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
Tsunomaru
is a Japanese manga artist who writes mostly shōnen manga. He debuted in 1991 with , which received the ''Shōnen Weekly Jump'' newcomer's award. Tsunomaru is best known for the horse-racing comedy '' Midori no Makibaō'', which was adapted a ...
. It was serialized in
Shueisha's
manga magazine ''
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 November 1994 to February 1998, with its chapters collected in 16 volumes.
A 61-episode
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 ...
television series produced by
Pierrot was broadcast on
Fuji TV
JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as or , is a Japanese television station that serves the Kantō region as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System (FNS). The station is owned-and- ...
from March 1996 to July 1997. A second manga series, titled ''Taiyō no Makibaō'', was serialized in ''
Weekly Playboy'' from 2007 to 2011, and later in the ''Shū Play News'' website, under the title ''Taiyō no Makibaō W'', from 2011 to 2016, with the overall series' chapters collected in 36 volumes.
The ''Midori no Makibaō'' manga has had over 9 million copies in circulation. In 1997, it won the 42nd
Shogakukan Manga Award in the
children
A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...
category.
Plot
Midori Makibaō is a small white
mule. Compared to the other thoroughbred horses, his physical size is comparable to a donkey with wide nostrils. However, with guts and speed as his weapons, Makibaō wins in every big race.
At the beginning of his career, Makibaō has trouble making his debut as a racehorse. But he has reasons to overcome his difficulties; a lifelong rival horse called Superhorse Cascade, that Makibaō needs to defeat. Plus, he is determined to win back his mother, Midori, a horse taken away to pay debts.
There are many hardships that Makibaō has to overcome, but he thrives in a series of races to become a great racehorse.
Characters
Horses
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Media
Manga
Written and illustrated by
Tsunomaru
is a Japanese manga artist who writes mostly shōnen manga. He debuted in 1991 with , which received the ''Shōnen Weekly Jump'' newcomer's award. Tsunomaru is best known for the horse-racing comedy '' Midori no Makibaō'', which was adapted a ...
, ''Midori no Makibaō'' was serialized in
Shueisha's
manga magazine ''
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 November 28, 1994, to February 9, 1998. Shueisha collected its chapters 16 volumes, released from June 2, 1995, to June 4, 1998.
A second series, titled , started in Shueisha's ''
Weekly Playboy'' on March 26, 2007. The manga was later moved to the ''Shū Play News'' website, continued under the title , where it ran from May 9, 2011, to November 14, 2016. Shueisha collected the ''Taiyō no Makibaō'' chapters in 16 volumes, released from August 17, 2007, to June 17, 2011, while the ''Taiyō no Makibaō W'' chapters were collected in 20 volumes, released from September 16, 2011, to February 17, 2017.
Anime
A 61-episode
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 ...
television series adaptation, produced by
Pierrot and directed by
Noriyuki Abe, was broadcast on
Fuji TV
JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as or , is a Japanese television station that serves the Kantō region as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System (FNS). The station is owned-and- ...
from March 2, 1996, to July 12, 1997.
The opening theme is by F.MAP, while the ending theme is by Men's 5.
The series was re-released on a
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of ...
box on July 27, 2022, which included a five-minute-long new episode that adapted the final chapter of the original manga series.
Episodes
Other
An
art exhibition
An art exhibition is traditionally the space in which art objects (in the most general sense) meet an audience. The exhibit is universally understood to be for some temporary period unless, as is occasionally true, it is stated to be a "permanen ...
to celebrate the series' 30th anniversary ran at the Graveyard Gallery in
Nakano, Tokyo
Nakano (, Latn, ja, Nakano-ku) is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is Nakano City (, Latn, ja, Nakano-ku). from November 7 to December 2, 2024.
Reception
The manga has had over 9 million copies in circulation. In 1997, the manga won the 42nd
Shogakukan Manga Award in the
children
A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...
category.
See also
*
List of fictional horses
Notes
References
External links
*
*
{{Pierrot (company)
Comedy anime and manga
Horse racing in anime and manga
Fuji Television original programming
Pierrot (company)
Seinen manga
Shōnen manga
Shueisha franchises
Shueisha manga
Tomy games
Winners of the Shogakukan Manga Award for children's manga