Peacemaker Kurogane

is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated created by Nanae Chrono. It is unrelated to the ''Peace Maker'' manga by Ryōji Minagawa. The story begins in 19th century Japan before the Meiji Restoration, a chain of events that led to enormous changes in Japan's political and social structure while the seeds of the revolution are being planted. The story follows the boy protagonist, Tetsunosuke Ichimura, who joins the Shinsengumi (initially as Toshizō Hijikata's page) while seeking strength to avenge his parents' death at the hands of a Chōshū rebel.

It is a sequel to , which was published by Enix in the magazine '' Monthly Shōnen Gangan''. ''Shinsengumi Imon Peace Maker'' was licensed in North America by Tokyopop.

Plot

The story is focused on the main character, Tetsunosuke Ichimura, who is an energetic, short and very childlike fifteen-year-old (16 in the manga). He and his older brother Tatsunosuke are left to fend for themselves after the vicious murder of their parents. While Tetsunosuke wants to get revenge, his pacifist brother is not so inclined. "Tatsu" joins a special police force dubbed the Shinsengumi, as an accountant to earn a living, his brother "Tetsu" wishes to join as a soldier to seek his revenge. The story chronicles Tetsu's trials and tribulations as a struggling page craving redemption. He develops relationships with all the legendary members of the Shinsengumi army helping them with their various struggles as he constantly battles his own against himself. At the story's climax, Tetsu discovers himself and the overwhelming responsibility the power he is searching for holds.

Media

Manga

Peace Maker

''Peace Maker'' () was published from April 12, 1999 to August 11, 2001 in Japan by Enix magazine '' Monthly Shōnen Gangan'' and was compiled in six volumes by Enix.

The sequel to ''Peace Maker'' transferred to Mag Garden's '' Monthly Comic Blade''. Mag Garden republished ''Peace Maker'' in five ''tankōbon'' volumes on September 10, 2005.

Mag Garden edition was licensed and published in North America and Germany by Tokyopop. Tokyopop released ''Peace Makers five ''tankōbon'' volumes between August 14, 2007 and November 4, 2008. Later, Tokyopop re-released the manga through Madman Entertainment. The first volume was released on November 10, 2008. The second was released on February 10, 2009. Tokyopop Germany released the manga's five ''tankōbon'' volumes between December 2005 and June 28, 2006. The manga was also licensed and published in Italy by Star Comics and in France by Kami. Kami released the manga's five ''tankōbon'' volumes between September 20, 2006 and July 11, 2007.

Peacemaker Kurogane

''Peacemaker Kurogane'' itself was started as a new series in Mag Garden's '' Monthly Comic Blade'' in 2001連載作品データ
(Serialization Data). GanganSearch. Retrieved on February 5, 2008. and transferred to '' Monthly Comic Garden'' in 2014. Mag Garden released the manga's first ''tankōbon'' volume on October 10, 2002.

''Peacemaker Kurogane'' was licensed by ADV Manga, which released three volumes between October 4, 2004 and March 22, 2005 before putting it on hold indefinitely. After the license lapsed, Tokyopop acquired it and released the manga's first volume on March 10, 2009. It released four volumes in total. The manga was licensed and published in France by Kami, in Germany by Tokyopop and in Russia by Comics Factory. Tokyopop Germany released the manga's first five ''tankōbon'' volumes between June and October 2005.

Anime

An anime television series adaptation by Gonzo and produced by Geneon ran for 24 episodes, which aired on TV Asahi between October 7, 2003 and March 24, 2004. The US license for the anime is held by ADV Films under the title ''Peacemaker''. The anime mostly follows the plot of the original manga ''Peace Maker'', but also introduces characters that are only shown in ''Peacemaker Kurogane''. The anime aired in the United States on Showtime Beyond, alongside '' Chrono Crusade''. On June 25, 2010, anime distributor Funimation Entertainment announced on their online panel FuniCon 4.0, that they have acquired rights to the series along with 3 other ADV title, after ADV's shutdown in 2009. The anime was broadcast in France by Déclic-Images. It was broadcast in Spain by Buzz Channel. It was broadcast in Saudi Arabia by space power, in the Philippines by QTV and Hero.

