Unico is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka. It was serialized in Sanrio's shōjo manga magazine Ririka from November 1976 to March 1979 and collected in two volumes. A pilot film for a potential television series was produced in 1979. Two theatrical anime film adaptations were produced by Tezuka Productions and Madhouse in the early 1980s.

Osamu Tezuka was a Japanese manga artist, cartoonist and animator. Born in Osaka Prefecture, his prolific output, pioneering techniques and innovative redefinitions of genres earned him such titles as "the Father of Manga" , "the Godfather of Manga" and "the God of Manga" . Additionally, he is often considered the Japanese equivalent to Walt Disney, who served as a major inspiration during Tezuka's formative years. Though this phrase praises the quality of his early manga works for children and animations, it also blurs the significant influence of his later, more literary, gekiga works.