INUYASHA

DESCRIPTION

CAST

ANIME ActionInuyasha: Kanketsu-hen
MANGA AdventureInuyasha
MOVIE AdventureInuyasha: Guren no Houraijima
MOVIE ActionInuyasha: Kagami no Naka no Mugenjo
MOVIE AdventureInuyasha: Tenka Hadou no Ken
MOVIE ActionInuyasha: Toki wo Koeru Omoi
SPECIAL ComedyIt's a Rumic World: 50th Anniversary Weekly★Shonen Sunday
SPECIAL ComedyUrusei Yatsura: The Shougaibutsu Suieitaikai
SPECIAL ActionInuyasha: Kuroi Tessaiga

REVIEWS

• 

  biogundam

  74/100
  one of the better things to come out during the 90s

  Warning: this review contains spoilers.

  First impressions: So, when getting into this show, all I heard was that it’s about time travel between modern day Japan and Sengoku period Japan, half demons, pervy monks, romantic polygons, kittens that turn into a huge monsters, getting power ups with tooth swords and a villain that keeps coming back to life and summoning more monsters. Man, this show sounds like everything I ever wanted out of shounen. It seems like this’ll be the cream of the crop. What could possibly go wrong?

  Story: 7/10
  So, our story begins in modern day Japan, where our main character, Kagome one day falls into her old family well, after some sort of crazy monster pulled her into it. After mentally recuperating from what had just happened, she then proceeds to climb out of the well. Upon climbing out of the well, she finds herself in a forest. After walking around for awhile, she finds a mysterious looking man, with dog ears pinned to a tree. During her investigation of the area, she finds a village, and also finds out that she’s in Sengoku period Japan. She finds out that the dog eared man is a half-demon, named Inuyasha, who long ago came to the village, to get the powerful shikon jewel, but was stopped by a powerful shrine maiden, who turns out to be his ex-girlfriend. While getting used to her situation, the village comes under attack by a demon who wishes to get the shikon jewel. During the attack, Kagome frees Inuyasha, out of desperation, to battle the demon and in the battle the village nearly gets destroyed and the shikon jewel gets split into multiple fragments, that get cast all over Japan(cause apparently, that’s what happens, when you fire arrows at magic jewels, they explode and send their fragments hundreds of miles away). So, to make a long story short, the both of them decide to start a journey across Japan, to find and gather all the pieces, before they fall into evil hands.

  On paper, Inuyasha is actually a very good shounen. It has the tone and it has the battles. Like most long running shounen though, it drags on for far too long and after a while, loses any sense of direction or purpose. It was quite good, for the first 30-50 episodes, there was adventure, demons slaying, samurai, good drama, actual stakes and some character development. The problem is that after that point, it played out its basic concept and the plot ended up constantly playing out the formula of “power up, chase the main villain, he escapes”. Even when it tried to add some flavor, with different characters and locations, it was still the same shit, over and over again. How many times do we need to be reminded of Inuyasha’s resurrected old girlfriend? How many times do we need to have the main villain send demons after the main cast? There is saying, that it's the journey that matters, not the destination. Fucking hell though, in Inuyasha’s case, it's the journey that kinda sucks and the destination that’s reached after way too long. Here’s idea, explore why are there no yoki living in modern day Japan, or address what's going to happen to the demon characters, when their human friends die and they decide to move on. That would’ve been ten times more interesting than what we got.

  It’s time to talk about one of the shows focal points, the romance between Inuyasha and Kagome. The foundation for their relationship was built very well, which I really liked. I have to ask this question though. Does it really take 190 episodes to drive home the point that these characters are in love with one another? They could have done it in half the time. I also feel that their relationship together was way too pitch perfect for my liking and I felt it was little unnatural, I’m not sure why though.

  The last thing I want to address is how insulting the ending is, on so many levels. Pretty much what happens is that after everything's been sorted and Kagome and Inuyasha are about to start their life together, Kagome, in so many words, says goodbye to Inuyasha. Inuyasha naturally questions her on why she’d do this, after confessing to him no less. She then turns around and gives the fact that she wants to finish highschool as her only reason. After this statement, she returns back to the modern day Japan, to finish high school. One two year time skip later and we see her graduating from highschool and returning back to medieval Japan, because now she has her certificate. Why do you need a certificate in medieval Japan, you're a women. It feels like some sort of forced feminist message, saying “hey kids, make sure to pursue your career and education, before your love life, even if it has no purpose to begin with.”

