ネオアンジェリーク Abyss

Rating: (5/5)

Released: 2008
Genre(s): Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Shoujo, Harem

Plot: The story takes place in a fictional world called Arcadia, where life-draining monsters called Tanatos plague the populace. The only ones who have the power to exterminate these creatures are Purifiers, but only a few exist. One day, Angelique, who is just a presumably normal girl attending school, is visited by Nyx, a rich gentlemen, as well as a Purifier, who created an organization of Purifiers dedicated to eliminating Thanatos. Nyx is interested in the potential power she possesses and invites her to join his organization, but she refuses since she wants to become a doctor, like her father. However, when her school is later attacked by a Thanatos, she ends up activating her powers in her want to protect those in danger. After purifying the creature, she finds out she has a unique purifying power, and that she is the one that has been foretold in legends, the "Queen's Egg". It is then that her journey begins, and she becomes the only female Purifier in the world. This series is noted as being quite similar to Kiniro no Corda, otherwise known as La Corda D'oro.


Main Character Descriptions:

Angelique - A charming, kind-hearted girl. When she was a child, her village was attacked by Tanatos and she lost both her parents. This inspired and encouraged her more than ever to pursue her ambition to be a doctor when she grows up as she wants to help others and save lives. This was how she agreed to go with Nyx to fight Tanatos with the other Purifying Ability Compatibles as she felt that in this way, she would be able to save more lives than as a doctor. She has a modest and reserved personality, but she has inner strength and can be severe. It has always been her wish to help others as she, like her parents, always places others before herself. In the second season, she knows how to use a sword. It has been revealed later on in the second season that in order to save Arcadia and Nyx she must sacrifice the life she has as a normal girl among her loving friends and become the Prophesised Queen, protecting Arcadia yet from far away.

Rayne - A smart, stylish young man. He actually acts his age, and is a friend you can freely chat about anything with, but actually he is extremely capable and reliable when it counts. In the past he worked as a scientist and a professor, being an important member of the Foundation with his older brother Yorgo. He also has feelings for Angelique. Rayne is referred to as "that guy" (ano hito) by Erenfried as Erenfried had a particular dislike for Rayne since Erenfried has always been jealous of all the attention that Rayne got, which he has never gotten before, in the past. He gets annoyed whenever referred to as "Professor" Rayne , which Erenfried does on purpose, and usually responds by calling him simply "Eren". Rayne later reveals his Purifying Ability is not natural and is a result of a self-experimentation. He fights Thanathos with a gun.

Nyx - Very mysterious and is an ultra gentleman. Rather than calling Angelique by her name, he often call her mademoiselle, which is a very polite French term for "lady". He likes to play piano and drink tea. In season 2 he is possessed by something (foreshadowed in season 1) and seems to want to help Angelique and others, but cannot always control what he calls "his condition". He has two sides, one is his normal side while another side is Erebos. He has lived for 200 years due to Erebos. When he was younger, the ship he and his family were in got caught in a fierce storm. As Nyx was drowning, he wished to live and that he would do anything. Erebos heard him and saved him, possessing him but Nyx's mother and father drowned. This is why Nyx fears and hates the sound of the sea as it was when Erebos first possessed him. He is the core that Erebos uses to help send Thanatos into the world. The only hope he had to get rid of Erebos was the Queen's Egg so he set out all over the world and found Angelique. When she becomes the Queen, Nyx wishes for her to give him a peaceful death. Nyx blames himself for making Angelique suffer, taking away her home and parents but Angelique says it was Erebos who did that and that Nyx was the one who gave her many precious things including a place to belong. Nyx perhaps has the strongest feelings for Angelique for while he wishes her to give him a peaceful death, he also states that knowing her has given him a reason to live.He fights Thanathos with a whip.

J.D. - J.D. is a Jasper-Doll, a type of artifact. He was referred to as a "defective product" by Jet when they were engaged in a fight. J.D. also said that he (Jet) is just like him (himself). It seems that J.D. used to work for the Foundation, but somehow managed to escape and is now wanted. Hence, he avoided meeting the Foundation as much as he could, for fear of forcefully being taken away by them. He always wants to see Angelique to smile and the people around him. He enjoys baking for others, often making cookies or scones. He fights with a pair of Tonfa against Thanatos but possesses melee skills as well.

