Mai Minakami

Mai originally appeared as an unnamed character alongside her dogs in the Helvetica Standard manga.

Mai has two dogs: Pyon, a small white dog, and Oguri Cap, who is brown and white. She also has a cat named Chitchi.

When she plays the stair-climbing game with Mio and Yuuko in episode 2, she (incorrectly) recites the resurrection incantation (i.e., the password) from the video game Dragon Quest: "chi yo ta ni ke ra ha to ho ra su te no ha te ki ra to na ri ha shi te to".

Mai somehow understands Yuuko's greeting, "selamat pagi," which means good morning in both Indonesian and Malay. However, she (perhaps intentionally?) incorrectly replied with "selamat malam," which means good night.

On Kumomadori Radio, in response to a chat question, Arawi Keiichi originally stated that Mai's birthday was February 17. [4] However, many years later he wrote in chapter 207 of the manga that Mai's birthday was October 24.

In the time skip, she became a preschool teacher and later helps Mio with her manga in volume 10.

The name Mai means "linen tunic" (麻衣).

Mai's surname, Minakami, means "aquatic, on water" (水上).

Mai gets its name from the city of Minakami in Gunma

Yoshino Naganohara

Mai's only encounter with Yoshino (so far) occurs in chapter 143, where they try to outdo each other with pranks. Yoshino finds Mai "funny" and enjoys their banter, while Mai keeps her emotions hidden. There's no clear winner, as they both manage to fool each other, though Yoshino promises to see Mai later.

Hakase

Mai seems to have feelings for Hakase. Mai doesn't smile often, but she seems to smile more when she's with Hakase. They met when Mai was walking her dogs in episode 22. Mai let her dogs off the leash and then seemingly walked away. Hakase felt cornered and frightened by the dogs. When Mai returned and Hakase was angry, she gave her some shark-shaped chocolates, which calmed her down. Mai seemed concerned about this incident. [3] Then, in episode 23, she visits Hakase and draws pictures for him. Mai's shark drawings amaze Hakase, changing his image of her and strengthening their relationship.

Nano Shinonome

Mai knows Nano is a robot, but she doesn't tell anyone to keep her secret. Once, she took one of Nano's screws home and recorded her in class.

Mai's dogs

Mai has two dogs, Oguri Cap and Pyon, and together they make a very charming trio. Mai is affectionate but calm in their energetic company. Sometimes she has to keep them in line when they misbehave, and she reassures those around her with good humor, telling them she means no harm. Both dogs seek Mai's company and attention, and she seems to enjoy it, treating them with affection, petting their heads, and taking them for walks.

He seems to enjoy playing with Oguri Cap and has played several games with him. [citation needed] He sometimes removes their leashes, which leads to an incident in episode 22.

Yuuko Aioi

Mai annoys Yuuko whenever she tries to play a prank on her, reacting unexpectedly or counterattacking with better jokes or sarcastic replies. However, despite this, they are good friends, and Yuuko considers Mai one of her best friends. In the manga (chapter 134), it is shown that Mai has known Yuuko since middle school. Initially, Mai was accepted into a prestigious school, Tokisadame Academy, but decided to attend Tokisadame High School with Yuuko. Interestingly, during their relationship, it is also shown in the manga that Mai is the first to show a surprised expression (unlike the more emotional Yuuko) when Yuuko asks her an awkward question (about where Alaska is located in Japan).



Yuuko and Mai are having a serious conversation... or not.

On one occasion, Mai confesses her love to Yuuko, but this appears to be another prank on Yuuko. [2] Some fans question the veracity of the prank, but they are still close friends.

Mio Naganohara

Mai and Mio become classmates at Tokisadame High School. Mai doesn't seem to bother Mio as often as she does Yuuko. However, there are two particular instances that contradict this. The first is when Mai plays the game of "red light, green light" with Mio and Yuuko, and the second is when Mai "helps" Mio draw her manga. Mai's teasing about the manga in particular makes Mio angry when Mai tells her that her drawings aren't very interesting. Mio seems quite disappointed when Mai tells her that she also hasn't done her self-portrait sculpture homework, to which Mio replies, "It's going to be a disaster." Despite this, Mio still respects Mai and is very impressed by her talent and her status as an exemplary student. For example, Mio happily tells Mai that her chopstick holder is "amazing, as expected" when Mai makes a better chopstick holder than hers.

