History Characters / MawaruPenguindrum

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This page lists the characters of ''Anime/MawaruPenguindrum'' and the tropes associated with them. Be warned; there are '''spoilers ahead.'''
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[[folder:Major characters]]
!!Shouma Takakura
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/_shouma_small_4907.JPG]]

The younger male of the Takakura household, Shouma is the resident domestic dude. Having been tasked with obtaining Ringo Oginome's diary, he seems to be developing an odd relationship with her.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/RyoheiKimura (Japanese), Creator/BlakeShepard (English)
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* BadassPacifist: Unlike Kanba, Shouma is mostly peaceful and his attempts at action fail hilariously. [[spoiler: However, his kindness saved Himari from the child boiler and helped stop Kanba, find the Penguindrum and save Himari]]
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Shouma is usually nice and quite the pushover, but he threatens Kanba with violence in Episode 1 when he responds to Himari's death lightly [[spoiler: and later tries to choke Ringo in Episode 8 when she states that the Takakuras's image of a happy family is a fabrication.]]
* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler:Rescues Himari from the Child Broiler when she's passed out on the conveyor belt to the incinerator.]]
* {{Bishonen}}
* BreakTheCutie: As of Episode 23, it looks like the world is REALLY out to break this poor dude and those in his surroundings.
* ButtMonkey:
** Not to the extent of his penguin, but when [[spoiler: a frog gives birth on your back]] you know you are one of these.
** He also gets drugged in two separate episodes, and chronologically only a few hours between incidents.
** Even more so when, in episode 15, [[spoiler: he tries to rescue Ringo from Yuri... and slips on a bottle thrown by #2, hitting his head and ending up unconscious.]]
* CainAndAbel: [[spoiler: The Abel to his adoptive brother Kanba's Cain. (With Masako as a secondary Abel, to a lesser degree.)]]
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: Shouma is heavily associated with blue as the Blue Oni to Kanba's Red Oni. Careful viewers will notice foreshadowing in [[spoiler: Himari's flashback as her soulmate is wearing blue shoes.]]
* DistressBall: Catches a big one in episode 10, courtesy of [[spoiler:Masako]].
* DullEyesOfUnhappiness: His eyes are completely dull in episode 12 when it seems that [[spoiler:Himari died]].
* DyingDeclarationOfLove: [[spoiler: He tells "I love you" to Ringo before his HeroicSacrifice.]]
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: The seventh audio drama reveals that [[spoiler:his friend Yamashita]] has a crush on him.
* TheFatalist: ''Especially'' in episode 12.
* {{Foil}}:
** To Ringo. The two of them are trying to help their families through bizarre means, but he keeps a more level head and often tries to discourage her from unsavory actions.
** To Kanba. While Kanba is willing to go to borderline illegal methods to get Ringo's diary, Shouma tries to approach Ringo first and make her give it up willingly. [[spoiler: Not to mention, Kanba is more accepting of their parents's stance, while Shouma strongly resents them for what has happened. [[WhamEpisode And then there's episode 21...]].]]
* GenericCuteness: He's supposed to be merely plain-looking, but his wide-eyes and standard shoujo-like features don't make this apparent.
* HeroicBSOD: When [[spoiler:Himari dies]] in episode 12, he lapses into this and recites a metaphorical story involving three lambs, the shepherd, and two bunnies. [[spoiler: He gets better when Sanetoshi brings Himari back in episode 13.]]
%%* HeroicSacrifice
* HouseHusband: One in training. Lampshaded when Himari sees him and Ringo cooking and is reminded of their parents.
* MadeOfIron: The guy [[spoiler: is hit by a car]] and yet barely suffers bruises and bumps. Lampshaded by Kanba:
-->'''Kanba''': Don't worry, you didn't break any bones. It's just some minor bumps and bruises. The doctor is ''amazed'' at how mild your injuries were!
* MiddleChildSyndrome: Tied to his unfavorite status. Kanba is the elder brother and the one tasked with protecting the others while Himari is the youngest and an IllGirl and so she's the one being protected and cared for. Shouma has less of a role in the family.
** [[spoiler: Subverted in that he's the Takakura's only biological child. His neglect is a continuation of his parent's early neglect of him and even when improved, they still seemed to have taken him for granted.]]
%%* NiceGuy:
* PolarOppositeTwins: With Kanba; he's gentler and more domestically-inclined than his more stoic older twin brother. [[spoiler:Subverted when they're not actually blood-related.]]
* RedOniBlueOni: Red to his stoic brother Kanba, Blue to the more excitable Ringo.
* TheResenter: Unlike the other Takakura siblings who miss and thinking fondly of them, Shouma heavily resents his parents for their abandonment. [[spoiler: It's implied that Shouma already resented them for their earlier neglect and furthermore has prior experience with how their dedication to their cult hurt their family.]]
* RetGone: [[spoiler: Takes on Ringo's punishment and vanished from the world.]]
* SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl: Has this dynamic with Ringo at first as she drags him along on her "Project M" while he snarks at her. CharacterDevelopment on her part and reveals of his past graduate the dynamic to BroodingBoyGentleGirl.
* ShipTease: With Ringo, increasing as time passes, especially in episode 10 and 11. [[spoiler: Concluding with the DyingDeclarationOfLove.]]
** Also gets some scenes with [[spoiler: Himari]] in episode 19. Specially one that happens [[spoiler: in the Child Broiler]]
* ShirtlessScene: In episodes 4 and 7.
%%* SiblingYinYang
* SinsOfOurFathers: Later episodes reveal that he has issues stemming from this trope, [[spoiler:blaming himself for the fact that his parents caused the death of Ringo's sister,]] among other things. This complicates his situation with Ringo later on.
%%* SpannerInTheWorks: Ringo pretty much all but states he's one for [[spoiler: her "Project M".]]
* StepfordSmiler: Gives some vibes [[http://ninteenpointzerofour.wordpress.com/2011/07/24/spinning-penguin-drum-novel-chapter-1/ in the novels.]]
-->'''Shouma''': "I’ve always thought I was a more pathetic and helpless person than I seem to be on the outside."
* SupremeChef: Everyone comments on his cooking.
* TaremeEyes: Highlights his sensitive, kind personality, and [[PolarOppositeTwins and contrasts]] with Kanba's TsurimeEyes.
%%* TeamMom: To Kanba's TeamDad.
* TheUnfavourite: Hinted at. While we see Himari and Kanba bonding with the Takakuras, there's never any such scene for Shouma. [[spoiler: He was actively neglected as a child when his parents were more involved with their cult. Ironic, considering that he's their only biological child.]]
%%* WhatTheHellHero: To [[spoiler: Ringo]] in episode 8, and to [[spoiler: Kanba]] in episode 21. The first one sort-of works, [[spoiler: the second horribly fails.]]
* YamatoNadeshiko: He's a SupremeChef, does most of the household chores and protective of his family. BewareTheNiceOnes because he only looks like a pushover. Lampshaded by Kanba and Himari when they call him the perfect HouseWife.
* YouAreNotAlone: To [[spoiler: Himari]] in episodes 19 and 20, when [[spoiler: he takes her out of the Child Broiler and into the Takakura family.]]
* YouAreTooLate: A running gag with Shouma is that he always arrives just too late or just falls short of saving the day. [[spoiler: Subverted awesomely when as a child, [[BigDamnHeroes he arrives just in time to save Himari from the Child Broiler]]]]
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: He has dark blue hair.

!!Kanba Takakura
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kanba_small_8826.JPG]]

The eldest of the Takakura siblings. Kanba is known to be quite a playboy, having had several girlfriends in the past. He seems to harbor a deep affection for Himari, bordering on BrotherSisterIncest.

He's also involved with several shady connections, revealed to be [[spoiler:the Penguinforce group his parents are affiliated with]], in order to gain enough money for a cure to Himari's illness.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/SubaruKimura (Japanese), Creator/IllichGuardiola (English)
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* BadassLongcoat: [[spoiler:He gets one of these after his FaceHeelTurn.]]
%%* {{Bishonen}}
* BishieSparkle: He gets these in his more charming moments.
* BigBrotherInstinct:
** Is extremely protective of Himari, bordering on BrotherSisterIncest.
** In flashbacks, it's also revealed that [[spoiler:he bargained with his father so that Masako and Mario could go home to the Natsume family and only he would remain involved with the dangerous Kiga Group]].
* BrotherSisterIncest:
** Heavily implied to have incestuous feelings towards Himari. Sorta sealed with the infamous kiss in the first episode. [[spoiler: Made even more canon when [[http://imageftw.com/uploads/20110929/1317318196481.jpg he and and a practically naked possessed!Himari]] share a last reunion in the Princess's world... before ''both'' the Princess and Himari temporarily die.]] Episode 19 reveals that [[spoiler:subverted, since they are NotBloodSiblings.]]
** Episode 21 provides a hilarious ''inversion'' of the above: [[spoiler:Masako, who's been aggressively pursuing him romantically the whole series, ''is'' his biological sister, and ''both of them knew it the whole time'']].
* CainAndAbel: [[spoiler: As the Cain to Shouma (and Masako)'s Abel(s).]]
* DealWithTheDevil: [[spoiler: Made a deal with Sanetoshi so he would save Himari's life. The costs will come later and finish in a FaceHeelTurn and RedemptionEqualsDeath.]]
* {{Determinator}}
* FaceHeelTurn: As of Episode 21. [[spoiler:He becomes the leader of the Kiga Group.]]
* FamilyRelationshipSwitcheroo: [[spoiler:He is actually Masako and Mario's biological brother and was adopted by the Takakuras when his father died.]]
%%* FieryRedHead
* HalfIdenticalTwins: [[spoiler: With Masako. It's more apparent when they were children and looked almost exactly the same.]]
* HappilyAdopted: [[spoiler:He was adopted into the Takakura family. This eventually falls apart by Episode 21.]]
* HeroicSacrifice:
** Not a full one, but he does nearly lose his arm in Episode 18 in trying to [[spoiler:prevent Himari from falling from a construction site]].
** [[spoiler:Played straight in the last episode, alongside Shouma.]]
* KickTheDog: There's nothing better than [[spoiler: him [[CurbStompBattle curb-stomping]] Shouma and then saying they're not brothers anymore]] in episode 21, to fully mark his [[spoiler: FaceHeelTurn.]]
* KnightTemplarBigBrother: As of episode 21, he has fully joined [[spoiler: the Takakura parents's faction]] [[LoveMakesYouEvil all to save]] [[DeclarationOfProtection Himari's life]].
* LadykillerInLove: He's a playboy, but he is deeply affectionate towards Himari.
* LoveHurts: To protect Himari, he's willing not just to sacrifice himself (as shown by Episode 18), but to [[spoiler: harm or kill others (seen when he stages the death of the shady reporter who was asking around.)]] And then we have [[spoiler: his FaceHeelTurn.]]
* LoveMakesYouEvil: His love for Himari makes him do extremely questionable things, and he embraces this trope when [[spoiler:he becomes leader of the terrorist Kiga group]] for her sake.
%%* LoveRedeems: [[spoiler: Via an HeroicSacrifice, [[DeathEqualsRedemption in the end]].
* NoGuyWantsToBeChased: He tells Himari that ''really'' hates it when girls cling to him or offer him cutesy gifts to gain his favor. Masako isn't fazed by it, and she fills the maze of episode 10 with these things ''specially'' to get under Kanba's skin. It's pretty strongly implied that [[spoiler:Masako is the reason why Kanba finds these gestures of affection so disturbing in the first place]].
* OhCrap: He's openly shocked and almost terrified in episode 11, when [[spoiler: he meets Mario after several years... and leans about him being Masako's ''other'' motivation.]]
* OutGambitted:
** By Masako in episode 10. [[spoiler:While Kanba ''did'' rescue Shouma, she still got what she wanted the most from him... a kiss.]]
** Also by [[spoiler: Sanetoshi. After he brings Himari back, he manages to trap Kanba in a DealWithTheDevil... like he also seems to have done to Masako.]]
* PolarOppositeTwins: With Shoma; he's sterner and more stoic than his gentler twin brother. [[spoiler:Subverted when they're not actually related.]]
* PromotionToParent: Tries to be a parental figure for Shoma and specially to Himari, [[spoiler: having promised such things to Mr. Takakura when he was a child.]]
* RealMenWearPink: In episode 5 [[spoiler: during the truck chasing scene]], we can see his underwear... it is... well... pink.
* RedOniBlueOni: The Blue to Shouma's Red.
* RetGone: [[spoiler: In the final episode, as a result of having the entirety of his life-force returned to him, then transferred to Himari by the diary]].
* SiblingYinYang: [[spoiler: Subverted since he and Shouma aren't related. He's actually very similar to his [[ActionGirl real]] [[BigBrotherInstinct sibling.]]]]
* TakingTheBullet: In Episode 22, [[spoiler: he does this for Masako and takes a LOT of them.]]
%%* TeamDad: To Shouma's TeamMom
* TsurimeEyes: Highlights his harsh and proud personality, and contrasts with Shouma's TaremeEyes. [[spoiler:Also something he has in common with Masako, his twin sister.]]
* TheUnfettered: Kanba would do anything to save Himari. [[spoiler: Even destroy the world if he has to]].
* WellDoneSonGuy: Wants to make Kenzan proud because [[spoiler:his real father considered him the "wrong choice".]]
* WouldHitAGirl: But ''only'' when she opposes him and presses her foot to his crotch. Then, he will kick her legs and trip her. You should've thought twice, Masako.

!!Himari Takakura
[[quoteright:260:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/_himari_5922.jpg]]

The youngest sibling of the Takakura household. Himari has very poor health and actually dies at the start of the series; her death sparks the plot once the penguin hat that she has revives her, demanding that the Takakura siblings obtain the "Penguindrum".

