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Slam Dunk (manga)
Encyclopedia
is a sports-themed manga
series written by Takehiko Inoue
about a basketball
team from Shōhoku High School
. It was first serialized in Shueisha
's Weekly Shōnen Jump
in Japan from 1990 to 1996 and had also been adapted into an anime
series by Toei Animation
which had been broadcast worldwide, enjoying much popularity particularly in Japan, several other Asian countries and Europe. Inoue later used basketball as a central theme in two subsequent manga titles: Buzzer Beater and Real
. In 2010, Inoue received special commendations from the Japan Basketball Association
for helping popularize basketball in Japan.
Haruko Akagi, who recognizes Hanamichi's athleticism, introduces him to the Shohoku basketball team. Hanamichi was reluctant to join the team at first because he had no previous background in any sports and thought that basketball was a game for losers (also because the fiftieth girl rejected him for a basketball player). Sakuragi, despite his immaturity and hot temper, proves to be a natural athlete with potential and joins the team in order to impress Haruko and prove that he is worthy of her. Later on, Sakuragi realizes that his love for the sport equals that of his crush on Haruko. Kaede Rukawa — Sakuragi's bitter rival (both on the basketball court and love, even when Rukawa doesn't acknowledge Haruko's crush on him), the star rookie and a "girl magnet" - joins the team at the same time. Hisashi Mitsui, an ex-junior high school MVP
, and Ryota Miyagi, a short but fast player, both also rejoin the team and together these four struggle to complete team captain Takenori Akagi's dream of making Shohoku the national champion. Together, these misfits gain publicity and the once little known Shohoku basketball team becomes an all-star contender in Japan.
, he noted that when he was doing Slam Dunk he had a simpler perspective on life as he focused more in victories and success.
With the series, Inoue wants the readers to feel achievements as well as love for the sport. Believing his success as a manga artist being largely due to basketball, Inoue started a Slam Dunk Scholarship for Japanese students as he wanted to give back to the sport by increasing its popularity in Japan. However, when asked about the response from readers to basketball, Inoue commented that although Slam Dunk is technically a basketball manga, its story could have been done with other sports such as soccer. He also added that the artwork for the manga was very typical and mangalike in comparison to his newer works such as Real. His experiences with basketball also influenced the story from Slam Dunk: as a youth Inoue started playing basketball to be popular with the girls, but later became obsessed with the sport in and of itself. This was mirrored in the character of Hanamichi Sakuragi, who starts playing basketball to impress the girl he likes, to later become truly fond of the game.
's Weekly Shōnen Jump
since the issue 40 from 1990 until the issue 27 from 1996. The 276 individual chapters were originally collected in 31 tankōbon
editions under Shueisha's Jump Comics imprint, with the first volume being published on February 8, 1991 and volume 31 on October 3, 1996. It was later reassembled in 24 kanzenban volumes under Shueisha
's JUMP Comics Deluxe imprint from March 19, 2001 to February 2, 2002.
In North America, an English version of Slam Dunk was published by the now-defunct Gutsoon! Entertainment, which serialized the title in their manga anthology Raijin Comics
from 2002 to 2004. Five collected volumes were published under Gutsoon's Raijin Graphic Novels imprint. They were released from July 2, 2003 until May 5, 2004. After Gutsoon! went out of business, the license for the Slam Dunk was purchased by Viz Media
, which published a preview of the series in the December 2007 issue of the North American edition of Shonen Jump
. Slam Dunk began serialization in the magazine, starting with the May 2008 issue, as well as in tankōbon format with the first being published on September 2, 2008. As of April 5th, 2011, Viz has published 16 volumes of their translated edition.
In 2004, Inoue produced an epilogue titled Slam Dunk: 10 Days After, which was drawn on 23 chalkboards in the former campus of the now-defunct Misaki High School located in the Kanagawa Prefecture
, which was held for public exhibition from December 3 to December 5. The epilogue, along with coverage of the event, was reprinted in the February 2005 issue of Switch magazine.
The anime series, consisting of 101 episodes, was produced by the TV Asahi
terrestrial television
network and Toei Animation
and directed by Nobutaka Nishizawa. It was first aired on TV Asahi from October 16, 1993 to March 23, 1996. It was later aired on the anime satellite television
network, Animax
, in addition to four animated movies produced. The anime
series follows the manga
storyline, but leaves out the National Tournament games. Toei compiled the episodes into a series of seventeen DVDs which were released in Japan from December 10, 2004 to May 21, 2005. Toei once again collected the series in three DVD boxes during 2008. All the three boxes have a total of seventeen discs.
Toei and Geneon
briefly chose to release the anime on DVD after the manga was discontinued, though the anime was also discontinued after only a few volumes. The first DVD was released on March 15, 2005 and the volume 4 was the last one released on June 14, 2005 before they were cancelled. Various episodes from the series were also downloadable in IGN
's Direct2Drive service. Toei is currently streaming episodes of the series on-line for a fee and for free through Crunchyroll
. Joost
also started airing all the 101 as of May 2009 on their website. Each episode is in Japanese, with English subtitles.
The music was composed by Takanobu Masuda (from episode 1 to episode 69) and BMF (from episode 70 to episode 101). Three CD soundtracks were published during the airing of the series in Japan. The openings, ending and other two themes were collected into the CD soundtrack The Best of TV Animation Slam Dunk, released on July 21, 2003.
from 1994 to 1995 while the manga and TV series were still running. They contain largely new material that is either only hinted at or is not presented in the manga. From August 1 to 4, 2006, NHK
broadcasted all four movies as part of its satellite networks NHK BS-2's Summer Anime Choice line-up, and TV Osaka
aired the last three movies from January 3 to 8, 2007. All the films were collected into a DVD box named Slam Dunk The Movie which was released on December 10, 2004.
The first film, simply titled Slam Dunk, premiered on March 12, 1994. Set after Shohoku's practice game against Ryonan, the film focuses on a practice game against Takezono High. Before the game, Sakuragi runs into Yoko Shimura, the girl who rejects him in the very first scene of the series, and Oda, the basketball player she rejected him for. , released on July 20, 1994, is the second film from the series. It happens during Shohoku's 4th Round Qualifying game against Tsukubu High. The film features original characters including Godai, an old friend of Akagi and Kogure's, Rango, a wild show-off who is in love with Haruko and quarrels with Sakuragi, and Coach Kawasaki, a former pupil of Anzai-sensei. was released on March 12, 1995.
Set after Shohoku's loss to Kainan, and during a practice match against Ryokufu High.
, which was released one June 15, 1995, tells that Rukawa's middle school kouhai Ichiro Mizusawa will be paralyzed soon and wishes to have one last game against Rukawa.
and produced by Bandai
, have been published for the Japanese market. Two basketball sims titled Slam Dunk and Slam Dunk 2 were released for the Game Boy
. The Super Famicom
had three games, Slam Dunk, Slam Dunk 2, and SD Heat Up!!. Slam Dunk games have also been released for the Game Gear, Mega Drive, and Sega Saturn
. A Slam Dunk coin-operated arcade game by Banpresto
was released in 1995. Characters of the series also appear in the Nintendo DS
games Jump Superstars and Jump Ultimate Stars
.
for shōnen
. The success of Slam Dunk is cited as an influence in the increased popularity of basketball among the Japanese youth during 1990s. In a poll of over 79,000 Japanese fans for the 10th Japan Media Arts Festival
, Slam Dunk was voted the #1 manga of all time. The English translation of Slam Dunk was listed one of the best comics of 2008 by Publishers Weekly
. In a survey from Oricon
in 2009, Slam Dunk ranked first as the manga that fans wanted to be turned into a live-action film. In the Japanese government's Media Arts 100 Poll of the public's favorite works of art of all time, Slam Dunk took first place in the manga division. The imprint version of Slam Dunk: 10 Days After has been highly popular in Japan, having initially ranked 6th and then 15th in a ranking of Japanese comics.
The anime adaptation has also been very popular in Japan. In TV Asahi
's Top 100 Anime show, Slam Dunk ranked as the 10th most popular anime. In another poll from TV Asashi but developed by a website, the series ranked 8th. The DVD boxes from the anime also had a good sale in Japan, having appeared in rankings from Japanese Animation DVD Ranking.
