Kazuhiro Fujita (born 24 May, 1964) is a Japanese manga artist. While virtually unknown in the West, he is very popular in Japan and has a great influence on many mangaka. Several popular artists had made their debut after being his assistants, including Nobuyuki Anzai (Flame of Recca), Kazurou Inoue (Midori Days), and Makoto Raiku (Zatch Bell!).
His most well-known works in the West are Ushio and Tora and Karakuri Circus. The latter has an anime adaptation while the former has two.
Works
- Ushio and Tora (1990–1996)
- Yoru No Uta (collection of short stories drawn 1988–1994), one story of the collection, "Puppet Princess", was made into an OVA in 2000.
- Karakuri Circus (1997–2006)
- Akatsuki No Uta (collection of short stories drawn 1996–2003)
- Jagan Wa Gachirin Ni Tobu (2006–2007)
- The Black Museum: Springald (2007)
- Moonlight Act (2008–2014)
- The Black Museum: Ghost and Lady: (2014–2015) Featuring a Very Loosely Based on a True Story retelling of the story of Florence Nightingale and her ghostly bodyguard. Yes, that Florence Nightingale.
- Sou Bou Tei Must Be Destroyed (2016–2021)
- The Black Museum: Dance with Beasts, O Crescent Moon (2022–2023)
- Original concepts for Bakegyamon and Ayakashidou no Hourai
Kazuhiro Fujita provides examples of:
- Author Appeal: He loves to have his characters being passionate about something (usually arts) but absolutely sucks at it. For example, Ushio with his horrible paintings and Narumi with his abysmal talent in making people laugh.
- He loves to have badass females in his works. Even non-action female characters tend to have a very strong personality, despite their appearances.
- He also has a fondness for Chinese culture and depicted it very accurately in his works. In Ushio and Tora, the origin of Beast Spear is from China. In Karakuri Circus, Narumi is a master of Xing Yi Quan which is also from China. Narumi's mentor is also one of the most powerful character in the series.
- In addition to his love for Chinese elements, Kazuhiro also loves Western settings. Many of his stories either taking place in Europe with important plot points or having core characters with a European background. For example, his Black Museum series are dark tales that take place in Britain that focusing on Spring-heeled Jack, the Karakuri Circus series has its entire original plot begin in France, the Nightingale story happens mostly in Crimea, and four members of the core cast of Sou Bou Tei Must Be Destroyed are foreigners.
- Art Evolution: While not obvious, a comparison between the beginning of Ushio and Tora and his newest Sou-Bou-Tei Must Be Destroyed shows a much cleaner and sharper line-art. The characters' proportions and faces look a bit fuller, too.
- Art Shift: His serious and dark art could switch to something that looks like it comes from a
Quirky Work in just panels; or sometimes, even in a single panel could contain two different art-styles interacting with each other. - Creator Cameo: Kazuhiro does this in the final chapter of Moonlight Act when just as he finished his series which was Karakuri Circus, the friends of the hero Gekko Iwasaki barged into his studio begging him to create a new manga series in order to bring their friend back after he sacrificed himself to seal the big bad along with himself
- And just before he made an appearance in his short story Shall we go out by walking into the night It's revealed that he was the great-grandson of the main protagonist and his love interest a damsel in distress
- Gorn: All over the places, which is understandable, since his stories often include monsters and long bloody battles.
- Mood Whiplash: Another trademark of his. Just read the beginning of Ushio and Tora or Karakuri Circus and see.
- The Power of Love: Surprisingly, for a (battle) Shounen mangaka, his works often contain a lot of romantic elements. Characters' motivations within the plot usually start from the love/friendship for someone else instead of the usual "Chasing your goal/dream" Shounen protagonists tend to have.
