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Philippine National Hero Jose Rizal's Life Inspires Manga

TORICO, CCC announced last Friday that it is publishing a new manga titled Joze Rizal, based on Philippine national hero Joze Rizal's life. The manga launched on Tuesday in both English and Japanese, and is planned to be released in Filipino. Takahiro Matsui is in charge of the story, and Ryō Konno is drawing the art.

TORICO, CCC describes the manga:

In the land now known as the Philippines, there was a time when colonial Spain ruled for more than 300 years. During a period when native Filipinos once called Indios were oppressed, exploited, and stripped of their human rights, Jose Rizal was born on the outskirts of Manila. "What does it mean to be a Filipino?" "Is it possible to incite change through knowledge and not violence?" He thought of those every day. A doctor, novelist, and a painter who can speak 15 languages, Jose Rizal is a legendary figure who brought about national revolution through one epic novel!

Takurō Andō, the company representative of TORICO, said that he was inspired to make a manga about Rizal after seeing his statue in Hibiya Park in Tokyo, and asked the CEO of a Filipino company connected to TORICO for more details about Rizal's life.

Jose Rizal is renowned throughout the Philippines as a scholar, polymath, and novelist. His work and life is part of the Philippines' standard academic curriculum, and his Noli me Tangere and El Filibusterismo novels are required reading in all Filipino high schools. Rizal's works, along with his execution at the hands of the Spanish government in 1896, helped fan the flames of a then-ongoing revolution against the Spanish, and laid the groundwork for eventual Philippine independence.

Thanks to Ian Pete Titular for the news tip.

Source: TORICO, CCC (link 2), manga.club, Sukima, CNN Philippines