+Anima is a manga series written and drawn by Natsumi Mukai. It was serialized in Dengeki Comic Gao from 2001 to 2005, and was licensed in North America by Tokyopop.
Beings who possess animal-like powers walk among humans in this alternate universe. These mysterious mutants, the +Anima, are shunned by society. Four outcasts in particular - Cooro, a boy with crow-like powers; Husky, a fish-boy; Senri, a bear +Anima; and a girl named Nana, who wields the power of the bat - search for others like themselves while trying to gain acceptance in a world cruel to anyone or anything that is different.
Provides examples of:
- Abusive Parents: Nana reveals that her father used to beat her and her mother. A flashback shows that during one beating Nana tried to stop him which accidentally led to her impaling his hand with her sewing scissors. In a rage he chased her into the dark woods with a cleaver, where she first turned into her bat +Anima to save her life.
- Adults Are Useless: In Sailand, Nana, Cooro and Senri go off on their own to 'save' Husky when they thought that he was sold as a slave against his will. The adult, who was supposedly looking after them, had refused to break into the mansion.
- Aerith and Bob: In the fifth volume, the four mains (Cooro, Husky, Senri and Nana) meet a boy named Kevin. (Since they travel a lot and have crossed into at least one other country, cultural differences might justify this.)
- Animorphism: The main premise of the story is that the world is populated by people who can partially (or very rarely, completely) transform into a specific animal, known as +Anima. +Anima gain traits from the animal they transform into, such as wings, claws, fins, tails or sometimes enhanced strength and senses. This phenomenon is a subject of much speculation and suspicion amongst ordinary people, with most of them either envying or hating +Anima. There are many theories as to why one becomes a +Anima, with many scientists thinking it has something to do with Superpowerful Genetics, but it's eventually revealed that +Anima are made, not born, and gain their powers through experiencing life-threatening danger.
- Animal Motif: Ofcourse a manga about people who transform into animals would have this, and most of the +Anima we see have a motif fitting with the animal they derive their powers from, and it's even reflected somewhat in their personalities:
- Cooro has crows, manifesting as a pair of black wings sprouting from his back. Though he's not quite as smart as a crow, he's shown to be Constantly Curious (sometimes to his own detriment) and insightful, fitting with his motif. Many people mistake him for an omen if bad luck or doom as well, though his actual personality subverts this.
- Husky has fish, manifesting as a merman-like tail, fins, and gills. He borrows the least noticeable traits from his animal, though he is shown to have a fondness for pretty or shiny gems, similar to how fish can be easily lured in by shiny things.
- Senri has bears, manifesting as a furry claw on his right arm. Whereas Husky borrows the least from his animal, Senri borrows the most, being a mostly quiet and unassuming Gentle Giant who will absolutely rip you to pieces if you hurt people he cares about.
- Nana has bats, manifesting as large ears and a pair of wings on her back. Nana is mostly friendly, but also has the easily panicked and/or jittery nature of a bat, as well as the cuteness of one.
- Rose has cats, manifesting as claws, fangs, Facial Markings that look like whiskers, and slitlike pupils. She's shown to be laid-back and snarky, but like Senri, can be vicious if you hurt people she cares about.
- Mr. Bison has...well, bison, manifesting as thick fur and horns on his head. He's shown to be a Gentle Giant, similar to Senri, but slightly more aggressive.
- Kazana has hawks, manifesting as wings on his back and talons on his feet. He's shown to be proud and powerful, but also a little bit aggressive, and it reflects his status as a Well-Intentioned Extremist.
- Daisy has coyotes, manifesting in a heightened sense of smell and a tail. She displays Undying Loyalty to Lady Crystala, the series' resident +Anima slavery abolitionist.
- Sheriff Hopps from the parallel works manga has an alligator anima, manifesting as his head transforming into that of an alligator. He's shown to be capable of hiding his status as a +Anima much better than most of the characters we see, fitting with how alligators are masters of ambush and camouflage.
- Artificial Human:
- Blanca. She is created from dreams.
