Inuyasha

## Inuyasha: The Final Act

***Inuyasha*** (犬夜叉, lit. "Dog Yaksha") is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. It was serialized in Shogakukan's *shōnen* manga magazine *Weekly Shōnen Sunday* from November 1996 to June 2008, with its chapters collected in 56 *tankōbon* volumes. The series begins with Kagome Higurashi, a fifteen-year-old middle school girl from modern-day Tokyo who is transported to the Sengoku period after falling into a well in her family shrine, where she meets the half-dog demon, half-human Inuyasha. After the sacred Shikon Jewel re-emerges from deep inside Kagome's body, she accidentally shatters it into dozens of fragments that scatter across Japan. Inuyasha and Kagome set to recover the Jewel's fragments, and through their quest they are joined by the lecherous monk Miroku, the demon slayer Sango, and the fox demon Shippō. Together, they journey to restore the Shikon Jewel before it falls into the hands of the evil half-demon Naraku.

In contrast to the typically comedic nature of much of Takahashi's previous work, *Inuyasha* deals with a darker and more serious subject matter, using the setting of the Sengoku period to easily display the violent content while still retaining some comedic elements. The manga was adapted into two anime television series by Sunrise. The first series ran for 167 episodes on Yomiuri TV from October 2000 to September 2004. The second series, *Inuyasha: The Final Act*, ran for 26 episodes from October 2009 to March 2010. Four feature films and an original video animation have also been released. Other merchandise includes video games and a light novel. A sequel anime television series, titled *Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon*, aired for two seasons from October 2020 to March 2022.

Viz Media licensed the manga, the two anime series, and movies for North America. Both *Inuyasha* and *Inuyasha: The Final Act* aired in the United States on Adult Swim (and later on its revived Toonami block) from 2002 to 2015.

By September 2020, *Inuyasha* had 50 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling manga series. In 2002, the manga won the 47th Shogakukan Manga Award for the *shōnen* category.

## Synopsis

Kagome Higurashi's ordinary life comes to an abrupt halt when a demon drags her deep into a well, transporting her five hundred years into the past. In this era, Kagome quickly learns two things: demons walk amongst humans and she has unknowingly brought a dangerous object from her world—a marble-sized sphere known as the Shikon Jewel. This unusual orb brings tremendous power to any demon who has it in their possession, and Kagome is an easy target for anyone determined enough to steal it.

While in a fight with a demon, a hasty attempt to fend it off causes Kagome to accidentally shatter the jewel, sending countless pieces of it all over feudal Japan. She soon learns the grave consequences of her actions when she must work with the half-demon Inuyasha to collect all the pieces of the jewel before they fall into the wrong hands.

## Development

Takahashi wrote *Inuyasha* after finishing *Ranma ½*. In contrast to her previous comedic works such as *Urusei Yatsura* (1978–1987), *Maison Ikkoku* (1980–1987), and *One Pound Gospel* (1987–2006), Takahashi wanted to create a darker storyline that was thematically closer to her *Mermaid Saga* stories. In order to portray violent themes softly, the story was set in the Sengoku period, when wars were common. Takahashi did no notable research on the designs of samurai or castles because she considered such topics common knowledge. By June 2001, a clear ending to the series had not been established because Takahashi still was unsure about how to end the relationship between Inuyasha and Kagome. Furthermore, Takahashi said that she did not have an ending to previous manga she wrote during the beginning, having figured them out as their serialization progressed.

## List of Published Books

### *Light novel*

A light novel, written by Tomoko Komparu and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi, was published by Shogakukan in 2004.

### *Manga*

*Inuyasha* is written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. The series debuted in Shogakukan's *Weekly Shōnen Sunday* (issue #50, 1996) on November 13, 1996. *Inuyasha* finished after an 11 year and seven month run in the magazine (issue #29, 2008) on June 18, 2008. Its 558 chapters were collected in 56 *tankōbon* volumes by Shogakukan, released from April 18, 1997, to February 18, 2009. Shogakukan re-published the series in a 30-volume *wide-ban* edition, released from January 18, 2013, to June 18, 2015. Takahashi published a special epilogue chapter, titled "Since Then" (あれから, *Are kara*), in *Weekly Shōnen Sunday* on February 6, 2013, as part of the "Heroes Come Back" anthology, which comprised short stories by manga artists to raise funds for recovery of the areas afflicted by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. The chapter was later included in the last volume of the *wide-ban* edition of the manga in 2015, and was published again in *Shōnen Sunday S* on October 24, 2020.

