Rin-ne, known as in Japan, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. It has been serialized in Shogakukan's Weekly Shōnen Sunday manga magazine from April 22, 2009 to December 13, 2017. The series follows Sakura Mamiya, a girl who gained the power to see ghosts after an incident as a child, and her classmate Rinne Rokudo, a boy of mixed human and shinigami heritage who helps lingering spirits finally pass on to be reincarnated. The manga has been licensed in North America by Viz Media, which was simultaneously releasing the manga chapters online in English as they were serialized in Japan until March 17, 2011, and in Australasia by Madman Entertainment. A three season animetelevision series adaptation, produced by Brain's Base, aired in Japan from 2015 to 2017. As of August 2014, the manga had 3 million collected volumes in print.
Plot
Sakura Mamiya is a high school girl who became able to see ghosts after she was spirited away for a week when she was a child, though she does not remember the details of the experience. Once in high school, Sakura wishes to be rid of her extrasensory perception, which is an annoyance to her as no one else apart from her can see spirits. She meets a shinigami of sorts named Rinne Rōkudo, a classmate of hers who is absent for the first month or so of school. As a shinigami, his job to guide spirits, whose regrets bind them to Earth, to the wheel of reincarnation, a large, red spoked wheel revolving in the sky, so that they may be reborn, involves these two on dangerous and comedy-filled adventures.
Media
Manga
The manga series Rin-ne is written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. The series was serialized in Shogakukan's Weekly Shōnen Sunday manga magazine from April 22, 2009 to December 13, 2017. Shogakukan released 40 tankōbon volumes in Japan from October 16, 2009 to January 18, 2018. In North America, the manga has been licensed by Viz Media, and published the chapters simultaneously online in English as they were serialized in Japan until March 17, 2011. Rin-ne was the first title to be released under Viz Media's Shonen Sundayimprint, with the first volume published on October 20, 2009. Madman Entertainment published the first volume in Australia on October 10, 2010.
Anime
The 25-episode anime television series adaptation, produced by Brain's Base and directed by Seiki Sugawara, premiered in Japan on April 4, 2015. The screenplay is written by Michiko Yokote and the music composed by Akimitsu Honma. The first set of opening and ending theme songs is "Ōkaranman" by Keytalk and "Tokinowa" by Passepied respectively, while the second set used from episode 14 onwards is "Ura no Ura" by Passepied and "Futatsu no Sekai" by Quruli. Prior to the anime, an animated commercial promoting the manga and Weekly Shōnen Sunday was created in 2009. The second season premiered on April 9, 2016. For the second season, the first set of opening and ending theme songs is "Melody" by Pile and "Hanashi o Shiyō" by Glim Spanky respectively, while the second set used from episode 38 onwards is "Ainii" by CreepHyp and "Beautiful Life" by Shiggy Jr. The third season aired from April to September 2017. For the third season, the first set of opening and ending theme songs is "Shiny" by Yoru no Honki Dance and "Suki nano Kana" by Softly respectively, while the second set used from episode 63 onwards is "Setsuna Yumemishi" by Keytalk and "Puzzle" by Mone Kamishiraishi. The anime's three seasons are licensed by Sentai Filmworks for digital and home video release in North America.
Reception
As of August 2014, Rin-ne had 3 million tankōbon volumes in print. During the week of October 12–18, 2009, the first two volumes ranked at No. 15 and 16 for the best-selling manga in Japan; combined, the volumes sold about 100,000 copies that week. The following week of October 19–25, 2009, the first volume ranked at No. 18 with over 44,000 copies sold, while the second volume ranked at No. 20 with over 41,000 copies sold in Japan. The third manga volume ranked at No. 11 for the best-selling manga in Japan for the week of March 15–21, 2010, and the English version ranked at No. 8 on The New York Times Manga Best Seller list in May 2010. The fourth manga volume ranked twice at No. 19 and 20 in June 2010 with over 76,000 copies sold in Japan. The fifth manga volume also ranked twice at No. 21 and 23 in September 2010 with over 71,000 copies sold in Japan. The sixth manga volume ranked at No. 29 for the best-selling manga in Japan for the week of December 13–19, 2010.
