Franchouchou (Sakura Minamoto) | The Living & Others - Major Characters | Gaiden Characters
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Major Characters
Characters with a notably exceeding amount of screen time or who play a major role in the series plotSecondary Characters
The supporting cast, comprised of many recurring extras, and friends and family of the main cast.Introduced in Zombie Land Saga
Rapper Trio
Voiced by: Subaru Kimura, Shunsuke Takeuchi, Kazuki Miyagi (Japanese), Darren McElroy, Rare Orion, Ninjamik3 (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E02
- "Yo yo yo mic check!"
- Abhorrent Admirer: In their first appearance they try to hit on three of the girls, not realizing they're all minors or that they're zombies.
- The Cameo: They appear in a dance competition in Revenge.
- Gratuitous Rap: Have no problem rapping in public at inopportune times.
Hisanaka President
Voiced by: Seiko Tamura
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E04
- The Bus Came Back: She returns in Revenge as the judge of a dance competition. Tae manages to freak her out once again.
- Cool Old Lady: Her interactions with Kotaro are quite pleasant, and she seems genuinely interested in helping to support a local idol group.
- Trauma Button: Ever since her encounter with the zombie girls, even though she experienced Trauma-Induced Amnesia about the incident, anything that reminds her of the incident, such as Tae crawling around upside down again (albeit this time in makeup), will cause her to freak out.
- Trauma Conga Line: Her experience with Franchouchou at the inn.
- First she discovers Sakura's disembodied head floating in the hot springs.
- Then Saki and Junko emerge looking like swamp monsters, with water gushing out of their mouths.
- Lily flickers into her view in a dark hallway, followed by Tae who crab walks around her like a Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl.
- She and Ai scream hysterically at each other, Ai looking inadvertently more terrifying to her.
- She pleads for help from Yugiri, who turns around creepily to reveal her zombie features.
- And finally Saki and Sakura slips on a dropped medicinal patch, causing to slide down the hall into the poor woman, right as the screen fades to white.
- Trauma-Induced Amnesia: Played for Laughs. The girls consecutively run into her through a dark inn with their makeup off which terrifies her to the point of her memory from the past day regressing.
Cocco-san
Voiced by: Kenji Konno (Japanese), Kyle Phillips (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E05
Saki: "We're standing in the presence of greatness!"
The mascot of Drive-In Tori, a real-life fried chicken chain in Saga Prefecture.- Ambiguously Human: His appearance and proportions are a little too uncanny for a person in a costume, and his face a little too emotive for a mask.
- In Episode 12 of Revenge, he appears in a Three-Point Landing. It's entirely possible that he was jumping down from a ledge, given the amount of debris around, but the framing and sound effect of feathers rustling in wind imply he flew to the concert with his wings.
- The Bus Came Back: He returns in Revenge as the reigning champion of Saga's local dance competition.
- Butt-Monkey: Tae — mistaking him for a real chicken — constantly chases him, trying to bite him.
- The Faceless: His face under the costume is never shown.
- Mascot with Attitude: Very slick and classy if a bit goofy, flippantly dancing at random intervals and loving to show off to his audience.
- Moonwalk Dance: Pulls this off a couple of timess
- Nice Guy: Despite being Tae's first bite victim outside of Franchouchou, he seems to enjoy working with the girls and even bends the rules so Tae can compete in a dance contest she was too late to sign up for.
- Plucky Comic Relief: Possibly the goofiest resident in Saga, being a person in a chicken suit that does nothing but dance.
- Shout-Out: He seems to love Michael Jackson's dancing, performing several of his moves.
- The Speechless: Only makes the occasional chicken noise.
- Worthy Opponent: Accepts a challenge to a Dance-Off with Tae in Revenge. He’s a very good sport in spite of her not signing up before hand.
Inubashiri
Voiced by: Ryōhei Kimura (Japanese), Aaron Dismuke (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E05
- Accidental Truth: He makes an offhand joke to Okoba about Franchouchou being zombies, explaining their resemblance to deceased people. This helps Okoba clue in to their true nature.
- Agent Scully: The Scully to Okoba's Agent Mulder. While Okoba thinks something strange is going on with Franchouchou — with many of its members resembling dead celbrities — Inubashiri shrugs it off as all of them being doppelgangers and stresses not to worry about it. Okoba is, of course, actually onto something.
Ironically, Inubashiri's joke about Franchouchou being zombies is what lets Okaba piece everything together about Franchouchou's true nature after seeing Tae's head pop off. - Flat Character: He hasn't had as much development as Okoba, mostly acting as a commentator to the latter's research into Franchouchou.
- Those Two Guys: He and Okoba are introduced as this, being the journalists assigned to learn more about Franchouchou.Though Okoba slowly gains more characterization and plot-relevance over him.
Takeo Go
Voiced by: Tsuyoshi Koyama (Japanese), Christopher Sabat (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E08
Lily's preposterously large father, who was devastated by the loss of his only child, only to see her back from the dead years later. Also appears in the Gaiden manga, showing how he and Lily's mother, Sachika, met in high school.
- Beard of Sorrow: He's grown out his facial hair in the wake of Lily's death.
- Cannot Spit It Out: Enforced, A Sagako that had possessed him always stopped him from confessing to the girl who would become his wife.
