Kōtarō Makaritōru!

Kōtarō Makaritōru! (コータローまかりとおる!, "Kōtarō Forces His Way Through!") is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuya Hiruta. It was serialized in Kodansha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine from 1982 to 1994, with its chapters collected in 59 tankōbon volumes. It was followed by two sequel series: Shin Kōtarō Makaritōru!, serialized from 1995 to 2001, with its chapters collected in 27 volumes, and Kōtarō Makaritōru! L, serialized from 2001 to 2004 and collected in eight volumes.

Kōtarō Makaritōru!
First tankōbon volume cover
コータローまかりとおる!
Manga
Written by	Tatsuya Hiruta
Published by	Kodansha
Magazine	Weekly Shōnen Magazine
Demographic	Shōnen
Original run	August 25, 1982 – August 10, 1994
Volumes	59
Manga
Shin Kōtarō Makaritōru!: Jūdō-hen
Written by	Tatsuya Hiruta
Published by	Kodansha
Magazine	Weekly Shōnen Magazine
Demographic	Shōnen
Original run	September 7, 1994 – January 31, 2001
Volumes	27
Manga
Kōtarō Makaritōru! L
Written by	Tatsuya Hiruta
Published by	Kodansha
Magazine	Weekly Shōnen Magazine (2001–2002) Magazine Special (2002–2004)
Demographic	Shōnen
Original run	May 16, 2001 – July 20, 2004
Volumes	8

In 1986, Kōtarō Makaritōru! won the 10th Kodansha Manga Award in the shōnen category.

Characters

Main article: List of Kōtarō Makaritōru! characters

Kōtarō Shindō

A high-school-aged karate prodigy who is descended from a long line of ninja. Although a fighting genius, he lacks common sense and inhibitions, but has a strong sense of justice. He is frequently in trouble with school officials, and often attempts to steal girls' underwear, especially his friend Mayumi's. He is very protective of his long hair, his collection of stolen underwear, and Mayumi.

Mayumi Watase

Captain of the 7th Discipline Squad, Mayumi is Kōtarō's childhood friend and main romantic interest. She is the only person who is able to keep Kōtarō under control. Although not as skilled as Kōtarō, she is proficient in the basics of karate and judo. She is also a member of the school's Decency League, in spite of Kōtarō's disapproval.

Teruhiko Tenkōji

A bald samurai who patrols the school as the enforcer of the Decency League. He initially appears to be an enemy of Kōtarō, but as the series progresses he gradually becomes his main rival and best friend. He comes from a traditional upper-class family and has an iinazuke (fiancée chosen by his parents) named Sayoko. He is highly sensitive about mockery of his baldness, and maintains that his head is actually shaved. He is the only character in the series whose fighting ability is equivalent to Kōtarō's, though they have never fought on genuinely even terms, and it is implied that both of them are reluctant to do so, in case it jeopardises their friendship.

Publication

Written and illustrated by Tatsuya Hiruta, Kōtarō Makaritōru! was serialized in Kodansha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine from August 25, 1982,^[1] to August 10, 1994.^[2] Kodansha collected its chapters in 59 tankōbon volumes, released from January 20, 1983,^[3] to December 14, 1994.^[4]

A sequel, titled Shin Kōtarō Makaritōru!: Jūdō-hen (新・コータローまかりとおる! 柔道編), was serialized in the same magazine from September 7, 1994,^[5] to January 31, 2001.^[6] Kodansha collected its chapters in 27 tankōbon volumes, released from March 16, 1995,^[7] to March 16, 2001.^[8]

A third series, Kōtarō Makaritōru! L (コータローまかりとおる！Ｌ), was serialized in the same magazine from May 16, 2001,^{[lower-alpha 1]} to August 7, 2002.^{[lower-alpha 2]} It was then transferred to Magazine Special, where it was published from December 18, 2002,^[13] to July 20, 2004;^[14] the series remains incomplete due to the author's poor health.^[15] Kodansha collected its chapters in eight tankōbon volumes, released from October 17, 2001,^[16] to October 15, 2004.^[17]

Other media

Kōtarō was featured as a playable character in Weekly Shōnen Sunday and Weekly Shōnen Magazine 2009 crossover game Sunday vs Magazine: Shūketsu! Chōjō Daikessen released for the PlayStation Portable (PSP).^[18]

Reception

In 1986, Kōtarō Makaritōru! won the 10th Kodansha Manga Award for the shōnen category.^[19]

Notes

1. It started in the magazine's 24th issue of 2001 (cover date May 30),^[9] released on May 16 of the same year.^[10]
2. Its last chapter published in the magazine was in the combined 36th–37th issue of 2002,^[11] released on August 7 of the same year.^[12]

References

1. 週刊少年マガジン1982年36. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
2. 週刊少年マガジン1994年34. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
3. コータローまかりとおる！（１） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
4. コータローまかりとおる！（５９） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
5. 週刊少年マガジン1994年38. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
6. 週刊少年マガジン2001年7. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
7. 新・コータローまかりとおる！（１） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
8. 新・コータローまかりとおる！（２７） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
9. 週刊少年マガジン2001年24. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
10. 週刊少年マガジン2001年24号詳細情報. manganetto.com (in Japanese). Archived from the original on March 14, 2023. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
11. 週刊少年マガジン2002年36·37. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
12. 週刊少年マガジン ＜第36・37合併号＞. Shōnen Magazine Website (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on August 8, 2002. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
13. マガジンSPECIAL 2003年1号 (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on December 20, 2002. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
14. マガジンSPECIAL 2004年8号 (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on August 19, 2004. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
15. 蛭田達也. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc.
16. コータローまかりとおる！Ｌ（１） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
17. コータローまかりとおる！Ｌ（８） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
18. Ciolek, Todd (April 8, 2009). "Tales of Tales - The X Button". Anime News Network. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
19. Joel Hahn. "Kodansha Manga Awards". Comic Book Awards Almanac. Retrieved August 21, 2007.

External links

• Kōtarō Makaritōru! (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia