Dragon Maid Characters
We sure do love slice-of-life style anime and manga here at MOEFLAVOR.
Dragon Maid, also known by the names Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid and The Maid Dragon of Kobayashi-san, is a wonderfully quirky mix of fantasy and “slice of life” that we just can’t get out of our heads. This manga should definitely be on the bookshelf in your kawaii room if it isn’t already.
If you’re new to the world of Dragon Maid, or even if you’re new to the world of manga in general, we’ve got your back. You can count on us to break down the lovable, endearing, silly, and just plain silly characters in Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid world.
Let’s learn about the characters that help make Dragon Maid so popular, including a little peek into the anime spinoff! Ready to leave the real world behind and enter the mythical realm of Dragon Maid? Let’s dive in!
What Is Manga?
Maybe you are unfamiliar with what manga is and find your head spinning with all of this new information.
Simply put, manga is the name given to Japanese graphic novels. Comic books can also be included when defining manga, too, but they’re not quite like comic books from America. Manga is most often published in black and white – however, special releases can include special colorized books.
Another difference between graphic novels in Japan and America is that you commonly read manga from left to right instead of from right to left. Always keep this in mind when you pick up a copy of Dragon Maid: You don’t want to spoil the ending by accidentally starting your book at the end!
Some people think that manga’s roots date back to the 12th century, with colorful scrolls depicting scenes and conveying messages and stories. Since then, manga has evolved into an industry worth almost 613 billion Japanese yen (that’s nearly 42 million US dollars).
Manga is divided into multiple genres that target various demographics. So, where does Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid fall? As we mentioned above, this manga is considered a “slice of life” manga, often considered Shōjo, meaning the target audience of Dragon Maid is women and teenagers on the older side (you can expect some playful adult jokes amongst the pages of Dragon Maid).
The Beginnings of Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid was created by graphic artist Coolkyousinnjya in 2013. Coolkyousinnjya both writes and illustrates this series, with 12 volumes currently published.
Coolkyousinnjya seems to have no plans of stopping this epic fantasy tale anytime soon. They are still creating new chapters presently, so we can expect to scratch our fantasy comedy itch with new volumes as the years go on!
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid was adapted as an anime series in 2017, which we can find on Crunchyroll here stateside. Let us not forget to mention that Dragon Maid was made into a video game, too! Kaminari Games spearheaded the project, which was released in the summer of 2022.
Whether you game on a Nintendo Switch or a PlayStation 4 with your kawaii gaming setup, you can partake in the shoot ‘em up fun of “Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid: Burst Forth!! Choro-gon Breath.”
What Is the Dragon Maid Manga About?
Okay, okay. Before you invest in copies of the Dragon Maid manga or save the anime to your list on Crunchyroll, you’ll want to know just why audiences are so captivated by this charming manga series.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid follows office worker Kobayashi after a drunken mountain adventure. During said excursion, Kobayashi suddenly happened upon a dragon with a sword in its back. The dragon, known as Tohru, felt eternally grateful for Kobayashi’s kindness.
The next day, Tohru ends up on Kobayashi’s doorstep, but not in the way that you’d expect … Tohru had taken the form of a young girl dressed up as a maid.
Tohru had no place to stay, so Kobayashi proposed the idea that Tohru should stay with her. Tohru earns her keep by performing duties as Kobayashi’s personal maid. Let’s not forget that Tohru is still a dragon at heart, though! The real world and fantasy worlds collide with the introduction of Tohru into Kobayashi’s home, creating some quirky and fun shenanigans.
Who Are the Human Characters of Dragon Maid?
Part of what makes Dragon Maid so special is its beloved characters — get to know them better below!
Kobayashi
The main character of Dragon Maid is Kobayashi herself, whose first name is unknown. Kobayashi has fiery red hair that is usually up in a ponytail, and she wears unassuming office clothes while at work.
When Kobayashi isn’t on the clock, you can find her wearing modest clothing such as a light blue button-up shirt, a hoodie, or a light brown cardigan with a white shirt underneath.