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In North America, *Inuyasha* has been licensed for English language release by Viz Media, initially titled as *Inu-Yasha*. They began publishing the manga in April 1997 in an American comic book format, each issue containing two or three chapters from the original manga, and the last issue was released in February 2003, which covered up until the original Japanese 14th volume. Viz Media started publishing the series in a first trade-paperback edition, with 12 volumes published from July 6, 1998, to October 6, 2002. A second edition began with the 13th volume, released on April 9, 2003, and the first 12 volumes, following this edition, were reprinted as well. Up until the 37th volume, Viz Media published the series in left-to-right orientation, and with the release of the 38th volume on July 14, 2009, they published the remaining volumes in "unflipped" right-to-left page layout. Viz Media published the 56th and final volume of *Inuyasha* on January 11, 2011. In 2009, Viz Media began publishing the series in their 3-in-1 omnibus volume "VizBig" edition, with the original unflipped chapters. The 18 volumes were released from November 10, 2009, to February 11, 2014. On December 15, 2020, Viz released the 18 volumes digitally.

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## Inuyasha

"Should something terrible be caused again by the Shikon Jewel, whatever it may be, I shall cut it down with my own hands."

### Allied:

* Miroku *(friend)*
* Sango *(friend)*
* Shippō *(friend)*

## 「Biographical Information」

### Age:

15 *(physical appearance)** 200 → 203 *(chronologically)*
* 221 *(chronologically)* [Hanyō no Yashahime]

### Relatives:

* Tōga *(father)* †
* Izayoi *(mother)* †
* Unnamed stepmother
* Sesshōmaru *(older paternal half-brother)*
* Kagome Higurashi *(wife)*
* Moroha *(daughter)*
* Rin *(half-sister-in-law)*
* Towa & Setsuna *(twin half-nieces)*
* Grandpa Higurashi *(grandfather-in-law)*
* Grandma Higurashi *(grandmother-in-law)* †
* Mr. Higurashi *(father-in-law)* †
* Ms. Higurashi *(mother-in-law)*
* Sōta Higurashi *(brother-in-law)*
* Moe Higurashi *(sister-in-law)*
* Mei Higurashi *(niece-in-law)*

### Like:

Cup Noodles, Potato chips, and Takuan *(pickled radish)*

## 「Physical Description」

### Eye Color:

* Gold slit-like black pupils (hanyō form)
* Amber grey (human form)
* Teal with red sclera (yōkai form)

### Hair Color:

* Silver white
* Black *(human form)*

## 「Voice Actor」

### Japan VA:

* Kappei Yamaguchi
* Toshihiko Seki *(Shōnen Sunday CM)*

### English VA:

Richard Ian Cox

The human equivalent age is 15; the actual age is unknown. In the movie version of "Tenka Hadou no Ken", he was born on the same day Inuyasha's father died 200 years ago, which means he is 200 years old. In the original story, he has a vague memory of his father, and it is unknown if the movie version and TV anime series share the same setting. He is a half-demon, born between a yokai (Demon Dog) and a human; his father was a Great Dog Demon who had his roots in the western part of Japan, and his mother was a human of a fallen noble family.

He is a roughneck who always uses a rough tone of voice, but at heart he is gentle and conscientious. Because of his naturally belligerent nature, he shows no mercy to those he regards as enemies, even when he has no choice but to cut them down. On the other hand, if the opponent begs for his life or apologizes, he will let him go without killing him, and he will go easy on a human opponent. When he encounters a half-demon who is in the same position as himself, he shows some kind of concern (Naraku is no exception). He is furious with him for having a human heart but choosing the life of a Yokai.

Like Kagome, he can pass through the Bone-Eater's well and is the only one of the group who can move freely between the Sengoku period and the present day. When he comes to Kagome's house, he is often playing with her cat, Buyo. He is characterized by his dog ears and silver hair, the hallmarks of a half-demon dog. The ears are said to feel like five raw dumpling skins. He occasionally makes dog-like gestures, but gets angry if he is treated like a dog. He has a very good sense of smell and is very good at finding his targets by the slightest smell left on the ground or in the air. On the other hand, he has a weakness for strong smells. His nose is usually wet and dries up when he catches a cold. A black pearl is hidden in his right eye, leading to the place where his father's grave is located.