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 by Takehiko Inoue
Takehiko Inoue
is a Japanese manga artist, best known for the basketball manga Slam Dunk, which has become a success both in Japan and overseas. Many of his works are about basketball, Inoue himself being a huge fan of the sport, and many Japanese children started to play basketball because they read the manga...
about a basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
team from Shōhoku High School
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
. It was first serialized in Shueisha
Shueisha
is a major publisher in Japan. The company was founded in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The following year, Shueisha became a separate, independent company. Magazines published by Shueisha include Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Young Jump,...
's Weekly Shōnen Jump
Weekly Shonen Jump
is a weekly shōnen manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the Jump line of magazines. The first issue was released with a cover date of July 2, 1968, and it is still circulating. One of the longest-running manga magazines in Japan, it has a circulation of 2.8 million copies...
in Japan from 1990 to 1996 and had also been adapted into an anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series by Toei Animation
Toei Animation
Toei Animation Co., Ltd. is a Japanese animation studio owned by Toei Co., Ltd. The studio was founded in 1948 as Japan Animated Films . In 1956, Toei purchased the studio and it was reincorporated under its current name...
which had been broadcast worldwide, enjoying much popularity particularly in Japan, several other Asian countries and Europe. Inoue later used basketball as a central theme in two subsequent manga titles: Buzzer Beater and Real
Real (manga)
is a manga series, by Takehiko Inoue, which deals with wheelchair basketball. It has been serialised in Shueisha's Young Jump and to date, 10 volumes have been published in Japan...
. In 2010, Inoue received special commendations from the Japan Basketball Association
Japan Basketball Association
The Japan Basketball Association is the governing body of basketball in Japan. Formed in 1930, it is based in Tokyo. The JABBA is a member of the International Basketball Federation and FIBA Asia...
for helping popularize basketball in Japan.
Plot
Slam Dunk centers around Hanamichi Sakuragi, who starts as a delinquent outcast, becoming the leader of a gang. Hanamichi, being very unpopular with girls, has been rejected by them fifty times. Yet, he finds out that Haruko Akagi is the girl of his dreams, and is happy when she's not scared of him like all the other girls he has asked out.Haruko Akagi, who recognizes Hanamichi's athleticism, introduces him to the Shohoku basketball team. Hanamichi was reluctant to join the team at first because he had no previous background in any sports and thought that basketball was a game for losers (also because the fiftieth girl rejected him for a basketball player). Sakuragi, despite his immaturity and hot temper, proves to be a natural athlete with potential and joins the team in order to impress Haruko and prove that he is worthy of her. Later on, Sakuragi realizes that his love for the sport equals that of his crush on Haruko. Kaede Rukawa — Sakuragi's bitter rival (both on the basketball court and love, even when Rukawa doesn't acknowledge Haruko's crush on him), the star rookie and a "girl magnet" - joins the team at the same time. Hisashi Mitsui, an ex-junior high school MVP
Most Valuable Player
In sports, a Most Valuable Player award is an honor typically bestowed upon the best performing player or players on a specific team, in an entire league, or for a particular contest or series of contests...
, and Ryota Miyagi, a short but fast player, both also rejoin the team and together these four struggle to complete team captain Takenori Akagi's dream of making Shohoku the national champion. Together, these misfits gain publicity and the once little known Shohoku basketball team becomes an all-star contender in Japan.
Production
Inoue became inspired to make Slam Dunk as he liked basketball since High School. After Inoue started Slam Dunk, he became surprised while receiving letters from readers that they started playing the sport due to the manga. His editor even told him "basketball was a taboo in this world." Due to these letters, Inoue decided he wanted to draw better basketball games in the series. With the series, Inoue wants to demonstrate the feelings from an athlete such as their thoughts when they win, lose or improve at their sport. When he started making VagabondVagabond (manga)
is an ongoing manga by Takehiko Inoue, portraying a fictionalized account of Miyamoto Musashi's life, on a loose adaptation of Eiji Yoshikawa's novel Musashi....
, he noted that when he was doing Slam Dunk he had a simpler perspective on life as he focused more in victories and success.
