Ryuko Matoi (纏流子, Matoi Ryūko) is the main protagonist of the Kill la Kill anime and manga. Her story begins when she transfers to Honnouji Academy as an exchange student in search of the murderer of her father, Isshin Matoi (Souichiro Kiryuin).
When she arrives, she discovers that the school is led by the Student Committee, with the despot Satsuki Kiryuin at its head as president and highest authority. Ryuko soon suspects that Satsuki was involved in the murder of her father, and rivalry breaks out between them.
Appearance[]
Ryuko is 17 years old with fair skin and a slim build. She enjoys a full bust, flat abdomen, and wide hips, which makes her a target for harassment and leering when she is wearing Senketsu, or simply when she is naked. Her hair is short and messy, gray-black in color with a distinctive red-dyed strand located in her bangs. She has blue eyes and her pupils resemble the shape of a gear.
Before using Senketsu for the first time, she Ryuko wore a high school uniform consisting of a white blouse with a red bow at the neck, a pleated navy skirt, white sneakers, and a black and white sports jacket. She additionally carried a guitar case in which she concealed her part of her Scissor Sword. Ryuko would dress Senketsu religiously after their first meeting. Inactive, Senketsu has the appearance of any Sailor uniform, albeit much shorter and bolder. In the transformed version of her, Senketsu shapeshifts to partially cover Ryuko's upper body through armor that starts from her neck to halfway down her breasts. The lower part of her outfit is more like a lingerie set; clip-on suspenders start from the armor on her chest and fasten to the skirt of the set, now much smaller, only being able to cover part of the pelvis. In addition, the Kamui wears long, heeled boots that connect to the undergarment with a garter belt, and long gloves that completely cover Ryuko's arms.
In her first encounter with Nui Harime, Ryuko is absorbed by Senketsu and changes into a monstrous form, where she has blue and green skin. Other than that, the one on her waist has a huge mouth with large sharp teeth, and she also sports Senketsu's eyes with a large size between her chest and her head. Her left arm grows considerably and appears to be encased in a block, while her right arm maintains its usual shape and carries her half of the Scissor Sword. Also, that whole appearance of hers is often dyed red from the countless amount of blood she sheds. After her first confrontation with Ragyo Kiryuin, Ryuko refused to dress Senketsu and wore a cloak that covered her entire body, from head to toe, which is the same one she wore when she covered herself the first time she dressed. to Senketsu, because he was embarrassed to wear so few clothes. She also once dressed Junketsu, appearing to wear white and blue armor that covered her chest, waist, and legs. Finally, he dressed Senketsu again and, by absorbing all of Goku's and Junketsu's uniforms, he was able to develop a more advanced transformation, in which his hair temporarily changes color to blonde, and his suit becomes red and yellow.
Personality[]
Ryuko's greatest characteristic is her stubborn and temperamental nature. It is easy for Ryuko to be manipulated by her own emotions and commit actions based entirely on rage and the desire for revenge, even losing control of her body when consumed by both Divine Garments. Although Ryuko is easy to impatient and get on her nerves, she has been able to learn from her mistakes and enjoy better self-control by the end of the anime. Although sometimes proud and confident, Ryuko has shown a sense of heroism, altruism, and kindness to those she cares about. She is fearless and can be considered insolent and intrepid, which is shown when she directly and disrespectfully addresses Satsuki Kiryuin and the Elite Four on a first-name basis, or when she fights against Takaharu Fukuroda, even with the difference in power.
She shows great determination in finding her father's killer. Her audacity reaches such an extent that she manages to free herself from Ragyo's mental control simply by punching herself. On the other hand, in the same episode it happens one of the few times that it is shown that she is truly surprised, when Ragyo defeats Satsuki, rips Ryuko's heart out of her chest and reveals that she is her mother.
After Ryuko is brainwashed and forced to put on Junketsu, her personality becomes wild and sadistic, destroying everything around her for no apparent reason. After she is released, she reverts to her personality but is somewhat calmer and more mature. She also makes peace with Satsuki and is even able to fight alongside her as comrades, but still has trouble recognizing her as her sister. However, when Satsuki catches her as she is falling back to earth, and warmly welcomes her back to her home, Ryuko responds to her by calling her "her sister".
She is also a serious and cheerful girl, and despite the fact that she smiles when she is in funny moments, but even so she tends to get angry easily, this can be seen when she talks to her teacher, this scene also makes us understand that she hates perverts and also to dress with few clothes which tells us that it is shameful.
Although during the duel against Satsuki Kiryuin, after realizing that she means wearing Senketsu, she gets rid of her shame in order to take on the true form of her divine garment and all her strength. She is usually calm, but when she meets the murderer of her father she loses her temper and control over herself. At first she is seen eating a lemon, which makes her appear tough. Ryuko is also capable of doing anything to achieve her goal, such as facing the entire Honnouji Academy just to learn details of her father's death. At first, she preferred to be alone and refused other company, but thanks to Mako Mankanshoku, she enjoyed the company, especially the lively dinners with the Mankanshoku family, so when the social status of this family increased and the lively dinners, Ryuko saddens and begins to feel lonely. She was also embarrassed to address her sister as nee-san, even though she finally shamelessly calls her that. At first, Ryuko wasn't much of a fan of regular shopping, but later she ends up going with Mako and enjoying it.