Giant Killing

For other uses, see Giant-killing (disambiguation).

Giant Killing
Cover of the first volume of Giant Killing featuring Takeshi Tatsumi
ジャイアントキリング (Jaianto Kiringu)
Manga
Written by	Masaya Tsunamoto
Illustrated by	Tsujitomo
Published by	Kodansha
English publisher	NA: Kodansha USA
Magazine	Weekly Morning
Demographic	Seinen
Original run	2007 – present
Volumes	48
Anime television series
Directed by	Yuu Kou
Produced by	Atsuya Hirooka Yuji Shibata
Written by	Toshifumi Kawase
Music by	Hideharu Mori
Studio	Studio Deen
Original network	NHK
Original run	April 4, 2010 – September 26, 2010
Episodes	26

Giant Killing (Japanese: ジャイアントキリング, Hepburn: Jaianto Kiringu) is Japanese manga series written by Masaya Tsunamoto and illustrated by Tsujitomo. A 26-episode anime adaptation animated by Studio Deen began airing in Japan on NHK, BS2 and BShi on April 4, 2010. In 2010, it won the Kodansha Manga Award for best general manga.

Plot

East Tokyo United, ETU, has been struggling in Japan's top football league for a few years. It has taken everything they have just to avoid relegation. To make matters even worse, the fans are starting to abandon the team. In an effort to improve their performance, ETU has hired a new coach, the slightly eccentric Tatsumi Takeshi. Tatsumi, who was considered a great football player when he was younger, abandoned the team years before but has proven himself as the manager of one of England's lower division amateur teams. The task won't be easy, the teams East Tokyo United is pitted against have bigger budgets and better players. However, Tatsumi is an expert at Giant Killing. ETU home stadium in this manga was modeled on Hitachi Kashiwa Soccer Stadium, while the team appears to have been inspired by Tokyo Verdy, which has faced a similar riches-to-rags trajectory in the J. League.

Characters

Takeshi Tatsumi (達海 猛, Tatsumi Takeshi)

Voiced by: Tomokazu Seki

Former East Tokyo United star and member of the Japan national football team, he transfers to a foreign club after a successful spell at ETU. After retirement as a player, Tatsumi coaches FC Eastham, an English Division 5 amateur team, into the fourth round of the FA Cup. Following his success with Eastham, the thirty-five-year-old is convinced by ex-teammate Gotoh, now GM at East Tokyo United, to return to Japan and coach the team where he spent his years as a player. While his somewhat eccentric management decisions are usually contested by the board and supporters, they start to bear fruit as ETU makes themselves a viable contender again.

Shigeyuki Murakoshi (村越 茂幸, Murakoshi Shigeyuki)

Voiced by: Ryotaro Okiayu

Plays Defensive Midfield for East Tokyo United. He joined ETU as a promising talent in the hopes of playing with then-ETU star Tatsumi, but his dreams were crushed when Tatsumi left for Europe the following season. He is known as "Mr. ETU" throughout the storyline because of his loyalty and dedication to the club, even during the seasons it spent relegated in J2.

Daisuke Tsubaki (椿 大介, Tsubaki Daisuke)

Voiced by: Takahiro Mizushima

Plays Midfield for East Tokyo United. At twenty years old, he was promoted from ETU's reserve team to ETU's "A" team by Tatsumi. He is a very fast runner and is able to stretch opposition defences. Lacking self-confidence, Tsubaki has doubts about his ability to help the team, however Tatsumi encourages him because if he lets his talent show, it will more than compensate for the mistakes he makes.

Luigi Yoshida (ルイジ 吉田, Yoshida Luigi)

Voiced by: Daisuke Ono

Plays Midfield for East Tokyo United. Of half-Japanese and half-Italian descent; known as the "Prince" among ETU teammates because of his ingenious playmaking ability and his often narcissistic attitude, the latter of which leads him to have a lackadaisical approach to the game; this, however, makes him an asset in taking set pieces, because his indifferent look makes him enigmatic enough that opponents have a hard time reading him.

Kazuki Kuroda (黒田 一樹, Kuroda Kazuki)

Voiced by: Kentarō Itō

Plays defense center back for East Tokyo United. Kuroda had problems working with Tatsumi when he first started as manager, prompting him to ask for a transfer to another club. In this time he is able to reflect with fellow defender Sugie on how it is they who need to change and not Tatsumi.

