How Gurihiru redesigned the legendary Osamu Tezuka's manga characters for a new audience

Unico Awakening; a blue small unicorn
(Image credit: Scholastic)

Artist Osamu Tezuka is often referred to as the 'father of manga' and one of the greatest comic artists of all time, so you can imagine the pressure on an art team asked to redesign characters by the creator of Astro Boy. That's just what Japanese creative team Gurihiru were tasked with doing for the new kid-friendly reworking of Unico, a manga by Osamu Tezuka first published in 1976.

"There was a lot of pressure for us to work on a manga by Tezuka-sensei," says Gurihiru. "We really thought a lot about being a part of this project and took a long time until we answered."

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

TOPICS
Editor, Digital Arts & 3D

Ian Dean is Editor, Digital Arts & 3D at Creative Bloq, and the former editor of many leading magazines. These titles included ImagineFX, 3D World and video game titles Play and Official PlayStation Magazine. Ian launched Xbox magazine X360 and edited PlayStation World. For Creative Bloq, Ian combines his experiences to bring the latest news on digital art, VFX and video games and tech, and in his spare time he doodles in Procreate, ArtRage, and Rebelle while finding time to play Xbox and PS5.

Latest in Digital Art
Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau; a vibrant, dynamic illustration showcases Spider-Gwen in a dynamic action pose amidst a cityscape, radiating a sense of energy and playful confidence
"Art is not easy. You have to suffer in joy" – Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau reflects on what it takes to succeed in comic art
JD Vance meme by Beeple, a man with curly hair and a beard
JD Vance memes are now art as Beeple joins the trend
Image from Disney Snow White remake
Disney should own Snow White’s character design backlash
Cartoons of the 1960s; A vibrant illustration of the Yellow Submarine, a psychedelically patterned background surrounds the iconic vessel.
Cartoons of the 1960s – the best animated movies feature the work of Chuck Jones, who ensured characters were "not realistic, but believable"
ImagineFX art challenge
ImagineFX Art Challenge is back!
Peppa Pig
3 questions Peppa Pig animators face after bombshell pregnancy announcement
Latest in Features
Pittura, a short film made at ArtFX
"We wanted to talk about AI and its relationship to art" – how we made 2025’s VES Student Award-winning animation Pittura
Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau; a vibrant, dynamic illustration showcases Spider-Gwen in a dynamic action pose amidst a cityscape, radiating a sense of energy and playful confidence
"Art is not easy. You have to suffer in joy" – Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau reflects on what it takes to succeed in comic art
Your House indie game art interview; A stylised illustration depicts a young woman seated, seemingly contemplative, in a setting that combines elements of a comic book panel and a vintage aesthetic
"This is a game you can read, or a book you can play” – solving the visual design of Your House, a detective game crossed with a Daniel Clowes comic
AI generated images of a male creative director and a female parent
AI's gender bias is even worse than reality
Augustinas Paukšte waving out of a window
"I tried to be a human orchestra": a day in the life of creative director Augustinas Paukšte
Lady Phyll
"She embodies strength, resilience, and pride": Ron Timehin on photographing LGBTQ+ icon Lady Phyll