After many years, my Urusei Yatsura collection is finally complete. At 37 VHS tapes and 62 DVDs, Urusei Yatsura is, by far, the largest series in my collection - with Robotech, Starblazers and Ranma 1/2 trailing far behind....
From Rumiko Takahashi, creator of Ranma 1/2 and Inu Yasha, Urusei Yatsura aka Those Obnoxious Aliens starts it's TV run with the Oni deciding to take over the Earth. They give humanity one chance for survival, if a Ataru (the unluckiest person on Earth) can defeat the Oni champion, Lum, in a game of tag, humanity will be spared...
Movies
Movie 1 Only You
It isn't easy being a guy - especially if you're Ataru Moroboshi, the luckless lecher loved by Lum, the aviating Alien Princess with a very short temper. Lum doesn't need much assistance going ballistic when everyone in Tomobiki gets an invitation to Ataru's wedding and she's not listed as the bride! Seems some 11 years ago, Ataru played "Shadow Tag" with a young girl named Elle and won; unfortunately, Elle was another Alien Princess, and on her planet, if a boy steps on a girl's shadow, they have to be married! When Elle's emissary comes to make arrangements, Lum redefines the term "the atmosphere was electric," but to no avail; Ataru's now protected from her high voltage zaps. Lum's friend Benten suggests a pre-emptive wedding, and with Lum's parents help, they manage to break the force-field and abduct Ataru. However, before the emergency wedding can occur, Elle's fleet attacks, and Ataru and the entire "wedding party" are re-abducted to Planet Elle. While Lum and Co. plan to re-re-abduct Ataru, his rival Mendou and his long suffering, semi ex-girlfriend Shinobu find out that Elle has a hobby: finding handsome men and freezing them! Alas, Mendou is slated to be slotted onto slab 100,000! After Ataru finds out about Elle's sideline, he decides not to marry her, on the grounds she's been unfaithful (a real leap, considering he's been planning to turn Planet Elle into his own private harem!). And so, as the sky is lit up by colliding battle-fleets, the stage is set for the shot-gun wedding of all time! "Urusei Yatsura 1: Only You" Insanity, Japanese-style!
Movie 2 Beautiful Dreamer
LIFE IS BUT A DREAM... ... or so the story goes. But is it? As you read these words, are you awake, or dreaming? A silly question, perhaps - but if you're a high school student, and your classmates include Lum, a beautiful alien princess, Ataru, the lecherous and luckless lad she loves, and Mendou, the scion of the richest family on the planet, you quickly learn not to take anything, even reality, for granted. So when the gang at Tomobiki High find themselves endlessly repeating "the day before the School Festival", they may be confused, but they aren't surprised! Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer is wrriter-director Oshii Mamoru's magnum opus, combining the insanely funny comedy that made Urusei Yatsura a huge hit in Japan with a deeply philosophical tale of time and space, reality and fantasy. Yes, life is but a dream ... but who is the Beautiful Dreamer?
Movie 3 Remember My Love
IN THE FIRST URUSEI YATSURA MOVIE, Ataru found himself a reluctant bridegroom trapped between two Alien Princesses. In the second Urusei Yatsura Movie, he found himself trapped in a dream of Lum's making. Those were just warm-ups: This time he finds himself'... Herbivorous??? When Lum was born, a postal screw-up caused a witchy friend of the family not to get an invitation to the celebration. Believing herself snubbed, she lays a curse on Lum-that she will never be happy with her True Love. In the present, a new Amusement Park has been built in Tomobiki, and opening day finds the whole gang sampling its pleasures. At a magic show, however, Ataru gets turned into a pink hippopotamus-FOR REAL! When Lum attempts to track down the magician that transformed her darling, things start to get very weird, very fast.
Movie 4 Lum The Forever
DON'T CHOP DOWN THAT CHERRY TREE FOR ANYONE ELSE BUT ME... Strange things begin happening in Tomobiki Town. When a great cherry tree, "Tarozakura," is cut down while Lum and Co. are making a movie, Lum loses her horns-and her powers! Thus begins the strangest and most lyrical of the Urusei Yatsura movies. To explain any more would be to do you a disservice. Watch it, and draw your own conclusions.
Movie 5 The Final Chapter
ALL'S WELL THAT DOESN'T END... The Urusei Yatsura story comes to a climax in this animated retelling of the final Manga story. Lupa, yet another one of Lum's fiances, arrives on the scene, and Lum and Ataru have to repeat their game of tag in order to prevent the Earth from being destroyed. All Ataru has to do to win is say "I love you," the three words he has steadfastly refused to say to Lum. Will he admit his true feelings and save the Earth? Or will his pride doom it to destruction?
Movie 6 Always My Darling
A LOVE POTION, BY ANY OTHER NAME, WOULD TASTE AS AWFUL. Lupica, another one of the legion of space princesses that all seem to have found out about Earth in some tour book, appears and abducts Ataru. Needless to say, Lum, assisted by her friends Oyuki and Benten, gives chase. Also needless to say, Lupica isn't after Ataru for his great looks or charming personality (because he doesn't have either). Lupica's goal is the greatest love potion in the galaxy, which she intends to use to induce her sweetheart to tie the knot. To get it, she needs the possessor of the greatest lust in the universe. Now you know why she needs Ataru Moroboshi...
