Yu Yu Hakusho 幽★遊★白書 (Yuu Yuu Hakusho / Poltergeist Report) Genre Supernatural, Action, Shōnen Manga Authored by Yoshihiro Togashi Publisher Shueisha VIZ Media Editora JBC Glénat Kana Serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump Original run 1990 – 1994 No. of volumes 19 TV anime Directed by Akiyuki Arafusa, Noriyuki Abe Studio Studio Pierrot Network Fuji Television, Animax Animax Cartoon Network, FUNimation Channel GMA 7, IBC 13 Cartoon Network, Rede Manchete, Play TV A+ K3 Original run 10 October 1992 – 7 January 1995 No. of episodes 112 TV Episodes, 2 Movies YuYu Hakusho (幽★遊★白書 YūYū Hakusho, literally Spirits Wander White Book, meaning "Ghost Files" / "Poltergeist Report") is a manga and anime series by Yoshihiro Togashi. The anime, produced by Studio Pierrot consists of 112 TV episodes and two movies, "The Golden Seal" (YuYu Hakusho: The Movie) and "Bonds of Fire" (YuYu Hakusho: Poltergeist Report). In Japan, the series ran in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump. In North America, the manga currently runs in Viz's Shonen Jump. The name of the series is spelled Yu Yu Hakusho in FUNimation's distribution of the anime, and Yuu Yuu Hakusho in the Viz manga. It originally started airing in February 2002 on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block. Around March 2003, the show moved to Cartoon Network's Toonami block due to higher ratings with the kids. Then Yu Yu Hakusho was taken off Toonami around March 2005 and moved to a early Saturday morning timeslot at 5:30 A.M. where the series finished its run. A series of Yu Yu Hakusho Original Animated Videos were released only in Japan: Eizou Hakusho: Ankoku Bujutsukai (2 Volumes) Eizou Hakusho II: Yusuke Volume Eizou Hakusho II: Kurama Volume Eizou Hakusho II: Hiei Volume Eizou Hakusho II: Kuwabara Volume Opening Ending Encyclopedia Recap Guide Complete Advance Set (3 Volumes) In the Philippines, the anime and both movies were initially shown on IBC 13, then on GMA 7, all under the name Ghostfighter, with the names of the main characters changed. It has also been released in Italy under the title Yu degli spettri. It has also been broadcast across Japan, Southeast Asia and the Indian Subcontinent by the anime television network Animax. Contents 1 Background 2 Story Arcs 3 Terms 4 Classes 5 Theme songs 6 Trivia 7 External links Background YuYu Hakusho logo (English manga) In the beginning of the manga, Yusuke Urameshi is nothing more than a street-brawling delinquent who only goes to school about once every ten days. His teachers hate him and he has few friends. Yusuke's mother Atsuko is an alcoholic. She had him at the age of 14 and shows little interest in raising her son. He has a reserved seat in the guidance counseler's office. Since every single punk in the city is trying to take him on, Yusuke is pretty fed up with life. Right to Left: Yusuke, Kurama, Hiei, and Kuwabara However, no one could foresee his most famous deed: he dies trying to save a little boy from a speeding car. When he arrives in the afterlife, the people in the afterlife inform him that since no one was expecting him to die in that way, they are not prepared for his arrival. In the manga (volumes 1 and 2), between the time Yusuke is run over and the when he manages to return to his body he has several adventures, (mostly helping people in need) that are omitted from the TV series. Eventually, Yusuke gets his life back and discovers a new power, he can see beings from the spirit world (yōkai). This is when the series really kicks off. He is enlisted as a spirit realm detective (霊界探偵 Reikai Tantei), to help control the actions of spirits in the real world. His first assignment is to round up three demon prisoners (Goki - spelled "Goki" in the English manga and "Gouki" in the English anime-, Kurama, and Hiei) who escaped and stole three terribly powerful artifacts. Later Hiei and Kurama become his allies. His second is to participate in a contest to choose the next disciple of an aged fighter (Psychic in the English Dub) named Genkai, and to defeat a demon, Rando, who is posing as a contestant so he can win Genkai's powers. Yusuke's next assignment is to kill the four Saint Beasts, Genbu, Byakko, Seiryu, and Suzaku. In that mission, he is assisted by Kazuma Kuwabara, Kurama (Shuichi Minamino) and Hiei. The next mission involves the Kōrime, Yukina, who is Hiei's sister. She has been kidnapped by the evil Gonzo Tarukane (Tarukane Gonzō). Yusuke and Kuwabara have to fight the Toguro brothers, who fake their deaths. After Toguro threatens to hunt their loved ones down Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei have no choice but to join the Dark Tournament. Thus a new season, The Dark Tournament, begins. Here they encounter the Jolly Devil Six a.k.a. Team Rokuyukai (Rinku, Chu (Chū), Roto, Zeru, Ichikia, and Gouta), Team Ichigaki (Dr. Ichigaki, M1, M2, M3 (see below) ), Team Mashotsukai a.k.a. Shadow Channelers a.k.a. Team Masho (Gama, Touya, Bakken, Jin, The Master of Wind; and Risho), and Team Uratogi a.k.a. Fractured Fairy Tales (Kuromomotaro/Black Peach Boy, Uraurashima, Shishiwakamaru, Suzuki, and Makintaro/Evil Kintaro). Genkai is killed by the younger Toguro and Yusuke gains all of Genkai's power. In the finals Sakyou makes a bet and risks his life on Yusuke versus Toguro fight. He loses the bet and sets the stadium to blow up within ten minutes. The team and their loved ones barely make it out alive. Yusuke's wish for winning the Dark Tournament was to bring Genkai back to life. Next is the Chapter Black Saga, which is the story of Sensui and his humans with Yokai powers. Kuwabara, and Yusuke must fight through the five human psychics who are helping Sensui open the portal to the Makai Realm. The seven members on Sensui's team are (in the order they appear): Dark Angel (Shinobu Sensui), Sniper (Kaname Hagiri), Doctor (Minoru Kamiya), Gate Keeper (Itsuki), Seaman (Kiyoshi Mitarai), Game Master (Tsukihito Amanuma), and Gourmet (Sadao Makihara). Yusuke later confronts Sensui head on in the fight of the spirit detectives to stop Sensui's plans of breaking the barrier and unleashing havoc upon the Human World. Yusuke learns there is no other way to beat Sensui, and charges head on at the fallen spirit detective planning to get killed to bring out the limits of his friends, who get out of Itsuki's shadow creature just in time to see Yusuke smile at them as Sensui punches a hole through his heart. Enma (King Yama) tells Botan how Yusuke is distantly related to a powerful demon called the Mazoku, and has sent his spirit guards to make sure Yusuke can never revive. But at that exact moment, Yusuke starts to glow, and out comes an unusually long haired Yusuke (a hanyou, or half-demon). Yusuke and Koenma travel to Makai to help his friends. But at that same moment Yusuke is taken over by his "Father" Raizen, the war god of Makai. Raizen tells Yusuke that he is too weak, and shows him his own potential. The possessed Yusuke fires a barrage of attacks on Sensui and ends off with a spirit gun. Yusuke regains his consciousness right before he fires his spirit gun and yell, "Sensui, dodge it!", but Sensui gets hit anyway. When Yusuke finds Sensui, Sensui tells him that this was his dream. Sensui says, "After all the demons I killed, I wanted to travel and die in Makai, after seeing how horrible humans are to Yokai." Yusuke starts yelling at Sensui to live so they can continue their fight, but Sensui dies because of his wounds as well as a pre-existing terminal illness. Yusuke has a choice to either stay in Makai or go back to Human World. He decides to go back. The series ends off with the Demon World Tournament. Yusuke begins to question his existence. There are no more difficult challenges for him to face and he is now regarded as too dangerous to stay in the Human World by King Enma. Genkai advises him to go talk to the first spirit detective. He gets a little insight before three demons arrive and try to persuade Yusuke to go back to Makai. Yusuke accepts, wanting to learn more about Raizen and face off with stronger demons. There is a war going on in Makai between the three strongest demons: Raizen, Mukuro, and Yomi. The