Kouta Hirano
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese manga artist born in Adachi, Tokyo
, Japan, most famous for his manga Hellsing.
titles such as Angel Dust, Coyote, Gun Mania and Hi-Tension. His first major success came with his manga series Hellsing, which got its start and was subsequently serialized in a monthly manga magazine, Young King OURs
, towards the latter half of 1997.
However, Hellsing was not the earliest Hirano series to be published in Young King OURs monthly. In 1996, the same year Hellsings precursor, The Legends of Vampire Hunter, was first released as a single H short story in Heavenly Pleasure (a monthly H-centric manga magazine), another WWII-based short story named Hi-And-Low was being published in Young King OURs by a then lesser-known Kouta Hirano. The story takes place primarily at a train station in Russia and features two female characters that are strikingly similar to Integra Helsing from Hellsing and Yumiko/Yumie in Crossfire
; and who are, in actuality, undercover Axis spies in-league with one another for a common purpose: the success of Operation Barbarossa
. This story saw ink in one issue of OURs before being discontinued in favor of Hellsing itself.
A decent number of Hirano's older works are now considered collector's items due to the small number of them that exist. Many characters from Hellsing appear in his previous works and, as mentioned above, there is a rare hentai prototype of Hellsing titled The Legends of (the) Vampire Hunter. At Otakon 2006, he said in an interview that in about a year and a half to two years, he will finish Hellsing and move on to a different project which he says will be kept a secret until the time comes. This statement was proven true when Hellsing ended with 95 chapters in October 2008. Hirano has since begun a new series, Drifters
, which will be published in April 30's issue of YKO.
Hirano contributed a piece of fan art to "Project G", a dōjinshi
tribute to the manga
; Genshiken
. The piece features the character Madarame resting and looking at his cell phone. Hirano has also been part of a doujinshi circle titled GUY-YA, consisting of himself and Read or Die
manga artist Shutaro Yamada.
In a panel question at Anime Expo
2005, Hirano stated his favorites characters: his favourite male characters were Alucard
and Alexander Anderson
, and his favorite female character was Seras Victoria
. But in the current Sakura-Con, a fan asked him to illustrate his favorite character and he sketched The Captain; then at Animagic 2007, when asked about his favorites, he replied they were Alucard, Seras and Integra Hellsing
, and from Millennium, the Major. Previously, in Otakon, he had said Jan and Luke Valentine were his favorite characters. Probably his tastes are seasonal, according to what he is writing.
Kouta Hirano. However, it is occasionally romanized Kohta Hirano (e.g. the cover of Dark Horse Comics
's version of Hellsing and the Japanese tankōbon
covers).
Daidōjin Monogatari Deep Desert Schutzstaffel Drifters
Doc's story Front Gun Mania Hellsing
Susume! Ikaryaku
Susume!! Seigaku Dennō Kenkyūbu
The Legends of Vampire Hunter
The Weekenders
UFO 2000
Adachi, Tokyo
is one of the Special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It is located north of the heart of Tokyo. The ward consists of two separate areas: a small strip of land between the Sumida River and Arakawa River and a larger area north of the Arakawa River...
, Japan, most famous for his manga Hellsing.
History
Starting his career first as a manga artist's assistant (self-described as "horrible" and "lazy" in said assistant position), and later an H manga artist, he went on to enjoy somewhat limited success with other relatively unknown mangaManga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
titles such as Angel Dust, Coyote, Gun Mania and Hi-Tension. His first major success came with his manga series Hellsing, which got its start and was subsequently serialized in a monthly manga magazine, Young King OURs
Young King OURs
is a monthly seinen manga magazine published in Japan by Shōnen Gahosha, aimed primarily at male audiences, mostly older teens and young adults. It is the sister publication of Young King...
, towards the latter half of 1997.
However, Hellsing was not the earliest Hirano series to be published in Young King OURs monthly. In 1996, the same year Hellsings precursor, The Legends of Vampire Hunter, was first released as a single H short story in Heavenly Pleasure (a monthly H-centric manga magazine), another WWII-based short story named Hi-And-Low was being published in Young King OURs by a then lesser-known Kouta Hirano. The story takes place primarily at a train station in Russia and features two female characters that are strikingly similar to Integra Helsing from Hellsing and Yumiko/Yumie in Crossfire
Crossfire (manga)
Crossfire refers to a three-chapter series by Kouta Hirano, who is best known as the author of Hellsing, where it appeared in the first three tankoubon. The stories focus on the fictional Vatican Section XIII, or the Iscariot Organisation...
; and who are, in actuality, undercover Axis spies in-league with one another for a common purpose: the success of Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
. This story saw ink in one issue of OURs before being discontinued in favor of Hellsing itself.
