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Yonkoma manga (4コマ漫画; "four cellmanga" or4-koma for short) is acomic strip format that generally consists ofgag comic strips within fourpanels of equal size, following a structure known askishōtenketsu.
Rakuten Kitazawa (who wrote under the name Yasuji Kitazawa) produced the firstyonkoma in 1902. EntitledJiji Manga, it is thought to have been influenced by the works ofFrank Arthur Nankivell and ofFrederick Burr Opper.[1]
Traditionally,yonkoma follow a structure known askishōtenketsu. This word is a compound formed from the following Japanese kanji characters:
Yonkoma most commonly consists ofgag comic strips within fourpanels of equal size ordered from top to bottom. They also sometimes run right-to-left horizontally or use a hybrid 2×2 style, depending on the layout requirements of the publication in which they appear.
These comic strips appear in almost all types of publications in Japan, includingmanga magazines,graphic novels, the comics section ofnewspapers, game magazines, cooking magazines, and so forth. The plot often ends within the four panels; although someserial development may pass on to future installments, creating a more continuous story. Someyonkoma also tackle serious topics, though most do so with humor. Some manga occasionally useyonkoma, usually at the end of a chapter or bound volume, as a non-canon joke to complement the story.
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