List of Medaka Box characters
Medaka Box, a manga series written by Nisio Isin and illustrated by Akira Akatsuki, follows the efforts of Student Council President [|Medaka Kurokami], a young woman with extraordinary capabilities, as she works to improve Hakoniwa Academy, along with her closest friend, Zenkichi Hitoyoshi. The Hokoniwa Academy population consists of several groups of students. The Specials are scholarship students whose abilities allow them to excel in a specific area. They include Student Council members [|Kouki Akune] and [|Mogana Kikajima]. The Abnormals are students who possess overwhelming capabilities such that they are dominated by that aspect; they are unable to relate to normal people, and typically have a superiority complex; Medaka herself is one of these. The antithesis to the Abnormals are Minuses; their abnormalities as destructive expressions of mental illnesses, chronic depression, being mentally shut off from the world, and possibly a complementary inferiority complex. The students who lack any special abilities are known as Normals.
Main characters
Medaka Kurokami
Medaka grew up in a family of five: her father, her 'legal' mother, her older sister, her older brother, and herself. Her biological mother, the mistress of her father, died from a heart attack directly after childbirth and Medaka believed it was because her mother's sole purpose in life was to give birth to her. Because of her abnormal abilities, she quickly matured and was selected to be part of the Flask Project. However, she ran away after being confronted with the realization that life has no meaning. Shortly afterward, she met Zenkichi Hitoyoshi for the first time; when he showed genuine happiness and amazement for her remarkable abilities, he told her that her purpose in life was to make the people around her happy. Thus, Medaka was reborn and the unbreakable bond between Zenkichi and Medaka begun. She despises her older brother but at the same time holds some degree of begrudging respect for him. She looks up to her older sister and loves her deeply. However, she unwittingly feels lonely because of her incredible abilities and the company of others has actually allowed her to restrain the true extent of her power.
Medaka and Zenkichi have been friends since they were two years old. In middle school, Medaka had a classmate whom she tried to help but failed to do so. Her failure to do so ended in the death of another classmate, Ajimu, and Medaka was emotionally scarred. In hopes of protecting her, Zenkichi vowed to prevent anyone similar from getting close to her again, which Medaka is secretly grateful for. During Zenkichi's fight with Munakata, Medaka confesses her love for Zenkichi to the other Student Council members and breaks down in tears when Zenkichi falls to Munakata. After Medaka was brainwashed, the bond between Medaka and Zenkichi enables him to return her back from her old personality. In more recent events, Medaka has expressed an interest in Zenkichi since he challenged her to a duel. After the new student council election, Medaka confesses that she has fallen for him.
Medaka's abnormality, identified as "The End" by Naze, is her ability to copy and master other people's abnormalities. It is this ability that draws the interest of the Flask Plan, as she appears to be the one person who can achieve the ideal of the "Perfect Person". It has been commented, by herself no less, that only she can hold this ability, because she is a beast, and no human would be able to withstand it. When Oudo tried to steal her abnormality with his "Unreasonable Taxation" abnormality, he stated that it was, "Dark enough to black out the sun". He noticed that his arm appeared to have melted, however this was an illusion and most likely the results of him trying to take an ability too powerful for him to handle. However, her abnormality has proved to be a double-edged sword, as she is unable to stop herself from taking on and enhancing an ability when she experiences it. If she were to copy and perfect a Minus abnormality, it would not serve any positive purpose and would undoubtedly cause her harm.
In the Unknown Shiranui arc, after coming back to life, she is called to save the world. Apparently, Fukurou has created a style, Testament User, that activates after he dies. This style draws the moon to the earth. Medaka then left to destroy the moon.
According to Zenkichi: "That day, the moon disappeared from our sky. And Medaka-chan never returned.". However, Medaka reappeared during her class's graduation, having survived and gone on several fantastic adventures in space before returning. Medaka then decided to leave school to work for her family's Zaibatsu, but not before defeating the entire school to collect a farewell message.
In the final chapter, when the cast meets again in their high school reunion, Medaka, along with the other main characters, has lost all of her abilities with age, but gained the ability to be loved by animals, the only skill she lacked in her youth. Zenkichi challenges Medaka to a final duel. If he wins, she must marry him. Medaka counters this that if SHE wins, HE must marry her. Zenkichi points out the conditions are basically the same but then proceeds to begin the fight.
