Beyblade

Beyblade is a Japanese manga that was created originally by Takao Aoki. Aoki created a whole world with Beyblade, that launched into an anime and into a huge toy franchise. The manga began in 1999 and the toy craze started shortly thereafter. It took only three seasons of the manga, in fact, for video games and merchandising to get a hold of the product in order to start the craze. In 2004, the anime version ended. The manga, however, may still be published, as Viz Media still holds the rights to it in the United States.

Synopsis

Tyson Granger, Kai Hiwatari, Ray Kon and Max Tate are the Bladebreakers. They are on a mission to become the ultimate Beyblade champions. In order to do so, they have to win certain championships. In the beginning of the series, the Bladebreakers all meet after they were in a tournament. They decide that together, they can be unbeatable.

The difference between the Manga and the Anime

It has been noted that there is a large difference between the manga and the anime. Kai and Tala have different backgrounds, and Kai is much more cold and self-involved. Tala is not very loyal and the character of Hilary Tachibana does not even exist. The last volume, volume 14, actually shows the Bladebreakers as adults, along with their children.

The Toy

Shortly after the manga became a hit, Takara started manufacturing a gaming system to go with the story. Beyblade the game was released in 1999. The game follows along with the story, using a spinning top, or beyblade in order to try to knock the opponent’s tops out of the Beystadium. The basic system includes a big chip, which has a picture of a mythical creature, just as the anime and manga do, an attack ring, which determines where the blade goes, a weight disk which is meant to determine the endurance of the blade, as well as the balance it has, and a blade base. It also has a tip, which determines how the blade moves.

A system was later created known as the Engine Gear. This allowed the top to be able to shoot out much faster, allowing the beyblade to truly attack the opponent’s blade. Hasboro ended up releasing a similar version of Beyblade, only they have sparking beyblades and did a few other different things.

Characters

• Tyson Granger – Tyson is a very strong-willed teen who wants to become one of the best Beybladers in history. He winds up being the leader of the crew, even though he has no experience in leading anyone.

• Kai Hiwatari – Kai is an introverted person, except when he competes. He is an excellent competitor and ends up opening up to his team mates.

• Ray Kon – Ray is an extremely popular character because he is so open minded. He is very calm and tends to be the voice of reason in the group.

• Max Tate – Max’s father owns a Beyblade shop, and his American mother is the coach for the American beyblade team. He is very upbeat and friendly.

External Links

• Beyblade Website