Hyuuga - A former Silver Knight and also an Aube Hunter. He will protect Angelique with all his being, even with the cost of his life. He refers to Angelique as "Angelique-sama" (Lady Angelique). He is often seen practicing his spear skills during his free time outside the Mansion. At the end of the first season, Angelique gave him an "order" that in future, he was to simply call her Angelique as she felt that they were "nakama" (仲間, literally means close companion or comrade) or friends. Hyuga has a hard time trying to say Angelique's name with out saying it in a formal form in the beginning. In Season 2 he suffers from seasickness but eventually overcomes it. He wields a spear in battle against Thanathos.

René - He lives in the Holy City of Celestizam and is allowed to move about freely within its walls but forbidden to go outside the city. He often comments how he is a "caged bird" to Mathias, who is his mentor. His second appearance in the anime is in episode 6, where he rescues Angelique from the persistent journalist, Roche, who keeps trying to take photos of "The Queen's Egg" to "get a scoop". He is revealed to be the future and true leader of the Religious Order. He declares that he will unite his power with Angelique's to help save the world of Arcadia.

Bernard - A reporter who always writes the truth. Roche sells a lot of his pictures to Bernard. He recognizes Angelique's necklace when she loses it after being kidnapped by Jet and seems to know something. Later on he is revealed to be a son of Angelique's relative whom she stayed with while a little girl after her parents were killed. He left however to go work with the newspaper and never saw Angelique again until now. Angelique calls him "nii-san" (big brother).

Mathias - Also known as Lord Mathias or Mathias-sama, he is the Leader of the Religious Organization which supports the Knights of the Silver Tree. It is also revealed that he is a fake Leader that was only chosen for his exceptional memory. The Organization is trying to kill him so that Rene can take the title, but he, in Season 2's episode 5, kills the High Elder. He places an Artifact chip created by Erenfreid on his neck to receive powers. Due to the chip, half of Mathias is his ownself, half is controlled by the chip (therefore by Thanatos). In season 2, he was killed by Nyx/Erebos's attack in order to protect René.

Erenfried - Is a scientist that works at the Foundation who has a deep hatred for Rayne as he always got the attention. He gets angry or annoyed when Rayne simply calls him "Eren", telling him that he has a name and it is "Erenfried" or responds by calling Rayne "Professor". Jet takes orders from Erenfriend and Director Yorgo, who Erenfried really wants to notice his accomplishments. Erenfried admires and is grateful to Director Yorgo and in season 2 when Yorgo is imprisoned (due to mistakes of Erenfried with the Jinx project), he wants to rescue him. He somewhat befriends Angelique company in season 2 when J.D. rescues him from jail and he stays with the group for a while. He also realizes that "Artifacts/Jasper Dolls" have hearts when J.D. rescues him from jail.

Jet - Like J.D., he is also an artifact made by the Foundation in a desperate attempt to make another Artifact like J.D. after they "lost" J.D. during the mysterious fire. The fact that Jet and J.D. are both artifacts make them "brothers". In season 2, he takes order from Mathias. Eventually he starts to experience some feelings (mostly when Angelique is around), which he calls defective, since he thinks of himself as only a weapon. Later he was abandoned by Mathias as he failed to complete his mission to capture Angelique, the Queen's Egg. He was lost and Erenfried told him to act according to his own will from now on. Therefore he helps out in the repairs of the "Ship Of Stars" but on the morning of the departure, he sacrificed his life to remove the bomb that Erebos planted in the ship. However he is saved by Erenfried at the last episode of season 2, seen at the very end in a capsule.

