How Two Friends Created a Manga Legacy

Hiroshi Fujimoto and Motoo Abiko became manga legends together.

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I vividly remember the first manga (Japanese comic books) my Mom bought me – it was issue 14 of Doraemon. I’ve re-read this book a bajillion times. From the point forward, Doraemon became one of my all time favorite manga.

Today’s story revolves around two legendary manga masters, one of whom is the creator of Doraemon.

Hiroshi Fujimoto (藤本弘) and Motoo Abiko (安孫子素雄) first met when they attended the same grade school at age 10. They went to a bookstore one day, read a copy of Osamu Tezuka’s manga New Treasure Island, and got completely hooked.

They began making their own manga together. They tried to mimic Tezuka’s way of storytelling, including character design, storyboarding, compositions, etc. In the process, they learned a lot about comic creation. One can imagine how much fun it must have been for two young kids to explore the world of comics.

After high school, Abiko worked in a local newspaper agency, but Fujimoto wanted to pursue his childhood dream as a comic creator. He successfully persuaded Abiko to quit his job (Wow!). Together, they moved to Tokyo, the heart of manga publishing.

They co-created a few manga series together, but the books didn’t generate much noise. Undeterred, they moved into what is now a famous apartment building called Tokiwa-sō, where many famous manga artists once resided.

Fujumoto and Abiko continued to collaborate. They shared a pen name: Fujiko Fujio (藤子不二雄). Their first major breakthrough came in 1964: Little Ghost Q-Taro, a story about a mischievous ghost who enjoyed playing pranks on others.

Over time, despite their deep friendship, Fujimoto and Abiko preferred to work on their own projects. To avoid confusion, Fujimoto switched his pen name to Fujiko F. Fujio (藤子 •F•不二雄), and Abiko to Fujiko Fujio A (藤子不二雄Ⓐ).

Fujimoto enjoyed making stories for young readers. The most famous manga series he created was Doraemon, a robotic cat from the future with endless amounts of gadgets to share with a self-proclaimed unfortunate boy, Nobi Nobita.

Another big hit Fujimoto created was Perman, an adventure story of a group of young superheroes.

Abiko preferred to explore a wide variety of topics. He created several manga series for children, including Ninja Hattori-kun and The Monster Kid.

But Abiko also enjoyed exploring darker subject matters, the most famous of which was The Laughing Salesman, a salesman who sold what the prospective client desired but would punish the client when he/she breached the terms, usually due to greed.

Fujimoto and Abiko might have walked separate paths as they grew as comic creators, but their friendship lasted a lifetime.

I always find the story between Fujimoto and Abiko fascinating. To have a passion in life is a blessing. To share a passion with a friend for a lifetime is a true gift, a true wonder.

Hiroshi Fujimoto (Fujiko F. Fujio) (Left) and Motoo Abiko (Fujiko Fujio A) (Right)

Have you read any of Fujimoto’s or Abiko’s manga series? What’s your favorite? I look forward to hearing from you on the comments below.

Developing Interests in History Through Graphic Novels

How I became a history buff through reading comics and graphic novels.

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As most of my friends and colleagues know, I am a history buff.

But I wasn’t born a history buff. That part was very much nurtured.

When I was growing up in Hong Kong, I loved reading comics and graphic novels. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was a highly visual learner (still am!). Images drew me in. I was lucky that my parents were never opposed to me reading comics. They were both teachers, and they understood that different kids learned in different ways. (Okay, it probably helped too that they both majored in art.) They saw it as a good thing for me to pick up the habit of reading. So, they took me to the local library every weekend. There, I checked out tons of comics and graphic novels on biography, history, and mythology.

Biography series above include: Siddhartha Gautama, Julius Caesar, Michelangelo, Galileo, George Washington, Hans Christian Andersen, and Florence Nightingale.

Sample interior pages of the series I loved as a child.

There was a series that focused on world history, and another series specifically on Chinese history.

I soaked them up like a dry sponge in the ocean.

I had the most fun reading them. Sometimes, I created my own history comics. The creative process deepened my interest in the subject matter.

A comic I did in middle school. The story revolved around a war during the Song Dynasty in China (around 950CE).

