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Disney’s newest animated film, Big Hero 6, which is releasing countrywide in Japan on Dec. 20, is now getting a Japan-exclusive development: it will be adapted into a manga and serialized in Japan. Episode 0 of the manga will be released on Aug. 6 in a double issue of Kodansha’s Weekly Shonen Magazine. After this, the serialization will begin on Aug. 20 in Magazine Special.
Other Disney films to be adapted into manga to date include the animated films Tangled and WALL-E and the live-action series Pirates of the Caribbean. However, each was just a one-shot work. This will be the first time a story is developed that takes place before the movie and will release before the movie as a serialized manga. In recent years, the development of manga linked to anime or movies has been widening more and more. However, because it’s Disney that is now fully tackling Japanese manga, this news is gathering great attention and creating buzz.
Big Hero 6 is Disney’s newest CG animation. It is set in the fictional city of San Fransokyo, a portmanteau of San Francisco and Tokyo. Baymax, a care robot that appears in the film, also references typical Japanese designs. Japanese aspects have been included in various other areas of the film as well, including the look of the cityscape and buildings. There is a lot that Japanese audiences will find familiar in this film.
The manga adaptation is a project to leverage these motifs even more. Director Don Hall divulged, “We want to convey Baymax, which is inspired by Japan, to the world through the manga.”
A talented staff is participating in creating the manga. Appointed to the role of illustrator is Haruo Ueno who was also in charge of illustrations for the manga Phi Brain: Puzzle of God serialized in Weekly Shonen Magazine. “Because of his cute and delicious-looking form, Baymax is an easily likable character for everyone from kids to adults. I hope to convey this friendliness to readers of the manga as well,” Ueno explained, showing his ambition for the project.
Big Hero 6 Official Site
Countrywide Roadshow Release: Saturday, Dec. 20, 2014
Director: Don Hall / Chris Williams
Producer: Roy Conli
Distribution: Walt Disney Studio Japan
American Release: Nov. 7, 2014
Source: animeanime
Source article written by Katsunori Takahashi
