Inductees into the Will Eisner Comic Awards Hall of Fame must have "made a significant contribution to the comic book/graphic storytelling medium," and it's hard to think of many creators more influential in the world of manga than Go Nagai. The legendary manga creator was included in this year's Hall of Fame list, recognizing his many contributions to the medium over the decades. The official website states: Of the many genres of manga popular today in the United States, there are few that Go Nagai (Kyoshi Nagai) has not either influenced or outright created. On Mazinger Z, he created the first mecha robots—a genre centered on piloted giant robots—popular now more than ever. With Cutie Honey, he helped pioneer the “magical girl” genre. The postapocalyptic visions, dark violence, and psychological depth present in works such as Violence Jack and Devilman were hugely influential, not only in his native Japan, but also the world over. Much of his work continues to be adapted across other media to this day. Nagai and his 18 fellow 2026 inductees will be honored at a ceremony at the San Diego Convention Center on the morning of July 24, 2026. A full list of inductees, as well as this year's judges, is available on the official SDCC website . Last year saw the addition of Junji Ito and Shigeru Mizuki to the hall of fame. Manga creators honored in previous years include Osamu Tezuka (2002), Kazuo Koike (2004), Goseki Kojima (2004), Katsuhiro Otomo (2012), Rumiko Takahashi (2018), Moto Hagio (2022) and Keiji Nakazawa (2024). Source: San Diego Comic-Con Website
