Tezuka In English
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Hyakkimaru

Also known as 百鬼丸 (Hyakkimaru)

Hello, My Name (in English) is…

His name is a combination of the Japanese words hyaku (百) oni (鬼) and maru (丸) which together have the meaning of “a circle of a hundred demons”.

Distinguishing Features

Although missing 48 body parts, you can pick Hyakkimaru out of a crowd by his distinct, spiky black hair tied up in a large ponytail and equally long bangs that covering a good deal of his emotionless face.

Status: Series Lead (★★★)

Hyakkimaru is the very definition of a fighter. Having survived a childhood of disability – missing the 48 body parts that his father sold to a cadre of demons at his birth – Hyakkimaru has had to fight every inch of the way. This has made him hard and grim, the perfect Star to be cast in a samurai period adventure featuring supernatural monsters of all sort.

In a way, Hyakkimaru can also be considered an “older brother” to one of Tezkua’s major Stars – Black Jack. Besides the sullen and emotionally distant disposition, the two also share a certain visual similarity, with a hairstyle the covers half their face. What’s more, Hyakkimaru’s quest to re-assemble his body from the parts he retrieves from defeating the demons has a certain “medical” quality to it. As such, Hyakkimaru is considered by many to be a prototypical version of Black Jack.

Notable Roles

Although the series isn’t named after him, Hyakkimaru made his debut in, and is arguably the main protagonist of, the series Dororo (1967-69), where he appears as a samurai warrior on a mission to hunt down and destroy the demons who effectively stole 48 of his body parts when he was a baby. Besides his appearances in that series, he has also appeared twice in Black Jack (1973-83) in the chapters, “Miyuki and Ben” and “Ashes and Diamonds”, and made a short cameos in Gum Gum Punch (1969) and Gachaboi’s Biography (1970).

Manga Appearances

If you spot an appearance not already listed, please let us know in the comments section below!


1967

Dororo (“Hyakkimaru”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“The Monk”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“Kanekozo”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“Bandai”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“The Face Tumor”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“The Misery Chronicles”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“The Possessed Sword”) as “Hyakkimaru”


1968

Dororo (“Banmon”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“The Fair Fudo”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“Sabame”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“Hell Screen”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“The Two Sharks”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“Shiranui”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“The Cruel Cape”) as “Hyakkimaru”


1969

Dororo (“Midoro”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“Donburi Belly”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“The Four-Turned Bonze”) as “Hyakkimaru”
Dororo (“Nueh”) as “Hyakkimaru”
v (“Oshishi”) as “a member of the magic gum heroes”


1970

Gachaboi’s Biography as “Hyakkimaru” (cameo)


1973

Black Jack (“Miyuki and Ben“) as “Ben”


1974

Black Jack (“Ashes and Diamonds“) as “Doctor Hyakki”


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