A list of characters from the Sano Ichiro series. Character names are presented in "family name, given name" order.
Edo Castle
Sano Ichiro
Originally a yoriki, Sano was promoted to the Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People (aka sosakan-sama) after saving the Shogun's life.- By-the-Book Cop: At the beginning, he does his best to follow Bushido and be the obedient subordinate. This quickly changes once he realizes that sticking by the book won't always help him in his pursuit of justice.
- Cowardice Callout: When giving Tokugawa Tsunayoshi a "Reason You Suck" Speech in public, he straight-up calls him a coward who is unworthy of bearing the Tokugawa name. To everyone's surprise, the shogun agrees with Sano.
- Cowboy Cop: He becomes this after befriending Dr. Ito and using his forbidden Western knowledge to find clues. When those behind the Shogun start making things more difficult for him to investigate directly, Sano often has to flout his orders in order to get to the truth. He usually does this through finding loopholes or ways to sneak around and remain in his master's good graces while carefully stirring up trouble to find answers.
- The Exotic Detective: He is a samurai who bears the title of the Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People.
- Good Parents: He loves both of his children and helps to raise them despite the demands being sosakan-sama brings.
- Guilt Complex: Sano has a tendency to blame himself for the various deaths that arise during his investigations.
- Happily Married: Once he and Reiko come to an understanding, they both become devoted to each other. Their marriage does go through some rough spots, especially after Sano persists on exposing Ienobu's part in Tsuruhime's death at the expense of his family's wellfare, but they always manage to pull through.
- Heroic BSoD: Throughout the whole series, he has two emotional breakdowns:
- The first one happens in The Pillow Book Of Lady Wisteria after one too many death threats in reward for loyalty and competence.
- The second and biggest one happens in The Shogun's Daughter after finding the evidence of a crime, being falsely accused of committing said crime, and then being beaten to a pulp by the shogun with the evidence in front of a full court and unable to lift a hand to defend himself for fear of reprisal. When Hirata encounters him recovering from his injuries, Sano's aura is almost entirely black from his hatred directed at the shogun.
- Honor Before Reason: Sanos' biggest strength and weakness. His strive for truth and justice usually ends up putting his and his family's lives in danger, but it's this same strive that lets him find the real culprit and help innocents from being wrongly punished.
- Interdisciplinary Sleuth: Sano's past as a tutor helps him question witnesses and find various clues. His training as a samurai is a boon when it comes to interacting with hostile suspects.
- Knight in Sour Armor: While he always knew life at court was dangerous, years of the shogun failing to show any appreciation whatsoever for his loyalty gradually wears away at his idealism.
- Official Couple: Is part of one with Reiko. They're the most prominent couple and have the healthiest relationship out of the main cast.
- Papa Wolf: Sano will harm anyone that threatens his children's wellbeing.
Sano Reiko
Soon after her marriage to Sano, Reiko began assisting him with various cases.- Action Mom: She's the mother of two children and can fight toe-to-toe with other samurai.
- Amateur Sleuth: Due to her father letting her help out with court trials, Reiko developed a taste for detective work. And since she's a women, she go places that Sano would not otherwise be able to and get answers from people who would be intimidated by a samurai. However, her unconventional behavior earns her scorn from her peers.
- Character Tics: In times of stress, Reiko has a tendency to touch her front chipped tooth with her tongue.
- Good Parents: She loves her children and will do anything to keep them safe.
- Happily Married: Initially cautious, Reiko comes to love Sano and quickly becomes devoted to him. Their marriage does go through some rough spots, especially after Sano persists on exposing Ienobu's part in Tsuruhime's death at the expense of his family's wellfare, but they always manage to pull through.
- Mama Bear: Reiko follows Sano all the way to Hokkaido on the off chance of saving Masahiro. In general, she'll fight anyone who dares to put her children in danger.
- Missing Mom: Reiko was raised solely by her father and has no memory of her mother.
- Official Couple: Is part of one with Sano. They're the most prominent couple and have the healthiest relationship out of the main cast.
- Parental Favoritism: Reiko admits that she favors Masahiro, due to him being born first.
- Pregnant Badass: Reiko's pregnancies don't slow her down as far as helping in investigations. This comes back to bite her when she miscarries her third child.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Reiko is the tomboy to Midori's girly-girl.
- Waif-Fu: Reiko is an accomplished martial artist and a tiny woman.
Sano Masahiro
Sano's only son and his first child.- Kid Detective: During The Cloud Pavilion, Masahiro begins to show some of the same detective skills that his father does, even helping out his parents with some of their cases.
- Kid Samurai: Masahiro's kidnapping in The Snow Empress forces him to mature faster than he ordinarily would have. This means having to kill his way out of certain situations.
Sano Akiko
Sano's only daughter and his second child.- Like Father, Like Son: Akiko is just as stubborn and determined as her mother.
Hirata
Starting as a dÅshin, Hirata became Sano's chief advisor after helping him catch the Bundori Killer.- Atonement Detective: Before starting his partnership with Sano, Hirata let his previous master die while he fled for his life. Since that event, Hirata had been desperately trying to atone for his cowardice by committing the ultimate act a samurai can do: sacrificing himself in order to save his master. By the end of the series, he does ultimately achieve this goal.
- Beta Couple: Is in one with Midori. Their marriage becomes rocky after he dedicates himself to his mystical martial arts training. It provides a contrast to Sano and Reiko's more stable relationship.
- Good Parents: Hirata starts out as this, but his martial arts training interferes with his ability to parent and be with his children.
- Happily Married: His marriage with Midori starts out as this, until he begins his martial arts training.
- Heroic Sacrifice: He sacrifices his well-being and life twice. Once in order to save Sano from a fatal sword strike and again when he manages to stop General Otani from hurting Sano.
- Nature Hero: Hirata becomes one in The Snow Empress, able to sense the natural aura of things around him.
- My Greatest Failure: The death of his previous master haunts Hirata; he could have tried to defend him, but he fled the scene instead.
- Only One Name: Among the main cast, Hirata is the only one who's family name (or first name?) is never mentioned.
Niu Midori
After helping Sano with his first case, she becomes a lady-in-waiting to Lady Keisho-in.- Abusive Parents: Once Hirata disappears out of nowhere, Midori develops a habit of taking out her anger and frustration on her children. Unlike many other examples of this trope, Midori seems to be aware her abusive behavior.
- Ascended Extra: She was introduced in Shinju as a sister of the one of the victim's. She later becomes a major character after marrying Hirata and befriending Reiko.
- Beta Couple: Is in one with Hirata. Their marriage becomes rocky after Hirata dedicates himself to his mystical martial arts training. It provides a contrast to Sano and Reiko's more stable relationship.
- Happily Married: Her marriage with Hirata starts out as this, until he begins his martial arts training.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Experiences this after mistreating one of her children.
- My Secret Pregnancy: Midori doesn't reveal her pregnancy to anyone other than Hirata until after they are married.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Midori is the girly-girl to Reiko's tomboy.
- Yamato Nadeshiko: Midori is perfectly happy with being a housewife and partaking in traditional womanly activities. She also isn't afraid to call Hirata out whenever he leaves his family behind.
Taeko
Midori and Hirata's first child.- My Secret Pregnancy: Despite having a maid following her around, Taeko manages to become pregnant with Masahiro's child. She doesn't tell anyone about it until after the danger has passed.
Detective Marume
One of Sano's loyal detectives and personal bodyguard.- Mauve Shirt: Accompanies Sano and his family in several novels.
- Those Two Guys: With Fukida. Not much is known about Marume's background and his personality isn't as well defined as other characters.
Detective Fukida
Another one of Sano's loyal detectives and personal bodyguard.- Mauve Shirt: Accompanies Sano and his family in several novels. He dies in the 1703 earthquake in The Incense Game.
- Those Two Guys: With Marume. Little is known about his life before becoming Sano's bodyguard and his personality isn't as well defined as other characters.
Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu
The Shogun's Chamberlain and the primary antagonist of the series.- Abusive Parents: His parents saw him and his siblings as little more than tools for their own ambitions. Yanagisawa isn't much better to his own children.
- Batman Gambit: His plans to undermine Sano's investigation usually fall into this. He comes to know Sano's methods and ideologies well enough to predict that his principal values won't allow him to ignore any clues, no matter how dangerous they are to himself or his family.
- Berserk Button: Don't even think about trying to usurp his position as second-in-command. More generally, don't attempt to take any power away from him. Shichisaburo learns that last point the hard way; after confessing his love to Yanagisawa, Yanagisawa feels the balance of power tilt towards his paramour. This enrages him to the point of beating up the actor and letting him take the fall for setting up the Shogun's mother as a murder suspect.