- Doesn't Know Their Own Child: While he loved his daughter a lot, he was oblivious to many of her problems shortly before she died. He didn't realize Lily didn't care much about her acting career and only wanted to spend quality time with him like they used to. He also didn't have a clear idea of what made her so upset about growing body hair. He tried to calm her down by telling her that's part of growing up, but he couldn't understand Lily didn't want to grow up because it meant developing a male body that would conflict with her female identity, continuing to call her "Masao" in private even long after she died.
- Doting Parent: Flashbacks show that he was incredibly doting towards Lily, who herself seemed very happy living with him back when she was still alive. He even immediately quit his job and became Lily's manager when she expressed interest in performing within the television industry, doing his best to make sure that her career was a success. However, he became a bit too engrossed in her career and failed to notice the accumulating stress that she was gathering until it was too late.
- Establishing Character Moment: In his first scene in Episode 8, he walks out of his office when his coworkers put on the TV and is troubled after seeing a cheerful young girl playing nearby. All this shows how much the death of his child affected him.
- Face of a Thug: He's a huge, hulking man with a scar across his left eye, and when he first appears at Franchouchou's photo session, Saki assumes that he must be a loan shark who's trying to collect debts from Kotaro. In reality, he's only there because he thinks Lily's an Identical Stranger who looks like his daughter, and he's a good person deep down.
- Gentle Giant:
- Despite his gargantuan size and intimidating appearance, he's really amicable to others and generally a quiet and reserved man.
- During high school, he was easily twice as tall as every other student. Despite that, he turned down delinquents' offers to take over the prefecture in favor of tending to flowers.
- Manly Tears: He does this upon watching Franchouchou's concert in Episode 8; he remembers the time with Lily and finally manages to move past it.
- Meaningful Name: The kanji for his name literally translate to 'War Man Grand', befitting a thuggish-looking, cartoonishly huge man and keeping with the theme of Lily's birth name.
- The Mourning After: The loss of his wife and daughter sends him into deep sorrow. Even after 7 years he is a melancholic and reserved man who cannot even stay in a room with a TV on because of its association with Lily. He could've stayed that way forever, but thanks to his daughter's resurrection and a concert the girls made for him, he finally finds peace and moves on with his life.
- Never Got to Say Goodbye: He still hasn't gotten over Lily's death after seven years, unable to watch the TV he so loved anymore because of its relation to the whole ordeal. He regrets his words and actions in her final moments, and can't find closure because of that. Thankfully Lily has returned to life, but because she is a zombie she cannot say goodbye to him directly. So Franchouchou pulls off a concert with a new song specifically targeted for him, with Lily thanking Takeo for all the time they had together and telling that she still loves him. This finally allows him to move on, and he even starts watching TV again. Even though Lily can't confirm that she's actually his daughter, it's clear that Takeo has finally found peace within himself.
- Nice Guy: He's a kind, tender and affable Gentle Giant.
- Non-Standard Character Design: Most characters in Zombie Land Saga have very realistic features with the occasional odd hair coloration here and there. Takeo completely disrupts it by being an 8-foot-tall Tiny-Headed Behemoth. This is even referenced in universe as many other characters are in awe or disbelief about his figure.
- Open-Minded Parent: Zigzagged. While it was clear that he was accepting of Lily's gender identity, he would still call her "Masao" rather than her preferred name, and he also severely underestimated her concerns and worries in relation to her dysphoria. During their final pre-mortem conversation, while Lily was distressed over the fact that she was growing body hair, Takeo did his best to assure her that it wasn't a big deal and tried to get her to accept that she was growing up. While it was clear he had good intentions, he ultimately didn't quite comprehend just how devastating the ordeal was for Lily, and the conversation ended up turning into a massive regret that haunted him for years to come.
- Outliving One's Offspring: He was devastated by Lily's death, and still hasn't gotten over it after seven years.
- Parents as People: He loved Lily very much, but after he became her manager and her acting career took off, he became more focused on his daughter's career than her well-being. Years later, it's clear that he regrets being so neglectful.
- Parting-Words Regret: He seems to deeply regret how his last words to Lily were him being dismissive over Lily being distressed over growing body hair, due to her being trans and not wanting to go through puberty.
- Punched Across the Room: Takes a kick to the head from 105 lb Saki that somehow had enough power to both do this and knock him out instantly.
- Scars Are Forever: In the present day, he has a noticeable scar across his left eye. After Lily died, during a Blink-and-You-Miss-It moment right before he trashed the television in his house, you can see him actually clawing his own face and creating said scar in despair from the loss of Lily.
- Screen Shake: He's so massive he causes this whenever he walks.
- Stage Dad: A sympathetic example. Once Lily became a rising child star, Takeo became engrossed in his daughter's career. Unlike other examples, he wasn't fame hungry; he was so proud of Lily's talent that he tried his best to make her a successful actress. Unfortunately, he began to neglect Lily's wellbeing along the way, to the point Lily accused him of only caring about how she looked in TV. After Lily died, Takeo realized how his obsession with her success damaged their relationship and came to regret it all. Once Lily sees her father did love her and learned the error of his ways, she forgives him.
- Tears of Remorse: He cries hard in the aftermath of Lily's death, clearly blaming himself for overworking her.
