Interest

Rumiko Takahashi, Junji Ito Meet for Viz's Teatime for Two

Viz Media released a new English-subtitled video on Saturday featuring legendary manga creator Rumiko Takahashi (Inuyasha, Ranma ½) and renowned horror manga creator Junji Ito (Tomie, Uzumaki). Titled “VIZ Teatime for Two with Rumiko Takahashi and Junji Ito," the two manga creators spoke about their impressions about each other, their works, what kind of manga they would create if they collaborated on a short, and how the manga industry has changed since their respective debuts.

On what sort of manga the two would create if they collaborated, Ito states that Takahashi has created several different stories, but he would like to lean towards horror. “She can write anything. So perhaps we should lean toward horror,” Ito states.

Takahashi, in turn, praised Ito's style of horror saying it “has a freshness that I believe changed the world of manga.” Takahashi then agreed a horror manga would be best.

When digging further into a concept the two spoke on capturing the “minds of older men” and the “Ito calamity attacking a middle-aged man”. Takahashi concluded the segment joking, “We wouldn't do it though.”

Following the release of the video, Ito shared the video to his X (formerly Twitter) account. In his post, the horror icon stated that he met with Takahashi in San Francisco in January for filming. As of press time Ito's post has over 7,900 likes and 15 comments.

Since making her debut in 1978, Takahashi has created such manga as Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku, Mermaid Saga, Rumic Theater, Ranma ½, One-Pound Gospel, and Inuyasha. In her career of over four decades, many of her works have become internationally popular and inspired anime and live-action adaptations. Takahashi was inducted into the Harvey Awards' Hall of Fame in 2021. She was similarly inducted into the Will Eisner Comic Awards Hall of Fame in 2018.

The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards inducted Ito into the Will Eisner Comic Awards Hall of Fame in July 2025. Ito previously won Eisner Awards for Lovesickness, Remina, Venus In The Blind Spot, and "Frankenstein." Comic-Con International in San Diego awarded its Inkpot Award to Ito 2023. Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre, an anime based on 20 different Ito stories, debuted worldwide on Netflix in January 2024. Ito's Uzumaki manga also inspired a four-episode anime mini-series that premiered on Toonami in September 2024. Junji Ito "Collection", a previous television anime of manga by Ito, also adapted stories from the Itō Junji Kessaku-shū collection, as well as the Fragments of Horror book. The anime premiered in January 2018 and had 12 episodes.

Sources: Viz Media's YouTube channel, Junji Ito's X/Twitter account