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MihoArakawa (Japanese), Creator/MonicaRial (English)
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* AnimationBump: Her flashback episodes (9 and 20) have a significantly higher quality level than the rest of the show.
* BackFromTheDead:
** She has a FirstEpisodeResurrection in the pilot.
** [[spoiler:She seemingly dies in episode 12, but is brought back in episode 13.]]
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: She loves Shouma a lot because he showed her kindness [[spoiler:when she was an abandoned child.]]
* CreepyChild: Briefly toes the line in episode 20, [[spoiler: which describes how she was like before Shouma adopted her into the Takakura family. [[TearJerker It's really heartbreaking]].]]
* CovertPervert: In a certain scene in episode 12, she makes some... ''very'' suggestive comments while cooking cabbages.
* DamselOutOfDistress : Despite ''[[spoiler:[[DeathTrap dangling from an empty construction crane from several floors above the ground]]]]'' in episode 18, [[PluckyGirl Himari]] manages not to cry and panic. She is even willing to [[spoiler:''jump to her death'' if it means she can save Kanba and absolve her family from the parents's sins, which makes Tabuki change his mind about killing her at the very last moment.]]
* ADayInTheLimelight: Episode 9, 20, and 21 focus on her more than the brothers.
* EmotionlessGirl: In flashbacks, [[spoiler:prior to becoming friends with Shouma]].
* FirstEpisodeResurrection: She dies in episode one before the penguin hat revives her.
* ForeheadOfDoom: She has a notably large forehead.
* HappilyAdopted: [[spoiler:She was adopted into the Takakura family after Shouma found her abandoned in the "Child Broiler".]]
* IOweYouMyLife: The reason she's so fond of Shouma is that he saved her life [[spoiler:when she was abandoned in the "Child Broiler" by offering her a place in their family.]]
* IllGirl: She was so ill that she was given barely months to live ''and'' had to retire from school.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:She's willing to do one if it will stop/save Kanba from the villainous path he has taken.]] [[spoiler: Doesn't happen in the end.]]
* LivingEmotionalCrutch: For ''both'' of her brothers, in different degrees. [[spoiler: Shouma is one for her.]]
* LockedOutOfTheLoop: Shouma, Kanba and Ringo desperately try to keep the search for the Penguindrum and her imminent death hidden from her. [[spoiler: It doesn't work and she eventually remembers]]
* LongHairIsFeminine: She's a gentle girly girl with long brown hair.
* NotBloodSiblings: Episode 19 reveals that [[spoiler:she isn't related to Kanba and Shouma at all; she was rescued by Shouma from the Child Broiler, and he invited her to "join their family". She later "recruited" Kanba into the Takakura household.]]
* OdangoHair: She sometimes styles her hair this way.
* ParentalAbandonment: [[spoiler:Abandoned in Kiga's apartment complex by her parents.]]
* PluckyGirl: Himari fully graduates to this in episode 21, [[spoiler: via joining Kanba... but with the intention of saving him.]]
* ScarsAreForever: She gets one at the end of the final episode as evidence that [[spoiler: her brothers existed and sacrificed everything to give her a chance at a normal and happy life.]]
* StepfordSmiler:
** All but stated. She ''is'' a very kind girl, but she keeps her thoughts and pains to herself.
** Also seen in episode 19, whern she gets depressed [[spoiler: upon feeling that she doesn't belong in her family]] and [[HeroicSelfDeprecation seriously questions her own worth.]] Which actually is {{foreshadowing}} of [[spoiler: her past in the Child Broiler.]]
%%* TeamMom: Shares this duty with Shouma
* TragicDream: Episode 9 states that [[spoiler: Himari and her friends Hibari and Hikari wanted to be {{Idol Singer}}s, but Himari couldn't join them in the upcoming audition because of Chiemi's accident. After other incidents, Hikari and Hibari pressed on and became a successful duo... the "red and blue" girls we know.]]
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Subverted, according to her. As often as she is reminded of [[spoiler:Hibari and Hikari's success as idols]], she is supportive of them because they used to be her friends.
%%* [[WiseBeyondTheirYears Wise Beyond Her Years]]
%%* WistfulAmnesia: [[spoiler: After the fate transfer.]]
* YourDaysAreNumbered: As explained in episode 21. [[spoiler: Sanetoshi tells Shouma and later Kanba that this is because, though the medicine ''can'' expand her lifetime, it loses effect if you keep using it.]]

!!Ringo Oginome
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/_oginome_4307.jpeg]]

A student from an all-girls school who gets roped into the plot after Himari's possessor orders the Takakura siblings to obtain the "Penguindrum" from her. A very strong believer in fate and destiny, Ringo possesses a diary with events written down on it that she has taken upon herself to fulfill. She's obsessed with Keiju Tabuki, whom she has known ever since childhood. She befriends Himari, has a rather weird relationship with Shouma, and turns out to have multiple issues coming from her family's complicated past.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MarieMiyake (Japanese), Creator/EmilyNeves (English)
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%%* ACupAngst
* BecauseDestinySaysSo: A firm believer in it, due to having a diary that lists events that she believes will happen. [[spoiler: Possibly not as much as of episode 13.]]
* BreakTheHaughty: She acts very haughty towards Shouma, but softens up after she sees her father with another woman and a little girl who asks him to become her dad, [[spoiler: has (half of) her prized diary stolen, watches her friend Shouma get hit by a car, knowing it's all because of her.]] As a result, in episode 10 [[spoiler: she's willing to actually give up on the Diary if it's needed to save a kidnapped Shouma]], and ultimately does so, which kicks off her CharacterDevelopment.
* CatchPhrase: "'''[[GratuitousEnglish DESTINYYY!]]'''" [[spoiler:She drops it after her return to sanity.]]
* CharacterDevelopment:
** In episode 10, [[spoiler:she's willing to give up the other half of the destiny diary in order to save Shouma from Natsume, who's taken him hostage and demands it in exchange for his release]]. This would've been unthinkable before.
** As of Episode 13, Ringo seems to have come to terms with the fact that she can't patch up her family by [[spoiler:becoming her older sister Momoka. She's even happy about her father's new marriage when she texts him, compared to a few episodes before.]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: She is not happy seeing Yuri at Tabuki's apartment.
* DudeShesLikeInAComa: On both ends of the trope. In episode 8 she makes an unsuccessful attempt to [[spoiler:drug and rape Tabuki to have him impregnate her]]; then in episode 14, [[spoiler:Yuri drugs and almost rapes ''her'' since she loved her older sister Momoka and sees Ringo as a ReplacementGoldfish]].
* FirstNameBasis: With "Himari-chan". On the other hand, she refers to the twins by their first names ("Kanba-kun" and "Shouma-kun") whereas they call her "Oginome-san".
* {{Foil}}: For the Takakura brothers, but Shouma in particular. They're both doing crazy things for the sake of their loved ones, but Ringo is willing to go farther in pursuit of her goals.
* TheHeart: She seems to have evolved into this for the Takakura siblings after her CharacterDevelopment, being their emotional support and attempting to minimize conflict between them.
%%* HerHeartWillGoOn: [[spoiler: After Shouma's HeroicSacrifice.]]
* HeroicSacrifice: Subverted in the final episode, where [[spoiler:Shouma takes the punishment of the diary instead]].
%%* LoveHurts: And how.
* LovingAShadow: It's eventually revealed that she's not so much in love with Tabuki as what he represents -- mainly, [[spoiler:the restoration of her broken family]]. Her character arc is mainly composed of her realizing this and getting over it.
* MagicSkirt: Given how short her skirt is, it would seem that she's frequently flashing people just by bending over. Especially evident in episode 2, when Shouma and Kanba get an eyeful thanks to the camera on 2's head as she's crawling through the ducts under [[spoiler:Tabuki's apartment]], but we don't see anything. Subverted for a brief moment in episode 5 after she [[spoiler:flips back up the shaft the Crystal Princess had sent her down in the Dream World]].
* MeaningfulName: Her name can be read as "Apple". In a show where apples have significant importance and symbolism (mostly around love and fate), her name is incredibly meaningful.
* MrImagination: In the first few episodes, she has quite a few [[ImagineSpot Imagine Spots]] involving her and Tabuki...with Yuri as the villain trying to get in the way of their romance.
* MySiblingWillLiveThroughMe: The real reason she's so obsessed with Tabuki is because [[spoiler:she's trying to become a ReplacementGoldfish for her older sister Momoka, who was Tabuki's Childhood Friend and [[VictoriousChildhoodFriend would have been his eventual wife]]. Ever since she was a child, Ringo's thought that if she "becomes Momoka", her divorced parents will get back together, and in episode 11 she flat out states that she believes herself to be Momoka's {{reincarnation}}.]]
* OneNoteCook: By her own admission, can only make curry. Gets better under Himari and Shouma's tutleage. Like [[WorldOfSymbolism everything else]], this ties into her CharacterDevelopment.
* OnlySaneMan: In the second half of the show due to CharacterDevelopment. After Ringo [[spoiler: abandons Project M and resolves her emotional issues, she ends up serving as this for the rest of the cast.]]
* PluckyGirl: You really can't say Ringo gives up easily.
* PrecociousCrush: Ringo is in love with Tabuki, Shoma and Kanba's homeroom teacher, and has had feelings for him since she was a child.
* ProphecyTwist: How she interprets the fate written in her diary often differs drastically from what actually happens.
* RealityWritingBook: Her diary seems to be Type 1, as well as as a [[spoiler:RewritingReality example, as one can transfer fate with it.]]
* RedOniBlueOni: Serves as the Red to Shouma's Blue.
* ScarsAreForever: [[spoiler: By the end of the series, though Ringo has forgotten almost everything relating to the Takakuras except Himari, she has a burn on her left wrist (there may be more on her body) as evidence of her connection to Shouma.]]
* StalkerWithACrush: She's not above stalking Tabuki.
* ReplacementSibling: Self-inflicted. [[spoiler:Her parents, notably, ''didn't'' want her to be this, but she became convinced that it was the only way to reunite the family.]]
* ShipTease: She and Shoma, more and more as the series advances. Fully sealed when [[spoiler: Shouma's FamousLastWords overlap with DyingDeclarationOfLove.]]
* StalkerWithATestTube: [[spoiler:Wants to have Tabuki's child to "become Momoka" and fix up her broken family]]. She gives up later, though.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Curry. It's the only thing she can cook.
* {{Tsundere}}: ''Seems'' to be this for Shouma. Seen when, in the same scene, she expresses relief that Shouma wasn't seriously hurt when he took a DivingSave for her, and then beats him herself when he calls her "fool" for [[spoiler: giving up half of her Destiny Diary to save him]], specifically telling him how worried she was for his safety.
* {{Yandere}}: To Tabuki. Played almost completely for laughs at first, until episode 8 with [[spoiler:the AttemptedRape of drugged Tabuki]]. It's shown just as screwed up as it sounds. As the series goes on, [[PlayingWithATrope the series plays with this]] by revealing that she's only yandere ''[[LovingAShadow for what Tabuki represents]]'', i.e., the restoration of her broken family. Once she accepts that she can't do this using her methods, she returns to sanity and meets up with Tabuki to clean up loose ends, and from then on she focuses on emotionally supporting the Takakura siblings instead.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Secondary characters]]
!!Keiju Tabuki
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/_tabuki_5978.jpg]]

The homeroom teacher of Kanba and Shoma, an eerily cheerful young man who sometimes seems detached from reality. Has known the Oginome family since he was a very young boy, thus he's been a constant presence in Ringo's life.

--> '''Voiced by:''' Creator/AkiraIshida (Japanese)
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* AbusiveParents: As first shown by the second novel, and later by episode 18. [[spoiler:His divorced mother pressured him in regards to studying music due to how much she loved the piano, then discarded him completely when Tabuki harmed his fingers and then his stepbrother turned out to be a ChildProdigy pianist.]]
%%* {{Bishonen}}: [[Creator/AkiraIshida But of course.]]
* ChildhoodFriendRomance:
** Him and Yuri, who have known each other since childhood. [[spoiler:Actually a subversion, since their relationship is fake.]]
*** [[spoiler:Double subverted in the final episode, where they confess their love to each other.]]
** His romance with [[spoiler:Momoka started when they were much younger. Since she died, well...]]
* CloudCuckooLander: [[ObfuscatingStupidity Subverted]]. Although he seems like a ditzy teacher, he's much more aware than he lets on.
* DisproportionateRetribution: His idea of [[spoiler:getting revenge against the Takakuras for Momoka's death]] involves [[spoiler:holding Himari (who hadn't even been ''born'' when Momoka died) hostage and trying to kill her]].
* DudeShesLikeInAComa: In episode 8, [[spoiler:Ringo drugs him and tries to rape him.]]
* GoodScarsEvilScars: On his left hand. It looks like, at some point, [[{{Fingore}} he had his fingers SEVERELY injured]]... if not cut off and then reattatched. Episode 18 explains that [[spoiler:he ''deliberately'' injured his own fingers in a misguided attempt to win the affection of his psychologically-abusive mother. It didn't work.]]
* HiddenDepths:
** The flashbacks of episodes 6 and 12 show a Tabuki who's quite more thoughtful than in the present. Additionally, he always knew that [[spoiler:the Takakuras were the children of the terrorists who planned the attacks that killed Momoka, but decided to not pursue anything similar to hate or revenge...at least, not until episode 18.]]
** And again, in episode 13, he proves insightful when he and Ringo discuss the Takakura family's relationship to their lives.
** Episode 17 has him [[spoiler:tricking Ringo and Himari into going with him to he can have {{revenge}} for Momoka's death]]. Episode 18 subsequently reveals several things about his past. [[spoiler: [[BreakTheCutie It's NOT pretty]].]]
* HotTeacher: He's the boys' homeroom teacher, and Ringo certainly finds him attractive.
* LoveConfession: In the final episode, [[spoiler:both he and Yuri say "I love you" to one another.]]
* LoveMakesYouEvil: [[spoiler: He lost the girl he loved (and whom he owed his life to) in the subway bombings performed by Kenzan and his group]]. In episode 18, [[spoiler:he finally snaps and tries to kill Himari as punishment for the loss of Momoka, but at the last moment he decides not to.]]
* LovePotion: [[spoiler:Ringo slips him one in a drink]] during episode 11. The results aren't pretty.
%%* NightmareFace: In Episode 11.
* ObliviousToLove: Subverted. [[spoiler: It was a facade.]]
%%* StepfordSmiler
* TakingTheBullet: Does this for [[spoiler: Yuri, taking a knife to the gut (from ''Tsubasa''!) to protect her.]]