war was started when there was a dispute over eating habits. Raizen felt that it was wrong to eat humans, and that all demons should stop doing it. Mukuro and Yomi disagreed, which led to a standstill for over many centuries. Raizen is about to die from starving himself, and they need Yusuke to help lead the territory. Yusuke trains his hardest to try to beat his ancestor. The story then turns to Hiei and his history. Hiei was abandoned by the Koorime and had to fend for himself in the harsh Makai world. He grew to be ruthless. Hiei received his Jagan eye because he lost the jewel his mother had given him and he wanted to find where the ice world was. When Hiei goes to the ice world, he finds out he has a sister and goes off searching for her. Hiei is summoned to Makai by Mukuro. Then it switches off to Kurama, and we learn of his past life as the great thief Yoko Kurama as he is summoned by his former co-commander, Yomi. Kurama sent an assassin after Yomi because he was a huge risk to his group, but the assassin was only able to blind Yomi. After one year, Raizen dies and Yusuke goes to Yomi to suggest holding a tournament to see who would rule all of Makai. Yomi agrees, along with Mukuro. Yusuke, Hiei, and Kurama all participate and each one deal with their conflicts. They all lose in the end, and Enki becomes the champion. He declares that all demons shall not harm or cause problems in Human World and that there will be regular demon tournaments to see who becomes the ruler, sort of like general elections. Yusuke goes back to human world in the last episode. Hiei decides to stay in Makai. It's been a couple of months and everyone is going to Genkai to discuss about the opening to Makai. Genkai wants to set up a neutral place for demons to live. Yusuke still has not returned. They decided to go to the beach. The sun is going down when Keiko shouts that she will no longer wait for Yusuke. Yusuke appears and Keiko runs toward him, leaping on top of him. They kiss and a large wave washes over them. The series ends with a water fight between the friends, and a very memorable message: Forever Fornever. This message has been argued to be a typo and has created discussion amongst the fan base. = Story Arcs Spirit Detective Saga Dark Tournament Saga Chapter Black Saga Saga of the Three Kings Terms Reikai Tantei (literally Spirit Realm Detective) / Spirit Detective - "Spirit Detective" is the name given to those who defend the human world (Ningenkai) from interference from demons, beasts, and apparitions known as yōkai hailing from the Demon World (Makai). Reikai Tantei are usually picked by Koenma, the prince of Spirit World (Reikai), the realm of the dead or disembodied. Classes Main article: List of YuYu Hakusho demon ranks In YuYu Hakusho, the ranking of demons and apparitions is done by grade letters. E-class is the weakest class of demons, only slightly stronger than ordinary humans. Meanwhile, The S-class is the strongest demon classification. Each class also has sub-divisions of upper special (or ++), upper (or +), middle, and lower (or -). For example, A has four subclasses: A-, A, A+ and A++. While the classes are intended for ranking demons, they are also used to classify powerful humans. A* indicates that the particular character is at the highest level of that rank. In the Three Kings Saga, it seems that many demons surpass the Upper S-Class rankings, so Yu Yu Hakusho adopts a numerical system. 80,000 on this system is equivalent to a Middle B-class, 120,000 to a middle A-class, and 200,000 to a Middle S-class. However, the Device used to record the energy levels aforementioned breaks before the Makai Tournament, so the few figures are just inferred when comparing the class and the energy readings. Theme songs Opening "Hohoemi no Bakudan" (Smile Bomb) by Matsuko Mawatari (originally used only on Adult Swim but now seen on regular Cartoon Network) In the English version, this and the ending themes are dubbed on the English tracks. During the Chapter Black Saga, the images of the entire opening have been replaced with updated ones. Some of