A shounen manga and anime series by Sakura Kinoshita and Kazuko Higashiyama following a spiritually sensitive folklorist (did we mention he's an exorcist? And has a scar and bells that throb/ring anytime anything evil comes around?), his enthralled servant fox Youko, a bratty little girl who's in love with the final member of the group, a demon eating goblin/tengu who has been named 'Haruka', and their various escapades all throughout demon country, until the major Genre Shift in the anime kicks in and everything gets a whole lot more depressing.
The anime is produced by Studio Deen.
Not to be confused with Final Fantasy Tactics, Tactics Ogre, or other strategy games.
Tactics provides examples of:
- A Fool and His New Money Are Soon Parted: Somehow, Kantarou's newly earned cash always runs out quickly...
- The Ageless: The youkai.
- A God Am I: Kantarou gets like this when a religion is devoted to him. Turns out he's just putting it on for show to make his Batman Gambit work.
- Ahoge: Kantarou has one, although it's curled and isn't very noticeable.
- Anyone Can Die: In the anime, at least.
- Ax-Crazy: Haruka, when he feels another youkai disrespects him.
- The Barnum: Youko.(talking about Haruka)"He's so...pretty. Maybe I can whore him out!"
- Bad Boss: Kanatarou. To again quote Youko on this:"Welcome to hell, Haruka-chan. Even a badass like you will crumble under that guy."
- Batman Gambit: Kantarou is quite good at these...
- Bishounen: Hooo boy... Where to start?
- Kantaro and Sugino probably take the cake, though - If it weren't for their voices, they could easily be mistaken for girls.
- Even Kantaro's voice could be mistaken as a girl's, if he tries hard enough. See episode 4.
- Berserk Button: Do NOT try to take Haruka's rice bowl.
- Biting the Handkerchief: Well, biting his robes; Sugino does this when he sees Muu-chan clinging to Kantaro.
- Bleached Underpants: Kinoshita and Higashiyama are also a doujin duo that have notably done Yaoi based off the series.
- Bratty Half-Pint: Suzu could classify, depending on character interpretation.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Kantarou.
- Butterfly of Death and Rebirth: Done with Miyabi's death.
- Chick Magnet: Haruka. There's even a hilarious sound effect played when another girl falls for him.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Kantarou.
- Deadpan Snarker: Haruka.
- Dude, Where's My Reward?: Frequently, seeing as Kantarou is a grade-A money grubber.
- Elegant Gothic Lolita: Rosalie
- Emotionless Girl: What Rosalie appears to be at first.
- Expy: Kantaro and Suzu look like adult Loki and Reiya from Matantei Loki Ragnarok. Of course, since Sakura Kinoshita is the artist, it's hardly surprising.
- Fangirl: Basically every female character on the show, save for Youko is like this towards Haruka.
- Fanservice: Female fanservice at that.
- Gender-Blender Name: When Kantarou names Haruka, he specifically states that his name is to be spelled with the kanji for "spring flowers." (As Haruka can be alternately said as "being distant")
- Glamour Failure: Despite being humanized by Kantarou, Haruka is a powerful youkai.
- I See Dead People
- I'm a Humanitarian: Haruka is a demon-eater, so...
- I'm Taking Her Home with Me!: Kantarou can get like this with certain youkai...
- Improbable Weapon User Averted. Kantarou uses scrolls and beads and such, but then you realize he is an exorcist.
- Ill Girl: Miyabi, and later on Suzu.
- Incapable of Disobeying: Yokai have an inborn trait that makes them obey the human who names them when that human calls their name.
- It Was All Just A Dream: Episode 15.
- Jerkass: Hasumi.
- Large Ham: Kantarou, hoo boy Kantarou...
- Miko Kantarou dresses like one.
- Meaningful Name: Youko's entire name is Kantarou's way of making an Incredibly Lame Pun: Youko is also the name of a type of fox demon, which is what Youko actually is, she is a youko named "Youko", a play on the female name Youko/Yoko.
- Meido Youko, though her outfit is a rather odd combination of a traditional kimono and French maid apron.
- Older Than They Look: All of the youkai, obviously, but also Kantaro. At first glance, you think Kantaro must be eighteen-years-old, nineteen at most. But then you read volume three and learn that Hasumi is actually his underclassman, and one has to wonder just how old the money-grubbing priest really is...Haruka: Underclassman? How old does that make Kantarou?Yakko: ... ... ...Haruka: ... Why aren't you answering, Yakko?
- Only Sane Man: Despite being the show's resident Barnum, Youko seems to be the one with the most amount of sense in her...
- Parental Obliviousness: Hasumi doesn't really seem to get that Rosalie can hold her own.
- Powers via Possession: Rosalie.
- Psycho Lesbian / Yandere: The Yuki-onna in the first episode (When she's possessed by an aradama, anyway.)
- Rapunzel Hair: Sugino; his hair goes at least down to his butt.
- Really 700 Years Old: Haruka.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning. Subverted. Kantarou is the only one who has them, and he's one of the only humans.
- Rescue Hug: Haruka once does this to
Kantarou. - Running Gag: The odds are good that in any given drama CD, Raikou will be bathing in one scene, no matter how improbable.
- Second Law of Metafictional Thermodynamics: Suzu, it would seem.
- Shirtless Scene: Both Kantarou and Haruka get one in episode 3. Granted, it was the Hot Springs Episode, so it's to be expected.
- Shout-Out: Episode 15, in which the main characters are drawn to the house of a former friend of Suzu's, in rural Japan, everyone gets picked off one by one, Suzu goes bonkers, at the end it turns out it was all just Suzu's hallucination...and the episode title is called "The Fading Song of Summer Cicadas."
- Sitting on the Roof: one of Haruka's preferred places to relax.
- 10-Minute Retirement: Youko, in the anime.
- Tsundere: Youko to Kantarou. It's normally justified.
- Youkai
