Yume Yume Yu Yu
Encyclopedia
is a Japan
ese shōjo
manga
and anime
series created and drawn by Pink Hanamori
. The manga is being published in the monthly shōjo manga anthology Nakayoshi
. There are more than ten chapters published and most of them are compiled into volumes issued by Kodansha
. It is licensed in German by Heyne
.
Yume Yume*Yu Yu is loosely based upon the Shinto miko
and shrines, as well as four constellations in the Chinese Zodiac
: Suzaku — The Vermilion Bird of the South (who represents the summer season and Yin
,), Seiryuu — The Azure Dragon of the East (who represents the spring season as well as Yang
), Genbu — The Black Tortoise of the North (who represents the winter season), and Byakko — The White Tiger of the West (who represents the fall season, Bai Hu in China).
The story follows a young girl, Yume, who is clumsy and unpopular. While dozing in class, she has a vision of a young Miko, telling her that she must be the new Miko. She awakes with a mirror in her hands, and is confused by it. After school, the mirror reveals itself as a portal to a different world as a red-haired boy, named Rekka, appears chasing a unicorn
, the peacekeeper of their world. The Azure Dragon of the East, or Seiryuu, shares that he is not happy a human of the Light world has become Miko, and tries to destroy Yume. None of the Guardians from the other world, except Rekka, believes in Yume. Rekka destroys the mirror so that the Other world-ers can not come through to harm Yume.
It is revealed that the world in which Rekka lives is suffering due to the Light world's exceptional development in such a short span of time. The Unicorn is the peacekeeper, and without the unicorn the world will become endangered. The goal of Yume and Rekka is to find the Unicorn and take it back to its home, as it is its own portal between worlds.
After a time of Rekka living in the Light world, he becomes the Kagura's cousin. Aoi, a boy at Yume's school, is soon revealed to be the King of the Eastern Skies of the Light world. Discovering this, the team decides they must find all the Guardians of the light world to help the Unicorn.
Unicorn (Female)
Mizuki Aoi
Kurobe-sensei
Kaneshiro Mashiro
Kirin, Unicorn (Male)
Rekka Sariu
Yuu Hokyuu
Toufuu Nyan-Nyan
FuuChii
Lee
Yue
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese shōjo
Shojo
The term refers to manga marketed to a female audience roughly between the ages of 10-18. The name romanizes the Japanese 少女 , literally: "little female". Shōjo manga covers many subjects in a variety of narrative and graphic styles, from historical drama to science fiction — often with a strong...
manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
and anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series created and drawn by Pink Hanamori
Pink Hanamori
is a Japanese manga artist known for illustrating the manga Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch which was written by Michiko Yokote. Michiyo Kikuta once worked under Hanamori as an assistant...
. The manga is being published in the monthly shōjo manga anthology Nakayoshi
Nakayoshi
is a shōjo manga magazine published by Kodansha in Japan. First published in December 1954, it is a long-running magazine with over 50 years worth of manga publication history. The target demographic for Nakayoshi is aimed at young girls between...
. There are more than ten chapters published and most of them are compiled into volumes issued by Kodansha
Kodansha
, the largest Japanese publisher, produces the manga magazines Nakayoshi, Afternoon, Evening, and Weekly Shonen Magazine, as well as more literary magazines such as Gunzō, Shūkan Gendai, and the Japanese dictionary Nihongo Daijiten. The company has its headquarters in Bunkyō, Tokyo...
. It is licensed in German by Heyne
Heyne
Heyne is the surname of:* Christian Gottlob Heyne , a German classical scholar and archaeologist* Ernst Bernard Heyne , German Botanist* Moritz Heyne , Germanic linguist* Paul Heyne , an American economist...
.
Yume Yume*Yu Yu is loosely based upon the Shinto miko
Miko
is a Japanese term that anciently meant a "female shaman, spirit medium" who conveyed oracles from kami , and currently means a "shrine maiden; virgin consecrated to a deity" who serves at Shinto shrines.-Word:...
and shrines, as well as four constellations in the Chinese Zodiac
Chinese zodiac
The Shēngxiào , better known in English as the Chinese Zodiac, is a scheme that relates each year to an animal and its reputed attributes, according to a 12-year mathematical cycle...
: Suzaku — The Vermilion Bird of the South (who represents the summer season and Yin
Yin and yang
In Asian philosophy, the concept of yin yang , which is often referred to in the West as "yin and yang", is used to describe how polar opposites or seemingly contrary forces are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and how they give rise to each other in turn. Opposites thus only...
,), Seiryuu — The Azure Dragon of the East (who represents the spring season as well as Yang
Yin and yang
In Asian philosophy, the concept of yin yang , which is often referred to in the West as "yin and yang", is used to describe how polar opposites or seemingly contrary forces are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and how they give rise to each other in turn. Opposites thus only...
), Genbu — The Black Tortoise of the North (who represents the winter season), and Byakko — The White Tiger of the West (who represents the fall season, Bai Hu in China).
The story follows a young girl, Yume, who is clumsy and unpopular. While dozing in class, she has a vision of a young Miko, telling her that she must be the new Miko. She awakes with a mirror in her hands, and is confused by it. After school, the mirror reveals itself as a portal to a different world as a red-haired boy, named Rekka, appears chasing a unicorn
Unicorn
The unicorn is a legendary animal from European folklore that resembles a white horse with a large, pointed, spiraling horn projecting from its forehead, and sometimes a goat's beard...