With the series, Inoue wants the readers to feel achievements as well as love for the sport. Believing his success as a manga artist being largely due to basketball, Inoue started a Slam Dunk Scholarship for Japanese students as he wanted to give back to the sport by increasing its popularity in Japan. However, when asked about the response from readers to basketball, Inoue commented that although Slam Dunk is technically a basketball manga, its story could have been done with other sports such as soccer. He also added that the artwork for the manga was very typical and mangalike in comparison to his newer works such as Real. His experiences with basketball also influenced the story from Slam Dunk: as a youth Inoue started playing basketball to be popular with the girls, but later became obsessed with the sport in and of itself. This was mirrored in the character of Hanamichi Sakuragi, who starts playing basketball to impress the girl he likes, to later become truly fond of the game.
Manga
The series was originally published in ShueishaShueisha
is a major publisher in Japan. The company was founded in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The following year, Shueisha became a separate, independent company. Magazines published by Shueisha include Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Young Jump,...
's Weekly Shōnen Jump
Weekly Shonen Jump
is a weekly shōnen manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the Jump line of magazines. The first issue was released with a cover date of July 2, 1968, and it is still circulating. One of the longest-running manga magazines in Japan, it has a circulation of 2.8 million copies...
since the issue 40 from 1990 until the issue 27 from 1996. The 276 individual chapters were originally collected in 31 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...
editions under Shueisha's Jump Comics imprint, with the first volume being published on February 8, 1991 and volume 31 on October 3, 1996. It was later reassembled in 24 kanzenban volumes under Shueisha
Shueisha
is a major publisher in Japan. The company was founded in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The following year, Shueisha became a separate, independent company. Magazines published by Shueisha include Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Young Jump,...
's JUMP Comics Deluxe imprint from March 19, 2001 to February 2, 2002.
In North America, an English version of Slam Dunk was published by the now-defunct Gutsoon! Entertainment, which serialized the title in their manga anthology Raijin Comics
Raijin Comics
Raijin Comics was a manga anthology published in North America by the now-defunct Gutsoon! Entertainment and largely backed by the Sega Corporation at its inception. The collected volumes of Raijin Comics titles were published under the Raijin Graphic Novels imprint.The comics were aimed at an...
from 2002 to 2004. Five collected volumes were published under Gutsoon's Raijin Graphic Novels imprint. They were released from July 2, 2003 until May 5, 2004. After Gutsoon! went out of business, the license for the Slam Dunk was purchased by Viz Media
VIZ Media
VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...
, which published a preview of the series in the December 2007 issue of the North American edition of Shonen Jump
Shonen Jump (magazine)
Shonen Jump, officially stylized SHONEN JUMP and abbreviated SJ, is a shōnen manga anthology published in North America by Viz Media. It debuted in November 2002 with the first issue having a January 2003 cover date...
. Slam Dunk began serialization in the magazine, starting with the May 2008 issue, as well as in tankōbon format with the first being published on September 2, 2008. As of April 5th, 2011, Viz has published 16 volumes of their translated edition.
In 2004, Inoue produced an epilogue titled Slam Dunk: 10 Days After, which was drawn on 23 chalkboards in the former campus of the now-defunct Misaki High School located in the Kanagawa Prefecture
Kanagawa Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the southern Kantō region of Japan. The capital is Yokohama. Kanagawa is part of the Greater Tokyo Area.-History:The prefecture has some archaeological sites going back to the Jōmon period...
, which was held for public exhibition from December 3 to December 5. The epilogue, along with coverage of the event, was reprinted in the February 2005 issue of Switch magazine.