The anime uses two pieces of theme music. "You Gonna Feel" by Hav is the opening theme, while "Hey Jimmy!" by Hav is the ending theme of the anime.

Gonzo Digimation released the anime's seven DVDs between December 21, 2003 and June 25, 2004. Gonzo Digimation released the DVD box set, containing all 7 DVDs, on December 22, 2004. ADV Films released the anime's seven DVDs between September 14, 2004 and September 13, 2005. ADV Films released the DVD box set, containing all 7 DVDs, on November 15, 2005.

On April 14, 2016, it was announced that the manga would receive a new anime adaptation, which was later confirmed to be a two-part anime film that adapted a later arc of ''Peacemaker Kurogane''. It is directed by Shigeru Kimiya and written by Eiji Umehara, with animation produced by White Fox and character designs by Sayaka Koiso. The first part titled premiered in Japan on June 2, 2018. The second part titled premiered on November 17, 2018.

Drama and animation CDs

On December 21, 2003, Geneon released an animation soundtrack CD for ''Peacemaker Kurogane''. Geneon released a set of 5 Drama CDs for ''Peacemaker Kurogane''. The first CD was released on December 21, 2003, the second CD on January 23, 2004, the third CD on February 25, 2004, the fourth CD on March 21, 2004 and the fifth CD on April 23, 2004 The songs were sung by Mitsuki Saiga, Yuka Imai, Joji Nakata, Takaya Toshi, Junichi Suwabe, Kappei Yamaguchi and Kenji Nomura. On November 25, 2005, Geneon released a Drama CD for the second season of ''Peacemaker Kurogane''. The songs were sung by Mitsuki Saiga, Joji Nakata, Takaya Toshi, Kappei Yamaguchi, Kenji Nomura, Kousuke Torimi and Takahiro Sakurai.

On March 10, 2004, a soundtrack CD was released for the opening theme of ''Peacemaker Kurogane'', "You Gonna Feel" by Hav.

Live-action TV

A ten-episode live-action TV series adaptation of the manga aired on TBS entitled . It premiered on January 15, 2010, and concluded on March 19, 2010.

Reception

Mania.com's Megan Levey commends the tension and emotion of the second volume of ''Peacemaker Kurogane'' that "seems to just ring from the pages". Mania.com's Megan Levey commends the third volume of the manga for its "very close facial expressions" in its artwork but criticises the manga's color pages for coming "across as extremely flat and somewhat washed out".

Peacemaker was ranked 9th as the "Favourite Anime Series" in the 26th annual Animage readers' poll. THEM Anime Reviews comments that the "drama of the series is paramount" but its comedy is lame. Animefringe.com criticises the protagonist of the series, labelling him as "an annoying brat that cries and moans when he doesn't get what he wants". Mania.com's Chris Beveridge commends the anime for its slowly revealed "supernatural elements" as well as the simplicity and comical nature of Saizō the pig. John Sinnott at DVD Talk praises the first DVD of ''Peacemaker'' for its original language version over the English dub because Ayumu's English voice actress uses "one of those fake southern accents that are really horrible". DVD Talk's John Sinnott criticises the fifth DVD of the anime for "the lack of focus this series has". Brian Hanson at Anime Jump criticises the anime for aping Rurouni Kenshin as well as not displaying the qualities of other Weekly Shōnen Jump anime when it becomes "surprisingly violent". DVD Verdict's Judge Jeff Anderson commends the anime for its "CGI that blends well with the animation" and English dub that has a much more dynamic sound than the original Japanese track. Science Fiction Weekly's Tasha Robinson commends the anime for its "highly textured, detailed and beautifully rendered semi-historical drama, very much in the spirit of Rurouni Kenshin" whenever Tetsu "drops to the background" or "shuts up for a few scenes".

References

External links

Official Madman ''Peace Maker'' anime website
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{{White Fox

1999 manga
2001 manga
2003 anime television series debuts
ADV Manga
Funimation
Gangan Comics manga
Gonzo (company)
Historical anime and manga
Madman Entertainment manga
Mag Garden manga
Meiji Restoration
Nanae Chrono
NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan
Odex
Samurai in anime and manga
Shōnen manga
Tokyopop titles
TV Asahi original programming
White Fox