Yoshihiko Umakoshi: Character Designing Extraordinaire
Anime
While mostly known today as the character designer for My Hero Academia, Yoshihiko Umakoshi's recognition as one of anime's finest predates it by quite a lot. Getting his start as an animator at Toei Animation, Umakoshi was involved in some of Toei's biggest shoujo manga adaptations in the 90s, translating the shoujo aesthetic, with its quirks and all, onto the TV screen. This would culminate in Umakoshi's designs for Ojamajo Doremi, which sees his mastery of creating memorable characters, striking a fine balance between cute and cartoonish.
His versatility extends beyond cute characters, however—Umakoshi's involvement in now-iconic shows such as the first Berserk adaptation and Mushishi showcases his ability to design and appropriate serious-looking characters vastly different from his magical girl character designs. The following list is a selection of his most significant works.
Blogpost about Ojamajo Doremi: https://blog.sakugabooru.com/2020/12/05/20-years-of-ojamajo-doremi-the-ideal-kids-anime-grows-up-with-its-audience/
Umakoshi interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xix6NUavVCQ
His versatility extends beyond cute characters, however—Umakoshi's involvement in now-iconic shows such as the first Berserk adaptation and Mushishi showcases his ability to design and appropriate serious-looking characters vastly different from his magical girl character designs. The following list is a selection of his most significant works.
Blogpost about Ojamajo Doremi: https://blog.sakugabooru.com/2020/12/05/20-years-of-ojamajo-doremi-the-ideal-kids-anime-grows-up-with-its-audience/
Umakoshi interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xix6NUavVCQ
