Stunning and exceptionally large original page by Jiro Kuwata, the artist behind Batmanga (Japanese Batman) | * Shõnen Jupiter published in Bessatsu Shonen King (1965) Media: pencil & ink on drawing paper | Very good condition Size: 27.2 x 39 cm Jiro Kuwata (1935-2020) started as a mangaka at the age of 13 and is undoubtedly one of the greatest post-war manga artists ! His career was defined when he created 'Phantom Detective', which was adapted into a television show in 1959. Since then, his main subject was science fiction, superheroes & adventure. His best-known series was 8 Man but also X-Man, Moonlight Mask and Ultra Seven. In 1966, when Shonen Gahosha acquired the Batman rights (for Japan), they entrusted him with the project. For this project, he chose to use Osamu Tezuka's style and combine Golden Age techniques with Bob Kane-era Batman; a Mount Rushmore-style Batman head, the widest cars ever seen and a whole lot of mad scientists He continued his manga work until the late 1970s, but also ran into depression and alcoholism. In 1977, he converted to Buddhism and returned to manga only occasionally. In 1992, he agreed to make the last issue of 8 Man. Jiro Kuwata is a forerunner of the realistic drawing style known as gekiga. He mixed his science fiction stories with a cinematic style and more adult themes such as abuse, broken relationships and addiction. Fun fact: he worked as ghostwriter/artist for ‘Astro Boy’ instead of Tezuka when Tezuka was ill for a long time ... Check out our other items for other mangaka, the largest selection available outside Japan. Combine your purchases to save on shipping costs or opt for collection of won items at our gallery in Antwerp (Belgium) or our pop-up in ...