OVAs
Volume 1 Inaba the Dreammaker
After almost 200 episodes of Urusei Yatsura and several theatrical films, the Japanese were unanimous in their opinion: Enough Is Not Enough! We want more! The result was "Urusei Yatsura '87: The Coming of Inaba the Drearnmaker - What Will Become of Lum's Future?! " a 50-minute excursion into the future of 3 of Japan's most loved animated characters! What would you do if you found a boy in a bunny suit lying in a trashheap? That's what happens to Shinobu on her way back from the market. Fortunately, she has a carrot! When he's finished eating, Inaba the bunny-boy tries to hit on Shinobu, and Shinobu demonstrates her own version of "hitting on someone!" When the dust settles, Shinobu finds a strange key that dropped out of Inaba's pocket. What do you do if you have a key but no door? Build one, of course! Unfortunately, it is Lum who decides to build the door, and when the key does indeed fit, Shinobu, Lum and Ataru go through the door - and literally fall into their own futures! Meanwhile, Inaba's co-workers at the Destiny Production Management Bureau are unanimous in their opinion that since he screwed up in the first place, he should be the one to fix things. When he arrives on the scene, everyone is coming face to face with futures they really hadn't bargained for. When Inaba risks his life to show them how to create their ideal futures, will they really get what they think they want? Will there be a future where Lum and Ataru can get married after all?
Volume 2 Raging Sherbet
First they did the TV series; then they started making Movies; then they did the TV special; and still, the multitudes cried "We want more Lum!" So legions of animators wore out forests of pencils to create a series of additional outrageous Urusei Yatsura Original Video Animations (OVA's)! This double-feature volumes contains two 25-minute OVA's! In Raging Sherbet, Lum, Benten and Ran decide to beat the Tokyo heat by taking a summer vacation with Oyuki on Neptune. There they learn about the fabulous Sherbet birds, which produce icy treats upon demand. Ran wheedles a bird out of Oyuki, but when she gets it back to Earth, her dreams of getting rich quick melt when the over-worked avian loses his cool and goes on a rampage!
I Howl At The Moon
Then, in I Howl at the Moon, Ataru learns to think before he eats when he gobbles down some of Lum's homemade treats - and promptly starts turning into a wolf!
Volume 3 Catch The Heart
Lum, Ataru and the rest of the gang at Tomobik High School are back for two more animated installments of Urusei Yatsura madness! In Catch the Heart, a mischievous spirit gives Ran a heart-shaped candy that causes a magical heart to appear over the head of whoever eats it. And whoever catches that heart captures the heart of the person who ate the candy! And if there's one thing the Urusei Yatsura crowd can do, it's play catch!
Goat and Cheese
Then, in Goat and Cheese, Mendou recounts an old story that warns, "Don't take pictures in front of the statue of Great-Grandfather's Goat, or terrible things will happen!" When his father does just that, only Sakura and Onsen-mark the Teacher can ward off the horrifying consequences of an ancient family curse... or can they?
Volume 4Date With A Spirit
In Tomobiki Town, the unfortunate suburb where Lum and the rest of the Urusei Yatsura gang live, serious silliness is around every corner. Sit back and n'oy another double dose of infectious insanity, Japanese style! In Date with a Spirit, things get crazy when Ataru tries to hit on a beautiful ghost who has attached herself to Sakura's sorcerous fiance, Tsubame.
Terror Of The Girly-Eyes Measles
Then, in Terror of Girly-Eyes Measles, Ten gives Ataru an alien disease, the contagious Girl Measles, which makes the victim's eyes turn big and twinkly (like the eyes of young girls in much of manga and anime), and when Ataru's girl-hunting spreads the virus all over Tomobiki Town, chaos ensues!
Volume 5 Nagisa's Fiance
Ever since Lum and Co. came to live in Tomobiki, it's become the insanity center of the universe, a black hole of silliness that irresistibly attracts weirdness to the suburbs of Tokyo. Join us now for two more outrageous ventures into the land of laughs with our highly charged Alien princess and the rest of the Urusei Yatsura gang. In Nagisa's Fiance, Lum, Ataru, Mendou and Shinobu visit an inn which Ryuunosuke and her father have opened. But when it turns out to be on a haunted desert island, the stage is set for some serious silliness!
The Electric Household Guard
Then, in The Electric Household Guard, Mendou acquires a new personal Ninja with some very unusual abilities, only to have him fall head-over-heels for his manipulative sister, Ryoko.
Volume 6
Ryoko's September Tea Party
The final Urusei Yatsura OVA collection consists of two very unusual offerings, even by Urusei Yatsura standards! In Ryoko's September Tea Party, some of the best scenes of the original TV series are combined with 15 minutes of new animation to reveal the pasts of each of Ryoko's guests.
Memorial Album
Next, in Memorial Album, Shuu-chan, the Mendou clan's personal satellite narrates the story of the Mendou family, again using a mixture of new animation and scenes from the original series. Includes still video shots of all the original Japanese record and video packages, 1982-1985.
TV Series
Volume 1
When the Oni, a mysterious race of Aliens, come to repossess the Earth, they give us one chance to save our planet, a champion, selected at random, must defeat their princess, Lum, in their national sport - Tag! Unfortunately for Earth, the champion turns out to be Ataru Moroboshi, a lecherous lad whose lack of luck is legendary. When Ataru lays eyes on the curvaceous Lum, he readily agrees to take on the task of touching the tips of her tiny horns; Alas, when the contest begins, he finds out that the Oni forgot to mention one small matter - Lum can fly! When all seems lost, his girlfriend Shinobu promises to marry him if he wins. Win he does, but Lum misinterprets his victory cry as a proposal of marriage - to her! Now Lum's living in his closet, planning their wedding, and zapping him with high voltage electricity if he even looks at another woman. His girlfriend isn't sure if she's been jilted or saved from a life of misery; his Lum-crazed schoolmates are plotting to get him "out of the way," his parents are loudly wishing he'd never been born, and to top it all off, a demented Buddhist Monk has been seen lurking around the neighborhood mumbling something about evil spirits and curses. Then Lum's friends and relatives start visiting, and things start to get really weird! Sit back, relax, and prepare yourself for the first four episodes of 'Those Obnoxious Aliens," Japan's most popular (and wackiest) animated comedy. And if you think they're funny, wait until you see the other 192!