In the beginning, he has a prayer bead of the spirit of words placed around her neck by Kaede, and is knocked to the ground by Kagome's "*spirit of soul-quelling*" osutsuwari. At first, he is averse to Kagome, but gradually becomes attracted to her kindness, cheerfulness, and resilience. As a result, he is quick on his feet when Kagome is involved. He is extremely curious, showing interest in Kagome's luggage of math textbooks, practicing riding Kagome's bicycle when he is alone, and mastering the use of a flashlight before he knows it.

He is not good at brain games, as he is basically an intuitive person. Therefore, he has been caught up in his opponent's schemes many times throughout the work. On the other hand, he has very keen intuition and has often discovered his opponent's weak points. He is also a gourmand, and his favorite foods are cup noodles, potato chips, and takuan (pickled radish). He does not like spicy food.

### *Past Life*

He spent his childhood in a mansion with his mother, an aristocrat (of fallen descent), and was shunned and ostracized as a half-demon. According to Kuseimaru, his father's side of the family also treated him as an outcast because he was a half-demon.

After his mother's death, he was lonely and spent his childhood running away from the monsters, even though he was the son of a great demon. Because of these circumstances, he gradually began to have it rough, and in order to become stronger, he spent all his time fighting with the Yokai (Demons). He was a warrior-like in his approach to defeat his enemies fairly and squarely. Because of this upbringing, he was simple and childish for a 15-year-old (actually 200 years old), and often fought by rushing into everything with brute force. Therefore, he was often at the mercy of his opponents, such as Nahira and Nekkotsu of the Seven, who were skilled in wiles and schemes. In the middle of the battle, when Kagome, Miroku, and Sango were almost killed by the poison from the misty bone, Inuyasha, who usually refuses to admit his faults, seriously regretted his inadequacies.

Eventually, he fell in love with Kikyo, whom he met in his quest for the ball of the four souls, and promised to use it to become human and live together, but their relationship was torn apart by Nahira's trickery, and he was crucified and sealed to the sacred tree by Kikyo's sealing arrow.

#### *The Encounter with Kagome*

Fifty years after being sealed, she was unsealed by a reincarnation of Kikyo (Kagome Higure) who came from a world 500 years in the future. At first he dislikes her because of her resemblance to Kikyo, but as they work together, he gradually opens his heart to her and eventually falls in love with her. After Kikyo's resurrection, he is torn between her and Kagome, and each time he is torn between the two women, he hurts Kagome. On the other hand, when she sees Kagome being courted by other men, including Kouka, she ignores Kagome's attempts to stop her and instantly lashes out at her, showing a jealous side to her. At first, when Kagome's modern friends (Yuka, Eri, and Ayumi) heard about him, they called him a "two-timing, jealous, and violent man" (a two-timing violent man). After the battle with Naraku and the Four Spirits Balls was over and Kagome was sent back to the present day, he lived in the village of Kaede while helping Maitreya with exorcisms after the Bone Eater's well was disconnected, and about three years later, he reunites with Kagome who came from the Bone Eater's well that is now connected once again. In the sequel anime "*Half Demon Princess Yashahime*," he and Kagome become husband and wife, and have a daughter, Moroha.

#### *As a Demon-God*

The yokai blood he inherited from his father is so powerful that when his life is in danger, the yokai blood takes over his body and he is temporarily transformed into a full-blown yokai. Its appearance becomes terrifying, with purple bruises appearing on its cheeks like claw marks, its eyes turning red, and its claws becoming sharper and sharper. The yokai is particularly fierce, and even Kenseimaru muttered in his mind that he felt fear the first time he witnessed Inuyasha's transformation. While his fighting abilities increase dramatically when he changes (his defenses also increase dramatically, such as instantly recovering from serious injuries and nullifying poison), he also loses all sense of reason and begins to indiscriminately destroy all life except his own. It no longer feels fear or pain, and its main emotion is the joy of tearing apart its enemies (and others). The outburst does not stop until the body is destroyed. It is said that if the change is repeated many times, the mind will be eaten by the blood of the yokai, and the person will eventually lose his/her mind. In addition, he does not remember what happened during the transformation. The only way to prevent this change is to have the Tetsu Shatter Fang, and even during the change, the change can be reversed or the person can regain control of his mind if he has the Tetsu Shatter Fang in his hand (he can also be quelled by Kagome's "sitting").

On the night of the first day of the first month (new moon), which comes around once a month, he loses his yokyoku, his claws and fangs become human, his silver hair and golden eyes turn black, he cannot use his nose, he cannot change his iron-shattering fangs, and even his fire-rat robe loses its yokyoku and becomes a mere robe. This is due to the fact that on the first day of the month, during the day, Inuyasha is a half-demon with no yokai, at sunset he becomes a human, and at sunrise his yokai power is restored and he returns to being a half-demon. Therefore, it would be fatal for Inuyasha to know the date of the first day of the month, so he never tells others about it and has kept it a secret for a long time. He has kept it a secret for a long time, but his companions learned of it during their travels. Also, it seems that Kouseimaru knew about it before, but later even Koga and his group, Kagura, and the deceptive spirits of the Môryômaru came to know about it. The day on which he loses his yoken power seems to vary from person to person, but in the sequel, "*The Half-Demon Yashahime*," Setsuna and Towa also lose their yoken power on Saku no Hi. In addition, the quarter demon (quarter) does not have this characteristic. Shiori, a half demon of the Hyakki Bat, loses her demon power on the day of Eclipse.

At first, he had hoped to become a complete yokai by using the Four Souls Ball, but after his fight with Mothtenmaru, in which he turned into a yokai and took on evil people and was treated as a monster by the villagers he protected (as a result), he realized that he would become a yokai by using the Four Souls Ball in the same way, and he has given up hope of becoming a complete yokai since then. After that, he gave up the hope of becoming a complete yokai. However, even after his renunciation, he still does not deny that humans and yokai are fundamentally different, and he vehemently criticizes ordinary humans for having yokai swords.

When he goes outside the Nipporo-jinja Shrine in the presence of Kagome, he wears a hat borrowed from the Nipporo-jin family to hide his dog ears.

### Abilities

The red robe and hakama he usually wears are made of woven fire-rat hair (***Robe***), and provide powerful armor against fire and poison. In addition, Inuyasha himself has a robust body that can withstand pressure that would blow off the head of a normal human being. Inuyasha's life force is also considerable, and he can fight even with a gaping hole in his stomach, and his wounds heal within three days.

His horsepower far surpasses that of ordinary yokai, and he uses his father's *Tessaiga*, a sword, as his main weapon, as well as his claw technique, a weapon unique to the dog-shaped half-demon. When transformed into a yokai, his abilities other than his intelligence are dramatically improved compared to when he was a half-demon, and he can instantly heal serious wounds sustained before his transformation.

***Tessaiga's Scabbard***
* *Kaze no Kizu Kekkai Yaburi no Akai Tessaiga* (結界破りの赤い鉄砕牙の, Barrier-breaking Wind Scar of the Red Tessaiga, "Scar of the Wind Red Tessaiga Barrier Shattering"): While in this state, Tessaiga can still produce the *Wind Scar*, but adds the ability to break barriers to the blast.
 *Dragon Scale* (竜鱗, Ryū uroko): It absorbs the Yōkai of the opponent or slashes the Yōkai hole to destroy it. Slashing the Yōki, which is the source of the Yōkai's energy, causes instant death to ordinary Yōkai. On the other hand, the deceptive spirits of Nara and the Môryômaru, which are made up of multiple yokai, do not have an instant death effect.
* *Yōketsu* (妖穴, "Vortex of Demonic Energy"): The visual manifestation of demonic energy in the form of a whirlpool that appears behind a yōkai and is visible to just a few. It can banish Magatsuhi from possessing someone's body.
* *Yōketsu Cutting*: After realizing that the true nature of the Dragon-Scaled Tessaiga was to cut yōki, Inuyasha learned how to see yōketsu (the source of a yōkai's yōki) and used the Dragon-Scaled Tessaiga to cut it, instantly destroying normal Yōkai. Against stronger Yōkai, the Dragon-Scaled Tessaiga could cut away portions of its opponent's yōki to weaken their power, which could prove fatal.
* *Nikosen's Life-Root Stalk*: Inuyasha gains power after beating the Yōkai Nikosen, who was once a hermit, and imbuing his holy aura in the Life-Root Stalk. After absorbing this power into Tessaiga, Inuyasha gained the power to control the Dragon-Scaled Tessaiga's demonic aura with the holy aura from the Life-Root Stalk. This only occurred in the manga.
* *Flame of Tetsusaiga* (鉄砕牙の炎, Tetsusaiga no honō)*:* The power of the Flame of Tetsusaiga assimilated with the Kinka. The blade is covered with flames. The Ginka is the evil spirits of the Môryômaru, and the Kinka is the evil spirits of the Môryômaru, and the Kinka assimilated with the Tetsu Shattei Fang with the wish that it would slay the Môryômaru. Then, they resonated with the silver disasters that were absorbed by the Môryômaru to drive the deceptive spirits of the Môryômaru away. Since the deceptive spirits of the Môryômaru abandoned the Ginka that it had taken in, it no longer has the power of resonance. In the final version, neither of them appears because they were taken by the Môryômaru.
 *Meidō Zangetsuha* (冥道残月破, "Dark Path of the Dawn's Moon Wave"): This technique was attained when Sesshōmaru's Tenseiga broke on Tessaiga. The original technique manifested as a giant black circle that sent anything within its vicinity directly to the Netherworld. It could also be used as an escape from a Meidō one was already in, though the exit location was not set. Inuyasha also used it to reach both the closed-off path between eras in the Bone-Eater's Well and the Sacred Jewel itself.
* *Meidō Blades*: Once Inuyasha completely mastered the Meidō Tessaiga, the Tessaiga could fire multiple black crescent-shaped portals that not only cut an opponent but have their remains sucked up into the path. Thus the technique kept its original ability intact while also adding the Tessaiga's cutting nature. It seemed to be stronger than the original Meidō Zangetsuha, as it was able to destroy forever Naraku's body, which was impervious to the original move, but not his spirit.

