is a Japanese
manga series written and illustrated by
Naoki Urasawa
is a Japanese manga artist and musician. He has been drawing manga since he was four years old, and for most of his professional career has created two series simultaneously. The stories to many of these were co-written in collaboration with his ...
. It was originally serialized in
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, comics ( manga), non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.
Shogakukan founded Shueisha, which also founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the H ...
's
''seinen'' manga magazine ''
Big Comic Spirits
is a weekly Japanese ''seinen'' manga magazine published by Shogakukan. The first issue was published on October 14, 1980. Food, sports, romance and business are recurring themes in the magazine, and the stories often question conventional va ...
'' from 1999 to 2006, with the 249 chapters published into 22 ''
tankōbon
is the Japanese term for a book that is not part of an anthology or corpus. In modern Japanese, the term is most often used in reference to individual volumes of a manga series: most series first appear as individual chapters in a weekly or ...
'' volumes. A sixteen chapter continuation, titled , ran in the same magazine from 2006 to 2007 and was gathered into two ''tankōbon''. It tells the story of Kenji Endo and his friends, who notice a cult-leader known only as "Friend" is out to destroy the world, and it has something to do with their childhood memories. The series makes many references to a number of manga and anime from the 1960s–1970s, as well as to classic
rock music
Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...
, its title being taken from
T. Rex's song "
20th Century Boy
"20th Century Boy" is a song by T. Rex, written by Marc Bolan, released as a stand-alone single on 2 March 1973.
It entered in the UK Singles Chart at number 3, on 10 March 1973 and peaked three weeks in a row at that position. It stayed ...
".
A trilogy of live-action film adaptations, directed by
Yukihiko Tsutsumi
is a Japanese television and film director. He began directing commercials and music promotion videos as an employee of Nihon Television. After spending time abroad, he returned and started his own production company, ''Office Crescendo'', from w ...
, were released in 2008 and 2009. The manga was licensed and released in English by
Viz Media
VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ M ...
from 2009 to 2012, and distributed in Australasia by
Madman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment Pty. Ltd., also known as Madman Films, is an Australian distribution and rights management company headquartered in East Melbourne, Victoria, specialising in feature films, documentaries and television series across theatr ...
. The films were also licensed by Viz in North America and by 4Digital Media in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. ''20th Century Boys'' has received critical acclaim and has 36 million copies in circulation.
Plot summary
In 1969, young boys Kenji, Otcho, Yoshitsune and Maruo build, in an empty field, a hideout they call their secret base, in which they and their friends can get together to share manga and stolen pornographic magazines and listen to a radio. To celebrate the event, Otcho draws a symbol for the base that would represent their friendship. After their friends Yukiji and Donkey join the gang, they imagine a future scenario where villains would try to destroy the world, and in which the boys would stand up and fight; this scenario is transcribed and labelled .
In the late 1990s, Kenji is a convenience store owner, finding solace in his childhood adventures as he takes care of his baby niece Kanna and his mother. After Donkey is reported to have committed suicide, Kenji stumbles upon a large cult led by a man known only as "Friend". With current events beginning to resemble actions from the Book of Prophecy, Kenji and his former classmates try to remember who knows about the book. They find more events unfolding such as bombings and virus attacks in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
,
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, and a major Japanese airport.
Kenji and his former classmates eventually uncover a plan to destroy the world on New Year's Eve of 2000, referred to in the latter part of the story as the Bloody New Year's Eve, with the use of a "giant robot", which is later revealed to be a giant balloon with robotic appendages, which spreads the virus throughout the city as well as other cities. Kenji manages to get inside the robot to plant a bomb, but is presumed dead when it explodes. From this event, the members of the gain widespread political popularity and power by presenting a vaccine that counters the virus, and thus take all the credit for saving the world.
Fourteen years after Bloody New Year's Eve, Kanna is a teenage girl who works at a Chinese restaurant. After she tries to defuse some interaction between various mafia groups, she discovers that a patron's friend had witnessed a Chinese mafia member get killed by a corrupted policeman. The mafia member mentions an assassination attempt on the Pope as he visits Japan. She then finds herself being hunted by members of the Friends while trying to unite the mafia groups to her cause. Meanwhile, Otcho manages to escape a maximum security prison.
Kyoko Koizumi, who attends Kanna's school, impulsively takes on a school assignment of covering Bloody New Year's Eve, but soon becomes entangled in activities involving both the Friends and the people who oppose them. After surviving a brainwashing program, she joins with Kenji's friend Yoshitsune and his resistance force.
Friend reveals a new plan, a continuation of the Book of Prophecy, in which he plans to kill every human being on Earth except for sixty million of his followers, but he is then assassinated by his chief scientist Yamane. Following this, Friend's funeral becomes a worldwide spectacle, held in a stadium with the
Pope
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
giving the address. Partway through the service, Friend appears to rise from the dead, and is shot in the shoulder by his own assassin. By saving the Pope, Friend is elevated to deity like status. Meanwhile, there is a worldwide viral outbreak that threatens to kill everyone except those who have been vaccinated.
The final portion of the story takes place in a newly remodeled Japan, under the "Era of Friend", who has instituted numerous bizarre changes, including the establishment of an Earth Defense Force, reputedly to protect Earth from an imminent
alien invasion, exiling those without vaccinations, and forbidding travel across regions, under penalty of death. During this time frame, Kanna, who is revealed to be Friend's daughter, leads an
insurgency
An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric nature: small irr ...
against Friend's government, enlisting the aid of numerous groups, including the survivors of rival gangs and mafia organizations. During this, Kenji, apparently also risen from the dead and carrying his trademark guitar, reappears.
The series spans several decades from 1969 to 2017, the last of which in the chronology of the series, becomes 3FE (3rd Year of the Friend Era). The series makes three distinct timeline cuts during the story; one from 1971 to 1997, one from 2000 to 2014, and one from 2014 to 3FE. Several parts of the series are also told in flashbacks to previous events as the characters attempt to unravel the mystery of who Friend is and how to stop his plans of world destruction; most of the character's childhood backstories through the 1970s and 1980s are told in this fashion.
