Hataraki Man (働きマン) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Moyoco Anno. It was serialized in Kodansha's manga magazine Morning from 2004 to 2008, before entering on indefinite hiatus. The story centers on 28-year-old Hiroko Matsukata, editor at the magazine Weekly Jidai. Talented and hard-working, Hiroko's colleagues refer to her as Hataraki Man (literally "working man") because of her dedication to her job. But despite her successes in the workplace, she struggles with moments of self-doubt and with the challenge of balancing life and career. Hataraki Man was adapted into an anime television series broadcast from October to December 2006 and a drama that aired from October to December 2007. In North America, the anime series has been licensed by Maiden Japan.

Plot

Hiroko Matsukata is a woman who works as editor at the magazine Weekly Jidai (週刊「JIDAI」). She puts all she has into her work, and is known as a strong, straightforward working woman, who can at will turn herself into Hataraki man (working man) mode. Despite Hiroko's success at work, her life lacks romance. Even though a hard worker, she would leave early anytime to go on a date. Too bad her boyfriend is an even bigger workaholic than Hiroko.

Development

Anno has said that "Absolutely, women need a Man Switch", saying that more understanding is needed of male and female psychology in the workplace. She is critical of a "laziness" in modern Japanese culture, saying that "The traditional virtue of Japan was that people took everything very seriously. As those traditions have been eroded, the quality of Japanese work has been downgraded."

Characters

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Moyoco Anno, Hataraki Man started its serialization in Kodansha's manga magazine Morning in March 2004. The series entered on indefinite hiatus in March 2008 due to Anno's health. Before its hiatus, Kodansha collected the series' chapters in four, released from November 22, 2004, to August 23, 2007. A fifth volume was released on June 27 of the same year.

Volumes

Anime

An eleven-episode anime television series adaptation, animated by studio Gallop, was broadcast on Fuji TV's Noitamina late night programming block from October 13 to December 22, 2006. Puffy performed the opening theme "Hataraku Otoko" (働く男), while Chatmonchy performed the ending theme "Shangri-La" (シャングリラ). In North America, the anime series was licensed by Maiden Japan in 2018. The entire series was released on Blu-ray on January 22, 2019.

Episodes

Drama

A television drama adaptation aired from October to December 2007.

Reception

By June 2024, the manga had over 3.3 million copies in circulation. It was nominated for the tenth Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2006. The realism of the series has been regarded as key to its popularity with readers facing the same issues in life.