## Opening Theme

### OP Title:

* Change the World (eps 01-34)
* I Am (eps 35-64)
* Owarinai Yume (eps 65-95)
* Grip! (eps 96-127)
* One Day, One Dream (eps 128-153)
* Angelus (eps 154-167)

### OP Composer:

* V6
* Hitomi
* Nanase Aikawa
* Every Little Thing
* Tackey & Tsubasa
* Hitomi Shimatani

## Ending Theme

### ED Title:

* My Will (eps 01-20,166-167)
* Fukai Mori (eps 21-41)
* Dearest (eps 42-60)
* Every Heart - Minna no Kimochi (eps 61-85)
* Shinjitsu no Uta (eps 86-108)
* Itazurana Kiss (eps 109-127)
* Come (eps 128-148)
* Brand-New World (eps 149-165)

### ED Composer:

* Dream
* Do As Infinity
* Ayumi Hamasaki
* BoA
* Do As Infinity
* day after tomorrow
* Namie Amuro
* V6

### *Inuyasha*

The first *Inuyasha* anime adaptation, sometimes known as *Inuyasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale* (戦国御伽草子 犬夜叉, *Sengoku Otogizōshi Inuyasha*), produced by Sunrise ran for 167 episodes and was broadcast in Japan on Yomiuri TV from October 16, 2000, to September 13, 2004. It was also broadcast on Nippon Television. Avex collected the episodes in a total of seven series of DVD volumes distributed in Japan between May 30, 2001, and July 27, 2005.

In North America, the series was licensed for an English dub release by Viz Media. The series was first run on Adult Swim from August 31, 2002, to October 27, 2006, with reruns from 2006 to 2014. When Toonami became a block on Adult Swim, *Inuyasha* aired there from November 2012 to March 2014, when the network announced that they had lost the broadcast rights to the series. On August 25, 2017, Starz announced that they would be offering episodes of the series for their video on demand service starting on September 1 of that same year, where they were available until November 30, 2018.

The series was also streamed on HBO Max in the United States from August 4, 2020, until August 3, 2022. The series aired in Canada on YTV's Bionix programming block from September 5, 2003, to December 1, 2006. Viz collected the series in a total of 55 DVD volumes, while seven box sets were also released. In September 2020, Funimation announced that they would begin streaming the first 54 episodes of the series and the four films.

* ***Staff***
	+ Planning - Michihiko Suwa, Masuo Ueda
	+ Original work - Rumiko Takahashi
	+ Director - Sari Ikeda (*Episode 1-Episode 44*) → Yasunao Aoki (*Episode 45-Episode 167*)
	+ Series Composition - Katsuyuki Sumisawa (*Episode 45-Episode 167*)
	+ Character Design - Yoshihito Hishinuma
	+ Yokai Design - Takumi Sakura
	+ Art Director - Shigemi Ikeda
	+ Acoustic Director - Yota Tsuruoka
	+ Director of Photography - Kumiko Ito, Yoichi Ogami
	+ Color design - Miyuki Sato
	+ Editing - Tomoaki Tsurubuchi
	+ Music - Kaoru Wada
	+ Draft Cooperation - Weekly Shonen Sunday Editorial Department
	+ Producer - Michihiko Suwa, Hideyuki Tomioka
	+ Production - Yomiuri TV, Sunrise

Viz Media also released a separate series of ani-manga volumes which are derived from full-color screenshots of the anime episodes. 30 volumes were released from January 14, 2004 to December 9, 2008.

