The manga on Rizal was originally published online in Japan by Torico Co. Ltd. in 2018. Published locally in paperback by Anvil Publishing Inc., the comic book presents an entirely new way for young readers to get to know Rizal as it casts familiar events in a new light.
Rizal visited Yokohama and Tokyo in Japan in 1888. The Rizal bust in Tokyo’s Hibiya Park was erected in 1998 at the site of what used to be the Tokyo Hotel, where Rizal stayed. Matsui read books on Rizal by Reynaldo Ileto, Renato Constantino, Vicente Rafael and Floro Quibuyen, which had been translated into Japanese. He readily admitted he should have also read Ambeth Ocampo, but did not get to do so.For the art, Konno came to the Philippines to do his research: “I went to Rizal Shrine, Fort Santiago, the historical buildings around Manila and his hometown,” he said.
The manga was released online on June 19, 2018, Rizal’s 157th birth anniversary, and gained enough media attention to alert Anvil, which sought to publish the title in print form. Flores thinks there should be more manga about Filipino heroes, something that Ando seconds. “If there is another opportunity in the future, we’d like to do so,” he said.