Kajika (Manga)
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| Kajika | |||
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 Kajika tankōbon cover | |||
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| Author | Akira Toriyama | ||
| Publisher | Shueisha (JP) | ||
| Publication | Weekly Shōnen Jump | ||
| Demographic | Shōnen | ||
| Manga Series | |||
| Original Run |
Weekly Shōnen Jump 1998 No. 32 to Weekly Shōnen Jump 1998 No. 44 (07 July 1998 to 29 September 1998) | ||
| Chapters | 12 | ||
| Volumes | 1 | ||
Kajika is a twelve-chapter manga series by Akira Toriyama, debuting in the 1998 No. 32 issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump, originally released 07 July 1998 in Japan. The series ran through to the No. 44 issue that same year, and a collected volume was released the following January.
Though it has received other international releases, Kajika remains officially unreleased in English.
Synopsis
Kajika is a boy who has set out on a journey to save 1,000 lives in order to undo the curse a fox put on him. He comes to the rescue of Haya, a girl being pursued by G. Gibachi and his group, and ends up being entrusted with the egg of the last dragon in the world...?![1]
Characters
Characters in Kajika are generally all named directly for specific fish species; Akira Toriyama mentions in several of his weekly comments during the original serialization that his workroom is overflowing with tanks and tropical fish.
Major Characters
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Kajika (カジカ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 1 A young boy cursed and subsequently transformed into a fox-boy, Kajika sets out with the spirit Gigi to save 1,000 lives to reverse the curse. Kajika is likely named for the fish of the same name (魚 or カジカ kajika), the sculpin, a type of benthic fish that belongs to the superfamily Cottoidea in the order Scorpaeniformes. |
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Gigi (ギギ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 1 Now traveling with Kajika as a spirit, Gigi is the young fox that Kajika killed and received the curse from. |
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Haya (ハヤ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 1 A young thief who steals a dragon egg from Gibachi, Haya winds up pulled into a larger fight than she anticipated alongside Kajika. Likely named for the general term for the freshwater fishes of the Cyprinidae family in Japan. |
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Gibachi (ギバチ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 2 TBD. Likely named for the fish of the same name (義蜂 gibachi), a species of catfish called the cut-tailed bullhead. |
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Isaza (イサザ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 2 TBD. Likely named for the Gymnogobius isaza, a type of gobie. |
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Donko (ドンコ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 3 TBD. Likely named for the dark sleeper (鈍甲 donko in Japanese), a species of freshwater sleeper native to China, Japan, and Korea. |
Minor Characters
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Yugoi (ユゴイ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 1 A henchman working under Gibachi who attacks Haya, Yugoi is quickly defeated and cleansed by Kajika. Likely named for the flagtail, a type of ray-finned fish (ユゴイ科 yugoi-ka in Japanese). |
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Bluegill (ブルーギル) Debut: Kajika Chapter 3 A villain with 35 murders under his belt (listed in the bounty hunter book with a 400,000 Don reward) who Kajika stumbles into. Likely named directly for the bluegill, a type of freshwater fish. |
Miscellaneous
- Ron-Ron Island (ロンロン島 Ronron-tō): An island said to have been the home to dragons.
- Dragomin (ドラゴミン Doragomin): Stated to be within the blood of a newborn dragon, which it uses to then mature at an incredible rate.
- Life Pill (命の丸薬 Inochi no Gan'yaku): TBD
- World-Class Bounty Hunter Catalog (世界の一流賞金稼ぎカタログ Sekai no Ichiryū Shōkin Kasegi Katarogu): TBD
- Fox-Man (キツネ人 kitsune-jin): The "Fox-Man" (or "fox-person") Kajika is turned into.
- Kawa Clan (カワ族 Kawa-zoku): Clan to which Kajika and Isaza belong to, said to have been wiped out from a volcano four years ago.
- Rivans (リーバ人 Riiba-jin): People of the Riva region or race.[note 1]
- Eagle Wind (鷲風 Shūfūn): A special technique of the Kawa Clan members.
- Don (ドン Don): Currency in use in the world of Kajika.
Production
Coming off the heels of the 14-chapter series COWA! in 1998, Kajika was one of Akira Toriyama's comparatively-longer works following the completion of Dragon Ball in 1995. Alongside Neko Majin and other short works, Sandland followed next in 2000.
