Kōtarō Makaritōru!
Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuya Hiruta, and film and novel series adaptations
Kōtarō Makaritōru! (コータローまかりとおる!; "Kōtarō Forces His Way Through!") is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuya Hiruta. It was serialized in Kodansha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine from 1982 to 1994, with its chapters collected in 59 tankōbon volumes. It was followed by two sequel series: Shin Kōtarō Makaritōru!, serialized from 1995 to 2001, with its chapters collected in 27 volumes, and Kōtarō Makaritōru! L, serialized from 2001 to 2004 and collected in eight volumes.
In 1986, Kōtarō Makaritōru! won the 10th Kodansha Manga Award in the shōnen category.
Characters
Kōtarō Shindō
A high-school-aged karate prodigy who is descended from a long line of ninja. Although a fighting genius, he lacks common sense and inhibitions, but has a strong sense of justice. He is frequently in trouble with school officials, and often attempts to steal girls' underwear, especially his friend Mayumi's.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Kōtarō Makaritōru!” is japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuya Hiruta, and film and novel series adaptations. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Kōtarō, Makaritōru and Japanese, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuya Hiruta, and film and novel series adaptations” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Attribution, date and provenance are strongest when supported by the original work, a catalogue record and documented transmission. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 24, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1041581. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1982, 1994, 1995 and 2001.
Rights, attribution and provenance may remain disputed even when a general reference summary presents a stable account. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.
- Identifying works and editions
- Tracing reception history
- Finding collection records
The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Kōtarō Makaritōru!”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Kōtarō Makaritōru! primary sources, Kōtarō Makaritōru! archive and Kōtarō research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Kōtarō Makaritōru!”?
- How did later circulation or interpretation alter the work’s reception?
- Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Kōtarō Makaritōru!” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.