Roche - Roche is a respectable journalist who loves money and women. He has never taken photos for others without taking payment for the photos, but in episode 9, he sent the photos he took of Angelique (which he took secretly when he was on the "secret date" or so he calls it, with Angelique.) which he had originally intended to sell to Bernal for money to Angelique. This was done out of kindness when he realized that Angelique, like himself, was an orphan and he didn't feel like "selling" her "information" to others even if it is not for a bad purpose. He, however, did not regret making that decision and was a bit confused and surprised at himself as that was the first time he had taken photos for others without charging them. The "secret date" he went on with Angelique was not a real date. He happened to see Angelique on the streets after Angelique ran from Sally and Hannah as she was upset that her best friends refused to accept the truth that the Jinx was destroying many people's homes and even taking away some lives in the process of destroying Thanatos. He called it a "secret date" but in truth, he wanted to cheer up Angelique when he saw just how upset Angelique was. He eventually develops romantic feelings toward Angelique, telling Erebos possessed Nyx he has a "date with Angelique" which he cannot miss when he is caught. He is shown to use throwing knives as weapons in his fight with Erebos as Nyx.

Review: This Series made me cry more then once. I am in love with these characters, and you will be to after watching it. Not only is it heartfelt and captivating, but it's Action packed as well. If you haven't seen this Anime yet, You're missing out on something GREAT!

Review Written by: Leanore

タユタマ -Kiss on my Deity-

Rating: (5/5)

Released: 2006
Genre(s): Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Shounen

Plot: The story of Tayutama revolves around the male protagonist Yuuri Mito, a third year high school student who is a descendant of the Mito family of the Yachimata Shrine. One day during spring break, Yuuri and his friends Ameri and Sankurou discover a wooden relic which bears mysterious symbols in the school's woods. The relic turns out to host the Tayutai race which the shrine worships, but is deemed to be insignificant for preservation by the school, and will be demolished to allow the school grounds' expansion. Yuuri later sneaks into the school to transfer the relic's spirits, after coming to the conclusion that destroying the relic may be harmful. As he performs the ritual, he accidentally summons Kikuramikami no Hime, a Tayutai goddess who explains the belligerent relationship between humans and Tayutai, and materializes as a young girl, hoping to maintain a mutual relationship with humans. The relic is then destroyed after an accident caused by Ameri, which accidentally releases the entire Tayutai race, among whom are Nue and Oryu, two other influential Tayutai who hold humans in low regard.


Main Character Descriptions:

Yuuri Mito - the protagonist of Tayutama. Yuuri comes from a family that presides over the Yachimata Shrine, and holds a vast knowledge in shinto practices. He takes an interest in automobile maintenance, and also aspires to be an auto mechanic or designer.

Mashiro Mito - the main heroine of Tayutama, is a Tayutai girl who is the materialization of the goddess Kikuramikami no Hime. She falls in love with Yuuri soon after being left in his care, to the extent that she wishes to marry him. She has a high understanding of spiritual powers, and strives to create a world where both humans and Tayutai can coexist together.

Ameri Kawai - another heroine, is Yuuri's energetic and outgoing childhood friend. She frequently carries around candies which she often shares with others, and actually has a slight crush towards Yuuri, but is unable to carry her feelings further.

Yumina Takanashi - also a heroine, is Yuuri's stepsister who resided with his family until his mother's death. She is often shy and quiet in front of others, and takes an interest in activities such as drawing and cooking. Yumina transfers into the Flawless department early in the story, and often voluntarily takes care of the household chores for Yuuri's family.

Mifuyu Kisaragi - the last of Tayutama's heroines, is an honor student from the Flawless department. She is calm and intelligent, and is skilled in various activities such as kenjutsu.

Nue - Originally referred to as one of the "Three Mightiest" Tayutai, she eventually switches sides after being defeated and forced to show her true form. Mifiyu adopts her as though she were her younger sister and Nue becomes very protective of her first 'Friend'.

