Anime (アニメ) refers toanimation originating fromJapan. It is characterized by distinctive characters and backgrounds (hand-drawn orcomputer-generated) that visually and thematically set it apart from other forms of animation. Storylines may include a variety of fictional or historical characters, events, and settings. Anime is aimed at a broad range of audiences; consequently, a given series may have aspects of a range ofgenres. Anime is most frequently distributed bystreaming services, broadcast ontelevision, or sold onDVDs and other media, either after their broadcast run or directly asoriginal video animation (OVA).Console andcomputer games sometimes also feature segments or scenes that can be considered anime.
Manga (漫画), Japanese for "comics" or "whimsical pictures", arecomics orgraphic novels originating from Japan. Manga developed from a mixture ofukiyo-e and Western styles ofdrawing, and took its current form shortly afterWorld War II. Manga, apart from covers, is usually published in black and white but it is common to find introductions to chapters to be in color and read from top to bottom and then right to left, similar to the layout of Japanese plain text. Financially, manga represented 2005 a market of ¥24 billion in Japan and $180 million in the United States. Manga was the fastest-growing segment of books in theUnited States in 2005. In 2020, Japan's manga industry hit a value of ¥612.6 billion due to the fast growth of the digital manga market, while manga sales in North America reached an all-time high of almost $250 million.
Anime and manga have a sharediconography, including exaggerating the scale of physical features, to which the reader presumably should pay most attention; the best known being "large eyes". Manga are often adapted into anime, usually with the collaboration of theoriginal author.Light novel series and video games can also be adapted into anime or manga. In such cases, the work's original story is often compressed or modified to fit the new format and appeal to a wider demographic. Popular franchises sometimes include full-lengthfeature films, both animated andlive-action, as well as live-action television programs.
Allen Walker is a fictional teenage character who appears as theprotagonist ofKatsura Hoshino'smangaD.Gray-man, as well as twoanime adaptations, threelight novels, twovideo games, and severalcrossoverfighting games. In the 19th century, the gentlemanly teenager joins the Black Order, a group of soldiers known as Exorcists, and fights Akuma demons and their creator, theMillennium Earl. In the anime television series and related franchise, he was voiced bySanae Kobayashi. In 2016, for the new television anime seriesD.Gray-man Hallow, he was voiced byAyumu Murase, and byTodd Haberkorn in an English-language anime series. The character has been popular withD.Gray-man readers, usually ranking in the top three in the series' popularity polls. Reactions to him have also been generally positive in manga and anime publications and other media. Critics have noted approvingly that his calm demeanor and mysterious origin are atypical of a protagonist inmanga for boys. Merchandise featuring Allen Walker's likeness includes clothing andcosplay pieces. (Full article...)
TheNaruto manga is written byMasashi Kishimoto and published byShueisha inWeekly Shōnen Jump. The series began its serialization in 1999. Shueisha later collected these chapters intankōbon volumes. The first 244 chapters are known as Part I, and constitute the first part of theNaruto storyline. All subsequent chapters belong to Part II, which continues the storyline from Part I after a two and a half yeartimeskip.Viz Media licenses theNaruto manga for an English adaptation in North America, where it is serialized in the AmericanShonen Jump and released in volume format.
Several adaptations based onNaruto have been made, including twoanime series and five featured films, with a sixth film slated for release during the summer of 2009. The first anime series, also titledNaruto, covers the entirety of Part I over 220 episodes. The second, namedNaruto: Shippuden (ナルト 疾風伝,Naruto Shippūden; lit.Naruto: Hurricane Chronicles), is based on Part II, and started airing on February 15, 2007. Both series are produced byStudio Pierrot andTV Tokyo, and air on TV Tokyo. (Full list...)
