Rideback (stylized as RɪᴅᴇBᴀᴄᴋ) is a Japanese
manga series written and illustrated by Tetsurō Kasahara. It was serialized in
Shogakukan's
seinen manga magazine Monthly Ikki from April 2003 to October 2008, with its chapters collected in ten tankōbon volumes. Set in Japan in the 2020s, it follows the story of college student Rin Ogata, as she comes across a two-wheeled automobile robot known as a Rideback. It was adapted into a 12-episode
anime television series by
Madhouse broadcast from January to March 2009. In North America,
Funimation licensed the anime series for English release.
Plot
In the year of 2020 (2025 in the anime), an organization called the Global Government Force (世界統治軍, Seikai Toushigun, lit. "World Government Army") (GGF)[a] has taken control of the world. Rin Ogata was a promising up-and-coming ballet dancer but suffered a serious injury while dancing and decided to quit. Years later in college, she comes across a club building and soon finds herself intrigued by a transforming motorcycle-like robotic vehicle called a "Rideback". She soon finds that her unique ballet skills with balance and finesse make her a born natural on a Rideback. However, those same skills also get her into serious trouble with the government.
A college student. Being the daughter of a talented dancer, she was therefore expected to be their natural successor, having participated in dancing competitions from a young age. However, she fractured her left foot while dancing and subsequently decided to leave it, later enrolling in the theater department of Musashino University, where she first comes across the Rideback Fuego.
The corrupt commander of the GGP. He runs the government with a dictatorship approach. He is shot and killed by Misawo. He is an anime original character.
Misawo Yokoyama (横山 みさを, Yokoyama Misawo)
Voiced by:
Risa Hayamizu (Japanese); Jennifer Seman (English)
Lecturer at Musashino University's department of literature and adviser to the Rideback team. In reality, however, she is a member of the GGP.
BMA
Note: BMA is an acronym for Borderless Military Alliance (国境なき軍事同盟, Kokkyō Naki Gunji Dōmei).
A soldier of BMA, who rides a black Rideback. In his early years, he served in the same GGP unit as Okakura and Kallenbach before later defecting to the BMA.
In North America,
Funimation announced the license to the series at
Anime Central in May 2010.[22] Funimation released the series on Blu-ray and DVD on June 28, 2011.[23] The series made its American television debut on July 26, 2011 on
Funimation Channel.[24]
Novel
A novel, titled Rideback: Cannonball Run (RIDEBACK―キャノンボール・ラン―, Raidobakku Kyanon Bōru Ran) was released by Shogakukan, under its
Gagaga Bunko, on January 21, 2009.[25]
^Kasahara, Tetsurō (October 26, 2008).
もえつきしんどろーむ. kasaharatetsuro.hatenadiary.org (in Japanese).
Archived from the original on July 11, 2022. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
^2009年冬期(新春)放送開始の新作アニメ一覧. Gigazine (in Japanese). December 5, 2008.
Archived from the original on December 9, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2020. OP:MELL「RIDEBACK」 ED:ユンナ featuring GOKU「記憶」