They Were Eleven

They Were Eleven (Japanese: 11人いる！, Hepburn: Jūichinin Iru!) is a Japanese science fiction manga series written and illustrated by Moto Hagio. It was serialized in three issues of Shogakukan's Bessatsu Shōjo Comic magazine in 1975. The following year, it won the 21st Shogakukan Manga Award in the combined shōjo and shōnen category. The series has inspired a live-action television film, an anime film, multiple stage plays, and an audio drama CD. It also inspired a sequel manga series, Zoku Jūichinin Iru! Higashi no Chihei, Nishi no Towa (続・11人いる！東の地平・西の永遠, "They Were Eleven, Continued: Horizon of the East, Eternity of the West"), serialized in Bessatsu Shōjo Comic magazine from 1976 to 1977. They Were Eleven was originally licensed in English by Viz Media and published in the manga anthology Four Shōjo Stories in 1996. The series and its sequel have been licensed by Denpa for a new English-language release in 2022. The anime film was originally licensed in English by Central Park Media, but it was discontinued in 2004.

They Were Eleven
Cover of the 2019 reissued collected edition
11人いる！
(Jūichinin Iru!)
GenreScience fiction, suspense[1]
Manga
Written byMoto Hagio
Published byShogakukan
English publisher
MagazineBessatsu Shōjo Comic
DemographicShōjo
Original runSeptember 1975 (1975-09) – November 1975 (1975-11)
Volumes1
Manga
  • Zoku Jūichinin Iru!
  • Higashi no Chihei, Nishi no Towa
Written byMoto Hagio
Published byShogakukan
English publisher
MagazineBessatsu Shōjo Comic
DemographicShōjo
Original runDecember 1976 (1976-12) – February 1977 (1977-02)
Volumes1
Live-action television film
Directed byTōru Minegishi
Written byMamoru Sasaki
Music byRyōhei Hirose
Original networkNHK
Released
  • January 2, 1977 (1977-01-02)
Runtime45 minutes
Anime film
Directed by
Written by
  • Toshiaki Imaizumi
  • Kazumi Koide
Music byYasuhiko Fukuda
StudioMagic Bus
Licensed by
(expired)
Released
  • November 1, 1986 (1986-11-01)
Runtime91 minutes
Stage plays
  • They Were Eleven
    • Axel: June 25, 2004 – July 11, 2004
    • Axel: December 26, 2008 – January 12, 2009
    • Studio Life: February 5, 2011 – March 27, 2011
    • Studio Life: January 10, 2013 – January 20, 2013
    • Studio Life: May 18, 2019 – June 2, 2019
  • Sequel manga series
    • Studio Life: February 28, 2013 – April 7, 2013
    • Morning Musume '16: June 11, 2016 – June 26, 2016
Audio drama
Produced by
  • Yoshiaki Imanishi
  • Shima Yoshida
Written byHikari Onodera
ReleasedSeptember 25, 2013 (2013-09-25)
Episodes8

Story

Ten young space cadets are put onto a decommissioned spaceship as their final test. If they pass this test, their lifelong dreams of being valued people in their respective societies will come true. Their orders are to survive as long as they can with what they have. Once they arrive at the ship, they find that their crew has gained an eleventh member—and no one can remember the original lineup well enough to recognize which of them is the newcomer.

As the days pass, the eleven cadets must deal with their suspicions of each other as well as the sudden knowledge that the spaceship is in a decaying orbit around a star, which is causing the temperature on the ship to rise. With this rise in temperature, a sickness begins to spread among the crew as they work to stabilize their orbit and determine who among them is the spy.

Media

Manga

They Were Eleven was serialized in the September, October, and November issues of Shogakukan's Bessatsu Shōjo Comic magazine in 1975.[2][3][4] Shogakukan collected the individual chapters, along with three unrelated short stories by Hagio, into a single bunkoban volume published on July 20, 1976.[5][6] Shogakukan has since reissued They Were Eleven several times: in 1978,[7] 1986,[8] 1994,[9] 2007,[10] and 2019.[11] Viz Media originally licensed the series for an English-language release in North America, published in the now out-of-print anthology Four Shōjo Stories in 1996.[12] In 2021, Denpa re-licensed the series for publication in the third quarter of 2022.[13][14] They Were Eleven is also licensed by Ediciones Tomodomo in Spain[15] and by Japonica Polonica Fantastica in Poland.[16]

