Inu-Yasha

Director
Masashi Ikeda
Production
Sunrise, Yomiuri TV
Country of origin
Japan
Format
Series
Running time
30 mins/per episode
Year
2000

Inu-Yasha

By Aki
19th May 04

Time travel, sacred jewels, magic swords, demons, curses, enchantments, death, rebirth, love, betrayal. Interested? You should be. Welcome to Inuyasha!

A girl named Kagome falls through a well one day, and winds up in the past, during a feudal period in Japan's history. There she discovers that she is the reincarnation of a powerful priestess, and that she holds the Sacred Jewel. The Sacred Jewel is a powerful artifact, which grants phenomenal powers to any demon that possesses it. Sensing the power of the jewel, demons begin to attack Kagome, trying to take it from her. Inuyasha, a half-demon boy, is one of those who seek the Sacred Jewel in an attempt to gain more power. In a small 'accident', the jewel is shattered, and it's fragments scattered throughout the land. Now, Kagome and Inuyasha must work together to collect all the shards of the jewel before they fall into the wrong hands.

This is a deceptively simple plot. Although 'collect the jewel shards' may seem rather boring and even a little stupid, it does not come across in this way at all. And this is only the surface plot of Inuyasha. Beneath it are much deeper, more complicated twists, involving lots of trickery and betrayal by the appointed bad-guy of the series, a demon called Naraku. Throw in an evil half-brother with a healthy sibling rivalry, a cursed monk, an un-dead priestess, and a demon-slayer out for revenge, and the stage is set for a story that keeps you interested at every turn. The numerous plots in this series are all well thought out and masterfully woven together to create one of the best anime I have seen.

Inuyasha has a little bit of everything. Lots of action and humor, some tragedy and a little romance through it all. It's a great series to start with if you're just getting into anime, and I highly recommend it for any anime fan.

10/10

-- Aki 19th May 04

Inu-Yasha Images