About Azumanga Daioh

[Urban Legend]

Azumanga Daioh is a manga by Kiyohiko Azuma that was adapted into an anime in 2002. Published in the magazine Dengeki Daioh, the manga consists almost entirely of four panel comic strips that are known as yonkoma in Japan, subsequently compiled and rereleased in tankōbon format. While comparatively few manga of this type are released in the United States, this is superficially similar to anthologies of Western newspaper comic strips, with the primary difference being Azumanga Daioh has a vertical, rather than horizontal layout.

The anime, which aired from April 8, 2002 until September 30, 2002, was broadcast in 5-minute segments every weekday, and as a 25-minute compilation each weekend. Thus there are 130 5-minute episodes which can also be seen as 26 episodes, each 25 minutes in length. These episodes were released on VHS and DVD. In addition to these episodes, there were also two others: The Very Short Azumanga Daioh Movie, a 6-minute trailer, and Azumanga Web Daioh.

In the United States, the anime was released on both a 6 DVD volume set September 9, 2005 and later a 5 DVD volume "Thinpak" set by ADV Films. The 6th DVD volume also included The Very Short Azumanga Daioh Movie. The manga was published in English by ADV Manga. The two soundtracks to the anime were released in the United States by Geneon.

Azumanga Web Daioh is a 4-minute story with its own peculiar plot distributed in 2000. Although there was a charge to view Web Daioh, its sound and image quality was so low that Hideki Satomi denounced it as "a swindle".[citation needed] Image and sound quality have improved, but it has remained unofficial.

Both the manga and the anime follow the trials and triumphs of everyday life in a Japanese high school. The readers and/or viewers follow Sakaki's obsession with neighborhood cats, Chiyo's struggle to fit in with an age group far above her own, and Yomi's (sometimes lacking) patience with a rather silly best friend, Tomo, whose energy is rivaled only by her total lack of sense. They get to see yearly accounts of summer vacation, holidays, tests, and athletic events. Although it generally follows everyday life, this series is occasionally marked by bursts of surrealism and absurdity, such as an episode featuring the characters' New Year's dreams.

(source: Wikipedia)