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Touch (manga)
Encyclopedia
is a Japan
ese high school
baseball
manga
by Mitsuru Adachi
. It was originally serialized in the weekly manga magazine Shōnen Sunday
from 1981–1986. The manga was also adapted into a 101-episode TV anime
series, which was one of the highest-rated television anime series ever, three theatrical anime movies which summarized the TV series, two TV anime specials which take place after the events in the TV series, a live-action TV drama
special, and a live-action movie released in 2005. Touch was one of the winners of the 1983 Shogakukan Manga Award
for shōnen
or shōjo
manga, along with Adachi's Miyuki
.
Shingo and Haruko Uesugi, Punch
Shōhei Harada
Sakata
Eiichirō Kashiwaba
volumes. It has been reissued in 11 wideban volumes, 14 bunkoban volumes, and then again in 17 "perfect edition" volumes in the original magazine size with color inserts.
Original release
Wideban release
Bunkoban release
Kanzenban release
My First Wide (vol.1), June 2002, ISBN 4091621341 (vol.2), June 2002, ISBN 409162135X (vol.3), June 2002, ISBN 4091621368 (vol.4), July 2002, ISBN 4091621554
of the top 100 animated television series, Touch was ranked 9th.
Ending
as Minami Asakura, and Syota Saito as Tatsuya Uesugi.
of the J-pop
group KAT-TUN
was named after Kazuya Uesugi.
Tatsuya Ueda
, of the same band, was named after Tatsuya Uesugi.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
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...
by Mitsuru Adachi
Mitsuru Adachi
is a Japanese manga artist. After graduating from Gunma Prefectural Maebashi Commercial High School in 1969, Adachi worked as an assistant for Isami Ishii. He made his manga debut in 1970 with Kieta Bakuon, based on a manga originally created by Satoru Ozawa...
. It was originally serialized in the weekly manga magazine Shōnen Sunday
Shonen Sunday
, first published on March 17, 1959, is a weekly shōnen manga magazine published in Japan by Shogakukan. Contrary to its title, Weekly Shōnen Sunday issues are released on Wednesdays.- History :...
from 1981–1986. The manga was also adapted into a 101-episode TV 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....
series, which was one of the highest-rated television anime series ever, three theatrical anime movies which summarized the TV series, two TV anime specials which take place after the events in the TV series, a live-action TV drama
Japanese television drama
, also called , are a staple of Japanese television and are broadcast daily. All major TV networks in Japan produce a variety of drama series including murder romance, comedy, detective stories, horror, and many others...
special, and a live-action movie released in 2005. Touch was one of the winners of the 1983 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 shōnen
Shonen
The term refers to manga marketed to a male audience aged roughly 10 and up. The Kanji characters literally mean "few" and "year", respectively, where the characters generally mean "comic"...
or shōjo
Shojo
The term refers to manga marketed to a female audience roughly between the ages of 10-18. The name romanizes the Japanese 少女 , literally: "little female". Shōjo manga covers many subjects in a variety of narrative and graphic styles, from historical drama to science fiction — often with a strong...
manga, along with Adachi's Miyuki
Miyuki (manga)
is a romantic comedy manga series by Mitsuru Adachi. It was published by Shogakukan from 1980 to 1984 in the biweekly manga magazine Shōnen Big Comic . The series was adapted into a movie, an anime television series, and a live-action television drama...
.
Characters
- The main character. The elder of the Uesugi twins. Seemingly selfish and lazy, Tatsuya's main quality is his altruistic nature. Naturally athletic, he lets his younger brother progress further than him in baseball so Meisei would win the Koushien fulfilling their childhood dream. Like Kazuya, he loves Minami Asakura, the girl next door and their childhood friend. However, in the field of love, he too cedes to his younger brother, telling everyone that they are meant to be despite his broken heart.
- The younger of the Uesugi twins. Serious and hard working, he is the complete opposite of his older brother. His pitching skills and perfect grades makes him the favorite of his parents who despite his young age, conspire to get him and Minami to marry. His good looks makes him popular with the girls at school, which irks Tatsuya. Though not as naturally athletic as Tatsuya, Kazuya had work hard to hone his skills since an early age. Like his brother, Kazuya is in love with Minami. He suspects early on that Minami is in love with Tatsuya but even when figuring it out to be the truth, he still refuses to give her up. He hopes to take her to the Koushien and win, fulfilling their dream.
- The Uesugi twins' neighbour and childhood friend. An intelligent and active student who has to help her father with house chores and at the family coffee shop since her mother died at a young age. Minami is a pretty girl who is popular at school and the object of desire for both the Uesugi twins. Although her widower father and Mr. and Mrs. Uesugi often pair Minami and Kazuya to be married, her heart truly lies on Tatsuya. Despite that, she is more often seen with Kazuya and actively supports him on the road to the Koushien which makes everyone think that Minami is actually in love with Kazuya, the star pitcher. Like the twins, she is also naturally talented in sports.