- Tiny-Headed Behemoth: Jesus.
◊ - Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: His wife, Sachika, is much more attractive than he is. They met when he used his massive strength to prevent a flower from being run over by a car. Sachika, being naturally frail, appreciated how tender he is.
- When He Smiles: He looks rather kindly when happy. Especially so once he finds some peace with his grief.
Reiko Amabuki (née Kirishima)
Voiced by: Komina Matsushita (Japanese), Colleen Clinkenbeard (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E05 (Cameo), Zombie Land Saga E09 (Major Appearance)
Current Appearance
Click to see her young
The former leader of Dorami, and Saki's best friend from when she was still alive. Now a regular housewife, she worries about her daughter Maria's rebellious behavior.
- Affectionate Nickname: Maria refers to her as “mama”, though she’s embarrassed to call her this in front of others.
- Ain't Too Proud to Beg: For all her past bravado as an ex-biker, she simply begs for Korosuke and Dorami to stop fighting, knowing it will put her daughter in harm's way.
- Ambiguous Situation: Her husband doesn’t appear save for a Freeze-Frame Bonus when she reminisces on her daughter’s pre-school years.
- Anger Born of Worry: After Saki repeats the stunt that killed her, Reiko punches her in the face and yells at her for being an idiot, still having painful memories of her friend's death.
- Apologizes a Lot: Reiko is quick to apologize, even when Maria's the one at fault. Maria tells Reiko that this tendency is one of the things that annoys her most about her mother.
- Badass Biker: She was one back when she was the boss of Dorami. Though she's now a regular housewife, she's still kept her old motorcycle and hasn't lost her skills at riding it.
- Badass Normal: She could match a human Saki in terms of strength and combat prowess. Even in the present she can still deliver a killer hook on the latter.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Like Saki said to Maria, just because she became a law-abiding housewife does not mean she lost her biker chops.
- Early-Bird Cameo: Before her proper introduction in Episode 9, she makes an appearance in Episode 5 in Saki's flashback to her old biker gang days.
- Former Teen Rebel: She used to be the boss of Saki's biker gang, but now she's an ordinary housewife. However, there are still traces of the old delinquent in her, since she still has her old motorcycle and slips back into harsh speech when she's truly angry.
- Good Parents: She and her daughter had a very loving relationship early on. And even when they're both at odds, everything Reiko does is for Maria's sake, including standing up to Dorami's rivals.
- I Just Want to Be Normal: Even back when she was the leader of Dorami, she told Saki she wanted to eventually settle down and have a normal life, since her parents were divorced and she didn't want her own children to deal with that.
- Lovely Angels: With Saki as co-captains of Dorami.
- Mama Bear: She's willing to intervene in a biker conflict to save her daughter.
- Motherly Side Plait: She wears her hair this way in the present day, showing how she's now a regular wife and mother.
- Nonconformist Dyed Hair: She used to have red and blue streaks in her hair back when she was the boss of Dorami. Her purple hair itself may be dyed as well, as a flashback in Episode 2 of Revenge shows that when Saki first met Reiko, her hair was a dark brown/black.
- One-Woman Army: She and Saki could take down scores of delinquents and rival bikers together, sometimes with little to no scratches.
- Rebuilt Pedestal: Initially, her daughter Maria views her as a spineless weakling since she's no longer the biker she used to be. However, when Reiko confronts Saki after she drives her motorcycle off a cliff, she proves to Maria that just because she's no longer a gang boss doesn't mean she's weak.
- Retired Badass: She left the biker life to settle down, marrying her husband and having a daughter together.
- Still Got It: Despite many years retired from biking and preoccupied with raising a rebellious teenage daughter, Reiko showed that she still knows how to ride her motorcycle.
- Tragic Keepsake: She still has Saki's old Tamagotchi, entrusted to her on the night the latter died.
Maria Amabuki
Voiced by: Aoi Koga (Japanese), Madeleine Morris (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E09
- Badass Biker: She really wants to be one like her mother, but her gang only consists of her and two other girls, and her girly pink sticker-covered scooter doesn't exactly inspire this image.
- Boisterous Weakling: She talks a big game during a confrontation with Misa, but her voice trembles the entire time, and Saki comments afterwards that Misa would've beaten the tar out of Maria if they had actually come to blows. Given Saki's past combat experience, it's safe to say she accurately judged who was the more dangerous of the two.
- Bullying a Dragon: She makes a bad move trying to pick a fight with Saki, who is not even a little intimidated by her. If anything, Saki gives her a cold "Don't pick fights you're not ready for." Unfortunately, this advice falls on deaf ears, since she subsequently attempts to pick a fight with Misa, another biker delinquent who is way above her level.
- The Cameo: She attends Franchouchou concerts frequently and can be seen as a member of the audience.
- Casting Gag: Aoi Koga, her Japanese voice actor, is a real-life native of Saga.
- Failed a Spot Check: She somehow misses Okoba following them back to the girls' mansion, despite him literally right behind her not even trying to hide. Although she may be on a lookout for thieves after Tae's unexpected win and fortune.
- Fangirl: Of Saki as Number 2, in no small part thanks to her badassery in Episode 9. She begins regularly attending Franchouchou concerts with Ukawa and Sayama, being seen in the audience at multiple points.