those images are updated during the Saga of the Three Kings. The full song was used as the closing for the final episode. Ending "Homework ga Owaranai" (Neverending Homework) by Matsuko Mawatari (1-29) (Used on Cartoon Network up until Toonami moved to Saturday Nights) "Sayonara Byebye" by Matsuko Mawatari (30-59) - Used on the Cartoon Network version starting with the Finals of the Dark Tournament storyline. "Anbaransu na Kisu wo Shite" (Unbalanced Kiss) by Hiro Takahashi (60-83) Used for the Cartoon Network Version starting with the beginning of the Chapter Black Storyline using the English lyrics and music from Ending #4. "Taiyō ga Mata Kagayaku Toki" (The Sun is Shining Again/When the Sun Shines Again) by Hiro Takahashi (84-102) Used for the Cartoon Network Version finishing the Chapter Black Saga. "Daydream Generation" by Matsuko Mawatari (103-111) Used for the Cartoon Network Version starting the Three Kings Saga(episode 95) Main Character Songs Kurama (By Megumi Ogata) "Kurayami ni Akai Bara ~Romantic Soldier" (Red Rose in the Darkness ~Romantic Soldier) "Kyou no Sayonara wa Mirai no Hajimari" (Today's Goodbye is the Start of Tomorrow) "Nightmare" "Koori no Naifu o Daite" (Embracing the Ice Knife) Hiei (By Nobuyuki Hiyama) "Kuchibue ga Kikoeru" (I Hear a Whistle) "Manazashi no Aria" "Ryuusei no Solitude" (Solitude of a Shooting Star) "Tasogare ni Se o Mukete" Kuwabara (By Shigeru Chiba) "DACHI" (Buddies) "Eien ni THANK YOU!" (Thank You Forever) "Konjou Icchokusen" (Guts All the Way) "Otoko no Junjou" (The Simple Feelings of a Man) Yusuke (By Nozomu Sasaki) "All Right!" "Akatsuki no Chikai" (Rising Sun) "Dead or Alive ~Toshi Kami" (Dead or Alive ~Holy Battle) "FIRE" "Kokoro o Tsunaide" (Join our Hearts) "TOUGH" "Tsukanoma no Sunset" Other Character Songs Hinageshi "Anata o Dakishimeru Watashi de Itai" (I Want to Embrace You) Toguro "Cry Lonely Cry" "Icy Blood" Keiko "Donna Toki Demo Anata to Mezametai" "YELL" Touya "GLEAM ~Yami ni Hikaru" (GLEAM ~Shining in the Darkness~) Kaname Hagiri "Kiri no Naka no Sniper" (The Sniper in the Mist) Chuu "Maa, Nome yo" (Just Have a Drink) Itsuki "Never Ending Dreams" Mukuro "REBIRTH ~Saisei~" (REBIRTH ~Rebirth~) Yomi "Sennen no Yami no Hate" (The End of a Thousand Years of Darkness) Koenma "TOKOTON" Jin "Tsumujikaze de Fly Away" (Fly Away with a Whirlwind) Sensui "Unbelievable" Suzuki "Utsukushi Sugite..." (Too Beeutiful...) Group/Duet Songs "Mienai Mirai" - Kurama, Yusuke, Hiei, Kuwabara, Yukina, Keiko, Botan, and Koenma "Wild Wind ~Yasei no Kaze no You ni (Wild Wind ~Like the Wind of the Wild) - Hiei and Kurama "Yasashisa Wa Nemuranai" (Kindness Never Sleeps) - Kurama, Yusuke, Hiei, and Kuwabara "Moonlight Party" - Botan and Koenma "EYE TO EYE" - Kurama, Hiei, and Kuwabara "Rocket Hanabi no LOVE SONG" - Kuwabara & Yukina "Omoide o Tsubasa ni Shite" (Turning Feelings into Wings) - Yusuke & Keiko "Love Song o Anata ni" (A Love Song for You) - Koto, Juri, Ruka "HOLD OUT!" - Botan, Keiko, Yukina "Hikari no Naka de" (Inside the Light) - Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, Hiei "Eien no Requiem" (Never Ending Requiem) - Sensui & Itsuki "Dark Side Stories" - Yoko Kurama & Hiei "Boku-tachi no Kisetsu" (Our Seasons) - Yusuke, Kurama, Kuwabara, Hiei On the FUNimation DVDs, there is a flaw in DVD volumes 9-12. The English lyrics track for Ending #2 did not start until Episode #43, which is the first episode on DVD Volume #13. On all the DVDs that have this, it will only play the English version of Ending #1 for the end credits by not turning on the Japanese subtitles (English subtitles that follow the Japanese version) in the menu. The reason behind this flaw is that no English track was produced at that time during the DVD releases. "Daydream Generation"(Ending 5) first aired on episode 95 in the U.S. starting the Three Kings Saga. "Hohoemi No Bakudan" and "Homework ga Owaranai" were re-made by Kurama on a special collecter item CD. The same applies for "Anbaransu na Kisu wo Shite" and "Taiyō ga Mata Kagayaku Toki" by Yusuke. Koenma re-sang "Daydream Generation". The dance re-mixes and karaoke