Billy Bat

Billy Bat

Billy Bat

ビリーバット • บิลลี่ แบ็ท • Билли Бэт • 빌리 배트 • بيلي بات • 蝙蝠比利
SuggestiveViolence or Gore
Origination: Manga
Demographic: Seinen
Published: 2008
Status: 📗 Completed
Translation: 📗 Completed
Final Chapter: Volume 20, Chapter 165
Ranked: #2,856
Followed by 6,812 users
(286 ratings)

From Kana:
The story begins in 1949 Los Angeles. Kevin Yamagata, a Japanese American cartoonist, has built his career on Billy Bat, a sharp, wisecracking detective beloved by readers. But everything shifts when Kevin realizes he may have unknowingly copied the character from an image he once saw in Japan.

Determined to find the truth, Kevin returns to a devastated, post-war Japan. What he uncovers goes far beyond questions of inspiration or theft. The image of the bat is ancient, surfacing again and again across history, tied to moments of upheaval, power, and violence.

As Kevin follows the trail, he is drawn into a far-reaching mystery that blurs fiction and reality, where a single drawing may hold the key to forces shaping human history.

Awards Won:

  • Winner of the Lucca Comics Awards for Best Manga Series in 2012.
  • Winner of the Max und Moritz Award for Best International Comic in 2014.

See MyAnimeList for Manga Details.

  • Wikipedia

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More Info

Authors: Urasawa Naoki, Nagasaki Takashi
Artists: Urasawa Naoki
Genres: Drama, Ecchi, Historical, Mystery, Psychological, Sci-Fi, Tragedy, Gore, Philosophical, Thriller
Theme: Supernatural, Office Workers
Format: Award Winning
Publishers: Kodansha

Tags

  • Conspiracy/ies
  • Alternate History
  • Comic Artist/s
  • Crime/s
  • Story within Story
  • Comic Industry
  • Secret Organization/s
  • Time Skip
  • America
  • Post-War
  • Cold War
  • Mind Break
  • Hallucination/s
  • 20th Century
  • 21st Century
  • Amusement Park
  • Assassin/s
  • Interracial Couple/s
  • Assassination/s
  • Seeing Things Other Humans Can't
  • Anthropomorphism
  • Criminal/s
  • Dark Ambience
  • Discrimination
  • End of the World
  • Extended Flashbacks
  • Historical Persons
  • Huge Cast of Characters
  • Hunted Protagonist
  • Japan
  • Multiple Protagonists
  • Murder/s
  • Mysterious Elements
  • Ninja/s
  • Pop Culture References
  • Realistic Art Style
  • Strong Female Lead
  • Strong Male Lead
  • Supernatural Elements
  • Thriller
  • Time Progression
  • World Domination
  • Real Life Facts
  • Award-Winning Work
  • Emancipation
  • Black Character/s
  • Black Protagonist
  • Movie Business
  • Nudity
  • On the Run
  • President
  • Prostitute/s
  • Rich Family
  • Serial Killer/s
  • Space Travel
  • Terrorist Attack
  • Violence
  • Noir Fiction
  • 1960s
  • 1980s
  • Male Author

Referrers

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English

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Most Helpful Reviews

ponyyonp avatar

ponyyonp

1 reviews87 follows

Posted 12:54 PM · Jun 6, 2026

Recommended
10/10
Reviewed through Ch. 165 · 100%

Untitled review

Billy Bat is One of the Best manga of all time , Naoki Urasawa really cooked with this One The way he connects all dots in later chapters is simply Brilliant, As expected fro, Best Mangaka of all time

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