, or simply known as ''Gag Manga Biyori'', is a Japanese

manga 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 history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

series written and illustrated by . The series features a hyperactive, random, and nonsensical style that revolves around various plots and characters throughout. It started in

Shueisha is a Japanese publishing company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. Shueisha is the largest publishing company in Japan. It was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The ...

's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''

Monthly Shōnen Jump was a shōnen manga magazine which was published monthly in Japan by Shueisha from 1970 to 2007 under the '' Jump'' line of magazines. It was the sister magazine to ''Weekly Shōnen Jump''. History The ''Monthly Shōnen Jump'' magazine star ...

'' in the January 2000 issue. The magazine ceased publication in June 2007, and the series was transferred to the then-brand new magazine ''

Jump Square , also written as , is a Japanese monthly manga magazine. Published by Shueisha, the magazine premiered on November 2, 2007, as a replacement for ''Monthly Shōnen Jump'', another manga anthology that Shueisha discontinued in June of that year. ...

'' in November of the same year, where it was published until November 2014. Shueisha collected its chapters in fifteen volumes. The manga continued in ''Jump Square'', under the title ''Gag Manga Biyori GB'', in December 2014. Its first

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

adaptation was a short film animated by Toei as part of Jump Festa in 2002. The first anime television series adaptation and the sequel were produced by Artland, while the third, fourth and fifth sequel were produced by

Studio Deen is a Japanese animation studio founded in 1975 by former Sunrise producer Hiroshi Hasegawa, along with a team of ex-Sunrise animators. The studio owns three subsidiaries: Danny Donghua (), a Chinese sub-contracting studio; Megumi (め組), a di ...

. Most episodes are five minutes long. The first four series aired in 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2010, and the fifth series premiered in 2025.

Overview

''Gag Manga Biyori'' is a nonsensical comedy series known for its bizarre plot setups and non-sequitur humor. It has also been described as a "

Monty Python Monty Python, also known as the Pythons, were a British comedy troupe formed in 1969 consisting of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin. The group came to prominence for the sketch comedy ser ...

-esque weirdness." In the anime adaptation, its various characters are mostly voiced by

Yūji Ueda is a Japanese actor, voice actor and singer from Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. He is best known for voicing the roles of Sagara Sanosuke in ''Rurouni Kenshin'', Akito Tenkawa in '' Martian Successor Nadesico'', Valerino in the 1992 series of '' C ...

Kaori Nazuka is a Japanese actress and singer. She played Tsukasa Ayatsuji in '' Amagami SS'', Nunnally Lamperouge in '' Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion'', the eponymous character in '' Eureka Seven'' and Cosette in '' Les Misérables: Shōjo Cosett ...

and Takeshi Maeda.

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by , ''Gag Manga Biyori'' debuted in

's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''

'' in the January 2000 issue. The magazine ceased its publication on June 6, 2007. Following a brief run in ''

Weekly Shōnen Jump is a weekly Shōnen manga, ''shōnen'' manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the ''Jump (magazine line), Jump'' line of magazines. The manga series within the magazine consist of many Action (fiction), action scenes and a fair ...

'' from August 27 to October 29, 2007, the series was transferred to the then brand new magazine ''

'' on November 2 of the same year. In October 2014, it was announced that the series would change its title to coincide with its 15th anniversary, being serialized under the title ''Gag Manga Biyori'' until November 4 of the same year. Shueisha collected its chapters in fifteen volumes, released from September 4, 2000, to October 3, 2014. The series continued in ''Jump Square'', under the title , starting on December 4, 2014. Shueisha released its first ''tankōbon'' volume on December 4, 2015. As of August 2, 2024, eight volumes have been released.

Anime

television series adaptation, produced by Artland (first two series) and

(third series onwards) were broadcast on

Kids Station Kids Station ( Japanese: キッズステーション, ''Kizzu Sutēshon'') is a Japanese cable and satellite television channel that launched on April 12, 1993. It primarily airs anime and other animation-related content aimed at children during ...

; the first 12-episode series aired from February 7 to April 25, 2005; the second 12-episode series was broadcast from August 5 to October 28, 2006; and the third series aired from March 17 to June 2, 2008. The fourth 26-episode series, ''Gag Manga Biyori+'', was first broadcast on

Yomiuri TV JOIX-DTV (channel 10), branded as , is the Kansai region flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned by the , itself a subsidiary of Yomiuri Chukyo FS Broadcasting Holdings. FYCS is partially c ...

from January 5 to June 29, 2010. A fifth series, ''Gag Manga Biyori Go'', premiered on April 5, 2025. Remow licensed all five series.

Episodes

=Series 1 (2005)

=Series 2 (2006)

=Series 3 (2008)

=''Gag Manga Biyori+'' (2010)

=''Gag Manga Biyori Go'' (2025)

Theme songs

; Opening * by Yuji Ueda (season 1) * by Yuji Ueda and

(season 2) * by Yuji Ueda (season 3) * by Yuji Ueda (''Gag Manga Biyori +'') * by Yuji Ueda (''Gag Manga Biyori Go'') ; Ending * by Tetsuya Kanmuri * by Tetsuya Kanmuri (''Gag Manga Biyori +'') * by Tetsuya Kanmuri (''Gag Manga Biyori Go'')

References

External links

* * {{Studio Deen 2002 films 2005 anime television series debuts 2006 anime television series debuts 2008 anime television series debuts 2010 anime television series debuts 2014 comics endings 2025 anime television series debuts Anime series based on manga Artland (company) Comedy anime and manga Remow anime Shōnen manga Shueisha franchises Shueisha manga Studio Deen Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation original programming