Famous Mangaka Spreads Positivity in the Face of Loss After Earthquake
January 1st, 2024 saw one of the most devastating earthquakes in recent Japanese history — the most damaging and powerful one since the famous Tohoku Earthquake in 2011. At 7.6 in magnitude, the earthquake caused a lot of structural damage, along with loss of life and injury. While it is easy to get depressed just thinking about the situation, one mangaka is using his voice to encourage and comfort.
This mangaka is Go Nagai, the legend behind manga such as Devilman, Grendizer, Cutie Honey, and Mazinger Z. He is also the writer behind the upcoming anime Grendizer U, which is a reboot of the classic UFO Robot Grendizer. The anime is set to premier later in 2024. His manga are especially famous in Japan because they were often a point of contention in schools and caused a lot of parent-teacher conferences due to some of the content in manga that often drew the attention of children.
If you are wondering what Go Nagai has to do with the January 1st earthquake, we are getting there. The earthquake was in a part of Japan that few people outside the country (and not so many inside it as well) have ever heard of. The epicenter was near the town of Wajima on the Noto Penninsula of Ishikawa Prefecture, on Japan's Western coast. While Wajima is not famous for much, it is famous for one thing — it is the birthplace of Go Nagai, the creator of Grendizer!
While his incredible career took the mangaka far from his humble beginnings in a small hometown, Wajima does have a museum dedicated to his work. The Go Nagai Wonderland Museum is one of the most famous places to visit in Wajima, and was full of original arwork, character statues, and more creations by Nagai. It was also a small way to try to draw tourists and their money to such an isolated part of Japan.
However, the earthquake on January 1st destroyed most of the museum, and of course, its contents as well. While the full extent of the damage has not yet been assessed, it doesn't look good. More than likely most, if not all, of
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