Aside from participating in a stage event to celebrate his film’s theatrical run in Japan, Slam Dunk creator Takehiko Inoue also shared a special illustration to celebrate Japan’s basketball Olympic qualification.
On his official X (formerly Twitter) account, Inoue shared a brand-new illustration that was made to congratulate the Japanese national basketball team for successfully qualifying for the Olympics at the FIBA World Cup.
This is the latest work Inoue shared as the iconic manga artist has continued his active streak.
Takehiko Inoue Continues to Be Active Following The First Slam Dunk
Takehiko Inoue is perhaps one of the most respected manga authors ever. After all, he not only made Slam Dunk, which is the bestselling sports manga of all time, but he also created the hugely popular Vagabond seinen manga.
Sadly, for fans of his work, Inoue has been rather inactive. Aside from Vagabond still being on hiatus since 2015, his wheelchair basketball manga Real has also been on break for two years.
However, Inoue made a comeback last year with the release of The First Slam Dunk – the first anime project in the franchise in decades.
Inoue himself was the director of the film, and it was incredibly well-received in Japan and many other countries with big Slam Dunk followings.
Aside from general acclaim, the movie has also become a huge box office hit as it has become the fifth highest-grossing Japanese film of all time.
Moreover, Inoue also resumed his work on Real, with the manga’s latest chapter finally being released a bit over a week ago.
ALSO READ: Will The First Slam Dunk Be On Crunchyroll?
Inoue Celebrates Japan’s FIBA World Cup Success With New Illustration
Japan was among the countries that participated in the ongoing 2023 FIBA World Cup. While the Japanese basketball team couldn’t replicate the success of the national football team, their run still ended on a positive note.
Specifically, the Japanese basketball team was eliminated in the group stage, but because of their win in the 17th-32nd classification round, the team was able to qualify for the Olympics.
To celebrate, Takehiko Inoue shared a new illustration in honor of the team.
This illustration is made in a bit of a unique style, and it got plenty of attention from Japanese fans. After all, Inoue is one of the biggest reasons basketball is popular in Japan.
As Inoue continues to be active, whether it’s in manga or via illustrations like this, fans are hoping that this means more Slam Dunk projects might be coming in the future.
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