!!Yuri Tokikago
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/95d2825409fc45cc464dbffa79a67668.jpg]]

A beautiful and eccentric Takarazuka actress, as well as Tabuki's childhood friend and actual girlfriend.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MamikoNoto (Japanese), Creator/ShelleyCaleneBlack (English)
----
* AbusiveParents: In episode 15, we see her past. [[spoiler:Her father, a famous sculptor, told her that she was ugly, started poisoning her against her own mother and the rest of the world, and started "sculpting" her into something beautiful... with his chisels.]]
* AttemptedRape: In episode 14, she attempts to rape [[spoiler:Ringo as part of a plan to make her into Momoka]], though it's ambiguous as to whether or not she was fully stopped.
* BadassNormal: For being able to keep up with [[spoiler: Masako]]'s antics.
* TheBeard: Her relationship with Tabuki [[spoiler:is fake, and seems to have mostly been convenience in order to try and get Momoka back. Also a beard in the traditional sense since Yuri is either a lesbian or a lesbian-leaning bisexual]].
* BigFancyHouse: A freaking ''awesome'' loft in a huge high-class condo. [[spoiler: Tabuki moves in with her after they're engaged.]]
%%* BitchInSheepsClothing
%%* BreakTheCutie
%%** BrokenBird
* CatchPhrase: "Fabulous max!", as well as referring to things as "fabulous".
* ChildhoodFriends: With [[spoiler:Momoka]] and Tabuki.
* CovertPervert: ''Not'' played for laughs. Before episode 15, who would guess that Yuri would know how to [[spoiler:tie someone up in shibari bondage]]? Or have access to [[spoiler:what're essentially roofies]]?
* DudeShesLikeInAComa: Invokes this during her [[spoiler:attempted rape of Ringo]] by drugging her drink beforehand. Though it's ambiguous to whether or not Yuri fully raped her, she did at least tie her up, kiss her, and manage some sexual contact before getting interrupted.
* FeatherMotif: Pure white feathers scatter from her side during her firefight with [[spoiler: Masako]] in episode 17.
* {{Foil}}: To Ringo as an accomplished, self-possessed rival for Tabuki's love. [[spoiler: Their roles are reversed when Ringo gets mountains of character growth while Tabuki is revealed to be an emotional mess.]]
* FreudianExcuse: Revealed in episode 15, involving [[spoiler:her father carving her body with a chisel to make her "worthy of being loved".]] It's made even worse by the fact that this can be interpreted as a metaphor for physical and sexual abuse, [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything with the pounding and nudity imagery]].
* ImNotPretty: She believes herself to be ugly because of her history of abuse.
* ImprovisedWeapon: When [[spoiler:Masako attacks her]], Yuri repels her attacks with a ping-pong paddle.
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler:Her attempted rape of the underage Ringo]] has no repercussions at all.
* LoveConfession: In the final episode, [[spoiler:both she and Tabuki say "I love you" to one another.]]
* LoveMakesYouCrazy: [[spoiler:To get Momoka back]], she will do anything. ''Anything''.
* MeaningfulName
** "Yuri", the name for the Japanese genre of female love, referring to how Yuri is a lesbian.
** "Tokikago" can be read as "time cage", which refers to Yuri's [[spoiler:strong obsession with Momoka even years after her death]] and [[spoiler:low self-esteem caused by her body's scars]].
* TheMourningAfter: To [[spoiler:Momoka, to the point of tying up and attempting to rape her [[ReplacementGoldfish younger sister]] because [[StrongFamilyResemblance they look and act similar]].]]
* {{Ojou}}: As a wealthy, famous actor, she's beautiful, graceful and confident with just a hint of steel. [[spoiler: It's entirely an act]].
%%* PluckyGirl: [[spoiler: A darker example.]]
* PimpedOutDress: As a Creator/{{Takarazuka|Revue}} performer, she gets these.
%%* PinkMeansFeminine
%%* PoisonousFriend
* RuleOfGlamorous: Governs basically everything she owns. Hell, she's got a clean white ''crossbow'' with gold trim.
* SarcasticConfession: At one point she flat out tells Ringo that [[spoiler:her relationship with Tabuki is just for show]] only to say she was just kidding.
* ShipperOnDeck: Yuri actually ships Ringo/Shoma and [[spoiler: straightforwardly tells that to Ringo (thus forcing her to face her growing feelings on him)]] in episode 11.
* SlippingAMickey: Drugs [[spoiler:Ringo]]'s cola during their hot spring trip.
* StepfordSmiler: Who would say that a beautiful, all-smiles idol would hide such tremendously low self-esteem?

!!Masako Natsume
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/_pd_1308.JPG]]

An attractive, shady young woman with red hair and uncanny aim skills. She possesses a mysterious interest in the Takakura family. Her WeaponOfChoice is a slingshot with mind-wiping bullets.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YuiHorie (Japanese), Creator/MaggieFlecknoe (English)
----
* AbusiveParents: Or better said, abusive grandfather]
* ActionGirl: She's a physical combatant capable of kicking lots of ass.
* BackFromTheDead: Courtesy of [[spoiler:Sanetoshi]] in Episode 23.
* BigDamnHeroes: Played with in Episode 14. [[spoiler: Kanba is surrounded by [=MIBs=] and Masako attacks them -- but it turns out that he was with them willingly, getting paid by them for services unspecified.]]
* BigFancyHouse: A black mansion, apparently set in the outskirts of Tokyo.
* BrutalHonesty: Masako is '''not''' the kind of person that sugarcoats her words. Specially seen when she talks down to Yuri in episode 15, when she {{Breaking Speech}}es Himari in episode 19, and when she [[spoiler: explains her bond with him in much more polite but still cutting terms]] in episode 21.
* CatchPhrase: "Gosh, I need to crush it/him/her/them soon." Which ''almost'' become her FamousLastWords in episode 22.
** In the dub, her catchphrase is: "Not good. This must be crushed at once."
* ClingyJealousGirl: Is one for Kanba, her [[spoiler: [[BigBrotherAttraction twin older brother]].]] She ''is'', however, quite more manipulative and calculating than the standard.
* ADayInTheLimelight: Episode 16 focuses on her past.
* DealWithTheDevil: [[spoiler: She made a similar deal with Sanetoshi to save Mario that Kanba made for Himari's sake.]]
* DaddysGirl: She's very fond of her DisappearedDad, who was exiled from the Natsume clan by her grandfather Sanbei for being a failure to his standards.]]
* ColdSniper: Can snipe from afar and has a cold, haughty personality.
%%* EvenTheGirlsWantHer
* EvilRedhead: She's at least [[JerkAss callous]] and [[ManipulativeBitch manipulative.]] While not virtuous, she turns out to be ''not'' 100% cartoonishly evil later, as [[spoiler:her care for Mario [[PetTheDog is very genuine]].]]
%%* {{Expy}}: Of both Nanami and Kozue from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'', especially in regards to how she acts around [[spoiler:Kanba]].
%%** And her demeanor, hairstyle and tendency to go from tender to dangerous in the space of a few seconds recalls Juri from the same series.
%%Expy must be a deliberate reference by the creator.
%%* ForcefulKiss: On none other than [[spoiler: Kanba]]!
* FlowerMotifs: [[SomethingAboutARose Bright red rose petals]] appear during her [[spoiler:firefight with Yuri]] in episode 17.
* HalfIdenticalTwins: Lampshaded by [[spoiler: Sanetoshi, who first points out that she and Kanba are twins, and then refers to the physical similarities between them.]]
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Stays behind as bait for the firing squad while the Kiga Group representatives take off with the injured Kanba.]]
* IcyBlueEyes: Has very cold blue eyes to suit her demeanor.
* {{Keigo}}: She uses ''very'' formal speech, to the point of referring to her own little brother as "Mario[[UsefulNotes/JapaneseHonorifics -san]]".
* KickTheDog: Verbally abusing [[spoiler: Himari out of jealousy]] in episode 19 feels at least like a borderline example.
* KnightTemplarBigBrother: A Big Sister version. Her ''other'' motivation is [[spoiler: saving the life of a [[AdorablyPrecociousChild young]] [[CreepyChild boy]] named Mario, her little brother.]] For that, Masako also needs the Penguindrum, and will ''not'' hand it to the Takakuras.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: She possesses a slingshot which shoots bullets that administer this. Bonus points for the slingshot actually being laser-guided. In a twist, in episode 19 we find out [[spoiler: that she has special bullets capable of ''returning'' lost memories too.]]
* LargeHam: As the series progresses, Masako gets more and more HotBlooded, culminating with [[spoiler: her two duels with Yuri]] which go the HamToHamCombat way with absolute ''glee''.
* {{Leitmotif}}: And InvokedTrope with "New World Symphony" by Antonín Dvořák, which she has playing several times when she confronts Kanba. Also counts as {{foreshadowing}}, since the title of a piece that was based on the symphony's melody is [[spoiler:"Goin' Home"]].
* LivingEmotionalCrutch: [[spoiler: She and her brother served as this to Kanba when they were children. It's implied that the reason Kanba found an apple in the cages was because the siblings loved each other.]]
%%* LonelyRichKid
* MoreDakka: Swaps her trademark slingshot for a machine gun in Episode 17.
* NamedAfterSomebodyFamous: In RealLife, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masako_Natsume Masako Natsume]] was a popular actress and model from TheEighties.
* TheOjou: Not snobbish and cruel enough to be a RichBitch, but she's aloof and manipulative.
* OjouRinglets: Befitting her status as the heiress to the Natsume family.
%%* OneeSama: [[spoiler: For Mario]]
* RaisedByGrandparents: Because her eccentric and pushy grandfather actually kicked her and Mario's father out of the Natsume clan.
* PleaseDontLeaveMe: To [[spoiler: Kanba, when he chose to stay with their dad so she and Mario could go back to the Natsume clan.]]
* PluckyGirl: Masako will '''not''' give up on what she wants. Never ever.
%%* ProperTightsWithASkirt
* PsychoExGirlfriend: Seems set up to be this to Kanba, especially after it's revealed she was pulling the strings behind Kanba's other ex-girlfriends forming a group against him. [[spoiler:She's actually his ''twin sister.'']]
* SadisticChoice: In episode 16, [[spoiler:Mario gets possessed by the dead grandfather's spirit and stages a challenge. Two dishes of the very dangerous ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fugu fugu]]'' fish are put in front of them, and the one who eats the dish that is well prepared (as in, it won't poison the one who eats it to death) will inherit the Natsume fortune.]]
* SpannerInTheWorks: In her backstory episode, we find out that she doesn't want to be used by Sanetoshi at all and only goes along with his plans resentfully; later on, [[spoiler: she refuses to burn her half of the Destiny Diary, which serves as some sort of seal on Sanetoshi's power. The entire diary ''does'' get burnt to bits by episode 23, but her refusal holds him off long enough for Ringo to learn the Fate Transfer spell.]]
* SpotOfTea: Frequently seen sipping tea to indicate her high-class background.
* TakeAThirdOption: When faced with a SadisticChoice that would put Mario in danger, [[spoiler:Masako ''eats both lionfish dishes'' to spare Mario from suffering harm, and she spends three days in a coma.]]
* TsurimeEyes: And she's arrogant and strong-willed to match. [[spoiler:It's something she has in common with Kanba.]]
* {{Twincest}}: With [[spoiler:Kanba, who she aggressively pursues throughout the series. Maybe.]]
* WeCanRuleTogether: [[spoiler: Gets this offer from Sanetoshi when she's almost dying in episode 16. She rejects it.]]
* WistfulAmnesia: In Episode 24, after [[spoiler:Kanba is retconned out of existence, she tells Mario that she dreamt she had another brother.]]
* YouAreWorthHell, [[spoiler:Kanba is]], as she expresses in episode 22.


!!The Princess of the Crystal
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/princc_2331.JPG]]

An otherworldly life-form (possibly) residing in a penguin hat purchased by Shoma in the aquarium. It kickstarts the plot by reviving Himari and essentially holding her hostage to order Kanba and Shoma to obtain the "Penguindrum".

