Highschool of the Dead (学園黙示録 HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD Gakuen Mokushiroku Haisukūru obu za Deddo) is a manga series written by Daisuke Satō and illustrated by Shōji Satō. The story follows a group of high school students caught in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. The series was serialized in the September 2006 issue of Fujimi Shobo's Monthly Dragon Age, and the first volume was released by Kadokawa Shoten on March 1, 2007,[2] with a total of seven volumes available in Japan as of April 25, 2011.[3] The series is licensed in North America by Yen Press,[4] and released the first volume on January 25, 2011.[5] An anime adaptation produced by Madhouse aired in Japan from July 5, 2010 to September 20, 2010.[6]
Plot
Highschool of the Dead is set in the present day 2010 Japan, beginning as the world is struck by a deadly pandemic that turns humans into zombies, euphemistically referred to by the main characters as "Them" (奴ら Yatsu-ra).The story follows a group of high school students, the high school's nurse, and a young girl as they fight their way to safety through the deadly streets of Japan during a worldwide catastrophic event known as the "Outbreak". As the cast tries to survive the zombie apocalypse, they must also face the additional threats of societal collapse, in the form of dangerous fellow survivors, and the possible decay of their own moral codes.
Media
Manga
Main article: List of Highschool of the Dead chapters
Highschool of the Dead began serialization in the July 2006 issue of Fujimi Shobo's manga magazine Monthly Dragon Age. The first bound volume was released by Fujimi Shobo on March 1, 2007 under Kadokawa Shoten's "Dragon Jr." imprint,[2] with a total of seven volumes sold as of April 25, 2011.[3]
From Volume 6 onwards, the manga is currently published under Fujimi
Shobo's "Dragon Comics Age" imprint. The series went on hiatus from the
end of 2008 until March 2010, with another short break between May and
July 2010. The series has been on yet another hiatus since March 2011.
The manga is licensed in North America by Yen Press,[4] and released the first volume on January 25, 2011.[5]A full-color version of H.O.T.D., called Highschool of the Dead: Full-Color Edition (学園黙示録 HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD FULL COLOR EDITION) began serialization in the February 2011 issue of Monthly Dragon Age. The first two volumes were released by Kadokawa Shoten on February 25, 2011,[7][8] with six volumes currently available in Japan as of February 9, 2013.[9][10] In North America, the full-color edition began serialization in the March 2011 issue of Yen Press' Yen Plus online magazine,[11] and ran until the July 2011 issue.[12] It was later released as a hardcover omnibus on November 22, 2011.[13]
The manga has been licensed for international release in a number of languages and regions. It is published in Spain by Glénat España,[14] in Germany by Carlsen, in Brazil by Panini Comics, in Canada and France for French-language publication by Pika Édition, in Poland by Waneko,[15] and in Taiwan by Kadokawa Media. The first volume was released in May 2008 in Spain, in March 2010 in Germany, in April 2010 in Brazil, and in June 2011 in Poland. Shortly following the inception of the series, however, the manga became popular enough in English via scanlation to draw the attention of the creators, who included a message in English within the magazine's printing of the fifth chapter that requested readers to buy the original manga when it's available.[16]
A crossover manga by Shouji Sato, called Shōji Sato Artworks: Highschool of the Dead & Triage X - Lightning Pop (佐藤ショウジアートワークス 学園黙示録HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD＆トリアージＸ LIGHTNING POP Satō Shōji Ātowākusu: Gakuen Mokushiroku Haisukūru obu za Deddo & Toriāji Ekkusu Raitoningu Poppu), was published on August 9, 2012, featuring characters from Triage X, Sato's other work.[17]
In February 2013, the color editions of Volume 5 and 6 featured jacket bands that confirm that the Highschool of the Dead manga would resume in spring.[1][18]
Anime
Main article: List of Highschool of the Dead episodes
An anime adaptation of H.O.T.D. produced by Madhouse and directed by Tetsuro Araki aired on the Japanese network AT-X from July 5, 2010 to September 20, 2010,[6] with subsequent broadcasts on TV Kanagawa, Tokyo MX, Chiba TV, KBS Kyoto, TV Aichi, TV Saitama, and Sun TV. Six DVD and Blu-ray volumes were released by Geneon Universal Entertainment between September 22, 2010 and February 23, 2011.[19][20]In North America, the series was licensed by Anime Network for simulcast (although these airings are uncensored during explicit scenes).[21] The series was also licensed in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment.[22] Sentai and Madman later gained additional rights to the series,[23][24] with Section23 Films releasing the series with an English dub (produced by Seraphim Digital) on Blu-ray and DVD on June 28, 2011.[25] Manga Entertainment also released the series in the United Kingdom.[26] The English dub of the series aired on Anime Network's VOD service from March 10, 2011 to May 26, 2011, and was made available on Microsoft's Zune Marketplace and Apple's iTunes Store on May 27, 2011 and June 27, 2011, respectively.[27]
An OVA episode of H.O.T.D., entitled "Drifters of the Dead", was bundled on Blu-ray with the limited edition release of the seventh volume of the manga on April 26, 2011.[3] It was originally intended for a February release, but was pushed back.[28] It was later licensed by Sentai Filmworks in North America for streaming.[29]
Music
The series' opening theme is "HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD" by Kishida Kyoudan and the Akeboshi Rockets.[30] The series' closing theme songs differ in each episode, and each are sung by Maon Kurosaki.[30] The CD single for the opening theme was released on August 18, 2010 by Geneon Universal Entertainment.[31] The CD single features the TV and instrumental versions of "HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD" and a new song called "Ripple" (リプル Ripuru), along with an instrumental version of the song. A CD containing all 12 ending themes sung by Kurosaki was released by Geneon on September 22, 2010,[32] along with an original soundtrack.[33]Reception
In Japan, the sixth volume of Highschool of the Dead reached #5 on the Oricon charts between July 5 and July 11, 2010, selling 92,040 copies,[34] and #13 between July 12 and July 18, 2010, selling 43,714 copies for a total of 135,734 copies.[35] The seventh volume of Highschool of the Dead reached #11 on the Oricon charts between May 2 and May 8, 2011, selling 57,016 copies,[36] #2 between May 9 and May 15, 2011, selling 115,154 copies,[37] and #19 between May 16 and May 22, 2011, selling 34,362 copies for a total of 206,532 copies.[38]In North America, the second volume of H.O.T.D. reached The New York Times Best-Selling Manga List, reaching #4 between April 24 and April 30, 2011,[39] #10 between May 1 and May 7, 2011,[40] and #8 between May 8 and May 14, 2011.[41]
For the anime adaptation, Chris Beveridge from Mania.com comments on the first episode, "There's a lot to like here if you're looking for something beyond the usual high school dramas and comedies of the last few years."[42] Carlo Santos of Anime News Network states that, "Other recent zombie works in Western entertainment have tried to play it ironic, or postmodernist, or just plain silly, but this one goes for straight-up horror—and pulls it off admirably."[43] However, Zac Bertschy, also of Anime News Network, states for this episode that, "It just could've easily been written by a script generator or a horror fan with 19 minutes to kill."[44]
Andy Hanley of the UK Anime Network summaries the first manga volume as: "Nothing ground-breaking here, but a volume of mindless fun that brings all of the gory entertainment of a zombie apocalypse to the printed page."[45] Chris Lanxon of Wired UK praises its production quality despite having no single original element.[46]
At a Comic-Con "Best and Worst Manga of 2011" panel, it was listed among the "Worst Manga" in a series of rapid-fire questions.[47]
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