Miho Nosaka
| Names | Miho Nosaka (野坂ミホ), Ribbon, Ribbon-chan |
| Gender | Female ♀ |
| Race | Human |
| Occupation | Student, Waitress, Student librarian |
| Origin | Yu-Gi-Oh! Chapter 7: The Face of Truth 真実の顔 Shinjitsu no Kao (March 4, 1997, tankōbon volume) |
| Alignment | Good |
| Age | 16 |
| Created By | Kazuo Takahashi (Japanese: 高橋 一雅) |
| Personality Type | ESFP, 7w6 (Enneagram) |
| Voice Actors | Japanese: Yukana Nogami (野上 ゆかな) |
Miho Nosaka is a major character in the Toei Yu-Gi-Oh! anime and the Yu-Gi-Oh! (1999) film. Originally, she appeared only once in the manga in a story where Hiroto Honda bought her a love-themed jigsaw puzzle. However, in Toei’s adaptation, she was expanded into a main character alongside Yugi Mutou, Anzu Mazaki, Hiroto Honda, and Katsuya Jonouchi. Her role and personality in the anime differ significantly from the manga, though one constant remains—Honda’s massive crush on her, which persists throughout the series. While she does appear in the anime's adaptation of the jigsaw puzzle story, her role is minor, as the plot instead focuses on Mayumi purchasing the puzzle for Jonouchi.
Appearance
Miho wears the standard Domino High School girls' uniform. She has lilac hair tied into a ponytail, often adorned with a yellow ribbon, and has fair skin.
Personality
Miho is cheerful and flirty but also possesses a stubborn and resilient nature. She deeply cares for her friends’ well-being and often refers to herself in the third person. A typical fangirl, she excitedly squeals whenever an attractive male, particularly Ryo Bakura, walks by and frequently becomes obsessed with new games and trends despite having no prior interest in them. She claims to dream of marrying someone wealthy, but at heart, like Honda, she is a romantic. However, Miho can also be naïve and somewhat oblivious to the feelings of those around her, much to Honda’s frustration. Despite this, she occasionally hints at being aware of Honda’s crush, deliberately making comments that prompt him to volunteer for things on her behalf.
Despite her bubbly and somewhat flighty personality, Miho is fiercely protective of her friends. She stood up to Warashibe after he gave Anzu, Honda, and Jonouchi tainted water, making them sick. At times, her carefree nature even leads to accidental triumphs—such as when she single-handedly, albeit unintentionally, defeated three of Seto Kaiba’s professional mercenaries in a game of laser tag.
Biography
Miho Nosaka is Anzu Mazaki’s best friend and a close friend of Yugi Mutou, Katsuya Jonouchi, Hiroto Honda, and Ryo Bakura. Honda, in particular, is madly in love with her, a dynamic that persists throughout the series.
One day, Miho entered the classroom while Jonouchi was teasing Yugi. Complaining about the long cafeteria line and her empty stomach, she prompted Honda to eagerly volunteer to buy her lunch.
After school, Yugi and Jonouchi planned to stop by Burger World, but Honda objected, citing school rules. However, Miho expressed interest in going, immediately swaying Honda to change his stance. Anzu, trying to deter them, warned of the restaurant’s bad reputation and reminded them of Jiro the Jorogumo, an escaped convict. Jonouchi noticed Anzu had been acting strangely and suspected she might be secretly dating older men for money. Concerned, Miho decided to "rescue" her friend and followed her home—only to discover that Anzu had secretly taken a job at Burger World, breaking school rules. Inspired, Miho also took a job there to earn extra money. Honda, suspecting Miho was also involved in illicit activities, followed her and ended up getting a job himself to be near her. Yugi and Jonouchi later tailed them, witnessing an incident where two escaped convicts stormed the restaurant, resulting in Anzu being taken hostage. After the ordeal, Miho and Honda quit their jobs, soon finding new work at a noodle shop.
Miho was later invited to Seto Kaiba’s mansion alongside Yugi’s friends. Instantly charmed by Kaiba’s wealth, she openly admired him, much to Honda’s jealousy.
