is a Japanese manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 series written and illustrated by Go Nagai

Go Nagai

, better known by the penname , is a Japanese manga artist and a prolific author of science fiction, fantasy, horror and erotica. He made his professional debut in 1967 with Meakashi Polikichi, but is best known for creating Cutie Honey, Devilman, and Mazinger Z in the 1970s. In 2005, he became a...

 which originally started as an anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 adaptation of the concept of Nagai's previous manga series, Demon Lord Dante

Demon Lord Dante

is the title of several horror-themed manga series written by Go Nagai as well as an anime series.During 1971, Go Nagai wrote the original Demon Lord Dante manga, which was published in Kodansha's Bokura Magazine. After its original run in 1971 from January to June, Go Nagai went on to author the...

. A 39 episode anime series was developed by Toei in 1972 and Nagai began Devilman as a manga in Kodansha

Kodansha

, the largest Japanese publisher, produces the manga magazines Nakayoshi, Afternoon, Evening, and Weekly Shonen Magazine, as well as more literary magazines such as Gunzō, Shūkan Gendai, and the Japanese dictionary Nihongo Daijiten. The company has its headquarters in Bunkyō, Tokyo...

's Weekly Shōnen Magazine

Weekly Shonen Magazine

, also known as Shōnen Magazine, is a shōnen manga magazine published by Kodansha, first published on 17 March 1959. Despite some unusual censorship policies , it's mainly read by an older audience, with a large portion of its readership falling under the male high school or college...

, barely a month before the anime series started. The series has since spawned numerous OVAs, manga, novels, and films.

Devilman and other characters from the series have shown up in cameo appearances numerous times in Go Nagai's other works.