Reviews Manga / Inuyasha

A Rumiko Takahashi classic

I think everyone agrees on that one, Inuyasha is a classic indeed.

The characters are interesting, albeit not very original, and the dynamics between them are kinda typical of a Takahashi work. Let's see: two Tsunderes leads who beat around the bush for so long it becomes really annoying; the token Mouthy Kid; a Yamato Nadeshiko with Action Girl undertones and a Handsome Lech that lusts after her and anything wearing a skirt. Add to that a very evil Big Bad, an Aloof Big Brother, a bunch of spectacularly incompetent Mooks and you've got the cast in a nutshell.

What are they after? A Mac Guffin that will grant them their wishes for power, purity etc... And sharing one's life between Sengoku era and the modern days is SUCH a pain for poor Kagome, really. And Inuyasha had it SO rough as a kid. And so did Miroku who lost his father just like Shippou and Sango who had it even worse with loosing her whole village. Sensing a pattern here? There are much more ways to give characters consistence, you know.

Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoyed the series. But really, do we need SEVEN seasons to get to the conclusion when THREE seasons would have done the trick? Do we need so many filler episodes? And this is what's a real pity actually because the show had much potential with that whole time travel thing and it could have been epic in the proper sense of the word if the fight scenes and the dialogues were a little less trite. And the way the story flounders and drags along for so long can eventually wear out even the most patient viewer.

All in all, it's still very watchable but its replay value is somewhat limited and the countless episodes make the majority of them easily forgettable. As for the manga, which I couldn't finish for the same reason, it is still pretty good stuff but, once you're done with it, you don't feel like reading it again although YMMV still applies I suppose.