RIP Takao Saito
October 24, 20212021 – with all the fun that it has been /s – is also turning out to be a tragic year for the Japanese mangaka world. After the passing away of Kentaro Miura and Shirato Sanpei now comes that of Takao Saito, which is the creator of the long-running series “Golgo 13” that passed away.
As an English-reader of manga’s – the struggle to obtain the Golgo 13 stories (There are only 13 volumes to date in English) is a mission to itself. Sold out / out-of-print / inobtanium – I own seven of them – and I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that no one has reprinted them – or simply did an anthology.
How many volumes are in existence? Its 201st edition came out in July 2021, breaking the Guinness world record for the most volumes ever published of a single manga series. And we get 13 stories out of 201 in English.
llustration shows Duke Togo, the main character of “Golgo 13.”(Copyright Takao Saito, Saito Production, Shogakukan Inc.)(Kyodo)