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Main Characters
Masane Amaha
Masane Amaha/ Yasuka Ohara
Click here to Masane when using the Witchblade.
Click here to Masane's second Witchblade form.
Voiced by: Mamiko Noto (Japanese), Jamie Marchi (English)
The current host of the Witchblade. She has a six-year-old daughter named Rihoko.
- Absurdly Youthful Mother: Masane's only 23 at the start of the series. Rihoko is six years old. That means that Masane would have been seventeen years old when she had Rihoko. Justified later in the series because she's not Rihoko's biological mother.
- Antenna Hair: Masane has two cowlicks on the back of her head that perpetually stick up.
- Black Eyes of Crazy: Her sclera also turn black while transformed. Partially subverted in that, while Masane's violent and aggressive when using the Witchblade, she's definitely not evil; and as the show goes on, she gets a handle on her murderous impulses.
- Blade Below the Shoulder: Her main weapon, an extendable blade on her right forearm. She gets a second one when in her Super Mode.
- Canon Immigrant: She makes an appearance in the original comic along with other users of the Witchblade.
- Conveniently an Orphan: In episode 14, it's revealed that Masane lived in an orphanage for seventeen years and no records of her family were ever found. Her real name is Yasuko Ohara.
- Curtains Match the Window: Masane has brown eyes to match her brown hair.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Masane may turn into a bloodthirsty killing machine with yellow eyes and black sclera, wild red hair that she can form into impaling tentacles and blades on her fingers when using the Witchblade, but a villain she most definitely is not.
- Dude Magnet: Just ask Tozawa, Mr. Cho and Takayama.
- Glowing Eyes of Doom: Masane's eyes glow yellow while she is transformed.
- Heroic BSoD: After she releases Riko into Reina Soho's custody (Riko's biological mother) , she loses the will to fight and refuses to get out of bed.
- Heroic Sacrifice: In episode 24, Masane sacrifices herself to destroy all of the X-Cons.
- Hidden Heartof Gold: When the social worker convinces her that giving Riko to her biological mother would be better for her, she acts coldly towards Riko in order to make easier for Riko to leave her. After Riko leaves with the social worker, she bursts into tears.
- Identity Amnesia: Masane doesn't remember anything about her life before the Great Quake. Masane Amaha isn't even her real name; it's a fake name the government assigned her after she was rescued. Even after Takayama shows her where she grew up, she still doesn't remember anything.
- In a Single Bound: Masane can jump really far and really high when transformed. This gets upgraded to Flight in her Super Mode.
- In-Series Nickname: "Melony" or "Masamune".
- Legacy Character: The newest Witchblade wielder.
- Mama Bear: Masane will go through hell and high water to protect Riko.
- Manchild: At first, her daughter Rihoko acts like the adult and she acts like the child.
- Most Common Superpower: Her breasts are so large, she's referred to as "Melony" (in the English dub) or "Masamune" ("undefeatable breasts") by her friends.
- Ms. Fanservice: A busty, curvaceous woman who wears a very revealing outfit when using the Witchblade.
- Navel-Deep Neckline: While in Witchblade-mode, her outfit is open from her neck down to her waist, leaving her cleavage and midriff exposed.
- Power Dyes Your Hair: Her hair turns red when she uses the Witchblade. When she transforms into her Super Mode, her hair instead becomes white.
- Power Makes Your Hair Grow: It also gets noticeably longer when she transforms. Doubly so for her Super Mode.
- Power Makes Your Voice Deep: She tends to sound huskier and more sensual whenever she transforms.
- Punch-Clock Hero: Initially, at least, Masane only fights X-Cons in order to pay the bills.
- Second Love: To Takayama, his first being Reina.
- She Cleans Up Nicely: She wears a lovely white dress in episode 10 when Takayama forces her to attend a company award ceremony. Unfortunately, her manners remain the same.
- Supernatural Gold Eyes: When her Witchblade is activated.
- Super-Toughness: Masane once took a tank shell to the chest; while it blew her across the room, she was completely unharmed and her only reaction was to smirk and laugh. She can still be harmed by Cloneblade users and powerful X-Cons, however.
- Tsundere: Type B, towards Reiji Takayama.
- The Unchosen One: She was actually never meant to have the Witchblade and her sync values with it are very poor. The Witchblade is instead using her as a sort of intermediary host while waiting to jump to its real target, Riko.
Riko Amaha
Rihoko "Riko" Amaha
Voiced by: Akemi Kanda (Japanese), Carrie Savage (English)
Riko is the only child of Masane Amaha.
- Happily Adopted: When Reina reveals that Riko is her daughter, she says that Masane is her real mother and doesn't want to leave her.
- The Heart: She is able to put everyone in a good mood.
- In-Series Nickname: Her full name is actually "Rihoko", but everyone calls her "Riko".
- Living Emotional Crutch: To Masane. Her mother constantly states that Riko is her whole world, which proves true when Masane goes through a major Heroic BSoD after Reina takes custody of Riko.
- Nice Girl: She is sweet, polite, and friendly.
