Ajin: Demi-Human

Ajin: Demi-Human

Cover of the first manga volume released in Japan.
亜人
(Ajin)
Genre Action, adventure, horror, mystery
Manga
Written by Gamon Sakurai
Published by Kodansha
English publisher
Demographic Seinen
Magazine good! Afternoon
Original run July 6, 2012 – present
Volumes 10
Anime film series
Ajin Part 1: Shōdō
Ajin Part 2: Shōtotsu
Ajin Part 3: Shōgeki
Directed by
  • Hiroyuki Seshita
  • Hiroaki Andō
Produced by Naoya Tanaka
Written by Hiroshi Seko
Music by Yugo Kanno
Studio Polygon Pictures
Licensed by
Released November 27, 2015 (Part 1)
May 6, 2016 (Part 2)
September 23, 2016 (Part 3)
Runtime 103 minutes (Part 1)[1]
106 minutes (Part 2)[2]
121 minutes (Part 3)[3]
Anime television series
Directed by
  • Hiroyuki Seshita
  • Hiroaki Andō
Produced by Naoya Tanaka
Written by Hiroshi Seko
Music by Yugo Kanno
Studio Polygon Pictures
Licensed by
Sentai Filmworks (home video distribution rights)
Netflix (streaming rights)
Original network MBS, TBS, CBC, BS-TBS
Original run January 16, 2016 – December 24, 2016
Episodes 26
Original animation DVD
Directed by Hiroaki Andō
Written by Kenta Ihara
Studio Polygon Pictures
Released May 6, 2016 – April 7, 2017
Runtime 21 minutes (each)
Episodes 3
Live-action film
Directed by Katsuyuki Motohiro
Released September 30, 2017

Ajin: Demi-Human (Japanese: 亜人, Hepburn: Ajin) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Gamon Sakurai. It was adapted into an anime film trilogy by Polygon Pictures between November 2015 and September 2016. An anime television series adaptation also by Polygon Pictures aired between January and April 2016, with a second season premiering on October 8, 2016. A live-action film adaptation is scheduled for release on September 30, 2017.

Plot

The story is about a student named Kei Nagai (永井 圭, Nagai Kei), who discovers he is an immortal "Ajin" when he is hit by a truck. He is wanted by the government because the Ajin are considered dangerous inhuman beings and the only person who is there to support him is his childhood friend, Kaito. While the government claims to help Ajin live in a safe environment, they are actually using them as subjects for cruel and inhumane experimentation. As a result, Ajins that have escaped are bent on revenge with the exception of Kei who wants no part in the Ajin conflict. Kei is initially shown to lack empathy for others, even the people closest to him, but as Sato's actions become even more extreme, he eventually joins the fight to stop Sato's violent campaign.

Characters

Kei's Group

Kei Nagai (永井 圭, Nagai Kei)
Voiced by: Mamoru Miyano[4] (Japanese); Johnny Yong Bosch (English)
Played by: Takeru Satoh
The main protagonist who first discovered that he is an Ajin after being killed in a vehicle accident. He appears to be a very smart and carefree student by his peers, but in reality he is overly logical and emotionally detached from others. As an Ajin, he has the ability to create an abnormal amount of IBM (Invisible Black Matter) which is a powerful semi-solid creature that is difficult to control. According to Ikuya, he is implied to have manifested his Ajin at a very young age.
Kaito (海斗)
Voiced by: Yoshimasa Hosoya[4] (Japanese); Bryce Papenbrook (English)
A close friend of Kei Nagai who helps him escape from the police and Ajin hunters. He was sent to prison for assisting Kei and later befriends Takeshi.
Kō Nakano (中野 攻, Nakano Kou)
Voiced by: Jun Fukuyama (Japanese); Griffin Burns (English)
Kō is a partner of Kei with the intention to stop Satō's plan to kill humans. Unlike Kei who is indifferent to others, Kō values friendship and is willing to put others upon oneself. He is also physically fitter than Kei but lacks the intellect that Kei possesses.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare

