| Cowa! | |
 Tankōbon volume cover | |
| Genre | |
|---|---|
| Manga | |
| Written by | Akira Toriyama |
| Published by | Shueisha |
| English publisher | |
| Imprint | Jump Comics |
| Magazine | Weekly Shōnen Jump |
| Original run | 1997 –1998 |
| Volumes | 1 |
 Anime and manga portal | |
Cowa! (stylized inall caps) is a Japanesemanga series written and illustrated byAkira Toriyama. It was serialized inShueisha'sWeekly Shōnen Jump from 1997 to 1998, with the fourteen chapters collected into a singletankōbon volume. The story follows the child monsters Paifu, José and Arpon, and the human Maruyama, as they travel to get medicine to save their town from a deadly flu.Viz Media released the single volume in North America in July 2008.Cowa! was generally well-received by critics, and was nominated for the 2009Eisner Award for Best Publication for Kids.
Paifu, a mischievous monster boy, lives in harmony with his friend José and rival Arpon. This tranquil village life is interrupted by the spread of a Monster Flu (お化け風邪,Obake Kaze), which kills monsters within a month. The doctor reveals that the cure can be created by a witch that resides at the top of Horned-Owl Mountain. Due to the adult monsters being sick, Paifu, José and Arpon volunteer to make the trip with the help of Maruyama, a human who lives near the town and is widely feared due to rumors that he killed a man. Paifu tricks him by telling him that the town will pay him a million yen in exchange for his accompaniment. During the trip, the children encounter several thugs, whom Maruyama easily defeats, and they soon learn that this is a formersumo wrestler.
In the last village before reaching the mountain, Maruyama stops to buy food. At that moment, Paifu witnesses an assault on an old man and stops the assailant. As they are about to reach Mount Owl, Arpon suddenly falls ill. Their search for someone to take care of him leads them to the family of the man who was assaulted, who gladly agree to take care of Arpon. When the group reaches the forest around the mountain, they encounter Baroaba, whom they manage to defeat when Paifu learns to whistle, the monster's weakness. When Baroaba realizes that they are going to see the witch, he helps them reach her house. Before entering they are greeted by the witch's servant, anoni named Leonardo, who grants them entry only after they answer a riddle. The group retrieves the medicine and begins their descent down the mountain, during which Maruyama accidentally slips and falls; Paifu narrowly saves his life by learning to fly.
On the way back, Maruyama is disappointed to learn that Paifu lied about the monetary reward, but decides that Paifu's rescue was sufficient compensation. The group's return is heralded with a party, but Maruyama leaves, claiming not to enjoy such activities. Paifu takes the opportunity to explain to everyone what has happened, and together they manage to fix an old ghost ship to present to Maruyama, fulfilling his wish to obtain one with the promised money.
Cowa! has its origins inBubul of Demon Village (魔人村のBUBUL,Majin-Mura no Buburu), aone-shotAkira Toriyama drew for the revived Jump Readers' Cup competition in 1997.[6] Toriyama, who had done only a few one-shots since finishingDragon Ball in 1995, won handily; it was his first win sincePola & Roid took the top spot in 1981. After winning, Toriyama said he was thinking of creating a "more developed" form ofBubul of Demon Village.[6] He re-tooled the character designs and setting of the one-shot to suit a new series, as detailed in the issue beforeCowa!'s start.[citation needed]
Despite previously claiming to be done with weekly serials, Toriyama decided to drawCowa! when he learned his editor would beKazuhiko Torishima and that he could do things his own way.[7] Unlike bothDr. Slump andDragon Ball, where he never skipped an issue, he drewCowa in a three-weeks-on, one-week-off pattern, which afforded him time to rest and work more slowly. Toriyama stated he wanted to draw everything himself, forgoing the customary use of an assistant, even though he had pain in his arm.[7] The story came about from wanting to take a storybook type approach and have the main character be an "unlovable grumpy guy."[7]
Written and illustrated byAkira Toriyama,Cowa! was serialized inWeekly Shōnen Jump magazine from issue #48 of 1997 to #15 of 1998. The fourteen chapters were collected into onetankōbon volume that was released on May 1, 1998 byShueisha.[8]
Viz Media licensedCowa! for English release in North America on July 1, 2008.[9] Their graphic novel edition retained the first chapter in color.[1] It has also been released in other countries, such as in France byGlenat, Spain byPlaneta DeAgostini, South Korea byDaewon C.I. and MalaysiaComics House.
| No. | Original release date | Original ISBN | English release date | English ISBN | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | May 1, 1998 | 4-08-872557-3 | July 1, 2008 | 1-42151-805-8 | ||
| ||||||
About.com's Deb Aoki listedCowa! as the "Best New All Ages Manga" of 2008, calling it "clever and charming enough to entertain adults as well as younger readers."[10]Anime News Network's Carl Kimlinger disagreed, claiming the plot is not complex enough to appeal to adults. He also wished Viz would have kept the other few chapters that were originally colored as such instead of just the first, as those particular ones were hard to follow in black and white. However, he wrote that "Makoleen's character elevates what might have been a simple children's adventure to a gentle fable about acceptance and understanding." and praised the humor.[1] A.E. Sparrow ofIGN gave the series an 8.6 out of 10 and referred to it as a "self-contained mini-epic." On the humor he said "the jokes come at you unapologetically and you're either going to catch them or write them off."[11] Viz Media's English release ofCowa! was nominated for theEisner Award for Best Publication for Kids in 2009.[12]