InuYasha
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- For the manga character, see InuYasha (character)
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Template:Nihongo, full title Template:Nihongo, is a Japanese shōnen adventure romantic comedy manga created by Rumiko Takahashi. The story tells of the adventures of Kagome Higurashi, who can travel back in time through a mysterious well, and the half-demon, InuYasha, along with their companions Miroku (a monk who accompanies Inuyasha to defeat the demon lord Naraku, to rid himself of the black hole in his hand), Sango (a demon slayer wanting revenge on Naraku for the death of her brother and village) and Shippo (an orphan fox demon). The whole group travels together, seeking to kill Naraku as revenge and gather all the shards of the sacred jewel (Shikon no Tama, which was broken accidentally by Kagome) to keep them out of the hands of demons. It was adapted into an 167 episode anime series produced by Sunrise which first aired on Nippon TV in Japan from 16 October 2000 to 13 September 2004. The television run of the anime ceased without a conclusion to the story. The manga is still being released in Japan as of today.
The series is named after the main character, InuYasha. The name "InuYasha" literally means "dog demon". Inu (犬) is a Japanese word meaning "dog". Yasha (夜叉) is a Buddhism-related word meaning demon or demon warrior. <ref name = "yaksha">*Infoseek Japanese dictionary entry for 夜叉/Yasha -- "an Indian term which was imported with Buddhism through China into Japan.(Sanskrit, Yaksa)) of Indian origins, a demon which harms people. In Buddhism it is a type of ancient Indian demon that have converted to Buddhism and serve as protectors of Bishamonten, one of the Shitennō." </ref>
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Plot
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The story begins 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 bursts from the well and grabs her. The demon claims that Kagome possesses the Jewel of the Four Souls (四魂の玉 Shikon no Tama) and attempts to seize it. When the demon is driven off, the very confused Kagome emerges in the Sengoku period of Japan. Kagome wanders into a colossal forest looking for landmarks that she may recognize. She spots the Sacred Tree off in the distance and proceeds to run towards it, where she finds Inuyasha, who is still sealed with an arrow to the tree. He is asleep. Villagers seize her and take her to a nearby village where she meets an old miko (Shinto shrine maiden) by the name of Kaede, who recognizes that Kagome is almost a mirror likeness for Kikyo (Kikyou), her elder sister (and powerful shrine maiden) who had died at the age of 17 and had her body burned with the Jewel of the Four Souls, taking it with her into the afterlife. Kaede relates the story of how, 50 years earlier, a han'yō 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, pinning him into an enchanted sleep against a tree and thus retrieving the Jewel before she finally died. It is later shown that Inuyasha had a relationship with the priestess Kikyo and it was not him that tried to steal the jewel but Naraku, an evil character bent on destroying Kikyo, Inuyasha, and many other people. Inuyasha must fight his half brother Sesshomaru because he wants to kill Inuyasha for their father's sword, Tetsusaiga.
Characters
Template:Main Template:Main The plot focuses mainly on Kagome and InuYasha and their expanding group of friends, mainly Miroku, Shippo and Sango as they seek the shards of the Shikon Jewel of the Four Souls. The television show will occasionally skip over to the lives of the antagonists, minor characters or modern-day people as a way of setting up a plot, or clarifying a point. Flashbacks are occasionally used to the same effect. Shippo is a young fox demon who occasionally squabbles with Inuyasha, which tends to end with a bonk on the head and a "Sit!" on Kagome's part. Miroku is a rather lecherous monk armed with spell scrolls and his trusty spiritual staff, as well as his "Kazaana (Wind Tunnel)", an other-dimensional black hole embedded into his right palm. Sango is the beautiful but very sensible demon exterminator with a giant boomerang-like weapon (Hiraikotsu) and Kirara, her cat-demon companion who transforms from innocent kitten to formidable flaming feline.
Terminology
- Hanyou - commonly translated as "half-demon". They are products of a union between a supernatural being (commonly a yōukai) and a human, and are often considered as an outcast in the human society.
- Obake - ghosts, goblins and monsters from Japanese folklore, including spirits of the human dead.
- Yōkai - belongs to a class of obake and generally has a sort of spiritual or supernatural power. Some possess part animal and part human features.
- Taiyōukai (Daiyōukai) - an especially strong and powerful yōukai. Literally "great yōukai".
