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all twins rock (am a twin cool )

I love this series. I saw it when I lived in Korea, sometimes it would be in Japanese and there wouldn't be any subtitles, and you just had to try and feel what the characters are feeling by how they act. Fun but I didn't know what was happening in the plots.

Plot Summary

Miaka Yūki is a junior-high student desperate to pass the entrance exam for the illustrious Jonan High School. Her best friend Yui Hongo is a straight-A genius applying for the same school, and her mother is pushing her also in an attempt to see Miaka gets the best education available, although Miaka would rather attend Yotsubadai High School. The result is Miaka is constantly under pressure to study and attends juku (cram school) every day, when she’d rather be with her friends and eating.

During a study session with Yui in the library, Miaka, in the manga, drops her pen; in the anime, she drools at the vending machine and drops her 100 yen coin. In both versions, as she chases it, she finds herself in the Restricted Section. As the girls go through the books, Miaka stumbles across “The Universe of the Four Gods” and both girls start to read. They’re then sucked into the book-world, and after an encounter with slave-traders and a man with ‘demon’ written on his forehead (Tamahome), return to their world. They continue on as normal, believing the whole thing to be a dream, but neither want to forget about the book, and Miaka especially can’t get her mind off her handsome rescuer. After getting into an argument with her mother, she ends up back at the library. As she starts to read “The Universe of the Four Gods” again, she’s shocked to find what happened in her ‘dream’ has been written in the book. She then gets sucked into the book a second time.

Trying to find the boy who helped her earlier, she runs into a gang looking to sell her to a brothel. Tamahome steps in and helps her again, and in trying to repay him, gets them into a sticky situation with the Emperor’s men. They try to escape the dungeon, only to come across the Emperor Hotohori himself, who explains that they believe Miaka is the legendary Priestess of Suzaku (Suzaku no Miko), a girl from another world who will gather Konan’s Celestial Warriors and summon the phoenix god, Suzaku. Doing so will grant her the power to grant any three wishes. Miaka decides to accept the responsibility, and already has a head-start, as Tamahome and Hotohori are two of the seven Celestial Warriors, distinguishable by characters for their respective constellations on their bodies. The third, Nuriko, is found quickly afterwards in a somewhat unconventional fashion, and soon Miaka and company are setting out across Konan in search of the other four warriors.

The series describes their travels and their adventures along the way to summoning Suzaku, enduring various trials along the way, both quest-driven and personal. There are also frequent clashes with Yui, who has become the country of Kutou's Priestess of Seiryu and thus making the former best friends deadly enemies and rivals, along with the Seiryu Celestial Warriors. The manga can be split into two parts:

Part 1 (Volumes 1-13) documents the journey find the Celestial Warriors and summon Suzaku.

Part 2 (Volumes 14-1 cool was written due to popular demand, and tells of the characters' lives after Suzaku has been summoned.

It's all out on anime now.

Story

In Japan of 1923, a 16-year-old girl named Takiko Okuda is living with her ill mother after recently moving to a small town. Her father comes home one day (he's never home, as he's a busy novelist), much to Takiko's chagrin. He apparently has been working on something called "The Universe of the Four Gods" and even after returning home, is obsessed with the book. Her mother eventually dies and Takiko becomes angry at her father for ignoring the two of them. These feelings, paired with her feelings of loneliness and uselessness at being rejected both in love and by her father, lead her to attempt to tear the book apart. However, it instead whisks her away to the country of Hokkan where all of her adventures begin.