Characters
;
: The central protagonist of the first half of the story, which revolves around his childhood in the early 1970s to the present day. He is generally laid-back, with an almost recklessly careless nonchalance, and is heavily interested in
rock'n roll. works at his family's store which used to be a liquor store but has since been converted to a subsidiary convenience store.
[''20th Century Boys'' manga, Volume 1] He, his relatives, and friends play crucial roles as the plot unfolds. Kenji's whereabouts are unknown after the events of the Bloody New Year's Eve and he is presumed dead. He reappears in 3FE as a traveling musician under the alias (a reference to the main character of ''
Ashita no Joe
is a Japanese boxing manga series written by Asao Takamori (a pen name of Japanese author and manga writer Ikki Kajiwara, and one that's a variation on his real name) and illustrated by Tetsuya Chiba. The story follows a young man named ...
''). After barely escaping the robot's explosion in 2000, he experienced amnesia and wandered throughout Japan before regaining his memory during the events of 2015. His song becomes a popular underground anthem against Friend's oppression.
: He is named after the Japanese musician of the same name.
;
: Kenji's childhood friend who created the secret base with him. He is nicknamed after the famous samurai
Minamoto no Yoshitsune
was a military commander of the Minamoto clan of Japan in the late Heian and early Kamakura periods. During the Genpei War, he led a series of battles which toppled the Ise-Heishi branch of the Taira clan, helping his half-brother Yoritomo conso ...
due to the fact that his family name is . Ever the nervous, unconfident, and self-deprecating little guy of the group, Yoshitsune is nonetheless one of the few who answered the call to fight on Bloody New Year's Eve, where he is believed to have died. In the year 2014, Yoshitsune has become the dependable, albeit reluctant leader of an underground organization bent on taking down Friend. By 3FE, the group is now known as the after the
Minamoto/Genji clan.
: In the live-action film series, his full name is given as .
;
: Kenji's portly childhood friend. After answering the call to fight, he is believed to have died in Bloody New Year's Eve. But in 2015, he is the manager of singer under the pseudonym . Namio is one of Friend's favorite entertainers, the singer of the official theme song of
Expo
An expo is a trade exposition. It may also refer to:
Events and venues
* World's fair, a large international public exposition
* Singapore Expo, convention and exposition venue
** Expo Axis, one of the world's largest membrane roofs, constructe ...
2015, and a former bandmate of Kenji's. Using Namio's influence and connections, the two secretly investigate and subvert the Friends, such as inserting subliminal messages in videos. After meeting Friend, Namio draws his face, allowing Maruo to identify him. In 3FE, Maruo tracks down Keroyon and Kiriko and helps distribute the vaccine.
: In the live-action film series, his full name is given as .
;
: A member of Kenji's childhood group of friends who is killed at the beginning of the series. His real name was , and as a child, he grew up in a poor family with many siblings. Initially, Kenji and the others made fun of Donkey, but later befriended him. Obsessed with science and always thinking in a logical manner, he later went on to become a science teacher at a technical high school. After discovering that his student, Masao Tamura, had joined the "Friend" cult, he began to investigate them, but was pushed off the roof of his school during a confrontation with Masao and another member of the group. Donkey's death, which was originally ruled a suicide, is the event that reunites the members of Kenji's group and what kicks off the beginning of the story.
;
: Kenji's childhood friend, whose nickname comes from the Japanese word for the sound a frog makes due to his frog-like features. Terrified by the events his friends had become embroiled in, he ignored Kenji's call to action on Bloody New Year's Eve and chose to escape as far as possible from Japan. 15 years later, feeling guilty traveling America in a
soba food truck, he discovers that Kanna's mother has gone there to try to manufacture the vaccine for the outbreak of 2015 and saves her life. But they are captured by the Friends and sent back to Japan. After being released, they form the "Frogdoom" commune in
Higashimurayama, Tokyo
is a city located in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 148,275, and a population density of 8700 persons per km2. The total area of the city is .
Geography
Higashimurayama is located on th ...
.
: In the live-action film series, his full name is given as .
;
: A childhood friend of Kenji's whose real name is . He moved to Germany and became a rugby player before retiring to take care of his ailing mother. After her passing, he started his own business with a partner. He returns to Japan to attend Donkey's funeral, and later answers Kenji's call to arms on Bloody New Year's Eve. Mon-chan survives the event, but prior to this, he was diagnosed with a terminal illness. He is later seen hospitalized in 2002 due to his disease, showing Yukiji the information he has collected while investigating the Friends. Mon-chan suddenly leaves the hospital with no warning and disappears, which is later revealed to have been to contact Sadakiyo in an attempt to investigate further, not knowing Sadakiyo's involvement in the group. Sadakiyo kills him on behalf of the Friends, taking the information he has gathered.
;
: A childhood friend of Kenji's whose real name is . After elementary school, his family moved to Hokkaido and he lost touch with Kenji. Like Keroyon, he chose to ignore Kenji's call to action on Bloody New Year's Eve and regrets doing so. In 3FE, Konchi acts as a disc jockey at a
Hokkaido
is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel.
The lar ...
radio station, continuously playing Kenji's song over the airwaves.
;
: Kenji's female childhood friend and former classmate. During Kenji's school years, Yukiji was a tomboy who was able to fight off the bullying twins, Mabo and Yanbo. Kenji and Yukiji had crushes on each other as children but neither had the courage to confess, with Kenji's only attempt being misunderstood due to its vagueness. At the beginning of the series, Yukiji is a single unmarried woman who works as a customs official (often comically mistaken by Kenji's friends and local townsfolk for a narcotics officer). She bumps into Kenji and the gang at an airport in Tokyo when her disobedient drug sniffing dog named Blue Three (a Japanese pun on the name
Bruce Lee), attacks Kenji.
[''20th Century Boys'' manga, Volume 2, chapter 1] Yukiji assists Kenji during Bloody New Year's Eve and, following his disappearance, becomes Kanna's guardian per his wishes.
