomi Shimatani
Ending themes
"My will"
- Ending for episodes: 1 - 20, and 167
- Lyrics by Mai Matsumuro, music by Yasho Ohtani, arranged by Keisuke Kikuchi and chorus arrangement by Yas Kitajima
- Performed by Dream
- Ending for episodes: 21 - 41
- Lyrics by D-A-I, music by D-A-I, and arranged by D-A-I and Seiji Kameda
- Performed by Do As Infinity
"Dearest"
- Ending for episodes: 42 - 60
- Lyrics by Ayumi Hamasaki, music by CREA (Ayumi Hamasaki) + D-A-I and arranged by Naoto Suzuki
- Performed by Ayumi Hamasaki
- Ending for episodes: 61 - 85
- Lyrics by Natsumi Watanabe, music by Bounceback and arranged by H-wonder
- Performed by BoA
- Ending for episodes: 86 - 108
- Lyrics by D-A-I, music by D-A-I, and arranged by D-A-I and Seiji Kameda
- Performed by Do As Infinity
"Come"
- Ending for episodes: 128 - 147
- Lyrics by Kask/Mansson/Cunnah and music by Kask/Mansson/Cunnah
- Japanese lyrics by Yuriko Mori and arranged by Cobra Endo
- Performed by Namie Amuro
"Change the world"
- Special ending for episode: 148
- Lyrics by Rie Matsumoto, music by Miki Watanabe and arranged by Keiichi Ueno
- Performed by V6
"Brand new world"
- Ending for episodes: 149 - 166
- Lyrics by Mizue, music by Oyagihiro and arranged by Masaki Iehara
- Performed by V6
Movie themes
"No More Words"
"Four Seasons"
Games
InuYasha has been adapted into a mobile game released for Java and Brew handsets on June 21, 2005, an English-language original Trading card game created by Score Entertainment that was first released on October 20, 2004, and the following video game console games:
OVA
A 30 minute original video animation, was presented on July 30, 2008 at an "It's a Rumic World" exhibit at the Matsuya Ginza department store in Tokyo's Ginza shopping district. The episode uses the original voice cast from the anime series.
Reception
The manga won the 2002 Shogakukan Manga Award for best shonen title of the year.
The InuYasha graphic novels continue to show strong sales numbers. Volume nineteen of the InuYasha manga series has been ranked third on Nielsen BookScan’s Graphic Novel Top Fifty List for the week ending October 3, 2004, and volume one ranks eighteenth in its seventy-seventh straight week on the list, confirming a growing interest in the manga among new fans.
According to Viz, the feature film InuYasha: Affections Touching Across Time has sold over 30,000 DVD units to date.
External links
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