Anime
TV Asahi
, also known as EX and , is a Japanese television network headquartered in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The company writes its name in lower-case letters, tv asahi, in its logo and public-image materials. The company also owns All-Nippon News Network....
terrestrial television
Terrestrial television
Terrestrial television is a mode of television broadcasting which does not involve satellite transmission or cables — typically using radio waves through transmitting and receiving antennas or television antenna aerials...
network and Toei Animation
Toei Animation
Toei Animation Co., Ltd. is a Japanese animation studio owned by Toei Co., Ltd. The studio was founded in 1948 as Japan Animated Films . In 1956, Toei purchased the studio and it was reincorporated under its current name...
and directed by Nobutaka Nishizawa. It was first aired on TV Asahi from October 16, 1993 to March 23, 1996. It was later aired on the anime satellite television
Satellite television
Satellite television is television programming delivered by the means of communications satellite and received by an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic mirror generally referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an...
network, Animax
Animax
is a Japanese anime satellite television network, dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. A subsidiary of Japanese media conglomerate Sony, it is headquartered in in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with its co-founders and shareholders including Sony Pictures Entertainment and the noted anime studios...
, in addition to four animated movies produced. The anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series follows 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...
storyline, but leaves out the National Tournament games. Toei compiled the episodes into a series of seventeen DVDs which were released in Japan from December 10, 2004 to May 21, 2005. Toei once again collected the series in three DVD boxes during 2008. All the three boxes have a total of seventeen discs.
Toei and Geneon
Geneon
is a Japanese music, anime and home entertainment production and distribution enterprise headquartered in Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Geneon has been involved in the production and distribution of several anime in Japan...
briefly chose to release the anime on DVD after the manga was discontinued, though the anime was also discontinued after only a few volumes. The first DVD was released on March 15, 2005 and the volume 4 was the last one released on June 14, 2005 before they were cancelled. Various episodes from the series were also downloadable in IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's Direct2Drive service. Toei is currently streaming episodes of the series on-line for a fee and for free through Crunchyroll
Crunchyroll
Crunchyroll is an American website and international online community focused on streaming East Asian media including anime, manga, drama, music, electronic entertainment, and auto racing content...
. Joost
Joost
Joost is an Internet TV service, created by Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis . During 2007-8 Joost used peer-to-peer TV technology to distribute content to their Mozilla-based desktop player; in late 2008 this was migrated to use a Flash-based Web player instead.Joost began development in 2006...
also started airing all the 101 as of May 2009 on their website. Each episode is in Japanese, with English subtitles.
The music was composed by Takanobu Masuda (from episode 1 to episode 69) and BMF (from episode 70 to episode 101). Three CD soundtracks were published during the airing of the series in Japan. The openings, ending and other two themes were collected into the CD soundtrack The Best of TV Animation Slam Dunk, released on July 21, 2003.
Films
Four films were produced by Toei AnimationToei Animation
Toei Animation Co., Ltd. is a Japanese animation studio owned by Toei Co., Ltd. The studio was founded in 1948 as Japan Animated Films . In 1956, Toei purchased the studio and it was reincorporated under its current name...
from 1994 to 1995 while the manga and TV series were still running. They contain largely new material that is either only hinted at or is not presented in the manga. From August 1 to 4, 2006, NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
broadcasted all four movies as part of its satellite networks NHK BS-2's Summer Anime Choice line-up, and TV Osaka
TV Osaka
is a TV station affiliated with TXN in Osaka, Japan. The mascot character is "Takoru-kun" .-Offices:*The headquarters - 1-2-18, Otemae, Chūō-ku, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture, Japan...
aired the last three movies from January 3 to 8, 2007. All the films were collected into a DVD box named Slam Dunk The Movie which was released on December 10, 2004.
The first film, simply titled Slam Dunk, premiered on March 12, 1994. Set after Shohoku's practice game against Ryonan, the film focuses on a practice game against Takezono High. Before the game, Sakuragi runs into Yoko Shimura, the girl who rejects him in the very first scene of the series, and Oda, the basketball player she rejected him for. , released on July 20, 1994, is the second film from the series. It happens during Shohoku's 4th Round Qualifying game against Tsukubu High. The film features original characters including Godai, an old friend of Akagi and Kogure's, Rango, a wild show-off who is in love with Haruko and quarrels with Sakuragi, and Coach Kawasaki, a former pupil of Anzai-sensei. was released on March 12, 1995.
Set after Shohoku's loss to Kainan, and during a practice match against Ryokufu High.
, which was released one June 15, 1995, tells that Rukawa's middle school kouhai Ichiro Mizusawa will be paralyzed soon and wishes to have one last game against Rukawa.
