Full view: http://dr-jerk.deviantart.com/art/Makin ... -196806040
Reposting from DA:
"Today is February 9th, another anniversary date, but one that isn't too joyous...
On February 9th, 1989, Osamu Tezuka, praised by many for his comics, had died at the age of 60. But remarkably, despite how much pain he was in, his passion for drawing comics was still as strong as ever. Reportedly, his final words were along the lines of "Please let me continue working!"
And for such simple words, it meant a lot to me when I first read about it. Here was a man, who had such a busy and hard schedule and was also in so much pain, who still loved to draw comics. And he would be willing to stick around and draw some pictures for some kids because they asked, despite the fact that he was much needed elsewhere. This man loved to draw... ever since he was a kid. And today, even 22 years later, his works are still greatly respected and he is still revered as The God of Comics. And I couldn't agree more.
When he had died, the news in Japan were all over it. And groups of people, even those who did not know him personally, had actually started to cry and mourn for him. And people still miss him today, and I occasionally see tribute drawings of the anniversary of his death. Many of those drawings associate Tezuka with The Phoenix/Hi no Tori, which is befitting, as The Phoenix can symbolize revival and of course immortality. It truly is quite fitting, and I had actually had thoughts of doing such a similar piece myself to pay respects to The God of Comics.
...But I couldn't really bring myself to draw such a thing, since it seems so overdone and I had no good ideas at the time. And while thinking about it, I thought of a piece of a boy Tezuka, putting on his trademark red beret that he is almost never seen without.
Thinking about it, I thought it would work. I do not think Osamu Tezuka would want us to mourn him forever. I believe he would want us to look towards the future, which many of his manga inspires us to do. So instead of drawing a sad or piece that mourns, I drew something else in memory of him. A young boy Osamu, putting on a beret that so symbolizes art. In a way, it's kinda like a younger version of him looking forward to the future."
...And I guess that's about it. I don't know what else to say...
We'll never know for sure.
