Leiji Matsumoto, creator of Captain Harlock, dies at 85

Manga artist Leiji Matsumoto died of acute heart failure in a Tokyo hospital on February 13, 2023, at age 85. His daughter Makiko announced his passing on the artist's official website, quoting his words: 'We will meet again where the wheels of time cross.' Born Akira Matsumoto in Fukuoka Prefecture on January 25, 1938, he began his career in 1954 with 'The Adventures of a Bee' for Manga Shonen magazine. In the 1960s he shifted to science fiction, with 1968's 'Sexaroid' marking a turning point. His major works from the 1970s include 'Galaxy Express 999,' 'Space Battleship Yamato,' 'Danguard,' 'Queen Millennia,' and 'Captain Harlock,' which spawned four manga series and a 1979 anime directed by Rintarō. Matsumoto's stories often explored dying planets, radioactive catastrophes, and the dangers of technological immortality, reflecting his experience of World War II and Japan's tension between tradition and modernity. In 2003, he collaborated with French electronic duo Daft Punk on their album 'Discovery.'