Manga pioneer Tetsuya Chiba, creator of Ashita no Joe, dies at 87 in Tokyo

Early life and first steps in manga

Tetsuya Chiba was born in Tokyo in 1939. His family took him as an infant to the Korean Peninsula and, when he was two, to Japanese-controlled Manchuria in what is now northeastern China. He lived through the end of the Second World War there, enduring violence and looting, before returning to Japan in 1946. Around that time he developed an interest in manga, joined a manga magazine group and made his professional debut at 17, according to Jiji Press. El Mundo gives a different account, dating his debut to 1958 at the age of 19, after he had founded a manga club with school friends. In 1962 he won a children's manga award sponsored by the publisher Kodansha.

Ashita no Joe and its afterlife

In 1968 Chiba worked with comic artist Asao Takamori, who also wrote under the name Ikki Kajiwara, to create the boxing series. Its protagonist, Joe Yabuki, is a troubled young man who discovers boxing in a juvenile detention centre and rises through the professional ranks to fight memorable bouts. Serialized in Weekly Shonen Magazine, the series helped sharply lift that magazine's circulation, per Jiji Press. It spawned a hugely popular animated series, live-action films, video games, television commercials and stage productions. Long-time fans still recite lines from the manga, and readers once held a 'funeral' after the death of Joe's main rival in the story. Glénat has published the series in French.

Other works, honours and teaching

Chiba's other works include Notari Matsutaro, about the professional sumo world, Ashita Tenki ni Naare, a golf series, and Ore wa Teppei, themed on kendo. Earlier hits included Shiden-kai no Taka, about a wartime pilot, and the sports manga Harris no Kaze, which became a hit television anime. Honours followed: a Medal with Purple Ribbon in 2002, then the Order of the Rising Sun in 2012, and the Order of Culture in 2024. El Mundo reports that the Order of Culture made him the first artist in his field to receive it. Chiba also taught at a university and headed the Japan Cartoonists Association. Kodansha's Tetsuya Chiba Prize has been awarded to young manga creators for 46 years.

Death and tributes

Jiji Press reported that Chiba died of myelodysplastic syndrome at a Tokyo hospital on Thursday, and El Mundo dates that day to 22 October. He was 87. Only his closest relatives attended the funeral, Jiji said. His publishers confirmed the death on Tuesday, 27 October. Kodansha said in a statement that countless debut manga artists had taken his advice to heart and that many of them were still working today. Shogakukan credited him with helping shape manga culture in Japan and with winning over several generations of fans. He also frequently spoke to the media about his commitment to peace and his childhood in China during the war.