- Friendly Rival: She and Misa start off as bitter rivals before slowly easing into this thanks to Saki convincing them to settle their differences. Maria later cheers for Misa during the latter’s boat race in Revenge.
- I Just Want to Be Badass: She tries her best to become the same biker gang captain her mom was before, as Maria feels her mom lost her nerve. She has a hard time pulling that off when the most her gang has are girly scooters covered in stickers and only two other members who know they're not cut out for it. Saki has to prove her point about knowing her limits by surviving a bike stunt that Misa wouldn't dare pull.
- Miles Gloriosus: Tries to be a tough-talking biker like her mother in the past, but she's quite inept and in over her head doing so.
- Momma's Girl: She’s a bit embarrassed about it, but her mom loves her dearly and worries about her safety and she loves her right back, though you’d be hard pressed to get her to admit so out loud. Their relationship gets better in later episodes.
- Nom de Mom: She goes by her mom's maiden name, Kirishima. Uniquely for this trope, she rejects her mother's married name because she hates what her mom has become, and would rather take after the Badass Biker she used to be. It's plot-relevant too, as her using her mother's name is how Saki realizes she's Reiko's daughter.
- Odd Friendship: She’s on pretty good terms with Tae of all people, helping her out at her grocery job and escorting her home after doing errands. Though she doesn’t appreciate Tae chewing on her hair.
- Ominous Walk: Parodied to hell. She and her gang do this to look threatening to Sakura and Lily, but all it does is make them look silly.
- Running Gag: Tae chewing on her Odango Hair.
- Took a Level in Kindness: By her second appearance, she's much friendlier towards Franchouchou and her rivals in Korosuke. Taking her mother's concerns for her safety to heart, she's been working to take Dorami in a direction outside of its biker gang roots.
- Tsundere: A familial variation. She gets shy whenever she talks about her mother positively in public.
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: She once had a healthy relationship with her mom when she was younger, but it all fell to pieces when she discovered Reiko's background. It's implied she dragged her two friends along to be part of her gang, but they're too nice about it.
- Wouldn't Hurt a Child: Despite acting as a tough and surly Japanese Delinquent, she draws the line at harming grade schoolers and lets Lily off the hook when threatening her and Sakura.
Ukawa & Sayama
Ukawa voiced by: Rina Honnizumi (Japanese), Alexis Tipton (English)
Sayama voiced by: Azumi Waki (Japanese), Terri Doty (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E09
Ukawa(Left with the freckles) and Sayama (Right with the glasses)
Maria's friends who join her as members of Dorami, though they are reluctant to keep it going.- The Cameo: They attend Franchouchou concerts frequently and can be seen as members of the audience.
- Fangirl: Of Saki as Number 2, in no small part thanks to her badassery in Episode 9. They begin regularly attending Franchouchou concerts with Maria, being seen in the audience at multiple points.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: They're much more savvy than Maria when it comes to picking fights, as they immediately recognize the girls of Franchouchou shouldn't be trifled with.
- Minion with an F in Evil: Maria ropes them into becoming biker delinquents, and tries (and fails) to be intimidating, with Sakura being the only one who's actually intimidated.
- Only Sane Man: For Dorami. They realize how in over their heads they all are and consider quitting biking all together. Unfortunately their captain, Maria, has no intention of quitting herself.
- Satellite Character: Don't have a ton of development outside of being Maria's friends.
- Sensing You Are Outmatched: They can tell picking a fight with Saki would be a terrible idea, and the two cower in fear when they're surrounded by Korosuke.
- Those Two Girls: Always depicted as a pair.
Misa Azumatsuru
Voiced by: Momoko Notomi (Japanese), Morgan Garrett (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E05
The tenth boss of the Korosuke biker gang and Maria's rival.
- All There in the Script: Her surname comes from the credits of Episode 9.
- Badass Biker: Comes with being the leader of her all-girl biker gang.
- The Cameo: Has a small but significant role in Revenge Episode 11, using her speedboat to give Kotaro a ride to the disaster shelter where Franchouchou are staying, following the Saga-wide flood.
- Drives Like Crazy: Episode 6 of Revenge shows that she has become a speedboat racer, where she apparently has a habit of driving too aggressively and wiping out. Somewhat of an Informed Flaw considering that the only time we see her race, she manages to keep her boat under control and wins.
- Graceful Loser: She is nothing but awed by Saki's daring attitude after losing to her in a game of chicken.
- Hidden Depths: Her Tears of Joy moment suggests a hidden soft side to her.
- Important Haircut: Has her hair cut after she leaves her biker interests in favor of becoming a speedboat racer.
- Japanese Delinquents: She is the boss of her own biker gang.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She’s the leader of a brutal biker gang that terrorizes its rivals, who consist of three incredibly inept middle-school girls. She’s also a very good sport, works to earn her rivals’ respect, and cares enough about Franchouchou that she cries with relief upon seeing them recover after their stage is destroyed.
- Red Baron: She is otherwise known as the "Fallen Angel".
- The Rival: She and Maria are at odds due to leading gangs that have been at each other’s throats for decades. Thanks to Saki though, the two now seem to be able to settle their disputes peacefully.
- Tears of Joy: She weeps with relief seeing Franchouchou jump back into singing after almost being killed (but not really) by a snowstorm. Even Maria and her friends are crying less than her.