  Characters: 7/10
  Kagome, our main character is possibly one of the worse female main characters I’ve seen in a show, to date. Now, before you get triggered in the comments section, let me explain the reason why. It’s not that I dislike her character, or what she brings to the series as a whole, but what bothers me about her is that she doesn't seem to have much in the way of a personality and as a result, she comes off as a bland Mary Sue. Her personality basically comes down the fact that she's the person who wants to help many people as possible. Besides that, she seems mostly unfazed about most of the stuff she sees and goes through, which is kinda jarring, when you think about the fact that she’s in the warring states period, one of the most bloody and brutal times in all of Japanese history. This was a time when entire families were wiped out and entire cities would be set on fire, and to top it all off, you’ve got demons running around, that can level entire armies or towns, with minimal effort. She’s basically in a meat grinder and I’d think that seeing this would make her act a little cynical or maybe express some level of appreciation for the circumstances of her birth, but nope, that doesn't happen. Thankfully, she does actually develop, as her world view gradually changes, over the course of the snow, when she learns that not everything can be categorized as purely good or evil and that you can’t always make the right decision. Aside from that though, when she’s compared to the other main cast members, or even the side characters, she just comes off as bland, because there isn't much reason for why she the way she is. In contrast to Kagome though, we have Inuyasha, who I’m so thankful he’s in this show, as he makes the show work for a number of reasons. He’s a hot headed, selfish asshole, with good reason too and I love him for it. Sadly though, because of Kagome, he loses his original edge and devolves into a generic shounen protagonist.

  When it comes to the side characters, most of them have decent personalities, characterization and decent development, some of my favorite examples of which being Sesshomaru, Inuyasha’s half-brother and Miroku, the pervy monk. One of the main reasons I really like Sesshomaru is because I’m a big fan of his particular type of character arc, which can also be seen with the character of Accelerator, from a certain magic index. In fact, when I think about it, I feel that Sesshomaru was the basic blueprint for accelerator, since they have very similar characteristics and both their character arcs revolve around a little girl and the main character’s actions. In contrast, the reason that I like Miroku is that he’s a pervert, who tries to tap every piece of ass he sees, while robbing people of everything that isn't nailed to the floor. Finally, it’s time for the main villain, Naraku. He’s probably both the high and low point of the series. As a main villain, he’s proactive and has a strong presence, but the problem is that he has a weak motivation, at best and is, for the most part, pretty predictable. After a point though, it becomes easy to predict what he’s gonna do and so he just becomes kinda boring.

  Art: 7/10
  So, at the time this came out, the animation was most likely pretty good and in fact, it still looks decent today, although it hasn't aged well. Inuyasha’s animation gives it a gritty feeling, which fits the tone and nature of the warring states period Japan, that the series takes place in. The backgrounds look alright, but nothing to write home about. As for the fights, they look pretty decent, but I wish that they didn't end with the ever so popular wind scar as often. The art style has this retro shounen feel to it, which I quite dig. I’m kinda on the fence about the character designs, because on one hand, the demons look really cool, but on the other, the humans look boring and feel more like background characters.

  Sound: 6/10
  I like the first opening song, but I couldn’t care less about the rest of the opening and ending songs. I think the soundtracks are decent and on point, most of the time. There isn’t much that’s worth me going out of my way to listen to, but there are some good tracks that are worth a listen. This isn’t surprising, as the OST was done by Kaoru Wada, who’s also done the OST for samurai 7. I feel that both the sub and the dub have their strong points. The dub did a very good job of capturing the personality of Inuyasha and Sesshomaru, while Inuyasha’s sub version sounds like the Japanese voice actor for Goku, from dragon ball Z, which I find very bothersome to listen to. By the same token though, I feel that the sub captured Naraku better than the dub, because in the sub he feels more intimidating and scheming, which fits his character well.

  Enjoyment: 6/10
  So, I’m a big fan of demons, samurai and anything that involves massive amounts of action, so naturally, I did enjoy Inuyasha, to a point. While I found it to be a very interesting and an overall fun ride, wish it was shorter and maybe didn't go in circles. Maybe if it took some more liberties and mixed it up a little, I would have found it more enjoyable.

  Overall: 7/10
  Conclusion: I think Inuyasha is a pretty decent shounen and I recommend it to anyone who Iikes demons, time travel, Sengoku period Japan and the like. All things considered though, there are shounen that have done similar things to this show, except better. Yu yu hakusho did the whole demon and spirit world thing better and had morality ambiguity as a bonus. Fullmetal alchemist or One piece have also done the whole adventure thing better. For everything this series is good at, there is another series that’s better at it. I guess if you're new to anime, then Inuyasha is a good shounen to start with, but if you're into more mature series or want more depth, then it’s best to go somewhere else.

  Special credit to my unpaid and slightly pissed editor, Lonecrit.

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• 

  crystalgirl1010

  100/100
  Inuyasha is one of the best anime series ever!