![Mannequin of Tomodachi](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Mannequin_of_Tomodachi.jpg)
;
: The main antagonist of the series. An enigmatic cult leader who uses the symbol Kenji and his friends created in the 1970s. By 1997, his followers have filled venues such as the
Budokan.
One of his secret goals is to take over the world.
[''20th Century Boys'' manga, Volume 2, Chapter 5] Friend's face is hidden in shadow or by a mask throughout the series.
[''20th Century Boys'' manga, Volume 3] His true identity is one of the driving mysteries of the series. By the year 2000, the Friendship Democratic Party (FDP) is established as a political group with government representatives such as Manjome Inshu.
Over the course of the series, two people assume the identity of Friend:
Fukubei, who is one of Kenji's schoolmates, initially appears to be one of Kenji's allies, and
Katsumata, another of Kenji's schoolmates, the latter of whom actually possesses special powers. In the ''kanzenban'' edition of the series, which has a different ending, Kenji realizes that Fukubei died after elementary school graduation and Katsumata learned everything about him to imitate him perfectly and take on his identity as a child, meaning Katsumata was Friend throughout the entire series.
[''21st Century Boys: The Perfect Edition'', Chapter 16]
;
: A junk-peddling con artist allied with Friend who becomes one of the Friendship Democratic Party leaders. His real name is . He originally met the boys in the early 1970s when selling knick-knacks such as
space food
Space food is a type of food product created and processed for consumption by astronauts during missions to outer space. The food has specific requirements of providing balanced nutrition for individuals working in space while being easy and s ...
and spoons, claiming them to be cutting edge modern innovations from
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...
. Upon discovering that Fukubei had a spoon bending talent, he recruited him for a TV show in 1972, but the two were labelled frauds.
[''20th Century Boys'' manga, Volume 18, Chapter 10] In 1980, the financially struggling Manjome was recruited by Fukubei to aid him in creating "Friend".
In 3FE, after Friend reveals to him his intention to destroy humanity and that he is not Fukubei, Manjome asks Kanna and Otcho to kill Friend. Manjome is killed by Takasu while playing the virtual reality game created for Friend Land.
;
: Kenji's childhood friend, whose real name is .
[''20th Century Boys'' manga, Volume 4] Around 1988, he was sent to Thailand by his Japanese trading company, but went missing for a week; upon his return he quit the company and divorced, and a year later was in India.
Originally suspected to be Friend (perhaps due to the fact that he was the one who thought of the symbol which Friend's cult uses), he actually went to receive enlightenment and training from a monk after the death of his son, and was simply living in Asia's seedy underground. In 2000, Otcho is in Thailand doing jobs such as "saving" kidnapped tourists, going under the alias . In prime physical shape, he has escaped certain death many times, but a local drug boss allied with the Friends hunts him. When he gets a plea from Kenji for help, Otcho returns to Japan. He was arrested after the events of Bloody New Year's Eve and is housed in a maximum security prison, before eventually escaping. In 3FE, Otcho takes on the job of riding the robot and shooting down the flying saucers that will disperse the virus.
;
: Kenji's niece, originally introduced at the beginning of the series as a toddler under Kenji's care when her mother disappeared. After Kenji's apparent death and the time-skip, she is the series' new protagonist. Following the events of Bloody New Year's Eve, she returns to Tokyo as a high school student. She seems to possess supernatural abilities such as
ESP
ESP most commonly refers to:
* Extrasensory perception, a paranormal ability
ESP may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment Music
* ESP Guitars, a manufacturer of electric guitars
* E.S. Posthumus, an independent music group formed in 2000, ...
and weak telekinesis. Her father is revealed to be
Friend
Friendship is a relationship of mutual affection between people. It is a stronger form of interpersonal bond than an "acquaintance" or an "association", such as a classmate, neighbor, coworker, or colleague.
In some cultures, the concept of ...
, who claims her abilities to be the result of a secret medicine given to her mother before childbirth. Coupled with her charisma, Kanna makes an able leader, as she unites Tokyo's Thai and Chinese mafia organizations to save the Pope, and later assembles a faction against Friend where she is known under the moniker of .
;
: is a homeless old man nicknamed "Kamisama"; shortening his surname to "Kami" forms the Japanese word for god, which is emphasized when the honorific suffix
-sama is added. He is bent on the return of
ten-pin bowling
Ten-pin bowling is a type of bowling in which a bowler rolls a bowling ball down a wood or synthetic lane toward ten pins positioned evenly in four rows in an equilateral triangle. The objective is to knock down all ten pins on the first rol ...
as a major sport in Japan and has the power of foresight, being able to see what will happen before it comes to pass. Kamisama and his friend lure Kenji out to the riverbank where he warns Kenji about saving the future.
[''20th Century Boys'' manga, Volume 2, Chapter 10] He is revealed to be the businessman who unknowingly evicted Kenji and the gang from their secret base in order to build a bowling alley. Later in the series, Kamisama has become extremely rich by using his foresight to play the stock market, and becomes the first Japanese civilian to travel into space.
;
: In 2014, Kyoko is an airheaded teenage girl that attends the same high school as Kanna. For a history assignment, she impulsively picks Bloody New Year's Eve, but when she starts doing research, she meets Kamisama and learns the truth of what happened that night. She is suddenly recruited to participate in Friend Land where she must abide by the Friend cult activities or risk being sent to Friend World to suffer a worse fate. Kyoko struggles with her survival until she meets Yoshitsune, who helps her get through the exams, the most notable of which is a virtual reality game where she meets Kenji and his classmates in the 1970s, in exchange for uncovering more information on the identity of Friend. In 3FE, Kyoko discovers that she has a talent for bowling and is forced by Kamisama into playing the sport.
;
: Fukubei is a schoolmate of Kenji. His nickname comes from an incorrect reading of the ''
kanji
are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese ...
