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Shadow Star
	Manga volume 1 cover, featuring Shiina Tamai and Hoshimaru
なるたる; (Narutaru)
Genre	Dark fantasy; Mystery;
Manga
Written by	Mohiro Kitoh
Published by	Kodansha
English publisher	NA: Dark Horse Comics;
Magazine	Monthly Afternoon
English magazine	NA: Super Manga Blast!;
Demographic	Seinen
Original run	1998 – 2003
Volumes	12 (List of volumes)
Anime television series
Directed by	Toshiaki Iino
Written by	Chiaki J. Konaka
Music by	Susumu Ueda
Studio	Planet
Licensed by	NA: Central Park Media;
Original network	Kids Station, TBS
Original run	July 7, 2003 – September 29, 2003
Episodes	13 (List of episodes)

Shadow Star, known in Japan as Narutaru (なるたる), is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Mohiro Kitoh, originally serialized in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Monthly Afternoon from 1998 to 2003. The Japanese name is an abbreviation of Mukuro Naru Hoshi, Tama Taru Ko (骸なる星珠たる子), which roughly translates to Corpse of a Star; A Precious Child. In North America, it was licensed by Dark Horse Comics and serialized in Super Manga Blast!. A 13-episode anime adaptation by Planet was broadcast in 2003 and was released in English by Central Park Media.

Plot

The protagonist of the series is a twelve-year-old girl named Shiina Tamai. She bonds with a starfish-shaped "dragonchild" (baby "shadow dragon") whom she calls Hoshimaru. The series is mainly about the interaction between Shiina and other young people who have also bonded with dragons.

Media

Manga

Shadow Star, written and illustrated by Mohiro Kitoh, was serialized in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Monthly Afternoon from 1998 to 2003.^[3] Kodansha collected its chapters in twelve tankōbon volumes, released from August 19, 1998, to December 22, 2003.^[4]^[5]

In North America, the manga was licensed for English release by Dark Horse Comics and serialized in their Super Manga Blast! manga magazine.^[6] The series ran in the magazine from March 29, 2000,^[7] to February 1, 2006,^[8] when the magazine ceased its publication.^[9] Dark Horse Comics collected the chapters in seven volumes, which were released from September 5, 2001, to December 21, 2005.^[10]^[11]

Anime

A 13-episode anime adaptation by Planet was broadcast from July 7, to September 29, 2003, on Kids Station.^{[citation needed]} The anime adapted the storyline of the first six volumes (seven volumes of the American release) of the manga.^{[citation needed]}

The anime was licensed by Central Park Media and released in English as Shadow Star Narutaru, and has played on Comcast's Anime Selects multiple times.^{[citation needed]} In 2007 it ran on the Illusion on Demand television network.^{[citation needed]} Central Park Media released the title under their "U.S. Manga Corps" line, on 4 DVDs, and later re-released the DVDs in a box set.^{[citation needed]} Central Park Media filed for bankruptcy in 2009, and the DVDs have since been out of print.^[12]

Reception

Tasha Robinson of the Sci Fi Channel described the anime series as "transformed" from "fascinatingly quirky" to "slow but expressive".^[13]

References

^ King, Patrick. "Shadow Star Vol.3: Shadows of the Past". animefringe. Archived from the original on June 29, 2003. Retrieved December 8, 2019.
^ Santos, Carlo (September 20, 2005). "Shadow Star Narutaru DVD 2 - Review". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on January 12, 2019. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
^ 鬼頭莫宏「なるたる」新装版、描き下ろしカバーで6月より刊行開始. Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. June 14, 2017. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ なるたる（１） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ なるたる（１２） (in Japanese). Kodansha. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ "U.S. Manga News Briefs". Anime News Network. October 23, 1999. Archived from the original on November 7, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ "Super Manga Blast! #1". Dark Horse Comics. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ "Super Manga Blast! #59". Dark Horse Comics. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ Alexander, Isaac (November 24, 2005). "Super Manga Blast Discontinued". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ "Shadow Star Vol. 1 TPB". Dark Horse Comics. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ "Shadow Star Vol. 7: Victim's Eyes, Assailant's Hands TPB". Dark Horse Comics. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
^ "Syndicated Comics". www.comicsbeat.com. 30 April 2009. Archived from the original on 2021-02-28. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
^ Robinson, Tasha. "Shadow Star Narutaru." Sci Fi Channel. May 21, 2008. Retrieved on December 26, 2010.