Origin
Creation
Saya Takagi (????, Takagi Saya) is a main character of the manga series Highschool of the Dead that was written by Daisuke Sato and illustrated by Shouji Sato. The series first began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten’s Monthly Dragon Age magazine in July 2006. The creators of the series classified characters using role-playing game terminology, and Saya is the mage due to her intellect.
Her first appearance was in Hightschool of the Dead Volume 1 CH. 1 “Spring of the Dead”.
Before the outbreak, Saya was considered the sexiest girl of the second-year class. Of her fellow classmates, Saya has the largest breasts at 92cm F-Cup. In a popularity ranking held by Dragon Age magazine, four characters from Highschool of the Dead were in the top 10, and Saya tied for tenth place with Kohta Hirano and Gosick character, Victorique de Blois.
Character Evolution
“Fear gives rise to chaos. Chaos gives rise to the collapse of social order. And when social order collapses…how do you propose we retaliate against the walking dead.”
Saya Takagi – “Highschool of the Dead” Vol. 1 Ch. 2
Her first appearance in Highschool of the Dead had her wearing a basic school uniform of Fujima High School with a short skirt, but no glasses. She first paired with fellow survivor Kohta Hirano, and teamed up with fellow second-year Takashi Komuro’s group. She follows his lead, but Saya’s insight has guided the survivors through many trails. She switched to her glasses at the school to avoid the complications of her contacts. Her personality can be overbearing, realistic, and critical. She’s often insulting others. She had serious resentment for her parents when she thought they had given up on her, but eventually was made to realize how lucky she was to know they survived.
- Age: 16
- Hair: Pink
- Eyes: Orange
- Height: 155cm (5′ 1″)
- Weight: 52kg (115lbs)
- Measurements: 92F-59-87cm (36F-23-34in.)
As a self proclaimed genius, it was Saya that used her deductive reasoning that avoided the stamped that killed numerous students during the initial attack, and figured out that the zombies (dubbed “Them”) don’t react to sight but sound. She used her knowledge of movies in helping to create some of the weapons they needed to escape the school. Unlike the rest of the girls from her school, Saya doesn’t return to her school uniform in any way after leaving the apartment of Rika Minami. After her group adopted Alice Maresato, a 7 year-old girl they rescued; Saya has played the role of a protective older sister. While they were staying at a local mega-mall for shelter, Alice and Saya selected new more practical outfits for their journey.
Major Story Arcs
Spring of the Dead
Weapons
As a human fighter with no real combat training, Saya is dependent on the power of others survive against the zombies. Kohta has been her primary guard but she has used some weapons. Her mother gave her Kiku Crest Lugar P08, a rotary extended ammo clip, and optional stock when they left the estate, but she never got the chance to fire it. While at the Eastern Police Station, Kohta handed her a MP5 machine gun that was equipped with a suppressor.
- Power Drill
- Kiku Crest Luger P08
- MP5 SFK
Other Media
Anime
Highschool of the Dead
Her first anime appearance was in Highschool of the Dead – Episode 1 “Spring of the Dead”. Her character in the Japanese series is voiced by Eri Kitamura, and the U.S. dub produced by Section 23 is done by Maggie Flecknoe.