With the live-action adaptation of Lilo and Stitch hitting cinemas in May, now is the perfect to revisit a manga take on the adorably destructive alien. Stitch visits a Japanese island near Okinawa, where he befriends a young girl named Yuna who excels at karate. The pair get up to various hijinks including going fishing, entering a costume contest, and even attempting to bake a cake.
Based on a popular anime series that ran for three series and even got its own TV specials and film, this manga was originally released in 2008 to coincide with the anime’s release. Stitch is already a character that lends himself well to anime and manga. His anime run along with the Sengoku era manga Stitch and The Samurai have shown he can easily be fitted into manga style themes and storytelling. But this manga that Panini have timely released in the lead-up to the live-action film in particular feels like the perfect marriage between the two worlds.
The original anime already did a great job in capturing the spirit of the original 2002 animated film, with Yuna filling in the role of Lilo well. But the manga adaptation has the extra benefit of manga creator Yumi Tsukurino. Tsukurino came to the series with several years of experience working on licenced properties involving cute characters such as Pokémon and Cinnamoroll. She proved to be a natural fit for Stitch in this regard, with her art packing a ton of energy whilst injecting a manga charm to the series without losing track of the spirit of the original film. She also manages to maintain the chemistry and antics between Stitch and the human character (in this case Yuna) that is so integral to story.
Lilo and Stitch fans will naturally gravitate towards this release, and it is a strong jumping on point for those who want to familiarise themselves with the character. It’s also a great all-ages manga to boot that is perfect for children just starting with the genre.
Stitch! Volume 1 is out now from Panini Manga (9781804913192, p/b, £9.99)
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