15th Manga Division Jury Selections
KARIAGE KUN
Manga published in book form, in magazine [Japan]
UEDA Masashi
Outline
This is a four-frame gag manga about a company employee, which has been serialized in “Weekly Manga Action” for 30 years. The unmarried company employee Kariage-kun, whose close-cropped hairstyle is his trademark, is a prodigy when it comes to pranks. This eternal member of the company rank-and-file has kept his cool while making his way through the world, both during the era of the economic bubble and during the era of corporate restructuring; the hilarious subject matter, which expresses the trends and social conditions of the times cynically, has been beloved by middle-aged and older readers for many years. Kariage-kun, who is drawn by a master of the four-frame manga world and whom everyone has seen at least once, continues to cheer and encourage Japan’s company employees.