Review: Having already written and accidently deleted this review ONCE I'd like to take the time to truely explain how much I love this anime Series. I've seen it all the way through a few times now... and every time I find myself falling just as in love with each character and their individual motives. This anime has the right balance or humor, romance, action, and cuteness. It's a definate reccomend. ♥

Review Written by: Leanore

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戦国御伽草子 犬夜叉 Sengoku Otogizōshi InuYasha

Rating: (4/5)

Released: 2000
Genre(s): Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Historical, Romance, Shounen, Supernatural

Plot: The story begins with a flashback to Feudal Japan, when the handsome half-demon InuYasha raids a human village to steal the Sacred Jewel of Four Souls, a magical jewel that enhances its wielder's powers and can grant a single wish. InuYasha hopes to use the gem to turn himself into a demon, but is soon stopped when Kikyo, the young miko of the village, shoots him with a sacred arrow, sealing him onto the sacred tree Goshinboku in the nearby forest. Mortally wounded, Kikyo tells her younger sister, Kaede, to burn the jewel with her body to prevent it from falling into the hands of evil.

The story then shifts to modern Tokyo, where a junior high school girl named Kagome Higurashi lives on the grounds of her family's hereditary Shinto shrine. When she goes into the well house to retrieve her cat, Buyo, a centipede demon bursts out of the enshrined Bone Eater's Well and pulls her through it.
Main Character Descriptions:

InuYasha - InuYasha is the titular character and one of the main protagonists of the series. Born to a dog demon father and human mother, InuYasha is a half-demon who initially wants to use the powers of the Shikon Jewel to become a full demon. After falling in love with Kikyo, the miko who guards the Jewel, he changes his mind and wants to become human so he can live with her, but Naraku manipulates both of them into believing they have been betrayed by one another. Kikyo is fatally wounded, but before she dies, she shoots an arrow through InuYasha to seal him onto a sacred tree. InuYasha remains in suspended animation for fifty years until Kagome Higurashi, Kikyo's reincarnation, pulls out the arrow and frees him. After the Shikon Jewel shatters, InuYasha and Kagome travel together to retrieve its shards. At first, he is hostile and uncooperative, but Kikyo's sister Kaede restrains him with a magical necklace that hurls him to the ground whenever Kagome gives the simple command word "Sit!"

Kagome Higurashi- Kagome is one of the main protagonists and the narrator of the series. Born in modern Japan as the reincarnation of the priestess Kikyo, Kagome has the Shikon Jewel unknowingly hidden inside her body until 1997, when a demon pulls her into the Bone Eater's Well and 500 years back through time. They emerge in the Feudal Era about 50 years after Kikyo's death, where the demon extracts the jewel from Kagome. When another demon seizes the jewel, Kagome shoots it with a bow and arrow,
While trying to protect the jewel using a bow and arrow, she accidentally shatters it into numerous shards that disperse throughout the country. She agrees to help find them, as she can sense the presence of nearby shards. As the series progresses, she falls in love with InuYasha, and finds herself competing with the revived Kikyo for his affections. During the search for the jewel, Kagome's own spiritual powers and archery skills continue to improve.

Myoga - Myoga is a flea demon who appears randomly and gives InuYasha information on current events, foes, and the shards of the Shikon Jewel. Assigned to protect Tetsusaiga's hiding place in the grave of InuYasha's father, he runs away when Sesshomaru comes there in search of the sword. Myoga often flees before or during a battle, which the others recognize as a sign of pending danger; his mere presence in any area is enough to determine its safety. Myoga enjoys drinking demon blood, and actually saves InuYasha's life at one point by drinking a spider demon's venom out of his blood. He can save the others in a similar manner, but often gets slapped for drinking their blood without permission.

Kaede - Kaede is Kikyo's younger sister and assists her with various tasks such as gathering herbs or holding her arrows. After Kikyo's death, Kaede becomes a miko in her own right and defends the village against demons. When Kagome arrives, Kaede recognizes her as the reincarnation of Kikyo. After Kagome frees InuYasha, Kaede puts the "Beads of Subjugation" onto him to give Kagome the power to control him with a spoken word. Kaede is highly respected by the villagers and the members of InuYasha's group, and she often advises them about demons and other spiritual anomalies. Though InuYasha is easily annoyed by her, he listens to her when necessary and doesn't hesitate to protect her from a threat.

