I Am a Hero

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Japanese: アイアムアヒーロー

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Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: 22

Chapters: 264

Status: Finished

Published: Apr 20, 2009 to Feb 27, 2017

Genres: Award Winning, Drama, Horror

Themes: Gore, Psychological

Demographic: Seinen

Serialization: Big Comic Spirits

Authors: Hanazawa, Kengo (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 7.65¹ (scored by 33,542 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #2043²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #133

Members: 110,163

Favorites: 2,493

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7.65

Ranked #2043Popularity #133Members 110,163

MangaBig Comic SpiritsHanazawa, Kengo (Story & Art)

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Volumes: /22

Chapters: /264

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Synopsis

Insecure 35-year-old Hideo Suzuki is forced to work as a mangaka's assistant when his own series fails due to low sales. As he struggles through a mundane life plagued by hallucinations, he comes to realize that his relationship with his girlfriend is not that great, suspecting that she may be cheating on him with her ex-boyfriend. After confronting her about the possible affair, however, Hideo feels bad about his inquisition and decides to visit her house to apologize.

But the world as he knows is about to be overturned. At first, not much seems to have changed, but he soon realizes that society has become a living nightmare, as the horrifying reality of what is taking place around him finally begins to sink in.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

I Am a Hero was nominated for the 3rd, 4th and 5th Manga Taisho Award (2010, 2011, and 2012) and is the winner of the 58th Shogakukan Manga Award (2013) in the general manga category. As of November 30, 2015, the series has sold 4 million copies.

The series was published in English by Dark Horse as 2-in-1 omnibus volumes from April 26, 2016 to October 23, 2019; in Spanish by Norma Editorial since May 24, 2013; and will be published in Argentina by Editorial IVREA in the second semester of 2016. It has also been published in Italy, France, Mexico, Germany, and Indonesia by different companies.

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Characters

Suzuki, Hideo

Main

Hayakari, Hiromi

Main

Oda, Tsugumi

Supporting

Kurusu

Supporting

Nakata, Korori

Supporting

Barcelona Zombie

Supporting

Ezaki, Takashi

Supporting

Yajima

Supporting

Tomabechi

Supporting

Auntie

Supporting

Reviews

Feb 16, 2025

Boozarda

Recommended

Any zombie-horror fan should read this.

Ever since i can remember I have been a fan of zombies. TWD, Resident Evil, and many more have been with me since childhood.

In traditional western media, Zombies are mostly a factor in the character's decision-making, but never really a plot point.

I am a hero was my first taste of an Eastern Zombie story and the way they treated it really blew me away. True, in every sense of the word they are flesh-eating zombies just as we know and love, but the more you read I am a hero the more you realize these zombies are actually ...

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Mar 27, 2025

Wraithraiser93

Mixed Feelings

After reading the many reviews posted here. I thought my opinion might add some value to prospective readers.

This story does not stick to traditional storytelling norms, and I must say left me feeling bemused. After some reflection, I realised that if I disregard my expectations, which have been set by the many stories that came before this one, I can allow myself to truely enjoy what is being presented here.

This story is primarily a character story and the events exist as though they might in reality. This left me often a little dissatisfied as important events sometimes seemed meaningless and the truths of ... the infection are exposed only enough to generate more questions. This chaos had me hunting for thematic relevance and meaning, but as is the way of the world, there is no inherent meaning. Our characters are often believably flawed and not just in ways that make them sympathetic or more likeable but in fact often does the opposite.

In recent years I find myself losing my adoration for allegory. I often have too many of my own world views to lap up the clearly defined teachings stories present to me. In this story, that certainly is not an issue. I was free to make my own judgements of characters and my own assessments of events without fighting a predominant narrative.

If you're looking for a manga which is deeply thematic, has a clear message and neatly ties up its loose ends, then this story may not be for you.
Instead where this story excels is in its authenticity. The story might seem slow if you're looking for the next major plot beat, however, if you just enjoy the characters and the presentation of the world then you'll certainly have a good time. The entertainment value here is the beautiful art, the enigmatic infection, the horrifying struggle to survive, and all the tension and heartbreak that comes with that.

With this story, more than most, your milage may vary. For me this story stands out as a unique take on the zombie genre and a fresh approach to storytelling.

Characters: 8/10
The characters felt real but the women are written a little shallow and seemed more like a man's understanding of women than a true representation of them.

Plot: 8/10
The creativity brought to the genre was fascinating and despite the lack of a complete resolution, left me with plenty to speculate on and enjoy after the fact.