versions of most of the character songs were also on this (and other) Yu Yu Hakusho CD's. Trivia Volume 1 of the manga has an advertisement for a dōjinshi manga created by Togashi titled Church! Volume 3 - We're Carried Away Here. According to the volume, the manga is no longer available. In episode six of the anime series, the words "Mad Piero" can be seen as graffiti on one of the walls. This is a self-reference from the anime studio behind the production of the series, Pierrot, whose name is pronounced as Piero, and is the Japanese word for clown, derived from the French language. A villain by the name of "Mad Piero" also appears in the anime title Cowboy Bebop. In episode 9, The Successor to Genkai! The Tournament Begins, background characters that look remarkably like Zangief, Dhalsim and E.Honda from the fighting game franchise Street Fighter appear behind Yusuke and Kuwabara. When Yusuke, Botan, Kuwabara and his sister Shizuru are watching a video (VHS) (sent by Hiei from orders of Koenma) about Yukina in Episode 22, the video started featuring Koenma spoofing (with trademarks of his own name) Columbia Pictures, with Koenma circling and holding a torch; and a stunted male oni meowing inside the name Koenma as a parody of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Kuwabara's favourite band is Megallica, the "Gods of Heavy Metal" as he calls them, in the Chapter Black saga; Megallica may possibly be a tribute/parody of both Megadeth and Metallica. In The Three Kings saga, Koenma appears at the tournament dressed incognito as Sailor Moon's Tuxedo Mask, perhaps because series creator Yoshihiro Togashi began to date Sailor Moon creator Naoko Takeuchi (whom he later married). In chapter 44 of the manga, Kurama claims, "Just call me Tuxedo Mask.", again a possible reference to Tuxedo Mask of the Sailor Moon series. In Episode 44 while Kuwabara is playing cards, the Ace of Spades is printed with Nintendo's name, with Nintendo also coming up again other times throughout the series. The Idunn Box used during the Dark Tournament may have been named from the Norse goddess, Iðunn. In the final episode, while Kurama is speaking to Kuwabara on the train, a sign on a building reads in English "YUYUHAKUSHOEND!". Also in the final episode, the two girls shown as Keiko's classmates bear strong resemblances to Haruka Tenoh (Sailor Uranus) and Michiru Kaioh (Sailor Neptune) of the anime Sailor Moon. YuYu Hakusho is the only anime that debuted on Adult Swim to move to Cartoon Network's Toonami block. Other shows have transitioned from Toonami or the rest of Cartoon Network to Adult Swim, such as some of the Gundam series and The Big O, but this is so far the only example to do it in reverse. The kanji that were used by the author to spell Yuu Yuu Hakusho have 2 possible meanings. 1 is "Astral Visit Report", and the other is "Chronicle of Yuusukes Journey". The second is supported by the fact that the same kanji is used for the Yuu in the title, as for the Yuu in Yuusukes name (Yuusuke means lit. "Ghost Helper", Hakusho translates roughly to document, white paper, or report). The second meaning is also supported by the end of the anime, which states that the show is nothing but a record of Yuusukes travels, recorded by rei-kai intellegence. YuYu Hakusho Characters Yusuke Urameshi | Kazuma Kuwabara | Keiko Yukimura (Kayko Yukimura) | Koenma | Botan | Hiei | Kurama | Genkai | Yukina Story Arcs Spirit Detective Saga | Dark Tournament Saga | Chapter Black Saga | Saga of the Three Kings | The Movie | Poltergeist Report Other YuYu Hakusho characters | Ability list | Demon ranks | Manga chapters | Makai | Episodes | Trading Card Game External links Studio Pierrot's Yu Yu Hakusho website (Japanese) FUNimation's Yu Yu Hakusho website (English) YuYu Hakusho at the Internet Movie Database YuYu Hakusho at TV.com Search Term: "YuYu_Hakusho" Categories: Manga series | Anime series | Anime dubbed into English | YuYu Hakusho | Fantasy anime | Fantasy manga | Supernatural anime | Supernatural manga | Action manga | Action anime | Shows on Toonami | Shōnen | Viz Media manga