  Inuyasha proves what a talented mangaka Rumiko Takahashi truly is! Rumiko Takahashi can go from making slackjaw comedy like Ranma 1/2, to making creepy horror such as Mermaid Saga, to jam packed action shounen anime such as Inuyasha. There are elements from Ranma 1/2 in Inuyasha. Many of the characters in Inuyasha parallel characters from Ranma 1/2. There is a half demon girl in Inuyasha that bares a slight resemblance to Lum from Urusei Yatsura. Inuyasha was inspired from one of Rumiko Takahashi's earlier series from the 80's called Fire Tripper. Inuyasha is about a teenage school girl from the present day (at the time 1996) named Kagome Higurashi. Kagome lives with her little brother, mother, pet cat, and grandfather in a house right next to the family shrine. Her grandfather is obsessed with mythology and ancient artifacts. Kagome is well liked by her peers at school, she has three friends, and a guy named Hojo who is secretly in love with her but Kagome is of course oblivious to this. On her 15th birthday Kagome enters the family shrine and the well starts glowing and Kagome is captured by a centipede demon named Mistress Centipede. Kagome is transported 500 years into the past and she sees Inuyasha a half dog demon who is bond to a tree. Kagome is attacked by Mistress Centipede who bites out the sacred jewel from Kagome's body. Inuyasha tells Kagome to free him so that he can kill Mistress Centipede. Kagome does so by pulling out the sacred arrow that binded Inuyasha to the tree. Once free, Inuyasha easily kills Mistress Centipede but tries to kill Kagome. The elder of the village an old priestess Kaeda magically puts on an enchanted necklace onto Inuyasha which he cannot take off and Kaeda tells Kagome to give the necklace a command and Kagome says "Sit" and Inuyasha crashes face first to the ground. Kagome accidentally breaks the sacred jewel into many pieces with a sacred arrow causing her and Inuyasha to go on a quest to find all the pieces. Kagome being a powerful priestess can sense a piece of the scared jewel close by. The main antagonist of the series Naraku is the cause of most of the tragedies and murders in the series. Naraku is different from other half demons because Naraku is the human bandit/murder Onigumo and a legion of demons combined into one body. Naraku gives "birth" to many incarnations that follow his orders. One of his incarnations a wind sorceress named Kagura despises him and wishes to be free. Naraku is the reason why Inuyasha was bond to the tree because Naraku caused Inuyasha and Inuyasha's first lover Kikyo to turn against one another in order to capture the sacred jewel. Inuyasha and Kagome on their quest to capture all the pieces of the Sacred Jewel befriend a young monk named Miroku who has a generational curse from Naraku which is the wind tunnel that is a black hole in the palm of his right hand that he uses to cover up with sacred beads and a piece of clothing. To remove the curse Naraku must be killed or the wind tunnel will eventually suck up Miroku just as it did to his father and grandfather. A fox demon child named Shippo who can transform into anyone and anything. Shippo's family was killed by Naraku's minions. A teenage demon slayer named Sango whose father and clan were slain by her possessed little brother Kohaku who under Naraku's control slaughtered them and joined Naraku. Sango's companion a demon cat named Kiara who can transform into a giant flying cat , all travel with Inuyasha and Kagome united in their quest to capture the sacred jewel shards and kill Naraku. Inuyasha's older half-brother Sesshomaru is easily the most complicated character in the series. Sesshomaru was originally one of the villains in Inuyasha. Sesshomaru and Inuyasha each had animosity towards one another. They each both told the other that they will kill the other and would try to fight the other to the death. Sesshomaru resented the fact that both his and Inuyasha's father (The Great Dog Demon) gave Inuyasha the Tessaiga which Sesshomaru believed was the best sword that belonged to his father because Sesshomaru received the Tenseiga which Sesshomaru believed was a useless sword. Sesshomaru goes from despising humans to eventually bonding with one, when he saves a little human girl named Rin who he allows to become one of his traveling companions that he guards and protects. It can be said that Rin was the one that gave Sesshomaru his "heart". Inuyasha and Sesshomaru actually don't want the other to die. Towards the end of the series Inuyasha begins to care about Sesshomaru and doesn't want him killed. Sesshomaru, Inuyasha, Kagome, and their traveling companions all unite in their common quest to kill Naraku once and for all! If someone enjoys adventure, action, fantasy, and mythology then they will enjoy Inuyasha.

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• 

  Kalladry

  70/100
  Bicycles & miniskirts in feudal Japan fighting demons? Sure! It's not going to get deep, but it will be fun.

  [Note: this review treats the original Inuyasha show and the sequel Inyasha: The Final Act as a single show, and reviews both, since together they make one long, complete story.]