'' in his real name, . Due to this, he is frequently seen wearing a mask of the titular character of the manga series ''
Ninja Hattori-kun
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by the Fujiko Fujio duo (and later by Fujiko A. Fujio) which was serialized between 1964 and 1988. It was later adapted into a television drama that aired on TV Asahi from 1966 ...
'', both as a child and when acting as Friend. In 1972, he was recruited by Manjome to show his spoon bending talent on TV, but the two were labelled frauds and Fukubei vowed to have revenge by conquering the world and destroying humanity.
He begins to enact his plan for revenge in 1980 when he reunites with Manjome and creates "Friend".
While helping Kenji on Bloody New Year's Eve, Fukubei appears to die by falling off a building while unmasking a guy who appears to be Friend controlling the giant robot. But he later reveals himself to Kenji as the true identity of Friend, Kanna's biological father and an extremely unbalanced man who nurtured a pathological envy of Kenji since their childhood and delusions of grandeur. A megalomaniac primarily motivated by a desire to live out childish fantasies of being recognized as a hero and to take revenge on the world for not recognizing his exceptionalism, Fukubei is an charismatic leader who explores people's need to believe in something greater than themselves in order to fake a series of supernatural powers (in reality, only stage magic tricks) and pose as a superhuman prophet. He seduced Kanna's mother in order to enlist her help in developing vaccines for the viruses he has Yamane create. Fukubei is shot dead by Yamane in the middle of the series on New Years Day 2015. In the ''kanzenban'' edition of the series, which has a different ending, Kenji realizes that Fukubei died after elementary school graduation and Katsumata learned everything about him to imitate him perfectly and take on his identity as a child.
: In the live-action film series, his full name is given as .
;
: Kenji's classmate who was not part of the original gang. His real name is . Although bullied a lot in elementary school, he often wore an alien-like mask and left after only a semester, thus his face remains unknown to most of the gang. However, Fukubei accepted Sadakiyo's request to be his friend. As an adult, he is a member of the Friends and is the caretaker of Friend's replica childhood home. After killing Mon-chan in 2002 and watching Kanna stand up against them, Sadakiyo began to question if following Friend was the right thing to do. In 2014, he becomes Kyoko's English teacher and takes her to Friend's home, where he ends up betraying the Friends, burning the home, and taking Kyoko to meet his old teacher. There, Sadakiyo gives Kanna and company the info Mon-chan gathered on Friend before seemingly dying in a fiery car crash while the others escape. He reappears in 3FE with his mask on and stops the new Friend from killing Kanna. In the live-action film, he stays in the home as it burns.
;
: Kenji's classmate and friend of Fukubei and Sadakiyo. He became a bacteriologist that worked with Kiriko for the Friends. He was responsible for developing the deadly viruses that are unleashed by Friend, while Kiriko was tasked with developing their vaccines. Yamane left the Friends in 2003 after Kiriko enlightened him on what their research was being used for, but only after he had already created an even more potent form of the virus. Although he tried to hide, Yamane receives a message from Friend to meet on New Years Day 2015. Realizing that he can not escape and expecting to be killed, Yamane goes to the meeting and shoots Fukubei, before being killed by the Friends immediately after.
: In the live-action film series, his full name is given as .
;
: In 2014, Takasu is a Dream Navigator in the Friend organization who keeps an eye on Kyoko both at Friend Land and after she leaves. She rises towards the top of the Friends, originally as Manjome's mistress, but later as General Secretary after killing Manjome in 3FE. She becomes pregnant by Friend, hoping to take over the "Holy Mother" role from Kiriko.
;
: In 2014, Chono is a young detective in the
Kabuki-cho police and the grandson of a legendary detective nicknamed "Cho-san". While investigating a murder, Chono meets the cop-hating Kanna and slowly begins to believe that it was committed by a cop who is involved in a plot to assassinate the Pope. When Chono reports his findings to
NPA director-general Yamazaki, who is his grandfather's former partner, the same murdering cop attempts to kill him, proving his report was leaked and that the corruption reaches high into the police force ranks. In 3FE, Chono has been transferred to watching a northern border checkpoint, where he meets Kenji, whom he starts to follow back to Tokyo after immediately recognizing him as the singer on Kanna's cassettes. Chono arrests Yamazaki and, in ''21st Century Boys'', is chief of the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
' investigation into the Friend cult.
;
: Kenji's older sister and Kanna's mother. After her boyfriend was mysteriously murdered, is seduced by Fukubei into marrying him and joining Friend's research group. She becomes a virologist tasked with creating vaccines to the viruses that her colleague Yamane creates. After learning of Fukubei's role as Friend, Kiriko abandoned Kanna into the care of Kenji and her mother and tries to get the police to stop the cult, but has no success before Bloody New Year's Eve happens. Realizing that her research resulted in the deaths of 150,000 people, she embarks on a quest to mitigate the damage of her earlier unwitting involvement. In 2015, she travels to Germany and America handing out vaccines to that year's virus. She and Keroyon are captured by the Friends and sent back to Japan to fulfill the "Holy Mother" prophecy. After being released, they form a commune in Higashimurayama, where Kiriko develops the vaccine for the events of 3FE.
;
: The man who usurps Fukubei's place as Friend is revealed in the last chapter of ''21st Century Boys'' to be Katsumata. A friend of Fukubei's who often wore a double of the same mask Sadakiyo wore, Katsumata harbors a deep hatred of Kenji for stealing a prize from a candy shop in their childhood and letting Katsumata take the blame for it. This incident leaves Katsumata "dead": a social pariah, his very existence unacknowledged by his schoolmates. A rumor spread that Katsumata died the day before a fish dissection at school. Since Katsumata had really been looking forward to this, a rumor that his ghost was seen carrying out the dissection in the science room that night was told amongst the kids. Unlike Fukubei, who only pretends to have paranormal powers, the second Friend seems to have actual precognitive powers that have allowed him to see the future since he was a child. Also unlike Fukubei, who dreamed of conquering the world so his need for attention could be fed by the praise of others, Katsumata wishes to destroy the entire planet after deeming the world unnecessary. Immediately following Fukubei's death in 2015, Katsumata assumes not only the Friend identity, but had plastic surgery to look identical to Fukubei. Katsumata is killed during the final confrontation with Kenji at his old school when Sadakiyo holds him at knife point to stop him from crushing Kanna with the robot, and one of the flying saucers crashes on him. In the ''kanzenban'' edition of the series, which has a different ending, Kenji realizes that Fukubei died after elementary school graduation and Katsumata learned everything about him to imitate him perfectly and take on his identity as a child, meaning Katsumata was Friend throughout the entire series.