- Subverted with Cooro, as Aaron's story negates what Fly tells Cooro about his birth.
- Arranged Marriage: Igneous' cousin is in one. This comes across as...
strange, since his cousin is a very young girl and her fiancé is significantly older than her (closer to Senri's age if not older), though at least for now their relationship is more about him protecting her and trying to make her happy than anything else. - Attractive Bent-Gender: Husky, whenever he's cross-dressing. And even when he's not. (He likes jewelry...)
- Bears Are Bad News: Senri, though he's generally nice unless you decide to harm his friends. Of course, there's the matter of what happens when his eyepatch comes off...
- Berserk Button:
- Don't call Husky a girl. And definitely don't hit on him while doing so.
- Also, don't hurt Senri's friends. Or take his book. Or, as Kazana learns, disrespect Lady Crystala in his presence.
- Talking about +Anima or Kim-un-Kur around Igneous isn't the best idea, either.
- Big Bad: The series starts out having No Antagonist. By the end of the story, however, we learn that the villain of our story is none other than the seemingly kind researcher, Fly.
- Big Eater: Cooro is known for having a large appetite. He's usually the reason why the group runs out of food quickly.
- Big, Screwed-Up Family: Husky's family. His father, the King of Sailand, is the reason for Sailand's oppression and enslavement of +Anima. On top of that, the king has many wives who constantly gossip and compete amongst themselves to win his favor so that their own childern could rise higher in status. It's implied that Husky grew up to be misogynistic because he witnessed said wives mistreating and abusing his mother. When Husky's father picks him as his favorite, (mainly because his mother Marien is implied to be the king's favorite wife), Husky's siblings start bullying him out of jealousy, making fun of his feminine appearance and gravelly voice. The competition and backstabbing escalates to the point that Husky's stepmother tries to drown him in a pond so her own son could become Crown Prince, which turns him into a +Anima and forces him to leave Sailand. The only members of his family Husky can really say he has a good relationship with is his mother who loves him dearly and his Cool Aunt Lady Crystala, who taught him how to fight and is running a caravan to free as many +Anima slaves from her brother's rule as she can.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing:
- Magdala, who acts like a friendly and likable girl before who gives her friends all the food and material comfort they could want. It's revealed that said "friends" are actually forced to stay with and work for her, and she punishes them terribly if they try to escape and even tries to have them killed. It's implied by the end of the Maggie coliseum arc that she's slowly growing out of this, when one of her former "playmates" becomes a +Anima just to escape from her, forcing her to have a Heel Realization, and she sees that her power is only absolute within Maggie village and not outside of it. She later decides to help the main gang escape and states that she wishes to explore the world someday so that she can learn more.
- Fly, who at first comes across as a ditzy but kindhearted and well-meaning scientist, before it's revealed that all of that is a cover for a selfish, cruel and manipulative person, who spent years taking advantage of Cooro's insecurities and people-pleasing nature, later taking his Anima and driving the kid into a suicidal depression.
- Bittersweet Ending: Cooro's Anima returns to him and the others convince him not to kill himself; Fly falls to his death after losing Cooro's Anima while Blanca fades away, leaving Igneous distraught; Marca continues her research; Cooro, Husky, Senri and Nana decide to live with Harden and Margaret (though the author notes that this arrangement is unlikely to be permanent) and Marca notes that, with the exception of Senri, the children will still have to say goodbye to their Animas someday, and that day is likely coming sooner rather than later.
- Break the Cutie: Having his Anima taken from him by Fly was pretty much what finally sent Cooro mindlessly spiraling. See Driven to Suicide for the outcome.
- Cat Girl: Rose, though she only has the claws, slitted eyes, Naruto-like Facial Markings - no ears or tail. She also has fangs; they come out if you mess with her little brother.
- Central Theme: Family is not limited by blood relation—a Family of Choice is just as valid as a family by blood.
- Cheerful Child: Cooro is the most cheery and innocent of the main characters.
