Shout Out / Flame of Recca

Here are Flame of Recca's various shout-outs and references to other series.

Yu Yu Hakusho

Rekka no Honō has arguably been inspired by YuYu Hakusho wholesale^note (as it has often been compared to YuYu Hakusho since its inception).

• Recca Hanabishi's delinquent mannerisms, unwillingness to kill, and eventual participation in a dark underground tournament while leading a motley crew of misfits make him a similar character to Yusuke Urameshi.
  • Meanwhile, whenever he summons his eight dragons, it looks quite similar to Jaganshi Hiei's Jaou-En-Satsu Koku Ryu Ha (Dragon of the Darkness Flame) technique but with normal red and yellow Human World flames instead of black and purple Demon World flames.
  • Having Recca's eight flame dragons sealed inside his arm brace then summoned by name as kanji tattoos on his shoulders is also Hiei-like^note in that Hiei has sealed the Dragon of the Darkness Flame on his forearm as a tattoo that he further binds with a bandage and talismans.
• As the delinquent Big Guy of the team and rival of the hero in a series oft-compared to YYH, Domon is often considered the stand-in for Kazuma Kuwabara. Unlike Kuwabara, Domon manages to stay relevant till the end of the series.
• The pretty boy smart fighter of the team, Tokiya Mikagami, is basically Team Hokage's Kurama if he's fully human instead of a demon in human guise.
  • Tokiya's character design specifically resembles Kurama's demon fox form
  • Tokiya's use of the water-based madougu Ensui also makes him highly reminiscent of Touya the Ice Demon as well, particularly when it comes to their ice/water swords.
• The Healing Hands and Damsel in Distress arc of Yanagi Sakoshita, meanwhile, is also reminiscent of Hiei's younger sister Yukina the Ice Maiden^note who's ironically Kuwabara's love interest instead of Yusuke's while Yanagi is Recca's love interest instead of Domon's..
  • While we're at it, the way the overprotective Tokiya substitutes Yanagi for his deceased sister is also reminiscent of Hiei's relationship with his long-lost sister Yukina or Kurama's overprotective relationship with his human "mother", Shiori Minamino.
• Even though the soft-spoken Yanagi is Recca's love interest, Fuuko Kirisawa ended up being more like Keiko Yukimura (Yusuke's love interest) instead but with a dash of Shizuru Kuwabara thrown into the mix.^note It's as if the Expies of the primary and secondary love interests of YYH switched places when they were transplanted into the world of Flame of Recca.
• Kaoru Koganei might not be a 1:1 direct Expy of Hiei, but he does share the fire demon's short stature, Heel–Face Turn, and quickness in battle.
  • As for his ability to quickly change the puzzle-like madougu Kougan Aki into different forms^note (from a huge blade to scissors to chain-sickle to a bow and arrow), it's reminiscent of Kurama's adaptability in battle when it comes to his all-purpose demonic plants.
• Kagehoshi or Kagerou is basically the even more Action Girl version of Botan with a dash of Yusuke's mother and/or Raizen's lover (Yusuke's ancestor) thrown into the mix.
• Kurei Mori's purple flames are highly reminiscent of the Demon World darkness flames of Hiei, except on Kurei's part, he summons a ghostly flame woman with fiery wings instead of a destructive rampaging black dragon.
• Kouran Mori looks like a mix between one of Yusuke's antagonistic junior high teachers (Mr. Iwamoto) design-wise and one of the rich Black Black Club members funding the Ankoku Bujutsukai tournament motivation-wise.
  • His immortality powers when he gets a hold of the madougu known as Tendo Jigoku (Heaven and Hell) is also reminiscent of the regenerative abilities of Elder Toguro mixed with the assimilation abilities of Gourmet.
• Mokuren Nagai is another candidate for Elder Toguro's Expy with his Ax-Crazy tendencies and his Body Horror powers. Ironically, both him and Elder Toguro also end up becoming one with the plants, although in Toguro's case it was without his knowledge or consent.
• Both Recca and YYH also end up with their own respective team-based tournament arcs with animal-themed female referees^note (they're merely doing Cosplay in Recca instead of being outright monster girls like in YYH) for good measure. Both are underground tournaments that involve the wealthy betting on the participants. This was when the comparisons between the two series were at their peak.
• Genjurou the psychic surgeon and resident Mad Scientist of the Uruha Jyuushinshu is reminiscent of YYH's Dr. Ichigaki with the way he keeps victimizing innocent people for his own nefarious ends.

The King of Fighters

The series has also been inspired by The King of Fighters.

• Recca's ancestral flame powers (and a measure of delinquency), having a rival that fights with purple flames, and having a semi-mystical girlfriend sought out by the bad guys give him similarities with Kyo Kusanagi.
• Kurei Mori, Recca's estranged elder brother, is also the eerie and more ruthless rival of a flame-wielding hero. He shares many similarities with Iori Yagami, particularly when it comes to wielding purple flames.
• The tournament shown in the series—the Ura Butō Satsujin—also involves team-based action instead of single-elimination entries, just like how KOF has been conducted since 1994.

• Fuuko is capable of releasing Razor Wind with her madougu just like Takeshi Onimaru and his cursed Fuujin sword from Ken'yu Densetsu Yaiba. No wonder, since both of them have links to the elemental wind god Fuujin. Ditto with Raiha and his madougu Raijin being reminiscent of the titular hero Yaiba wielding the Raijin sword and sphere.
  • Her being the tomboyish childhood friend who's in love with the protagonist has shades of Ukyo Kuonji from Ranma ½ as well. The fact that she's commonly paired up with Domon Ishijima like Ukyo is to Ryoga Hibiki is also of note.
• Kurei's ability to summon undead flame warriors fighting by his side like his deceased girlfriend Kurenai is not unlike the Stands^note (psycho-spiritual humanoid manifestations of willpower) found in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.
  • Kurei also looks like a colorful JoJo character himself, what with his androgynous features, creepy White Mask of Doom, earrings and jewelry, Visual Kei fashion sense, prominent face burns, leathery clothes with Too Many Belts that look like S&M gear, and purple lipstick.
  • Kurei also has shades of Burai from Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger in him thanks to him becoming The Sixth Ranger to the rest of Team Hokage later on in the manga. This on top of the viotriolic brotherly relationship and Succession Crisis that Burai and Geki share with Kurei and Recca.