Don Dracula

Don Dracula
Cover of "Don Dracula" volume 1 from the Osamu Tezuka Manga Complete Works edition
ドン・ドラキュラ (Don Dorakyura)
Genre	Comedy horror
Manga
Written by	Osamu Tezuka
Published by	Akita Shoten
Demographic	Shōnen
Magazine	Weekly Shōnen Champion
Original run	May 28, 1979 – December 10, 1979
Volumes	3
Anime television series
Directed by	Osamu Tezuka
Original run	April 5, 1982 – April 26, 1982
Episodes	8

Don Dracula (ドン・ドラキュラ, Don Dorakyura^?) is a manga by Osamu Tezuka that began serialization in 1979. An anime television series aired from April 5 to April 26, 1982.

After living in Transylvania for several years, "Earl Dracula" (as Osamu Tezuka's official website calls him in English) has moved to Japan. (The English summary on the front page of volume 1 of the "Complete Works Edition" says that a mercantile firm bought Dracula's castle and moved it to Tokyo without knowing it was inhabited.) In the Nerima Ward of Tokyo, he and his daughter, Chocola, and faithful servant Igor continue to live in the castle.

While Chocola attends night classes at Matsutani Junior High School, Earl Dracula is desperate to drink the blood of beautiful virgin women; an appropriate meal for a vampire of his stature. However, each night that Earl Dracula goes out on the prowl he finds himself getting involved in some kind of disturbance which leads to him causing various trouble for the local residents. With nobody in Japan believing in vampires, his very presence causes trouble amongst the people in town.

The slapstick comedy of the proud vampire adjusting to life in Japan is compounded by Professor Hellsing, Earl Dracula's nemesis for the past ten years. He has come to Japan to exterminate Earl Dracula, but has the tragic flaw of suffering from hemorrhoids. In addition, Earl Dracula is also pursued by Blonda, the first woman Dracula was able to drink blood from when he arrived in Japan. Because Blonda has a face only a mother could love, Earl Dracula wants to get as far away from her as possible.

Published in the same magazine as Black Jack at the same time, Tezuka commented that creating the slapstick antics of the poor vampire was very enjoyable. Don Dracula appears in 2004 Game Boy Advance game Astro Boy: Omega Factor, where he is a henchman of Sharaku.