- Chekhov's Gunman: Blanca. We see her on the FIRST PAGE of the entire series, right before chapter 1.
- Cool Big Sis: Rose is this to her younger brother Pinion, and the main reason that she's working so hard is to be able to take care of him better. To some extent, she also becomes one to our gang, especially Nana, who seems to see her as a role model.
- Crossing the Desert: For some reason, most of Sailand just is a desert. And with help from Crystala, Cooro and Nana cross one to try and save Husky and Senri.
- Curiosity Is a Crapshoot: In Chapter 8.3, Shines in the Darkness (one of the parallel chapters), Cooro "saves" a traveler, Mr. Gates, from some bandits (actually the rest of the gang in disguise) and is given some money as thanks. Mr. Gates is shown taking an interest the fact that Cooro is a +Anima, and later invites him to come meet another +Anima, but warns him not to tell his friends. Cooro, being the Constantly Curious Cheerful Child that he is, sees no problem in sneaking away to meet a stranger, which turns out badly for him when Mr. Gates is revealed to be a Mad Scientist who dissects +Anima and uses their parts to make a Pseudo-+Anima suit. Only his friends and the town sheriff's timely intervention saves Cooro from sharing the same fate.
- Curtains Match the Windows: Cooro (brown eyes and hair), Husky (silvery-blue eyes and hair) and Senri (gray eyes and hair).
- Dark and Troubled Past: All of the main characters have one of these, because childhood trauma is what causes children to become +Anima.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Cooro has black wings, which makes most people think he's a bad guy, ie, an angel of death. However, he is nothing but a +Anima, albeit a very unique one.
- Deconstruction: Of Traumatic Superpower Awakening; no kids, just because you got some cool powers out of it doesn't mean that your trauma will just instantly go away and even if it does there's still the fact that not everyone thinks your powers are cool.
- Did We Just Have Tea with Cthulhu?: When the gang sit around and talk with Fly, who tries to sweet talk them into giving up their Animas. For some reason, only Cooro is the one catching on, albeit silently. It's implied that Cooro may be the only one who notices because he had already promised to give up his Anima to Fly as a very young child.
- Does That Sound Like Fun to You?: After Sinon becomes a +Anima to escape from her pet lions, Magdala tries to rationalize why this is a good thing that he should thank her for by saying that she's the reason he can fly now. Husky, who had just lectured her on how +Anima are usually childhood trauma victims, is understandably furious, but Cooro jumps in to give a slightly more passive-aggressive version of this trope by cheerfully asking Magdala if she would enjoy becoming a +Anima. Tellingly, she can't come up with an answer.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: Fly befriended Cooro when the latter was just a very young child. He expressed a strong attraction to Cooro's Anima and took advantage of the boy's naivete by tricking him into promising that he'll give said Anima to him when he's older. Years later, Cooro leaves and Fly grows obsessed with getting him back, stalking him relentlessly. When Cooro finally shows some resistance, realizing that Fly is bad news, Fly resorts to lying to him when he's at his most vulnerable. Fly then takes Cooro's Anima by force, driving Cooro to a suicidal stupor. Give up? Fly is basically coded as a child molester.
- Don't Fear the Reaper: More in spirit than anything—Cooro mentions that the nuns who raised him had this attitude; that angels of death served an important purpose, just as important as the more traditionally benevolent angels of light, and should be accepted rather than feared. This is why they took him in despite believing him to be exactly that.
- Doorstop Baby: A variation; Cooro fell into a church when he was a baby, having become +Anima during his postmortem delivery, while his mother's newly-deceased body was being consumed by crows. The nuns there took him in and raised him.
