'One Punch Man' Illustrator Shares Curious 'Akira' Sketch

If you thought One Punch Man's manga illustrator couldn't get any cooler, think again. Yusuke Murata is one of the manga industry's biggest talents, and shonen readers would happily praise his sketches of a phone book if given the chance. So, you can imagine how the fandom reacted when Murata took Akira out for a spin.

Over on Twitter, Murata took fans by surprise by posting a black-and-white sketch he did of Akira. The drawing, which can be found below, shows off the franchise's protagonists and its super-sweet motorcyle.

To the right, fans can see the biggest characters of Akira in portrait. Kei is in the front with her hair short and eyes narrowed as she carries a gun over her shoulder. Shotaro Kaneda and Tetsuo Shima can be seen behind the girl alongside their friends.

AKIRAの落書き pic.twitter.com/sTTHtIU1L8

— 村田雄介 (@NEBU_KURO) February 27, 2018

Kaneda's bike also gets a beautiful spotlight. The iconic motorcycle is housed in the left-hand corner, and fans are curious if this sketch has anything to do with Murata's work on Ready Player One.

After all, the much-awaited movie is set to debut this year, and Murata will do a bit of work on it. When Ready Player One is released in Japan, the artist will release a special theatrical poster for the foreign premiere. The movie's main character rides a motorbike just like the one Kaneda rides, so Murata may be practicing his Akira artwork before going in on his movie poster.

If you are not familiar with Akira, there is a lot you need to know. The series was made by Katsuhiro Otomo in the 1980s and became a worldwide hit after its feature film dropped in 1988. Set in a dystopian future, Akira tells the story of a teenager named Shotaro who runs a bike gang. When the boy's friend Tetsuo is taken captive by military forces because of his latent psychic powers, Shotaro tries to save him. However, the biker quickly learns there is more standing between Tetsuo and himself than he realized.

Do you like Murata's take on Akira? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics, k-pop, and anime!