Inuyasha is a long-running anime that tells the story of Kagome, an everyday teenage girl who is dragged into a well and whisked away to Feudal Japan. This isn't the Feudal Japan you read about in history books though, it emanates with magic and is overrun by demons. Upon stepping out of the magic well that transported her to this time period, Kagome comes upon one such demon, Inuyasha. Inuyasha isn't like all the rest though, he is a hanyou born from the union of a demon and a human.

Though Inuyasha takes coldly to Kagome and confuses her for someone else, their relationship slowly grows over time. After it is revealed that Kagome has the legendary Shikon Jewel in her body, it is almost soon-after shattered into pieces, which disperse themselves throughout the countryside. It then becomes up to Kagome and Inuyasha to recover the pieces before havoc is wrought.

As the two travel, they learn a great deal about themselves and one-another. Twists and turns abound. Inuyasha and Kagome also bump into a colorful cast of characters, who either join them on their quest or try to kill them.

It didn't take me long to fall in love with Inuyasha. The series simply does a lot of things right, and that's not really surprising, considering that it was and still is such a successful franchise. There are four points about Inuyasha that I feel really make the series. The first point is its humor, the second is its action, the third is its plot twists, and fourth are its characters.

The humor of Inuyasha is very similar to what is found in Ranma 1/2, another Rumiko Takahashi work, though it is much more refined here. The humor comes primarily from the characters' little peccadillos. Consider Myouga the flea, he only comes out when he is absolutely certain everything is safe. Or Miroku, the cursed monk with a little ecchi streak who goes around asking every beautiful girl he comes across to bear his child. Also of note for the series' humor is how refreshingly the characters respond to one-another. There's nary a cliche moment.

The humor of Inuyasha is counter-balanced with its stunning action sequences. The title character must face off against countless demons throughout the series. And these demons aren't easy either - some take a full two episodes to defeat.

As Inuyasha and Kagome venture through the world, we learn many facets about the characters and their past. Don't take anything at face value with this series. It likes throwing twists, turns, and coincidences at you. I personally liked them all.

While all the aforementioned help make Inuyasha a delightful series, it is really the characters that give Inuyasha its heart. The characters of the show are all very well-conceived and just as well presented. Kagome is a typical teenage girl who is still very awkward around romantic relationships and so gets scared when she begins to get close to Inuyasha. Inuyasha suffered a very lonely childhood, not being accepted by either humans or demons, and so carries this resentment in his mind still. Every main character has a reason for why he or she behaves the way he or she does. But this beauty in Inuyasha's characters aren't limited to just the main ones. Even the minor characters have their motivations and most are quite interesting to watch.

Inuyasha is a very good series and its success is a testament to that fact.