- Driven to Suicide: Volume 10: Cooro has a falling out with his friends over whether they should give up their Anima or not, with Husky and Nana feeling angry that he couldn't see why they'd want to give up their powers (since unlike them, Cooro has had his Anima since birth and doesn't have traumatic memories associated with it). Before they can reconcile, Fly steps in, deliberately driving a wedge between them and isolating Cooro, then emotionally manipulating him to make it easier to convince him to give up his Anima. When Cooro tries to resist, Fly lies to him about being an experiment that Fly himself created, and finally surgically removes his Anima. The combination of losing his best friends, his Anima and the lie of thinking he's not even a real person drives Cooro to a suicidal depression, and only his friends last-minute arrival, where they apologize about their fight and urge him to think about himself for once, stops him from killing himself.
- Dude Looks Like a Lady: Husky is petite, has smooth skin, and huge eyes, and could make a very convincing mermaid princess by just wearing a wig. Even Nana thought he was a girl at one point.
- Eyepatch of Power: Senri wears one to keep his rabid, man-eating Anima contained. When it comes off, you have but seconds to run far, far away. His +Anima is also why he doesn't express any emotion.
- Extreme Doormat: Cooro. He has emotions and opinions, but smiles through it all and never goes against another's choice, even if he wants to. The resolution of his character arc is learning to do what he wants to do instead of trying to always please other people at the cost of his own happiness, which he finally learns at Husky's urging when the latter talks him out of his suicide attempt.
- Fairy Tale Motifs: The "Mermaid Princess" legend pararells to The Non-Disneyfied "The Little Mermaid" story.
- Family of Choice: Our four main heroes end up this way. They love and care for each other just like a family, with all of them turning down the chance to have a permanent home just so they can keep traveling together.
- Fantastic Racism: In some chapters, the group come across people who hate +Anima. Taken to its extreme in Sailand, where +Anima are enslaved.
- Fantasy Counterpart Culture: The Kim-Un-Kur are based on the indigenous Ainu people of Japan, with their name even being partially derived from Ainu language.
- Faux Affably Evil: When we first see Fly, he seems kind of nice, if not a bit eccentric. Later, however, he shows his true colors and quickly turns out to be the series' Big Bad.
- Fetish:
- Senri tends to have a thing for Bloodplay. (Although not introduced sexually, it's a pretty herfderf concept.)
- Rose, being older than the kids, did seem to catch on to the sexual aspect of it... She suddenly seemed to give up on her interest in Senri after he licked Cooro.
- Flash Back: Nana's explanation of how she got her Anima, among numerous others about their pasts.
- Friend to All Children: Senri. He's only about 15 or 16 himself, but he will go great lengths to protect a child, immediately from the moment he sees it's needed.
- Gender-Blender Name: Husky's real name is Myrrha, which is most commonly used for girls. He was nicknamed "Husky" because of the 'husky' sound of his voice.
- Gilded Cage: Maggie Vil is this to the children Magdala take in as her playmates and guards. They are generally treated well and given everything their hearts desire, but only as long as they stay on her good side. And God help anyone who decides they want to leave...
- Goggles Do Nothing: Averted, sort of. Cooro uses his ONCE in the entire series.
- Gold Digger: Played for (rather cute) laughs. Nana briefly wonders what it would be like to marry Husky...and the first perk she discovers to it is that she'd be married to a rich man.
- Good Wings, Evil Wings: Nana (bat wings) and Cooro (crow wings) would generally fall under 'Evil' wings, but the characters certainly aren't evil. Fly with Cooro's wings, on the other hand...
- Go Out with a Smile: Fly smiles as he's falling to his death in the ocean. His last words are an expression of how happy he is that he got to fly with Blanca.
- Hair Color Dissonance: Husky's hair is described in-universe as being blonde but it appears to be blue or silver in volume covers. Word of God states it is silver.
- Happily Married: Harden and Margaret. They're so happy together, in fact, that Margaret's +Anima abilities faded some time after their marriage—he was her guardian now, so she no longer needed her Anima.
- Happiness in Slavery: Crystala acts as more of a protector than a master; her slaves, including Daisy and Senri, in his backstory, are clearly loyal to her and seem quite happy.
- He-Man Woman Hater/Girls Have Cooties: Husky's technically prepubescent, but since he doesn't actually think girls are 'icky', and has actual legitimate reasons for hating them, it's safe to assume it's unlikely for him to really warm up to women in the future. He eventually warms up to Nana. He just doesn't show it well.
