Shunsaku Ban [aka Higeoyaji]
Also known as Ban Shunsaku [Higeoyaji]
Hello, My Name (in English) is…
” Higeoyagi, born in Kanda… “
In Japanese, the word hige , meaning “moustache”, and the word oyaji , meaning “old man”, combine to give Shunsaku Ban his even more famous nickname “Higeoyaji” – or “Moustachio” in English.
Distinguishing Features
He’s easily recognizable by his huge, U-shaped, bristly mustache.
It is interesting to note that, even though Shunsaku Ban appears in so many of Tezuka’s series, he didn’t really create him. As Tezuka confesses in his book I am a Manga Artist , Higeoyagi’s character design is in fact based on a doodle that a good friend of Tezuka’s drew of his own father, when both were in middle school. Tezuka swiped it and used it in Old Man Detective , one of his early amateur works, and he soon became an indispensable part of Tezuka’s work.
Status: Super Star (★★★★★)
Shunsaku Ban is, without a doubt, one of Tezuka’s most important Stars. He takes the prize in practically every category, earliest appearances, longest serving, most appearances, etc. However, despite all those appearances, he is, almost without exception, true to his core. Most often cast in the role of a spirited, if not particularly sophisticated, middle-aged man, who is also warm-hearted with a burning sense of justice. of the most petty, quick to temper and fly off the handle of all of Tezuka’s Stars. But when the chips are down, no one comes through more often than Higeoyagi. He’s most often portrayed as a plucky gumshoe detective, or as a teacher of some sort, but in the end, he’s one of the few Stars that transcends the role he’ss been given – and the role becomes him, not the other way around.
Notable Roles
As Tezuka’s longest-running Star, bar none, Shunsaku Ban has appeared in almost every Tezuka work worth noting. His debut precedes Tezuka’s own start as a manga artist, and he appeared in several of his early amateur works – including Old Man Detective (circa 1943).
Arguably, his professional debut came in The Mysterious Underground Men (1948) as “Uncle Bill”, but his early appearances also include Lost World (1948) , Metropolis (1949) , and Next World (1951). known for his role as Astro Boy ‘s teacher, Higeoyaji in Astro Boy (1952-68) .
Besides those roles, he’s made important appearances in Lion Books (1956-57) – including a rare appearance as a young man, with jet-black hair and sans his famous mustache, in the chapter “The Green Cat” (1956) – as well as numerous times in Black Jack (1973-83) , The Three-Eyed One (1974-78) , MW (1976-78) , The Rainbow Parakeet (1981-82) , among many others.
Manga Appearances
If you spot an appearance not already listed, please let us know in the comments section below!
1947
Phantom Koronko Dr.
Golden Bat as “Count Salad”
1948
The Mysterious Underground Men as “Uncle Bill”
The Magic House as “Dr. Higeta”
The Jungle Kingdom as “Sandwitch”
Q-chan’s Arrest Warrant
The Four Fencers of the Forest as “Braton the bandit”
Tobi’s 20 as “the servant”
King Rocket as “Dr. Kamo”
The World of the Queen from a Thousand Years in the Future as “King Boro”
Secret Base on the Shari River as “Frank”
Tuberculosis as “
Lost World as “The Private Detective”
1949
Angel Gunfighter as “the ship captain”
Men with Tails as “Frank Alan”
Metropolis as “the detective”
A Country Without Air
1950
The Golden City as “a passenger on the ship”
The Wonderful Journey
The Plain of Abusegahara as “the village headman”
The Strange Travels of Dr. Tiger as “King Petakon”
The Tutelary God’s Fire
Manga University as “the Detective”
Ashiato Hot Spring
Jungle Emperor as “Kenichi’s Uncle”
1951
Ambassador Atom as “Higeoyaji”
Next World
The Cactus Kid as “the barber”
The Moony Men [Manga Shonen] as “the grandfather”
Fossil Island as “the rock”
1952
Astro Boy (“ Gas People ”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“ Frankenstein ”) as “Higeoyaji”
Skyscraper Kid as “the manager”
A Man From Mars as “King Nero”
The Adventure of Rock
People with Pistols on their Heads as “Nureteya Awabe”
1953
Astro Boy (“Red Cat”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Sea Serpent Island”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Flying Skyscraper”) as “Higeoyaji”
X-Point in the South Pacific as “Sam Yudo”
The Monster of the 38th Parallel Gut
-chan as “the Pachinko customer”
1954
Astro Boy (“Mission to Mars”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Cobalt”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Fuhrer ZZZ”) as “Higeoyaji”
The Devil of the Earth as “Detective Shunsaku Ban”
Boy Wonder as “Kuzuoyaji”
Benkei as “Funako no Tayu”
Dr. Thrill as “Shunsaku Ban aka Dr. Thrill”
1955
Astro Boy (“Electro”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Gernica”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Youth Gas”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Yellow Horse”) as “Higeoyaji”
The Age of Great Floods as “the former doctor who escaped from jail”
Chief Detective Kenichi (“The Case of the Gorilla”) as “the deceased Ringmaster in the gorilla cage”
1956
Astro Boy (“Atlas”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“The Midoro Swamp”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Robot Bombs”) as “Higeoyaji”
Lion Books (“Mankind of the Future”) as “Kuroki”
Lion Books (“The Green Cat”) as “
Oh! We Three
The Rainbow Fortress as “the police detective”
1957
Astro Boy (“Black Lux”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“The Mysterious Ball”) as “Higeoyaji”
Lion Books (“The Crazy Border”) as “a guest at the club”
Lion Books (“The Multi-Eyed Devil”) as “a guest at the station”
Lion Books (“ A Bullet Hole in the Wilderness “) as “the dentist”
Mignon as “Count Rotario”
The Earth War as “Dontaro’s uncle”
1958
Astro Boy (“Crucifix Island”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Fortress of the Centaurs”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Count Bat”) as “Higeoyaji”
The Three Who Glimpse the Future as “Dorokusa”
The Film is Alive as “a drunk”
Super Taiheiki as “the tenement landlord”
Pin Pin Sei-chan as “”
1959
Astro Boy (“The Eyes of Christ”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Secret of the Egyptian Conspirators”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Subterranen Tank”) as “Higeoyaji”
The Merchant of Venice as “the judge”
The Doodle Encyclopedia
The Devil Garon
1960
Astro Boy (“Space Snow Leopard”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“The Invisible Giant”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“A Day to Remember”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Uran”) as “Higeoyaji” ”
Astro Boy (“His Highness Deadcross”) as “Higeoyaji”
Secret Order No.3 as “Inuoka”
Fire Valley as “the grandfather”
Captain Ken as “the man with the time machine”
1961
Astro Boy (“The White-Hot Being”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Plant People”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“The Hot Dog Corps”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“The Third Magician”) as “Higeoyaji”
The Ant and the Giant as “the newspaper reporter”
The Strange Boy as “a spectator at the baseball game”
White Pilot as “”
1962
Astro Boy (“Space Parasites”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Robot Land”) as “Higeoyaji”
A Blue Shadow Behind the Backstop as “the picture on the hanging scroll”
1963
Astro Boy (“Demon Bees”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“The Devil’s Balloons”) as “Higeoyaji”as “Higeoyaji”
Princess Knight [Nakayoshi]
SF Fancy Free (“The Inch Insect”)
The Eye of the Building as “the detective”
Roppu
1964
Astro Boy (“Last Day on Earth”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“The Brain Swap”) as “Higeoyaji”
The Great Zeo as “the Minister”
The Story of Animals (“Sanma”)
1965
Astro Boy (“Roboids”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Robio And Robiette”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Blue Knight”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Slippery Catfish in Imminent Danger”) as “Higeoyaji” ”
Astro Boy (“Atom’s Been Stolen”) as “Higeoyaji”
Leo the Lion Cub (“The Robbers’ Rehabilitation”) as “Kenichi’s father”
Wonder 3 [Shonen Sunday] as “the fisherman”
Ambassador Magma as “the man who stands up to gore”
1966
Astro Boy (“The Face in the Rock”) as “Higeoyaji”
Astro Boy (“Astro Boy Reborn”) as “Higeoyaji”
Flying Ben as “the private detective”
Vampires (“Treachery”) as “Detective Shunsaku Ban”
1967
Astro Boy (“Zolomon’s Jewels”) as “Higeoyaji”
1968
Astro Boy (“The Man Who Returned from Mars”) as “Higeoyaji”
Burunga I as “the teacher”
1969
Gum Gum Punch (“Oshishi”) as “a member of the magic gum heroes”
Rubbish Poetry as “a member of the audience”
1970
The Crater (“The Mask of Tomoe”) as “the toy company staff”
Gachaboi’s Biography
Yaketpachi’s Maria as “Yaketpachi’s father”
1971
Zephyrus as “the farmer”
1972
Lion Books (“Mother River”) as “the XYZTV clerk”
Lion Books (“The March Covered with Mud”) as “a journalist”
Buddha as “Pampas the Detective”
1973
Lion Books (“The Distant Planet”) as “the professor”
Microid S as “the vagabond”
Black Jack (“Miyuki and Ben”) as “a police detective”
Black Jack (“On a Snowy Night”) as “part of the rescue team”
Lolo’s Journey as “a Hokkaido Product Exhibition customer”
The Euphrates Tree as “the detective”
1974
Black Jack (“Sealed Memory”) as “the Tokiwa landlord”
Black Jack (“Ashes and Diamonds”) as “Old Man Matsukata”
Black Jack (“The Sinking Woman”) as “a city official”
Black Jack (“A Wrong Diagnosis”) as “a patient”
Black Jack (“Two Loves”) as “a customer at the sushi”
The Three-Eyed One (“The Mystery of the Third Eye”) as “the owner of Rairaiken”
The Three-Eyed One (“The Jumyoin Residence’s Underground Dungeon”) as “the owner of Rairaiken”
The Jumbo as the “trading company salaryman”
Paper Fortress as “a man in the crowd”
1975
Black Jack (“Stradivarius”) as “a passenger on the airplane”
Black Jack (“The Cat and Shozo”) as “a doctor”
Black Jack (“Tatsu the Outie”) as “the Professor of ‘M’ University”
Black Jack (“Con Man, Aspiring”) as “Dr. Yabui”
The Three-Eyed One (“The Secret of Ghrib”) as “the owner of Rairaiken”
The Three-Eyed One (“UFO Commotion”) as “the owner of Rairaiken”
Astro Boy (“Astro Boy II”) as “Higeoyaji”
1976
Black Jack (“Timeout”) as “a citizen”
Black Jack (“U-18 Knew”) as “a patient”
Black Jack (“Vibration”) as “a passenger on the Shinkansen train”
Black Jack (“Burglary”) as “
Black Jack (“Lost and Found”) as “a passenger on the train”
The Three-Eyed One (“The Seven Wonders of Seven-Snake Temple”) as “the owner of Rairaiken”
Astro Boy (“Showdown in the Standard Deviation Kingdom”) as “Astro’s Teacher”
Horror Tales of Yotsuya as “the doctor”
MW as “the bartender”
1977
Black Jack (“There Were Two Films”) as “Mairi Nozaki”
Black Jack (“Disowned Son”) as “the father”
Black Jack (“Three-Legged Race”) as “Shogo’s father”
The Three-Eyed One (“Mysterious Floating Debris”) as “the owner of Rairaiken”
1978
Black Jack (“Swapped”) as “the judge”
Black Jack (“Tetsu of the Yamanote Line”) as “Tetsu”
Black Jack (“The SL Called Life”) as “the conductor”
1981
Astro Boy (“Space Doll”) as “Astro Boy’s teacher”
Astro Boy (“A Feline Guardian Diety”) as “Astro Boy’s teacher”
The Rainbow Parakeet (“The Tale of Shuzenji“) as “Tsughiagi Fujita”
The Rainbow Parakeet (“R-U-R“) as “the puppeteer”
1982
The Rainbow Parakeet (“Othello“) as “the face of the butterfly”
1986
Midnight as “Midnight’s father Senkichi Mito”
1987
Atom Cat (“The Cat Mummy”) as “department store crowd member”
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