The manga industry is indeed one of the biggest up-and-coming faucets garnering massive fan attention, but even that has faced a decline in recent years. This is true considering all the legendary Mangakas (aka manga creators) who have left this world in the last few years, leaving only their masterpieces behind to continue their legacy.
One of these masterminds was none other than the super-brains behind the epic Dragon Ball universe who was the most recent to leave fans devastated with his death, Akira Toriyama. However, he wasn’t the only one, and there have been multiple other manga creators who broke many hearts with their deaths preceding Toriyama sensei in recent years.
Besides Akira Toriyama, the World Lost these Legendary Mangakas in Recent Years
Though many may be unaware, Akira Toriyama sensei wasn’t the only manga artist whose sudden unexpected demise broke manga fans from all across the world. While he was the most recent loss the manga industry had to bear due to subdural hematoma, several other manga creators have also joined the League of the Legendary Dead in the last couple of years.
Out of all of them, we have picked out 4 of the most legendary manga creators besides Toriyama sensei who lost their lives within the past half a decade, each due to their own respective reasons. These include the Kentaro Miura sensei, Hinako Ashihara sensei, Haruka Kaya sensei, Kazuki Takahashi sensei, and Nami Sano sensei. Read on to know more.
1. Kentaro Miura
First off, Miura sensei. Born on the 11th of July, 1966, Miura sensei gifted the world with his most famous best-selling and incredibly acclaimed dark fantasy manga series Berserk, which began its serialization in 1989. His other works included Noa, Futatabi, Japan, King of Wolves, Duranki, and Gigantomachia.
However, after a little over three decades of worldwide success with Berserk, Miura sensei left this world at the age of 54 on the 6th of May, 2021. The cause of his death was revealed to be acute aortic dissection (via Hakusensha), and his sudden demise left a wave of sadness sweeping over his fans for an unbearably long period.
2. Hinako Ashihara
Mangaka Ashihara sensei (real name: Ritsuko Matsumoto), born on the 25th of March, 1974, was one of the most commended Japanese manga artists and was the brains behind Piece: Kanojo no Koiku and Sand Chronicles. Other manga series that she illustrated included Homemade Home, Forbidden Dance, Tennen Bitter Chocolate, SOS, and Chouchou Kumo.
But at the age of only 50, her dead body was found in Nikkō, Tochigi Prefecture on January 29th, 2024. Her death has been cited as a suspected suicide (via Anime News Network), which notably happened 3 days after she criticized NTV for not being faithful to her manga Sexy Tanaka-san while making its TV drama adaptation in a “later deleted and apologized for” blog post.
3. Kazuki Takahashi
Mangaka Kazuki Takahashi sensei (real name: Kazuo Takahashi) has inevitably been one of the most renowned Japanese manga artists of all time. Born on October 4th, 1961, he delivered the masterpiece Yu-Gi-Oh! manga and trading card game to fans in 1996, which even earned the honor of holding the Guinness World Record for becoming the best-selling trading card game of all time.
Then a little over four decades after his glorious career took off in 1981, Takahashi sensei’s body was found in the water 300 meters off the shore of Nago, Okinawa on the 4th of July, 2022. The circumstances of his death were eventually reported to have taken place while he was assisting in the rescue of three other people who were stuck in the riptide (as per Stars and Stripes).
4. Nami Sano
Born on the 17th of April in 1987, Mangaka Sano sensei gifted the manga world with some incredibly appreciated manga works that later went on to get adapted into animes. These included two of her most notable works Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto and Migi & Dali.
Yet, at the age of only 36, she left this world in a heartbreaking turn of events on the 5th of August 2023. The cause of her death was ovarian cancer, which happened approximately 3 months after she was diagnosed with a tumor in her ovary (via The Asahi Shimbun).
While all of these manga artists’ phenomenal works continue their legacy, garner more fan attention, and become some of the biggest fan-favorite projects of all time, these masterminds will unquestionably continue to be remembered as some of the most legendary people to have ever walked on the face of this earth.