Volume 2
In the 2nd Installment of Urusei Yatsura: Ataru runs away from home, and into the arms of Sakura, a Shinto sorceress. Alas, Sakura has her own agenda: The boys of High School suddenly become accident-prone when Sakura takes a job as School Nurse. Ataru tries to make a secret date with Shinobu and sneak around on Lum. A midnight mishap with mirrors unleashes an annoying devil, and Cherry's attempts at exorcism only multiply the "problem". Ataru insulates himself from Lum's electric zaps, resulting in unexpected consequences; Lum starts playing around with alien voodoo dolls; Oyuki, Princess of Neptune, opens an interdimensional portal into Ataru's closet to dispose of excess snow, and when Ataru "flies the unfriendly skies," a midair mishap grounds the gang in the age of the Dinosaurs! Urusei Yatsura: High Weirdness and Low Comedy!
Volume 3
In the 3rd Installment of Urusei Yatsura: Princess Kurama is awoken by the kiss of her future husband... but her Prince Charming is Ataru, Making the best of things, Kurama decides to remake Ataru into a perfect husband, even if it kills him; Megane plots to discredit Ataru with Lum, and set him up for the Mother of All Zappings. In a hilarious parody of the world's first Novel, "The Tale of Genji," we go back to Heian period Japan, where preincarnations of everyone battle baby-nappers from the future, and time gets royally screwed up, Tsubame, Sakura's fiancee and aspiring black magician, matches wits with Cherry and turns a nightclub into "Disco Inferno", and Kurama's dad agrees to teach Ataru the secrets of swordsmanship - if Ataru will teach him about babes! Urusei Yatsura: Insanity, Japanese Style!
Volume 4
In the 4th Installment of Urusei Yatsura: During a Hawaiian vacation, someone starts swiping the girl's swimsuits, Cherry and Sakura take a Hotel's "Full Course From Hell" "Free if you can eat it all" challenge, Mendou Shutaro, the richest boy in Japan, is transferred to Tomobiki High, and causes chaos when he runs for class president; Lum uses high-tech astrology to decide who is the best match for her: Ataru or Mendou; Benten and her fellow Chinese Gods of Luck have their annual End-of-Winter grudge match against Lum and the Oni, Benten comes back with a few friends to make Lum's life lousy; A mysterious teacher-for-hire arrives at the school, and he's going to clean up the class, and if you think Lum, Ataru and Mendou are bad, the first meeting of their mothers threatens to plunge the galaxy into war! Urusei Yatsura: It's Japanese for "Outrageously Funny!"
Volume 5
A cultural phenomenon, Urusei Yatsura ("Those Obnoxious Aliens") is one of Japan's funniest and weirdest TV shows. The story of Ataru, the lecherous lout loved by Lum, a highly-charged (literally) Alien Princess, it started out as a comic book, turned into a long-running TV series, and continues to this day in a series of Theatrical Films. In the 5th Installment of Urusei Yatsura: Mendou's mysterious camera means more trouble for Ataru; Ataru accidentally trades his soul for the ability to excel; Ran, Lum's childhood friend, arrives with an avenging agenda; Ran tries to sucker Lum and steal Ataru; A diary from the future falls into the wrong hands - Ataru's; An alien baby appears in Mendou's locker; Two soporific spirits turn the classroom into a sleepy battleground; and Cherry's lack of singing ability proves to be a big problem! Urusei Yatsura: It's Japanese for "Just Plain Weird!"
Volume 6
In the 6th Installment of Urusei Yatsura, Ataru splits not only his personality but his body as well; late night card-playing leads to demented daydreams; Ataru's mother recaps the series so far in a half-hour special; The electric company (who else) enlists the gang in a set of Public Service announcements (for real!); A trip to the ancient capital of Nara pits Ataru against a gang of female Ninja; and Lum's impatient Dad decides to match Lum with another man! Urusei Yatsura: It's Japanese for "Deliciously Demented!"
Volume 7
In the 7th Installment of Urusei Yatsura, Ataru is kidnapped by "kappa" vampires and taken to the bottom of a lake, prompting Lum to fear he's been drowned; Confusion reigns supreme when Ataru and Ten run afoul of body-switching earmuffs; A strange, green, and very rapidly growing caterpillar eats everything in its path, then holes up in its cocoon while the gang goes to war over it; and Ten gets a big crush on Sakura, then enlists the aid of Kintaro and his bear in carrying out his Assault of Love! Urusei Yatsura: It's Japanese for 'Wonderfully Weird!"
Volume 8
Insanity reigns supreme in Tomobiki town! In the 8th Installment of Urusei Yatsura, an amorous Dracula and his batty "girl-Friday" hit town and redefine the term "nightlife"; Lum travels back in time to re-educate and reform a young lad named Ataru; love blooms when both Ten and Ataru fall for a fair lady florist; and trouble looms for Ataru when an evil rain-spirit dumps all over him! Urusei Yatsura: It's Japanese for "Seriously Strange!"
Volume 9
In the 9th installment of Urusei Yatsura, Ten loses his powers when his horn disappears, and Ataru wastes no time in taking advantage of the situation; The gang has to re-catalog a weird library in order to save the universe; We find out that there's one thing worse than a new teacher and Lum as a new student - Volleyball; and a sad goblin gets kicked out of his pool and wreaks havoc. Urusei Yatsura: It's in the dictionary under "Wacky".
Volume 10
In the 10th installment of Urusei Yatsura, Ran makes another attempt to steal Ataru from Lum; Chaos reigns supreme during the self-study period when Rei drops in for a visit; The return of the mysterious "Red Cloak" sets up a night of Disco terror; and Lum tries to thwart Ran's latest scheme by duplicating her Darling! Urusei Yatsura: It just keeps getting stranger and stranger.
Volume 11
In the 11th installment of Urusei Yatsura, Lum and Ataru actually go out on a date; A trip to the seaside results in a run-in with a cursed watermelon; A typhoon treads on Tokyo, panicking Ataru's parents; and if you think Lum and Ten are a recipe for chaos, wait until you see them after they get smashed on high-proof pickled plums! Urusei Yatsura: Proof that the Japanese ARE weirder than we are.