- Supreme Chef: She is constantly praised for her cooking skills.
- Wise Beyond Her Years: She has to be, considering her mom's not the most responsible person around.
Yuusuke Tozawa
Voiced by: Masaya Matsukaze (Japanese), Robert McCollum (English)
A freelance photographer investigating the "Pulverizer Murders", a series of murders of NSWF employees. While investigating the murders, he discovers the existence of the Witchblade and NSWF's connection to the murders.
- Curtains Match the Window: He has brown eyes to match his brown hair.
- Going for the Big Scoop: He often gets himself into trouble with the police and security because of this.
- Intrepid Reporter: He wants to find out the culprit behind the "Pulverizer Murders."
Douji Group Industries
Douji Group Industries is a huge corporation that is headed by a board of directors and Bureau Chief Reiji Takayama. Douji's primary focus is researching and developing special weapons, such as Witchblade and the I-Weapons. They are also responsible for the presence of X-Cons that rampage through Tokyo at night. Before the Great Quake, they possessed the Witchblade. In the past, Douji Group Industries collaborated with the NSWF on researching the Witchblade. The product of this research was the Cloneblade, a copy of the original Witchblade.
While Douji Group Industries and the NSWF were working together on the Witchblade, one of the NSWF's top scientists, Reina Soho, was sent to aid them in their research. However, Reina stole the Witchblade from Douji Group Industries in an attempt to gain its power. Once Reina's betrayal was discovered, both Douji Group Industries and the NSWF sent agents in to retrieve the Witchblade.
The Witchblade awoke during this time and the resulting power surge resulted in the Great Quake, a massive earthquake that devastated Tokyo and killed millions of people. After the Great Quake, Douji focused its attention on retrieving X-Cons, which were malfunctioning machines that escaped during the Great Quake.
Reiji Takayama
Voiced by: Rikiya Koyama (Japanese), Mark Stoddard (English)
Takayama is the head of the Special Section in Douji Group Industries, which manufactures weapons and researches weapons like the Witchblade. He hired Masane Amaha to dispose of X-Cons. He first appears to be a cold and ruthless man who only cares about his job, but this is not actually the case.
- Brutal Honesty: He says exactly how he feels and doesn't worry about offending or hurting anyone with his words.
- Curtains Match the Window: Has black eyes and black hair.
- Defrosting Ice Queen: A male example.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: Has a faint diagonal scar across his right eye.
- Missing Mom: His mother died giving birth to Takayama.
- Luke, I Am Your Father: He is Riko's biological father.
- Papa Wolf: He gains a protective streak towards for his daughter Riko. In the final episode, when Riko was outside during a dangerous fight, Takayama immediately left a safe area to go and look for her.
- Parental Neglect: His father was always at work and rarely spent time with him.
- The Stoic: He rarely allows his emotions to show even when he's in danger.
- Tsundere: Type A. Initially, he acts rudely towards Masane, but later on starts to develop romantic feelings toward her.
- Uptown Guy: He's the boss of a relatively wealthy business and develops feelings for Masane, a woman who works as freelancer of sorts.
Masaya Wado
Voiced by: Kazuhiro Nakata (Japanese), Kent Williams (English)
A work colleague of Takayama's who works as the Director of Bio Division at Douji Group Industries. He's known Takayama since college and sees him as a hated rival.
- Hidden Depths: Apparently he has an unusually strong physical constitution that gives him the uncanny ability to hold his liquor.
- Kick the Dog: He uses his servile aide as a Sacrificial Lamb for one of his experiments.
- Pyrrhic Victory: He eventually succeeds at defeating Takayama, and forces the latter to resign. In doing so, however, he utterly destroys the company he wanted to take over in the process, with no way to recover. As Takayama says himself."The boat has sunk. You shot the hole in the bottom yourself."
- The Rival: Considers himself this to Takayama.
- Smug Snake: This is his undoing; he tries so hard to be a
Magnificent Bastard, but he keeps fucking up royally because as Badass Normal Reiji Takayama puts it, "He's always looking for shortcuts." This winds up biting him in the ass in a cruelly ironic way.
Hiroki Segawa
Voiced by: Kenichi Suzumura (Japanese), Christopher Bevins (English)
Takayama's right hand man who is always professional and prepared. He loves power and frequently switches sides depending on who has the most power.
- Chronic Back Stabbing Disorder: By his own admission, he frequently switches sides depending on who has the most power.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: The reason he's risen so far in the ranks.
NSWF
The National Scientific Welfare Foundation is a government agency led by Tatsuoki Furumizu. Like Douji Group Industries, they are interested in the Witchblade and seek to capture Masane for research purposes. They have managed to create a working replica of the Witchblade, called the Cloneblade, and created a series of clones called "Neogenes" to wear it. Tatsuoki Furumizu
Voiced by: Shinji Ogawa (Japanese), R. Bruce Elliott (English)
Head of the NSWF and father to Neogenes.
