Kyo Kara Maoh!

Kyo Kara Maoh! (今日から㋮王!) is a series of Japanese light novels written by Tomo Takabayashi and illustrated by Temari Matsumoto. The story follows the adventures of Yuri Shibuya, an average 15-year-old Japanese high school student, who is suddenly transported to another world where he is told that he is now the king of demons.

Yuri becomes the king of a nation where all of the citizens are demons, but they appear indistinguishable from humans. Their only distinguishing traits are their long lives and the ability to use magic. The people of the Demon Tribe are able to make a pact with an element after which they can then use magic of that element. Covenant Castle is in the capital of the Demon Kingdom. It is the residence of the demon king. The culture of The Great Demon Kingdom is very different from the Japanese culture Yuri is accustomed to, and the differences make for amusing mishaps with long-ranging consequences, such as an accidental proposal of marriage.

The series was adapted into an anime in 2004 by NHK and a manga in 2005 serialized in Asuka magazine. The manga was updated for release by VIZ Media and launched in North America on September 30, 2014.[2]

Plot

While on his way home from school, Yuri Shibuya sees his classmate, Ken Murata, being harassed by bullies. When Yuri intervenes, Murata runs away, and Yuri becomes their new target. They force him into the girls' bathroom and shove his face into a toilet, where a portal suddenly appears.

Media

Light novels

Written by Tomo Takabayashi with illustrations by Temari Matsumoto. The novels are released under Kadokawa's Beans Collection. The first novel was released in November 2000. There are currently 22 books in the series.[3] 17 are main story novels and the other 5 are extras and side stories which provide background and other information to the story.

Official Doujinshi

So far several doujinshi have been released by the author and artist under the title of APOLLO (アポロ) that have continuation of elements from the original series. In particular APOLLO 00 in 2008, APOLLO 0.1 in 2009, and APOLLO 01 in 2019.[4] In these was the original planned ending in which most of the story was a dream, however this ending was discarded.

Manga

Drawn by Temari Matsumoto, the Kyo Kara Maoh! manga series (Titled Kyō Kara MA no Tsuku Jiyūgyō! (今日からマのつく自由業!) in Japanese) debuted in June 2005 issue of the monthly Asuka magazine on April 23, 2005,[5] and ended on July 23, 2016. The first volume of the manga was released on December 26, 2005, and 21 volumes total have been released.[6][7]

An English-language version of the manga was licensed by Tokyopop but when Tokyopop shut down their North American branch in 2011 all of their licenses were cancelled. They released seven volumes of the manga before they shut down. After 3 years, VIZ Media licensed a digital release in North America, releasing the seven volumes in 2014.[8]

Anime

The anime adaptation of Kyo Kara Maoh was directed by Junji Nishimura, animated by Studio Deen, and produced by NHK. It aired across Japan on NHK.[9] The series consists of 117 episodes and 5 OVA episodes.[10][11] While much the first season follows the original story from the novels, the plot in the following seasons varies drastically.

The anime was originally licensed for release in North America by Geneon under the title ''Kyo Kara Maoh! God(?) Save Our King!'', but when Geneon ceased production of their titles in late 2007, it left three volumes of the second season unreleased on DVD in North America. On July 3, 2008, Geneon Entertainment and Funimation Entertainment announced an agreement to distribute select titles in North America. While Geneon Entertainment will still retain the license, Funimation Entertainment will assume exclusive rights to the manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution of select titles. Kyo Kara Maoh! was one of the titles involved in the deal. In August 2011, Funimation announced that the license expired and that they had no plans to renew the license.[12]

Musical

In April 2013 the series was adapted into a musical titled ''Kyo Kara Maoh! Birth of the Maou''.[14] It showed for 11 days during golden week at the Hakuhinkan theater. It was produced by Sōgō Vision.

A second musical adaptation titled ''Kyo Kara Maoh! Second Advent of the Demon King'' premiered in 2015. It ran in Tokyo's Space Zero from October 1 to October 11.[15][16]

A third musical ran in 2016, titled ''Kyo Kara Maoh! The Demon King Runaway Edition''. It featured an original story, running in Tokyo's Space Zero from November 3 to November 13.[17]

type	tv series
director	Junji Nishimura
producer	Yūji Shibata
writer	Akemi Omode
music	Yoichiro Yoshikawa
studio	Studio Deen
network	NHK
first	April 3, 2004
last	February 19, 2009
episodes	117
episode list	List of Kyo Kara Maoh! episodes