> ***Wikipedia Info**: List of Inuyasha episodes*
>
>

All of the theme songs for this film were sung by artists belonging to the Avex Group at the time they were used. This was also the case with the follow-up program "Black Jack," and has been followed in the film version and "*The Final Arc*".

## Ending Theme

### ED Title:

* With You (eps 1-9)
* Diamond (eps 10-17)
* Tooi Michi no Saki de (遠い道の先で) (eps 18-26)

### ED Composer:

* AAA
* alan
* Ai Takekawa (武川アイ)

### *Inuyasha: The Final Act*

In 2009's 34th issue of *Weekly Shōnen Sunday*, published July 22, 2009, it was officially announced that a 26-episode anime adaption of volumes 36 to the end of the manga would be made by the first anime's same cast and crew and would air on Japan's YTV. The following week, Viz Media announced it had licensed the new adaptation, titled *Inuyasha: The Final Act* (犬夜叉 完結編, *Inuyasha Kanketsu-hen*). The series premiered on October 3, 2009 in Japan with the episodes being simulcast via Hulu and *Weekly Shōnen Sunday* in the United States. In other parts of Asia the episodes were aired the same week on Animax Asia. The anime completed its run on March 29, 2010. Aniplex collected the series into a total of seven DVDs released between December 23, 2009, and June 23, 2010.

* ***Staff (final version)***
	+ Original work - Rumiko Takahashi
	+ Draft cooperation - Shinichiro Tsuzuki, Masato Hayashi, Masaki Nawata, Shunsuke Motegi, Masakazu Usutani
	+ Director - Yasunao Aoki
	+ Deputy Director - Teruo Sato
	+ Series composition - Katsuyuki Sumisawa
	+ Character design/chief drawing director - Yoshihito Hishinuma
	+ Art Director - Shigemi Ikeda
	+ Color design - Miyuki Sato
	+ Director of Photography - Shigeru Ogawa
	+ Editing - Tomoaki Tsurubuchi
	+ Acoustic Director - Yota Tsuruoka
	+ Music - Kaoru Wada
	+ Chief Producer - Michihiko Suwa, Hideyuki Tomioka
	+ Producers - Tomoyuki Saito, Minoru Asai, Naohiro Ogata
	+ Production - Yomiuri TV , Shogakukan, Sunrise

Viz Media released the series in two DVD or Blu-ray sets which included an English dub. The first thirteen episodes, constituting the first set, were released on November 20, 2012, and the last thirteen episodes, constituting the second set, were released on February 12, 2013. The series began broadcasting in the United States and Canada on Viz Media's online network, Neon Alley, on October 2, 2012. On October 24, 2014, it was announced that Adult Swim would air *The Final Act* on the Toonami block, beginning on November 15, at 2:00 a.m. EST.

#### *Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon*

> ***Wikipedia Info**: List of Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon episodes*
>
>

In May 2020, an anime original spin-off/sequel series was announced, titled *Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon* (半妖の夜叉姫, *Han'yō no Yashahime*), following the journey of Towa Higurashi and Setsuna, Sesshomaru and Rin's fraternal twin daughters, and Moroha, Inuyasha and Kagome's daughter. It premiered on October 3, 2020.

The series is produced by Sunrise, directed by Teruo Sato (season 1) and Masakazu Hishida (season 2) with main character designs by the original creator Rumiko Takahashi. Staff from *Inuyasha* returned, with Katsuyuki Sumisawa in charge of the scripts, Yoshihito Hishinuma in charge of the anime character designs and Kaoru Wada as composer. The cast includes Sara Matsumoto as Towa Higurashi, Mikako Komatsu as Setsuna, and Azusa Tadokoro as Moroha.

Viz Media announced the rights to digital streaming, EST, and home video release of the series for North and Latin American territories.