Shingo and Haruko Uesugi, Punch
- Tatsuya and Kazuya's parents. Always seen flirting and teasing with each other despite the boys' presence. Mr. Uesugi sometimes puts on a straight face, usually to tell off Kazuya but soon turns back to teasing with his wife. Mrs. Uesugi is always seen smiling, sometimes giggling behind her hand. They live very carefree lives, often at the cost of their sons. Punch is the Uesugi family SamoyedSamoyed (dog)The Samoyed dog takes its name from the Samoyedic peoples of Siberia. An alternate name for the breed, especially in Europe, is Bjelkier...
. (Shingo, Punch) , (Haruko)
- Minami's father and owner of the Minami Kaze ("South/Southern Wind") coffee shop. A widower, his wife died when Minami was very young. Despite of that, he maintains an upbeat, positive attitude especially when seeing Minami and Kazuya together, hoping that they would soon marry. During match days, he would either watch Meisei's team at the stadium or watch them on the coffee shop's TV if the match is broadcast. Mr. Asakura is also an occasional baseball player.
- Meisei's catcher. He is Kazuya's best friend and is always paired with him.
Shōhei Harada
- A big, intimidating schoolmate at Meisei. Despite his appearance and gruff attitude, Harada frequently gives Tatsuya sound advice on various matters, and at times shows he genuinely cares about his well being.
- A star slugger for Sumi Tech, the runner-up team at Koshien. Akio became seriously devoted to baseball when he played against Kazuya in middle school. He has a mild crush on Minami, and is a friend of Harada's during junior high when he was a delinquent.
- Akio's little sister, she is unusually close to her brother, and somewhat immature besides. She enters Meisei under the pretense of spying for her brother, but seems to develop a schoolgirl crush on Tatsuya. Nevertheless, she is very good at observing and analyzing baseball players.
- A somewhat conceited pitcher who overestimates his worth in the story. He has a decent curve ball, but is not considered a threat by any of the main characters. He is easily forgotten and ignored, but considers Akio Nitta to be his only rival.
- A substitute coach, hired under coach Nishio's recommendation. A brutal coach with a Spartan attitude, on his first day, he fires Minami as manager and ruthlessly beats Tatsuya, Nishimura, and anyone who slacks off on the team. Because of him, the entire team works much harder, but lose their enjoyment of the game, causing many to quit. He holds a grudge against Meisei's baseball team because of some events that occurred when he attended.
- Coach of the Meisei High team. He becomes ill in the brothers' senior year, and must stay in the hospital for its entirety. He assigns an interim coach, Eijiro Kashiwaba, to fill his position, touting him as a "kind, gentle man who loves baseball from the bottom of his heart." The players find, however, that Kashiwaba is not like this at all, much to their chagrin. Coach Nishio returns much later, after nearly a full season has passed.
- Daughter of Coach Nishio, and manager for the Meisei High team. She befriends Minami, and encourages her to also become a team manager. She is the girlfriend of Meisei's former ace, Kuroki, and both she and he see prospective talent in Kazuya's older brother, Tatsuya, and they try to recruit him to the baseball team.
- Upperclassman of Kazuya who initially scouts him out, and finds his pitching incredible enough to recommend that he starts as Meisei's ace in his own place the following year. Afterwards, he moves to third base. He and his girlfriend Sachiko, who also happens to be the team manager, see talent in Tatsuya as well as Kazuya, and constantly try to get him to try out for the team.
- Transfer student to Meisei High who initially idolizes the older brother, Tatsuya, but eventually becomes bitter because he felt he is a better pitcher than Tatsuya if given the same chance. He then swears to be Tatsuya's enemy, and turns from a kind and pleasant young man into a vengeful and rude curmudgeon. He became distrustful of those who are close to Tatsuya, believing them to be playing favoritism and he wasn't completely wrong. He challenged Tatsuya for the position of the team's ace pitcher but before the match was resolved, he had to move to South America due to his father's job. →
Sakata
Eiichirō Kashiwaba
- The brother of Eijirō, and the one who Coach Nishio thought he was hiring.
Manga
The series was collected in 26 tankōbonTankobon
, 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...
volumes. It has been reissued in 11 wideban volumes, 14 bunkoban volumes, and then again in 17 "perfect edition" volumes in the original magazine size with color inserts.
