Wagaya no Oinari-sama.

(female), Yuichi Nakamura (male):Kūgen is a fox deity that used to be the Guardian of the Mizuchi family. Kūgen was sealed away by a Water Priest because of her mischievous behavior. She was released by Noboru after Tōru was targeted by a demon and now serves as their guardian. She can become male or female at any time, but uses the pronoun Nihongo|"ore"|俺 to refer to herself which is usually only used by males in Japan, though in the past females did use the pronoun as well. She attracts a fair bit of attention because of her blonde hair, blue eyes and fox ears, which have to be covered by a hat when out in public, though she can also hide them completely without a hat (they involuntarily pop out if she gets distracted or excited, though).

;Nihongo|Noboru Takagami|高上 昇|Takagami Noboru:anime voices|Takahiro Mizushima:Noboru is the eldest son of the Takagami family. He is sixteen-years-old and was made aware that he is the head of the Mizuchi family in the beginning of the series. He is in the badminton club with Misaki Sakura.

;Nihongo|Tōru Takagami|高上 透|Takagami Tōru:anime voices|Yu Shimamura:Tōru is the youngest son of the Takagami family. He is eleven-years-old and has strong Yin in his blood, as stated by his grandmother. This indicates that Tōru may be sought after by spirits like in the beginning of the series.

;Nihongo|Kō|コウ:anime voices|Saori Hayami:Kō is the sentinel of the Mizuchi family. She is sent to keep an eye on the Takagami brothers and Kūgen, and therefore must live in Noboru's house for the time being. She appears to be helpful, (having asked if she can do anything to help around the house), dedicated to her job, and does not want to be a bother. She initially is very poor with common household tasks, and is mainly proficient in combat.

;Nihongo|Misaki Sakura|佐倉 美咲|Sakura Misaki:anime voices|Yui Kano:Misaki is a friend of Noboru's from school who tries many times to be more than friends with him. Kūgen and Kō, as well as Misaki's own imagination, get in the way of these attempts however.

;Nihongo|Miyako Takagami|高上 美夜子|Takagami Miyako:anime voices|Yui Horie:Miyako is Tōru's and Noboru's late mother. She passed away before the beginning of the series. She had a friendship with Kūgen, and seemed to adore animal mascots. Ebisu states to Kūgen that her spirit has not yet passed on early in the series.

;Nihongo|Ebisu|恵比寿:anime voices|Daisuke Ono:Ebisu is the local deity of the area where the Takagami brothers live. He runs a convenience store close to his shrine where he has two stone imperial guardian lions, named Kōga and Eiga, which he can bring to life. He is a real god unlike a "yōkai" like Kūgen Tenko, so he is able to overpower Kūgen without trying too much especially by the use of "kotodama" since he is the most powerful in his territory. He usually seems very jovial and friendly but is extremely sharp and sly and sometimes might be harsh. He keeps note of any new "yōkai" that enter his domain.

;Kotochinonushi / Kotochi no Nushi:A female snake yōkai who targets Tōru. She is defeated by Kō and Kūgen.

Media

Light novels

"Wagaya no Oinari-sama." began as a series of light novels written by Jin Shibamura, and drawn by Eizō Hōden. The novels are published by ASCII Media Works under their "Dengeki Bunko" publishing label. The first novel was released on February 10 2004, and as of October 10 2007, seven volumes have been published. In 2003, the first novel in the series won the Gold Prize in the tenth Dengeki Novel Prize contest. [citeweb|url= http://www.mediaworks.co.jp/3taisyo/10/10novel2.html|title="Wagaya no Oinari-sama." official listing for the tenth Dengeki Novel Prize|publisher=MediaWorks|accessdate=2008-01-10|language=Japanese]

Manga

A manga adaptation started serialization in the Japanese shōnen manga magazine "Dengeki Comic Gao!" on February 27 2007, published by MediaWorks. [citeweb|url= http://www.mediaworks.co.jp/magazine/backno/gao_200704.php|title="Dengeki Comic Gao!" April 2007 issue|publisher=MediaWorks|accessdate=2008-01-01|language=Japanese] On February 27 2008, the manga ended serialization in "Dengeki Comic Gao!", but continued serialization in ASCII Media Works' manga magazine "Dengeki Daioh" on April 21 2008. The manga takes its story from the light novels that preceded it, and is illustrated by Suiren Shōfū. As of March 27 2008, two bound volumes have been released under ASCII Media Works' "Dengeki Comics" label.

Anime

An anime adaptation produced by the animation studio Zexcs and directed by Yoshiaki Iwasaki began broadcasting in Japan on the Chiba TV television network on April 6 2008. The anime is set to contain twenty-four episodes. Three pieces of theme songs are used; one opening theme, and two ending themes. The opening theme, Nihongo|"KI-ZU-NA ~Haruka Naru Mono e|KI-ZU-NA 〜遥かなる者へ, is performed by Yoshida Hitomi. The first ending theme, Nihongo|"Kaze ga Nanika o Iō to Shiteiru|風がなにかを言おうとしている, is performed by Saori Hayami, and was used for the first eighteen episodes. The second ending theme, Nihongo|"Shiawase no Kotodama"|シアワセの言霊, is performed by Yukana, Saori Hayami, and Mikako Takahashi, who are the voice actresses for three female characters in the anime.

References

External links

* [http://asciimw.jp/mediamix/oinarisama/ "Wagaya no Oinari-sama."] at ASCII Media Works ja icon
* [http://anime.webnt.jp/oinarisama/ Anime official website] ja icon
*ann anime|id=8774