- Whip of Dominance: She's an imposing woman who carries a whip around to intimidate rivals.
Introduced in Zombie Land Saga Revenge
Machiko
Voiced by: Kozue Saito
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga Revenge E 01
- Cool Old Lady: Is quite kind to Ai and her friends, offering them a spot at a nearby shelter after their mansion collapses.
- Early-Bird Cameo: She's introduced in the first episode of Revenge at Ai's part-time job. She then gets a bigger role in episode 11, helping with the relief efforts after the storm.
- Feminine Women Can Cook: She works at a dried squid factory with Ai, and also helps provide food at the relief shelter.
- Locked Out of the Loop: She helps out Franchouchou through episode 11, all while being completely unaware that they're zombies or that the names they give are fake.
- Unfazed Everyman: She's completely indifferent or unfazed by Tae and her zombie-like behavior, including being bitten on the head."Oh my, well aren't you a hungry little dear!."-Machiko happily receiving Tae's Bite of Affection
White Ryu
Voiced by: Hakuryu (Japanese), Tony Oliver (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga Revenge E 02
Click to see him young
A veteran musician and actor from Saga prefecture, host of the radio show So Saga Can Be Saga. He was a big inspiration to Saki during her living days.
- Adam Westing: White Ryu is based on his actor, Hakuryu ("Haku" meaning "White"), a real actor and musician from Saga. Here he's playing an exaggerated version of himself — he probably doesn't ride everywhere on the hood of a 1960s Cadillac convertible, for instance.
- Back for the Finale: He attends and helps promote Franchouchou's relief concert in the season finale.
- But Now I Must Go: He leaves Saga to explore the open road, but not before handing off the reins of his show to Saki.
- Cloud Cuckoo Lander: He's an odd fellow for sure. He talks about Saga like it's a living creature, and he's introduced riding atop the hood of his car instead of the seats."Sorry for the holdup. The wind blowing down from Kyogatake gave me pause."
- Cool Old Guy: He's getting on in years (probably somewhere in his 50s or 60s), but he manages to maintain his rock star demeanor.
- Delinquent Hair: He has a massive pompadour that sticks out at least two feet. Though in his old age it now sags in front of his head, obscuring his face.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: In his youth where he was an icon of virile masculinity, his large pompadour stood erect. Now in his lethargic old age, it lies flaccid.
- Ice-Cream Koan: Fond of giving elaborate speeches about freedom that nobody but Saki understands.
- Image Song: Do You Hate Windy Days. A soothing rock song about overcoming the struggles the world throws at you. Saki performs a more energetic cover at the next Franchouchou concert.
- Jailbait Wait: He turns down Saki's confession, but tells her to meet him again once she's grown into a young woman. Played with in that a) while Saki is physically still a teenager, she's actually around 40 if you take her birth year into account, and b) Saki, being a zombie, can never age beyond her teens, something that causes her significant grief once it sinks in.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: White Ryu knows that not only is he getting on in years, whatever fame he had is dwindling which is why he is retiring from his radio show. At the same time he knows that Saga needs beacons of hope to get them through the tough time, which is why after noticing Saki's passion decides to name her his successor.
- Passing the Torch: In Episode 2 of Revenge, when Saki learns that retired rock star White Ryu is planning to quit his radio show, she tries to convince him not to leave. Instead, Ryu announces that he thinks he's found the perfect replacement hosts in Saki and the other girls of Franchouchou.
- Silver Fox: Has aged pretty well all things considered, though his floppy pompadour somewhat detracts from this.
- You Are Not Alone: Perhaps his most powerful message, as the morning after he gave it, Saki would meet Reiko that would lead to creation of Dorami.
- Wandering the Earth: In the last scene with him, he's riding with his driver through what looks like Route 66.
Light Oozora
Voiced by: Minami Takayama (Japanese), Steph Garrett (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga Revenge E 05
A child actor who enters the same talent show as Lily.
- Ambition Is Evil: He desires to get as much fame as possible so that, once he grows out of being a child actor, he'll be able to enter Broadway easily.
- Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: Behind the scenes, he's a conceited Spoiled Brat, but he actually is a good performer. As shown when during his juggling act, he intentionally screws up to net some sympathy, and then immediately saves his performance while shouting his catchphrase.
- Back for the Finale: Attends Franchouchou's second EFS concert.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Like Lily, he acts very cutesy and nice in front of others. Behind the scenes though, he's quickly shown in private to be a bossy and ambitious prima donna. However, he's also a Graceful Loser, as while he wins the regionals for Japanese Got Performance he acknowledges that Lily's improvised performance made it a close race.
- Casting Gag: Played by the voice of Conan Edogawa (a.k.a. Shin’ichi Kudo), another character who uses a veneer of childhood innocence to his advantage.
- Expy: He's blatantly based on Light Yagami, having the same given name (though this Light's name is written in katakana instead of kanji), looking like a younger version of him, being almost as arrogant and manipulative, and even using his famous "Just as planned!" line.