It was learning without realizing I was learning.

Because I had a good foundation in history, I was really into history classes in middle school and high school. The more interest I had, the more I spent time reading and studying in history classes. That, in and of itself, became an infinite cycle of curiosity and interest.

Graphic novels are great for visual learners. There are many great history and biographical graphic novels nowadays. They are EXCELLENT not only for children, but also for adults who either want to refresh their memory on a particular person or time period, or for those who want to build a general foundation in history.

Some of my favorites include:

And for older audiences:

I really would like to thank my parents for being very open-minded. Back in the days, a lot of people saw comics and graphic novels as something to frown upon. Harmful, even. True, there were titles that were violent, sexual, and inappropriate for kids. But that could be true in anything, including plays, movies, TV shows, video games, the internet… My parents knew comics in and of itself was just a storytelling format. The content of the story mattered much more.

Do you have a favorite comic or graphic novel on history or biography? Please share in the comments below!

Until next time!

Why "One Piece" Echoes with Readers?

Eiichiro Oda masterfully reminds us the key to a strong story.

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Kazuhiko Torishima (鳥嶋和彦), legendary editor of Dragon Ball, once famously criticized Eiichiro Oda (尾田榮一郎)’s One Piece. Torishima described Oda’s compositions as “messy”, the flow among his action sequences as “ill-defined”, and the overall story as “boring”.

A year later, One Piece became a bestseller. Torishima acknowledged his mistake, “Oda’s is very gifted in character development. Along with the written dialogues, strong world-building and touching friendship-arcs, Oda is unquestionably a very successful manga creator.”

Every creator is different. To me, the biggest strength in Oda’s work lies in his great skills in his ability to tell a very character-driven story.

The premise of the book was simple: a boy named Monkey D. Luffy dreamed of becoming the pirate king and searched for the ultimate treasure of the sea known as One Piece. On his journey, he recruited crew members, each with his/her unique sets of talents, baggages, and dreams.

Each character has his/her own touching storyline, and those stories ultimately circle back to become reasons why he/she eventually joins the crew. The emotional arches are very well developed. When an author can touch the reader repeatedly, the story is bound to go far.

There were dialogues that made me laugh with happy tears, and scenes that made me cry with sad tears. Many tears were shed.

To top it off, Oda’s had a solid world-building talent. The world of One Piece contains its own history and complicated geopolitics among bandits, pirates, the world government, and political factions. Did I mention it also has tons of fighting actions to get your heart pumping?

In terms of art, Oda often pulls the “camera-angle” for a more drastic effect.

“I like to make the character at the front really big, and the ones behind really tiny. This gives more depth to the scene.” ~Eiichiro Oda, via a Weekly Shonen Jump Magazine interview.

One Piece is a story where a bunch of dreamers get together on a boat to go on an adventure of a lifetime. They cheer each other on and always have each other’s back. Isn’t that what we all strife for in life, to chase our separate dreams together with a group of trustworthy friends?

You can almost taste the salty sea water, almost hear the boy’s exciting, booming voice calling out to you: “Adventure is on the horizon!”

How can a reader resist to dive in?

Luffy will be part of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade this week, which is a VERY big deal. The parade is highly selective. This means the series have made a strong footprint in American pop culture.

(On a side note, because I am also a big fan of picture books, check out Melissa Sweet’s beautiful book Balloons Over Broadway to learn more about the story behind the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. ♥︎)

The live-action series in 2023 became the #1 show on Netflix, and it made #1 in 84 countries!

As of 2023, the story of One Piece is still ongoing. After working on it for more than 25 years, rumors had it that Oda is planning to end the series soon. Although he had said that many times before. Who knows?

In the mean time, the grand adventure continues.

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As a general guideline for parents, educators and librarians, the recommended age for One Piece is 14+. Although there are no nudity scenes, there are sexual references, and fighting scenes can at times be violent.

Sanji is a smoker throughout the manga series. In the American anime version, this has been switched to him holding a lollipop the entire time, but his smoking habit remains in the comic format – something to be aware of if you are introducing the series to a young audience.

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Do you enjoy reading One Piece? Who is your favorite character and character’s story arc so far? I look forward to your thoughts on the comments section below.