Urusei Yatsura (うる星やつら)[a] is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi.

A second anime television series adaptation of 46 episodes produced by David Production aired on the Noitamina programming block from October 2022 to June 2024.

Urusei Yatsura launched Takahashi's career and received positive reception in and out of Japan from fans and critics alike.

The computer-selected human player is Ataru Moroboshi, a lecherous, unlucky and academically unsuccessful high school student from the fictional Tomobiki Town (友引町) in Nerima, Japan, and the Oni player is Lum, daughter of the leader of the alien invaders.

Two characteristics of Ataru are particularly strong: his pervertedness and his bad luck that draws to him all bizarre residents of the planet, the spirit world and even the galaxy.

Lum develops a fan base of admirers among the boys of the school, including Shutaro Mendo, the rich and handsome heir to a large corporation that all the girls from Tomobiki have a crush on.

In 1977, Rumiko Takahashi created the short story Those Selfish Aliens that was nominated for Shogakukan's Best New Comic Artist award.

The series was her first major work, having previously only published short stories, and is a combination of romantic comedy, science fiction, suburban life, and Japanese folktales.

[12][13] Lum's use of the English word "Darling" in reference to Ataru was to emphasize her status as a foreigner, as well as a play on the name Darrin, the husband figure from Bewitched.

[15] In contrast the character Kosuke Shirai plays a large role in the manga, but does not appear in the first anime series.

[22][32][33] After requests from fans, Viz Media licensed the series for release in English across North America under the title of Lum * Urusei Yatsura.

[61] A fan group known as "Lum's Stormtroopers" convinced the Californian public television station KTEH to broadcast subtitled episodes of the series in 1998.

[63] An improvisational dub of the first and third episodes was broadcast on BBC Choice in 2000 as part of a "Japan Night" special as Lum the Invader Girl.

[65] On January 1, 2022, a second television series adaptation was announced and premiered on Fuji TV's Noitamina programming block on October 14, 2022.

[66][67][68] The series is produced by David Production and directed by Takahiro Komei, Hideya Takahashi and Yasuhiro Kimura, with scripts written by Yūko Kakihara, character designs and chief animation direction by Naoyuki Asano and Masaru Yokoyama composing the music.

Sentai Filmworks has licensed the series in North America, Europe, Oceania, and selected Latin American and Asian territories.

A year after the television series finished, Urusei Yatsura: The Final Chapter was directed by Satoshi Dezaki and was released on February 6, 1988, as a tenth-anniversary celebration.

[45][78] The final film, Urusei Yatsura: Always My Darling, was directed by Katsuhisa Yamada and was released on August 18, 1991.

[85] On January 29, 2010, a boxed set was released featuring all of the recent Rumiko Takahashi specials from the Rumic World exhibition.

Following it were microcomputer games, as well as Urusei Yatsura: Lum no Wedding Bell (うる星やつらラムのウェディングベル), which was released by Jaleco for the Famicom on October 23, 1986, exclusively in Japan.

[94] Urusei Yatsura: Dear My Friends (うる星やつら~ディア マイ フレンズ) was released by Game Arts for the Sega Mega-CD on April 15, 1994.

Urusei Yatsura: Endless Summer (うる星やつら エンドレスサマー) was released for the Nintendo DS by Marvelous on October 20, 2005.

[104] In Manga: The Complete Guide, Jason Thompson referred to Urusei Yatsura as "A slapstick combination of sci-fi, fairy-tale and ghost-story elements with plenty of cute girls."

He further wrote that the experience of reading Urusei Yatsura is "a bit like channel-hopping between The Outer Limits, Neighbours, and Star Trek.

"[106] In an interview with Ex.org, Fred Schodt expressed surprise at the popularity of the original English release of the manga as he believed the cultural differences would be a problem.

Lep said Takahashi nails the many gags and physical comedy, with the series' stability from the never-changing sitcom elements of "Disappointed parents.

[108] RightStuf wrote that Takahashi excels at creating characters who play off of each other perfectly and Urusei Yatsura's normally "calm [and] innocent", but hot-tempered, Lum serves as a wonderful foil to the "idiotic, lecherous, and lazy" Ataru.

[109] Nick Benefield of Operation Rainfall enjoyed that each chapter stands on its own and can largely be read in any order, as well as the manga's "heavy-handed usage" of puns, visual gags, and parodies of other works.

[110] In a critical review of the first volume, Elias Rosner of Multiversity Comics praised her clear artwork, facial expressions and comedic timing for slapstick comedy, and stated "In spite of Takahashi’s always lively artwork and sharp eye for slapstick, Urusei Yatsura is not for everyone.

[111] The series has been credited by Jonathan Clements in Schoolgirl Milky Crisis: Adventures in the Anime and Manga Trade as influencing multiple other "geek gets girl" works including Tenchi Muyo!