Summary
In 1981,Shonen Jumplaunched Hisashi Eguchi’sStop!! Hibari-kun!, a romantic comedy that has attracted significant controversy over the years because of its queer main character. After four decades, an official English version will finally be available. On X and at AnimeNYC, publisher Peow2 announced their intention topublish an English edition of the historic manga in the Fall of 2025.
Stop!! Hibari-Kun!is a romantic comedy whose title character was assigned male at birth, but presents and behaves femininely. The manga follows her and a boy named Kosaku as they navigate daily life, including Hibari’s yakuza father. It’s considered a milestone work for LGBTQ+ representation in manga. Its reach has also been much broader, and even the most hardcore anime fans tend to underestimateits profound influence on showstopper franchises likeDragon Ball.
Stop!! Hibari-Kun!’s Bold Representation Has Been A Magnet For Controversy
The Queer Classic Has Raised Eyebrows For Decades
Transgender characters are historically underrepresented in the anime and manga world, andHibari-Kun!is a major exception. At the same time,Hibari-Kun!has been controversial with anime and manga fans, and these same controversies are resurfacing following Peow2 presenting Hibari as an “OG trans protagonist”. Although Hibari is without a doubt gender-nonconforming, many fans still question whether she can properly be labeled “transgender”. Beyond that, cultural constraints of the time led toHibari-Kun!’s representation to be limited and, to some, offensive.
Eguchi himself has said that Hibari is intended to be a transgender character inan interview with Radio France:
I chose a transgender character because it contributed to the comic spirit. In Japan at the time (during the 1980s), the transgender question belonged to a very closed space which lived in hiding. It was a question unaddressed by public debate, an underground world. It [since] has become [a question requiring delicacy] to address. If I were to rewrite ittoday, I couldn’t do the same thing I did 38 years ago. At the time, I had, in the end, a kind of tonal liberty.
[author’s translation]
Although a transgender character being chosen for comedy’s sake isn’t ideal,the author’s intention regarding Hibari’s gender identity is also unclear. At other times, Eguchi has stated that Hibari is a boy. Intuitively, this might collide with his description of Hibari as transgender, but the explanation might be simple:Hibari isn’t a black-and-white character who fits into gender norms; she might “be a boy”, but nonetheless presents and functions socially as a girl until people know her assigned gender.
In the manga itself, the question is more difficult. First, it’s important to remember Japan has a different culture and relationship to gender. For example, visual kei is a music genre where men do makeup and project a feminine presentation without identifying as a woman. All translation also involves a combination of linguistic knowledge, cultural savvy, stylistic choices, and personal bias - a problem, sinceHibari-Kun!has so far only had fan translations.
Because of this, it’s possible that the official translation will “clear things up”. However, although Hibari isn’t referred to as transgender in the manga, it’s nonetheless an intentional story of self-affirmation and defiance of gender roles. Peow2’s upcoming edition ofStop!! Hibari-Kun!is a great chance for Western fans to get acquainted with this seminal manga, which holds great historical significance for the medium, regardless of the controversies around it.