Yusaku Sugie (杉江 勇作, Sugie Yusaku)

Voiced by: Daisuke Kirii

Plays defense center back for East Tokyo United. He is loyal to Kuroda and skipped practice with him so they could reflect on the state of the team and how they were playing.

Hiroshi Midorikawa (緑川 宏, Midorikawa Hiroshi)

The goal keeper for East Tokyo United. One of the older members of the team, he gives advice to Kuroda and Sugie to help them become better defenders.

Yuri Nagata (永田有里, Nagata Yuri)

Voiced by: Masumi Asano

Daughter of ETU's President Nagata, and PR Manager for the club. Was a big fan of ETU and Tatsumi during his player years, and sets off for England alongside GM Gotoh to convince Tatsumi to return to Japan as coach of ETU.

Media

Manga

Giant Killing began as a manga series written by Masaya Tsunamoto and illustrated by Tsujitomo, which began serialization in Kodansha's Weekly Morning manga magazine in 2007. Kodansha USA are publishing the manga in English in a digital format.

Volume list

No.	Release date	ISBN
01	April 23, 2007	978-4-06-372593-3
02	July 23, 2007	978-4-06-372618-3
03	October 23, 2007	978-4-06-372637-4
04	January 23, 2008	978-4-06-372660-2
05	April 23, 2008	978-4-06-372682-4
06	July 23, 2008	978-4-06-372716-6
07	October 23, 2008	978-4-06-372740-1
08	November 21, 2008	978-4-06-372753-1
09	January 23, 2009	978-4-06-372769-2
10	April 23, 2009	978-4-06-372789-0
11	July 23, 2009	978-4-06-372818-7
12	October 23, 2009	978-4-06-372840-8
13	January 22, 2010	978-4-06-372868-2
14	April 23, 2010	978-4-06-372897-2
15	May 21, 2010	978-4-06-372904-7
16	July 23, 2010	978-4-06-372918-4
17	October 22, 2010	978-4-06-372950-4
18	January 21, 2011	978-4-06-372972-6
19	April 22, 2011	978-4-06-372992-4
20	July 22, 2011	978-4-06-387023-7
21	October 22, 2011	978-4-06-387047-3
22	January 23, 2012	978-4-06-387074-9
23	April 23, 2012	978-4-06-387098-5
24	July 23, 2012	978-4-06-387127-2
25	October 23, 2012	978-4-06-387148-7
26	January 23, 2013	978-4-06-387178-4
27	April 23, 2013	978-4-06-387206-4
28	July 23, 2013	978-4-06-387228-6
29	October 23, 2013	978-4-06-387262-0
30	January 23, 2014	978-4-06-387284-2
31	April 23, 2014	978-4-06-388323-7
32	July 23, 2014	978-4-06-388350-3
33	October 23, 2014	978-4-06-388381-7
34	January 23, 2015	978-4-06-388416-6
35	April 23, 2015	978-4-06-388436-4
36	September 23, 2015	978-4-06-388474-6
37	November 20, 2015	978-4-06-388510-1
38	January 22, 2016	978-4-06-388559-0
39	March 23, 2016	978-4-06-388572-9
40	May 23, 2016	978-4-06-388595-8
41	July 22, 2016	978-4-06-388617-7
42	October 21, 2016	978-4-06-388637-5
43	March 23, 2017	978-4-06-388659-7
44	July 21, 2017	978-4-06-388694-8
45	October 23, 2017	978-4-06-510278-7
46	January 23, 2018	978-4-06-510735-5
47	April 23, 2018	978-4-06-511227-4
48	July 23, 2018	978-4-06-511858-0

Anime

An anime television series was produced by Studio Deen, directed by Yuu Kou, and written by Toshifumi Kawase. The anime began airing in Japan on April 4, 2010. On May 21, 2010 it was announced that Crunchyroll had picked up the series for simulcast distribution starting on May 23. The opening theme song to Giant Killing is "My Story", by THE CHERRY COKE$. The closing credit music is "Get tough!" by G.P.S.

Episode list

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No.	Title	Original air date

External links

• Giant Killing at Weekly Morning Template:Ja icon
• Anime official website Template:Ja icon
• Giant Killing (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia