SHONEN SUNDAY WEEKLY, 1997 ISSUE 50

Issue 50, 26 Nov 1997
Update by Eri Izawa

What is SHONEN SUNDAY? SHONEN SUNDAY is one of the largest weekly manga magazines in Japan. Containing some of the latest and hottest boys' manga series in Japan, Sunday has hosted such notables as RANMA 1/2 and the currently popular MEITANTEI CONAN.

(Last issue's SHONEN SUNDAY update)

	Selected Overview INUYASHA Takahashi Rumiko Overview: Kagome is a seemingly normal student who finds herself in fifteenth or sixteenth century Japan, where she meets the strange boy Inuyasha. Now, they are on a quest to retrieve the fragments of the Shikon no Tama, whose powers are sought by evil beings. This issue: This week's SHONEN SUNDAY pays tribute to the one year anniversary of INUYASHA with six pages of full color for the opening of Episode 49: "On-nen (grudge)." It would be hard to pick a more deserving episode for special treatment. The current storyline has delved deeper than ever into the mysterious relationship between Inuyasha and Kikyou, the young woman who had, fifty years before, essentially killed him and bound him to a tree even as she herself was dying. Our modern-day heroine Kagome is the apparent reincarnation of Kikyou, and it is her relationship with Inuyasha that forms the core of the series. Kagome, lacking any memory of Kikyou's life, wonders about what happened between Inuyasha and Kikyou; Inuyasha, though insistent that Kikyou was his enemy, seems to be in some mental anguish about her. The current story started with the theft of Kikyou's remains from her grave by an evil witch-like ogre-woman. The ogre had wanted to resurrect Kikyou in order to enslave her and make her retrieve the fragments of the Shikon no Tama. Briefly stymied when Kikyou's soul would not return to the re-made body, the ogre noticed Kagome's resemblance to Kikyou, captured her, and began the process of forcing her soul out and into Kikyou. Yet mysterious forces prevented this from occurring until Inuyasha arrived and, upon seeing Kikyou's body, called out her name. A soul left Kagome and entered Kikyou's body; Kagome's body, meanwhile, appeared to become a lifeless husk. But the ogre had miscalculated Kikyou's powers, for an angry Kikyou quickly attacked the ogre and shredded her apart for having awakened her. For a moment Kikyou turned to Inuyasha with apparent longing—and then cried "Why did you betray me?" and attacked him. Long before, Kikyou, sensing a familiar loneliness in Inuyasha, had talked with him about the Shikon no Tama. By using up the magical sphere, she told him, he could become completely human instead of being half demon-dog; and with the permanent destruction of the sphere, Kikyou could become a normal woman, instead of being the Shikon no Tama's lonely guardian. They both decided to live together as a normal man and woman. Yet, the night she was to have brought the Shikon no Tama to him, Inuyasha had apparently attacked her and taken the stone. Meanwhile, what appeared to be Kikyou also attacked Inuyasha for no apparent reason. So, Inuyasha, in turn, became enraged and went on a rampage, for he thought she had betrayed him, just as she now thought he had betrayed her. The end result: Kikyou, dying, shot Inuyasha with an arrow and bound him to a tree, and both died believing the other had turned traitor first. Now, in Episode 49, the resurrected and still-angry Kikyou is intent on killing Inuyasha.Kikyou's younger (now physically older) sister Kaede, however, has realized that, until Kikyou's soul finds peace, she will never return to Kagome's body. Inuyasha tries to reconcile Kikyou; there is even a moment where, in his embrace, she seems almost to forget her anger.But she cannot, since hatred of him had been the last thing she knew, and she tries again to slay him.Inuyasha, meanwhile, realizes he can't possibly fight and kill her, even though that would be the only way to free her soul. Just as Inuyasha seems the most doomed, though, Kagome's body stirs. Somehow, Kagome calls back Kikyou's soul into herself.There is a moment of calm; Kagome lies unconscious. But then, Inuyasha and Kaede suddenly realize that Kikyou is still alive and moving for some reason. And the question remains: Who had attacked Kikyou that fateful night, fifty years before?

	Selected Brief Updates ME GUMI NO DAIGO Soda Masahito Overview: Asahina Daigo is a young firefighter with the "Me" Company, who has an unusual ability to find and rescue people in danger. This issue: A dangerous chemical is still headed toward a town, emitting poisonous gases in the rain.Daigo has scrambled up a sodden hillside, where he is now trying to destabilize a tree in order to make the impending landslide worse.The landslide occurs, and as Ochiai watches in horror, Daigo is swept away. Nearby, the firefighters also watch as the mud sweeps down just far enough to stop the spill's progression (thanks to the tree Daigo had been trying to move).But, Daigo is now missing.

	LOVE Ishiwata Osamu Overview: Takagi Ai ("Love") is a girl who, in a bid to have a re-match with her old tennis rival, has entered a high school tennis club disguised as a boy. This issue: Ryo and Makino must win their match against the "monks" in order to keep Kuroyuri school in the Inter-High tennis competition. Makino and Ryo, pushed to their limit and already losing, psych themselves with a "Win" mentality, and finally even the score.

	GROOMING UP! Yuuki Masami Overview: Although originally a city boy, young Kuze Shunpei has taken to working as a farm hand at the Watarai racing horse breeding farm; he also has taken to Watarai Hibiki, one of the Watarai daughters. This issue: Satoru has come over to the Watarai farm again, where he converses with the family about horse racing matters.They watch races on TV and watch as Yuu wins another race.Ume, who briefly drops by, remarks to Shunpei that Satoru looks like a member of the family.Shunpei is not happy about Satoru's increasingly apparent friendliness with Hibiki.Later, Hibiki's mother suggests that Hibiki praise Shunpei's work with Hiko (Shunpei's favorite horse), but Hibiki, unreadable as always, says she will do it sometime later.

	GHOST SWEEPER MIKAMI GOKURAKU DAISAKUSEN!! Shiina Takashi Overview: Mikami Reiko is a money-hungry, gorgeous female ghost buster, aided by her sex-starved and underpaid male assistant Yokoshima Tadao, as well as kind and gentle female ex-ghost O-kinu. This issue: Episode 301! Yokoshima is still the captive pet of the powerful female demons who seek the resurrection of Mikami's evil nemesis. Yet he has grown increasingly friendly with them, and one of them has fallen in love with him (Luciola)... This week, he spends most of his time agonizing over Luciola's offer to sleep with him. (He is agonizing because she is an enemy to humanity, not because of any loyalty to Mikami.) But Bespa stops Luciola.Luciola defends her decision, saying that her soul is free, and she is fated to die in a year anyway. Bespa reminds her that to go against the will of her master would result in her immediate death.Luciola says she does not mind. They fight. Yokoshima watches, stunned by the knowledge that Luciola was willing to die.

	MAJOR Mitsuda Takuya Overview: It has been four years since Honda Goro put together the Mifune Little League.Now, in junior high school, he is reunited with his old friends and is faced with a new baseball crisis. This issue: Kaidou High School baseball talent scouts have come to watch the game between the powerful Seibukan team and the little-known Mifune team.Honda, who has now nearly perfected his left-handed pitching, amazes them.Given his name and his baseball background by Shimizu, they prepare to watch Honda's performance against Seibukan's Amano, a star hitter.If Honda can win, they plan to recruit him.