The Girl Who Overcame Time... and the Boy Who Was Just Overcome is the first episode of the InuYasha anime.
Synopsis
- Inuyasha attempts to steal the Shikon no Tama, but Kikyō seals him to the sacred tree before dying.
- Modern-day Kagome Higurashi, the reincarnation of Kikyō, is pulled through her family's well to the Sengoku jidai.
- 50 years have passed, and Inuyasha awakens and Kagome frees him from his seal.
Summary
The hanyō Inuyasha is in the middle of stealing the Shikon Jewel from a village in feudal era Japan. The villagers attacked him in an attempt to prevent him from taking the jewel, but they were unsuccessful. Inuyasha succeeded in getting the jewel, but on his way from the temple he was attacked by the priestess Kikyō.
Kikyō pins Inuyasha to the sacred tree with a sacred arrow, putting him into a deep sleep. Kikyō, who had already been fatally wounded at that point, tells her sister, Kaede, to burn the Shikon Jewel along with her body in order to keep it out of the hands of those who would abuse it.
Kagome with a replica of the Jewel of Four Souls
In 1997 Tokyo, 14-year-old Kagome Higurashi is being told the story of the Shikon no Tama by her grandfather. Her grandfather gets upset when he notices Kagome isn't interested in his stories. He gives her an early birthday gift, the mummified foot of a water imp, which she gives to her cat Buyo to eat.
The next morning is Kagome's 15th birthday. As Kagome leaves for school she notices her brother Sōta near the shrine's sacred well. Approaching him she stands beside her brother in the doorway, asking what's going on. He explains he believes the cat is down near the well. Kagome heads inside towards the well in search of Buyo. They hear a scratching sound that scares Sōta, but Kagome continues down the stairs, convinced it is Buyo. After finding the cat, the well explodes in a flash of blue light and arms reach out and grab Kagome, pulling her into the well and transporting her into Feudal Japan.
Kagome meets Inuyasha
On the trip to Feudal Japan Kagome notices the yōkai that grabbed her and gets scared. She pushes it away and when she does so, a purple flash of light hits it sending it away from her. Kagome then lands at the bottom of the well and, thinking she's still home, she calls for her brother to get their grandfather. Using the vines in the well to climb out she quickly notices that she isn't home anymore. She searches around the clearing hoping to find her family when she sees the Sacred Tree from her family shrine. Walking closer to the tree she notices the half-dog demon Inuyasha pinned to the tree. Curious, she reaches up and pets his cute little dog ears. The villagers, thinking that she is a demon, attack her and capture her when they notice her near Inuyasha.
The villagers take her to their village and call the town priestess Kaede, Kikyō's younger sister, to deal with her. Kaede notices something familiar about Kagome and frees her, then she takes Kagome to her hut. Kaede gives Kagome some stew for dinner and tells her that times are troubling and that's why the villagers distrusted her. Kaede then remembers what happened the day her sister died and reflects that it's been fifty years since then.
Meanwhile, Mistress Centipede, the demon that brought Kagome into the well, is in the Forest of Inuyasha searching for Kagome and the Shikon Jewel. Mistress Centipede attacks the village in an attempt at getting the Jewel. Sensing the demon is after her, Kagome runs towards the well to try and get it away from the village. While Kagome is running from the demon she calls for help. When she does this, the spell on Inuyasha breaks and he wakes up saying he smells the blood of the woman who 'killed' him, Kikyō.
Mistress Centipede attacks Kagome and she lands in front of the Sacred Tree. Inuyasha calls her Kikyō and asks her why she's taking so long to kill the demon, calling her weak in the process. Kagome tells him that she isn't Kikyō and is once again attacked by Mistress Centipede. The villagers attack Mistress Centipede and Inuyasha once again calls Kagome Kikyō. Mad, Kagome yells at Inuyasha that she isn't Kikyō and that her name is Kagome. Inuyasha sniffs her and determines she in fact isn't Kikyō and tells her that Kikyō was much cuter than her. Kagome gets angry and, while she is distracted, Mistress Centipede grabs her. To keep from getting taken Kagome grabs Inuyasha's hair.
Mistress Centipede attempts to bite Kagome but Kagome unknowingly blasts her, cutting off several arms like she had done in the well. Kaede tries to figure out why Inuyasha woke up when the spell should have lasted forever, while Inuyasha wonders why Kagome has the Shikon Jewel. The Shikon Jewel then glows in Kagome's side and Mistress Centipede bites her and throws her into the air. As Kagome falls, the Shikon Jewel flies out of the hole bitten in her side. Mistress Centipede then pins Kagome to Inuyasha and the tree by wrapping her long body around it. The demon insults Inuyasha, who claims he can beat her. Kagome asks if what he says is true while Mistress Centipede proceeds to eat the Shikon Jewel.
Inuyasha threatens Kagome
Inuyasha tells Kagome to pull the arrow out of him so he can save them. Kaede warns Kagome against it, saying Inuyasha will kill them all. Inuyasha says that they will all die if he doesn't save them, and so Kagome pulls the arrow free with the desire to live fresh in her mind. Inuyasha quickly destroys Mistress Centipede with his "Iron Reaver Soul Stealer" and Kaede gets the Jewel from her remains once Kagome tells her where it is. Kaede returns the Jewel to Kagome, telling her that she is now the protector of the Jewel. Kagome wonders how it even got inside her body when Inuyasha interrupts her thoughts, threatening to kill her if she doesn't give him the Jewel. Kagome wonders how he can be so bad after saving all of their lives and fears she may have been wrong to free him.
Characters in Order of Appearance
- Inuyasha (First appearance)
- Kikyō (First appearance)
- Kaede (First appearance)
- Kagome (First appearance)
- Grandpa Higurashi (First appearance)
- Buyo (First appearance)
- Sōta Higurashi (First appearance)
- Mama Higurashi (First appearance)
- Mistress Centipede (First appearance)
- Rikichi (First appearance)
Notes
- This episode marks one the few times the Shikon Jewel is referred to as "Shikon no Tama" in the English dub.
- In the English dub Kagome references the Wizard of Oz: "Toto, I think we're not in Tokyo anymore."
- After seeing Kagome's weird clothing a villager says 'Them Shape-shifting fox's are a lot tricker than that' referencing Kitsune the same type of demon Shippō is.
- Although this is the first episode, this isn't the first time Inuyasha has killed Mistress Centipede.
- Although Sango doesn't make her first appearance until episode 24, she appears in the ending credits.
- Myōga, Sesshōmaru, and Jaken are listed in the credits. However, they don't appear until episode 5.
- This is the only ending theme song in which Inuyasha, Miroku, Shippō, and Kirara are not pictured.
- This is one of the few times Kagome is not wearing a skirt and/or out-of-uniform.
Differences from the manga
- The opening scene is expanded to show Inuyasha fighting with the villagers and stealing the Shikon Jewel from inside a shrine instead of him jumping over the burning village. This places the Goshinboku at the site of a well-developed, hilly shrine, which is later shown to not be the case.
- In the anime, Kaede throws purification salt on Kagome before taking a look at her face.
- In the manga, Kaede explains about Kikyō and her role in the village to Kagome while making their supper. In the same scene, Kagome is still bound hand and foot, demanding for Kaede to untie her so she can eat. This is not present in the anime.
- In the manga, it's Kagome, not Kaede, who removes the Shikon Jewel from Mistress Centipede.
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