Yū Tosaki (戸崎 優, Tosaki Yuu)
Voiced by: Takahiro Sakurai[4] (Japanese); Todd Haberkorn (English)
Played by: Tetsuji Tamayama
Yū is the head of Ajin Research under the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and has a comatose girlfriend, Ai. He is protected by the Ajin: Izumi Shimomura.
Izumi Shimomura (下村 泉, Shimomura Izumi) / Yōko Tainaka (田井中 陽子, Tainaka Youko)
Voiced by: Mikako Komatsu[4] (Japanese); Cristina Vee (English)
Played by: Rina Kawaei
She is an Ajin working for Yū Tosaki at the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. She also acts as his protector against other Ajins. She was recruited and had her name changed under a special contract with Yū.
Sokabe (曽我部)
Voiced by: Kenichi Suzumura[4] (Japanese); Martin Billany (English)
Yū's junior at the Ministry who was also assigned to supervise Yū. After Yū decides to defy orders from the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, Sokabe was appointed as his successor.

Ajin

Satō (佐藤, Satou) / Samuel T. Owen (サミュエル・T・オーウェン, Samyueru. T. Ouwen)
Voiced by: Hōchū Ōtsuka[4] (Japanese); Pete Sepenuk (English)
Played by: Gō Ayano
The leader of the pro-Ajin movement, also known as Hat (帽子, Boushi) due to his signature hat, Satō is a calm and collected individual who is well-known by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare as the most dangerous Ajin. Despite his appearance as a white-haired friendly old man, in reality he is merciless, calculative and an extremely talented tactician, especially in combat as he is a former military soldier. Satō originally claimed that he wished to protest against the mistreatment of Ajins worldwide, but it is later revealed that he used this claim as an excuse in order to gather an army of Ajins in order to create an immortal army in order to rule Japan. He is frequently described as a "player" in the latter half of the anime, using strategies picked up from video games in order to carry out assassinations of famous politicians in order to negotiate with the government for allowing human rights of Ajins. This was revealed to be an excuse in order to wage war with the country simply for the sake of violence and destruction, with the end result of him ruling the nation. He enjoys the use of violence against anybody (human or Ajin) who attempts to ruin his plans and is especially irked by provocation.
Kōji Tanaka (田中 功次, Tanaka Kouji)
Voiced by: Daisuke Hirakawa[4] (Japanese); Keith Silverstein (English)
Played by: Yu Shirota
He is the second Ajin to be discovered in Japan. He was rescued by Satō and joins in with his pro-Ajin movement against the Japanese government.
Masumi Okuyama (奥山 真澄, Okuyama Masumi)
Voiced by: Hiroyuki Yoshino (Japanese); Lucien Dodge (English)
Played by: Yudai Chiba
Masumi is one of the few Ajins who accepts Satō's invitation to use genocide to fight for Ajins' rights. He is an extremely skilled hacker and highly knowledgeable in weaponry and machines. In the anime, he eventually betrays Satō and reaches out to Kei in order to defeat him
Takeshi Kotobuki (琴吹 武, Kotobuki Takeshi)
Voiced by: Sōma Saitō
A prisoner who had escaped from jail after seeing Sato's announcement to protest for Ajins' rights. Takeshi becomes Kaito's partner after Kaito helped him when he was bullied by the other prisoners wanting to know how he had escaped from jail. His IBM is shown to have wings, which was his means of escape from prison. After he and Kai reconcile he promises to let Kai use his IBM to escape prison if, for whatever reason, he wishes to escape in order to assist Kei. In the anime, Takeshi uses his IBM to bring himself as well as Kai to Eriko's hospital in order to save both her and Kei from the riots occurring there.

Others

Eriko Nagai (永井 慧理子, Nagai Eriko)
Voiced by: Aya Suzaki[4]
Played by: Minami Hamabe
Kei’s sister who seems to suffer from a terminal illness and is hospitalized throughout most of the series.
Ikuya Ogura (オグラ・イクヤ, Ogura Ikuya)
Voiced by: Hiroyuki Kinoshita[4] (Japanese); Kyle McCarley (English)
He is a researcher who studied Ajins in the United States and has a great deal of knowledge about them.

