Anpanman is a Japanese children's superhero picture book series. It was written by Takashi Yanase. It ran from 1973 until the author's death in 2013. "Anpanman" is one of the most popular anime series for young children. Anpanman is a superhero with an anpan (a red bean paste filled pastry) for a head. He protects the world from an evil anthropomorphic germ named Baikinman.