To-y

Japanese manga series by Atsushi Kamijo and its OVA adaptation

To-y

First tankōbon volume cover, featuring To-y Fujii

Genre| Musical[1]
Manga
Written by| Atsushi Kamijo
Published by| Shogakukan
Imprint| Shōnen Sunday Comics
Magazine| Weekly Shōnen Sunday
Demographic| Shōnen
Original run| April 3, 1985 – March 25, 1987
Volumes| 10
Original video animation
Directed by| Mamoru Hamatsu
Written by| Izo Hashimoto
Music by| Masaya Matsuura
Studio| Studio Gallop
Released| October 1, 1987
Runtime| 55 minutes

To-y is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Atsushi Kamijo. It was serialized by Shogakukan in the shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Sunday from 1985 to 1987, with the chapters collected in ten tankōbon volumes. It tells the story of GASP, an underground punk rock band, and their attempt to get a recording contract and attain stardom. To-y was adapted into an original video animation (OVA) in 1987.

## Plot

[edit]

The story follows To-y Fujii (藤井冬威), lead singer of GASP, and his attempts not to sell out during his rise through the recording industry. The story also follows To-y's growing relationship with Niya Yamada (山田二矢), as the two find comfort in one another while they are shunned by mainstream society.

## Media

[edit]

### Manga

[edit]

To-y is written and illustrated by Atsushi Kamijo. It was serialized in Shogakukan's Weekly Shōnen Sunday from April 3, 1985, to March 25, 1987.[2][3] Shogakukan collected its chapters in ten tankōbon volumes released from September 18, 1985, to June 18, 1987.[4][5] Shogakukan re-published the series in six bunkoban volumes between January 17 and May 16, 1997.[6][7] Shogakukan re-released the series into a five-volume deluxe edition for its 30th anniversary between December 21, 2015, and April 25, 2016.[8][9]

#### Volumes

[edit]

No. | Japanese release date  | Japanese ISBN

|
|

1|  September 18, 1985[4]| 4-09-121351-0
2|  November 18, 1985[10]| 4-09-121352-9
3|  January 18, 1986[11]| 4-09-121353-7
4|  March 18, 1986[12]| 4-09-121354-5
5|  June 18, 1986[13]| 4-09-121355-3
6|  September 18, 1986[14]| 4-09-121356-1
7|  November 18, 1986[15]| 4-09-121357-X
8|  February 18, 1986[16]| 4-09-121358-8
9|  April 18, 1986[17]| 4-09-121359-6
10|  June 18, 1987[5]| 4-09-121360-X

### Original video animation

[edit]

The manga was adapted into an original video animation (OVA) by Gallop, directed by Mamoru Hamatsu, with character designs by Naoyuki Onda, and art direction by Shichirō Kobayashi.[18] Masaya Matsuura was in charge of the music, and his band Psy-S provided the theme songs; "Lemon no Yūki" (Lemonの勇気) and "Cubic Lovers".[19][20] It was released on October 1, 1987,[21] on VHS, LaserDisc, Betamax and Video High Density.[20] On June 30, 2021, Sony Music Entertainment Japan, who produced the OVA, released it on a limited remastered edition Blu-ray set.[22]

## Legacy

[edit]

To-y was a pioneer of band-themed manga and has served as an influence to other manga series like Beck and Nana.[23]

In 2007, Justin Sevakis of Anime News Network reported that a frame-by-frame digital restoration of the To-y OVA was being done by fans. He cited it as the first fan restoration in the anime community.[20]

Visual kei rock band Penicillin took their name from the group Penicillin Shock seen in To-y, and titled their first album after the fictional band.[24] In 2015, Atsushi Kamijo drew the album cover for Penicillin's Memories ~Japanese Masterpieces~.[25]