-->'''Voiced by''': Creator/MihoArakawa (Japanese), Creator/MonicaRial (English)
----
* CatchPhrase:
** "''SURVIVAL STRATEGY!!''"
** "Imagine!"
** "Listen up, you lowlifes who will never amount to anything!"
** "Shall we initiate the survival strategy?"
* CooldownHug: Sorta gives one to [[spoiler:[[http://i39.tinypic.com/2em0gih.jpg Kanba]], in episode 17.]]
* CovertPervert: While it doesn't quite fit her to a 100 %, she does seem to quite... enjoy taking racy photographs of Renjaku the NinjaMaid in Episode 16.
* DefrostingIceQueen: Compare her behavior in episode 1 with what she does and say in episodes 12 and 17.
* GoodIsNotNice: Definitely quite the {{jerkass}} for someone claiming to help Himari. [[spoiler:The good part comes in full force when it's revealed she's a fragment of Momoka's soul.]]
* HesBack: [[spoiler:After Himari is revived by Sanetoshi]], the Princess seems to be fully gone... until episode 16, when she returns with a vengeance.
* IncomingHam: "SURVIVAL STRATEGY!"
* JerkAss: While [[GoodIsnotNice not]] ''[[GoodIsnotNice evil]]'', she can be quite the bitch sometimes. Specially seen when [[spoiler: she kills Himari temporarily to remind the brothers of their "mission"]] and later when [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech she verbally abuses Ringo]], calling her "slut" among other things. [[spoiler: No wonder Ringo snaps ''badly'' on her.]]
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: In episode 11 she [[spoiler: summoned her Dream World ''specifically'' to urge Ringo to tell her and Shouma about her huge problems and feelings.]] This being the "Princess", she still called Ringo rather mean names ("monkey bitch", this time).
%%* LargeHam
* NiceHat: Is one when not possessing Himari.
* NoNameGiven. In the anime. [[AllThereInTheManual Supplemental materials]] have named her the "Princess of the Crystal" instead.
* OhCrap: Not a full blown one, but her haughtiness snaps in Episode 5 before [[spoiler: Ringo climbs up the chute, runs to her and punches her in the face.]]
* PrecisionFStrike: Himari is rather polite and softspoken, but her possessor has a much rougher speech pattern:
-->'''Princess''' (To Ringo): "I've had enough of listening to your bullshit, stupid bitch!"
* SealedGoodInACan: Episode 23 reveals that [[spoiler:the two penguin hats (Himari's and Mario's) are two halves of Momoka's soul, sealed away by Sanetoshi]].
* SoulJar: For [[spoiler:Momoka Oginome.]]
* ShowgirlSkirt: She has a poofy skirt that flaunts her legs in this way.

!!Sanetoshi Watase
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/__ane3_5280.JPG]]

A mysterious librarian who appears to Himari in a dream. He reappears later on, with some plans of his own.

->'''Voiced by:''' Yutaka Koizumi (Japanese), Creator/DavidMatranga (English)
----
* AffablyEvil: He´s always ridiculously nice and polite, '''always'''. This arguably makes him scarier.
** FauxAffablyEvil: [[spoiler: When the brothers find the Penguindrum and foil the plot, Sanetoshi's mask cracks and he breaks into a spiteful rant]]
* BadassLabcoat
* BigBad: He's already rather shady from his first appearance, but by Episode 21, it's revealed that [[spoiler:he's the DeadAllAlong mastermind behind the Kiga Group who wants to reenact the plot that Momoka foiled sixteen years ago]].
* {{Bishonen}}
* BreakingTheFourthWall: His monologue in Episode 13, though not ''quite'' directly breaking it, gets pretty meta.
* CatchPhrase:
** "Isn't it electrifying?" and "I know, right?"
** In the dub, his catchphrase is, "Overwhelming, isn't it?"
* TheCorrupter: [[spoiler: Tries to corrupt both Kanba and Masako and succeeds with Kanba]].
* DeadAllAlong: As revealed in Episode 21, and further confirmed by 23.
* {{Determinator}}: Not only did he refused to stop his plans after he [[spoiler: died, but after being foiled a second time by Shouma and Kanba, he STILL is waiting for a chance to brings his plans to fruition.]]
* DissonantSerenity: He can say some scary stuff and even then retain his gentle personality.
* {{Expy}}: Something of a more {{camp}}y cross between Mikage and Akio from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena''. His nonchalant yet seductive attitude, some of his lines and actions, and allusions to him conducting some grand game in the background are reminiscent of Akio, and like Mikage, he has pink hair and may be working to fulfill [[spoiler:GhostlyGoals]].
* GracefulLoser: [[spoiler: Even after he loses in the GrandFinale, he really doesn´t seem to mind that much, possibly because he may have another chance.]]
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Sending the idols [[spoiler:Himari's scarves led to Ringo getting their CD and learning the "fruit of fate" spell]] which defeats him.
* HotLibrarian
** [[spoiler: Either HotScientist or HospitalHottie. Or maybe even both. It's hard to define.]]
* ForcefulKiss: [[spoiler: Tries to give one to possessed!Himari in episode 9. She stops him.]]
* KnightOfCerebus: The previously relatively lighthearted story takes a much darker turn when he shows up.
* LabcoatOfScienceAndMedicine: Is always wearing a white lab coat which emphasizes his MadScientist and MadDoctor persona. It also [[LightIsNotGood makes him all the more sinister.]]
* LoveHurts: [[spoiler: Sanetoshi was rejected by the only person who could truly understand him, hinted to be Momoka. Confirmed in episode 23 when we see how she confronted him.]]
* MadScientist
* ManipulativeBastard: Seems to have his own designs for Himari and her possessor. Even more obvious from episode 12 and then on.
* MeaningfulEcho: He echoes the opening narration in the first episode at the beginning of Episode 12.
* MindRape: His treatment of [[spoiler: Kanba]] in the first part of episode 23 felt a lot like this, since he [[spoiler: invokes a Survival Strategy to force Kanba to watch how his twin sister Masako dies, before he uses his powers to bring her BackFromTheDead ''and'' fully convince Kanba to destroy the world in exchange for Sanetoshi doing the same to Himari.]]
* NotSoStoic: Finally shows some emotion other than a perpetually serene cheerfulness in the last two episodes.
* NietzscheWannabe: According to his soliloquies in episodes 13 and 23, [[spoiler:the apparently godly powers he shares with Momoka]] have only served to alienate him from others and depress him, as he believes that he cannot save anywhere near all the people who need help. This eventually led to his epiphany that the world is empty and the only way to change anything is to burn it all down.
* PetTheDog: Sending Hibari and Hikari the scarves that Himari made for them, [[spoiler:[[SubvertedTrope most likely in order to strengthen her attachment to the world and add to her torment so she would stay alive and Kanba would be more motivated to save her...]]]]
* ThePowerOfHate: To serve as a foil to [[spoiler: Momoka]]. It's implied that Sanetoshi's magical powers come from his nihilistic worldview and hatred of everyone and everything, which allows him to twist people's fates for the worse.
* SealedEvilInACan: [[spoiler: His encounter with Momoka 16 years ago resulted in him being split and sealed inside the two black bunnies usually seen inside the hospital examination room.]]
* StepfordSmiler: Frequently seen with a smile on his face, but he's of the depressed and intensely nihilistic variety.
* TotallyRadical: His catchphrases are examples of slightly outdated Japanese slang. Actually justified, since it's implied that [[spoiler:he's been dead for 16 years or longer.]]
* WeCanRuleTogether:
** To possessed!Himari. He's rejected, but doesn't seem to give up. Considering the end of episode 12 as well as episode 13, he didn't, and seems to have more mysterious plans... [[spoiler: centered on the girl who rejected him, who may or may not be Momoka.]]
** Also offers [[spoiler: Masako the chance to join him, but he's rejected again.]]
** And the third offer is for [[spoiler: Kanba. This time it works.]]
* WorthyOpponent: [[spoiler: Views Momoka as this]]
%%* ZenSurvivor
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Background characters]]
!!The Penguins (#1, #2, #3)
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/_p3_5461.png]]

->''"Kyu"''

Three penguins who start following the Takakura siblings around after the first episode. They seem to be invisible to normals and serve as {{Funny Background Event}}s for each episode.
----
* BigEater: #2. It's hinted that this is because [[spoiler:Shouma once nearly starved to death as a child.]] [[ExtremeOmnivore He even tries to eat #3 once!]]
* BigOlEyebrows: #1 has larger eyebrows than the rest.
* ButtMonkey: #2, even more so than Shouma
* DeadGuyJunior: [[spoiler: It's implied that #3 (San) is partially named after Sun, Himari and Shouma's adopted stray cat.]]
* EmpathyPet: They often mirror what's happening with the Takakuras. #1, for instance, is seen decked out in samurai armor when Kanba goes to confront [[spoiler:Masako]].
* EverythingsBetterWithPenguins: All three provide a lot of the incidental humour.
* InvisibleToNormals: All 3 can't be seen by muggles.
* LovableSexManiac: #1. As an example, in episode 10 he's seen checking on cute nurses with weird implements, and later uses a fishing rod [[PantyThief to steal panties]] [[spoiler: while Kanba and Ringo discuss what to do in regards to Shoma's kidnapping]].
* NoOntologicalInertia:
** In episode 12, when both Himari ''and'' her possessor die (and seemingly for real this time), #3 [[http://imageftw.com/uploads/20110929/1317318162309.jpg collapses and almost disappears]]. Conversely, when Himari is brought back by Sanetoshi, #3 comes back as well.
** Happens again in episode 22 [[spoiler: when #1 passes out after Kanba is shot and loses consciousness and #3 almost disappears after Himari has a seizure)]]; and in episode 23 [[spoiler: (Esmeralda disappears when Masako dies and returns when Sanetoshi revives her, and #3 is transparent and weakened as Himari is on the brink of definitive death.)]]
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness:
** If one of them behaves unlike their usual selves, it's ''very'' much a signal that big things will happen. Specially when [[spoiler: #2, the local BigEater, is seen trying to give half of his food to #3 while Himari and Shouma spend their last hours together at home, when he loyally takes care of #3 and brings her candy when she and Himari are about to die in episode 23, and when in that same episode he gives #1 candy as well when he drops by with Kanba.]]
** You know something bad is going down when #1 is more interested in reading literature and won't so much as glance in #3's direction even when she's waving porno mags at him. Or when #2 cracks raw eggs on his own forehead instead of eating them.
* ShooOutTheClowns:
** Partially. While they haven't ''disappeared'', they're less noticed by the characters as time passes.
** Also, in the novel they're in the background almost since the beginning. Not only the novels have a different tone, but their antics are harder to describe without visual aid.
* SixthRanger: A fourth penguin with darker, more dignified (and sinister) features and grey feathers. She's a girl, her name is Esmeralda, and [[spoiler:her owner/companion is none other than Masako Natsume (whom she's very close to), and she is a hilariously terrifying TortureTechnician with a crush on #1.]]
* TertiarySexualCharacteristics: #3 who is female by virtue of wearing a ribbon and occasionally a blonde wig, not to mention she keeps company to Himari while #1 and #2 join the brothers in their hijinks. Esmeralda doesn't have ribbons or anything, but she has long-ish eyelashes and a heartshaped face, and lets out rather high-pitched penguin squeals. When not aiding [[spoiler:Masako in her missions, also, [[TeamMom she keeps order]] [[TheCaretaker around the Natsume mansion]].]]
* UncattyResemblance:
** Esmeralda's markings mirror [[spoiler:Masako's heart-shaped face.]]
** Additionally, the penguins' personalities mirror their owners'.
* UndyingLoyalty: Esmeralda, in episode 22. [[spoiler: She stays next to Masako when she faces the firing squad.]]

!! Momoka
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/momoka_oginome_6470.jpg]]

A young girl who seems to have extremely close conections to many people in the story.

->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AkiToyosaki (Japanese), Creator/BrittneyKarbowski (English)
----
* AllLovingHero: She was friendly, kind, and extremely selfless. Her introductory episode is even called "Savior of the World".
* BadassAdorable: ''Especially'' as of episode 18, when she's shown [[spoiler:singlehandedly rescuing child!Tabuki from the "Child Broiler" aka the place where [[TheUnfavorite unwanted children]] go before [[RetGone they're erased from existence]].]]
* BigGood: The biggest obstacle to [[NietzscheWannabe Sanetoshi]]'s plan to [[spoiler:"turn the world to ash"]], not to mention her status as AllLovingHero.
* BirthDeathJuxtaposition: [[spoiler:To Ringo, having died exactly the same day of her birth.]]
* ButNowIMustGo: Leaves for good after [[spoiler: foiling the bombing plot]].
* CastFromHitPoints: Momoka explains that she has to suffer bodily harm whenever she uses [[spoiler: her Diary to change someone's destiny in exchange for what she wants to do/fix/etc.. To save a bunny from dying, she got a cut on her hand; later, to rescue Yuri from her abusive father, she got severe burns that landed her in the hospital.]] In fact, when Yuri tried to touch the Destiny Diary, Momoka stopped her from doing so to avoid a possible backlash from hitting her.
* ChekhovsGunman: We learned that she was [[spoiler: Ringo's deceased sister and the owner of the Diary]] in episode 6. Her importance to the plot ''as a whole'' is revealed in Episode 15.
* DirtyKid: She went missing as an elementary schooler. The Destiny Diary is ''very'' detailed and specific about how her future life would have gone. This includes sexual activities with Tabuki.
* TheFaceless: Until episode 15, her face wasn't shown.
* FreakinessShame: She was the first person who told Yuri that she was beautiful, even with all of the scars from the latter's abuse.
%%* GenkiGirl
* GoodIsNotSoft: A loving and kind girl who nevertheless is willing [[spoiler: to make people vanish from existence]]
* HeroicSacrifice:
** Paid an ''appalling'' price in order to save [[spoiler:Yuri from her abusive father. SpontaneousHumanCombustion, specifically. She managed to survive, but her burns were so serious that she had to be hospitalized.]]
** Also, according to Tabuki, she actually died/disappeared [[spoiler: trying to stop the subway bombings that the Takakuras and their group performed. It's confirmed when we see how she was sealed away by Sanetoshi.]]
* TheLostLenore: To ''both'' [[spoiler:Tabuki and Yuri]].
* MeaningfulName: Her name means "peach". She's got pink ("peach-color" in Japanese) hair and wears a shirt with a peach on it. Peaches are seen as symbols of perfection in some cultures. Momoka was, according to Tabuki, probably supposed to have been a literal messiah.
* ManicPixieDreamGirl: To [[spoiler:Tabuki and Yuri]], who both say she completely changed how they viewed the world and made life worth living for them.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: Her possessing Mario and making Masako search for the Penguindrum ended up pitting the Natsumes against the Takakuras. The resultant squabbling over the diary delays Momoka's plans long enough for Sanetoshi to put his in place.]]
* OneDegreeOfSeparation: Her presence ties much of the cast together despite having been dead for 16 years. She was the [[spoiler: firstborn daughter of the Oginomes, Ringo's dead older sister, Tabuki and Yuri's childhood friend, maybe Sanetoshi's fated person, '''and''' the original owner of Ringo's infamous Destiny Diary. She is also the real identity of the Princess of the Crystal, since the penguin hat Himari wears to turn into her contains half her soul.]]
* PluckyGirl: Now you know where [[spoiler: her younger sister Ringo]] got her sheer pluck and stubborness.
* PosthumousCharacter: Her death drives many characters in the show, and we learn about her through their relationships with her.
* ThePowerOfLove: It's implied that Momoka's [[spoiler: magical powers]] stem from her status as an AllLovingHero. Because Momoka genuinely loves and cares for all people, [[spoiler: she can change their fate.]]
* NeverFoundTheBody: [[spoiler: Her lifeless body was never located, and only her Destiny Diary remained.]]
* RealityWarper: [[spoiler: She claims to be able to change the fate of living beings via her Destiny Diary.]]
%%* RedEyesTakeWarning: At times.
* RomanticTwoGirlFriendship: Her relationship with [[spoiler: Yuri Tokikago]] is an elementary-school version of the trope. [[spoiler: 16 years later, [[BrokenBird Yuri]] [[TheMourningAfter is still in love with her]].]]
* RoseHairedSweetie: The pink hair emphasizes to her loving and kinda nature. [[spoiler: It might also be an indicator of mystical power since Sanetoshi has pink highlights.]]
* SpontaneousHumanCombustion: The price for [[spoiler:changing Yuri's fate.]]
* SealedGoodInACan: [[spoiler: Her soul is split and sealed inside the two penguin hats by Sanetoshi.]]
* StrongFamilyResemblance: Physically, [[spoiler:Ringo is a brown-haired, older Momoka -- even with some of Momoka's tics, which comes off as a little odd considering that Ringo says Satoshi and Eriko never told her a lot about her sister.]] This is first mentioned by Yuri in episode 14, and then confirmed in episode 15 (hence why the picture above doesn't show her face).
* TakeMyHand: To [[spoiler:Tabuki, when rescuing him from the Child Broiler. Not even having an adult try burning her hand dissuaded her from saving him.]] See also BadassAdorable above.
* WiseBeyondTheirYears: To the point of TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior. Momoka is much more mature and worldly than worldly than her 10 years would suggest. Risking her life to stop a bombing plot is not something one would expect a grade schooler to do.

