Durarara!!

Ikebukuro, Tokyo. Mikado Ryugamine is a young man who yearns for the city like no other. At the invitation of his childhood friend, Masaomi Kida, he leaves his hometown and enters Raira Academy in  Ikebukuro. Masaomi warns Mikado about some dangerous people in Ikebukuro to watch out for. There are two in particular: the brawling champion Shizuo Heiwajima and hobbyist information broker Izaya Orihara; And also the mysterious organization of unknown origin known as the “Dollars.” On his first day out in the city, Mikado sees a jet-black motorcycle being driven by the fabled “Headless Rider.” From then on, a series of random attacks and events begin to occur on the streets of Ikebukuro, and a group known as the Yellow Scarves arises as Ikebukuro begins to crumble!

Main Characters

Mikado Ryugamine

Online Alias: Tanaka Taro

A first year high school boy who moved to Ikebukuro with the encouragement of his best friend, Masaomi Kida. He moved in order to search for unusual beings and adventure. His greatest fear is having a normal life. Mikado tries hard to change his image but so far he has not had any luck, although he does get up enough courage to become the Class Representative along with Anri. Mikado has had moments where he speaks his mind, and Masaomi claims to admire this about him. He is the only remaining creator of the infamous Dollars. He seems to be infatuated with Anri Sonohara, but has never found a chance to tell her. Whenever he is close to confessing, she leaves. Mikado often gets advice from Izaya, particularly in relation to the Dollars and his need to seek out a life that isn't ordinary. He is the leader of Dollars. 

Masaomi Kida

Online Alias: Bakyura

A resident of Ikebukuro and Mikado Ryūgamine's best friend from childhood. He was the one who encouraged Mikado to come to Ikebukuro. He is enthusiastic about picking-up girls, but he seems to fail at it. He was depressed and lonely before Mikado arrived because his girlfriend was kidnapped and injured during a gang war between the Blue Squares and Yellow Scarves, which he led at the time. After Anri is injured during the Slasher incidents and the rising presence of the Dollars, he is forced to become the leader of the Yellow Scarves once more. He despises Orihara Izaya for manipulating him when he first formed the Yellow Scarves, but returns to him again for information about the leader of the Dollars and discovers it is Mikado. He leaves Ikebukuro with his ex-girlfriend, Saki Mikajima, during the conflict between the 3 main forces in Ikebukuro. Masaomi has commented on not letting Mikado "go to the dark side", claiming that he has already gone through it. 

Anri Sonohara

Online Alias: Saika

A spectacled girl who attends the same school as Mikado and Masaomi. She is the class representative along with Mikado. She is rather quiet and timid and seems very close to Kida and Mikado, but she tends to keep to herself. Though she knows Kida and Mikado's feelings for her, she considers herself unable to feel "love" towards either of them. She is very busty and cute, which makes her somewhat popular, even though she feels uneasy about it. She feels as if she needs to rely on somebody to move on, and thus considers herself a parasite. Instead of Niekawa Haruna, Anri is revealed to be the real owner of the blade "Saika". She has shown great control over it as she is not possessed by it. This is due to a traumatic experience during her childhood, when her mother killed her abusive father and then herself with Saika. Her inability to love negates Saika's "love" for humans and thus makes Anri able to control the blade. She seems to be a skilled swordsman, being able to handle Saika with great skill. After defeating Haruna, she gained control over the "Saika-children" that Haruna created. After a talk with Celty, she decides to use this ability for the best of the city. Anri also becomes aware of Kida's identity of the leader of the Yellow Scarves, but does not understand why he has taken the position. 

Celty Sturluson

Online Alias: Setton

The heroine of the series. Also known as "The Black Biker" or "The Headless Rider", she is a Dullahan from Ireland who came to Japan looking for her stolen head. Her motorcycle is actually a horse in disguise. She has no heart and perceives via unknown sensors that are not located on the head. The physical strength she possesses is above human, though not quite on par with Shizuo Heiwajima. She is also capable of manipulating a shadow-like, durable substance to form objects ranging from gloves to chariots at her will.

Celty lives with Shinra Kishitani, and the two are romantically involved. She works as an underground courier. She wears a helmet when she goes out and communicates via a PDA. She enjoys online chatting, television and DVDs. She is one of the minority who knows the creator of the Dollars and that Anri is in control of Saika. Over the course of the series, her relationship with Shinra intensifies; eventually, she says that she is in love with Shinra. She has a habit of punching Shinra in the stomach whenever he talks about his love for her. She tends to get mad when Shinra says she does not need her head. Despite being a supernatural creature, she is afraid of extraterrestrials and has developed a fear of traffic officers as they started pursuing her frequently. Her biggest fear, however, is that if her head is destroyed, the same may happen to her. She is a member of Dollars.