Zenkichi Hitoyoshi
Zenkichi is noted to be a "normal" individual, one with no special abilities. Medaka's brother, Maguro, takes special interest in him because no matter how much he is discouraged or fails, he stands back up. Zenkichi has vowed to protect Medaka ever since she was emotionally scarred after failing to help a classmate in middle school. In order to become stronger, he has undertaken Maguro's hellish training sessions along with Medaka. Zenkichi is revealed to be a master of Savate, having honed his skill to such an extent that he possesses an almost impenetrable defense. According to Zenkichi, he learned this style because he fears fighting and uses it to disarm opponents and take away their desire to fight. He also studied on how to disassemble guns, and rocket launchers, just in case something ever happened to Medaka. Thanks to this display of skill, the Flask Plan is very interested in him, believing him to have the potential to become an Abnormal. However, it has been repeatedly iterated that Zenkichi, despite his remarkable abilities, is still only "normal." If standard human limits are applied though, Zenkichi has long since passed the line of a "normal"; for instance, when he caused a small earthquake with his stomp. Even if it was biologically possible, a man of Zenkichi's weight and mass would find it impossible.
During the moments of unconsciousness after he sacrifices himself to defeat Kumagawa, Zenkichi meets Ajimu, who had been killed by Kumagawa and helps him recover his eyesight by granting him one of her own abilities - "Parasite Eyes," which allows Zenkichi to see another person's perspective of the world. However, Zenkichi dislikes his new ability and avoids using it unless necessary, often expressing distaste for how he is no longer normal. The ability is later modified into "Model Zenkichi" by Shiranui, which allows Zenkichi to see the limitations of his opponents instead.
Because of Zenkichi's otherwise normal nature, Ajimu exposes Medaka to the potential successors, who are also normal girls, destroying the appeal that Zenkichi's "normalness" has for her. Ajimu then mocks the broken boy, listing off some of the most famous protagonists in manga and pointing out how he has nothing in common with any of them. To remain by Medaka's side, Zenkichi accepts Ajimu's offer to become a main character by using the Flask Plan. In order to defeat Medaka by becoming the next Student Council President, Zenkichi is given a specially made ability created by Hanten Shiranui: "Devil Style", an Abnormal ability that nullifies any coincidence, allowing Zenkichi to enter any venture without luck or the whims of fate interfering with it, thus making any endeavor completely fair. This ability flies in the face of Ajimu's idea of a "main character" as most are known to be incredibly lucky. He is now one of the only characters, alongside Youka Naze, Misogi Kumagawa, Najimi Ajimu, and Kamome Tsurubami, to possess more than one abnormality or minus. At the end of the second semester, he defeats Medaka in an election and becomes the 100th Student Council President.
In the final chapter, when the cast meets again in their high school reunion, Zenkichi challenges Medaka to a final duel. If he wins, she must marry him. Medaka counters this that if SHE wins, HE must marry her. Zenkichi points out the conditions are basically the same but then proceeds to begin the fight.
Hakoniwa Academy
Student council
Medaka recruits the following student council members in addition to Zenkichi.Misogi Kumagawa
During Kumagawa's early appearances, his face was never seen, it was either shrouded in shadow or covered by his hair. He used to carry around a macabre stuffed rabbit as a child and as a middle schooler was shown to be capable of solving complex puzzles in seconds. At some point he mostly sealed off the virtually omnipotent immortal psychopath Ajimu from reality, which led Medaka to mistakenly think that he had killed an innocent woman, and attack him in a fit of rage, resulting in him leaving the school. Upon realizing that she could not help him, which went against everything that she believed herself to be capable of, she was left emotionally scarred. The scar has still not yet healed, as this day she still berates herself over not being able to do anything positive for him. Much to Medaka and Zenkichi's horror, Misogi transfers into Hakoniwa Academy after the destruction of the Flask Plan. His very nature caused him to absorb all the negative aspects of the people he met; he failed at everything and lost to everyone at everything. Medaka attempted to sympathize with him and reform him, like she had done to her other classmates, but Misogi proved to be beyond her influence.
As a child, Kumagawa was tested for any abnormalities, but was believed to be normal. However, it later turned out to be far too great to be detected or measured. He possesses the Minus ability "All Fiction" which allows him to deny reality absolutely. With it, he can take any action done and undo it, and take anything that was made and unmake it. Wounds he inflicts can be instantly cured as if they never were, because they were not, and people who can see can be made blind as if they had never seen, since they had not; it can also undo death making himself effectively immortal. This ability is so strong and so immense, Kumagawa himself confesses that if he should lose control, the entire world would be unmade. The ability's one weakness is that the only thing it cannot undo is itself: anything it unmade or undid cannot be remade or redone by its action alone; it also seems limited in that it cannot undo minuses, after his failed attempt on Mukae it actually evolved her ability further. This ability, however, is not his original Minus; "All Fiction" was a Minus that resulted when he altered a separate ability granted him by Najimi Ajimu. His original Minus is a skill called "Book Maker", which takes the form of a javelin-sized wood screw. It allows him to make anyone it strikes gain all his weaknesses and limitations, experience the same emotional turmoil he does, and potentially become a Minus themselves. In one-on-one combat, Kumagawa uses giant screws that materialize from nowhere and can control their size and type at will.