Publication

The series began publication in Kodansha's magazine good! Afternoon in 2012.[5] Initially, it was written by Tsuina Miura; however, his name is not mentioned in the credits after the first volume, and Gamon Sakurai has been creating the manga himself since.[6]

In February 2014, Vertical announced that it had licensed the series for English release.[5] On March 15, 2014, Crunchyroll began to release the series on their manga service under the title Ajin: Demi-Human, starting with the first two chapters.[7]

Volume list

No.Japanese release dateJapanese ISBNEnglish release dateEnglish ISBN
1 March 7, 2013[8]ISBN 978-4-06-387868-4October 14, 2014[9]ISBN 978-1-939130-84-6
  • 01. "Detection and Subsequent Action" (発覚とその後の行動について, Hakkaku to Sonogo no Kōdō ni Tsuite)
  • 02. "Event on the First Night" (１日目、深夜の事象について, 1-Nichi-me, shinya no jishō ni tsuite)
  • 03. "Escape and Threat" (逃走と脅威について, Tōsō to Kyōi ni Tsuite)
  • 04. "Interrogation and Conspirator" (尋問と協力者について, Jinmon to Kyōryoku-sha ni Tsuite)
  • 05. "Appearance and Organization" (発現と組織について, Hatsugen to Soshiki ni Tsuite)
2 June 7, 2013[10]ISBN 978-4-06-387902-5December 9, 2014[11]ISBN 978-1-939130-85-3
  • 06. "Fresh Start" (心機一転, Shinki Itten)
  • 07. "003"
  • 08. "Blindness"
  • 09. "Killtacular" (キルタキュラー, Kirutakyurā)
  • 10. "The Shin’ya Nakamura Incident" (中村慎也事件, Nakamura Shin’ya Jiken)
3 November 7, 2013[12]ISBN 978-4-06-387934-6February 3, 2015[13]ISBN 978-1-941220-21-4
  • 10. "The Real Kei Nagai 1" (本当の永井 圭1, Hontō no Nagai Kei 1)
  • 11. "The Real Kei Nagai 2" (本当の永井 圭2, Hontō no Nagai Kei 2)
  • 12. "The Real Kei Nagai 3" (本当の永井 圭3, Hontō no Nagai Kei 3)
  • 13. "Plan A" (作戦A, Sakusen A)
  • 14. "Backstage" (舞台裏, Butaiura)
4 May 7, 2014[14]ISBN 978-4-06-387972-8April 7, 2015[15]ISBN 978-1-941220-44-3
  • 15. "Fighter" (ファイター, Faitā)
  • 16. "Runaway" (逃亡者, Tōbō-sha)
  • 17. "Double Team" (ダブルチーム, Daburuchīmu)
  • 18. "Fringe" (フリンジ, Furinji)
  • 19. "Let's Make It Flashy!" (派手に行こうぜ！, Hade ni Ikōze!)
5 November 7, 2014[16]ISBN 978-4-06-388007-6June 2, 2015[17]ISBN 978-1-941220-45-0
  • 20. "Sucker Punch" (サッカーパンチ, Sakkāpanchi)
  • 21. "Battlefield Bad Company" (バトルフィールド バッドカンパニー, Batorufīrudo Baddo Kanpanī)
  • 22. "Ajin" (亜人, Ajin)
  • 22.5. "Ajin 2" (亜人②, Ajin 2)
  • 23. "The Chosen Man" (選ばれた男, Erabareta Otoko)
  • 24. "Come with Me!!"
6 June 5, 2015[18]ISBN 978-4-06-388067-0August 25, 2015[19]ISBN 978-1-941220-88-7
  • 25. "Day One" (初日, Shonichi)
  • 26. "Genius…?!"
  • 27. "Izumi Shimomura" (下村 泉, Shimomura Izumi)
  • 27.5. "Izumi Shimomura 2" (下村 泉②, Shimomura Izumi 2)
  • 28. "Wall" (壁, Kabe)
7 November 6, 2015[20]ISBN 978-4-06-388098-4March 22, 2016[21]ISBN 978-1-942993-26-1
  • 29. "Listen!!"
  • 30. "Call of Duty"
  • 31. "Don't say "lazy""
  • 31.5. "Don't say "lazy" 2"
  • 32. "The Attack Begins" (攻撃開始, Kōgeki Kaishi)
  • 33. "Invincible" (無敵, Muteki)
8 May 6, 2016[22]ISBN 978-4-06-388137-0October 18, 2016[23]ISBN 978-1-942993-47-6
  • 34. "Splinter Cell" (スプリンターセル, Supurintā Seru)
  • 35. "The Man Trap"
  • 35.5. "The Man Trap 2"
  • 36 "Doom"
  • 37. "Shadowrun" (シャドウラン, Shadōran)
  • 38. "Battlefield Hardline" (バトルフィールドハードライン, Batorufīrudo Hādorain)
9 October 7, 2016[24]ISBN 978-4-06-388189-9April 4, 2017[25]ISBN 978-1-945054-19-8
  • 39. "Battlefield Hardline: 2"
  • 40. "Battlefield Hardline: 3"
  • 41. "Party's End"
  • 42. "Hirasawa"
  • 43. "Fight"
10 May 6, 2017[26]ISBN 978-4-06-388248-3——
  • 44. "Blood Relations"
  • 45. "U & I"
  • 46. "Good Morning, See You Tomorrow"
  • 47. "Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare"
  • 48. "The Losers"

