Yomiko Readman
, also known as "The Paper", is a
fictional character and the main
protagonist in the
Japanese novel series
Read or Die, the
manga and
anime spin-offs of the books, and the
sequel,
R.O.D the TV. Though in appearance
Japanese, she is in fact half-Japanese, half-
English.
=Role in the Story=
Yomiko is a bespectacled substitute teacher and an
introvert. A
bibliophile, she prefers to bury herself in her books. She spends almost all of her
income on books, and her "apartment" is stacked floor to ceiling with books. She resides somewhere in
Jinbocho, a neighborhood of
Chiyoda, Tokyo known for its insanely large amount of used bookstores.
Surprisingly, she is also a
secret field agent for the
British Library. She is a
Papermaster, a person with the ability to bend
paper material to her will. She can make paper bulletproof or sharper than the sharpest
sword. If she has enough paper, then she can construct a giant paper airplane that flies. The only limit to the effects she can create is her own imagination. It seems that she must have in her grasp of at least hands, teeth, or perhaps some other body part at least one piece of paper in a group of papers in order to manipulate them, though eventually by the time of
R.O.D the TV she is able to manipulate paper by pure mental control.
In her capacity for the
British Library, Yomiko often has to embark on dangerous missions assigned by her director, known only as "
Mr. Joker". Though because of her clumsiness and social awkwardness she would not seem to make a very good
secret agent, many times she allows her emotions to get in the way of defeating an enemy, if receiving the proper support she can actually be quite useful, with
ninja-like reflexes in combat and the ability to stay focused on the battle. She is considered one of the Library's top agents.
Donnie Nakajima
|
Yomiko's lover and mentor, Donnie Nakajima |
Though Yomiko appears to be a cheerful, book-loving, happy young woman many times, she has a deep and dark past in certain aspects. Yomiko's paper abilities were not always as magnificent as they are today. She was taught by a former papermaster by the name of Donnie Nakajima, a Japanese librarian who secretly worked for the British Library as an agent in their special "D-Line" forces. As their meetings for Yomiko's training to become a papermaster went on, their relationship gradually increased.. After a while or so the two book-lovers became
lovers, and more than often expressed their affections for each other by talking about books and themselves, for they were both obsessive bibliophiles. They were a true, loving couple.
Apparently, as one of many of Read or Die's unexplained occurrences, Yomiko had to somehow kill her mentor to become the true "Paper". One afternoon she supposedly killed Donnie by surprising him during her daily lessons, shooting a handful of razor-sharp paper sheets into his body. Yomiko does not know what made her do this, but she knows that she has regret it more than ever since that day. After his death, Yomiko took Donnie's thick-rimmed glasses in tears and replaced her own with them, stating that so whenever she reads, "he can read too."
It was, however, shockingly revealed in Episode Five of Volume Two of the manga that Donnie had proposed the set up of his 'death' in order to escape from the British Library, for through his research discovered Mr. Joker's true intentions ofchanging history with his own boss, "Gentleman", in making Great Britain the lead power of the world and shaping the Earth to their own ideals. Donnie knew this must be stopped, and a while after his 'death', decided it was finally time to ask for Yomiko's assistance in halting the library's frightening plans.
While at a local bookfair in
London (possibly the famous
London Bookfair), Yomiko received a mysterious letter from Donnie, whom she thought was dead, from an unknown source. Immediately she rushed to find him, believing such things to be too good to be true. But when travelling to a rather bizarre school known as the
Manshu Academy, Yomiko cried with happiness as she discovered her long-lost lover and mentor, Donnie, to be alive right in front of her blushing face. Though their meeting was brief, Donnie told Yomiko about his 'death' and that it was not her fault, for it was planned anyway. Later getting towards the point, he explained to her of Joker and Gentleman's plans to reshape civilization as they know it, and that he desperately needed her help to halt such things. Yomiko, however, in shock, did not exactly know what to say to Donnie, and in sorrow Donnie left her stating "Because of your view of the British Library, from now on I will only meet you when it's absolutely necessary." Immediately afterwards, Yomiko sulked in solitude.
Volume three then shows that
this Donnie was really an old friend of Donnie's in disguise wanting revenge on Yomiko for killing his dear friend. This man too was a paper master.
|
Nancy Makuhari and Yomiko Readman are the main characters of the Read or Die OVA |
In the OVA, Yomiko goes into debt to buy a rare copy of a book called "die Unsterbliche Liebe" or "Immortal Beloved". The book is dusty and dirty, but has
sheet music handwritten in its pages, in the margins and on the blank pages in the back and front. Almost immediately she is attacked by a super-human-like clone of
Jean Henri Fabre. He tries to steal her book, but using her paper techniques she fights back and wins. Various clones or
I'jin of famous historical figures try to steal her book throughout the OVA. They are trying to use the sheet music in the book to reconstruct
Ludwig van Beethoven's supposedly lost Death Symphony, which causes anyone who hears it to commit
suicide. Eventually, Yomiko, with the assistance of her friends
Nancy Makuhari and
Drake Anderson, helps in destroying the leader of the plot, a clone of
Ikkyu Soujon.
