Kunisaki Izumo no Jijō
Encyclopedia
is an ongoing Japanese manga
series written and illustrated by . The series began on January 2010 in the Weekly Shōnen Sunday magazine. Before the series, a one-shot by the same title was featured in Weekly Shonen Sunday in February 2009, as a prototype. This article is written mostly about the series, as major changes were made between the one-shot and the series.
. The series is a comedy following Izumo's school and actor life. Izumo performs some of the most famous roles in kabuki, solving problems and gaining friends on the way.
, January 2011.
The series, greatly revised from the prototype to a school and actor slice-of-life comedy, is stated to be in the Otokono-ko
(男の娘) genre in the obi strip
and media sources introducing this manga. On the other hand, this series highlights the Japanese traditional performing art kabuki, which is rather rare to be a manga theme.
Aya Hirakawa comments that kabuki is a theme she always wanted to write about. She was born and raised in Shimane Prefecture
, believed to be the birthplace of Izumo no Okuni, founder of kabuki. She became interested in kabuki when she participated in a play about Izumo no Okuni when she was in junior high school.
First edition of the comics published in Japan has illustration printed on the backside of the cover. Also, Omake
such as illustrated papers are bundled in the book as sales promotion in bookstores such as Animate
and Comic Toranoana
after each comic release.
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...
series written and illustrated by . The series began on January 2010 in the Weekly Shōnen Sunday magazine. Before the series, a one-shot by the same title was featured in Weekly Shonen Sunday in February 2009, as a prototype. This article is written mostly about the series, as major changes were made between the one-shot and the series.
Story
Izumo Kunisaki, a boy with lovely features often mistaken as a girl, is an onna-gata (female role) actor in the Japanese traditional stage play kabukiKabuki
is classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.The individual kanji characters, from left to right, mean sing , dance , and skill...
. The series is a comedy following Izumo's school and actor life. Izumo performs some of the most famous roles in kabuki, solving problems and gaining friends on the way.
Production
A prototype oneshot of this series was a battle story, in which the hero Izumo transforms into a battle form of Izumo no Okuni, founder of kabuki and beautiful lady. This prototype first appeared in Weekly Shonen Sunday in February 2008, and reprinted in Shōnen Sunday SuperShonen Sunday Super
is a bi-monthly shōnen manga magazine published by Shogakukan.-History & Background:Originally billed as a special edition of Shōnen Sunday entitled Shōnen Sunday Zōkan, it was renamed Shōnen Sunday Super in 1995. It is often the home of short term serials by established Shogakukan artists, as well...
, January 2011.
The series, greatly revised from the prototype to a school and actor slice-of-life comedy, is stated to be in the Otokono-ko
Cross-dressing
Cross-dressing is the wearing of clothing and other accoutrement commonly associated with a gender within a particular society that is seen as different than the one usually presented by the dresser...
(男の娘) genre in the obi strip
Obi strip
An is a strip of paper looped around a book or other product. This extends the term obi used for Japanese clothing; it is written with the same kanji. It is also referred to as a , or more narrowly as .-For books:...
and media sources introducing this manga. On the other hand, this series highlights the Japanese traditional performing art kabuki, which is rather rare to be a manga theme.
Aya Hirakawa comments that kabuki is a theme she always wanted to write about. She was born and raised in Shimane Prefecture
Shimane Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region on Honshū island. The capital is Matsue. It is the second least populous prefecture in Japan, after its eastern neighbor Tottori. The prefecture has an area elongated from east to west facing the Chūgoku Mountain Range on the south side and to...
, believed to be the birthplace of Izumo no Okuni, founder of kabuki. She became interested in kabuki when she participated in a play about Izumo no Okuni when she was in junior high school.
First edition of the comics published in Japan has illustration printed on the backside of the cover. Also, Omake
Omake
means extra in Japanese. Its primary meaning is general and widespread. It is used as an anime and manga fandom term to mean "extra or bonus". In USA, the term is most often used in a narrow sense by anime fans to describe special features on DVD releases: deleted scenes, interviews with the...
such as illustrated papers are bundled in the book as sales promotion in bookstores such as Animate
Animate
is the retailing arm of MOVIC and is the largest retailer of anime, games, and manga in Japan. The first and headquarters store of Animate opened in 1983 and is located in Ikebukuro, a district in Tokyo, Japan. Currently, there are 38 Animate stores in Japan, and two in Taipei, Taiwan...
and Comic Toranoana
Comic Toranoana
Comic Toranoana is a dōjin shop operated by the Toranoana Inc. . This shop specializes in selling manga related items. It is also known by the name, "Toranoana", or simply, "Tora".-About the Company:...
after each comic release.
Drama CD
A drama CD was released in October 19, 2011 as a bundle for the limited edition of Volume 7 of the manga.Characters
- The main character of the story. Onna-gata (女形, female role) kabuki actor and first year student of the entertainment division in Shijogawara High School.
