Miaka Yuki

Date of birth: 12 May
Age: 15
Height: 1.58m
Weight: 48 kg (with all she eats!)
Measurements: 82-59-85 (a bit too close to the famed 90-60-90, no?)

I don't even know why I'm giving all this useless data (why would someone wanna know her weight for?) but it seems to be a staple with the many FY pages out there so might as well do it... Anyway voila Miaka, the heroine of the series. In many ways Miaka is a carbon copy of Usagi, down to the hairstyle and everything, except that she is even more incompetent when it comes to getting out (and staying out) of trouble, since she can't transform into a sailor-suited pretty warrior. But the thing I like about Miaka is that she tries. She is clumsy, mostly helpless, a loser some of the time, and she knows it, yet she tries to do things herself, and that courage is what I like about her. This type of clutzy, friendly, selfless, gluttonous (and how) heroine is usually my least favorite character, but I can't bring myself to hate Miaka. There are moments when she is very sweet, and she is truly an ordinary girl. She is very young, and what she has to deal with is much bigger than what the traditional shoujo heroines go through, so you can't really blame her for breaking down at times. A lot of people hate Miaka because she always needs someone to rescue her. But even before she becomes the priestess, she tries. The very first time that Yui and her entered the book, she threw herself at the bad guys to let her friend escape. That is the good thing about Miaka.

Bonus! Yu Watase's free talk about Miaka! Excuse my poor translation:

I think that most people have a certain opinion of Miaka, but her color is white. She is honest, and I wanted to draw a naive girl. Every time, this child makes many efforts, but as she is a child, it doesn't work. So she hesitates.

Speaking of which, some readers are unhappy, but I think that in this world, nobody's perfect. Many times, she is sad and wants to run away, but tries to hang on. When a stranger looks at her, he asks himself, "but why is she going that way?". She hesitates, but in the end always finds the right road, all for Tamahome's love and Yui's friendship.

If Yui treated me like this (even though it's all a misunderstanding), I would just leave her. Yes, even me! Friends have good sides and bad sides, but they are people that we like. This is why Miaka likes Yui. I don't think Miaka would choose between love and friendship. She is a sincere and generous child.

I receive a lot of letters asking me why I always torture Miaka. It's not to hurt her, but I like showing that she can overcome difficulties. You would like everything to go well for the main character, wouldn't you? But I'd rather he or she suffered. Reality is harsh, and I wish for my readers to be aware of this while reading about Miaka.

Kishuku So - Tamahome

Date of birth: 28 June
Age: 17
Height: 1.80m

You know, I was really surprised when I read that Tamahome was only seventeen. He seemed older than than to me, especially when he first appeared, and the way he took care of Miaka then reminded me more of an elder brother than a boyfriend. I think it would have been interesting if Watase had kept him that way and made Miaka fall in love with someone else. But then, I like them together too.

The annoying thing about Tamahome is that he's just perfect! He is handsome, strong, loyal, nice, brave... It is impossible to find any faults to him except his keen interest in money, but even then there has to be a touching reason behind that which shows that he has a 46 carat gold heart. It would have been much funnier (and more real) if he'd only been a moneygrubber! But then, this is from someone whose favorite Ranma 1/2 character is Nabiki. Apart from that, though, Tamahome is a great guy, he's my second favorite FY character. What do you want, he's just hot, very self-confident (I have a thing for that kind of person) a kick-ass martial artist (I like that phrase, can you tell?) to boot, and all around cool character. Besides, he is one of the funniest guys in FY, and especially his brawls with Tasuki are hilarious! And you can't get any cooler than having a "demon" sign on your forehead.

Yu Watase on Tamahome:

I think he changed a bit since the beginning. He lived without love, and I think that it's his meeting with Miaka which showed him what it is. Ah, first love...

He has an amusing side, but also a more shadowy one, he's very lonely. A hard-to-understand young man. His character is strong but sensitive. He protects himself by protecting others.

