Qilin in popular culture

The Qilin has appeared many times in works of popular culture.

Contents 1 Literature 2 Film and television 3 Comics and manga 4 Games 5 Notes

Literature

• In Jorge Luis Borges's Book of Imaginary Beings, there is a section on "The Unicorn of China", of which he writes:

"It is universally held that the unicorn is a supernatural being and of auspicious omen; so say the odes, the annals, the biographies of worthies, and other texts whose authority is unimpeachable. Even village women and children know that the unicorn is a lucky sign. But this animal does not figure among the barnyard animals, it is not always easy to come across, it does not lend itself to zoological classification. Nor is it like the horse or bull, the wolf or deer. In such circumstances we may be face to face with a unicorn and not know for sure that we are. We know that a certain animal with a mane is a horse and that a certain animal with horns is a bull. We do not know what the unicorn looks like."

• Herman, a character in Matthew Pearl's The Last Dickens, carries a cane with a Kylin head attached to it.

• In the 2010 Novel, Raiju: A Kaiju Hunter Novel, Qilin is the name given to one of the two main giant monsters in the story. The monster Qilin is a kami, originally a benevolent water-god bound to a girl named Aimi, a Keeper. However, he was used by Aimi's father to clean up pollution and the pollutants corrupt him, turning him into a shape-shifting sludge monster. Qilin takes several forms, usually manifesting tendrils that mix the appearance of serpents and centipedes. His first manifested form resembles a frog and is the first form to battle Raiju, the titular "hero" monster. Its next manifestation is humanoid, though only used briefly. Its third form is a gigantic cephalopod. Its fourth form is that of a water-serpent, its original form. Its final form is a gigantic reptillian creature with a crocadillian head.

Film and television

• In Takashi Miike's The Great Yokai War, the hero is bitten during a street festival by the dancer's kirin head. According to local custom that makes him the next "kirin rider", a hero who defeats malevolent yokai, and he is seen riding the kirin through the sky at the climax of the film.

• In Gosei Sentai Dairanger, Kazu of the Heavenly Time Star uses his Chi to manifest the power of the Kirin to become the Kirinranger and pilots the Mythical Chi Beast, Sei-Kirin. When the Sei-Kirin was adapted to the Dairanger's 1994 counterpart, the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, the Kirin was renamed as the Griffin Thunderzord.

• The Kirin is one of the mythical beasts that passes through Count D's mythical petshop in Pet Shop of Horrors. It is said to have changed the fate of the world several times by choosing a worthy leader for a country. The Kirin's inability to walk on living beings is compared to the ancient, crippling Chinese practice of footbinding.

• In the film Snakes and Earrings (蛇にピアス), Shiba-san, a tattoo artist, explains the magical nature of the Kirin to Lui, including its peaceful nature and its ability to walk on grass without trampling it. He then gives Lui a tattoo of a Kirin and dragon fighting, but leaves the pupils of both creatures' eyes blank, at Lui's request.

Comics and manga

• In the Twelve Kingdoms anime series, based on the fantasy novels by Fuyumi Ono, the monarch of each kingdom is chosen by a kirin, who then becomes his (or her) principal counselor. The kirin's name is derived from the name of the kingdom plus either "ki" (male) or "rin" (female).^[1]

• The Kirin in the manga Genju no Seiza is the only deity who can tell which baby the constantly reincarnating Holy King has taken host of. He is blind and deaf, but able to sense thoughts, and thus unpopular in the palace despite the respect given to him.

Games

• In the Dungeons & Dragons universe, the Ki-rin are monsters in the Oriental Adventures setting, cited as an example of how D&D uses influences from many places.^[2][3]
• In the video game series Final Fantasy, Kirin is one of the Espers, or summoned monsters, in Final Fantasy VI. Kirin also makes an appearance as the strongest of the "gods" in Final Fantasy XI.^[4]
• It appears in the game SaGa Frontier as a playable character named Kylin, the only master of "Space Magic".^[5]
• In Digimon, Kudamon's Ultimate form, Qilinmon, is named after and based on the Qilin.^[6]
• In Golden Sun: Lost Age, Kirin appears as a summon option when two or more fire djinn are equipped.^[7]
• In the computer game Guild Wars Factions, players encounter both helpful Kirin charged with safeguarding certain areas, as well as several tainted Kirin as enemies.^[8]
• In the Magic: The Gathering set "Saviors of Kamigawa", there are five Kirin, one for each color of Magic: Infernal Kirin, Skyfire Kirin, Cloudhoof Kirin, Celestial Kirin, and Bounteous Kirin.^[9]
• In the Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card game, a Monster Card called Cyber Kirin is based on the Qilin.
• In Super Robot Taisen: Original Generation 2 for Game Boy Advance (and its enhanced PS2 remake), one of game's antagonists, Axel Almer, uses "Code: Kirin" as his ultimate attack. So does leader of Shadow-Mirrors, Vindel Mauser ("Kirin Ne Plus Ultra").
• In the game ADOM Ki-rins appear as high-level monsters.
• In World Heroes Perfect, Ryofu's desperation move, "The Giraffe Bomber", summons a fiery Qilin that charges at the opponent.
• In the MMORPG world of Ultima Online, the Kirin was introduced as a passive monster that could be tamed and used as a mount by a character of reasonably developed taming skill.
• In the game series Monster Hunter, the Kirin is a fightable monster and craftable weapons and armor using its hide

Notes