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 . It follows a 24-year-old

Afro The afro is a hair style created by combing out natural growth of afro-textured hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" '' Ebo ...

-haired young man named Hiroshi Tanaka who falls in love for the first time. It has been serialized in

Shogakukan is a Japanese publisher of comics, magazines, light novels, dictionaries, literature, non-fiction, home media, and other media in Japan. Shogakukan founded Shueisha, which also founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but ...

's manga magazine ''

Big Comic Spirits is a weekly Japanese ''seinen'' manga magazine published by Shogakukan. The first issue was published on October 14, 1980. Food, sports, romance and business are recurring themes in the magazine, and the stories often question conventional val ...

'' since 2001, spawning six series. A

live action Live action is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live action with animation to create a live-action animated feature film. Live action is used to define film, video games o ...

film adaptation premiered in February 2012.

Media

Manga

The ''Afro Tanaka'' series, written and illustrated by , has been serialized in

's manga magazine ''

'' since December 3, 2001. It has been divided into seven parts: * (2001–2004, 10 volumes) * (2004–2007, 10 volumes) * (2007–2010, 10 volumes) * (2010–2013, 10 volumes) * (2015–2018, 10 volumes) * (2018–2021, 10 volumes) * (2022–present; 4 volumes)

Film

A film directed by

Daigo Matsui is a Japanese screenwriter and film director. Early life Matsui was born in Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka, on November 2, 1985. His family consists of his mother, a columnist who works mainly in Kyushu, his father, and an older brother. Filmogra ...

, based on ''Jōkyō Afro Tanaka'' story was released on February 18, 2012, by Showgate. The theme song of the film is "''Yoru wo Koete''" by Tsuru. ''Afro Tanaka'' was released in

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

and

Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a 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 high-defin ...

Happinet is a Japanese entertainment company. History In February 1968, Hiroshi Kawai left Bandai to establish his own toy business. Kawai founded on June 7, 1969. In September 1972, it changed its name to . Tōshō merged with two other companies, ...

on August 2, 2012. The film also spawned a

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

, a 10-episodes mini-

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

entitled ''Hōkago Afro Tanaka''.

Reception

The ''Afro Tanaka'' manga has sold 3.6 million units in Japan by May 2013. In 2008, the third manga series, ''Jōkyō Afro Tanaka'', was nominated in the manga category at the 12th

Japan Media Arts Festival The Japan Media Arts Festival was an annual festival held since 1997 by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. The festival begins with an open competition and culminates with the awarding of several prizes and an exhibition. Based on judging by ...

Awards. The film debuted at number 10 in Japanese theaters. ''Afro Tanaka'' grossed over $1.8 million in Japan.

Notes

References

External links

Afro Tanaka film's official siteArchive
* * 2002 manga 2004 manga 2007 manga Comedy anime and manga Films directed by Daigo Matsui Japanese comedy films Live-action films based on manga Manga adapted into films Seinen manga Shogakukan franchises Shogakukan manga 2010s Japanese films Long stubs with short prose {{manga-stub