Sequel

A sequel manga series, titled Zoku Jūichinin Iru! Higashi no Chihei, Nishi no Towa (続・11人いる！東の地平・西の永遠, "They Were Eleven, Continued: Horizon of the East, Eternity of the West"), was serialized in the December, January, and February issues of Bessatsu Shōjo Comic magazine in 1976 and 1977.[17][18][19] Shogakukan collected the individual chapters into a single bunkoban volume published on August 20, 1977.[20][21] Shogakukan has since reissued Zoku Jūichinin Iru! several times: first in 1978,[22] and later in collected editions of They Were Eleven published in 1986,[8] 1994,[9] 2007,[10] and 2019.[11] In 2021, Denpa licensed the sequel series for an English-language release in North America and was published in the third quarter of 2022.[14]

Live-action film

A 45-minute live-action television film adaptation of the manga was broadcast in Japan on January 2, 1977, as part of the NHK's Shōnen Drama Series.[2][23][24] The film's screenplay was written by Mamoru Sasaki. It starred Taizō Sayama as Tada and the Takarazuka Revue's Haruka Yamashiro as Frol.[2]

Anime film

A 91-minute anime film adaptation of the manga was released in Japan on November 1, 1986.[25][26] It was licensed by Central Park Media in North America and released on VHS with English subtitles in the early 1990s.[27] It was re-released on VHS with a newly produced English dub in 1996 and on DVD with dual language audio tracks in 2004.[28] Central Park Media discontinued their home video release in 2004.[29] The New York company MYC & Associates liquidated the anime license in 2009.[30]

Cast

Staff
  • Director: Satoshi Dezaki, Tsuneo Tominaga
  • Executive Producer: Hidenori Taga
  • Original Story: Moto Hagio
  • Planning: Shigekazu Ochiai
  • Screenplay: Toshiaki Imaizumi, Katsumi Koide
  • Animation Director: Keizo Shimizu
  • Character Design: Akio Sugino, Keizo Shimizu
  • Effects Director: Kenichi Maejima
  • Mechanical Design: Yōichi Yajima
  • Art Director: Junichi Higashi
  • Cinematography: Nobuo Koyama
  • Audio Director: Shigeharu Shiba
  • Music Director: Zen Oikawa
  • Music: Yasuhiko Fukuda
    • Theme Song: "Boku no Honesty", Shinichirō Kawakami
  • Producer: Minoru Kotoku
  • Production: Magic Bus, Kitty Films

Stage plays

They Were Eleven has been adapted into several stage plays in Japan. The first, performed by the all-male acting troupe Axel, ran from June to July 2004;[31] the second, performed by Axel, ran from December 2008 to January 2009;[32] the third, performed by the all-male acting troupe Studio Life, ran from February to March 2011;[33][34] the fourth, performed by Studio Life, ran throughout January 2013;[1][35] and the fifth, performed by Studio Life, ran from May to June 2019.[36][37]

The sequel manga series has also been adapted into two stage plays in Japan: one performed by Studio Life, which ran from February to April 2013,[1][35] and another performed by the female idol group Morning Musume '16, which ran throughout June 2016.[18][38][39]

Audio drama

An audio drama adaptation of the manga was produced by the drama CD label E-Star and released in Japan on September 25, 2013. It starred Atsushi Abe as Tada, Kazutomi Yamamoto as Frol, Kōsuke Toriumi as King Mayan Baceska, and Daisuke Kishio as Doricas Soldam IV.[40][41][42]

Reception

In 1976, They Were Eleven won the 21st (1975) Shogakukan Manga Award in the combined shōjo and shōnen category.[2][43]

