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{{cleanup|Examples need sorting, both within each type of youkai and in the unsorted list at the end of the page.}}
[[File:Yoshitoshi The Heavy Basket.jpg|thumb|300px|"Various Yokai Flying out of Wicker Clothes Hamper" from the "Omoi Tsuzura" (おもゐつづら), Yoshitoshi]]
'''Youkai''' are a widely-varied collection of various supernatural creatures that pop up in [[Shinto]] religion. They have a lot in common with [[The Fair Folk]] from Western folklore. Some youkai are good, others are evil, and many are [[Blue and Orange Morality|different]]. Some are mischievous, others avoid humans entirely. Shinto is an animist religion, and youkai are often associated with natural features such as forests and mountains. This word is often translated as "demon" in Western translations, but that does not adequately describe the creatures in question. The closest true Western equivalent is probably that of the ancient Roman [[wikipedia:Genius (mythology)|genii]] or [[Our Spirits Are Different|spirits]].
Supernatural creatures drawn from Western sources often turn out to seem more like youkai in Japanese works.<ref>Fun fact -- the Japanese word for vampire contains the character for oni.</ref> For instance, vampires. In the West you've got Nosferatu—a grotesque, undead monster who burns in sunlight and murders to preserve his hideous unlife.<ref>Notably, this may be used to refer both to the classic film character and to one of the clans in ''[[Vampire: The Masquerade]]'', which features other kinds of vampires, with the same powers and weaknesses, but characteristics that set them apart into clans</ref> In Japan you've got [[Cute Monster Girl|exceptionally cute]] [[Fan Service]] protagonist [[Rosario + Vampire|Moka Akashiya]], who is not undead, harbors no ill-will towards the sun, and drinks tiny amounts of blood that leave her "victim" light-headed at worst, but who has a [[Super-Powered Evil Side]] who can (and will if you look at her the wrong way) kick your ass thoroughly.
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* The Anthology ''[[Border Town]]'' contains the short story "Demon" which has a tsukumogami in the form of a teapot.
* This can be the only explanation for a good half of the [[So Bad It's Good|monstrosities]] strewn throughout Steve Moraff's [http://bimshwel.com/renk/moraff/unforgiven.htm Dungeons of the Unforgiven].
* ''[[Rosario
==Oni==
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Literally meaning "snow woman", Yuki-onna appear as beautiful women in snowy, cold, or mountainous regions. Some incarnations sleep with lone travelers to steal valuable body warmth, others will simply make them get lost during their travels to freeze to death, yet others will kill travelers by tricking them into touching them or a baby they hold in their hands. More benevolent Yuki-onna will either lead the victims to safety or leave them alone; the more wicked ones will lead them astray to begin with and use them.
=== Examples ===
* Mizore from ''[[Rosario
* Letty Whiterock from the ''[[Touhou Project]]''
* Yukina of ''[[Yu Yu Hakusho]]'', technically Hiei, Toya may be some relation.
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* The [[Fighting Fantasy]] gamebook ''Sword of the Samurai'' had the protagonist visit an entire village of nukekubi, though the book mistakenly referred to them as rokorokubi.
* In the ''[[Punky Brewster]]'' episode "The Perils of Punky," Cheri is taken by the Spirit and turned into either a rokorokubi or a nukekubi (you cannot really tell),
* ''[[Rosario
* Kubinashi from ''[[Nurarihyon no Mago]]'' is a nukekubi.
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* One appears in ''[[Hellboy Animated]]: Sword of Storms''
* One appears in ''[[×××HOLiC]]''.
* ''[[Rosario
* ''[[Throne of Blood]]'', [[Akira Kurosawa|Kurosawa Akira's]] adaptation of ''[[Macbeth]]'', exchanges [[Lost Woods|Birnam Wood]] for Spider's Web Forest, possibly invoking these creatures from Japanese folklore.
* Though it may have been entirely unintentional, the eponymous creature of Stephen King's ''[[IT]]'' has much in common with this particular brand of youkai. Its (It's?) true form is a gigantic spider, and throughout the story appears in several humanoid shapes, most notably [[Monster Clown|Pennywise the Clown]]. The balloons are strictly of King's invention, though.
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* ''Demon's World'', an obscure arcade game also known as ''Horror Story'', features many enemies from various mythologies, and in the Japan-esque stage you get to fight kappa, karakasa, rokurokubi, and other youkai.
