Kamichama Karin

Kamichama Karin (かみちゃまかりん) is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Koge-Donbo about a seventh grade girl named Karin who finds out that she can transform into a goddess. The series began as a manga first serialized in January 2003. Kamichama Karin was serialized in the Japanese shōjo manga magazine Nakayoshi and published by Kodansha. While the first manga series ended at seven bound volumes, a second titled Kamichama Karin Chu (Little goddess Karin kiss) began serialization in the same magazine in July 2006, and as of April 2008, the series ended with seven bound volumes being released.

Kamichama Karin has been licensed in North America by Tokyopop. Del Rey Manga published Kamichama Karin Chu between June 24, 2008 and January 26, 2010. An anime series based on the original manga was produced by TV Tokyo, NAS, and Pony Canyon, animated by Satelight, and directed by Takashi Anno. It aired on TV Tokyo from April to September 2007.

Plot
Karin Hanazono is an ordinary 13-year-old girl who becomes depressed after the death of her parents and her last companion, her pet cat Shii-chan. With poor grades, a mean aunt, and few friends who understand her, she feels lonely and desperately believes that God will help her out of these circumstances one day, holding on to the last remaining memento: a ring that originally belonged to her mother. Things change for better for Karin when she meets Himeka Kujyou and her cousin Kazune, whom she lives with. A confrontation after Kazune insults Karin's cat and ultimately her feelings invoke something within her and the ring, causing everything to go smoothly for Karin, including weather matters. It turns out that her precious ring is in fact a holder of the power of God, and Karin, as its bearer, is a goddess. With this revelation, she is hunted down by mysterious enemies who are seeking that power while trying to control her strength. On her journey, she discovers more about her past, and the truth of her goddess heritage, as well as how it affects others around her like Kazune and Himeka.

The second season, Kamichama Karin Chu, features the main cast in the eighth grade. After Kazune returns from his trip to England, Karin and the others travel through time with a celebrity named Jin Kuga.

Characters

 * Karin Hanazono (花園 花鈴)
 * Karin is the outgoing 13-year-old protagonist. She used to live with her aunt as her parents died a long time ago, but she moved in with Kazune and Himeka after they found out she can transform into a god. She is an outgoing person and sticks up for her friends, but bad at academics. Karin had a cat named Shii-chan (シ-ちゃん) that died in the beginning of the first series. At the end of Kamichama Karin Chu, it is shown that she and Kazune get married.
 * Karin is the outgoing 13-year-old protagonist. She used to live with her aunt as her parents died a long time ago, but she moved in with Kazune and Himeka after they found out she can transform into a god. She is an outgoing person and sticks up for her friends, but bad at academics. Karin had a cat named Shii-chan (シ-ちゃん) that died in the beginning of the first series. At the end of Kamichama Karin Chu, it is shown that she and Kazune get married.


 * Kazune Kujō (九条 和音)
 * Kazune is a seventh grade student who is deemed weak and cried frequently, only becoming his present self when he turned ten years old, after knowing who he was. Although Kazune is a clone of professor Kazuto Kujō, he is incomplete and passes out after transforming in god form. He often talks to Karin in a way that she claims to be sexist, talking about things like the inherent stupid behavior of girls. The couple eventually got married at the end of Chu.
 * Kazune is a seventh grade student who is deemed weak and cried frequently, only becoming his present self when he turned ten years old, after knowing who he was. Although Kazune is a clone of professor Kazuto Kujō, he is incomplete and passes out after transforming in god form. He often talks to Karin in a way that she claims to be sexist, talking about things like the inherent stupid behavior of girls. The couple eventually got married at the end of Chu.


