Dororo Review: A Boy Born Without a Body, Fighting to Take It Back
by Osamu Tezuka
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Quick Take
- A lord sacrificed his unborn child's body to 48 demons in exchange for power. The child survived without eyes, ears, limbs, or skin, raised by a doctor who gave him prosthetic weapons. Now he hunts demons to take back what was his.
- Osamu Tezuka — the "God of Manga" — at his darkest and most morally complex
- Four volumes, complete, and one of the foundational dark fantasy stories in manga history
Who Is This Manga For?
- Readers interested in manga history and the work that influenced countless later stories
- Fans of dark historical fantasy who want something with genuine emotional weight
- Anyone who wants to understand where Berserk, Inuyasha, and a dozen other series come from
- Readers who appreciate short, complete classics
Content Warnings & Age Rating
Age Rating: T (Teen) Content Warnings: Violence against demons and some humans, body horror in the concept (a character with prosthetic limbs and artificial sensory organs), war themes, parental abandonment
Less graphic than modern horror manga. More emotionally disturbing than the rating suggests.
Yu's Rating
| Category | Score |
|---|---|
| Story Depth | ★★★★★ |
| Art Style | ★★★★☆ |
| Character Development | ★★★★★ |
| Accessibility for Non-Japanese Readers | ★★★★☆ |
| Reread Value | ★★★★★ |
Story Overview
Daigo Kagemitsu wanted power. He prayed to 48 demons, offering whatever they wanted. They wanted his unborn son. They took the child's eyes, ears, nose, skin, limbs — 48 body parts — and left a living thing that should not have survived.
The child survived. A wandering doctor found him, raised him, built him prosthetic limbs that concealed blades, gave him artificial eyes and a skin of lacquer. The boy, Hyakkimaru, grew up unable to see, hear, or speak in any conventional way. He perceives demons through an internal sense that has no name.
Now he hunts the 48 demons. Each one killed returns a piece of his body: an eye, an ear, skin that can feel. As he reclaims himself, he becomes more human. The story follows him and Dororo — a small, cheerful orphan thief who attaches to him and provides the warmth and voice that Hyakkimaru cannot.
What the manga asks, across its four volumes, is: what happens when taking back your humanity means destroying what others have built on your sacrifice?
Characters
Hyakkimaru — One of manga's most original protagonists. He begins the story barely able to communicate, perceiving the world in ways no one around him can share. His development as he reclaims senses — the moment he first hears, sees, feels — is extraordinary.
Dororo — The orphan thief who becomes Hyakkimaru's companion. Cheerful, loud, and carrying secrets of their own. Dororo provides the human connection that keeps Hyakkimaru tethered to the world.
Daigo Kagemitsu — Hyakkimaru's father. A man who made a monstrous choice and has been living with its consequences. His complexity is one of the manga's most impressive achievements.
Art Style
Tezuka's art is rooted in the Disney-influenced style he developed in the postwar era — round characters, expressive faces, cartoony proportions. In Dororo, this style is deployed in service of very dark material, creating an unsettling contrast that is part of the story's effect. The demons are genuinely disturbing despite the lighter visual register. The action sequences are dynamic and clear.
Cultural Context
Dororo is set in the Sengoku period — the era of civil war that defined medieval Japan — and engages with the period's violence and political chaos authentically. Tezuka was writing in the late 1960s, during a period of significant social upheaval in Japan, and the story's themes about sacrifice, complicity, and what is owed to those harmed by their parents' choices reflect that moment.
What I Love About It
The scene where Hyakkimaru first hears — not just sound, but the specific sound of Dororo's voice — is one of the most moving moments in manga. Tezuka built toward it carefully across multiple volumes, making sure the reader understood what Hyakkimaru was missing. When it arrives, it arrives completely.
I also love the moral complexity of Daigo's situation. The manga does not make it easy. The land did prosper because of his bargain. People's lives were better. The cost was a child who had no say. How do you weigh that? Tezuka refuses the easy answer.
What English-Speaking Fans Say
Dororo has gained significant Western attention through the 2019 anime adaptation, which brought many readers to the manga. The manga is considered darker and more morally complex than the anime in places. Western readers consistently praise Hyakkimaru's character concept and development, and note the historical and moral depth as unusual for a manga of its era. It is frequently recommended as essential reading for anyone interested in manga history.
Memorable Scene ⚠️ Spoiler Warning
The confrontation between Hyakkimaru and his father — after Hyakkimaru has reclaimed enough of himself to confront the man who gave him away — is the scene the entire manga builds toward. Tezuka makes it complicated in exactly the right ways. No one is entirely wrong. No one is entirely right.
Similar Manga
- Berserk — Directly influenced by Dororo; darker, longer, more extreme
- InuYasha — Historical demon-hunting; lighter tone, similar setting
- Hell's Paradise — Historical Japan, supernatural threat, similar episodic structure
- Blade of the Immortal — Historical Japan, body modification protagonist, darker
Reading Order / Where to Start
Volume 1. Four volumes reads quickly and rewards the full commitment.
Official English Translation Status
Vertical published the complete English edition in four volumes. All volumes available.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- One of the foundational dark fantasy manga — historically essential
- Hyakkimaru's concept and development are extraordinary
- Four volumes — short, complete, perfectly contained
- Moral complexity unusual for the era it was created
Cons
- Tezuka's cartoony art style contrasts with the dark content in ways some readers find jarring
- The episodic structure means some demon encounters feel more developed than others
- The manga was never fully completed by Tezuka — the ending exists but the original serialization was cut short
Format Comparison
| Format | Notes |
|---|---|
| Individual Volumes | Vertical's editions; four volumes |
| Omnibus | Some omnibus editions exist; check availability |
| Digital | Available |
Where to Buy
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Written by
Yu
Manga Enthusiast from Japan
I grew up in Japan and manga literally saved me during a tough time in elementary school. My English isn't perfect, but my love for manga is real — and I want to share it with you.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.