Izaya Orihara

Online Alias: Kanra/Nakura

A young man who sells information for his own enjoyment . He claims to love the entire human race except for Shizuo Heiwajima, and exhibits said love by putting humans in often miserable conditions and observing their reactions.

He attended Raira Academy with Shizuo, Shinra and Kadota. According to Shinra, Izaya and Shizuo hated each other with a passion almost from the point they met. In the novels, Izaya framed Shizuo for crimes on several occasions. In the anime he gives Shizuo constant problems, from daily attacks from gangs to framing him for crimes.

He is a master of parkour, and also quite skilled with his flick-blade, as he is implied to be the only one capable of leaving numerous cuts in Shizuo's bartender suit after a fight in the novels. In the anime, he shaves a gang member's head bald without him noticing it. Izaya has two younger sisters, Mairu and Kururi, who are twins and troublemakers. It seems that from the beginning Izaya had a hunch about Mikado being the creator of Dollars, which was proven correct. He is a member of Dollars and the one who began recruiting people after Mikado stopped sending invitations to Dollars. He is behind the most relevant events of the series. He knows the identities behind each of the leaders of the three main forces in Ikebukuro. One of his main goals is to create a war in Ikebukuro that will "wake up" Celty's sleeping head. His name comes from a combination of the biblical Isaiah and Japanese for "the one who looks over the crowd". He is usually seen pretending to be female online and talks in a feminine manner in the chatroom. 

Shizuo Heiwajima

A blond young man who is always seen wearing sunglasses and a bartender's suit. Although quiet and nondescript while not angered, he has a very short fuse and fights with incredible strength, though he claims he hates violence. Despite his simple and unrefined fighting skills, namely his use of road signs, trash cans, and vending machines as weapons, he is considered the strongest fighter in the series. In the novels his power is described as the naturally unlimited form of human strength and likened to "adrenaline power" that can give people superhuman strength in times of emergency. In addition, Shizuo is capable of often superhuman parkour moves, a skill he obtained naturally from years of hunting down Izaya Orihara. He is also a member of Dollars. He works as a bodyguard for a debt collector in Ikebukuro and carries intense animosity towards Izaya. He has a younger brother, Kasuka, who is a top idol under the showbiz name of Yuuhei Hanejima. He is also a long-time acquaintance of Celty. Although he and Izaya Orihara are on bad terms, Shizuo is actually well-acquainted with Izaya's younger sisters, Mairu and Kururi. His first and last name translates literally into "serene man" and "peaceful island" respectively.

Shinra Kishitani

A young underground doctor who lives with Celty and is also in love with her. He stays indoors mostly, and wears a white lab coat even when not working as a doctor. He went to the same primary school as Shizuo, and has since then been interested in his unlimited strength in times of anger. In fact, he rather enjoys it when Shizuo makes use of his strength. His father is a doctor. Shinra has participated in surgeries with his father since childhood, most notably a vivisection on Celty. He went to the same middle school as Izaya and has been friends with him since then. He is amused by Shizuo and Izaya's fights. Shinra is also well-informed with news of Ikebukuro's underground, such as the location of Celty's head and the sword 'Saika' which allowed Celty's head to be severed from her body. Despite knowing this, he keeps a secret from Celty out of fear that he will lose her if she finds her head, as the head may have a different will than Celty herself. Shinra seems to have the "capacity" to tell what Celty is feeling, much to her surprise since she doesn't have a head to show her emotions. He has a great interest in unexplainable phenomena.




Supporting Characters

Simon Brezhnev


A tall Black Russian who came to the city to help out his Russian friend who runs a sushi shop. His real name is Semyon (Russian: Семён) but everyone just calls him by the name "Simon". Even though he is a friendly person, it has been shown that he is a force to be reckoned with as he is able to stop a fight with a man his size with just a single arm and also able to fight on par with Shizuo, who is one of the most feared men in Ikebukuro. He is another member of Dollars.

Kyohei Kadota


Originally part of the Blue Squares, he is now a member of Dollars. He was nicknamed Dotachin, much to his annoyance, by several characters in the series (mostly Izaya and Erika). He quits the Blue Squares after finding out their leader kidnapped Saki Mikajima and subsequently rescues her along with his gang. 

Walker Yumasaki

Like his female friend and companion, Erika, Walker is a very passionate otaku and manga reader. He and Erika are nearly always together, and it is implied, on occasion, that the two are romantically linked. He also likes to perform torture by letting the victim to choose a light novel or manga, and carrying out the contents.