Chapters not yet in tankōbon format

Media

Film

Plans to adapt the series into an anime film trilogy were announced in June 2015.[27] The films were directed by Hiroaki Andō and written by Hiroshi Seko, with animation by Polygon Pictures.[28] The first film, titled Ajin: Shōdō (Ajin: Impulse),[4] debuted in Japan on November 27, 2015.[29] This film is a compilation of the first six episodes of the TV series. The second film, titled Ajin: Shōtotsu (Ajin: Collision), debuted in Japan on May 6, 2016, and the third and final film in the trilogy, titled Ajin: Shōgeki (Ajin: Clash), was released on September 23, 2016.[30]

Anime

A television series that follows the anime films premiered on January 16, 2016.[lower-alpha 1][31] It is produced by the staff that produced the film trilogy.[32][31] It aired on MBS, TBS, CBC and BS-TBS,[32] with 13 episodes.[33] The series was streamed by Netflix,[32] starting on April 12, 2016, along with English, French, Spanish, German and Brazilian Portuguese dubs.[34] The series is licensed by Sentai Filmworks for home video release in North America.[35] An OAD was bundled with the manga's 8th limited edition volume, which was released on May 6, 2016.[36] A second OAD was bundled with manga's 9th limited edition volume, which was released on October 7, 2016.[37]

A second season premiered on October 8, 2016 and continued the original numbering sequence.[38][39] The second season premiered on Netflix on December 27, 2016.[40]

Live-action film

The production of a live-action film was announced in November 2016,[41] which is scheduled for release on September 30, 2017. The director will be Katsuyuki Motohiro, with Takeru Satoh in the lead role. The action scenes are to be planned by the team behind the Rurouni Kenshin trilogy, which also starred Satoh.[42]

Reception

The Japanese manga news site Comic Natalie awarded the series third place in its poll of the best manga in 2013.[43] The third volume ranked 6th on the Oricon manga chart on the week of its release.[44] In a survey of 400 manga and publishing professionals for the manga guidebook Kono Manga ga Sugoi!, the series was rated 3rd place in a list of top 20 manga for Male readers.[45] The manga had over 4 million copies in print as of December 2015. [46]

The series was listed as a nominee for the Readers Award in the 18th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize, and in the Seinen category in the 38th Annual Kodansha Manga Awards.[47][48]

Notes

  1. ↑ The episode is listed for broadcast at 25:55 on January 15; this is the same as a broadcast time of 1:55 on January 16.[31]