Original release
- Volume 1, December 1981, ISBN 4091206514
- Volume 2, March 1982, ISBN 4091206522
- Volume 3, July 1982, ISBN 4091206530
- Volume 4, October 1982, ISBN 4091206549
- Volume 5, January 1983, ISBN 4091206557
- Volume 6, April 1983, ISBN 4091206565
- Volume 7, July 1983, ISBN 4091206573
- Volume 8, October 1983, ISBN 4091206581
- Volume 9, December 1983, ISBN 409120659X
- Volume 10, May 1984, ISBN 4091206603
- Volume 11, July 1984, ISBN 4091211313
- Volume 12, September 1984, ISBN 4091211321
- Volume 13, November 1984, ISBN 409121133X
- Volume 14, December 1984, ISBN 4091211348
- Volume 15, January 1985, ISBN 409121133X
- Volume 16, April 1985, ISBN 4091211364
- Volume 17, June 1985, ISBN 4091211372
- Volume 18, September 1985, ISBN 4091211380
- Volume 19, October 1985, ISBN 4091211399
- Volume 20, December 1985, ISBN 4091211402
- Volume 21, April 1986, ISBN 4091214517
- Volume 22, May 1986, ISBN 4091214525
- Volume 23, August 1986, ISBN 4091214533
- Volume 24, October 1986, ISBN 4091214541
- Volume 25, November 1986, ISBN 409121455X
- Volume 26, January 1987, ISBN 4091214568
Wideban release
- Volume 1, May 1992, ISBN 409123741X
- Volume 2, July 1992, ISBN 4091237428
- Volume 3, February 1992, ISBN 4091237436
- Volume 4, November 1992, ISBN 4091237444
- Volume 5, January 1993, ISBN 4091237452
- Volume 6, March 1993, ISBN 4091237460
- Volume 7, May 1993, ISBN 4091237479
- Volume 8, July 1993, ISBN 4091237487
- Volume 9, September 1993, ISBN 4091237495
- Volume 10, November 1993, ISBN 4091237509
- Volume 11, January 1994, ISBN 4091237517
Bunkoban release
- Volume 1, April 1999, ISBN 4091932517
- Volume 2, April 1999, ISBN 4091932525
- Volume 3, April 1999, ISBN 4091932533
- Volume 4, May 1999, ISBN 4091932541
- Volume 5, June 1999, ISBN 409193255X
- Volume 6, July 1999, ISBN 4091932568
- Volume 7, August 1999, ISBN 4091932576
- Volume 8, October 1999, ISBN 4091932584
- Volume 9, October 1999, ISBN 4091932592
- Volume 10, November 1999, ISBN 4091932606
- Volume 11, December 1999, ISBN 4091932614
- Volume 12, January 2000, ISBN 4091932622
- Volume 13, February 2000, ISBN 4091932630
- Volume 14, March 2000, ISBN 4091932649
Kanzenban release
- Volume 1, June 2005, ISBN 4091278418
- Volume 2, June 2005, ISBN 4091278426
- Volume 3, June 2005, ISBN 4091278434
- Volume 4, July 2005, ISBN 4091278442
- Volume 5, July 2005, ISBN 4091278450
- Volume 6, July 2005, ISBN 4091278469
- Volume 7, 8 August 2005, ISBN 4091278477
- Volume 8, 8 August 2005, ISBN 4091278485
- Volume 9, 8 August 2005, ISBN 4091278493
- Volume 10, 2 September 2005, ISBN 4091278507
- Volume 11, 2 September 2005, ISBN 4091278612
- Volume 12, 2 September 2005, ISBN 4091278620
My First Wide (vol.1), June 2002, ISBN 4091621341 (vol.2), June 2002, ISBN 409162135X (vol.3), June 2002, ISBN 4091621368 (vol.4), July 2002, ISBN 4091621554
Anime series
The anime series of Touch premiered on 24 March 1985, and ran until 22 March 1987, comprising 101 episodes in total. It was one of the highest-rated anime television shows ever in Japan, with episodes consistently rated 30+ percentage points during parts of its run. In a 2005 poll by TV AsahiTV Asahi
, also known as EX and , is a Japanese television network headquartered in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The company writes its name in lower-case letters, tv asahi, in its logo and public-image materials. The company also owns All-Nippon News Network....
of the top 100 animated television series, Touch was ranked 9th.
| # | Title |
|---|
Staff
- Planning: Tadashi Oka (Fuji TV) & Yoshirō KataokaYoshiro Kataoka, also known by the nickname Hagera, is an anime producer and production designer. He has worked for the Tōkyū Agency, Asatsu DK, and NAS, and he currently works as a full time advisor at Marvelous Entertainment...
(ADK), in cooperation with Kiyoshi Usami (OB Planning) - Executive Producers: Yoshinobu Nakao (Fuji TV), Chihiro Kameyama (Fuji TV), Masashi Fujihara, Shigetsugu Tsuiki
- Art Director: Shichirō Kobayashi
- Backgrounds: Kobayashi Production
- Photography: Studio Gallop
- Music Director: Fusanobu Fujiyama
- Music Work: Zack Promotion
- Music: Hiroaki SerizawaHiroaki SerizawaHiroaki Serizawa is a Japanese singer and songwriter. He has released albums under two other similar names: Hiro Serizawa . He has released music for many Mitsuru Adachi anime series, including Touch and Hiatari Ryōkō!- External links :* *...
- Assistant Animation Director: Minoru Maeda
- Series Bungei Organization: Yumiko Takaboshi, Satoshi Namiki
- Title Animation: Gisaburō SugiiGisaburo Sugiiis an anime director and Nihonga artist. He is currently a member of the anime studio Group TAC, and is most well known for his work as director of the Touch series and the movie Night on the Galactic Railroad...
, Minoru Maeda, Akinori Nagaoka - Animation Director: Tsuneo Maeda
- Series Director: Hiroko TokitaHiroko Tokitais a Japanese animation director and script writer.-Productions worked on:*Bonobono*Chocchan's Story*Descendants of Darkness*Galaxy Angel A*Mamotte! Lollipop*Master Keaton*Miracle Girls*Mirage of Blaze*Mizuiro Jidai...
- Assistant Director: Gisaburō Sugii
- Production Assistance: Studio Junio, Studio Gallop, Kitty FilmsKitty FilmsKitty Films is an anime production company established in 1972 in Japan. The company also operates a record label under "Kitty" or "Kitty Records" .-History:...
- Production: TohoTohois a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...
, Group TACGroup TACGroup TAC was a Japanese animation and computer graphics studio located in Shibuya, Tokyo, and founded in 1968. They have worked on movies, videos, TV shows, and commercials, and have contributed to all stages of the process, including planning, production, sound effects, and so on...
, ADK
Theme songs
Opening- Episodes 1-27: Touch, by Yoshimi IwasakiYoshimi IwasakiYoshimi Iwasaki is a singer and actress. She is notable for singing various theme songs for the TV anime series Touch. In 2008, she joined the fantasy band Sound Horizon for the release of their 6th story CD Moira...
- Episodes 28-56: Ai ga Hitoribotchi, by Yoshimi Iwasaki
- Episodes 57-79: Che! Che! Che!, by Yoshimi Iwasaki
- Episodes 80-93: Hitoribotchi no Duet, by Yumekojo
- Episodes 94-101: Jōnetsu Monogatari, by Yoshimi Iwasaki
Ending
- Episodes 1-27: Kimi ga Inakereba, by Yoshimi Iwasaki
- Episodes 28-62: Seishun, by Yoshimi Iwasaki
- Episodes 63-79: Yakusoku, by Yoshimi Iwasaki
- Episodes 80-101: Kimi wo Tobashita Gogo, by Yumekojo
Live-action movie
A live-action movie of Touch was released in Japan on 10 September 2005; Keita Saito starred as Kazuya Uesugi, Masami NagasawaMasami Nagasawa
is a Japanese actress under Toho Entertainment. She has performed in many movies and television dramas including Crying out Love, In the Center of the World, Dragon Zakura and Proposal Daisakusen. She graduated from Horikoshi High School in 2006. She is also known as "Ma-chan" or, as Tomohisa...
as Minami Asakura, and Syota Saito as Tatsuya Uesugi.
Reception
Kazuya KamenashiKazuya Kamenashi
, often called Kame, is a Japanese idol, singer–songwriter, actor, television personality, producer, radio host and occasional model. Born and raised in Edogawa, Tokyo, he joined the Japanese talent agency, Johnny & Associates, at the age of 12 and was drafted as a member and co-lead vocalist of...
of the J-pop
J-pop
, an abbreviation for Japanese pop, is a musical genre that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in 1960s music, such as The Beatles, and replaced kayōkyoku in the Japanese music scene...
group KAT-TUN
KAT-TUN
KAT-TUN is a Japanese boy band formed by Johnny & Associates in 2001. The group's name is an acronym based on the first letter of each member's family name until the departure of Jin Akanishi in 2010. As of 2010, KAT-TUN stands for Kazuya KAmenashi, Junnosuke Taguchi, Koki Tanaka, Tatsuya Ueda,...
was named after Kazuya Uesugi.
Tatsuya Ueda
Tatsuya Ueda
Tatsuya Ueda , born on October 4 1983, is a Japanese singer from the Japanese idol group KAT-TUN. Born in Kanagawa in Japan, he joined the Japanese talent agency, Johnny & Associates in 1998.- Group Participation :* B.B.A.* M.A.D.* B.B.D....
, of the same band, was named after Tatsuya Uesugi.