: In the live-action film series, his full name is given as .
Production
On the day he gave his editor the manuscript for the final chapter of ''
Happy!'',
Naoki Urasawa
is a Japanese manga artist and musician. He has been drawing manga since he was four years old, and for most of his professional career has created two series simultaneously. The stories to many of these were co-written in collaboration with his ...
was relaxing in the bath when he heard a speech on television by someone from the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
say "Without them, we would not have been able to reach the 21st Century..." and wondered "Who's 'them'? Who are those people?"
Envisioning "them" appearing to a cheering crowd in his head, he came up with the title ''20th Century Boys'' and then the
T. Rex song "
20th Century Boy
"20th Century Boy" is a song by T. Rex, written by Marc Bolan, released as a stand-alone single on 2 March 1973.
It entered in the UK Singles Chart at number 3, on 10 March 1973 and peaked three weeks in a row at that position. It stayed ...
" began to play in his head.
Having been planning to take a break from weekly serialization after consecutively creating ''
Yawara!
''Yawara!'' (also stylized as ''YAWARA!'') is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoki Urasawa. It was serialized in ''Big Comic Spirits'' from 1986 to 1993, with the chapters collected into 29 ''tankōbon'' volumes by p ...
'' and ''Happy!'' with that schedule, Urasawa said he was not looking forward to drawing, but "had" to fax the new idea to the editorial department at ''
Big Comic Spirits
is a weekly Japanese ''seinen'' manga magazine published by Shogakukan. The first issue was published on October 14, 1980. Food, sports, romance and business are recurring themes in the magazine, and the stories often question conventional va ...
'' since it had come to him.
He also felt the need to get started on the series right away since it was around 1998 and the end of the century was approaching.
Although he creates a "movie trailer" in his head when starting a new series, Urasawa does not plan the story out in advance. For example, a young woman appears in the first chapter pulling a curtain open to reveal a giant robot (as envisioned in the trailer). While writing that scene Urasawa could hear a baby crying in the convenience store next door and included that in the manga, thus it cuts to 1997 with Kenji and a crying baby Kanna in a convenience store. The author did not initially know that Kanna would grow into that young woman.
When asked if scenes in ''20th Century Boys'' reflect his own childhood experiences, Urasawa said about 1/10 did. He also explained that the
spoon bending
Spoon bending is the deformation of objects, especially metal cutlery, purportedly by paranormal means. It is a common theme for magic tricks, which use a variety of methods to produce the effect. Performers commonly use misdirection to draw t ...
seen in the series was based on
Uri Geller
Uri Geller ( ; he, אורי גלר; born 20 December 1946) is an Israeli-British illusionist, magician, television personality, and self-proclaimed psychic. He is known for his trademark television performances of spoon bending and other i ...
.
A few weeks before the
September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...
, Urasawa turned in a manuscript for ''20th Century Boys'' where two giant robots fight and destroy buildings in
Shinjuku. But after the attacks, the artist could not bring himself to illustrate that scene and created a chapter almost entirely devoted to Kenji singing a song, in order to express how he felt.
When Urasawa began ''20th Century Boys'' in 1999, he was already writing ''
Monster'' semimonthly and continued to serialize both at the same time. Although he was briefly hospitalized for exhaustion at this point, ''Monster'' ended in 2001 and Urasawa began writing another semimonthly series simultaneous to ''20th Century Boys'' in 2003 with ''
Pluto
Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Sun. It is the largest ...
''.
Media
Manga
Written and illustrated by
Naoki Urasawa
is a Japanese manga artist and musician. He has been drawing manga since he was four years old, and for most of his professional career has created two series simultaneously. The stories to many of these were co-written in collaboration with his ...
, ''20th Century Boys'' was originally serialized in
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, comics ( manga), non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.
Shogakukan founded Shueisha, which also founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the H ...
's
''seinen'' manga magazine ''
Big Comic Spirits
is a weekly Japanese ''seinen'' manga magazine published by Shogakukan. The first issue was published on October 14, 1980. Food, sports, romance and business are recurring themes in the magazine, and the stories often question conventional va ...
'' from 1999 to 2006.
The 249 individual chapters were published into 22 ''
tankōbon
is the Japanese term for a book that is not part of an anthology or corpus. In modern Japanese, the term is most often used in reference to individual volumes of a manga series: most series first appear as individual chapters in a weekly or ...
'' volumes by
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, comics ( manga), non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.
Shogakukan founded Shueisha, which also founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the H ...
from January 29, 2000, to November 30, 2006.
Takashi Nagasaki is credited as "co-producer" of the manga's story. A sequel, titled ''21st Century Boys'', was serialized in the same magazine from December 2006 to July 2007; the 16 chapters were released into two volumes on May 30 and September 28, 2007. ''20th Century Boys'' received an eleven-volume ''
kanzenban'' re-release between January 29 and November 30, 2016. The single ''kanzenban'' reprint of ''21st Century Boys'', released on December 28, 2016, includes a new ending. A
one-shot manga titled ''Aozora Chu-Ihō'' ("Blue Sky Advisory – Kiss") was published in the February 2009 issue of ''Big Comic Spirits'', it was credited to "Ujiko-Ujio", the pen-name of the fictional manga creator duo Kaneko and Ujiki in ''20th Century Boys''.
Both ''20th Century Boys'' and ''21st Century Boys'' were licensed for English-language release in North America by
Viz Media
VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ M ...
in 2005, however their release was delayed until after their translation of ''
Monster'' had finished.
