List of Genshiken characters

This is a list of characters that appear in the manga and anime series "Genshiken".

Main characters

"Note: the Genshiken members' favourite manga, anime, and games are non-existent parodies of actual manga, anime and games. For instance, Sasahara is a fan of the game "The Champ of Fighters" (CoF), a parody of "The King of Fighters" (KoF). Occasionally a real series is mentioned in the manga that is fictionalized in the anime, and vice-versa. (Biographical information is from Volume One of the Genshiken manga and the Genshiken Official Data Book.)"

; nihongo|Kanji Sasahara|笹原 完士|Sasahara Kanji: Kousaka's girlfriend. Fashionable, violent, confident, and not at all attracted by the sexual charms of cartoon characters, Saki is not an otaku in any sense of the word. She follows Kousaka into Genshiken, and is eventually blackmailed by the first Genshiken chairman into joining the club. Surprisingly, Saki actually saves Genshiken from being shut down on two separate occasions, though her motives have more to do with revenge and guilt than becoming more of an otaku.

:Despite being vehemently against otaku activities such as wearing nekomimi (cat-ears) at the start of the series, Saki eventually becomes comfortable with the other club members to the point that she can be considered their close friend (aside from the possible exception of Kuchiki). Saki has a tendency to use nicknames. She calls Sasahara "Sasayan", Kugayama "Kugapii", and Ogiue "Ogichin" by nicknames, and even though she at first refuses to call Kuchiki by his self-appointed nickname ("Kucchi"), Saki starts using that nickname as well.

; nihongo|Harunobu Madarame|斑目 晴信|Madarame Harunobu:The stuttering, heavyset Kugayama is Genshiken's only artist until Ogiue's arrival. He generally lacks the motivation and commitment to create a full-fledged dōjinshi. In volume 5, Sasahara asks Kugayama to draw a dōjinshi for Comic-Fest, which he fails to do until Saki forces him, Ogiue, and Sasahara to make one under a very tight schedule. He is given the nickname 'Kugapii' by Saki. In volume 6, he graduates and begins work at a medical device manufacturing company in Iidabashi.

:Kugayama, though at first a seemingly mediocre artist, is actually quite talented. However, his talent only appears when he is properly motivated, i.e. when drawing more erotic imagery, particularly that of Yamada from Kujibiki Unbalance.

; nihongo|Kanako Ohno|大野 加奈子|Ōno Kanako: Introduced in volume two of the manga, Kuchiki becomes a full-member of Genshiken together with Ogiue in volume four apparently after being kicked out of the Anime Club. Kuchiki is a very abrasive individual with a loud and obnoxious style of speech and no qualms about doing indecent or improper things such as spying on girls. He was a part of the Anime Society before he joined Genshiken. He wants to be nicknamed nihongo|Kuchi|クッチー|Kucchī and enjoys it when people use this nickname. He is also not ashamed to cosplay.

:Kuchiki is actually the second best fighting game player in Genshiken, next to Kousaka. He twice expects himself to be named the next Genshiken president, only to be passed over by Ohno and then Ogiue.

:Mostly a background comedic character, Kuchiki is used as a goad for a good many of Genshiken's slapstick and off color jokes. One might even consider him a boke to the rest of the Genshiken's tsukkomi.

Other characters

Other club members

; nihongo|Original Club President/"Prez"|初代会長|Shodai Kaichō:: This character is the first club president, whose name is never revealed. He is eerily quiet and very stealthy, moving from place to place like smoke without anyone noticing (scaring Saki in particular), although he seems largely harmless on the surface. He appears to have a vast amount of knowledge about the college and many of the students, although he denies having hidden cameras or any other means of spying on them. He has been head of the Genshiken longer than most care to remember; some indications go back as far as 1987. He often stands on top of buildings, staring into the club room. He leaves his position as President to work on his graduate thesis, implying that he is working on his PhD. He begins the custom of the current president personally choosing his or her successor. The titles for the first 12 episodes of the anime can be interpreted as the "research" he has conducted on unsuspecting fellow club-members, as titles from after his departure are far more mundane.

; nihongo|Keiko Sasahara|笹原 恵子|Sasahara Keiko:"Voiced by:" Kaori Shimizu (Japanese), Zena Fries (English): Keiko is Kanji's little sister, who leads a kogal lifestyle. She carries a blatant crush on Kousaka, much to Saki's chagrin. She even tries to become an otaku and gets drawn into the otaku world (to a point) when she seems to like some of the dōjinshi Ohno shares with her. In volume 6, she moves into Kanji's place so that she can take the entry exam for Shiiou University and fails, but she gets into Ohka Business College nearby. Her sole reason for doing so is in order to join Genshiken and be closer to Kousaka.

