Ken Wakui (
Wakui made his debut in 2005 with Shinjuku Host published in Bessatsu Young Magazine (Kodansha), and made his serial debut with Shinjuku Swan, which started in the same year in Weekly Young Magazine (Kodansha). He moved to Weekly Shonen Magazine in 2015, where he serialized Tokyo卍Revengers from 2017 to 2022.[1]
Tokyo卍Revengers became Wakui's most successful and acclaimed series, with over 80 million copies sold as of April 2024. It also received an anime series, two live-action films alongside other adaptations.
Background[]
When he was a teenager, Wakui was a young delinquent who often spent his time with gangs. As a consequence, he was expelled from school for poor behavior and lost his first job. He then started to work as a bar host in a women's bar in Shinjuku and eventually graduated from high school. Wakui grew immersed in the neon-lit world of Kabukicho's hostess bars during this time and worked as a scout before it was criminalized.[2]
His mangaka career started in 2004 when he submitted Shinjuku Swan for the Weekly Young Magazine Newcomer Award, which received an honorable mention. In the following year, it began serialization on the Weekly Young Magazine.
Works[]
Shinjuku Swan[]
Wakui's first series, Shinjuku Swan (新宿スワン, Shinjuku Suwan?), was serialized from 2005 to 2013 with 38 total volumes. The manga inspired a television series in 2007 and two live-action comedy films directed by Sion Sono in 2015 and 2017 respectively. It also earned a jury recommendation at the 12th Japan Media Arts Festival in 2008.
It features Tatsuhiko Shiratori, an unemployed young man gets into a fight with a gang but is saved by Mako, who is a scout for Burst in Kabukichō. The story follows Tatsuhiko working as a scout and the struggles between the yakuza and rival scouts.
Abaddon[]
Abaddon (アバドン, Abadon?) was a shorter series which ran from 2010 to 2011 and compiled into two volumes. Unlike Shinjuku Swan, Abaddon focuses on the martial arts genre rather than in Kabukicho's underworld. Abaddon was created to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Weekly Young Magazine's founding.
Sekisei Inko[]
Sekisei Inko (セキセイインコ, Sekisei Inko?, Budgerigar) was another shorter series Wakui wrote and illustrated from December 21, 2013 to March 16, 2015. Sekisei Inko's story stars an amnesiac man named Kaneda, who tries to piece together a traumatic event of a classmate while his memories manifest into a surreal being.
Dessert Eagle[]
Dessert Eagle (デザートイーグル, Dezāto īgeru?) was the third series written and illustrated by Wakui on the Weekly Young Magazine from August 5, 2015 to May 18, 2016. The series features Ichigo Washio, who after meeting fellow student Ringo, decides to help seek vengeance against the gangs he looked up to.
Tokyo卍Revengers[]
Wakui made his debut on Weekly Shonen Magazine with Tokyo卍Revengers (東京卍リベンジャーズ, Tōkyō Manji Ribenjāzu?). Tokyo卍Revengers won the shonen category of the Kodansha Manga Award in 2020 and considered as Wakui's most popular manga series.
Tokyo卍Revengers: A Letter from Keisuke Baji[]
A spin-off of Tokyo卍Revengers co-written by Wakui and illustrated by Natsukawaguchi Yukinori, titled Tokyo卍Revengers: A Letter from Keisuke Baji (東京卍リベンジャーズ ～場地圭介からの手紙～, Tōkyō Manji Ribenjāzu ~Baji Keisuke Kara no Tegami~?) began on July 27, 2022 on Magazine Pocket, and is set to finish on April 14, 2025. The spin-off focuses on Chifuyu Matsuno and Keisuke Baji from their first interaction to the latter's death in Bloody Halloween.
Astro Royale[]
Nearly two years after completing Tokyo Revengers, Wakui would later move to Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump. He begin serializing a new series called Astro Royale (
The story features Hibaru Yotsurugi, who is the legitimate son of an Asakusa yakuza named Kongo Yotsurugi. After his father's death, a battle to inherit leadership in the Yotsurugi Family begins between himself and other adopted members. As the discussion for succession arises, a meteorite strikes Asakusa which forever changes the world by suddenly awakening superpowers in people.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Wakui rarely has an assistant for his manga work.
External Links[]
References[]
- ↑ "Ken Wakui". Wikipedia. Retrieved on June 19, 2021.
- ↑ ""Tokyo Revengers": un manga de voyous écrit par un ancien voyou (in French)". Le Monde. — August 31, 2019. Retrieved on April 25, 2024.
[]
| Manga | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ken Wakui |
| Manga | Tokyo卍Revengers (Manga) · Volumes & Chapters |
| Spin-offs | Tokyo Revengers: Letter from Keisuke Baji |
| Parodies | Todai Revengers |