The Seven Deadly Sins (manga)

The Seven Deadly Sins

First volume of The Seven Deadly Sins, released in Japan by Kodansha on February 15, 2013.
七つの大罪
(Nanatsu no Taizai)
Genre Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Manga
Written by Nakaba Suzuki
Published by Kodansha
English publisher
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine
Original run October 10, 2012 – ongoing
Volumes 14
Manga
The Seven Deadly Sins Academy
Published by Kodansha
Demographic Shōnen
Magazine Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine
Original run August 9, 2014 – ongoing
Anime television series
Directed by Tensai Okamura
Written by Shōtarō Suga
Music by Hiroyuki Sawano
Studio A-1 Pictures
Network JNN (MBS)
Original run October 5, 2014 – March 29, 2015
Episodes 24

The Seven Deadly Sins (Japanese: 七つの大罪 Hepburn: Nanatsu no Taizai) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Nakaba Suzuki. It has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine since October 2012, with the chapters collected into fourteen tankōbon volumes as of April 17, 2015. The manga features a setting similar to the European Middle Ages, with its titular group of knights representing the seven deadly sins.

As of January 2015, The Seven Deadly Sins had sold over 10 million copies. It is currently being adapted into a television anime by A-1 Pictures that debuted on October 5, 2014. The manga has been licensed by Kodansha Comics USA for English publication in North America, while the chapters are released digitally by Crunchyroll in over 170 countries as they are published in Japan.

Plot

The Seven Deadly Sins were once an active group of knights in the region of Britannia (ブリタニア Buritania), who disbanded after they supposedly plotted to overthrow the Liones Kingdom (リオネス王国 Rionesu Ōkoku). Their supposed defeat came at the hands of the Holy Knights, but rumors continued to persist that they were still alive. Ten years later, the Holy Knights staged a coup d'état and captured the king, becoming the new, tyrannical rulers of the kingdom. The third princess, Elizabeth, then starts out on a journey to find the Seven Deadly Sins and enlist their help in taking back the kingdom.

Characters

Meliodas (メリオダス Meriodasu)
Voiced by: Yūki Kaji
The leader of the Seven Deadly Sins and the Sin of Wrath with the symbol of the Dragon. He is the main protagonist and owner of the Boar Hat (豚の帽子亭) bar. Despite having the appearance of a child, Meliodas is actually a lot older and very powerful. His most distinctive trait is his Dragon symbol carved at the top of his arm, just below his shoulders. He has demon blood flowing in his veins. He is very perverted when it comes to Elizabeth.
Elizabeth Liones (エリザベス・リオネス Erizabesu Rionesu)
Voiced by: Sora Amamiya
The Third Princess of the Kingdom of Lyonesse who, along with Meliodas, is searching for the Seven Deadly Sins in order to fight against the Holy Knights. She is a main protagonist and becomes a waitress at the Boar Hat bar when she begins traveling with Meliodas. During her adventures with the Seven Deadly Sin captain, she starts to develop feelings for Meliodas and pointed out by Gowther, is in love with Meliodas, much to her embarrassment.
Hawk (ホーク Hōku)
Voiced by: Misaki Kuno
A talking pig and Meliodas's companion. He is introduced as the cleaner of the Boar Hat bar who helps clean the disgusting food scraps. He often scolds Meliodas for his perverted ways.

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Nakaba Suzuki, The Seven Deadly Sins began as a one-shot pilot chapter published on November 22, 2011 in Weekly Shōnen Magazine's 52 issue of the year.[1] The manga started serialization in the magazine's 45 issue of 2012, released on October 10, 2012. The chapters have been collected into 14 tankōbon volumes as of April 17, 2015.[2] The first of three planned story arcs was completed with chapter 100 and Suzuki has projected that the series will run for 20 to 30 volumes.[3]

