Inuyasha:
Inuyasha is a 200 year-old*
dog Hanyou(half demon). His father was Inutaisho, a general and his mother Izayoi, a human. He always wears the robes of the
Fire-Rat, which is many times stronger than metal and his weapon is the Tessaiga**, a sword forged from his father's fang.
It represents Man (or rather earth) and is meant to protect him. Tessaiga's abilities:
Kaze no Kizu(Scar of the
Wind)-Inuyasha first used this unconsciously around ep 16, but only learned of it a few episodes later when he met Totosai.
He then used it to defeat Sesshomaru. Kaze no Kizu can kill a hundred in a single sweep. Considered a beginner's ability.
Baku
ryu-ha(Backlash Wave)-Tessaiga gained this ability when Inuyasha defeated Ryukotsusei, the demon who defeated his father.
It sends an opponent's DEMONIC attack back at him with a Kaze no Kizu added in. However, it may not work against extremely
powerful attacks(as shown in the 3rd movie-it couldn't stop Tokijin's Sou Ryu-ha.)
Congou Sou-ha(Diamond Spear
Blast)-Tessaiga gained this ability when Inuyasha killed Housenki. Its most powerful attack, Coungou Sou-ha flings a wave
of diamond shards at the opponent.
Inuyasha's attacks:
Iron Reaver Soul Stealer(think
it was Sounken Tessuai): A powerful scratching attack.
Blades of Blood: Can only
be used when he is wounded. Sends a wave of blood-red daggers at the opponent.
When we first see Inuyasha,
he pinned to the Goshinboku tree by an arrow, which was shot by Kikyo(For more info go to the sypnosis page.). Kagome frees
him and the two of them unwittingly become allies in the search for the Shikon shards. Inuyasha is loudmouthed and brash,
and his first impulse in a situation is often to crash head-on. His goal is to gather all the Shikon shards to become a full-fledged
demon, but it seems to weaken as the anime progresses. He is in love with both Kagome and Kikyo(technically, they'e the same
person since Kagome is Kikyo's reincarnation...). He and Kagome often get into arguments, usually because Inuyasha was unaware
that what he said had offended Kagome. However, this never happens with Kikyo.
*I have seen many websites
differing on what Inuyasha's age is, but I would like to clarify that it is indeed 200 years. In the third movie, Saya was
supposed to seal Sounga for 700 years but he only managed to do so for 200 years,
from the day Inutaisho died(which incidentally happens to be the day which Inuyasha
was born) right up to the movie. The reason for this was that Sounga was thrown into the Well, and since modern day is 500
years ahead of the Feudal Era, 700 years would have passed in that period but only 200 in the Feudal Era.
**Yes, it is Tessaiga
not Tetsusaiga. Tetsusaiga is a translation error.If you don't believe me, watch the Japanese version!
Kagome:
Kagome is your average
15 year old schoolgirl. She is the reincarnation of Kikyo. One day, she falls into the well at her house's shrine, and is
transported 500 years back into the Feudal Era. She then learns of the Shikon jewel and that many demons(as well as humans) are
after it. One day, it breaks and she teams up with Inuyasha to gather all the shards because even one will give a demon great
power. She uses a bow and arrow, and she has holy powers, though not as strong as Kikyo's.
Kagome is seen in here
school uniform most of the time. She carries a huge backpack which contains her homework, clothes, first aid kit and food.
The rest of the group are fascinated by items from Kagome's time, and they all enjoy present-day food: Miroku and
Sango love biscuits and such, Inuyasha goes bananas over instant noodles and potato chips, and Shippo, like all small kids,
relishes sweets, lollipops and chocolates.
Kagome may be considered
by some to be petty and childish, but she is quick-thinking and very firm. She sometimes says things she later regrets. Because
they both are headstrong, she often argues with Inuyasha. But she has a powerful weapon-The Kotodama Rosary around Inuyasha's
neck, and whenever she says "Osuwari!"(sit), Inuyasha crashes to the ground.
Miroku:
Miroku is a youngish monk
who first appears around episode 14. His main weapon is a golden staff(or whatever it is) and his holy powers are pretty strong.
Naraku put a curse on his family: All of them have a vortex(aka Wind Tunnel-Kaza-na) in their right hand, which grows bigger
every year and will eventually consume them(as was his father). The only way to stop the curse is 1) for Naraku to lift it(which
is totally impossible) or 2) kill him. Thus Miroku is gathering all the Shikon shards for that purpose. When Inuyasha finds
out it was Naraku who killed Kikyo, he allows Miroku to join the group.
Miroku's favorite pastime
is touching Sango's butt(...). Basically, he goes for pretty young women...and his favorite question is:
"Will you consent to bear
my child?"
But despite his lecherous
personality, Miroku is a gentleman. For example, in the 3rd movie, he knew that he would he would be seriously injured if
he used his Wind Tunnel on Takemaru's army. But seeing that they were outnumbered and to give Inuyasha the opportunity to
save Kagome, he used it anyway. When Sango protested, he said, "If I do not use my power for the one I love, what use is there?"
Miroku is also excellent
at persuading villagers to let the group stay for the night by pretending to perform exorcisms.Inuyasha doesn't seem to approve
of it very much...
