Devilman is probably Go Nagai's greatest creation. It has become a major cult event in Japan and has even become very popular in the U.S.
Devilman was first produced as a manga in 1972, and consists of 5 volumes. The manga's extreme violence and excellent story line made it an instant hit. It was so popular that an anime series was released the same year. The series was 39 episodes long and ran from July 1972 to March 1973. The series sported some differences from the manga, but was still very popular. Two OVAs (Original Video Animation) were released in 1987 and 1990. These videos were what Go Nagai originally intended the first anime series to be like, since the censors made him tone the series down back in 1972 because of its extreme violence. The videos revolve around Akira's transformation into Devilman up until his battle with Silene (also called: Sirene, or Siron). The OVAs are well animated and, other than a few minor alterations, are faithful to the original manga, and were released in the U.S. during the mid 1990s on video and then on DVD in 2000. Also in 2000, Amon: Apocalypse of Devilman was released as a pay-per-view event in Japan and later released on video and DVD. It covers the period between the humans becoming aware of demons and the final battle between Devilman and Satan. It has even spawned a video game for the Playstation.
Many other mangas were created later on including Shin Devilman, Neo Devilman, and Amon: The Darkside of the Devilman. Also a very popular artbook entitled Devilman Illustrations was published.
Storyline
The story line in Devilman really makes it stand out as one of the greatest mangas of all time. However, its extreme violence made it a major target of protest for the PTA and other groups. Still, the story has become a classic in Japan and has even been working its way through the U.S. over the past decade or so.
A long time ago, the Earth was ruled by demons. The demons constantly fought each other for survival. They soon found themselves fighting a new race of beings. These beings were the first humans. The demons then became imprisoned in ice after a great cataclysm. They would remain there until the ice melted. Satan would then rise up and lead them in Armageddon. That time has come in Go Nagai's Devilman.
Devilman is about a teenager named Akira Fudo. At first, Akira is very modest and avoids conflict. When his parents go away on a business trip, Akira goes to stay with his childhood friend Miki Makimura (both soon form a close relationship as the story progresses). Miki loves Akira but wishes that he would stand up for himself when he gets pushed around.
One day, Akira's best friend, Ryo Asuka, shows up and completely changes Akira's life. Ryo's father had discovered the existence of demons and created a mask which showed the world when demons ruled over it. Ryo shows Akira how the world was and informs him about the demons' revival. Akira then sees Ryo's plan, "To fight a demon, one must become a demon."
Demons have the ability to posses and control humans. However, Ryo believes that Akira may be able to harness a demon's powers when possesed due to the fact that Akira has a pure heart. Ryo takes Akira to a demonic nightclub and begins to bring out the demons in the club. The demons begin to attack Akira until he becomes possesed by Amon. Amon is the Lord of War and also one of the strongest demons. His possesion of Akira causes Akira to transform into Devilman. Devilman contains the strength and power of the demon Amon, as well as the heart and soul of the human Akira Fudo, giving Akira complete control. After he becomes Devilman, Akira is no longer timid and shy. He becomes very aggressive and no longer lets anyone push him around. This new change pleases Miki, although she is unaware of Akira's new found powers.
Throughout the manga and anime, Devilman has many battles with the demon hordes. He encounters many foes such as Silene (Sirene, Siron) the demon bird (she was also Amon's lover before he possesed Akira), the water demon Geruma (also called Gelmer), a large turtle-like demon called Jinmen, Welvath, Kaim, Zannin, Zan, Zenon (Zenon is basically Satan's right-hand, and strongest, demon), Psycho Jenny, and Saylos (Saylos is one of the main villians in the movie Amon: Apocalypse of Devilman).
The story ends with Akira discovering that his friend Ryo is really Satan in a dormant state. The final fight between Devilman and Satan then ensues.