Hataraki Man

働きマン

29 chapters

4 volumes

2004 – 2009

This is a collection of one-shot stories about working people, seen through the eyes of Matsukata Hiroko, a 28-year-old single editor at the weekly magazine JIDAI. She frequently clashes with Tanaka Kunio, a novice editor who shows no remorse for his blunders, and work already stresses her out plenty. Because she takes her work so seriously, everyone calls Hiroko a masculine woman. She smokes excessively, overworks herself, and never has sex. Yet when a story must be completed, she shifts into "Working Man" mode: the testosterone in her blood surges, she operates at three times her usual pace, and every thought of life's necessities fades away. Note: The manga has been on hiatus since 2009.