A special issue of Weekly Shōnen Magazine, published on October 19, 2013, featured a small crossover between The Seven Deadly Sins and Hiro Mashima's Fairy Tail, where each artist drew a yonkoma (four-panel comic) of the other's series.[4] An actual crossover chapter between the two ran in the magazine's combined 4/5 issue of 2014, which was released on December 25, 2013.[5] A comedic spinoff series titled The Seven Deadly Sins Academy (七つの大罪学園 Nanatsu no Taizai Gakuen) launched in Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine's September issue on August 9, 2014.[6] Nakaba himself wrote a one-shot for the November 2014 issue of the shōjo manga magazine Nakayoshi, released on October 3, 2014.[7] He also created a comedic one-shot depicting how Meliodas and Hawk first met that ran in the October 20, 2014 issue of Magazine Special.[8] From February 24 to May 10, 2015, two more spin-off manga by Nakaba will be available on the smartphone and tablet application Manga Box. Naku na, Tomo yo (泣くな 友よ, "Do Not Cry, My Friend") is about Hendrickson and Dreyfus' younger years, while Gilthunder no Shinjitsu (ギルサンダーの真実, "Gilthunder's Truth") is set after the Byzel Fight Festival arc and follows Gilthunder.[9]

The series is licensed for English language release in North America by Kodansha Comics USA, who published the first volume on March 11, 2014.[10][11] As the series is published in Japan, it is also released simultaneously in English digitally by Crunchyroll in over 170 countries.[12][13]

Anime

In April 2014, the 20th issue of Weekly Shōnen Magazine announced that The Seven Deadly Sins was being adapted into a television anime.[14][15] The series debuted on MBS and other Japan News Network stations on October 5, 2014 at 5:00pm.[16][17] The staff was revealed in the combined 36/37 issue of the year: created by A-1 Pictures, directed by Tensai Okamura, written by Shōtarō Suga (Lagrange: The Flower of Rin-ne), with Keigo Sasaki (Blue Exorcist) providing character designs and Hiroyuki Sawano composing the music.[18] The show's first opening theme song is "Netsujō no Spectrum" performed by Ikimono-gakari and the second opening theme is "Seven Deadly Sins" which is performed by Man with a Mission, while the first ending theme is titled "7-Seven" which is a collaboration between Flow and Granrodeo and the second ending theme is "Season" which is a major label debut of Alisa Takigawa.[19][20]

An original video animation titled "Ban's Additional Chapter" (Ban no Bangai-hen) will be included with the limited edition of volume 15 of the manga, set to be released on June 17, 2015.[21]

