Mad Bull 34

Mad Bull 34 manga

Mad Bull 34 is a manga that was serialized in Shueisha's Young Jump and Bears Club between 1986 – 1990 and was compiled into 27 volumes. Mad Bull 34 is about the toughest cop in New York City's 34th precinct, Mad Bull (a.k.a. John Estes or "Sleepy"). The story follows his often-violent exploits when dealing the city's criminals with his partner Daizaburo Edi-Ban and fellow police officer Perrine Valley. Mad Bull 34 was created during the 80's, a decade in manga that was flood with many over-the-top, extremely violent titles such as Fist of the North Star (Hokuto no Ken) and Violence Jack. Mad Bull 34 has a sequel titled Mad Bull 2000 (マッド・ブル２０００) serialzed in Allman.

Mad Bull 34 anime

The anime adaptation was composed of four, 50-minute OAVs released in 1991. It selected four different stories from the Mad Bull 34 manga and maintained its high level of violence. The voices of the characters were lent by many famous Japanese voice actors, most notably Akio Otsuka, voice actor for many popular anime series (such as Trigun and City Hunter) and many videogames such as the Metal Gear Solid series. The anime has also been released and dubbed for American audiences by MANGA Entertainment.

The Plot

Daizaburo Edi-Ban, a Japanese-American, joins New York City's toughest precinct, the 34th, and is partnered up with John Estes, called Sleepy by his friends and Mad Bull by his enemies, a cop who stops crime with his own violent brand of justice. Mad Bull makes no qualms about executing common thieves with shotgun blasts if they even pose a minor threat to them or anyone around them. Mad Bull also often steals from prostitutes and does incredible amounts of property damage while fighting crime. Mad Bull's unpoliceman-like behavior often puts him in hot water with his partner Daizaburo and the 34th precinct. However, despite how reckless or illegal these acts are, a good cause is always revealed (For example, Sleepy uses the money he steals from the prostitutes to fund a venereal disease clinic and a home for battered and raped women). Perrine Valley, a police lieutenant, joins Daizaburo and Sleepy later on to help them tackle more difficult cases involving the mafia and drug-running.

The Characters

John Estes (A.K.A Mad Bull A.K.A. Sleepy) – The titular character. A giant of a man police officer who works for the 34th precinct.

Daizaburo Edi-Ban – A Japanese-American who is Sleepy's partner. Daizaburo is in love with Perrine Valley.

Perrine Valley – A lieutenant of the 34th Precinct, she helps Sleepy and Daizaburo on many missions.

The Chief – The chief of the 34th Precinct. Although not very important, he is a reccuring character.

Nickel – A man who has some sort of tie with New York City's underworld and is often coerced (by force) to relinquish information involving criminals by Mad Bull. Addicted to canned coffee and, according to Sleepy, "reeks of piss."

The Authors

The manga was written by Koike Kazuo and illustrated by Inoue Noriyoshi. Koike Kazuo is known for other works, Lone Wolf and Cub and Crying Freeman. Inoue Noriyoshi is known for being one of the first Japanese mangaka (manga artist) to use CG in his works. He won an award in the Young Jump 4th Youth Manga Awards for his work Angels.