Mayumi Yamano

"Why do I have to explain myself to you...? What's wrong with you...? D-don't make me call for help! Wh-What're you going to do...!?"

- Mayumi to Tohru Adachi before her death, Persona 4

Mayumi Yamano is a character in Persona 4. She is a TV announcer who went to an affair with Taro Namatame, as well as the first victim of the bizarre murder cases.

Appearances

 * Persona 4 / Golden: Minor Character
 * Persona 4 Manga: Minor Character
 * Persona 4 The Animation: Minor Character
 * Persona 4 The Golden Animation: Minor Character
 * Persona 4: Kiri no Amnesia: Minor Character

Design
Mayumi is a young woman with short black hair and brown eyes. She wears a white collar shirt, black skirt, thick black tights, and black flats.

Persona 4
A TV announcer, she is the center of the media attention after her scandal with a political secretary, Taro Namatame. Namatame once said that she was the only one who accepted him for who he was and in turn, she gave meaning to his life, implying that they had an emotional connection which was more important than Namatame's relationship with his wife (at the time), enka singer Misuzu Hiiragi.

The protagonist is introduced to Mayumi Yamano when her alleged affair with Namatame was broadcast by the media. People cared more about the novelty of their affair being brought to light than the reasons that lead to it in the first place, focusing on the sensationalism and not on the actual people involved. This affair led to a chain of events, including the end of Namatame's career, and his marriage to Misuzu Hiiragi being broken off. People's opinion on Mayumi significantly deteriorated to the point where she retreated to Yasoinaba to avoid further media attention. She chose to stay at the Amagi Inn run by Yukiko Amagi's family.

A junior police detective, Tohru Adachi, claimed to be assigned as her guardian to help protect her from the media swarm. Ensuring he was alone with her, he confronted her about the affair, asking if it was true. When she brushed him off, he became incredibly abrasive and approached her, cornering her in front of the television and accidentally pushing her in. Through this incident, Adachi became aware of his powers. Adachi was merely threatening her at that point, and never intended to fully push her in. During this moment, Namatame was watching the Midnight Channel, and believes that Yamano was asking him for help, causing his arm to be snuck into the TV, although Namatame dismissed it as a dream.

Pushed into the television world, Mayumi fell into despair and was killed by the Shadows within. The Amagi Inn was abuzz over Ms. Yamano's "disappearance", until her body was found by Saki Konishi hanging between television antennas days later. Her subsequent disappearance and death made Taro Namatame aware of the existence of the Midnight Channel. Mayumi's death while staying at the Amagi Inn gave it the reputation of being cursed.

Namatame was grief struck by Yamano's death, and he believed that Yamano gave him the power to enter the TV to "save people" from the killer. Namatame's sheer ignorance of the situation led to him unwittingly playing into Adachi's sadistic serial murder spree.

Persona 4 The Animation
When the protagonist, Yosuke, and Chie accidentally arrived in the Midnight Channel, they stumbled upon a mysterious room where there were posters of Misuzu Hiiragi, either with the faces cut out or splattered with blood, upon the walls, and a noose hanging in the middle made with rope and a scarf belonging to Mayumi. A foreboding feeling lingered within the area, forcing the trio to leave. This area is undoubtedly where Mayumi had died.

After the culture festival, the protagonist, Teddie, Yosuke Hanamura, and Kanji Tatsumi stay in a room at the Amagi Inn in which they believe to be haunted due to the weeping sounds and the talismans hanging in the room. They believe that was the room Mayumi stayed in before she died. However, it is revealed the sobbing sounds came from Hanako Ohtani and Ms. Kashiwagi in a nearby room.

Persona 4 The Golden Animation
During episode 6, the scene where Mayumi is thrown into the TV by Adachi at the Amagi Inn is shown. Beforehand, Adachi sees Yamano on the Midnight Channel under the impression that one's soulmate does appear when viewed, further provoking his violence after asking her whether she is really in an affair or not.

Persona 4: Kiri no Amnesia
Yamano's Shadow appears under the deity's name Iwanaga-hime and attacks Amnesia, a being that takes the form of Saki's Shadow, along with Yosuke.

Etymology

 * The name Mayumi means "real, genuine" (真) (ma), "reason, case, cause" (由) (yu) and "beautiful" (美) (mi).
 * Mayumi's surname Yamano means "mountain, hill" (山) (yama) and "field, wilderness" (野) (no).