Manga
Authored by Yuu Watase
Publisher Shogakukan
Editoral Ivrea
Conrad
Japonica Polonia Fantastica
Viz

Serialized in Shōjo Comic
Original run May 1992 – July 1996
No. of volumes 18

TV anime
Directed by Hajime Kamegaki
Studio Studio Pierrot
Network Animax, TV Tokyo
GMA 7
Animax

Original run 6 April 1995 – 28 March 1996
No. of episodes 52

OVA: 1
Directed by Hajime Kamegaki
Studio Studio Pierrot
No. of episodes 3
Released 25 October 1996

OVA: 2
Directed by
Studio Studio Pierrot
No. of episodes 6
Released 25 May 1997

OVA: Eikoden
Directed by Nanako Shimazaki
Studio Studio Pierrot
No. of episodes 4
Released 21 December 2001

Characters

The main characters are a Japanese girl, Miaka Yūki, brought into the other world and declared to be the "Suzaku no Miko" or shrine maiden of Suzaku by the emperor Hotohori, and the seven "Suzaku Seishi" or celestial warriors of Suzaku. [[Vermilion Bird (Chinese constellation) | Suzaku]] is a red phoenix, the Guardian of the South in Chinese astrology, and the Suzaku Seishi correspond to the Chinese constellations.

Suzaku is a red Phoenix god and also the protector of the country of Konan (Hong Nan). He appears to Miaka later when she has returned to her world and asks for her help. He is compassionate as far as the beast gods go, and honestly tries to allow Miaka and Tamahome to be together forever.

Miaka Yūki (夕城美朱 Yūki Miaka) is the main character in the manga and anime series Fushigi Yūgi. She's an ordinary high school girl with a tremendous appetite and is generous and cares greatly for others. She became the priestess of Suzaku, or the Suzaku no Miko. She admittedly isn't the brightest crayon in the box, despite studying extensively for her high school entrance exams and going to juku (cram school) for hours on end. Her goal is to pass the entrance exam for Junon High School to please her mother and be with her best friend Yui (an admitted genius), though she really wants to attend Yotsubadai High School with her friends.

Miaka is also an avid fan of anime and imitates several characters during the course of the story. In episode 5 she impersonates Sailor Moon's "I will punish you, in the name of the moon" introduction (this is also a nod to the fact that actress Kae Araki was the voice of Sailor Chibi-Moon) and in later episodes mimicks Astroboy and even Doraemon.


Date Of Birth: 12 May 1977
Age: 15
Height: 1.58m (about 5 feet, 2 and 1/4 inches)
Weight: 48 kg.
Blood type: B
Birthplace: Tokyo
Third District Junior High School, 9th Grade, 4th Homeroom, Seat Number 18.
Family: Mother and older brother (Keisuke)
Hobbies: Reading manga (comics), eating and making cookies
Abilities: As a priestess of Suzaku, has a latent ability to protect herself.
Personality: Outgoing and optimistic. Amiable with everyone. Tends to be guileless and sentimental. Never suspicious. Naïve, but sometimes surprises adults with an insightful comment. Can be unassuming. Magnanimous and courageous but somewhat unsophisticated. Seems to give the impression that she always needs help so she always seems to have someone looking after her. Believes herself to be considerate.
Voices: Kae Araki (Japanese), Ruby Marlowe (English), Rose Barin (Tagalog)

Tamahome (鬼宿) is a character is the anime and manga series Fushigi Yūgi.

First portrayed as greedy and only seems to want to help out when he is paid. Of course later on in the series it is revealed that he only acts greedy for a special cause. He later fell in love with Miaka after she confessed her love to him and was struck ill. He cares for all the Suzaku Seven and is deeply wounded when some of them die. Tamahome is a easy-going, lovable warrior. In the OVA Season 1 3rd episode, he is reborn in Miaka's world as Taka.