Episode list

No. Title Original air date
1 "The Seven Deadly Sins"
"Nanatsu no Taizai" (七つの大罪) 		October 5, 2014
The third princess of the Kingdom of Liones, Elizabeth, finds Meliodas, who is the owner of the Boar Hat bar and is also one of the Seven Deadly Sins. With her identity exposed, she is pursued by Twigo whom Meliodas quickly defeats. The princess joins him on his journey to find the other Deadly Sins in order to defeat the Holy Knights, who have orchestrated a coup d'état and have overthrown the king. 
2 "Sword of The Holy Knight"
"Seikishi no Ken" (聖騎士の剣) 		October 12, 2014
Gilthunder plants his sword in the center of the town of Bernia, thus preventing the village from making the Bernia ale, which was their primary source of income. After innumerable unsuccessful attempts of the villagers to remove the sword with which the source was blocked, Meliodas easily removes the object. A celebration is held at the Boar Hat and Meliodas is hailed as a savior by Bernia's villagers. Gilthunder, wanting to confirm whether the removal of his sword was an accident, threw a spear imbued with his power toward the town. Meliodas, however, easily stops and throws the spear back, destroying Fort Solgales. 
3 "The Sin of the Sleeping Forest"
"Nemureru Mori no Tsumi" (眠れる森の罪) 		October 19, 2014
Meliodas, Hawk and Elizabeth travel to the Forest of White Dreams that even Holy Knights avoid. There, the Prankster Imps that inhabit the Forest of White Dreams attempt to confuse them by impersonating Hawk and Elizabeth in order to lead them away. After defeating them, they follow them and find the Serpent's Sin of Envy, Diane sleeping in the forest. Gilthunder suddenly arrives and binds all of them with his lightning magic. Meliodas battles Gilthunder, purposely allows the Holy Knight to slash him and under the pretense of dying due to the grave wound, acquires information about the whereabouts of two members of the Seven Deadly Sins, King and Ban, as his apparent last wish. 
4 "A Young Girl's Dream"
"Shoujo no Yume" (少女の夢) 		October 26, 2014
Having discovered the whereabouts of Ban and King, Diane throws Gilthunder out of the forest and Meliodas, Hawk and Elizabeth, now joined by Diane, head toward the Baste Dungeon, where Ban is imprisoned. They later arrive at Dalmary Town where Meliodas is treated by Dana. Diane and Elizabeth begin to argue and discuss about the aspects in which they envy each other. They are suddenly attacked by the Holy Knight Friesia, who tries to destroy the entire town along with the Deadly Sins, but Diane quickly destroys all of her insects. Concurrently, Ban escapes from his cell in the Baste Dungeon and is stopped by Jericho, who tries to subdue him. Dana unexpectedly reveals that the medicine Meliodas drank was a deadly poison as Golgius appears out of the blue. 
5 "Even If You Were To Die"
"Tatoe Anata ga Shindemo" (たとえあなたが死んでも) 		November 2, 2014
Golgius appears and attempts to take Elizabeth and Meliodas' sword back to Liones. Whilst attempting to take the sword, Meliodas awakens, with no effect of the poison showing, proceeding to blast an aura that causes Golgius to make a hasty retreat. Meliodas and Elizabeth set off to Baste Dungeon afterwards, however, they are stopped by a confused Diane, who after hearing the sound of a bell, attacks the group. They try to run away from the berserk Diane, involving a pair of shepherds along the way, however Meliodas soon succumbs to the same bell, and begins to fight Diane. Meanwhile in Baste Dungeon, Ban is shown wandering around after having dealt with Jericho. It is not long before he is found by Jude of the Weird Fangs, who promptly stabs Ban in the chest. 
6 "Ballad of the Beginning"
"Hajimari no Shi" (はじまりの詩) 		November 9, 2014
Meliodas and Diane are still fighting each other; Elizabeth shouts for them to snap out of it, and for a few moments they do, until the sound of the bell once again spurs them to fight each other again. The Holy Knight Friesia comes in, threatening the life of the shepherds, however Elizabeth steps in to protect one of them, heavily injuring herself in the process. It is then revealed that one of the young shepherds is actually Ruin, and that he has been fooling them all this time. As Elizabeth gets beaten up by Ruin, she manages to knock off the bell that is causing the hallucinations; Ruin goes to punish Elizabeth further for doing so, but Meliodas quickly comes to her aid, thus beginning Meliodas' battle with Ruin, whilst Diane faces off against Friesia. Both defeat their respective opponents, and the team continues their trek to Baste Dungeon. Elsewhere, despite having been pierced in the chest, Ban is able to overpower Jude, and takes him out. Meliodas and co. finally enter Baste Dungeon, although it is all a trap as Golgius locks them in with the Eternal Seal Spell. However, the reunion between Ban and Meliodas caused so much destruction that it completely destroyed the structure and disregarded the spell. Later that evening, the gang enjoys a meal courtesy of Dana, but an omen in the sky foretells of great disaster to befall Britannia soon. In Liones, it is revealed that King is alive and well, but he is working with Gilthunder. 
7 "Touching Reunion"
"Kandō no Saikai" (感動の再会) 		November 16, 2014
8 "Dreadful Pursuer"
"Osorubeki Tsuiseki-sha" (恐るべき追跡者) 		November 23, 2014
King has a final confrontation with Ban, finishing him off with Ban being frozen, with Elaine making an appearance, never showing herself to King. A holy knight Guila battles it out against Meliodas, Diane and Elizabeth. Ban continues his flashbacks with Elaine and the Fairy forest, at the foutain of youth. 
9 "Dark Pulse"
"Ankoku no Myakudō" (暗黒の脈動) 		November 30, 2014
10 "Byzel Fight Festival"
"Baizeru Kenka Matsuri" (バイゼル喧嘩祭り) 		December 7, 2014
11 "A Long-Standing Feeling"
"Sekinen no Omoi" (積年の想い) 		December 14, 2014
12 "Terrifying Cannon"
"Senritsu no Kanon" (戦慄のカノン) 		December 21, 2014
13 "Apostle of Destruction"
"Hakai no Shito" (破壊の使徒) 		January 11, 2015
14 "The Reader"
"Honwoyomu Hito" (本を読むひと) 		January 18, 2015
15 "Unholy Knight"
"Anhōryi Naito" (アンホーリィ・ナイト) 		January 25, 2015
16 "The Cornered Legends"
"Karitate Rareru Densetsu-tachi" (駆り立てられる伝説たち) 		February 1, 2015
17 "First Casualty"
"Saisho no Gisei" (最初の犠牲) 		February 8, 2015
18 "Even If I Have To Give Up My Life For It"
"Kono Inochi ni Kaete mo" (この命にかえても) 		February 15, 2015
19 "The Fairy King Who Waited In Vain"
"Machibōke no Yōsei-ō" (まちぼうけの妖精王) 		February 22, 2015
20 "The Spell of Courage"
"Yūki no Majinai" (勇気のまじない) 		March 1, 2015
21 "The Threat That Draws Near"
"Ima, Soko ni Semaru Kyōi" (今、そこにせまる脅威) 		March 8, 2015
22 "What I Can Do For You"
"Kimi no Tame ni Dekiru Koto" (君のためにできること) 		March 15, 2015
23 "The Advent of Despair"
"Zetsubō Kōrin" (絶望降臨) 		March 22, 2015
24 "The Heroes"
"Eiyū-tachi" (英雄たち) 		March 29, 2015

