The series revolves around the lives of two rough-and-tumble high school friends, Hiroshi Kato (加藤 浩志, Katō Hiroshi) and Toru Nakama (中間 徹, Nakama Tōru), who frequently cause trouble and start fights. Toru and Hiroshi style their hair in punch perms and also adopt exaggerated swaggering gaits. The manga also features an assortment of outlandish characters who also sport unusual fashions and hairstyles.
A spin-off parody, titled Be-Bop Kaizokuban (Be-Bop 海賊版), Memeoka Manhiru, was serialized in Bessatsu Young Magazine,[5] and its chapters were collected in six tankōbon volumes, released from January 1990 to January 1996.[6][7]
Live-action films
There are seven live-action films based on the manga; six films directed by Hiroyuki Nasu and released between 1985 and 1988, and a 1994 film directed by the manga's own author, Kazuhiro Kiuchi.
Be-Bop High School (ビー・バップ・ハイスクール) (December 14, 1985)[8]
Be-Bop High School: Kōkō Yotarō Aika (ビー・バップ・ハイスクール 高校与太郎哀歌) (August 9, 1986)[9]
Be-Bop High School (ビー・バップ・ハイスクール) (February 19, 1994)[14]
Video game
A video game, titled Be-Bop High School: Kōkōsei Gokuraku Densetsu (ビーバップハイスクール 高校生極楽伝説, Bi-Bappu Hai Sukuru: Kōkōsei Gokuraku Densetsu), was released on March 30, 1988, by Data East for the NintendoFamicom console.[15]
Original video animation
A seven-episode original video animation (OVA) adaptation, animated by Toei Animation, was released between January 26, 1990,[16] to December 11, 1998.[17] A three-episode OVA, based on Be-Bop Kaizokuban, was released between 1991 and 1993.[5]
Drama
A special television drama adaptation of two episodes was broadcast on TBS on June 16, 2004,[18] and August 17, 2005.[19]
Reception
The manga has sold over 40 million copies.[20] The series' eighth volume had a first print run of 2.27 million copies in 1987, making it the publisher's highest first print run of all time; the record was broken by Attack on Titan's 13th volume in 2014, which had a first print run of 2.75 million copies.[21][22]
^Chavez, Ed (February 7, 2008). "Yanki Doodle Dandy!". Otaku USA. Archived from the original on April 12, 2021. Retrieved April 30, 2020. The yanki ideal made popular by titles Be-Bop High School, Shounan Bakusouzoku, Bukkomi no Taku, and Rokudenashi Blues was especially appealing to me. Yanki are basically Japanese juvenile delinquents, prone to fighting over turf, foxy girls, and imitating the honor-bound world of the yakuza on their own troubled-teen terms
^ビー・バップ・ハイスクール. Eiren Database (in Japanese). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. Archived from the original on September 20, 2020. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
^ビー・バップ・ハイスクール 高校与太郎哀歌. Eiren Database (in Japanese). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
^ビー・バップ・ハイスクール 高校与太郎行進曲. Eiren Database (in Japanese). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. Archived from the original on February 5, 2009. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
^ビー・バップ・ハイスクール 高校与太郎狂騒曲. Eiren Database (in Japanese). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. Archived from the original on September 8, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
^ビー・バップ・ハイスクール 高校与太郎音頭. Eiren Database (in Japanese). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. Archived from the original on September 8, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
^ビー・バップ・ハイスクール 高校与太郎完結篇. Eiren Database (in Japanese). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. Archived from the original on July 4, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
^ＢＥ－ＢＯＰ－ＨＩＧＨＳＣＨＯＯＬ ビー・バップ・ハイスクール. Eiren Database (in Japanese). Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. Archived from the original on June 23, 2013. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
