San Diego, CA – Renowned manga creator Kia Asamiya was presented with the prestigious Inkpot Award by Comic-Con International on Thursday, July 24, 2025. The surprise announcement was made during his “Kia Asamiya: 40 Years of Imagination and Visions” retrospective panel at the San Diego Comic-Con, recognizing his significant contributions to the worlds of comics, animation, and popular culture.
The Inkpot Award: A Legacy of Recognition
The Inkpot Award is an annual honor bestowed by Comic-Con International since 1974. It celebrates professionals in various fields, including comic books, comic strips, animation, science fiction, film, and other areas of popular culture. Recipients are recognized for their outstanding contributions and can also include members of Comic-Con’s board of directors and convention committee. The award itself consists of a plaque with a mounted statue, and there is no set number of winners each year.
Over the decades, the Inkpot Award has acknowledged a diverse array of influential figures. Past recipients span legendary creators such as Forrest J. Ackerman, Ray Bradbury, Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Charles Schulz, and Steven Spielberg. Other notable manga and anime industry figures who have received the award include Osamu Tezuka, Hayao Miyazaki, Monkey Punch, Rumiko Takahashi, Naoko Takeuchi, and Junji Ito.
Kia Asamiya’s Illustrious Career
Born Michitaka Kikuchi in 1963, Kia Asamiya is a prolific Japanese manga artist known for his work across multiple genres. He is particularly celebrated for his series Silent Möbius and Martian Successor Nadesico, both of which have garnered significant popularity and have been widely translated into various languages, including English.
Asamiya’s career began with character design for anime series and even model design for Godzilla films in the 1980s, using his real name, Michitaka Kikuchi. Even after transitioning to primarily manga creation, he has continued to contribute to anime by providing character designs and creative consultation for series based on his stories. Some of his notable early anime design works include Sonic Soldier Borgman and Project A-ko.
Embracing Western Influences and Audiences
A distinctive aspect of Asamiya’s work is his evident incorporation of influences from American comics, television, and films. He openly expresses his admiration for franchises like Batman and Star Wars. In the early 2000s, Asamiya notably shifted his focus to include projects aimed at an American audience, fulfilling a long-held desire to work with his favorite American characters. This led to collaborations with prominent American publishers such as Image Comics, Marvel Comics, and DC Comics, including his work on Batman: Child of Dreams and a manga adaptation of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.
Unlike many reclusive Japanese artists, Asamiya is known for his accessibility to fans, often engaging with them and maintaining a website for his studio, Studio TRON. His acceptance of the Inkpot Award further solidifies his standing as an internationally recognized and influential figure in the global pop culture landscape.