Original Serialization
| # | Chapter Title | Pages | Publication | Issue | Sale Date |
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| 1 | Kajika the Cursed | 31 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 32 | 07 July 1998 |
| 2 | Gibachi's Scheme | 15 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 33 | 14 July 1998 |
| 3 | Kajika and Isaza | 15 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 34 | 21 July 1998 |
| 4 | The Third Man | 15 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 35 | 28 July 1998 |
| 5 | Isaza's Abilities | 15 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 36 | 04 August 1998 |
| 6 | Donko's Operation | 15 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 37/38 | 11 August 1998 |
| 7 | Kajika's Shock | 15 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 39 | 25 August 1998 |
| 8 | Gibachi's Dragon Power | 13 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 40 | 01 September 1998 |
| 9 | Will the Curse be Lifted?! | 13 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 41 | 08 September 1998 |
| 10 | The Decisive Battle: Kajika vs. Gibachi | 13 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 42 | 15 September 1998 |
| 11 | Kajika's Doubts | 13 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 43 | 22 September 1998 |
| 12 | Kajika the Kind | 13 | Weekly Shōnen Jump | No. 44 | 29 September 1998 |
Releases
Kajika received a single-volume complete tankōbon release 08 January 1999 in Japan.[1] The volume is presented exclusively in black-and-white, with any color pages from the original serialization presented instead in greyscale.
A digital release later came TBD...
In April 2014, in celebration of the Jaco the Galactic Patrolman collected manga volume release, Shueisha began including new comments from Akira Toriyama on the obi (paper band surrounding the book, generally promotional in nature) of his seven other (non-Dr. Slump and non-Dragon Ball) manga volumes. While each comment was only a short few lines, they provide a quick bit of insight with the occasional nod or comparison to Dragon Ball. Toriyama also contributed a new illustration for each comment showcasing a representative character crossing their arms. These comments were also briefly archived on Shueisha's promotional Jaco the Galactic Patrolman website.[2] For Kajika, Toriyama stated:
As a reaction to the flashiness of Dragon Ball, this is a very unassuming work, but I like this kind of thing.
— Akira Toriyama
The Toriyama's World team released a complete English "scanlation" of Kajika via its tankōbon release in 2001.[3]
Legacy
Alongside Dub from Dub & Peter 1, Ackman and Tenshi from Go! Go! Ackman, Yukio Kyūmonji and Kaede Beniya from Jiya, as well as Pack from the Dragon Ball GT television special, the foursome of Kajika, Isaza, Donbe, and Haya make a cameo appearance in the fourth chapter of Toyotarō's Dragon Ball Heroes: Victory Mission series, originally published in December 2012.[4]
Akira Toriyama's illustration for Kajika used for the cover of the 1998 No. 37/38 double-issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump (containing the series' sixth chapter) was featured as a December 2019 entry in the Dragon Ball Official Site's The Nearly Complete Works of Akira Toriyama ongoing weekday column.[5]
International Media Coverage
- Animerica Extra, May 2000 issue, "In Depth – Kajika"
Notes
- ↑ From what little context we have, it is unclear if "Riva" is the name of a specific race of people or the name of a region/village/area.
External Links
- TBD
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "カジカ／鳥山 明". 集英社の本 公式. Retrieved: 11 December 2019.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "鳥山明先生13年ぶりの「週刊少年ジャンプ」連載作品が遂にコミックス化!!通常版と特装版の２バージョンで登場!!". shonenjump.com. Retrieved: 09 April 2014.
Kanzenshuu News Archive: New Translations: April 2014 Akira Toriyama Obi Comments
Kanzenshuu Translations Archive: "April 2014 Akira Toriyama Obi Comments" - ↑ "Kajika". Toriyama's World. Retrieved: 07 June 2002.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Toyotarō. Dragon Ball Heroes: Victory Mission Chapter 4: "A Rival Appears?!". V-Jump, February 2013. Japan: Shueisha, 21 December 2012.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "【鳥山明ほぼ全仕事】 平日更新24時間限定公開！ 2019/12/10" (10 December 2019). Dragon Ball Official Site. Retrieved: 10 December 2019.
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