- Taijiya - yōukai exterminator.
- Kitsune - fox yōukai from Japanese folklore known by their magic tricks.
- Hōshi - Buddhist monk.
- Miko - although commonly translated as "priestess", miko are actually young female attendants at Shinto shrines.
- Shakujo - Buddhist staff.
- O-fuda - translated as "sacred sutras" or "spell scrolls". Papers which hold special powers and are used against yōkai.
- Tanuki - raccoon dogs from Japanese folklore.
- Nekomata - A cat older than ten years is said to receive magical powers and two tails.
- Sengoku Jidai - Sengoku period, feudal Japan.
- Goshinboku - Time tree. For example: the one Inuyasha was sealed to.
- Shibugarasu - demon crows
- Shōuki - demonic miasma
Manga
The manga was serialized in Japan in the weekly publication Shonen Sunday by Shogakukan, with the first installment issued on November 13, 1996. Chapter 481 was published November 7, 2006 with the series still ongoing.<ref>Inuyasha - Sengoku o-Togi Zoushi - English translations of the manga</ref> Every 180 pages, usually ten chapters, the issues are collected in bound tankōbon. Volume 45, collecting chapters 439 through 448, was published in May 2006.<ref>Inuyasha volume 45 Template:Ja icon</ref> Volume 46 has been collected recently, with 47 in sight as the chapters needed to compile 48 are on the verge of completion. In the United States the English version is published by Viz Communications. The artwork is flipped to conform to the American standard of reading left to right. Volume 1 was published in March 1998, with either two or three new volumes following each year. Volume 27 was published in October 2006.
Anime
Episode guide
Popularity
InuYasha is wildly popular in Japan. Also, according to Google, InuYasha was the most searched for term on their search engine in Canada in April 2004. InuYasha was also the 3rd most popular searched for term in Canada in all of 2003.Template:Cn
Leaping onto American TV's in August of 2002, InuYasha made its debut in Cartoon Network's Saturday Adult Swim Block. American fans loved it and the show's rapid rise in popularity quickly pushed it to air four nights a week. Leading the pack of anime heavyweights such as Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, and Lupin the 3rd, InuYasha is one of the most popular programs on cable among 12-17 year olds.
According to VIZ, the release of the feature film, InuYasha: Affections Touching Across Time on DVD has sold over 30,000 units to-date and has occupied the number one spot on Nielsen Videoscan’s Anime Rankings for three consecutive weeks. As a series overall, more than 800,000 DVDs of the InuYasha series have been sold since March 2003.
On the literary side, InuYasha graphic novels also continue to show strong sales numbers. The recently released Volume 19 of the InuYasha manga series has been ranked Number 3 on Nielsen Bookscan’s Graphic Novel Top 50 List for the week ending October 3, and Volume 1 is at Number 18 in its 77th straight week on top, confirming a growing interest among new fans. [1]
Production broadcast history
The InuYasha anime series spanned 167 episodes, and was broadcast across Japan by the anime television network, Animax, who have also aired the series across its English-language network in South Asia (being the first network to fully broadcast the series in the English language) and also across its networks in East Asia, and Nippon Television. The series ended on September 13 2004.
InuYasha was first broadcast in the United States on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim in August 2002. The series later premiered on Canadian television screens, where it is currently airing on YTV.
InuYasha is now also shown on Cartoon Network's Latin American incarnation, Cartoon Network LA. In Latin America, it is shown dubbed in Spanish and in Portuguese (Brazil or with SAP in other countries). Cartoon Network LA can be seen in many countries south of the United States, as well as some cruise ships in the Caribbean. It is unknown if the last 7 episodes will air dubbed in the region.
At one point [in Japan], new episodes of InuYasha were airing twice a day, 5 times a week, and reruns were being aired Saturday night - 5 episodes in two hours. This is why the series concluded much faster than in the United States. InuYasha is on rotation on the network, and the official site should be visited to see if the show is currently re-airing.
In the United States, the final episode of InuYasha aired on October 27, 2006. The series is scheduled to begin its second run starting on January 1, 2007<ref> Template:Cite web</ref>. The anime is licensed by in North America by Viz and ShoPro Entertainment, and the actual dubbing is done by the Ocean Group. InuYasha anime was dubbed in Mandarin and hosted on Xing Kong, a Tawainese TV Channel. InuYasha (Japanese and Chinese version) now aired in Singapore on Art Central, thrice a week at 11 PM (Singapore time).
