[With a trial reading! The Masterpiece Manga That Completed This Year] Completed with a Smile! Why “Tokyo Manji Revengers” fascinated people
This is a series of short articles looking back on the greatest hit manga that have reached their conclusion this year. From the manga that have been loved throughout the ages from the Heisei era to Reiwa, we present selected masterpieces in the genres of “sports,” “action,” “fantasy,” “romance,” and “everyday” manga.
Tokyo Manji Revengers” (author: Ken Wakui) was serialized in “Weekly Shonen Magazine” from March 2017 to November 2022. The 30 previously published volumes have sold more than 70 million copies, and seven related books, including the 31st volume, are scheduled to be released simultaneously on January 17, 2023.
The main character, Takemichi Hanagaki, is a 26-year-old dull freelancer. One day, he learns on the news that his ex-girlfriend Hinata Tachibana (Hina) has been killed by the “Tokyo Manjikai” (To-man), a gang of villains. Takemichi is pushed onto a train platform by someone and suddenly jumps back in time to his junior high school days 12 years ago.
A handshake with Hina’s younger brother, Naoto, brings him back to the present, and to his surprise, Naoto, who was supposed to have died with Hina, is still alive. The future has been changed by time leap. Naoto, now a detective, asks Takemichi for help to change the past and save his sister. In order to save Hina and change his own life, which he has been running away from, Takemichi confronts Tokyo Manjikai.
Tokyo Manji Revengers,” a.k.a. “East Revengers,” has created a huge boom that can be called a social phenomenon. In July, a live-action movie was released, featuring a star-studded cast including Takumi Kitamura, Ryo Yoshizawa, Yuki Yamada, and Shotaro Mamiya, which was well-received for the cast’s enthusiastic performances.
The work has reached its conclusion after five and a half years of serialization, and with the second anime season, “Seiyoru Kessen Hen,” scheduled to air in January 2023, the momentum continues even after the conclusion of the series.
A Yankee Manga for a New Age, Mixing the Royal Road and the Innovative
Manga such as “BE-BOP-HIGHSCHOOL,” “Bastard BLUES,” and “CROWS” passionately depict the fights, friendships, and adolescence of delinquents. The main feature of Tōlibe is that the hot storyline, which can be called the royal road of such “yankee manga,” is intertwined with the science fiction element of altering the past through “time leaps.
How can Hina’s death be avoided? Why has Manjiro Sano (Mikey), the head of Tokyo Manjikai, become a different person? While traveling back and forth between 12 years ago and the present, Takemichi searches for the key person or incident that will change the future, and tries to change the past by putting his own body on the line. The present world, which changes two or three times each time he performs a time leap, and the development of a mystery that leads to more mysteries stimulate the reader’s desire to think, and continue to attract the reader’s attention.
Another highlight is the unique characters. Takemichi, the main character who is weak in fights but never gives up and stands up to protect the girl he loves, the charismatic Mikey, the big brotherly and dependable Draken, and the calm but compassionate Chifuyu (……) are just a few of the many fascinating characters. The “bad guys” are now so dorky that they’re not even funny.
A manga featuring a delinquent as the main character may seem like a subject that male readers would prefer, but the fact that “Tokyo Manji Revengers” has gained the support of many female readers is due in large part to the stylish character designs, in which the author Wakui’s sense of style is fully demonstrated.
Of course, the way in which the inner lives of the characters are portrayed is also a source of inspiration for readers. Since “Shinjuku Swan,” his debut work in the series, Mr. Wakui has been deeply penetrating not only the beautiful side of the human heart but also the dark side, depicting people who are struggling to find the light even though they are struggling with algae. Mikey’s “black impulses,” Kisaki’s obsession, Jochi’s determination, and the goals of Izana and Tsurucho. The storyline, in which the pasts that each has carried on their shoulders, and their unyielding thoughts intersect and collide, is, in Reiwa’s words, “emo” in the best sense of the word.
Tokyo Manji Revengers” is not only a Yankee manga, but also breaks new ground in shonen manga. It is a work that should be read at least once by both men and women alike.
