A manga about Philippine National Hero Jose Rizal has been released on the anniversary of his birthday. The eponymous “Jose Rizal” tells of how he inspired a revolution against Spanish rule. Matsui Takahiro wrote the storyline, while Ryo Konno was in charge of the illustrations.

Publisher TORICO said this is the first manga written about Rizal. TORICO representative Takuro Ando shared that the inspiration behind the original manga stems from his curiosity on why Rizal had a statue in Tokyo.

Rizal stayed in Japan for 45 days in 1888 and was said to have been charmed by the country’s natural beauty and its people, prompting him to study its culture and traditions. During his sojourn, he fell in love with a Japanese woman named Seiko Usui.