The Seven Deadly Sins (manga)

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The Seven Deadly Sins (Japanese: ?????, Hepburn: Nanatsu no Taizai) is a Japanese fantasy manga series written and illustrated by Nakaba Suzuki. It has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Sh?nen Magazine since October 2012, with the chapters collected into thirty-one tank?bon volumes as of April 17, 2018. The manga features a setting similar to the European Middle Ages, with its titular group of knights representing the seven deadly sins.

As of January 2015, The Seven Deadly Sins had sold over 10 million copies. It was adapted into a 24-episode anime television series by A-1 Pictures that aired from October 2014 to March 2015. The manga has been licensed by Kodansha USA for English publication in North America, while the chapters are released digitally by Crunchyroll in over 170 countries as they are published in Japan. Netflix acquired the exclusive English streaming rights for the anime series while Funimation currently has the home video rights. A second season of the anime series began airing on January 13, 2018. An anime film is scheduled to premiere on August 18, 2018.

Video The Seven Deadly Sins (manga)

Plot

The Seven Deadly Sins were once an active group of knights in the region of Britannia (?????, Buritania), who disbanded after they supposedly plotted to overthrow the Liones Kingdom (??????, Rionesu ?koku). Their supposed defeat came at the hands of the Holy Knights, but rumors continued to persist that they were still alive. Ten years later, the Holy Knights staged a coup d'état and captured the king, becoming the new, tyrannical rulers of the kingdom. The third princess, Elizabeth, then starts out on a journey to find the Seven Deadly Sins and enlist their help in taking back the kingdom.

Maps The Seven Deadly Sins (manga)

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Nakaba Suzuki, The Seven Deadly Sins began as a one-shot pilot chapter published on November 22, 2011 in Weekly Sh?nen Magazine's 52 issue of the year. The manga started serialization in the magazine's 45 issue of 2012, released on October 10, 2012. The chapters have been collected into 31 tank?bon volumes as of April 17, 2018. The first of three planned story arcs was completed with chapter 100 and Suzuki has projected that the series will run for 20 to 30 volumes. The series is licensed for English language release in North America by Kodansha USA, who published the first volume on March 11, 2014. As the series is published in Japan, it is also released simultaneously in English digitally by Crunchyroll in over 170 countries.

A special issue of Weekly Sh?nen Magazine, published on October 19, 2013, featured a small crossover between The Seven Deadly Sins and Hiro Mashima's Fairy Tail, where each artist drew a yonkoma (four-panel comic) of the other's series. An actual crossover chapter between the two ran in the magazine's combined 4/5 issue of 2014, which was released on December 25, 2013. Nakaba wrote a one-shot for the November 2014 issue of the sh?jo manga magazine Nakayoshi, released on October 3, 2014. He also created a comedic one-shot depicting how Meliodas and Hawk first met that ran in the October 20, 2014 issue of Magazine Special. From February 24 to May 10, 2015, two more spin-off manga by Nakaba were available on the smartphone and tablet application Manga Box. Naku na, Tomo yo (??? ??, "Do Not Cry, My Friend") is about Hendrickson and Dreyfus' younger years, while Gilthunder no Shinjitsu (?????????, "Gilthunder's Truth") is set after the Vaizel Fight Festival arc and follows Gilthunder.

Spin-off manga

A comedic spinoff series by Juichi Yamaki, titled Mayoe! The Seven Deadly Sins Academy! (??!???????!, Mayoe! Nanatsu no Taizai Gakuen!) and imagining the characters as high school students, ran in Bessatsu Sh?nen Magazine from August 9, 2014 to October 8, 2016. It was collected into four tank?bon volumes. The Seven Deadly Sins Production (????????????, Nanatsu no Taizai Purodakushon), a comedic spin-off by Chiemi Sakamoto that imagines the characters as actors performing in a live-action TV show, ran in Aria from November 28, 2015 to October 28, 2017. It was collected into four tank?bon volumes.

A comedic yonkoma titled The Seven Deadly Sins: King's Road to Manga (????? ???????, Nanatsu no Taizai Kingu no Manga Michi) and written by Masataka Ono that depicts King as an aspiring manga artist, began on February 20, 2016 in Magazine Special before transferring to the Manga Box app on February 1, 2017 and ending later that year. Its chapters were collected into three tank?bon volumes. A manga adaptation of Mamoru Iwasa's novel Seven Days was serialized in Sh?nen Magazine Edge from January 17 to September 2017 and shows how Ban and Elaine met in more detail. It is illustrated by Y? Kokukuji, titled The Seven Deadly Sins: Seven Days ~The Thief and the Holy Girl~ (????? ??????~??????~, Nanatsu no Taizai: Sebun Deizu ~T?zoku to Seish?jo~) and was collected into two tank?bon volumes.