 * Himeka Kujō (九条 姫香)
 * Himeka is Karin's friend and Kazune's "cousin". She is the daughter of Kazuto and Suzuka. However, it turns out that Himeka is somewhat Karin and Kazune's daughter, due to the fact that Karin is Suzuka and Kazune is Kazuto's clone. Because of this, she is also Suzune's "older sister". Originally contained Kazuto's god research data, Himeka was split into two by Kirihiko attempting to steal the research data. One half lives with Kazune, while the other lives with the Karasuma family. When one Himeka becomes stronger, the other becomes weaker.
 * Himeka is Karin's friend and Kazune's "cousin". She is the daughter of Kazuto and Suzuka. However, it turns out that Himeka is somewhat Karin and Kazune's daughter, due to the fact that Karin is Suzuka and Kazune is Kazuto's clone. Because of this, she is also Suzune's "older sister". Originally contained Kazuto's god research data, Himeka was split into two by Kirihiko attempting to steal the research data. One half lives with Kazune, while the other lives with the Karasuma family. When one Himeka becomes stronger, the other becomes weaker.


 * Kirio Karasuma (烏丸 キリオ)
 * President of Sakuragaoka Academy, Karasuma tests the protagonists and fights them outside the campus. He offen leaves before ever winning and revealing his plot to Karin and the others while they didn't know, thinking they did. Kirio gets possessed by his father, Kirihiko, via Zeus ring he wore after his broke, until Karin and Kazune saved him.
 * President of Sakuragaoka Academy, Karasuma tests the protagonists and fights them outside the campus. He offen leaves before ever winning and revealing his plot to Karin and the others while they didn't know, thinking they did. Kirio gets possessed by his father, Kirihiko, via Zeus ring he wore after his broke, until Karin and Kazune saved him.


 * Kirika Karasuma (烏丸 キリカ)
 * Kirika is Kirio's fraternal twin sister drawn as a young man and Kirio's twin brother. With slightly masculine features to combine her natural feminine beauty, as well as a kind personality, she came across to many as a princely figure, which caused Karin to instantly develop a crush on her. Initially, Kirika did not believe that Karin is a goddess, but comes to believe in it.
 * Kirika is Kirio's fraternal twin sister drawn as a young man and Kirio's twin brother. With slightly masculine features to combine her natural feminine beauty, as well as a kind personality, she came across to many as a princely figure, which caused Karin to instantly develop a crush on her. Initially, Kirika did not believe that Karin is a goddess, but comes to believe in it.


 * Michiru Nishikiori (錦織 みちる)
 * Michiru is a transfer student from England who once lived Karin, Kazune, and Himeka. When he was little, he was involved in an accident that killed his parents and crushed his left eye beyond repair, and almost died. However, Kazuto made a replaceable eye for Michiru, and saved his life. Since he was in the hospital for one year, he is a year older than Karin, Kazune, and Himeka. Michiru shares a close bond to Kazune because he initially thought of him as Kazuto, and still respects Kazune.
 * Michiru is a transfer student from England who once lived Karin, Kazune, and Himeka. When he was little, he was involved in an accident that killed his parents and crushed his left eye beyond repair, and almost died. However, Kazuto made a replaceable eye for Michiru, and saved his life. Since he was in the hospital for one year, he is a year older than Karin, Kazune, and Himeka. Michiru shares a close bond to Kazune because he initially thought of him as Kazuto, and still respects Kazune.


 * Jin Kuga (久我 神)
 * Debuting in Kamichama Karin Chu, Jin has a strong confidence in himself and wishes to regain his father's "honor", as revealed later on in the series. He shows much affection for Karin which tends to make him Kazune's love rival for her. Although Jin normally displays a sweet natire, he can sometimes be a pervert around Karin.


 * Suzune (鈴音)
 * Debuting in Kamichama Karin Chu, Suzune is the son of Karin and Kazune as well as is Himeka's "younger brother". He came from the future to warn Karin and the others of the upcoming battle with the Karasuma family and the tragic outcome.

Media
A manga adaption has been released into seven full volumes. Koge-Donbo admits in volume one at how the point of Karin's "I am God" featured her say something stupid and the manga started was as a gag. According to Koge-Donbo, Kamichama Karin was originally going to be a two-chapter one-shot manga, but she continued the story due to its unexpected popularity. The story continues on in a sequel series Kamichama Karin Chu, again with seven volumes in regular special edition volumes released in Japan. The special edition volumes include the same basic content as the regular editions but include additional content making them highly valuable to manga collectors.

An anime television adaption of Kamichama Karin began on April 6, 2007. Animation was done by the animation studio Satelight.