!!Kenzan and Chiemi Takakura
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/takakura_parents_3730.JPG]]

The parents of the Takakura household. They do not appear in the main story and are developed through flashbacks.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/TakehitoKoyasu (Kenzan) and Creator/KikukoInoue (Chiemi) (Japanese)
----
* DarkAndTroubledPast: [[spoiler: They were in ''very'' shady deals in the past, specially with the Penguin Factions.]] In episode 12, [[spoiler:Kenzan is shown as a member of the group branch that performed the attacks that led to Momoka and other people's deaths. Chiemi also was a follower, but the extent of her involvement is unknown.]]
* DeadAllAlong: [[spoiler:[[http://i.minus.com/ib1mdsBnGyVxi1.jpg As seen in]] [[http://i.minus.com/iSeHseeMguMF0.jpg episode 21]].]]
* GoodParents: Kenzan carried little Himari on his back to an hospital ''during a typhoon'' and '''by foot''' to get her medical help. (With little Kanba in tow, even protecting him from a falling lamp). Then in episode 9, we learn that Chiemi went MamaBear by shielding little Himari from a falling mirror [[DivingSave with her own body]], getting injured in her place and having to be hospitalised as a result.
** [[spoiler: Averted for Shouma where it's heavily implied that they neglected him as a young child]]
* {{Hypocrite}}: Kenzan and Chiemi railed and fought against an uncaring, unloving world. However, they [[spoiler: destroyed their family and abandoned their children to a life of neglect and suffering. Even before that, they were so involved in their cause that they neglected their only child - a throwaway line implies they didn't notice that Shouma had been locked up and nearly starved to death.]]
* KnightTemplar: Chiemi's voice on the matter is yet to be heard, but episode 20 shows Kenzan sincerely believing that his organization must [[spoiler:cleanse the world for impeding Judgement Day with their terrorist attacks]].
* LikeFatherLikeSon: Kanba appears to inherit Kenzan's personality as well as his looks (except for the red hair), while Himari inherits Chiemi's looks and both she and Shouma inherit her personality traits. [[spoiler: Even though both Kanba and Himari are adopted.]]
* MotherlySidePlait: Chiemi wears her hair in this manner.
* ParentalAbandonment:
** Left their kids alone in their run-down house one day, and never came back. [[spoiler: They didn't exactly have much of a choice in the matter.]]
** In episode 19, we see that they're still in occasional contact with Kanba and are the ones behind the money he gets for the family. They even give him a SoProudOfYou pep talk! However, they also tell him that they can't come back home, as they still have "a mission" to fufill. [[spoiler: But then we get to [[DeadAllAlong episode 21]]...]]
* ParentalNeglect: [[spoiler: Shouma was heavily neglected as a child. Every flashback we see shows Shouma playing by himself or Himari while his parents attended cult meetings. It became so bad that Shouma nearly died from the neglect.]]
* PosthumousCharacter: They vanished years before [[spoiler: and died soon after]] but the Takakura children have to deal with the [[SinsOfTheFather consequences of their actions]]
* StrongFamilyResemblance: Kanba looks a lot like Kenzan, while Himari seems to take after Chiemi. [[spoiler:Ultimately ''inverted'', as Shouma, their only biological child among the three, doesn't resemble them physically.]]
* TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: Chiemi and Kenzan are a normal loving couple who care of their children. They even look normal and nondescript. [[spoiler: It's all the more shocking that they're major terrorist leaders]].
* WellIntentionedExtremist: According to episode 20, at least. [[spoiler:Kenzan was directing the attacks under the belief that the world's rotten to the core and that a "Survival Strategy" would make things better.]]

!!Satoshi and Eriko Oginome
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ringo_parents_4580.JPG]]

Ringo's divorced parents. She lives with Eriko and meeets up with Satoshi outside home.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/FumihikoTachiki (Satoshi) and Creator/RikaFukami (Eriko) (Japanese), Creator/AdamGibbs (Satoshi) (English)
----

* AbsenceMakesTheHeartGoYonder: The irony of Ringo's obsession is that [[spoiler: both parents have moved on. Her father has a new family and her mother is comfortable talking about her dead daughter to a stranger.]]
* ParentsAsPeople: They're divorced, and Ringo meets her dad in outside home in outings that she calls "dates". Not to mention Eriko cares for her, but is shown to be way too much into her work. [[spoiler: Momoka's death completely trashed the family dynamics, thus being the trigger to their divorce and explaining a LOT of Ringo's behavior and belief in "destiny".]]
** Ringo never suffers the fate that [[spoiler: Himari, Kanba and Souma faced and never nearly died of neglect or was delivered to the Child Broiler]] implying that her parents do love her, it's just a bad situation.
* ParentWithNewParamour: In episode 8, [[spoiler:Ringo sees Satoshi with another woman and a little girl named Aoi. Either he remarried and kept a SecretOtherFamily without telling Ringo, or he's about to re-marry.]]
* ShipperOnDeck: Eriko seems to ship her daughter Ringo with Shoma, and isn't convinced when Shoma says they're JustFriends. Understandable since she met him when she saw Ringo humping him rather... passionately in the SickEpisode.
* StrugglingSingleMother: Eriko does love Ringo but she's a single mother and has to work long hours to provide a comfortable lifestyle. She can't pay as much attention to her daughter, contributing to Ringo's emotional problems.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Satoshi inadvertently becomes one, since the whole [[spoiler: AttemptedRape incident]] is triggered after the ParentWithNewParamour one happens in the Ikebukuro Aquarium.
* {{Workaholic}}: The few times we see Eriko, she's too engrossed in her work to spend time with Ringo.

!!Double H (Hibari Isora and Hikari Utada)
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/_doubleh_3070.JPG]]

Two very famous {{idol singer}}s whose merchandising is everywhere.

->'''Voiced by:''' Yui Watanabe (Hibari) and Marie Miyake (Hikari) (Japanese), Creator/BrittneyKarbowski (Hibari) (English) and Creator/CynthiaMartinez (Hikari) (English)
----
* ChekhovsGunman:
** They're the "red and blue" girls shown in the ending credits, even before episode 9 reveals that [[spoiler:they were friends of Himari in elementary school.]]
** And in the GrandFinale, the name of their album ([[BorrowedCatchPhrase "Let's share the fruit of fate"]]) is what allows Ringo to [[spoiler: decode and recite the fate-transfer spell.]]
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Both have RapunzelHair now... but three years ago, Hibari had OdangoHair and Hikari sported a boyish haircut.
%%* {{Expy}}: Of the Shadow Girls of ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'' in their role as GreekChorus.
* ForgottenChildhoodFriend:
** If episode 15 is anything to go by, they do seem to remember [[spoiler:Himari very fondly, as they wear the scarves she made for them (sent by Sanetoshi)]]; Hibari says that "a precious friend" sent them, and Hikari adds that they were "so happy" to find out.
** Even more so, in episode 22 [[spoiler: the girls get {{Paper Thin Disguise}}s and drop by the Takakura home to visit Himari, but she's not there anymore and Ringo attends them. (And they barely miss meeting up with Shouma!)]]
* IdolSinger: The two of them.
* LoveFreak: Both of them are very supportive of love in all forms as revealed in the seventh audio drama. Though Hikari is especially supportive of [[spoiler:Yamashita's [[YaoiFangirl love for Shouma]]]].
* NamedAfterSomebodyFamous: [[Music/UtadaHikaru Hikaru Utada]] and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hibari_Misora Hibari Misora]], to be precise.
* {{Nice Girl}}s: Both of them seem to be very kind despite heir fame.
* RapunzelHair: Both of them have very long, voluminous hair.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: The CD they drop by [[spoiler:the Takakura house for Himari]] has a song titled after [[spoiler:Himari's favorite phrase, which, as Ringo figures out, is the Fate Transfer spell.]]
* ThoseTwoGirls: Always seen together. Their OnceAnEpisode [=PSAs=] serve a GreekChorus function.
* ThreeAmigos: As it turns out, they were this with [[spoiler:Himari]] when they were younger, showcased in the second end credits animation.
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Hikari has long blue hair, while Hibari has long pink hair.

!!Mario Natsume

[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mario_natsume_65.png]]

A quiet young boy seen very few times. He is Masako's younger brother.

->'''Voiced by:''' Kazusa Aranami (Japanese)
----
* AdorablyPrecociousChild: He occasionally delivers uncanny insight for a young boy.
%%* CreepyChild: [[spoiler: Though he wasn't always like that, judging by episode 20.]]
%%** [[spoiler: And after the GrandFinale, he actually gets better and is seen acting normally towards his OneeSama Masako.]]
* HeavySleeper: Is frequently seen napping on a couch.
* IllBoy: Appears to have poor health, which Masako worries about.
* NiceHat: He's seen wearing a hat, which turns out to be [[spoiler: his own Penguin Hat!]]
* {{Protectorate}}: To his sister, Masako; ensuring his wellbeing is one of her primary motivations.
* RaisedByGrandparents: Was raised by Sanbei alongside Masako.
* SoulJar: [[spoiler: Was used by Sanbei as one.]]

!!Sanbei Natsume
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sanbei_natsume_9707.png]]

Masako's grandfather and leader of the Natsume family.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Hitoshi Itou (Japanese)
----
* AbusiveParents: He's their grandfather, but was the parental figure for much of Masako and Mario's life. This doesn't mean he was particularly kind to them; he was very harsh and had high standards.
%%* BoisterousBruiser
* TheFaceless: His face is never seen, since it's covered by a slip of paper.
* KickTheDog: Sanbei treated his grandchildren really harshly. First he kicked their father [[spoiler:and the eldest son Kanba out of the clan]] merely because Dad wasn't as strong as he wanted. Then he burned all of the remaining kids's toys and memorabilia -- including a letter that Masako got from her dad, despite little Masako's pleas. And later, [[spoiler:his spirit possessed Mario to force Masako into a SadisticChoice.]]
* ILikeMyXLikeILikeMyY: Something of a CatchPhrase for him. All of them involve women, and some of them [[CrossestheLineTwice are rather disturbing]].
%%* {{Jerkass}}
%%* LargeHam: And holy crap, how. [[spoiler: Even in '''death'''.]]
%%* RatedMForManly
* ThereAreTwoKindsOfPeopleInTheWorld: Losers and winners!
* TooDumbToLive: The ''fugu'' fish he wanted to eat is actually an insanely poisonous treat; so much that it should be only purchased ''by people with special licenses'' ([[FridgeLogic which apparently Sanbei lacked of]]. [[spoiler: He prepared it ''himself'' despite knowing all of this. Enjoy being poisoned to death, old man.]]

!!Renjaku
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/renjaku_7950.png]]

A maid in service of the Natsume family, who has worked for them for many years.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MaiNakahara (Japanese), Creator/BrittneyKarbowski (English)
----
* BeautifulAllAlong: [[TheGlassesComeOff Remove her]] StoicSpectacles and [[LettingHerHairDown undo her chignon bun]].
* CryCute: Cries adorably when [[spoiler: Masako wakes up from her coma]], and then when [[spoiler: she's BackFromTheDead.]]
%%* {{Expy}}: Of Anthy from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'', both visually and [[spoiler:in terms of HiddenDepths and BeautifulAllAlong]].
%%* {{Meido}}
* NinjaMaid: Parodied in the end, as she gets caught by the Princess and given an hilarious HumiliationConga.
* SugarAndIcePersonality: She looks and acts very cold normally, but she holds a sincere UndyingLoyalty to the Natsume clan and specially to Masako.