Kobayashi is the voice of reason in a world of fantastical characters and mythical beasts. Despite this, she is known to get a bit aggressive and rowdy after a few drinks. Another source of frustration for Kobayashi is that she gets mistaken for a boy at times. This is amplified by her annoyance about her flat chest, and she’s often grumbling to herself on the topic.
All in all, Kobayashi is a very cute and endearing character! You find yourself wanting her to succeed. Many view Kobayashi as both reliable and kind-hearted.
Makoto Takiya
Kobayashi’s friend and coworker, this handsome computer programmer is best-known in the series as an otaku — just like us!
Even-tempered, good natured, and unruffled by surprises, Makoto likes to hide his otaku side, even though he’s extremely passionate about the things he loves. Of course, once Kobayashi gets Makoto out of the office, he can’t help but loudly rant about cosplay, manga, and his strong opinions about video games.
Who Are the Fantasy Characters in Dragon Maid?
We delved a little bit into some of the fantasy characters in Miss Koboyashi’s Dragon Maid world through our dragons-turned-humans, Tohru and Kanna Kamui. Still, there are a few other mythical beings that round out the wholesome cast of characters in Dragon Maid!
Quetzalcoatl
Quetzalcoatl, also known as Lucoa, is literally a goddess. She is able to take the form of a human, too, much like Kanna and Tohru. In her human form, Quetzalcoatl is blonde, tall, and well-endowed. She boasts two different colored eyes, which is known as heterochromia.
Even though Quetzalcoatl is a goddess, she fell off of that pedestal many years ago due to a drunken scandal. Nevertheless, she is carefree and constantly has a warm smile on her face.
Fafnir
Fafnir is a dragon that also has a human form. His human form is that of an unassuming young man with small-framed glasses, long, dark hair, and red eyes. These red eyes can change color depending on his mood.
Fafnir’s mysterious demeanor also reflects his personality: calm, cool, and collected. Not much is known about his dragon life, aside from the time he spent guarding treasure in a cave.
Elma
While Tohru is a dragon from the Chaos Faction, Elma is on the other side of the spectrum: belonging to the Faction of Harmony. While in her human form, short black hair adorns Elma’s head, along with a unicorn horn that ties into her life as a dragon.
Elma is one tough cookie, personality-wise, and really enjoys eating cookies, too. Elma is known for having a massive sweet tooth!
Azad
We can’t all be heroes. Azad is a double-agent pretending to work for Kimun Kamui who doesn’t love dragons quite as much as the rest of us. Although he appears calm and collective at first, he can be angry and violent when he shows his true feelings about the dragons.
Of course, we can’t really blame him for having some negative feelings about our fantasy friends — he’s just taken things more than a little too far, killing innocent dragons as often as possible.
After dragons took his sister away from him during his youth, he began to hate dragons as he mourned. Azad let his anger overcome him, and now he teeters on the verge of madness trying to avenge his sister.
How to Cosplay as a Dragon Maid Character
Here at MOEFLAVOR, we have options for both the “dragon” and “maid” parts of a costume fit to represent Dragon Maid at your next con.
Our Devil Horn Headband can be interchangeable with dragon horns, and it comes in black, red, and pink. Combine this sassy headband with one of our maid outfits (the Tactical Maid Set comes to mind), and you are all set! For some extra added flair, go for some Luna Thigh High Stockings in white.
If you want to dress up as the adorable Quetzalcoatl, we’ve got what you need. No Quetzalcoatl cosplay would be complete without Dex Sheer Stockings in black to go with her jean shorts and black tank top.
Conclusion
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid manga has a cast of characters that is full of kind-hearted, silly, inspiring, goofy, and dreamy individuals. We know you’ll relate to the qualities of a few of these characters while you’re flipping through these graphic novels!
Now that you feel like you may fit into Miss Kobayashi’s world, you just might be inspired now to don a Tohru cosplay or dress up as Quetzalcoatlfor Anime Central.
Sources:
Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid | IMDB
A Beginner's Guide to Manga | The New York Public Library
The History of Manga in Manga | Google Arts & Culture
Manga industry in Japan - statistics and facts | Statista