Lum the Invader Girl (), known in Japan simply as , is a fictional character and the female protagonist of Rumiko Takahashi's manga series Urusei Yatsura. She is often believed to be the main protagonist of the series due to her iconic status. However, Takahashi has stated that Ataru Moroboshi is the main character. She is named Lamu in Animax's English-language dub of the series, and in the Italian and French anime dubs as well; however she is still called "Lum" in the Spanish anime dub. Her name is thought to come from popular 1970s swimsuit model Agnes Lum, as well as Rumiko Takahashi's nickname of "Rum" or "Lum" (from the interchangeable sound of the Rs and Ls in Japanese). Lum is considered a magical girlfriend, though significantly different from others such as Belldandy of Oh! My Goddess and Ai of Video Girl Ai. While the latter two are openly considered "ideal" women by the protagonists of their respective series, Ataru often indicates publicly that Lum is the opposite of ideal. Creation and conception Lum was created by Rumiko Takahashi for a short story she was working on before her professional debut. She worked meticulously on designing her hairstyle and body shape. However, the outspoken and uninhibited Lum is the author's polar opposite. This proved to Takahashi that she could draw characters who do not reflect herself at all. Appearances In Urusei Yatsura Lum is royalty and the daughter of the Oni alien Invader and is capable of flying and generating massive electrical discharges. She generally wears a tiger-striped bikini and Go-Go Boots which highlight her shapely figure, and has two tiny horns on her head that, when sprayed with a special solution, can be shaped to resemble barrettes. When these horns are removed (or when specially blessed yellow ribbons are tied around them), her electric and flying abilities disappear and she becomes a regular girl. Her hair color was originally iridescent and ever-changing in the manga; due to difficulties in making such an effect possible at the time the anime was originally produced, Lum's hair was given the shade of green it is best known for. Lum's appearance and clothing (and that of her family) draw heavily on the Japanese god of thunder, Raijin. She grew up on her homeworld Oniboshi a precocious girl and attended primary school with Benten of the Oni's rivals, the Lucky Gods, Oyuki, the