Justin Wang

Character Designer and Illustrator based in NYC

[wangamanga]

King of Beasts! Round 1

Loup vs Jaguar Star

[wangamanga]

King of Beasts Character Line Up

King of Beasts comes from my childhood love of animals and martial arts. I thought of the first UFC 1 from 1993 where French kickboxers, Hawaiian sumo wrestlers, and Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu masters would all clash to prove which martial art was the greatest. But then I said to myself, "what if they were animals instead?" And from there, the King of Beasts Fighting Championship was born.

[wangamanga]

Gerozeki Character Exploration - King of Beasts

I saw my first live sumo match in Fukuoka a few years ago and wanted to bring the power of those sumo wrestlers into animal form! At first I thought he would be a Japanese koi fish, but sumo with fins just didn't feel right. This eventually led me to the Japanese toad!

His name comes from the onomatopoeia for frogs in Japanese which is "gero (ゲロ)" and the champion rank in the sport of sumo known as, "Ozeki (大関). "

[wangamanga]

Jaguar Star Character Exploration - King of Beasts

I was never a wrestling fan until a recent trip to Mexico City where I got the chance to experience Lucha Libre for the first time. The energy, charisma, and acrobatics of the show were the big inspiration for Jaguar Star, the current champion of the King of Beasts Fighting Championship.

[wangamanga]

Capobeira Character Exploration - King of Beasts

When I was creating the martial artists for King of Beasts, I knew I wanted some Brazilian representation. Despite practicing Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu for over 7 years, there is just something funny about a fat, short-limbed rodent break dancing and kicking you in the face.

[wangamanga]

Loup Character Exploration - King of Beasts

Loup is a French savate practicing wolf. When I first thought of him, I imagined him as a snooty, twirly mustached fox, but after a few drawings, he naturally became a wolf. His mean-spirited, gangster appearance was a nice balance to my more heroic and wholesome characters.

[wangamanga]

Gerozeki Turnaround

[wangamanga]

King of Beasts! Round 2

Capobeira vs Gerozuna!