In the anime adaptation of episode 110, the book Mai uses to cover the book she's actually reading is titled "Id - Superego." Both "id" and "superego" are concepts related to human psychology. This could suggest that Mai is also interested in human psychology, which might be one of the main reasons she deceives people so easily.

In chapter 130, Mai appears to be behaving unusually. Along with Yuuko and Hakase, she hugs Snaq, the snack mascot (much to Mio's surprise), and displays an expression of genuine surprise, as does Hakase, in two panels where she appears with her mouth agape. This could be because she wanted to further redeem herself in Hakase's eyes after the dog incident, or simply because she wanted to have some fun without playing a mean prank. The only other time she acts abnormally, it's revealed to have been just a dream of Mio's.

Chapter 134 reveals several details about Mai's past:

She composes and performs music.

Before moving to Japan, she had lived in Alaska. She moved to Japan because of her father's job. However, chapter 134 isn't the first time Mai's father is mentioned. He's also mentioned at the beginning of volume 5 (just before chapter 73), where his "beloved" plush toy of a real racehorse named Oguri Cap was eaten by Mai's largest dog, which was then named "Oguri Cap."

As depicted in the four-panel comic "Steam," behind her impassive exterior lies a shy and sensitive girl. For example, practicing Yuuko's nickname proved exhausting: the ticking time on her alarm clock indicated she needed time to prepare; and once she said Yuuko's name aloud, she felt so embarrassed that she hid her head under her pillow.

Mai remains impassive most of the time, and a smile, anger, or regret is rarely seen on her face. Her deadpan demeanor often leaves others wondering what's going on in her mind, and her intentions can be difficult to decipher. However, it's said that she's been this way since childhood and has always behaved this way with people she likes. Mai can also behave erratically or abnormally at times, which confuses her friends. Studious and introverted, she likes statues of Maitreya Buddha and is sometimes seen carving them.

Her most distinctive personality trait is her penchant for playing pranks on people (especially Yuuko, but many others as well) just to annoy them. Examples include placing her glasses on top of a card tower that Yuuko and Mio had built, staring at her friends for an extended period during a game of "Red Light, Green Light," and even tricking Yuuko into believing she cares for her as more than friends, just to embarrass her and see her reaction. She even plays pranks on her dogs (for example, throwing them a frisbee just before they catch it) and goes so far as to play pranks on herself when she's bored and no one is around.

Mai uses a wide variety of pranks, ranging from puns and practical jokes to the use of rather elaborate props or even situations bordering on bullying. Despite this, she seems to care about her friends, as seen when she smiled after a heated argument between Yuuko and Mio ended with a handshake and a hug. Furthermore, she never intentionally plays pranks on children, not even Hakase. However, Mai also has a habit of ignoring her friends or leaving them alone to do other things, possibly preferring her own company most of the time.

Mai Minakami (水上 麻衣, Minakami Mai) is a quiet and unpredictable student at Tokisadame High School who is a close friend of Mio Naganohara and Yuuko Aioi.

Japanese:

水上麻衣

Romanized:

minakami mai

English:

Mai Minakami

Age:

16

Adulthood (chapters with time jumps)

Birthday:

October 24 [ 1 ]

Occupation:

Student

Preschool teacher (chapters with time jumps)

Alignment:

Good

Relations

Friends:

Yuuko Aioi (friend)

Mio Naganohara (friend) Nano Shinonome (friend)

Associated:

Oguri Cap (pet dog)

Pyon (pet dog)

Series

Debut:

"Nichijou Episode 0"

Japanese voice actor:

Misuzu Togashi

VA in English:

Lauda Britain