Aah! Harimanada

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Aah! Harimanada
First tankōbon volume cover
ああ播磨灘
(Ā Harimanada)
GenreSports
Manga
Written byKei Sadayasu
Published byKodansha
ImprintMorning KC
Magazine
  • Morning Open Zōkan
  • (1988–1989)
  • Morning
  • (1990–1996)
Original runSeptember 1988 – September 1996
Volumes28
Anime television series
Directed byYukio Okazaki
Music byMasamichi Amano
Original networkTXN (TV Tokyo)
Original run April 23, 1992 – October 1, 1992
Episodes23
Video game
DeveloperSega
PublisherSega
Music byHirofumi Murasaki
Morihiko Akiyama
Masayuki Nagao
GenreFighting
PlatformGame Gear, Game Boy, Sega Mega Drive
ReleasedGame Gear
  • JP: July 2, 1993
Game Boy
  • JP: July 23, 1993
Mega Drive
  • JP: September 3, 1993

Aah! Harimanada (Japanese: ああ播磨灘, Hepburn: Ā Harimanada) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kei Sadayasu. It was originally serialized in Kodansha's seinen manga magazines Morning Open Zōkan (1988 to 1989) and Morning (1990 to 1996), and published in 28 tankōbon volumes. An anime television series was broadcast in 1992. The series was later adapted to a video game developed and published by Sega for the Game Gear and Mega Drive. A port was also released on the Game Boy, released by ASK.

Premise

On the first day of the September Professional Sumo Tournament, the new yokozuna Harimanada enters the ring wearing an eerie mask, surprising the audience. He then declares that he will break Futabayama's streak of 69 consecutive wins, and that he would retire on the spot if he loses even once. This invokes the wrath of the Japan Sumo Association and makes an enemy of all makuuchi wrestlers.[1]

Characters

Isao Harimanada (播磨灘 勲, Harimanada Isao) / Isao Yamagata (山形 勲, Yamagata Isao)
Voiced by: Akio Otsuka[2]
The protagonist. Stands at 6'0" and weighs 335 pounds.
Oyakata Raikō (雷光 親方, Raikō Oyakata)
Voiced by: Kenichi Ogata[2]
Harimanada's master.
Atagoyama (愛宕山)
Voiced by: Yuzuru Fujimoto[2]
The Chairman of the Sumo Association. He is modeled after Wakanohana, the then-incumbent head of the real-life Sumo Association.
Yasokichi Fugaku (富嶽 八十吉, Fugaku Yasokichi) / Iote Iyaokea
Voiced by: Masahiro Anzai
A mountainous 550-pound Hawaiian ozeki. He is modeled after Konishiki.

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Kei Sadayasu, Aah! Harimanada was first serialized in the special issue of Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Morning, Morning Open Zōkan, from its A to F issues (cover dated September 20, 1988,[3] and August 1, 1989,[4] respectively).[5] It was then transferred to Morning in April 1990, starting with its 20th issue of that year,[5][a] where it was serialized until September 1996, in its 40th issue of that year.[7][b] Kodansha compiled its chapters in 28 tankōbon volumes, published between March 20, 1991, and December 14, 1996.[9][10] The series was reissued in 14 bunkobon volumes, published between March 12 and August 9, 2002.[5][7]

Anime

E&G Film produced an anime television series based on the manga, titled It Makes Me Feel Strong When I Watch It! Yokozuna Anime: Aah! Harimanada (見ると強くなる 痛快!横綱アニメ ああ播磨灘, Miru to Tsuyoku Naru Tsūkai! Yokozuna Anime: Ā Harimanada). It was directed by Yukio Okazaki and series supervised by Norio Osada.[2] The series premiered in Japan on TV Tokyo on April 23, 1992, and ran for 23 episodes until its conclusion on October 1, 1992.[2] Aah! Harimanada is notable as an animated series based on the rare theme of sumo wrestling; following the end of the series' broadcast, no other such series would be produced until the premiere of Rowdy Wrestler!! Matsutaro in 2014.

Video games

Aah! Harimanada was adapted into three video games of the same name in 1993. A Game Gear title was developed by Sega and released on July 2. A Game Boy title by Ask Kodansha was released on July 23. Sega also developed a title for the Mega Drive that was released on September 3.[11] The Mega Drive game was criticized for its "poor responsiveness" and "boring gameplay".[12] British gaming magazine Sega Pro rated the Mega Drive version 59 out of 100.[13]

Notes

  1. Cover dated May 3, 1990.[6]
  2. Cover dated September 19, 1996.[8]

References

  1. ああ播磨灘（漫画）. Mangapedia (in Japanese). Digitalio, Inc. Archived from the original on June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  2. 見ると強くなる 痛快! 横綱アニメ ああ播磨灘 (1992). www.allcinema.net (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 30, 2023. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  3. コミックモーニングオープン増刊 1988.0. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  4. コミックモーニングオープン増刊 1989.0. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  5. ああ播磨灘（１） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  6. コミックモーニング 1990.0 20. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  7. ああ播磨灘（１４） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  8. モーニング 1996.0 40. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  9. ああ播磨灘（１） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on October 14, 2025. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  10. ああ播磨灘（２８） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on June 27, 2026. Retrieved June 27, 2026.
  11. "Software List (Sega Release)". Sega Hardware Encyclopedia (in Japanese). Sega Corporation. Archived from the original on April 16, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  12. "2D Sumo Wrestling Games". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on January 6, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
  13. Sega Pro (28). Paragon Publishing: 54. February 1994.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)