!!Souya and Shirase

[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Mawaru_Penguindrum_-_17_-_Large_33_865.jpg]]

Two strange children who hang around Sanetoshi.

-->'''Voiced by''': Megumi Iwasaki (Souya) and Creator/MotokiTakagi (Shirase) (Japanese), Creator/HilaryHaag (Souya and Shirase) (English)
----
* CatchPhrase: "----, Dr. Sanetoshi!" [clap clap]
%%* [[CheerfulChild Cheerful Children]]: When they're not being [[CreepyChild creepy]].
* CreepyTwins: They're a pair of unsettling children who hang around the similarly shady Sanetoshi.
* [[HairRaisingHare Hair-Raising Hares]]: [[spoiler:Their true forms are two very creepy black bunnies]].
* IdenticalTwinIDTag: How their ribbons are shaped.
* NoNameGiven: It's only through the credits that we have learned their names.
%%* RedEyesTakeWarning
* SingleMindedTwins: They're always on the same page.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: [[http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_luvhhhwDBI1qat36jo3_500.gif Carrot juice.]] [[spoiler: Even [[http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_luvhhhwDBI1qat36jo2_500.gif as bunnies]]!]]
* {{Twincest}}: PlayedForLaughs in episode 20, when one of them clings to the other and tries to kiss him. Is more of a metaphor for the whole mess among the Takakuras, though.
* YesMan: To Sanetoshi, whom they just agree with most of the time.

!!Tsubasa Yuuki

[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Mawaru_Penguindrum_-_14_-_Large_02_8624.jpg]]

Yuri's partner in their trope. She's modeled after the ''otokoyaku'', or Creator/{{Takarazuka|Revue}} actresses that play exclusively male roles.

-->'''Voiced by''': Creator/RomiPark (Japanese)
----
* {{Bifauxnen}}: Very, ''very'' much. If she wasn't one, she wouldn't be able to play her roles to start!
%%* {{Bokukko}}
%%* ButchLesbian
* LargeHam: [[GratuitousFrench "Mon amoooooour!"]]
* LoveMakesYouEvil: [[spoiler: Implied that she stabbed Tabuki out of jealousy once Yuri broke off their affair.]]
* NonStandardCharacterDesign: Even in a really... colorful environment, she stands out whenever she shows up; she's drawn in a 70s shoujo manga style, and is specifically modeled after [[Manga/TheRoseOfVersailles Lady Oscar]].
* PutOnABus: Pretty much disappears after episode 14.
%%** [[spoiler: TheBusCameBack: Episode 22!]]
%%* PsychoExGirlfriend
%%* PsychoLesbian
%%* SkintoneSclerae

!!Yousuke Yamashita

Shouma's best friend who also knows Kanba.

----
* AffectionateNickname: Likes to call Shouma "Takakura Otouto" or "Baby Shouma".
* AllLoveIsUnrequited: By the time he learns the magic words that lead to love from Hikari and Hibari [[spoiler:which he intended to say to Shouma, Ringo had already said them to him]].
* ContrivedCoincidence: Happens to win raffles tickets to the same resort that Yuri and Ringo are staying at as well as having their room right next to theirs and [[spoiler:listens in on Yuri about to rape Ringo]] while saying it all out loud. Subverted -- [[spoiler: he had actually worked hard on his part time job to buy those tickets to a good vacation spot visited by celebs, and he had repeated what Yuri was saying in hopes of getting Shouma to sleep with him]].
* TheFaceless: His face is never shown.
* StraightGay: [[spoiler:Revealed in the seventh audio drama.]]

!!Asami Kuho

Kanba's ex-girlfriend, who still can't forget him.

-->'''Voiced by''': Creator/SaoriHayami (Japanese), Creator/CynthiaMartinez (English)
----
* ChekhovsGunman: She's the first person who gets her memories deleted by Masako, foreshadowing her (Masako's) role in the story. Also, the incident foreshadows the role of the "Destiny Diary": [[spoiler:Ringo had written on it about a woman with red shoes...]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: Sorta. She and other two girls whom Kanba dated and left, Yui and Chizuru, form a group named "Association of Romantic Victims of Kanba Takakura".
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: Courtesy of Masako, who deletes all of Asami's memories of Kanba with her bullets. When he visits her in the hospital, she's very confused and doesn't even know his name.
* NiceShoes: She's wearing a pair of cute red shoes [[spoiler: when Masako pushes her down the stairs.]] Her shoes are explicitly described as such.
%%* TheOjou
* StaircaseTumble: [[spoiler: Subverted. She gets pushed down some elevator stairs by Masako, but aside of minor injuries she lives to tell.]]
* TeenIdol: She's a beautiful and popular model.

[[/folder]]
----

The homeroom teacher of Kanba and Shoma, an eerily cheerful and sometimes detached from reality young man. Has known the Oginome family since he was a very young boy, thus he's been a constant presence in Ringo's life.

* LoveMakesYouEvil: [[spoiler: He lost the girl he loved (and whom he owed his life to) in the subway bombings performed by Kenzan and his group]]. In episode 18, [[spoiler:he finally snaps and tries to kill Himari as punishment for the loss of Momoka, but at the last moment he decides not to.]].

* SadisticChoice: In episode 16, [[spoiler:Mario gets possessed by the dead grandfather's spirit and stages a challenge. Two dishes of the very dangerous ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fugu fugu]]'' fish are put in front of them, and the one who eats the dish that is well prepared (as in, it won't poison the one who eats it to death) will inherit the Natsume fortune.

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/_tabuki_5978.jpg

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https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Mawaru_Penguindrum_-_14_-_Large_02_8624.jpg

* HairDecorations: Their red headbands [[spoiler: that look like their bunny ears]]

* ManInWhite: Is always wearing a white lab coat which emphasizes his MadScientist and MadDoctor persona and makes him all the more sinister

%%* MeaningfulName: Her name can be read as "Apple". %%How is this meaningful?

* ManInWhite: Is always wearing a white lab coat which emphasizes his MadScientist EvilDoctor persona and makes him all the more sinister

* PimpedOutDress: As a {{Takarazuka}} performer, she gets these.

Yuri's partner in their trope. She's modeled after the ''otokoyaku'', or {{Takarazuka}} actresses that play exclusively male roles.

* ManInWhite

* ThePowerOfHate: To serve as a foil to Momoka. It's implied that Sanetoshi's magical powers come from his nihilistic worldview and hatred of everyone and everything, which allows him to twist people's fates for the worse.

%%* PurpleEyes

** [[spoiler: Subverted in that he's the Takakura's only biological child. His neglect is an continuation of his parent's early neglect of him and even when improved, they still seemed to have taken him for granted.]]

* TheOjou: Not snobbish and cruel enough to be a RichBitch, yet too aloof and manipulative to be SpoiledSweet.

%%* BadassGrandpa

* ThePowerOfLove: It's implied that Momoka's magical powers stem from her status as an AllLovingHero. Because Momoka genuinely loves and cares for all people, she can change their fate.

-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/FumihikoTachiki (Satoshi) and Creator/RikaFukami (Eriko) (Japanese), Adam Gibbs (Satoshi) (English)

%%* GreenEyes

%%* GreenEyes

* NonStandardCharacterDesign: Even in a really... colorful environment, she stands out whenever she shows up; she's drawn in a 70s shoujo manga style, and is specifically modeled after [[Manga/RoseOfVersailles Lady Oscar]].

%%* RetGone: [[spoiler: The consequences.]]

%%* LoveRedeems: [[spoiler: Via an HeroicSacrifice, [[DeathEqualsRedemption in the end]].]]
* MiddleChildSyndrome: Tied to his unfavorite status. Kanba is the elder brother and the one tasked with protecting the others while Himari is the youngest and an IllGirl and so she's the one being protected and cared for. Shouma has less of a role in the family.
** [[spoiler: Subverted in that he's the Takakura's only biological child. His neglect is an continuation of his parent's early neglect of him and even when they got better, they still seemed to have taken him for granted.]]

%%* BadassLabcoat

%%* {{Bishonen}}

%%* {{Expy}}: Something of a more {{camp}}y cross between Mikage and Akio from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena''. His nonchalant yet seductive attitude, some of his lines and actions, and allusions to him conducting some grand game in the background are reminiscent of Akio, and like Mikage, he has pink hair and may be working to fulfill [[spoiler:GhostlyGoals]].
%%Expy needs to be a deliberate reference by the author

%%* HotLibrarian
%%** [[spoiler: Either HotScientist or HospitalHottie. Or maybe even both. It's hard to define.]]

%%* MadScientist
%%* ManInWhite

%%* WorthyOpponent: [[spoiler: Views Momoka as this]]

* PetTheDog: Sending Hibari and Hikari the scarves that Himari made for them, [[spoiler:[[SubvertedTrope most likely in order to strengthen her attachment to the world and add to her torment so she would stay alive and Kanba would be more motivated to save her...]]]] * SealedEvilInACan: [[spoiler: His encounter with Momoka 16 years ago resulted in him being split and sealed inside the two black bunnies usually seen inside the hospital examination room.]]

* StrugglingSingleMother: Eriko does love and care for Ringo but she is a single mother and has to work long hours to provide a comfortable lifestyle. She can't pay as much attention to her daughter, contributing to Ringo's emotional problems.

* FieryRedHead
* GreenEyes

* HeroicSacrifice: Not a full one, but he does [[spoiler:nearly lose his arm]] in Episode 18 in trying to [[spoiler:prevent Himari from falling from a construction site]].

A student from an all-girls school who gets roped into the plot after Himari's possessor orders the Takakura siblings to obtain the "Penguindrum" from her. A very strong believer in fate and destiny, Ringo possesses a diary with events written down on it that she has taken upon herself to fulfill. She's obsessed with Keiju Tabuki, whom she has known ever since childhood, to the point of stalking [[spoiler:and attempted rape]]. She befriends Himari, has a rather weird relationship with Shouma, and turns out to have multiple issues coming from [[spoiler: her sister Momoka's death and her parents's divorce]].

* ACupAngst
* BecauseDestinySaysSo: A firm believer in it. [[spoiler: Possibly not as much as of episode 13.]]
* BreakTheCutie[=/=]BreakTheHaughty: [[spoiler: Seeing her father with another woman and a little girl who asks him to become her dad, having (half of) her prized diary stolen, watching her friend Shouma get hit by a car ''and'' knowing it's all because of her may count.]] As a result, in episode 10 [[spoiler: she's willing to actually give up on the Diary if it's needed to save a kidnapped Shouma, and ultimately does so, which kicks off her CharacterDevelopment.]]

* CharacterDevelopment: As of Episode 13, [[spoiler:Ringo seems to have come to terms with the fact that she can't patch up her family by becoming her older sister Momoka. She's even happy about her father's new marriage when she texts him, compared to a few episodes before.]]
** And even before that, in episode 10, [[spoiler:she's willing to give up the other half of the destiny diary in order to save Shouma from Natsume, who's taken him hostage and demands it in exchange for his release]]. This would've been unthinkable before.

* TheHeart: She seems to have evolved into this, after her CharacterDevelopment.
* HerHeartWillGoOn: [[spoiler: After Shouma's HeroicSacrifice.]]

* LoveHurts: And how.
* LovingAShadow: It's eventually revealed that [[spoiler:she's not so much in love with Tabuki as what he represents -- mainly, the restoration of her broken family. Her character arc is mainly composed of her realizing this and getting over it]].

* MeaningfulName: Her name can be read as "Apple".
* [[MrImagination Miss Imagination]]: In the first few episodes, she has quite a few [[ImagineSpot Imagine Spots]] involving her and Tabuki...with Yuri as the villain trying to get in the way of their romance.

* PrecociousCrush[=/=]StalkerWithACrush[=/=]StalkingIsLove: Ringo is one for Tabuki, Shoma and Kanba's homeroom teacher, and has had feelings for him since she was a child.

* ShipTease: She and Shoma, more and more as the series advances. [[spoiler: Fully sealed when Shouma's FamousLastWords overlap with DyingDeclarationOfLove.]]
* StalkerWithATestTube: [[spoiler:Wants to have Tabuki's child to "become Momoka" and fix up her broken family. She gives up later, though.]]
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Curry
* {{Tsundere}}: ''Seems'' to be this for Shouma. Seen when, in the same scene, she expresses relief that Shouma [[spoiler: wasn't seriously hurt when he took a DivingSave for her]], and then beats him herself when he calls her "fool" for [[spoiler: giving up half of her Destiny Diary to save him]], specifically telling him how worried she was for his safety.
* {{Yandere}}: To Tabuki. Played almost completely for laughs, until episode 8 with [[spoiler:AttemptedRape of drugged Tabuki]]. It's shown just as screwed up as it sounds.
** As the series goes on, [[PlayingWithATrope the series plays with this]] by revealing that [[spoiler:she's only yandere ''[[LovingAShadow for what Tabuki represents]]'', i.e., the restoration of her broken family. Once she accepts that she can't do this using her methods, she returns to sanity and meets up with Tabuki to clean up loose ends, and from then on she focuses on emotionally supporting the Takakura siblings instead.]]

* {{Bishonen}}: [[Creator/AkiraIshida But of course.]]
* ChildhoodFriendRomance: Him and [[spoiler:Momoka. Since she died, well...]]
* CloudCuckooLander: [[ObfuscatingStupidity Subverted]].

* HiddenDepths: The flashbacks of episodes 6 and 12 show a Tabuki who's quite more thoughtful than in the present. Additionally, he always knew that [[spoiler:the Takakuras were the children of the terrorists who planned the attacks that killed Momoka, but decided to not pursue anything similar to hate or revenge...at least, not until episode 18.]]
** And again, in episode 13, [[spoiler:he and Ringo discuss the Takakura family's relationship to their lives.]]

