Shotaro Ishinomori

Infobox Person
name = Shotaro Ishinomori


image_size =
caption = Shotaro Ishinomori
birth_date = January 25, 1938
birth_place = Tome, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan
death_date = January 28, 1998
death_place =
occupation = Mangaka

nihongo|Shotaro Ishinomori|石ノ森 章太郎|Ishinomori Shōtarō|January 25, 1938—January 28, 1998 was an influential figure in manga, anime and tokusatsu who created several immensely popular long-running series such as "Cyborg 009" and the Kamen Rider Series. He was twice awarded the Shogakukan Manga Award, in 1968 for "Sabu to Ichi Torimono Hikae" and in 1988 for "Hotel" and "Manga Nihon Keizai Nyumon".cite web | url=http://comics.shogakukan.co.jp/mangasho/rist.html | title=小学館漫画賞：歴代受賞者 | publisher=Shogakukan | language=Japanese | accessdate=2007-08-19] He was born nihongo|Shotaro Onodera|小野寺 章太郎|Onodera Shōtarō in Tome, Miyagi, and was also known as nihongo|Shotaro Ishimori|石森 章太郎|Ishimori Shōtarō before 1986, when he changed his family name to Ishinomori.

Body of work

"Cyborg 009", created in 1963, became the first superpowered hero team created in Japan. That same year, Kazumasa Hirai and Jiro Kuwata created Japan's first cyborg superhero, "8 Man" (which predated "Kamen Rider" by eight years). The success of the tokusatsu superhero TV series "Kamen Rider", produced by Toei Company Ltd. in 1971, led to the birth of the "henshin" (transforming) superhero (human-sized superheroes who transform by doing a pose, and use martial arts to fight henchmen and the weekly monster), and resulted in many sequel shows to this day. Ishinomori then created many similar superhero dramas, including "Android Kikaider" , "Henshin Ninja Arashi", "Inazuman", "Robotto Keiji", "Secret Task Force Goranger" (the first Super Sentai series), "Kaiketsu Zubat", "Akumaizer 3", "Sarutobi Ecchan" and countless others. He even created popular children's shows such as "Hoshi no Ko Chobin" ("Chobin, Child of the Stars", 1974, a co-production with Studio Zero which was a major success on Italian television), and "Ganbare!! Robokon".

Ishinomori's art is quite reminiscent of that of his mentor, Osamu Tezuka. The true story of his first meeting with Tezuka was illustrated in a short four-page tale drawn up as supplementary material for the 1970s "Astro Boy" manga reprints. Around 1955, Ishinomori submitted work to a contest seeking new talent in the magazine, "Manga Shonen". Tezuka was impressed by his drawings and asked Ishinomori to help him with "Astro Boy". In the American release, this story can be seen in Volume 15, along with Ishinomori's earliest work on the "Electro" story arc.

There was also a ' comic created for the U.S. "Nintendo Power" magazine by Shotaro Ishinomori. Loosely based on the game, this telling portrayed Link's parents as Knights of Hyrule, lost to the Dark World. It also included other original characters such as Link's fairy guide and companion, Epheremelda (long before this concept was introduced to the series, unless one counts the "Super Mario Bros. Super Shows Legend of Zelda segments); and Roam, a descendant of the Knights of Hyrule who fought in the Imprisoning War. (Roam bears a striking resemblance to 002 from Cyborg 009 who could also fly as a result of changing into his beast form in the "Dark World".) The comic ran as a serial in NP starting in January 1992 (Volume 32) and ran in 12 parts. It was later collected in graphic novel form.

Later life

At the end of 1997, Kazuhiko Shimamoto, a young and up and coming mangaka was contacted by an increasingly ill Shotaro Ishinomori and asked if he would do a continuation (though more along the lines of a remake) of his 100-page, one-shot manga from 1970, "Skull Man" (the manga that became the basis for "Kamen Rider"). Ishinomori, who had been one of Shimamoto's boyhood heroes, faxed him copies of the proposed story and plot notes. Shimamoto was astounded that he had been chosen to work on his idol's final, great work.

Shimamoto had already been involved in the revival of one of Ishinomori's other earlier works (including "Kamen Rider") but little did he dream that, as only one of many whom Ishinomori had inspired, he would be chosen for the final collaboration and resurrection of "Skull Man". It was also recently adapted into an anime in 2007.

Death

Ishinomori died of heart failure on January 28, 1998. His final work was the tokusatsu superhero TV series, "Voicelugger", televised months later. A manga museum named in his honor opened in Ishinomaki, Miyagi in 2001.

His work posthumously awarded him the Guinness World Record for most comics published by one author, totaling over 128,000 pages. [cite web|url=http://rinkya.blogspot.com/2008/01/japanese-manga-artist-wins-guinness.html|title=A Rinkya Blog: Japanese Manga Writer Wins Guinness World Record|accessdate=2008-01-28]

Motifs/Themes

*Heroes with distinctive scarves (serve almost as miniature capes without the cumbersomeness)
**1st gen Kamen Rider: Kamen Rider 1 (red), 2 (red), V3 (white), Riderman (yellow), X (black and yellow stripes with a red X), Amazon (white), Stronger (white), Skyrider (red), Super-1 (red), ZX (green), The First and The Next 1 (red) and 2 (red)
**Cyborg 009: All 00s except 001 (orange or yellow)
**Henshin Ninja Arashi: Hayate (untransformed) (orange), Arashi (transformed) (purple)
**Kaiketsu Zubat (white)
**Inazuman (yellow) and Inazuman Flash (orange)
**Akumaizer 3: Zabitan (white) and Evil (red)
**Chôjin Bibyun (sequel of Akumaizer 3): Bibyun ( [http://www.ishimoripro.com/image/wallpaper/2005/11/bibyun_B.jpgbrownish beige] , normally green)
*Anti-heroes early for their time: Skull Man, some aspects of Hakaida of Kikaida series, Cyborg 0013 of Cyborg 009 series
*Heroes torn between humanity and inhumanity (influenced by Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy [itself a basis of Pinocchio] , and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein): Cyborg 009 series, Kamen Rider series, Kikaider series
*Egg/oval shaped eyes: Kamen Rider series, Kikaider series, Robotto Keiji, Henshin Ninja Arashi series, Skull Man, Inazuman series, Evil of Akumaizer 3, Chôjin Bibyun series
*Skull/skeleton: Black Ghost (Cyborg 009), Skull Man, Shocker and Destron style soldiers (Kamen Rider 1/2/V3), Skull Rider
*The few underdog heroes vs. an evil organization that dominates every facet of the world
*The irony of turning those who were intended for evil to fight for justice and define a new life purpose

References

* [http://www.ishimoripro.com/index2.php Ishimori@Style] - Official website ja icon
* [http://www.man-bow.com/manga/ Mangattan Museum website] ja icon
* [http://www.ishinomori.com/top.html Shotaro Ishinomori Complete Comic Works] ja icon
* [http://www.city.tome.miyagi.jp/kinenkan/index1.htm Shotaro Ishinomori Memorial Museum] - Official website ja icon