Kikyo - Kikyo is a powerful shrine maiden, or miko, who is given the task of guarding the Shikon Jewel. She falls in love with InuYasha and considers using the jewel to turn him from a half-demon into a full human; this would cause the Shikon Jewel to vanish, allowing her to live as an ordinary woman by his side. However, Naraku disguises himself as InuYasha to attack her village, mortally wounding her. With her last strength, Kikyo shoots a charmed arrow into the real InuYasha to seal him to a sacred tree, then orders the Shikon Jewel to be burned with her on her funeral pyre. The jewel disappears and is apparently destroyed, but is reborn 500 years later in the body of Kagome Higurashi, her spiritual reincarnation.
After Kagome travels back through time and reappears fifty years after Kikyo's death, an ogress tries to pull her reincarnated soul into a clay body made with graveyard soil and Kikyo's bones and ashes. Kagome appears to suffer no permanent harm, but a small part of her soul detaches and reanimates the new body with Kikyo's memories, personality, and human appearance. Although Kikyo retains some of her old powers in this form, she remains technically "dead" and must absorb the souls of dead women in order to move. At first, she wants to vengefully drag InuYasha to hell and kill Kagome to recover the rest of her soul. However, Kikyo gradually returns to her former compassionate nature and learns that Naraku caused the real circumstances of her death. In the anime she is attacked by a reborn Naraku, who has been able to rid himself Onigumo's heart, and falls into a stream of thick miasma. During her last moments she recollects her fond memories of her and Inuyasha. Inuyasha, also having visions of Kikyo, arrives to Kikyo's broken bow and looks into the stream just in time to see a piece of cloth from her clothing fall into the stream with a soul collector. Her remainder of her soul then dissipates with a flash of light.

Miroku - Miroku is a Buddhist monk who travels the countryside performing spiritual services such as exorcisms and demon exterminations, although sometimes he deliberately falsifies these to earn comfortable rewards. Miroku can attack enemies with his holy staff and sutra scrolls, but his greatest weapon, the Wind Tunnel embedded in the palm of his hand, is also a hereditary curse originally inflicted by Naraku upon Miroku's grandfather Miyatsu. The Wind Tunnel sucks in almost anything in its path and is a powerful weapon against demons. However, it grows larger with increasing use, so that Miroku's grandfather and father were eventually consumed by their own Wind Tunnels. Miroku hopes to break the curse by killing Naraku.
Miroku first meets InuYasha by stealing the Shikon Jewel, causing them to fight one another until Kagome leaps between them. After Miroku explains his situation, InuYasha allows him to join their group as a valuable ally. Miroku's lechery is a recurrent habit, usually manifesting as shameless flattery, semi-surreptitious groping, and asking random women to bear him a child; he learned these bad habits from the monk Mushin who raised him, but he also has the more serious motive of wanting an heir to follow him if he dies without defeating Naraku.

Sango - Sango is a demon slayer who hails from a village of professional demon slayers. Naraku wipes out her entire family and village, then causes Sango to blame InuYasha and try to kill him. When the plot fails, Naraku revives Sango's little brother Kohaku, controlling him as a pawn to manipulate Sango's emotions and attack the rest of InuYasha's group. Sango seeks vengeance against Naraku, but her primary goal is to rescue Kohaku from Naraku's influence and save his life.
Of her broad repertoire of tools and tricks for fighting demons, her most powerful weapon is the Hiraikotsu, a massive boomerang made of purified demon bones. She is accompanied by the demon cat Kirara. Sango is often the victim of Miroku's lecherous tendencies and tends to slap him for it.

Shippo - Shippo is an orphaned young fox demon who attempts to steal the Shikon Jewel from Kagome and InuYasha, wanting to become stronger and avenge his father's death. Though his plan fails, Kagome and InuYasha aid him after hearing his story, and he becomes their companion for the rest of the series.
Shippo normally appears to be a young boy with certain fox-like features: his legs, feet, ears, and tail. He can shape-shift, but his other forms (such as a large pink flying balloon) are temporary and often ineffective, usually given away by his lingering fox tail. He can also create illusory duplicates of himself, as well as weak fox-fire magic and toy-based tricks such as his giant spinning top attack. Naively observant, he often directs cheeky comments to InuYasha, earning a smack on the head. InuYasha and Kagome serve as older sibling figures to Shippo. Because of his small size, Shippo often rides on Kirara or the shoulders of others. His actual age is never stated in the series; according to the official InuYasha guide by Rumiko Takahashi, his appearance is equivalent to that of a seven year old boy.