, the peacekeeper of their world. The Azure Dragon of the East, or Seiryuu, shares that he is not happy a human of the Light world has become Miko, and tries to destroy Yume. None of the Guardians from the other world, except Rekka, believes in Yume. Rekka destroys the mirror so that the Other world-ers can not come through to harm Yume.
It is revealed that the world in which Rekka lives is suffering due to the Light world's exceptional development in such a short span of time. The Unicorn is the peacekeeper, and without the unicorn the world will become endangered. The goal of Yume and Rekka is to find the Unicorn and take it back to its home, as it is its own portal between worlds.
After a time of Rekka living in the Light world, he becomes the Kagura's cousin. Aoi, a boy at Yume's school, is soon revealed to be the King of the Eastern Skies of the Light world. Discovering this, the team decides they must find all the Guardians of the light world to help the Unicorn.
Guardians of the Light World
Yume Kagura- The main character and Miko of the story. Although a somewhat simple-minded girl who pales in comparison to her perfect and talented twin sister, Yume embodies the power to save two worlds. As the new Miko, she is to gather up the four guardians of her own world in order to save them both. From the beginning of the story it is laid down that she believes in magic and casts protection spells on herself while she sleeps- which is why she was probably more accepting of her newfound abilities compared to other girls. Yume has a crush on Aoi, a boy at her school who is a student council member along with her sister, and who is also one of her protectors from this world, though that crush has began to fade when she falls in love with Rekka, the Emperor of the South Sky of both worlds.
Unicorn (Female)
- The girl that Kirin, the Other World Unicorn, has been searching for. She was hidden in a comma-shaped jewel, and the love between Rekka and Yume freed her.
Mizuki Aoi
- King of the East Sky. His mark is located on his right chest. He didn't know that he was the Light world's Seiryuu until the bus incident while being forced into photography. He is the only one who noticed Yume from the beginning of the story, and loves her. He is on the student council with Hime. His holy animal's name is DoraDora. He also has a cousin , Kurobe-Sensei
Kurobe-sensei
- The light world's King of the North Sky, Genbu. He discovered his destiny along with Mashiro 10 years previous when she found the mirror in her family's warehouse. The previous Miko told him to hurry and find the new Miko. The mark of Genbu is above his right eyebrow. Kurobe seems to dislike interactions between the opposite sex in teenagers, as he steals their gifts away or keeps couples apart. His cousin is Mizuki Aoi.
Kaneshiro Mashiro
- The Light world's Queen of the West Sky, Byakko. She knew her standing as she appeared to Yume in the attack of Hime, as she found the mirror in her family's warehouse 10 years prior. Her mark is on her right upper chest. She is in love with Kurobe, though he rejected her; when Hime walked in while Mashiro was on Kurobe's lap, she mentions that Hime has the wrong idea. She is sensible and resourceful, even though she is an IdolIdolatryIdolatry is a pejorative term for the worship of an idol, a physical object such as a cult image, as a god, or practices believed to verge on worship, such as giving undue honour and regard to created forms other than God. In all the Abrahamic religions idolatry is strongly forbidden, although...
.
Guardians of the Other World
Miko-sama- The previous Miko before Yume. She was loved and all things were at peace until she gave up her power to Yume. She was like a mother figure to Rekka.
Kirin, Unicorn (Male)
- The keeper of peace in the Other world who escaped to the Light world to search for his other. He heals Yume and reveals he's always been searching for his loved one.
Rekka Sariu
- A boy found in Yume's dreams who must protect the new Miko. He is the Emperor of the South Sky, Suzaku in both worlds. His mark is by his navel on the right side. He knew of his abilities in the beginning, and comes out of the Mirror with Lee (Rii), and destroys the mirror. At first he dislikes Yume being the new Miko, but quickly begins to accept her and starts to like her. Hime likes him, giving him handmade chocolates on Valentine's DayValentine's DaySaint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day, is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496...
, though Rekka cannot return her feelings since his duty is to Yume, whom he loves.
Yuu Hokyuu
- Rekka's childhood friend, and the Other world's Emperor of the North Sky, Genbu. His mark is under his left eye. He is reckless and has a high sense of loyalty.
Toufuu Nyan-Nyan
- The Empress of the Eastern Sky, Seiryuu. Her Holy animal is Ryuu, a small dragon. She uses the male pronoun, 'boku', to refer to herself, making her a gruff person in speech, though she looks rather young and innocent.
FuuChii
- Emperor of the Western Sky, Byakko. He is an estranged male with a tiger's tail and pointy, elfElfAn elf is a being of Germanic mythology. The elves were originally thought of as a race of divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind...
-like ears.
Other major characters
Hime Kagura- Yume's better twin, who gets good grades, is on the student council, and is well known at school. She has lots of friends and is technically perfect. She is in love with Rekka, whose feelings for her have not been returned, as he is in love with Yume. She goes in an angry frenzy, since she took the mirror and pieced it together. She then becomes the Miko for the Other World. She is jealous of Yume, for getting Rekka's attention.
Lee
- Lee acts as a little guardian to Rekka, following him everywhere. She resembles a butterfly.
Yue
- Yue is another 'little guardian', and is seen with the Other World's Seiryuu when he attacks Yume. She enters Hime's body in the story, and identifies her as the Other world's miko, and controls her.
Chapters printed
- Volume 1 - Chapters 1 - 5
- Volume 2 - Chapters 6 - 10
- Volume 3 - Chapters 11 - 13