Takao Aoki

Beyblade, known in Japan as Bakuten Shoot Beyblade (Japanese: 爆転シュートベイブレード, Hepburn: Bakuten Shūto Beiburēdo; lit. 'Explosive-Spin Shoot Beyblade'), is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Takao Aoki, created to promote Takara's Beyblade spinning tops. The series focuses on a group of kids who form teams, which battle one another using Beyblades.

It was serialized in Shogakukan's children's manga magazine CoroCoro Comic from August 1999 to June 2004, with its chapters collected and published in 14 tankōbon volumes. It was licensed for English release in North America by Viz Media and in Singapore, Australia and New Zealand by Chuang Yi.

An anime adaptation by Madhouse aired in Japan on TV Tokyo from January to December 2001 and was followed by two sequel series, Beyblade V-Force and Beyblade G-Revolution, and the 2002 film Beyblade: Fierce Battle all three by Nippon Animedia, a partnership between Nippon Animation, Takara, Agatsuma and Epoch. Nelvana licensed and produced English-language adaptations of the anime series and the film.