- Big Bad: From the beginning of the series onwards, he and his organization pose the preeminent threat to Masane and her daughter, Riko. However, this is ultimately subverted given that he is later killed 5 episodes before the series finale by his "daughter" Maria, who subsequently seizes control of the NSWF.
- Big Ol' Eyebrows: Only Reiji's eyebrows are larger than his.
- Faux Affably Evil: Despite displaying charm and paternal warmth when interacting with the public and his "children," he is actually a very cruel and cold-hearted individual who has no regard for the well-being of those who serve him.
- In-Series Nickname: He is called "Father" by his Neogenes and the children of the city.
- It's All About Me: As a consummate narcissist he cares about no one but himself.
- Manipulative Bastard: One of the key secrets behind his personal success is the extent which he can effortlessly charm and deceive others around him without any semblance of regret. This is made most apparent by the manner in which he wields authority over his powerful but largely naive Neogene daughters by callously exploiting their desire for parental affection.
- Narcissist: In distinct contrast from the kindly and humble persona he presents to the public, Furumizu is in reality an egocentric megalomaniac who believes that his genes embody the best humanity has to offer.
- Mommy Issues: He believes his mother is responsible for his sterility and seeks to create a new one to end his shame.
- The Stoic: Even when his plans are frustrated, he perpetually maintains a serene and calm demeanor up until the time of his death when he undergoes a rather disturbing emotional breakdown.
- Villain with Good Publicity: His charming and friendly nature is just an act.
Reina Soho
Click here to Reina when using the Cloneblade.
Voiced by: Mie Sonozaki (Japanese), Colleen Clinkenbeard (English)
One of the first Neogenes that Masane encounters and a top NSWF scientist.
- Defrosting Ice Queen: She starts out emotionless at the beginning, but after she gains custody of Rihoko she starts showing emotions, including maternal feelings for her daughter.
- Foil: To Masane. Both are some maternal figure to Riko—Masane as her adoptive mother and Reina as her biological mother. Masane is constantly on the run from child welfare and is an irresponsible Womanchild, while Reina is professionally and financially prepared to care for Riko. However, Masane and Riko's bond is a natural and warm one, while Riko and Reina's starts off as distant and slow to progress.
- In-Series Nickname: "Lady."
- Lady of War: Unlike her assistant Shiori, she never loses control of her emotions in battle.
- Mama Bear: Reina will go through hell and high water to protect Riko. Whether it means killing Nora, her "sister" or from the psycho second generation Neogene Maria.
- Prehensile Hair: That she can use not only to slash and impale things, but also protect herself with by forming a shield.
- Luke, I Am Your Father: She is Riko's biological mother.
- The Stoic
Shiori Tsuzuki
Click here to Shiori when using the Cloneblade.
Click here to Shiori's second Cloneblade form.
Voiced by: Shizuka Itō (Japanese), Trina Nishimura (English)
Reina's assistant and the second Neogene that Masane encounters.
- Attempted Rape: She was just about to do this to Takayama before her Super-Power Meltdown went critical.
- Ax-Crazy: With the possible exception of Maria, she is definitely the most violent and depraved of the Witchblade bearers.
- Blood Knight: Aside from basking in the presence of her beloved Reina, nothing gratifies Shiori more than senseless brutality and the thrill of fighting to the death.
- The Dragon: To Reina.
- In-Series Nickname: "Diva".
- Interplay of Sex and Violence: Even more so than the other Witchblade bearers.
- Psycho Lesbian: She's obsessed with Reina, her employer, though the 'Psycho' aspect of this trope doesn't really come into play until she starts suffering her breakdown.
- Sanity Slippage: While she never was sane to begin with, she begins losing all semblance of sanity when the Cloneblade begins to consumer her (i.e., going so far as to slaughter people indiscriminately before having sex with their bodies and attempting to rape the object of her infatuation's former lover.
- Stalker with a Crush: She volunteers to clean up Reina's office just for the sake of kissing her mug which has her lipstick on it. Additionally, she can't resist groping Reina's buttocks when the object of her infatuation tends to her injuries in an NWSF infirmary.
- Super-Power Meltdown: Her Cloneblade gets damaged during her first real fight with Masane and starts breaking down, turning Shiori into a vicious and uncontrollable psychopath before finally killing her in a spectacular fashion.
- White Hair, Black Heart: In Neogene form.
Nora
Nora
Click here to Nora when using the Cloneblade.
Voiced by: Saori Yumiba (Japanese), Stephanie Young (English)
Tatsuoki Furumizu's assistant.
- Arachnid Appearance and Attire: It's relatively subtle, but while transformed Nora's hair forms itself into long appendage like the legs of a spider.
- The Dragon: To Father.
- In-Series Nickname: "Spider", and for good reason. Not only does she look a little like a spider while transformed, a lot of her attacks and tactics evoke spiders as well.
- Prehensile Hair: Her main weapon. Nora can do a lot of things with that hair of hers, such as forming it into tendrils with which to swing off obstacles or impale her opponents, and she can also fire strands of it like needles
- Wolverine Claws: She can extend her fingers into a set of really long blades.