### Stage plays

In 2000, a Japanese live-action stage play ran from April through May in the Akasaka ACT Theater in Tokyo, around the same time the anime series began production. The play's script followed the general plot line of the original manga, with a few minor changes to save time. A second run of the play ran from January through February in 2001 at the Akasaka ACT Theater in Tokyo.

In February 2017, it was announced that a stage play adaptation of *Inuyasha* would be performed at Tennozu Galaxy Theater in Tokyo from April 6–15 of the same year, featuring Yutaka Kyan from Golden Bomber as Inuyasha and Nogizaka46's Yumi Wakatsuki as Kagome.

## Films

There are four animated films with original storylines written by Katsuyuki Sumisawa, the writer for the *Inuyasha* anime series. The films were released with English subtitles and dubbed audio tracks on Region 1 DVD by Viz Media. Together, the four films have earned over US$20 million in Japanese box offices.

The first film, *Inuyasha the Movie: Affections Touching Across Time*, was released in 2001. In the film, Inuyasha and his friends confront Menomaru, a demonic moth warrior brought to life by one of the shards.

In the second film, *Inuyasha the Movie: The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass*, released in 2002, the group seemingly kills Naraku for good and return to their normal lives, only to encounter a new enemy named Kaguya, a character based on the literature *The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter*.

The third film, *Inuyasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler*, was released in 2003. In it, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru are forced to work together to seal the evil Sō'unga, their father's third sword, when it is awakened from its sheath.

The fourth and final film, *Inuyasha the Movie: Fire on the Mystic Island*, was released in 2004. It follows Inuyasha and his friends protecting a group of half-demon children from four evil demons on an ancient mystical island.

### Original video animation

A 30-minute original video animation titled *Black Tessaiga* (黒い鉄砕牙, *Kuroi Tessaiga*), 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. It was released in Japan on October 20, 2010, in both DVD and Blu-ray formats.

### Soundtrack CDs

Multiple soundtracks and character songs were released for the series by Avex Mode. Three character singles were released August 3, 2005 – "Aoki Yasei o Daite" (蒼き野生を抱いて, Embrace the Untamed Wilderness) by Inuyasha featuring Kagome, "Kaze no Naka e" (風のなかへ, Into the Wind) by Miroku featuring Sango and Shippō, and "Gō" (業, Fate) by Sesshomaru featuring Jaken and Rin. The singles charted at number 63, 76, and 79 respectively on the Oricon chart. Three more character songs were released on January 25, 2006 – "Rakujitsu" (落日, Setting Sun) by Naraku, "Tatta Hitotsu no Yakusoku" (たったひとつの約束, That's One Promise) by Kagome Higurashi, and "Abarero!!" (暴れろ!!, Go On A Rampage!!) by Bankotsu and Jakotsu. The singles charted at number 130, 131, and 112 respectively on the Oricon chart.

On March 24, 2010, Avex released *Inuyasha Best Song History* (犬夜叉 ベストソング ヒストリー, *Inuyasha Besuto Songu Hisutorī*), a best album that contains all the opening and ending theme songs used in the series. The album peaked at number 20 on the Oricon album chart and charted for seven weeks.

## Video Game

Three video games based on the series were released for the WonderSwan: *Inuyasha: Kagome no Sengoku Nikki* (犬夜叉 〜かごめの戦国日記, *Inuyasha: Kagome's Warring States Diary*), *Inuyasha: Fūun Emaki* (犬夜叉 風雲絵巻, *Inuyasha: The Sealed Scroll Picture*), and *Inuyasha: Kagome no Yume Nikki* (犬夜叉 かごめの夢日記, *Inuyasha: Kagome's Dream Diary*).

A single title, *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*), was released for the Game Boy Advance on January 23, 2003, in Japan.

*Inuyasha* has been adapted into a mobile game released for Java and Brew handsets on June 21, 2005.

Two titles were released for the PlayStation: an RPG simply titled *Inuyasha*, and the fighting game *Inuyasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale*, the latter of which was released in North America. For the PlayStation 2, the two released games were the RPG *Inuyasha: The Secret of the Cursed Mask* and the fighting game *Inuyasha: Feudal Combat*, which also received an English version. An English-only RPG, *Inuyasha: Secret of the Divine Jewel*, was released for the Nintendo DS on January 23, 2007.

Inuyasha appeared in the crossover video game *Sunday vs Magazine: Shūketsu! Chōjō Daikessen* as a playable character.

Inuyasha's sword, Tessaiga, has appeared in *Monster Hunter* as a craftable weapon using items gained from a special event.