See also

References
  1. Loo, Egan (November 5, 2012). "Moto Hagio's They Were Eleven Sequel Gets Stage Play". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  2. 11人いる！. Digital Daijisen Plus (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Retrieved December 21, 2019 – via Kotobank.
  3. 萩尾望都 11人いる！：萩尾望都作品目録. Moto Hagio Works Library (in Japanese). Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  4. 【1970～80年代】ベツコミ作品年表. eBookJapan (in Japanese). Yahoo! Japan. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  5. 11人いる！. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  6. 11人いる！―SFロマン傑作選 (小学館文庫 712) (in Japanese). Shogakukan. ASIN 4091907121.
  7. 11人いる！ 1. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  8. 11人いる！ : 萩尾望都スペースワンダー (プチフラワーコミックススペシャル). NDL Online (in Japanese). National Diet Library. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  9. 11人いる！ 1. Shogakukan (in Japanese). Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  10. 萩尾望都パーフェクトセレクション3：11人いる！. Shogakukan (in Japanese). August 24, 2007. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  11. 萩尾望都スペースワンダー：11人いる！ 復刻版. Shogakukan (in Japanese). March 26, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  12. Garrity, Shaenon K. (April 11, 2013). "Jason Thompson's House of 1000 Manga Special Guest Edition: Love Song and Four Shojo Stories". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  13. @denpa_books (March 26, 2021). "And our last new license announcement for this season is Moto Hagio's THEY WERE ELEVEN! -Complete-" (Tweet). Retrieved March 26, 2021 – via Twitter.
  14. Hazra, Adriana (March 27, 2021). "Denpa Licenses Moto Hagio's They Were Eleven Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  15. "¿Quién es el 11º pasajero? de Moto Hagio". Ediciones Tomodomo (in Spanish). Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  16. "Było ich jedenaścioro". mangarden.pl (in Polish). Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  17. Thorn, Rachel (2005). "The Moto Hagio Interview". The Comics Journal. Seattle: Fantagraphics Books (269). Archived from the original on January 13, 2016.
  18. Ressler, Karen (April 16, 2016). "Morning Musume Idols Star in Stage Play of Moto Hagio's They Were Eleven Sequel". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  19. 萩尾望都 続・11人いる！―東の地平・西の永遠：萩尾望都作品目録. Moto Hagio Works Library (in Japanese). Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  20. 続・11人いる！. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  21. 11人いる！ (続) (小学館文庫 714) (in Japanese). Shogakukan. ASIN 4091907148.
  22. 東の地平 西の永遠 1. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  23. 映像化・舞台化作品 11人いる！. Moto Hagio Works Library (in Japanese). Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  24. 11人いる！[DVD]. Amazon Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  25. Sevakis, Justin (February 14, 2008). "Buried Treasure – They Were 11". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  26. 11人いる！ (アニメーション). Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  27. Stuckmann, Chris (April 15, 2018). "1986: They Were Eleven". Anime Impact: The Movies and Shows that Changed the World of Japanese Animation. Miami, Florida: Mango Publishing. p. 87. ISBN 978-1-63353-732-3.
  28. Macdonald, Christopher (October 20, 2003). "January CPM Releases". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  29. Macdonald, Christopher (August 9, 2004). "Discontinued CPM Titles". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  30. Loo, Egan (June 8, 2009). "Central Park Media's Licenses Offered by Liquidator". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  31. "Axle official website" アクサル第3回公演 「11人いる！」. Axel's Official Website (in Japanese). Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  32. "Axle official website" アクサル第9回公演 「11人いる！」. Axel's Official Website (in Japanese). Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  33. 男優集団が萩尾望都「11人いる！」舞台化、東名阪で上演. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). December 3, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  34. 『11人いる！』舞台化決定. Monthly Flowers (in Japanese). Archived from the original on November 28, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  35. 「11人いる！」続編も舞台化、萩尾望都が田中芳樹と語る. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). November 5, 2012. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  36. スタジオライフ×萩尾望都「音楽劇 11人いる！」に関戸博一・松本慎也ら. Stage Natalie (in Japanese). April 23, 2019. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  37. 宇宙飛行の行方は？スタジオライフ×萩尾望都「音楽劇 11人いる！」開幕. Stage Natalie (in Japanese). May 19, 2019. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  38. 萩尾望都「続・11人いる！」が舞台に、モーニング娘。'16ら出演で6月上演. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). April 15, 2016. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  39. 舞台「続・11人いる！」会見、モ娘。小田さくら「原作ファンの母喜ばせたい」. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). April 15, 2016. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  40. 11人いる、パープル・アイ、やじきた学園のドラマCD同発. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). September 25, 2013. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  41. ドラマＣＤ『 11人いる！』. eigeki.jp/estar (in Japanese). Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  42. 『11人いる！』キャストインタビュー. eigeki.jp/estar (in Japanese). September 6, 2013. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  43. 小学館漫画賞：歴代受賞者. Shogakukan (in Japanese). Retrieved November 10, 2019.
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