- Born to a kabuki-performing family Kunisaki-ya (國崎屋, Kunisaki family), he began his acting career in his childhood, but had not performed for eight years due to his parents' separation and his own antipathy for playing female roles. With his feminine looks, he is a natural as a female impersonator, and attracts both male and female characters in and out of the stage. He dislikes cross-dressing, but is often forced to wear female clothing. He works part-time as a maid in a maid cafeMaid cafeMaid cafés are a subcategory of cosplay restaurants found predominantly in Japan. In these cafés, waitresses dressed in maid costumes act as servants, and treat customers as masters in a private home, rather than as café patrons...
. In school he proves to have good sense in sports. He is also an excellent cook.
- An Onna-gata actor in Kunisaki-ya. As a senior apprentice, Kagato teaches Izumo female role performance. He is a talented actor with beautiful features and delicate health. He falls ill before his stage in chapter 1, forcing Izumo to fill in and re-start his Onna-gata career. He often cross-dresses under the pretext of the "study of Onna-gata", but Izumo suspects he only likes it.
- Izumo's father and the present head of Kunisaki-ya. He loves his son, apparently too much, getting sexually aroused by Izumo dressed in female costumes.
- Son of a distinguished kabuki family Togashiki-ya, and a tachi-yaku (立役, male role) actor. Second year student of the entertainment division in Shijogawara High School. He comes to believe Izumo is a girl after performing with him in the play Narukami, as he touches Izumo's breasts and find it soft (actually it was a donut). He has a crush on Izumo ever since.
- Son of kabuki family Minamoto-ya, and a tachi-yaku actor. First year student of the entertainment division in Shijogawara High School. Having childish features, he had played only child roles until the age of 15, as he was afraid the audience will not accept him as an adult. Izumo encourages him to play his first adult role in the play Kamakura Sandai Ki.
- First son of kabuki family Sugawara-ya, one of the most prominent families in the Rien (梨園, Kabuki world). tachi-yaku actor, and second year student of the entertainment division in Shijogawara High School. As the heir of his family, he was promised good roles but was eventually spoiled by it, having rough manners and not showing up for practice. Actually, he began to act this way to give his younger brother more chances.
- Second son of kabuki family Sugawara-ya, tachi-yaku actor, and first year student of the normal division in Shijogawara High School. He is also a regular customer of the maid cafe where Izumo works part-time. Matsuki hated his older brother Umeki, for his rough behavior and loss of respect for Kabuki. Dispute between the brothers came to a solution after Izumo served to bridge them in the play Kagotsurube.
- Leader of a new kabuki troupe . He bears a grudge against traditional kabuki, and goes hard on traditional actors like Izumo. He once belonged to a traditional kabuki family, but was banned from it because his teacher decided his performance did not follow traditions. Recovers relationship with his former teacher through the play Yamatotakeru.
- A son of a traditional kabuki family, he was tortured in Kiyora's Zan-kabuki troupe. He is an extremely optimistic person, and does not think he was being ill-treated at all.
- A childhood friend of Izumo, and daughter of kabuki family Nakamura-ya. She is not a kabuki actress, as kabuki is only performed by men, but knows a lot about kabuki and the Rien. She is a first year student in the entertainment division just like Izumo, and is hinted to be a TV talent of some sort. Calls Izmo "Ikkun". A fan of Kagato.
- Student guidance teacher of Shijogawara High School. She strictly keeps an eye on her students, but she does not hide her sexual arousal for Izumo. A kabuki fan in her childhood, she was hurt by the haughty behavior of an actor she liked, causing her to abandon her love for kabuki until she was ordered to check Izumo's performance in the play Sannin Kichiza.
- A rich kid suffering from a lack of attention from his father, who is an important patron of Kunisaki-ya. After watching Izumo's kabuki stage performance in Yotsuya KaidanYotsuya KaidanYotsuya Kaidan , the story of Oiwa and Tamiya Iemon, is a tale of betrayal, murder and ghostly revenge. Arguably the most famous Japanese ghost story of all time, it has been adapted for film over 30 times, and continues to be an influence on Japanese horror today.Written in 1825 by Tsuruya Nanboku...
, the father and son began to take time together.
- Izumo's apprentice. He declared love to Izumo while dressed in girl's clothing, and demanded to enter Kunisaki-ya as a Onnna-gata to be. A third year junior high school student, he wishes to become a Kabuki actor after being enthralled by Izumo's stage performance during a school trip to the theater.
- An actor from the Kansai region, who claims himself to be the top young actor of Kansai-style kabuki, or Kamigata-Kabuki. He seems to be arrogant and proud, but is actually very serious about acting and therefore, sensitive. He suffers from a slump due to poor relationship with other actors while practicing for the kabuki play Sonezaki Shinju, but eventually managed to overcome that with the help of Izumo and Umeki.
Volume List
External links
- Kunisaki Izumo no Jijō at Weekly Shōnen Sunday