Eyecatches
| No. | Description | Episodes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | InuYasha's hand comes out and grabs the Shikon Jewel which dissolves into a red (into commercial break) then blue (out of commercial break) background of Japanese writing. | 1-20 |
| 2 | InuYasha's hand comes out and grabs the Shikon Jewel which dissolves into a green (into commercial break) then yellow (out of commercial break) background of Japanese writing. | 21-56 |
| 3 | InuYasha does the Backlash Wave and fades away to reveal a cherry blossom tree in front of a red full moon. | 57-105 |
| 4 | InuYasha and Kagome are back to back spinning clockwise vertically, they fade away replaced by multiple shards of the Shikon Jewel converging together in the center. | 106-167 |
Movies
Four movies, which continued the anime plot, have been released. The first movie, InuYasha the Movie: Affections Touching Across Time was released on December 16, 2001 in Japan with InuYasha the Movie: Fire on the Mystic Island being the last movie to be released; on December 23, 2004 in Japan. The fourth movie was released three months after the series finale of InuYasha in Japan.
Four theatrical releases of the series has appeared so far:
| Cover | English Title | Japanese Title | Premiere date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kanji | Romaji | |||
| File:Inuyasha MOVIE 1 japanese dvd box-art.jpg | InuYasha the Movie: Affections Touching Across Time | 映画犬夜叉 時代を越える想い | Eiga Inuyasha: Toki o Koeru Omoi | JPN: December 16, 2001 US: September 7, 2004 |
| After mastering the ultimate attack of the Tetsusaiga, InuYasha continues his quest for the Shikon Jewel shards with Kagome, Shippo, Sango, and Miroku. This time, all of them will have to face Menomaru, a demonic enemy brought to life by a jewel shard. | ||||
| File:InuYasha movie 2.jpg | InuYasha the Movie: The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass | 映画犬夜叉 鏡の中の夢幻城 | Eiga Inuyasha: Kagami no Naka no Mugenjō | JPN: December 21, 2002 US: December 28, 2004 |
| After defeating Naraku, InuYasha and his friends each return to their lives. However, their short period of peace is interrupted when a new enemy emerges - Kaguya, the ruler of the eternal night. Locked inside a mirror, Kaguya is prevented from bringing eternal darkness into the world. | ||||
| File:InuYasha movie 3.jpg | InuYasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler | 映画犬夜叉 天下覇道の剣 | Eiga Inuyasha: Tenka Hadō no Ken | JPN: December 20, 2003 US: September 6, 2005 |
| At the time of InuYasha's birth, InuYasha's father fought with a human named Setsuna no Takemaru, who loved InuYasha's mother, Izayoi. Soon after, Sou'unga, the legendary sword which belonged to InuYasha's father, was sealed away. Centuries later, Sou'unga is once again unleashed. However, the sword seeks to destroy the Earth and all life on it. Inuyasha must join forces with his brother, Sesshoumaru, and destroy this sword before it destroys the world. | ||||
| File:InuYasha movie 4.jpg | InuYasha the Movie: Fire on the Mystic Island | 映画犬夜叉 紅蓮の蓬莱島 | Eiga Inuyasha: Guren no Hōraijima | JPN: December 23, 2004 US: August 1, 2006 |
| The reappearance of the mysterious island of Houraijima after 50 years brought the attack of the four gods, the Shitoushin. With their eyes set on the powers that protect and sustain the island, the Shitoushin must be defeated as Inuyasha and his friends seek to help the children that are trapped on that island escape. | ||||
DVD releases
| Season | Episodes | Discs | Features | DVD release date | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Region 1 | Region 2/4 | ||||||||
| 1 | 1 - 27 | 5 |
| US/CAN: 7 September 2004 | AUS: 12 May 2006 | ||||
| 1 | 1 - 12 | 3 |
| ---- | UK: 22 January 2007 | ||||
| 2 | 28 - 54 | 5 |
| US/CAN: 8 November 2005 | AUS: 8 November 2006 | ||||
| 3 | 55 - 81 | 5 |
| US/CAN: 12 September 2006 | ---- | ||||
Theme songs
Video games
Games in Japanese
| Japanese Title | English Title | Release date | Console | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romaji | Kanji | |||