Real Name: Sō Kishuku ~ Xong Guixiu
AKA: Taka Sukunami, Obake-chan (Little Ghost)
Character: Ogre (could also mean Devil or Ghost), located on his forehead
Constellation: Cancer
Date Of Birth: 28 June
Age: 17
Height: 1.80m (about 5 feet, 11 inches)
Bloodtype: O
Birthplace: Hakko Village, Juso prefecture in Konan Empire ~ Bai-Jiang Village, Shou-Shuang Prefecture, Hong-Nan
Weapon: Fists, street fighting, nunchaaku (when he sided with Seiryu)
Family: Father (Kyuen), mother (Yuugetsu - died when he was 12), 2 younger brothers (Chuei ~Zhong Rong (12) and Shunkei ~ Chun-Jing (7)), and 2 younger sisters (Gyokuran ~ Yu-Lun (9) and Yuiren ~ Jie-Lian (5))
Hobbies: Making money
Abilities: Martial arts in general, he has the ability to channel his Chi into energy blast's and when emotionally motivated he can sometimes use his Chi to increase his strength, speed and reflexes in combat
Personality: On the outside he is very chipper, and that leads to some comic expressions. But he's tough on the inside (so he thinks). On the other hand, he is very shy. (He had to become stoic for his family's sake.) That's why he was hard on Miaka at first. He sacrifices himself for the sake of others, and won't back down against an enemy.
Voices: Hikaru Midorikawa (Japanese), David Hayter as Sean Barker (English), Lloyd Navera (Tagalog).

Taka Sukunami

Miaka's last wish was for her and Tamahome to be together forever. Encouraged by her warriors and by Taiitsukun, Miaka hoped that her heart's desire would be granted. A month later, after her middle school graduation, Miaka's older brother Keisuke introduced her to a new classmate of his, Taka Sukunami. Taka remembered a past life when he was one of seven destined to protect a young girl who would save their world from destruction. He remembered that he was once called Tamahome, but he didn't remember any particular details about his former life. During a class field trip to the Takamatsuzuka Burial Mound in Nara, Suzaku reached out to Miaka to aid him on a quest. A Demon God was threatening the Universe of the Four Gods and her world, and Miaka was once again needed to save the world. A later encounter with Suzaku gives Miaka even more answers as to the origins of Taka. The love between Miaka and Taka was a strong source of Suzaku's powers, and because of their strong love, Suzaku was able to create a version of Tamahome to exist in the real world. However, the Demon God (later revealed to be Tenkō) realized that Suzaku's powers were weak in the real world (attributed to the fact that the southern wall of the Takamatsuzuka Burial Mound was destroyed by grave robbers) and was attempting to ursurp the powers of heaven and destroy everything. Suzaku charged Miaka with the quest of retrieving seven stones (one which had already been recovered) which contained Tamahome's memories. When Tamahome's memories were placed back into Taka, Suzaku's powers would be restored and Tenkō could be sealed away once more.

Hotohori (星宿) is a character in the manga and anime series Fushigi Yūgi.

The beautiful narcissistic fourth emperor of Konan. When he first heard about the Suzaku no Miko at a young age, he thought the priestess would be the one for him and love him for himself, instead of his title. Eventually, when he met Miaka, he loved her deeply and would do anything for her. Thus, he became Tamahome's rival, but stepped aside when he realized Miaka only had eyes for Tamahome. He eventually marries a woman named Houki, who bears a striking resemblance to Nuriko. He is killed by Nakago during the battle between Konan and Kutou, leaving Houki pregnant with his son Boushin.

Real Name: Seishuku ~ Xingxiu
AKA: Saihitei ~ Caipidi
Character: Stars, located on the left side of his neck
Constellation: Hydra
Date Of Birth: 2 April
Age: 18
Height: 1.82m (5 feet, 11½ inches)
Bloodtype: A
Birthplace: Eiyo, Capital of Konan Empire ~ Rong-Yang, capital city of the Hong-Nan Empire
Weapon: Sword
Family: Mother (Motaikō), elder brother (Shu Tendō), 3 half brothers (Ōgi, Bogyoku, and Kotsuki), 2 younger half-sisters, wife (You Houki) and son (Boushin AKA Reizeitei)
Hobbies: Reading, fashion
Abilities: Fencing (received expert training as a child)
Personality: He seems like the type that hides his feelings, but he's actually a warm and gentle man. As the ruler of his kingdom, he was raised surrounded by adults, so it's no wonder he looks old for his age. He looks cold and harsh when he's sitting on the throne because of his isolated and lonely upbringing. He never had any real love from his parents, the previous emperor and empress, so he's very attracted to Miaka's warmth. When he's around her, he turns into a normal young man. The worst part (or best part) about him is that he's a total narcissist. Due to his sheltered background he doesn't know much about the world.
Voices: Takehito Koyasu (Japanese), Kirk Thornton as Sparky Thornton (English)


Nuriko (柳宿) is a character in the manga and anime series Fushigi Yūgi.

