The artist and illustrator for the acclaimed manga series Death Note, Takeshi Obata, is set to begin a new series very soon, according to rumor. It seems fans should restrain their expectations, however, as this new work is looking to be very different indeed.
Wildly popular and influential, Death Note was a psychological thriller series in the mid-2000s, written by Tsugumi Ohba with art by Obata. The series' stylized artwork played a major role in its popularity, and many scenes from the anime adaptation have lived on as internet memes. Ohba and Obata have worked together on other projects as well, most notably Bakuman, which ran for four years and followed two high schoolers on their quest to become manga artists for Shonen Jump. They also worked together on the recently finished Platinum End, another supernatural thriller. With a career stretching back to 1985, Obata has also been credited as a mentor to many of today's most popular manga artists, including One Punch Man's Yusuke Murata. As an illustrator, Obata has also worked with writers other than Ohba in the past, with his first major collaboration being the hit series Hikaru no Go back in the late 1990s.
This time, Obata is said to be working with Asakura Akinari, whose only previous notable work is Flagger no Houteishiki (Flagger's Equation), a romance comedy with a sci-fi twist that published 2 volumes between 2013 and 2014. Their new series, Shoha Shoten, seems like it may be leaning more on Obata's experience from Bakuman, as it has a similar premise of following two young comedians as they enter the industry. Shoha Shoten will begin running in the November issue of Jump Square, a monthly magazine in the Shonen Jump line, according to the reliable English-language Twitter account @MangaMoguraRE. Jump Square was previously the home of Obata's last project, Platinum End, which ended in January of 2021.
Given Akinari's past experience and the manga's subject matter, it seems likely that Shoha Shoten will be a comedic series rather than a thriller like Death Note. Still, with the premise described in such simple terms, the story could take almost any tone, and even a classification as a comedy doesn't necessarily mean it will be without darker moments. Artists best known for their horror work have had some very successful transitions to comedy in the past, like Junji Ito's Cat Diary, which presented a hilarious look at the famed mangaka's daily life with his pet cats, through the artistic style used in his darker works like Uzumaki. Obata's range of style and skill make it a bit difficult to predict just what Shoha Shoten may look like, but at least fans won't have long to wait before they find out.
Whether the series will receive an official English localization isn't known at this time, since its existence has only just been revealed, but Obata's name and the legacy of Death Note may be enough to secure a translation so long as the first chapters are well received.