An English-language original collectible card game created by Score Entertainment that was first released on October 20, 2004

## Reception

### Manga

*Inuyasha* was one of the Manga Division's Jury Recommended Works at the fifth and 12th installments of the Japan Media Arts Festival in 2001 and 2008, respectively. In 2002, the manga won the 47th Shogakukan Manga Award in the *shōnen* category. On TV Asahi's Manga Sōsenkyo 2021 poll, in which 150,000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, *Inuyasha* ranked 28th.

By February 2010, *Inuyasha* had over 45 million copies in circulation. By September 2020, the manga had over 50 million copies in circulation. Individual volumes from *Inuyasha* have been popular in Japan, taking high places in rankings listing sales. In North America, the manga volumes have appeared various times in *The New York Times* and Diamond Comic Distributors top selling lists. Moreover, in 2005 *Inuyasha* was one of the most researched series according to Lycos.

Reviewing volume two for Ex.org, Eri Izawa wrote that *Inuyasha* combines many of Rumiko Takahashi's best elements; "fast paced action, interesting characters, deep doses of imaginative fantasy, a bit of horror, and those famous touches of Takahashi humor." She also praised the "undeniably intelligent and observant" Kagome as refreshing. Izawa described the faults of the series as subtle and minor; feeling that the action sometimes seems to drag a little and that some of the characters are too familiar to those from Takahashi's previous works. Rebecca Bundy began her review of volume 23 of *Inuyasha* for *Anime News Network* by claiming; "Twenty three volumes in and this series still packs a serious punch." She called its balance of action, conversation and "reflection" perfect, and noted it had plenty of character development for the main cast, sans Koga. Bundy's sole complaint was that she felt the character designs had changed a modest amount since the beginning of the series. Even though they had not read *Inuyasha* since around volume six, Manga Life's Penny Kenny said they were able to jump right in with volume 52 thanks in part to the sense of familiarity provided by Takahashi "riffing on the same themes." Kenny stated that Takahashi's genius lies in her "endless improvisations on the standard elements" by adding new enemies and monsters she forces the heroes to up their game and grow as individuals. The reviewer described the art as having little background detail, with Takahashi instead focusing on the characters and their actions. Kenny also noted that, like all of the manga artist's works, the drama is heightened by levity, with each character having their own style of humor.

### Anime

The anime of *Inuyasha* was ranked twenty by TV Asahi of the 100 best anime series in 2006 based on an online survey in Japan. In ICv2's Anime Awards from both 2004 and 2005, the series was the winner in the category of Property of the Year. In the Anime Grand Prix polls by *Animage*, *Inuyasha* has appeared various times in the category of Best Anime, taking third place in 2003. In the American Anime Awards from 2007, *Inuyasha* was a nominee in the categories of Best Cast, Best Long Series, and Best Anime Feature, but lost to *Fullmetal Alchemist* and *Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children*, respectively. A 2019 NHK poll of 210,061 people saw *Inuyasha* named Takahashi's best animated work. Inuyasha and Sesshomaru were voted first and third place respectively in her characters category.

The English DVDs from the series had sold over one million copies between March 2003 and November 2004, with the first film's DVD topping the Nielsen VideoScan anime bestseller list for three weeks. By 2016, Viz Media had sold more than 2 million *Inuyasha* home video units. Mania Entertainment listed the series in an article ranking anime series that required a reboot, criticizing the series' repetitiveness.

## External Links

* ***Inuyasha TV Anime Website***
	+ *Shonen Sunday'*s official *Inuyasha* manga website (in Japanese)
	+ Viz's official *Inuyasha* website
	+ Sunrise's official *Inuyasha* anime website (in Japanese)
		- Sunrise's official *Inuyasha: Final Act* anime website (in Japanese)
	+ Yomiuri Television's official *Inuyasha* anime website (in Japanese)
	+ Official Sunrise *Inuyasha: The Final Act* anime website (in Japanese)
	+ Avex official *Inuyasha* anime website (in Japanese)
* ***Inuyasha Movie Website***
	+ *Inuyasha the Movie: Affections Touching Across Time*
	+ *Inuyasha the Movie: The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass*
	+ *Inuyasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler*
	+ *Inuyasha the Movie: Fire on the Mystic Island*
* ***Wikipedia Website***
	+ *Wikipedia Information Inuyasha **JP***
	+ *Wikipedia Information Inuyasha **EN***