Asura Cryin'

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

Tomoharu Natsume one day receives a mysterious package from Shuri, a friend of his older brother. This box, called the Extractor, is sought after by many. At the same time, Tomoharu has to keep the fact that his childhood friend, Misao, is constantly hovering, ghostlike, beside him. Then a miko with heterochromia breaks into his house searching for the Extractor. After a fight breaks out in his house, he opens the box. What lies within is a mecha-like creature called the Asura Machina. That is only the beginning.

Asura Cryin' is based on a series of Light Novels, animated by Seven Arcs in the spring of 2009, with a second season following in the fall.


Tropes used in Asura Cryin' include:
  • A Boy and His X -- A boy and his Ghost, and later on his flame-wielding Miko classmate.
  • The Abridged Series -- From this guy
  • Absurdly Powerful Student Council -- Because one isn't enough, the school has three:
    • The First/Holy Guards: The Saeki siblings . Knight Templar-like disposition and clothing, and guns...Lots and lots of guns! Demon Hunters.
    • The Second/Pilgrim Union: Rikka and Shuu. The Mercenary Company.
    • The Third/Royal Dark Society: Tooru, Shuri and the Science Club. Demon Protectors.
  • All the Myriad Ways -- In this case, it's actually the "main" universe that we see get sent to hell. It turns out the first world holds several answers, as well as letting the audience see several characters who were dead in the second world be alive in this one.
  • Anti-Magic -- Every ex-handler is immune to both the science of the Asura Machina and the magic of the demons. It comes at a terrible price, though.
  • Could Have Avoided This Plot -- Nia asks why Kanade couldn't have just burned the ribbon off earlier. It's implied that she knows she could've, but wanted to spend some time with Tomo instead.
  • Cute Ghost Girl -- Misao, though she's not quite a ghost. She's a projected existence, which is close enough.
    • Aine and Shuri's sister Yukari also count. In fact although some are rarely seen, every Asura Machina in the show has one related to it.
  • Cybernetics Eat Your Soul -- Explained as a last word at the last episode of the first season.
  • Dead All Along -- Tomoharu's older brother is dead all along.
  • Defeat Means Friendship -- Half of the casts halfway to the end were once enemies at the beginning of the series.
  • Does This Remind You of Anything? -- Kanade and Tomoharu's Daughter is introduced like an actual daughter.
  • Downer Ending -- The last episode of the first season unceremoniously took a darker turn and killed one of the Cute Ghost Girl as listed above. Besides, although the hero saves the day, the Big Bad took Karma Houdini Villain Exit Stage Left and The Bad Guy Wins.
    • Then karma bites said Big Bad out and the presumed Big Bad was not the Big Bad after all.
  • Dude, She's Like, in a Coma -- When Shuri passes out (also, she has amnesia) Tomo wants to help her get into bed, but he wears a blindfold and has Misao guide him what to do with her voice so she makes sure he doesn't see or touch anything he's not supposed to. He still gets a Nosebleed when she wakes up, though.
  • Eyelid-Pull Taunt -- Misao makes this gesture at Tomoharu occasionally.
  • Eyepatch of Power -- Rikka, after having her eye damaged in a fight with Picasso Mask.
  • Face Heel Turn -- Club president and Toru
  • Fan Service
  • Fourth Wall -- Higuchi asks is Tomoharu a anime protagonist in episode 11.
  • Freud Was Right -- These jokes unexpectedly thrown on the last parts of episode 11 and the beginning of episode 12.
  • Future Badass -- From another world, but Tomoharu-1 is a much more serious version of Tomoharu-2.
  • Gag Boobs -- Kanade
  • Gone Horribly Right -- Black hole experiments in the first world destroyed it and caused a collision of multiple dimensions.
  • The Gunslinger -- Shuri and several others. The word "guns" is going to show up a lot on this page.
  • Heroic Sacrifice -- Aine at the end of season 1
  • Hikikomori -- Tokiya Kagayaki, who prefers to communicate through a stuffed koala.
  • Hollywood Cyborg -- Shuri, whose body is loaded with guns. More Dakka!
  • Hot Chick with a Sword -- Toru for most of the series, but Aki looks to be where she got it from.
  • Humongous Mecha -- The Asura Machina, which is at least mecha-like.
  • Jacob Marley Apparel -- Tomoharu questions Misao on why this trope doesn't apply to her. Her only response is that "it'd be boring". So, somehow, she can change her clothes.
    • Although she never changes her Victorian Alpine look--even on the beaches of Hawaii!--Aine's outfit is also not what she was wearing when impaled.
  • Karma Houdini -- Kagakagari. But in the second season karma bites him back.
  • Killed Mid-Sentence -- Tomoharu-1. Killed by a gunshot.]]
  • Love Makes You Evil -- While Kagakagari seems to be this way at first, it's Kagayaki who's gone from doing questionable things to being outright insane.
  • Macross Missile Massacre -- Shuri loves this trope
  • Mask Power -- Picasso Mask, a swordsman with almost unfathomable skill.
  • Melee a Trois -- The first episode.
  • Mismatched Eyes -- Kanade normally has blue eyes, but if she "powers up" one of her eyes changes to green. This may change if she takes a level in badass and has both eyes go green.
  • Mood Whiplash -- Mild version happened at Episode 11, a comedy interspersed with Tear Jerker. Episode 20 goes to Modern Warfare style Kill'Em All.
  • Miko -- Kanade.
  • Nanomachines -- Apparently both the ability to be a handler and the anti-magic of an ex-handler stem from these machines.
  • New Transfer Student -- Misao, which gets treated as an Unusually Uninteresting Sight.
  • Ordinary High School Student -- Tomoharu
  • People Jars -- The Burial Dolls within the Asura Machina.
  • Playing with Fire -- Kanade's powers, once put to use in helping Tomoharu recover from a cold.
  • Powered by a Forsaken Child -- The Asura Machinas
  • The Power of Love -- A twisted version. Demons, when they find a contractor, get their power by sapping their contractor's ability to love. Not that the alternative is any better.
    • Later played straight when Kurogane literally becomes harem-powered. And on on fire.
  • Red String of Fate -- A variation. A red ribbon ties together Kanade and Tomoharu as they're practicing for a three-legged race. Then Kanade ties it really tight. Then a superglue splashes on it, forcing them to stay together. Even when Kanade needs to take a shower...
  • She's All Grown Up - Nia
  • Smug Snake -- Kagakagari Takaya.
    • Try Kiyomi from the 1st Student Government. He's WAAAAY more of a Smug Snake than Kagakagari.
      • And now, presenting THE CLUB PRESIDENT in episode 20. Yeah, killing Shuri, Yo, and Tomoharu-1. And his reason is that he wants the Hagane just to live in a world where his girlfriend is. Could have done a Kill'Em All if it wasn't for a minor complication.
  • Soul Jar --Hisui Reishirou's/ Aine's Asura Machina in Episode 12.
  • Suspiciously Specific Denial -- Saeki isn't wearing her hair like that because anyone complimented her or anything.
  • Third Person Person -- Misao.
  • Those Two Guys -- Higuchi and An.
  • Took a Level in Badass -- Nia, after five years fending for herself in the first world.
  • Tsundere -- Saeki
  • Utopia Justifies the Means -- Kagayaki's reason for fighting. Even if it means destroying everything.
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist -- Kagakagari, in light of things.
  • Winds of Destiny Change -- The power of Ania and her family. She can give and take luck at will.
  • Zettai Ryouiki -- Pretty much all the girls possess this in season 1, but lose them by season 2.