* HotTeacher

* AttemptedRape: In episode 14, she attempts to rape [[spoiler:Ringo]] as part of a plan to [[spoiler:make her into Momoka]], though it's ambiguous as to whether or not she was fully stopped.

* ChildhoodFriends[=/=]TwoGirlsAndAGuy: With [[spoiler:Momoka]] and Tabuki.

* DudeShesLikeInAComa: Invokes this during her rape of [[spoiler:Ringo]] by drugging her drink beforehand. Though it's ambiguous to whether or not Yuri fully raped her, she did at least tie her up, kiss her, and manage some sexual contact before getting interrupted.

* FreudianExcuse: Revealed in episode 15, involving [[spoiler:her father carving her body with a chisel to make her "worthy of being loved".]] It's made even worse by the fact that [[spoiler:the chisels]] are probably a metaphor for [[spoiler:physical and sexual abuse, [[{{Squick}} with the pounding and nudity imagery]].]]
* ImNotPretty: [[spoiler: She believes herself to be ugly because of her MadArtist dad's abuse.]]
* ImprovisedWeapon: When [[spoiler:Masako]] attacks her, Yuri repels her attacks with a ping-pong paddle.
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler:Her attempted rape of the underage Ringo has no repercussions at all.]]
* LoveMakesYouCrazy: [[spoiler:To get Momoka back, she will do anything. ''Anything''.]]
* LovingAShadow[=/=]TheMourningAfter: To [[spoiler:Momoka]]. To the point of [[spoiler:tying up and attempting to rape her [[ReplacementGoldfish younger sister]] because [[StrongFamilyResemblance they look and act similar]].]]

* {{Ojou}}: As a wealthy, famous actor, she's beautiful, graceful and confident with just a hint of steel. [[spoiler: It's entirely an act]]

* [[RuleOfGlamorous Rule of Fabulous]]: Governs basically everything she owns. Hell, she's got a clean white [[spoiler:''crossbow'']] with gold trim.

* StepfordSmiler: [[spoiler: Who would say that a beautiful, all-smiles idol would hide such tremendously low self-esteem?]]

An attractive, shady young woman with red hair and uncanny aim skills. [[spoiler: She also has her own Project M focusing on Kanba, along with a Survival Strategy centered on her little brother Mario. Also possesses her own penguin, a black one named Esmeralda. Her WeaponOfChoice is a slingshot with mind-wiping bullets.]]

* AbusiveParents: [[spoiler: Or better said, abusive grandfather.]]
* ActionGirl
* AngstySurvivingTwin / WistfulAmnesia: In Episode 24, after [[spoiler:Kanba is retconned out of existence, she tells Mario that she dreamt she had another brother.]]

* BigFancyHouse: A black mansion, apparently set in the outskirts of Tokyo
* BrutalHonesty: Masako is '''not''' the kind of person that sugarcoats her words. Specially seen when she talks down to [[spoiler: Yuri]] in episode 15, when she {{Breaking Speech}}es [[spoiler: Himari]] in episode 19, and when she [[spoiler: explains her bond with him in much more polite but still cutting terms]] in episode 21.
* CatchPhrase: "Gosh, I need to crush it/him/her/them soon." [[spoiler: Which ''almost'' become her FamousLastWords in episode 22.]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: Is one for [[spoiler: Kanba]], her [[spoiler: [[BigBrotherAttraction twin older brother]].]] She ''is'', however, quite more manipulative and calculating than the standard.
* ADayInTheLimelight: Episode 16.

* DaddysGirl[=/=]WellDoneSonGuy: [[spoiler: To her beloved DisappearedDad, exiled from the Natsume clan by her grandfather Sanbei for being a failure to his standards.]]
* ColdSniper
* EvenTheGirlsWantHer[=/=]LesYay
* EvilRedhead: She's at least [[JerkAss callous]] and [[ManipulativeBitch manipulative.]] [[spoiler: While not virtuous, she turns out to be ''not'' cartoonishly evil later, as her care for Mario [[PetTheDog is very genuine]].]]
* {{Expy}}: Of both Nanami and Kozue from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'', especially in regards to how she acts around [[spoiler:Kanba]].
** And her demeanor, hairstyle and tendency to go from tender to dangerous in the space of a few seconds recalls Juri from the same series.
* ForcefulKiss: On none other than [[spoiler: Kanba]]!
* FlowerMotifs: [[SomethingAboutARose Bright red rose petals]] appear during her firefight with [[spoiler: Yuri]] in episode 17.
* HalfIdenticalTwins: She and [[spoiler: Kanba]], according to episode 23. Lampshaded by [[spoiler: Sanetoshi, who first points out that they're twins, and then refers to the physical similarities between them.]]

* IcyBlueEyes
* {{Keigo}}: She uses ''very'' formal speech, to the point of referring to [[spoiler: her own little brother]] as "Mario[[UsefulNotes/JapaneseHonorifics -san]]".
* KickTheDog: Verbally abusing [[spoiler: Himari]] in episode 19 out of jealousy feels at least like a borderline example.
* [[KnightTemplarBigBrother Knight Templar Big Sister]]: Her ''other'' motivation is [[spoiler: saving the life of a [[AdorablyPrecociousChild young]] [[CreepyChild boy]] named Mario, her little brother. For that, Masako also needs the Penguindrum, and will ''not'' hand it to the Takakuras.]]
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: [[spoiler: She possesses a slingshot which shoots bullets that administer this.]] Bonus points for [[spoiler:the slingshot actually being laser-guided]].
** And in a twist, in episode 19 we find out [[spoiler: that she has special bullets capable of ''returning'' lost memories too.]]
* LargeHam: As the series progresses, Masako gets more and more HotBlooded, culminating with her two duels with [[spoiler: Yuri]] which go the HamToHamCombat way with absolute ''glee''.

* OneeSama: [[spoiler: For Mario]]
* RaisedByGrandparents: [[spoiler: Because her eccentric and pushy grandfather actually kicked her and Mario's father out of the Natsume clan.]]

* ProperTightsWithASkirt

* SadisticChoice -> TakeAThirdOption: In episode 16, [[spoiler:Mario gets possessed by the dead grandfather's spirit and stages a challenge. Two dishes of the very dangerous ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fugu fugu]]'' fish are put in front of them, and the one who eats the dish that is well prepared (as in, it won't poison the one who eats it to death) will inherit the Natsume fortune. Masako ''eats both dishes'' to spare Mario from suffering harm, and she spends three days in a coma.]]

* SpotOfTea

* YouAreWorthHell, [[spoiler:Kanba]]: As she expresses in episode 22.

* CooldownHug: Sorta gives one to [[spoiler:[[http://i39.tinypic.com/2em0gih.jpg Kanba]]]], in episode 17.

** JerkWithAHeartOfGold: In episode 11 she [[spoiler: summoned her Dream World ''specifically'' to urge Ringo to tell her and Shouma about her huge problems and feelings.]] This being the "Princess", she still called Ringo rather mean names ("monkey bitch", this time).
* LargeHam

-->Princess (To Ringo): "I've had enough of listening to your bullshit, stupid bitch!"
** [[ClusterFBomb And it goes downhill from there.]]

* [[HesBack She's Back]]: [[spoiler:After Himari is revived by Sanetoshi, the Princess seems to be fully gone... until episode 16.]]

* ShowgirlSkirt

A mysterious librarian[[spoiler:/doctor]] who appears to Himari in a dream. He reappears later on, with some plans of his own.

* BadassLabcoat[=/=]BadassLongcoat

* {{Bishonen}}

* CatchPhrase: "Isn't it electrifying?" and "I know, right?"

* TheCorrupter: [[spoiler: Tries to corrupt both Kanba and Masako and succeeds with Kanba]]

* DudeLooksLikeALady : Quite a portion of the Japanese ''and'' English fandoms were shocked to find out he was a guy.
* {{Expy}}: Something of a more {{camp}}y cross between Mikage and Akio from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena''. His nonchalant yet seductive attitude, some of his lines and actions, and allusions to him conducting some grand game in the background are reminiscent of Akio, and like Mikage, he has pink hair and may be working to fulfill [[spoiler:GhostlyGoals]].

* HotLibrarian
** [[spoiler: Either HotScientist or HospitalHottie. Or maybe even both. It's hard to define.]]

* KnightOfCerebus

* ManInWhite

* MindRape[=/=]MoreThanMindControl: His treatment of [[spoiler: Kanba]] in the first part of episode 23 felt a lot like this, since he [[spoiler: invokes a Survival Strategy to force Kanba to watch how his twin sister Masako dies, before he uses his powers to bring her BackFromTheDead ''and'' fully convince Kanba to destroy the world in exchange for Sanetoshi doing the same to Himari.]]

* NietzscheWannabe: According to his soliloquies in episodes 13 and 23, [[spoiler:the apparently godly powers he shares with Momoka have only served to alienate him from others and depress him, as he believes that he cannot save anywhere near all the people who need help. This eventually led to his epiphany that the world is empty and the only way to change anything is to burn it all down.]]
* PetTheDog: [[spoiler: Sending Hibari and Hikari the scarves that Himari made for them, [[SubvertedTrope most likely in order to strengthen her attachment to the world and add to her torment so she would stay alive and Kanba would be more motivated to save her...]]]]
** HoistByHisOwnPetard: [[spoiler:... But that's what led to Ringo getting their CD and learning the "fruit of fate" spell.]]
* SealedEvilInACan: [[spoiler: His encounter with Momoka 16 years ago resulted in him being split and sealed inside the two black bunnies usually seen inside the hospital examination room.]]
* StepfordSmiler: [[spoiler:Of the depressed and intensely nihilistic variety.]]

* WeCanRuleTogether: [[spoiler: Again, to possessed!Himari. He's rejected, but doesn't seem to give up. Considering the end of episode 12 as well as episode 13, he didn't, and seems to have more mysterious plans... centered on the girl who rejected him, who may or may not be Momoka.]]
** Also offers [[spoiler: Masako]] to join him. [[spoiler: He's rejected again.]]
** And the third offer is for [[spoiler: Kanba.]] [[spoiler: [[FaceHeelTurn This time]] [[LoveMakesYouEvil it works]].]]
* WorthyOpponent: [[spoiler: Views Momoka as this]]

Three penguins who start following the Takakura siblings around after the first episode. [[spoiler: They're actually four, since there's another one whose companion is Masako.]] They seem to be invisible to normals and serve as {{Funny Background Event}}s for each episode.

* BigOlEyebrows: #1.

* EverythingsBetterWithPenguins: All three provide a lot of the incidental humour
* InvisibleToNormals: All 3

* NoOntologicalInertia: In episode 12, when [[spoiler:both Himari ''and'' her possessor die (and seemingly for real this time), #3 [[http://imageftw.com/uploads/20110929/1317318162309.jpg collapses and almost disappears]]. Conversely, when Himari is brought back by Sanetoshi, #3 comes back as well.]]

* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: If one of them behaves unlike their usual selves, it's ''very'' much a signal that big things will happen. Specially when [[spoiler: #2, the local BigEater, is seen trying to give half of his food to #3 while Himari and Shouma spend their last hours together at home, when he loyally takes care of #3 and brings her candy when she and Himari are about to die in episode 23, and when in that same episode he gives #1 candy as well when he drops by with Kanba.]]
** You know something bad is going down when [[spoiler:#1 is more interested in reading literature and won't so much as glance in #3's direction even when she's waving porno mags at him.]] Or when [[spoiler: #2 cracks raw eggs on his own forehead instead of eating them.]]
* ShooOutTheClowns: Partially. While they haven't ''disappeared'', they're less noticed by the characters as time passes.

* UncattyResemblance: Esmeralda's markings mirror [[spoiler:Masako]]'s heart-shaped face.

!! Momoka [[spoiler: Oginome]]

A young girl who seems to have extremely close conections to many people in the story. [[spoiler: She actually was: the firstborn daughter of the Oginomes (deceased in the attacks of 16 years ago), Ringo's dead older sister, Tabuki and Yuri's childhood friend, maybe Sanetoshi's fated person, '''and''' the original owner of Ringo's infamous Destiny Diary. She is also the real identity of the Princess of the Crystal, since the penguin hat Himari wears to turn into her contains half her soul.]]

* BigGood: The biggest obstacle to [[spoiler: [[NietzscheWannabe Sanetoshi]]'s plan to "turn the world to ash"]], not to mention her status as AllLovingHero.

* ButNowIMustGo: [[spoiler: Leaves for good after foiling the bombing plot]]

* TheFaceless: Until episode 15.
* FreakinessShame: She was the first person who told [[spoiler:Yuri]] that she was beautiful, even with all of the scars that [[spoiler:her father]]'s abuse left on her.
* GenkiGirl

* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Paid an ''appalling'' price in order to save Yuri from her abusive father. SpontaneousHumanCombustion, specifically. She managed to survive, but her burns were so serious that she had to be hospitalized.]]
** Also, [[spoiler: according to Tabuki, she actually died/disappeared trying to stop the subway bombings that the Takakuras and their group performed. It's confirmed when we see how she was sealed away by Sanetoshi.]]

* MeaningfulName: Her name means "peach". She's got pink ("peach-color" in Japanese) hair and wears a shirt with a peach on it.
** Peaches are seen as symbols of perfection in some cultures. Momoka was, according to Tabuki, probably supposed to have been a literal messiah.

