Youkai: Difference between revisions

* 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].

==Oni==

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 ===

* Letty Whiterock from the ''[[Touhou Project]]''

* Yukina of ''[[Yu Yu Hakusho]]'', technically Hiei, Toya may be some relation.

* 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),

* Kubinashi from ''[[Nurarihyon no Mago]]'' is a nukekubi.

* One appears in ''[[Hellboy Animated]]: Sword of Storms''

* One appears in ''[[×××HOLiC]]''.

* ''[[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.

* ''[[Princess Mononoke]]''

* ''[[Ranma ½]]'' frequently exploited Japanese folklore to provide their [[Monster of the Week]].

* ''[[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.

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Japanese Media Tropes]]

[[Category:Useful Notes/Japan]]

[[Category:Index of Fictional Creatures]]

[[Category:Oral Tradition]]

[[Category:Examples Need Sorting]]