| Inuyasha: Kagome no Sengoku Nikki | 犬夜叉 ～かごめの戦国日記 | InuYasha: Kagome's Warring States Diary | November 2, 2001 | WonderSwan |
| Inuyasha: Sengoku Otogi Kassen | 犬夜叉 | InuYasha | December 27, 2001 | PlayStation |
| Inuyasha: Fūun Emaki | 犬夜叉 風雲絵巻 | ---- | July 27, 2002 | WonderSwan |
| Inuyasha: Kagome no Yume Nikki | 犬夜叉 かごめの夢日記 | InuYasha: Kagome's Dream Diary | November 16, 2002 | WonderSwan |
| Inuyasha: Naraku no Wana! Mayoi no Mori no Shōtaijō | 犬夜叉～奈落の罠！迷いの森の招待状 | InuYasha: Naraku's Trap! Invitation to the Forest of Illusion | January 23, 2003 | Game Boy Advance |
| Inuyasha: Juso no Kamen | 犬夜叉 呪詛の仮面 | InuYasha: The Cursed Mask | March 18, 2004 | PlayStation 2 |
| Inuyasha: Ōgi-Ranbu | 犬夜叉 奥義乱舞 | InuYasha: Feudal Combat | June 16, 2005 | PlayStation 2 |
Games in English
| Title | Console | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| InuYasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale | PlayStation | April 9, 2003 | English version of Inuyasha: Sengoku Otogi Kassen |
| InuYasha: The Secret of the Cursed Mask | PlayStation 2 | November 1, 2004 | English version of Inuyasha: Juso no Kamen |
| InuYasha: The Mobile Game | Java and Brew handsets | June 21, 2005 | Inuyasha mobile phone game |
| InuYasha: Feudal Combat | PlayStation 2 | August 23, 2005 | English version of Inuyasha: Ōgi-Ranbu |
| InuYasha: Trading Card Game | Trading Card Game | October 20, 2004 | English version of Japanese Inuyasha TCG |
Name dispute
There is a long-standing debate about the proper English spelling of the title character's name, an example of the type of dispute that often happens as a result of romanization. Variant spellings include "InuYasha", "Inuyasha", "Inu-Yasha", "Inu-yasha", "Inu Yasha", and "Inu yasha". Fans of the series often use "IY" (or simply, "Inu"), especially on fansites, although it is usually considered to be more of an abbreviation than an actual name. Official licensors use varying spellings, so they provide little guidance in this area; the two most popular versions are "Inuyasha" and the VIZ CamelCase version (InuYasha).
Critical reception
Critics are found to agree that the artwork in both the anime and manga versions of InuYasha is quite impressive<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>, such as Anime News Network praising it as "excellent".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, some viewers, such as Derrick Tucker, from THEM Anime Reviews, complain that some action scenes are often reused and that sometimes a static image moved against a background is used as a substitute for animation. He concedes, however, that the costs of producing a long anime series like InuYasha often make such compromises unavoidable.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Others have observed that the story engages in frivolous use of reoccuring plot devices such as "barriers" and flashbacks. The story is also accused of running too long with many irrelevant characters, storylines, and battles with no substantial character development involved. Many believe such irrelevant battles and storylines to be filler. The anime is also criticized for abruptly ending mid-story after 167 episodes without conclusion to Naraku's fate or Inuyasha and Kagome's relationship.
Trivia
- The protagonists, InuYasha and Kagome, kiss only once, in the second movie: The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass.
- InuYasha is one of few anime characters to go barefoot outside of a martial arts themed story.
References
Links
- Official Sites
- Shonen Sunday's Official InuYasha manga website Template:Ja icon
- Sunrise's official InuYasha anime website Template:Ja icon
- Yomiuri Television's official InuYasha anime website Template:Ja icon
- Viz's official InuYasha website
- Unofficial sites
Information
- The InuYasha Companion
- Inuyasha Scripts & Episode Capsules
- Ear-Tweak
- Inuyasha Information From Japan
- Inu Goya
Media
- Inuyasha Screenshots Gallery With over 1000 screens and growing.
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