Video games
Numerous video games based on the series, mostly developed by BanprestoBanpresto
is a Japanese toy company, best known in America for game development, headquartered in the Shinagawa Seaside West Building in Shinagawa, Tokyo. It was founded April 1977 as Hoei Sangyo, Co. Ltd. The company was renamed Coreland in 1982, and during the 1980s it worked mainly as a subcontractor for...
and produced by Bandai
Bandai
is a Japanese toy making and video game company, as well as the producer of a large number of plastic model kits. It is the world's third-largest producer of toys . Some ex-Bandai group companies produce anime and tokusatsu programs...
, have been published for the Japanese market. Two basketball sims titled Slam Dunk and Slam Dunk 2 were released for the Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
. The Super Famicom
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
had three games, Slam Dunk, Slam Dunk 2, and SD Heat Up!!. Slam Dunk games have also been released for the Game Gear, Mega Drive, and Sega Saturn
Sega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
. A Slam Dunk coin-operated arcade game by Banpresto
Banpresto
is a Japanese toy company, best known in America for game development, headquartered in the Shinagawa Seaside West Building in Shinagawa, Tokyo. It was founded April 1977 as Hoei Sangyo, Co. Ltd. The company was renamed Coreland in 1982, and during the 1980s it worked mainly as a subcontractor for...
was released in 1995. Characters of the series also appear in the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
games Jump Superstars and Jump Ultimate Stars
Jump Ultimate Stars
is a fighting video game developed by Ganbarion and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. It is the sequel to Jump Super Stars, also released for the DS. The game was released in Japan on November 23, 2006...
.
Reception
Slam Dunk has sold over 120 million copies in Japan as of May 2007. In 1995, it received the 40th Shogakukan Manga AwardShogakukan Manga Award
The is one of Japan's major manga awards, sponsored by Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga since 1955 and features candidates from a number of publishers.The current award categories are:...
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"...
. The success of Slam Dunk is cited as an influence in the increased popularity of basketball among the Japanese youth during 1990s. In a poll of over 79,000 Japanese fans for the 10th Japan Media Arts Festival
Japan Media Arts Festival
The Japan Media Arts Festival is an annual festival held by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs since 1997. The festival for a nominal year was usually held during February or March next year, rather than at the end of the nominal year. For instance, the 2010 Japan Media Arts Festival, where...
, Slam Dunk was voted the #1 manga of all time. The English translation of Slam Dunk was listed one of the best comics of 2008 by Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...
. In a survey from Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
in 2009, Slam Dunk ranked first as the manga that fans wanted to be turned into a live-action film. In the Japanese government's Media Arts 100 Poll of the public's favorite works of art of all time, Slam Dunk took first place in the manga division. The imprint version of Slam Dunk: 10 Days After has been highly popular in Japan, having initially ranked 6th and then 15th in a ranking of Japanese comics.
The anime adaptation has also been very popular in Japan. In TV Asahi
TV Asahi
, also known as EX and , is a Japanese television network headquartered in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The company writes its name in lower-case letters, tv asahi, in its logo and public-image materials. The company also owns All-Nippon News Network....
's Top 100 Anime show, Slam Dunk ranked as the 10th most popular anime. In another poll from TV Asashi but developed by a website, the series ranked 8th. The DVD boxes from the anime also had a good sale in Japan, having appeared in rankings from Japanese Animation DVD Ranking.
See also
- J. R. Sakuragi — Japanese-American basketball player who named himself after Hanamichi Sakuragi
- Kung Fu DunkKung Fu DunkKung Fu Dunk , also known by its former title Slam Dunk, is a 2008 Chinese-language live-action film. It was directed by Taiwanese director Chu Yin-Ping and filmed in Taiwan and mainland China...
External links
- Slam Dunk at ShueishaShueishais a major publisher in Japan. The company was founded in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The following year, Shueisha became a separate, independent company. Magazines published by Shueisha include Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Young Jump,...
- Slam Dunk at Toei AnimationToei AnimationToei Animation Co., Ltd. is a Japanese animation studio owned by Toei Co., Ltd. The studio was founded in 1948 as Japan Animated Films . In 1956, Toei purchased the studio and it was reincorporated under its current name...