Cyberpunk Momotarō – Could AI replace our favourite Mangaka?
AI art, for better or for worse, is quickly becoming one of our favourite hot topics.
The creativity we are seeing produced on such a large scale is unprecedented, and regardless of the critical debates revolving around the topic and its ethical standpoints, there is no denying that the digitalised art form is both groundbreaking and intriguing.
It seems that it is flooding into everything we know and love, and whether you like it or not it is producing some outstanding content in the form of art, fashion, and now even Manga. Yes, you read that right, AI is creating fantasy tales for us to not only look at but to read and enjoy. Possibly the first of its kind to gain mass coverage, Rootport's ‘Cyberpunk Momotarō’ is a reimaging of an old Japanese folklore created using the combined power of technology and human creativity.
It's hard to wrap your head around how this could even be possible but rest assured Twitter user Rootport really has developed the slides you see above using AI software. Not only does the manga look incredible, but even tells a cohesive story; a cyberpunk adaptation of Momotaro, a popular character in Japanese folklore often called Peach Boy is reimagined in an immersive cyberpunk dystopian world to fight foes.
Visually the manga is stunning. The colours and world-building here are deep and contrasting, with a beautiful balance between light and dark. Accents of vibrancy harmonising with the greys and blues of a dystopian world help to create a world that feels alive, energetic, and alluring.
Created in the AI software, Midjourney, the manga creator Rootport started posting the manga on Twitter initially, drip-feeding the series to fans. This was then quickly picked up by major news outlets such as NHK News Ohayō Nippon and Nippon Television's News Zero after going viral. With such buzz around the AI-generated manga, Shinchosha's Bunch Comics is now set to publish the manga in full colour on March 9th in Japan.
Is AI Manga the future of the industry?
