Weed (manga)

Weed, known in Japan as Ginga Densetsu Weed (Japanese: 銀牙伝説WEED（ウィード）, Hepburn: Ginga Densetsu Wīdo; lit. Silver Fang Legend Weed) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Takahashi. It is a sequel to Takahashi's 1980s manga Silver Fang, and focuses on Weed, a dog, the son of Gin, the original series' protagonist. Weed, named after the English word for wild plant, leaves his birthplace to search for his father in the Ōu Mountains. Upon arriving, Weed immediately begins protecting Ōu and its soldiers from dangerous threats. As the series progresses, Weed and his allies journey throughout Japan, aiding those in need and preventing takeovers. Weed was originally serialized in the magazine Weekly Manga Goraku from May 1999 to July 2009. Publisher Nihon Bungeisha released 60 bound volumes and later reprinted early volumes. ComicsOne licensed the series for release in Canada and the United States by the name of Weed, but issued only three volumes before it went out of business. In addition to the main series, Takahashi authored several side stories and books relating to Weed and the supporting cast. In 2005, NAS and SKY Perfect Well Think produced an anime series that aired on Animax. The show was released on several DVDs between 2006 and 2007 in Japan, and was licensed and distributed in Taiwan and several Nordic countries. As of 2013, Weed had over 20 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time.