Volume 12
In the 12th installment of Urusei Yatsura insanity, Ataru takes on every cat in town to save a pretty girl from a cursed fate; In the episode voted "Best Episode" by Japanese viewers, Lum decides to find out if Ataru is really serious about wanting to be rid of her; Benten, Oyuki and the rest of Lum's friends descend upon the High School; and then when the gang starts sneaking from school to get fast-food, the teachers mobilize for all-out war! Urusei Yatsura: Watch it before the government decides it's bad for you!
Volume 13
In the lucky 13th installment of Urusei Yatsura; Tabloid TV reporters go on a rampage when Ataru assembles a bird out of old fossils and Lum brings it to life; Goblins are galvanized into action as they once again try to find a mate for the lovely Princess Kurama; Dentists are delighted when Ten infects the school with a contagious alien toothache; and Mendou is mortified when his younger sister Ryooko arrives and proceeds to put the moves on Ataru. Urusei Yatsura: proof that the Japanese are just as weird as we are!
Volume 14
In the 14th Installment of Urusei Yatsura, the ghost of a large cat stands between Ataru and his dinner; a strange raccoon proves that no good deed goes unpunished; Ataru goes through hell (literally!) to get the perfect part-time job; and Lum's Year-End Party turns into an exercise in demented deduction. Urusei Yatsura: To have more fun than this, you need a prescription.
Volume 15
In the 15th installment of Urusei Yatsura, the UY Gang run amuck in a twisted retelling of the life of Japan's greatest swordsman, Miyamoto Musashi; Onsen-Mark lays down the law in class and ends up getting the silent treatment; Lum's Dad decides to live at the Moroboshi house after a family quarrel; and a ski-vacation goes rapidly downhill when the guys use every dirty trick they know to obtain "the Kiss of Miss Snow Queen!'' Urusei Yatsura: The Antidote for Sanity!
Volume 16
In the 16th installment of Urusei Yatsura, love becomes ludicrous when Ten gets an unwanted girlfriend in the "St. Valentine's Day Horror;" gazing into Crystal Eyeballs reveals the future of one's love life in "Love, Love, Catchball;" Mendou's conniving sister Ryoko arranges for a little mayhem in "The Mendou Family's Masquerade War;" and when humans start catching Lum's cold, things rapidly degenerate into a "Space Cold Panic!" Urusei Yatsura: Weirdness at its very finest.
Volume 17
In the 17th and wackiest installment (so far) of Urusei Yatsura, the gang meets Ryuunosuke, a "boy" whose father wanted a son and who wasn't going to let a little matter of gender stand in his way; Ataru decides to "resign" and the battle is on to see who will take over the job of being Lum's husband; cross-dressing gender-bending goes round the bend and out to lunch when Ran dates Ryuunosuke; and Lum commits the ultimate crime - she forgets Ataru's birthday! Urusei Yatsura - the instant cure for comedy deficiency syndrome, now available in subtitled strength without prescription.
Volume 18
In the 18th installment of Urusei Yatsura, Lum's indescribably bad cooking is the least of the problems facing the gang in "Found: The Valley of Peaches in the Camp-from-Hell"; those pesky Tengu crows find a near-perfect match for their princess, Kurama, and they set out to fix that one little problem that keeps "him" from being eligible in "The Bridegroom's name is Ryuunosuke"; a letter in a bottle leads to chaos in "A Letter in a Bottle-Seaside Spookiness"; and Mendou's deadly rival, the scion of the second-richest family in Japan (they own the other 49.9% of the country) arrives on the scene in "The Sensational Debut of Mizunokouji Ton!"
Volume 19
In the 19th installment of Urusei Yatsura, Shinobu meets a mysterious stranger who plunges her into a perilous predicament in "Shinobu's Cinderella Story;" movie-making gets mangled by extra-terrestrial technology in "Lum: Rebel Without A Clue;" Lum's notoriously inedible cooking results in the Moroboshi house becoming a battlefield for space-fleets and angry spirits in "The Ultimate Match: Sakura vs. Cherry"; and a spooky story sets nerves on edge when "The Old Man of the Willow Tree" turns out to be more real than everyone bargained for. Urusei Yatsura: Now being considered for FDA regulation.
Volume 20
In the 20th installment of the TV Series that would not die, a holiday trip to a remote island turns into a deadly mystery as the gang gets gruesomely murdered, one after another; Ataru sets out to avenge himself on Ten when Ten's Mom, a Pyromaniac-slaughtering Intergalactic Firefighter, comes for a visit; Lum races against a deadline when Ran poisons her Darling; and Mrs. Moroboshi battles against The End Of The World As We Know It! Urusei Yatsura: Positive Proof tot Anime Fans are Just Plain Weird!
Volume 21
The 21st installment of Urusei Yatsura continues the proud tradition of inspired insanity with 4 installments of way-out weirdness! In "The House of Mendo - Summer Xmas," Mendou's devious sister Ryoko invites everyone to a Christmas Party that features a gigantic tree and a twisted contest. In "Panic In The Haunted Inn" the gang gets scared out of their wits by a ghost, only to find out that the ghost is the least scary thing they have to worry about! In "Oh! The Memories of Mother," a home-cooked meal leads Ryuunosuke to wonder what her mother was like, but it seems that no torture will force her father to tell all about Mom! And finally, in "Full of Sunshine, Full of Amours", one of Ten's extraterrestrial toys make sand-people come alive, and one of Lum's gadgets helps a dolphin become human - sort of. Urusei Yatsura - If your life is boring, after watching this, you'll be thankful.
