Higanjima

Plot

When Akira Miyamoto learns that his older brother, Atsushi, is missing, his family begins to fall apart. The family business fails, and his father becomes an alcoholic. His two parents constantly compare Akira to Atsushi. Worse, Akira has a crush on a girl named Yuki, who already has a boyfriend, his friend Ken.

One day, Akira finds a girl unconscious in front of his house. The girl, Rei Aoyama, shows Akira Atsushi's ID card, claiming that Atsushi is alive. Rei explains that Atsushi is trapped on Higanjima Island, said to be inhabited by vampires. Akira invites his friends to help his brother, under the guise of a vacation to celebrate their graduation.

Upon arrival, vampires attack their boat and capture all of them except Rei. However, Akira escapes with his friends before vampires can drain their blood. On the island, he meets with Atsushi, who explains that the vampires are led by Miyabi, another vampire. Trained by Atsushi, Akira and his friends begin the battle against Miyabi and his vampire army in order to escape the island alive.

Publication

Higanjima was serialized between 2002 and 2010 in the Young Magazine. Kodansha released the first tankōbon volume on April 4, 2003 and the 33rd was published on December 6, 2010. A sequel series, Higanjima: Saigo no 47 Nichikan (彼岸島 最後の47日間), was serialized in the same magazine from October 2, 2010 to July 28, 2014. Sixteen volumes were published between January 6, 2011 and September 5, 2014. Another sequel, Higanjima 48 Nichigo... (彼岸島 48日後…), started to be serialized on August 18, 2014. The first volume was published on December 5, 2014; as of July 6, 2017, twelve volumes have been released.

The first series was published in France by Soleil Manga. Taiwanese publisher Tohan translated all the three series into Chinese.

Cast

Reception

Mark Schilling of The Japan Times describes the vampires as "not the sensitive heartthrobs of Twilight but vicious, ravenous types who revel in terror and torture." The film grossed $1,247,050 in Japan and $22,142 in Taiwan.

Television drama

A live-action television adaptation aired between October 24, and December 26, 2013 on MBS, and TBS. Starring Shunya Shiraishi as Akira, other cast members include Ryohei Suzuki, Rio Yamashita, Megumi Sato, Rui Kurihara, Yuya Endo, Shingo Tsurumi, and Yūga Yamato. The series was released on DVD on March 26, 2014. A sequel television series adapting Higanjima: Saigo no 47 Nichikan and featuring the same cast was announced in August 2014.

Video game

A video game adaptation of Higanjima was released in 2005 by Now Production for the PlayStation Portable.