Kirara - Kirara is Sango's faithful demon-cat companion. Kirara usually appears to be a small kitten-sized feline with two tails, but can become large enough to carry several passengers (usually Sango, Miroku, and Shippo). Her full-sized form has more prominent fangs, flames around her feet and tail, and enough power to fly through the air fast enough to keep up with InuYasha's top speed.
At the end of the series after Naraku's defeat, she joins Kohaku as he trains to become a demon slayer while Sango starts her new life with Miroku and their children. The anime series suggests that she was once the companion of Midoriko, the miko who created the Shikon Jewel.

Sesshomaru - Sesshomaru is InuYasha's older half-brother. As a full-blooded demon, he is very powerful, though he too has been unable to completely defeat Naraku. Unlike most demons seen in the series, he shows no interest in possessing any of the Shikon shards, feeling confident of his own strength and seeming to find the use of the gem to enhance one's power distasteful. He is initially ruthless in dealing with InuYasha, whom he despises as a half-demon who consorts with humans, and attempts to take the sword Tetsusaiga from him.

Naraku - Naraku is the series' primary antagonist. Naraku is responsible for most of the characters' misfortunes, including the death of Kikyo, the sealing of InuYasha to the sacred tree, Miroku's curse, and the death of Sango's family. Naraku was born from the fusion of Onigumo, a crippled human bandit tended by Kikyo, and a horde of weak demons. Driven by frustrated lust for Kikyo, Onigumo made a bargain with the demons: they could eat his flesh, and the demons would combine into one entity to become part of that new body. However the resulting half-demon promptly caused Kikyo's death in an attempt to corrupt and possess the Shikon Jewel.
Naraku is driven by three goals: To become a full demon, to possess a fully-corrupted Shikon Jewel, and to possess Kikyo. The third goal is rooted in Onigumo's heart as a vital part of Naraku's body, causing an obsession with Kikyo that prevents him from killing her. He attempts to rid himself of Onigumo's heart multiple times, ultimately separating it into The Infant. With his heart freed from his obsession, he is able to later kill Kikyo. On his final death, he faintly remembered why he made the bargain in the first place and merely expressed regret at not being able to have Kikyo for his own. He then understood the true essence of peace and recovered himself from his sins.
Throughout the series, Naraku creates many subordinate beings from his own body to aid his goal of killing his opponents and reuniting the shards of the Shikon Jewel, whose corrupted form he hopes to use to gain ultimate power.

Review: This is another classic anime that I'm sure everyone knows and loves. It is one that I would consider more family friendly. It has a little something for everyone, without being overly adult, or graphic. I'm personally a huge fan and have been for a while now thanks to Adult Swim's constant need to re-run the series over and over. Review by: Leanore

明日のよいち! Asu no Yoichi!

Rating:  (4/5)
Released: 2009

Genre(s): Seinen, Harem, Ecchi, Romantic, Comedy

Plot:
After learning martial arts in the mountains for 17 years under his father's teachings, Yoichi Karasuma's father orders Yoichi to learn martial arts with the Ikaruga family in the city, as he has nothing left to teach him. The current head of the Ukiha Divine Wind Style Swordplay school of martial arts, Ibuki Ikaruga, and her siblings gradually accept Yoichi as a freeloader at their dojo. In addition to domestic problems, Yoichi deals with Washizu's jealousy of Ibuki and Yoichi's supposed relationship and his school life and eventually the sensual tension becomes a powder keg. Emotion will run high, and the action is damn near constant.
Main Character Descriptions:

