Tenken

Japanese manga series

For the novel series whose title is sometimes shortened to Tenken, see Reincarnated as a Sword.

Tenken

天顕祭
(Tenkensai)
Genre|

* Epic[1]
* Romance[1]
* Science fiction[1]

Manga
Written by| Yumiko Shirai
Published by| Sanctuary Publishing
English publisher|

* NA: One Peace Books

Published| July 30, 2008
Volumes| 1

Tenken (Japanese: 天顕祭, Hepburn: Tenkensai) is a Japanese doujinshi manga written and illustrated by Yumiko Shirai. It was originally written in 1997 and later sold at various conventions and by mail order. In 2008, Sanctuary Publishing sold the manga as a volume.

The series has received a positive response from critics and won the Encouragement Prize at the Japan Media Arts Festival in the manga division in 2007.

## Plot

[edit]

The plot is based on the mythological dragon Yamata no Orochi.[2]

## Publication

[edit]

Yumiko Shirai first wrote the manga in 1997. Upon submitting it to a manga publisher, they told Shirai to change her art style. Shirai refused and instead sold it as doujinshi (self-published manga) at doujinshi conventions such as COMITIA and by mail order.[3][4][5] Sanctuary Publishing published the manga in a tankōbon volume, which was released on July 30, 2008. It included an obi with comments by Nahoko Uehashi, whom Shirai had previously worked with.[4]

In September 2010, One Peace Books announced that they licensed the manga for English publication.[6] The released the print volume on September 15, 2010.[7] Digital manga service Azuki added the manga to their catalog in August 2023.[8]

## Reception

[edit]

John Oppliger of AnimeNation praised the characters and story, particularly the use of Japanese mythology and folklore in the latter. Oppliger felt the artwork was a mix of the artsyles of Goseki Kojima's Lone Wolf and Cub and Hiroaki Samura's Blade of the Immortal.[9] Chris Zimmerman of Comic Book Bin felt the story was unique from other manga despite its hero's journey theme. Zimmerman also liked the artwork, which he described as detailed and expressive.[10] Scott Green of Ain't It Cool News praised the artwork and story, describing the manga as more clearly Japanese than most other manga.[1]

At the 2007 Japan Media Arts Festival, it won the Encouragement Prize in the manga division.[11] It was the first doujinshi to win the award.[4]

In January 2009, Sanctuary Publishing reported the volume had sold 66,000 copies.[12]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d Green, Scott (November 12, 2010). "AICN Anime - Ninja-ing into November". Ain't It Cool News. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
2. ^ 天顕祭. Kotobank (in Japanese). Retrieved November 16, 2023.
3. ^ 天顕祭 (in Japanese). Japan Media Arts Festival. Archived from the original on January 10, 2008. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
4. ^ a b c Watanabe, Kei (July 26, 2008). 天顕祭：同人マンガが異例のメディア芸術祭受賞 書籍化され、30日から発売. Mainichi Shimbun (in Japanese). Archived from the original on September 2, 2008. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
5. ^ メディア芸術祭奨励賞受賞同人誌 「天顕祭」が商業出版へ. Anime! Anime! (in Japanese). July 10, 2008. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
6. ^ Manry, Gia (September 14, 2010). "One Peace Books Licenses Award-Winning Manga Tenken". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
7. ^ Manry, Gia (September 14, 2010). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, September 12-18". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
8. ^ Cayanan, Joanna (August 10, 2023). "Azuki Adds 10 Manga Series, 13 1-Shot Titles from Media Do, MediBang!, One Peace Books This Month". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
9. ^ Oppliger, John (September 13, 2010). "A Ten for Tenken". AnimeNation. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
10. ^ Zimmerman, Chris (October 6, 2010). "Tenken". Comic Book Bin. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
11. ^ Loo, Egan (December 4, 2007). "Coo, Gurren-Lagann, 'Kafka' Win Media Arts Awards". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
12. ^ 「天顕祭」またまた重版 (in Japanese). Sanctuary Publishing. January 29, 2009. Archived from the original on February 20, 2009. Retrieved November 16, 2023.

## External links

[edit]

* Tenken (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia