is a Japanese

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

written and illustrated by

Yukari Ichijo is a Japanese '' shōjo'' and ''josei'' manga artist. She made her debut as a professional manga artist in 1968 with ''Yuki no Serenade''. In 1986 she received the Kodansha Manga Award for shōjo for '' Yūkan Club'', and in 2007, she received ...

. It is serialized in

Shueisha (lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The foll ...

's ''

Bessatsu Margaret , or for short, is a shōjo manga magazine published monthly in Japan by Shueisha since 1964. Serializations Current *''Fujishiro-san Kei'' – Yuki Nojin *'' Ima Koi: Now I'm in Love'' – Ayuko Hatta *''My Special One'' – Momoko Kōda *'' ...

''. ''Yūkan Club'' received the 1986

Kodansha Manga Award is an annual award for serialized manga published in the previous year, the event is sponsored by the publisher Kodansha. It is currently awarded in three categories: '' shōnen'', '' shōjo'', and general. The awards began in 1977, initially w ...

for the shōjo category. The manga was adapted into an

original video animation , abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the first part of an OVA s ...

Madhouse Studios is a Japanese animation studio founded in 1972 by ex– Mushi Pro staff, including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. Madhouse has created and helped to produce many well-known shows, OVAs and films, starting with TV anime s ...

. It was also adapted into a

Japanese television drama , also called , are television programs that are a staple of Japanese television and are broadcast daily. All major TV networks in Japan produce a variety of drama series including romance, comedy, detective stories, horror, jidaigeki, thriller ...

Media

Manga

''Yūkan Club'' was written and illustrated by

released the 19 '' bound volumes'' of the manga between December 13, 1982 and November 15, 2002. Shueisha re-released the manga into 10 ''kanzenban'' volumes between May 18, 2000 and April 18, 2002. Shueisha re-released the manga a second time into 9 ''kanzenban'' volumes. The third revision of the manga was called . The first three ''kanzenban'' volumes were released simultaneously on October 15, 2007. The next three ''kanzenban'' volumes were released on November 15, 2007. The final three ''kanzenban'' volumes were released on December 14, 2007. The manga is licensed in Indonesia by

Elex Media Komputindo Elex Media Komputindo is a publishing company in Indonesia which publishes books, comics, magazines, novels and other print media. Established on January 15, 1985, Elex Media Komputindo is a subsidiary of Kompas Gramedia Group. Elex is headquart ...

OVAs

The manga was adapted into an

. The first

OVA , abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the first part of an OVA s ...

's ending theme was "Shake Dance" by Toy Boys, while "Rainy Dance", also by Toy Boys, was the second OVA's ending theme. The first OVA was released on a VHS on July 25, 1991. The second OVA premiered on December 14, 1991 as a film, in

Toho is a Japanese film, theatre production and distribution company. It has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. Outside of Japan, it is best known as the producer an ...

cinemas. The second OVA was released on April 25, 1992. Both of the VHSs were released by Madhouse Studios.

TV Drama

Directed by Oya Taro, the drama's 10 episodes were broadcast on

Nippon Television JOAX-DTV (channel 4), branded as , is the flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned-and-operated by the which is a subsidiary of the certified broadcasting holding company , itself a listed su ...

between October 16, 2007 and December 18, 2007. On April 23, 2008, VAP released a DVD Box set containing five DVDs, spanning the 10 episodes of the drama. The theme song of the series is "

Keep The Faith ''Keep the Faith'' is the fifth studio album by American rock band Bon Jovi, released on November 3, 1992, by Mercury Records. It is Bon Jovi's last studio album to feature all five original band members as bass guitarist Alec John Such was dism ...

" by

KAT-TUN is a Japanese boy band formed under Johnny & Associates (Johnny's) in 2001. The group's name was originally an acronym based on the first letter of each member's family name: Kazuya Kamenashi, Jin Akanishi, Junnosuke Taguchi, Koki Tanaka, ...

. It was voted the fifth best selling single listed on the

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...

charts in 2007. Main Casts: *

Akanishi Jin is a Japanese musician, singer, songwriter and actor. He has been active since 1998 as one of the two lead vocalists of the J-pop boy-band KAT-TUN before starting a solo career in 2009. Akanishi has also acted in several films and dramas. Biog ...

as Shochikubai Miroku * Yokoyama Yu as Kikumasamune Seishiro * Taguchi Junnosuke as Bido Granmarie * Minami as Kenbishi Yuri * Kashii Yu as Hakushika Noriko *

Emi Suzuki ,http://person.naver.jp/1108859 (Naver) also called Emichee (えみちぃ), is a Chinese-born Japanese model and retired occasional actress. She debuted in 2005 with ''Seventeen'' and remains a prominent figure in the fashion and modelling indus ...

as Kizakura Karen *

Kaga Takeshi , real name , is a well-known stage and movie actor in Japan who is best known internationally for his portrayal of Chairman Kaga in the Japanese television show ''Iron Chef'' produced by Fuji TV. Biography Kaga was born on October 12, 1950, i ...

as Shochikubai Jishu * Kataoka Tsurutaro as Kenbishi Mansaku * Kato Kazuko as Kenbishi Yuriko On November 21, 2007,

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

released a single for the theme song of the drama. The lyrics were written by

Kyosuke Himuro is a former Japanese musician and singer-songwriter. He was lead vocalist of the rock band Boøwy from 1981 to 1988. After the band disbanded he started a successful solo career, becoming one of Japan's best-selling artists. In 2003, HMV Japan ...

. On November 28, 2007, wint released a soundtrack CD for ''Yūkan Club''. The songs are sung by

Jin Akanishi is a Japanese musician, singer, songwriter and actor. He has been active since 1998 as one of the two lead vocalists of the J-pop boy-band KAT-TUN before starting a solo career in 2009. Akanishi has also acted in several films and dramas. Biog ...

and are composed by

. ''Yūkan Club'' won four of the five awards at the 2007

Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix The Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix is an award given by the Nikkan Sports newspaper to Japanese television dramas. The 14th Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix was canceled due to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Categories *Best Drama *Best A ...

was awarded best actor;

Junnosuke Taguchi in Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Japan), is a singer-songwriter, actor, and model. He is a former member of the Japanese idol group KAT-TUN. He joined the talent agency Johnny & Associates in 1999 and officially debuted as part of KAT-TUN in 2006. Apar ...

was awarded best supporting actor; Yu Kashii was awarded best supporting actress and ''Yūkan Club'' was awarded best drama of 2007.

References

External links

Official Shueisha ''Yūkan Club'' website

Official''Yukan Club'' Japanese drama website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yukan Club 1982 manga 1991 anime OVAs 2007 Japanese television series debuts Comedy anime and manga Japanese television dramas based on manga Magic Bus (studio) Nippon TV dramas Shōjo manga Shueisha franchises Shueisha manga Winner of Kodansha Manga Award (Shōjo) Television shows written by Eriko Shinozaki