The facts:

Title: COWA!

Author and artist: Akira Toriyama

First published: It was serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1997 to 1998

Series: 14 chapters collected into a single tankōbon volume

Plot summary:

The story follows the child monsters Paifu, José and Arpon, and the human Maruyama, as they travel to get medicine to save their town from a terminal disease in their town.

Graphics:

Of the 14 chapters, only the first is in colour. Toriyama’s style is the cartoonish look and Cowa! has a simple feel well suited to a kid audience. Even the monsters are more cute than scary, and the action scenes are direct, without the page-turning pacing of complicated action. Cowa! is definitely one of those mangas that rely on the art to tell the story, not just the mood.

Context in the Manga Universe:

 This isn’t a manga that would make a lot of top-five lists, but for the younger manga readers, or for Dragonball devotees like myself it sits in the top 10!

What I like most:

 Even thought this story involves defeating villains, it is not gory or with weapons. I like that there is no blood shed and the physical fights are in the context of Maruyama having been a sumo wrestler.

What I like least:

I think coming off Dragonball, I was happy to find more of Akira Toriyama’s work but sometimes, the simplicity of the story made it hard for me to stay engaged. In some ways this isn’t a bad thing, it just means I would only read it when I was looking for something lighter.

Recommended for age:

Cowa! is an adventure tale aimed at younger kids and I think it would be awesome for kids aged 6+. There is a lot of detail that can only seem real to kids, as Jose’s farting whenever he’s nervous.  Paifu is impulsive and wants to help, but also falls into lying and bragging.  They are the kind of kids you would meet in any year 2 classroom.

Interesting fact:

Akira Toriyama’s first major effort following the completion of the Dragonball manga.

How to explain it to your parents/teacher:

This is a story of three young monster boys who with the help the human Maruyama, they set out discover a cure to a deathly Monster Flu threatening their village.  While it has a happy ending the true story is about friendship and shared experience.

Media/Film/Tv crossover:

Cowa! is one of the few all ages Manga titles published by Viz! that isn’t tied into a video game or tv show.   It is tied to Dragonball by the creator.

In Bibliography:

Toriyama, A. 2022, ‘COWA!’, Viz [image] Available https://www.viz.com/read/manga/cowa/product/1451/digital, Accessed 22 October 2022.