* ''[[Digimon]]'', like ''[[Pokémon]]'', has many youkai-based creatures.
* ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'': The "Oriental Adventures" setting features all kinds of youkai, including oni, kappa, tengu, and yuki-onna. Oni have made their way into the main game as [[Our Ogres Are Hungrier|ogre mages]], which are in fact called Oni or Oni Mages in some editions.
** [[Pathfinder]] as [[Fan Nickname|D&D 3.75]], features many similar monsters and has simply decided to call Ogre Magi Oni and be done with it. They have also expanded to include more types of Oni as well.
* ''[[Gantz]]'' features every youkai ever as aliens in the Osaka arc.
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* ''[[Okami]]''
* ''[[Omamori Himari]]'' features several other Youkai in addition to the aforementioned, including an water serpent in a leading role, a Shutendoji and many others in minor parts. Most of the major ones are [[Cute Monster Girl]]s.
* In ''[[One Piece]]'' four of the Five Elders have [[One-Winged Angel]] forms that are based on Yokai. Jaygarcia Saturn is an Ushi-Oni, Marcus Mars is an itsumade, Topman Warcury is a fengxi, and Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro is a bakotsu. Shepherd Ju Peter is the odd man out, his demon form most resembling a sandworm from ''[[Dune]]'', though it may have been based on a Cryptid called [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongolian_death_worm the Mongolian death worm].
* ''Petopeto-san'': Most of the cast are youkai of one kind or another, if not [[Half-Human Hybrid|Half Human Hybrids]].
* ''[[Pokémon]]'' has a lot of creatures based on youkai. An example is Mawile, who is based on the futakuchi-onna, a woman with a monstrous, voracious mouth growing out of the back of her head and hair that functions like tentacles, and Ninetales, which is based on the kitsune. A complete list of Youkai-inspired Pokemon [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXhwp2X8lto&ab_channel=Linfamy is found here.]
* ''[[Princess Mononoke]]''
* ''[[Ranma ½]]'' frequently exploited Japanese folklore to provide their [[Monster of the Week]].
* ''[[Rosario
* ''[[Saiyuki]]'', in which three out of the four main characters are at least part youkai, as are most of their opponents. Unfortunately, the majority are generic 'demons' - i.e., pointy-eared humanoids with claws - rather than Japanese folkloric Youkai.
* ''[[Samurai Sentai Shinkenger]]'': The enemies are based on Youkai, but not really the Youkai themselves. According to [[Word of God]], they serve as the base of Youkai inspiration.
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* ''[[Shin Megami Tensei]]'' has lots and lots of these, in addition to nearly every other culture's demons and spiritual beings, in the main series of games, as well as spin-offs.
* ''[[Shonen Onmyouji]]''
* ''[[Spirited Away]]'': Most of the background characters are some form of youkai. The workers at the bathhouse are animal spirits - male spirits are toads, females are weasels, Kamaji is a spider, and Yubaba {{spoiler|and her sister Zeniba}} are ravens - while No-Face is a noppera-bō.
* ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]''
* ''Tactics'', unsurprising since the show chronicles the adventures of a Japanese folklorist who practices Shinto and does exorcisms to make a little on the side.
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* ''[[Yozakura Quartet]]''
* ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!]]'' has many cards based on youkai, particularly the Spirit Monsters who, when summoned, return to your hand at the end of the turn.
* ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh! GX]]'': In the manga, Bastion's
* ''[[Yu Yu Hakusho]]''
* The ''Obake Karuta'', a set of cards with Yokai themes which were used in the Edo Period. An ancestor of the modern [[Pokémon]] and [[Yu-Gi-Oh!]] card games.
* ''[[Maple Story]]'' features Yokai as Mooks and NPCs in the Korean Folk Town, Zipangu, and Momijigaoka maps. Also, Kanna (who is from Momijigaoka) uses many skills that summon Yokai, plus has a Spirit Fox companion named Haku as an [[Assist Character]].
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Japanese Media Tropes]]
[[Category:Useful Notes/Japan]]
[[Category:Index of Fictional Creatures]]
[[Category:Oral Tradition]]
▲[[Category:Youkai]]
[[Category:Examples Need Sorting]]
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