| Updated 08-20-03 |
Yuu Yuu Hakusho |
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As a young boy wanders
into the street to grab his ball, a car comes rushing in.
Seconds later, the boy is unhurt but his savior, a
teenage boy, lies dead in the street. Hanging above the
scene is the spirit of Urameshi Yuusuke, who takes a few
moments to realize that, yes, he is dead. A girl
side-straddling an oar appears behind him, introducing
herself as Botan. Yuusuke isn't very interested in her
considering his recent death. She continues, however, to
explain that she is a person who leads the dead to their
rightful place (aka, hell, heaven, in-between). After
seeing the boy he helped safe and sound in the hospital,
Yuusuke gives Botan the okay to take him to hell
(seemingly the obvious choice since he is certainly no
saint). Botan just laughs and tells him that due to a
mistake in his death, the higher-ups have decided to
bring him back to life. Yuusuke simply looks confused at
the concept. Leaving tact behind, Botan explains that the
boy he saved was meant to be hit by the car and survive
without severe damage. A miracle, as it were. No one
expected the deliquent Urameshi to risk his life to save
a child. And so, Yuusuke's brave sacrifice was in fact a
pointless gesture. After seeing a few people actually hurt by his loss, Yuusuke decides that reviving might not be such a big thing. Handling Yuusuke's case is Ko-Enma (somewhat literally "child hell master") who gives the 'rules' behind Yuusuke's revival. In the long run, Yuusuke does come back to life. But, in return payment, he has to be a detective for Ko-Enma in spiritual cases. These basically result in clashes between Yuusuke and a 'demon' stronger than him. But Yuusuke of course manages just barely. While Yuusuke is the main character, there are several others wonderful people/demons. Kuwabara is a fellow classmate that can never quite beat Yuusuke. Kurama is part human part Yoko (spirit fox) and tends to be the fancy of female fans of this series. The demon Hiei has a bad attitude, incredible speed, and an evil eye. Ko-Enma can rarely focus on the bureaucracy of hell and is the one responsible for putting Yuusuke in difficult situations. Botan is far too cheery for a person dealing in death. Keiko is the perfect girlfriend for Yuusuke, mainly because she's the only girl who can stand up to him. And so on, and so on. In short, this series is about fighting, overcoming odds, fighting, unlikely friendships, and more fighting. If you don't like blood, I suggest reading another series. For those who enjoy Flame of Recca, the two series have basically the same feeling, but different story aspects such as reasons for fighting and how they are able to fight. Otherwise, the tournaments and one-on-one fighting towards a goal/ultimate battle are the same. This is a series to be enjoyed and to give the brain a good rest. The main character himself rarely thinks, so why should the reader? Rating -- 7.5
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