Anime

In April 2014, the 20th issue of Weekly Sh?nen Magazine announced that The Seven Deadly Sins was being adapted into an anime television series. The series debuted on MBS and other Japan News Network stations on October 5, 2014. The staff was revealed in the combined 36/37 issue of the year: created by A-1 Pictures, directed by Tensai Okamura, written by Sh?tar? Suga (Lagrange: The Flower of Rin-ne), with Keigo Sasaki (Blue Exorcist) providing character designs and Hiroyuki Sawano composing the music. The show's first opening theme song is "Netsuj? no Spectrum" (?????????, Netsuj? no Supekutoramu, "Spectrum of Passion") performed by Ikimono-gakari for the first twelve episodes and the second opening theme is "Seven Deadly Sins" performed by Man with a Mission, while the first ending theme titled "7-Seven" is a collaboration between Flow and Granrodeo, the second ending theme from episode thirteen onwards is "Season" the major label debut of Alisa Takigawa.

An original video animation (OVA) titled "Ban's Additional Chapter" (??????, Ban no Bangai-hen) was included with the limited edition of volume 15 of the manga, released on June 17, 2015. A second OVA composed of nine humorous shorts was shipped with the limited edition of the sixteenth volume of the manga, released on August 12, 2015.

A second anime series was confirmed on September 27, 2015 to air in 2016. This turned out to be a four-week anime television special featuring an original story by Nakaba Suzuki, titled The Seven Deadly Sins: Signs of Holy War (????? ?????, Nanatsu no Taizai: Seisen no Shirushi), that began airing on August 28, 2016 on MBS and TBS. The special was produced by A-1 Pictures, directed by Tomokazu Tokoro, and written by Yuniko Ayana and Yuichiro Kido, featuring character designs by Keigo Sasaki. The music was composed by Hiroyuki Sawano and Takafumi Wada. Its opening theme song is "Classic" by the rock band Mucc and its ending theme is "Iroasenai Hitomi" (??????) by Alisa Takigawa. A commercial following the final episode confirmed a second anime series has been green-lit.

The first The Seven Deadly Sins anime series was licensed for English release by Netflix as its second exclusive anime, following their acquisition of Knights of Sidonia. All 24 episodes were released on November 1, 2015 in both subtitled or English dub formats. The Signs of Holy War arc, labeled as "Season 2", has also been licensed by Netflix and was released on February 17, 2017. On February 14, 2017, Funimation announced that they acquired the first anime for home video distribution for US and Canada and will release the series on Blu-ray and DVD later this year.

A second season, titled The Seven Deadly Sins: Revival of The Commandments (????? ?????, Nanatsu no Taizai: Imashime no Fukkatsu), was announced at the "Nanatsu no Taizai FES" event in July 2017 and premiered on January 13, 2018. Takeshi Furuta and Takao Yoshioka replaced Tensai Okamura and Sh?tar? Suga as director and series composer, respectively, while the other main staff members returned from the first season to reprise their roles.

An anime film, titled The Seven Deadly Sins the Movie: Prisoners of the Sky (??? ????? ???????, Gekij?-ban Nanatsu no Taizai Tenk? no Torawarebito), is scheduled to premiere in Japanese theaters on August 18, 2018. It is directed by Yasuto Nishikata and written by Makoto Uezu, featuring an original story by Nakaba Suzuki and Noriyuki Abe serving as chief director. The other main staff members returned from the anime series to reprise their roles in the film. The movie features three original characters called Sorada, Elatte, and Bellion. Sorada will be voiced by Tsubasa Yonaga, Elatte by Haruka Tomatsu, and Berylion by Toshiyuki Morikawa. The movie is set to release in Japan on August 18, 2018.