Volume 22
The 22nd installment of Urusei Yatsura delivers four steaming helpings of hot hilarity and spicy strangeness! In "Big Battle! -Ten vs Ataru", after getting trampled and made a fool of by Ataru, Ten undergoes some seriously demented training in order to be ready for a final to-the-death battle with his nemesis! In "Terror! Attack of the Killer Potatos", an alternate universe is the stage for a tale in which the vegetables climb the food chain and get revenge! Next comes "Galactic Teacher CAO-2 Strikes Back", Lum and Ran discover that the teacher they marooned on a deserted planet is back and out for revenge! And finally, in "Outraged! Piteous Boy Shutarol", Mendou's attempts to cure himself of his various phobias result in a trip back in time to determine how he got them. And yeah, if you're thinking, "Gee, I know how he got them...", you're right! Urusei Yatsura - It's insanity... OK, that's it, I give up. I can't think up any more cute lines to describe this demented TV series! My mother wanted me to be an accountant, but nooo... I had to become an advertising copywriter. And now I'm stuck on this project, and there's another 28 installments to go! Aiiieeee!
Volume 23
In the 23rd installment of Urusei Yatsura weirdness, Cherry feeds the gang some mushrooms with a twist; Ten accidentally gets Lum "all burned up" over a torched scarf; Ataru's parents take an overnight trip, leaving Lum and Ataru alone in the same house; and Onsen Mark takes on an impossible task - teaching Ryuunosuke how to act like a girl! Urusei Yatsura: Insanely funny, and 100% Fat Free as well!
Volume 24
In the 24th installment of the continuing saga of silliness that is Urusei Yatsura, the Miss Tomobiki High beauty pageant results in the scheming contestants going to any lengths to win; a magical cookie turns Ataru into a lecherous ghost; Mendou has a miserable morning reliving his many defeats; and Ten's out for revenge after getting crushed by an extraterrestrial snowman. Urusei Yatsura: Even the characters on this show know that the real millennium doesn't start until 1/1/2001!
Volume 25
In the 25th installment of Urusei Yatsura: The ancient legend of Momotaro spins off in a new direction courtesy of that deranged monk, Cherry; Obsessions fly out of the closet when the day arrives for Ryuunosuke to buy the bra of her dreams; The secret of Benten's mysterious chain is literally "unlocked" when it is stolen by the original Spice Girls; and things get really crazy in Tomobiki Town when Ran-chan's new plan for vengeance goes hay-wire and Lum multiplies like a rabbit! "Urusei Yatsura: where "Y2K" means "Yes 2 Knuttiness."
Volume 26
In the 26th installment of the show voted best comedy featuring an alien girl with green hair, the finest fast food fighters in the world converge in town for an all-star eating contest in "Sure Death! The Fast Food Wars!" Cabin fever strikes when Ataru and Mendou get stuck in the Mendou family vault in "Big Trouble in Bigger Vault!" The soap hits the fan as Ataru and the boys try to sneak a peek of the girls at the bathhouse in "Top Secret Pool Party Peeping Plan!" And school life crumbles (literally) when Sakura's younger self emerges from a strange dream in "Sakura's Childhood."
Volume 27
In the 27th installment of the show that will have you craving more octopus balls, Ran seethes with anger (is anything new?) when she receives mysterious videos of her painful past in "Video Mail of Revenge." Sakura's sensual charms preoccupy Ataru as he narrates a story of love and lust in "Sakura on my Mind." Lum's vehicle crashes on Mendou's estate, sending the schoolboys into an uproar in "Scramble! Rescue Lum!" And Ataru, along with a few friends, takes on the entire Mendou army, in the thrilling conclusion, "Death Match: Ataru vs. Mendou's Army!"
Volume 28
In the 28th installment of the show that loves to name monks after fruits, Lum gets stuck in an upside-down version of Tomobiki where everything and everyone is backwards in "Parallel Worlds! Where's Darling?" Ryuunosuke loses her breast wrap, plays rugby and gets trapped in a tiny alien spaceship, only to be chased by a swarm of young men in "Raging Queen of Rugby!" Ran bakes some sweets for Rei and gets more than she bargains for in "Ran's First Kiss has Bitter Tears of Love." Finally, Lum cooks up some "Unremovable Magic Lipstick" for Ataru, only to see the love potion create hormone hysteria in school.
Volume 29
The 29th installment of Urusei Yatsura serves up a dizzying dessert of two-dimensional comedy! A mysterious monster leaves a trail of cherry blossoms behind as it terrorizes Tomibiki at night in "The Steel Cage Flower Viewing Death Match." Benten and Ryuunosuke steal a gang leader's bike and go searching for a lost kitten, only to be followed by the entire gang in "Butch Benten and the Ryuunosuke Kid!" A Neptunian Lemming follows Ran home, leading to a confrontation with the woman who speaks softly and carries an extremely big stick in "The Horror of Outraged Oyuki!" And in "Ten's Mysterious Love Story," Ten goes on a journey with a young ghost girl who simply wants to hold a puppy.
Volume 30
In the 30th installment of the show that is slowly rotting the brains of the entire AnimEigo staff, Mendou and the gang search for the family treasure in the strangest of places in "Haunted Special: Raiders of the Lost Mendou." The squared circle gets twisted when Cherry returns from a trip with a set of magical boxing gloves in "Love and Fighting Spirits: Gloves vs. Pants." Lum gets bitten by a cow which has a strange effect on her and her horns in "Lum the Cow." And Megane, using artistic intuition, and a few friends at Tomobiki High School, directs a movie "his way" in "Lum's Movie of Youth."
Volume 31
In the 31st installment of the show that has more uses than the peanut, Sakura loses her wand and Cherry loses a drunken demon in "Exercise: Exorcise! Beautiful Sakura." A pool cleaning turns into a science experiment of biblical proportions in "Revenge Of The Protozoa: Poolside Rampage!" That space queen returns to look for love in all the wrong places in "Princess Kurama: Love Hunter." And a shape-shifting fox comes to town to repay the debt of an old friend in "The Fox's Lonely Unrequited Love."