Art: 10/10
The Art is amazing and the warped and first person perspectives we're engaging and visually appealing. The city scapes were beautiful and a much needed respite from the grotesque depictions of the infected.

Enjoyment: 9/10
I truly believe the dissatisfaction some people feel about this story is a testament to how engaging this story really is. When endings fall foul of expectations it hurts all the more, so be warned.
As a dyslexic my reading pace is often slow and I fatigue quickly during a single reading instance. However, against the odds this story had me reading deep into the night with the notion that I would stop after the next chapter.

Overall: 8.75/10

I think if you read 11 chapters you'll probably know whether the story is for you or not. If you don’t like the first 10 chapters and stick around for the action you might end up disappointed as the story leads with its best foot forward.

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May 11, 2024

Stadtfeldi

Not Recommended

This was one of the most exhausting and unrewarding reads I have ever sat through. I really can't recommend I Am a Hero to anybody, even those who are okay with nothing but running from and killing zombies. With all due respect to the author, he had a really strong concept to start with and most of the characters were actually interesting, but really unfortunate pacing issues and out-of-touch artistic philosophy really hinders the series. Not to mention the plot that gets major traction only to land absolutely nowhere. You can only look at a double-spreader of a city landscape with zombies roaming around so ... many times before getting absolutely sick of it.

The only saving grace of this series, to me, is the art at least being consistently good... until the last volumes. Quite a few of the pages were clearly rushed and borderline unfinished or straight up anatomically incorrect near the end, but with how sour the ending already is for every other reason imaginable, I didn't even find myself caring. If you want a straightforward gory survival story with frequent cool, creepy, and/or pretty illustrations, then I guess I Am a Hero is an *okay* choice. But only okay. The pacing still makes even that aspect diminish substantially by the halfway point.

Many of the supporting characters were potent, yes, but way too many of them were completely dropped out of nowhere. Because Suzuki himself takes a backseat in the latter third of the plot, this feels reeeeally terrible sometimes. On top of the story about the zombies itself just... literally not being resolved at all, I cannot name a series I've read that's left me with larger dissatisfaction. It's almost as if the author imploded everything on purpose because he grew to hate what he made for some reason.

There is almost nothing to take away when finishing the read. I've read a few series that are loose-ended and/or aren't obvious with what exactly they stand for at the end (Blame! is the most obvious one that comes to mind), but I Am a Hero is anything but either of those things. The author somehow wrapped up everything with a clear ending while also not delivering on any of the previous setups at all. I do not feel there was anything to be gleamed from here at all. The series ends up not respecting itself, and at the end it doesn't bother to give the reader what they might've been hoping to stumble upon.

If you love this manga yourself, all the more power to you. I don't think it takes away from you as an enjoyer or critic of the medium. I simply cannot, in good will, give this the thumbs up to any prospecting people at all, and I am kind of appalled that something like this is even remotely close to an 8 in public score.

Edit: I'm re-uploading my review after reading some positive ones from across the web. I am even more appalled. This series was not scary at all. The scariest part was when Suzuki was having schizophrenic delusions in the first chapter, which almost never pop up in the story ever again afterwards. I would never call this a horror manga because of it. Also, "realism" is not a good basis for how well-written a series is. I thought we got over this as a collective people a few years ago. If anything, attempting realism almost always comes across as a superficial attempt to buff up how "mature" the series feels, but this manga is not even remotely realistic even outside of the zombie stuff, with the exception of a very small handful of characters. I cannot believe what I have read.

0/10 for a thoughtful read. 4/10 for a casual read if you just want to kill a lot of time with zombies.

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Poll: I Am a Hero Chapter 148 Discussion haydocc - Jun 12, 2014	5 replies	by LateHero_ »» Feb 16, 2:52 PM
Poll: I Am a Hero Chapter 54 Discussion Ale1212 - Mar 10, 2013	19 replies	by LateHero_ »» Feb 14, 12:21 PM
I Am a Hero Chapter 265 / Epilogue Discussion Thread TheMangaManiac - Dec 12, 2021	19 replies	by INoLuv »» Feb 8, 1:09 PM
Poll: I Am a Hero Chapter 20 Discussion Raitei_Dono - Mar 9, 2012	13 replies	by jax4377 »» Jan 23, 9:08 PM
official digital release when? HibiChika - Feb 23, 2024	5 replies	by HibiChika »» Dec 28, 2024 1:08 AM

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