He seems to be carefree. He also keeps a wide dumb smile most of the time. But this smile can hide more than people can see at first glance. He was also a member of Blue Squares but quits with Kadota. He helps save Saki Mikajima after she is kidnapped by the Blue Squares by setting the kidnappers' van on fire and escaping with her in Saburo's van. Like Erika he is very mysterious person. He is a member of the anonymous online gang Dollars and Kadota's gang.

Erika Karisawa

Erika is a very passionate otaku and manga reader. She and Walker are usually together, and it is implied, on occasion, that the two are romantically linked. She is equally enthusiastic about manga or novel inspired torture. It is noted she is a fujoshi or a Boys Love fan. Like Izaya, she calls Kadota "Dotachin". She is a member of the anonymous online gang Dollars and Kadota's gang. She was also a member of Blue Squares.

Saburo Togusa

A member of Dollars. He is the driver for Kadota's group. He can very mad when his van is being damaged, but when it was Shizuo who grabbed his van's door, he cannot do anything. The famous singer Ruri Hijiribe is his goddess. He was also a member of the Blue Squares, but quit with the others. 

Seiji Yagiri

A classmate of Mikado's. He quits school claiming he has something more important to do with his life - to find his "love" and run away with her - and seems to rely on his sister's money for that. It is revealed that he is in love with Celty's head. After learning the truth of Mika's surgery, he decides to accept her love.

Namie Yagiri

The Chief of Yagiri Pharmaceuticals and sister of Seiji Yagiri. She harbors feelings for her brother. She is behind the recent human hunting in Ikebukuro which involves kidnapping people whose disappearance would not be noticed for unknown experiments. She seems to rely on Shinra for some tasks, including keeping their secret. She doesn't like the fact that Seiji is in love with Celty's head. She wants to get rid of what she calls "that thing". After Yagiri Pharmaceuticals ends up merging with another company, she makes a deal with Izaya and becomes his secretary.

Mika Harima

Seiji's stalker. She is a friend of Anri whom she has been looking for as she has disappeared from her home. They were very close to each other but they also used each other to look better. While stalking Seiji, she broke into his apartment and discovered Celty's head. Seiji attacked her, and called his sister, Namie, after believing that he had killed Mika. Namie made Mika undergo surgery to her badly-beaten face and added a "scar" to make it appear as though Celty's head had been surgically attached. After confessing the truth to Seiji he accepts her and is with him since then.

Shingen Kishitani

Shingen is the father of Shinra. He constantly wears a gas mask, claiming that the air in Tokyo is filthy. His personality ranges from childish for comic relief to intimidating, especially when in front of Izaya and Namie. He offered Celty a place to stay in exchange for being able to dissect her, to which she agreed. Izaya claims that Shinra acquired his twisted personality from Shingen. It is revealed that he was the one who stole Celty's head, using the demon blade "Saika" to sever the soul that connected her head and body. He later sold the sword to an acquaintance who was an antiques dealer, Anri's deceased father, while giving Celty's head to Namie's uncle. He claims that his higher-ups are now more interested in Celty herself than her head.

Other Characters

Kinnosuke Kuzuhara

Kinnosuke is, according to Shinra, a motorcycle policeman known for dealing with the most troublesome characters. He has been sent to Ikebukuro to deal with Celty, and he thinks of her merely as a monster. He is very proud of the Police and of himself for warning Celty not to mess with them. He is known to be very persistent, as he and his men were able to follow Celty for a whole evening, something which eventually tired and scared her.

Saki Mikajima

Saki is a girl who has a godlike idolization of Orihara Izaya. She approaches Masaomi under Izaya's instructions and becomes Masaomi's girlfriend. Later Saki lets herself be abducted and injured by Blue Square under Izaya's instructions. Blue Square members Kadota, Yumasaki and Karisawa betray their gang and save Saki, who is immediately hospitalized after having both of her legs broken.

Kasuka Heiwajima

Shizuo Heiwajima's younger brother. He is a famous actor under the alias "Yūhei Hanejima". In Vol.3, Shinra explains to Celty the link between Kasuka's true name and showbiz name: the "Hane" in "Yūhei Hanejima" can alternatively be pronounced as "Wa" and "Yū" as "Kasuka"; as such, "Wa-jima-kasuka-hei" is an anagram of "Kasuka Heiwajima". He was scouted to debut after saving the life of a talent scout from Shizuo, who apparently did not appreciate being talked to by that talent scout. He plays a more prominent role in Vol.4, when he meets the killer called "Hollywood".

* character descriptions taken from wikipedia