Volume 32
In the 32nd installment of the show features a plethora of sushi-rolled anime goodness. First, a strange lady with a strong appetite and a stronger punch shows up in "Ryuunosuke's Stunned! A Mother's Search For Her Missing Child." Then Ataru drifts off into a hypnotic horror in "The Terror Of The Girl's Dormitory!" Next Mendou's aquarium is home to a familiar face who has relationship problems in "The Pool Ghoul! Burning In Forbidden Love!" And finally, a lost trinket and a fat cat could spell the end of everyone in "Ran's Panic! There's No Tomorrow For Tomobiki!"
Volume 33
In the 33rd installment of the show that generously tips more than it should, a school trip turns into a pear-picking possession in "Where Is Kuriko And Chojuro's Love Nest?" Ten meets a caped crusader with a tiny costume and strong moral values in "Man Or Bird? An Opulent And Luxurious Superhero!" The spice girls return to wreak havoc on some familiar interplanetary girls in "Get Them! The Revenge Of The Girl Trio." And Lum's little red friend helps judge a classroom talent (or lack thereof) show in "Hidden Talent Show Of Fire! Performing Is Our Life!"
Volume 34
In the 34th installment of the highly un-decaffeinated series, Mendou has some trouble with one of his sister's dolls in "Don't Die! Ryoko's Special Voodoo Doll." Ataru and a lot of other people get involved in Mendo's pseudo marriage proposal in "Omiai Hell! Is The Armored Girl a Beauty? Or a Beast?" A war breaks out (again) and a secret weapon is unleashed in the thrilling conclusion, "The Love of the Armored Girl; Her Heart Sways to and Fro." And that lovable fox returns with a sack full of magical nuts in "I Miss You So Much, I Could Die! The Return of the Pure-Hearted Fox!".
Volume 35
In the 35th installment of the show that has a better shelf life than any potted meat, flowers blanket the town and start spreading rumors in ?I Hate Gossiping Flowers!? A mysterious egg ends up on the unlikeliest of bellies in "The Birth of Ten's Son? I Know Nothing!" A big-lipped bully picks on the wrong girl in "Lum's Heroic Showdown! Victory by Cheap Means!" And finally, a young ninja decides to get a job in "Her Great Wish To Find a New Job! The Return of Kaede, The Fugitive Ninja."
Volume 36
In the 36th installment of the show that knows why the chicken crossed the road, the school grounds become a battleground between the students and a group of chain-saw-wielding tomato lovers in "Tomobiki High School Survival Game! Who Will Be The Sole Survivor?" Ryoko plans a wedding and a little revenge when Mendou throws a New Year's party inside of a giant cake in "The Mysterious Humongous Cake! Love Escape Panic!" Ataru and the gang crash on a mysterious island where bamboo shoots flourish and dreams come to life in "The Reincarnation Of Hell! What Is Darling Thinking?!" And finally, Lum provides some special planetary juice with entertainingly strange effects in "Theatrical Panic: The Mendou Clan's Cherry-Blossom Banquet!" Urusei Yatsura: Leading the fight for vegetable rights.
Volume 37
In the 37th installment of the show that warms your socks faster than any kotatsu, a misunderstanding (what else is new?) threatens Ataru and Lum's relationship as winter invades Tomobiki in "Spring is Not Far! The Story of the Lonesome Fairy." Sakura takes some of Lum's dream fruit and begins to have strange relationship dreams about the one guy she can't stand in "Into the Dream: Scramble for Darling, A Battle Royale." Sugar, Ginger, and Pepper use their sex appeal (yeah, right) to seduce Ataru in "Those Three Girls Are At It Again! The Great Darling Seduction." And a possessed footwarmer with a penchant for cold weather searches for a lost love in "Kotatsu-neko Runs About! He's Getting Warm no Matter What!"
Volume 38
The 38th installment of Urusei Yatsura showcases all the reasons why an episode a day may not keep the doctor away. First, in an effort to learn more about her mother (and possibly herself), Ryuunosuke follows her father to an amusement park where Mr. Fujinami's memories are brought to life in "Ryuunosuke's Dad Comes Clean! His Wife Is Still In His Memory!" Then, Oyuki gets mad at Ran (again), they both get sick, and everything begins to get a little colder in Tomobiki in "Spring In Full Bloom: Frozen Because Of Oyuki's Cold!" Next, Ataru's lunch becomes Ten's pet when a blowfish suddenly gets powers that cause everyone to run for their lives in "Friendship Panic. I Love The Blowfish." And finally, mass hysteria envelops Tomobiki High School when Asuka visits Mendou in "The Return Of The Armored Girl. Too Many Brothers!" Urusei Yatsura: Where bad jokes come back to life, and are then brutally murdered once again.
Volume 39
In the 39th installment of the show that takes brotherly love to a whole other level, a normal day turns bizarre when Ataru drinks Lum's eye drops and begins to have dreams that affect the entire town of Tomobiki in "The Ennui Plague. Whither Tomobiki?" Ran cooks up some love-mushroom soup for Rei, only to see it slurped down by a hungry cat in "Ran In Peril! Kotatsu-Neko's First Love Oden?!" An arranged date between Asuka and Mendou becomes a battlefield when Ataru shows up unannounced in "The Armored Girl Is Back Again! Dates Of Thunder!" And a strange monk with an even stranger proposal shows up in Sakura's office in "Monk Of Mystery! Bell Bashing Battle Royale!" Urusei Yatsura: A lyrically loud lollipop of lampoonery that isn't quite as ludicrously lecherous or lavishly ludicrous as the luscious Lum lets on.
Volume 40
In the 40th installment of the show that wishes all the world's octopi a happy birthday, Ten finds a love locket from Lum's past that stirs up fond memories in "First Love Again. Will Lum And Rei Reunite?" A man and his daughter open a new cafe in Tomobiki which causes the school staff to get steamed in "Here Comes The Barista Of Youth! Shining Cafe Of Dreams!" Ataru meets a ghost-girl who simply wants to go on a date with him before she goes to heaven in "Darling, I Love Your Kindness." And everyone's favorite fox (or maybe just Shinobu's favorite) returns to Tomobiki in a magic bus in "Return Of The Purehearted Fox! I Love Shinobu!" Urusei Yatsura: Magical Animals "R" Us.
