Rei Nishina (仁科 麗, Nishina Rei) is Keiichiro's ex-girlfriend who appears in episode 14. She's only in the anime version of Tokyo Mew Mew.
Appearance[]
Rei is a woman with wavy medium brown hair that reaches a little past her mid back. Most of her hair is loose, but the last few inches are tied in a ponytail. Her eyes are a very dark gray or black.
Throughout most of episode 24, she is seen wearing a lab coat over a plain, simple outfit. Flashbacks show her in more casual clothes while not working.
Career[]
Rei is a Lepidopterist, someone who researches butterflies, and uses clues on their population to find out how the environment in Tokyo is changing. The job keeps her very busy that there are times when she can't go out for fun but she loves her work due to the butterflies, wishing that she could be just as free as they are.
Tokyo Mew Mew[]
In episode 14, the Mew Mews notice that Keiichiro is acting strangely. He is designing a birthday cake that he doesn't intend to sell and is so caught up in making it that he isn't paying attention to anything else. The only clue as to what's upsetting him is that July 6th is circled on the calendar. Around that time, Ichigo gets caught in a net belonging to Rei, who was attempting to catch a butterfly that had landed on Ichigo's head. They run into each other the next day when Ichigo visits the park looking for Aoyama, who isn't there. Rei once again comes close to catching Ichigo in a net, causing them to both fall into a lake. Ichigo is taken to Rei's apartment to dry off, where she notices that Rei's calendar also has July 6th marked on the calendar. Rei admits that it's her birth date, prompting Ichigo to try asking if she knows Keiichiro, though the topic is soon dropped as Ichigo believes the chances of that are slim.
Ichigo later witnesses Keiichiro still working on the cake. Ryou explains that Keiichiro makes one every year for his ex-girlfriend's birthday, who was studying butterflies and broke up with Keiichiro as they didn't have time to spare for each other. The break up and lack of a proper goodbye is what caused Keiichiro to make cakes in the first place. Ichigo tells Ryou about meeting Rei and that she seems lonely. Ichigo tries to convince Keiichiro to reconnect with Rei. Though Keiichiro is initially mad that Ryou told her, he softens when Ichigo tells him about how Rei is doing and that she left because she loved him. The other Mew Mews arrive and agree with Ichigo, convincing Keiichiro to see her.
Upon getting there, they notice a bright light and quickly learn that Pie and Tart have taken Rei's spirit to create a butterfly Chimera Anima while in the process of getting a DNA sample from Rei. While the Mew Mews fight the Chimera Anima, Keiichiro runs to Rei's unconscious body. Pie attempts to attack Keiichiro, who enters the cocoon encasing Rei's body and removes her from it. This weakens the Chimera enough that Ichigo is able to finish it off.
When Rei wakes up, Keiichiro tells her about the cake he made, which was accidentally dropped before the fight. Rei assures him that it's okay and that she finally has the courage to give him a proper goodbye, allowing them to part on better terms. Most of the Mew Mews are saddened by this, but Zakuro points out that Keiichiro and Rei can now move on with their lives.
Mew Mew Power[]
This particular episode in Mew Mew Power stays mostly the same with a few minor changes. Rei's name is changed to Chrys which is a pun on the word Chrysalis(a butterfly cocoon). Most of her personality stays the same but the English dub adds that she's not good at telling jokes due to not being very social.
The end of the English dub of episode 14 ends with Renée and Elliot saying that despite Wesley and Chrys breaking up, there's still a chance that they'll get back together someday, giving the episode a more optimistic ending than the original Japanese version.
International[]
Name Changes[]
- Mew Mew Power - Chrys
- Vadmacska Kommandó (Hungarian) - Christy
- Dong Jing Mao Mao (Mandarin) - Lì RénKē
- Berry Berry Mew Mew (Korean) - Jiwon Seo
Etymology[]
- The name Rei means "beautiful, lovely" (麗).
- Rei's surname Nishina means "compassionate" (仁) (ni) and "family, department, section" (科) (shina).
Gallery[]
