The Three Straw Hats are the second most important characters in the Hell Girl series after Enma and Ai. Today we will be introducing each of the Three Straw Hats, so please enjoy!
But first, what is Hell Girl?
This popular dark horror series aired its first anime series in 2005, with a sequel airing the following year. As of 2008, four seasons have aired, and the anime remains popular even 10 years after the first season. While the story is primarily dark and horror-themed, it also incorporates plenty of social satire and its style has evolved over the years, entertaining audiences.
What are the Three Straw Hats?
These three are Enma Ai's familiars and close friends. Long ago, unable to die due to the regrets they each left behind in their previous lives, they were picked up by Enma Ai while living as evil youkai. Since then, he has called Ai Ojou and served her by her side, conducting background checks on people who access Hell Communications.
Ichimokuren (voiced by Masaya Matsukaze)
He's usually a modern young man, a self-proclaimed good-looking man. Even when he disguises himself as a high school teacher for undercover investigations, he attracts the attention of female students. When he's undercover, he operates under the alias of Ishimoto Ren. Ichimokuren has a generally good personality, but he's a relatively narcissistic man who is openly declaring his handsomeness. His behavior and speech can sometimes be a bit frivolous, which can be a bit of a pain (lol).
Ichimokuren's Abilities
When transformed into a yokai, she can spy on things like her eyes, which appear on her forehead and the back of her head to intimidate others. She can also freely attach these eyes to walls and ceilings, allowing her to spy on places and rooms that are invisible to the naked eye and gather information. In other words, she can spy on them... She can also sometimes create wind to teleport her.
Hitomeren's Past
Originally a sword-wielding Tsukumogami who had slashed countless people in battle, she was abandoned on the battlefield and was picked up by Enma Ai, who became her companion. Perhaps due to her non-human origins, she is very interested in siblings and proactively takes action when a request for sibling-related matters comes her way.
What are the Tsukumogami?
Souls and spirits reside in objects that have been used for many years, and the older they are, the more they are treated as something bad. In other legends, she is sometimes portrayed as the reincarnation of a fox that lived for 100 years.
Hone Onna (Hone Onna) Voiced by Takako Honda
A beautiful woman with a voluptuous, mature appearance who often wears bold clothing. Like Ichimokuren, her basic job involves sneaking in disguise. When she is disguised as a human, she uses the name Sone Anna. She is a woman who plays the role of an office lady, female teacher, nurse, and other roles that require sexy outfits. In reality, she is quite old as she is a yokai, but she becomes angry when people call her old or an old lady. She is the most emotional of the three straw warriors.
Hone Onna's Abilities
Able to reduce herself to a skeleton, she primarily serves to instill fear in her targets. On rare occasions, she appears to be able to encase her kunai in flames and throw them.
Hone Onna's Past
Long ago, while still living as a human, she was deceived by the son of the man she loved and sold to a brothel. There, she was betrayed, killed, and dumped in a river by her most beloved companion. Unable to die in peace, she became a demon, frightening humans, until she was picked up by Enma Ai and became her companion. Perhaps due to a lifetime of constant betrayals, he is also more sensitive to emotions than most.
Wanyudo (voiced by Takayuki Sugo)
He has the most life experience of the Three Straw Hats and looks like an elderly man. He also serves as a leader among them. He usually wears hakama and speaks in an Edo-style manner. When in human form, he goes by the name Fuwa Ryudo. He has a very friendly, grandfatherly personality, and as such, stories involving Wanyudo tend to be relatively humane.
Wainyuudou's Abilities
As a yokai, she has the ability to transform into a wheel, serving as a vehicle for Enma Ai to travel to her destination. In her wheel form, she can become surrounded by flames and stop cars with her superhuman strength.
Rin-Nyudo's Past
Originally a carriage wheel carrying a princess, he chased her and then lost her in an accident while fleeing. Feeling guilty for causing her death, he became a demon out of remorse. While scaring passersby, Ai picked him up and they became friends.
Yamawaro (CV: Shiina Hekiru)
A new member of Ai and her friends, appearing in the third season. With Yamawaro's addition, the Four Straw Hats are effectively the Straw Hats. He has a boyish appearance, wearing short sleeves and shorts. He is very polite and reliable, calling Kikuri "Princess" and Kikuri calling him "Warowaro." Ai had once invited him out in the past, but he wasn't interested at the time and turned her down.
Yamawaro's Abilities
She has the ability to transform herself by placing leaves on her head, create wind, and, as a mountain spirit, make flowers bloom. He also has the ability to make Kikuri feel attached to him (lol).
Yamawaro's Past
Originally, she was a mountain spirit and lived alone in the mountains. She was once invited to join, but she declined because she had no particular doubts about her current lifestyle. At that time, the son of a family living in a mountain mansion dies in an accident, and the wife of the mansion comes across a Yamawaro who looks exactly like her dead son while wandering the mountains. She invites him to live in the mansion as his reincarnation, but the wife is ill and does not have much time left, and when her husband realizes that the Yamawaro is not human, he uses him as a test subject for a drug he is developing to extend the wife's life. In the end, the wife finds out and lets the Yamawaro escape into the mountains, and realizing he is alone, he decides to go to Ai's place.
Yamawaro's Decision
At the end of the latest film, "Hell Girl: Yoi no Kakera," Yamawaro leaves Ai's gang and joins Michiru, the new Hell Girl. Kikuri was shocked, and viewers were pretty shocked too... I hope she does well in her new place.
The Three Straw Hats Share a Common Ability
Even if they've met someone before, they have a special ability that prevents them from recognizing them as if they're meeting for the first time when they meet again on a different assignment. Also, while not an ability, all of their names are taken from the names of ancient Japanese yokai.
Summary of the Three Straw Hats!
This was an introduction to Ai's precious companions, the Three Straw Hats. Despite being demons, the Three Straw Hats are also very human, and in fact, more human than humans themselves. They are entertaining characters in many ways, so if you'd like to watch the series, be sure to check out the Three Straw Hats. Thank you for reading to the end.