Volume 41
In the 41st installment of the show where spring cleaning is not only a chore, but a school subject, Mr. Fujinami's hard work (along with Ryuunosuke's much much harder work) allows him to open his beach-side teashop in a not-so-tourist-friendly area in "I Love The Sea! The Saga Of Hamajaya!" The town's two famous tomboys square off in combat and on stage in "Ryuunosuke vs. Benten: The Pointless Charm Contest!" That fire-breathing runt, Ten, points his magical bottle the wrong way for some shrinkingly fun effects in "Little Magical Bottle: What Will Happen To Me?" And the students and faculty face off in an apocalyptic battle featuring a peppy robot in "Some Disassembly Required: Lum's Dangerous Shopping." Urusei Yatsura: Small town mass hysteria has never been so beautiful.
Volume 42
In the 42nd installment of the show where childish curses have not yet become a thing of the past, Lum gets a bump on the head which causes a slight translation problem in "Oh No! Darling Can't Understand Me!" Ten stumbles across a magical world that enlists his help to find some lost food in "Summer Nightmare! Ten's Operation Eel & Rice!" Ran is feeling sick... and a little angry.... and a little under-appreciated in "Sick Call Panic! It's Not My Fault!" And an adventurous octopus finds refuge in a not-so adventurous place in "The Terrifying Octopus On Shutaro's Head!" Urusei Yatsura: Shamelessly exploiting the love between octopus and man.
Volume 43
In the 43rd installment of the show that successfully flies low enough to avoid all enemy anime, an uninvited guest gets a few lessons in Earth etiquette in "Invaders From Space! Lum's Lips Are In Peril!" A group of hungry students and an extraterrestrial bowl meet in a wacky culinary battle in "Take This Food And Eat It!" Blood, sweat and fear descends on Tomobiki when the students find a unique way to cool down in "Exciting Head Air Conditioner!" And a tiny friend with bad aim helps spread a little love in "Love Attack! Romantic Resistance Is Useless!" Urusei Yatsura: Unfiltered laughter delivered straight to your television set.
Volume 44
In the 44th volume of the show where flame retardant diapers are a true sign of parental love, Ten cools down and shows a softer, less volatile side when his mom stops by for a quick visit in "The Return Of The Fire-Fighting Mama! She's Steamed!" A winged visitor tries to spread some happiness but only succeeds in spreading catastrophe in "High-Pressure Happiness Pusher! That Blue Bird Never Gets It!" A summer of love between a sly father and an angry daughter inevitably leads to the fight of the century in "Battle-Royale: Will Ryuunosuke Ever Wear A Bathing Suit?" And as autumn approaches, a fox seeks out his favorite student (guess who?) in "I Want A Bride! The Big Adventure Of A Fox In Love!" Urusei Yatsura: Our ambition is ambiguity.
Volume 45
In the 45th installment of the seal-like, big-lipped, infatuated bully of anime, those triplets of terror look to torment their least favorite girls in "The Spice Girls Strike Back: Operation Animals!" A day of fun at Mendou's Marine Park turns into bedlam when Mr. Fujinami becomes an event coordinator in "Grasp As Many Fish As You Can! The Beach House's Dangerous Business!" Tomobiki's most dysfunctional family (this is still up for debate) gets a few wishes from a shiny visitor in "Let's Wish Upon A Star! The Moroboshi's Are Really Panicked!" And Ataru gets green with envy when Lum's little green friend shows up and needs some help in "Darling Is A Jealous Guy!" Urusei Yatsura: No foxes, dogs, frogs, or eye-patched cats are harmed (much) during the filming of our episodes.
Volume 46
In the 46th installment of the show that turned yoga into a contact sport, the smell of sake is in the air as Sakura tries to rid herself of a spirit with a taste for spirits in "Beware of Booze! Sakura's Exorcism Error!" A paunchy Ataru and the rest of the physically fit gang visit a yoga studio run by a familiar short monk in "It's Creepy! The Sakuramboo School of Yoga!" Everyone's favorite hot-headed teacher trains his mind and body for a showdown with some of his favorite students in "Say Good-Bye to Onsen?! Tearful Farewell Marathon!" And Lum cooks up a bubbling-hot recipe that slips between one of Tomobiki's most misunderstood couples in "Sakura's Pure Love. Slippery Soap Spells Sayonara!" Urusei Yatsura - Small town mass hysteria has never been so beautiful.
Volume 47
In the 47th installment of the show that recycles only the highest quality fortunes, sibling rivalry reaches epic proportions when a strong-natured sister takes on her somewhat strong-willed brother in "Asuka vs. Her Big Brother! A Battle of Love!" Lum and Ataru search... and search... and search some more for the perfect (or at least decent) fortune in "Darling's Horrible Luck! Alternate Universe Omikuji Horror!" Ataru and the gang become pawns in a scary game at another year-end party at the Mendou's in "New Year's Panic! The Mendou Family Game of Trouble." And Ten goes on a journey to find a tiny umbrella for a magical guy in a deep puddle in "Dreaming Ten's Big Adventure at the End of the Rainbow!" Urusei Yatsura - The pay-per-view anime of no-holds-barred sibling rivalry.
Volume 48
In the 48th installment of the show that only occasionally fabricates its emotional roller-coaster of distilled network-like comedy, a big test at school causes Ataru to flirt, cheat, dress up as a girl and get trapped in a copy machine (but that's just the beginning) in "Ataru Wants to Go on a Date! Operation Examination!" Sakura tries to cook up some passion while the boys simply cook up some outrageous lies in "Darling Told Me He Loves Me!" Onsen's teaching instincts (and other unstable emotions) take him door-to-door in an effort to get to the root of his problems in "Hellish Home Visits! The Passion of the Teacher!" And after a classroom is destroyed, a group of students must meditate their sins away in an exclusive campus prison-hut in "Ran's Humongous Doll of Destruction!" Urusei Yatsura - Your two-dimensional companion for those cold winter nights.
