Magical Taluluto

, also known as ''Magical Taluluto'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuya Egawa. It was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from November 1988 to September 1992, with its chapters collected in 21 volumes. The manga was published digitally in North America by Manga Planet in 2020.

An 87-episode anime television series adaptation animated by Toei Animation, was broadcast on TV Asahi from September 1990 to May 1992. Three feature anime films along with several video games based on the anime were released from 1991 to 1992.

By November 2020, the manga had over 12.6 million copies in circulation.

Premise

In Tokyo, there lived an outcast fifth grader named Honmaru Edojo who is a naughty youngster and one of the most trodden-upon losers in his class. He is in love with a smart and pretty girl in his class named Iyona Kawai, but is frequently humiliated in front of her thanks to the school's bully, Jabao Jaba, his companion Korekiyo Ryouguchiya and Iyona's mean-spirited friend, Rui Ijigawa. After a bad day at school and since almost everyone in town hates him for who he is, his misery and negative emotions reach its peak and nearly took its toll on him until he accidentally summons the great wizard, Taruruto. Since becoming friends, Taruruto uses his magical powers to help Honmaru deal with all his hardships and other challenges. Later conflicts arise when new students like the narcissistic egotist Tsutomu Harako, and much later the troubled twins, Neyo and Nezo Zakenja all transfer to Honmaru's school, all while the dark wizard Rivar attempts to eradicate Taruruto to divert the attention of fellow young wizard, Mimora, who is madly in love in Taruruto.

Characters

Main characters

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:A young self-proclaimed wizard accidentally summoned by Honmaru. He and Honmaru quickly become best friends and is often used by Honmaru to perform several deeds that allow him to get the upperhand in life. Despite the title he gives himself, his magic only lasts 10 minutes which often puts Honmaru in a bind, and that is assuming it does fall flat on their faces or produce some other unwarranted effect. He enjoys eating takoyaki above anything else.
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:A blue-haired boy is the town outcast, frequently bullied by classmates for his poor academic and athletic performance. His lewd and mischievous behavior further alienates him, earning the disdain of those around him. Through Taruruto's magic, others begin to perceive him more favorably. Over time, he matures and discovers his inner strength as he faces difficult trials and challenges.
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:An elegant and kindhearted daughter of a wealthy family who Honmaru is in love with. Though she has mature features for her age, she is around the same height as her peers, almost always dresses modestly, and has a pure, caring, and honest personality. Unlike Honmaru she is also very talented, getting the top grades in her class and being a skilled athlete. Like Honmaru, she sees Taruruto as a surrogate young brother and despite his flaws, she may have some secret feelings towards Honmaru.

Supporting characters

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:Iyona's best friend, who is a cunning and mean-spirited prankster. Like Iyona, she has secret feelings for Honmaru, but hers are more overt. Despite that, she spends much of her time bullying and harassing Honmaru, the result of being rejected by him when they were younger.
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:Honmaru's obese and ugly childhood bully whose grades are just as bad as his. Despite his weight, he is very muscular and has strong punches. He spends his time beating up Honmaru and often takes his anger out on him even when in the rare instances where he tries to help him. Over time, he becomes less dominant in power as new students keep overpowering him, which reveals his hidden cowardly nature. Despite his violent temper, he cares about his closest clasmates deep down.
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:A short-statured kid who acts as Jabao's sidekick. While Jabao has terrible grades, Korekiyo is a weakling with no money and is unpopular with girls. While he seems polite and proper at first glance, he is a smartmouth who often speaks in proverbs and idioms, often taking shots on Honmaru. In the anime, he always serves as the commentator for any sporting events.
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:A young and strong-willed teacher who is the homeroom teacher of the main cast. While presenting herself as strict during school hours, she is infamous for using corporal punishment to discipline her students (whenever they break the school rules, act naughty and violate policies) and protégés. Despite this knowledge, she is a passionate and tomboyish lady who has extensive knowledge on sports and jumps at the opportunity for her and her students to compete in some new game. At home, she is laid back and often seen cooking and exercising.
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:A wealthy transfer student who thinks highly of himself. He is very tall, and has such a mature and developed physique and face that he is often mistaken for an adult. He often boasts about being the junior champion of all sorts of challenges, whether they be genuine competitions or mundane and bizarre feats he clearly made up on the spot. He becomes Honmaru's main rival and bully throughout the series because of their mutual love for Iyona and because Harako is quick to challenge him to any competition.
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:A troubled delinquent girl who transfers to the main cast's classroom.
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:Neyo's twin brother who also transferred to their school, but has a different homeroom. He eventually becomes Honmaru's ultimate rival and bully. During a martial arts tournament, he once tried to take advantage of Honmaru's negative emotions and use them as his power source and to be exact, brainwash him, but this backfires as Honmaru resists the negative emotions himself.
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:Honmaru's father is a passionate and energetic picture book artist. Skilled in various martial arts, he acts as Honmaru's primary trainer, preparing him for competitions. Despite his role as a mentor, he shares his son's tendency toward lewd behavior.
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:Honmaru's kind and friendly mother who married Shogunnosuke at a young age.
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:A takoyaki chef from Osaka who is in love with Mari Oaya.
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:The crystal ball that Taruruto wears around his neck.
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:Taruruto's older sister who comes to Earth to search for Taruruto. She lets him stay and decides to hang around for herself.
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:Taruruto's self-proclaimed love-interest who gets jealous of anyone who becomes close to him.
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:A strange creature who is like a pet to Taruruto. It has the ability to shapeshift into an exact replica of any living being.
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:An evil dark wizard who views himself as Taruruto's rival. He is in love with Mimora and pulls insidious tricks, ranging from spiteful to near-fatal on both Taruruto and Honmaru to deviate Mimora's attention to him.

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Tatsuya Egawa, ''Magical Taruruto'' was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from November 14, 1988, to September 21, 1992. Shueisha collected its chapters in 21 volumes, released from July 15, 1989, to March 9, 1993.

In July 2020, Manga Planet announced that they had licensed the series for an English digital release on its platform, starting on August 7 of that same year.

Volumes

Anime

An 87-episode anime television series adaptation, produced by Asahi Broadcasting Corporation, Asatsu and Toei Animation, was broadcast on ABC, TV Asahi and other stations from September 2, 1990, to May 10, 1992. The opening theme is "Ore Taruruto", composed by Yukihide Takekawa and performed Tarako. The first endings theme is "Kimi to Sekai Seifuku!?" composed by Chiho Kiyooka and performed by Midori Akiyama, while the second is "Taruru Kataburaruru" composed and performed by Tarako.

Films

Three theatrical films based on the anime were released. The first one premiered on March 9, 1991; the second one, , premiered on July 20 of that same year; and the third one, premiered on March 7, 1992.

Video games

During the series' run, multiple video games based on the ''Magical Taruruto'' series were released in the early 1990s. These include games for the Famicom, Super Famicom, Game Boy, Mega Drive, and Game Gear.

The series was also represented in a few ''Shōnen Jump''-based crossover games like '' Famicom Jump II: Saikyō no Shichinin'', ''Cult Jump'', and ''Jumputi Heroes''.

Reception

By November 2020, the manga had over 12.6 million copies in circulation.

Notes

References

External links

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{{Toei Animation films 1990s

1992 Japanese television series endings
1991 video games
1992 video games
Asahi Broadcasting Corporation original programming
Comedy anime and manga
Game Boy games
Bandai games
Fantasy anime and manga
Game Freak games
Japan-exclusive video games
Sega video games
Shōnen manga
Shueisha franchises
Shueisha manga
Tatsuya Egawa
Toei Animation television
TV Asahi original programming