- Hot Springs Episode: Chapter 14, when the crew finds themselves in the town of Bubbly.
- I Believe I Can Fly: There sure are a lot of winged +Anima; of the 15 named ones, 8 are birds or other flying critters of some sort, including Blanca, though she's all sorts of things at once. There's even Shadow, who can't fly, but he wishes he could. Justified as children gain their Anima when they are about to die and see the animal in question. You're a lot more likely to see a bird than anything else just because they're always around and the power of flight in most cases will save the child's life.
- Identity Amnesia: Senri gets this after his eyepatch is removed. He not only goes berserk, but does not remember Cooro, Husky, or Nana. This happened previously when Senri was young, and was given his pressed flower book to remember Crystala.
- Idiot Hero: Cooro, who despite having the most skill with his Anima, comes across as too naive and trusting to really be smart. Although this is Downplayed, since he's shown to have more insight and knowledge about situations than he first appears.
- I Just Want to Be Normal: Nana often feels like this, and at one point she is offered a chance to give up her Anima, though she eventually decides against it.
- Instant Cosplay Surprise:
- Played a little different. Cooro is stripped of clothing very quickly by Husky (who also strips himself), instead of being changed into a new outfit. Cooro comments on Husky's ability to remove entire outfits from two people in a span of what seems to be 3 seconds, and soon becomes confused on 'why [he's] naked too.'
- Also played straight, when Nana knocks Husky out and puts him in a dress.
- Interrupted Suicide: Husky manages to convince Cooro not to kill himself at the last minute with an Armor Peircing Question.Husky: What about you, Cooro!? Try telling us what you want for once!
- Jaywalking Will Ruin Your Life:
- Sinon tries to quit his 'job' as Magdala's guard, and in turn gets thrown into a coliseum and used as a play toy for Magdala's pet Lionesses. It nearly kills him.
- Similarly, Husky and Cooro politely turn down the opportunity to become her guards, so they get thrown into a dungeon and get water poured on them all night so they can't sleep.
- Karmic Death: Fly falls to his death after losing the Anima that he stole from Cooro..
- Kids Are Cruel: None of Husky's siblings treated him well, bullying him about his effeminate appearance and 'husky' voice. Although his brother Keane eventually comes to regret this after he mistakenly believed that Husky had killed himself.
- Limited Wardrobe: Due to their constant travelings, they only get one new set of clothes through the series. Except Nana, who just turns up with new clothes whenever she feels like it. (She does say where she got them from - she usually sews them herself.)
- Little Bit Beastly: Cooro and Nana, and the majority of lower-tier Anima.. Generally, the lucky Anima who get this are more good. Other minor characters might have more of their body- say, their head- transformed.
- A MacGuffin Full of Money: The treasure chest in one of the extra chapters. But, it ends up getting eaten by an interesting looking fish.
- Made a Slave:
- Senri, in his backstory. He, along with Husky, experienced this again when they reached Sailand.
- And any +Anima who lives in Sailand.
- Husky being sold to the Ringmaster may also count as this.
- Magic Pants: Varies, obviously, depending on what kind of animal your Anima is based on. Probably the most confusing is the fact that Cooro and Nana's wings just seem to phase through their shirts, leaving them totally unscathed after the transformation's complete.
- Manipulative Bastard: Fly, who spent a very long time manipulating Cooro.
- The Mind Is a Plaything of the Body: An early chapter mentions how Anima who are unlucky enough to have a monstrous transformation have a chance of losing their humanity if they are not careful.
- Mistaken for Transformed: In one arc, the kids hear rumors of a noble who became a bee +Anima and ended up completely transforming into a man-eating bee monster, a form Cooro meets up close and personal after the noble's mother, Lady Beena, seemingly lures him into the mansion to feed him to it. It turns out that the monster was neither a +Anima, a man-eater, nor Lady Beena's son at all — he had found a mysterious egg in the manor and left it in the care of one of his servants while he went to contact the nearest research facility. Unfortunately, after the egg hatched and the giant bee grew up quickly on a diet of honey, the servants fled from the manor in fear... neglecting to tell anyone about it before doing so.