; nihongo|Haraguchi|原口: A "phantom member" of the Genshiken, Haraguchi rarely shows up at the club room, and when he does, it is almost always bad news. He is a member of the Manga Society and Anime Society as well, but has paid his club dues for none of them. Called "Haraguro" by those who are unfortunate enough to know him, he is roundly disliked by everyone in all three groups, and only grudgingly tolerated by his much-touted connections among semi-professional manga artists. However, as he tends to intimidate others into submission, few are willing to voice their complaints in public.

Ohno's American friends

; nihongo|Susanna Hopkins|スザンナ・ホプキンス|Suzanna Hopukinsu:: One of Ohno's American friends, Susanna (more frequently known as Susie or Sue), is a petite girl with an avid interest in yaoi. Susanna comes off as somewhat harsh and unsociable, and startles the other Genshiken members by using crude anime and manga quotes in Japanese (written in katakana to show her unfamiliarity with the language). As she makes gains in comprehension, her responding solely in quotes makes it unclear just how much Japanese she understands, much to the chagrin of Ogiue and others. Her extensive knowledge of anime and manga quotes suggests that Susanna is well-versed in both, having seen "Neon Genesis Evangelion" , "Kimi ga Nozomu Eien" , "Fist of the North Star", "Saint Seiya" , "Neko-Yasha" , "Mahoromatic" , "Azumanga Daioh" , and "Lupin III" , among others. She also seems to be obsessed with Japanese culture. As for her age, it is undetermined, and those who would know (i.e. Ohno) refuse to tell. Susanna wishes to study in Japan in the near future.

; nihongo|Angela Burton|アンジェラ・バートン|Anjera Bāton:: Another of Ohno's American friends, Angela is very much the opposite of Sue in that she is tall, mature, and very friendly. Angela is a very athletic girl and is able to endure posing for cosplay pictures longer than even an experienced cosplayer like Ohno. She is very fond of the anime and manga series "General Gyororo". Angela enjoys both "male-oriented" and "female-oriented" doujinshi. She also has a bit of a glasses fetish (which makes her feel somewhat attracted to a scared Madarame the first time they meet). Angela does not seem to be able to speak much of any Japanese, with her vocabulary limited to terms like "sō-uke" ("total bottom," obviously learned through her interest in yaoi dōjinshi). However in the anime when characters are speaking Japanese around her she has commented on what they are saying in English, implying that she has a basic understands of Japanese even if she does not speak it.

Other students at Shiiou University

; nihongo|Takayanagi|高柳: A member of the Manga Society, Takayanagi is on friendly terms with the Genshiken members and is seen conversing with them from time to time on various matters. In one notable instance, he finds himself in the unenviable position in the middle of the battle between the girls of his club and Ogiue, who had attempted to join. He is much relieved when the Genshiken takes Ogiue in, as the other girls in Genshiken are already hated by the Manga Society girls for various reasons.

; nihongo|Yabusaki|薮崎: One of the girls in the Manga Society at the time Ogiue attempted to join, she seems to harbor strong feelings of resentment towards Ogiue. Criticizing Ogiue for slipping into her Tohoku dialect when she doesn't speak formally, Yabusaki herself speaks in a highly pronounced Kansai dialect, which she says scares those from Kantō. When Ogiue is rejected as a vendor for the next ComiFes, Yabusaki (grudgingly) invites her to become a guest artist in her own circle's dōjinshi. Though she appears only towards the end of the manga, she shows up much earlier in the anime, in episode 3 of season 2.

; nihongo|Asada|麻田: Yabusaki's friend and fellow member of the Manga Society who speaks in a highly irregular manner. While her real name is never revealed in the manga, she receives a name for the second Genshiken TV series in the ending credits. She is also known as "Nyaako."

; nihongo|Kato|加藤|Katō: Kato is a mysterious girl in the manga society, who always wears her hair over her face. At some point, she takes an interest in becoming friends with Ogiue, and sets out to do just that in spite of her fellow members' dislike of the girl. In reality, she is quite good looking, but few seem to know this because of the way she conceals her features.

Figures from Ogiue's past

; nihongo|Nakajima|中島: One of Ogiue's friends from her junior high school days, Nakajima worked on writing scripts for yaoi dōjinshi which Ogiue would then draw. When she notices the relationship between Ogiue and Makita, she appears to grow jealous of the two, orchestrating the event that Ogiue carries as a mark of shame from that point on. Her appearance (along with Shigeta) at Comifes while Ogiue is selling her newest dōjinshi greatly disturbs Ogiue emotionally, until her bitter reminiscence is interrupted by the arrival of Susie.

; nihongo|Shigeta|重田: Another of Ogiue's friends from junior high school, Shigeta (distinguished by her blushing cheeks) was one of the group with whom Ogiue made dōjinshi. While perhaps not directly responsible for the incident involving Ogiue and Makita, she still associates with Nakajima even five years later, and her presence is enough to upset Ogiue at Comifes when she appears. Her name is not mentioned in the manga, or in dialogue; it appears in the credits in episode 11 of "Genshiken 2".

References