Axis Powers Hetalia (manga)

Axis Powers Hetalia is a webmanga by Hidekaz Himaruya, that began in 2003 and continues to run on his website "Kitayume". It has been adapted into print form, several drama CDs, and an anime series.

The series involves anthropomorphic representations of the world's nations, with the main storyline taking place in WWI and WWII, though there are stories set in earlier and more modern eras. The series is named for the main character Italy, with "Hetalia" being a portmanteau of the words hetare (useless) and Italia.

Plot
During WWI, Germany, in search of the heir to the empire of Ancient Rome, finds Italy hiding in a crate and takes him as a captive. After living with him to the start of WWII, Italy takes it upon himself to become Germany's ally. The two are soon joined by Japan, though the three wind up having to deal with the arrival of the Allied Forces: America, England, France, China, and Russia.

Characters
Main article: List of Axis Powers Hetalia characters

The Hetalia series is notable for its large, colorful cast of characters. Each of the characters represents a nation, complete with the stereotypes attributed to it. The original webcomic initially focused on the nations of the Axis Powers vs. the Allied Forces, with the cast quickly expanding to include others.

Original Web Version
Main article: List of Axis Powers Hetalia chapters (webcomic)

The entire series so far includes five chapters of the main storyline, a bonus story (Chibitalia), and several side stories and "comic diary" strips by Himaruya. The main storyline takes place in the eras of WWI and WWII, with the Chibitalia storyline and some of the side-stories focusing on eras outside of that time.

The "Lost" Strips
There are also strips of the original webcomic that no longer exist on Kitayume or any other place, outside of fans having saved the artwork while it was still up on the site. One notable series of lost strips happen to be more pages of the fanservice-themed "Christmas Rampage 2007", recently salvaged and scanlated. Other "lost" pieces of artwork include America cosplaying as England, Korea imagining China as a girl, and France informing teenage Italy about the demise of the Holy Roman Empire.

Published Manga
Main article: List of Axis Powers Hetalia chapters (published manga)

A print version of the manga by Gentosha Comics was released in 2008, and has been collected into two volumes so far. The published version differs somewhat from the original online strips, with several events being retold or redrawn for better quality. New strips exclusive to the volumes were also included. Some scenes have also been cut or edited from the originals for content (ie: Holy Roman Empire kissing Chibitalia in the "Chibitalia" arc).

The first volume was released on March 17th, 2008, with the second volume being released on December 10th, 2008. While only one version of the first volume was released, the second came in both a standard and a deluxe edition. The deluxe edition came with a special booklet containing various sketches of the characters, including preliminary designs for them.

Drama CDs
There have been three drama CDs released for the series so far, with a fourth to come.


 * Hetalia Drama CD: Prologue, released as a Comic Market 74 exclusive on August 15th, 2008.
 * Hetalia Drama CD: Volume 1, released on October 24th, 2008.
 * Hetalia Drama CD: Prologue 2, released as a Comic Market 75 exclusive on December 29th, 2008.
 * Hetalia Drama CD: Volume 2, to be released on June 3rd, 2009.

The first two CDs feature the Axis Powers, Austria, and the Allied Forces, with the absence of China, who wasn't cast at the time. Instead, Lithuania is included in the main cast. China however, did make his debut in Prologue 2 along with Hungary.

Sealand is slated to appear in Volume 2, and is voiced by Ai Orikasa. Switzerland and Liechtenstein will also make their drama CD debut in Volume 2.

Anime
Main article: Axis Powers Hetalia (anime)

An anime adaptation of Axis Powers Hetalia was announced in July 2008, and premiered on January 24th, 2009 on Animate.TV. It was originally scheduled to air on Kids Station, but was pulled from the lineup due to "various circumstances". The first season is scheduled for 26 episodes.

On April 15th, 2009, it was announced that a second season of the Hetalia anime was in production, to be released in the summer. Like the first season, it will be 26 episodes long and will be broadcast on Animate.TV.