Volume 49
The 49th installment of Urusei Yatsura takes good-hearted family fun and sprinkles it with demented monks, electric shocks, and hot-tempered friends with unforgiving memories. First, a familiar furry visitor comes to town, once again looking for his favorite resident in "Pure-hearted Fox; He'll Risk His Life for Love!" Then, Lum gets kidnapped by a strange boy with a penchant for television in "Darling, Rescue Me! Lum's Dangerous Engagement." And finally, Ran gets angry and dusts-off an old (and not so reliable) weapon from her arsenal in "I Can't Take It Anymore! Ran's Malicious Operation!" Urusei Yatsura - The only thing stronger than our tea is our comedy.
Volume 50
Just when you thought it was safe to turn away, the 50th installment calls down the lightning and pops open the bottles on two special episodes. First, Cherry, in various forms of dress, hosts a countdown awards show where the top-ten episodes are revealed in the special program "Announcing the Urusei Awards!" And as the cherry blossoms bloom, everyone (and we mean everyone) gathers for an electrifying costume contest finale in "All-Star Party! We Are Immortal!" Urusei Yatsura - As God is my witness, I'll never write one of these taglines again!
When I started collecting and watching Urusei Yatsura in the early '90s, TV volumes, OVA's and movies were retailing for about $39.95. There weren't too many places in Philadelphia where you could find them, but, I managed. Then, the bad times came. There were no new Urusei Yatsura episodes left on store shelves and nothing was forthcoming from AnimEigo. At the time, I was working for a large video store and I was able to research the UY volumes that I didn't have and order them through the store. It was about this time that AnimEigo decided to drop the price on tapes to $24.95 -- that saved me quite a pretty penny.
By the way, the Urusei Yatsura OVA "Terror of the Girly-Eyed Measles", turned more than a few heads at the video store when it came in. My favorite TV episodes are in volume 9 when Ten loses his horn and his powers. And, in volume 16, when Ten is stalked and knocked out of the air by an overly aggressive girlfriend. Among the OVAs, my favorites are Raging Sherbet, where Ran discovers that Oyuki's Sherbet birds don't like being overworked. And Nagisa's Fiance, where we find that Ryuunosuke is betrothed.
In case you were wondering, there was one attempt to dub the UY TV series called Those Obnoxious Aliens. I hated the dub with so much passion, that I actually took the time to write AnimEigo a letter, expressing my profound displeasure. The first two movies were also dubbed. I've heard some of the dub for the first movie and it is better than the TV series dub, but, I still prefer to read my anime.
Back in the day when VCRs still stalked the Earth, I had been running around the city scooping up various volumes of the TV series on VHS tape. At one point, I got to TV volume 25 and there were no more episodes to be had. AnimEigo was strangely quiet about the whole thing. Details are a little fuzzy at this point, but, I believe that a year had gone by with no word. Then, one day, news came that AnimEigo was switching to DVD-only production. I was on the fence with regard to DVD, but, that shocking news made up my mind. Eventually, after a few minor glitches, UY production started up again.
I am a fan of Rumiko Takahashi's works, but, Urusei Yatsura is the only one of her long-running series where I've felt a compelling need to purchase every episode. If you like Ranma 1/2, you'll probably like Urusei Yatsura. Some of Rumiko Takahashi's long-running series follow a similar path where there is a large cast of characters and at the core is a romantic tension between two of the main characters. In addition, there is a theme that runs through each long-running series. With Urusei Yatsura, the theme is aliens. With Inu Yasha, the theme is monsters. With Ranma 1/2, there is a distinct martial arts flavor and the romantic tensions go in multiple directions as Ranma transforms from boy-Ranma to girl-Ranma. Watching the entire series requires an enormous commitment, so, if you just want a taste of UY, I would recommend the first movie - Only You.
I used to have the first 25 TV volumes, 6 movies and 6 OVA volumes on VHS tape and I currently have volumes 26 to 50 of the TV series are on DVD. After awhile, I've repurchased the movies and OVA's on DVD. Recently, AnimEigo had a sale in which they offered most of their anime catalog at deep discounts. So, with UY available at 60% off, free shipping and a free t-shirt, I found that I couldn't resist. It took a good-sized bite out of my wallet, but, I went ahead and repurchased the first 25 volumes on DVD. Curiously, AnimEigo actually sent me a bunch of extra DVDs that I already owned along with ones that I had ordered. It was the one and only time I had asked for an RMA. I couldn't keep items that I didn't pay for, so, I sent the extra items back.Of course, since I ended up repurchasing the series, I gave Urusei Yatsura a 5 out of 5.
The Urusei Yatsura OVA Vocal Collection CD has 12 tracks and I liked 9 tracks for a total of 75% which works out to a rating of 3 out of 4. I'm fairly certain that the CD I have is a bootleg of some official release, but, at the time of this writing, I have no idea what the official release was.
I used to have the first 25 TV volumes, 6 movies and 6 OVA volumes on VHS tape and I currently have volumes 26 to 50 of the TV series are on DVD. After awhile, I've repurchased the movies and OVA's on DVD. Recently, AnimEigo had a sale in which they offered most of their anime catalog at deep discounts. So, with UY available at 60% off, free shipping and a free t-shirt, I found that I couldn't resist. It took a good-sized bite out of my wallet, but, I went ahead and repurchased the first 25 volumes on DVD. Curiously, AnimEigo actually sent me a bunch of extra DVDs that I already owned along with ones that I had ordered. It was the one and only time I had asked for an RMA. I couldn't keep items that I didn't pay for, so, I sent the extra items back.Of course, since I ended up repurchasing the series, I gave Urusei Yatsura a 5 out of 5.Movies
OVAs
TV Series