It's not that I'm in love with Tamahome, but he makes me want to hug him. I wonder why!

Saihitei Seishuku - Hotohori

Date of birth: 2 April
Age: 18 (He looks a little older)
Height: 1.82m

Hotohori too, looks and acts much older than his age. But then there's a reason for it which makes him incredibly easy to identify with for anyone who has ever experienced loneliness: Being the heir to the throne, he grew up in the palace with no friends, and this has caused him to mature very quickly. Hotohori always dreamed of the priestess from another world and hoped that she would fall in love with him. When Miaka came, she was everything he expected and more, yet she was already practically in love with Tamahome when they met. I don't think that any girl can help but like Hotohori, because he's so incredibly touching in the way he watches over Miaka and Tamahome when all the while he's madly in love with her. It's very sad. Sometimes, he seems very far away, but the author gives him a little touch of reality by making him such an uncanny narcissist. He fits in with the general atmosphere of Fushigi Yugi much more when he is admiring himself in the mirror. Oh yeah, cool sword too.

More free talk by Yu Watase!

Hotohori is either loved or hated! It seems that the younger readers don't like him. They prefer Tamahome, but those who like Hotohori speak only of him in their letters! But Hotohori is so good. Don't you find him very sincere? He even gave up his place to Tamahome. People say he had an affair with Miaka in vol. 6. Me, I tend to defend him, the poor guy! In the polls, he was found to be kinder than Tamahome. If I had to marry, it would be with Hotohori! When I first created him at the age of 18, I wasn't sure whether to use Japan or China, but I knew he was going to be the heir to the throne. At the beginning of the story, my editor told me to make him the emperor, however his activies are limited.

Cho Ryuuen - Nuriko

Date of birth: 10 March
Age: 18
Height: 1.66m

Um...Don't let the picture fool you, Nuriko's actually a guy....You see, when his twin sister died some years ago, Nuriko decided to dress as a woman so that he would at least see her in the mirror everyday. While I find that a somewhat shaky reason to become a transvestite, it is true that Nuriko is hilarious, with the author using all the classic drag-queen jokes. I didn't like at him at first because of the way he treated Miaka and Tamahome (all because she's jealous of Hotohori's feelings for Miaka!) However, when that misunderstanding was sorted out, Nuriko turns out to be an adorably funny, cheerful person who acts as an older "sister" to both Miaka and Tamahome. He seemed to me to be one of the most mature characters of the series, because of the fact that no matter what happened to him, he always kept his smile. Nuriko is deservedly one of the most popular characters of Fushigi Yugi, and I'm forced to agree, though he is only my fourth favorite.

Of course, when he starts to act like a guy he's just yummy.

Yu Watase and Nuriko (spoilers):

Nuriko, even after his death, is a fan favorite. In the CD-booklet poll, he was in third place. I even had some letters from Taiwan asking me to bring him back to life! I think it was a good idea to make him a homosexual, it gave him class. At the beginning, Hotohori was "a guy as beautiful as a woman", but Nuriko looked completely like a woman, no? When I first created him, he had a real man's body. He was very tall. But then he looked really simple being a homosexual, so I changed him a bit.

In fact, loving Hotohori would mean he is a homosexual, but I also liked him (Nuriko) as a girl. I guess this is natural. He was someone who understood both men and women. He was like an older sister!

Houjin Ri - Chichiri

Date of birth: 21 May
Age: 24
Height: 1.75m

No da! Meet the kawaii monk! Of course, Chichiri is not that kawaii under his mask, but I've always said that people with scars on their eyes are cool. Yet, I don't like the serious Chichiri, because he just comes across as the boring wise older member of the group. 3 feet tall kawaii Chichiri is much more interesting! My favorite Chichiri scene is when he is practically passed out from boredom on the throne while impersonating Hotohori. That must be one of the funniest FY moments! The only reason I like Chichiri is because of the comic relief he provides to the series by being mischievous and using his powers to surprise people.

Watase's free talk about Chichiri:

I did a lot of work on his personality, but the design has stayed the same since the beginning. I wanted a relaxed character. As he is a monk, he should really shave his head, but I gave him a more original cut. His face is a mask with an expression that is sometimes serious and usually very calm. I suppose his voice changes a lot.

Kou Shunu "Gennro" - Tasuki

Tasuki!!!! All right, he is brash, rude, dumb, insensitive and very naive, but he is a really cool character. He is my third favorite character, after Nakago and Tamahome. I like Tasuki because he is so straightforward about everything, and very loyal to his friends. Tasuki reminds me somewhat of Ryouga, both because he has fangs and because he is a very loyal, impulsive person. He is also one of the funniest characters. Due to their initial encounter, and also because Tasuki is such a hothead, him and Tamahome always brawl, yet they are good friends. Some of the funniest parts are when Tamahome is teasing Tasuki about not knowing how to swim. I like how Tasuki takes care of Miaka as well as he can and is always concerned for her. The fact that he isn't really angelic like Tamahome or Hotohori gives him major plus points. The guy has a really foul mouth on him, and he was a thief before he became a seishi. He is close to all the other characters, and gets along with everyone except Tamahome! Tasuki is somewhat childish (see how he reacted to Nuriko's death), but that makes him all the more likeable among the other characters. Great guy.

Yu Watase talks about the hilarious Tasuki:

The second position in the CD leaflet poll was Tasuki. I gave him a kansai accent. I wanted a character different from the others. The hairstyle and the fangs depict him as wild, savage. It would have been boring if he had only been "a handsome young men different from Tama or Hori."

His design changed about three times. At first he was completely different, a childhood friend of Tamahome. To create a character more original than peasants, emperors, monks and doctors etc., I made him a thief.

Tasuki is a very fast runner. When he first appeared, he took Miaka away very rapidly, remember? He is strong and fights well. Unlike the others, he is good all-around.

Myo Ju Ann - Mitsukake

Date of birth: 7 May
Age: 22 (He looks much older)
Height: 1.99m

There isn't really that much to say about Mitsukake, except that he is a kind, and *very* quiet man. We never really know what he is thinking, because he is not very expressive, and stays in the background. It's a shame that Yu Watase didn't give him a larger role to play. But he is the owner of the coolest cat on the series!

Watase has more things to say about him than I do:

I created this character to have someone who's very strong and *chic* (laugh). He would make a good husband since he is kind and calm. When I wasn't sleeping enough and I felt dozy, I often wanted to sleep on his back, because it looks strong and very comfortable. Um... Does this sound strange to anyone? Maybe she really wasn't sleeping well at the time... The cat is there to show his softer side. A big man and a small animal make a good team together. Talking about teams, Chiriko was originally to make a team with Mitsukake. I think there should be a big guy and a small guy.

Ou Doukun - Chiriko

Like Mitsukake, Chiriko doesn't play a large part in the series, even though his character is more developed. I like the fact that the author shows his weaknesses: While his seishi sign is there, he is extremely intelligent, but when it disappears, he becomes completely dumb. Due to this, his self-esteem is pretty low, and he feels he is useless to the Suzaku seishi.

I found him pretty uninteresting before vol. 11, but later his determination and courage was really touching. There was a really good Tasuki and Chichiri scene there! Watase says that she was going to age him to 16 or 17, but that it didn't happen. Too bad, there is a picture of how he would look then, and it's pretty cute!

Watase's free talk on Chiriko:

Chiriko is very intelligent when he has his sign. Then he doesn't remember the times when he is being an airhead. When he doesn't have his sign and he's a crybaby, he still remembers that he is a smart boy, and it's hard for him. Maybe the real Chiriko is the airhead. I think I am like him. Not because of my height or my intelligence, but because I'm useless when I don't have any manga around. People tell me that I'm an airhead, but I think I become a different person when I draw.