Akira

Manga8.748421 votes6 volumes · 120 chaptersFinished

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About this title

Synopsis

1988: It is World War III. Tokyo is decimated by a mysterious black explosion, unmatched in magnitude. 2019: Fast forward 31 years. Neo-Tokyo, hastily built on the ruins of old Tokyo, is a sprawling cityscape of neon extravaganza. It is a fusion of towering skyscrapers and cutting-edge technology that is permeated through and through with an explosive, hyper-violent cocktail of biker gangs, poverty, and revolutionaries. In this derelict metropolis live Tetsuo Shima and Shoutarou Kaneda, two bikers who are the best of friends and the fiercest of rivals, despite being affiliated with the same gang. Desperate to prove himself as Kaneda's equal, Tetsuo unwittingly pulls a stunt that culminates in the awakening of a cryptic existence that threatens to change both the face of Neo-Tokyo and the lives of those who call the city their home—the awakening of a government secret simply known as Akira. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Publication notes

Akira won the 8th Kodansha Manga Award in the General category in 1984, the Harvey Award for Best American Edition of Foreign Material in 1993, and was nominated for the Harvey Award for Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Work in 2002. The series was published in English by Marvel Comics under the Epic Comics imprint as 38 fully colorized trade paperback volumes from 1988 to 1996. It was one of the first manga to be translated in its entirety. The publisher later collected into the series 10 volumes although incompletely. Dark Horse Comics republished Akira in its original six-volume format from December 13, 2000, to March 27, 2002. Kodansha Comics USA currently holds the license and republished the series from October 13, 2009, to April 12, 2011. The publisher later rereleased the series in a 35th-anniversary box set; the set contained six hardcover volumes in the original right-to-left reading format for the first time, as well as the artbook Akira Club. The manga was also published in Brazilian Portuguese by Editora Globo based on Marvel Comics' release from December 1990 to March 1998.

Published

Dec 6, 1982 to Jun 11, 1990

Authors

Otomo, Katsuhiro

External links

MyAnimeList page KodanshaKodansha USA Wikipedia Wikipedia

MAL rank: #91
Members (MAL): 147,827
Favorites (MAL): 6,934

Related titles

Adaptation

Main characters

Shoutarou Kaneda1801 fan favorites
External profile
Kaneda is a carefree gang-leader who boasts a custom-modified motorcycle. He and Tetsuo have been best friends since early childhood. He is brash and not above teasing Tetsuo despite feeling affection for him as a younger brother. Upon rescuing Kei, Kaneda becomes involved in the activities of her group of anti-government guerillas in hopes of locating Tetsuo. (Source: Wikipedia)
Tetsuo Shima871 fan favorites
External profile
Kaneda's best friend since preschool and the second principal subject of the story's theme. Tetsuo is shown as a black sheep in the gang he and Kaneda are part of, and quietly suffers from a deeply rooted inferiority complex. He admires his friend yet at the same time strongly resents his own reliance upon him. After his psychokinetic abilities manifest, Tetsuo quickly becomes Kaneda's nemesis; he desires Kaneda's motorcycle (a symbol of status and power), and seeks to prove himself supremely powerful, without need of protection. (Source: Wikipedia)
Kei147 fan favorites
External profile
A young woman whom Kaneda meets on his quest to find Tetsuo. She is a member of an anti-government organization that Ryu and Nezu are also involved in. She is seemingly better looking in the manga, and appears to be somewhat older than Shotaro Kaneda, just as he appears younger in the manga. Kei's role in the Resistance is important because she is completely loyal to its cause and to Ryu. Her character is far more developed in the manga, where she plays more than a "hard-to-get" love interest for Shotaro Kaneda. She is strong willed and is the one to discover that Lady Miyako is an Esper too. Miyako helps Kei channel her thoughts and discovers she is a conduit for the Espers' telepathy. Kiyoko does this in the movie and Kei communicates with Kaneda and Tetsuo. She works closely with Chiyoko, a physically strong and resilient resistance fighter and they look out for each other.
Akira87 fan favorites
External profile
Codename #28 in the Japanese government's secret ESP project. An estimately 8-year-old boy around whom the story revolves. Akira's power was so immense that he inadvertently caused the destruction of Tokyo in 1988 and was secretly sealed afterwards in a cryogenic chamber underneath the destruction site. No voice actors have been added to this character. Help improve our database by searching for a voice actor, and adding this character to their roles .