Kenichi Sonoda, Hitoshi Ariga Win Inkpot Award from Comic-Con

by Danica Davidson
July 26, 2024

San Diego Comic-Con is in full swing, and mangaka Kenichi Sonoda and Hitoshi Ariga have won the esteemed Inkpot Award. Comic-Con explains that this award is “given to individuals for their contributions to the worlds of comics, science fiction/fantasy, film, television, animation, and fandom services.”

As a nice bonus, both manga creators were already at the con, doing an art demonstration panel with Edwin Huang and Jeffrey Cruz.

Sonoda’s credits include Gunsmith Cats, Riding Bean, and Cannon God Exaxxion. On top of that, he handled character design for the OVA series Bubblegum Crisis.

Ariga’s credits include The Big O, Mega Man Megamix, and Megaman Gigamix. He has done design and conceptual art for various parts of the Pokémon franchise, including Pokémon Horizons: The Series and Pokémon Journeys: The Series.

Udon Entertainment, which brought the men here, will soon publish the Bubblegum Crisis: Complete Archive artbook. Mega Man Megamix and Megaman Gigamix were likewise published in English by Udon.

A number of people in the otaku sphere have won the Inkpot Award over the years, including Hayao Miyazaki, Osamu Tezuka, Naoko Takeuchi, Tite Kubo, Monkey Punch, Junji Ito, Kazuki Takahashi, Moto Hagio, and Rumiko Takahashi.

Udon Entertainment gave this description for Bubblegum Crisis: Complete Archive:

Bubblegum Crisis: Complete Archive

Bubblegum Crisis Complete Archive brings together concept art, model sheets, key visuals, poster art, special magazine artwork and more from the groundbreaking original anime series. Commentary from creators, designers and production personnel sprinkled throughout highlights the creative spirit that went into this innovative production. Also included is an exclusive interview with character designer Kenichi Sonoda! This must-have volume shows fans everything that went into the creation of Priss, Linna, Nene, Sylvia and all of the characters and technology that make up Bubblegum Crisis!

Udon gave this description for Mega Man: Official Complete Works:

Mega Man: Official Complete Works

Mega Man: Official Complete Works showcases 30 years of official artwork from this classic series, featuring character designs, box art, promo art and many rarely seen art pieces. Fan favorites Proto Man, Bass & Treble, Rush, Dr. Wily, tons of robot baddies, and of course the blue bomber himself are all packed into this prestigious collection.

Source: ANN

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Danica Davidson is the author of the bestselling Manga Art for Beginners with artist Melanie Westin, plus its sequel, Manga Art for Everyone, and the first-of-its-kind manga chalk book Chalk Art Manga, both illustrated by professional Japanese mangaka Rena Saiya. Check out her other comics and books at www.danicadavidson.com.