In another instance, Miho convinced Honda to wake up early and wait in line to buy her a D-Shock watch. However, while distracted, Honda lost the watch to Shotaro Akaboshi. When Miho arrived to collect it, Honda, realizing it was missing, frantically searched his clothes—stripping down to his underwear in the process—only for Miho to slap him and run off in tears. Dark Yugi later won the watch back in a Shadow Game, returning it to Honda, who passed it to Miho. Delighted, Miho then asked Honda to buy her perfume, which he eagerly did.
Miho also got a Digital Pet and hoped to win a vacation prize in an upcoming tournament. Not wanting to train the pet herself, she casually mentioned this in front of Honda, who, as expected, volunteered to do it for her. After taking three days off school, he returned with the pet, now named Super Strawberry, and used it to defeat Kujirada’s Devil Master, which had been eating Anzu and Jonouchi’s pets. However, Haiyama, who had been manipulating Kujirada, kidnapped Miho and left a note for Honda. Attempting to rescue her, Honda was overpowered and knocked unconscious. Dark Yugi intervened, defeating Haiyama in a Shadow Game. As she lay unconscious on Honda, Miho dreamily spoke about the vacation—revealing she intended to go with her mother rather than Honda.
At one point, Mayumi, who had a crush on Jonouchi, sought gift ideas and consulted Miho and Anzu. Miho jokingly suggested porn videos before realizing Mayumi was serious. With Yugi’s help, they ultimately chose a jigsaw love letter instead.
Miho also attracted the attention of Warashibe, a college student who desperately tried to win her affection by sending her Capsule Monster Chess pieces as gifts. Staging a heroic act, he had Yugi—disguised as a thug—pretend to attack Miho so Warashibe could "rescue" her. However, Miho instantly recognized Yugi and was unimpressed by Warashibe. When Warashibe invited her to his secret base, she refused, slapping him after finding his advances unsettling. Humiliated, Warashibe retaliated by poisoning Miho’s friends with tainted water. Enraged, Miho confronted him, but he forced her into a rigged game of Capsule Monster Chess. Realizing she was being set up with weak monsters, Miho attempted to leave, but Warashibe blocked the exit and attempted to trap her inside a giant CapMon capsule. In the ensuing chaos, part of the gate broke, striking Miho and Yugi unconscious. Dark Yugi then emerged, defeating Warashibe and subjecting him to a Penalty Game, ultimately rescuing Miho.
When Yugi and Anzu went to Domino Park together, Miho, Jonouchi, and Honda decided to investigate whether it was actually a date. When Honda suggested they visit the pool so he could see Miho in a swimsuit, she lashed out at him but still ended up spending time with him there. During a bomb scare evacuation, Miho managed to leave the park safely but returned after the bomber was captured.
Later, Miho congratulated Yugi when he received a love letter from Risa Kageyama and teasingly asked Anzu if she was jealous. She continued to spy on Yugi’s love life, hiding in the bushes with the rest of their friends to watch his meeting with Risa.
Honda attempted to convince Miho to enter a beauty pageant, but she only agreed after developing a crush on Bakura. However, fellow contestant Kaoruko Himekoji and her supporter, the Student Council Chairman, plotted against her. In the first round, Miho performed a majorette dance, but for the swimsuit portion, the chairman had her outfit sabotaged. Quick-thinking, she improvised by wearing a mermaid costume from the school’s drama supplies. Before the final round, Kaoruko knocked Miho unconscious and tore her dress, but Dark Yugi stepped in, defeating Kaoruko in a Shadow Game, forcing her to withdraw from the competition.
Miho also supported her friends during the Death-T and Monster World arcs.
In Yu-Gi-Oh! (1999 film), Miho spent time with her friends at school before accompanying Honda, Yugi, and Jonouchi to a card shop to watch Yugi and Jonouchi play Duel Monsters. To their surprise, they discovered Anzu was working there. As Yugi played, he explained the game to Miho, and although Honda challenged her to a match, she preferred to keep watching. They also witnessed Shougo Aoyama being picked on for his lack of skill. Anzu mentioned that Shougo had visited before but had been too timid to play.
Miho’s final appearance was enjoying time with her friends and Shougo.
Trivia
- Miho's first name combines the characters for "beautiful" (美) and "grain" (穂).
- She is nicknamed "ribbon" or "ribbon-chan" by her friends for the yellow ribbon she wears in her hair.
- She is one of the many manga characters who do not appear in the Duel Monsters adaptation, but are listed as Trueman's victims in GX.