The first English-language volume of ''20th Century Boys'' was released on February 17, 2009, and the last of ''21st Century Boys'' on March 19, 2013. It had been reported that the reason for the delay was at the request of Urasawa, who felt there was a change in his art style over time.
However, when asked about it being due to his request in 2012, Urasawa was surprised saying that he did not know about that and simply suggested Viz did not know which order to publish the two series. In 2017, Viz licensed the ''kanzenban'' editions of both ''20th Century Boys'' and ''21st Century Boys''. The first volume of ''20th Century Boys: The Perfect Edition'' was published on September 18, 2018, and the single volume ''21st Century Boys: The Perfect Edition'' was published on June 15, 2021. Viz's initial release was distributed in
Australasia
Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologi ...
by
Madman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment Pty. Ltd., also known as Madman Films, is an Australian distribution and rights management company headquartered in East Melbourne, Victoria, specialising in feature films, documentaries and television series across theatr ...
.
Films
![20th Century Boys - shibuya (2765949968)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/20th_Century_Boys_-_shibuya_%282765949968%29.jpg)
The trilogy of ''20th Century Boys'' live-action films, directed by
Yukihiko Tsutsumi
is a Japanese television and film director. He began directing commercials and music promotion videos as an employee of Nihon Television. After spending time abroad, he returned and started his own production company, ''Office Crescendo'', from w ...
, were first announced in 2006. In February 2008, the main cast was announced, as well as the trilogy's budget of 6 billion yen (approx. $60 million US) and that Urasawa will contribute to the script.
Filming of the first two movies was planned from January 3 to the end of June, and of the third from mid-August to the end of October.
English rock band
T. Rex's "
20th Century Boy
"20th Century Boy" is a song by T. Rex, written by Marc Bolan, released as a stand-alone single on 2 March 1973.
It entered in the UK Singles Chart at number 3, on 10 March 1973 and peaked three weeks in a row at that position. It stayed ...
", the song from which the series gets its name, was used as the theme song to the films.
The first movie's premiere was held in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
on August 19, 2008, at the
Publicis
Publicis Groupe is a French multinational advertising and public relations company. One of the oldest and largest marketing and communications companies in the world by revenue, it is headquartered in Paris.
After 1945, the little-known Paris ...
Champs-Elysées cinema with a press conference at the
Louvre Museum
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
, which was attended by
Toshiaki Karasawa
(real name Kiyoshi Karasawa (唐澤 潔 ''Karasawa Kiyoshi'')) is a Japanese theatre and film actor. He made his theatrical debut in the play ''Boy's Revue Stay Gold'' (ボーイズレビュー・ステイゴールド ''Bōizu Rebyū Sutei Gōrud ...
(Kenji) and
Takako Tokiwa
is a Japanese actress.
Career
Tokiwa was nominated for the "Best Actress" award at the Japanese Academy Awards in 2005 for her performance in '' Akai Tsuki''.
She co-starred with Hidetoshi Nishijima in Amir Naderi's 2011 film '' Cut''.
Fil ...
(Yukiji).
The first film was released on August 30, 2008, the second on January 31, 2009, and the third was released on August 29, 2009. The first movie covers volumes 1 to 5 of the manga, and the second covers volumes 6 to 15, but differs from the original story on some key points; important characters missing in the first movie were introduced in the second. The final film in the trilogy covers the remainder of the volumes, but with several changes to the main story.
Cast
*
Toshiaki Karasawa
(real name Kiyoshi Karasawa (唐澤 潔 ''Karasawa Kiyoshi'')) is a Japanese theatre and film actor. He made his theatrical debut in the play ''Boy's Revue Stay Gold'' (ボーイズレビュー・ステイゴールド ''Bōizu Rebyū Sutei Gōrud ...
as Kenji Endo
*
Etsushi Toyokawa
is a Japanese actor.
Biography
Born in Yao, Osaka, he studied at Shimizudani High School
is a prestigious Japanese public co-educational senior high school (secondary school), located in Tennōji-ku, Osaka, Japan.
Overview
Shimizudan ...
as Otcho
*
Takako Tokiwa
is a Japanese actress.
Career
Tokiwa was nominated for the "Best Actress" award at the Japanese Academy Awards in 2005 for her performance in '' Akai Tsuki''.
She co-starred with Hidetoshi Nishijima in Amir Naderi's 2011 film '' Cut''.
Fil ...
as Yukiji
*
Airi Taira as Kanna
*
Teruyuki Kagawa
is a Japanese actor, kabuki actor and boxing commentator.
Biography
Born in 1965, his parents are the kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke III and the cinema actress Yuko Hama. His grandmother is the film actress Sanae Takasugi.
In the Kabuki world, ...
as Yoshitsune
*
Takashi Ukaji as Mon-chan
*
Hiroyuki Miyasako
is a Japanese comedian, television presenter, actor, voice actor and plays the boke in Ameagari Kesshitai. His partner is Tōru Hotoharu. He is represented by Yoshimoto Kogyo. Miyasako won the award for Best Supporting Actor at the 28th Hochi F ...
as Keroyon
*
Kuranosuke Sasaki
is a Japanese actor, known primary for his roles in Japanese television drama.
Biography
He was born into a family of a sake brewery in Kyoto, Japan. After graduating from Kobe University and resigning from an advertising agency, he played an ...
as Fukubei
*
Renji Ishibashi
, born is a Japanese actor. He won the award for best supporting actor at the 15th Hochi Film Award for '' Rōnin-gai''.
