Summary
2024 has been a bittersweet year for the anime and manga industry. The year was filled with big announcements related to anime and manga titles. Fans have been waiting for certain announcements for years, so they were elated after learning about them.
At the same time, 2024 was filled with some tragic news, the biggest of which was about Akira Toriyama, the legendary mangaka who wroteDragon Ball. Now, another luminary, Macoto Takahashi, has passed away. He was an icon whorevolutionized the Shojo mangawith his phenomenal artwork. Macoto Takahashi passed away on June 20, 2025, at the age of 90. He had been hospitalized for a lengthy spell for esophagogastric junction cancer treatment.
Macoto Takahashi Leaves Behind A Great Legacy
The news of Macoto Takahashi’s passing was broken on Eien no Kirameki’s X (formerly Twitter) account. According to the post, Macoto Takahashi passed away on November 17, and the funeral was held on May 18, 2025, which was only attended by relatives.
Macoto Takahashi’s first major work was Kanashimi no Hamabe, and it was released in 1957. Kanashimi no Hamabe was a big hit, and itredefined the shojo genre. His other projects, Arashi o Koete and Petit La, have been just as influential.
The Industry Has Lost Many Legends
As previously stated, Akira Toriyamapassed away in 2024. The author of Dragon Ball is considered the pioneer of the modern manga industry. Dragon Ball began serializing in the Weekly Shonen Jump in 1984 and continued until 1995. In a short time, the manga attracted the attention of readers and became a massive hit.
Another tragic news to emerge in 2024 was related to Kazuki Yao. He served as the voice actor of Franky, one of the main characters from One Piece. After voicing the character for more than two decades, he was forced to give up his role because of health complications. Fans were extremely worried after the announcement. So thevoice actor went to Instagramto let them know that he was doing fine. The new voice actor who will play Franky will be announced at the upcoming Jump Festa 2025.
Another tragic event that affected fans around the world was the death of Berserk author, Kentarou Miura, who passed away in 2021. He was responsible for creating a series that changed the world of seinen manga forever. His work inspired numerous other manga artists and game developers. In fact, the souls-like genre is heavily inspired by Berserk.