- Modest Royalty: Husky never told the others he was a Crown Prince, or even gave any hint that he is a member of royalty, before becoming a +Anima.
- Modesty Towel: Everyone but Rose keeps their towels on after entering the onsen in chapter 14.
- Near-Death Experience: This is what's required to receive Anima powers.
- No Antagonist: Subverted. During the story's initial run, the "antagonist" was the ever present prejudice displayed against +Anima, represented by various bigoted jerks the cast meets on their travels. Fly changed that in the latter half of the series.
- One Myth to Explain Them All: A subtle version. It's implied that legends like mermaids, werewolves or angels may actually be people with Anima powers.
- Our Mermaids Are Different: Husky. For one thing, he's male. That doesn't stop some people from mistaking him for one, though.
- Parental Abandonment: None of the main characters seem to have parents or reliable adult figures in their current life. Cooro was Born from a Dead Woman and raised as in orphan in a church, Nana had to run away from home because her abusive father tried to murder her, Husky has a mother who's implied to love him deeply, but is forced to leave her behind because of the laws of Sailand towards +Anima, and Senri's father was killed when he was possessed by an evil bear spirit before accidentally passing on the curse to his son.
- Parental Favoritism: A very large part of Sailand's Royal Family. The King's children were ranked from Most Favorite to Least Favorite. This is why Husky was named Crown Prince out of birth order. It's also why Dylana then tried to kill him, so her own son could be Crown Prince.
- Perpetual Molt: All the bird +Anima are shown as constantly shedding their feathers whenever they manifest their wings.
- Ping Pong Naïveté: Cooro's usually pretty ignorant to the world, but he has his moments of knowledge and insight.
- Power Tattoo: It's technically a scar, but the +Anima mark is the source of their abilities. However, as shown in Chapter 50, losing an Anima causes the scar to melt away.
- Pretty Boy: Husky has a very pretty appearance, to the point of often being mistaken for a girl, even by his close friends.
- The Runaway: Husky and Nana. Both can technically be considered Type 2. Nana ran away from home when her alcoholic father tried to kill her after she accidentally stabs him with a pair of scissors, and Husky was forced to leave his home when his jealous stepmother tried to drown him and he becomes a +Anima, knowing that staying in Sailand would only endanger him more.
- Silent Bob: Pinion. Senri is more The Quiet One, as he does speak - albeit very rarely and in brief sentences.
- Shipper on Deck/Yaoi Fangirl: Though it's played for laughs, Nana makes a lot of innuendoes about Kevin's crush on "the mermaid" (i.e. Husky). Sometimes she seems to hint at Husky/Cooro, too.
- She also really wants Cyranova and Miranda to get together.
- Ship Tease: Senri and Rose have moments that makes it seem like their relationship could become this, although it ultimately doesn't go anywhere. Husky and Nana and Husky and Cooro also have their moments.
- Shoot Your Mate: Subverted. In one of the extra chapters, Cooro attacks Husky because he thinks it'd be fun, and less because they're in opposing gangs who like to kill each other.
- Stepford Smiler: Cooro. Much like his Extreme Doormatism, Cooro uses his smile and cheer to hide how positively unhappy he is, especially when someone even hints at Fly's person.
- Super Powerful Genetics: People with Anima power are believed to have Kim-un-Kur blood in their veins. In reality, children gain Anima powers from the first animal they see during a Near-Death Experience.
- Super Drowning Skills: You're not Husky? Oh, okay; then you can't even come close to being able to swim.
- More like, "You're not a fish +Anima? Forget you!", since Husky couldn't swim either before he became a +Anima. In fact, that's exactly why he became one.
- Though it tends to be NAMED characters who can't swim. One chapter hints that others who live by water can swim. But not the nobles - swimming was for peasants, as nobles could just have a bridge or ship built.