- Combat Pragmatist: Of the verbal variety. He's extremely good at twisting truths and using bad facts to make himself look better by comparison.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Raised by a pair of abusive and unloving parents, he was used as a sexual plaything by several men. At an early age, he learned how to use his looks and cunning in order to rise in the ranks.
- Dirty Old Man: The first lover of the thirty-one-year-old Yanagisawa that we're introduced to is a preteen actor called Shichisaburo.
- Domestic Abuser: Yanagisawa mainly uses his lovers for pleasure and/or to execute his plans. He's callous and emotionally distant in an effort to keep them from gaining power over him. This trait is lessened greatly after his love affair with Hoshina collapses; he realizes others are using his affection to gain power in a similar fashion.
- Evil Chancellor: He reinforces Tsunayoshi's bad habits and weaknesses in order to keep the Shogun under his control. To keep other's from usurping his position and power, he'll use whatever means necessary to get rid of the competition, including, but not limited to, malicious gossip, character assassination, and actual assassination.
- Historical Domain Character: Based on the real life Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu.
- Historical Villain Upgrade: Fact indicates the real Yanagisawa was not quite as scheming or nasty as he is portrayed in the novels. He was likely little more than a yes man to the Shogun.
- Manipulative Bastard: Yanagisawa knows exactly how to phrase things to his lord to make himself look good and his competitors look bad. It gets more and more impressive as the books go on; just when it seems like Yanagisawa can't go any farther with stretching the truth, he somehow does. It culminates when he manages to pass off his own son as the shogun's long lost son and future Tokugawa heir.
- Noble Fugitive: Yanagisawa pretends to be a monk after escaping from exile and planning his return.
Tokugawa Tsunayoshi
The fifth shogun of Japan.- Extreme Doormat: Tsunayoshi is this to a "T". When he actually tries to take things into his own hands on a couple of occasions, he makes things worse. He subverts this temporarily in The Fire Kimono when he gets fed up with Lord Matsudaira's jealous and condescending attitude. It becomes permanent at the end of The Shogun's Daughter after he realizes how cowardly and ineffectual he's been.
- Historical Domain Character: Based on the real Tokugawa Tsunayoshi.
- Like Is, Like, a Comma: The shogun uses "ahh" in this way in almost every piece of his dialogue. It's actually a way of showing his speech faltering as he can't make a decision, and he drops it after The Shogun's Daughter when he becomes more sure of himself.
- Upper-Class Twit: He prefers to let his underlings govern for him while he indulges in personal pleasures.
Lady Keisho-in
Tsunayoshi's mother and former concubine to the previous shogun.- Historical Domain Character: Based on the real life Keisho-in.
- I Was Quite the Looker: She likes to remind people of this.
- Parental Hypocrisy: Keisho-in refuses to accept her son's preference for those of his own sex, yet she has no problem with indulging in her own tastes for females.
- Rags to Riches: Originally the daughter of a grocer, she eventually became the concubine of Iemitsu, the previous Shogun. After giving birth to Tsunayoshi, she became the mother of the next Shogun and, as a result, the highest ranking women in Japan.
- Upper-Class Twit: Due to her peasant upbringing, she lacks a lot of the refined mannerisms and education associated with the nobility. She doesn't bother to hide or change any of that.
Hoshina
Originally a yoriki that worked in Miyako, Hoshina moved to Edo after becoming Yanagisawa's new lover.- Dirty Cop: Hoshina cares more about appearances and keeping in Yanagisawa's good graces than he does serving justice.
Yanagisawa Yoritomo
One of Yanagisawa's children and his protege.- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Yoritomo dislikes being the Shogun's lover, but he does it to earn Yanagisawa's affection.
Yanagisawa Yoshisato
Another one of Yanagisawa's children.- Hates Their Parent: He strongly resents Yanagisawa for ignoring his existence until he needed a new pawn.
- Noble Fugitive: After being kidnapped by Ienobu's men, he manages to escape and pretends to be a gangster, eventually becoming leader of the gang.
Commoners
Lady Wisteria
A former yujo, Wisteria was the friend of one of the victims of Sano's first case.- High-Class Call Girl: She was a famous first-class courtesan.
Okaru
A prostitute who was Oishi's lover.- Hooker with a Heart of Gold: She's a prostitute who genuinely falls in love with a drunken ronin.