Kumagawa is eventually defeated by Medaka during the battle against the Student Council and admits his love for her. He subsequently accepts Medaka's offer to become the Vice President of the Student Council, completing the group's ranks, and providing the necessary different perspective that Medaka wanted in order to balance the viewpoints of her executives. Despite the former animosity held toward him, Kumagawa becomes a welcomed member of the Student Council and fulfills his intended role well. He instantly and brutally reduces the number of potential successors to five normal girls and instantly recognizes that they are "Not Equals". Enduring their torture and abuse with an amicable attitude, he soon wins their admiration when he defends them from bullying. However, because of his changing perspective of life, the seal he originally placed on Ajimu has gradually begun to weaken. In response to Kikaijima and the five recruits's request to stop the battle between Medaka and Zenkichi, he forms the "Naked Apron Alliance" based on the Shinsengumi's battle tactics and regains the use of "All Fiction"; albeit less complete than before as it is restricted so that it cannot undo anything with strong emotional attachment. This also limits his immortality to such that if his fight with Zenkichi were to be replayed out, he would effectively die.
After Anshin'in's death at the hands of Iihiko Shishime, an unconscious Kumagawa comes across an afterimage of her, presenting him with two of her skills. The first is "Hundred Gauntlets" which according to her can help him perfect his "All Fiction" skill, and the other is "Unskilled", which nullifies and blocks all his skills for an interval of three minutes. He later becomes student council president after Medaka's destruction of the moon and subsequent disappearance, though he made a bet with her that she would return. When she does finally return, Kumagawa realizes that he has "won" for the first time in his life and begins to cry tears of joy.
Kouki Akune
Because of his natural fighting abilities, Akune is known as the "Prince of Judo". His captain, Nabeshima, arranges a match between him and Zenkichi, where if he wins he would succeed her as captain, otherwise he would have to quit. Akune wins the first nine points, but loses the tenth and the match. After Nabeshima informs Medaka that Akune has excellent handwriting, he joins the Student Council as its secretary. Both he and Kikaijima are considered Specials, but not Abnormals. Though primarily expressed in his fighting skills, Akune's ability is being able to copy other people's abilities, though to a lesser extent than Medaka's similar ability, "The End". As Akune gradually realizes, he has a tendency to shape his personality according to how he believes others need him to be.
Mogana Kikaijima
Though Medaka successfully reforms Kikaijima from her old ways, it still does not keep her from being obsessed with money. Shortly after she joins the Student Council, she charges Zenkichi for accidentally seeing her changing and then again for insulting her, and one last time for saying she had a great body. She develops strong relationships with the Student Council members, particularly Medaka and Zenkichi, after being encouraged by Yakushima and Tanegashima to make friends outside of the swim club. Like Akune, she is regarded as a "special" and is one of the school's many scholarship students. Kikaijima has an incredible lung capacity, allowing her to hold her breath for a month if she chooses. She can also focus her voice as a sound cannon and destroy physical objects with ultrasonic shrieks. Her ability can also be used as a form of echolocation, though Kikaijima must be accompanied by someone who can act as a receiver for the reflected sound waves, such as Medaka or Kibougaoka. As a result of her past desire to acquire money, she is also capable of performing high-level calculations of probability for gambling purposes.
