Ken Akamatsu
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese manga artist
from Tokyo
.
Sailor Moon
was his introduction to anime and manga fandom.
In his teens, Akamatsu applied himself to Film Study (it is speculated that this is where he got the idea for Love Hina
). Eventually, he became famous as an illustrator featured in Comiket
(a comic convention held bi-annually in Japan). He used the pen name . Akamatsu, still in college (Japanese literature course at Chuo University
), then proceeded to win the Weekly Shōnen Magazine
award twice. Soon after he graduated, his Hito Natsu no Kids Game
was awarded the coveted 50th Shōnen Magazine's Rookie Award.
After a big hit with A.I. Love You
, he finally made a grand success with his new and magnum opus
manga, Love Hina
. The series appeared in Weekly Shōnen Magazine and has been collected in eleven volumes (with fourteen volumes in total), which have sold over 6 million copies in Japan, and received the Kodansha Manga Award
for shōnen
in 2001. Akamatsu had added elements of his own life experiences to the story, and this was said to have induced a unique feeling to the manga especially for Western readers, whose lack of familiarity with Japanese culture for the most part added to the effect. The series, published in America in 2002, was especially well received in many overseas countries - Akamatsu was surprised that even foreign readers found Love Hina to be "cute" and to their liking. Akamatsu appears as a character in the 'Love Hina
' anime, in episode 14, and the Christmas and Spring specials.
He is now married to 'Kanon' Akamatsu, who was previously a singer/idol. He is currently working on his latest manga series, Negima!: Magister Negi Magi
, which is his longest running manga so far, which, like Love Hina, has also been made into an anime series. A second independent retelling of Negima was made called Negima!?
. The first anime adaption was produced by XEBEC
, and the second retelling produced by Shaft
. Shaft also produces all of the OVAs for Negima! Magister Negi Magi
and is currently making a new Negima! OVA , Negima! Magister Negi Magi ~Shiroki Tsubasa Ala Alba~, and a newer series of OVAs, Maho Sensei Negima! Mo Hitotsu no Sekai ~Another World~
Along with working on the Negima manga, he was also helping with the live action
Negima! series. He has no task-based daily schedule for his manga work; instead he works on one page at a time until the whole chapter is finished. When he was younger he could draw one chapter each week, but nowadays he usually draws 18 pages every 9 days. Thus, he has time to take a week-long break on four-week intervals while maintaining his weekly publishing schedule.
In November 2010 he announced he is starting a free manga download site for out-of-print titles called J-Comi
, and has announced all 14 volumes of Love Hina will be its first release. The service is completely free and without any time restrictions or commissions, with authors receiving payment based on site ads. The comics will be distributed as PDFs without any type of DRM
. He also expects other manga artists to take advantage of the service.
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
from Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
.
Sailor Moon
Sailor Moon
Sailor Moon, known as , is a media franchise created by manga artist Naoko Takeuchi. Fred Patten credits Takeuchi with popularizing the concept of a team of magical girls, and Paul Gravett credits the series with "revitalizing" the magical-girl genre itself...
was his introduction to anime and manga fandom.
In his teens, Akamatsu applied himself to Film Study (it is speculated that this is where he got the idea for Love Hina
Love Hina
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Ken Akamatsu. It was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine by Kodansha from October 21, 1998 to October 31, 2001 and was published in 14 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. The series tells the story of Keitaro Urashima and his attempts to...
). Eventually, he became famous as an illustrator featured in Comiket
Comiket
, otherwise known as the , is the world's largest self-published comic book fair, held twice a year in Tokyo, Japan. The first Comiket was held on December 21, 1975, with only about 32 participating circles and an estimated 600 attendees. Attendance has since swelled to over a half million people....
(a comic convention held bi-annually in Japan). He used the pen name . Akamatsu, still in college (Japanese literature course at Chuo University
Chuo University
Chuo University is a one of the Japanese leading universities. Thus it is competitive in several rankings such as shown below.-General Rankings:The university has been ranked 27th, 25th, 34th during 2008-2010 respectively in the ranking "Truly Strong Universities" by Toyo Keizai.-Research...
), then proceeded to win the Weekly Shōnen Magazine
Weekly Shonen Magazine
, also known as Shōnen Magazine, is a shōnen manga magazine published by Kodansha, first published on 17 March 1959. Despite some unusual censorship policies , it's mainly read by an older audience, with a large portion of its readership falling under the male high school or college...
award twice. Soon after he graduated, his Hito Natsu no Kids Game
Hito Natsu no Kids Game
is a short, debut manga work by Ken Akamatsu, the creator of Love Hina. The manga was published on September issue of Kodansha’s Magazine Fresh on September 10, 1993. Ken Akamatsu later received Kodansha’s "Freshman Manga Award" and Special Jury Award for this work...
was awarded the coveted 50th Shōnen Magazine's Rookie Award.
After a big hit with A.I. Love You
A.I. Love You
is a Japanese manga series by author Ken Akamatsu. First released in the mid-1990s in Japan, an English translation of the series was published by Tokyopop; the Tokyopop version of the manga is out of print as of August 31, 2009....
, he finally made a grand success with his new and magnum opus
Magnum opus
Magnum opus , from the Latin meaning "great work", refers to the largest, and perhaps the best, greatest, most popular, or most renowned achievement of a writer, artist, or composer.-Related terms:Sometimes the term magnum opus is used to refer to simply "a great work" rather than "the...
manga, Love Hina
Love Hina
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Ken Akamatsu. It was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine by Kodansha from October 21, 1998 to October 31, 2001 and was published in 14 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. The series tells the story of Keitaro Urashima and his attempts to...
