Mad Bull 34
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| Mad Bull 34 | |
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| マッド☆ブル３４ (Mad Bull 34) |
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| Genre | Seinen |
| Manga | |
| Authored by | Koike Kazuo and Inoue Noriyoshi |
| Publisher | Shueisha |
| Serialized in | Young Jump |
| Original run | 1986 – 1990 |
| No. of volumes | 27 |
| OVA | |
| Directed by | Tetsu Dezaki |
| Studio | Magic Bus |
| No. of episodes | 4 |
| Released | 1991 |
Contents |
[edit] Mad Bull 34 manga
Mad Bull 34 is a manga that was serialized in Shueisha's Young Jump and Bears Club between 1986 - 1990 and was compiled into 27 volumes. Mad Bull 34 is about the toughest cop in New York City's 34th precinct, Mad Bull (a.k.a. John Estes or "Sleepy"). The story follows his often-violent exploits when dealing the city's criminals with his partner Daizaburo "Eddie" Ban and fellow police officer Perrine Valley. Mad Bull 34 was created during the 80's, a decade in manga that was flooded with many over-the-top, extremely violent titles such as Fist of the North Star (Hokuto no Ken) and Violence Jack. Mad Bull 34 has a sequel titled Mad Bull 2000 (マッド・ブル２０００) serialized in Allman.
[edit] Mad Bull 34 anime
The anime adaptation was composed of four, 50-minute OAVs released in 1991. It selected four different stories from the Mad Bull 34 manga and maintained its high level of violence. The voices of the characters were lent by many famous Japanese voice actors, most notably Akio Otsuka, voice actor for many popular anime series (such as Trigun and City Hunter) and many videogames such as the Metal Gear Solid series. The anime has also been released and dubbed for American audiences by MANGA Entertainment. MANGA no longer owns the license to Mad Bull 34, officially dropping the title among a few others on their website.
[edit] The Plot
Daizaburo "Eddie" Ban, a Japanese-American, joins New York City's toughest precinct, the 34th. On his first day he is partnered up with John Estes, called Sleepy by his friends and Mad Bull by his enemies, a cop who stops crime with his own violent brand of justice. Mad Bull makes no qualms about executing common thieves with shotgun blasts if they even pose a minor threat. Mad Bull often steals from prostitutes and does incredible amounts of property damage while fighting crime. Mad Bull's unpoliceman-like behavior often puts him in hot water with his partner Daizaburo and the 34th precinct. However, despite how reckless or illegal these acts are, a good cause is always revealed (for example, Sleepy uses the money he steals from the prostitutes to fund a venereal disease clinic and a home for battered and raped women). Perrine Valley, a police lieutenant, joins Daizaburo and Sleepy later on to help them tackle more difficult cases involving the mafia and drug-running.
Mad Bull 34 is inspired by the high-action buddy cop films of the 70's and 80's.
[edit] The Characters
Sleepy John Estes (a.k.a. Mad Bull) - The titular character. A giant-of-a-man police officer who works for the 34th precinct police department. He runs a prostitution ring in the 34th precinct which makes him a target by other gang bosses wanting to take over the territory. As Sleepy's family was murdered by gangsters when he was only fourteen, his goal is to kill every gang boss in New York and rid the city of organized crime.
In the anime, Sleepy is his nickname but in the manga it isn't as clear. Sleepy could be considered his first name much like how the "Eddie" in Daizaburo's name could be his middle name. Sleepy's name is a reference to blues singer Sleepy John Estes.
Daizaburo Eddie Ban - A Japanese-American who is Sleepy's partner. Daizaburo is the foil for Sleepy as he rather do things by the book whereas Sleepy would rather stop crime by murdering the criminals. In the beginning of the manga, Daizaburo is used mostly as comic relief, but later on this role is transferred to Sleepy as his antics become more and more absurd. Daizaburo quickly falls in love with Lieutenant Perrine Valley.
Daizaburo's name is a reference to Japanese guitarist Eddie Ban.
Perrine Valley - A lieutenant of the 34th Precinct, she helps Sleepy and Daizaburo on some of the more difficult missions. She eventually marries Daizaburo, first in a scheme concocted by Sleepy in an effort to bring a critically injured Daizaburo out of a coma. Later, she, Daizaburo, and Sleepy are kidnapped by cowboy assassins and are married once again after the previous marriage was presumably annulled.
Perrine's name may be a reference to actress Valerie Perrine.
Chief Alan - The chief of the 34th Precinct. He and Sleepy often butt heads due to Sleepy's "creative" police work. Chief Alan often fantasizes about Sleepy being murdered because of all the trouble Sleepy causes him.
Nickel the Electrician - An inventor with a vendetta against Mad Bull and has ties with the New York underworld. Develops devices ranging from guns built into hard hats to shotguns that strap onto cats. A diabetic addicted to canned coffee that has a particular odor that smells like a mix of sugar and urine. Although his name is romanized in the manga as 'Nickel', his name could be translated as 'Nichol', perhaps a reference to actor Jack Nicholson who the character closely resembles.
[edit] The Authors
The manga was written by Koike Kazuo and illustrated by Inoue Noriyoshi. Koike Kazuo is known for other works, Lone Wolf and Cub and Crying Freeman. Inoue Noriyoshi is known for being one of the first Japanese mangaka (manga artist) to use CG in his works. He won an award in the Young Jump 4th Youth Manga Awards for his work Angels.
