Blue Period

• Name — Blue Period • Ja Kanji — ブルーピリオド • Ja Romaji — Burū Piriodo • Genre — * Coming-of-age • Drama

• Type — manga • Author — Tsubasa Yamaguchi • Publisher — Kodansha • Imprint — Afternoon KC • Magazine — Monthly Afternoon • First — June 24, 2017 • Volumes — 19

• Type — tv series • Director — * Koji Masunari • Katsuya Asano • Writer — Reiko Yoshida • Music — Ippei Inoue • Studio — Seven Arcs • Licensee — Netflix (streaming rights) • Network — JNN (MBS, TBS) • First — October 2, 2021 • Last — December 18, 2021 • Episodes — 12

• Type — live film • Director — Kentarō Hagiwara • Writer — Reiko Yoshida • Music — Yaffle • Studio — Warner Bros. Japan • Released — 2024 08 09

• Portal — yes Blue Period is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tsubasa Yamaguchi. The series has been serialized in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Monthly Afternoon since June 2017, with its chapters collected in 19 tankōbon volumes as of May 2026. The series is licensed in English by Kodansha USA. An anime television series adaptation produced by Seven Arcs aired from October to December 2021. A live-action film adaptation premiered in Japanese theaters in August 2024. By November 2021, the manga had over 4.5 million copies in circulation. In 2020, Blue Period was awarded the 44th Kodansha Manga Award in the General category and the Grand Prize of the 13th Manga Taishō award.

Yatora Yaguchi is a fairly popular student who excels in school, but secretly grapples with feelings of emptiness and frustration. After a night out with his friends, Yatora sees the morning scene of Shibuya in a shade of blue that awfully touches him. This feeling would inspire his first drawing for art class, which he normally viewed as a useless subject. However, later, when visiting his high school's art club and feeling passionate for something for the first time, Yatora decides to pursue art. He eventually aspires to attend the Tokyo University of the Arts (TUA) after he graduates from high school, the most prestigious public art university in Japan. The acceptance rate is extremely low, so to pass the entrance examination, Yatora must work very hard.

• Yatora Yaguchi: • Gordon Maeda • An academically gifted and diligent student whose friends are disinterested in school. After developing an interest in painting from his art club senior Mori, he is set down a path to attend art school. • Ryuji "Yuka" Ayukawa: • Fumiya Takahashi • Yatora's friend and fellow art-club member. Yuka considers himself to be a non-conformist and indifferent to the opinions of others. He is male but dresses in women's clothes. Throughout the series he struggles with pressure from his family. • Yotasuke Takahashi: • Rihito Itagaki • Yatora's classmate in prep school. He is stoic and aloof towards Yatora, often sharply criticizing his work and character. • Haruka Hashida: • Ikuho Akiya • Yatora's classmate in prep school. Hashida dresses well and takes a very classical and theoretical approach to art, which shows in his work. • Maki Kuwana: • Sena Nakajima • Another of Yatora's classmates from prep school. Her entire family attended TUA, and as a result she often struggles with feelings of inadequacy, despite being a highly talented artist in her own right. • Maru Mori: • Hiyori Sakurada • Yatora's senior in his high school art club. To Mori art is a spiritual activity, and her pieces often incorporate images of religion and prayer. It is one of her works that spurs Yatora's interest in art. • Masako Saeki: • Hiroko Yakushimaru • The art teacher at Yatora's high school. She is his first art teacher and guides his first steps of him improving his artistic ability. • Mayu Oba: • Noriko Eguchi • Yatora's teacher at prep school. She continually provides Yatora with valuable criticism and advice on how to overcome personal and technical obstacles as he continues with art. • Sumida: • A friend of Yatora's from high school. He performs poorly in school and has a keen interest in sports. He is shown to care deeply about his friends. • Koigakubo: • Katsumi Hyodo • A friend of Yatora's from high school. He is tall, quiet, and intimidating on the outside, but over time reveals his sensitivity, dreams, and emotional character to Yatora. • Utashima: • Another of Yatora's friends from high school. He does not apply himself academically but is very interested in girls and highly devoted to his friends. • Takuro Ishii: • Yatora's classmate at prep school. • Sae Okada: • Yatora's classmate at prep school. • Hanako Sakuraba: • Yatora's classmate at prep school. She always wears her school uniform to prep school, which is revealed to be to save money. • Umino: • A member of Yatora's high school art club. • Shirai: • A member of Yatora's high school art club. • Shirota: • A member of Yatora's high school art club. • Yamamoto:

Blue Period is written and illustrated by Tsubasa Yamaguchi. The series began in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Monthly Afternoon on June 24, 2017. Kodansha has collected its chapters into individual tankōbon volumes. The first volume was released on December 22, 2017. As of May 22, 2026, nineteen volumes have been released. In North America, Kodansha USA announced the print release of the manga in November 2019.

• 86. "As the World Glitches" • 87. "No Longer the Same As Yesterday" • 88. "The Screaming Canvas" • 89. "The Moon and the Sun"

An anime television series adaptation was announced on January 19, 2021. Seven Arcs is animating the series, with Koji Masunari serving as chief director, and Katsuya Asano serving as director, with scripts by Reiko Yoshida, character designs by Tomoyuki Shitaya, and music by Ippei Inoue. While the series had an advanced streaming debut on Netflix on September 25, 2021, it aired on television from October 2 to December 18 of the same year on the Super Animeism block on MBS, TBS and other channels. Netflix is streaming the series on a weekly schedule outside of Japan since October 9, 2021. Omoinotake performed the opening theme "Everblue", while Mol-74 performed the ending theme "Replica".

Blue Period is associated with Japan.