Other media

Four light novels based on The Seven Deadly Sins have been published; The Seven Deadly Sins -Gaiden- The Seven Wishes of the Royal City from Old Times (????? -??- ????? ?????, Nanatsu no Taizai -Gaiden- Sekijitsu no ?to Nanatsu no Negai) by Shuka Matsuda on December 17, 2014; The Seven Deadly Sins: Seven Days (????? ??????, Nanatsu no Taizai Sebun Deizu) by Mamoru Iwasa on December 26, 2014; The Seven Deadly Sins: Seven Scars They Left Behind (????? -??- ???????????, Nanatsu no Taizai -Gaiden- Karera ga Nokoshita Nanatsu no Kizuato) by Shuka Matsuda on October 16, 2015; and The Seven Deadly Sins: Seven-Colored Recollections (????? -??- ?????, Nanatsu no Taizai -Gaiden- Nanairo no Tsuioku) by Shuka Matsuda on October 17, 2016. Vertical released Seven Scars They Left Behind in North America in May 2017, with Seven-Colored Recollections set to follow in March 2018.

An illustration collection titled Rainbow of Sin (????, Nanairo no Tsumi) and an official fan book were both released on February 17, 2015, while a guidebook for the anime called Ani-Sin (???, Ani-Tsumi) was released on April 17, 2015.

A video game titled Seven Deadly Sins: Unjust Sin (????? ?????, Nanatsu no Taizai Shinjitsu no Enzai) was developed by Bandai Namco Entertainment and released for the Nintendo 3DS on February 11, 2015. A game titled The Seven Deadly Sins: Knights of Britannia (????? ????????, Nanatsu no Taizai: Buritania no Tabibito) was developed by Bandai Namco for the PlayStation 4. It was released in North America and Europe on February 9, 2018.

The Seven Deadly Sins Manga Book Series By Nakaba Suzuki Volumes 1 ...

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Reception

As of August 2014, the collected volumes of The Seven Deadly Sins had 5 million copies in circulation. By January 2015, this number had grown to 10 million sold. The first collected volume of the series sold 38,581 copies in its first week, ranking number 13 on the Oricon manga chart. Its second volume ranked 5 selling 106,829 in its first week, while its third debuted at number 4 with 135,164 copies. The thirteenth volume had the manga's best debut week to date, selling 442,492 for first place on the chart. The series was the ninth best-selling manga of 2014, with over 4.6 million copies sold that year. For the first half of 2015, The Seven Deadly Sins was the number one best-selling series. It finished the year in second place with over 10.3 million copies sold, behind only One Piece. It was the sixth best-selling of 2016, with over 5 million copies sold, and the seventh of 2017, with close to 3.6 million copies sold. The 2014 edition of Kono Manga ga Sugoi!, which surveys people in the manga and publishing industry, named The Seven Deadly Sins the fifth best manga series for male readers. The title was named Best Sh?nen Manga at the 39th Kodansha Manga Awards alongside Yowamushi Pedal. It was also nominated for the 2014 Manga Taish? award and as Best Youth Comic at the 42nd Angoulême International Comics Festival in France.

The North American releases of volumes two and four charted on The New York Times Manga Best Seller list at number seven and nine respectively. Rebecca Silverman of Anime News Network (ANN) gave the first volume a B grade, calling the art interesting and the story a "neat take on the basic knights-in-shining-armor." She saw influence from Akira Toriyama in Meliodas and 1970s sh?jo manga in the female characters. However, Silverman felt the art had issues with perspective and commented that Elizabeth lacked character development. Both Silverman and Danica Davidson of Otaku USA warned that Meliodas' perverted actions towards Elizabeth, which are used for comedic relief, could possibly be misinterpreted by some readers. In a brief review, Jason Thompson claimed that the series follows common sh?nen manga elements, making its plot twists and dialog predictable. He did however like the art and the series' European setting.

The first DVD volume of the anime debuted at number one on Oricon's Japanese animation DVD chart with 3,574 copies sold. With 32,762 copies sold of the five volumes released at the time, The Seven Deadly Sins was the 30th best-selling anime of the first half of 2015. Reviewing the first anime for ANN, Theron Martin felt that the series has a slow start with generic sh?nen action fare but the storytelling picks up significantly in the second half. He had strong praise for the music and enjoyed the main cast and their interactions, but not the common archetypal villains. Martin noted that the art has a "semi-cartoonish look" that one would expect in a series that "skews a bit younger," but The Seven Deadly Sins' graphic violence and minimal fan service prove its "anything but a kiddie show."

The novel The Seven Deadly Sins -Gaiden- Sekijitsu no ?to Nanatsu no Negai was the 33rd best-selling light novel of the first half of 2015, with 61,939 copies sold.