. The series appeared in Weekly Shōnen Magazine and has been collected in eleven volumes (with fourteen volumes in total), which have sold over 6 million copies in Japan, and received the Kodansha Manga Award
Kodansha Manga Award
is an annual award for serialized manga published in the previous year, sponsored by the publisher Kodansha. It is currently awarded in four categories: children's, shōnen, shōjo, and general. The awards began in 1977, initially with categories for shōnen and shōjo. The first award for the...
for shōnen
Shonen
The term refers to manga marketed to a male audience aged roughly 10 and up. The Kanji characters literally mean "few" and "year", respectively, where the characters generally mean "comic"...
in 2001. Akamatsu had added elements of his own life experiences to the story, and this was said to have induced a unique feeling to the manga especially for Western readers, whose lack of familiarity with Japanese culture for the most part added to the effect. The series, published in America in 2002, was especially well received in many overseas countries - Akamatsu was surprised that even foreign readers found Love Hina to be "cute" and to their liking. Akamatsu appears as a character in the 'Love Hina
Love Hina
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Ken Akamatsu. It was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine by Kodansha from October 21, 1998 to October 31, 2001 and was published in 14 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. The series tells the story of Keitaro Urashima and his attempts to...
' anime, in episode 14, and the Christmas and Spring specials.
He is now married to 'Kanon' Akamatsu, who was previously a singer/idol. He is currently working on his latest manga series, Negima!: Magister Negi Magi
Negima!: Magister Negi Magi
Negima! Magister Negi Magi, known in Japan as is a manga and anime series by Ken Akamatsu . The manga is currently being published by Kodansha and serialized in Shōnen Magazine in Japan. Del Rey Manga published the English translated version in the United States and Canada prior to Kodansha...
, which is his longest running manga so far, which, like Love Hina, has also been made into an anime series. A second independent retelling of Negima was made called Negima!?
Negima!?
is an alternate retelling of the manga series Negima! Magister Negi Magi. The anime, directed by Akiyuki Shinbo, aired October 4, 2006 to March 28, 2007 in Japan. It is accompanied by a new monthly manga series by Takuya Fujima called Negima!? neo. Both series feature the same characters and...
. The first anime adaption was produced by XEBEC
XEBEC
is a subsidiary of the anime studio Production I.G that specialises in the production of television anime. They have worked on many popular series such as Love Hina and Martian Successor Nadesico...
, and the second retelling produced by Shaft
Shaft (company)
is a Japanese animation studio founded on September 1, 1975 by Hiroshi Wakao. They are best known for their unique use of gags and references notably in Pani Poni Dash!, Maria Holic, Sayonara Zetsubō Sensei, Hidamari Sketch, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, and Bakemonogatari series.- History :Shaft was...
. Shaft also produces all of the OVAs for Negima! Magister Negi Magi
Negima! Magister Negi Magi
Negima! Magister Negi Magi, known in Japan as is a manga and anime series by Ken Akamatsu . The manga is currently being published by Kodansha and serialized in Shōnen Magazine in Japan. Del Rey Manga published the English translated version in the United States and Canada prior to Kodansha...
and is currently making a new Negima! OVA , Negima! Magister Negi Magi ~Shiroki Tsubasa Ala Alba~, and a newer series of OVAs, Maho Sensei Negima! Mo Hitotsu no Sekai ~Another World~
Along with working on the Negima manga, he was also helping with the live action
Live action
In filmmaking, video production, and other media, the term live action refers to cinematography, videography not produced using animation...
Negima! series. He has no task-based daily schedule for his manga work; instead he works on one page at a time until the whole chapter is finished. When he was younger he could draw one chapter each week, but nowadays he usually draws 18 pages every 9 days. Thus, he has time to take a week-long break on four-week intervals while maintaining his weekly publishing schedule.
In November 2010 he announced he is starting a free manga download site for out-of-print titles called J-Comi
J-Comi
J-Comi Jコミis a website that distributes out of print manga and doujinshi as DRM-free ebooks, with the permission of the authors and supported by advertising. The first beta test began on 26 November, 2010, and included all 14 volumes of CEO Ken Akamatsu's Love Hina. Over the first two days of the...
, and has announced all 14 volumes of Love Hina will be its first release. The service is completely free and without any time restrictions or commissions, with authors receiving payment based on site ads. The comics will be distributed as PDFs without any type of DRM
Digital rights management
Digital rights management is a class of access control technologies that are used by hardware manufacturers, publishers, copyright holders and individuals with the intent to limit the use of digital content and devices after sale. DRM is any technology that inhibits uses of digital content that...
. He also expects other manga artists to take advantage of the service.
Anime works
- Love HinaLove Hinais a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Ken Akamatsu. It was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine by Kodansha from October 21, 1998 to October 31, 2001 and was published in 14 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. The series tells the story of Keitaro Urashima and his attempts to...
- Negima!: Magister Negi MagiNegima!: Magister Negi MagiNegima! Magister Negi Magi, known in Japan as is a manga and anime series by Ken Akamatsu . The manga is currently being published by Kodansha and serialized in Shōnen Magazine in Japan. Del Rey Manga published the English translated version in the United States and Canada prior to Kodansha...
- Ground Defense Force! Mao-chanGround Defense Force! Mao-chan, also known as Earth Defender! Mao-chan, is a 26-episode comedy anime, created by Ken Akamatsu, the author of Love Hina.It stars three eight-year-old girls, Mao, Misora and Sylvia, as they try to defend the earth against invading aliens...
(story, character designs) - Itsudatte My Santa!Itsudatte My Santa!is a manga by Ken Akamatsu. Originally a one-chapter production, it ran in Japan before Akamatsu's Love Hina was serialized. It ran in Shōnen Magazine in 1998, and was serialized in volumes 4 and 5. An anime OVA, with two episodes, was released on December 7, 2005 in Japan...