We need to talk about Yasushi Nirasawa, Sin'Ichi Hiromoto, and an obscure erotic monstergirl action figure line from the late 90s.
But first we need to talk about Return of the Jedi, Pokemon Colosseum, Kamen Rider, and a little manga called Hells Angels.
Let's dive in.
But first we need to talk about Return of the Jedi, Pokemon Colosseum, Kamen Rider, and a little manga called Hells Angels.
Let's dive in.
Yasushi Nirasawa was one of the most influential Japanese monster designers of the 90s. He did designs and sculptures in a Hobby Japan magazine column, "Creature Core". Besides his originals, he did sculptures based on Kamen Rider, Hellraiser, Phantom of the Paradise, etc.
quick aside - I'm pretty sure this design from 1992 inspired Yasuhiro Nightow's design for Legato Bluesummers in Trigun (1995).
Nightow was on the same wavelength, at any rate. Also a figure/sculpture enthusiast! But that's another thread.
Nightow was on the same wavelength, at any rate. Also a figure/sculpture enthusiast! But that's another thread.
here is that thread, incidentally. But let's get back on track!
Nirasawa designed a line of Devilman figures for Fewture Toys, which released to an unsuspecting American public in the late 90s.
And then, to the core point of our thread, a line called Resurrection of Monstress! Except these were only designed by Nirasawa, they were actually sculpted by Kenji Ando.
It's worth mentioning that Bengus and Capcom were cooking up Darkstalkers at around this same time. Turning classic Universal monsters into scary/sexy women was in vogue, and I'm sure these two designers fed off each other's ideas!
While most of the inspirations are obvious (werewolf, witch, Frankenstein, etc) Phanteana here is slightly more esoteric. She's based on the Phantom of the Paradise, a 1974 movie that also inspired Griffith's Femto look from Berserk.
There were 5 figures released, and 3 more planned but cancelled in 1999 as popularity waned.
But this would not be the last we'd see of these girls.
But this would not be the last we'd see of these girls.
Look familiar?
Here's the other four, just so you can see how the designs were completely accounted for. Changed up somewhat, but still definitely Nirasawa's core concepts.
The above image comes from the 2008 anime film from Madhouse, titled Hells. How did the designs leap a decade and a medium, to a work totally unconnected to Nirasawa?
Hold on, I'm getting to that. But I want to talk more about Kamen Rider first.
Hold on, I'm getting to that. But I want to talk more about Kamen Rider first.
See, Nirasawa was getting busy in the 2000s. He did design work for a PS1 jrpg called Volfoss, flexing his monster-making skills.
He also designed Gigan in Godzilla: Final Wars, getting his first brush with what would be his true calling - Tokusatsu.
He designed the monsters for Kamen Rider Blade, Kabuto, Den-O, Decade, and G.
He designed the monsters of Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger.
He even did Golden Knight Garo.
Nirasawa was all over 2000s Tokusatsu, and he knocked it out of the park every time.
Nirasawa was all over 2000s Tokusatsu, and he knocked it out of the park every time.
He also did Shin Megami Tensei IV, because of course he did. I know a lot of people prefer Kaneko's designs, but... c'mon. you gotta admit this kicks ass.
Sadly, that was one of the last projects that Yasushi Nirasawa worked on, as he passed away in 2016. The world is lesser, without his incredible imagination and talented hands.
but, he certainly left a wide wake of inspiration. One of them being Hiromoto Sin'ichi, the deuteragonist of our story.
Hiromoto is a manga artist, who got his start on some small manga before getting picked to do the official manga version of Return of the Jedi in 1999.
He's much more muted here than in everything else he's done, maybe he was playing it cool for George.
Now, you might have seen these comics on shelves, but skipped over them, because the covers were done by Adam Warren!
That's right!! The "How to Draw Manga" guy!
Who also did a comic book version of Dirty Pair, for some reason. Not just the covers, I mean a whole Western comics adaption. I have no idea why this was allowed, or if they're even any good.
Who also did a comic book version of Dirty Pair, for some reason. Not just the covers, I mean a whole Western comics adaption. I have no idea why this was allowed, or if they're even any good.
Tangentially, he also does a Superhero comic that's totally about bondage fetish but is also really good at the same time? Look, it's a Nirasawa thread. We're not king-shaming around here. Empowered is FAR better than it has any right to be, that's all I'll say.
But let's get back to Hiromoto. After finishing Return of the Jedi, he cut lose on the Neo Devilman anthology project, joining luminaries like Katsuya Terada, Go Nagai, Ken Ishikawa, and others.
THIS is what his art usually looks like.
THIS is what his art usually looks like.
His style is edge, obscene, and chaotic. A perfect fit for a prequel spin-off focusing on Jagi from Fist of the North Star, giving the character some much-needed depth.
And then, in 2002 - Hell's Angels.
And hold on a minute, aren't those the Resurrection of Monster girls? They sure are! The 2008 anime is an adaption of Hirimoto's manga.
And how did they end up here? We'll get to it, hold your horses.
And how did they end up here? We'll get to it, hold your horses.
First - hey did you know he did the designs for Pokemon Colosseum?
As you see more of his work, it makes more and more sense. The proportions, and flair - it's all Hiromoto. No wonder these games felt so unique!
As you see more of his work, it makes more and more sense. The proportions, and flair - it's all Hiromoto. No wonder these games felt so unique!
And of course, that includes the legendary Mirror B. Who I think shares a lot of DNA with the impeccably named Principal Hellvis, of Hell's Angels.
special appreciation post for Hellvis, who is actually the literal biblical Cain, because Hell's Angels is a wild ride
and because I forgot to mention it earlier, Kenji Ando? Who sculpted the Resurrection of Monstress figures? He also worked on the Super Imaginative Chogokin line of Kamen Rider figures, meaning he got to work with Nirasawa's designs again with Den-O, Blade, and the rest!
And not to jump ahead, but speaking of Nirasawa's tokusatsu efforts, Sin'Ichi Hiromoto did a manga adaption of Garo in 2014 to coincide with the new anime! Their paths cross multiple times!!
Anyway, Hell's Angels is insane. It's like Soul Eater but working on overdrive, SO MUCH happens in 3 volumes and honestly I don't know if it's very "good", but the artwork is a tour de force if nothing else.
And now we can finally answer the question - how did Nirasawa's designs pop up in Hiromoto's manga? I mean, it's blatantly obvious. What's going on?
The answer is perhaps disappointingly simple, but I enjoyed stringing you all along.
They're just friends!!
Nirasawa even sent Hiromoto a bunch of design ideas, some of which he used, in Hell's Angels. Obviously the Resurrection of Monstress designs were used with his blessing.
They're just friends!!
Nirasawa even sent Hiromoto a bunch of design ideas, some of which he used, in Hell's Angels. Obviously the Resurrection of Monstress designs were used with his blessing.
But it is cool, to see Nirasawa's concept artwork here, and then how it was interpreted by Hiromoto. As you've seen, they would work together in the future as well.
So there you have it! The history of design and inspiration isn't a straight path, it's an overlapping web. I encourage you to research your favorite games/manga/movies and learn their designers names, then find what they worked on, who they worked with, and follow the trail.
Most likely, it'll lead you back around to something you already loved, but didn't know why. Or maybe you'll find something new!
Either way, stay engaged with your media and its creators. Trust me, it's more fun that way.
Either way, stay engaged with your media and its creators. Trust me, it's more fun that way.
if you enjoyed this thread, you may also like my deep dive into the origins of the SNK character Mud Man:
and my inspection of a common anime trope that goes over most American's heads:
