Nobuhiro Watsuki is a renowned Japanese manga artist, born on May 26, 1970. He is best recognized for his iconic samurai-themed series Rurouni Kenshin, as well as his fantasy series Buso Renkin, which have both been adapted into anime series. Prior to his successful career, Watsuki worked as an assistant for his idol, Takeshi Obata.
During his middle school days, Watsuki practiced kendo, a martial art in which he proved to be quite inept. Despite his lack of skill, he still found time to draw manga and engage in sports. Watsuki humorously admits to being "so weak in fact, that I was an embarrassment to my 183 centimeters of height" (approximately 6 feet). He never managed to win a single kendo match, but he did get to start as a substitute player after a teammate was suspended for causing a commotion. Frustrated with kendo, Watsuki eventually quit the sport.
When creating the character Myōjin Yahiko for Rurouni Kenshin, Watsuki drew inspiration from his own experiences with kendo. In high school, Watsuki won the prestigious Hop Step award for his work on his manga, Podmark. This award-winning title has not been translated into English and remains one of Watsuki's earliest and most notable works.
As an assistant, Watsuki worked on the manga Mashin Bōken Tan Lamp-Lamp (Arabian Genie Adventure Lamp-Lamp). The character Sagara Sanosuke was modeled after a version of Lamp. In 1994, Watsuki created and published a new manga in Weekly Shōnen Jump, marking the beginning of the Rurouni Kenshin series.
When not working on manga, Watsuki enjoys playing video games, reading other manga, and watching television. His favorite American comic book is X-Men, which he appreciates for its action-packed storylines. He also enjoys anime, particularly Neon Genesis Evangelion, and video games like Samurai Spirits. Watsuki is a fan of action movies, citing Die Hard and The Matrix as some of his favorites.
Watsuki describes himself as "pro-dōjinshi" and encourages fans to create their own fan comics. In 2013, an exhibit of art from Rurouni Kenshin was displayed at Otakon in the United States, curated by Watsuki's wife, Kaoru Kurosaki, from August 9-11.
