I"s


I"s is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masakazu Katsura. The story's main character is 16-year-old high school student Ichitaka Seto who is in love with his classmate Iori Yoshizuki, but too shy to tell her. Again and again he plans to tell her his true feelings, but each time something gets in the way. Things become even more complicated when Itsuki Akiba returns to Japan; she is a girl Ichitaka was friends with in their childhood before she moved to the United States, and who had a huge crush on him.
Originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump in Japan from 1997 to 2000, the series was collected into 15 tankōbon volumes by Shueisha. It was adapted into a two-episode original video animation, titled From I"s, in 2002, and a six-part OVA, called I"s Pure, which was released in 2005 and 2006. The manga and both OVAs were licensed in North America by Viz Media. The manga was released from April 2005 to September 2007, while the OVAs were released as a box set on March 24, 2009.

Characters

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Media

Manga

I"s, written and illustrated by Masakazu Katsura, was serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump from April 21, 1997 to May 29, 2000. Publisher Shueisha collected the chapters into 15 tankōbon volumes. The manga was licensed in North America by Viz Media, and was released from April 15, 2005 to September 4, 2007. However, Viz censored their releases in order to, as they stated, "fit the criteria of audiences in the U.S.". All edits were done to conceal nudity, specifically characters' breasts, and were made with the approval of Katsura. However, as of the 13th through 15th volumes, the censorship of nudity has ceased. Jason Thompson declared the edits one of "The Greatest Censorship Fails" in manga.
The manga was also released domestically in other countries, such as in Argentina by Editorial Ivrea, in France by Tonkam, in Germany by Carlsen Comics, in Hong Kong by Jonesky, in Italy by Star Comics, in Mexico by Grupo Editorial Vid, in Spain by Planeta DeAgostini and in Taiwan by Tong Li Comics.

Volume list

Original video animations

The manga was adapted into two original video animation series, From I"s in 2002 and I"s Pure, which was released in 2005 and 2006. The OVA generally follows the main plot of the manga, but due to the shorter nature of the OVA, few of the main characters play a less prominent role and others such as Jun and Aiko are omitted altogether. Due to the missing characters, there are many situations in the OVA that follow the plot in the manga but are played out by different characters. In addition to the manga, Viz Media also licensed both OVA series and released them in North America as a box-set on March 24, 2009.

''From I"s''

From I"s is the first OVA based on I"s, consisting of two 30-minute episodes, released December 9, 2002 and March 19, 2003, respectively. A box set containing both episodes as well as a making-of documentary on a third DVD, was released on March 25, 2004. The story of From I"s is not an adaptation of a story from the manga, but a new story set during the characters' summer holidays.

''I"s Pure''

I"s Pure is the second OVA based on I"s, a 6-episode OVA series animated by ARMS, produced by Pierrot, and released on DVD in Japan by Liverpool. There is also a DVD volume 0 containing promotional and background material.
;Episodes
  1. "Au commencement"
  2. "Souvenir"
  3. "Adieu"
  4. "Vertige"
  5. "Déclaration d'amour"
  6. "Ensemble"

    Drama

A Japanese television drama adaptation aired between December 21, 2018 and April 26, 2019 on SKY PerfecTV!'s SkyPer! channel. It starred Amane Okayama as Ichitaka Seto, and Sei Shiraishi as Iori Yoshizuki. Kyoka Shibata played Itsuki Akiba, and Minori Hagiwara played Izumi Isozaki.

Video games

A video game titled I"s Pure, based on the OVA series of the same name, was released on November 9, 2006 for the PlayStation 2 in Japan.
Additionally, despite being a romantic dramedy, four characters from I"s are featured in Jump Ultimate Stars, a fighting game featuring many characters from popular Shōnen Jump series. None of the I"s characters fight directly, however, and simply serve a support role for other characters.

Reception

By 2008, the I's manga had sold over 10 million copies.