Nuriko first appears disguised as Kourin in the Emperor's harem (which Hotohori never goes to unless to welcome new maidens). "Kourin" was in fact Nuriko's younger sister who died at a young age; he began behaving and dressing like her to keep her memory alive.

Nuriko is the only consistently crossdressing, physically strong warrior in the series and is very infatuated with his fellow warrior, Hotohori. In addition to that, it is later revealed that he also loves Miaka (and according to creator Yuu Watase, Nuriko is bisexual), though the exact nature of this love is never revealed due to his death shortly after admitting his love for her. However, within Hotohori's character novel consists a letter written by Nuriko to Houki. It was written just before his death and in it he says he's fallen in love with someone special (Miaka). Nuriko is the first Suzaku warrior to die in the story. He was killed during a fight with Seiryū Seishi Ashitare. Near the end of his life he dresses as a man so he can properly protect Miaka.

Real Name: Chō Ryūen ~ Tiao Liujuan
AKA: Chou Kourin ~ Tiao Kanglin
Character: Willow (Yanagi), under his left collar bone
Constellation: Hydra
Date Of Birth: 10 March
Age: 18
Height: 1.66m (5 feet, 5½ inches)
Bloodtype: B
Birthplace: Eiyo, Capital of Konan Empire
Weapon: Armlets which increase strength.
Family: Parents, elder brother (Rokou), younger sister (Kourin - deceased), uncle (Sonjun), and aunt (Fuyou)
Hobbies: Dressing like a woman, fashion, makeup
Abilities: Superhuman strength, come hither eyes
Personality: Nuriko is biologically a man, but judging by his looks, tone of voice and all other factors, Nuriko seems like a woman, and as a woman is infatuated with Hotohori. The uninitiated may simply see a homosexual, but as Nuriko puts it, "I have a man's body but a woman's heart." When not angry or being calculating, Nuriko can be a very level-headed, compassionate person. He's the jealous type, but he's also a worrier. Nuriko seems to worry most about Miaka and Tamahome's relationship. Miaka looks up to Nuriko as an older sister, but there is a part of him that remains very manly. It should be noted that the reason Nuriko cross-dresses is because he believes that it makes him feel closer to Kourin, as revealed in episodes 30 and 32; as a child, he began cross-dressing days after his sister's demise.
Romantic Interests: When Nuriko is first introduced into the series, he identifies as gay and cross-dresses as a woman. While he stops doing so in order to be able to better protect Miaka, he maintains his love for Hotohori. Though he is jealous of Miaka - for Hotohori admits his love for her early on in the series - Nuriko remains (relatively) mature about the situation, and he and Miaka grow close. Later on, Nuriko comes to terms with the fact that his cross-dressing resulted from the unyielding pain of losing his sister Kourin, and concludes that he had been trying to live his life as Kourin would have, not as he would have. This revelation allows him to finally allow himself to experience life as a man. He cuts his hair, which once hung down to his waist in a braid, and admits to Tamahome that he loves Miaka as more than a friend. Throughout the rest of the series, even after his death from Ashitare, one of the Seiryu Warriors, the friendship between Nuriko and Miaka remains strong.
Voices: Chika Sakamoto (Japanese), Mary Elizabeth McGlynn as Melissa Williams (English)

Chichiri (井宿) is a character in the manga and anime series Fushigi Yūgi.

A blue haired Buddhist monk trained by Taiitsu-kun. When he first appears, he is wearing a mask in order to hide a scar acquired at the age of eighteen when he "learned" that his best friend had in a way cheated with his fiancee. He is the oldest and wisest of all of the Suzaku warriors and thus thinks of himself as their older brother, who looks after them all. He is known to say "na no da" at the end of all of his phrases, which translates to "ya know" in the English version, much to the dismay of the original fans.. At the end of the series, he and Tasuki are the only living Suzaku seishi remaining in the Universe of the Four Gods.

Real Name: Ri Hōjun ~ Li Fang-zhun
Character: Well, located on his right knee
Constellation: Gemini
Date Of Birth: 21 May
Age: 24: 27 by the series' end.
Height: 1.75m (5 feet,9 inches)
Blood type: Unknown
Birthplace: Unknown, though is has been revealed that it was in a village along the Shouryuu (Rising Dragon) River, probably close to the Kotou border
Weapon: Wizardry, staff (shakujou), hat (kasa), mantle (kesa)
Family: Parents and a younger sister (all died in flood)
Hobbies: Fishing
Abilities: Learned his abilities from Taiitsukun (includes instantaneous mobility, freezing opponets, etc.)
Personality: An elusive character. A masked man with a seemingly light heart, Chichiri is a mystery. He can turn super-deformed (chibi) and suddenly be very serious. He's the most neutral character of the Seven Celestial Warriors of Suzaku. If Tamahome and Hotohori are the obvious leaders of the warriors, Chichiri is the man manipulating from the shadows. He's the power behind the throne, and he always helps out. (You could also call him the adult who looks after the kids.) He can use many techniques Taiitsukun taught him. He's unconcerned with his own mortality. He has become much like a typical Zen master with his abandonment of earthly desires.
Voices: Tomokazu Seki (Japanese), Jim Taggert as Sean Mitchell (English)

Tasuki (翼宿) is a character from the manga and anime series Fushigi Yūgi.

Tasuki at first is seen as loud (though most of the time he always is) and a potty mouth. He always says he hates girls (most believe he dislikes them because he has over 6 sisters) but loves Miaka as he would a younger sibling. Is a pyromaniac leader of Mt. Leikaku bandits. He's one of the funniest characters in the series and also the most sentimental, which fans often find contradicts his personality. Beneath that rebellious, tough, bandit exterior is a sweetie (even if he'll try to deny it). He is also extremely quick and agile. He loves to joke around and just act like a goof-ball. His preferred weapon is a metal tessen (fan) that can emit flames when he cries out "Rekka Shin'en" (or "Lekka Shien," depending on the translation). At the end of the series, he and Chichiri are the only Suzaku seishi remaining in the Universe of the Four Gods.

Real Name: Kō Shun'u ~ Hō Junyu
AKA: Genrō ~ Huan Lang
Character: Wings, located on his right forearm
Constellation: Crater
Date Of Birth: 18 April
Age: 18
Height: 1.78m (5 feet, 10 inches)
Bloodtype: B
Birthplace: Foot of Mt. Leikaku, in Koshu Taito province of Konan Empire
Weapon: The tessen, which resembles a metal fan, and can throw fire.
Family: Parents, older sister (Aidou) and 4 other older sisters
Hobbies: Fighting
Abilities: Martial arts, fast-footed, generate fire blast from iron fan.
Personality: He's like a little boy who got bigger but no more mature. But when the chief bandit (Hakurou) of Mt. Leikaku took Tasuki under his wing, Tasuki found his calling. He started to improve his martial skills in order to be like - and carry on after - his mentor as the bandit leader. He also learned (along with Koji) the use of the iron fan which was changed in the first season to a diamond fan. now that he's left his close friend Koji as the bandit leader, Tasuki's gone off to help Miaka on her quests. Tasuki is too straight forward, simple minded, and quick to pick a fight. Despite that, he is bound by chivalry, yet gets emotional easily. He unfortunately can't cope with swimming; a few episodes show that Tasuki "can't swim". His usual excuse for it is because he's a "man of the mountains". However in the Series 2 OVA, he saves Miaka from drowning by "swimming," that is he pushes along the bottom of the lake in water that only comes up to his armpits. When Chichiri appears, Tasuki is startled into deeper water, where he instinctively began to tread water. Only when Chichiri points out that he can't swim does he stop, resulting in his sinking.
Voices: Nobutoshi Canna (Japanese), Daran Norris as James Penrod (English)

Mitsukake (軫宿) is a character in the manga and anime series Fushigi Yūgi.

The healer of Suzaku's warriors. He is soft-spoken and one of the most serious of the Suzaku Seven. The son of a country doctor, he put his natural talents to work and often would help his father with his rounds. However after the death of Shoka, the daughter of the local nobleman and with whom he was in love, Mitsukake gave up medicine and devoted all of his time and energy into finding a miracle herb that could cure any illness. It was during this reclusive stage that Miaka and the others found him, and with a little persuasion managed to get him to join them. During the battle between Konan and Kutou, he is severely wounded by Nakago, and later gives up all his strength to heal the wounded. His cat Tama is the unofficial mascot of the Suzaku Seven, and after Mitsukake's death, becomes Chichiri's pet.

Real Name: Myō Ju-an ~ Miao Nioh-an
Character: Loneliness (but can also mean chariot cross-board), located on his left palm
Constellation: The crow
Date Of Birth: 7 May
Age: 22
Height: 1.99m (6 feet, 6½ inches)
Bloodtype: O
Birthplace: A manor near Choko of northern part of Konan Empire
Weapon: Some fighting abilities (mostly strength-based)
Family: Father (Keiyu), his cat Tama
Hobbies: Taking care of animals
Abilities: Healing powers, can use often to heal minor injuries but for life threatening injuries he would need up to a day to regenerate his life force.
Personality: He's silent, and because he's expressionless most of the time, he's thought to be aloof. But he's actually just shy and doesn't know how to be more outgoing. He's very kind to the weak, as well as to animals, the elderly, kids, and of course the sick. He's utterly devoted to healing. A calm, kind man. Deep inside he still cherishes the memory of the late Shoka.
Voices: Kōji Ishii (Japanese), Richard Epcar as Richard George (English)

Chiriko (張宿) is a character in the manga and anime series Fushigi Yūgi.

The youngest and the genius among the seven seishi. He is an extremely intelligent child who becomes attached to Tasuki, and likewise Tasuki becomes attached to him. When he first appears, it is revealed he was studying to take an exam to take a seat in the government. He and Chichiri are the two technical minds of the team, but Chiriko is ruled by his character: when it is not on his body, he's a rather average child with limited intelligence, which is a source of frustration for him. The youngest and weakest member of the group, it is unusual that he would gravitate towards someone like Tasuki; however, the reasoning behind it is that Tasuki always wanted a younger brother and is more than happy to fill the roll for Chiriko. His body was taken over by Seiryū Senshi Miboshi, but after regaining control, he stabs himself, taking Miboshi with him to his death.

Real Name: Ō Dōkun ~ Wang Daohui
Character: Stretching (can also mean stretched net), on his right foot
Constellation: Hydra
Age: 13
Height: 1.48m (4 feet,10 inches)
Bloodtype: A
Birthplace: Jozen City of west part of Konan Empire
Weapon: His incredible intelligence, leaf flute
Characteristics: Genius, youngest of group, smart
Family: Aged mother, elder brother (Gishou), and a nephew (Doukun)
Hobbies: Reading and researching
Abilities: Exceptionally high intelligence, (more so when his character appears) however, becomes somewhat of a crybaby when his character disappears.
Personality: Because he's so small for his age, he looks almost like a toddler. His incredibly high IQ gave him an interest in research at a very early age, and his experience of the world has main been through books and study. On the other hand, his intelligence is tied to the appearance of the Chinese character on his foot, and when it disappears, he is even less mentally adept than a normal child his age. (He also becomes something of a crybaby.) He's very sensitive about his height and his peculiar intelligence, and this had made him strive to grow up to be a "man of strength." He's a nice, quiet, good-student type.
Voices: Tomoko Kawakami (Japanese), Zan (English)