Though it is not mentioned, almost immediately after the OVA, Yomiko's friend Nancy gives birth to an unnamed child, which is unforgivably stolen from her arms by Mr. Joker. Yomiko rushes to his office to fight for Nancy's parental rights, but Joker states that the child has "more important plans" in the future. Yomiko cries in outrage, and demands to know why such things must be the way they are. Joker does not answer, but instead tells her that he has captured Donnie and is, all that is known, "in this form now". Horrified out of her imagination, Yomiko becomes so emotional that she loses control of her paper powers and destroys the British Library, possibly killing dozens of people and severely emotionally scarring a little girl in the library at the time by the name of
Anita King.
After this, she escapes with Nancy and the two go into hiding for five years, doing her best to escape from the pursuit of the newly rebuilt British Library. This unexaplined absence, however, worries and shocks Yomiko's favourite author and best friend,
Sumiregawa Nenene, and the young Japanese novelist becomes fully determined to discover Yomiko's whereabouts, believing that she alive somewhere in the world, for she knows deep within her heart that if Yomiko were dead, she would know.
|
Yomiko demonstrating her Papermaster skills in Read or Die: The TV |
Though Yomiko does not appear until Episode 15 of the anime television series sequel to the OVA,
R.O.D: The TV, the search for her occurs throughout much of the beginning of the story, particularly lead by Nenene who is a main character (as opposed towards a supporting character in the original story) in the series.
Nenene, a feisty, courageous, passionate young woman who met Yomiko when she was in high-school (Yomiko acting as a substitute teacher for her school), becomes haunted by her best friend's sudden disappearance and suffers a seriously emotional
writer's block that has lasted for as long as she has currently been missing: 4 years. Throughout her travels and search, she stumbles upon the mysterious
"Paper Sisters": Michelle Cheung, Maggie Mui, and Anita King, and offers them hospitality in thanks for saving her life at a disastrous autographing session.
Throughout the series, Nenene slowly and gradually receives information upon Yomiko's current whereabouts. Half-way through the series she receives the final clue from Yomiko's favourite bookstore's owner, and she and the Paper Sisters rush to a building's underground storage library to find Nancy Makuhari buried in books in which she dropped clumsily onto the floor. Nenene at firsts suspects the nearly-lifeless hand under the books to be Yomiko, but then is suddenly surprised to discover her long-lost friend walking right towards her; carrying a ridiculous amount of books, just like she always remembered her. In indescribable shock, Yomiko and Nenene stare at each other for a period of nearly 20 seconds, not speaking and absolutely speechless at each other's faces. Then, after five years of not seeing each other, Yomiko slowly places her books on the floor and runs away from Nenene, though is later stopped by Nenene violently throwing a book at the back of Yomiko's head.
Embracing and laying upon Yomiko's breast, Nenene begins to sob and demands to know why the person she loved so much disappeared without telling her anything. Yomiko informs her that she ran away because of the events that took place after the OVA, explaining that
she was the one who destroyed the library and as well as escaping with Nancy. She says she did not want to trouble Nenene, and believed her escape without telling her anything was the best, and safest way to go.
The meeting is interrupted short, however, as Joker suddenly appears right in front of them with British Library soldiers, explaining his plan and confirming Donnie's explanations about Joker and Gentleman. Yomiko, Nenene, and the paper sisters escape safely, and later discover more about Joker's plan to "resurrect" Gentleman and gain control of the world by using his power. Yomiko, Nenene, the Paper Sisters, Drake Anderson, Nancy Makuhari and
Junior, whom is later discovered to be Nancy's long-lost child (now an adolescent young boy), all put a stop to such things together at the intensely climatic end of the series, and soon after Yomiko, Nenene, and Nancy travel to India in search of Nancy's clone, who was believed to have been alive after the events in the OVA.
Trivia
Yomi in her first name meant
reading in
Japanese, while
-ko is a common suffix in Japanese female names; so her first name means
Reading-woman, a
cognate of her surname
Readman if neglecting gender differences.
Private Sheska of
Fullmetal Alchemist was most likely inspired by Yomiko. Both are shy, glasses-wearing
bibliophiles who would rather read than work; and both become involved in uncovering the secretive dealings of their respective organizations.
Image:Yomiko_Readman_smiling.jpg|Yomiko ReadmanImage:Yomiko1.jpg|Yomiko purchases her usual amount of books at a bookshopImage:Yomiko3.jpg|Inside Yomiko's apartmentImage:Yomiko2.jpg|Yomiko does a little papermastery
