In the latest Comic Book Legends Revealed, learn how Moon Knight had his own Manga in Japan in the 1970s/early 1980s that has never been published in the United States!

Welcome to Comic Book Legends Revealed! This is the eight hundred and thirty-fourth installment where we examine three comic book legends and determine whether they are true or false. As usual, there will be three posts, one for each of the three legends. Click here for the first part of this installment's all-Moon Knight legends. Click here for the second part of this installment's legends.

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COMIC LEGEND:

There was a Moon Knight Manga done just in Japan in the late 1970s/early 1980s that hasn't been published in the United States.

STATUS:

True

In the first legend of this installment's all Moon Knight legends, I discussed the pervasive legend that Moon Knight had his own TV show in Japan in the late 1970s/early 1980s (it was particularly pervasive because Doug Moench, the legendary co-creator and longtime writer of Moon Knight's comic book adventures, specifically SAID that such a show existed in a text piece in an issue of Moon Knight in the early 1980s). I explained that it was just a bit of a misunderstanding and that rather than having his own TV show, Moon Knight ALMOST had his own TV series, as part of a deal that Marvel Comics made with Toei Animation in Japan to do some animated adaptations of Marvel Comics properties.

However, the only one of those adaptations that actually came to fruition was a Tomb of Dracula cartoon. The other planned cartoons did not happen. That said, due to the fact that the deal DID exist and the plan WAS to do the cartoon, there was other Moon Knight merchadise in Japan presumably specifically tied to the then-upcoming cartoon.

The primary example of this was a Moon Knight Manga that was published in the pages of the long-running Manga magazine, Televi-Kun...

moon-knight-manga

As you can see from the cover, the comic book WAS a licensed comic, presumably as part of the same overall deal that saw Marvel license its characters for use in the animated projects that didn't end up happening.

It is likely that these Manga adaptations also had something to do with the same thing I mentioned in the first legend, which is that in Japan, a very popular character is a hero known as Moonlight Mask, and thus there would presumably be a strong market for a Manga about a hero like Moon Knight, whether there was a tie-in Anime or not.

One Tumblr user was able to find copies of the Manga in a library and they posted a photo of the Manga on their Tumblr.

moon-knight-manga-library

That same Tumblr also posted what they purport to be the basic setup for the Japanese Moon Knight Manga (I have not read it, of course, so I can't say whether their description is accurate or not):

Name: 冬馬シンゴ(Shingo Tōma)

High school student.

Ninja. Survivor of the ninja clan “Silver Wolf” inheriting a power from sacred wolf.

Battle the evil enemy “Black Wolf” clan.

He is immortal during the moonlit night. Even if a body is bisected, he doesn’t die.

This magazine is for young children, but contains very violent expressions…

Boy, Marvel really should just see if they can reprint this stuff in English, right? Wouldn't that be amazing?

Thanks so much to Leica-Tendo (who has a whole Moon Knight fan blog on Tumblr) for the amazing treasure trove of Moon Knight Manga information! Without these images, some folks would likely think that this Manga didn't actually exist!

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MORE LEGENDS STUFF!

OK, that's it for this installment!

Thanks to Brandon Hanvey for the Comic Book Legends Revealed logo, which I don't even actually anymore, but I used it for years and you still see it when you see my old columns, so it's fair enough to still thank him, I think.

Feel free (heck, I implore you!) to write in with your suggestions for future installments! My e-mail address is cronb01@aol.com. And my Twitter feed is http://twitter.com/brian_cronin, so you can ask me legends there, as well! Also, if you have a correction or a comment, feel free to also e-mail me. CBR sometimes e-mails me with e-mails they get about CBLR and that's fair enough, but the quickest way to get a correction through is to just e-mail me directly, honest. I don't mind corrections. Always best to get things accurate!

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