Hikaru no Go facts for kids
| Hikaru no Go | |
First tankōbon volume cover, featuring Hikaru Shindo
|
|
Quick facts for kids ヒカルの碁 |
|
|---|---|
| Genre |
|
| Manga | |
| Written by | Yumi Hotta |
| Illustrated by | Takeshi Obata |
| Published by | Shueisha |
| English publisher | |
| Imprint | Jump Comics |
| Magazine | Weekly Shōnen Jump |
| English magazine | |
| Original run | December 8, 1998 – July 14, 2003 |
| Volumes | 23 |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by |
|
| Written by | Yukiyoshi Ōhashi |
| Music by | Kei Wakakusa |
| Studio | Pierrot |
| Licensed by | |
| Network | TXN (TV Tokyo) |
| English network | |
| Original run | October 10, 2001 – March 26, 2003 |
| Episodes | 75 |
| Anime television film | |
| Hikaru no Go: Journey to the North Star Cup | |
| Directed by |
|
| Written by |
|
| Music by | Kei Wakakusa |
| Studio | Pierrot |
| Network | TV Tokyo |
| Released | January 3, 2004 |
| Runtime | 77 minutes |
| Television drama | |
| Qi Hun | |
| Directed by | Liu Chang |
| Original run | October 27, 2020 – November 26, 2020 |
| Episodes | 36 |
Hikaru no Go (which means Hikaru's Go) is a popular Japanese manga series. It is all about the board game Go. The story was written by Yumi Hotta and drawn by Takeshi Obata.
The series was published in a magazine called Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1998 to 2003. All the chapters were collected into 23 books called tankōbon volumes.
The story begins when a boy named Hikaru finds an old Go board in his grandfather's attic. This board is haunted by a ghost named Sai. Sai was once a famous Go teacher for the emperor in ancient Japan, during the Heian era.
Sai's ghost gets stuck in Hikaru's mind. He starts telling Hikaru how to play Go. This makes Hikaru seem like an amazing Go player, even though he is just starting.
Hikaru no Go was also made into an anime TV show by Studio Pierrot. It had 75 episodes and aired from 2001 to 2003. A special TV movie came out in 2004.
The series has been very successful. Over 25 million copies of the manga have been sold. It won important awards, like the Shogakukan Manga Award in 2000. Many people believe Hikaru no Go helped make the game of Go much more popular around the world, especially among young people.
Contents
The Story of Hikaru's Go Journey
How Hikaru Meets Sai
The main character, Hikaru Shindo, finds an old Go board in his grandfather's storage shed. This board is special because it holds the spirit of Fujiwara-no-Sai. Sai was a brilliant Go player from the Heian period in Japan.
Sai really wants to play Go again. He hasn't been able to since the Edo period, when his ghost appeared to another great player, Honinbo Shusaku. Sai's biggest dream is to achieve the Kami no Itte (神の一手, "Divine Move"). This is a perfect Go move that no one has ever made.
Since only Hikaru can see and hear Sai, the ghost lives inside Hikaru's mind. Sai becomes like a separate part of Hikaru.
Hikaru Starts Playing Go
At first, Hikaru isn't very interested in Go. But Sai keeps urging him to play. Hikaru starts playing by letting Sai tell him what moves to make.
He goes to a Go club and plays against a very talented young player named Akira Toya. With Sai's help, Hikaru beats Akira twice. Akira is amazed and becomes obsessed with finding out how Hikaru became so good.
Hikaru sees how dedicated Akira and Sai are to Go. This makes him want to play the game on his own. He starts as a beginner but has a special talent. He can remember entire games move by move.
Hikaru's Training and Growth
Hikaru trains at Go clubs and study groups. He also plays practice games with Sai. He works hard to become an Insei, which is like an apprentice Go player. Later, he becomes a professional Go player.
Along the way, Hikaru meets many different Go players. They all have their own styles and dedication to the game. Hikaru is determined to prove his own skills to Akira, Sai, and himself.
The Hokuto Cup Tournament
Hikaru enters the Hokuto Cup. This is a big international tournament for Go professionals under 18 years old. Players from Japan, China, and Korea compete.
Akira Toya, who is the highest-ranked young Japanese pro, automatically qualifies. Hikaru has to play in special matches to earn his spot. He becomes one of the three players chosen to represent Japan. Akira and Kiyoharu Yashiro are the other two.
During the tournament, the captain of the Korean team, Ko Yong Ha, says something that is mistranslated. It makes it sound like he is insulting Honinbo Shusaku, the player Sai once possessed. This makes Hikaru very angry because he feels it's an insult to Sai.
Hikaru wants to play against Ko Yong Ha to show him how skilled Sai truly is. Their coach, Atsushi Kurata, lets Hikaru play against Korea. Hikaru plays with great passion but loses by a very small margin.
Japan finishes last in the tournament, behind Korea and China. However, the Japanese team surprised everyone by playing much better than expected. At the end, Ko Yong Ha asks Hikaru why he plays Go. Hikaru replies, "To link the far past, with the far future." This deep answer shows the connection between Sai, Shusaku, and Hikaru.
After the Tournament
After the Hokuto Cup, Hikaru and Akira play against each other in another tournament called the Young Lions. The story doesn't show who wins this match.
Media About Hikaru no Go
The Manga Series
The Hikaru no Go manga was written by Yumi Hotta and drawn by Takeshi Obata. It was published in Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine from December 8, 1998, to July 14, 2003. A Go professional named Yukari Umezawa helped make sure the Go games in the series were accurate.
All 189 chapters were collected into 23 tankōbon volumes by Shueisha. The first book came out on April 30, 1999, and the last on September 4, 2003.
In North America, Viz Media released the English version of Hikaru no Go. It started appearing in Viz's Shonen Jump magazine in January 2004. Viz Media also released all 23 collected volumes from May 19, 2004, to May 3, 2011.
The Anime Series
Studio Pierrot created the Hikaru no Go anime television series. It was shown on TV Tokyo from October 10, 2001, to March 26, 2003. There were 75 episodes in total. A special TV movie, Hikaru no Go: Journey to the North Star Cup, aired on January 3, 2004.
Viz Media also brought the Hikaru no Go anime to North America. They started releasing the series on DVD in December 2005. The anime was shown on ImaginAsian TV starting in May 2006. It was also available for streaming online on Toonami Jetstream. The entire series was added to Netflix in 2011.
Video Games
Several Go video games based on the series were made by Konami for the Game Boy Advance. These games were released between 2001 and 2003. One of the games was also released on the GameCube. Hikaru and Sai also appeared in the Weekly Shōnen Jump crossover game Jump Super Stars.
Live-Action Drama
A Chinese live-action TV show based on Hikaru no Go was made. It was called Qi Hun and had 36 episodes. This show was streamed online from October 27 to November 26, 2020.
See also
In Spanish: Hikaru no Go para niños
- Go Player, another animated series about young Go players.
