Ken the Warrior it is a work that has accompanied entire generations of fans all over the world. The work, still today, enjoys extraordinary popularity to the point that merchandising is among the most sought after in the territory of the Rising Sun.

Recently, the designer of the eponymous manga, Tetsuro Hara, gave himself to an interview for Otaquest in which he told the origins of his involvement in the comic and some interesting anecdotes about the project. The work, in fact, according to the sensei himself, was not to last so long, but the extraordinary popularity of Ken the Warrior they pushed the authors to “pull the manga for long” for another two years, until the conclusion reached in 1988. During the interview, Hara revealed some details about his participation in the manga:

“Since I was a kid since I was a fan of manga, especially in those action-packed works. At the time Bruce Lee was very popular, which is why in elementary and middle school I was very interested in his films. However, unfortunately by that time Bruce Lee was already missing. […] Then, since it was not possible to record TV, I printed his image in my mind and then tried to recreate it on a sheet of paper. I also drew Yusaku Matsuda by heart, an actor whom I found particularly cool but who left the scene following some problems. Anyway, it was with Ken the Warrior that I finally managed to draw a protagonist who was strongly inspired by both Bruce Lee and Yusaku Matsuda.

Then the designer added the following:

“The overwhelming of my motivation for drawing was to make real what I wanted to see firsthand. After admiring Bruce Lee and Yusaku Matsuda, their way of speaking, the atmospheres evoked by their acting entered my mind culminating in the ideas that pushed me to characterize the characters. I have always wanted to draw men capable of striking only with the look. Here, this was my goal. To be honest, I was ready to hang my pen when Ken the Warrior finished. After all, it was the only thing I wanted to draw. “

And you, instead, what do you think of his words? Let us know, as always, with a comment below, but about the franchise, did you know that Fist of the Blue Sky was suspended due to the author’s health condition?

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Sweety Otaku

One of the best parts of watching anime is how many times a show can surprise you. Sometimes for good, sometimes for bad. But if the Otaku know one thing, it's that anything is possible.

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