Class 13
This is a class consisting entirely of students possessing abnormalities. Many are involved with the Flask Plan, an experiment overseen by the Headmaster of Hakoniwa Academy to create a Perfect Human. Most members of Class 13 are notorious for not attending class and are generally indifferent to expectations.The Front Six
Recognized as the primary members of the Class 13, the Front Six consist of students whose abnormalities became refined and highly developed under the Flask Plan, mostly under the direction of Youka Naze. Unlike the Plus Six, they are actively involved in the Flask Plan and are the first opponents that Medaka has genuine difficulty attempting to defeat.Plus Six
The Plus Six consists of members of Class 13 involved in the Flask Plan, whose Abnormalities are far more advanced than the other members of Class 13. While they were brought together as the original foundation for the Flask Plan, Naze notes that their inherent attitudes mean that they have little interest in actually furthering the plan's completion. However, they elect to help stall the Student Council and their allies to stall for time during Oudo and Naze's plan to brainwash Medaka.Class -13
Once the Flask Plan was destroyed, the Headmaster put his own personal version of the Flask Plan into action. Selecting students with negative outlooks and corresponding abnormalities, Class -13 was born. The class consists entirely of Minuses: detached, traumatised, resigned, or pessimistic people, who can develop emotionally shallow attachments to anything or anybody that makes them feel a little better. More unusually and specifically, they actually seem to enjoy being that way, hence are usually smiling and appear to have masochistic tendencies. Centered around Misogi Kumagawa, their stated aim is to create an entirely equal society where nobody would possess any distinguishing special abilities, though they lack any sort of direction as to how to achieve the goal. Though most members seem borderline homicidal and willing to use underhanded means, they are actually mostly good-hearted individuals.Hansode Shiranui
;Hansode ShiranuiOthers
Committee students
Hakoniwa Academy's various student activities and services are run by committees, which includes the Student Council. The majority of the chairmen of the various committees at Hakoniwa Academy are introduced as the opponents that the potential successors and the Student Council must overcome during Medaka's treasure hunt. As the Chairman of the Enforcers, Myouri Unzen is also an opponent, who sets up a chess match: "Four Continuous Showdowns on the Boards: Casting Boat". The match is simultaneous to the challenge set up by Kiruko Tachiarai, the Chairman of the Election Management Division. The executives of the Student Committees are later challenged and manage to defeat Kumagawa's "Naked Apron Alliance" that was composed to counter the opposing factions of Zenkichi and Medaka preceding the 100th election for Student Council President.Public Morals Committee
This committee is a group of students who are charged with enforcing school rules and regulations, viewing themselves as the upholders of justice. They are generally referred to as the Enforcers and consider themselves in opposition to the Student Council, and that they are not above the laws of the school. They are led by the charismatic Myouri Unzen and generally will not hesitate to carry out his orders, regardless of how ruthless they might be.Election Management Committee
The Election Management Committee consist of students charged with ensuring the fair elections for the governing body of the academy. Members of the committee are dedicated working within the shadows of the Student Council and the Enforcers and avoid unnecessary attention in order to be forgotten so to maintain their impartiality in regard to school affairs. Committee members are also known for concealing their eyes behind masks.;Tokemichi Choujabaru
;Kiruko Tachiarai
Other committee executives
;Yabumi Juunichou;Aoki Aka
;Kuroudo Iizuka and Konomi Mera
;Tsue Kamimutsuro
;Uzume Megusuno
Other students
Potential Successors
After Ajimu makes herself known to Zenkichi and the Student Council, Medaka organizes an attempt to find successors who will be able to continue to stop Ajimu from succeeding at completing the Flask Plan after Medaka and the current Student Council graduate. However, among the many middle school students who appear upon Medaka's summons, only five remain standing when Kumagawa brutally and bluntly disheartens them with his words. However, unbeknown to the Student Council, the five are actually detachments of Ajimu and are completely normal girls, much like Zenkichi was a normal boy.;Kiki Kikitsu
;Shori Wanizuka
;Ima Takarabe
;Tsugiha Yojirou
;Suishou Kibougaoka
Kurokami Group
Jet Black Wedding Feast
Following Zenkichi's successful election as the 100th Student Council President of Hakoniwa Academy, Medaka is forced to deal with the suitors from seven branch families to the Kurokami family. Her original fiancé was decided in a battle between the seven suitors known as the Jet Black Wedding Feast; the eventual victor was Fukurou Tsurubami, the father of Kamome Tsurubami. However, he was killed afterward before the marriage and the organization behind the Jet Black Wedding Feast intended to wait until Medaka had finished her work as the Student Council President before arranging another feast. When Kamome is invited as the suitor from the Tsurubami family, Medaka elects to take his place so she can decide for herself who she will marry.;Bukiko Udou
; The Proxy Suitors
; The True Suitors
Shiranui Village
Founded at the spot where Hanten Shiranui first appeared, members of the Shiranui Village are dedicated to preserving the existences of rare and unusual natures through their ability to become the shadow of another person. They primarily serve the Kurokami Group.;Obi
;Iihiko Shishime
Other members
;Fukurou Tsurubami;Kajiki Kurokami
;Hato Tsurubami
;Nashi Kurokami
Other characters
Works cited
- "Ch." and "Vol." are shortened forms for chapter and volume and refer to the appropriate sections in the Medaka Box manga, written by Nisio Isin, illustrated by Akira Akatsuki, published by Shueisha in 18 volumes.
- "Ep." is shortened form for episode and refers to an episode number of the Medaka Box anime. "AB Ep." refers to episodes in Medaka Box Abnormal.