Yoichi Karasuma - A high school sophomore who is also a young swordsman and has moved away from his mountain life to live with the Ikarugas in the city. He is a very active person who actively enjoys martial arts with swordsmanship in particular. Due to his early childhood in the mountains with his father, he does not know the current customs in Japan or to act around a girl. He is very honorable, which is shown when he addresses everyone with the dono honorific. However, due to constant misunderstandings, Ibuki, in particular, constantly attacks him under the assumption that he had done something perverted. He is usually seen wearing a Japanese martial arts uniform and a wooden sword. He is a freeloader at Ikaruga Dojo and is a student of the Ukiha Kamikaze Swordplay (Soaring Wind, Divine Wind Style). He attends the private school Yoku-Ryou Gakuen with Ibuki and Ayame, and he's in the same class as Ibuki. He always gets nosebleeds after unintentionally doing or seeing something perverted, usually the latter.

Ibuki Ikaruga - Ibuki is a high school sophomore who becomes a self-appointed head of the Ikaruga family. She is popular at school due to her beauty. She becomes a maternal figure for the Ikaruga family since their parents went overseas at an early age. She secretly likes Yoichi but is the first to attack him for no reason as well as circumstantial reasons, usually when it involves other girls. She is good at studies, sports, and martial arts. She is the Assistant Instructor of Ikaruga Dojo, which teaches Ukiha Kamikaze Swordplay. There are only five students in her dojo due to her violent nature. However, she treats children in a maternal fashion. It is revealed in chapter 19.5 of the manga that her violent nature developed when her parents left Ibuki to look after her siblings at an early age.

Ayame Ikaruga - Ayame is a freshman in high school and Ibuki's younger sister. She has a shy, tsundere personality and is acutely aware of her small breasts when compared to those of her siblings. It took a while for her to like Yoichi romantically and she tries to help him at times while saying it was for no particular reason. She is bad with household chores in general. She dislikes being compared to Ibuki as she is constantly overshadowed.

Chihaya Ikaruga - Chihaya is a 15-year-old, 3rd year junior high school student and the second youngest (and most sexually frank) of the Ikaruga family. She is also a professional manga writer/artist who uses her siblings and Yoichi as a basis for her manga by manipulating events to bring about satisfying resolutions. She also seems the most knowledgeable about relationships out of the sisters as she flirts with Yoichi while poking fun at the others. She is the only person in the Ikaruga family to wear glasses. Her signature hair antennae are reminiscient of Naru Narusegawa's from Love Hina.

Kagome Ikaruga - Kagome is the youngest of the Ikaruga family and an elementary school student. She is clumsy and does the washing up for the rest of the family. She has a shy personality and is very talented in cooking. Her breasts are bigger than Ayame's, so she binds her breasts to hide them.

Ryu Washizu- Washizu (also known as "Wa-san") is Ibuki's classmate and a famous delinquent. At the beginning of the manga, Washizu was depicted as a loner, and the only friend he had was Torigaya. As the manga progressed, Washizu started being friendly to other people around him. Washizu has a crush on Ibuki and sees Yoichi as a perverted pimp who plays around with many girls, including Ibuki. He despises him because of his misunderstanding of the relationship between Yoichi and Ibuki. However, he occasionally teams up with Yoichi to fight a common enemy. Instead of confessing to Ibuki, He accidentally confessed to Ibuki's sister, Ayame, and they started acting as a comic relief of the manga. They usually think together for how they could get close to their respective love interests (Ibuki for Washizu, Yoichi for Ayame). The "Washizu Fantasy Channel" in the manga and "Washizu Vision" in the anime are Washizu's misinterpretations of the situation, usually concerning Ibuki. They can also be Washizu's fantasies.

Keita Torigaya - Torigaya is Washizu's only friend until Washizu started opening himself to other people. He usually acts cocky and arrogant when he is with Washizu and is very fond of children. In the anime, he unusually (and unexplainably) shrinks, which only Washizu notices. In the end of the anime, he unexplainably reveals that he is a girl, which was extremely shocking to Washizu.

Review: I love the characters, and I love the story! It's definately more geared toward the female audience, but there's ALOT of sexual humor that should be enough(when coupled with the awesome samurai fight scenes) to entertain some men too. ^_~ Review by: Leanore