Akira is wonderful. The Simpsons is wonderful. Put them together and you get something pretty special.
This is Bartkira. As Kotaku first mentioned when the crowd-sourced project first launched, Bartkira is inspired by artist Ryan Humphrey‘s art (see below) and spearheaded by cartoonist James Harvey
https://kotaku.com/akira-meets-the-simpsons-gets-a-full-cast-it-might-sur-458662615
With over 500 hundred artists worldwide, each contributor works in his or her own style, with the central concept being that this is The Simpsons meets Akira
[via Bartkira]
So, for example, Bart is Kaneda, Milhouse is Tetsuo, and Ralph Wiggum is the titular character, Akira.
[via Bartkira]
[via Bartkira]
To hopefully avoid legal threats, the project is non-profit, which, so far, is working out. Currently, the group has completed the first three volumes of Bartkira. Via the Bartkira Tumblr, see how these panels compare with the original Akira:
[via Bartkira]
The remixing makes a great deal of sense. According to Harvey, “Both pieces depict a world of children at war with adults… Both Bart and Kaneda were avatars for [an] aggressive brand of anti-establishmentarianism—The Simpsons lampooned society with barbed wit while Kaneda’s gang literally smashed it with hammers. Both pieces, then, were a massive moment of catharsis for the cultures they sprang out of.”
[via Bartkira]
[via Bartkira]
Previously, Bartkira had three exhibitions: two in the US and one in the UK. This weekend, it will have its first exhibit in Japan at the Gallery Hakusen in Tokyo.
[via Bartkira]
For the Akira part of the collaboration, this is a homecoming of sorts.
[via Bartkira]
There’s also a non-profit, crowded-sourced Bartkira anime trailer that’s based on the original Akira movie trailer. Here are some preview GIFs via Tumblr site Catsuka:
While not officially connected to The Simpsons or Akira, it is officially connected to Bartkira
To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him on Twitter @Brian_Ashcraft
