In 2020, the manga creator of Baki the Grappler, Keisuke Itagaki, decided to honor the Rambo of Hollywood. When the fifth and final installment of Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo movie series, Rambo: Last Blood, got an official release date in Japan, the manga artist drew an illustration of the movie poster featuring the actor.
Rambo: Last Blood has been in the discussion since 2008, and the film finally got a release in 2019. The story revolves around a former soldier who is on a mission to save his niece, Gabriella, who was kidnapped in Mexico and forced into prostitution by the Mexican cartel. However, Rambo is able to save her and destroy the cartel.
While the movie was released in America in September 2019, it took a whole year for the movie to get a release window in Japan. Therefore, to mark this release, Gaga Production reached out to Itagaki to give Stallone a gift that is longed for by many other big Hollywood stars.
Keisuke Itagaki’s Illustration for Rambo: Last Blood
Itagaki’s portrayal of The Expendables actor was spot on with the mixture of the Baki Hanma artistic style.
『ランボー/ラスト・ブラッド』は海外版ポスターのスタローンが完全に板垣恵介作画だったことから、親和性が抜群に高いことを感じられますね。 pic.twitter.com/2gRKgJD1vu
— タイラーの大乱 (@movie_watch4) June 11, 2020
The illustration focused on a close-up shot of an angry Stallone who kind of resembles Baki’s father, Yujiro Hanma, as both of them have broad muscles that are visible even on the face.
The illustration also worked perfectly in favor of the movie, as it became a decent success in Japan. Additionally, according to Comic Natalie, after watching the movie, Itagaki praised the role of Stallone and commented, “Rage and revenge—as long as there are these two things, Rambo can continue again and again. Because he’s not dead yet, this time too!”
This was indeed a big surprise for Stallone, as he has been following Itagaki’s work for a long time and even got the opportunity to meet the manga creator in 2010.
MEETING TODAY WITHFAMOUS MANGA ARTIST kEISUKE ITAGAKI tHE PIONEER MARTIAL ARTS GENRE IN COMIC BOOKS…….lIKE WHAT HE DOES. lOVE THE ARTS!
— Sylvester Stallone (@TheSlyStallone) September 26, 2010
The actor revealed this through an X (formerly Twitter) post claiming what an honor it was for him to meet the legend in the martial arts genre.
Other Celebrities Who Have Been Honored by Manga Artists
Although Itagaki’s illustration for Rambo: Last Blood and Sylvester Stallone was indeed appreciated, he was not the first manga creator to honor celebrities by drawing illustrations of them or featuring them in their work. There have been multiple other manga creators who have been spotted in popular anime and manga series.
The first one among them is the former President of America, Barack Obama. Obama has been featured in not one but two different anime series. The first one is Mr. Osomatsu, where he made a cameo as Hatabou’s friend, and the second one is Yo-kai Watch!, where he was saved from a bomb threat by Komasan.
Another prominent actor who made it into the anime world was Brad Pitt. The actor was portrayed as Brad Kidd, the founder of the detective firm and the friend of Ryou Kuroyanagi in the popular anime and manga series Yakitate!! Japan by Takashi Hashiguchi. There are many other actors and celebrities who have been honored by the anime and manga industry.