Japan’s ‘One Piece’ manga hits over 510 mil. copies in print, boosts own world record – The Mainichi – The Mainichi

The front cover of the 103rd volume of "One Piece" (c) Eiichiro Oda/Shueisha Inc.

TOKYO -- Total printed copies of the "One Piece" manga series topped 510 million worldwide after the hit comic's 103rd volume was published on Aug. 4, boosting its own world record.

Tokyo-based publisher Shueisha Inc. made the announcement that day. According to the firm, more than 410 million copies of the manga by Eiichiro Oda have been printed in Japan, and over 100 million copies have been issued across 60 foreign countries and regions.

One Piece was certified by Guinness World Records in 2014 for the "most copies published for the same comic book series by a single author." The record was renewed at over 410 million copies in July this year.

The series started in the Shukan Shonen Jump weekly comic magazine in 1997. It relates the high-seas adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his "Straw Hat Pirate" companions as he strives to become King of the Pirates. A TV anime adaptation has been broadcast by Fuji Television Network Inc. and affiliated stations in Japan. A new movie, "One Piece Film Red," will hit Japanese theaters on Aug. 6.

(Japanese original by Hisanori Yashiro, Cultural News Department)

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Japan's 'One Piece' manga hits over 510 mil. copies in print, boosts own world record - The Mainichi - The Mainichi