- More like, "You're not a fish +Anima? Forget you!", since Husky couldn't swim either before he became a +Anima. In fact, that's exactly why he became one.
- Superhuman Trafficking: In Sailand all +Anima are slaves. If they don’t have a master, they will be arrested and sold on the slave market anyway. It’s the law. They are mostly sold to people, who can make use of their powers (swimming +Anima for fishman etc.), but more attractive ones may be bought to just stand around and look pretty, which is what happens to Husky, although it was a deliberate gambit on his part.
- Sweet Polly Oliver: Subverted when Nana spends a whole chapter trying to find a proof that Husky is a crossdressing girl. When he finds out, Husky proves her wrong in no uncertain terms.
- Swords to Plowshares: Harden, an Ultimate Blacksmith, gave up on making weapons of war when he realized War Is Hell, and instead devoted all his smithing skills to making practical domestic tools for him and his wife to use in their daily lives, deciding to never make anything that can't be used for a practical, non-violent purpose again. Despite this, he is still sought after by the army to keep making weapons for them. Eventually, he grants their wish by giving them a box full of... kitchen knives and scissors. The leader of the army is furious, but the soldiers end up admitting that they're very well made and decide to keep them for practical purposes anyway.
- Trademark Favorite Food:
- Cooro and his apples.
-
According to the author, Nana loves homemade food and baked goods, which remind her of a warm and comforting home. - Senri like sweet things, such as honey.
- Apparently, Husky likes eating fish. And before you ask, yes, the appropriate joke was made about that.
- Traumatic Superpower Awakening: This is the way you gain a +Anima in the first place. Deconstructed in many ways too—the trauma doesn't go away just because you got some cool powers out of the deal and even if it does there's still the problem of persecution against Anima, as well as Innocently Insensitive individuals who think having +Anima powers would be fun.
- True Companions: At least two of the main four have given up the possibility of stable and permanent homes to continue traveling with the others.
- Tsundere: Husky, who yells at Cooro and complains about Nana a lot, but it's obvious that he's warmed up to them and cares about them under the surface.
- Unsettling Gender-Reveal: When Nana starts to believe that Husky is a girl because of how he acts and his appearance, even putting him in a dress because he looks so much like one, Husky proves to her that he is a boy by taking his clothes off with her looking away fast in embarrassment.
- Unstoppable Rage: Senri, if he loses control of his +Anima power and lets his animal instincts take over. This would happen every time he loses his Eyepatch of Power
- What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?: Played with - straight, sometimes averted, and lampshaded with Husky, whose Anima powers are only any use when water is involved... which happens a lot. However, Nana once remarks that hey, Husky was the only one who didn't use his Anima in this chapter, to which he answers that duh, there was no water. Cooro then suggests they try to find a lake for their next destination, just because.
- Averted for laughs at one point, when Nana, Husky and Senri take shelter in a cave (Cooro had flown off somewhere and was helping a farmer). The cave floods while Husky is still asleep and he nearly drowns when he wakes up. When he asks Senri and Nana why they didn't wake him, Nana explains that they "figured he'd be fine because he's part-fish".
- Wholesome Crossdresser: Husky, again. In Chapter 1 and Chapter 39/40, he dress up as a beautiful "mermaid princess", and pulls it off really well. Though he usually does this for money.
- Plus that time in chapter 13, though to be fair Nana did it while he was unconscious.
- Wicked Stepmother: Lady Dylana, Husky's stepmother. She tried to drown him so that her own son can become the heir to the kingdom.
- Why Did It Have To Be A Forest At Night?: Nana has a damn good excuse, considering her father tried to murder her in one.
- Winged Humanoid: Cooro, Nana, and all the other bird/flying +Anima. Played a bit straighter with Blanca, since, well, she's not exactly human.
- Youngest Child Wins: Unfortunately for hostile step-brother Keane, Husky isn't hostile back, is younger, and most definitely wins.