Professional wrestler Toi Kojima changed his ring name to "To-y" in February 2024.[26] He explained that his parents were fans of Kamijo and To-y and had named him after the series, so he will now be using the ring name to honor it and bring more attention to pro-wrestling.[27]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Oppliger, John (July 26, 2004). "Ask John: How Popular is Music Themed Anime?". AnimeNation. Archived from the original on May 22, 2021. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
2. ^ 週刊少年サンデー 1985年 表示号数16. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 29, 2020. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
3. ^ 週刊少年サンデー 1987年 表示号数15. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on March 29, 2020. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
4. ^ a b ＴＯーＹ 1 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
5. ^ a b ＴＯーＹ 10 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
6. ^ TO-Y / 1 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Archived from the original on January 31, 2004. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
7. ^ TO-Y / 6 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Archived from the original on January 31, 2004. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
8. ^ Ｔｏ－ｙ ３０ｔｈ ＡｎｎｉｖｅｒｓａｒｙＥｄｉｔｉｏｎ １ (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
9. ^ Ｔｏ－ｙ ３０ｔｈ ＡｎｎｉｖｅｒｓａｒｙＥｄｉｔｉｏｎ ５ (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
10. ^ ＴＯーＹ 2 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
11. ^ ＴＯーＹ 3 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
12. ^ ＴＯーＹ 4 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
13. ^ ＴＯーＹ 5 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
14. ^ ＴＯーＹ 6 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
15. ^ ＴＯーＹ 7 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
16. ^ ＴＯーＹ 8 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
17. ^ ＴＯーＹ 9 (in Japanese). Shogakukan. June 28, 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
18. ^ 「To-y」‐Original Video Animation HD REMASTER Blu-ray Limited Premium Box. Sony Music Shop (in Japanese). Archived from the original on September 2, 2021. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
19. ^ Clements, Jonathan; McCarthy, Helen (2015). The Anime Encyclopedia: A Century of Japanese Animation (3rd ed.). Stone Bridge Press. p. 2371\. ISBN 978-1611720181. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
20. ^ a b c Justin Sevakis (March 15, 2007). "Buried Treasure To-y". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on October 28, 2014. Retrieved October 27, 2014.
21. ^ 上條淳士×松浦雅也が写し取った1980年代東京の空気がよみがえる「To-y」‐Original Video Animation HD REMASTER Blu-ray Limited Premium Box【不破了三の「アニメノオト」Vol.10】. Akiba Souken (in Japanese). Kakaku.com. August 7, 2021. Archived from the original on September 2, 2021. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
22. ^ OVA「To-y」Blu-rayプレミアムボックスの詳細発表、イメージアルバムの復刻版が付属. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. May 1, 2021. Archived from the original on September 2, 2021. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
23. ^ マンガの常識を突き破った名作がよみがえる『To–y』＆『SEX』上條淳士 インタビュー. Da Vinci (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. June 6, 2017. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
24. ^ 【インタビュー】PENICILLIN、初のカバー集完成「高校時代の俺をビックリさせたい」. Barks (in Japanese). Japan Music Network. March 18, 2015. Archived from the original on September 30, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
25. ^ ""TO-Y" Manga Artist Draws Visual-kei Band PENICILLIN's Latest Album Jacket". Crunchyroll. March 3, 2015. Archived from the original on October 6, 2015. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
26. ^ DDT Pro-Wrestling [@ddtproENG] (February 14, 2024). "Toy Kojima will be changing his name today! From today onwards, he will be called... To-y" (Tweet). Retrieved February 16, 2024 - via Twitter.
27. ^ Kojima, Toi [@toy_ddt_k] (February 15, 2024). "Boku no honmyō no Tōi wa chichi to haha ga Kamijō-sensei no sakuhin de aru To-y ga suki de nazuketekuremashita!" 僕の本名の斗偉は父と母が上條先生の作品であるTo-yが好きで名付けてくれました！ [My real name, Toi, was given to me by my parents because they liked Mr. Kamijo's work, To-y!] (Tweet) (in Japanese). Retrieved February 16, 2024 - via Twitter.

## External links

[edit]

* To-Y (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia

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