Afro Samurai to debut on American TV screens
Japan’s own “Afro Samurai” is set to hit the small screen in the United States as an animated series, to be followed up by a feature film starring Samuel L. Jackson. Comic book aficionados in Japan, though, may be scratching their heads as they have likely never heard of this manga export.
Though in Japan “Afro Samurai” only appeared in a self-published magazine, it has attracted interest from Hollywood, and there are even plans under way for a nationwide release of the manga. Japanese manga as a whole has caused a stir in the U.S. film industry, but it is extremely rare for a series that is so little known in Japan to make such a high-profile U.S. debut.
“Afro Samurai,” written by 31-year-old Tokyo-based graphic designer Takashi “Bob” Okazaki, is the story of a black samurai fighting his enemies as he sets out to find the person who killed his father. With a sci-fi twist, the violent story is akin to a fusion of historical drama and hip-hop culture.
Originally carried in Nononhow, a self-financed magazine put together in 1998 by Okazaki and his friends during their time at art school of which fewer than 100 copies were published. Stumbling across the comic while looking for “new stuff from Japan,” at the U.S. office of Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo-based animation house GDH, GDH International Creative Director Eric Calderon recalled that he had a gut feeling about Okazaki’s story. “It was high-quality art–very innovative and cool,” he said. “I thought it would go over well with kids here.”
When envisioning an animated series, Jackson, an African-American actor whose most recent credits include the role of a Jedi master in the “Star Wars” prequels, jumped on the project, signing on as both lead voice actor and coproducer.
Jackson’s involvement served as momentum for the project, which has since found a home at major U.S. cable television network SpikeTV, and is scheduled to debut around November.
Following its debut in the United States, the anime will be reimported and broadcast in Japan, complete with subtitles.
The project also attracted Charles Roven, producer for “Batman Begins,” and plans were under way for a live-action version of the manga to be filmed in collaboration with a Japanese studio, and starring Jackson in the lead role.
Comics and video games based on the series likely will hit the stores in the United States ahead of its release in Japan.
This is the first time Okazaki has illustrated a manga, though he has spent much of his time as an illustrator. According to the artist, the idea for a story centering on an afro-coiffed samurai was greatly influenced by his love for American movies and music. “The work has a really unique look, and it’s even popular with some readers in Japan,” Okazaki said. “I never would have thought a bunch of Americans would be reading my work.”
“Japanese animation is well respected [in the United States], and the original manga are drawing a lot of attention as well,” said Masaki Kaifu, who has experience with joint anime projects between the two countries. “But there’s still a high hurdle to overcome in producing live-action adaptations, and as a result there have been very few made. It’s truly groundbreaking that ‘Afro Samurai’ is spreading out in a all different directions.”
Read the original article here!
