The Ring

Sadako's evil spirit is based on the Japanese concept of onryō (怨霊) or "vengeful ghosts." Onryō were thought to be the souls of those who died with extreme hatred, particularly women. They all have a specified appearance: pale women with long, disheveled black hair wearing white burial clothes. (In ancient Japan, women's hair was kept up until death.) Sadako herself is based on two famous onryō: Okiku of Banchō Sarayashiki (番町皿屋敷, The Dish Mansion at Banchō) who was murdered and thrown down a well by the samurai she spurned, and Oiwa of the Yotsuya Kaidan (四谷怪談) who was fooled into drinking poison and murdered by her husband. After the seven day period of her curse passes on an individual, nothing can stop Sadako from reaching them, and killing them. She can pass through solid objects, can't be hurt through traditional means, and will not give up until the individual is dead.

<Sadako's Powers> Sadako is very powerful, inheriting her psychic powers from her mother, and possibly her unknown father in the films. Her most notable power is that of Nensha, an ability that allows her to telekinetically burn images onto surfaces or into a person's mind. This allows her to create the videotape while trapped in the well. Her psychic powers also allow her to manipulate DNA and viruses, creating her mutated smallpox virus in the novels. The virus also carries her DNA, allowing her to be reborn after Mai Takano and Mitsuo Ando sleep together. In Rasen, she resurrects Ryuji Takayama, and Ando's son Takanori. The cursed tape allows her to appear as a ghost and extend her nensha powers to others, leaving Masami Kurahashi with some degree of power after killing Tomoko. Her ghost can appear, most notably showing an ability to crawl out of a television to kill her victims. How she killed Tomoko's friends who weren't near a television at the time remains unknown. However, it is suspected her ability to give people heart attacks caused this.

This tape is held in mythology, however, nobody of the modern age knows of it. The tape holds on it a video, reflecting the last living moments of Yamamura Sadako. Which, the first image is of a white ring, a reflection of what Sadako saw when she was in the well, then various images appear seconds apart, it cuts to a video of the well Sadako fell down, and then the tape cuts to black. The tape is a cursed tape, taking the form of a cassette tape. Anyone who watches the tape is cursed and has a week to copy the tape and show it to someone else, otherwise, they will be killed by Samara's ghost. The cursed tape is a recording of Sadako Yamamura's past life, seeking vengeance and discovery. Anyone who watches it is cursed. They will receive a call from Sadako herself, registered under "Unknown". Once answered, she will whisper the words, "Seven days", then cut the line. The person now must copy and show the tape to someone else within a week, or they will be killed by Samara's ghost.

Upon viewing the recording on the tape, by inserting it in a television and playing it, Samara contacts viewers by phone, saying "Seven days," starting a countdown. Various symptoms and effects, stemming from Samara's suffering, afflict characters in the films. These include frightening animals like horses or deer, nosebleeds, and an obsession with drawing images from the video.

An unusual effect is a fly on the tape that can move if paused and be removed, causing additional effects like nosebleeds. Most effects manifest as disturbing, nensha-like powers.

If the watcher fails to pass the curse on before the 7-day period ends, will be hunted down by Sadako. Sadako typically appears through the ending of her tape. After 7 days pass, regardless of the television's state, her videotape will begin to play, starting at the end, with Sadako crawling from a well, and slowly teleporting to the screen. Once at the screen, she will pass from the video to the real world, and begin her hunt of the person who watched her tape.

After watching the tape, a timer counts both 24 hours in 30-minute increments, and another timer counts days from 1 to 7. The second, day timer, will only increase when the first timer reaches 24 hours.

Time: 00:15 (Day 1)

Time: 01:30 (Day 3)

Time: 12:45 (Day 2)

Time: 21:00 (Day 4)

Time: 23:45 (Day 6)

Time: 10:30 (Day 5)