* PosthumousCharacter: Her death drives many characters in the show

* RealityWarper[=/=]WindsOfDestinyChange: [[spoiler: She claims to be able to change the fate of living beings via her Destiny Diary.]]
** CastFromHitPoints: [[spoiler: Momoka explains to Yuri that, whenever she uses her Diary to change someone's destiny, she has to pay a price: suffering bodily harm in exchange for what she wants to do/fix/etc.. To save a bunny from dying, she got a cut on her hand; later, to rescue Yuri from her abusive father, she got severe burns that landed her in the hospital. In fact, when Yuri tried to touch the Destiny Diary, Momoka stopped her from doing so to avoid a possible backlash from hitting her.]]
* RedEyesTakeWarning: At times.

The parents of the Takakura household. So far, they have only been developed through flashbacks, as they have not appeared in the main story as of yet. [[spoiler:They participated in the series of subway bombings that caused Momoka Oginome and other's deaths as part of a Survival Strategy]].

* {{Hypocrite}}: [[spoiler: Kenzan and Chiemi railed and fought against an uncaring, unloving world. However, they destroyed their family and abandoned their children to a life of neglect and suffering. Even before that, they were so involved in their cause that they neglected their only child - a throwaway line implies they didn't notice that Shouma had been locked up and nearly starved to death.]]

* ParentalAbandonment: Left their kids alone in their run-down house one day, and never came back. [[spoiler: They didn't exactly have much of a choice in the matter.]]
** [[spoiler: In episode 19, we see that they're still in occasional contact with Kanba and are the ones behind the money he gets for the family. They even give him a SoProudOfYou pep talk! However, they also tell him that they can't come back home, as they still have "a mission" to fufill. But then we get to [[DeadAllAlong episode 21]]...]]

* TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: Chiemi and Kenzan are a normal loving couple who care of their children. They even look normal and nondescript. [[spoiler: It's all the more shocking that they're major terrorist leaders]]

* AbsenceMakesTheHeartGoYonder: [[spoiler: The irony of Ringo's obsession is that both parents have moved on. Her father has a new family and her mother is comfortable talking about her dead daughter to a stranger.]]

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler: Satoshi inadvertently becomes one, since the whole AttemptedRape incident is triggered after the ParentWithNewParamour one happens in the Ikebukuro Aquarium.]]

* ChekhovsGunman: They're the "red and blue" girls shown in the ending credits, even before episode 9 reveals that [[spoiler:they were friends of Himari in elementary school.]]
** [[spoiler: And in the GrandFinale, the name of their album ([[BorrowedCatchPhrase "Let's share the fruit of fate"]] is what allows Ringo to decode and recite the fate-transfer spell.]]
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: [[spoiler: Both have RapunzelHair now... but three years ago, Hibari had OdangoHair and Hikari sported a boyish haircut.]]
* {{Expy}}: Of the Shadow Girls of ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'' in their role as GreekChorus.
* ForgottenChildhoodFriend: Both are this to [[spoiler:Himari]]. If episode 15 is anything to go by, they do seem to remember her very fondly, as they wear the scarves she made for them (sent by [[spoiler: Sanetoshi]]); Hibari says that "a precious friend" sent them, and Hikari adds that they were "so happy" to find out.

* GreekChorus: Their OnceAnEpisode [=PSAs=] serve this function.

* {{Nice Girl}}s: Both of them.

* ThoseTwoGirls

* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Hikari

!!Mario [[spoiler: Natsume]]

A quiet young boy seen very few times. [[spoiler: He is Masako's younger brother, and apparently died in undisclosed circumstances. He has his own Penguin Hat, and his older sister's other motivation aside of winning Kanba's affections is to save his life.]]

* [[AbusiveParents Abusive]] [[RaisedByGrandparents Grandfather]]: [[spoiler: Was raised by Sanbei alongside Masako.]]
* AdorablyPrecociousChild
* CreepyChild: [[spoiler: Though he wasn't always like that, judging by episode 20.]]
** [[spoiler: And after the GrandFinale, he actually gets better and is seen acting normally towards his OneeSama Masako.]]

* IllBoy
* NiceHat: [[spoiler: His own Penguin Hat!]]
* {{Protectorate}}: To [[spoiler:His sister, Masako.]]

Masako's grandfather and leader of the Natsume family. [[spoiler: Until his death, several years ago.]]

* BadassGrandpa
* BoisterousBruiser

* KickTheDog: [[spoiler: Sanbei treated his grandchildren really harshly. First he kicked their father and the eldest son Kanba out of the clan merely because Dad wasn't as strong as he wanted. Then he burned all of the remaining kids's toys and memorabilia -- including a letter that Masako got from her dad, despite little Masako's pleas. And later, his spirit possessed Mario to force Masako into a SadisticChoice.]]

* {{Jerkass}}
* LargeHam: And holy crap, how. [[spoiler: Even in '''death'''.]]
* RatedMForManly

* TooDumbToLive: [[spoiler: The ''fugu'' fish he wanted to eat is actually an insanely poisonous treat; so much that it should be only purchased ''by people with special licenses'' ([[FridgeLogic which apparently Sanbei lacked of]]. He prepared it ''himself'' despite knowing all of this. Enjoy being poisoned to death, old man.]]

* BeautifulAllAlong: [[spoiler:[[TheGlassesComeOff Remove her]] StoicSpectacles and [[LettingHerHairDown undo her chignon bun]].
* CryCute: When [[spoiler: Masako wakes up from her coma]], and then when [[spoiler: she's BackFromTheDead.]]
* {{Expy}}: Of Anthy from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'', both visually and [[spoiler:in terms of HiddenDepths and BeautifulAllAlong]].
* {{Meido}}
* NinjaMaid [[spoiler: Parodied in the end, as she gets caught by the Princess and given an hilarious HumiliationConga.]]

Two strange children who hang around Sanetoshi. [[spoiler: They may actually be two bunnies able to take human form.]]

* [[CheerfulChild Cheerful Children]]: When they're not being [[CreepyChild creepy]].
* CreepyTwins

* RedEyesTakeWarning
* SingleMindedTwins

* [[YesMan Yes Boys]]: To Sanetoshi.

* {{Bokukko}}

** [[spoiler: TheBusCameBack: Episode 22!]]

* SkintoneSclerae

* AllLoveIsUnrequited: [[spoiler:He loves Shoma]] and by the time he learns the magic words that lead to love from Hikari and Hibari [[spoiler: Ringo had already said them to Shouma]].
* ContrivedCoincidence: Happens to win raffles tickets to the same resort that Yuri and Ringo are staying at as well as having their room right next to theirs and [[spoiler:listens in on Yuri about to rape Ringo]] while saying it all out loud. [[spoiler: He had actually worked hard on his part time job to buy those tickets to a good vacation spot visited by celebs, and he had repeated what Yuri was saying in hopes of getting Shouma to sleep with him]].

Kanba's ex-girlfriend, who still can't forget him. [[spoiler: Masako, however, finds a way around that...]]

* ChekhovsGunman: [[spoiler: She's the first person who gets her memories deleted by Masako, foreshadowing her (Masako's) role in the story. Also, the incident foreshadows the role of the "Destiny Diary": Ringo had written on it about a woman with red shoes...]]

* LaserGuidedAmnesia: [[spoiler: Courtesy of Masako, who deletes all of Asami's memories of Kanba with her bullets. When he visits her in the hospital, she's very confused and doesn't even know his name.]]

* TheOjou

The younger male of the Takakura household, Shouma is the resident domestic dude.[[spoiler: And the only full-blooded Takakura child, since Kanba and Himari were adopted. (And he, in fact, brought Himari into the family).]] Having been tasked with obtaining Ringo Oginome's diary, he seems to be developing an odd relationship with her.

* ButtMonkey: Not to the extent of his penguin, but when [[spoiler: a frog gives birth on your back]] you know you are one of these.
** He also gets [[spoiler:drugged]] in two separate episodes, and chronologically only a few hours between incidents.

* DullEyesOfUnhappiness + HeroicBSOD: When [[spoiler:Himari dies]] in episode 12, he lapses into this and recites a metaphorical story involving three lambs, the shepherd, and two bunnies. [[spoiler: He gets better when Sanetoshi brings Himari back in episode 13.]]

* {{Foil}}: Serves as one to Ringo. The two of them are trying to help their families through bizarre means, but he keeps a more level head and often tries to discourage her from unsavory means.
** Also one to Kanba. While Kanba is willing to go to borderline illegal methods to get Ringo's diary, Shouma tries to approach Ringo first and make her give it up willingly. [[spoiler: Not to mention, Kanba is more accepting of their parents's stance, while Shouma strongly resents them for what has happened. [[WhamEpisode And then there's episode 21...]].]]
* GreenEyes

* InformedFlaw[=/=]HollywoodHomely: ... He's supposed to be merely plain-looking?!

* NiceGuy

* RedOniBlueOni: Red to Kanba, Blue to Ringo.

* SiblingYinYang

* SpannerInTheWorks: [[spoiler: Ringo pretty much all but states he's one for her "Project M".]]

* SupremeChef

* TeamMom: To Kanba's TeamDad
* TheUnfavourite: Hinted at. [[spoiler: While we see Himari and Kanba bonding with the Takakuras, there's never any such scene for Shouma. He was actively neglected as a child when his parents were more involved with their cult.]]
* WhatTheHellHero: To [[spoiler: Ringo]] in episode 8, and to [[spoiler: Kanba]] in episode 21. The first one sort-of works, [[spoiler: the second horribly fails.]]

* YouGottaHaveBlueHair

!!Kanba Takakura[=/=][[spoiler:Kanba Natsume]]

The eldest of the Takakura siblings. [[spoiler:However, he is actually Masako and Mario's biological brother and was adopted by the Takakuras when his father died.]] Kanba is known to be quite a playboy, having had several girlfriends in the past. He seems to harbor a deep affection for Himari, bordering on BrotherSisterIncest.

* {{Bishonen}}
** BishieSparkle
* BigBrotherInstinct: Has a huge one for Himari, bordering on...
** BrotherSisterIncest: Sorta sealed with the infamous kiss in the first episode. [[spoiler: Made even more canon when [[http://imageftw.com/uploads/20110929/1317318196481.jpg he and and a practically naked possessed!Himari]] share a last reunion in the Princess's world... before ''both'' the Princess and Himari temporarily die.]]
*** Episode 19 reveals that this is [[spoiler:subverted, since they are NotBloodSiblings.]] Not only that, but episode 21 provides [[spoiler:a hilarious ''inversion'' of NotBloodSiblings: Masako, who's been aggressively pursuing him romantically the whole series, ''is'' his biological sister, and ''both of them knew it the whole time'']].
** KnightTemplarBigBrother: As of episode 21. [[spoiler: He has fully joined the Takakura parents's faction, [[LoveMakesYouEvil all to save]] [[DeclarationOfProtection his adoptive sister Himari's life]].]]

* LadykillerInLove: For Himari.

* LoveMakesYouEvil - TookALevelInJerkass .
* LoveRedeems: [[spoiler: Via an HeroicSacrifice, [[DeathEqualsRedemption in the end]].]]
* NoGuyWantsToBeChased: He tells Himari that ''really'' hates it when girls cling to him or offer him cutesy gifts to gain his favor. [[spoiler: Naturally, Masako isn't fazed by it, and she fills the maze of episode 10 with these things ''specially'' to get under Kanba's skin.]]
** It's pretty strongly implied that [[spoiler:Masako]] is the reason why Kanba finds these gestures of affection so disturbing in the first place.
* OhCrap: He's openly shocked and almost terrified in episode 11, when [[spoiler: he meets Mario adter several years... and leans about him being Masako's ''other'' motivation.]]
* OutGambitted: By [[spoiler:Masako]] in episode 10. [[spoiler:While Kanba ''did'' rescue Shouma, she still got what she wanted the most from him... a kiss.]]

* TeamDad: To Shouma's TeamMom

* TheUnfettered: Kanba would do anything to save Himari. [[spoiler: Even destroy the world if he has to]]

* WouldHitAGirl: But ''only'' when she opposes him and presses her foot to his crotch. Then, he will kick her legs and trip her. You should've thought twice, [[spoiler:Masako.]]

The youngest sibling of the Takakura household. [[spoiler:She is actually an abandoned child; after getting her out of the "Child Broiler", Shoma offered her a place in the Takakura family and she has been the brothers' beloved baby sister ever since]]. Himari has very poor health and actually dies at the start of the series; her death sparks the plot once the penguin hat that she has revives her, demanding that the Takakura siblings obtain the "Penguindrum".

* BackFromTheDead --> DisneyDeath
* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe - IOweYouMyLife: To [[spoiler: Shouma]]

* ADayInTheLimelight: Episode 9. [[spoiler: And episodes 20 and 21]]

* FirstEpisodeResurrection
* ForeheadOfDoom
* HappilyAdopted: [[spoiler:She was adopted into the Takakura family after Shouma found her abandoned.]]

* LongHairIsFeminine
** OdangoHair: She sometimes styles her hair this way.

* PluckyGirl - SilkHidingSteel: Himari fully graduates to this in episode 21, [[spoiler: via joining Kanba... but with the intention of saving him.]]
* ScarsAreForever: [[spoiler: She gets one at the end of the final episode as evidence that her brothers existed and sacrificed everything to give her a chance at a normal and happy life.]]
* StepfordSmiler: [[spoiler: All but stated. She ''is'' a very kind girl, but she keeps her thoughts and pains to herself.]]

* TeamMom: Shares this duty with Shouma
* TragicDream: Episode 9 states that [[spoiler: Himari and her friends Hibari and Hikari wanted to be {{Idol Singer}}s, but Himari couldn't join them in the upcoming audition because of Chiemi's accident. After other incidents, Hikari and Hibari pressed on and became a succesful duo... the "red and blue" girls we know.]]

* [[WiseBeyondTheirYears Wise Beyond Her Years]]
* WistfulAmnesia: [[spoiler: After the fate transfer.]]

* RetGone: [[spoiler: In the final episode, as a result of [[spoiler:having the entirety of his life-force returned to him, then transferred to Himari by the diary]].
* SiblingYinYang

* TeamMom