Sango
Sango is a demon slayer.
She comes from a family which is famous for their demon slaying, and she herself is excellent at it. However, Naraku destroyed
all of them in an elaborate plot to defeat Inuyasha and get the Shikon shards, by making her believe that it was Inuyasha
who actually did it and thus turn her against him, as she is a formidable enemy.
After finding out that
it was actually Naraku who killed her family, she joins Inuyasha to hunt him down. Miroku takes a special liking to her, and
though the two never kiss in the anime, it is clear that they are a pairing. Miroku enjoys touching her butt, however,
which results in him getting a painful slap on the face by an offended Sango.
Sango has a younger brother
called Kohaku. He was killed by a spider demon Naraku controlled, and is now alive only because of a Shikon shard in
his back. But due to that, Naraku is able to control him. However, there are a few instances in the anime where Kohaku and
Sango actually manage to talk face to face.
Sango has a pet: Kirara,
a cat demon, who was given to her for her (11th? I can't remember) birthday. Kirara can transform into a bigger form when
needed, and can also fly in that form. When travelling, Kagome rides on Inuyasha, while Shippo, Miroku and Sango ride on Kirara.
She has also saved their lives many times.
Sango's main weapon is
the Hiraikotsu, a giant boomberang(which even Miroku finds heavy). She also uses a sword.
Sesshomaru
Sesshomaru is a dog and unicorn demon
cross. His father was Inutaisho, a demon general and he is the half-brother of Inuyasha, the main character. He wears a kimono
and the swords he carries are called Tenseiga and Tokijin. Tenseiga is the Sword of Heaven made from his father's fang and
can ressurect a hundred in a single sweep. It cannot be used to kill anyone from the human world, only those from Heaven and
the Netherworld. Tokijin was made from the fang of Goshinki, one of Naraku's servants. (This sword is a clarification of his
power as Totosai said,"Only someone who was incredibly powerful would be able to control this sword"). Sesshomaru uses this
as his main weapon and its most powerful attack is Sou ryu-ha, which is able to overpower even Baku ryu-ha, as seen in the
third movie.
Sesshomaru is pretty much the quietest and coldest character in InuYasha. He is filled with scorn and
contempt for humans, maybe because it was because of them that his father died(Inutaisho died while trying to save Inuyasha
and Izayoi, the former's mother). However, this seems to diminish as the anime progresses(probably due to Rin). He hates and
scorns his Hanyou brother, Inuyasha and this is further enhanced by the fact that Inuyasha loves a human(Kagome/Kikyo): "You,
who feel compassion for humans, are a disgrace to all our kind!" He is also angry that Inuyasha inheirited Tessaiga and he
Tenseiga, which, in his opinion, is a "stupid, useless sword". Although he stopped trying to get Tessaiga from Inuyasha after
he got Tokijin, he was still angry that Inuyasha was choosen over him. (In actual fact this wasn't the case at all: Inutaisho
gave them their respective swords in order to control the demon blood within them.)
Sesshomaru has two (or you could
say three) characters following him around. The first is Jaken, a frog demon. Some years ago(by that I mean 70 or more), his
tribe was waging a war against some demons, and the strongest of them was a demon nun. Just as she was about to kill Jaken,
Sesshomaru wanted to pass through and said,"Move". She turned to attack him but he destroyed her instantly with one slash
of his Whip of Light. Jaken was extremely awed and grateful to him(for saving his life) and became his most loyal servant.
Sesshomaru then gave him the Human Head Stick, which can breathe fire, among other things.
The other is a little girl
called Rin. She appears somewhere around episode 30, after Sesshomaru was blasted and quite heavily injured by a Kaze no Kizu
from Tessaiga. She brought him food for about three days and was then killed by Koga's wolves. When Sesshomaru had recovered,
he was walking along a road with Jaken when he saw her lying dead on the ground. He was about to ignore her when Tenseiga
pulsated. He took this to mean "Ressurect her" and so he did. She started following him around after that. She sometimes rides
on Ah-Un(the third character), a two-headed demon horse who can fly.
After Rin enters his life, Sesshomaru changes
a little. He seems to become somewhat less cold and a little more caring. For example...
- Towards the end of the anime, there are two episodes about Sara, a human in love
with him. She let herself be possesed by demons to get Tessaiga, which she mistakenly thought was his desire. Sesshomaru went
so far as to use Tessaiga to kill the demons posessing her, even though he knew would be injured. After the demons(and thus
her body) are destroyed, her spirit lingers for a shor time to say goodbye. All that is left of her is her flute and a pile
of dust. Sesshomaru crouches down, takes the flute and puts in the pile, and then walks away with the thoughts:"Continue to
play your flute for me in the world above", while in the past he would not have bothered.
- Further proof about his change in personality is shown throughout the anime i.e.
he is less inclined to kill though he has absolutely no qualms about it. He cares a lot for Rin as well. Whenever she is attacked,
he immediately rushes to her aid. At about 3/4 way through the anime, Sesshomaru travels a goodly distance to save her from
Naraku. And in episode 162(definitely my fav Inu ep), Rin asks, "Sesshomaru-sama, when I die, will you please not forget me?"
Sesshomaru is startled, then gazes at the sky, smiling,"What a foolish thing to say."