Other media

On July 25, 2014, it was revealed that two novels based on The Seven Deadly Sins will be published. The two are tentatively titled Fate's Seven-day Period (宿命の七日間 Shukumei no Nanoka-kan) and The Kingdom of the Olden Days: The Oath of Seven (昔日の王都　七つの誓い Sekijitsu no Ōmiyako, Nanatsu no Chikai).[17]

A video game titled Seven Deadly Sins: Unjust Sin (七つの大罪 真実の冤罪 Nanatsu no Taizai Shinjitsu no Enzai) was developed by Bandai Namco Games and released for the Nintendo 3DS on February 11, 2015.[19]

Reception

As of August 2014, the collected volumes of The Seven Deadly Sins had 5 million copies in circulation.[19] By January 2015, this number had grown to 10 million sold.[22] The first collected volume of the series sold 38,581 copies in its first week, ranking number 13 on the Oricon manga chart.[23] Its second volume ranked 5 selling 106,829 in its first week,[24] while its third debuted at number 4 with 135,164 copies.[25] The twelfth volume had the manga's best debut week to date, selling 307,374 for second place on the chart,[26] although volume nine reached number one its first week, it sold less.[27] The Seven Deadly Sins was the ninth best-selling manga series of 2014, with over 4.6 million copies sold that year.[28] The 2014 edition of Kono Manga ga Sugoi!, which surveys people in the manga and publishing industry, named The Seven Deadly Sins the fifth best manga series for male readers.[29] The title was nominated for the 2014 Manga Taishō award,[30] and as Best Youth Comic at the 42nd Angoulême International Comics Festival in France.[31]

The North American releases of volumes two and four charted on The New York Times Manga Best Seller list at number seven and nine respectively.[32][33] Rebecca Silverman of Anime News Network gave the first volume a B grade, calling the art interesting and the story a "neat take on the basic knights-in-shining-armor." She saw influence from Akira Toriyama in Meliodas and 1970s shōjo manga in the female characters. However, Silverman felt the art had issues with perspective and commented that Elizabeth lacked character development.[34] Both Silverman and Danica Davidson of Otaku USA warned that Meliodas' perverted actions towards Elizabeth, which are used for comedic relief, could be misinterpreted by some readers.[35] In a brief review, Jason Thompson claimed that the series follows common shōnen manga elements, making its plot twists and dialog predictable. He did however like the art and the series' European setting.[36]

References

  1. ↑ "No.52 2011年11月22日（火）発売" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved 2013-11-09.
  2. ↑ 七つの大罪 (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
  3. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Manga's 1st of 3 Planned Arcs Ends". Anime News Network. 2015-01-19. Retrieved 2015-01-20.
  4. ↑ "鈴木央が「FAIRY TAIL」、真島ヒロが「七つの大罪」を執筆" (in Japanese). Natalie. 2013-10-19. Retrieved 2013-11-11.
  5. ↑ "Fairy Tail, The Seven Deadly Sins Get Crossover 1-Shot Manga". Anime News Network. 2013-12-06. Retrieved 2013-12-06.
  6. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Gets School Comedy Manga Spinoff". Anime News Network. 2014-06-29. Retrieved 2014-06-29.
  7. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Gets One-Shot in Nakayoshi Magazine For Girls". Anime News Network. 2014-09-03. Retrieved 2014-09-03.
  8. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Manga Gets Comedy 1-Shot Story". Anime News Network. 2014-09-20. Retrieved 2014-09-21.
  9. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins' 2nd New Spinoff Manga by Creator Posted". Anime News Network. 2015-02-26. Retrieved 2015-02-26.
  10. ↑ "Kodansha Comics Adds UQ Holder, Seven Deadly Sins Manga". Anime News Network. 2013-10-11. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
  11. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Volume 1". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
  12. ↑ "CRUNCHYROLL LAUNCHES "CRUNCHYROLL MANGA" DIGITAL COMIC PLATFORM". Crunchyroll. 2013-10-30. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
  13. ↑ "Crunchyroll to Simultaneously Offer Kodansha Manga in 170 Countries". Anime News Network. 2013-10-26. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  14. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Fantasy Manga Gets TV Anime". Anime News Network. 2014-04-11. Retrieved 2014-04-11.
  15. ↑ "「七つの大罪」TVアニメ化決定！単行本は累計300万部突破" (in Japanese). Natalie. 2014-04-16. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  16. ↑ アニメ「七つの大罪」10月より日5枠で放送 (in Japanese). Natalie. 2014-07-27. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "The Seven Deadly Sins Anime Commercial Streamed". Anime News Network. 2014-07-27. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  18. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Anime's Game, Cast, Staff Announced". Anime News Network. 2014-08-01. Retrieved 2014-08-03.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 "The Seven Deadly Sins Anime's Theme Songs, Game Detailed". Anime News Network. 2014-08-12. Retrieved 2014-08-12.
  20. ↑ "Man With A Mission, Alisa Takigawa Perform The Seven Deadly Sins' New Songs". Anime News Network. 2014-12-21. Retrieved 2015-01-19.
  21. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Manga to Bundle OVA Episode About Ban". Anime News Network. 2015-03-16. Retrieved 2015-03-16.
  22. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Manga's 1st of 3 Planned Arcs Ends". Anime News Network. 2015-01-19. Retrieved 2015-01-19.
  23. ↑ "Japanese Comic Ranking, February 11-17". Anime News Network. 2013-02-20. Retrieved 2013-11-10.
  24. ↑ "Japanese Comic Ranking, April 15-21". Anime News Network. 2013-04-24. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  25. ↑ "Japanese Comic Ranking, June 17-23". Anime News Network. 2013-06-26. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  26. ↑ "Japanese Comic Ranking, December 15-21". Anime News Network. 2014-12-24. Retrieved 2015-01-19.
  27. ↑ "Japanese Comic Ranking, February 16-22". Anime News Network. 2014-06-25. Retrieved 2014-06-25.
  28. ↑ "Top-Selling Manga in Japan by Series: 2014". Anime News Network. 2014-11-30. Retrieved 2014-11-30.
  29. ↑ "Top Manga Ranked by Kono Manga ga Sugoi 2014 Voters". Anime News Network. 2013-12-09. Retrieved 2013-12-09.
  30. ↑ "10 Titles Nominated for 7th Manga Taisho Awards". Anime News Network. 2014-01-20. Retrieved 2014-01-20.
  31. ↑ "Akira's Katsuhiro Otomo Wins Angoulême's Top Prize". Anime News Network. 2015-01-29. Retrieved 2015-01-29.
  32. ↑ "New York Times Manga Best Seller List, May 11-17". Anime News Network. 2014-05-23. Retrieved 2014-05-23.
  33. ↑ "New York Times Manga Best Seller List, September 14-20". Anime News Network. 2014-09-26. Retrieved 2014-09-26.
  34. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins GN 1 - Review". Anime News Network. 2014-05-15. Retrieved 2014-06-29.
  35. ↑ "The Seven Deadly Sins Manga #1". Otaku USA. 2014-04-14. Retrieved 2014-06-29.
  36. ↑ "House of 1000 Manga - Crunchyroll Manga". Anime News Network. 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2013-11-14.

External links