New Evidence Shows That Kazuki Takahashi, Creator of ‘Yu-Gi-Oh!’ Died A Hero
Kazuki Takahashi, the beloved creator of Yu-Gi-Oh! died earlier this year and new reports prove he was trying to save riptide victims.
Kazuki Takahashi was found dead off of the coast of Nago City in Okinawa at 10:30 am on the morning of July 6th. Someone passing in a boat reported the scene, about three hundred meters from the shore, to the Coast Gard. They reported he was found equipped with snorkeling gear. At the time this report was as sudden and surprising as it was sad. There was no evidence of foul play, but the circumstances were just a bit too weird. But recent reports have shed both light and closure on this tragedy; Kazuki Takahashi died attempting to save three swimmers caught in a riptide.
U.S. Military newspaper, Stars and Stripes, reported this week that Takahashi was attempting to help a U.S. Army Major, Robert Bourgeau in saving three people who were caught in a riptide in Mermaid’s Groto in Onna, Okinawa. Bourgeau confirmed that Takahashi got into the water during the rescue attempt of an eleven-year-old girl, her mother, and a U.S. soldier, but couldn’t see him during the ordeal. Additionally, Bourgeau’s diving students saw Takahashi momentarily a few times before he was lost in the water.
About Kazuki Takahashi
Also known by his legal name, Kazou Takahashi, the sixty-year-old manga artist was known for his work on the internationally popular anime and card game, Yu-Gi-Oh!
Takahashi first began his manga career in the 1980s, submitting short comics for various shonen magazines. His first major work was Tokio no Taka (or Fighting Hawk). This one-off manga was published in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1990. Shortly after he published two volumes of Tennenshoku Danji Buray from 1991 to 1992. More recently he published the one-shot manga, Drump, and the limited series, The Comiq, in Weekly Shonen Jump as well as the two-part manga Secret Reverse as part of the “Marvel x Shonen Jump+ Super Collaboration” which was released in Shonen Jump+ in 2019. But what Takahashi is most famous for is introducing us to the heart of the cards in Yu-Gi-Oh!
Yu-Gi-Oh!, Popularity, & Awards
He began publishing Yu-Gi-Oh! in 1996 in Weekly Shonen Jump. And many years, thirty-eight volumes, and forty million copies sold later, anime history was made.
Following the story of Yugi Mutou, Yu-Gi-Oh! is about a boy whose body is sometimes hosting to the ancient spirit of an Egyptian Pharaoh and game enthusiast. There are nearly countless Yu-Gi-Oh! spinoff manga, movies, video games, and animated shows. But perhaps the most famous is the Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card game. Bringing the fictional, animated game into real life and letting fans play a part in the show for themselves.
The 2011 Guinness World Records recognized Takahashi and Yu-Gi-Oh! as the biggest trading card ever with more than twenty-five billion cards sold. And in 2015 he received the Inkpot Award at San Diego Comic-Con International.
Fans and friends of Takahashi described him as a gracious, kind person who genuinely loved games, his work, and his fans. His works were full of themes of friendship and optimism and his characters were always working towards a better tomorrow no matter how dire the present.
Not much is known about Takahashi’s personal life, but he was an outspoken fan of American and Japanese comics alike. Some of his favorites included Hellboy, Akira, Dragon Ball, and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. He also had a pet dog, Taro, who he drew onto a Yu-Gi-Oh! card, Shiba-Warrior Taro.
So In case you all weren’t aware Kazuki Takahashi just died yesterday. So I wanna share the thing he wrote at the final volume of YGO, cause it’s great and he will be missed. pic.twitter.com/aI5Kp1TqXH
— Omace (@YuGiOHTwink) July 7, 2022
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Were you a fan of Kazuki Takahashi’s works? Which of his manga projects is your favorite? Are there any themes or scenes that are particularly important to you? Let us know in the comments.
Ja Ne, Adventurers!
