A Spirit of the Sun
Encyclopedia
is a seinen manga written and illustrated by Kaiji Kawaguchi
about a resourceful boy, Genichiro Ryu, as he survives a series of natural disasters and collapse of the economy in Japan set in the beginning of the 21st century. It was serialized in Shogakukan
's Big Comic
. In February 2009, Shogakukan
has currently released seventeen bound volumes
, with the first on May 30, 2003. A Spirit of The Sun received the 2006 Shogakukan Manga Award
for the seinen
/general category along with Rainbow: Nisha Rokubō no Shichinin
by Masasumi Kakizaki and George Abe.
The series was adapted into a 2 episode anime by Madhouse Studios.
, Madhouse
produced a 2 episode TV special adaptation of A Spirit of The Sun, which was shown on WOWOW
on September 17, 2006 and September 18, 2006, respectively. The anime was released in Germany by OVA films.
The ending theme of the anime is "The Power" by Kanon
.
for the seinen
/general category. It also received the grand prize for the comic category at the 10th Japan Media Arts Festival
in 2006.
Kaiji Kawaguchi
is a Japanese manga author whose works include Eagle and Zipang. Generally, his stories involve Japan and examine the moral choices that people make in extreme situations. He received the Kodansha Manga Award three times, for Actor in 1987, for The Silent Service in 1990, and for Zipang in 2002...
about a resourceful boy, Genichiro Ryu, as he survives a series of natural disasters and collapse of the economy in Japan set in the beginning of the 21st century. It was serialized in Shogakukan
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, manga, non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.Shogakukan founded Shueisha which founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the Hitotsubashi Group, one of the largest publishing groups in Japan...
's Big Comic
Big Comic
is a semimonthly seinen manga magazine published since 1968-02-29 by Shogakukan in Japan. It was originally launched as a monthly magazine, but switched to twice monthly on the 10th and 25th beginning in April 1968. It is paired with sister magazine Big Comic Original, going on sale in the weeks...
. In February 2009, Shogakukan
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, manga, non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.Shogakukan founded Shueisha which founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the Hitotsubashi Group, one of the largest publishing groups in Japan...
has currently released seventeen bound volumes
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
, with the first on May 30, 2003. A Spirit of The Sun received the 2006 Shogakukan Manga Award
Shogakukan Manga Award
The is one of Japan's major manga awards, sponsored by Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga since 1955 and features candidates from a number of publishers.The current award categories are:...
for the seinen
Seinen
is a subset of manga that is generally targeted at a 20–30 year old male audience, but the audience can be older with some manga aimed at businessmen well into their 40s. In Japanese, the word Seinen means "young man" or "young men" and is not suggestive of sexual matters...
/general category along with Rainbow: Nisha Rokubō no Shichinin
Rainbow: Nisha Rokubō no Shichinin
, is a Japanese manga series written by George Abe and illustrated by Masasumi Kakizaki. It began serialization in 2003 in Shogakukan Publishing's Weekly Young Sunday manga magazine but was moved to Big Comic Spirits when the magazine stopped publication. It was later published in twenty two bound...
by Masasumi Kakizaki and George Abe.
The series was adapted into a 2 episode anime by Madhouse Studios.
Anime
Directed by Masayuki KojimaMasayuki Kojima
is a Japanese animator, director, and member of the renowned animation studio Madhouse. He was born on March 11, 1961 in Yamanashi, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan, and is a twenty year plus veteran of the anime industry.-Personal history:...
, Madhouse
Madhouse (company)
is a Japanese animation studio, founded in 1972 by ex–Mushi Pro animators including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro, and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. It has created and helped to produce many well known shows, starting with TV anime series Ace o Nerae! in 1973, and including western favourites Ninja...
produced a 2 episode TV special adaptation of A Spirit of The Sun, which was shown on WOWOW
WOWOW
WOWOW was the first private satellite broadcasting and pay TV station in Japan. It has its headquarters on the 21st floor of the Akasaka Park Building in Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo...
on September 17, 2006 and September 18, 2006, respectively. The anime was released in Germany by OVA films.
The ending theme of the anime is "The Power" by Kanon
Kanon (singer)
Kanon is a Japanese singer and song-writer born in Tokyo, Japan on March 9, 1980. She is signed to Sony Music Japan International.Her latest mini album, My Road ~ Songs for Guin Saga was released on August 26, 2009. Her fifth album planned to be released on March 31, 2011 as she stated on her blog....
.
Reception
A Spirit of The Sun received the 2006 Shogakukan Manga AwardShogakukan Manga Award
The is one of Japan's major manga awards, sponsored by Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga since 1955 and features candidates from a number of publishers.The current award categories are:...
for the seinen
Seinen
is a subset of manga that is generally targeted at a 20–30 year old male audience, but the audience can be older with some manga aimed at businessmen well into their 40s. In Japanese, the word Seinen means "young man" or "young men" and is not suggestive of sexual matters...
/general category. It also received the grand prize for the comic category at the 10th Japan Media Arts Festival
Japan Media Arts Festival
The Japan Media Arts Festival is an annual festival held by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs since 1997. The festival for a nominal year was usually held during February or March next year, rather than at the end of the nominal year. For instance, the 2010 Japan Media Arts Festival, where...
in 2006.