Filmography
Film
Television
Video game
* '' Yakuza: Dead Souls'' - Oyassan
References
External links
*
Renji Ishi ...
as Inshu Manjome
*
Katsuo Nakamura
is a Japanese actor. Nakamura is a former Kabuki actor as well as his older brother Kinnosuke Nakamura. His first film appearance was in the 1955 film ''Furisode Kenpo''. He won the award for best supporting actor at the 5th Japan Academy Prize ...
as God
*
Hitomi Kuroki
Hitomi Kuroki (Japanese: ; Katakana: ''Kuroki Hitomi''; born October 5, 1960, in Kurogi-Machi, Yame District, Fukuoka, Japan) is a Japanese actress and film director. Her birth name is Shoko Ichiji ( ''Ichiji Shōko'') née Egami ( ''Egami Sh ...
as Kiriko Endo
*
Naohito Fujiki
is a Japanese actor and singer.
Filmography Drama
* (1996), Guest at Table 3
* ハートにS (1996)
* (1996)
*
* ''Shin-D Love Blood'' (1997)
* (1997)
*
*
* (1998)
* (1998)
* (1999)
* (1999)
* (1999)
* (2000)
*
* ''LOVE REVOLUTION ...
as detective Chono
*
Arata Furuta
is a Japanese theatre and film character actor.
Biography
Furata has a broad range that goes from playing serious salary men, to '' bushi'' in period drama roles, and even women.
He works with the theatrical troupe called Otona Keikaku and oft ...
as Namio Haru
*
Yoriko Douguchi
*
Kenichi Endō
is a Japanese actor and writer. He also worked as a narrator for many documentaries, both on television and film. He is best known for his roles in '' Visitor Q'' (2001), ''Crows Zero'' (2007), ''Crows Zero 2'' (2009), and '' The Raid 2: Beran ...
as bleeding man
*
Fumiya Fujii
is a Japanese musician, actor and former lead singer of The Checkers born in Kurume. His younger brother is Naoyuki Fujii, a musician and former sax player for The Checkers. His eldest son is Fuji TV announcer Kōki Fujii. He formerly belonged t ...
as Masato Ikegami
*
Takashi Fujii
*
Chizuru Ikewaki
*
Nana Katase
Nana, Nanna, Na Na or NANA may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Nana (given name), including a list of people and characters with the given name
* Nana (surname), including a list of people and characters with the surname
* Nana ( ...
*
Ken Mitsuishi
is a Japanese actor. He has appeared in films such as '' Chaos'' and ''Tokyo Playboy Club''.
Filmography Film
;1980s
*'' Tora's Tropical Fever'' (1980)
*''Foster Daddy, Tora!'' (1980)
*'' Sailor Suit and Machine Gun'' (1981)
*''Tora-san, the Exp ...
*
Mirai Moriyama
is a Japanese actor and dancer.
Life and career
Moriyama started training in dance when he was 5 years old. He trained in jazz dance, tap dance, ballet and hip-hop, and he appeared in several stage roles. He officially made his stage debut with ...
as Kakuda (manga artist)
*
Katsuhisa Namase
is a Japanese actor, known primary for his roles in Japanese television dramas. His roles are often positions of authority, such as managers, principals, or police officers, but many of these characters also share a certain kookiness and incom ...
as Saburo Kido (Donkey)
*
Naoto Takenaka
is a Japanese actor, comedian, singer, and director from Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, affiliated with From First Production. He is married to idol singer and actress Midori Kinouchi. He is also known as the voice of Samuel L. ...
*Oshikazu Fukawa
*Masato Irie
*Tamotsu Ishibashi
*Hidehiko Ishizuka as Michihiro Maruo
*
Fumiyo Kohinata
is a Japanese actor.
Filmography
Film
* '' Begging for Love'' (1998)
* '' Give It All'' (1998)
* '' Ring 2'' (1999) - Dr. Kawajiri
* '' Audition'' (1999) - Television producer
* ''Minna no Ie'' (2001)
* '' Turn'' (2001)
* '' Dark Water'' (2002 ...
as Akio Yamane
*Raita Ryu as detective Chosuke "Cho" Igarashi
*Shirô Sano as Yanbo / Mabo (twins)
*Miyako Takeuchi
*Ryushin Tei
*Yu Tokui
*Hanako Yamada
*Komoto Masahiro as the first teacher of Kyoko Koizumi
Home video
The first film in the trilogy is available on DVD and Blu-ray in Japan from
VAP, and in Hong Kong from Kam & Ronson.
A UK DVD release was announced by label 4Digital Asia, and released on May 4, 2009. On the same day, Part 2 received its UK theatrical premiere at the 8th
Sci-Fi-London
Sci-Fi-London (stylised as SCI-FI-LONDON), also known as The London International Festival of Science Fiction and Fantastic Film or simply SFL, is an annual United Kingdom-based film festival dedicated to the science fiction and fantasy genres. ...
annual fantastic film festival. Part 3 received its UK theatrical premiere on May 7, 2010, at the
Prince Charles Cinema
The Prince Charles Cinema (PCC) is a repertory cinema located in Leicester Place, 50 yards north of Leicester Square in the West End of London. It shows a rotating programme of cult, arthouse, and classic films alongside recent Hollywood relea ...
in London as part of the 2nd Terracotta Film Festival. Following this, 4Digital Asia released a 4-disc boxset containing the complete trilogy on May 31, 2010.
Viz Media
VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ M ...
licensed the trilogy for North American release. The first film had its US theatrical premiere at the New People opening in San Francisco on August 15, 2009. The second film premiere followed at the same cinema on August 21, 2009, and the third film premiere followed on the same day as the Japanese premiere on August 28, 2009.
Part 1 received its US DVD release on December 11, 2009. A launch event was held at the New People cinema in San Francisco with a theatrical screening. Part 2's DVD release had a similar launch event on February 9, 2010, with a one-night-only theatrical screening. Likewise, Part 3 had a launch event and theatrical screening at New People on May 20, 2010. The entire trilogy was broadcast by NHK on its TV Japan channel airing on consecutive Saturdays beginning November 13, 2010.
Reception
Manga
''20th Century Boys'' has 36 million ''tankōbon'' copies in circulation,
was the third top-selling manga series of 2008, and the ninth top-selling of 2009. The series has also won numerous awards, including the 2001
Kodansha Manga Award in the General category,
an Excellence Prize at the 2002
Japan Media Arts Festival
The Japan Media Arts Festival is an annual festival held since 1997 by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. The festival begins with an open competition and culminates with the awarding of several prizes and an exhibition.