  _15-year-old modern schoolgirl Kagome and grumpy half-demon Inuyasha reluctantly team up to recover the pieces of a magical jewel that were scattered when Kagome fell down a well into magic-filled feudal Japan. On their quest they team up with a monk, a demon slayer, and a young fox demon while trying to stay ahead of the large number of people who want one or all of them dead._

  This counts as a classic now, right? I remember plenty of Inuyasha character cosplays, fanart, and the rare anime merch in real stores while the original series aired in the early aughts. But despite that, I wasn’t a dedicated watcher at the time. Which ended up to my advantage, because now the entire series is easily available.

  

  The premise is simple: Kagome falls down a well at her family’s shrine, and comes out the other side in feudal Japan. She’s attacked by a demon that wants to acquire the magical Shikon Jewel embedded in her body, awakens and is saved by the grumpy half-demon Inuyasha, the jewel shatters, and now they gotta go put it back together. Only, Kagome is the reincarnation of Inuyasha’s former girlfriend, the priestess Kikyo, and the two parted on bad terms each believing their lover had betrayed them. (It was a trick by series Big Bad Naraku, but still.)

  And because nothing is ever simple, Kikyo gets brought back to life at one point for Reasons, then proceeds to spent a chunk of the series alternating between helping random peasants (because she’s got such a nice soul) and trying to kill Inuyasha and co (because breakups suck).

  This is not an intellectual series, but it is a fun series. Mostly. There’s lot of action, lots of magic and demon-slaying, and the occasional respite/comedy break when Kagome heads home because she’s got a school exam, or needs to stock up on snacks, and say hi to a family who is super chill about their teenager just gallivanting around 500 years in the past, using her archery skills to avoid being eaten for dinner.

  

  Yes. In this portal fantasy the portal remains open, allowing free crossing back and forth, which is convenient. I remain, however, mystified by how far the characters seem to travel while always remaining within a fairly easy trip back to their home base where the well is.

  In general, you can’t think about it too hard. It won’t hold up, it’s not supposed to hold up. This is a feudal Japan where no one cares that Kagome is running around in a miniskirt, riding a bicycle and eating cup noodles and bags of chips.

  

  On one hand, Inuyasha, like many action series, is great for the casual viewer: after a brief introduction at the beginning, you know the basic setting and the rest of the story in any given episode is easy to figure out (usually: this brightly-colored character wants to harm these other ones and/or steal their weapons). But what’s fun when viewed in short doses gets old if you’re trying to cram it. Not because it’s bad, but binging does make its flaws more obvious.

  Its main flaw is that every single character needs to take a course in communicating.

  To be clear, every main character has the emotional intelligence of a sleep-deprived sixth grader. Inuyasha isn’t alone in this, but the number of fights that compelled me to yell please work out your interpersonal drama later when demons are not actively trying to kill you was…a lot.

  (Don’t worry, there’s plenty of arguing when they’re not dealing with murder attempts, too!)

  

  Okay, so, why watch? I mean, sometimes you just wanna see cool magical people fighting other magical people in ridiculous ways? I mean look at these people! You’re not going to mix any of them up with anyone else, huh? And the colors, nice and bright!

  

  Also, initial-minor-antagonist-who-refuses-to-admit-he-would-ever-willingly-be-nice Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha’s older half-brother? He was popular eye candy back then, and he’s still pretty now.

  

  Now, my roommate and I watched this over the course of many months, which is what I recommend. It’s a long series (193 episodes total, excluding movies), and why rush it? A plus to watching now is that the series is complete: the original anime ended before the manga, so 163 episodes in, it just…doesn’t resolve. But a few years later, Inuyasha: The Final Act was released and completed the story.

  Even so, the show is long enough that unless you’re really enjoying it, you can go ahead and skip the filler episodes that were stuck in the original run. Just google “Inuyasha filler” and you’ll find multiple lists.

  

  Verdict

  English dub? Yes

  Visuals: I mean, the first 167 episodes are from 2000-2004, so the aspect ratio is 4:3, but it’s held up OK. Character designs are colorful and distinctive. This isn’t going for anything close to realism, but it’s fun to look at.

  Worth watching? Yeah, probably. Sometimes you just need a silly action show, and Inuyasha delivers in spades. It’s not perfect–monk Miroku’s lechery and groping is treated as a small character flaw and usually played for laughs, which gets old real quick. A lot of the side characters are legitimately fun as well, from Sesshoumaru’s little entourage Jaken and Rin (does he care about them? he’ll kill you before admitting it) to Kagome’s easygoing family to the recurring wolf demon allies.

  Overall, I think I have to hold a long-running fantasy action show to a different standard of “is it good” than I do, say, something with 12-26 episodes. It’d have to get to the point quickly if it was shorter; even skipping the filler, this is the adaptation of a 56-volume manga so there’s just going to be a lot of adventures where the entire point is just “characters get [magical weapon/power-up/knowledge] and beat up some bad guys.” There’s something fun and also comforting in knowing it’s not going to get deep.

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