Kazuki Motoyama, the author and artist of Kodansha’s Super Mario Bros. manga, has passed away at the age of 69. His sister, Risa Motoyama, confirmed his passing on her official Instagram account.
Currently, there’s no confirmed date for when Kazuki Motoyama passed away. However, based on the date of Risa’s Instagram post, Kazuki passed away sometime in October. News of Motoyama’s passing started spreading across social media after a viral post acknowledged his death on X (formerly Twitter). The Super Mario Wiki account on X shared the viral post to its nearly 16K followers.
Super Mario Bros. Manga Artist Kazuki Motoyama Passes Away at 69
“I had no idea that Mr. Kazuki Motoyama, who was drawing Mario comics for Bonbon, had passed away,” the viral post reads. “About 20 years ago, I discovered this comic when I found volume 2 of Yoshi’s Island at a used bookstore, and I collected the entire series. I loved the passionate, intense story developments. My condolences and prayers for his soul.”
Risa Motoyama, the author and artist of the manga Start With a Happy Ending, announced the passing of her brother on her official social media account. “My brother passed away,” she said on Instagram. “Thank you to everyone who helped me during my life. We apologize for causing you worry. I’ll be back on YouTube once I calm down a bit. I’d appreciate it if you’d wait.”
From 1988 to 1998, Motoyama illustrated Mario and the rest of the Super Mario Bros. family for official game strategy guides and The Super Mario manga published under Kodansha’s manga anthology, Comic BomBom.
These comics typically featured self-referential humor and references to Japanese pop culture, alongside juvenile jokes comparable to those found in Dragon Ball, such as sexual references and comical depictions of nudity.
Motoyama’s Super Mario was rarely published under a singular name, as the books were often named after the latest Nintendo release, such as Super Mario Bros. 3 or Super Mario 64. The final collected volumes were based on the 1997 N64 title, Yoshi’s Story, before Kodansha lost the Super Mario license.
