Eyeshield 21

Eyeshield 21
First tankōbon volume cover, featuring Sena Kobayakawa (front) and the students of the Deimon Private High School
アイシールド21 (Aishīrudo Nijūichi)
Genre	Comedy[1][2] Drama[2] Sports[1]
Manga
Written by	Riichiro Inagaki
Illustrated by	Yusuke Murata
Published by	Shueisha
English publisher	NA: Viz Media
Imprint	Jump Comics
Magazine	Weekly Shōnen Jump
Demographic	Shōnen
Original run	July 23, 2002 – June 15, 2009
Volumes	37 (List of volumes)
Original video animation
Eyeshield 21: The Phantom Golden Bowl
Directed by	Tamaki Nakatsu
Studio	Production I.G
Released	September 2003 (Jump Festa Anime Tour) 2004 (Jump Festival)
Runtime	30 minutes
Anime television series
Directed by	Masayoshi Nishida (1–103) Shin Katagai (104–145)
Music by	Kō Ōtani
Studio	Gallop
Licensed by	NA: Sentai Filmworks (expired)
Original network	TV Tokyo
English network	NA: Toonami Jetstream
Original run	April 6, 2005 – March 19, 2008
Episodes	145 (List of episodes)
Original video animation
Eyeshield 21: Christmas Bowl e no Michi
Studio	Gallop
Released	2005
Runtime	11 minutes
Anime and manga portal

Eyeshield 21 (Japanese: アイシールド21, Hepburn: Aishīrudo Nijūichi) is a Japanese manga series written by Riichiro Inagaki and illustrated by Yusuke Murata. The series tells the story of Sena Kobayakawa, an introverted boy who joins an American football club as a secretary, but after being coerced by quarterback Yoichi Hiruma, becomes the team's running back, wearing jersey number 21 and an eyeshield to conceal his identity. Inagaki chose American football as a central subject of Eyeshield 21 after realizing that it fit perfectly with his idea for the series.

The manga was originally serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from July 2002 to June 2009. The series consists of 333 chapters collected in 37 tankōbon volumes. An anime adaptation consisting of 145 television episodes was co-produced by TV Tokyo, NAS, and Gallop. The television series first aired on Japan's TV Tokyo network from April 2005 to March 2008. The Eyeshield 21 franchise has spawned two original video animations (OVAs), audio albums, video games, and other merchandise.

In North America, the manga was released by Viz Media from April 2005 to October 2011. The anime series was later licensed in North America by Toonami Jetstream as a joint effort with Viz Media and aired in December 2007, on its site, but before its completion, the streaming service was shut down. The whole series was streamed in English by Crunchyroll, while Sentai Filmworks licensed the series, with distribution from Section23 Films on DVDs.

In Japan, the Eyeshield 21 manga has sold over 20 million volumes. The manga and anime have been featured at various times in weekly top ten lists of best-selling in their respective media. The anime has been watched by a large number of television viewers in Japan, helping to raise American football's popularity in the country. Publications for manga, anime, and others have commented on Eyeshield 21, which received praise for its artwork and characters, and criticism towards its non-football related plotlines.