- Foil: Serves as one to Lily; they're both popular child performers who have English words as given names and family names with a stellar theme (Hoshikawa means "star river" while Oozora means "big sky"), but their personalities and their approaches to their careers are different. While Lily's cutesy, childish stage presence is her true personality, Light's is a calculated facade that hides his true nature, and while Lily will remain a child forever much to her delight, Light accepts that he won't be a child forever and is already planning the next stage of his career.
- Friendly Rival: By the end of his debut, he and Lily part on decent terms. He even offers to collaborate with her in the event that they meet again. He attends and helps promote Franchouchou's relief concert in the season finale.
- Nice Character, Mean Actor: He acts sweet and polite towards his fans and in front of an audience, but behind the scenes he's a smug brat who verbally and physically abuses his manager.
- Pyrrhic Victory: Light wins the competition, but ultimately feels he lost in the long run since Lily's song was both heartfelt, and an improvised routine that she came up with on the fly to boot (something which he couldn't have done). This knocks his ego down a few pegs, but Lily assures him he's a good entertainer and that Light should continue to learn and improve as he continues his career path.
- Smug Snake: Behind the scenes, he thinks he'll win the show in a landslide, and takes the time to taunt Lily after learning they're doing the same song. This changes after he sees Lily's improvised performance, with him actually looking unsure that he would win and realizing that he still has some ways to go as a performer.
Maimai Yuzuriha
Voiced by: Kana Hanazawa (Japanese), Cherami Leigh (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga Revenge E 01 (Cameo), Zombie Land Saga Revenge E07 (Major Appearance)
A clumsy, average high school girl who happens to be a big fan of Franchouchou...and accidentally stumbles upon their biggest secret.
- Ascended Fangirl: Becomes the honorary eighth member (though 7th in name) in episode 7 of Revenge.
- Back for the Finale: She rallies her friends and classmates to attend Franchouchou's second EFS concert.
- Bespectacled Cutie: Her thin round-frame glasses do well to highlight her adorably clumsy and energetic character.
- Blind Without 'Em: She has very poor vision without her glasses.
- Character Catchphrase: Any time she comes up with an idea - and/or her "Franchouchou sense" tingles - she shouts "ding!"/"ka-ching!" very loudly while pointing her index finger upwards.
- Chekhov's Gunman: She shows up in several audience shots throughout Revenge, several of which get shown in more detail to show that yes, she really was there all those timesnote .
- Color-Coded Characters: During her brief stint as a Franchouchou member, she's assigned the color green.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: She's extremely clumsy and quite impulsive. But once she works past those flaws, she's able to perform on the same level as her idols-Franchouchou.
- Cute Clumsy Girl: Maimai is very enthusiastic, but not very coordinated-rivaling even Sakura in terms of clumsiness, something even she's aware of.Maimai: "Come on, mind and body, please be in sync for once."
- Determinator: Quite fitting for a Franchouchou member. Despite spending several hours practicing without getting the routine right, Maimai refuses to call it a day, an attitude that endears her to Ai.
- Early-Bird Cameo: Maimai can be seen in multiple audience shots prior to her appearance in Episode 7 of Revenge. Also lampshaded, as flashbacks to those shots are shown when she’s introduced to Franchouchou.
- Fangirl: She's a big fan of Franchouchou-especially Sakura. The two have a lot in common, and Sakura inspires her to become an idol herself one day.
- Fantastically Indifferent: Franchouchou being zombies doesn't seem to phase her even a little.
- Foil: Acts as one to Sakura. They're both clumsy-yet enthusiastic-girls determined to succeed as idols, and Maimai looks up to Sakura and Franchouchou the same way Sakura once looked up to Ai and Iron Frill. The difference, of course, is that Maimai is still alive: her motivation is simply to live her life to the fullest, while Sakura's motivation (and that of the other zombies) is to make up for the fact that their lives got cut short and they were never able to fulfil their potential.
- Genki Girl: Possibly even more than Sakura and the members of Franchouchou.
- Guest-Star Party Member: She graduates Franchouchou in the same episode she joins them in, because she feels like Franchouchou is so special because they still fight to live on and shine brightly even after death, whereas she wants to live her life to the fullest before she can feel like she's reached their level.
- Nice Girl: Endearingly sweet and friendly. She's also incredibly accepting of Franchouchou being The Undead, something that would've triggered a more terrified response from other characters. Unsurprisingly she bonds quickly with Sakura.
- Secret-Keeper: She discovers that the members of Franchouchou are zombies, but promises to keep it a secret.
- Sucks at Dancing: She starts out like this, somehow managing to get her feet tangled in a way even the zombies couldn’t manage. She gets better with dedicated practice, though, and averts the trope entirely by her first and only concert.
- Token Human: She's the only living human to perform as a member of Franchouchou.
- Trademark Favorite Food: According to her friends, Maimai's a big fan of tapioca. For their part, Maimai turning down tapioca while not having school festival stuff to deal with meant something was up (that being Franchouchou, though their guess was that she had a "hot date").
- Unfortunate Name: It's a borderline catchphrase for her to state that she's well aware how strange and ridiculous her name sounds, followed by insisting it is indeed her real name.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: She's one of the few characters on the show who doesn't freak out on seeing the members of Franchouchou out of their make-up (mostly because she doesn't have her glasses on and can't get a good look at them at first).
