Don Dracula
A vampire's slapstick life in Japan.
Don Dracula is a manga series created by Osamu Tezuka, first serialized in 1979. An anime adaptation aired from April 5 to April 26, 1982.
After spending years in Transylvania, Count Dracula relocates to Japan. According to the English summary on the first volume of the Complete Works Edition, a mercantile firm unknowingly purchased his castle and moved it to Tokyo. Now living in the Nerima Ward, Dracula shares the castle with his daughter Chocola and his servant Igor.
Chocola attends night classes at Matsutani Junior High School. Meanwhile, Dracula desperately seeks the blood of beautiful virgins, which he considers a proper meal for a vampire of his rank. But every time he goes hunting, he gets caught up in some disturbance that causes trouble for the locals. Since no one in Japan believes in vampires, his mere presence creates chaos. The slapstick comedy centers on this proud vampire trying to adjust to life in Japan. Complicating matters is Professor Hellsing, Dracula’s nemesis for the past decade, who has followed him to Tokyo to exterminate him—but suffers from severe hemorrhoids. Dracula is also pursued by Blonda, the first woman he bit after arriving in Japan. Because she is extremely ugly, Dracula wants nothing to do with her.
Tezuka published Don Dracula in the same magazine as Black Jack. He noted that creating the poor vampire’s slapstick antics was very enjoyable.
Count Dracula is the legendary vampire who finds Japan even harder to handle than Transylvania. He sleeps in his coffin in the castle basement and prowls Shinjuku and Shibuya at night. Water in almost any form weakens him, as do cross-shaped objects. A stake through the chest can destroy him. Sunlight turns him to dust, but Igor or Chocola usually vacuum him up and reconstitute him like instant ramen using a magic spell that requires a cup of blood and the vacuum cleaner’s contents.
Chocola is Dracula’s half-vampire, half-werewolf daughter. She attends night classes at Matsutani Junior High. Because of her mixed heritage, she can survive in water but still turns to dust in sunlight. She eats normal food but prefers human blood. Unlike her father, she will bite men as well as women, though she accepts her classmates as off-limits. She belongs to the school’s SF club.
Nobuhiko Ōbayashi is Chocola’s classmate and a fellow SF club member. He believes in aliens and UFOs but not old-sc
- Creator
- Osamu Tezuka
- First Serialized
- 1979
- Anime Aired
- April 5–April 26, 1982
- Genre
- Slapstick comedy
- Medium
- Manga and anime
- Notable Characters
- Count Dracula, Chocola, Igor, Professor Hellsing
Quick Facts
- Ja Romaji
- Don Dorakyura
- Genre
- Comedy horror
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
After living in Transylvania for several years, Count Dracula moves to Japan when a mercantile firm buys his castle and moves it to Tokyo without knowing it was inhabited. In the Nerima Ward of Tokyo, he lives with his daughter Chocola and faithful servant Igor. Dracula desperately seeks the blood of beautiful virgin women, but each night he causes trouble among local residents who do not believe in vampires. The slapstick comedy is compounded by Professor Hellsing, Dracula's nemesis for the past ten years, who suffers from hemorrhoids, and Blonda, the first woman Dracula drank blood from in Japan, whose ugly face makes Dracula want to flee.
Reader's Guide
Don Dracula is a notable entry in Osamu Tezuka's body of work, blending vampire lore with slapstick comedy set in contemporary Japan. Published in the same magazine as Black Jack, Tezuka commented that creating the antics of the poor vampire was very enjoyable. The anime adaptation, produced by Tezuka Productions, was cut short after only four of eight episodes aired due to the bankruptcy of the sponsoring company. The four 'lost' episodes later aired in other territories and were eventually released on DVD in Japan. The character appears in other Tezuka works such as Marine Express and Black Jack, and in the 2004 Game Boy Advance game Astro Boy: Omega Factor, demonstrating his integration into Tezuka's shared universe.
Did You Know?
- Only four of eight anime episodes aired in Japan due to the sponsoring company's bankruptcy.
- Professor Hellsing uses the same character design as Astro Boy's Dr. Fooler.
- Chocola is half-vampire and half-werewolf, and can survive in water but turns to dust in sunlight.
- Dracula can be reconstituted from dust by Igor or Chocola using a magic spell with a cup of blood and the contents of a vacuum cleaner.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Don Dracula?
Don Dracula is the eponymous vampire count in Osamu Tezuka's 1979 manga and its 1982 anime adaptation. He is a bumbling, good-natured vampire who has been uprooted from Transylvania and dropped into suburban Tokyo.
How did Dracula end up living in Japan?
A Japanese mercantile company accidentally purchased his Transylvanian castle and shipped it across the ocean to Tokyo. He now resides in Nerima Ward, sharing the relocated castle with his daughter Chocola and his loyal servant Igor.
What is Chocola's role in the series?
Chocola is Dracula's daughter who attends night classes at Matsutani Junior High School while her father fumbles through his vampire life in the suburbs. She grounds the story in an ordinary school setting, contrasting with her father's gothic habits.
What makes Don Dracula different from other vampire stories?
Tezuka frames the series squarely as slapstick comedy rather than gothic horror, focusing on the absurdity of an ancient vampire trying to navigate mundane Japanese suburban routines. The humor comes from the clash between Dracula's old-world vampire instincts and everyday modern life.
How long was the Don Dracula anime broadcast?
The anime adaptation aired for a very brief window from April 5 to April 26, 1982. It adapted Tezuka's 1979 serialized manga into a short television run.
More in Osamu Tezuka anime 1-24
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