A decent number of Hirano's older works are now considered collector's items due to the small number of them that exist. Many characters from Hellsing appear in his previous works and, as mentioned above, there is a rare hentai prototype of Hellsing titled The Legends of (the) Vampire Hunter. At Otakon 2006, he said in an interview that in about a year and a half to two years, he will finish Hellsing and move on to a different project which he says will be kept a secret until the time comes. This statement was proven true when Hellsing ended with 95 chapters in October 2008. Hirano has since begun a new series, Drifters
Drifters (manga)
is a fantasy, alternate history Japanese manga written and illustrated by Kouta Hirano. The manga started serialization in Shōnen Gahosha's magazine, Young King Ours on April 30, 2009...
, which will be published in April 30's issue of YKO.
Hirano contributed a piece of fan art to "Project G", a dōjinshi
Dojinshi
is the Japanese term for self-published works, usually magazines, manga or novels. Dōjinshi are often the work of amateurs, though some professional artists participate as a way to publish material outside the regular industry. The term dōjinshi is derived from and . Dōjinshi are part of a wider...
tribute to the manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
; Genshiken
Genshiken
is a manga series by Shimoku Kio about a college club for otaku and the lifestyle its members pursue. The title is a shortening of the club's official name, , or "The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture". The series has also been adapted into an anime directed by Tsutomu Mizushima...
. The piece features the character Madarame resting and looking at his cell phone. Hirano has also been part of a doujinshi circle titled GUY-YA, consisting of himself and Read or Die
Read or Die
is a series of light novels authored by Hideyuki Kurata, published under Shueisha's Super Dash Bunko imprint. Read or Die follows Yomiko Readman, codename "The Paper", an agent for the Special Operations Division of the British Library. There are currently 11 Read or Die novels. In volume 11, a...
manga artist Shutaro Yamada.
In a panel question at Anime Expo
Anime Expo
Anime Expo, abbreviated AX, is an American anime convention held in Los Angeles, California and organized by the non-profit Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation . With rare exceptions, the convention is traditionally held on the July 4th weekend and lasts for four days...
2005, Hirano stated his favorites characters: his favourite male characters were Alucard
Alucard (Hellsing)
is a fictional characterin the Hellsing manga and anime series created by Kouta Hirano. A powerful vampire, Alucard works with the Hellsing Organization against other vampires and evil forces. He fights with ferocity and often extreme cruelty, rarely killing until his target has been disabled and...
and Alexander Anderson
Alexander Anderson (Hellsing)
is a character from the manga/anime Hellsing, acting as an antagonist to his nemesis, the protagonist Alucard). He is a warrior priest or paladin monster slayer and purifier who works for the Iscariot Organization...
, and his favorite female character was Seras Victoria
Seras Victoria
is a fictional character from both the Hellsing manga series and anime series by Kouta Hirano. In both the television series and the OVA, her seiyū is Fumiko Orikasa. Seras' English voice actor in both series was K. T. Gray....
. But in the current Sakura-Con, a fan asked him to illustrate his favorite character and he sketched The Captain; then at Animagic 2007, when asked about his favorites, he replied they were Alucard, Seras and Integra Hellsing
Integra Hellsing
, more commonly, Integra Hellsing, is one of the main characters from the anime and manga series Hellsing. In both the TV series and OVA series, her Japanese voice is provided by Yoshiko Sakakibara and Kaori Mizuhashi , while her English voice in both is done by Victoria Harwood and Tricia Dickson...
, and from Millennium, the Major. Previously, in Otakon, he had said Jan and Luke Valentine were his favorite characters. Probably his tastes are seasonal, according to what he is writing.
Naming
Hirano's name is usually romanizedRomanization of Japanese
The romanization of Japanese is the application of the Latin alphabet to write the Japanese language. This method of writing is known as , less strictly romaji, literally "Roman letters", sometimes incorrectly transliterated as romanji or rōmanji. There are several different romanization systems...
Kouta Hirano. However, it is occasionally romanized Kohta Hirano (e.g. the cover of Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
's version of Hellsing and the Japanese tankōbon
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
covers).
Alphabetical list of works
Crossfire (manga)
Crossfire refers to a three-chapter series by Kouta Hirano, who is best known as the author of Hellsing, where it appeared in the first three tankoubon. The stories focus on the fictional Vatican Section XIII, or the Iscariot Organisation...
Daidōjin Monogatari Deep Desert Schutzstaffel Drifters
Drifters (manga)
is a fantasy, alternate history Japanese manga written and illustrated by Kouta Hirano. The manga started serialization in Shōnen Gahosha's magazine, Young King Ours on April 30, 2009...
Doc's story Front Gun Mania Hellsing