Groups
Iron Frill
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E01 (Cameo), Zombie Land Saga Revenge E 03 (Major Appearance)
Shiori's iteration
From left to right: Yui, Hikari, Shiori, Julia, and Makoto
From left to right: Yui, Hikari, Shiori, Julia, and Makoto
Click to see Ai's iteration
A legendary Idol Group that's been around for over a decade through different iterations. Ai was the original star of the group before her untimely and tragic death. The newest iteration featuring Shiori as their star is now touring in Saga.
- The Ace: They're considered one of the best idol groups out there. Franchouchou being asked to perform their opening act is considered a huge deal.
- Ambiguous Situation: None of Ai's group mates have been properly introduced save for some voiceless appearances in flashbacks. It's unknown where they are ten years later and how they were affected by Ai's death.
- Costume Evolution: The outfits the present Iron Frill wear are noticeably different from the ones of Ai's time. Ai's wore midriff-less tops with black vests and plaid skirts. The current iteration wears red cardigan vests with puffy red skirts and black accents.
- Early-Bird Cameo: Their presence is felt all the way back in the first episode when Sakura is dancing along to one of their singles. They have several small appearances before finally joining the main plot in Revenge.
- Genki Girl: Makoto is a bubbly Rose-Haired Sweetie. She happily answers questions at interviews and enjoys taking in the surroundings of the girls' venues.
- The Heavy: Of Revenge as idol business-wise, they become Franchouchou's biggest threat. Subverted in the second season finale when they showed up at their concert to support them.
- The Lancer: Yui helps level out Shiori's more competitive behavior. She tries to convince her not to get hung up on recruiting "No.3", realizing she's doing it out of her admiration of Ai Mizuno. She also playfully snarks at Shiori after Ai turns down her offer..
- The Psycho Rangers: An idol example, as they are this to Franchouchou.
- The Rival: In Revenge, Shiori publicly declares Franchouchou to be the group's greatest competition.
- Token Minority: Julia has an English name, hinting that she might have non-Japanese ancestory.
Dorami Biker Gang
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E02 (Cameo), Zombie Land Saga E09 (Major Appearance)
Click to see the newest iteration
An all-female biker gang from Saga prefecture. With Saki and Reiko at the lead, they conquered Kyushu, toppling any rival biker gangs that got in their way. The gang has faded in and out of existence ever since Saki's death. Reiko's daughter Maria has attempted to revive the gang.
- Amazon Brigade: A gang consisting of all-female bikers.
- Badass Decay: In-Universe. The gang slowly lost power after Saki's death, and the iteration Maria leads is just her and her two friends who don't have what it takes.
- Breaking the Fellowship: Reiko left the gang after Saki's death causing it to fade into obscurity over time.
Korosuke Biker Gang
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga E09
Dorami's longtime rivals who still seek to crush them to this day. Currently lead by Misa, "the Fallen Angel".- Always a Bigger Fish: They're badass in their own right, but Saki manages to frighten them with just a Death Glare.
- Amazon Brigade: Like Dorami, they're a gang consisting entirely of female bikers.
- Friendly Rival: Thanks to Saki, Dorami and Korosuke are able to settle their differences. By Revenge the two can gangs interact with little trouble.
Sagako Busters (Unmarked Spoilers)
The Sagako Busters
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga Gaiden Ch 01
From left to right: Yuko Hyodo, Tae Yamada, Anna Shuri, Hanako Hakase
- "Giving our lives for the sake of Saga's prosperity, a select unit of beauties!"
-Tae formally introducing the Busters.
A group of demon hunters from The '80s, led by a living Tae Yamada.
- See the Gaiden page for more information on its members.
- Amazon Brigade: An all-female group of demon hunters. This is until Yuko is incapacitated and substituted for by her brother, Eikichi.
- Ambiguous Situation: What became of them is unclear. Tae died some time around the period that Gaiden takes place, but the others had never been mentioned before in the anime.
- Demon Slaying: They hunt "Sagako", demons manifested by the curse of Saga.
- Expy: A pretty blatant one to the Ghostbusters, being a group of everyday folks who hunt supernatural entities at night. They even wear the same kind of baggy full-bodied uniform.
- Instant Sedation: Upon meeting Eikichi, they hold a rag to his face to sedate him and then drag him back to their hideout.
- Living a Double Life: They keep demon hunting a nighttime routine while working other jobs at day.
- Proud Beauty: How they market themselves, calling each other "ultimate beauties".
- "Super Sentai" Stance: Tae's formal introduction of the group utilizes this, with the three remaining members posing dramatically.
- Who You Gonna Call?: A group run by mostly women with separate day jobs, with no known benefactors outside of Jofuku and no known sponsors.
Historical Characters
Kiichi Momozaki
Voiced by: Mamoru Miyano (Japanese), Ricco Fajardo (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga Revenge E08
- Because You Were Nice to Me: Yugiri assists him after he falls into a nearby river. She later takes interest in his goal of restoring Saga.
- Butt-Monkey: Whether it's being shoved around on the streets or taken advantage of by friends, nothing seems to go right for the poor guy.
- Can't Hold His Liquor: Passes out after downing a cup of sake.
- Crush Blush: Boy does he go red when Yugiri is around.
- Determinator: Everyone around him seems indifferent or opposes his efforts to restore Saga, to the point of getting in trouble with law enforcement. He keeps trying regardless.