Based on judging by a ...
, the 2003
Shogakukan Manga Award
The is one of Japan's major manga awards, and is sponsored by Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga and features candidates from a number of publishers. It is the oldest manga award in Japan, being given since ...
in the General category,
and the first ever
Angoulême International Comics Festival Prize for a Series in 2004. It also won the Grand Prize at the 37th
Japan Cartoonists Association Awards, and the
Seiun Award
The is a Japanese speculative fiction award given each year for the best science fiction works and achievements during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by , the awards are given at the annual Japan Science Fiction Convention. ...
in the Comic category at the 46th
Japan Science Fiction Convention
The is an annual science fiction convention held in Japan. Each of these conventions is officially the , but they are more popularly known by the official nicknames given to them based on their locations, e.g. TOKON (when it is held in Tokyo) or ...
, both in 2008. The series won the 2011
Eisner Award for ''
Best U.S. Edition of International Material'' in the Asia category for Viz Media's English releases, and won the same award again in 2013.
Fans in the United Kingdom voted it Favourite New Manga at the 2012
Eagle Awards
The Eagle Awards were a series of awards for comic book titles and creators. They were awarded by UK fans voting for work produced during the previous year. Named after the UK's ''Eagle'' comic, they were launched in 1977 for comics released in ...
. ''20th Century Boys'' was nominated twice, 2010 and 2013, for the
Harvey Award
The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be the successor to the Kirby Awards that we ...
in the Best American Edition of Foreign Material category, and three years in a row, 2010–2012, for the Eisner Award for Best Continuing Series.
Manga critic
Jason Thompson called ''20th Century Boys'' "an epic saga of nostalgia, middle age, rock n' roll, and a struggle against an evil conspiracy." He compared the story to several novels by
Stephen King, such as ''
It'', where "a group of childhood friends who reunite as adults to deal with leftover issues from their childhood manifested in monstrous form." Thompson wrote that despite being a
seinen manga aimed at an older audience, the series gained fans of all ages for its great premise, storytelling and the mystery behind Friend.
In addition to King's ''It'', Thompson and Tom Speelman of ''
Polygon
In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two to ...
'' both suggested that the
Aum Shinrikyo
, formerly , is a Japanese doomsday cult founded by Shoko Asahara in 1987. It carried out the deadly Tokyo subway sarin attack in 1995 and was found to have been responsible for the Matsumoto sarin attack the previous year.
The group says ...
doomsday cult also served as an inspiration on the manga.
Anime News Network's Carlo Santos felt the pacing of the series should have been quicker, but praised the intricate and interconnecting plot and its
twists, as well as the well-developed characters.
He also noted Urasawa's art and dialogue, saying "it takes real skill to build a story as multi-layered as this one and still have it make sense as the characters explain things".
Including it on a list of "10 Essential Manga That Should Belong in Every Comic Collection", Matthew Meylikhov of ''
Paste'' praised the cast as one of "the most expansive and diverse" in any manga and how Urasawa makes each character independently recognizable as they age through the decades. "''20th Century Boys'' becomes an experience featuring horror, science fiction, post-apocalyptic futures, wild humor, epic landscapes, and more as an apex accomplishment in manga."
Films
''20th Century Boys'' was adapted into three films. The first live-action film debuted at number two at the box office, grossing 625.61 million yen (approx. $5.78 million US), and rose to number one the second week. The second film debuted at number one, grossing approximately $6,955,472 US. The third film followed also debuting at number one, and earned approximately $22,893,123 US by its second week.
Writing for ''
Empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
'', Justin Bowyer gave the first film a three out of five rating. He praised the action and faithfulness to the original manga, but stated that those unfamiliar with the source material may find the large cast of characters and complex story confusing. Bowyer also suggested waiting for all three films to be released. A fan of the manga, Jamie S. Rich of
DVD Talk
DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman.
History
Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...
felt too much had to be cut to fit three films, with the development of characters suffering as a result. He did comment on how close the actors looked to their comic book counterparts and ultimately recommended the film. In an opposite view, both ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
''s Cath Clarke and ''
Time Out London
''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 328 cities in 58 countries worldwide.
In 2012, the London edition becam ...
''s Trevor Johnston gave the first film two out of five stars and cited the faithfulness to the manga as a negative, feeling that some of the material could have been cut.
Charles Webb of
Twitch Film
Screen Anarchy, previously known as Twitch Film or Twitch, is a Canadian English-language website featuring news and reviews of mainly international, independent and cult films. The website was founded in 2004 by Todd Brown. In addition to films, ...
voiced similar criticism in a review of the second film. However, he praised the character Friend and Etsushi Toyokawa's performance as Occho, as well as the ending that makes the viewer anticipate the final installment in the trilogy. Jamie S. Rich also felt that the second movie "more than fulfills its prime directive of enticing me to stick around" for the final film.
On the third film, Burl Burlingame of the ''
Honolulu Star-Bulletin'' wrote, "The steam seems to have run out of the franchise during this third part, and it's simply an OK capper to the series," but praised the special effects. ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
''s Russell Edwards also cited the special effects in the final installment as the best in the trilogy.
References
External links
Films' official site
4Digital Media's films site*
*
*
*
{{Yukihiko Tsutsumi
1999 manga
2007 manga
Apocalyptic anime and manga
Bioterrorism in fiction
Coming-of-age anime and manga
Eisner Award winners
Fiction about cults
Films with screenplays by Yasushi Fukuda
Live-action films based on manga
Manga adapted into films
Mystery anime and manga
Naoki Urasawa
New People films
Science fiction anime and manga
Seinen manga
Shogakukan franchises
Shogakukan manga
Thriller anime and manga
Viz Media manga
Winner of Kodansha Manga Award (General)
Winners of the Shogakukan Manga Award for general manga
Works by Yasushi Fukuda
Japanese science fiction films
Japanese mystery films