References

  1. ↑ 劇場アニメ3部作 第1部『亜人 -衝動-』(2015). allcinema. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  2. ↑ 劇場アニメ3部作 第2部『亜人 -衝突-』(2016). allcinema (in Japanese). Retrieved June 3, 2016.
  3. ↑ 劇場アニメ3部作 最終章『亜人 -衝戟-』(2016). allcinema (in Japanese). Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Ajin Anime Film Project's 2nd Promo Video Reveals Cast". Anime News Network. July 30, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  5. 1 2 "Vertical Licenses Ajin, Witchcraft Works, Garden of Words Manga". Anime News Network. February 15, 2014. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  6. ↑ Thompson, Jason (June 26, 2014). "Ajin - House of 1000 Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 15, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Crunchyroll Releases Ajin, Koe no Katachi, Arslan Manga". Anime News Network. March 14, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  8. ↑ "亜人（1）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Ajin, Volume 1". Random House. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
  10. ↑ "亜人（2）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Ajin, Volume 2". Random House. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
  12. ↑ "亜人（3）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Ajin, Volume 3". Random House. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
  14. ↑ "亜人（4）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Ajin, Volume 4". Random House. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
  16. ↑ "亜人（5）" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  17. ↑ "Ajin, Volume 5". Random House. Retrieved April 2, 2015.
  18. ↑ "亜人（６）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved October 15, 2015.
  19. ↑ "Ajin, Volume 6". Random House. Retrieved April 2, 2015.
  20. ↑ "亜人（７）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  21. ↑ "Ajin, Volume 7". Random House. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  22. ↑ "亜人（８）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  23. ↑ "Ajin, Volume 8". Random House. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
  24. ↑ "亜人（８）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  25. ↑ "亜人（９）". Random House. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  26. ↑ "亜人（１０）". Kodansha (in Japanese). Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  27. ↑ "Ajin: Demi-Human Action Manga Gets Anime Film Trilogy". Anime News Network. June 2, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  28. ↑ "Ajin: Demi-Human Film Trilogy Unveils Teaser Trailer, Staff from Sidonia". Anime News Network. June 4, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  29. ↑ "Ajin - Demi-Human Film's Trailer Reveals flumpool Song, Release Date". Anime News Network. September 14, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  30. ↑ "2nd Ajin Film Premieres on May 6, 3rd Film on September 23". Anime News Network. March 7, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
  31. 1 2 3 "Mamoru Miyano to Perform Ajin TV Anime's Ending Theme". Anime News Network. October 15, 2015. Retrieved October 15, 2015.
  32. 1 2 3 "Ajin - Demi-Human Manga Gets TV Anime in January (Updated)". Anime News Network. September 10, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  33. ↑ "Ajin - Demi-Human TV Anime to Have 13 Episodes". Anime News Network. September 21, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  34. ↑ Green, Scott (March 13, 2016). "Netflix Lists "Ajin: Demi-Human" Premiere Date". Crunchyroll. Retrieved April 7, 2016.
  35. ↑ "Sentai Filmworks Licenses: Ajin: Demi-Human Anime for Home Video". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  36. ↑ "Ajin: Demi-Human Original Anime DVD Promo Previews 'Shinya Nakamura Incident'". Anime News Network. April 18, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
  37. ↑ "Ajin Manga Bundles 2nd Anime DVD in 9th Volume". Anime News Network. April 29, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
  38. ↑ "Ajin TV Anime Gets 2nd Season in October". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2016-05-02.
  39. ↑ "Ajin Anime Season 2 Reveals October 7 Premiere, New Visual". Anime News Network. August 31, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  40. ↑ "Ajin Season 2 Netflix Release Date Comes Online in the Holiday Season". nagamedigital.com. November 24, 2016. Retrieved November 24, 2016.
  41. ↑ "Ajin - Demi Human Manga Gets Live-Action Film With Rurouni Kenshin's Takeru Satoh". Anime News Network. 2016-11-03. Retrieved 2016-11-05.
  42. ↑ "Live-Action Ajin Film Slated for September 30, 2017". Anime News Network. December 16, 2016. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  43. ↑ "Nami Sano's Sakamoto desu ga? Manga Wins Comic Natalie Grand Prize". Anime News Network. September 18, 2013. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  44. ↑ "Japanese Comic Ranking, November 4–10". Anime News Network. November 13, 2013. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  45. ↑ "Top Manga Ranked by Kono Manga ga Sugoi 2014 Voters". Anime News Network. December 9, 2013. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  46. ↑ http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2015-12-17/2nd-ajin-demi-human-anime-film-previewed-in-trailer/.96609
  47. ↑ "18th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize 'Reader Award' Nominees Announced". Anime News Network. March 3, 2014. Retrieved March 3, 2014.
  48. ↑ "38th Annual Kodansha Manga Awards' Nominees Announced". Anime News Network. April 3, 2014. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
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