- Disappeared Dad: His father was killed in the Saga rebellion. Jofuku took him in not long after.
- Dogged Nice Guy: Nothing but polite and courteous towards the center of his affection.
- Et Tu, Brute?: He’s horrified by Itou’s betrayal and the reveal of his true nature.
- Foregone Conclusion: Saga was eventually restored, meaning Kiichi's dream was eventually fulfilled. It's also clear that any relationship he'd have with Yugiri would be cut tragically short.
- Gone Horribly Right: His efforts to make Saga reinstated as a prefecture unintentionally sparks a rebellion, leading to his followers dying at Itou's hands, Itou letting himself die in his fight with Yugiri, and Yugiri herself being executed after accepting the responsibility and punishment for Itou's death and the rebellion.
- Happily Adopted: He's living with his adopted grandfather Jofuku, who took him in after the death of his father.
- Implied Love Interest: While it's never explicit if Yugiri reciprocates his feelings, there are a lot of hints that seem to confirm it. The two play out a lot of other tragic romance tropes like Star-Crossed Lovers and Lost Lenore, and "Saga Jihen" which plays at the end of her arc is framed as a song of yearning.
- Lost Lenore: To Yugiri, being long dead by the story's present. Ironically it works both ways since she died before him originally.
- Meet Cute: As revealed in Episode 8 of ''Revenge'', the pinwheel Yugiri purchased just happened to fall on Kiichi's feet. When he picks it up, their eyes meet and he immediately falls in love with her.
- Posthumous Character: He'd be long dead by the story's present, having been alive more than a century before.
- She Is Not My Girlfriend: Tries and fails to convince his friend Itou that there's nothing going on between him and Yugiri.
- Significant Double Casting: He's played by Mamoru Miyano, the voice of Kotaro. However, the relation between the two is unclear, aside from both of them being young men acquainted with Jofuku and wanting to revive Saga.
- Star-Crossed Lovers: Yugiri sacrifices herself to save him, meaning the two would be forever kept from being together. And now that she's a zombie, and Kiichi has long since passed himself, the two are still kept apart by death.
- Tragic Keepsake: The comb Kiichi gifts to Yugiri is the same one she uses in the present story.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: He is completely genuine in his pursuit or bringing Saga back. Unfortunately, this bites him in the ass horribly when he unwittingly sparks an armed rebellion, leading to the deaths of his followers, his close friend Itou, and Yugiri, the woman he loves.
Seijiro Itou (Unmarked Spoilers)
Voiced By: Kōki Uchiyama (Japanese), Adam Gibbs (English)
First Appearance: Zombie Land Saga Revenge E08
- All There in the Script: His full name is known only in the credits; he's addressed solely by his family name in the show itself.
- Alternate Character Reading: His given name (正次郎) has a variety of readings (Shōjirō, Seijirō, Masajirō), none of which are spoken aloud.
- Ambiguously Evil: Has many moments that frame him in quite a sinister tone.
- Yugiri almost incapacitates him when he walks into her house uninvited. He has nothing but a stern look on his face as he blocks her hit with a fan.
- At the end of his debut, he's seen passing off a note to an informant on the streets.
- It's finally revealed that he's a government agent sent to subdue any attempts at an armed rebellion. He does so by killing a group of rebel samurai.
- Anti-Villain: He wants to prevent another war from breaking out between the people of Saga and the Japanese government, and is willing to kill for that to happen.
- Big Bad Friend: Kiichi's best friend who's revealed to be a government assassin.
- Broken Pedestal: Kiichi is heartbroken when Itou betrays him.
- Face Death with Dignity: He passes on content with his demise, knowing that he can never take back the things he did to his friend and the people of Saga.
- False Friend: Double Subverted. He's the only one who seems to tolerate Kiichi, playfully teasing him and humoring his dream to restore Saga. But for a while it's unknown how genuine this is, due to being in Saga to eliminate any insurgents. He eventually almost kills Kiichi if not for Yugiri's intervention. As he dies though, it's clear that he did see in something Kiichi's dream after all, and dies with the regret of betraying his friend.
- Greater-Scope Villain: Of the anime itself as his antagonistic actions against Saga and Yugiri in life was what shaped the prefecture to the way it is in the present day and led to the latter's beheading prior to her resurrection a couple centuries later.
- I Let You Win: He lets Yugiri cut him down in their duel, despite moments before saying he had to brace himself for a fight against her.
- Knight of Cerebus: When his true allegiance is revealed, the "Saga Jihen" arc ceases to be a comedy like the rest of the show, instead focusing on the dire political and interpersonal drama between him, Kiichi, and Yugiri.
- The Mole: He’s actually a government agent trying to subdue the rebellion.
- Named After Someone Famous: Ito Kashitaro was an officer of the Shinsengumi, a government police force from the Edo period. Like the real deal, he's a covert agent operating in Saga.
- One-Man Army: He single-handedly butchers a group of rebels with not even a scratch on him.
- Redemption Equals Death: He lets Yugiri cut him down after he betrays his friend Kiichi. In his final moments, it's clear part of him still believes in Kiichi's vision.
- Regretful Traitor: In his final moments, he ponders Kiichi's vision with a meloncholic smile, implying he feels guilt for betraying his friend.
